Book Review of Unsinkable

I was asked to review the book Unsinkable by Abby Sunderland and Lynn Vincent.  This is a book about Abby sailing solo around the world.  It was able to give be a really good idea of what he went through all of those months at sea. 

At the beginning of the book, there are 3 icons which will help you as you continue reading.  They are to let you know who the dialogue is by.  This is confusing at first but as you get into the book, it does get easier. 

I was amazed at the strength this 16 year old girl had and that she had enough courage to even want to sail around the world.  The book is filled with all of her experiences and downfalls.  There is a section of pictures in the middle of the book of her journey.  My favorite picture is the one of her younger brother, who was born just 12 hours after she arrived home from her trip.

This is definitely a must read for anyone who enjoys reading about people's triumphs in life.

 I was given this book by booksneeze.com.  All of the opinions are mine and I was not influenced in any way.

Stampin' Up! website

I just found this great website for Stampin' Up! products and ideas!  Go to http://www.gettincrafty.com/ and see what Cristena has!  She offers different classes and you can order products online.  As she puts it, you can order from your home 24/7 in your jammies! :)  What a wonderful thing.................

She has a button so you can sign up for emails or rss feeds.  You can also email her. 

I can't wait to explore more of her site!

When Your Child Is Sick..................

It has been a long couple of days, at least I think that's how long it's been. It seems much, much longer to me. Sunday morning, my youngest told me he was having trouble breathing. I listened to him and he sounded a little congested and I just thought he had a cold. After all, it is the start of fall here in the Northeast!  He played off and on throughout the day, but for the most part was quiet. Such a change from my usual moving at all times child!

Sunday night when he fell asleep, his breathing was way off. He was breathing so fast and being the mom I am, I had to make the agonizing decision to either wait it out, till we could get to the doctor or take him to the ER. I decided on the wait approach, because he was out cold. I was next to him in bed all night and I didn't sleep much.

Monday we went to the doctor and even though his breathing seemed a whole lot better to me, he was still breathing too fast.  He is now on 3 medications and had to have a chest x-ray.  He is out of school for most of the week, at least until we see the doctor again on Thursday afternoon. 

This means a rearrangement of our my schedule this week. All of the time I planned on being at school, means I have to be home.  He needs to be kept quiet all week (how do you do that with a 7 year old boy???) and I need to continue to try to get everything I need to get done, done and take care of the rest of my family.  Did I mention that I haven't really slept in 2 nights? 

Somehow I will have to try to squeeze in some take care of me time, so I don't have a flare or run myself down. I'll get back to you on that....................

Fall Fun!

The weather has started to turn cooler here in the Northeast and that means that there are so many things to do. Football has started for the kids, so us parents show up at the field with drinks, snacks, chairs and blankets (Yes, I do NOT like the cold!).  Soccer and lacrosse are also popular with some families.

Hiking, apple picking, fall fairs and festivals, pumpkin patches are other ideas, to name a few.  We went apple picking last week and made some applesauce yesterday and apple slab pie a few days ago.  LOTS of fun for the kids and lots of cleanup for mom, but SO worth it!

We have a hike planned in a couple of weeks and I know that we'll be going to the pumpkin patch.

While all of this is going on, this busy mom will be starting to do her fall cleaning, fall baking and get into gear for the holidays.  My holiday shopping is probably a third of the way done and I'm feeling a little behind at the moment.  I have a few items that I need to start making to give as gifts, because I always think it's a brilliant idea to do some homemade gifts.  Where is my brain????  I forget about the life we all lead sometimes! 

I will definitely be taking some time out to spend with my family and friends!

Price Chopper Deals for the week of 9/11

I think this is a slightly slow week at Price Chopper, but here is what I see for good deals:

Can Crazy Coupon  Buy 3 pepsi brand 12 packs get 1 Lipton Brisk ice tea 12 pack free

Can Crazy Coupon  Keebler Fudge Shoppe Cookies, Keebler Chips Deluxe and Famous Amos brand cookies 4 for $8

Pop Secret popcorn is Buy 1 at $3.19  get 1 free

Grande Tortilla Chips Buy 1 at $2.99 get 1 free

Spend $25 on certain General Mills products and get 20 cents off per gallon of gas


Remember, for every $50 you spend at Price Chopper, you get 10 cents off per gallon of gas (up to 20 gallons). Gift cards count towards gas rewards, with the exception of Price Chopper gift cards.  Alcohol and certain other exclusions apply.

CVS Deals for the week of 9/11

Here are the best deals that I see for CVS this week:

Mars, Wrigleys or Hersheys assorted fun size 5 for $10
Hershey Drops 2 for $5  coupon in 9/11 inserts
Irish Spring or Softsoap body wash $2.99 get $2 in EB final price $0.99
St Joseph Aspirin $2 get $1 EB use coupon in 9/11 inserts = free aspirin
RepHresh Brilliant tampons $6.79 get $6.79 in EB = Free Tampons
Huggies Jumbo pack $8.99 get $1 in EB use coupon from the 9/11 insert
Aussie or Herbal Essence $2.99 get $1 in EB

Spend $25 on certain Bounty, Charmin, Puffs and Duracell products and get $10 back in EB

Time for Exercise!!

With all of the struggles of parenting, relationships and household duties, sometimes our priorites get a little mixed up!  We often forget about ourselves and put many people first.  I know that I do that all of the time!  I feel like my family and friends should get all of my energy and don't realize that by doing that, I'm neglecting myself.  We need to prioritize and make sure that we give our bodies what it needs.

One way of doing this is by exercising.  I know, that word is not a good one.  Here's the good news -- playing with your kids outside counts!  As does walking them to the bus stop.  And all of those errands you run (you know, the ones where you are trying to find as many good deals as you can, to stretch the budget.....) park a little further from the store to get a few extra steps in.

Take 10 minutes to stretch in the morning, another 10 later in the day for walking and another 10 in the evening doing yoga or pilates.  Or throw some weight training in a 10 minute slot.  The possibilities are endless and you should never get bored. 

Try to find somewhere where you can go swimming with the family.  We try to take the kids to the Y and after swimming we hang out in the gym shooting hoops.  Get your kids or significant other to join you and get some quality time together.

You're Worth It!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We Survived the First Day of School

Yesterday I sent my oldest off to middle school for the first time, while my younger two went back to elementary school.  So now, I'm going to try and balance myself between the two schools.  But that is for another day!

My oldest woke up crying yesterday and didn't want to eat anything before he left. He was all packed up and ready so the morning went fairly well (except for the fact that we have to get up so early). I got him on the bus and told him I'd see him at the end of the day.

My younger two woke up after my oldest left and I went through the same routine with them except there were no tears this time.  This was pretty much routine for them since they were going back to the same school.  Drove them to the bus stop. 

Then I went to school to help a teacher organize all of the school supplies that came in. Ran a few errands after that and then it was time to do the pickups at the bus stop. I'm beginning to feel like I'm going to be living there......................

The middle school/high school bus was about 10 minutes late. No biggie!  Came home and went through all of the papers with my son, heard about his day (with excitement in his voice) and heard about what supplies he needed.

Back up to the bus stop.........

Elementary bus was 25 minutes late. Oh well!!  Life goes on.  Came home with the other two plus my two extras and heard about their day, went through the mountain of paperwork and found out what else they needed to take to school.

And out of the mouth of my youngest was the best thing of all "My teacher is so pretty, mommy!!"

I can't wait to see what else we all learn together this year.