Monday, February 28, 2011

****please don't forget****

Click on deals above to see the latest deals. I "share" several deals a day and most of them are time sensitive, so make a habit of checking them daily :)

Todays deals are mostly on prom dresses, running shoes, dishwasher detergent and a taco bell deal...there was an awesome peanut butter deal on amazon, but it expired already :)

Happy bargain hunting!

I have a lot of fun watching for deals so if there is something specific you are looking for let me know I would love to dig for you!

Bingo FUN!



Monday Multitudes 783-798

Help me understand the meaning of your commandments , and I will meditate on your wonderful deeds...I honor and love your commands. I meditate on your decrees...Sustain me, and I will be rescued; then I will meditate continually on your decrees. Psalm 119:27,48,117

My morning devotional compared meditating to cows chewing their food twice. It is sort of disgusting but very applicable when thinking about how we should bring those words back into our brains to rethink about them or meditate on them. I hope you have some time today to chew on God's Word.

Today, I am thankful for;

everyone back at school/work and mostly healthy again

a fun party Saturday night with family and friends

family breakfast at Grandma Bonnie's on Sunday

morning workouts

a sister who is super organized

the hope and faith of healing for JoAnn, Robert, Gertie, Karlyn, Larry, Steve, Rosalyce

a great Dr. Seuss day in the works, my kids love Dr. Seuss day and are uber excited

coupons for "real" food that is good for you

a slight warm up outside

the light at the end of potty training, I hope

kids who love to read and read and read so much that books get wet, stained and bent because they go everywhere the kids do

recipes that my family loves and the kids will eat AND are good for you

a neighbor who loves fabric, yarn and making things as much as I do, a mentor and a friend

local grocers that work with sisters to provide quality foods for families

a new website for a dear friend and a new day to renew her design journey

Friday, February 25, 2011

*sigh*

hoodie giveaway

Wild Olive Tees

I have posted about Wild Olive tees before. Now they are giving away a hoodie. I want one. Go to wildolivetees.com to enter. Good Luck!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

we are sick today, can't you tell?

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Words of Wisdom on a Wednesday

From Nora:
Mom, my tummy hurts. I think when I eat candy it will feel better!

I am a taco taco girl and Addi is a nacho nacho girl.

Screaming very loudly. EVERYBODY BE QUIET! Maleah is sleeping!

It's 8:45 am and we just finished breakfast. Nora scoots a chair over to the counter and grabs the bag of Fritos Scoops... Nora, if you get one chip mom will spank your butt.
Okay, I will get two chips mom!

From Addi:
Mom, at Sara's only one person goes in to the potty at a time. We have to wait outside the door for our turn.

I am tired mom, I am going to bed. You stay up all night and work on the 'puter.

Mom, do you like the blue coffee or the red coffee better? (Maxwell house vs. Folgers) my answer? ...the one that is on sale honey.

Monday, February 21, 2011

hair addiction



I have scheduled hair cuts for the girls tonight. All three of them. All. THREE. of. them. My stomach is in knots. It is killing me slowly to think of those tiny blond curls dropping to the floor.

The word addiction can be defined as "what we devote ourselves to habitually". I can see things all around me that are addictions. I devote time to my computer, the girls' hair, food...do I devote the same time and attention to my God?

Psalm 86 1-3 reads, "Bend down, O Lord, and hear my prayer; answer me, for I need your help. Protect me, for I am devoted to you. Save me, for I serve you and trust you. You are my God. Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am calling on you constantly."

I am thankful that God hears us, answers us, protects us, saves us, and shows mercy on us as we devote ourselves to Him. I know that I need this encouragement and God's help to devote, serve and trust God instead of all the other addictions I give into- things that have no importance in God's plan.

It grows back, right? That is what I keep telling myself. Asking the Lord to remind me of what is important will help me get through this, too. It will still be painful, I know. But I will get through it.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

free jeans


I visited my favorite store the $100 store otherwise knows as Target last week. All the skinny jeans were $4.98. They had several colors and styles available in LOTS of sizes. This week there is a coupon on their website for $5 off women's denim. I don't claim to be a genius but I think that means free jeans (you have to pay tax though). Now if you can get out of the store without buying anything that is the real challenge...there are several other good coupons there, too and they have mobile coupons now, too which means no ink and paper to waste money on. That is a real deal :) Happy Shopping!

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Tiiiiiiimmmmmmeeee is on HIS side, yes it is.

I am here.

I am about a month behind in everything, but I am here.

One of the misconceptions people have about stay at home moms is that we have more time. Time to keep things in order, time to spend playing with our children, time to clean and cook from scratch.

I am here to say hogwash.

I have less time now in my day to day duties than I have ever had in my life. There is not enough time to sleep, not enough time to get ready in the morning, not enough time to make a real meal, not enough time to run an errand, not enough time to finish that sink of dishes, not enough time to make an appointment, not enough time to read Brown Bear for the millionth time...

I have hardly enough time to breathe sometimes. That is what it feels like anyway. My problem is prioritizing my time. Today after chasing the littles and bigs around all morning and finally feeding them lunch at 3:30 p.m. in the afternoon, I grabbed my devotional for the first time in a month. This is what it said;

Turn your heart toward God. This is what the Lord says, "Turn to me now, while there is time, Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning." Joel 2:12

Guess whose timing is PERFECT?

This is what this means to me, a poor sinful being... God sees clearly into our spiritual hearts. God is not impressed with outward show (a clean house), but He is looking for people whose hearts are seeking Him. Throughout the Bible we are reminded that no one is outside the scope of His love. Even if we've moved away from God, we can turn toward Him with a repentant heart, and He will strengthen us!

Make time everyday for God. He will do the rest. It seems simple but it is not. I pray that you have time this week for Him.

Monday, February 07, 2011

SSSC update


I spent over $700 on groceries last week.

It was a culmination of 15 plus hours of making a price book, using local ads and coupons and a lot of spreadsheets calculating costs of items down to the nearest teaspoon. I kid you not.

This is the post you have been waiting for. The update on the Sensible Sisters Supper Club.

You see, Friday night was our first club. Friday wasn't really a good day for me.
You may think that to drum up business I am going to be all nicey nicey and say good and wonderful things so that we can get even more amazing women to join the club. But, come on, you know me. I always say it like it is. I always share too much information. I am the girl you wish would duct tape her mouth every once in a while, maybe more often than that, just being honest.

Anyway...Friday. It all started with one of them saying, "Mom, my tummy hurts." In in middle of the day the superintendent drove my semi clean son home with a stank garbage bag full of clothes. The girls had it coming out of the other end. I am sure that is plenty of too much information for ya. I had to sanitize myself and get out of the house. It is a good thing I love Clorox so much.

So, we had this supper club planned and I had the roasters on at the church. The pork roast was roasting. The ovens were heating, the groceries were bought, the tables were organized. I showered, again, before heading over late in the afternoon.

The gals started arriving at 5 and after lots of visiting we were off to a late start but a start no less. The smart sister (not me) had job lists for everyone with times and places and even had scheduled us a small break later in the evening.

The buzz of the lights that I had heard all afternoon was completely drowned out by the laughing and gabbing of real women who were mixing and chopping and stirring and washing. It went really fast and some things surprised us like; how long it really takes to brown hamburger in roaster and how fast bread rises when the kitchen in full of 10 busy women. I even fought with a food processor for a moment or two, I just walked away from that one, I know my limits.

At 9:30 pm each women packed up in her basket one tray of enchiladas (seasoned ground beef with homemade taco seasoning, homemade tortillas topped with sour cream, cheese, and cream soup mix from scratch), one bag of pulled pork for sandwiches with a container of homemade barbecue sauce, a pan of Iowa pork chops (thick chops sliced open and stuffed with corn, bread crumb stuffing and apples), a large pan of calico beans (started with an overnight soaking of dry beans) to serve over whole grain rice, a chicken bistro dish (with tomatoes, mushrooms and onions) to serve over whole wheat linguine, a homemade tomato basil soup (that I honestly will probably add chicken to) a spicy sausage potato soup with tons of green kale, two whole wheat pizzas topped with cheese and/or pepperoni and a bag of whole wheat tortillas rolled out by hand (or rolling pin) for snacking.

The church (and most of us) smelled of onions, mushrooms and bacon for the next few hours. But it was sort of a medal of smell honor for all the hard work we put in.

I think everyone went home happy, hungry (next month we really are taking that break to eat), and ready for next month.

Monday Multitudes 763-782

This morning as I put the title in this post I realized my last Monday Multitudes post was still in draft form, never published, sigh.

These past few weeks have been crazy. The weather and my busy schedule has really cut into my usually quiet winter. Life is FULL. That is a good thing.

I am so very blessed. Really more than I can fathom. But here are a few blessings I can count from the last week or so...

snow days with my whole family home

a house that is heated and warm

a Bible that waits for me to open it

friends who support me

an amazing sister

a niece who is a wonderful last minute sitter

a friend's mom who returned home from a lengthy hospital stay

time to finally send get well cards

time to do the taxes

time to read books with the girls

a few more scarves made

time to teach the kids some crafts

time to grocery shop with my sister

a husband who supports my craziness

a superintendent that brings my sick child home from school when I have two others under the weather here

not getting sick myself...yet

a fun school booster sandwich making event where I fought with some cheese slices

enjoying a Sunday with nothing to do

an amazing group of women, including my mother and my sister, who made cooking even more fun


Chopping up the kale for the spicy sausage potato soup.

Tuesday, February 01, 2011

Snow Day Fun







I've got breadcrumbs in the oven toasting. Dad and Gavin are out fishing in the FREEZING cold. Maleah is somewhere in the house and the girls are well everywhere. They have taken all the puzzles out and all the little people and all the barbies and all the nerf guns and pretty much every toy they own....sigh. I am glad it is naptime, cuz that yarn stash has been calling my name alllllllll day.