Crazy About Coffee

Well I had my rants about my can opener... and my issues with mops... now I want to tell you about something in my kitchen that I absolutely love.... my Bunn Coffee Maker. I would absolutely cry if my Bunn stopped working! Really... I would... like my 3 year old when she doesn't get her way...

I became a coffee addict 19 years ago when I had three babies within a years time... that's right... 3 in one year. My daughter was born Sept 26, 1988 and my identical twin sons were born Sept 7, 1989.... so it was much like having triplets as they were growing up. My favorite part of the year was that few days between their birthdays when they were all the same age... people would give me strange looks when they asked their ages and they were all the same age.... but not triplets. Of course I had to give the explanation of how this came about. I just love to freak people out a bit... heehee...

Anyways... back to the coffee....
Of course with these three babies to take care of I was up all hours of the day and night.... just napping really between feedings, changes etc.... even after they were all sleeping through the night I was up late getting things done while they were sleeping that I couldn't do while they were awake... you Moms know what I'm talking about! So I drank coffee day and night to keep going..... my pot was brewing 24/7. Then after the kids got older I slacked off a bit on my coffee drinking but still drank 2-3 pots a day... and that is currently my rate of consumption. Although I *have* begun to drink half caf now after I get that first pot of the day to wake me up good.

A few years ago my wonderful hubby decided that since I drink so much coffee and hated waiting for my coffee maker to do it's thing.... that I needed a Bunn. Now this was an extravagance to me... paying $100 for a coffee maker.... not my style. But he insisted.... and he bought me a Bunn for Valentine's Day that year. Thank you! Thank You! Thank You!... my dear sweet hubby! I love my Bunn.... and I would miss it so if it broke. Please don't anyone tell it so though.... because you know what would happen were it to find out... it would surely break.

Now a coffee lover like myself can't just drink coffee from an ordinary coffee cup... right??? I have my special large sized cups that I love almost as much as I love my Bunn. A regular sized coffee cup is just too small and requires filling way too often. So I always use my tall coffee cups to sip.... er... guzzle my coffee from.

So now I'm happy to get up in the mornings and only have to wait 2 minutes for nice fresh hot pot of coffee to brew so I can get my fix and hold my eyes open without assistance from toothpicks or other gadgets. When we visit friends who offer to make coffee.... I'm always fidgeting and thinking "when is that coffee gonna be done".... "these people need a Bunn"... "is this the largest cup you have" and other rude thoughts that I would never say out loud... well... maybe I would... you never know... and if I don't say it my Sagittarius hubby probably would.

So coffee lovers of the world... go out and get yourself a Bunn... and some large coffee cups! You'll be so happy that you did.





~A Lil Enchanted~

Sassy Hair Bows For Sassy Girls!

All lil girls need hair bows right?!.... They just add that extra lil sassy touch to whatever they're wearing. A Little 2 Sassy has amazing hand-made hair bows for girls of all ages... even us grown up girls.... the Moms! Each bow is uniquely designed in limited quantities... so you won't see these hair bows on every girl in town. They are all super full and loopy and made of high quality materials. But most of all they are made with love... by the hands of a Mom.











Just take a look at some of these cute bows... Your lil one will love these bows and so will you! But you'll find more than just hair bows at A Little 2 Sassy.... you'll find bows for your lil ones Crocs that can also be used as ponytail bows.... and flip flop bows for girls.... and Moms. She even has Rhinestone purses, caps, bandannas, and belts for Mom.... along with some home decor items as well.












Kristina is the owner of this wonderful company and she designs and makes all of the hair bows. She learned to do crafts from her Grandmother who she lived with after she lost her Mom in a car accident as a child. She is a Mom with 3 children of her own. She started by making hair bows for her own daughter... then had other Moms from her activities began to request them for their own children... and thus A Little 2 Sassy came to be. She loves to do custom bows so if you need to match an out fit you can just e-mail a pic and she'll work with you to get the perfect bow. How is that for customer service!










But that is not all.... she even offers a FREE Hair Bow Contest!

You know that old saying nothing is ever FREE! Well that's not the case at "A LITTLE 2 SASSY" !!! You really can win free hair bows for your little diva, and the best part is, you choose which bow or bows you want - up to $25.00 in value!! Just visit the web site for all of the details.



~A Lil Enchanted~

Freebies For Today!

Free Scrubbing Bubbles Gift Pack

First 3,000 to respond will receive one full-size sample of Scrubbing Bubbles Toilet Cleaning Gel.





Receive samples of Brilliant Brunette Liquid Shine Illuminating Shampoo (.28 oz.) and Brilliant Brunette Liquid Shine Illuminating Conditioner (.28 oz.)


http://www.wplj.com/goout.asp?u=http://www.johnfrieda.com/event.asp?eventcode=jf_djSample&action=entry&sod=WPLJ









Get a free Poise Sample Kit



http://www.poise.com/Products/ExperiencePoise.aspx




~A Lil Enchanted~

Mercury Retrograde

Well beginning tomorrow Mercury once again goes retrograde. If you don't know what this means or how it affects you... here's the scoop.

When a planet goes retrograde that means it appears to be moving backwards through the zodiac. This mercury retrograde will last from May 7 - May 31. This typically happens 3 times per year... however this year will have 4 Mercury retrogrades. When this happens it effects communication, transportation and events over which we seem to have little or no control. The effects of retrograde begin to be felt a few days before the actual reverse movement begins while the planet appears stationary.... and continues for several days afterwards while the planet again appears stationary before returning to a direct movement. Keep in mind that the planet is not actually moving in reverse... it just appears that way from our perspective in the solar system.

Mercury retrograde causes personal misunderstandings..... disrupted, flawed or misunderstood communications.... break downs and mishaps with phones, computers, cars (any mode of communication or transportation). It's not wise to make important decisions at this time because they will most likely be clouded by misinformation or miscommunication. This mercury retrograde occurs with Mercury in the sign of Gemini which is also a sign of communication and the mind as well.... so thinking will be more introspective... and communication will probably be even more affected. I really dread Mercury retrograde... it can wreak such havoc. So be mindful that you may be misunderstood.... or misunderstand communications more so at this time... and be more careful while you are driving... if there is something you've been meaning to fix on your car that could be dangerous now is the time to get it looked at just to be on the safe side.... and be more mindful of what others are doing on the road.

For more detailed information on Mercury retrograde... and this one in particular you can visit http://www.astrologycom.com/mercret.html.... there is a lot of info there.

So every one buckle up.... and let's all get through this as unscathed as possible!

~A Lil Enchanted~

Freebies and Giveaways

Free 8 x 10 today only !

Get a free printed 8 x 10 from Walgreens today, 5/6 only! To redeem the offer upload your photo, select pickup at store and use code 'MOTHER' at checkout. You will be able to pick up your photo at your local Walgreens absolutely free!

http://photo.walgreens.com/storepage/storePageId=Special+Offer+Prints?ban=flh2_photo_free_8x10








May 11th-17 is National Children’s Book Week!

The Paisley Monkey has teamed up with Manic Mother to giveaway 3 children's books each to 2 lucky families! This a an awesome giveaway... so click on over to Manic Mom for the details!

Print this coupon to buy a drink at Sonic and get a FREE CroisSonic Breakfast Sandwich!

Fill out the questionaire and become part of the Coffee Mate Brew Crew and get a sample of Coffee Mate and coupons too.

http://team.coffee-mate.com/screener

Get A Free KFC Grilled Chicken Meal!
Just go to www.oprah.com.... go to "get your KFC coupon" on the website... print it out and go eat for free! This offer is from 05/05/09 thru 05/19/09 and not valid on Mother's Day.


We just used ours for an awesome free lunch. You can print 4 of these coupons.... so we're saving our other 2 for another free lunch next week. Just be warned that a kids meal at KFC is $4.oo! Next time we'll get ours to go and make Steffie chicken nuggets at home....lol





Get a sample of the new Crest Whitening Strips!
http://instoresnow.walmart.com/enhancedrendercontent_ektid65100.aspx


~A Lil Enchanted~

Bissell Little Green Machine Giveaway!

J.Leigh Designz and Bissell are giving away a Bissell Little Green Machine . If you have kids, pets, a husband and carpet you need one of these! So click on over there and enter to win a free one.

~A Lil Enchanted~

Money Saving Tip - Laundry

When you think that your liquid laundry detergent container is empty... it's not! Pull that plastic spout out.... just stick your finger down in it and pull. Turn the container upside down... prop it in a basket of dirty laundry or something... and leave it for an hour. When you come back you'll have at least another wash load of detergent! So save a few cents... it all adds up!

Do this with your liquid fabric softener too.

And don't forget to adjust your water levels for the size of the wash load!

~A Lil Enchanted~

Mopping Misery....

Well I got my kitchen floor cleaned.... and it lasted all of about 2 hours.... how frustrating. Let me give you a lil tip on picking kitchen flooring.... DON'T PICK WHITE!.... not if you have kids and/or a husband. My kitchen floor is white vinyl with these lil ivory markings that are supposed to make it look a lil marbleized I guess.... it also has those tiny indents in it that are supposed to give it texture.... what this actually does is make it look dirty even when it's clean.... and those tiny indents just get filled with gunk and it's hard to get out with a regular mop. And no I did not pick this floor... it came with my house.

Over the years I've tried many different mops and have had no complete satisfaction with any of them. I've tried various sponge mops.... and the one I liked best had a lil scrubby sponge on one side that was great for scrubbing up those difficult dried on spots from drippings that someone never wiped up. But of course after about a year I couldn't find that mop head anymore.... or any other one that would fit the handle. So I had to buy a whole new mop and I didn't like it near as well. I prefer a sponge mop to a regular mop... but the trouble with sponge mops is that they don't do edges well... and they don't fit in that space between appliances and cabinets either.

So I decided at one point to try a few regular mops.... but the kind with a built in ringer... you know the kind that slides down and your twist it. Well I think I've tried at least 5 different ones.... this is the type my hubby likes.... but I don't like them because they just don't scrub as well and they leave lil pools of dirty water in those nice lil indents... it seems like no matter how many times you go over the floor it's still there. So over the years this nasty gunk of dirty mop water builds up in those indents and the floor looks nasty even when it's just been cleaned. These also don't fit well between the cabinet and the stove because of the ringer.


I even tried a Wet Jet.... now this is great to grab for lil spills and quick clean ups. But my kitchen is a bit large and trying to clean a whole dirty floor with it left the same results with the indents as the other mops I have tried. Plus.... those "mop diapers" as I call them.... the disposable pads that velcro to the bottom..... and the cleaning fluid... can get pretty expensive. The solution bottle is made so that you can't refill it... they want you to spend your money on their product instead of buying a less expensive cleaning fluid from another company!

So last year I found a product called Flip It.... and I decided that I needed one. It has a dry vacuum on one side... then you flip it over and it has a wet vacuum with a scrub brush like a vacuum cleaner and a squidgy to dry the floor fast on the other. I treated myself to this wonderful product for Mother's Day! I thought my kitchen floor worries were over. Well the dry vacuum side does work but not on anything larger than say a grain of salt.... it's great if you spill flour, sugar etc... cleans it right up. But I always have to sweep anything else with a broom first because it just doesn't pick up any food particles larger than that. So I just gave up on the dry vac side pretty quickly except for the above type spills. Now the wet vac side I was very impressed with..... those lil indents are now clean, clean, clean! It got the gunk right out and since it vacuums up the dirty mop water there is none left to pool into those tiny grooves. The difference was amazing! And I can use whatever cleaning fluid I want in this because it had a refillable tank. It's like a carpet cleaner but for vinyl flooring. However.... my other problem with the Flip It is that it doesn't do edges well either.... so with my nice clean... and now white again floor... the edges are still gunky and I still need to go around the whole large kitchen floor and scrub the edges with bleach and a scrub brush... not that I do this.... but I *NEED* to do this. It's on that list of things I need to do should I ever find the time and energy and enough of the desire.... you know... you want it done.... but you can't muster enough want to do it today? There a deluxe model of the Flip It that maybe addresses the issues.... maybe someday I'll get one of those... and maybe it will be worth the extra money.

So after the dinner mess was all cleaned up... I had to grab my flip it... and go over the floor again because someone had tracked mud in.... and of course there were dinner drips. Then I get up this morning and it already needs another going over from the lil ones breakfast drips. I really think that the only way to keep this floor clean is to stand in the corner with chosen mop apparatus in hand and follow after anyone and everyone that enters the kitchen with it.... then maybe... just maybe that would do the trick.... but of course that is not going to happen. I now wish I had not given away my Wet Jet when I purchased my Flip It.... I guess I'll have to buy another one for the lil spills. Maybe I'll get a new one for Mother's Day??? But probably not....

By the way my favorite cleaning solution for the floor, appliances and other things as well is called Awesome.... you can get a spray bottle of it at Dollar General and Dollar Tree (Walmart might have it as well.... and other stores... I haven't looked elsewhere) for only $1. It cleans great! I buy the gallon jug of concentrate at Dollar General for $3 and use it to refill my spray bottle and in my flip it... I even use it in my carpet cleaner.

So happy cleaning to you all.... may your kitchen floors shine! And maybe... just maybe... I'll clean those edges today... but probably not...

~A lil Enchanted~

Monday... Monday....

Remember that song? It rained and stormed all weekend.... so it was just a lazy kinda weekend... not getting much accomplished.... or doing anything fun either. We just kinda hung around the house for the most part. Now it's Monday and there is tons to get done.... mainly cleaning my kitchen floor which has been put off for way too long.

I got the dishes done between playing computer games with Steffie. She loves her games... and at 3 1/2 has recently learned to use the mouse... so now she can play most of the games without any help.... but of course most of the time she insists I sit with her and watch her play them. We started playing computer games with her when she was just barely 1.... at that time she loved Elmo and Sesame Street so we played those games with her. Of course she needed lots of help.... but she loved Key-Board-O-Rama and learned her letters by playing that game.... and of course from the many ABC books that I read to her.

Her next favorite.... when she was 2..... became Dora the Explorer and several other of the Nick Jr shows... like Go Diego Go and Ni Hao Kai-Lan.... of course she still needed lots of help.... but she loved these shows and the games.... and I'm amazed at how much she has learned from both. We also read tons of books and we play board games as well.

She currently loves the Strawberry Shortcake games over on www.agkidzone.com along with one that we bought her. Her favorite shows right now are Strawberry Shortcake and Hi-5.... she loves anything musical.... and if you combine music with kids she's all about it. She loves to sing and has even learned a Strawberry Shortcake song called Strawberry Jammin in German by watching the videos on You Tube! Yes!.... she even surfs You Tube! With supervision of course.... to make sure nothing inappropriate pops up....



So now at this point she is really becoming too advanced for the Sesame Street games to hold her attention.... she still plays them.... but for the most part she has surpassed them and they are just too babyish for her. So I'm continually looking for fun and educational games that are on her level. I would say she is more on a Kindergarten level than a pre-school level at this point. She already knows her letters and numbers... is learning phonics... can count to 100 with a lil help.... has an amazing vocabulary.... and I've begun teaching her to read (we're taking this very slowly).... and we're working on her fine motor skills.... cutting, writing and drawing etc... of course this is all fun and play to her.... we do it through games and art activities and reading... she loves books!

And you know they say that children shouldn't watch alot of TV.... even educational children's shows.... well she has been watching these shows since before she turned one and I am convinced that they really taught her alot. She doesn't sit and watch tv for hours on end... but I do keep the tv on her lil shows all day and she watches for a few minutes when something catches her attention and then she wonders off to play for awhile.... then it's back to the tv for awhile... and so on. I don't think she would be nearly as advanced if it weren't for watching these shows. But I *am* pretty picky about what I let her watch.... nothing that is violent or scary... we try to stay away from shows with nasty villans etc.... and we're careful about we watch ourselves when she is awake.... we save most of our own tv watching for when she is asleep.


Well I *really* need to get to that kitchen floor


~A Lil Enchanted~