I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We spent time with family and went to three {yes three} Thanksgiving events. It was great but we're worn out! Now that we celebrated Thanksgiving I can officially start celebrating Christmas! There's so many Christmas DIY project ideas floating around in my head and I can't wait to share them with my readers--so stay tuned for some great projects and ideas at Carrie This Home! It's Time To Party! We have five lovely hosts at this party which means more exposure for you! Your posts will show up on my blog as well as Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A Blossoming Life, Sara from Sneaky ... read more
Thankful Thursday: My Two Little Miracles
This is part 3 of 3 in my Thankful Thursday series. Instead of sharing one quick thing each day in November that I’m thankful for, I’m taking some extended time to share some amazing stories of thankfulness from my own life. In case you missed it you can check out part one: Thankful Thursday: My Home and part two Thankful Thursday: Affording To Be A Stay At Home Mom. Today I'm remembering two times in my life where God intervened and did something miraculous. Every child is a miracle. Every entrance into this world is a miracle and my children are no exception. I had the picture perfect pregnancy with both of my children. No nausea. No crazy off the wall ... read more
How To Cool Soup Fast!
I recently discovered how to cool soup fast without watering it down with ice. This little tip has been a game changer for me! One of my kids' favorite things to eat for lunch is "corn soup." It's a creamy corn and chicken soup that's perfect on cold days. But I always run into a problem...I have to wait until it cools off before I eat it so I don't burn my tongue. I'm not patient enough to wait for it to cool down. Neither are my kids. They can't eat it right away--it's BLAZING hot! My son doesn't quite understand the concept of waiting for food to cool down. I try to blow it off but as he eats the first bite he still burns his tongue. ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 51
I have to admit something that may not be too popular among my blogger friends but I'll say it anyway. I'm NOT ready for Christmas yet! There. I said it. I hate seeing Christmas stuff up before Thanksgiving. Especially in store displays. Every store in the world seems to have Christmas trees up, Christmas music playing, and jingle bells everywhere. That's wonderful but what happened to Thanksgiving? Don't go on thinking I'm a Scrooge. I LOVE Christmas. I just want to celebrate Thanksgiving first. Okay. Rant is now over! Time To Party! Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop has five hosts--which means 5 times the exposure for ... read more
Ultimate Outlet
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. I received compensation to write honestly about my experience with UltimateOutlet.com. All opinions are 100% my own. As a stay at home mom, I spend a lot of my time in pj's and sweatshirts. Not very stylish. Dressing up is an event for me. I feel my self esteem going up when I get to wear something that flatters me well. I've learned that it's really worth the money to invest in some outfits that make you feel good and beautiful. Because you are! I love to shop for clothes but usually I'm too cheap frugal to buy the clothes I really like. The biggest shopping season of the year is right about to get ... read more
Thankful Thursday: Affording To Be A Stay At Home Mom
This is part 2 of my 3 part Thankful Thursday series. Instead of sharing one quick thing each day in November that I'm thankful for, I'm taking some extended time to share some amazing stories of thankfulness from my own life. See part one HERE. Should I be a working mom or a stay at home mom? Have you ever asked yourself this question? I've asked myself this question at least a thousand times. I've been on every side of this issue. So many parents struggle trying to find out the right thing to do. I always envisioned myself being a stay at home mom....if we could afford it. To Be A Working Mom We were so thrilled to learn we were ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 50
Today Is A BIG Day! Today I'm turning 34 but in my mind I still feel like I should be 25. How in the world is it possible I'm already 34? Where did the time go? Middle Age My hubby is a high school science teacher and you'd never believe the crazy things he hears from his students. One day they were discussing middle age and one student chimed in and said that she thinks middle age starts at 34. Really?!? According to this lovely girl, I'm middle aged. Uh--no. I don't think so! All jokes aside I am very thankful for the years God has given me. I'm thankful for all He's doing in my life lately, that I'm healthy and I have lots of friends I ... read more
Thankful Thursday: My Home
November is a time to be thankful. I've seen a lot of people share on Facebook one thing they're thankful for each day in November. That's all good and fine but I'm not doing that. Why not? There's some things I'm thankful for that need to be explained. I want to tell the whole story & that won't fit in a Facebook status update. For the last three Thursdays in November, I'm going to do a series called Thankful Thursday. I'll be sharing some stories of some of the biggest things I'm thankful for. Thankful Thursday: My Home My hubby and I got married young. We spent the first several years of our marriage getting up on our feet ... read more
Photo Thanksgiving Card {Tutorial}
Disclosure: this post contains affiliate links. This means if you sign up for PicMonkey’s awesome Royale version, I will earn a small commission & you will be supporting Carrie This Home at no extra cost to you! I really don't buy many cards these days because they're just too expensive! Or maybe I'm too cheap. I'll settle on both. Over the years I've used PicMonkey to make my own photo cards. I love doing this because they're more sentimental and they only cost about 20 cents each! I make them for everything--birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, and the list goes on. Now that Thanksgiving is just around the corner, I thought I'd share how you can ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 49
Welcome to this week's Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop! This week on Carrie This Home I'm giving away this cute personalized sign to one of my lucky readers! {Click HERE to enter the contest} Time To Party! We have five fabulous hosts at this party--which means more exposure for your posts! Your posts will show up on my blog as well as Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A Blossoming Life, Sara from Sneaky Spoons, and Katie from The Casual Craftlete. My Favorite Link Ups From Last Week: The first year blog linked up this amazingly easy recipe for Cake Mix Apple Snaps. I pinned the recipe, put the ingredients on the ... read more
Personalized Signs
This is a sponsored post. I was given a sign for free to review and one lucky reader will receive one as a prize! All opinions are 100% my own. I love finding easy ways to decorate my home. One way I love to dress up an empty wall is with a personalized sign. I've had the pleasure of working with Andrea from Signs By Andrea and she's agreed to giveaway one of her beautiful handmade signs to one lucky reader! Signs by Andrea are all handmade painted wood signs made by....you guessed it...a sweet girl named Andrea. Her signs are simple, rustic, and the perfect addition to any home decor theme. Here are some lovely examples of how a handmade sign ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 48
I hope you all remembered to change your clocks last night! I went ahead and changed some of them & not thinking too clearly I moved the clocks one hour ahead. Oops. Good thing the hubby pointed out my error or else we would have totally missed church this morning! I'm blaming it on mommy brain! Do any of you mommas out there feel like your loosing your mind? If so we should get together because that stuff happens to me all.the.time. Allright...moving on... Let's Hop! There are five hosts to this party--which means more exposure for your posts! Your posts will show up on my blog as well as Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A ... read more
How To Help Kids Adjust To Time Change
This post contains affiliate links meaning if you make a purchase you will be supporting Carrie This Home at no extra cost to you! I used to love daylight savings time because it would give me light early in the morning so I could go for a run before work. Now as a mom I despise it. I know I'm not the only one. In my Facebook news feed this morning, here's what some of my friends said: "Toddlers know nothing about day light savings" -Ben "Yeah right an extra hour of sleep. Not with toddlers in the house." -Alana "I hate you time change!!!!!!!! 2 babies in my bed ready to start the day. Gonna be a long one" -Kristin Our bodies have been made to respond to light. ... read more
Easy Wainscoting
Get ready! Today I'm going to introduce you to one of the biggest-bang-for-your-buck projects I've ever done! I LOVE the look of wainscoting, don't you? It makes a boring builder-grade cabinet look upgraded and customized. Wainscoting gives a simple elegant look that I had to have in my kitchen. This summer, The Hubby and I painted our kitchen cabinets white. We wanted our cabinets to have more character so we decided to install traditional wainscoting to all the cabinet ends. My Hubby went to the local home improvement store to research our wainscoting project. As a result, he noticed several problems. The Problems With ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 47
There were so many great ideas linked up at Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop last week! I was really encouraged to see so many people participating! Let's Hop! Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop is hosted by FIVE bloggers--which means more exposure for your posts! Your posts will show up on my blog as well as Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A Blossoming Life, Sara from Sneaky Spoons, and Katie from The Casual Craftlete. Some of my favorite link ups from last week were: Titi Crafty linked up this Rice Pudding recipe & I'm hoping to try it for our small group soon! This would be the perfect warm treat to enjoy on a cold fall ... read more
Easy Creamy Spaghetti
The Easy Creamy Spaghetti recipe was born out of an epic dinner fail. Here's how it all began... One night I decided to try a recipe for spaghetti in the crock pot. It looked promising but the end results were terrible. It was super mushy, cost a lot, and I ended up throwing away the leftovers. I hate throwing away leftovers! Thinking back, why in the world did I decide to make crock pot spaghetti? Spaghetti is one of the easiest meals to make, so why would I make it in a crock pot? Oh well. Although I was upset at the loss of food and money at that meal, I did learn one important thing. Adding cream cheese to spaghetti sauce makes it epic! This ... read more
Tips For Beautiful Flowers
Today I'm sharing a a couple quick tips for beautiful flowers all year long. The best tip is one I learned from my Mom. She's always had a green thumb and loves to garden. Her flowers are always well cared for and look gorgeous. Me on the other hand--I'm lucky to keep a plant alive for more than two weeks. If you're like me and gardening doesn't come natural to you, don't worry. You can have a "brown thumb" and still have beautiful flowers all year long. Tips For Beautiful Flowers All Year Long Fake It! One little trick my Mom does is she uses fake flowers among in-season flowers to add more color and life to landscaping. The picture below ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 46
This week on Carrie This Home I shared a fun Orange and Chocolate Halloween Cookies recipe. My daughter and I made them together and she came dressed for the occasion! I also got the chance to Decorate With Icon Wall Stickers and it was a blast! There's so many decorating possiblities it was hard to narrow it down to one. Here's the one I chose and I love how it looks! Now it's time to blog hop! I'm teaming up with four other blogger friends to host this great party: Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A Blossoming Life, Sara from Sneaky Spoons, and Katie from The Casual Craftlete. Featured Posts From Last Week: I loved ... read more
Icon Wall Stickers
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Icon Wall Stickers. I received compensation and the product for free to review. All opinions are 100% mine. Every so often I like to tell my readers about products I love. Recently I was introduced to Icon Wall Stickers--a company that produces totally customizable vinyl "stickers" for your wall. Wall stickers are a great & easy way to add personality to a room. If you have a blank wall that's screaming for attention, this might be the perfect solution for you! I've used wall stickers before but the ones I see in the stores come pre-made so they're never quite the right size or color. ... read more
Orange and Chocolate Halloween Cookies
One of my most popular recipes here is my Orange Creamsicle Cookies. There's something special about the flavor combination of vanilla & orange. It reminds me of those push up ice cream treats I had when I was a kid. If you've never had these cookies, click over to that post and try them. They're wonderful! Speaking of flavor combinations, another good one is orange & chocolate. Whoever thought of that flavor combination is a straight up genius! I recently decided to do a twist on my Orange Creamsicle Cookies recipe for Halloween this year. Instead of using white chocolate chips, I swapped them out for milk chocolate ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 45
This week on Carrie This Home I shared the before and after pictures of my son's first haircut. We had to say goodbye to his baby curls :( Through the process, I wrote 7 Tips To Help Survive Baby's First Haircut to help those about to go through the same journey I just made. Time for the Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop Party! I've been blessed enough to team up with four fantastic bloggers to host this great party: Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A Blossoming Life, Sara from Sneaky Spoons, and Katie from The Casual Craftlete. Here are my featured posts from last week's party: I loved this Pumpkin Faces Felt Board link ... read more
Tips To Survive Baby’s First Haircut
I hit a milestone as a mom last week. I survived made it through my first baby haircut. After going through this experience, I wanted to make a list of helpful tips to survive baby's first haircut for those about to make the journey I just made. In the 4.5 years I've been a mother of two, I've never had to cut my children's hair. My daughter has beautiful hair. In fear of somehow ruining it, I've never had it cut. My son's hair is a different story. Over the past year his hair has been getting a LOT longer. One day, The Hubby pulled me aside and said "I'm sorry to say this honey but...he's got a mullet." He was right. I'd ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 44
I hope you all are having a wonderful Sunday evening! This past week at Carrie This Home I was excited to show you all my new paint color for the Living Room: ...and shared some things God was working on in my heart about spending more time with my kids: Now on to the Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop Party! I'm hosting this party along with four lovely ladies: Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A Blossoming Life, Sara from Sneaky Spoons, and Katie from The Casual Craftlete. Here's my featured posts from last week: Thrifty 31 linked up this fabulous list of 10 Inexpensive Fall Date Nights. A Cultivated Nest linked up a great ... read more
Painting The Living Room
If you follow Carrie This Home on Pinterest, you've seen me pin A LOT of inspiration for blue paint colors. When we first bought our house, almost every single wall was white. Very bland. Very boring. Very much in need of life. So we picked a tan paint color called Dune and loved it. We used this tan color in several rooms in our house and it gave the life we were looking for. Well, for awhile at least. Here we are six years later and every time I sit in the living room I feel like I'm drowning in a sea of beige. We have beige walls EVERYWHERE. Pinterest wasn't around when I originally picked paint colors so I had almost zero ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 43
What a week we had! The hubby and I went to a church retreat. It was a great chance to get away, spend time with Jesus, and reconnect with friends. Events like these are always challenging and fun for my faith. We were totally worn out by the time we got home! Thanks for joining me and Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A Blossoming Life, Sara from Sneaky Spoons, and Katie from The Casual Craftlete. Here's my featured posts from last week: Rain On A Tin Roof linked up this adorable Navy and White Chevron Tray. Did you know that there is a painter's tape shaped in chevron? I was super excited to find that out in this post. Check out her project for all the ... read more
Time Well Spent
I wanted to share something that God has been putting on my heart a LOT lately. Like most parents, I struggle with how to accomplish all the things on my to-do list. To be honest, most of them don't get done. I feel like I'm treading water most days. I spend a lot of my time doing things that have to be done. I have to do the laundry. I have to pay the bills. I have to water the flowers. I have to clean the house. I also waste a lot of time. I waste time on Facebook. I waste time on this blog. I waste time on Pinterest. I got to a place where I really had to ask for help and guidance from God as to how I should be spending my time each ... read more
All Things Fall
I'm so excited the fall weather is finally here! A couple weeks ago it was in the high 90s with crazy high humidity. This morning I was SO thankful to wake up to some crisp cool fresh air. Now that fall is here I wanted to share some fun fall projects, recipes and crafts with you. I absolutely love these free fall printables from aka design. Fall is a time of thankfulness and what better way to remember how good He is to me! The Casual Craftlete shared a great Pumpkin Roll Recipe. It has cream cheese frosting on it! Anything with cream cheese in it has to be good! Here's a cute Giant Distressed Fall Sign from Love Grows Wild. This is ... read more
Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop 42
Are you ready for fall? I sure am! After a month of crazy hot and humid temperatures, I'm really ready for cooler weather, wearing scarves, and sipping on hot chocolate. Thanks for joining me and Jordan from Lily White. Designs, Amy From A Blossoming Life, Sara from Sneaky Spoons, and Katie from The Casual Craftlete. Here's my featured posts from last week: We don't always want to think about scary situations but it's good to be informed. Mommyhead Adventures shared a really helpful post about What To Do If Your Child Swallows A Magnet. I pray this won't happen to any of you but if it does read this & you'll know what to do. I Want Crazy linked up a great collection ... read more
Easy Fall Decor For 6 Dollars
One of the simplest and most beautiful ways to decorate is to use your own photos. Decorating in the fall is so fun since nature provides such warm beautiful colors to photograph. Today I updated some of the decor in my guest bathroom for less than 6 dollars! All you need is a camera, some pretty fall leaves, and a place to hang pictures. First I gathered some colorful leaves and arranged them on a table outside. I try to take as many pictures as I can outside since the lighting is so good. I took some close up pictures of the leaves in different arrangements. I tried to focus on the leaves that were the most colorful. Next I uploaded them to my ... read more
Summer Recap
I know everyone has said the same thing already but I'm going to say it anyway. I can't believe how fast this summer flew by. My hubby is a teacher and had the summer off so we used our time to spend time together as a family and do lots of little projects to the house. Here's a recap of our crazy, fun, and memorable summer. In June I was reunited with two of my college roommates at my church's summer conference. These two women taught me what it's like to follow Jesus. I would not be who I am if God hadn't given these wonderful friends to me. So thankful for them! The hubby and I had an epic fail the first time we took the kiddos for a ride on the bike trailer. ... read more
