Monday, we had an unusually warm day. It was 74 degrees outside (the record high was 76). The kids were excited to play outside in the afternoon since it has been so cold. Unfortunately, it didn’t last long and today is in the 30s and snowing.
Posts Written OnJanuary 2013
Budget Friendly Winter Clothes from Cookie’s Kids
With three kids that are always growing, I love finding bargains and great sales on clothing. When I am at local shopping centers, I spend hours digging through unorganized clearance racks for cloths. When I find something I like, I spend just as much time trying to find the correct size. Yes, I can find a great deal, but sometimes I think it’s not worth the hassle, especially with three kids in tow. To eliminate most of the stress and save time, I try to shop online as much as possible. I recently discovered my new favorite online store for all my kids’ clothing needs: Cookie’s Kids.
Slip Resistant Shoes from Shoes for Crews – Review + Giveaway
A few times a week, when my husband would come home from work, he would complain about his feet. It was pretty obvious his shoes were the problem. He is on his feet a good portion of the day, running around the office, in the warehouse and on the loading docks. So it would take some great support and a good quality shoe to eliminate his problem. I knew what we had to do. We had to get a new pair of shoes. He was sick of being in pain and I was sick of hearing him complain about it (I mean that in the nicest way possible). Just in time, I was introduced to ShoesForCrews.com and knew it was the place to shop for his shoes.
The ‘Heated’ Thermostat Debate + Some Readers Average Temperature Settings
Some things never change. In my house, one of those things happen to be our typical thermostat disagreement. It never fails, the issue comes up at least once a week. I am always cold. My husband is always hot. I am always bundled under blankets and he is sweating without any covers. Last Sunday evening, as I went to turn the temperature up a notch after we put the kids to bed (my son’s room was cold), my husband started talking about how hot he was and blah blah blah . Well, that’s all I heard while I was thinking, Here we go again…
Why does it go that way? Lately, I have the thermostat set on 73 during the day and turn it up to 74-75 after the kids go to bed. I do this for the sake of my kids. All the bedrooms are upstairs and they are colder than the rest of the house. My three year old’s room is always the coldest. Anyway, Sunday after turning it up, my husband started his spiel about how most people keep the thermostat set at 68. I told him he was making that up so I would turn it down. He told me to ‘Google’ it (his normal way of settling a debate). So I did. The most information I found was that 68 was the best temperate to save money and energy or something. That wasn’t enough for me so I turned to my trusted Facebook fans.
I asked what people set their thermostats at during winter nights (see the thread here). I didn’t expect much of a response, but my fans came through (THANKS! YOU ROCK!!) I had over 350 responses and it seems we are not the only couple to disagree about thermostat settings. I decided to go through and read each comment (which I always do because I love my fans) and record each answer. I got some great tips and advice mixed with the temperatures, which was awesome! Now, before checking out my fancy pie chart I made, you must remember these are not scientific statistics! They were spontaneously gathered to settle an argument and many contributing factors are not accounted for (I.E. temperature outside, ages of household members).
Well, there you have it… My husband won. Thank you Facebook fans for letting him win his one argument for the month ;) 88 people said that they keep theirs set at 68. Some of which said they always have it set on 68. I was at the high-end for sure at 74-75.
Did anything result out of this? Slightly. Not that I am going to start freezing my rear off, but the numbers did make me notice I do keep it a little warm in here. So the next day I left it on 72 all day and night. I survived and so did my little ones. Then Tuesday I turned it down to 71. I was a little chilly, but once I put on a hoodie, I was fine and we made it through the day and night. But, it has be on 71 since then. I haven’t brought myself to go lower yet. But I think 75 to 71 is decent change. We will see what the new week brings!
What do you keep your thermostat set at?
Planning a Football Party – Made Easy #MealsTogether
I love having friends and family over and take any chance I get to host a party that involves food. One of my favorite times to do so is during football season. Normally when I want to have a big party, I like to go all out. I spend hours in the kitchen making lots of food, decorating an awesome cake, and setting everything up for the party. Which can sometimes leave me exhausted and allow for less time enjoying the company. I decided the next big football party we host (in a few weeks), I am going to spend less time in the kitchen. Right away, I knew my one-stop shop to make this happen: Sam’s Club.
You are My Sunshine – Handprint Sun
My kids love painting and doing art projects. Instead of doing our normal finger painting project this time, I wanted to do something different. It was a cold, gloomy day so we needed some sun! My sons are two and three and really enjoyed each step especially tracing their hands (well I traced most of them but my three year old did a few as well).
NEED:
- Yellow Paint
- Yellow construction paper or scrapbook paper (I had different shades in my scrapbooking supplies so I used a few different ones)
- Paper Plate (or yellow paper cut into a circle)
- Pencil/Pen to trace
- Scissors
- Glue
If you are using a paper plate, paint it yellow and let it dry. Meanwhile, trace about 20 hands on yellow paper and cut out.
Glue the hands on the back of the plate layering them.
Take it Further: Add a smiley face or write “You are My Sunshine” on it and give it to a loved one!
**Make sure you check out the handprint flower my son did a couple years ago. A definite hit with their Grandmas!
UPDATE: Check out the Handprint Tote Bags we made!
Wholly Guacamole & Jennie-O Turkey Store Prize Pack Giveaway
Jennie-O Turkey Store and Wholly Guacamole make eating healthy delicious and easy. Jennie-O has a huge line of turkey products including bacon, frozen patties, sausage, deli meat, meatballs and more. Switching out some beefs and pork for turkey can be a great healthier alternative with less fat. Wholly Guacamole has a great variety of dips and spreads made with no preservatives or additives. Some of the flavors include Guacamole & Spicy Pico dip, Avocado Verde Salsa, Organic Guacamole, Homestyle Guacamole and more. Using their products, you can make this yummy Jalapeno Jack Turkey Burger I recently posted along with a review.
To celebrate their awesomeness, they are giving one Nifty Mom reader a Prize Pack that includes:
- 4 – Wholly Guacamole/Salsa FREE Product Coupons
- 2 – Jennie-O Turkey Store $5 off coupons (makes most products FREE)
- Meat Thermometer
- T-Shirt
- Other promotion products shown above