Juicy Giveaway

I love this juice. MomSelect in conjunction with Welch's sent me a bottle of this awesome juice to try. And I love it. My family guzzled the whole bottle in a day. This juice is a combination of water and juice with no added sugar. I was sent the apple juice and I expected it to be weak because of the water but it was excellent. We loved it and will definitely buy it again. And now for the exciting news. They are giving one lucky reader a chance to win a bottle of this Aqua Juice. So all you have to do is leave a comment on this post and I will randomly choose one winner. Make sure you leave an email so I can contact you to get your info.

It Has Been A Long Day!

We were back to the doctor this morning (after a night of a screaming Maci Clare). Today was the scheduled re-check for both the little ones. In case I forgot to tell you and I think I did, Maci Clare has been to the doctor twice for the same ear infection. It didn't go away with Amoxicillin (Surprise! Surprise!) and now after 4 days of Omnicef it is still there and has migrated to the other ear as well. So on to our 3rd round of antibiotics. Augmentin (and this medicine has been a killer for us in the past.) I see tubes in the future.
Anyway, Jack cut school and his appointment went fairly well. They have added Singulair as a maintenance medicine for him. And the inhaler as needed.
After the appointment, we decided to go have a little fun. So we went to the mall. We did not shop or walk around. We went straight to the playground in the middle and played for almost an hour then walked right back out. It was fun and free. Then off to CiCi's Pizza for a great, cheap meal. I fed all three of us a pizza buffet for $6.87. I only had to pay for me. And my favorite thing about CiCi's is the cinnamon rolls. They are excellent. Then we had to go to Walmart.
Walmart is a big time Budget Buster for me. But I needed some things there. I ended up with $61 worth of stuff. I was a little perturbed because the cashier didn't send one of my coupons through. (I had a $3 coupon for $4 Cat food.) This seems to happen to me more and more. Next time I go in I am going to just take the cat food back and pay for whatever I need to get with the money they give me back. When they ask me why I am returning it, I'm going to tell them the truth.
I finally broke down and bought the High Efficiency Laundry Detergent. Oh my, but it is expensive. I hate my front loader. It has ruined all of our towels and continues to be a problem with smelly wash loads. If I bring it up Jim goes crazy and acts like a total nut case. So I am going to try the expensive detergent. You know, if you read my blog, I am not used to paying full price for anything and usually do not pay more than $3 or $4 for detergent. The cheapest they had was $10. So it just about killed me to do it but I did. We have tried the stuff you put in your machine for the stinky, wiping the rubber piece off after loads, several kinds of detergent, removing laundry immediately, and nothing seems to work. No one else I know seems to have this problem. I am frustrated (and can't talk about it with my husband) so I am unloading on ya'll. (Sorry!) So this is my last straw. I'm not sure what I will do if this doesn't work. (Possibly get rid of the washer and dryer and try something new. I don't know! If anyone has any suggestions, please, please let me hear them. Or just to know if someone else has this problem or has in the past would be helpful.) There! I think I feel better.
Now I'm home and getting ready to start supper. I am hosting a giveaway tomorrow so come back to see what exciting item I am giving away. And don't forget to tell all your friends.

More Grocery Deals

Last night we ate at Pizza Inn (for the first time in forever). But after we finished, Jim took the kids home and I went back to Ingles to see what deals I could cash in on. So here it is.

2 boxes of Multigrain Cheerios
2 packets of McCormick's Chili Seasoning
4 cans of French's Fried Onions
1 jar of Morton's Nature's Seasoning
1 jar of Mrs. Dash
1 jar of Season All Seasoning Salt
2 jars of Roasted Red Peppers
2 Cans of Manwich
1 Jar of Duke's Mayonaise
2 boxes of Act II Popcorn
2 boxes of Jolly Time Popcorn
1 bag of Laura Lynn Chips
1 6 pack of Diet Dr. Pepper
1 box of Capri Sun juice boxes
2 containers of Helluva Dip French Onion Dip
2 individual containers of Horizon Organic Vanilla Milk
1 container of Pampers wipes
2 Whiskas Cat Treats
4 Johnson's Buddies Soaps
2 Laura Lynn Frozen Veggie Mix for Soup
Total = $63.15 OOP = $28.19 It would've been $2.83 since cheaper but she didn't scan my free mayo coupon and I just let it go because I was already in the car and I had already saved such a big amount.

Next trip:
I had to just pick up some things for our Home Group meeting but they finally had the Totinos Pizza Rolls in stock so I bought more of those:
4 boxes of Pizza Rolls
2 liter Diet Dr. Pepper
2 bags of fresh organic broccoli
1 box of veggie burgers (organic)
1 lb. of ground chuck
6 boxes of Jiffy cornbread muffin mix
2 Aerosol cans of Cool Whip
Total = $19.63 OOP = $12.43

I had fun doing triple coupons this week. I hope they don't wait quite as long in between this time. This week I've gotta use some RR and ECBs so we'll just wait and see what I can do.

Grocery Shopping Deals

Last week I did okay at Publix. My total before coupons was $49.90 and OOP was $27.40. I did get a lot of stuff especially snack and lunch stuff but I won't list it all.
Ingles is having triple coupons this week. So I am doing several transactions this week.
My first was on Monday. Here is the deal:
6 cans of Chef Boyardee Ravioli
2 Bags of Wacky Mac
1 box of Quaker Instant Grits (would've bought two more but they only had 1)
2 cans of evaporated milk
2 boxes of Cap'n Crunch P-nut Butter Cereal
4 cans of Hunt's diced tomatoes
1 loaf of Sara Lee White Wheat
2 boxes of Puffs tissues
4 rolls of Bounty Big Roll paper towels
4 boxes of Toaster Studel
3 boxes of Totinos Pizza Rolls (wanted 4 more but they only had one kind and I wanted to have some variety)
2 bags Bird's Eye Steamfresh Sweet Peas
1 box of Fresh Spinach leaves
5 lb. bag of potatoes
2 loaves of French Bread
Total before coupons was $51.96
OOP = $27.76

Today I went back and bought:
2 boxes of Dominos Dark Brown Sugar
4 cans of Carnation Evaporated milk
2 cans of Glory Honey dipped Carrots
2 cans of Veg All Mixed Veggies
2 cans of Rotel
2 Jars of Pimentos
1 container of Almond butter
Dinner Plate (chicken tenders and mac and cheese, which was shared by me and the two little kids and there was enough brought home for someone else to eat.)
1 Diet Mt. Dew (Because I needed something to drink with my meal-we ate at the tables in the deli)
Total before coupons=$24.87
OOP = $15.72
If I had left off the dinner plate, the Mt. Dew, and the Almond Butter it would've only been $8.52

I am definitely going to go back and see what else I can cash in while it is triple coupon week.
Now I am off for a short little date night with my husband. We are taking the kids to church and going to have a cup of coffee.

I've Been Tagged

I thought this would be kinda fun. I was tagged by Karen and this is what you do. You use the first letter of your name to answer all the questions. It has to be real people you know and you can't use the same thing as the person who sent it to you. So here we go:

WHAT IS YOUR NAME: Tami

BOY NAME: Tim

4 LETTER WORD: talk

GIRL NAME: Tabby

OCCUPATION: teacher

A COLOR: taupe

SOMETHING YOU WEAR: tanktop

BEVERAGE: Tea

FOOD: tilapia

SOMETHING FOUND IN A BATHROOM: toilet

A PLACE : Target

REASON FOR BEING LATE: truck crashed into my car

SOMETHING YOU SHOUT: Take it back!

I'm not tagging anyone but if you play alone leave me a comment and a link so I can look. I am going to try to post some of my grocery deals soon.

The Early Bird Catches The Worm (Or The Snow)

This morning we woke up to this. I knew as soon as I woke up we would not go to church and I had to wake everyone up. Around here if it snows you have to take advantage of it immediately. You'll see what I mean in a minute. So I went around whispering everyone awake. The total excitement on their little faces as they stared out the window. We waited for an hour or so just because we need a little more snow to be able to play. And the bundled up in our best snow clothes (can you believe us Southern people were actually prepared for snow with snow boots and all?) (I bought 3 ski bibs and several pairs of snow boots last year at thrift stores and they all came in handy today.) The boys bolted out the door before I could get a good picture of them in their snow clothes.Maci Clare loved the snow.

Jack liked to eat the snow. (I tried to make sure it was white.)

And then the fun began:

Snow ball fight!

Zane was having a great time until Gabe busted him in the face with a giant snow ball at 2 feet away.

Jim loved it as much as the kids!

Here is our feeble attempt at a snowman. You can see in this picture that the snow in the South doesn't stick around very long. We played for about 30 or 45 minutes and then it was over. You could hear it begin to melt. So we headed in for hot chocolate.
By 11:30 there was no indication that we even had snow. But it was fun while it lasted.

Just Discovered

1. I love the song "Never Let Go" by Jeff Johnson but for some reason had never thought to listen to any of his other music. Go here to his acoustic version.We sing it at church and it is one of my favorites. Now I have discoverd he has all kinds of awesome music. If you let the video play, you can hear more. One of my new favorites is "Ruin Me" These songs are just great praise music.

Don't know why the number one is in this post but I couldn't get it to delete so just ignore it.

Celebrating 2000th post at Thrifty Mommy

Thrifty Mommy is celebrating their 2000th post with a Clorox giveaway. Go here to see how you can win. And tell everyone about it.

Chasing A UFO

Last night I sent my whole family to eat supper at church and went to Walmart and Publix to try to get some groceries in this house. I just haven't been shopping as much so my stockpile was no longer a stockpile. Anyway, I made my way through the two stores and was determined to make it back by 8:00 to pick up the kids at church. I was headed home and as soon as I hit the dark mountain road leading home, I saw a huge bright light. At first, I thought airplane. Then I realized it really wasn't moving that fast and it kinda hovering. So I thought helicopter. But as I continued to look, I saw several aiplanes flying above and below it. And it looked so much bigger and brighter. So I watched it for a few minutes and then decided to call my scientific husband, who rushed out on the deck and informed me he could see it too. I thought maybe the reason it was moving was because I was moving. But Jim said no, that it was kinda bouncing. Let me say right off the bat that I do not believe in UFOs so I was throwing out all these logical explanations. Things such as DNR watching a mountain fire (which happens pretty often around here.) Or Sherriff's Department searching for drugs (which happens usually in the fall and during the day.) Or TV helicopter filming something happening like a prison escapee. Anyway, I went and got the kids and told them about it. When we got home, Jim was standing in the driveway waiting with binoculars (we don't have a good telescope). We all get in my car and take off toward the light. We found the perfect spot and looked through the binoculars. It looked like a huge ball of fire. We managed to scare Maci Clare and Jack and Gabe to death with the talk of aliens. So we headed home to google it. What was it?
The only explanation that makes any since (according to Google search and a friend of ours that is into astronomy) is Venus. I thought Jim got pictures but it is only video and I'm not sure it is small enough to download. So if you look outside tonight you should be able to see it for yourself.
Gabe said he couldn't wait to tell his teacher about it. I said, "Oh yeah, great! Now your teachers will think you have crazy UFO chasing parents." So I can't wait to hear what they said to try to cover up their shock at how crazy Gabe and Zane's Mom and Dad are.

Projects and Potty Training

I hate potty training. I hate the mess and the pain that it is. Maci Clare tells me about every 20 minutes she needs to go potty so we go and take clothes off and get her on and then she does nothing. Only to pee her pants 10 or 15 minutes later. Today I put her diaper back on but she continues to tell me she has to go to the potty. So I just keep chugging along. If it was warmer I would let her run around in just panties but it is pretty chilly right now. I guess I'm just going to have to deal with it for now.
On to other more pleasant things. I am not finished with my bedroom but I am posting pictures anyway. My goal was to make our bedroom ours. No kids stuff. Not even pictures of the kids. I read one time that you should only put pictures of you and your spouse in the bedroom and keep it romantic. So here is what I have finished so far. I have plans for the rest. I just haven't had time to complete them.We painted the wall red over Christmas break. It was an ugly mauve color (can you say 80's?), which my husband actually said he liked. (Roll eyes here!) Anyway, he was way unsure of the color but quickly obliged me and now he loves it. These Live, Love, Laugh, Dream things came from Thirty One. I loved them from the moment I saw them and knew I had to have them.

This gooseneck rocker belonged to my grandma and it has always been in my bedroom. The little table was refinished by Jim and I after we were married to use as an endtable in our living room. I can't bear to get rid of it because it is one of the first pieces of furniture we owned. My wedding picture is waiting behind the chair for a new black frame and will go up beside the words. The round boxes were actually Christmas boxes from Hobby Lobby that were 66% off after Christmas. Jim spray painted the bottoms black (they were blue with Merry Christmas all over them.) And we left the tops alone. The look better in the picture than they look in real life. But you can't tell unless you are really close to them.
I bought these wall sconces at our local flea market for $5 each. They are Southern Living Home so the actual cost was probably high. They were still in the packages they came in . The top opens up so you can put flowers in them but I am not a plastic flower kind of girl so I am using them as shelves. Jim gave me this frame for Christmas. I saw it in Hobby Lobby and wanted it before Christmas. He went back and bought it for me. It says "Life is not measured by the breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away." Right now it has the three pictures that came in it still in it. I am going to put black and white pictures of us in it. We may have to get some made. I know I said I hate plastic flowers but the ones you see in the picture are the silk flowers that I carried in my wedding. So I can't get rid of those. This picture is just a cheap black frame with 2 pieces of scrapbook paper in it. I loved the black paper but because you could see through it, I had to back it with red. Now for my very favorite thing in the room.This old window came out of the very first house we owned. I took the glass out of it and spray painted it black. I then took one of the white letters from Hobby Lobby ($1.50 when wall decor was 50% off.) and mod podged it with scrapbooking paper. I hung the letter and 3 5x7 frames by black ribbon. The frame on the left is my bridal portrait. The one on the right is a picture of Jim posing in this tux at our wedding. In the middle I will put a recent picture of Jim and I. The iron thing over the window was bought at a yard sale for .25 and I spray painted it white. (It was an ugly cream color.) This whole thing hangs over my bed.This is our new comforter and shams. I will add some pillows. I want to find some red and prints that match everything else. We still have a few things to do but for the most part this is the look that I wanted. Now we are going to work on our bathroom. It is pretty ugly too. But it won't be for long.

Scripture

I Can Do All Things Through Christ Who Strengthens Me.
Phil.4:13

Reading this earlier reminded me that no matter how much or what I have to do, I can do it with God. Sometimes I feel a little overwhelmed and stressed ou. I need a gentle reminder that I can do all the things I need to do as long as I know and stay close to the One who gives me strength.

For the Last Time, Please!

I have the stomach thing again. This is the third time since Thanksgiving. Last night was a fundraising supper for the YAMs (the bluegrass group). I wasn't scheduled for it but was asked to help because 3 of the 5 team members bailed. Yep, that is usually what happens. Anyway, it turned out okay but I think it is a waste of time because we are not making enough money to work this hard. But that is another issue.
Anway, I was fine and this morning I got up and had my coffee and around 11:00am it hit me. So I have wasted yet another day lying on the bed. My dad took the 3 boys to lunch and they are still with him. Jack is gone to a birthday party thanks to my mom. And Maci Clare and Jim went to home group tonight. I really wanted to go but I just don't feel like it. I am still week but feel better than I did this afternoon.
To change the subject, we are in the middle of the last potty training adventure. I am sad but also excited. We have been buying diapers for over 10 years now. Maci Clare is loving her new "big girl panties". She wore panties all day today and did not have one accident. I just can't imagine it being that easy but we will see what is to come. She loves going to the potty and her favorite thing is to flush. So hopefully things will continue to go this smooth.
I am scheduled to teach tomorrow at church so I better get going on my lesson. I hope I feel 100% tomorrow so I can conquer the pile of laundry in my laundry room.

I'm not Ready

I'm just not ready to post anything substantial yet. I have all these thoughts (and post ideas) and I can't quite get it together. I have not used my camera since Christmas. Jim hauled off a load of clothes from my side of the closet two days ago. This picture does not do this justice. Because I had so much stuffed inside those bags and boxes. But you get the idea. How can one person have so many clothes? And I'm not finished. That was just the closet. I have now conquered my dresser drawers and my shoes and these things are waiting patiently to be delivered to the thrift store. I am hoping to get some pictures of my new and improved bedroom soon. I want to share my accomplishments. With every piece I get rid of, I feel as if a burden is being lifted. My goal is still to SIMPLIFY.

Getting Back To Normal

But really! What is normal? Well, normal around here is kids back in school and my routine back up and running. Can't you see my Meez in my sidebar doing the "kids are back in school" dance. I have been kinda sporadic in posting lately just because I'm trying to limit my time on the computer. I feel like I can easily waste lots of valuable time. I have been keeping up with most of you during the holidays because that is the one thing I can't quit. I can't quit reading blogs. I have to know what you are posting. So hopefully I will be back in the groove of normal posting along with my normal routine soon.
BTW, my sister in law, Marian, has finally started a blog. So go here and show her some bloggy love.

SIMPLIFY

I am in the process of cleaning out everything. I can't remember if I said it but my goal for 2009 is to SIMPLIFY! And that's just what I am doing. Today I worked in my bedroom. Over the holidays, we painted and re-decorated and I want things to look sleek and new. So I am getting rid of everthing. Right now I have a huge load to take to Goodwill or wherever. And it is just clothes. I still have some things to go through. I am headed to go through some more of my closet. I've decided to try to finish the clothes tonight and dump them tomorrow. I'll post pictures as soon as I have some worth posting.

I'm Finaally Getting On Board

Pictures to highlight 2008. Jules over at The Roost hosted this New Year's Party and I had to get in on it. It is only supposed to be 10 but I just couldn't stop at 10. There's only 13 so I only missed it by 3. So here are my pics.

Jim and my mom taking advantgae of our first and only snow of the year. (I should say once every 3 years we get one like this.) But we do take advantage of what little we get. All you northerners can go ahead and laugh because this is the way I like it.
A addition to our family. Welcome, Lucy!We celebrated 100 years with Jim's Grandma MaxineMaci Clare turns one. Boo Hoo!
Installation of the in ground pool.
Addition of Baby Tess to our family.

Zane earns his Tiger Cub badge.

Gabe learns to play fiddle.

A trip to Dollywood with our Mid-Western cousins.

Jack started Preschool

Time alone at the beach

Thanksgiving trip to Disney World

Christmas with my children.

Happy 2009!

What Are We Doing?

What have we been doing that I can't get back to my blog? We are doing a little remodeling. Nothing major! Just paint and a couple of new pieces of furniture. I will have pictures up soon. But we are overhauling and my goal for 2009 is "Simplify". So that's what we're working on. And I promise I'll be back with loads of pictures. So be patient.