Ah the Holidays...

Well, the holidays are in full swing now...I officially rolled out of bed after a late night with the girls and decided I'd better go to the Dr. Before we get out of town and there is nothing else I can do about it. My right tonsil was swollen and hurting and making me not want to eat or swallow. Tonsillitis no big surprise. So after waiting it out in the Dr's office this a.m., finally gtting to the end of my balance and having to shell out a wad for prescriptions, I was able to get home and dress the kids so I could run my 2 remaining errands.

Final preps for the fondue fest tonight which was mediocre at best... The house is nice and clean except for the dishes from the feast and our room which is only slightly messy. The kids are packed even though the grown up aren't. I didn't get to fix my hair, or pick a decent out fit, but I got my make up on and a festive Christmas green shirt to go with my blue jeans before the guest arrived...thank goodness she was late as usual. The kids were in bed a good hour late or more. And "Santa" is too tired to think about what is about to come next! Sheesh!

We learned a few things tonight...M learned to obey, and not to play with sharp objects. (so glad I didn't see her stab herself in the eye with a fondue fork). J and I both were certain-at least for a second-that we were headed to the ER for Christmas Eve. Maybe fondue will be a nicer tradition carried on when the kids are older. Easier is better on nights like this. We learned that cell phones are fantastic for keeping families together even when we're apart. I felt connected after receiving a pic of my niece in her Christmas PJ's and my nephew in another part of the country, in his nice Christmas outfit. So then we were able to send a pic of M and J partaking of fondue...a family tradition from my family of origin. Also, we got a message that my bro in law was firing up the big green egg for their special dinner just as we were firing up our fondue pot.
Now to make it through the rest of the night with the royally sore throat and hopefully not too late a night.

Here goes...

Got Paid

I didn't think the day would come, but yesterday I went to Walmart and they paid me 2 cents to take a product home! Granted I only bought one thing...but I was next door to Walmart for wig perusing (for my party character business). So since I was there, and had the coupon, I decided to swing in and pick up the free fabric softener. I was going to peak down the book aisle to see if they had the last of the Twilight series anyway. They didn't have the book, so I just got the fab softener. At 1.98 and a coupon for $2 off, they actually gave me 2 pennies and I walked out with the fab softener as well. Too bad I only had one coupon or I would have gotten 3 of these.

I did really well yesterday at Target as well. Got some free swiss miss hot cocoa and gave it to a friend (cause I already have 2). Got DelMonte canned green beans (our most used veggies in this house) for 25 cents a piece, and a Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure movie DVD/Blu Ray for $5!

Today I'm off to make a 5 yr old's day by surprising her in costume at her school with cupcakes! Off to the races.

Inching Ever Closer

Well I haven't blogged in a while. Not because I haven't had things going on, but mainly because nothing seemed to want to be written about. I'll explain...stories from my days and weeks come to mind in very storylike form sometimes. It is those that I blog about. If I make a list (like the last post) it's because the narrative form is lost for the time being. So, that's where I am. Still...

I am inching every closer to my 400th post! I should definitely use that as an excuse to throw a party...when it actually occurs that is.

Since the last post I have been to Disney World and Epcot, gotten to see one of my best friends from college, terribly missed one of my other best friends from college, driven to see my parents, flown in an airplane, read 3 of the Twilight books, very nearly completed my Christmas preparations with some last minute gift changing on the part of my 4 year old, past the 100,000 mile mark on my car (yikes!), had my 8th anniversary, and other fairly ordinary things.

I got to do a twins party this past weekend and that involved 2 of the princesses of their choice! Things didn't go as I'd hoped. J was supposed to be able to photograph the event for me since it was kind of a special deal, but we could find anyone to watch the kids at the last second since our usual plan b person was hospitalized for kidney stones. So he didn't get to photograph it, AND for the first time ever...I forgot the goody bags at home! So, to make up for it, I'm making pics and autographing them and slipping them in the mail with their goody bags to each child. That'll cost me...yuck, but I'm happy to oblige if it satisfies the customer. In spite of it not going precisely the way I would've liked, the mom was so ecstatic that she wrote me a raving review email that I will have to use on my site as a testimonial.

I have a singing telegram at a school on Tuesday (that should be quite fun). Tonight, though, I have a hot date with my hot husband! We are celebrating 8 years! It has been delightful...not perfect (we've been through a lot for sure), but compared to many stories of those around me, being married to him is rather easy. We will be spending the night in the swankiest hotel in the area and dining at High Cotton. I thought it a great excuse to buy a new dress (dress? what's that?!). Of course me in my ingenious plan was up till all hours trying to figure out my sister's sewing machine since mine are broken right now. It was an odd length that was very chic, but out of place for my height...would've made me look shorter and as he is 6'3" I don't need to look shorter, so I planned to hem it. In the end, I hand sewed it. Not ideal, but will work for this occasion. So, tonight I will don a classic, chic, red satin dress, some seriously high stilettos, huge earrings (I think...), but I have yet to figure out what to do with my hair.

Christmas has worked itself out as almost everything does (don't know why we worry about little stuff...God clothes and feeds the flowers and the birds, how much more will He take care of us). M wanted a violet incredibles costume from Santa. I ordered one online day after thanksgiving and got scammed apparently. Wasn't going to pay $60 to get one here by Christmas, so I had to improvise. We had a Mr. Incredible costume with a broken zipper from Goodwill, but the muscles would never do. It was too big and we needed to fix the zipper problem, so I asked her if I could scale it down and redo it so that it would be more "violet". That got a raving response. So we decided that Santa could bring her the wig and boots to go with the costume. ( I already had the wig put away). I actually had a hard time finding the boots and started to worry just a bit. Found the perfect ones the a.m. at Walmart on the way home from dropping her off to school! Yahoo!

Now all I have left to deal with for Christmas is anything that involves pictures. Haven't gotten to those yet...again it'll work itself out.

A Day I don't wanna repeat...

Today was quite a day. I knew it would be. I'm gonna list it fairly plainly as I have little emotion left and don't wish to "say" too much.

#1 on the list today was to attend a funeral...of a friend...who was young...and died unexpectedly/suddenly/tragically...at her own hands

So, I got up before my alarm with a start to my 4 year old asking me to start the music over in her room cause she'd had a bad dream and was scared.
2. turned the music and light on and went back to bed waiting for my alarm
3. Alarm didn't go off...even though I attempted to set it last night.
4. No problem, wasn't late...got up and made coffee and grits
5. Went to M's room and helped her to get ready.
6. Had argument with her over what she was going to have for breakfast (since I'd already fixed grits)
7. She asked me why I was being so bossy! Haha, just cause I made her eat the grits.
8. Saw her off and got her brother up
9. Cleaned his room
10. Got him dressed
11. Packed his bags since he was staying with a friend while I attended services
12. Cleaned the kitchen a bit
13. Ate some breakfast (fed the boy)
14. put on a movie for the boy and jumped in the shower
15. let hubs pick my dress for the day
16. make up, jewelry, hair (chose not to dry it and fix it to save time and since it was raining)
17. loaded up boy and bags in the rain and headed to friend who was watching W
18. dropped him off realized i'd forgotten the snacks and juice for his bag...oh well
19. ended up in the parking lot almost simultaneously with my mom, dad, and my husband
20. Went into the packed church
21. Had to potty
22. Tried not to think too much about the words of the songs that were being played on the piano
23. Hugged the neck of the best friend of the one who has gone on (vowed to exchange numbers...hope that really happens)
24. Cried...alot. Couldn't sing cause I couldn't read the words on the screen cause of my seating arrangement.
25. Went to graveside...in the rain (couldn't hear a thing but saw a bit).
26. Don't think anyone should have to go through that ever!
27. Saw someone put aside their own pain for just a moment in order to comfort someone who had personally injured them in the past
28. Can't believe it happened...still. doesn't seem very real.
29. Wandered around a bit aimlessly.
30. Went with hubs to love on the husband a minute and assure him of our support
31. went to get W...who fell asleep on the way home.
32. Dropped him off with hubs at home
33. Went to get M who was disappointed she had to leave
34. Got ready for naptime.
35. Got annoyed at M for continuously trying to evade naptime by calling me to her room again and again
36. Finally got to lay down. had some trouble actually sleeping though I am still exhausted
37. Slept...off and on.
38. heard a mouse in my room...ugh. then I really couldn't sleep
39. called hubs to bring a mouse trap home on his way home from work
40. M woke up
41. we talked a lot
42. almost dinner time, so I went to wake up W
43. We was standing in his crib quietly (been that way for who knows how long)
44. Started on dinner...since i didn't get to do publix run today (boo) I had to improvise
45. Parmesian encrusted tilapia, sweet potatoes, spinach
46. Took forever with kids under foot, but pretty quick and easy otherwise.
47. Not too bad as thrown together as it was.
48. rinsed dishes
49. M helped with 2 chores
50. bathtime
51. W poops in the bath
52. M hasn't bathed yet but has to get out
53. drain bath
54. clean bath
55. refill bath (sans toys as they now have to be washed)
56. wash M
57. do numerous things to get her ready for bed.
58. write blog
59. glass of wine
60. go to bed!

Success

I finally went to the grocery store and had HUGE success. Yesterday I went to Publix and spent $50.03. This should have been more like $47 something, but it wasn't until I got home to show off the receipt that I noticed that the gal rang up one item 3 times when I only purchased 2 of them. I don't know if I can go back and fix this or not. So it should have been $47.00, but I saved a little more than $85! Now that's nearly 70% or so. AND I didn't get weird stuff. I got very practical items across the board. Cleaning supplies, toiletries, groceries, meat, even the newspaper! It was awesome. Now this trip was a bit of an exception as I had several FREE item coupons from joining the baby club. Also, that same club sent me coupons for $1 off meat, dairy, and produce items (store coupons) that I was able to stack with manufacturers. I had 2 rain check items from the week before that allowed me to get free napkins and less than half price detergent (which I was entirely out of).

It was awesome. Then pair that with the trip to do the Huggies deal at CVS and I also came home with 2 papers, 2 packs of huggies, a huge pack of wipes, and 4 Halloween items on 90% off that cost me $16 and I got back 5 Extra Bucks! My total budget for ALL the groceries was to $75 and I spent $66 and some change. I did good.

Today's great deal was the nearly free Christmas photo cards I ordered. 50 for $3.19.

I am anxious for the holidays and getting to see lots of family, but there is plenty to do here before I go. This was supposed to be cleaning day, but I have gone at it only half heartedly...so probably tomorrow will be cleaning day as well. We have tons of packing to do, one car that needs brakes before the trip, and some Christmas decorations to put up before we go.

Thankfully, I have a few weeks off before the next big party. And it will be a doozie! Twins with 2 princesses! It should be awesome! The last 2 weekends have included 2 parties each, this last one being a HUGE Hannah Banana Rockstar Extravaganza. As fun as it was, I worked every spare moment last week and I'll be glad for the break!

Now off to clean and cook one of my hubs favorite meals; meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls, and tea

A Productive Yesterday

Up bright and early with a serious attack plan for the Publix deals. Never really went at it with such avengance before. I clipped and organized, printed, and listed till 11 or so the night before. The real success came in the fact that they actually had almost everything on my list. They no longer had any free napkins. We don't usually use napkins, but if they are free, I'm sure we would. They don't carry the Smart Balance sour cream either which really sweetened the butter deal...but I needed butter, so I went ahead and got some.

Then in the check out I find out that the Taylor's Publix doesn't take Food Lion coupons cause they are too far away to be considered a competitor. Oh well, so I lost another $1.50 in coupons. Still, when all was said and done, I spent $70 and saved $83. That's more than 50%! Was hoping to do better than that, but then I realized I am still working on that stock pile.

I also did really well at CVS! Not as good as I could have done, but I didn't have the 5$ coupon that I needed. Still I got a gift set for J's Christmas and an anniversary present. A little goody for myself, 2 things of sensitive toothpaste, and hair color. I spent a $25 gift card and then used the extra bucks to pay for the 2nd transaction and then got $9 Extra Bucks back! Awesome!

On top of it all I'm having a ridiculous girl's night out tonight. Though I'm not into and have never watched or read any of the Twilight things... I've been invited to a twilight ball tonight. I'm going if for no other reason than to finally knock the dust of my little black "cocktail" dress. What girl doesn't enjoy getting dressed up now and again.

Then 2 parties tomorrow for the business! Getting ready for that should stay interesting. Most everything is done except one final craft. One busy weekend, sure wish I could squeeze in a date with my hubs...we shall see.

Parenting 101

While at the library today, I had one of those moments that I knew would visit me eventually. I was watching my littlest (16month old) encounter another young boy (probably around 2). The boy was obviously annoyed at my little one. He was scowling and advancing toward him. No big deal. It's always interesting to watch their interactions. See how they both handle it.

So other kids pushes my little one. No big deal...W stumbles a bit but manages to keep his footing. All is fine. No need to intervene. Then kid advances further and pushes even harder. W catches air before he actually falls. At one point not one bit of his body is touching the ground. I look around for a moving mom. A mom that looks the least bit interested in what is happening. I see nothing so I say calmly but firmly, "No, no. We do not hit." And then I pick W up and move on to looking at books in the vicinity.

Then missing mom comes on the scene and I over hear here saying to the boy, "What's the matter". So I turn to look at him. He is still standing in the same spot with a big pout on his face. This doesn't bother me at all. Many children pout when they are scolded even if it is something they need to hear. Truthfully adults do the same thing. I tell the mom, he just pushed my son down and I told him that we don't hit (plenty of other parents around that witnessed the whole scene). The mother scoops him up and hugs him and he starts to cry.

She cuts me the look and tells me that in the future to leave the parenting to her. To which I replied that I was sorry, but I looked for a parent and as there was none, I felt something needed to be said as he deliberately pushed my son with no invocation. She said, well I was right there and was headed this way. To which I replied, Well I did look around for the parent, and didn't find one.

Now I'm annoyed for several reasons. I'm annoyed that it didn't seem to matter that her son was acting out...more it mattered that I said something to him when she wasn't present. I'm also annoyed that I employed gentle instruction and that was somehow perceived as inappropriate. I would much rather have had the discipline coming from the mom, but I couldn't find her when the time called for her instruction. Obviously I didn't lay a hand on the child, but is it now inappropriate to explain to a child that it's not ok to push? Sheesh. I know I muddle the line, because I tend to surround myself with people who discipline in the same manner as I do, so I don't mind when others correct my children. They are great learning times for both the kids and the moms!

How off am I on this? Opinions? Clearly I offended someone...that wasn't my intention. Was there a better way. Maybe not going to the library with both kids when my brain is still in a very serious flu fog!

...it pours

I have no idea where I accidentally ended the "when it rains story", but I think I had just said we had a major car overhaul. Torque converter, transmission, and all kinds of things all around that...you can imagine how that set us back. Still better than getting a new car.

So, we spent an extra day with Cuz in Highpoint, NC. Long night as we were all in the same room and W was in the middle of cutting his 2 top molars. We all woke up several times an hour from about 12:30 am--5:30am. The best part of the week came as mom had to drive us back to SC and decided to stay a bit to help out, at least till our car was ready.

She cooked and cleaned and watched kids, and this was fantastic! This allowed me to participate in things I wouldn't have otherwise been able to. I got to attend a field trip to the apple farm with M. I made a "Princess Ella" appearance at M's fall festival. I went to Mom to Mom but didn't have to put W in the nursery exposing him to more fall germs. No matter, somehow, by Thursday night I was growing VERY ill. No energy, lots of congestion, a complete inability to think coherently. Took W to the Dr. and I went too. I guess I ended up with a URI diagnosis and just a "keep a watch on him" for W. I was feeling a bit better on Friday, but I'm afraid I tried to do too much.

Friday night I took M to Payless to take advantage of the 50% off entire purchase coupon thanks to Southern Savers and ultimately Oprah. I got 2 pair and she got 2 pair and we spent $35! Now that's what I'm talking about! I also managed to get 6 pair of grippy socks at Children's place and used a coupon and ended up paying about $8 and some change! Awesome! But, I was dragging after all that.

Saturday, I literally slept almost the whole day! I tried to get up and help, feeling guilty for not pitching in. But I gave up. Just a little bit up and about and I was out of energy. Thankfully, J stepped in full force. I never ask him to take over, but I'm glad he was willing in this case. Turns out I had fever all day. Sunday was only a bit better. Less fever. A little more out of bed time, but still alot of laying around and going to bed early. By Sunday morn, M was definitely coming down with it too...whatever it really is. She had fever in the early morning hours today as well. So, she is home today, and we are awaiting the Dr.'s phone call.

Luckily, it seems W and hubs have managed to avoid the sickness this time around. Hope that lasts. I seem to be coming out of the fog just a bit today. Still a bit loopy, but definitely fever free.

I attempted to CVS yesterday, but lets just say this is not for someone who is severely ill. I'll try again another day.

When it rains...

I'm checking in after quite a week! In Mom to Mom this week we went around the room stating our best moments and worst moments. Not that I'm a pessimist (actually I'm the opposite), but I started with the worst...cause that's how my week started.

On this past Sunday, on the way home from NC, our transmission went out...in a big way. Not just the trans, but all these other things all around it. We were very close to an exit, so they towed us to Cracker Barrel. Luckily, we were only about 30-40 minutes past where my brother lives, so they rescued us. M thought it was pretty great cause she got to spend an extra day with her beloved cousin.

Oops I accidentally published this post by clicking the wrong button. I'll be finishing the story momentarily!

Standing my ground

So I went to this Southern Savers Extreme Couponing 101 class last night. I know I mentioned this. The head hauncho was saying that if you zone out in the 5-10 minutes during check out then you are doing yourself a great disservice cause a lot of mistakes happen at the register. Now, I do know this is true, but I'm a little bit timid when it comes to correcting other people's mistakes. You really don't wanna hack off the cashier as you will likely run into them again and again if you intend on continuing to shop at that grocery store.

Having said all that, let me recount my latest shopping experience.

#1 Mistake was HAVING to go to the store. Cause then I was buying my food that I had to have right then on their terms...thus paying a great deal more than I would if I were waiting for the deal. But alas, Mom to mom was in need of last minute breakfast items, so I went early this morning. I was going to purchase two bags of mini bagels, some cream cheese, and a package of cutlery so that I could provide a knife for the cream cheese. Oh and an additional carton of juice...my fave Pineapple Orange Banana! So I found the best deals on all of these and then noticed "peelies" on the bags of bagels. One said buy a loaf of bread and get this bag of bagels free. Well, the bread was cheaper than buying the bag of bagels alone, so this way I'm paying less than I would if I had just bought the bagels, but i'm also getting a loaf of bread. I can live with that since i HAD to have the bagels anyway. (Of course I would never pay anywhere near $2 and something for a loaf of bread!) Then the other coupon said buy a bag of bagels and get $2 off a pumpkin. Cool. Again, I was buying that bag of bagels regardless.

We don't have a pumpkin yet even though this is seriously one of M's favorite holidays. We just haven't been able to make it to the pumpkin patch to take advantage of all that between illnesses and injuries this season. So I roll over to the pumpkins and I see a medium sized Pumpkin Pie Pumpkin with a sign that says $1.99! Perfect. Not too tiny, Not too big...AND I can use the insides to make delicious concoctions. AND MOST OF ALL, the coupon makes it -1 cent. so I gain a cent. Awesome.

Well we ring it all up and I scan my bonus card knocking a good deal off my purchases then I use my coupons and it knocks more off, but then I see it! The price that the pumpkin rang up on the computer is listed at $2.99. That's a dollar more than the sign where I picked it out. So I point this out kindly to the cashier and she says, well that is before the coupon. Now it's .99cents. I say yes, but the pumpkin is supposed to be ringing up at a dollar less so that it is free after the coupon. She says to me that I'm still getting a good deal with the coupons. And I say, yes, but if the pumpkin is supposed to be $1.99, then I would like to pay only that and not the extra dollar. She appears a great deal annoyed and calls for a price check. 6 employees come for this price check!

Oh Geez Louise! So, not trying to be trouble, I have now gotten the woman behind me in the line in on this. She is now clarifying to the employees that I am due an extra dollar as the price listed should be ringing up at $1.99 instead of $2.99. Turns out, in a sense, I am right. The pumpkin label from last week's sale was still listed because they forgot to take it down. So, in the end, I got my free pumpkin...and I suppose I got my feet wet for reclaiming the dollars that are rightfully mine! Score one more for the coupon crazies!

All in all, I left the store having spent $10 for $18 or $19 worth of stuff, so for a trip that I HAD to make with no pre-planning, that's not bad! BTW, this was Bilo not the beloved Publix.

Mac Truck

Well, one can only go so long at full speed before there engine gets run down. I think that is most likely where I am right now. Hope that's all that is making me feel so sluggish anyway! The house was so quiet just moments ago cause of the naps, but I swear that W can hear the clicking of the keyboard or something because he always wakes up! Still, he will stay in there a bit while he is at least happy.

He has been extremely cranky lately and my mother's intuition (which is likely skewed by my own feelings at this point) tells me that something is wrong. Let's hope I'm off on that one. MOST likely he is just cutting teeth. I believe he's a good bit overdue for 2 or 3 anyway. He is very mommy-centric right now, which I would think I am supposed to love and eat it up, but truthfully it gets old.

I won't wish it away...not for anything in the world, cause I'm certain it will disappear soooo quickly, but the demands being ever constant get rather cumbersome with a 16 month old hanging off one hip! I think I managed to get mostly all of the resewing projects done for M and even added an extra one in. So the other night I was able to finish up about 10 pieces of clothing for her and 2 for myself. I believe I only have about one or two more for her. Then on to W! Got to throw him together some really cute things before the cold sets in for good.

Went to a huge couponing seminar/workshop thing last night. I waffled a good bit on whether or not to go. I mean the point of couponing is to save money and I was going to spend $10 to learn more about it. I felt like I knew most of it. I decided that I needed to get my behind out of the little world that can consume me, and step out and be sociable. (This didn't used to be so difficult!) And it wasn't really difficult, just with all that is forever on my plate I don't want to do something else before I've finished what's in front of me. J said I'd be glad I went cause even though I think I know it all, there will be some nugget that will make it worth it.

He was right of course. I learned 2 nuggets. The most exciting one was about B1G1 sales in the drugstore! Apparently the way the items ring up is different than at a grocer, making a bogo at the drug store a much better deal! Never new that! Then there was the nugget that freed me from coupon hell (excuse my french if that bothers you). I was spending/wasting (you decide) about 3 nights a week working with coupons! yuck. I would much rather be sewing, working out, spending time with my hubs! Well, now I know the quickest and easiest way to organize my coupons that takes little to no time at all! Seriously! File the whole insert after you have written the date at the top. Don't cut those coupons! Then when you read the Southern Savers list you know where to look in your file. AFTER you make your list, cut the coupon and your ready to roll!

Aha moment for me there! Well, there is always more to tell, but for now I will have to go get the baby who is now very aware that I'm right outside his room and awake.

Hoping to Make It

Hoping to make it to North Carolina this week. We were scheduled to go 2 weeks ago, but we have really been through it around here. We saw a Dr. 4 times in 9 days and had to other incidents that we chose to skip the Doctor for.

Poor W got his finger smashed in a door and now the entire nail was bleeding and is black. And yesterday he decided to climb the back of his high chair which is nice solid wood and it fell over on him. He luckily only got his other finger caught and injured. It may actually be broken but it is just the tip and he is using it...so what could they do for it anyway. It's nice and purple as well but not on the finger nail, on the tip.

Unfortunately he is in the climbing stage! Just waiting for him to attempt to climb out of his crib! He is also in the talking stage. I guess since he has mastered walking and is pretty good at running and dancing, he is now working on his verbal skills. He has been talking up a blue streak lately! He says "basketball", attempts to say "soccer ball", his sister's name; he said, "pants" cookie, water, puffs, wiggles, peepee, shoe, soup, ...and mostly anything he wants to repeat! So fun!

I have been sewing a good bit as well. I went Goodwill shopping on Dollar day again. I was at a loss as it has turned quite cold here and I realized I didn't have much by way of long sleeve for my 4 year old. I bought up a little less that $20 worth of clothes (so about 19 items), and have been resizing the ones that were too big. Now this may sound like a pain to some, but once you've done it once...IT IS SO EASY! Seriously. I resized a sweat shirt with a shooting star and the word "wish" on it (with sparkles of course) in 20 minutes! For real! Then it took me maybe an hour tops to resize a Tinkerbell hoodie from the Disney store. It was more complicated because it was a different shape, and I had to replace a pocket and put on the arm bands and bottom band. Still this is one of M's favorites! I also found a yellow turtleneck in her size, a red turtleneck, a very rocker chick long sleeve T in her size, a BT Kids pink sweater with a tiny hole I will patch tonight, a dress that's long sleeved in her size, and the list goes on.

I know I owe you guys pics, but my camera has been out of batteries. I haven't finished the shirt to pants conversion yet. My machine is actually in need of repair. Thank goodness for my serger. It's been carrying the load lately. I did convert an adult turtleneck into a child's long sleeved T in creme color. I converted another sparkly gold adult turtleneck into a very sassy dress! Very cute. Did another adult to child conversion of a navy turtleneck and still have a charcoal gray one to do if I think she needs it. Fun for me and for her and inexpensive for the family! Must do pics! I will work on it. So much to do so little time.

The Goods

Been triple couponing again this week as Bloom did another sale. The savings were right at about 50%...obviously that is over all. There were things that I needed that I bought at regular price (or at least sale without a coupon), so between triple coupons and regular prices, the money I spent was the same as the money that I saved.

I made a CVS run today as my hubs was craving Coke products (not my favorite thing at all), but CVS had a deal that made them 4/$10. So we stocked up. I was disappointed because one item that I wanted was going to make me $3 extra, but they were already out, so I had to settle for the similar product that was only going to make me $1 extra in the end. Oh well. Over all I spent $18.50 and saved $30.00 AND got back $10 in ECB for the next visit. I'd say that went well.

Thank You Sis!

A BIG shout out to my sister in Auburn for helping me to fix my silly blog! And mom too. No more random color mixing! And yes, there is certainly much more to say here.

I have been couponing again...til 1 am in the morning again! There just aren't enough waking hours sometimes. I just about missed the triple coupons at BLOOM which ended tuesday I certainly wasn't expecting it as I just did this about 2 weeks ago! A friend on Facebook informed me and so I spent the rest of the night sewing and couponing to get ready for an early morning run to the store. Much success ensued. I was and possibly still am a little bit confused on the actual specifications of using coupons in the triple coupon scenario and I will hopefully get clarification tomorrow. I spent $18.73 and saved $36.05.! That's not bad! This time I didn't get coupon crazy and buy things I wouldn't normally. I got a lot of rice, juice, bathroom tissue, spaghetti sauce...so I gelt even better about my $18 purchases.

But my week has been much more full than even that! Monday, I took W to the dr. for a recheck of his ears...which were clear! But Tuesday after my Bloom run, I picked M up from school and she was out of sorts. Apparently she had taken quite a fall in the gym about 30 minutes prior to schools end. She was running full force and ran into a boy. Bonk heads and then fell backwards and hit her head on the gym floor. Once the screaming subsided, the teacher said she kind of got back to playing, but no too long after she started to deteriorate.

On the way home she was droopy trying to fall asleep. I called the dr. He said she could sleep but just wake her up after about an hour. She did not want any lunch. So she laid down to sleep, but then she started throwing up. This is when mama knew we'd most likely be on our way to the ER. And the Dr. said go...so we went.

Of course the minute we arrive at the ER she is her old self again...for the most part. Funny, entertaining everyone, happy, excited about this new adventure. She stuttered a little over the word "flower" at one point. And not much later, stumbled over an entire sentence...that is a little scary as she is extremely clear and articulate verbally. But the dr. said that is very normal for a good joggle of the brain. He felt like "her cognitive skills are amazing!" So after a long day of blood pressure taking, pulse taking, heart listening, hospital gowns and gatorade, we were able to go home. Lots of special treatment of course. Happy meal on the way home and then dinner right after that!

The next day we tell her teachers to keep an eye on her. She was fine. Chose to have quiet time rather than actually sleep during nap time. But...after that she felt really warm. 102.9! sheesh. So we call the Dr. We called the ER. They say it is not likely to be related to her head injury, so we schedule an appt for first thing in the morning. And hey, she has Strep! Which she most likely got from the ER! So we have now been to the Dr or ER 3 times this week! So we have been taking care of our patient for the rest of the week. Very high temps have subsided and we are now fever free. Runny noses on both counts of the kids, so we had to miss Cuz's bday! So sad. We had so been looking forward to it! Still I guess we now have something to do for fall break in 2 weeks.

Here's hoping that next week is much more calm! I've done and redone so much laundry that I'm surprised the machine still works! Trying to keep the germs to a minimum.

Among other things...

I have been up till 1 am the past two nights (or mornings I should say). Partially due to a late cup of coffee and a thousand and one things I'm attempting to squeeze into my life.

Among other things, I have managed to resize one adult turtleneck into M's size! Cream so it can go with and under MANY things. It was quite simple actually! I cut down 3 adult turtle necks actually the same night. Another one I made into a dress which looks pretty awesome actually and the last one will just be a shirt, but it's not quite finished yet. Almost. I was going to take pics and then realized 2 things. The batteries in the camera were dead and I don't have anymore batteries in the stock pile.
I will take some pics though...eventually.

Among other things, I've been faithfully clipping coupons still in preparation for another try at the grocery game. Got 2 of each coupon for the past 4 weeks. Still have to sort the ones from this week though. Not sure if this is going to really hook me cause ALDI is just easier and I always know I'm getting the best price! I keep saying, if I can get stuff for basically free, then I suppose that would be better and thus worth it.

Among other things, we decorated for Halloween last night. We don't do this. The whole evil scene is not something we encourage. In fact, it makes me rightfully nervous. So, hubs and I talked it over...since M was really wanting to decorate, and we decided that if we could do it where in all the "creatures" looked cartoony and happy...not scary even a little, then we would let M decorate. Obviously we didn't go overboard on those decorations either. We went to the dollar store for this extravaganza. We bought a cartoony totem pole type door hanging with all sorts of Halloweeny characters. We got two inflatable cutesy ghosts and some "spider webbing" and a biggish spider. That's it. The ghosts are hung in the tree with colorful ribbon, the door hanging is on the door after a little redrawing and fashioning of the witches face cause even the cartoon character in this instance looked a little mean. Not anymore! A sharpy and some pseudo googly eyes did the trick! We spread the spider webs in the front bushes and used pipe cleaners to attach the spider to the white post out front.

We don't believe in Halloween and celebrating evil...but we do believe in making something good out of something that may have originally been intended for bad. We believe in play and imagination...dressing up, etc.

Among other things, we may have found a resting place for awhile as far as churches go. This could be a long paragraph, but I will keep it short. 2 years ago we were severely injured by a local church. We haven't recovered...may never fully. So we have wandered around trying to reconcile the situation. M has been going to school (much by accident--though I don't really believe in accidents) at Duncan Christian Academy. We love it and love that our child is talking more about God and asking questions...singing songs, learning Bible verses weekly. They had DCA day at the church there.

We get that they are just trying to "hook" the parents a bit by bringing the into the church to present the gospel. And truthfully they did an excellent job! I much prefer a going out approach, but we went understanding this concept cause we both grew up in Baptist churches. They honored our very deserving teachers. They featured the children singing. They had some very well done music with a choir that packed out the loft! I wasn't thrilled that it was generally done to tracks, but this is a rather small church. The gospel presentation was well done. I was annoyed at first by the phraseology. The church phrases that lost people would absolutely never understand without explanation. But I won't complain because the pastor did explain the phrases he used; one by one. The thing that struck me most about the church is that it had LIFE! the people were glad to be there and seemed to genuinely be worshiping God! Hallelujah!

So, who knows what it's like every week...but we finally found something that we are excited to try again. Who would've ever thought it would be a "first baptist church". At least in some respects, we know the drill! Ha ha!

Among other things, I exploded two hard boiled eggs in the microwave yesterday! Lesson learned! Not a centimeter of the microwave was left untouched! Shew! What a mess, what a smell, and what a clean up!

Deconstruct Reconstruct

I'm in the middle of all kinds of unusual sewing projects. If you know me personally you know several things. 1. I am decently frugal. Out of necessity I do my best to save money. 2. I love to take something old and make it new somehow. This gives me a great sense of accomplishment and I generally have enough patience to deconstruct. 3. I like the idea of recycling...not sending something to Goodwill that hasn't already been there before. (Get what I'm saying?)

Why buy something brand new that I can get at goodwill, or create from something I got from goodwill. We obviously have enough stuff (unwanted or otherwise) floating around in this world. So, it's part frugality and part responsibility that I shop second hand most of the time. Having said that, on come the projects.

And I will have to post pics before and after of these projects cause even I am curious. I purchase an adorable sweater/pull over type shirt from the children's place via Goodwill on the $1 day. I also found a striped turtleneck with the exact color blue in the adult portion also for $1. So I picked it up, knowing that it'd be close, but I could most likely create pants out of the turtle neck to go with the shirt. I am right. I have measured out the pattern onto the shirt and its striped pattern and it will just fit. Sadly this will be the last year and can get pants out of a shirt for my little girl...but I still have a little boy! If I have enough shirt fabric left over, I will also make an applique to go on the shirt...as inspired by two friends new to sewing!

I also bought some cream colored adult turtlenecks at that same $1 sale for M because she was in need of that color for several pieces. Trying to stretch her clothes a little further, I am making or remaking bottoms or tops to put together with pieces we already have. Then I'll have outfits for fall and winter, instead of going out and buying already put together new outfits. I am going to take the adult shirts and resize them down to make the sizes we need, and I'm going to attept a knit jacket much like those selling at Target in the girl's section. I love to throw out a pattern and do it myself. That's the way my brain works. So good luck to me in finding time and energy to plow through these projects as the cold sets in!

Also have a few things planned for the little man as I found a handful of baby boy ties at goodwill 3/$1! I intend on using dress shirts or even short sleeved dress shirts put in the back to goodwill pile by my hubs to piece together some long sleeved t-shirts that appear to have a dress shirt underneath and a tie on top...this will be sewn down for safety reason however so it won't get caught. We shall see how this all goes! Excited to get started and plow away at these project. Now to find the time to do so!

Coupon Crazy

I have found that over the past week I have been thinking in status updates and blogger entries. It is weird for sure, but if I had enough time I'd just sit down and post it. But life doesn't stop for deep thoughts.

I am relearning things about coupons and think I may share the Coupon Craziness here. You see, I love a bargain (a concept my 4 yr old asked me to explain). But we are watching a pennies as close or maybe even closer than ever right now, so I even have to beware of the Coupon Frenzy. Bloom just had triple coupons (still going on through Tuesday although I dare not set foot in the store again!) This is when I really noticed Coupon Craziness and was able to save myself to some degree. I scoured through all my coupons that were at least .50 up to .75 (cause lets face it...there are no .99 cent coupons). And then I went to the store...twice. I got some great deals and saved nearly 75%. What I discovered was this...even though I talked myself out of lots of things, I still bought things that I didn't really need. Will I use them? Sure, but do I NEED them...No.

Also, I still overpaid on some things even with the triple coupons. Let me explain. Lets take for example that I bought Soft Soap body wash. I usually just use a bar of soap. Now I think it was around $4 originally and I got $2.25 off. So that's more than half off. But I could have bought 3 bars of soap for around the same price...so which is better? Truthfully, when done right I could have done a drugstore deal that would have made it basically free...eventually.

And lets talk about basically free. The drugstore deals...they can be incredible! And you really can get things for pennies on the dollar...eventually. You see these items involve coupons AND rebate or Register Rewards. So you are fronting most of the money...and then you get rewarded. Now if you have the money to front...this is the way to go. Just don't forget to use those reward dollars before they expire. Or don't forget to send in for you Rebates! Then you get to wait for the rebate before it feels like you actually did a good thing as far as bargains go. It's a little confusing and a bit of a hassle if you ask me, but I think if I can save enough cash from my initial couponing (and not go overboard just cause I have a coupon for the item) I may use that money to start the drugstore ball rolling.

Once you front the money for enough items (that you need and that will produce a number of rewards) then you can use the rewards to buy the new items that will then produce new rewards...you see how this could be a great never ending cycle. Still I'm not sure I'm ready for this level of thriftiness yet.

Then there is the issue of prices. Well, so Publix has a store coupon for $3 off diapers and I have a manufacturers coupon for another $1 off. So I could get the diapers for $4 off...their price. You see. it's still not as good a deal as if I went to Aldi and bought their diapers which work fine at this stage in the baby game. So If I went overboard on Couponing I'd think...well I got this name brand for a great deal! But I don't NEED that brand...and thus I would be overspending.

I think to make the coupon craze better I'm going to sort through my coupons and order them from needs to would love to have at the right price and throw out the rest that I truly never should buy. Maybe not throw out, but separate into a totally different box...only to be used if it ends up being free.

So much to keep up with. I think that's why I gave this up a while ago. Trading time for money...which is what you do I guess if all you have is time!

Under Construction

Clearly I am busy playing with this silly blog. Getting ready for my favorite season. Realize what I did here, but don't know how to undo it/fix it. So, it'll look like this till I get some expert advice or at least some more time!

The Things I Love

Ahhh...It is 10:30 a.m. The house is quiet cause Baby is sleeping. Sister is at school for a little while longer. I feel so satisfied, maybe content is a better word. There is little angst in the pit of my stomach over expected guests coming to my home or an upcoming party that I need to get organized or do some buying for.

I actually have some time, though it is a small amount, to get somethings done. Hence the blogging. I also feel contented cause I just did some couponing and loved it! I have gotten away from this due to the lack of time and the simplification of going to ALDI. Clearly ALDI is still my favorite. Lowest prices no coupons required! And its clean and I know the people who work there. Love it! Still, as the economy is such, I am needing to find even more savings on some things. Thus, I am going to start grocery gaming. Since I have tried this before, I am able to be better prepared when I do start. I know that I do not need a list to every store. I now know in which stores I will shop. One grocery store and one drug store...maybe a Walmart list, although I do not really enjoy Walmart shopping.

I have now saved up to sets of two weeks worth of Sunday coupons, so only 4 more weeks to go till I have pretty much all of them on the list. I actually got one extra set of coupons so that I could use those now as needed. And I was able to do that this morning.

I went to Publix. I love Publix! It is easy to shop there and you get alot of help from the employees. However, I never shop there because I feel like it is the priciest of supermarkets. But, there are some things that we need in our house due to allergies that only Publix carries. So about once a week (every Monday) I take W to Publix. He loves it cause he gets a free balloon. Lately they have had store coupons that I have been able to combine with manufacturers coupons and get really good deals on. And of course there's the 1 cent coupon that is only good on Sunday and Monday. So I have gotten those extra items as well. I got 3 reusable shopping bags with coupons and the great thing is they aren't just some boring bag...they are halloween inspired! One is Frankenstein, one has a magic wand on it, and the other is plain black! M is going to flip over the spooky one.

Today I ended up getting 11 items for $11.35! I saved a total of $10.42 (so almost 50%)! It was like shopping at the dollar store except I got name brand things like Progresso soups, Pillsbury Cinnamon rolls, and ground beef to name a few! Not bad for just getting my feet wet again. So get to combining those coupons cause last week's mystery item was Cheerios (a large box) and this week's was coffee (which I needed anyway)! Hooray for savings! We all just might make it through this economic recession after all!

Slow to Upload

When there is a dry spell in my blogging, it is traditionally for one of two reasons...the first being that I'm just bored with it and feel somewhat apathetic with little to say. The second being that I am overwhelmed with things to say and so full with the life that is currently presented me that I haven't an inkling of time to spare for the blog.

The latter would be true in this case.

I will blog a bit and hopefully do some pics in the next little bit!

Life has been full. Full good or full bad you say? I say, "Yes". Seriously, don't know when I've had so much tugging at my head and my heart! Too much to detail here, but I have enjoyed it all none the less. When God places stuff in my life that could be dubbed as difficult to accept, I now know (through experience...lots of experience) that I can accept it through faith knowing that the other side of it all is going to be freaking awesome! I don't always like the way things in my life go...but I know that eventually I'm gonna love where God has taken me.

So, we are in the middle of major life change all around us. A few things have changed in our own lives, but a lot of things have changed in the lives of those around us! Of course, when you live and operate in community the way God intended, then you know that the shifts in the lives of others greatly affects your own life! So, we have been given the chance to minister in community and I'm thrilled! To show another the depth of God's love for us! What could be better?

On our family front, M has started school. We went back and forth over school and finally placed her in an inbetween class that teaches K5. I had my reservations about her maturity level and motor skills...and turns out I was right. Talked with her teacher today, and they now have an opening in the K4 class that they didn't have when I was trying to sign M up. M tried it out today and felt better about it. More confident of her skill level and such. She's working very hard on writing and making letters and numbers. Her motorskills have always been a good bit behind her intelligence level. She's not behind by any means. Most likely right on as far as 4 yr olds go, but her brain comprehension is beyond that of her age. Then there is her maturity level. Well, she is 4. right on. Need I say more. (The teacher didn't seem to think that mattered since she said she has many 5 yr olds that act like 4 yr olds!) Still, I'm glad my concerns were accurate and valid, and that they now have a spot for her in a more appropriate place. I'll just be most glad when she finally gets settled in one routine...So far we haven't settled into a routine with home and school.

W is a mess. The most beautiful boy I've ever seen and I can see how this is going to be trouble. He is a bruiser, no doubt, with a soft spot for his mama! He is mean as a snake when he wants to be, and rough and tumble unless mama's close enough to pick him up and love on him when he gets a boo boo. Hopefully he'll get some social interaction being in the nursery while I'm in Mom to Mom. He's still a HUGE eater! It still blows me away! He is really into climbing, although not out of his crib...at least not yet. He is trying to say all kinds of words. A good bit into repetition. He is finally enjoying seeing and hearing books more than eating them (most of the time). And He LoVES his dadda! so cute.

I am trying to find comfort in routine as well...hoping for that more in the next week or so. My party business is going pretty well. It goes in spurts. Lots of parties. No parties. Bookings for 2 months out and last minute things. I love it though. The last party I did was fantastic! I snuck in the house (with the mom's permission of course), stood in the foyer and started singing a call to the animals type princess thing! They were mesmerized! The little girls just wanted to sit around and talk shop. Where is so-and-so? What color is the castle? What do my shoes look like? The questions are by far my favorite party of doing these parties! My days are pretty full helping others, with a little bit of sewing for M thrown in there. It'll settle down a bit soon, I'm sure, but I have to say that I'm really enjoying sewing!

Mostly, I'm doing clothing redesign/repurposing. We are watching every penny, as are most people in these economic times, and I decided instead of going out and blowing the wad on buying outfits for back to school, I'd take inventory of the things she does have and turn them into working outfits for fall. It's been a fun journey and I can't wait to post pics! Well, time to sew before the sleeping children awake!