Sub Bag

I have been a substitute teacher for almost a year now, and I have had a few friends ask me what I take with me to the classroom. I have quite a few supplies built up, and I'm in the process of organizing them. What I would like to end up with, in addition to organized supplies, is a crate with file folders for each grade that contains activities in the folders that I can grab and go in the morning.

Anyway, for those of you who are interested, here are some things that I keep in my "sub bag":

Transition time (time when you are switching from one activity to the next or lining up and getting ready to go somewhere) can be difficult. It helps to have little songs and games to keep them interested and paying attention. I just got this book, Literacy-Building Transition Activities by Ellen Booth Church, from Scholastic that has a lot of good, easy transition activities:



Another favorite of mine is the Choose Your Own Adventure book series. The stories are quick, the kids get to vote on what the characters should do next, and they work for most elementary school ages.





I'm off to cut coupons and go grocery shopping, but I'll try to post more on this topic soon. Have a great day!

Body for Life

This is what I've been doing with my free time lately:

I picked up this book at the book store last month. I was browsing the health section because I had finally become disgusted with my unhealthy eating and lack of working out, but couldn't get motivated. Here is the first version of the Body for Life book:


I am starting on my 6th week of Body for Life workout, and the results are amazing. It's simple and healthy, too. You commit to 12 weeks (although the idea is you continue with this lifestyle after the initial 12 week commitment), 4 hours of exercise per week, 6 small, balanced, and nutritious meals per day. 3 days a week I do 20 minutes of cardio, and 3 days a week I do weight lifting. I'm also never hungry because I eat a lot of food. I just have to eat the right kinds of food. Like this breakfast:

This is 4 egg whites, spinach, mushrooms and salsa. I eat it with a whole grain tortilla. Lots of protein, very little fat and calories. Yum!

Another thing I love about the BFL book is all the before and after pictures. I find them to be very inspiring. The transformations some of these people made are almost unbelievable. But I'm seeing some pretty phenominal changes in my own body. The weight lifting really revs up the metabolism and gives you great shape. So much better than the old days of doing tons and tons of cardio and being hungry all the time. I feel great. I did take a "before" picture of myself, but it is soooooo scary I can't bring myself to show it to you. Maybe after the 12 weeks is over I'll have the courage, but for now ...

Happy Holidays everyone!

Tap, tap, tap. Phfft, phfft. Testing, 1, 2, 3. Is this thing on?

Heather here ... I do still exist, I am alive, no one kidnapped me and took me to Mars ...

(That's a great book, by the way.) We've been busy with a trip to Orlando, a trip to Indiana, mom working, house guests, sports, and most importantly, mom is doing this:

And it's working. And I feel absolutely GREAT! I eat 6 meals a day! I've dropped 1 dress size after 2 weeks. I found muscles I haven't seen in years. I'm talking serious dedication, people!! [Any diet queens out there who want to join me?] And I'm absolutely nuts about getting my workout in every day. Therefore, other things have fallen by the wayside. Have no fear, I have some housecleaning to do for a work party at Casa de Jones, so I will take time to blog instead.

Oh, I've been doing a lot of this, too:

And this ...

And this ....

This one's next. It should take me a week, or a few days, depending on whether I feed the children. Priorities.

Ah, a book series guaranteed to turn any mom into a 13 year old again. Does it get any better? Well, yes, actually ... let's just say I think movie casting for Edward was spot on. And I'll leave it at that.

So I just thought I would stop by the ole' blog and say "Hi" to my buddies and let you know you've been on my mind. [Hi Martha!! I owe you an answer to your tag. I love ya, girl! ...... Lisa!! I have a post about you on the way, too. Miss you!]

Deceptive ... and Delicious?

A while back, I bought this book

and I've slowly been testing the recipes. In case you haven't seen it, Jessica Seinfeld wrote this book on how to sneak pureed veggies into food. Some recipes have been good, some not so good. I'll get back to you on those recipes, but today I tried the recipe for donuts, and this is what I ended up with:

They were really good, and very easy to make. I did get lucky a couple months ago, and I found a donut pan at a yard sale, but the recipe says you can use muffin tins instead. They have sweet potato and pumpkin in them, and they are pretty low fat because they have egg white and just a table spoon of low fat margarine. Ok, they are not going to taste like real donuts, but my super picky kids ate them and liked them. I can't stop eating them.

A little of this, and a little of that

I received a question from Suzy this week, which I'm just now getting around to answering (sorry). But first, Ta Da ... here is the $15 dollar rug (regular price $399). It was just the thing I was patiently waiting for to bring the room together. I also figured out what I'm going to use to slipcover the love seat. I finished the pattern, but have been waiting to find just the right fabric ~ has to meet the criteria of the right color, price and texture ... so I decided last night that I'm going to use Wal-mart burgundy velvet curtain panels. I think they will be nice and cozy, and the price is right (here's a tip: sometimes curtain panels are cheaper per yard than fabric if you have a tight budget. I've used them for pillos, too). I'll keep you posted on that project after the holidays.

Here are some pictures from my dining room. I bought this tassel at Wal-mart last year and couldn't find a place for it. I think it works on the chandelier.
Some Martha Stewart ornaments I found at K-mart thanks to Liz, and also just happened to find a robin's egg blue vase on the clearance aisle while I was there (I think I'm on a lucky streak - right when I'm NOT supposed to be spending money!)

I was sick of the gold paint on these angel candlestick holders, so I painted them cream. I stuck some shells in there too. The garland is actually a really nice one that I got at Michael's clearance last year. It was $30 marked down to about $1.50. You've got to check out their blow-out sales after the holiday.
Suzy asked the other day about what magazines I love. Here are a few of my favorites. As far as decorating goes, just a few years ago, my hubby was the only decorator in this family. When we moved into our new house, I went into overdrive. But I wouldn't come up with an original decorating idea if it walked up and slapped me across the face. That is why I am obsessed with seeing other peoples houses (thank heaven for blogs!), I memorize magazines and save any pages with good ideas in an "inspiration" folder, and if I come across a good idea on the internet, I double-click on the picture and save it to my computer. I also love catalogs like Ballard Design and Pottery Barn. Another thing about my decorating abilities is, I got over my fear of trying things. There are a lot of holes in my walls where I hung things in the wrong spot, and Mr. Jones has done a teeeny bit of re-painting for me. I also regularly move furniture around. The next 2 projects I have worked up the guts to do are tiling (taking a class thanks to Martha), and I'm going to rip the carpet off my stairs and paint the pine underneath. Oh yeah, you heard me right. My poor, patient husband is holding back on this idea, I know it. "Yeah, honey." Poor guy. I got this idea from Manuela.

I have been liking a lot of the special interest Better Homes and Gardens publications on decorating lately. Creative Home is my absolute favorite. They spell out how to do a lot of projects.
Here is another favorite of mine ... Romantic Homes.
And last, but not least, Country Living magazine. These are the 3 magazines I never throw out. Southern Living has some good ideas, too, but I stopped getting those. I love to look at the Southern Living At Home catalogs, and those consultants always have great ideas!

The Birthday Party

Princess had her birthday party last week, and we decided to make it a spa experience. We looked at the local birthday party places, and they were all too much money. So do-it-yourself is what we went with. It was actually pretty fun, and I enjoyed giving pedicures to all the girls. I only wish I had more time, because we didn't get to the manicures. They opted to put on makeup and do a photo shoot instead, which is just fine with me. I set up the camera on the tripod, and they went to town.
I decorated the dining room table with green and purple sheets we had in the closet, with a feather boa on top. I got these battery-powered tea lights and put them under the boa. The lights were fun, because my kids always want candles but I'm a safety freak. I had this post-card frame, and put the menu in it. I also did a "spa services" menu for the spa area of the living room. I downloaded spa music for ambiance, and had magazines out for them to look at while I pampered their feet. I also checked out some tween fashion books at the library. We made bandanna flip-flops, which I first saw at this website (check it out ... she has some adorable shoes). The girls had a lot of fun tying little strips of fabric on their flips and it kept them busy while I pedicured.
I found the flip-flops at Target Dollar-Spot, along with a pedicure pack (file, cuticle stick and toe-separator). I got a pedicure pack for each of the girls because I didn't want them to share feet germs (yes, I am a germ freak in addition to being a safety freak). I found the plastic baskets at Target for 6 cents each (yes, you heard me right!). Princess decorated water bottles and put names on them (I didn't think this was necessary but it was a fabulous idea because there were water bottles everywhere and they didn't get mixed up), and we tied my towels with fabric strips. I bought a bottle of green face mask and sliced up cucumbers so they could give themselves facials. They were so cute!
(In case you wonder why sometimes my pictures have stars on them, I am also internet-paranoid so I change the photos to protect the innocent.)

The last 2 things in the photo we didn't have time to do. If we run out of time and things get too crazy, it is important to alter the plans and not get too wrapped up in having the Perfect Party. My daughter is a mini-Martha Stewart so I have had to coach her on this issue. She lets the planning get in the way sometimes (she learned this from me), and enjoying your guests and being flexible are much more important when entertaining. But in case you're interested, we were going to make bath salts with epsom salt and store them in Crystal Light containers, and also make a paper sack scrapbook for each girl and let them decorate that.

So here is my great idea: Instead of making the scrapbook, we are making a paper sack thank you card, and will give each girl a cd with their photo shoot pictures. I didn't want to spend the money to make photo shoot prints for each guest, and we have a mega-pack of cds from our favorite warehouse store. In case you don't know how to make a paper sack scrapbook, this is what we are doing for the thank you card: Take a brown or white paper sack (Target has red ones now too!), and fold it in half. Either sew down the left side (to make a binding) or punch holes and tie ribbons on the left side. Decorate with paper. Insert photo cd in the opening, punch a hole on the right side and tie a ribbon so the cd doesn't fall out. When we are done, I will share a picture with you.

I think this is a pretty economical thank you card, and I think the party was pretty economical as well. I love to be creative and save money at the same time. It is just important to remember not to get carried away with all the details. If you want to see another birthday party idea, check out Sandy's blog, For Reluctant Entertainers. She shares wonderful ideas and advice for gracious entertaining.

In planning for the party, I found this great spa book for kids. It is called The Girls' Spa Book by Mary Wallace and Jessica Wallace. It has a lot of recipes for beauty products that they can make with things from the kitchen.

The Proverbs Challenge

I was reading Justabeachkat's blog this morning, and she is joining in The Proverbs Challenge at My Montana Moments, which I think I will do too. I just love the book of Proverbs because it is full of the wisdom that I need. It is a great book to read with the kids too (most of it, depending on how old they are).

Tasty Little Muffins and Children's Cookbook

*A note to add to yesterday's post: If you like the mirror I got on clearance, Bed Bath and Beyond still sells them, and the regular price is only a little less than $20.00 (an amazing price compared to the other store). I didn't see them online, but I did see them in the mirror section at the store.*

A while back, I tried OliveJuice's recipe for Fruit Filled Scones, and they were *so* good that I thought I would try another one of her recipes.!

This time I made her recipe for Blueberry Cheesecake Muffins. Yum! They are really good. Easy too ... you start with a box mix and add the cream cheese filling. Click on the link above to get the recipe. You have to see her aprons, too. They are amazing!

I am going to have to try all the recipes on her blog, now, since the first 2 were very tasty. Thanks OliveJuice!

I also saw this great children's cookbook the other day. I have been looking for a good cookbook for my kids, but haven't been able to find one until now. I don't want anything with weird recipes, just the basics please.

Well, I was very happy when it arrived, because not only is it absolutely adorable (it has vintage children's cooking pictures throughout), but it covers the basics of cooking and the good old standards for recipes (tomato soup, meatloaf, muffins, etc.). Tween actually picked it up and made a recipe for blueberry muffins all by herself. She substituted chocolate chips for blueberries, and she even wore a vintage handkerchief apron! *I'm so proud that she accessorized before baking ... I wish I had taken a picture!*

You can get it at Amazon.com among other places. I get the used books from them for a better price. They also have them on ebay and P.O.S.H. Chicago (this is a fun store to look through).


There is a sewing version of the book, called See and Sew, a Sewing Book for Children. I haven't purchased this one yet, but I would love to check it out. Either of these books would make a great gift.


This past weekend, my Honey went to Cooperstown for the Baseball Hall of Fame Induction. He is *wild* about baseball. I have always enjoyed tagging along with him to baseball stadiums and to get autographs. I also love the old vintage baseball photos he has. (This particular photo is courtesy of HistoryImages.com)

My Honey has been fortunate to meet many baseball players through his job, including Tony Gwynn. We are big Tony fans anyway, because we are from San Diego. We live so close to Cooperstown, that Mr. J was able to drive right over to see Tony's big day. He and our son also had a chance to meet Cal Ripken, and he was so kind and humble. As a mother of two young sons, I truly appreciate two baseball players who are a good example to kids, and who use their fame and talent to do good things for others. Congratulations to both of you, and thank you!

I will finish my post with a picture of Puppy's Very Bad Day.

What I'm Reading

I have to share a great new book with you. It is Expressions: Taking Extraordinary Photos for Your Scrapbooks and Memory Art by Donna Smylie and Allison Tyler Jones. This is the photography book I have been wanting for years, but just finally found. It is about taking memorable photos of people. The authors give ideas on how to be more creative, as well as technical lessons on things like composition and lighting that are understandable but not too difficult for the average person. I think anyone could immediately improve their photography skills after reading this book. It is awesome!!!

Ok, I also have to share a link to an adorable new scrapbook store. My scrap style is very basic, and I don't go nuts over all the scrap stuff, but I would *love* to go to this store because it is so adorable. It is called By Design Scrapbook Boutique. It makes me want to redecorate my scrap/craft room. You may recall my recent posting about organizing my scrap room. I did have a deadline of 30 days for the I'm An Organizing Junkie contest, but got a little bogged down with what to do with *years* of photos. I was going to reorganize them all into boxes, but couldn't bring myself to do that. I had an epiphany last night ... instead of organizing the photos, I need to just sit my butt down and *scrap* them. Nothing fancy ... just using classic black or natural background. Journaling Heidi Swapp style. So I started last night, and I actually have almost completed a scrapbook. So, I have not forgotten about this project, but I'm not quite ready to show you the results. Stay tuned.

And since you might have noticed by now that I love photographs, I will end my post with two of my favorites I took this week. The boys and I are on our own because Fifi (that is what I call my daughter because she is a princess) is away at camp. This experience will either change her for life (she doesn't like dirt, bugs or water without chlorine), or it will cause every camper there to suffer for a week.

"...but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14

A Special Little Book

I would love to share with you one of my favorite little books. It is Little Things Long Remembered: Making Your Children Feel Special Every Day by Susan Newman. It is a collection of little things you can do to make your kids feel special and loved. And if you take off the paper cover, a pretty robin's egg blue cover is revealed that looks great on a bookshelf or table.

As of the writing of this post, there is a free copy available on PaperBackSwap. If you haven't heard of PBSwap, it is a website where you trade books with other members. You pay postage (about $1.50) when someone orders books from you, and when you order books it is completely free! My kids love it because they can post their books and order books without my help (or credit card). They run to the mailbox every day to see if they have any new books. Just click on the link at the top of my blog if you want to sign up (If you click on my button, I get referral credit which I greatly appreciate). I believe you get some bonus credits just for signing up.

"Memory is more indelible than ink."

~Anita Loos

"People need joy quite as much as clothing. Some of them need it far more."

~Margaret Collier Graham

"It isn't the big pleasures that count the most; it's making a great deal out of the little ones."

~Jean Webster

You probably know now that I am a quote girl. Love them. I got these courtesy of the book The Family Manager by Kathy Peel. As of the writing of this post, there is also a free copy of this book available at PaperBackSwap.