Thoughtful Thursdays Archives - Page 5 of 11

How-to Consignment Shop withOUT Kids {Thoughtful Thursday}

January 24, 2013 by Jules 1 Comment

I have to remind myself, "It is coming. It Is coming. Spring time is coming!"

I am so ready for some color sprinkled all over the ground, warmer {not hot} days, and the general cheeriness of the spring season. Another thing I love about season change is consignment shopping. Eek! My fave? Duck Duck Goose, the "BIG Sale" in Little Rock, AR!

Don't get me wrong, I don't really like spending money on clothes I just LOVE a great deal. We haven't had to spend much over the past few years due to God's blessing of hand-me-downs from friends and family as well as within our own closely born babes! This year though...this year, the year of limbo and growth, has brought us to the place where Every child needs nearly an entire spring/summer wardrobe. My kids are eating like there's a famine coming and sleeping like its going out of style- that's coming, too. The Growth Spurts! This year I plan to be proactive in this inevitable circumstance.

I need to be able to shop in a reasonable amount of time, thinking through purchases, as well as get all the things I need for the season without duplicates. Soooo, I'm fixing all of that. How am I going to get the right sizes without taking the kids, you ask? THAT is what I want to share with you today. I think this could work for consignment shopping or clothes shopping in general.

Check list for prepping to go
Children's Clothes Shopping:

{note: I'm not a genius, these tips come from years of watching the experts 😛 }

Purge
- Set aside all clothes for that current season {for me right now Winter}. The kids will still need these a bit longer.
- Then pull out all clothes that are the next season that will not fit {spring/summer for me}. I'm talking, if you have to, do a fashion show, try on all clothes that may be on the line of not fitting {if and When they have that next growth spurt}.
- Next, identify all clothes that you haven't been putting on your child due to them being stained, shrunk, stretched out, holey, whatever.
- Finally, depending on if it just doesn't fit or if it's really used: Consign, pass down to the next child, or pass along all those clothes to a friend, family member, clothes closet, etc. Don't allow them back in the closet or dresser. It will only be misguiding when you go to dress you child.
Take inventory of each child's closets and dressers.
- For real, write down exactly how many of each item they have, their size, and even the color.
- When you go shopping you will know you don't need a pair of pink shorts, black tennis shoes in size 6, or 2 more green sun dresses.
Make a shopping list
Measure each child. They will think this is fun.
- Feet
  1. Use a piece of paper {card stock or constructions paper holds up the best} and trace one foot of each child.
  2. If your kids have feet that are different sized, fit differently in shoes, etc you might want to do both.
  3. I just did one foot for each child because I have three kids I'm shopping for at once and the things you have to carry around add up quickly.
  4. I also cut out each foot for more convenience.
- Body
  Bottom {largest circumference around toosh}

{I punched a hole in each foot as well as the ribbon so I could hook them on a big ring for easier carrying.}

That sounds like a lot of stuff to think through but it's really not. I just tried to be very detailed for anyone who had never done this AND this is helping me think through what I need for next week's undertaking. If you're like me, you don't get too many chances to go shopping. And on top of that, these consignment sales don't come around but maybe twice a year. 😉

Next Thursday, I'll be back with a check list for taking with you to a Consignment Event! {link live next Thursday}

Share your tips & tricks for consignment shopping! We love to hear your favorite finds as well 🙂

UPDATE:

I know I shared my favorite consignment event above but just in case you don't have one in your area, here is an online consignment shop: "ThredUp". And you can get $10 off your first order using the code: GIMME10! Have fun!!! {valid thru 2-22-13 midnight}

contains affiliate links

Filed Under: Being a Help-Meet, Organizing, Parenting, The Ones about Link-Ups, The ones about the Rothacher Home, Thoughtful Thursdays

Beef & Veggie Stew

January 17, 2013 by Jules Leave a Comment

So our Arkansas winter went from 60'+ to snowing overnight. I'm constantly amazed my family isn't sick more often! When the weather turned frigged and there was not stank'n way I was heading out in it for groceries I was forced to hunt in the pantry, fridge, and deep freeze for what kind of heartiness I was going to feed my family. I know, 1st world problems, right!?

All of a sudden I had a hankering for some stew! I'd never made stew before and always thought you had to have fancy {expensive} stew meet to make it...then I realized that was crazy talk. That had never stopped me before. I then Googled {like every pro does} in search of a beef stew recipe I could tweek. I looked at several and realized I had the building blocks for a good stew already. SCORE! Here's what I came up with.

Beef and Vegetable Stew

I love recipes 😉

I started by browning my lean ground beef in my pampered chef steamer {best way EVER to brown meat!}.
I peeled, diced, and boiled my potatoes for about 30 minutes. I just waited until they were soft(er) not necessarily mashable.
In a big pot I mixed the browned meat, tomato sauce, {already dissolved bouillon cute} beef broth, onion powder, pepper, and salt all together.
I went in search of what other veggies I had and came up with a steamable bag of corn and a can of mixed peas and carrots. Yep, chunked all those veggies into the pot.
After bringing it to a bowl and stirring consistently, I removed it from the heat and ate it up! 😉

I'm thinking you could easily make this in a crockpot recipe. Put it all in to sit all day and simmer even more. That way you wouldn't have to hover over your potatoes either.

Yay for yet another made up recipe. If I can do it and have my family eat it, You can!

Filed Under: Baking and Cooking, Homemaker, The Ones about Post Series, The ones about the Rothacher Home, Thoughtful Thursdays

Chalkboard Play Table {Thoughtful Thursday}

January 10, 2013 by Jules 4 Comments

Today I wanna tell you how I "got took" and then turned my crappy table into a cool lil piece of furniture anyways.

Ya see, I've only purchased 2 things off of 'swap shops' on Facebook. The first was a cute sweater from a friend I knew from church. The second...well the second purchase was a little less cute. Ya see, this women posted a picture of what she called a "black coffee table". As I read through the thread of conversation happening under the odd angled picture I learned that the table was "tall enough for a preschool chair to fit under" and that "the table legs where 2+ feet tall and the top of the table was at her knee".

Sweeeeet! I'd been looking to replace our pre-children coffee table purchase with one that was less sharp-angle and more simple and round. I compared her description to our per-existing table and decided this was a Score. this was a simple, round, tall enough to be a practical coffee table, table! I messaged the women to see if it was still available and when it was we arranged to meet so I could purchase the table for a steal of deal- $20!

The day came to meet and we all loaded to head out to meet the stranger. As we waited and waited passed the set time, our daughters ended up needing to use the restroom. Matt chose to take them and allow me to have the awkward incounter with the women I had been dialoging with. She came like 2 seconds after they were out of sight. Having my baby boy in the backseat of the van, our conversation would of course be short and to the point. She rolled up in a Chevy Cavalier. 2 Door! You know where I'm going with this don't you. As she waffled her way out of the tiny car she began apologizing for being last, quickly retrieved the itsy bitsy table from Her TRUNK and placed it in my already open van, said a wierd, "Thank you, God used you to provide money during a hard time" spill after seeing scripture on my t-shirt and sped off in her lil bitty car.

What just happened? I stared at my new treasure with confusion. There is NO stank'n way a preschool chair could fit under that. That women was way taller than me and the top of that table doesn't come to my knee. The black paint was crazy scratched up and I'm pretty sure some good 'ole boy hacked these legs off something else and hooked'm to this "table top" using the wierd metal bracket thingies on the bottom. I think I would have been okay...if I'd paid like $5 for it. The worst part? Matt was gonna tease me about this for years...

As Christmas approached and we began pulling decorations and stuff from the basement, that table sat their laughing at me. Suddenly, I saw the leftover chalkboard paint we'd been given by a friend setting next to Sir Ugly and it hit me! Chalkboard table!!! It won't be tall enough for the kids to sit at but it will make a cute artsy play table. I did it!

Chalkboard Table

find a crappy {hopefully cheaper} table at a yard sale, swap shop, or somewhere random
get some chalkboard paint
clean the table well, sanding if necessary {I didn't...I put in as little man hours as possible}
paint at least 3 coats letting each coat dry really well before adding the next one
purchase some dust free chalk to appease the hubs who didn't want nasty chalk funk inside

We gave the table as a gift to all our kids on Christmas morning. It made a big statement next to the tree and has seen lots of scribbles, little people play, and even hand-drawn game boards in just a week!

Have you ever been "taken"? How can you turn your embarrassing moment around? Share!

EXTRA RESOURCE:
homemade chalkboard paint {ANY color}, all the tutorials I've found have these same 2 basic ingredients:

Dry Non-Sanded Grout
Acrylic craft paints

Filed Under: Decorating, Gifts Ideas, Homemaker, Homeschool, Parenting, Projects, The Ones about Post Series, The ones about the Rothacher Home, Thoughtful Thursdays

Organizing Christmas Clean-Up {Thoughtful Thursday}

January 3, 2013 by Jules 2 Comments

Welcome to the 1st Thoughtful Thursday of 2013!

Each Thursday I attempt to be thoughtful by share something helpful. It could be a fun new project I tried, organizational idea/system, yummy family friendly recipe, gadget I like, bla bla bla. You get the idea. I started this as a link-up but that's a lot of work and I didn't have a whole lot of interest. I would still LOVE to have you share your thoughtfulness in the comment section. Maybe someday I'll do a link-up again. Glad you're HERE!

Two years ago, Matt and I decided to dress up our house in Christmas decor early, we're talking the weekend Before Thanksgiving.

I were prego with our third baby who was due in January. We wanted to enjoy our the festiveness yet get it all clean up right after Christmas. Being in the "nesting" phase of pregnancy, I needed to clean the entire house, cook way too many freezer meals, and move our entire bedroom downstairs because I'd be coming home with our handsome Benjamin after my 3rd c-section and wouldn't be allowed to climb the stairs. Wow, that's a long explanation of why this has become a habit since Christmas 2010.

I LOVE the Christmas season. The thoughtful shopping. The family hang-outs. The charming decorations. but...when the birthday party has passed, I like to clean up Right way. Wash the dishes. Pack away decorations. Reorganize the fun new gifts to function in our house. In shorts... I need order. When my Christmas awesomeness is covering my home it feels like vacation. We lounge and enjoy one another like we're on a true school holiday. Anybody? When all this relaxing is going on things get a little too lacks. Nothing gets accomplished. Soooo, my poor hubs, who loves Christmas and everything that it entails, got until December 30 with our fun decorations this year.

5 ways to packed up Christmas stuff this year in case any of you have waited until this weekend to put yours to rest for another year.

Cut empty paper towel tubes into rings and wiggle them down around smaller rolls of wrapping paper OR cut toilet paper tubes length-wise to fit around larger tubes of wrapping paper to keep them rolled together and from getting ripped or crumbled up.
For stray bows I didn't want getting crushed before next year, I used a old animal cracker container.
Use punch cups to sort ornaments, keeping them from getting tangled together while eliminating giant boxes so they'll all fit in a smaller tub. Lay cardboard, cut to the size of your tube, to layer several layers of ornaments. I got 3 layers in this giant tub.
I even left a few ornaments in their original boxes if they were super sentimental or fragile. I also had room for our tree toppers and again with the old animal cracker container, this time full of tiny ball and shape ornaments for the kids tree.
Label tubs with index cards, detailed contents with sharpie, and slap that bad boy on with some fancy dancy packing tape on one of the long sides and one of the shorts sides so no matter which way you store it {length or width} you can read a label.

What are some of your favorite ways to clean up Christmas and get an organized start to a new year?

Looking for more thoughtfulness? Follow my Pinterest Boards!

Filed Under: Cleaning, Decorating, Holidays, Organizing, The ones about the Rothacher Home, Thoughtful Thursdays

Snow Ice Cream: Recipe {Thoughtful Thursday}

December 27, 2012 by Jules 2 Comments

Welcome to Thoughtful Thursdays! Every Thursday I {try to} post something thoughtful. Not much. Just a recipe. New gadget I've found. Cool store I think you'll like. Helpful hints I've learned. Welcome! Please share your thoughtfulness in the comment section below! If you happen to have a blog, leave a short description and link to the post.

It rarely snows anywhere in AR except for the North West corner. That's were I grew up. Winters were odd when I moved off to college and then when I got married to move yet again. I expected snow. A white Christmas wasn't a fluke. It happened often. One of the things I remember about white winters was SNOW ICE CREAM! Yum. Well, it's probably not to die for but the fun of making your own ice cream makes it taste that much more yummy. Now that I have 3 littles of my own, I've been passing down the simple goodness. My 2 girls thought it was just cool to bring snow Inside!

Snow Ice Cream

1 cup of milk
1 tablespoon of vanilla
1 cup of sugar
1 gallon of snow {1 heaping LARGE bowl of snow}

I like to mix the milk, vanilla, and sugar all together in a large measuring cup so all the ingredients are spread evenly around the snow. I know most people suggest collecting the snow in a big bowl as it's snowing but most of the time I'm not that optimistic. Most of the time, when I see it actually snowed enough to make the ice cream, I take a flat 'flipping' spatula and take the top clean layer off of something like the railing on my deck. Then I quickly take this inside where I add my milk mixture and blend it all together with a big spoon. If you want your ice cream consistency a little thinner you can just add more milk. Add your favorite toppings just like you would to regular vanilla ice cream. If you can't possibly eat all of this batch at once, just simply put it in a freezer safe container for later!

Flavored Snow Ice Cream

For flavored ice cream, use a little less milk, omit the vanilla extract, and add your favorite extract {coconut, lemon, mint! They even have root beer, eggnog, and pineapple now} or flavored syrup {chocolate, strawberry, caramel}.

UPDATE: This recipe sound Yummy! May have to try it.