Ridd Quicks vol. 6

Conversion Diary is hosting Quick Takes today. She found an interesting blog that gives loads of ideas for healthy(er) living. Head on over to check it out!

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We started a new month this past week and that has led me to be a bit reflective about my Word of the Year. I’m giving myself a B-, mainly for effort. And yes, that does include an appropriate level of grace bestowed upon myself for the fact that I was ill for the first 2 weeks of the year, had more calendared activities than usual as a family and that I really didn’t have an ultimate “plan” as to what I wanted to achieve in my “purposeful” state. Kind of formulating that as I go along. I’ve got lots of room for improvement and I’m hopeful that some doses of sunshine, good health and regular visits to the gym will make my February a little more successful!

2011 Menu #5

** something screwy happened with Menu #4…my bad!

Here we are, the final week of January…actually we’re nearing the final day of January! I am quite thankful February is nearly here, for many reasons. Most of all I’m thankful for an “open” calendar month, one that I can control a little easier and put less stress on my young’uns. Mommy and Daddy being gone so much in January did not bode well for D. But tomorrow is a new day and the times away from home will be a lot less for awhile.

I’m also starting to experiment with healthier breakfast options for myself and the kiddos – if any of them area actually successful then I’ll start to include those in my weekly menus as well.

Monday

Chicken Pot Pie with fruit salad and/or cornbread

Handmade Reusable Bag Giveaway

As I peruse the various blogs in my Google Reader, it’s not unusual to come across a giveaway once or twice a week. Most of the time I realize I wouldn’t have much use for what the host is offering, so I take a pass.

But who couldn’t use a reusable sack, especially one as pretty as this? Especially knowing it’s handmade!

Leigh Anne over at Find Your Sock Yarn is hosting a giveaway for one of these lovely totes, which she also sells for $30.00 on her Etsy shop page. If you’d like to try your hand at winning one, just click here and follow the instructions. Leigh Anne gives you 4 different ways to win – pretty good odds!

The giveaway closes tonight, March 3rd at Midnight PST. Good luck!

The Rusted Chain giveaway

Leigh Anne over at Your Homebased Mom is hosting a giveaway of a necklace from The Rusted Chain, an Etsy shop that makes custom jewelry, including stamped necklaces!

Beki of The Rusted Chain is offering up 1 custom-made necklace that will include your chosen Word of the Year. If you’ve yet to pick a word for the year, read my post here or Leigh Anne’s post here and then head on over to Your Homebased Mom to enter!

I’m always looking for unique gifts and I am loving the style and pricing at The Rusted Chain. Mother’s Day is coming up….these items come boxed and ready to give. Check it out! And I do believe Beki can ship Internationally as well. 😉

Epson Artisan 800 Printer

If you know anything about hubbs & I, “gadgets” really aren’t our thing. Yes, we own a few – the usual suspects like a digital cameras, cell phones & obviously, a computer. We own a somewhat “nice” printer – an HP of some sort that faxes, scans, copies, etc. – but the only reason we own it is because I won it at an office Christmas party years ago. There’s no way we probably would have just gone out & bought a printer that did more than, well, print.

It’s not that we don’t LIKE gadgets – certainly there are plenty of things on the market that peak our fancies. But I truly think that even if we had the cash to spend on “fluff” like that, it probably wouldn’t happen unless we needed to replace a gadget we already had.

Thus, the point of my post is that another giveaway is being held. And I’m not one to shy away from RECEIVING a gadget, unless of course it’s something I know I wouldn’t use much, like a PDA or something. (And that took me about 3 minutes to think of – I couldn’t even THINK of a gadget other than the ones we already have!!)

Enter the Epson Artisan 800 printer. I’m a sucker when it comes to anything to do with photos. Not that I see myself printing every single photo I want from a photo printer, but there are plenty of times when it comes in handy. The HP we have does have this capability, but it’s rather paltry in my opinion, so “hand made” definitely looks just that when you’re printing from this puppy.

It’s not that we “need” another printer & probably won’t for some time. But I’m interested to know if this one prints higher quality photos. I’d also like to know if replacing the ink cartridges is any cheaper than the HP. I honestly can’t believe how expensive ink is!! There are 6 separate cartridges, so my guess is you’d have to have an ink “fund” to finance it annually. Hmmm….

Either way, Simple Mom is hosting a giveaway so check it out!