My Husband Won't Let Me (or All The Cool Crap Happens to Me at Target)

By now you must be sick of me talking about the stuff that happens to me at my local Target. Yes, the one where that girl was stolen and killed. Gives me the creeps every time I go there. I watch my back there for sure even though the likelihood of anyone stealing 43-year-old ME is basically zero. Anyway, someone is always somewhere in that store ready to give me a rash of crap about having a lot of kids or something and I pretty much expect it now. But tonight was a tad different, and I'm starting to have fun with it. (perks of being older)

So tonight I only had one single kid with me. The oldest one. The one who needed swim trunks like IMMEDIATELY. I love hurry shopping. Not. At the checkout they always try to sell me on the Red Card or whatever and I always say no. They pester me and I say no, my husband says no and that he doesn't like saving money. (sidenote: Mr. Kerrie says they have never asked him about the Red Card, which I don't get because I thought they asked EVERYONE)

So tonight I was in a hurry and I just said, "No, my husband won't let me."

And this young girl looked at me and asked, "He won't LET you?"

And I said, "Well, he LETS me homeschool and run several businesses from home so he's not entirely oppressive. It's just the Red Card."

You can blame my parents for my sense of humor where I like to mess with people and don't take a whole lot seriously! I didn't mean to make myself sound like a simp or anything; it's just that I haven't been with Mr. Kerrie for almost 20 years by ignoring everything he says and being entirely selfish 100% of the time. AND ... you can call yourself a feminist all you want and I'm cool with that. I am one of those myself ... it's all about the choice to live how you want, right? Except you're going to be a divorced feminist with a horribly broken family if you think you always have to have your way and win every fight. Don't worry; I fight the fights that are worth fighting to me and the Target Red Card just isn't one of them.

Honestly, Mr. Kerrie puts up with me and I'm not sure why. He even LETS me keep this messy office space in the corner of our kitchen so I can homeschool and work.

Books for Gifts, Memoirs, Pets, Friends, Anything!

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been sharing how and why Blurb is such an incredible source for telling your story—whether it includes photos, words, or both. I realize that not everyone has the desire to write a novel or sell a book of their photos. Some people just want to commemorate a trip, an event, or a special occasion. Others may want to visually capture a business concept or life experience. Whatever the inclination, Blurb makes it easy and affordable to realize it. 

Chances are you already have an idea for the kind of book you want to create. But in case you need a little inspiration, here are a few ways people have used Blurb to create their own creative and useful books: 

Gifts
A beautiful, custom-made book is one of the most thoughtful, meaningful gifts you can give. With Father’s Day, graduation, and wedding season just around the corner, this type of book can make the perfect gift that keeps on giving. And with Blurb’s cutting-edge book-making tools, you can add photos, words, stories, drawings—anything you want—and make something that’s truly one-of-a-kind. Ideas include: a favorite recipes book, a baby’s first year book, a book of poems, a senior year book, etc. 

Memoirs
You have a story to tell. Ok, so you may not have hiked across the Sahara or been on Broadway, but that doesn’t mean that you haven’t impacted lives or had interesting life experiences. And it certainly doesn’t mean that you don’t have valuable insights to impart. Even if you have no interest in sharing your memoir with anyone, the process of reflecting on your life and writing down some of your thoughts and experiences can be incredibly eye-opening and cathartic. 

Pet Books
What better way to showcase your best friend than with their very own book. It could be something as simple as pictures and quips of trips to the park, naps on the couch, playing with a favorite toy, or basking in the sun, to a more in-depth life story book about your pet. These can be shared as gifts, sold to fellow pet-lovers, or just kept for your own personal enjoyment. 

Non-Profit Fundraising Books
With Blurb, non-profits can share their story with compelling words and images and then sell them via Blurb’s Sell & Distribute option to fundraise for their organization. For example, Gerrit Greve’s Hearts for Healing book showcases how kids interpret a giving heart through art. It also chronicles how Greve’s students gained new confidence in themselves and their abilities knowing that their art could make a difference in someone’s life and health. This beautiful book is an example of how Blurb’s platforms can be used to support a cause that’s important to you. 

These are just a few ways that you can use Blurb to share your story or promote a purpose, but know that there are many, many others. Get creative! Honestly, the most important part is just clicking on the “Get Started” link on Blurb.com. As you start the process of creating your own book, you’ll be surprised at how quickly the creativity floodgates open! 

And when it does and you’ve created your own book, be sure to tell me about it—if you’re okay with me doing so, I’d love to promote it to other readers. Who knows? You may inspire someone else to create a book of their own! 

#LEGO Store Monthly Mini Builds and the New Pre-register System AUGUST 2015 Update

I wrote this FOREVER ago, it seems like, about the LEGO Store monthly mini build! Things have definitely changed. I used to have to wait in line for a long time with a couple of littles ones but now they are older and easier!

For the last 6 months or so you don't have to build the LEGO set in the store after you get it. This cuts down on a lot of waiting time in line. Once 5 p.m. hits the line starts moving and you give the guy your card and you can choose to stay and build there or grab and go. You know we do the grab and go every month because we have other things to do besides wait in line to build LEGOs under pressure in public!

Michael and Mommy in line after he spent some of his birthday money at the LEGO build on Cinco de Mayo. No joke: I had 10 kids with me that day, mine and the Jones kids. It was a blast!

The line at our mall in Kansas City starts at 3 p.m. but there is no need to get there that early unless all your kids have iPads and can be kept quiet for 2 hours. Which is like EVERYONE these days with the iPads. Otherwise, as a general rule, most children and adults do not like to wait in line. Go figure.

They only have 250 sets but there was only one month I went that they ran out and that was the month of the robot set.

They prefer kids ages 6-14 get the sets but they are not carding, okay? Sam has been getting a set since he was at least 3 years old. They will give your kid a set and don't want kids crying in line and all that. LEGO people are the coolest people around.

Here is what you have been waiting to read: STARTING IN JULY YOU HAVE TO PRE-REGISTER. Here are the details from the card they handed out last night, and I"m super curious about how this is going to work out when it comes time to pick up your build:

"Starting in July, you will be able to reserve your Mini Model BEFORE you visit the LEGO Store!"

No more waiting in line, reserve it before your arrival, improved building experience, plan the build according to YOUR schedule.

To register visit here. July registration opens 9 a.m. EST June 1st through 11:59 p.m. EST July 6

Registration for the August mini model build will open Tuesday, July 7th at 9am EST.

FINE PRINT:

In order to participate, guests must be between the ages of 6-14. All guests will be expected to complete the build in the store. Registration on a first come first serve basis. Stores will no longer accept walk ups on the night of the event.

NEW FINE PRINT that I checked out on May 31, 2015, and it sucks that it's a max of 4 kids per household!!!!!!!

How Do I Love #Target? Let Me Count the Ways!

I love Target. My kids love Target. My husband has been to Target to Christmas shop for me, but I can't say he LOVES Target, since I always come home from Target after spending at least $200. Today I am going to count the ways I love Target.

• Even though the one I go to is not a SuperTarget, they have plenty of grocery options, making my life easy when I have to go there for one reason and then realize I need milk. We ALWAYS need milk.
• Toy section is fantabulous for the kids ... they love to spend birthday money there and always find something they love.
• I got a leather toy ottoman there years ago that still holds our toys and it's a great piece of furniture. It's not Target's fault my kids have trashed the top of it, and I have plans to re-cover it soon!!!
• Clothing options rock for kids. In Houston we were in need of all sorts of things like shorts and jackets and T-shirts for the kids and we got what we needed and it was all reasonably priced.

• Clothing options rock for me. I have a problem at Target because the clothes are so dang cute. All my T-shirts come from Target and they last forever. I also love dresses I have gotten there and socks and underwear and so on!
• We can always find shoes there that are reasonably priced, cute and that fit well and last.
• Target.com saved my life during the holiday season with their free shipping. I don't know how many different times I used that service and every time it was free!
• You can put something popular on hold, pay for it in advance and pick it up at the customer service desk easily.
• Shipping is free on orders of $25 or more currently. I have to take several deep breaths and work myself up to take all 5 kids to Target normally since they turn into chihuahuas when we arrive, so sometimes it's just easier to order some things online. This free shipping thing rocks because $25 is not that much and you get a lot for that.

Okay, so there are nine reasons I love me the Target. Leave me a comment with your reasons! (Oh, and Mr. Kerrie won't let me get a Red Card debit or credit, so do me a favor and sign up for one so I can live through you, okay? It's cash back and an amazing deal!)

*I am in the Target affiliate program so if you click the links to Target from my site I might make a little money from that, which I would spend at ... well, you can probably guess.

An Introduction to #Blurb: What the Heck Is It?!

Like many great companies before it, Blurb was actually started by accident. In the early 2000s, Eileen Gittins, Blurbs' Founder, rekindled a passion for photography while trying to figure out her next career gig. 

She wanted to compile her photos into a nice coffee table photo book, but she only wanted to print a handful of copies. The conundrum was that every publisher was quoting her hundreds of dollars for each book! She found this curious – and frustrating. So she asked herself, are there other people like me who want to affordably create their own high-quality book from their photos? The answer, of course, was yes, and it changed her life – and book publishing – forever. 

In 2006, Eileen launched Blurb, a simple book-designing platform and a publishing process that could quickly produce beautifully made books at game-changing price. 


Everyone from award-winning photographers, to couples wanting to commemorate the birth of their child started using Blurb – and they continue to do so today. Even after almost a decade, people are still blown away by Blurb’s user-friendliness, quality, and affordability. People trust Blurb to create every kind of book imaginable, including:

• Cookbooks
• Photo books
• Yearbooks
• Ebooks
• Magazines, and more

Blurb doesn’t just help people make books and magazines, they also help market them by providing publishers with their own dedicated sales page. Blurb’s dedicated sales pages allow authors to:

• Make their book or magazine available to the public or by invitation-only
• Write a compelling book description
• Customize a preview of their book
• Share their book with others on social media

Blurb also created their publishing platform to work seamlessly with Amazon and Apple iBooks Store so authors would have even more options for how they sell their books. 

There are so many remarkable things to share about Blurb – too much for just one post! So keep an eye out for next week’s post because I’ll be sharing some of my favorite Blurb tools and tips -- which, if you’re like me, will leave you thinking … “I didn’t know Blurb could do all that!”