Blog Hiatus!!

Blogging Break!

Hey ladies! We were gone to church camp for a week and are now back home, but wow, I have so much prep to do for homeschooling come August, I am preparing to teach the teen girls at church this fall, finishing up teaching nursery class at church, helping out with VBS, visiting with family, and working one day per week, so I am taking a much needed "Blogging Break"! Blogging is time consuming and reading all your fabulous blogs takes a lot of time and I have to focus right now and meet some deadlines!

Most importantly, I want to focus on the three little souls God has entrusted to me by giving them my full, undivided attention.

Hope you all have a wonderful remaining summer!

Udi's Gluten Free Foods Giveaway!!

Udi's Winners by Random Drawing!

1st place goes to Kari

2nd place goes to Kathy

3rd place goes to Shannon!!
I have sent each of you lovely ladies and email with instructions on how to claim your prize! Please respond by Sunday evening if at all possible.

Tons of thanks to all who shared their stories about your gluten-free journeys! It was so encouraging to all of us to know we are not alone in this lifestyle. Thanks a million to Udi's for the WONDERFUL prizes and a FABULOUS product!!



Please note, you must leave a way for me to contact you should you win - especially if you leave an anonymous comment, you need to leave your email!! Posts without a way to be contacted will be deleted before the random drawing. Thanks.I am SO excited for this giveaway sponsored by my beloved Udi's Gluten-Free Foods of Denver, Colorado!

For those of you who have been reading my blog for any time, you know I was diagnosed with gluten intolerance over a year ago and you know the strong reaction I had to Udi's the first time I had their Whole Grain Bread! I practically cried when I had my first sandwich in a year because I had missed bread so much, and this bread totally ROCKS! Since discovering the bread, I have also become a devoted fan of their Blueberry Muffins, Lemon Streusel Muffins and Granola! I would buy the rest of it too, but this is all my Whole Foods currently carries! The prizes for this giveaway are fantastic and even if you don't require a "gluten-free" diet these foods are delicious!


To enter the contest, (open to the US and Canada) please click through to the Udi's Website, have a look around and leave a comment here telling me what 1 product you would most love to try! Please make sure to leave your contact information so I can contact you if you win. The prizes include:

1^st place winner will receive a package including 1 of each of our frozen products including Whole Grain Bread, White Sandwich Bread, Bagels, Pizza Crusts, Blueberry Muffins, Lemon Streusel Muffins, Double Chocolate Muffins, and Cinnamon Rolls.

2^nd place winner will receive a package including a package of Pizza Crusts, Bagels, Whole Grain Bread, White Sandwich Bread, and Cinnamon Rolls

3^rd place winner will receive one of each of our Gluten Free Granolas (Original, Au Naturel, Vanilla, and Cranberry)

You have three chances to win a fabulous, delicious prize! Comments must be received by July 14th at noon and the winners will be chosen using random.org. The winners will be announced on July 14th at 5pm!! Again, please enter even if you are not gluten-free-- these products are delicious for everyone! I have tested them out on my co-workers and they all agree they are great!
Thank you Udi's for sponsoring this awesome giveaway!!

Winner of DownEast Basics Giveaway is.......

Lucky #9................

Jessica from Breakfast at Gigi's!!

Thanks to everyone who participated and made this DownEast Basics Giveaway a success! HUGE thanks to DownEast Basics for providing the giveaway and for making fabulous affordable fashions!

*************************************************************
Block Par-Tay!!!!

A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers, and woods, but it is a principle; and patriotism is loyalty to that principle. ~George William Curtis

This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave. ~Elmer Davis

From every mountain side
Let Freedom ring.
~Samuel F. Smith, "America"

I love my freedom. I love my America. ~Jessi Lane Adams

We on this continent should never forget that men first crossed the Atlantic not to find soil for their ploughs but to secure liberty for their souls. ~Robert J. McCracken

Boom! Bang! Pop! Crackle!

I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him. ~Abraham Lincoln

I've searched for you for 19 years!!

Funny story. I went out for a bike ride this morning because it was a glorious day! I had a destination in mind, first a great cup of coffee, then to the grocery for a few needed items. On my way, I came across a garage sale! I thought I would try my hand at seeing if there were any treasures. This was the nicest garage sale - everything looked brand new and was in its original box! Ann Taylor, Jcrew, New Balance, etc. Then I saw this purse, and almost shed a tear.

You see, years ago (19 to be exact) I met my wonderful sister-in-law for the first time. I instantly loved her and we quickly became very close. We had a lot in common and shopping and garage sale-ing were 2 of our hobbies. She had this Liz Claiborne purse that I loved. I always tried to find one just like it because I liked hers so much. I searched in stores, I searched in garage sales, no avail. Then, today, I saw it. And for $3 I HAD to buy it for memories sake and it's now considered "vintage"! So that makes it cool, right? Anyhow, I cleaned it all up (even though it was like brand new) and my "stuff" fits in in (a tight fit, but still).

So, what do you think? Do you like "vintage" items? This one is from the eighties or early nineties! I saw a similar one on ETSY. I know that mixing vintage with things like Anthro is very big in the blog world.

Sandy, I miss you - do you still have this purse??

DownEast Basics Review and Giveaway!

I'm am so very excited to announce my July Giveaway with..............DownEast Basics!

DownEast Basics is a a great online as well as a brick and mortar store that offers fashionable clothing at great prices! My niece first introduced me to this company and I can tell you that the skirt they sent me to review did not disappoint! I chose the Perfectly Pretty Skirt (no longer on the website) and it's so feminine and girly! I love black and white and the touch of pink is perfect! The skirt is very well made of nice 100% cotton fabric and has an underskirt with polka-dot ruffle hem. This particular skirt retailed for $29.99.

I really love these new arrivals on the website
Keepsake Cardigan $26.99

Whispy Stems Skirt $26.99

Side Swept Top $24.99

I also love these items

Pretty Poppy Skirt $29.99

Sweet and Scallop Skirt $23.99

DownEast Basics has generously offered to give one reader of She Hath Done What She Could a DownEast Basics item of their choosing! Here are the rules to enter:

Mandatory
1. Go to DownEast Basics New Arrivals page and leave me a comment stating your new favorite item. Make sure to leave your email so I can contact the winner!

Additional Entries: (please leave a separate comment for each entry you make)
2. Become a follower of She Hath Done What She Could by clicking the follow button on the right sidebar. If you are already a follower, please leave a comment stating this.
3. Blog about this giveaway and come back and paste your link into the comments
4. Become a Fan of DownEast Basics on Facebook and leave a comment stating this
5. Follow DownEast Basics on Twitter and leave a comment stating this

You can earn a total of 5 entries into the Giveaway!! ( The chosen winner will not be eligible to win another DownEast Basics giveaway on my blog for at least 90 days.) The Giveaway will be open until noon on Saturday, July 10th, and a winner will be chosen at random and announced on my blog at 6pm on July 10th!
Thank you to DownEast Basics for making this fabulous Giveaway possible!

Meet my Shopping Sensei!

I bet you all have wondered where I learned to wield a markdown rack.

Well, it started a long, long time ago as I watched and studied and learned from my Shopping Sensei. As a little child, I would watch her hit the mall stores- the most expensive ones and head straight to the back to the markdown rack. She would emerge with bags full of top name brand clothing at Wal-Mart prices (or better!) "That's no joke" (as my french Aunt Sue used to say)! Below is a photo of her in her 75% off Target dress (that I sent her actually because now she lives miles away from civilization).

Meet my Sister, Jackie, my Shopping Sensei! Back in the day, I learned the best tricks from her! She is 7 years my senior, so really, she was like my second mom! We have had lots of fun shopping together, but it was oh, so many moons ago. How I wish we lived closer. We would be an unstoppable shopping force to reckon with!

My teacher and sister Jackie (took this pic off a text message on my phone and couldn't get it any larger!)

And my pic when I wore the same outfit - we are twinsies! Look, we even chose the same belt, 2,000 miles apart!

My sister has always been on a budget, but I promise, she can put an outfit together like none other. She would pair a Gap item with a Wal-Mart item or a vintage necklace and look like a million bucks. She has always known how to accessorize to perfection- not to much and not too little.

I would say that I learned to always try to look feminine and "put-together" when you go out first, from my Mother, then secondly from my sister. (My mom doesn't even take a walk without lipstick - consequently, my lipstick is with me at all times!)

Thanks Sis, for leading by example in what it means to "work your style on a budget"!

P.S. I finally scored these Liberty of London PJ's for $5 today!! (Along with dress pants for my boys for church for $3.24 a pair! They needed them!)