K. here, holding down the fort while B. is off on vacay. I had all sorts of nice intentions for posting this weekend-I was going to update on the homemade preschool project, and do a cooking post (with pics!). However, the reason for no posts, and the reason for my uncontrollable yawning, is because we helped my sister and her family move over the weekend. They're now living just 2 buildings away from us. It's a good thing that we all get along! I'm very happy they're up here now. It's a fresh start that they've needed for a while.
Anyhoo, the move gave me reason to be grateful for my wee stockpile, because they needed so many basics! Paper towels, cleaning supplies, toothpaste, shampoo, trash bags, etc., etc. I snuck in to their apartment Friday night (well, I didn't sneak, they gave us a key.) and stocked up their cabinets. I put post it notes saying "Open Me!" all over the place, and apparently they had a great time the next day checking out all their loot. I spent much of Saturday either watching all 5 kids (only 1 was mine!), or fetching things. I fetched food, drinks, RCA gender converters, light bulbs, laundry, quarters for the laundry...it was a long, sweaty day, but it was worth it.
While I was staggering around the apartment today in a sleep-deprivation haze, I realized I do have something besides cooking and kids to blog about-Christmas! I know, I know, too soon. But I realized this year that, by shopping early and watching sales, I could get most of my gifts on the cheap. I'm going to try to take it a bit further, and try to plan ahead for all of it. The cleaning, the cards, the cooking, everything. Hopefully, assuming that my innate slacktitude doesn't kill my idea before it can take off, I'll be posting a comprehensive plan in the next couple of months, just in time for the holiday season. But I do have two tips for early gift shopping. First, for all the kids on your list, now is the time that Target starts to clearance out toys. It varies from store to store, but it seems to be around the end of July. I've picked up a few things that way-for example, a board game for $3. But what if you want something a little offbeat to give as a gift? Where do you go when the stores fail you? Try Heartsy! It's like Groupon for Etsy. It gives you deep discounts on a wide range of products, including bath and body, jewelry, clothing, toys, home decor, and food. I blogged a while back about a gorgeous necklace and some fabulous shower scrub I was given for my birthday, and they were from Etsy sellers that were featured on Heartsy. Check them out, and sign up for their emails. If you become a VIP member, you'll get even better discounts!
Hope you all had great weekends, and here's to a week of taking it easy!
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