Seven On Saturday

What a busy week this has been! So busy I missed "Five on Friday", but I did not fail to bring you Seven on Saturday!

1. Another Class Completed

I really enjoyed this course and the professor who taught it, but I will not miss Friday night class (after a long workday) and turning around and going back to class AGAIN from 8 to 5 on a Saturday. I finished the course last weekend and my grade is in! 

One more class down!

2. Summer Birthday Season Begins

All of my nieces' birthdays are in the summer, so I've dubbed summertime "Birthday Palooza." June is Audrey's birthday, July is Ava's birthday and August is Amelia's birthday. They all have theme birthday parties and their parents go all out (I don't know how they do it!!) and we all participate. Last summer was the summer of: pirate party, paint party and cowgirl party. 

But that was the summer of 2013 and this is the summer of 2014. 

My first invitation arrived in the mail today for my niece Audrey's birthday party. She's having, very specifically, a pink butterfly birthday party.  

I love this picture because she looks like a little kid model. 

3. Arrival of Summer

Today was the official start of summer and it couldn't have been more perfect. The sun was shining, the sky was blue and I celebrated with these beautiful roses in our window sill. Cheers to summer! 

4. Starting Another Class

This is my third-to-last grad school class. I repeat, this is my third-to-last grad school class. This includes my thesis course. This is the last course of the summer semester and I then begin my LAST semester. If you can't tell, I'm a little geeked. 

I feel like I started my grad school journey out with a light jog, energized and ready to roll. I am now on the ground, crawling through mud and the only thing getting me to the end is a complete mind-over-matter approach. 

I don't meant to seem ungrateful; I love learning, I just don't love the time away from my family. I'm very much looking forward to finishing up!

5. "Crawl With Me" Turtle

The online group of moms I've talked about before--"December Moms" on Facebook--have this care package rotation set up for those who want to participate. I don't participate just because I wouldn't want some poor soul waiting on this overly busy mother to get her act together and get stuff in the mail. However, when the moms who do participate post a picture of what's coming for the next person chosen for the care package, I get good ideas for stuff for Jackson.

One of the moms posted their teaser picture of the care package items and I saw this little turtle. It was too cute to not investigate myself. 

This is the "Crawl With Me" turtle by a company called Gund. The turtle is reasonably priced, plush and adorable. Jackson is thrilled with the music that plays and the encouraging words that come out of the turtle, i.e. "you're doing great baby!"

The turtle slowly crawls and is meant to encourage your baby to crawl. It's seriously one of the most adorable toys you will ever see. 

6. Rock Garden Border

So, we contracted a gentleman from Smith Floral to remove our weeds, dig a trench around our garden, remove some old plants that weren't working and lay mulch. He did such a great job (and wow was it nice to not have to worry about doing the work myself during such a busy time) that we decided to have him lay a garden border as well. 

The contractor came out last night to take a look at the garden and talk through border possibilities. 

We are going with a rock border and are anxious to see the results. 

7. Ready Rice

My husband and I figured out a really delicious, low-fat and easy to make dinner, which includes this easy staple--"Ready Rice."

All you need is a microwave and a minute-and-a-half. Seriously! 

At least until the end of December, I'm all about finding shortcuts for delicious and low-fat meals and these rice bags are definitely one of them! (And as you can see, they come in a variety of flavors.) 

 I hope you enjoy the rest of this wonderful weekend, darlings!

Cheers,

Samara

Seven on Saturday

To punish myself (because it's a teensy more work) and reward you for being so patient as I failed to deliver my Five on Friday, I am making up my missed deadline with a special edition of Five on Friday. I bring you....

Seven on Saturday

So, Seven on Saturday is my own spinoff of Five on Friday for when I do not get my Five on Friday up in time for you all. I don't plan on this regularly happening, but in the event that it does, this will be the alternative. It's all about creative solutions, right? ;-) 

OK, enough chit chat, here we go!!!

1. Closet Dividers

What else would a little world traveler have in his closet but world traveler closet  dividers?

Due to a lack of time, I did enlist an Etsy artist for these guys. However, this is something you could easily make on your own and there are tons of tutorials online.

2. Spice Racks to Bookrack

 Jackson's nursery is small, so dragging another piece of furniture (bookcase) into the mix was not an enticing idea. I was thinking instead of finding little cubby holes to hang from the wall. However, when I saw these IKEA spice racks being used as book holders on one of my favorite blogger's site (and then happily found this idea all over the internet, thus giving me several ideas on paint,etc.) I knew this was perfect for a small nursery!

Now to find the time to sand, paint and hang them. Purchasing them is half the battle, right? Right?!? :)

3. House Calculator

So, as we save for a home, with the possibility of building a home, my husband found this amazing website that walks you through several elements of home building--materials, number of bathrooms, bedrooms, etc. After you've answered all of the website's questions, you get a calculation as to what the cost of building your home would be, based on the information you've provided. It's a bit addictive and totally fun.

Here's the link:

http://www.costtobuild.net/calculator.html

4. Fighting the Good Fight For Positivity

One of the things I decided to work on this Lent was being positive. Let me tell you, giving up the bread was way easier. (And I looooove bread!) 

I am very blessed and am reminded of that each and every day. Those trigger things and people always exist, though, and they serve as a test. You can be so happy in your own life and when you're forced to deal with people who are determined to be negative about everything, or who are selectively negative to you for whatever reason (maybe just because you're happy), it can wear on you. Their negative demeanor can be cancerous and serves no good purpose. 

What is not productive, I will work (even after Lent) on not giving my attention or energy. We all say this, but you really have to think about this to act on it. 

Don't let negative people rule your day. Good always outweighs bad, 

we just have to let it.

5. Easter Basket

So, if you know me "in real life" (and even if you don't, and are only judging me from my blog), you know I enjoy the fact that I'm a little different, a little artsy, and a little bit of a perfectionist. This of course carried over into the selection of my little guy's Easter basket. 

I didn't want anything commercial or super common. I wanted something classic and/or rustic. I scoured the net for a bit and was overjoyed when I found these beautiful rustic baskets on Etsy. 

Jackson's basket arrived today in the mail, all the way from Fairbanks, Alaska.

I know this basket will be totally impractical for him in a couple of years (at least for Easter egg hunts), but I'll enjoy this beautifully impractical basket for now. When he outgrows it, it won't go to waste, either, as this is a perfect basket to place in his semi-vintage world traveler room.

6.  Thomas' Birthday Week

We've had plenty reason to eat naughty this week;it's Thomas' birthday week!

Tomorrow we are having a family birthday brunch and giving him presents. I can't wait!

7. Mad Men

Whip up an Old Fashioned, break out your 60's gear and get ready for some witty repartee.  The final season of "Madmen" commences tomorrow, April 13th, and will be spread out over two years. 

I, for one, cannot adequately express my joy in the return of this show. Finally, the void that was left by the end of the latest season of "Downton Abbey" is filled. Thank you, Hollywood.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend, darlings!

Cheers,

Samara