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Staying Home Sawyer

Real Life Living on a Real Life Budget

DIY, Lifestyle

We’re How Old?!

11.18.2014

Congratulations Expecting Card DIY

Yes, I know how old I am. Unlike many women my age, I am very happy about it. Let’s look on the bright side: I live in one of the most beautiful states in the country, I have an amazing husband, we just bought our first mansion townhome, we have an adorable fat cat, and I have eaten at least ten life-changing cheeseburgers across the country.

But alas, that’s not enough for some greedy people. They’ve got to have it all; they want the cheeseburgers AND a baby. Geez, they can never settle can they?

While we’re still over here on cloud nine with our tiny cat, most of my friends have abandoned our train and instead hopped on the other one. You know the one, it doesn’t have a sleeper station. It’s going 90mph and it doesn’t stop. Even for a nap. Once a year.

Congratulations Expecting CardSo for those lucky ones, I send a card. Because that’s much more appropriate than a cheeseburger. I mean, it wouldn’t be good by the time it got there anyway. So I’ll eat it instead. It’s the thought that counts anyway. Now you know why I moved away from all my friends.

All kidding aside, I love my friends and their adorable offspring. I even love babysitting. Sometimes. After age four. And especially after bedtime.

If you’d like to send a card like this, it’s simple. Cut a designed piece of paper into the size you want (mine was 4×5.5in), attach to front of card. Cut out the same sized white piece of cardstock, trace a silhouette of an expecting mother (just Google one). Cut out, and use glue dots to attach the white to the card. Print this Congratulations for the front, and this poem for the inside. And voila!

And then eat the cheeseburger for yourself.

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Birthday's, DIY, Lifestyle

Keep the Gifts Coming…

11.14.2014

New Home Gift BoxThere are few things I appreciate more than when someone buys me the very expensive, but yet adorable, Hallmark greeting card. Seriously. There’s nothing like saying, “I love you,” like there is with the 12.99 greeting card. I mean, if someone is splurging for the adorable, glittery (I get these a lot, not sure why), shiny greeting card, they clearly love you. Try to debate this.

Another thing that I think is hard to top: homemade gift boxes. I’m not exactly sure where my friends got the idea that I like gift boxes in the mail. Couldn’t have been this, or this, or even this, could it? Am I that transparent?New Home or Anniversary Gift BoxSomething happened to my friends when I said the big, “yes.” They turned into crafting bridesmaid machines. Seriously. I had never seen a craft come out of a one of them in the 20+ years I knew them. Suddenly, they’re popping out crafts made for me left and right. Apparently I put the pressure on. And apparently I rubbed off a little of this “glitter” onto them. Sorry not sorry.

Apparently (now I’m starting to feel like Noah Ritter) my maid of honor decided to keep the crafts coming even a year after the wedding. I’m secretly hoping her life turns into a giant craft fair. She has a spare bedroom, can I convince her to add a crafting room? She sent us this amazing gift box as a “First Anniversary/Housewarming” gift. I am in love. With her AND the box.Ingredients for a Congratulations BasketInside was everything glittery and sparkly and amazing. And then there was Fireball. For him. She added a bottle of my favorite wine as an anniversary gift, and a bottle of champagne as a Congratulations gift. And of course the adorable cards.Decorate a Gift Box for a New HomeLike I said, she clearly loves me.

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DIY, Home Decor

In Honor of Our Big Win

11.13.2014

Burlap NFL Team Wreath - House DividedYes, I said “our.” When my team wins, I consider it a personal win. I mean, you take what you can get. And sometimes, a team win is a score for yourself. At least that’s what I told myself when I splurged on shopping the next day. Congratulations me!

Not only did my team win on Sunday, but I also consider this amazing gift a personal score too. My aunt sent us this beautiful housewarming gift, a Packers/Bears House Divided wreath. I know what you’re thinking. Don’t I already have a House Divided wreath that I blogged about? Yes. And while you can find those instructions here, you must know: This new wreath is SO MUCH MORE AMAZING than my old one. The old one’s history! As in Old Testament history. It’s ancient. Unless you’re not super crafty, in which case it’s perfectly perfect for you to make! See what I did there?

My aunt bought this wreath, so I can’t give you instructions. But if you think like I do…”this looks a little too difficult (even) for me,” then you’re in luck: You can buy one from My Ginger Sister’s Etsy store. Or you can just take a look at how awesome they are on their Facebook Page. They have all different styles. I think my favorite might be their holiday wreaths. Weird right? Me, liking holiday things? Phhhh…Burlap NFL Team Wreath - House DividedMaybe someday I’ll get a little more detailed and get into this burlap movement. Until then, I think I’ll stick with the easier crafts. Good thing we can just buy the difficult ones. 🙂

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DIY, Lifestyle

I’m Flying Far Far Away!

11.11.2014

DIY Rosette HeadbandNot really. In reality I just flew back from flying “far far away” – to the land of freezing cold and snow. My hometown, Green Bay, Wisconsin. My husband and I took a trip to see the Green Bay Packers BEAT DOWN the Chicago Bears on Sunday night. It was excellent. Unless you ask him, in which case he would say it was horrible. His Bears really let him down.  Some teams just can’t handle the green and gold.

 So while I was on a real vacation, I also took a little blogging trip, over to Hugs x Heart where I was honored to be a guest blogger. It was my first time and it was everything I hoped it would be. It was flowers and chocolate and champagne and glitter all rolled into one. I feel so special that Nad asked me to write a post on her blog, and I can’t thank her enough for giving me a chance. Hopefully I didn’t bore her readers too much. I mean, everyone can handle a little DIY right?!

So why don’t you take a little trip too? Head on over to her blog to see my post on DIY Rosette Headbands (pictured above). While you’re there, find out what I’d write on a dating application. If I wasn’t married of course. 😉Go Pack Go

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About Me

About Me

Hi Mamas! My name is Shauna, a 30-something (big emphasis on the 'something') new mama and wife living in Southern California. I've become a Stay At Home Mom to Sawyer, and I would do it forever if I could! I'm originally from Wisconsin and am a total Cheesehead! I'm here to share DIY's, travel tips, and baby stuff I'm sure!

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stayinghomesawyer

Save for later. PS: This is my husbands rendition Save for later.

PS: This is my husbands rendition of a “Sexy Willy Wonka.” You know, because being Aladdin, Flynn Ryder, Prince Charming…he couldn’t just be a regular guy for one year. 🤣🤣
Don’t spend today wishing for tomorrow. Find five Don’t spend today wishing for tomorrow. Find five things every night that you’re thankful for, and BE thankful for them. So much of our lives are spent waiting for the next best thing when in reality, it’s sitting right in front of us.
If there’s anything I’ve learned in this life, it’ If there’s anything I’ve learned in this life, it’s to SLOW DOWN.

So much of life is spent going, going, going. Waiting for the next stage. Telling ourselves, “Once we get through this, things will be easier.” Once the kids are older. Once life settles down. Once we have more time. But what if we’re missing the whole point? Because the moments we’re so eager to get through ARE the moments.

Today is the important stuff. The ordinary days. The messy days. The little conversations, the giggles, the routines, the chaos, the moments that don’t feel significant while we’re living them. We spend so much time wishing for the next chapter that we forget we’re already living one we’ll someday wish we could go back to.

So slow down.

Be here.
Pay attention.
Let the moment take as long as it needs to.

Because someday, these will be the days we miss.

**And if you know us personally, you know why I had to jump on this social media trend**
This is your permission slip to let the crafts be This is your permission slip to let the crafts be messy. 

They don’t need to match your house. They don’t need to be Pinterest-worthy. They don’t need to be made with a neutral color palette and a Cricut. They just need to be theirs.

Because someday I’m probably going to miss the paper scraps, the glue everywhere, the questionable color combinations, and the little masterpieces I had no idea what to do with. Let them make the ugly craft. Let them make a mess. Let them create something that looks nothing like what you had in mind.

Childhood doesn’t have to be aesthetically pleasing to be beautiful.
When you stop to think about the fact that one day When you stop to think about the fact that one day all of her toys will be someone else’s toys, she’ll be heading off to college, and all I’ll be left with are these videos…
This is NOT a post to bash moms that are happy the This is NOT a post to bash moms that are happy their kids are going back to school. My neighbors and I commiserate all summer long about how long the days are, how frustrating the kids can be, how much they’re fighting, etc. 

But my days are always like that, and even though it’s exhausting and overwhelming at times, I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Even if I only have ONE moment like this a day, it’s one moment a day I could miss out on if they were in a traditional school. 

So here’s to whatever choice you are making in regards to your kids education. What’s best for YOU is most important. And what’s best for us is this.
I honestly never thought I’d be the mom saying yes I honestly never thought I’d be the mom saying yes
 to slime... but here we are.

The difference? This isn’t just a container of slime
 to squish around. The Slime Prank Lab by @CrunchLabs
turns it into an activity. We spent the afternoon mixing the slime, experimenting with different textures, and (of course) testing out the ridiculously funny booger and fart pranks. 🤣

My girls were completely entertained, and I loved watching them create, experiment, and laugh together. It feels like pure fun for the kids, but there’s actually some pretty cool science and engineering behind it all, plus Mark Rober walks you through even more with the QR code inside the kit.

Who in your family would be the first prank target? 
#sponsored #crunchlabs @moosetoys_
I’m about as outdoorsy as an overwater bungalow in I’m about as outdoorsy as an overwater bungalow in Tahiti can be.

#tahiti
A core memory I didn’t know I’d be making… This w A core memory I didn’t know I’d be making…

This weekend at church, my daughter got to light the candles for the first time. At the end of the service, when she went up on her own to extinguish them, proud tears dropped from my eyes. And as I looked around at others, I noticed I wasn’t the only one. 

If you had asked me in my early to mid twenties, I wouldn’t have imagined how much this community, this faith, and these little traditions would come to mean to our family. There was a season of my life, long before I became a mom, where I drifted away from actively going to church. Now, getting to watch my girls grow up surrounded by faith, love, and a church family who knows them and celebrates them feels like such a gift.
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