Level Up

Up until now, my quests in Middle Class have been so minor. Mainly, just diving into the social networking lands and making my tiny mark in Blogger Land. I have learned that DIY projects are hip, and if you can come up with the coolest, most unique, awesome thing out there, you can land yourself title of Master of Blogging. I am not there, yet. That status symbol is way beyond my capabilities and XP. But, as a part of Middle Class, I have found myself leveling up to a whole new level, which does open some awesome new worlds that I cannot wait to master! What world have I opened up?...


Home Owner!

New Home Sweet Home! Blessing XP: more than imaginable.

We didn't get here all on our own, and we Praise God and thank everyone who helped us get here! Talk about a guild full of skilled and experienced people on our side. and We won't be jumping into this level on our own, either. Mom and Dad will be joining us hopefully next weekend and Dustin and I will get to do our best to bless them as they adjust to all the new things life will be bringing them. 


It feels huge to level up right now! But we are excited! and this means that my blog will get to start looking into our remodeling and decorating and maybe I'll even learn to cook. What a world of adventures this already has been!

Lower Middle Class Family Level 2

The Marketplace

In any good RPG, there is an amazing place called the "Marketplace". 


(let's be honest here, I don't actually know that for sure, but with playing Lego Harry Potter and watching others play Zelda and such, I assume I am making a correct statement. And, for the sake of my blog post, we're going to own that.)


As a blogger, the best Marketplace right now is Pinterest and I cannot get enough of it. This is the part of the game that may not really gain me any experience, but it gives me "coins" of ideas that seem to break free from each "box"! Every picture that I see seems to be the door to the next adventure! The quest that I am made for! But, unfortunately, many times I find what I want and realize that I do not have enough experience to journey further. Or, I find that I do not possess the right skills to unlock the door and raid on! That is why it is VITAL to get yourself in with a guild and make sure those players are more advance than you, and are willing to go quest and bring you back the goods.


My guild leader? Big Sister (don't know what she wants to go by...) We were fully engaged in the marketplace together and ran across the most adorable thing ever!

The artist did the entire alphabet! I fell in love! I wanted to embark on this journey to take these wonderful images and turn them into a piece of art for my kiddos' bedroom. This is where I find that I am absolutely unequipped to take this mission on. The door is locked, my creativity meter does not hold enough skills for me to take this on. Fearless guild leader? HELP! 


She was up for the challenge!

This banner is beyond my skill level! But she had everything she needed! Both my boys LOVE it!! And honestly, I was able to glean so much knowledge and confidence that you should be seeing many more blogs brought to you by the Marketplace/Pinterest. So much fun to be unlocked! and more skills to be leveled up!


Humility XP 100
Creativity, by assistance XP 100
Happy Kids XP Unmeasurable

Crafting and Savings XP

During our ventures in "Low Income" we found our favorite level to play was "Bargain Shopping". We found ourselves getting so good that we just replayed the level over and over trying to top out our last High Score. Any one who has ever been to my house knows that we have become pros (especially around Target...). Find anything you like and chances are 75% off at Target! And, we don't just buy nonsense, we pick things out that we love/need and watch them like a hawk to go down on price. If it doesn't make it, we don't get it. As we advanced to the New World (Lower Middle Class) we also opened up new Levels to start "Bargain Shopping" through. Fred Myers has made it on our list today (hahaha).

Here's the thing with this level, the bad guys trying to bring you down are all those cool things that are new and full price and awesome and you can't live without them for even a moment longer. When you master the Level, such as we have at Target, you know their system. You can say no to the higher price tag and convince yourself that it will go down. But, a new Level, such as Freddy's for us, you don't know for sure it's going down. AND, there are a bunch of new things you have never seen before and they bombard you like those stinkin' Orcs in the Mines of Moria. Too many to handle!!! The Orc that I cannot defeat is called a Smash Book Video Clip of my Orc There are days I begged Dustin to take us to Fred Myers just so I can look at the display and spend way too much time trying to come up with as many excuses as possible as to why I HAVE to get one. My energy gets drained and Dustin eventually has to just KO one of his own in order to at least tap out of the level before it takes me completely.

So, I went home and thought to myself, what is it about this thing that I just have to have? What I found is that I love the different papers!! and the concept behind the relaxed scrapbook that goes with you everywhere. That's when it hit me, I can just make that on my own! I have tons of scrapbook papers! How hard could it be?

Recycled old Text Book Turned into my Very Own "Smash Book"

Answer is? Not hard at all. Time Consuming? Yes? Hard? No. And the cost involved? Not a penny out of my pocket (well, some of the stuff I bought before, but it's just around the house).

Step 1: Find a book. I had an old text book I had taken from work off the free bin.
Step 2: Rip out pages periodically throughout the book to give it room to add more pages in along with everything I want to scrap! Next, staple a few pages together (I choose 3 pages) to make the pages a little thicker.
Step 3: Cover book. I used a grocery bag to give me the brown paper look and used clear duct tape to make sure it would stay covered.
Step 4: Cut scrapbook papers to the size of pages from the book (measuring the cut out pages was the best way to find out how big I should cut down my paper) and glue onto stapled pages in book! You can add stickers and embellishments as desired!
Step 5: Enjoy your homemade and unique scrapbook that you can take everywhere and be hip and trendy.

Crafting XP: 50
Savings XP: 150

What my book has done for me: Given me something to do while my Packers were losing the game yesterday so I would stop yelling at the tv, help me use up a bunch of scrapbooking stuff that has just been sitting in my cupboard, and given me the Savings XP that I needed to boost me up to the next level at Freddy's and provide me with the skills I needed to say no to buying something at full price. Will I still want to buy some of the cool extras that are also on display with the Smash Books? Heck yes, I will! But, they are only a few dollars, verses the $15 I just said no to! This Boss has been defeated! and I can journey through Moria at ease knowing exactly how to fight off those awful Orcs.

How Our Journey Begins

A little over 6 years ago (6 years, 1 month, and 4 days) our family began. Marriage was a Quest Dustin and I were more than happy to spend as long as we could Leveling Up and Collecting as many Experience Points as we possibly could before we added to the family.

Love: 143 XP

Parenting: 100 XP LEVEL Up

Within 2 1/2 years, our family had doubled in size. Although Marriage is a constant adventure, brand new Quests were "born" and our focus went from XP with each other to XP with the kiddos.

Parenting: 200 XP LEVEL Up

We decided that I would start these little guys off with me staying home and getting by as a single income family. It was at this time that we began to realize that "Middle Class" was a mythical land that was miles and miles away from our reality. We embraced what we had and worked towards getting all the XP we could.






Eventually, our pushing-on paid off and we found ourselves getting to the Boss Level in our World of "Lower Class". The fight was hard, and it felt like we may have lost a few too many of our Extra Lifes. Our Happy meter was hit pretty hard, but once that Boss was dead and we found ourselves unlocking this new world, BAM! we were ready.


2012 is our year to finally really start this trek. As we start at "Lower Middle Class" and work on Leveling up all areas we can in order to get to "Upper Middle Class" we really do find ourselves in a mythical world that we only dreamed about. Bills are still hard to pay, work is still demanding, kids are still little punks. But, we are able to breathe a little more and find the fun in cutting corners with our budget, make all those cool things we love out there but can't afford, try new recipes that call for ingredients that we don't already have in the house, etc. First thing for me to do, though? Start a blog. All Middle Class Moms have a blog. It's a staple. So, get ready for all our adventures as we gain XP, go on Quests, and Nerd it up on the interweb.


                 This is:

Our Journey Thru Middle Class

Lower Middle Class Level 1 Family