Kiersten’s Blog

I went to a baby shower for a friend the other day.  Lately I have been really into home-made gifts, for a couple of reasons.  First, it’s cheaper.  Second, it’s from the heart.  I think that it shows a bit more thought and preparation, although I can’t say it always turns out better than a store-bought gift.  But with a little practice, I’m loving it and I hope the recipients are as well!  For this particular baby shower, I decided to make a couple of skirts to match some t-shirts I bought a while back just because I knew they would come in handy someday for a baby shower, and they were only $1.25 each on clearance at Target.  So here I am, telling you how cheap I am.  In fact, I think Devin might actually sometimes read my blog.  Maybe I shouldn’t divulge so much information.  Whatever.  I got a dang good deal on some really cute stuff.  The jellies came from the Old Navy clearance section when everything was an additional 50% off, plus I had a 30% off coupon so they were for sure less than $1.  Of course it’s all a little out of season right now, but she’ll be 6 months (the size of the outfits and jellies) just in time for spring.  Perfect!

As for the skirts, I used this tutorial for the white one, adjusting a bit for the size and using the body of the shirt instead of the sleeves (since I already used them for something else).  I got the idea for the denim skirt here, but made it a lot easier by just cutting off the bottom of a pant leg and sewing on a waist band (from the same t-shirt as the white skirt).  No pleats or hemming involved!  So the skirts were totally free.  I just used old clothes I’ve been keeping on hand for such an occasion.  And they were quite simple to make, especially the denim one.  I think they turned out great and can’t wait to make more!

Oh, and now that I think of it, I’m pretty sure I never shared this little outfit I made for another friend a couple of months ago.  I made a super easy shirred skirt, using this tutorial (but mostly just for the measurements since I don’t have a newborn or newborn clothes on hand to measure).  I had a white onesie on hand for such an occasion and I appliqued the flowers on from some extra fabric from the skirt (which was extra fabric from the mei tai carrier and nursing cover I made as a gift not long before).  Then I felt bad that the whole project took so little time and that I spent absolutely no money on it, so I got a little carried away and made a headband to match.  Yay for cheap and free gifts!

Since tomorrow is Halloween and I bought candy too early (that means we don’t have enough left) I needed to go to the store to get some more.  Of course, I don’t expect many trick-or-treaters, so I buy the stuff that I like.  That way I still get to eat it.  Plus, my kids didn’t get much in the candy department this year and since it was raining this morning, London’s carnival at school was cancelled.  I know more than anyone (except that darned dentist) that my kids don’t need any more candy.  But sometimes I think I do!  Truth be told, I don’t need it either.  So, as I was saying, I went out tonight to buy some more goodies, just in case.  Of course I wanted to go to the cheapest place so I got on line to see where to go.  I ended up printing off a coupon for $2.50 off 2 bags of a Nestle variety pack 20 oz or larger.  Then I headed out to Target.  I spent way too long looking at candy and trying to figure out what the best deal would be.  I finally decided to nix the coupon because I would save more money by just buying cheaper candy (or two smaller bags).  I chose some sort of Starburst gummies (I think) and peanut butter M&Ms.  I chose the M&Ms for a couple of reasons.  I love them.  London loves them.  Taylor loves them.  They also had one of those coupons stuck to the bag that you could just use right then for 50¢ off.  I figured that would be the best deal, and left.  It wasn’t until I got home that I realized that I FORGOT to use the coupon!!!  Sure, it’s only 50¢, but dang it!  I chose those M&Ms BECAUSE they had a COUPON!!!  So after my time spent (and it was too much) looking for the best deal, I would have been WAY better off to have just gone to Target (or probably any other store for that matter) and bought two bags of candy.  I could have been done in a half hour instead of all the time wasted just to save as much as $2.50, which I didn’t even use anyway.  Sometimes I think I’ll try couponing.  Then I have an experience like this and decide once again that it’s SO not worth it.

We just got back from lunch at Chick-fil-A where it’s national “dress like a cow” day.  That’s right.  We dressed like cows and went out to lunch.  And because we did, we got lunch for free.  Totally free.  And it was totally worth it.  London thought it was the coolest thing ever.  She got to dress like a cow and go out.  What could be better?  In her book, nothing.  So go get your cow on and have some free dinner.  Hmm, now that I think of it, maybe I should go back for dinner.  We’re already in costume.  And, by the way, Ashton was dressed like a cow, but by the time we were through the line, he had pulled off all of his spots and “Eat Mor Chiken” sign.