DIY accessory holder

 Are you TIRED of having you hair bows, bow-ties, sunglasses, or necklaces in a tangled mess, 
with no hope in sight for organizing them? 

Well i have the PERFECT solution for you! AND its super simple.

All you need is:

1. Picture Frame (without the glass or backing in it)

2. hot glue gun

3. clothes pins (how ever many you want to use)

4. ribbon

5. Staple gun

6. scissors

First measure out your ribbon on the BACK side of the picture frame. After you lay it out, you can cut it to the correct size that you need. 

TIP: I like to use a wide ribbon because the clothes pins fit better and are more secure on it. 

Next staple one end of your ribbon. On the opposite side pull the ribbon taught (tight) and staple. Don't worry if there is extra ribbon, you can cut it off and it wont effect anything.

Make sure your ribbon is tight, so that when the clothes pins are on it, it doesn't sag.

This is what the backside looks like after that step. I had to staple my ribbon in multiple places so that it would not bunch strange. I also placed one ribbon onto the sides where the glass would rest, and the other ribbon onto the back of the picture frame. Varying depths will help your accessories lay better.

Next place your clothes pins where you think you want them. You can play around with this step and see what suits your needs. Because my picture frame is smaller, i did not use very many clothes pins. So depending on the size you use, you can use more or less!

Next hot glue the ribbon where you are going to place the clothes pin, and set the pin in place! It should be quite secure, even with rough handling. 

And here is my finished result. I just hang it on the wall as added filler to a gallery wall in my sons room.

You can use this process for almost anything!! I even did it for pictures, as a fun way of displaying them in my living room...

I hope you enjoy this DIY and are inspired to try it yourself! 

I'll talk with you next week!

-Hannah

Dear Wives

I recently watched a video on Facebook of a pregnant woman bashing her husband because he got credit for being there for her when she had pregnancy appointments. She was a comedian so i know its her job to make fun, and say stuff to make people laugh but instead of making me laugh it made me think... a lot! 

It made me think about how many times we take our husbands for granted, and for the thing they do that we think "Well yea they NEED to do that!" but we never say thank you, or tell them how much it means for them to do that. 

I wanted to tell her something, and i think its something that we all (including me) need to hear now and again. Ready?

Hey Wife,

You recently found out your pregnant and your hormones are CRAZY, but did you ever imagine going through those mood swings without someone to run to the grocery store for you and grab those blueberry muffins you love? Or rub your back when it got sore from that extra weight you've started to gain? Imagine going to ALL your hospital visits alone, your ultrasounds would just be you talking to the nurse about how excited you are, instead of you talking to your husband about baby names and nursery plans! 

You would either have to paint the nursery, assemble the crib and mobile all by yourself while your pregnant or just give up because its more than you can handle. If your husband was there, he would assemble the crib, paint and even re-paint the room if you asked him too, and even help you pick up a dresser you found on Craigslist. If you were alone, none of that would most likely get done, unless you had some pretty great friends. 

You wouldn't have someone to hold onto when you got braxton hicks, or when those real contractions started. There wouldn't be anyone to text you constantly asking if you were in labor, or tell you how pretty your stretch marks are, or share the joys of feeling the baby move in your belly. 

There would be no one there to Walk you around the hospital for three hours while you dilate, or sleep next to you on an uncomfortable hospital bed while you wait and wait for the nurse to say "Your ready!"  

You would only have the nurses and the doctor there to "encourage" you while you push the baby out, and it would only be you there all alone to share the joys of holding that precious new baby. 

Yes there are several times when husbands can annoy or irritate us, and even get credit for stuff we don't think they should, but here's the deal. 

Now days 20 to 30 % of men leave their wives in general, but 30 to 40% of men cheat or leave their wives while they are pregnant!! That's why nurses are so impressed with husbands that are actually BEING a husband!

If you are a lady who has a husband that takes the time to come to appointments, or spend time doing things to help you. If you have a husband that loves you so much and shows you that love so much that it can be smothering at times, be thankful!!! Don't push them away like they are the bane of your existence, don't make them feel like their love means nothing, or its something that's expected of them! Because expectations in a marriage can make that marriage crumble! Your husband is beating statistics, he is loving you and only you throughout this time of immense change! You should be so thankful for him and you should even brag to the nurses "He is a wonderful husband for taking time off work to come to this appointment!" Even IF he just sits there playing games on his phone while you get checked out (which who wants to watch that anyways), he is there and he is showing his love for you! 

Be thankful wife, you have a husband who loves you, and treats you like a prized jewel! Don't treat him like he doesn't matter, because you could be doing this all on your own! 

Love your husband, because that's what we are supposed to do! 

1 John 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love

Sincerely,

Someone just like you

Postnatal Nightmares

What no one tells you....

Disclaimer: This post is strictly for women.... Men definitly dont want to read about what happens after birth

Ok So pregnancy- its that glowing, happy time of life when you can eat whatever you crave, savor your acne free skin, and thick luscious hair, and you have the courage to tell people what you think when they mention your large tummy. 

There are Tons of books about pregnancy and child birth, lots of random people's advice on what to do and not to do. But no one talks about the weird stuff that happens after your baby is born..... the postnatal nightmares! Here are some that i have heard of or have personally gone through. So if your about to have a baby this should give you a heads up, and if you already had your baby you can laugh with me!

1. Pooping

OK let me tell you i NEVER expected this to be any different after i had baby J. Not only is it difficult to get the business done, but the whole process of pushing, and such just feels so.... wrong and uncomfortable!  I was afraid to do it because i didn't want to tear my stitches or hemorrhage (paranoid!). i was uncomfortable and frustrated because NO ONE, not even the doctors told me it would be like that. Thankfully that feeling only lasts a few days, and apple or prune juice can help things move along easier.

2. Cravings

I didn't have cravings during my pregnancy; but let me tell ya, i had them after!!! Yup you read that right, AFTER! I craved apple juice, cake, cookies, french fries, and DQ Blizzards! healthy right?! i was not expecting to LOVE some things i never used to, let alone crave them constantly!!! Weird right? My son is almost a year old and i still crave sweets, which is NOT helpful when i'm trying to loose weight!

3. Hair loss

Lets just start by saying i lost more hair than my cat sheds. When i vacuumed MY hair clogged the bristles, and the shower wall and my pillows were always covered in my hair! I felt like i was going bald!!! Thankfully it grows back, but then you have to deal with those stubborn baby hairs! You just cant win!!

4. Acne

When i was pregnant i had the best skin of my life!!! i never got pimples, my skin didn't feel dry like it usually does, and i felt confident enough that i didn't even wear foundation! that lasted until the day after i had baby J. Then my skin decided it had enough and wanted to be rebellious, so it's back to foundation and concealer for me!

5. Intimacy 

Lets be quick and brief.  Didn't think about it, didn't want it, and that feeling lasted for 5 moths!!!!

Enough said...

6. Peeing 

Not only will you pee more than you did before you got pregnant, you also wont be able to hold it like you used to. Sneezing, coughing, and even laughing will be something you will try your very hardest to avoid! Let's put it this way, You wont be making fun of your mom for holding her legs together when she sneezes anymore, because you will be doing the EXACT SAME THING. 

7. Style

If you can fit into your pre-pregnancy clothes after you give birth, then that is AWESOME! i was able to, however, i didn't want to wear those clothes because after i became a mom my style completely changed, and i'm still trying to figure out what i feel comfortable in. There is just something about becoming a mom that makes you think of things in a whole new light, and for me it was definitely my style. 

8. Sleep

This one is probably an obvious one, but I'm going to say it anyways. You wont get hardly any sleep, you will thrive off coffee, and you might even do things that you won't remember. Like waking up in the night and turning the coffee pot on, or opening the blinds, or replying to a text message that you don't even remember getting. Yes sleep will be a very foreign idea for a while!

9. Memory

Lets just say you wont have one. You will forget EVERYTHING, and it will drive you nuts! But try as you may, nothing will help it get better, because Hey your a mom now, and apparently our brains turn to mush after we have kids. 

10. Love

Whatever you thought love was, is nothing to what it becomes after you hold your baby for the first time. You will do ANYTHING for this baby, and even on those hard days when they drive you nuts, just one look at them and your heart just melts. you fall in love over and over again with your little baby and you will always want to give them the best that you can. 

So... with all of that said, GOOD LUCK in your mom adventure, because its the biggest adventure you will EVER go on!!!

Until next time,

Hannah

Plan that Meal!!!

Simple Meal Planning for the busy mom

I am NOT an expert about meal planning, and to be honest I struggle with it still to this day!

It's one of my least favorite things to do, not only do i have to plan out meals, but i also have to write a grocery list, go to the grocery store, get tempted by all the yummy dessert they have there, tell myself NOT to buy them, go home sad, dessert-less, and forced to make a meal when i just want to go to a fast food restaurant and order food there! 

I've tried ever since I was living on my own to meal plan for a whole month, but I cannot for the life of me, get myself organized enough to do that. SOooo.... I meal plan for a week and it works out easier for me. I can actually grasp my mind around what all I need to buy and make that week!

One thing I learned while on my journey of meal planning, is

ONE: each home has a different way of meal planning, some can do a month, some a week, some more. The fact that you do it however, is what's important! 

TWO: Meal planning is more fun when you make it cute!!!

Which brings me to my MOST requested blog post yet... how I meal plan! 

First i find the cutest little notebook at the store that has dividers in it (you could also make your own, but ain't nobody got time for that)! I found this cute thing at Walmart for $3-

I mean seriously these whales are too cute!!

Ok anyways, the inside looks like this; it has three nice plastic dividers which gives me sections for,

1. Week meal planning

2. grocery lists

3. Pinterest recipes to try 

I LOVE to make my lists cute so that I'm more inclined to use them, because i like cute things.

Here are my pages:

Under my week meal plan i write down the main meals we will eat. Since lunches are usually the same during the week (sandwiches and chips) i just write lunch meat, bread, and chips on the grocery list automatically! Saturday and Sunday are the only days i actually meal plan for lunch AND supper.  Under the days meal, i write down what ingredients i need to buy for them. and then add those ingredients to my grocery list after I'm all done, I get distracted if i go back and forth otherwise.

So for this weeks meals I'm going to make some AMAZING chicken recipes, tacos, and pizza! 

I try new recipes and then if we don't like them i will never use them again, but i make sure to write that we didn't like them on the recipe itself (we don't want to repeat any nasty's).

If we know we will be going out to eat i make sure to save some grocery money for that purpose, because any extra costs will make other budgets tighter. 

The next thing i do is go through my cupboards and fridge and see what daily items we need, such as milk, cheese, butter, bread, creamer, etc.... Those are the items i usually either buy in bulk, a bigger size, or once a week if it goes bad quickly. I can usually refer back to this grocery list and see the basics that i buy and write them down again. That's why its nice to have a physical notebook so you don't have to worry about it getting "deleted" somehow. 

The last thing i do is go through my food board on pinterest and write down what recipes i want to try, because i am a regular "pin it and forget it" person. I do it this way so i can see how delicious these guys sound, and it makes me remember them and actually use them! 

When i go to the grocery store, i keep my marker in the binding of my notebook and mark off the items i get. I stick to my list because I WILL buy things i don't need otherwise.  I WILL also forget what things i DO need and then we WILL end up going out to eat and we WILL spend more money that way. 

So all i all, its super simple, not very time consuming, and it's mom conscious! 

If you want me to share some of my favorite recipes, let me know in the comments and i will totally make a blog post about them!! 

Thank you for reading, and i can't wait to chat next time!

-Hannah