So Sew Organized

I can not even begin to tell you how thrilled I am to be introducing today's guest blogger. Ever since meeting this family 3 years ago, I have become increasingly interested in adoption and the difference it makes in the lives of so many children. I have since talked to others that have adopted children and read blogs about the hope that is being given to so many children because of the opportunity to adopt. So when I was contemplating and praying about who to have as guest bloggers for this month, I knew Denise had to be one of them! I am so thrilled to read a brief recap of her personal story, and I know you will be personally blessed by it. My desire to adopt started during the Vietnam War.  I would watch the news and feel so sad for all the children who had lost their parents in the war.  In 1975, I believe, President Ford had a campaign of sorts called Operation Babylift which was an effort to bring Vietnamese orphans to the States to find them adoptive families....

I was asked by a friend to help her with a little painting project this month, and I couldn't have been more excited. I actually really like to paint, and don't often get the opportunity to do it! There is just something so rewarding about seeing a project come together and the difference a little paint can make! You've heard the saying, "A little caulk and a little paint will make a carpenter what he 'aint." Yup, pretty much true. :) I'm not carpenter or painter, but we managed to get 'er done and it turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself! Here are a few pictures of the process: The house is a split-level, and the area we were tackling was the entry just as you walk in the front door. If you've been in a split-level, you may be able to picture this area with its high, high walls!! Good thing I am not afraid of heights! I started by taking off the existing border and prepping the walls for painting. I used this miracle gel to get the border ...

It is no secret that I like me a good mug of coffee. If I had to pick my absolute favorite, a Caramel Macchiato from Starbucks would probably be my #1 pick. But you know the problem with that? It costs a lot of money. Well actually, the real problem is we don't have Starbucks here in Canada (at least not in our area) but even if we did, I wouldn't be able to afford it. So I'm always on the lookout for ways to create some yummy, not-your-average-Maxwell-House in my own kitchen. I actually tried a couple of different Pinterest inspired coffees for this month's project. Here was the inspiration pin for Homemade Cinnamon Lattes, from Alicia's Homemaking: Source: aliciashomemaking.com via Nicole on Pinterest This came out pretty good! ( Go over to Alicia's blog to get all the details and instructions!) I am still working on getting the perfect milk/coffee ratio, since I like my coffee a little strong, but its pretty good. I have used maple syrup and brown sugar to...

 As part of this month's challenge I have recruited the help of a few guest bloggers to share some new information for us to learn about. Today's guest touches on a subject that many people today are concerned about... saving money. I enjoyed delving into the world of couponing and deal shopping when I lived in the Sates, and have done some research on this subject before. (Go here , here and here to read about my system and thoughts in the subject) I am so thankful to have this post to add to my files as well! Take it away! I have always been frugal,  and I enjoy finding the best deals possible on whatever it is that I need to buy.  I got seriously into couponing and deal hunting back in 2008.  I was browsing the web trying to find the best price on a Christmas present for my husband when  I stumbled across a forum where people were talking about all the free stuff they were getting with coupons.  I had heard of people using coupons to get free stuff, ...

I hope you are enjoying this challenge as much as I am! Seriously, it has been great to learn new things and develop a way to better save them for future use. I feel like I am being a better steward of my time by having this system in place...saves me from searching and researching for information I already have! Today I’d like to branch out a little bit and talk about the other files you can build beside the virtual ones. Because really, in today’s day and age, who is going to limit themselves to some file folders? Not me! This is a step in the challenge that you can pick and choose what works for you. If you want to just fill your literal files, go ahead! Or, find other ways to build virtual files to make this process even easier than it already is! Here are just a few suggestions and ways to build other files: :: Pinterest :: obviously this has to be my first option. :) I have recently added new boards on Pinterest that match my 5 file topics. This is perhaps the easiest way to bui...

As part of this month's challenge I have recruited the help of a few guest bloggers to share some new information for us to learn about. Today's guest has me at a hello with all of the info and life-changing facts! Healthy living has been a subject of interest for me for a couple of years now. That is why I dedicated one of my 5 Fat Files to "Whole Foods Diet." This post reflects that this is also the heartbeat of the author, and I feel so privileged to be able to learn from her and glean from her wisdom! Without further ado, lets talk about herbs , shall we?  Hi! My name is Lauren Lockhart and I’m a farm girl-at-heart who lives in the city and longs for the country! I grew up on an 85 acre farm among the rolling hills of Middle Tennessee so farming and living minimalist is something I’m very familiar with! My husband and I are currently living in the foothills of the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of NC and have three children.  I love farming, animals (horses in p...

As part of the month-long blogging challenge we have going on over here, I want to be able to provide you with some quality content to start filling your files with (like this great post from yesterday). I don’t want to rely solely on guest bloggers, so I’m going to throw some of my own content in here for ya..with a little tutorial! I honestly can’t believe *I* am sitting here telling you how to make a blog button. Literally 3 short years ago I wouldn’t even have known what a blog button was. (I barely knew what a blog was then, lol!) But now I love making blog buttons and graphics, it is one of my favorite parts of having a blog! (And waaaay deep down inside, I think I have a little bit of a geeky vein running through me, haha!) There are a lot of different programs and tutorials out there, but this is what works for me. I hope that it is a help to someone else! I use Gimp, which is a free program , but kind of tricky to use. It just requires time and effort to learn the many many d...