Vacation!

It is school vacation week here! That normally means a week full of big ideas of what you would like to accomplish and do- and by the end of the week you have done none of them! But not this time! I am going to spend my week being productive... Or at least I am going to keep telling myself that... :)

I do know for a fact a that today I am going up to Jericho, Vermont to visit the Snowflake Bentley Museum... Fun right? :) Ok well I am a self proclaimed nerd and ever since I heard about this guy in kindergarten I have been fascinated! I loved the idea of taking picture of the snow- or maybe it was just all the snow itself! (I also cannot get enough of the snow). And when we had to choose a topic in History to write a 10 page paper on, I jumped at the chance to write about this dude. He lived a pretty cool and inspirational life. So today I am going to go up to his hometown and go to the one room museum... hopefully the grade on the paper makes the 3+ hour trip worth it.

What am I going to do for the rest of the week you ask? Well I have no idea! I might sew a maxi skirt... or I might play with my perlers (more on this unhealthy obsession later...), or I may read....

What should I be doing? I should be writing that 10 page paper or writing the lab report that will be due next week... and I probably should also work on all those Latin verbs I keep forgetting... But I seriously doubt any of these things are going to happen... well I doubt that most of the first list will get done too :)

~sarah

Book Review: Good Girls Don't Have to Dress Bad

Wow- that was one long hiatus! I cannot believe neither Sonja nor I have blogged in months! Things have been crazy, and I plan to blog more regularly now that school is winding down!

So the other day after staring at it on Amazon for almost a year, I did it... I bought Shari Braendel's book. I found it cheaper on iBooks and I convinced myself that it was ok to spend the money and strain my eyes (I was reading it on my iPhone)- I was sure that the material was worth it. And it was. I was not in LOVE with the book... but I enjoyed it.

Shari wrote this book to help other Christian Woman dress better. Now I know what you are thinking... God doesn't care what we look like on the outside- this is what I thought too. And then I read Shari's book and I have to say her argument it quite good. God wants us to to be walking billboards for HIM! So why should we only wear t-shirts and jeans? We should dress cute and love the body He gave us!

Shari saw the need in the church and began her ministry. I have learned different things about my body through this book. She teaches how to determine your body type and what colors and clothing looks good on you. This book is awesome because not only does it offer fashion advice but it does it with a Christian Twist. We need to love the body God gave us! He thinks we look good and cute and we need to think so too!

I personally loved the last chapter of the book on Modesty. I am a big advocate for helping this generation learn what is Modest and how what we dress affects our Brothers in Christ. Shari's blunt approach is just the wake-up call we all need. (If you want to read more about modesty, I recomend this AMAZING lady!)

God made you beautiful because He is beautiful! Embrace your Beauty!

~Sarah

What books have you read lately? I am always looking for suggestions!

I was not asked to write this review and did not receive this book for free. I bought this book with my own money and wrote this with my real opinions because I think this is an important message to share.

Hoilday Decorating

It's December! And that means that is time for Decking the Halls and Spreading some good old Holiday Cheer! Our family started off by picking out our Christmas Tree, well I picked it out, on December 1st. Sonja was off meeting Aly Raisman... I guess I can see how that trumps Christmas Tree Decorating for some- but not for this girl! (A side note- I love Aly and the Fab Five and if I had better knees- I would have gone- I just like giving Sonja a hard time) 

We had our tree all decorated and Christmas Cookies were baked by the end of the day! I felt so productive! Then on December 8 we did the same thing at our Dad's house! It was a blast! We had a dance Party and Sing-A-Long while baking. Ryan and I sang Good Time by Carly Rae Jepsen and Owl City. It was an awesome day! 

How is your Holiday Season Going? Have you got a tree yet?

~Sarah

Freebies and Samples

I started posting pictures on Facebook of many of the items I was getting for free (like the photo below) - and that generated some questions on how I got these things. I thought I would answer these questions once with this blog post.

I began my interest in receiving free items a few years ago- but never to the extent that I am involved in it now. About two months ago I saw this post on Pinterest. I got all excited- as what teenager doesn't love coupons! I started off by sitting down one Sunday afternoon and sending emails to everyone of those companies which my family uses. Out of those 30 or so emails I got 3 coupons. Now that I think about it- that is not a great odd- however I was very excited. I began to research if there were other things I could get coupons for or even for free.

I quickly found a few websites that have become my go-to resources for learning about freebies and samples. I use Vonbeau, My Free Product Samples, Freebie Shark, and I Crave Freebies. I do not have the time or the skill to go and search the Internet to find my own freebies, so I use these as my guides. I get so excited when I find an awesome new freebie or deal! I am working on the rest of my family- they tend to just role their eyes.

After I began and started ordering samples after samples- I lost track of what I was ordering and from where. That is when Genius Me decided it would be a brilliant idea to start a spreadsheet. Now this spreadsheet stays open at the bottom of my computer screen and I love to go and look at it often! I get so excited seeing what I may get next! So far I have reached row 78 so I will have a boat load of stuff coming in soon!

I also am a member of Swagbucks, Recyclebank, and Smiley 360. I love Swagbucks and Recyclebank! I am very new to Smiley 360- so when I get more equipped with it I will let you know how it is! With Swagbucks I have earned 2 $5 Amazon Gift Cards for free! Using Recyclebank, I have earned 1 magazine subscription and am close to getting another Amazon Gift Card! :) Both are TOTALLY FREE! What is better than that?! :)

I think that is all I have to say about my freebies and samples. One Tip I leave you with is- make a separate email account so that you do not have all these emails in your personal account! I have found this an easy way to separate the things I will read first from the things that I can read later! If you have any questions, or comments, or you have personally received free items, Let me know by leaving a comment or sending us an email!

~Sarah

A Saturday for Sarah

So what does a Saturday look like for me? Let me share! Today I woke up around 7:15am and watched the pilot of Once Upon a Time on my phone because only a billion people have told me to watch it! :) I called my dad and talked to my 1/2 brother on FaceTime. I finally got out of bed to eat a breakfast of pineapple around 9:30. My day began officially then. I finished my breakfast and went up stairs to the computer for about 15 minutes then I went downstairs and did dishes and cleaned other things in the kitchen until 3 PM. There were a lot of Dishes!!! I unloaded the dishwasher then ran icy, unloaded and reloaded it all within that time period ALONG with washing at least 50+ dishes by hand... Our kitchen was a MESS! :) (I also cleaned the microwave) I did eat lunch today at 1:45 so I was somewhat well fueled! When I finished, I went upstairs and watched 1.5 episodes of Touch and then packed for a overnight stay at my Grandparents house. (mom and Sonja are doing the Walk for Hunger tomorrow and I need a ride to church) We went to eat at the Country Club with my grandmother, then came back to her house to watch the Kentucky Derby. Every year we gather in A living room and pick our horses by their names and then cheer them on during the race. We wear hats of many different styles- my mom wore a flamingo hat to give you an idea. :) Then my mom and sister went back home and I have been sitting on my grandmothers couch ever since! Below is a collage of my day...