Saturday's Treasures

I thoroughly enjoy looking at other's blogs and getting decorating ideas. I will admit,
I'm not very original, but I do enjoy trying to make our house look more homey and inviting.
Most of all, when I view other decorating blogs, I often feel very inspired and think "I could do that too"! So my hope is, I can pass on that same positive feeling on to you. My house looks VERY lived in most of the time. I want it to feel like a HOME to my kids...not a place where they aren't allowed to touch anything or have fun. So with that in mind, from time to time I will try to post changes as I make them. And at least I'll have fun reading back through my posts, appreciating the difference whether you do or not:) And also, maybe my husband will also see what I do all day...haha. This is the little "foyer"(yeah..right) area when you just step in the door. I was pretty happy with this look, but still wanted to soften it a little. I priced some Smith and Hawken wreaths at Target, but after looking at the price decided I would be ok with just a plain mirror.

But...to my surprise, I found one at a yard sale for just a dollar that was nearly the same as the one they had at Target. Yep...I was happy. And it softened the mirror so now it feels a little warmer when you walk in!

OK...so this typewriter caught my eye,(my husband still does not get that)I mulled it over for about 4 hours...realized I could NOT live without it...went back and got it for $2 less then they wanted earlier. So for $8, I bought a whole lot of happy! lol The kids think it's really cool because it still works...that is after we get some ink ribbon for it. Lauren is very anxious to play "Kit"...haha. Who would have thought adding to my decor would make me happy AND provide the kids with something they can play with!! Win, win!

I could not believe someone was willing to part with these adorable pop bottle crates!! I nearly squeeled with glee....(except that would have embarassed Lauren, my yard sale pal, so I kept it all in ) Are they not SOOOO cute?!?! I got one from Coke, RC Cola, and 7-UP. It's really cool that the insides still have rings showing from where the pop bottles once were stored. Oh..the possibilities:) And only $2 a piece made me very happy!

And just for my Mom, this is the unique toy box I found for $2. I thought it looked way more living-roomish than our other plain red one. The kids were just happy to have a new hiding place...whatever:)

Well, I better run. (can ya keep a secret?) I'm working on a VERY cool treasure hunt for Lauren's birthday next week. And yes..I will post pics and details AFTER the grand event, of course:)

Scenes from Treasure Cove

Michael and his best friend Jonathan before

heading out to Treasure Cove!

Me and my team, the Sapphires. We are the ones wearing

the blue leis...although Jonathan tried to sneak into

the picture:)

Michael was on David's team, the Rubies. This

team will long be remembered for their

clever team cheers each and every night! The

boys loved it and looked forward to going each night!

Lauren really enjoyed being on the Emerald team.

Brenda was their team leader. Here they are just

singing away:)

Caleb and his best friend, Elizabeth,

were on the Diamond team led by Andrew

and Katie R. It's especially fun to watch these two

doing the motions to the songs..they both would stop

every so often and make sure the other

was getting it right!

Singing "Ephesians 1 verse 7"






Yep..Caleb is making sure Elizabeth gets

it right...lol

~Bargain Hunting~

This Saturday, I was thrilled to get the chance to go to yard sales. We started out in

Highland Heights where there was to have been a subdivision full of sales.

They turned out very dissapointing. I did, however, manage to find this

adorable shelf! I was thrilled to discover it had been found in

an old barn. The people I bought it from had it painted white. It looks

great in my kitchen area. But I'm not sure exactly what I want to do with it.

So many possibilites!! Its a little over 2 ft long. And pardon the

current decorations. I randomly ran through the house last night after hanging it,

looking for any objects to put on it. As

you can see, I didn't find much...haha.

The "Antiques" sign may stay...the other things...probably not??

Best part? This cost me $5!! I was pretty happy!!

After wasting/spending time in Highland Heights, I decided
to try going to the sales in Newport in the Historic
District. Wish I would have gone there first. Lots of antiques and treasures
were waiting to be discovered. Among them, was this old sled.
I have been DYING for an old sled to use at Christmastime, and
was almost afraid to look at the price. There wasn't one, actually.
The lady just old me "oh...I guess it's 4 bucks" My mouth just about
dropped open. Before I could get my money out, she had
changed it to $3. I have so many places to use this, I may have
to change it's location about 10 times
during the Christmas Season...lol! And yes, I'm more than
a little anxious to start decorating for Christmas. I also bought
2 Christmas trees also...one was 50 cents!



My last treasure, was this little wooden table. I'm not even sure
where I will use it, but it seemed too cute to leave behind.
The wood is fairly heavy and it's made very sturdy. I'm thinking about all the colors I could spray paint it...(though not all at once..lol) Ideas?? Oh...and it only
cost $2! See why I could not leave it behind??






If you haven't guessed it by now, I LOVE the thrill of
finding a good treasure!! Seems I may have passed that
on to all 3 kids! Saturday, however, only Lauren and
Michael were willing to crawl out of bed early to join me
for sales. Micael got a pretty good-sized
box of baseball cards for 50 cents. He's having
so much fun looking through them.

Chick-Fil-A Night

So, tonight at Chick-Fil-A, if you dressed like a cow

you got a free entree. Guess who could NOT resist

a deal like that?!? Chris, of course...haha Anyway,

costume design was done by Michael and I. Yep. We looked

crazy, but we had LOTS of fun and we made the

Houston Rd. Chick-Fil-A FB page!

Michael enjoying his chicken nuggets:)



Lauren loves their chicken salad sandwich
(we don't know where she gets that...lol)

Caleb enjoying his nuggets. What a fun night!!

We might just try that again sometime!!

Happy 14th Anniversary, chris!

This is the video I created for Chris for our 14th Anniversary, which was Monday! Enjoy!

First Week of School

Lauren started school on Monday morning at Aldersgate Christian Academy. She is in 4th grade, but 3rd and 4th share a room together. Both grades share Mrs. Beth Avery for their teacher. Lauren LOVES school and loves her teacher! 4th grade is a class of 9 girls and 1 boy. So LOTS of socializing for Little Miss Social, and lots of drama! Fun fun!
The boys are home schooling...well Michael is at least! Caleb sits quietly at his desk and does puzzles, coloring and other quiet play. Michael is in the 2nd grade this year. He is a good reader and enjoys learning (most days!) I thoroughly enjoy teaching them.
Keep checking back for more postings. I will update as I have time. With Lauren in school I have a few more free moments in my day. I realized, as my kids enjoy reading through older posts, that this blog was a way to keep track of highlights in our lives. I've never been good at keeping diaries or journals. So this is my online pictoral journal. Enjoy!

Goodbye Blogspot, Hello Facebook!

Since the new year of 2009 is just around the corner, I am re-thinking my web presence. As a busy home-schooling mother, blogging on Blogspot just takes too much time. As you can tell, my blogging has started to slip. After posting 105 times in 2007, I have only posted 33 times in 2008 and have not posted in over a month. Therefore, I am saying goodbye temporarily or permanently to

and saying hello to

I am moving over to Facebook. It takes a lot less time and is easier to use and post items. I can still upload albums and notes. As Chris likes to say, Blogspot is so 2007. You will be able to find me on Facebook very easily-just search for Nancy Hamer or Nancy Lambeth and ask to be my friend. Joining Facebook is free and only takes a minute or two.

And yes! We got enough money to buy a goat, five ducks, a chicken and a set of school supplies for a classroom. Not bad for two kids. They did lots of extra jobs for Mommy and others to earn extra $$. Thanks to everyone that donated to their little project. It is something that will probably turn into a Christmas tradition!

Buying A Goat

Yes. We are officially buying a goat. No. It's not that Chris is tired of mowing. Actually, this is our home school project. Recently, we received a Christmas Catalog from World Vision. How refreshing amidst all the toy and clothing catalogs.....it's seems like we are on EVERYBODY'S list. As I thumbed through, I decided this was a MUST for our kids....giving to someone in need. We looked through the catalog in class the other day, and after reviewing all the options, we have decided on a goat for $75. A goat can provide milk for a family plus the family can sell surplus milk, cheese, and other things at the market. Our kids are raising money, (with a little help from the teacher and principal) by doing extra chores around the house or by offering to do chores for others. They have also decided they would like us to take some of the "Christmas Present Budget" and put that towards the goat. As I'm typing this, the kids are screaming and jumping for joy....the mother of the boys I babysit, just added $20. So....we are well on our way!! I think our greatest gift this year will be the joy of helping others!