Walgreens Coupon

I have a coupon for $5 a $20 or more purchase at Walgreens for tomorrow (31st) only.

There might be a way to post it on here but I don't know how. But, if you want it, send me your e-mail address and I can forward it to you.

Blessings

Sugar and Spice....Eleven Months

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Trying again... I liked these a lot better. I thought these captured her personality really well. She is so much fun. Sorry there are so many, I had a hard time choosing.

I'm sure that someone is about to get on my case about there being more pictures of Chloe than Emma... I was going to do pictures of Emma today but she wanted to wear the same outfit Chloe did... Not so cute on a five year old. But really, Chloe is showcased on here because Emma is showcased in life. The kid definitely loves the spotlight. So, this is a case of the second child seeking justice for the second child. Making sure Chloe doesn't fade into the wallpaper.

Wonder what Aunt Denise will say about this one :).

Blessings,

Dana

Wynn is coming soon!

Just got off the phone with Jan (Adam's sister for those of you that don't know her) and they are inducing her in the morning. They are thinking she might be having a 9lb. baby! We made a trip to Alabama last week and we were hoping to get to meet our first niece then. But, our little Wynn has taken her time. Don't worry Wynn I was a little nervous about joining this family too! We did enjoy spending a few minutes with her and her husband Clint and hope we get to do more of that in the future!

Anyway, as you can tell in the pictures, her belly is as big as a pregnant belly gets. She was just a couple days shy of 40 weeks. It's a beautiful belly and she's being a trooper and letting me post these pictures. Don't worry, I got permission. I wish we had had more time and had found a more creative spot but the moment is at least documented. And we'll have more time next time because we won't be living so far away. So anyway, Emma and Chloe should have a new baby cousin by this time tomorrow. \

Please keep them in your prayers! I'll update soon.

Blessings,
Dana

My New Obsession

I started this post a week or two ago and got it done and then hit one button and erased half of it and then when I started re-typing it, it was highlighted in yellow. So, I got frustrated and am just now picking it back up..


Okay, My New OBSESSION!

Coupon Clipping--- I am so addicted to coupon clipping

In West Virginia, we had an Aldi's. Aldi's is awesome! milk is 1.99 a gallon, eggs are .99 a dozen. They have these huge and fabulous frozen pizzas for 3.29. A bag of salad is .79. The produce is super cheap and super fresh.. you can go to www.aldifoods.com and find the nearest one to you. Awesome deals in the whole store. Seriously, if you have an Aldis, thank God for the blessing and GO THERE! I was visiting my mom this weekend and I went to her Aldi's and bought four gallons of milk and froze them to bring back with me. Yes, I go through great extremes to save a few bucks. And we will eventually have an Aldi's here because I am going to e-mail them mercilessly until they put one here.

So off the rant about Aldi's and back on to coupon clipping. So since we don't have an Aldis (did I mention that Aldis is awesome?) I had to find a way to stay within our grocery budget. So, I started clipping coupons. And let me tell you, I have been getting stuff for FREE.. That's right FREE! And then I found out that there was this girl at church that clips coupons. Tiffany is the coupon queen! She is my coupon clipping idol. One day, my coupon binder will be as thick as Tiffany's and I will have reached couponer stardom. So, I've been listening intently to Tiffanies guidance and happening across all of these websites and I'm learning more and more! I've already checked out the deals for tomorrow and I'm going to get more free stuff.
...


So in case my enthusiasm hasn't convinced you yet.., I'm going to share with you some of the deals that I've gotten since I started this new hobby about a month ago.


Herbal Esscence Shampoo and Conditoner FREE
Crest Toothpaste FREE
CVS Tampons FREE
CVS Panty Liners FREE
Infusium detangler FREE
Secret Platinum deodorant FREE
And this week, I made .50 on Crest toothpaste. How awesome is that. Sure, I'll let you pay me to use your toothpaste. I'm like a celebrity getting free shoes. I feel so important.

And there have been so many other deals. I got a large bottle of Hunts ketchup today for 60 cents.. I got a $7.99 electric toothbrush for $.99 and a $7.99 razor for $.99. I got eight boxes of general mills cereal for right at a dollar a box.

This week I'm going to get free band-aids and I'll report my other deals later.

So if I've sparked your interest..

Here are a few things that I've learned so far... If you are an experienced couponer and are looking at me thinking that I'm an amateur... Please, tell me more.. I want to learn!!! Coupon hints can be left here!

Go to www.couponmom.com. There is a free book you can download that will explain lots of stuff. They also have listings of the deals at Walmart, Target, Walgreens, Rite Aid, and CVS. They tell you what is on sale and what coupons to put with the sales to get it dirt cheap...
They also have a link to where you can get newspaper subscriptions at 75% off. I think I've already saved enough in one month to pay for my years subscriptions.
Also, www.iheartcvs.com and www.iheartriteaid.com are great websites too. CVS and Rite Aid seem to be the best places to get the freebies. And my friend Tangee e-mailed me with this cool site. www.ccherrypicker.blogspot.com. And, of course the one that I mentioned in the previous post was www.thecentsiblesawyer.blogspot.com

Kroger and Publix double coupons up to 50 cents.. Publix accepts competitors coupons
Store coupons and manufacturer coupons can be used together.

On Sunday mornings. I wake like a kid on Christmas morning and run out to get the paper then I spread it all out on the living room floor and study the thing like a text book and find out how much my paper is worth that day...

Just think how much I could save if I did coupons and had an Aldi's!

So please leave any thrifty hints you might have.. Coupons, energy savers, anything.. What do you do to save money? I'm all about stretching a dollar. Until next time, happy clipping!

Blessings,
Dana

Walmart Shoppers Go Here

The Centsible Sawyer

I'm still working on a post for all of you that have asked me about the information I've gathered on coupon clipping but I know that several of you only shop at Walmart and I just came across this site that tells you lots of Walmart deals along with printable coupons right there. Lots of stuff for Free! Don't forget that Walmart price matches. My sister was clever and took a stack of post it notes and wrote the price and the store it was at that price on separate post it notes and stuck it on the items as she was shopping. That way she didn't have to stand there and tell them about every item.

Please feel free to share you money saving tips!

How Having a Child Made Me Beautiful

On a serious note.. In considering last night's conversation with my friend I met in Rite Aid (see  "Calling All Crazies" below), I felt that it was time for me to write a post that's been brewing in my head.  First I will say that I have to confess that I had to fight the urge to start a diet and high energy exercise program. I'm glad that I was able to shake it off and laugh about it and call the girl crazy but I do want to clarify that would not have always been the case. I never had an eating disorder but, I did constantly obsess over the way I looked. There was always a new obsession. My nose is too big, my ears are too big, other parts of my body aren't big enough, my hair is too thin... and so on.

Well, after working with many girls in youth ministry, and watching many teenage girls with eating disorders and girls obsess over the same types of thing that I did, I came to believe that this is an issue that as Christian women, we need to put an end to. I became especially aware of the problem within myself after I had Emma. I really wanted to make sure that I taught her to be okay with herself and I knew to do that, I had to learn to be okay with myself. It's really quite ironic because instead of teaching her, she taught me..

When Emma was born, I was so taken by her that I couldn't take my eyes off her. The first night that I had her, I stayed awake all night long and watched her sleep just waiting for her to wake up and need me. I examined her every little part and declared her beautiful. I marveled at the fact that I had made something so perfect. I remember thinking that by becoming a mother I had become what God had always intended me to be.. It was truly a magical time. This was the point that I began to believe in love at first sight. I loved every part of her but there was one thing that really stood out to me. Her lips. She has the most beautiful lips. I continued to watch her as she grew always admiring her lips. I closely examined every relative on mine and Adam's side trying to figure out where this specific feature came from.. I looked through pictures, I watched Adam as he talked and then one morning, I walked by the mirror and caught a glimpse of Emma's lips... on me... Her lips came from me! It just took seeing them on someone that I love more than life itself to look past the things that I didn't like about myself to see the things that I did like about myself.

After this realization, I printed out this scripture: Psalm 139:14
"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." I posted this scripture on my mirror and I wrote those words on my heart.

A few years later, Chloe came along and though it didn't surprise me that she was beautiful because I knew by then the beauty that I would see in my child, there were other features that she reflected from me. And I was amazed all over again. I'm sure that you've probably came to this conclusion on your own but I feel as if I would be remiss if I didn't mention that God's sees us as the same perfect beauty that we see our children.

Ok, so I didn't say all of this to say, so look at your children and find all the things that are pretty on them that they got from you so that you can feel good about yourself all though, that might not be a bad thing to do. But I do want to say that I don't think we can teach our children to see themselves as God sees them until we learn to see ourselves as God sees us.

I have made a commitment to not fret about my appearance in front of my girls.. And I'm working on not fretting about it at all. I'm not saying that we shouldn't teach our kids to be healthy. I think that eating healthy, exercising and taken care of ourselves is part of being a good steward of the things that God has blessed us with. But I also know that wrinkles and gaining weight is a part of aging and I truly want to embrace all of my life, even those parts. I don't think that God ever intended for us to pick his creation apart. I guess when the way we look becomes the sole motivation for the things that we do, there is a good chance, that motivation isn't from God.

I do want to tell you that once I dusted myself off and stopped calling her crazy as a defense mechanism, that poor girl last night has been on my heart. I've spent some time praying for her today. The things she said to me were not mean spirited at all. I think she was truly afraid that she wouldn't be able to live with herself if she gained 10 lbs and I feel so sad for her for that.

I guess that's pretty much it. Maybe she will find her way into your prayers tonight too.

And God please help me to help my girls see themselves and others as you do.

Blessings,
Dana

Calling All Crazies

I think someone must have put a sign on me in some inconspicuous place that said, "Come talk to me if you're crazy".... Okay, I know that post-partum depression is real but is there a such thing as post-partum craziness? What you are about to read may possibly have been one of the strangest interactions I've ever had.... Try to stay with me on this one.. It's a good one.

I was in Rite Aid picking up my deals of the week because the new sales start tomorrow. I need to make a post about my new coupon clipping habit. I am so addicted. I've been getting stuff for free and it's so much fun...

Anyway, I was pushing Chloe in the shopping cart and Adam and Emma had gone over to the dollar store next door. And this girl comes up behind me and says, "hey, how old is she?" Now it's a pretty common thing for people to ask how old your baby is. Everyone likes comparing babies... not a big thing. I looked down at Chloe, fluffed her hair and said, "she will be eleven months old on the thirtieth".. She said, "when does it get easier". She then points to the carrier that she has sat on the floor with what looked like a tiny baby in it to me and said, "he's six weeks old. It occurred to me that maybe this girl was suffering from post-partum depression and had been stuck in the house with no adult conversation and she saw someone with a baby that she thought might be able to relate to her. So, I decided to try to be the therapy that she needed. I didn't have the heart to tell her that it gets even harder when they become a two year old so I said, "it will be easier when he starts sleeping through the night." She then says, "He's big isn't he". Well, he looked tiny to me but to be fair, a young baby is probably going to seem very small to me right now since Chloe has grown so much so I said that to her.. Now her approach to me was pretty strange to begin with but this is not an isolated incidence for me. It happens regularly to me that someone will walk up to me and strike up a conversation like they've known me for life. I've always just thought it was a good thing to be approachable and haven't given a ton of thought to the matter. So, the conversation continues with her asking, "how much do you weigh?" Now I must have had a little bit of a confused look on my face because she followed that up with, "if you don't mind me asking". And really, I don't mind telling anyone my weight. I'm pretty much one of those people that tells it like it is. I've been described as everything from refreshingly transparent to blunt and no telling what behind my back :). I just figure that the world is full of people that are trying to look like they've got it all figured out and I truly treasure the friends in my life that I know are being real with me.. So pretty much, what you see is what you get. No surprises here. But I was however, trying to figure out if I misunderstood her and she wanted Chloe's weight since we had just talked about the size of her baby. So once I figured out that she was talking about my weight, I told her 135 lbs. Now I must say, I feel pretty good about weighing 135 lbs. I weighed 140 when I got pregnant with Chloe so I figured 135 was pretty good. I mean, I won't be sporting a bikini um ever. But, I feel like that's a good healthy weight.. So she says to me, "well I'm 115 pounds and the doctor wants me to gain 10. Do you think I'd be too fat if I gained 10 pounds". I started to say, "well, do you think I'm too fat since I weigh 20 more than that?" But instead, I just said no.. So then she says, "well how does your husband feel about your weight?" To which I said, "my husband is great, he never says a word to me about my weight". She went on for about 10 minutes talking about how she had friends who's husbands told them they would leave them if they gained weight and all of these people she knew that had eating disorders and that she did think she'd be prettier in the face if she gained a little weight and that it might make her look younger. She also said something about "those girls that live up on the hill". I explained to her that I had only lived here for two months and she gave me a patronizing look like I was ever so green and naive about the area... And then she said, "so your husband doesn't care that you're not toned?" Any kind of clever comment left me at this point because I guess I was just in shock.. So I just said, "no, he seems to be fine with me just the way I am". And then she just turned and walked away.. And I called out, "well you have a nice afternoon"...

And so what did we learn from this? I've got a wonderful husband and it's a good thing because I'm sure not toned... And, there are some crazies in South Carolina..

The Faith of a Child...

You will need to scroll to the bottom of the page and pause my playlist so that you can hear


Back by popular demand... At least from Aunt Denise, is the you tube video...

The first is of Emma reciting her memory verses. She actually knows more now. They memorize scripture all summer and ever Wed. night, the kids that know their verses get to make a trip to the pink dipper (ice cream shop). I've learned more consecutive scripture this summer than I ever have in my life..

The video of Chloe makes me cry every time I watch it. We love the "Praise Baby" CD. I want my kids to feel free to praise God with no reserve so that's what we do. We put it in and sing to the top of our lungs and throw our hands in the air and dance (uh huh, that's right we dance).. And we praise God... I have a theory.. My mom used to dance around the living room with us. Usually to Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers, "Island In The Stream".. Maybe that's where my fascination with Kenny Rogers comes from.. Well occasionally, I will hear one of those songs and I'm flooded with sweet memories from my childhood. So what if I can help my children associate songs about God with sweet memories and happy times... Well, I'm gonna give it a try.






I think this is what Jesus meant when he said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these". in Luke 18.

Still on a quest...

To get a picture of Chloe that is frame worthy...

We are back from taking Anna and Rachel half way to WV. We had a wonderful time catching up with them and since we had some late nights with them, the girls are sweetly tucked in and I'm headed there soon.

Emma was busy catching up on time missed with "her teenagers" ( that's what she used to call them). So, I took that opportunity to try to get a picture of Chloe that will go on my wall. Haven't gotten the perfect one yet but here are some that capture her little personality.

Aunt Denise, I did get some video since you requested it.. And as soon as Adam gets them ready, I'll post them. Hopefully these will hold you over until..

Blessings,
Dana












The following may go down as my all time favorite... This is her "you're kidding me right" look that undoubtedly came straight from her daddy.





And, this is what my spunky little Emma was doing while I was taking these pictures....



And it's the hay for me.

Bloggers Block

Or maybe it's Bloggers rush..

When I was first pregnant with Chloe, I was so sick that I let the house get unorganized which if you know me, only made me more sick... Anyway, I got so overwhelmed that it took me a while to get back on top of the mess because I just couldn't figure out where to start... Well, that's how I feel about this blog.. so much to tell.. so little time to do it that I just keep putting it off... Plus, I've misplaced my largest memory card which has a few pictures on it that I wanted to post..

Chloe is moving.. FAST... She's climbing. She climbed the gate up the stairs the other day.. She somehow pushed it over to where it was kind of propped on the stairs and she got her little toes in the cracks and climbed... She was crying the whole time because it was hurting her little toes.. but she kept climbing.. Determination is good.. when your a mother... I'm tired..

Emma walks around behind me all day asking questions... what's that? How do you spell.....? What does Alzheimer mean? Do they forget how to talk? Well do they forget how to sit up? Well to they forget how to......? What does the president do? What laws does he make? What if I had been a boy instead of a girl? What do you think my kindergarten teacher's name will be? What if the sky was red? What if I were your mother and you were my daughter? What makes a horn honk? What number comes after 79? And I'm sure you think I'm exaggerating but I'm not. These are only a few of the ones I can remember for the last day or so. I've always made a point to try to answer her questions.. But now, I think she just wants to hear me admit that I don't know... I DON'T KNOW Emma, let's play the quiet game... All of you mothers with babies just waiting on the first word.. Be careful what you wish for. Once it starts.. IT NEVER STOPS.

Anyway, we're busy. It's a good busy. Not the oh my goodness I've got a deadline and everyone is counting on me busy. I'm not sure that anyone is expecting anything at all from me right now except for my girls. That's the first time for that since well, never. That's wonderful but some how scary to me... Adam's loving being a preacher (I've still got to come up with a better word for it than that. That just sounds icky). I guess we all knew that he would. I sit there during church holding my breath because I'm afraid that he's really stirring people up. And everyone kindly reminds me that that's what they hired him to do. I think he's doing what he was born to do.. Which I guess means I'm doing what I was born to do since I feel confident that God made us for each other but, I'm still trying to figure out what that means for me.

I have a blog post hanging in the draft folder that I started on July 2.. I've come back to it and written a little more a couple of times. I might get it finished before the summer ends. If not, Emma starts Kindergarten in the fall.

So anyway, if you get to wondering where I went, I'm chasing the sweet, sweet, baby girl in only a diaper because she HATES to wear clothes followed by the vivacious and inquisitive five year old who has changed clothes at least 10 times that day. And I'm trying desperately to pack in the last little bit that I can before she will spend more of her time with another woman than she will me. No, I'm not giving her up for adoption... I'm talking about her Kindergarten teacher... And there's a whole other post I need to write!

My bed is calling my name.. Actually, that's not true, it called it an hour ago. Now all I have to do is close the laptop and drift off to sleep. And that's why I haven't been writing in here... I've sacrificed a whole hour of sleep that I needed to store up energy for tomorrow.

Edit: So Anna and Rachel know just how excited we are to see them and that last line was an afterthought just before I drifted off to sleep. I was more referring the storing up energy for a long car ride with the girls and not that Rachel and Anna took a lot of energy...

Tomorrow, we will be going to get Rachel and Anna, two of the teens from WV that are going to stay with us for a week. WE ARE SO EXCITED TO SEE THEM. I plan on just enjoying the week with them so definitely don't expect anything for a while...



Blessings,
Dana