Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Merry Christmas Eve!

12 And it came to pass that he cried mightily unto the Lord all that day; and behold, the voice of the Lord came unto him, saying:

13 Lift up your head and be of good cheer; for behold, the time is at hand, and on this night shall the sign be given, and on the morrow come I into the world, to show unto the world that I will fulfil all that which I have caused to be spoken by the mouth of my holy prophets.

14 Behold, I come unto my own, to fulfil all things which I have made known unto the children of men from the foundation of the world, and to do the will, both of the Father and of the Son--of the Father because of me, and of the Son because of my flesh. And behold, the time is at hand, and this night shall the sign be given.



 (3 Nephi 1:12-14)

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I know that I am a day early on this. However, today my family is celebrating Thanksgiving. I work at Walmart and our "Black Friday sale" starts on Thanksgiving night now. Even when "Black Friday" was on Friday I still worked on Thanksgiving Day. It's nothing new to me. I've seen a lot of people post or comment that they feel retailers shouldn't be open on Thanksgiving. Whether they act according to how they feel, I don't know. I do know that there is a large pool of people that are glad that retailers are open on Thanksgiving, because they shop on Thanksgiving. 

I am Thankful that I have a job that pays me well so that I can take care of my family, that I am also thankful for. I am thankful that my job provides so many great benefits beyond the paycheck. One such benefit Walmart is providing this year is a "25% percent off an entire purchase" voucher for every associate that works Thanksgiving Day during the Black Friday Sale. My family has been saving in our grocery budget so that we could use this discount to stock up on 2-3 months of groceries. So, just for working on Thanksgiving Day, as I have been for many years, we will be easily saving $300-$500 on food and gifts when I redeem that voucher. Some of you might be thinking that replacing money for family memories isn't right, I don't either. That's why my wife and I pick a different day to have our family Thanksgiving Day. We spend time together and build memories, just because it is on a different day doesn't make it any less special. 



Thursday, October 31, 2013

Coupon Binder For Sale


I've decided to sell my coupon binderIf you are looking to start couponing or just want an awesome binder to get organized, check out my ad on craigslist.



This starts with a Case-it "The Big Daddy Dual" ($34.99 from Caseit.com) that features; 
• 3" Rings and 1 ½" Rings
• Expands to 5" of Capacity
• Velcro Secured Organizer
• Removable Pencil Case with Padded Media Pockets
• Cover Flap Protects Pen, Flash Drive, and Media Holders
• Handle and Shoulder Strap
• Ripstop Material's Square Pattern Traps Punctures to Prevent Tearing




Then I added over 80 trading card pages with 48 category tabs for organizing coupons and store cards. ($40 value)




Also includes a single subject spiral bound notebook for making notes of the deals you are after, a pair of scissors for clipping your awesome coupons, and a pencil. ($5 value)



This is an awesome setup that I used to coupon and save a ton of money. http://www.thechadjacobsen.com/search/label/Couponing

Get this today for only $50 and start being organized in your couponing. You could easily save $50 in your first couponing trip! http://www.thechadjacobsen.com/2011/03/coupon-deal-for-day.html



All coupons pictured are most likely expired. 
Store cards pictured are not included. 
This is used. I personally used it in my couponing.

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Steps App for the iPhone 5S

Awhile ago I tracked my steps at work with a pedometer. Then I upgraded to an iPod Nano on a wrist watch band. Now I've started using the M7 Pedometer - Steps App on my iPhone 5S. I wish it had a share feature like the FitBit, but at the price of FREE I can live without it. One of the great things about this app is that from the day you download it you can already see your steps for the last week because the M7 chip saves your data for the last 7 days. 

Here are a couple of days (or should I say nights) from work last week. 


And then from days on my vacation. 

Apparently I don't have very much walking to do on my vacation. 

If you use a great fitness app that utilizes the M7 chip in the iPhone 5S let me know about it and what you love about it. Thanks




Monday, October 28, 2013

iPad Camera, Toddler, And A Tongue

My youngest son got my iPad and had some fun with the camera. 
I turned the pictures into a short video. enjoy. 

Sunday, October 20, 2013

My Grandpa, Edgar Hale Jeffery. RIP



view full image

"My Grandpa, Edgar Hale Jeffery, died this week after a battle with cancer. He was the longest serving fireman at the Delta City Fire Department. He had served for over 47 years. It was really neat that the fire department lead the funeral procession and brought his casket to the cemetery in the back of the only fire truck that they had when he joined. Thank you to the fireman everywhere for all that you do to help people in so many aspects. And today thank you specifically to the Delta City Fireman for being there to honor my Grandpa. " 

Friday, September 27, 2013

The Tooth Fairy

Despite my family's non-conventional holiday traditions as they relate to holiday characters, we do participate in "The Tooth Fairy". Our first experience with our oldest child, he didn't want the tooth fairy to take his tooth so he wrote a note asking to keep the tooth. It has continued ever since. And our second child has been doing the same thing. Early this morning Corbyn pulled out a loose tooth. Then as he was telling me about it Cole came up and said to "Email the Tooth Fairy". I asked him what he meant. He told me that I needed to send an email "so that it would know that Corbyn lost a tooth and to bring money". I don't remember ever having to email the Tooth Fairy about any lost teeth. When my four year old is telling me to email the Tooth Fairy, it makes me think of how the forms of communication Carey and I have chosen to use has had such an effect on what he understands to be the way to get ahold of someone. 



Thursday, September 26, 2013

Mialisia DVD Tip

There is a DVD that comes in the Mialisia Designer kit that contains the videos "The Mialisia Story" and "Infinite Possibilities". So many Independent Designers want to play this DVD in loop at their booths, but the DVD isn't written to play both files in loop on all DVD players. 


Here is how I got around this issue.
#1 Rip the DVD onto my MacBook Pro using MacX DVD Ripper Pro 2.
#2 Using PowerPoint, I created a slideshow with 2 slides with black backgrounds. 
#3 I then inserted 1 video into each slide, and set them to play automatically. 
#4 Then I set the slides to transition automatically after xx:xx time. Using the length of the video as the time. 
#5 I adjusted the settings for the slideshow to play continuously until stopped. 
#6 Saved my work. 
#7 Then tested the PowerPoint show.
#8 Using a mini display to HDMI adapter or via my Apple TV I can play the videos from my MacBook Pro in loop at Carey's booths/shows

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Mialisia business forms

As many of you know Carey started selling Mialisia Versastyle Jewelry back in August. I have been using my computer skills to help her organize her business binder. 

Today we worked on a few projects. 

#1 When you enter a new Fashionista online it wants a list of information. If you don't already know it or didn't get it from your new Fashionista at the time of booking, it is difficult to complete this step. 
Carey's solution was to have an application for the Fashionista to fill out with the information that will be needed to key in the event online. 

The backside of this form is a continuation of the guest list. 

#2 There is a weekly calendar available online. However, Carey wanted a month view calendar of the same style. I took the weekly calendar and edited it into a monthly calendar. Now she has a calendar that she can have available at the events to book future events. 


#3 The wish list. Everybody needs somewhere to make a list of what they'd like to have. This wish list is a half sheet of paper with room to wish away. The guests can take this home with them and when they are ready to order again they won't have search the catalog for the piece that they wanted to order next. Fast and simple. 


#4 Social media talker. I made this 4x6 image to be displayed in a tabletop acrylic frame. 


Friday, August 16, 2013

Free t-shirt and fun, for kids, from Apple!


He looks like he could actually work at the Apple Store. 
Did you know that your kids (ages 8-12) can get a free Apple t-shirt, flash drive, and name badge from Apple? Along with having fun learning to use iMovie and Garage Band to make their own short movie?

They can! Every summer the Apple Store does a free camp for kids. The camp takes place at the Apple store. The kids get to attend two 1.5 hour workshops learning to use iMovie and Garage Band. Then on Saturday all the kids, from 2 camps, get to share their videos on the BIG TV in the wall of the Apple Store, with all the other kids and their parents, friends, and whomever else the invite.




Carsyn attended last year and he had so much fun. This year as the instructor was asking what ideas the kids had for their movies, Carsyn volunteered to share his. As he shared his, she said "like last year". That's so cool that a year later and working with lots of kids, she remembers Carsyn's video. She even seems to have so much fun with kids. Since Carsyn has a YouTube account this year he is able to share it with all of you. It is only a couple of minutes and here it is.


Saturday, July 27, 2013

iMovie

Carsyn doing a little iMovie video editing on my Mac Mini.



Sent from my iPhone

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Patience vs. Kindness

So started reading The Love Dare last week. I am not doing very good at getting 1 chapter a day completed. I am only on day two. I have however already had an aha moment. It says "Kindness is love in action. If Patience is how love reacts in order to minimize a negative circumstance, kindness is how love acts to maximize a positive circumstance. Patience avoids a problem; kindness creates a blessing. On is preventive, the other is proactive."
I had never thought about it that way. I have always put patience and kindness into the same group, that being patient is being kind. They way they put it in the book is so eye opening. Kindness can make patience obsolete, amazing.


Saturday, July 13, 2013

Young Women Binders

So this weekend I helped Carey put together some binders for the Young Women group at Church. If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook then you've already seen the cover.  For those of you who missed it, here it is. 
Cover sheet image is from JennyPhillips.com 

We also found some good pages online and then revised and created new ones to fill the inside. 

In all we made binders for the;
  1. Laurel Adviser
  2. Laurel Class President
  3. Laurel Class 1st Counselor
  4. Laurel Class 2nd Counselor
  5. Laurel Class Secretary
  6. Mia Maid Adviser
  7. 2nd Mia Maid Adviser
  8. Mia Maid Class President
  9. Mia Maid Class 1st Counselor
  10. Mia Maid Class 2nd Counselor
  11. Mia Maid Class Secretary
  12. Beehive Adviser
  13. Beehive Class President
  14. Beehive Class 1st Counselor
  15. Beehive Class 2nd Counselor
  16. Beehive Class Secretary
And binder covers only for the;
  1. Young Women President
  2. Young Women 1st Counselor
  3. Young Women 2nd Counselor
  4. Young Women Secretary
That was quite the project in a short time.

Here are the pages for the Beehive Manual if you would like to see them in more detail. 
The Mia Maid and Laurel Manuals are altered to be specific to their classes. 

What a great time playing on my MacBook Pro and doing something useful at the same time. 
(Yes documents and spreadsheets count as playing for me.)

(Added 4/27/2016) Here is a link to all the files.


Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Creating with wood


Even though I don't really have a shop and I have to set up my tools outside every-time I want to use them, I love creating new art out of the wood and learning new things. And this time of year early in the morning it is so nice to be creating in the open air. Plus I don't have to sweep up the saw dust! 

Monday, June 17, 2013

Puzzle - Solved


Last week we were out shopping as a family. One of the Deseret Book stores near our home was closing and having a great sale. Because everything was such a deep discount I was letting the kids pick out a few things. My 6 year old decided that he wanted a Rubik's Cube. Now I have never taken the time to figure out how to solve one of those, so I was wondering how I was going to help him play with it. He opened it in the car and got it all messed up. The Cube sat around the house for a couple a days. Then last night I got on YouTube and watched videos uploaded by The Sergs B. to figure out how to solve the Rubik's cube.  Thanks to his great videos I was finally able to solve the puzzle! Now to teach my 6 year old how to solve it. 

Friday, June 7, 2013

I fight like a girl

I love this pink ribbon decal that I made this week for a co-worker. 
Go to Carey's Creations to see my post. 




Working on the Webelos Scout Handyman

This week I got to help Carsyn with some of his Handyman Requirements for Cub Scouts. 
My little white Escort got washed for probably the second time since I bought it.
It was quite dirty.


He checked the oil.


He also learned to change the brake light and check the tire pressure. 

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Worn

I Love this song!

It really touches my heart when I am having and bad day and I am so tired, I just want to ask God why life is so hard at times. 



In the wake of the many disasters lately, I am so thankful that my trials are not as near as difficult as they could be. I am so thankful to have my family, friends, faith, home, and many material things.



See Mike's story on how he got into music and is now able to touch so many people's hearts. 

Monday, May 20, 2013

My to do list better watch out

My to do list is in trouble. A couple days ago I fixed the washing machine. Saturday I ordered a new O2 sensor for my car. And today I fixed the broken fence slat on the gate, replaced the latch, and added a handle. 


What will tomorrow bring?


Monday, May 13, 2013

How to add share buttons to the bottom of your blog posts on Blogger


If you have a blogger blog and have been reading other blogs, you may have noticed this at the bottom of their posts.


If you have an older Blogger blog and this isn't showing up in your posts, I can show you how. 

From your blog click on "Design" on the top-right side of the page. If you don't have the Navbar at the top of the page go to your Blogger dashboard.



Click "Layout" from the menu on the lefthand side.


Go to the "Blog Posts" box in your layout and click "Edit".



In the menu that comes up, scroll down and check the box next to "Show share buttons".


Then scroll to the bottom and click save. 
Now all of your posts should have the share buttons and the end of your posts. 



What has been bothering you about your blog?

Sunday, May 12, 2013

What age does music draw the most interest?

Growing up I listened to music as often as possible. Music during homework, chores, going to sleep, or whenever. Some of my favorite teachers in school were the ones that had music on in their classrooms.  I listened to the radio, cassette tapes that my siblings and I recorded off the radio, and occasionally a legitimate cassette from the store. I remember asking for a boom-box, stereo, or some music centered electrical device every year for Christmas. I remember buying my first CD before I even had a CD player. It was Ace of Base - The Sign. A few years after becoming a father I started to wonder what kind of music my kids would like?, would I like it too?, or would I just think it's noise, like so many other parent to children music debates you see in the movies?. As my boys have gotten older I've been waiting more and more for the day when my one of my sons tells me about some new music that he likes. All the songs on their iPods have come form mine and their mothers influence, with the exception of Kidz Bop that my oldest son got from McDonalds. Though the last couple of years I've been spending a lot more time listening to books, conferences, and seminars in the car, I still enjoy my music, and still wonder when my boys will want to choose their own music. At church today part of the discussion turned to being able to spend time and talk to your children by hanging out with them and listening to "their" music. This evening the thought came to me that there isn't a music radio in our house, my oldest son rarely listens to music, and in the car he wants to turn the music off and talk. Even though I would love to share music I love with him while he shares his favorites with me, I am glad that I currently don't have to figure out how to get him to have a conversation with me. 

At what age did your children take a strong interest in music?

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Blog to Book

Ever since I started my blog I've wished that there was an easy way to print my blog and use it as part of my journal. Just over a year ago I discovered BlogBooker at http://blogbooker.com. On this site you can upload your export blog file and in 3-4 minutes you have a PDF version of your blog, without the color background or side bar stuff, ready to save or print. Just like that, so easy. And it even pulls the pictures and puts them into the PDF file. Since I keep my journal on my MacBook Pro and print the pages occasionally, this works perfect to combine my journal pages with the pages from my blog. And this service is FREE. They do accept donations. And if you want a print book of your blog, they make that available too, as a paid service. To the folks at http://blogbooker.com, I say thank you.


Sunday, March 24, 2013

Family Cookbook

As our family grows and we are experimenting more with new recipes it has become quite a disorganized situation trying to organize the recipes that we get from Pintrest, other websites, friends, relatives, packaging, magazines, and more. Some are on paper, recipe cards, torn pages, and package labels. Others bookmarked or pinned online.
I spent some time thinking about a good solution to this new opportunity in or home. The idea came to me to make a digital cookbook as a Mother's Day gift for Carey. With that idea I then needed a simple way to create such a book. After a couple not so appealing attempts with different programs, I decided to go with PowerPoint. With PowerPoint I have the ability to save in different file types, thus being able to share versions in iBooks, self publish in Amazon's Kindle bookstore, and be able to easily add and rearrange pages.
My gift idea was spoiled when I asked Carey for her help in the project. Although as we were working together and talked we thought of how great it would be to give our kids a copy of our family cookbook when they get married. So our current plan is to key in recipes that we enjoy and make often. When our kids move on in lives of their own we can give them a cookbook (printed and/or digital) with recipes that they grew up with and enjoyed. I am currently at 34 recipes entered, and between the ones that we have printed or saved, and the ones we come across in the years to come, I have many more to enter.

Monday, March 4, 2013

Idaho DMV

Hanging out at the DMV waiting to get our Idaho Concealed Weapons Permit. The ladies at the counter just love our kids, playing their iPods.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

My New to me RX-8

So yesterday I went to change the oil in my car. I figured that after 10,000 miles it was probably time. 

I got distracted and came home with this!
Carey says that from now on she will take the cars to get the oil changed. 







And my other car still needs the oil changed. 

Saturday, January 5, 2013

2013 Savings Challenge


My wife saw a savings challenge online. I took it and made it better. The idea is to deposit one dollar into your savings, and then add another dollar to your deposit into your savings account each week for a year. It should not be hard to find ways to save or earn an extra dollar each week. Anybody that wants to join in on the 2013 Savings Challenge feel free to print a copy or message me for a downloadable file that you can edit to fit your timeline or goals.