I am not one to toot my own horn or anything but...

Happy Birthday To Me!

Today, I am 25. Nothing exciting about that number, huh? I can't think of a better way to spend it than where we are right now.

Menu Plan Monday

No menu this week! We are on our way to Gulf Shores! However, you will be proud of me when I say we plan on hitting up a grocery store as soon as we get there to shop for the week!

Pray for us...safe travels, patience for us on the drive, and relaxation!

Have a good week everyone!

Hope I got everything!

It's Go Time!

Oh my! Last night, we got so much accomplished. Because we are trying to sell our house, even though I wonder if it ever will, we touched up the entire house with paint. It was comical, since every hand print, smudge, or mark was two to four feet high. Perfect height for the girls. All night long, we were telling the girls, "Do not touch the walls!". Zoa walked down the hallway with her arms crossed the rest of the night.

While Jeremy was doing that, I finished all the laundry! This, in case you don't know, is a MAJOR FEAT in my eyes. I literally have no dirty clothes in my house right now. Tonight, I am washing beds so we will have have a clean bed to sleep in once we get back from Gulf Shores.

Tonight, the girls are going to stay the night with the grandparent's. Papa Dave asked Macie to go the the races with him and she is excited beyond words. This morning her first words were "Am I going to the races now?". Have fun dad and I almost guarantee Macie will want nachos.

Zoa wanted to stay somewhere since Macie is so she will be with Jeremy's mom. I am sure she will have fun all night - reading books (which she LOVES!) and playing house with her babies.

That leaves us home alone. What are you going to do, you ask? Dinner for two? Movies? A date?

Nope. Nope. and Nope.

Finish cleaning! We plan on cleaning the garage and painting it, cleaing the laundry room and painting that, running to Target for some more vacation stuff (They have beach toys in the $1.00 section there!), and hopefully, I can start some packing.

Tomorrow morning, we have a showing at 10:00, and it is a second showing so we really need to clean first and then pack. We will tackle our recycling containers at the recycling center while they show the house. Then home to finish packing.

I have a few post scheduled to post for next week so be sure and check back in. We are taking the laptop so maybe I can post a few pictures as well.

Have a safe Memorial Day Weekend!

Daily Dose

Free Sample of Starbucks Coffee (Click Explore our Coffee, then you will see the icon in the upper right corner.)

Free Sample of Shine to Go

Free Wizzies for Kids

Also, coupon lovers, the May issue of All You magazine that is at Wal-Mart, has a coupon for free Adidas deodorant. The deodorant is over $4.00 and the magazine is $1.77 so be sure and pick it up. There are also a ton of other coupons in there as well. You can turn to a page in the back to see the list of coupons.

Simplicity is Key!

The jewelry at Lisa Leonard Designs is precious! I am not one to wear much jewelry and I love simplicity when I do. Her designs are the best of both worlds! You can also check out her blog.

I plan on ordering something once we get back from vacation. What is your favorite design?

Wordless Wednesday

Nothing like waiting until the last minute...

Vacation plans have changed...but it is only because we are now leaving on Sunday instead of Monday! We decided our goal is to drive halfway or longer if the girls can handle it and stop and get a room. Then we will get up and finish the drive Monday morning. This will allow Jeremy and I to sleep instead of driving through the night and being exhausted that first day. I started making a list last night and it is so long, as you can probably imagine. I am making a list of everything for everyone, then going to Don't Forget Your Toothbrush, and making sure I did not miss anything. (Thanks Whitney for telling me about this!)

I still need to make a run to Wal-Mart and Target to pick up some things and make a phone call to the post office to hold our mail. Oh, and the ever dreaded laundry. Thankfully, if I don't get everything done, I can pack it and take it with us...we have a washer and dryer in our condo.

Anything I am forgetting? Comment me and let me know!

In the coupon world, it has been a slow couple of days. Every Sunday, I get both of our papers, grab the ads and coupons, and see what I can get really cheap. This week - nothing. Such disappointment!

Here are some freebies I have found online though - enjoy!

Free sample of Fizzion Concentrated Cleaner

Free Subscription to 'Focus on the Family' magazine

Free Can of Mighty Dog food

Free Frutista Freeze from Taco Bell with purchase

What Should I Do With Expired Coupons?

Send them to military families!

A Small Sign Spring Has Arrived

Dirty feet. Any mom knows this is inevitable with children during the spring and summer months. Kids love to play outside and ours live in flip flops during warm weather. This picture was taken Saturday night about 9:30. We had been outside, literally, all day - since around 11:30 that morning. You could have not asked for better weather and we took full advantage of it.

Sunday, we were back at it. We celebrated our family's graduates and went to a picnic for Jeremy's work. Once again, the girls were in flip flops and ran around playing until it was time to leave.

Once we got home, my soon to be brother-in-law finished setting up our new computer and hooking us up to the internet while Tara and I clipped coupons. Later in the night, I told the girls it was bath time. Macie reminded me that they already had a bath and I told her it was this morning. Zoa then asked me, "We stinky again?". Yes, Zoa. Yes you are.

After their nightly bedtime routine, the girls wanted to lay down with us. After a few minutes of arguing, we made them a pallet on the floor beside our bed. Each night, they usually have a few minutes of talking before Macie finally tells Zoa she is going to sleep. Last night, it went something like this:

Zoa: Will you scatch my back. I hot.

Macie: Okay, but just for a minute.

Zoa: Ugh....okay.

(Whitney - any memories here?)

A few minutes later, Macie was given permission to stop "scatching". Then, I hear this.

Zoa: Who is the best sister?

Macie: Silence

Zoa: (Louder) Who is the best sister?

Macie: You are, Zoa.

Zoa: Who?

Macie: (Agitated) You are!

I couldn't help but smile.

Menu Plan Monday

In an effort to eat less meat, Mondays will now be meatless. No chicken, turkey, ground beef...etc. I am going to try to use more meatless recipes as I find them.
Monday - Seven Layer Tortilla Pie
Tuesday - Baked Spagetti I will add garlic and some veggies to this and serve with Garlic Bread.

Wednesday - BLT's

Thursday - Grilled Hot Dogs and Corn on the Cob

Friday - Panini's and Chips (For the panini, I get Sourdough Pepperidge Farm bread - expensive, but the best bread for you - and put turkey and mozzarella cheese on it. I brush the bread with olive oil and grill it on the Foreman. Once the bread is golden and the cheese is melted, I cut a garlic clove in half and rub the bread with it to add garlic flavor. It is so good!)

If you notice, the last few days are simple. We are leaving for vacation on Sunday night/Monday morning and can already tell this week will I be busy preparing packing and getting everything together.

Hey, at least I am realistic!

Head on over to Laura at Organizing Junkie for more menu ideas.

It's a good week!

Sample of Teddy Grahams Trail Mix

Sample of Ban Deodorant

Speaking of freebies, I received my $25 Kohl's Gift Card in the mail yesterday, just for clicking some e-mails.

I also should be getting $10 in the mail for filling out some surveys, and I just redeemed my Revolutionary Money Exchange account and should be receiving that check in the mail as well. (Which, by the way, looks as though you still get the money if you sign up. I never entered my bank account information. Instead, I just requested a paper check.)

E-mail me or comment me for more information! All in all, I received $80 in free money this week!

Last Call

Today is the last day to sign up for the free $25 from Revolutionary Money Exchange. You can just click the button in my sidebar to do so or get more information on it.

I have my free $25...do you?

Almost Wordless Wednesday (Times Two)

We just booked our condo! It is 10 minutes from the beach and we can play free golf all week long! I am so ready for our vacation, but I am not sure if I am ready for the drive there. Here are some pictures:

The Daily Dose

Free Old Spice Razor Sample

When you buy Enchanted on DVD and Cinnabon cereal, you can receive a $4.00 rebate by mail. We already have Enchanted, so I plan on doing this. You can also use a $.50 off coupon on your cereal!

Wish-Bone Bountifuls Salad Dressing Free After Rebate

Free Juicy Juice Sippy Cup

Hamburger Helper Singles Sample

Curel Lotion Sample - I keep these in my purse.

Free $10 Gift Card to amazon.com

Wordless Wednesday

Show and Tell

Good morning! Last night I went to Wal-Mart with the girls and had quite a few coupons and my ads to price-match. The cashier was frustrated with me (Oh well!) because I guess I was complicated. I went over a bit on the budget but once I got to the car, I noticed she charged me more by not scanning some coupons, scanning individual oranges instead of entering the price of the bag of oranges, and ringing up extra items.

Back into Wal-Mart. Without the girls. Jeremy met me and took them home and I walked out of Wal-Mart with $13.00 in my hand!


(2) LiveActive Cereal---$5.68 ---$6.00 Coupons---Profit $.32
(2) Smart Start Cereal---$5.00---$3.00 Coupon---$2.00 (Target price matched)
(2) Sure Deoderant---$3.34---$2.00 Coupons---$1.34
(1) Adidad Deoderant---$3.84---$3.84 Coupon---$0
(2) Colgate Max Toothpaste---$2.00---$2.00 Coupon---$0 (Walgreen's price matched)
(4) Bath Buddies---$3.76---$4.00 Coupons---Profit $.24
(1) Colgate Toothbrush---$.94---$1.00 Coupon---Profit $.06
(2) Cottonelle Kids Wipes---$4.00---$.50 Coupon---$3.50 (Walgreen's price matched)
(1) Scotch Brite Toilet Cleaner---$4.50---$4.50 Coupon---$0

Total Retail: $33.06
Total Coupons: $26.84
Total Spent: $6.22

Mom, are you proud?

Macie is officially on her last week of kindergarten. Pass me a tissue, would you? I cannot believe it! Play Day is on Friday, which she is super-excited about.

My dad is still working on the video and pictures of the graduation ceremony, but the moment it is done, it will be on here. I am thinking tomorrow, but I am not sure.

Have a good day! It looks like the sun might be trying to come out!

What's been going on...

I haven't really had much time to post what has been going on with the family recently. Where do I begin?

Macie graduated kindergarten on Friday! Can you believe it because I, for one, cannot. (Pictures and video coming soon, courtesy of Papa Dave!) They wore caps and gowns and sang us songs. It was adorable!

For her graduation present, we got her something everyone has been wanting.

Drumroll please....



We are sharing it for presents...Mother's Day, my birthday later this month, and Father's Day. I should have know better to send Jeremy out to pick it up. Three words - Tiger Woods Golf.

After the graduation ceremony, they had a field trip to the park and the bowling alley. Jeremy took off so he could help chaperone. (Just call him Super Dad!) He loved every minute of it!

That night, we went to our now called "Celebratory Dinner" restaurant - Shogun's. Macie picked and of course, we waited for 45 minutes for table. I used this time to take some pictures of the girls....which I will post at some point. After Jeremy and I shared some sushi and everyone's belly's were full, we went home and crashed. Ahhhh.

P90X is coming along. We have been sore and walking up the stairs has become a job for my legs. I feel the burn!

I think that is about it for now. My creativity mind is obviously turned off at the moment.

I forgot...

Beth over at I Should be Folding Laundry left a great post on commenting.

Check it out...wink, wink!

What a way to start the week!

Hello fellow bloggers! How was your Mother's Day?! Mine was great...I got a few homemade cards, which are the best and some flowers.

I am especially tired today so without further ado, here are some coupons and some deals I found this week. I will post more later but this is all I have for now.

Free Billy Graham book: God's Power to Change Your Life.

Free CFL light bulb.

Free gift to vote, although I am not sure what the gift is! Surprise, surprise!

Like coffee? Enjoy a free bottle of CoffeMate creamer.

Be kind...send a card!

Free Child Safety Kit.

Free pedometer. Research shows people who wear these walk more than people who do not!

Target has Smart Start cereal on sale 2 for $5. Get a $3 off 2 boxes coupon here making two boxes for $2.00!.

Walgreen's has Colgate Max toothpaste on sale 2 or $2. Register at the Colgate site and receive several coupons, including $1.00 off 1 Colgate Max. It's free!

(I am going to just take my ads to Wal-Mart and price match.)

Free Totally Toddler stain remover. ( We will put this to the test!)

P & G Coupon Booklet worth $31.

I did this one a few weeks ago but it's back. Walgreen's has the Brita pitchers on sale for $14.99. I price match everything at Wal-Mart so I only have to make one stop and saw they had a $30.00 Brita picher. I took it to the register and showed them the Walgreen's ad which marked it down to $14.99 (50% off). Then I had this coupon with put it at $9.99. That's a $20.00 savings! I am picking up a couple more this week for family.

More free Johnson and Johnson Bath Buddies! Click here to play a matching game. If you do not win, the consolation prize is a $1.00 off coupon Johnson products, including the Bath Buddies that cost less than $1.00 at Wal-Mart! I found these in the baby section, not in the adult section of soaps. We have so many of these already, but I continue to stock up.

(Thanks Freebies 4 Mom and Mom's Advice!)
Until next time...

Menu Planning Monday

Monday - Chili Parmesan Chicken with Buttered Noodles and Green Beans


Tuesday - Turkey Mini Meatloaves with Oven Fried Zuchinni

Wednesday - Inside Out Burgers and Sweet Potato Fries

Thursday - Chicken and Brown Rice from last week. I forgot we were having dinner at church one night last week.

Friday - Picnic Oven Fried Chicken and Mashed Potatoes with a veggie. If the weather cooperates, we will really go on a picnic.

Head on over to Laura at Organizing Junkie for more menu ideas.

If I had more than a minute....

...I would tell you how proud I am of Macie. She graduated kindergarten this morning.

...I would tell you about MJ's graduation gift. Something we all love!

...I would post more coupons and offers. I found some more freebies!

...I would tell you about my taking a final today.

...I would tell you about my other class, I was taking, who dropped me for no apparent reason. Can we all say it together....LIVID!?

...I would tell you about our progress on P90X.


But, due to lack of time...this will all have to wait.

Stamp Out Hunger

Saturday, May 10, be sure to leave some bags of non-perishable food items by your mailbox. Your mailman will pick them up and they donate them to your local food bank. I always take these opportunities to clean out my cabinets!

All they ask is you do not donate expired items or food in glass jars.

And Some More....

Free Ocean Spray Product Coupons! Read what Heather has done! (Thanks Freebies 4 Mom!)

Target Coupons Remember, you can stack manufacturer's coupons on top of store coupons. I love this website! They also have a list that is always updated on a TON of printable coupons! (Thanks A Full Cup!)

Wal-Mart Samples I keep my samples in a drawer to use on trips, in between grocery store runs, or for friends that might stay over.

Dove Samples and Coupons

Free Subscription to Bridal Guide Magazine

Free Cami and Shorts

Free Bag of Dog or Cat Food

Free Tide to Go Pen

Free After Rebate: Land-O-Lakes Butter

Buy one, get one free - coupon for a free 7-Up 2 Liter and 20 oz. bottle.

More Coupons and Free Offers!

Free Organic Yogurt

Free 31 Piece Roadside Emergency Kit

Free Country Bob's BBQ Sauce

Free Magazine Subscription to Good Housekeeping Magazine-just for watching some ads you can run in the background. They are adding more magazines soon, so keep your eye out!

Free Book : More Spaghetti, I Say! ( You can use this coupon to help with the requirements to get the book.)

$3.00 off LiveActive Cereal

400 free prints credits & 1 free 8x8 custom cover photo books from ArtsCow, just for signing up. Limited Time Offer. The above link is my referral link.

30% off Gymboree, in stores or online

And, if you are looking for any other coupons, check out this list. It is massive!

(Thanks Freebies 4 Mom and iMommies!)

5:00 AM

I thought 5:00 AM was way too early to get up. Once I got out of bed though, it was not that bad. I am pretty energetic right now too. Yesterday, I heard the alarm, told Jeremy is was 5:00, and layed back down.

Oops.

Today was Day 1 - Back and Chest along with the Abs Ripper. We did back and chest for 50 minutes and my arms feel like a big bowl of spaghetti noodles. A friend of ours started this as well recently and could only do 16 minutes of Day 2 because he was so sore.

I, on the other hand, enjoy the feeling of soreness I get with I bust my butt in the gym. It makes me feel like I am doing something productive.

I have never done so many push ups so I expect to be fairly sore tomorrow! Tonight we plan on doing the Abs Ripper because this morning we didn't have enough time.

I know exercising releases endorphins also so I am hoping this helps me mentally too. I feel like I need a release, I hope that makes sense.

But, so far so good!

Today, I will be leaving work for a bit to go to funeral. My great-uncle passed away earlier in the week, so I am going with my family to the funeral. Rest in Peace Ed.

In other news, today is Day 2 of Macie's school fund raiser for Jessie. My sister and I put our heads together for some ideas. I cannot begin to imagine how much everything costs them the past few months, plus normal maintenance (medicine), physical therapy, doctor visits...etc. I thought that since Macie goes to a private school and Jessie is alumni there, we could have a few 'Dress-Down Days' (DDD) for her. For DDD, we usually have to pay $1 or $2 and it will go to a charity or a good cause, like St. Judes. We are hoping to collect a bit of money for her through this. We know it won't even begin to make a decent dent in the costs of her care, but every little bit helps. We also have her former high school doing the same thing for her. We have a few more ideas that would involve the general public, so I will be sure and keep you all updated on those details, as they become available. If you could only meet Jessie, and see her personality, she really is a riot to be around! She is the type that always makes you laugh and there is never a dull moment! Her laugh is truly contagious!

Jessie was released yesterday! She will be living within minutes of the hospital for the next few months while she undergoes physical therapy among other things. Once she is cleared, she will be able to come home! She will still have to see doctors on a normal basis also, but she is doing great!

If you have any fundraising ideas, please leave me a comment and let me know!

Bone Marrow Registry

I have always wanted to sign up for the bone marrow registry, but there has been a fee. In honor of Mother's Day, the fee is now being waived for an unknown amount of time.

Please check out the Bone Marrow Registry.

I just signed up. They will send me a kit and then I will swab my cheek and return to them.

Easy as that!

More Freebies!

Big Savings Gift Pack You have to sign up for their newsletter to receive this. Only available for the first 10,000 people.

(Thanks Freebies 4 Mom)

Back to Sunday Naps

Aren't Sunday naps great? That is something I am looking forward to now that AWANA is over. I will miss everyone and the girls in my group for sure, but it will be a nice break.

Last night, was award night for AWANA at church. Macie received a Book Completion award and Zoa got a Certificate of Achievement. She started going a little late so she couldn't finish her book. I am going to count how many verses Macie learned this year just out of curiosity.

I was up this morning at 5:00 a.m. We didn't do the program though because Day 1, we needed a pull up bar so our plans are made out for us tonight - install one of those downstairs. I can't believe I heard the alarm though! That in itself calls for a celebration!

Hmmm, what else is new? I think that is about it. We are shopping around for condos in Gulf Shores. Our vacation starts the 26th of May. I am so excited! Hopefully, I can drop these last few pounds before then.

Oh! Guess who is 95% sure she is getting released tomorrow?! Yep - Jessie! She is doing wonderfully and is walking, talking and cutting up like normal I'm sure! We are so proud of her and happy does not even begin to describe how we feel about it all!

Menu Plan Monday

Oh My! The Forty Clove Garlic Chicken was delish! We loved it and used the leftover chicken for our salad wraps! Yummy!

Monday - Dinner with friends. I get to see the baby! I am going to bring a "Taco Bar".

Tuesday - Chicken and Brown Rice- Very simple to make. One can FF Cream of Mushroom soup, one can FF Cream of Chicken soup and chicken breast. I use boneless, skinless breasts. Follow the directions for the brown rice and pour the uncooked rice and the water needed to cook in in a 9 x 13 pan. Add the soups and stir. Add the chicken and cover the chicken with the mixture. Cook at 375 for about 30-45 minutes, until the chicken is done.
I also add carrots, spinach and celery in with it so it is a one dish meal!

Wednesday - Whole-Wheat Fusilli with Beef Ragu
Thursday - Soup and Sandwich

Friday - Chicken Fajitas

Head on over the Laura at OrgJunkie for more Menu Planning Ideas.

Shopping Spree

A few weeks ago, we bought PX90. (You can read reviews here.) Jeremy has been trying to get me to do it with him - everyone knows if you are on any sort of plan, it is nice to have a partner for accountability.

He told me last night if I start on Monday with him, I get to go on a $??? shopping spree. But, that means I have to go to bed around 8:45 or 9:00 to get up at 5:00 a.m.

Remember, this girl does not do mornings. But for shopping, I will try anything.

To fully understand, let me tell you what works for us financially. Jeremy handles the money in our home. I get x amount of dollars a month that I spend on day to day purchases. It is what is allowed in our budget. Some people might find this a bit controlling on his part, but it works for us. I had to be put on a budget because I believe in retail therapy.

Catch my drift?

So, this really is a big deal for me because my shopping on myself has been limited because a few reasons:
One: The girls. Every mother knows that you rather go buy your kids something than yourself. It's just so dang cute and you don't have to worry if they will look fat in it.
Two: I am trying to be more submissive to him. Some of you may think that should not be the case since we are in the 21st century, but God was right. (Go figure!) It really does make for a happier relationship. I try to remember divorce usually happens for one of two reason - finances and, well, you know the other. This helps us stay on the right track. And if it is working, then why change it.

I am not going to say that it was the easiest thing for me. In fact, it was really hard. But once I adjusted, I found our relationship was benefiting from him being the final say in every single decision we make. This is a daily internal struggle within myself, but he does make the decisions and I want to keep it that way.

But back to the workout...

We are starting on Monday. We have to watch the video this weekend. I have six more pounds to go to get to my goal weight. Now, hopefully, I can just tone up. Age has started to take it's toll on how tone I am. Now, I am going to have to work at it.

I will let you know how it goes. I might take before an after pictures, for my own use only, but I am not sure if I am ready to be that traumatized yet.

Here's to coffee.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy Birthday Pappa Dave! I hope you enjoy your present! I bet you will never guess what it is!

Introducing...

...Broderick Reed

Remind me why I don't want one of these isty, bisty, cute, soft, sweet smelling babies right now? They are definitely my weakness! I have baby fever, but not ready to take the plunge just yet.

Congratulations Adam, Desera, and Big Sister Avagail! Mom and baby are both happy and healthy. We plan on bringing dinner to them one night next week once things settle down for them.

I cannot wait.

Zoa is going to love this!

I don't know about your kids, but mine live yogurt. Zoa especially loves that new drinkable yogurt.

Until May 31, visit Yoplait Kids to request a coupon for a free 6-pack of yogurt!

Woo-hoo...more freebies!

(Thanks GoodyBlog!)

Free Children's Book!

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is giving away a free book - The Magic School Bus Gets Cleaned Up. This a great way to introduce the environment issues we are facing to your children. I just ordered mine.

All you do it call 1.800.490.9198 and request your copy. It is all free, including shipping and handling. It took me a few times to get through but keep trying.

Enjoy!

(Thanks Freebies for Mom!)