Welcome back to Home Matters Linky Party!

We are continuing to grow and are seeing more link-ups each week. Last week, we had 62 fabulous links added; that’s more than ever had before!

We always look forward to seeing your matters of the home links such as: home décor tips and tricks, DIY, homesteading, homeschooling, child rearing, frugal living, sustainability, and organizational tips. Hopefully, we will see more Fall related links as we enter the season.

Before we begin, I want to announce a giveaway that I have on the blog today. It is opened from today, October 1 to October 15. If you are a mom of young kids or just some who could use an extra blessing, do not hesitate to enter! Go here to enter!

Shirley and Kristen are also running giveaways on their blogs now. You can view their giveaway links further down in this post!

And now let’s get to the party! Shall we?

Our rules for the party are simple. Be sure to check them out before linking your posts!

Kristen at The Road To Domestications:

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Zan(Flourishing At Home)

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Shirley at Intelligent Domestications:

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Check out what we have been up to this past week!

Kristen at The Road To Domestication shared a post on Tile. It’s Not Just to Walk On.  She also did a Review and a Giveaway for Stubb’s Food Products.  The giveaway is still opened, so go enter!

Zan at Flourishing At Home  shared 4 Cheap and Easy DIY Frugal Fall Decorations. She also shared a recipe for Creamy Homemade Pumpkin Ice Cream and some Free Printables for Teaching Preschoolers the Alphabet.

Shirley at Intelligent Domestications shared some Trunk or Treat Ideas. She also shared some experiences she has had with negative customer service. You can read the post here: What Happened to Customer Service? In addition, she is running a giveaway on her blog. Go here to Tom and Jerry Show Frisky Business DVD Giveaway to enter!

Just looking at it will make you want to have a big bite!

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Congrats to our features this week and we have lots of them! I encourage you to go by and check them out!

Kristen’s Picks

Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Dates from Chrystal at Yum Eating

Skin Care the Old Fashioned Way from Tracy at Our Simple Life

Deeper ‘n Ever Turnip ‘n Tater ‘n BeetRoot Pie from Alison at Alison’s Wonderland Recipes

Zan’s Picks

20 Cozy Sweater Crafts from Cassie at Little Red Window

Octopus Footstool from Bonnie at Our Second Hand House

DIY Shabby Chic Bathroom Wall Art from Patricia at The Decoratoraholic

Shirley’s picks

DIY Cardboard Play Mailbox from Cassie at  Little Red Window.

Halloween Cake Pops from Heather at Crafts and Kiddos.

And DIY Chalkboard Fall Banner from Sahana at Vikalpah.

And the most clicked post of the week was the DIY Cardboard Play Mailbox from Cassie at Little Red Window!

Please Note: We have pinned your featured links unto our Home Matters Awesome Pins Board. You can follow along here: Home Matters Awesome Board on Pinterest.

And now to the party!

Thanks for coming to the Home Matters Link Party and have fun linking up!

I love blankets – don’t you! And where we live in the North Pole (just kidding) the cooler months seem to kick in real quick. Around the first week of September the temperature dropped down in the forties here in Illinois. People were wearing sweaters every where you go. And our kids started making use of the many blankets they own.

Because blankets keep us so warm and cozy during the cold months, our kids have blankets for every room in the home and for each of our two cars. Some of them they have been owning since they were babies – all Winter babies!!! When the cooler months start rolling around, I pull out their blankets and place them in their designated spots. The only time they are removed is when it is time for washing. And when the cooler months are over I fold them up and put them away. I only keep one or two on the couches for cuddling and of course, the ones on our beds! No need to have a bunch of blankets lying around during the hotter months!!!!

With that said, some of you may already know that we are expecting a baby boy. Today  I am celebrating with you by giving away a beautiful baby boy or baby girl blanket and a $20 Amazon E-Gift Card. The winner will choose a blanket with color of choice from the ones in the image above.

The giveaway is opened to US residents only and includes free shipping to your home!  It begins today, October 1 and runs until October 15.  If you are a mom with young kids or just any person who is in need of a baby blanket and an extra $20 gift card, don’t hesitate to enter!  Thanks for supporting us at Flourishing At Home. All the best to you!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Welcome to Fall!

It is week #7 at the Home Matters linky party and also, the Fall season has officially began! We are so glad you have chosen to share your posts with us!

We always look forward to seeing your matters of the home links such as: home décor tips and tricks, DIY, homesteading, homeschooling, child rearing, frugal living, sustainability, and organizational tips. Hopefully, we will see more Fall related links as we enter the season.

If this is your first time here at this linky, WELCOME! Check out the rules for this party before linking up.

Kristen at The Road To Domestications:

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Zan(Flourishing At Home)

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Shirley at Intelligent Domestications:

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Check out what we have been up to!

Kristen at The Road To Domestication showed us how she decorated her Fall Holiday Shelf. The decorations change based upon what holiday is represented. It is amazing what she does differently each holiday!

Zan at Flourishing At Home  shared how she plans her Meals with a Sample Dinner Menu Plan.

Shirley at Intelligent Domestications shared a recipe for her Mocha Chocolate Cake with Malted Caramel Icing.

Just looking at it will make you want to have a big bite!

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You may grab our button here or visit this page to choose another size.

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Congrats to our features this week!

Check out this beautiful post on Autumn Chalkboards from Lorelai at Life with Lorelai! After seeing this, I am inspired to create one myself! 

Alli at An Alli Event shared a simple recipe for cooking with kids, Mini Upside Down Oreo Cheesecakes.

Mother at Mother’s Home shared a creative way to make Apple Marshmallow Pops! Her post also received the most clicks of the week!

Please Note: We have pinned your featured links unto our Home Matters Awesome Pins Board. You can follow along here: Home Matters Awesome Board on Pinterest.

And now to the party!

Thanks for coming to the Home Matters Link Party and have fun linking up!

I cannot believe we are already in week #6 of Home Matters Linky Party!

We have had some great link-ups and we are learning so much from the posts you share with us. Last week we had 49 link-ups; that is more than we ever had in this party. So keep them coming! We love to know and connect with you!

We always look forward to seeing your matters of the home links such as: home décor tips and tricks, DIY, homesteading, homeschooling, child rearing, frugal living, sustainability, and organizational tips.

If this is your first time here at this linky, WELCOME! Check out the rules for this party before linking up.

Kristen at The Road To Domestications:

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/LinkedIn/Instagram/YouTube/Hometalk/Houzz

Zan(Flourishing At Home)

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Shirley at Intelligent Domestications:

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Check out what we have been up to!

Kristen at The Road To Domestication shared a great post on Solutions to Treat the High-Traffic Areas of Your Carpet.

Zan at Flourishing At Home a recipe for Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Rolls.

Shirley at Intelligent Domestications shared on How to Stop Junk Mail and Unwanted Telemarketing Calls.

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You may grab our button here or visit this page to choose another size.

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Congrats to our features this week!

Check out this beautiful 10 Tips on Decorating an Apartment by Veronica at The Naked Decorator!

Roopini at Let’s Make it Lovely shared a fantastic DIY project. You can read all about it here: Upcycled Fabric Basket.

And don’t miss out on these Healthy Turkey Meatballs Subs by

Robyn at Simply Fresh Dinners!

And this week, here is the post that received the MOST CLICKS!

Top Five Apple Recipes from Alli at An Alli Event. A must see!

Please Note: We have pinned your featured links unto our Home Matters Awesome Pins Board. You can follow along here: Home Matters Awesome Board on Pinterest.

And now to the party!

Thanks for coming to the Home Matters Link Party and have fun linking up!

It’s week 5 of Home Matters Linky Party!

We are having so much fun reading all your posts, learning about your creative work, and getting to know and connect with you!

Thanks to all those who linked up with us last week. We had 42 link ups this past week. Let’s keep on linking and sharing each other’s posts!

Congrats to those who have been featured this week! If this is your first time here, Welcome!

We look forward to seeing your matters of the home links such as: home décor tips and tricks, DIY, homesteading, homeschooling, child rearing, frugal living, sustainability, and organizational tips.

Here are a few simple rules for this party:

Kristen at The Road To Domestications:

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/LinkedIn/Instagram/YouTube/Hometalk/Houzz

Zan(Flourishing At Home)

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/Google Plus//LinkedIn/Hometalk

Shirley at Intelligent Domestications:

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/Instagram/Bloglovin/Google Plus/Hometalk

Check out what we have been up to!

Kristen at The Road To Domestication shared a great review of Cedar Lane Natural Foods which are Gluten Free.

Zan at Flourishing At Home and her family are just getting settled into their new home. She shared Moving Part 2: Issues to Overcome in the New Home Moving Part 2: Issues to Overcome in the New Home

Shirley at Intelligent Domestications shared an entry for a Dollar Store Fall Craft contest, Scarecrow Candy Corn Centerpiece.

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You may grab our button here or visit this page to choose another size.

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Roopini at Let’s Make it Lovely shared a fantastic DIY project. You can read all about it here: DIY Starburst Mirror.

Check out this beautiful Make Your Own iPad Cover DIY from Sahana at Vikalpah!

Get a load of these Anthropologie Inspired Confetti Glasses from Cassie at Kent Heartstrings.

And new this week, here are the two posts that tied for MOST CLICKS!

Meal in a Pumpkin from Kallee at Creative Southern Home

and

15 Tips & Tricks Organize Your Home from Lorelai at Life with Lorelai

Please Note: We have pinned your featured links unto our Home Matters Awesome Pins Board. You can follow along here: Home Matters Awesome Board on Pinterest.

Thanks for coming to the Home Matters Link Party and have fun linking up!

Today’s post is a continuation of Part 1 from last week. If you would like to read it, go here to Moving Part 1: The Setbacks and Blessings of Owning Our New Home.

Before I talk about some of the issues we had to overcome, I would like to give some credit to the previous home owners.

• Firstly, before we moved into our this new home, the sellers had asked my family if we would like to keep some of their furniture. They were moving out of state and I believe were going to sell some of the furniture they were not taking with them. They wanted us to have the first priority in choosing some furniture – free of cost!

Here is a photo of the furniture we requested. The couch set was very much appreciated for the extra family room which we now have. We only had one set for our living room in our previous home.

• Secondly, the outskirts of the home was left very clean. And when you walk in, the house seemed spotless. Floors, walls, and other areas of the home were clean. At one point, the seller apologized that a widow had gotten a little dirty because they had moved out a couple weeks before we moved in. Up to this day, I have no idea what widow she spoke about! Looked clean to me!

Here is a photo of how things looked when we walked in (minus the furniture – we requested some of them).

These were the good side of things. And here comes the downside (nothing major, but more time consuming and frustrating)!

• Although, everything seem spotless and we earned some free extra furniture (a true blessing), there were many unnecessary items left behind. I was so disappointed when I opened the drawers, closets, and storage doors and found all kinds of random items! I spent the first two weeks between unpacking our own stuff and trying to get settled in, trying to de-clutter all the extra JUNK! Maybe they thought they were leaving them in good faith; but we already have more than we need. In addition, most of the items were not even my kind of taste/style. Whenever we move from a home, we make sure everything is cleaned out – absolutely nothing left behind! Then to come into a home where you have to clean out another person’s junk – so not funny!!!!!

As you may notice in the above photo, the floors and walls are clean, but the extra dresser and stuff on it and the wall decor and curtains, cute but so not my style.

And here are some of the extra furniture left behind! The tall dresser was part of the 4 piece set in the furniture we requested (first photo above) but when we added our king size bed to the room it took too much space. See further explanation on photos!

• Check out this photo of all the cleaning supplies these people had. I like to make my own natural cleaning products so many of these items were trashed!

• And here are all the boxes of stuff I gathered for the thrift store that was left behind. Not to mention, the 3 or 4 huge bags of stuff I trashed. Seriously????!!!!

• Then we move on to our stove and dishwasher issue – see photo below for explanation.

• Then here is a biggie – the WATER issue! So annoying! I dealt with this for one week until the plumber came out to fix it. Only to find out there was a straw and some kind of tissue paper blocking the lines. It was deeper than just a regular person could fix. We did not know about this before (assuming the sellers knew). Thankfully, the sellers had left a one year home warranty for us. See explanation on the photo!

• This final one is not a problem – we knew about this before purchasing. Our old home was painted to our taste and now we are back to regular white and blue (or whatever color is in this house). We did not have a two week span like we did when we moved into our first home for painting and renovation.
• As you may have seen in some of these photos, there are wall paper in the rooms and bathrooms. Something to get rid of later, though. Again, not an issue – we will get to it when we get to it. Just happy to be getting settled somewhere!

So these were some of the issues we had to deal with. Remember, hubby had surgery on his knee and could not do anything to help clean out this place. Our two little ones are still toddlers (small helpers though). Me having to clean and deal with this at 5 months expecting was so not fun. But God gave me the strength to do what I can!

Have you had any moving into a new home issue, water, furniture, cleaning, etc? I would love to know about them in the comments!

It’s week 4 of Home Matters Linky Party!

We are having so much fun reading all your posts, learning about your creative work, and getting to know and connect with you! 

Thanks to all those who linked up with us last week. We had 37 link ups this past week. Let’s keep on linking and sharing each other’s posts!

Congrats to those who have been featured this week! If this is your first time here, Welcome!

We look forward to seeing your matters of the home links such as: home décor tips and tricks, DIY, homesteading, homeschooling, child rearing, frugal living, sustainability, and organizational tips.

Here are a few simple rules for this party:

Kristen at The Road To Domestications:

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/LinkedIn/Instagram/YouTube/Hometalk/Houzz

Zan(Flourishing At Home)

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/Google Plus//LinkedIn/Hometalk

Shirley at Intelligent Domestications:

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/Instagram/Bloglovin/Google Plus/Hometalk

You may grab our button here or visit this page to choose another size.

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And now, onto this week’s featured links! Please check out all our features and show them some love by sharing or commenting on their post. You can review our “How to be Featured” tips here. And below is the grab button for those have been featured.

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Robin at Redo It Yourself Inspirations shared some great tips for DIY Solar Lighting. You can read all about it here  Cut the cord: Solar Lighting Part 2.

Check out these beautiful NFL Kick Off Party with Free Printables from Heather at DIY Daily Life!

Read about some Old Fashion Cleaning Tips from Tracy at Our Simple Life.

Here is a great one for toddlers and younger kids: Creating Nature Wands from Paris at My Big Fat Happy Life!

Please Note: We have pinned your featured links unto our Home Matters Awesome Pins Board. You can follow along here: Home Matters Awesome Board on Pinterest.

Thanks for coming to the Home Matters Link Party and have fun linking up!

Some of you may have known that we moved into a new home, exactly two weeks ago. As with any big move, there are always many things to be done. I want to share a little of the blessings and setbacks we encountered as we strove to own this new home.

Let’s start with the Setbacks (get the negatives out of the way):

1. We were set to close on our old home July 28 and close on our new home in the same day. Well, as always, something has to go wrong right? Our buyer’s deal went through and she closed on the 28. However, we had some setbacks with our bank and could not close on our new home. Two days before we were supposed to close, the bank needed a whole bunch of other paper work. What! Where were we supposed to go now. The buyer of our home was no longer going to extend her contract (she was eager to move in and had scheduled all her moving sources for the 28). She was ready to move in since July 7 – a no no because our new home was not ready for us yet. The sellers still had to move out! Moreover, our extended family do not live close by. Hubby’s grandma does, but in a nursing home. All of our other family members live faraway. Needless to say, we ended up in a hotel.

Here is a previous post about owing our first home and our home decor and organization posts here. Below is a photo of our old little home – we sure miss it it! But we will eventually get used to the new.

2. We had to pay separate storage to keep our belongings.

• We only had 3 helpers from one family when we moved out; a mom, and her son and his wife. It was a Tuesday afternoon so people were busy with work. Hubby could not do much as he already had a bad knee. In any event, they stayed up until 1 am helping us clean and move things to the storage. At one point, they had hubby go check us in the hotel (the kids and me) while they stayed back and finish up.

3. We stayed in hotels from the day we closed on our old home (July 28th) until August 18th. Yes, three (3) whole weeks.  During that time:

• We skipped around in 3 different hotels hoping to save money.
• Hubby had surgery on his left knee (he had torn his meniscus 3 weeks prior).

4. Staying in hotels are not cheap. I do not want to be another hotel for a while. Seriously! They are supposed to bring fun memories, but not this time. The hotels themselves were nice places but just the stress of not knowing when our house was going to be ready, did not help. I told hubby that we should get a hotel far away and call it a vacation. That did not fly because we had to stay around to deal with the bank paperwork and all that buying a home stuff!

• In some ways, hubby was able to get some rest by staying in the hotel. See photo below.

The blessings (they always seem to outweigh the negatives): 

1. Our old home (a duplex type home) went on the market June 1, 2014 and was literally on the market for ONE day. Yes, you heard me right, ONE day! That was Sunday. The following Monday, we had SEVEN (7) showings. With more scheduled showings for Tuesday and Wednesday. Albeit, we had to cancel those showings because a contract went on our home that very Monday. Our Realtor reported that there were 3 or 4 bids on the home. People were actually bidding on the home. And some were very disappointed they did not get it. That in itself was a blessing that it went under contract so fast.

• You see, that area is a highly developed area and very quiet. It is well sought after by retired people. I remember when we moved in 2 years ago, one of the younger families were delighted to have another young family nearby:)

2. My hubby had prayed and we had hoped that the house would sell for a certain amount. And sure enough, the one bidder (who now owns the home) paid the exact amount not knowing what we had hoped for. This was an Act of God!

3. We are in our new home now; this is a true blessing! It is located in a neighboring city to our old. Just down the road. So we did not have to change shopping areas, church, post office, and our regular happenings. Ha Ha, we are now two minutes from a huge shopping area (Walmart, Target, Ross, Kohls, Big Lots, Sams, Dollar Tree, and all kinds of other stores). It used to take us about 10 minutes to get there now we are two minutes. Not good for a shopper like me!!!!

4. The home is slightly larger than our previous. We wanted a bigger place (3rd baby on the way)! In addition, it is a single family home so we can do whatever we desire with it – maybe add some more rooms if we desire. “In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths”. (Proverbs 3:6, KJV).

5. Many of our church families live in the surrounding areas. We found that out after we purchased. Hopefully, lots of play dates for our little ones!

6. The sellers were moving back to Kentucky and wanted to sell some of their stuff. However, they had me go over to choose what I wanted to keep for FREE. Of course, I chose the furniture below. I was delighted to have a second set of couches for the Family room. Previously, we only had a living room and just one set of couches. Photos to come in another post!

7. So thankful for a fenced backyard and a few parks near our home (there is one directly in front the house) where the kids can run around and play! Pictures to come in another part of this post!

8. When we moved, Hubby could not “lift a finger” (doctor’s warning). Thankfully, we had enough willing people from our church to help move us in. They were done in about an hour or less.

So that was some of the setbacks and blessings of owning own now new home. Part 2 of this post explains some of the issues we had to deal with when we moved in.

We were weary and kind of felt homeless but God heard our cry and gave us our new place of habitation. “Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” (Psalm 107:1-8, KJV).

Have you had moving setbacks or blessings you would like to share? Sure would love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

It’s the third week of Home Matters Linky Party!

We are having so much fun reading all your posts, learning about your creative work, and getting to know and connect with you! 

Thanks to all those who linked up with us last week. We had 43 link ups which is 8 more than we had at our first party. Let’s keep up the good work!

Congrats to those who have been featured this week! If this is your first time here, Welcome!

We look forward to seeing your matters of the home links such as: home décor tips and tricks, DIY, homesteading, homeschooling, child rearing, frugal living, sustainability, and organizational tips.

Here are a few simple rules for this party:

Kristen at The Road To Domestications:

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/LinkedIn/Instagram/YouTube/Hometalk/Houzz

Zan(Flourishing At Home)

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/Google Plus//LinkedIn/Hometalk

Shirley at Intelligent Domestications:

Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest/Instagram/Bloglovin/Google Plus/Hometalk

You may grab our button here or visit this page to choose another size.

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.beautifulstyling.com" title="Flourishing at Home"><img src="http://athomewithzan.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/beautifulstyling.com_.jpg" alt="Flourishing at Home" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

And now, onto this week’s featured links! Please check out all our features and show them some love by sharing or commenting on their post. You can review our “How to be Featured” tips here.

Amy at Vomiting Chicken shared her tasty Blue Berry Focaccia with us.

Check out Kelli’s Cheap Organization with Coffee Tub Recycle at Kelli’s Kitchen.

and

Tracy from Our Simple Life gives us Her Self-Sufficient Homesteading in 10 Easy Steps

Please Note: We have pinned your featured links unto our Home Matters Awesome Pins Board. You can follow along here: Home Matters Awesome Board on Pinterest.

Thanks for coming to the Home Matters Link Party and have fun linking up!