getting our moove on!

T A K E   M E   T H E R E !

it's baaaack!

we are so excited to be bringing food friday back to our blog

& hope you enjoy the yummy & convenient meal plan we've put together for you!

i fed my family the turkey poblano chili for dinner last night....  delish {they loved it} & easy to make.

below is our menu plan for the week:

M: favorite takeout or potstickers & rice

Tu: speedy chicken fajitas

W: turkey poblano chili

Th: light chicken parmesan

F: pesto pizza & salad

Sa: mu chu pork stir-fry

Su: chicken & leek pie

and a special treat

Dessert: tiramisu

{ download the recipe cards here }

T . G . I . F . F . 

xo . rae

a little love.

introducing our valentine’s day collection:

 

your sweet little cupids are sure to get some extra love with these uniquely adorable valentines.

{ i had so much fun putting them together }

each set includes a  5x7 glassine bags and 2.5” sticker, customized with your child’s name.

{ purchase option below }

  

looking for some unconventional treats to fill your goodie bags with?

try, doughnuts or doughnut holes, cocoa powder + marshmallows, s’more fixings, fruit loop necklaces, cake pops {yum!  have you tried one before?}, fudge, bark, brittle or caramel, anything mini, or dipped in chocolate {such as rice crispy treats} or colorful macaroons.

or something with a little less sugar perhaps?  howbout… trail mix,dried fruit, flavored popcorn, granola bars, chocolate covered raisins or pretzels, fruit leathers,  or flavored croissants or scones.

  

now for some ideas on how to seal your goods; all involving decorative scissors if you have them.

for the first on, cut, fold over and seal with your sticker.

for the second one, sew with a zig zag or straight stitch, trim the top and add your sticker.

for the third one, cut, fold, wrap with ribbon or twine and seal with your sticker.

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$0.89 each set of 1 {glassine bag & custom sticker}

so you can order the exact number needed for each class room, friends, family, neighbors or party favor!

choose from the below designs:

 

 

 

valentine choice, color & name

would you like a "to" line?

as always, let me know if you have any questions…  rae@armommy.com

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on another, but similar, note:

all of this valentine talk makes me miss the days of homemade cardboard “mailboxes”.  maybe we’ll make ones for the family to put notes in this year as a new tradition.

how does your family make valentine’s day special?

my childhood friends always got a new pair of pajamas on heart day and i always thought that was such a fun idea....  and i was a little jealous.

talk soon,

rae

christmas time is nothing short of a whirlwind experience.  

places to go, people to see, presents to buy, charities to support, neighbors to greet, halls to deck, children to decorate....  errrr, i mean cookies to decorate with children, school parties, office parties, family get togethers, gift exchanges, secret santa's, santa pictures, and so on.  while i seem to be able to budget some extra money so my kids have something cute to wear to all the christmas happenings, i tend to be in some sort of a spending coma by the time it occurs to me that,

"i have no.thing to wear!"  sound familiar?

so, this year, instead of heading out to target to see if i can pull together an outfit for $20, i thought it might be fun to experiment with some wardrobe staples.  you game!?  hehe.

anywho, with the help of kendra {my friend, neighbor and the model in these pictures} who also happens to be a stylist, we concocted these blissful digs.

ENJOY....  and let us know what you think!

xoxo . rae . vp + mom

ps - kendra, thank you doll face.  as always, this was fun! 

christmas mini - day 2

welcome to:

of our mini-magazine.

come back later this week for...

{friday some fashion.  saturday some fun.  sunday some yum.}

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My sister (and Rae’s aunt) Meg always says that Christmas day comes whether you are ready or not.  I admit that I have burned the midnight oil many times in order to be ready for the big day.  And the years when I was more on ready side were definitely better.  So I started putting a written schedule together so fewer things slipped through the cracks.  Much to my surprise, it worked!  What follows is a calendar adapted from my schedule.  Keep what works for you and ignore what does not.  Add your own ideas and needs and see if this helps you, too.

Dec 1

Finish decorating/put away regular décor.

Vacuum/dust living room

Dec 2

Set gift budget + list

Clean frig, empty garbage cans

Sweep/mop kitchen

Dec 3

Decide on Christmas cards + newsletter

Clean master + guest bathrooms

Shop for weekend groceries

Dec 4

Assemble wrap/ribbons/tags/tape/scissors

Dust/vacuum master + change sheets

Dec 5

Shop for teacher gift with child(ren)

Make batch of cookies or fudge

Dec 6

weekly menu plan + shop

Sweep and tidy front porch

Wipe down front door

Dec 7

Buy/wrap gifts to be mailed

Pick up/vacuum/dust dining area

Dec 8

Mail packages/buy stamps + wrapping supplies

Begin addressing cards

Pick up/vacuum/dust living room

Dec 9

Baking + hors d'oeuvres list

Clean out frig, empty garbage cans

Sweep + mop kitchen

Dec 10

30 min toy clean out

Of unused/broken toys

Clean kids + guest baths

Shop for weekend groceries

Dec 11

Kids design their wrapping paper

Dust/vacuum master + change sheets

Dec 12

Kids wrap gifts for others

Wrap

Dec 13

Weekly menu plan + shop

Buy stocking stuffers

30 min toy clean out

Of unused/broken toys

Dec 14

Final day to mail Christmas cards

Dust/vacuum dining room

Dust/vacuum kids room

Dec 15

Review gift list/last minute shopping

Dust/vacuum living room

Throw out paper clutter including mags and catalogs

Dec 16

Water poinsettias and refresh greenery

Plan Christmas dinner + make list

Clean out frig/empty all garbage cans

wipe down kitchen cabinets

Dec 17

Inventory serving dishes/utensils/centerpiece

Shop for weekend groceries

Master + guest + kids bath

Dec 18

Visit Santa

Sweep front porch

Dust/vacuum master

Dec 19

Kids make place cards

Make centerpiece

Gather friends for caroling

Dec 20

Weekly menu plan + shop

15 minutes kids room

15 minutes kids bath

Last minute wrapping

Dec 21

Set dining table with linens + place settings

Make ahead foods

Dust/vacuum dining room

Dec 22

Dust/vacuum living room

Arrange packages under tree

Put away wrapping supplies

Clothes picked out for Christmas Day

Dec 23

Shop for produce

Clean frig/empty all garbage cans

Sweep/mop kitchen

Dec 24

Food prep

Clean master + guest bath

Read Christmas story with kids

Church

Dec 25

Merry Christmas!

Optional ideas:

Help your children get involved with a charity (see letter from the editors)

Send your kids to the movies one day with an approved adult (dad, uncle, neighbor)

Do your best to keep your workout schedule during the holidays.  Put it in the calendar

want your own calendar to fill in?

 click here to download ours

happy scheduling!

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remember to come back tomorrow for a dose of ARMOMMY fashion.

loves.

christmas mini - day 1

W E ' V E   B E E N   A W A Y   

experimenting with a new venture,

blazing ourselves a trail,

& getting our feet wet.

the end result?

a "mini-mag", or maybe "magamini", or howbout "minazine"?!

well, the name will be changing and so will the format, but without further adieu i would like to introduce you to our first addition:

{today a letter.  tomorrow a calendar.  friday some fashion.  saturday some fun.  sunday some yum.}

E N J O Y  M Y  P E E P S !

D E A R {lovely} R E A D E R S ,

            When Rae and I sat down to create ARMOMMY’S first ever magazine, our minds were swimming with ideas.  When we decided to have it ready for December 1^st {obviously didn't happen}, we had some serious editing to do and we knew we would have to be briefer than we originally planned.  What follows is a sneak peak at what we will be doing in the future.

            We decided to introduce our vision in a Christmas version, because it is a jam-packed time of year for families, and not surprisingly, we have much to say about it.  The children are home from school for a fair share of December and here in the Pacific Northwest the weather doesn’t always lend itself to going outside to play.  On top of that is all the baking, shopping, wrapping, decorating…..  I know I am singing to the choir here. 

             Christmas is also the time of year when we want to share our love and joy with those close to us and a time to think of others who may not be as fortunate as we are.  It can be a great time to get your kids involved in doing thing for others.  Here are a few ideas to get the imagination going:

1.     World Vision Catalogue 2010 – This catalog has items from $16 to thousand of dollars.  You can buy rabbits, chickens, soccer balls, school supplies, and so much more for people in need from all around the world.  Just go to www.worldvision.org to shop.

2.     Have your kids pick out t toy they want to Target or somewhere and take it to the Toys for Tots drop off location.  You can local drop off locations at www.toysfortots.com.

3.     The Salvation Army has an angel tree program where you pick a child and provide gifts from a list of requests.  You can get and angel card at any JC Penney store or go to www.angeltree.com to find out where other trees can be found.

4.     Nothing says loving like a little time.  If you have an elderly couple or person in your neighborhood, think of things you can do with your children to help them.  If there is snow, maybe a little shoveling is called for, or in warmer climates maybe some leaf raking or weeding.  Or maybe your family could put together a basket of goodies including fresh fruit, crackers and cheese, some paper decorations you can make with your children – or even the cute twig decorations featured in this magazine. 

5.     Write a letter to a soldier serving overseas.  Christmas is an especially difficult time for those who serve in our military.  You can find a multitude of organizations on line who forward things to our men and women in the military.  Pick one you like and spend an afternoon writing a thank you letter and sharing your concern for them.

6.     Have your children help you clean out and organize your pantry or cupboards and take extra supplies and duplicate food items to your local Hopelink or Food Bank.  This is a win, win, win activity.  If you are unsure of where these services are, look on line or call a local church and ask if they have drop off bins for your donations.  Many do.  And churches are great places to find out about any needy families in your area you can serve.

So there are 6 quick ideas for giving during the Christmas Holidays.  I imagine you could add 6 ideas of your own and your children can add their own ideas.  No one can think out of the box like a youngster.

As a closing note, in our homes Christmas is a religious holiday and we want to close this note from the editor by wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a prayer that you will know how loved you truly are.

Jane Kelly and Rae Friis

{but mostly gamma jane!}