For the record, I'm not a coupon guru. I have followed some coupon gurus and implemented just about every system, but they didn't work for me. I ended up buying more, all for the sake of a good deal. And I realized that spending an extra twenty, thirty, fifty dollars on stuff I wouldn't be buying anyways was not really saving us money. It was too easy for me to legitimize splurging! Which doesn't work, because buying very little that we don't really need- then thrifting and saving for the rest- is how we survive on one budget. So here's how I organize only the coupons I know we'll use. I created this system for myself over two years ago, and it's worked really well ever since.

I didn't say it was fancy! For this system you'll need a three-ring binder, plastic sheet protectors, and lined three hole paper. A Sunday newspaper and a large cup of tea won't hurt either (wink). You'll want to devote a plastic protector and three hole paper for each coupon category you choose. 

My coupon categories (in order) are:

*Eat Out Coupons

*Canned Goods

*Dry Goods

*Meat & Dairy

*Freezer

*Health & Beauty

*Misc. 

I'll be sharing some ways we've been getting organized for baby this week, including Free Printables (hooray for last minute nesting energy!) and a review of the awesome book "Organizing You" by Shannon Upton. With baby arriving soon, the first thing we've had to consider is where Isia & Billy will go. When we left our city tribe behind a year ago I wasn't sure how long it would take build one up here in the woods. Not to replace our city one- you can never replace friends- but to complement it. And now, a year and a month later, we have four beautiful families close by that are graciously awaiting the phone-call to take care of our little ones. There aren't words for what a blessing it is, to know not only are they willing to... but they want to. We've been surrounded by so many people who enjoy our kids- who are far from perfect, just as we all are- as much as we do. To make sure the kids were ready to head out, I had their suitcase packed long before my own hospital bag. I also revamped the old babysitter sheet I had created years ago with this new one. 

I three-hole punched the new babysitter sheet and put in the middle of our three-prong folder baby-sitter folder. I love three-prong folders and actually keep one for each kid (more on that another time). On the baby-sitter folder, I wrote the kids' full names, our house phone number and address on the outside cover for easy reference. Then I fastened the babysitter sheet, along with medical consent forms for long trips away, on the interior prongs. I usually tuck a note with any other information that might be needed in the inside pocket, but everything else stays put so it's ready when we need it. 

Here's the printables in case you want to create a babysitter folder, or revamp one that you already have too!

For one kid: Babysitter Folder Printable

For two kids: Babysitter Folder Printable

For three kids: Babysitter Folder Printable

Here are the Ravelry notes to the last vest I made. The only modification here was to cast on size 9 needles. It's intended for a quickly-growing little guy, and I wanted to give him room to grow into it before this fall/winter. The grey is a wool blend that's washable, which makes it perfect for spitting-up babies and non-knitting mamas. And the buttons were a combination of what I had, and a quick errand to the fabric store. I really wanted teal buttons- his mama loves teal- but I couldn't find the right shade. So grey & white it is!

I'm currently finishing up the top and straps for the little creature in my belly's vest, so I'll be sharing that next. Which means we'll have a vest for Isia and a vest for baby. Billy David might need to be next!

I had one simple ambition when I began knitting- that one day I'd be able to make clothing and socks. I love cozy, woolen socks. While I have (yet) to cast on anything sock-wise, this is happily the second vest I've completed. My first sweater vest went to a newborn friend who looked quite dashing in it, if I do say so myself. This one turned out pretty well too!

Have you heard about Ladybug Girl? She's a favorite around here. Not only does she have awesome fashion sense- and Killer Boots- but she's always learning. She turns boring days into adventures, builds forts, and says she's sorry when she makes mistakes. And she's best buddies with a blonde-haired Bumblebee Boy that reminds us of Billy.

• Two wire hangers
• Red pantyhose
• Wire-cutters
• 1/2" or 1/4" inch elastic
• Hot glue gun & glue

Using your wire-cutters, cut the top piece off your hangers & bend the wire bodies into your wing shapes. I bent the first as I liked it, then tried to match the second hanger as closely as possible. 

I've tried to spare you too many details of our unpacked basement. You see, we had the luck to buy this house fully furnished. On one hand, this meant we inherited great furniture with it- and a couple boats too. On the other hand however, it was already full and we couldn't move all of our stuff in right away. And then there was the ongoing deliberation of what to keep? So we moved all our essentials into the upstairs, then stashed the rest- the totes, the furniture that wouldn't fit, baby stuff in case that time came again, all of Cory's tools- in the basement to deal with later. And now, four months later?, we're still coming to terms with it little by little. And while we've agreed that most of it can't be resolved until it gets warm- and Cory's able to get his shed how he likes- I'm still trying to put little dents in it, here and there. 

Last week, this meant organizing and down-sizing Seven totes of kid & baby clothes into a respectable three. I was pleasantly surprised by how easy the process was, and it inspired me to do more. So I tackled our Christmas card pile and created this keepsake:

You might have realized by now how much I love creating books with binder rings (smile). And this is such a sweet, kiddo-friendly way to keep our holiday cards around a bit longer. It'll also be a good home for all those cards, postcards & life announcements that I'm always reluctant to take off the frig & stash away in a drawer. It'll be so much nicer to put them here, where they can be read & enjoyed!

It takes me awhile sometimes to warm up to a project. I asked for this awesome icing kit a few years ago because I wanted to learn how to pipe, especially flowers. How long did it take me to pipe my first flower? Hmm, not until this summer when I decided to fulfill Isia's request for "a birthday cake with pink flowers" by myself. What I didn't realize was once I got started, it would be so much fun. If you happen to use a whole batch of royal icing, just realize that you're going to have a Lot of flowers. For those of us who find repetitive activities calming, such as knitting or making chinese dumplings, this is a perfect activity for you.