My sister and two friends and I have decided to team up and coupon chain. We're all pretty excited about it, to the point that we're even contemplating a name for ourselves! This is our first month of it, so we haven't gotten into a pattern or anything, but the plan is to buy 300-400 coupons from ebay once a month and pass them around our group. We still have the logistics to work out, but it's been fun listening to each other's ideas. Are you in a coupon chain? What works for you, and what doesn't? We'd love some tips on how to make ours run smoothly.
Couponing has been going very well. I've saved more money this month (I know that sounds crazy to some-yes, we do have to spend money to save money, but my storage room is starting to look nice and full with all of the great things I've been getting for great deals), so we're doing wonderful. I have made it beyond the middle of July and still have funds in the bank account where I put all the savings from last month, so I'm very excited about that!
I have been looking at couponing as a hobby which really helps...I have been spending a couple of hours daily checking out blogsites, coupon sites, and ads. Then there's the actual shopping, and that's been fun for me. My husband and kids beg to differ some of the time, but they are happy when we are home and they have a variety of food to eat! I don't ever want to look at couponing as a chore, because once it isn't fun anymore I have a feeling I won't want to continue. So some people have scrapbooking or knitting or whatever...I have couponing!
This last week went by rather quickly. It felt really strange today not to be packing to go somewhere. Jeff had a full day of golf with his company, so it's a stay at home weekend, which is okay, but I can't wait for our next camping trip. Instead, I cleaned the den (including inside cabinets and desks), mowed the lawn (and almost killed three baby bunnies in the process!), cleaned our front step/porch area (and the mess left behind from killing a hornet's nest yesterday), scrubbed down the grill, cleaned the garage, did laundry, and found a bit of time to do some coupon browsing. Oh, and facebook! Have I mentioned yet how much I enjoy facebook? With being a stay at home/homeschool mom, I don't get out much, so I am so thankful for the quick and easy way I can keep up with friends and family. I check it often, and love that so many people use it. A lot of people see it as a time waster and don't get the concept, but for homebodies like me, it gives me an opportunity to experience the outside world and have adult conversations with friends any time of the day, and I can still get homeschool accomplished and chores done.
Speaking of chores, I best get back to them! Hope your weekend is good!
Friday, July 17, 2009
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Wasn't it supposed to be Doshi's turn?
Wouldn'tcha know...I had on my to do list to cut my son's hair yesterday. Instead, I had to cut my daughter's. We discovered yesterday that she cut out several snarls in her hair, leaving a bunch of short hair popping out from the back of her head, making it obvious that it was not 'normal'. After a quick bath and some clips with the shears, I was able to hide the weird short spots on her head. I even gave her some bangs and now she has a whole different look! Here are before and after pics...
Before
After
To me, it doesn't even look like the same person! She seems to be liking it somewhat, but we'll see. Our original plan was to do Locks of Love together, but I guess we'll be waiting a bit longer as she needs about 4 more inches.
Before
AfterTo me, it doesn't even look like the same person! She seems to be liking it somewhat, but we'll see. Our original plan was to do Locks of Love together, but I guess we'll be waiting a bit longer as she needs about 4 more inches.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Ebates!
Have you tried ebates? I have been a fan of ebates for about a month now, and already have a good balance in my account that I'll receive back in cash in August. I can't believe the savings I am getting from them! Just the other day I had to order more Frontline for our dog. I opened up ebates and typed in 1-800-petmeds, and they are a partner...not only am I getting 8% back in cash, but I also was able to use a coupon through ebates to get free shipping! If you sign up soon, they are offering a $5 cash back reward when you make your first purchase through them, so you not only get the cash back from that particular store, but you get $5 too! Make sure to tell your friends as well, because with each friend that signs up off your invitation, you get more bonuses! It's a great deal! LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!!!
Monday, July 6, 2009
A little bit more of vacation time, please...
We had a great 4th of July weekend in Duluth, MN. We stayed at the Cloquet KOA in our travel trailer from Thursday to Monday, and we all had a wonderful time. 
On Friday, the kids and Jeff and I went to an indoor amusement park called Thrillz at Canal Park. From there we walked down to the lift bridge and watched a couple of sailboats go in and out of the harbor. 
Then we decided to cross the lift bridge and go out to the peninsula called "Park Point" and walked around in the sand a bit at the beach. It was very windy and cold, yet there were people everywhere in their bathing suits trying to catch some rays...we certainly looked out of place with our jackets and sweatshirts on, just trying to stay warm!
Friday evening we took in a college level baseball game between our hometown team and the Duluth team. Unfortunately we did not win, but it was still a fun game.
On Saturday we went down to the Lakewalk and Bayfront Park where the Duluth 4th festival was happening. We spent a few hours wandering around and Jeff and the kids checked out a feature attraction for the weekend, the Denis S. Sullivan, a beautiful replication of a 19th century sailboat.
After a few hour return to the campground to get some swimming in and have dinner, we headed back to the festival to enjoy the music and wait for the fireworks. After a bit of a mishap and not being seated in the right place for the fireworks, we relocated rather quickly and were able to see them. They were good, but not as good as we're used to here in St. Cloud. We also did have an issue with parking...we were stuck for over an hour in the parking lot waiting to get out. It appeared that the woman patrol who was signalling traffic had no clue what to do. We made it back to the camper after midnight and quickly got everyone off to bed.
On Sunday we all slept in a bit and then got ready and headed to the Duluth Zoo.
It was pretty warm already by the time we got there and most of the animals were napping, so we didn't get to see a whole lot. My son said that was his favorite part about the whole weekend, though, so it was worth going! After the zoo we stopped at the Kmart in Duluth because I happened to catch in their ad that they were doing the double coupon thing and I got several good deals. Jeff took a cart and 10 coupons and so did I, and we were able to save a bit of money. I think we did pretty good but I haven't had time to figure out the exact savings per item yet. When we were done there we headed back to the camper for an evening of steak on the grill and a roaring campfire to end our great weekend.
Today's trip home felt sooo long, and I was not looking forward to coming home, but with all trips - they must come to an end, and I think our kids had just about enough of small enclosed sleeping quarters in their bunks.
On a side note: I encountered something really sweet with our stay at the KOA, which was just a blessing to me. There was an older couple just over from us. I knew that they were having some issues with not having a campsite over the weekend and could only stay at the KOA the one night because the campground was filled up - we were registering at the same time. During the conversation the couple were having at their campsite later, I heard the gentleman tell his wife about the situation. She was so upbeat and so positive - she would heartily laugh and seemed to thoroughly just enjoy being with her husband no matter the problems, and she was such an encouragement to her husband. A while later, I looked over at them sitting outside in their lawn chairs. The husband had gone to the store and bought both of them ice cream bars and they were sitting there enjoying them. It was SOOOOOO sweet! I told Jeff that I hope when we're up in years and still able to get around (and hopefully be camping!) I pray that our marriage is still that sweet. Jeff smiled at me with that knowing smile - he knows the softy I am. Thank God for loving husbands and for the blessings in others He gives us everyday! This couple will never know what they did to bless me, but they certainly did just by how they cared for each other.
On Friday, the kids and Jeff and I went to an indoor amusement park called Thrillz at Canal Park. From there we walked down to the lift bridge and watched a couple of sailboats go in and out of the harbor. 
Then we decided to cross the lift bridge and go out to the peninsula called "Park Point" and walked around in the sand a bit at the beach. It was very windy and cold, yet there were people everywhere in their bathing suits trying to catch some rays...we certainly looked out of place with our jackets and sweatshirts on, just trying to stay warm!Friday evening we took in a college level baseball game between our hometown team and the Duluth team. Unfortunately we did not win, but it was still a fun game.
On Saturday we went down to the Lakewalk and Bayfront Park where the Duluth 4th festival was happening. We spent a few hours wandering around and Jeff and the kids checked out a feature attraction for the weekend, the Denis S. Sullivan, a beautiful replication of a 19th century sailboat.
After a few hour return to the campground to get some swimming in and have dinner, we headed back to the festival to enjoy the music and wait for the fireworks. After a bit of a mishap and not being seated in the right place for the fireworks, we relocated rather quickly and were able to see them. They were good, but not as good as we're used to here in St. Cloud. We also did have an issue with parking...we were stuck for over an hour in the parking lot waiting to get out. It appeared that the woman patrol who was signalling traffic had no clue what to do. We made it back to the camper after midnight and quickly got everyone off to bed.On Sunday we all slept in a bit and then got ready and headed to the Duluth Zoo.
It was pretty warm already by the time we got there and most of the animals were napping, so we didn't get to see a whole lot. My son said that was his favorite part about the whole weekend, though, so it was worth going! After the zoo we stopped at the Kmart in Duluth because I happened to catch in their ad that they were doing the double coupon thing and I got several good deals. Jeff took a cart and 10 coupons and so did I, and we were able to save a bit of money. I think we did pretty good but I haven't had time to figure out the exact savings per item yet. When we were done there we headed back to the camper for an evening of steak on the grill and a roaring campfire to end our great weekend.Today's trip home felt sooo long, and I was not looking forward to coming home, but with all trips - they must come to an end, and I think our kids had just about enough of small enclosed sleeping quarters in their bunks.
On a side note: I encountered something really sweet with our stay at the KOA, which was just a blessing to me. There was an older couple just over from us. I knew that they were having some issues with not having a campsite over the weekend and could only stay at the KOA the one night because the campground was filled up - we were registering at the same time. During the conversation the couple were having at their campsite later, I heard the gentleman tell his wife about the situation. She was so upbeat and so positive - she would heartily laugh and seemed to thoroughly just enjoy being with her husband no matter the problems, and she was such an encouragement to her husband. A while later, I looked over at them sitting outside in their lawn chairs. The husband had gone to the store and bought both of them ice cream bars and they were sitting there enjoying them. It was SOOOOOO sweet! I told Jeff that I hope when we're up in years and still able to get around (and hopefully be camping!) I pray that our marriage is still that sweet. Jeff smiled at me with that knowing smile - he knows the softy I am. Thank God for loving husbands and for the blessings in others He gives us everyday! This couple will never know what they did to bless me, but they certainly did just by how they cared for each other.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
What's your 6th picture?
Fishmama over at Life as Mom is playing the 6th picture game. It got me a bit curious as to what my sixth picture would be, and oh my goodness! 
Could that break a mother's heart any more? This is my son (we call him Doshi) when he was 2. He looks so sad and alone, cuddling his blanket and his dog for reassurance. I remember that doctor appointment fairly well. Both of our kids were sick with strep throat and they were both miserable, Doshi moreso. Just look at those big crocodile tears! It just brings me back in the moment of when he was a tender two year old. He still wasn't talking and the world was just so amazing to him. My Doshi is now 8 years old, and a rambunctious boy at that!
I am not going to tag anyone, so if you want to play along, here are the rules:
1) Go to your photo folders
2) Select the sixth file folder
3) Open it and select the sixth photo in that file folder
4) Write a story for that picture, post it and
5) Select five bloggy friends to tag
6) Be sure to let them know they've been tagged
I, like Fishmama, do not like tagging, since it really doesn't seem to work. So if you're curious what your 6th picture is and want to share, please post back to me in the comments. Thanks!
Could that break a mother's heart any more? This is my son (we call him Doshi) when he was 2. He looks so sad and alone, cuddling his blanket and his dog for reassurance. I remember that doctor appointment fairly well. Both of our kids were sick with strep throat and they were both miserable, Doshi moreso. Just look at those big crocodile tears! It just brings me back in the moment of when he was a tender two year old. He still wasn't talking and the world was just so amazing to him. My Doshi is now 8 years old, and a rambunctious boy at that!I am not going to tag anyone, so if you want to play along, here are the rules:
1) Go to your photo folders
2) Select the sixth file folder
3) Open it and select the sixth photo in that file folder
4) Write a story for that picture, post it and
5) Select five bloggy friends to tag
6) Be sure to let them know they've been tagged
I, like Fishmama, do not like tagging, since it really doesn't seem to work. So if you're curious what your 6th picture is and want to share, please post back to me in the comments. Thanks!
Distractions?
Okay, so I had planned on packing the camper yesterday afternoon. I don't know how it didn't happen! I only:
- Washed a load of clothes
- filled the dishwasher and started it
- made lunch
- ate lunch with family
- washed another load of clothes
- folded a basket of laundry
- set up all of our vitamins for our four day trip
- washed a sink full of dishes
- put some items in the bins to go to the camper
- cut some coupons from Sunday's paper
- prepped for dinner
- folded another basket of laundry
- went through packing list to see what else I could get in the bins to go to the camper
- ate dinner with family
- searched high and low for my husband's baseball mitt so he could go to softball (we pretty much tore apart the camper, truck and car but didn't find it)
- reorganized the back storage bin in the camper since we pulled it apart looking for the mitt
- fixed a hole in the pool
- helped a friend figure out a website she was having problems with
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
June...a review....
Wow, what a whirlwind month! I can't believe we fit in all that we did in the month of June - 2 camping trips, VBS, extreme couponing and SEVERAL shopping trips, homeschool, and various other things. July looks to be just as busy, however, so no slowing down yet! I thought I'd share a little bit about each of these subjects and my favorite parts about them.
Camping trip #1: Eveleth Veteran's Park, Eveleth, MN. A nice small city-run park with about 30 campsites. We have gone there the last three years so that we can camp with some of my family members who live nearby. This year it was just my sister's family and my family camping -we had a joint birthday party for one of her boys and my son. It was good, and the weather was cool and sometimes a bit rainy but overall nice. Below is a pic of my kids and some of their cousins enjoying an afternoon at the beach. The water was too cold to swim in so they played in the sand and waded in the water.
Camping #2: Baker Park Reserve, Maple Plain, MN. A county run park just 20 minutes west of the twin cities. It's a beautiful park on a good-sized lake with two swimming beaches. I'm guessing there are well over 75 sites at this campground and is always very busy. This is our second year we stayed there because we really like it and it's a nice short distance (under an hour) from our home. This trip we spent with friends, and it was a good time despite the inclement weather. It rained almost two inches overnight the first night, and our friends' tent had lots of water in it by morning. This is a pic of the beach at sunset our first evening there. It was hot (92 degrees), and the kids had a great time swimming.
Vacation Bible School: This was the first year ever that my kids attended VBS. Up until this last year, we had been attending a small Bible church that didn't have enough kids to host something like that, so my kids were very excited to go. They had a blast. My daughter wants every day to be a VBS day now, and she's already looking forward to next year. I am so happy to see both of the kids' enthusiasm grow for the things of the Lord. This is my daughter's 4th grade class acting out a song at the parent's program on the last day.
Extreme couponing and shopping: In total for the month of June, I have saved an overall amount of $859.55. We bought more than just groceries and household items - Jeff needed new clothing but we only bought during BOGO or 50% off sales. We also did a lot of rebating at Menards and are still waiting for the rebate coupons to come in the mail. For actual groceries and household needs we saved $403.93, so almost half of the $859.55. We saved exactly 1/3rd off the total (if we were to pay full price) amount for the month! I'm pretty excited about that!
Homeschool: Our summer session of homeschool is a bit lighter than during the regular school year. We use different curriculum and do different things. The summer months bring gardening and kitchen basics, and we spend some time daily doing either one of them. As I mentioned before, I also am going to be adding in a money management class for the kids. We'll be starting it next Tuesday. I found some great books (here and here) that we're going to be reading through together, and then when we've read through both of them I will start having the kids help me with weekly planning for shopping trips (looking through ads, coupons, making lists, etc.). I saw other Larry Burkett books for kids when I was searching these to put up and I may consider them for next year's summer session to keep reinforcing the importance of godly stewardship. I am looking forward to helping my kids learn how to use their money wisely.
Other various things: During the month of June we also went to a classic car show, "Back to the 50's" held at the state fairground every year. My dad, brother, and nephew all have classic vehicles and have gone for the last several years. We met up with them again this year and wandered around the fairgrounds for several hours looking at classic cars. It's always a fun time.
Jeff had softball on Tuesday evenings during the month, and he has enjoyed that. We did go see him play at one game, but haven't had the chance to go again.
Overall, June was a good month. Busier than I anticipated, and these are just a few of the 'big' things we did. I hope your June was just as fun!
Camping trip #1: Eveleth Veteran's Park, Eveleth, MN. A nice small city-run park with about 30 campsites. We have gone there the last three years so that we can camp with some of my family members who live nearby. This year it was just my sister's family and my family camping -we had a joint birthday party for one of her boys and my son. It was good, and the weather was cool and sometimes a bit rainy but overall nice. Below is a pic of my kids and some of their cousins enjoying an afternoon at the beach. The water was too cold to swim in so they played in the sand and waded in the water.
Camping #2: Baker Park Reserve, Maple Plain, MN. A county run park just 20 minutes west of the twin cities. It's a beautiful park on a good-sized lake with two swimming beaches. I'm guessing there are well over 75 sites at this campground and is always very busy. This is our second year we stayed there because we really like it and it's a nice short distance (under an hour) from our home. This trip we spent with friends, and it was a good time despite the inclement weather. It rained almost two inches overnight the first night, and our friends' tent had lots of water in it by morning. This is a pic of the beach at sunset our first evening there. It was hot (92 degrees), and the kids had a great time swimming.
Vacation Bible School: This was the first year ever that my kids attended VBS. Up until this last year, we had been attending a small Bible church that didn't have enough kids to host something like that, so my kids were very excited to go. They had a blast. My daughter wants every day to be a VBS day now, and she's already looking forward to next year. I am so happy to see both of the kids' enthusiasm grow for the things of the Lord. This is my daughter's 4th grade class acting out a song at the parent's program on the last day.
Extreme couponing and shopping: In total for the month of June, I have saved an overall amount of $859.55. We bought more than just groceries and household items - Jeff needed new clothing but we only bought during BOGO or 50% off sales. We also did a lot of rebating at Menards and are still waiting for the rebate coupons to come in the mail. For actual groceries and household needs we saved $403.93, so almost half of the $859.55. We saved exactly 1/3rd off the total (if we were to pay full price) amount for the month! I'm pretty excited about that!
Homeschool: Our summer session of homeschool is a bit lighter than during the regular school year. We use different curriculum and do different things. The summer months bring gardening and kitchen basics, and we spend some time daily doing either one of them. As I mentioned before, I also am going to be adding in a money management class for the kids. We'll be starting it next Tuesday. I found some great books (here and here) that we're going to be reading through together, and then when we've read through both of them I will start having the kids help me with weekly planning for shopping trips (looking through ads, coupons, making lists, etc.). I saw other Larry Burkett books for kids when I was searching these to put up and I may consider them for next year's summer session to keep reinforcing the importance of godly stewardship. I am looking forward to helping my kids learn how to use their money wisely.
Other various things: During the month of June we also went to a classic car show, "Back to the 50's" held at the state fairground every year. My dad, brother, and nephew all have classic vehicles and have gone for the last several years. We met up with them again this year and wandered around the fairgrounds for several hours looking at classic cars. It's always a fun time.
Jeff had softball on Tuesday evenings during the month, and he has enjoyed that. We did go see him play at one game, but haven't had the chance to go again.
Overall, June was a good month. Busier than I anticipated, and these are just a few of the 'big' things we did. I hope your June was just as fun!
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