Happiness Challenge - Day 1

I'm not sure if the Happiness Challenge is an official bloggy carnival or what, but I'm going to try to do it. A friend of mine did it in her blog last year, so I'm totally going to copy her. Oh, yes.

The point of the Happiness Challenge is to post once a day in August, and post about something that makes you happy. Easy as that. So here goes. My first entry!

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I'm going state the obvious today and say that on this first day of the month, as on every day of every month, my husband and son make me happy. For blogging purposes, I call them Hubband and Bear. Well, I call them that in real life, too. Convenient, yes? Both of them make me smile and laugh each day, and both of them make me want to be a better Christian, a better woman, a better wife and a better mama. Hubband and I have been married for almost two years. Bear is just over eight months old. I don't know what I did before they were around! I must have been so boring and pitiful! Dull as dishwater! But they're here now, and I pray they're always here. Today, and every day, my fellas make me happy.

Works for Me: Greek Chicken

Today's Works for Me Wednesday is all about recipes using five ingredients or fewer. I'm all about fast, healthy and flavorful meals, so this is one I cook often. I found this originally a long time ago in Southern Living but have seen similar versions posted elsewhere online. Enjoy!

Greek Chicken

Ingredients:

1. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (as many as you need)

2. one 16 oz. can of Italian style tomatoes, undrained

3. one 4 oz. can sliced black or kalamata olives, drained

4. chopped fresh basil, as much as you like (or its dried equivalent)

5. one tsp. balsamic vinegar

Directions:
1. Brown the chicken on both sides, about 2-3 minutes per side
2. Add the tomatoes, olives, basil and vinegar and stir
3. Reduce heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through
4. Serve chicken with tomato and olive mixture on top

Really, it's that easy! I serve this with a salad. You can add crumbled feta or another cheese to the top of the chickeny goodness, but that would be six ingredients. ;) It's very easy to make extra of this and put it in the fridge for lunch the next day. The flavors meld together and it tastes even better then!

See more Works for Me Wednesday posts at Rocks In My Dryer!

Best. Freebie. Ever.

Okay, I know I'm totally outing myself as a giant nerdy nerd, but I love getting freebies in the mail! I've gotten makeup, toothpaste, all sorts of skincare stuff, deoderant, food, coupons, CDs, seed packets and countless other nifty things, but this one is the best yet!

See those beautiful Ziploc Twist 'N Loc things? I am obsessed with those! About a month ago I tossed all of our random storage cartons in the trash and bought some of these babies. I got two sets of the small ones and one of the large. Well, now I have three sets of the small ones! Humor me, for I am easily amused! These are from the Clean Home Journal. I've requested it so many times and finally got it. I think this is one I requested back in April. There's also a free Glade Plug-In and a booklet full of coupons from Johnson (when did they drop '& Johnson'?).

You can always find lots more nifty freebies at fun places like Money Saving Mom, Freebies 4 Mom and Budget Helps.

deep breath...

I must really be brave, posting these photos for all the world to see! I decided to join everybody's fun and post before pictures of my bedroom and bathroom. This is even more of an incentive to get the work done. I don't want to be embarrassed come July 25!

First up, here's my lovely master bedroom. The room has some very good things going for it: it's big; we have a comfy queen bed; we're using my antique dressing table, bedside tables and chest of drawers; we love our bedding set and curtains; and we have room-darkening shades on the windows, so it's always cool and dark. Perfect for sleeping. Now for the bad.

Ooh, check it out, interwebs! Our headboard isn't even attached to the bed, for one thing! My husband brought it into the marriage, and I do hope he doesn't miss it when it finds its way to Craigslist soon and he finds himself at Miskelly's buying us a new one. Also, please note the baby poo brown walls. This must have been the default color for the house, because when we moved in, all but the kitchen was swimming in this unappealing color. And the kitchen had black prison stripes. Don't ask. Also, please note the beautiful splodge of blue paint next to the window. We got a pint (thankfully only that) of what we were sure was THE color. As you can see, it is definitely not. And doesn't any room look better with absolutely no pictures on the walls? I thought so, too, which is why it's been this way for a year. Gah.

Here's another view, looking into the bathroom/closet.

Don't you just love the lack of personal touches, and another splodge of light blue paint? Me, too.

Next we move into the bathroom. Control your excitement!

In a word: yawn. I don't even have the energy to snark it.

Seriously, though, I adore our house. It's perfect for us and we've had lots of fun decorating and settling in. It'll be even better once these rooms are fixed!

BooMama's Before and After

Thank you, BooMama! You have no idea what a kick in the pants your little before and after carnival is to me.

My husband and I bought our house in May 2007. We got a little bit done then, and have gotten bits and pieces done since (despite having a new baby who arrived in November!) but have a lot left to be finished. I've been saying for weeks that I'm going to buy paint and get to it, so now I'm actually going to get to it! Here are my goals:

1. Paint and decorate the master bedroom

2. Paint and decorate the master bathroom

3. Paint both short hallways in our house and hang pictures

4. Frame husband's watercolor and hang it over the couch

There's more that needs to be done, but those are the biggies. Numbers 1 and 2 are the top priorities. Now it's time to get to it! I can do this by July 25, even if I do it all myself!

Vote, Baby!

The voting poll is up for the photo contest I entered! The post with my entry is here.

CLICK HERE to vote for Mississippi Mama! Thank you! :)

We have a winner!

The winner of the Alphabet Soup wall hangings is commenter #94, Taylor (email @ Juno). I'll email Taylor and let her know!

Thank you all so much for entering! I really never expected such a response. Your kind comments meant a lot! If you'd be interested in purchasing similar canvases, or if you've got something else in mind you'd like me to try, please let me know!

Photo contest!

Christine at Are We There Yet Mom? has asked her readers to participate in a photo contest! When I read that in her blog, I knew I wanted to enter (I can never resist a contest!), and I knew exactly which photo I wanted to use. Here's the story behind it.

My husband proposed to me on Memorial Day 2006 at a state park in the city where we live. I had no idea the proposal was coming on that day! First walked the trails through the park. Part of the trail passes by a river, and it was there that I stopped to take a photo very similar to this one. After our walk, we had a little picnic, and that was when he very nervously dropped to one knee and asked me to be his wife.

On Memorial Day 2007, we returned to the park. We'd been married a little over four months and had just weeks earlier learned we were expecting our first baby! We had our picnic (first, of course, because pregnant ladies are hungry all the time!) and then took our walk. That's when I snapped this photo, along the same trail we'd walked the year before, just minutes before we became engaged. We plan to return there this Memorial Day, with our picnic and our camera. But this time we'll have an even more precious piece of cargo with us: our sweet little boy.

Bloggy Giveaway Carnival!

Howdy! It's time for a giveaway!

Before my son was born, I went on the hunt for cute wall hangings for his room, and couldn't find any I loved, or that I felt were worth the big bucks. So I made some myself! For this giveaway, I'm offering a set just like the ones you see here. These are from the "Alphabet Soup" crib set made by Cocalo (it's amazing what a color copier, paint and Mod Podge can do!), but they'd look great in any baby's or child's room. They're colorful and fun, and every kid loves that!

These are on 8x10 canvases, to give you an idea of their size.

If you'd like a shot at winning your own custom-made set of canvases, just leave a comment here and let me know how I can get in touch with you (your email address or blog address). You do not have to have a blog to win! I'll ship these to the U.S. or Canada only. Since I'll be making these from scratch, please give me at least a week to make sure they're perfect and ready to ship! I'll choose a winner using the random number generator on Saturday, April 26.

Thanks for stopping by! :)

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. THANK YOU FOR ENTERING!! :)

Sweet boy,

Tomorrow you will be baptized. Your daddy and I will walk to the front of the sanctuary at First Presbyterian Church, and your daddy will place you in the arms of your pastor. He will ask your daddy for your given name, and your daddy will proclaim it, strong and clear and with all the love in his heart. Your pastor will administer the sacrament of baptism to you and will pray over you. He will pray that you will come to know your Savior at a tender, early age, sweet boy. He will pray that you will grow in your faith, that you will study and learn and pray and be eager to serve your King by serving others. He will pray that your mommy and daddy and family and all the members of your church will pray for you and guide you and protect you from this fallen world. And he will pray that the Lord will even now be preparing a godly wife for you, a woman who will love you and watch over you and be your helper and give you children of your own.

Your daddy and I pray all those things for you, too, my love. We love you so much and could not imagine our lives without you. From the moment we knew you were coming to us, we have loved you and prayed for you. With us you will always be safe. In our arms you will always find love. In our home you will always be accepted and cherished. You are the brightest light in our world.

Thank you for being our son. You will never know how much you are loved until you look into the eyes of your own son or daughter for the first time. Then you will understand.

Love,
Mama and Daddy