Tuesday, September 30, 2008

The Common Sense Fix


Please let your Congressmen know that we don't want a 700 billion dollar bail out of Wall Street. Visit Dave Ramsey's site and read about the Three Steps to Fix Our Nation's Economy:

1. Pray for your leaders.

2. Send The Common Sense Fix to your representative and senators.

3. Tell others.

We don't need to spend taxpayer's dollars to clean up this mess. Be on the look-out for Dave to be appearing on many shows over the next 72 hours including:

The O'Reilly Factor
Larry King Live
Fox News
Most morning new shows
Many radio shows

Also, tune into The Dave Ramsey Show on Fox Business News at 8p.m. eastern to hear more about this plan!

What are you reading?


My favorite thing this week is a book I just finished reading. The Shack by William P. Young. I could not put it down! It is a beautiful story about God's Love, forgiveness, and tries to answer questions about evil in the world.

I highly recommend it!!



Be sure to visit Fiddledeedee to see what are on other folks lists of My Favorite Things.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Colorado White Chili


Here is my recipe for Colorado White Chili that is included in my menu plan for this week. I have no idea why it is "Colorado" white chili, but its a favorite of my family.

Chicken Mixture

1 tbsp. butter
1 bunch scallions, chopped
1 medium sweet yellow bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 -4 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped
1/2 tsp. fresh ginger, grated
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. sage (optional)
1-1 1/2 tsp cumin
4 1/2 chicken breasts, boned and cut into bite size pieces

Sauce

3 tbsp butter
1/4 c flour
1/2 cream (half&half or milk)
2 c chicken broth
1 (17 oz) can corn (I use frozen if I don't have canned)
3 cans Great Northern Beans
cayenne--to taste
white pepper--to taste
pickled jalapenos--if you like extra punch
Monterrey Jack or cheddar cheese

To make chicken mixture: Melt butter in a 5-quart pan. Saute scallions, yellow pepper, garlic, jalapenos, ginger, salt, sage and cumin. Add chicken and cook until just done. Don't overcook. Remove chicken mixture from pan and set aside.

For sauce: Melt 3 tablespoons butter in pan. When bubbling, add flour and whist briskly while adding cream (milk). When smooth and thick, add chicken broth. Stir until blended. Stir in corn, beans, and chicken mixture. Simmer 30 minutes. If desired, add 2 shakes of cayenne, 1 shake white pepper, and 1 oz. pickled jalapenos with juice.

I adjust spices to suit me. I also add more milk/broth than called for in the recipe. Adjust thickness of soup/chili to suit you. I serve this with flour tortillas, cornbread, or tortilla chips.

Enjoy!

Menu Plan Monday 9/29


Here is my menu plan for this week. I am continuing to use items mostly from my pantry and freezer. I have kept it simple this week, because it is just too hard to fix big dinners after work. I have saved recipes that require more prep time for the weekend. I already have the spaghetti sauce in the crockpot....

Breakfasts
Cereal/ milk/bananas
Bagels
Toaster Strudel
Eggo waffles
Juice

Lunches
Leftovers
Sandwiches
Carrot Sticks
Chex Mix
Pringles
Bananas, pears, grapes (choice)

Dinners

Monday
Once a Month Cooking Spaghetti Sauce
Noodles
Salad

Tuesday
Breakfast for dinner
Pancakes
Sausage
fruit

Wednesday
Soup
Rolls

Thursday
Crock Pot Pork Chops
Rice
veggie

Friday
Tacos

Saturday
Homemade Pizza
Brownies

Sunday
Colorado White Chili
tortillas

Have a great week!

Be sure to visit I'm an Organized Junkie to see other's Menu Plan Monday.

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Kroger Run


I decided to do a Kroger run to take advantage of a few sale item that matched with coupons for the week. Unfortunately, my Kroger was out of Glade Flameless Candles and Glade Plug-in Gel Warmers--I wanted to get more catalinas! I will try a different Kroger tomorrow on the way home from church. They were also out of the $0.99 Cottonelle that I had coupons to make free. :-(

I still did pretty well. My store was running a manager special on bananas--$0.19/lb! I got lots, as well as other produce. Here is my transaction:

6.30 lbs Bananas @ $0.19/lb $1.20
1 Cantaloupe $2.50
4 Bartlett Pears @ $0.99/lb $1.95
1 head lettuce $0.99
2.15lb red grapes @$1.29/lb $2.77
1 Sunday paper $1.87
2 bxs Cherrios $1.99 ea - 2 $1 Qs
2 gallons 1% milk $3.58 ea
4 Naturally Preferred H2O $1.29 ea -2 B1G1 Qs
1 Turkey Hill Tea $1.00 - $1 Q - FREE
3 cans Pringles $1 ea - $0.60 Q
1 96 oz. Tropicana OJ $4.49 -$0.75 Q
3 packages of cheese $1.67 ea
3 cans Great Northern beans $0.58 ea
3 cans Chef Boy-r-dee $1 ea - $0.70 Q
4 Ballpark Franks $0.99 ea -2 $1/2 Qs
2 pkg sandwich meat $1.99 ea -$2 corporate brand Q

I also used two catalinas from my last shopping trip--a $4 and $2.

Total OOP $35.48

I have budgeted $175 for groceries and household for the next two weeks. So that leaves me with $139.62. I need to make a Publix run tomorrow, we will see how I do.

Friday, September 26, 2008

"FIREPROOF" opening in theaters today!

fireproofbanner

Don' forget Fireproof, the movie made by the same folks who made Facing The Giants, is opening in theaters today. We have budgeted to be able to see the movie this weekend. Try to go out and support this movie on this opening weekend. Show Hollywood that there is a market for this type of movie!

Click below to see the movie trailer....

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Stress-Free Holiday Season?


Stress-free sounds good to me! I just signed up at The Household Helper for Cara's free e-course. Weekly e-mails will help with tips to stay organized during the upcoming holiday season. Every year I have great plans to be organized and get shopping done early. I usually end up in the last minute rush. So, I am going to give this a try! I hope to really be relaxed and able to enjoy the Reason for the Season! Click HERE to sign up.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Now that's Love!

How does he love me? Let me count the ways.....

A couple of months ago, in my coupon acquiring mania, I asked my sweet husband to help me get more coupons. "We can get them for free, honey!"

Now that is Love! I haven't asked for him to dumpster dive for coupons in a while. But there sure have been some really good coupons lately. Hmmm......... :-)

P.S. If you are considering doing this, be sure to check with local authorities to make sure dumpster diving is legal in your area!

Monday, September 22, 2008

My Favorite Things



My favorite thing this week is a set of 8 cloth napkins that I embroidered for my friend, Su. She gave these as a bridal shower gift. She said there is an old-fashioned tradition of giving a new bride a set of cloth napkins with her first name embroidered somewhere on each napkin. Of course, these used to be hand embroidered. Su had me machine embroider them on my Babylock professional embroidery machine.

I think these make an elegant, thoughtful, and very personal gift. Su said the bride, Alice, loved them!

Be sure to visit Fiddledeedee to see more My Favorite Things.

Publix Super Savers


I did pretty well at Publix this week. I wasn't able to find the Chinet Tall Tumblers, but my store issued a rain check. I will go by another Publix tomorrow to see if they have any tumblers. I really need those for my daughter's birthday party at the end of October. Here is a break down of my three transactions.

Transaction #1

2 Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks B1G1 $2.59/2 - $1 Q
4 Dixie 160 ct napkins $1.50 each - $1 Q each
1 Pillsbury Pizza crust$1.67 - $0.80 Q
1 Publix water 6 pk--penny item

Total OOP for this order $4.93

Transaction #2

2.43 lb white grapes total of $3.49
1 Revlon tweezer $2.99 - $1 manny Q and $2 Publix Q
1 Revlon emery boards $1.89 - $2 Publix Q
1 Dixie 160 ct napkins $1.50 - $1 Q
1 Publix water 6 pk--penny item
3 Pillsbury pizza crust - (2) $1.10 printable Qs, and 1 $0.80 Q

Total OOP for this order $6.56

Transaction #3

2 Duncan Heinz cake mixes B1G1 $1.59/2 -$1/2 Q
3 Scotties facial tissues $0.99ea - $1/3 Q
4 V-8 Splash B1G1 $2.99/2 - $1 Q on each
1 Pompeian Olive Oil $6.00 - $1 Q
4 Purex Free and Clear detergent $2.99 each - $1 Q on each
1 Publix water 6 pk--penny item
Land o Lakes spread $0.95 - $0.55 Q
1 Sunday Double paper $2.34

Total OOP for this order23.79

Grand Total for all OOP $35.28

Be sure to visit Fiddledeedee to see other Publix Super Savers!

Check out Super Savings Saturday at Money Saving Mom!

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Chicken Pot Pie



I have adapted this recipe from one in my Betty Crocker's New Cookbook, I have had this cookbook forever, so it isn't "new". I have changed the recipe just slightly--here is my version.

1 package (10 oz) frozen peas and carrots (I also add some frozen corn)
1/3 cup margarine or butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup milk
2 1/2 to 3 cups cut-up cooked chicken
1 package All-Ready (or store brand) pie crusts (from dairy section)

1. Rinse frozen peas, carrots, and corn in cold water to separate; drain.

2. Melt margarine in 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour, onion, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is bubbly; remove from heat. Stir in broth and milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in chicken and peas, carrots, and corn; remove from heat.

3. Heat oven to 425 degrees.

4. Prepare pastry. Place bottom crust in deep dish pie plate. Poor chicken mixture into pastry-lined pie plate.

5. Place second crust over chicken mixture in pie plate. Flute crust edges to seal.

6. Bake about 35 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Take a look at Fiddledeedee for more "My Favorite Things" recipes!

Menu Plan Monday- September 22

Welcome to this week's Menu Plan Monday! This week we are including a "Family Favorite" recipe. I really didn't have to do much shopping for this menu. Most everything was in my pantry, fridge or freezer. I did buy pizza crust (instead of making from scratch) because Publix had such and awesome deal when combined with my coupons.

Breakfasts
cereal and milk
toaster strudel
bagels with cream cheese
Fiber One and other granola bars

Lunches
Sandwiches
Leftovers

Dinners

Monday
Pork Fried Rice
Cantaloupe

Tuesday
Chili (Family Favorite)
Cornbread
Grapes

Wednesday
Chicken Pot Pie (Family Favorite)
Rolls
Fruit

Thursday
Cornflake Crusted Drumsticks/Thighs (Recipe from All You Magazine-Sept)
Pasta Roni
Green veggie

Friday
BBQ Pork Spareribs
Rice
Veggie

Saturday
Homemade Pizza
Fruit

Sunday
Leftovers OR
Eggs
Sausage
Toast
Grits
Fruit Juice

Be sure to visit I'm and Organizing Junkie for more Family Favorite Menu Planning ideas. Hope you have a great week!



Saturday, September 20, 2008

Organizing

This week I have been off work with my husband (teacher) and daughter. Our school system has a Fall Break. We have stayed home--not taking vacations while getting out of debt. We have used this week to do lots of projects around the house. Here are some before and after pictures of my daughter's closet.

Before:


































After:


























Not sure if this looks like much, but we are donating a ton of toys and clothes. At least you can see the floor and find shoes! And, I know that it had a good cleaning!

Friday, September 19, 2008

Kroger Catalinas


I made a very quick trip into Kroger today to take advantage of the Catalina deal on Glade. Here is what I bought:

2 Glade Gel Warmers-Apple Cinnamon $1.79 each
1 Glade Flameless Candle $9.99

Minus

B1G1 coupon for Glade Warmers -$1.79 (9/14 SS)
$5 Q for Candle (9/7 SS2)

Total OOP after tax $7.73

Got back catalina coupons for $2, $2. & $4 off my next order: in other words $8 off next order!

If you haven't been to Kroger for this, hurry!

For other super savings be sure to visit Crystal at Money Saving Mom and Her Super Savings Saturday post.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

CVS Superstars!


I only made one quick trip to CVS this week. Here is the transaction:

1 Aleve-D $3.99
1 Excedrine Express Gels $3.99
1 Johnson's Buddies soap $1.19
1 Gold Emblem Garlic Pepper Salt $0.88 (Love this spice--you have to try it!)

Minus

1 $1 Aleve-D Q
1 $1 Excedrine CRT
1 $1 Johnson Buddies Q
1 $2/$10 CVS Q
$5 ECB

Total OOP $0.16

Received back $3.99, and $3 ECB

A quiet week. I didn't really have to have any of these items, but with such a low OOP and a $5 ECB expiring next week, I decided to make the trip.

Be sure to visit Denise at The Centsible Sawyer to see other CVS Superstars and Crystal at Money Saving Mom to see Super Savings Saturday.

Count Your Blessings


This is my first post on Sheila's blog The Faithful Follower. Each week she is hosting Count Your Blessings. Here are my blessings for the week:

1. Staycation. I am off work this week. My husband (the teacher) and my daughter are on Fall Break from school. I usually try to take off the weeks during the year that they do. We are on our second "staycation" of the year. We are not taking vacations right now while we pay off debt. Unfortunately for our son, his college's fall break isn't until next month. But, I have been available to help him, fix his lunch, etc. Back to reality next week, son!

2. Organization projects. While we are on our staycation we are doing a different organization or cleaning project every day. We have organized/cleaned the garage, our kitchen, my daughters closet/room (huge job!), cleaned carpets, and today, my hubby is staining the grout in our two bathrooms. Organization will give me more peace around the house.

3. Friends. I am thankful for my friends in the blogosphere. It is great to be able to connect to all kinds of people all over the country.

4. Dave Ramsey. I am grateful that God put a billboard up on I-75 last year that I could see. I was looking for an answer to our financial problems, and Dave Ramsey's biblically based financial advice is helping up to become debt free. We have paid off more than half of what we owe and should be completely debt free shortly after the new year.

5. Good weather. After seeing the devastation on the Gulf coast, I am grateful that we have enjoyed good weather. My prayers go out to those folks affected by the recent storms.

Be sure to visit The Faithful Follower and join in Count Your Blessings.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Target Diaper Deals

Check out Living Simply with a Handful and Quietness to see the great deal on diapers that can be found at some Target Stores. Hurry, and you might find a deal too!

Publix Deals


I just studied the Publix ad for this week and found a few good deals:

Pompeian Extra Virgin Olive Oil B1G1
$1 printable HERE

Dixie napkins 2/$3 (monthly advantage buy)
$0.50 coupon 8/17 SS

Kellogg's cereal B1G1
Printable mini-wheat coupons and Smart Start coupons
These printables may no longer be available but check your stash
Mini wheat coupon from All You Magazine (August)
$1/2 Kellogg's cereal 8/17 SS

Land-o-lakes spread B1G1
Coupons in 8/24 SS and 9/7 SS

Orville Redenbacher's popping corn B1G1
coupon in 8/3 SS

Ronzoni Pasta B1G1
coupon for Ronzoni smart taste pasta 8/24 SS

V-8 Splash juice B1G1
coupon 8/17 SS

Be sure to check with Sarah at Fiddledeedee for more information on this week's Publix Deals.

Monday, September 15, 2008

My Favorite Things



My favorite thing for this week is this Revlon Color Stay eye shadow. I bought this a while back at CVS when Revlon was B1G1 free and I used two $2 coupons on each eye shadow. I ended up getting two of these for nearly free. It makes a nice base for the entire eyelid, and I add other color on top of it or wear it alone for a natural look. Simple, but I love it!

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Homemade Salsa



Here is the recipe for the homemade salsa that I promised in my Menu Plan Monday Post. This is so simple to make and very frugal--especially if you use those near free Muir Glen Organic Tomatoes that many of us got for $0.18 at Walmart (after coupons)!

Homemade Salsa


1 large can of crushed tomatoes (28 oz.) or two 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes -use immersion blender
1/2 red onion (I substitute with white or yellow-whatever is on hand)
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp cilantro (or more if you like)
1 Tbsp lime juice
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped (more if you like)
1/4-1/2 tsp cumin
1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix and let set 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Many times we will also make fresh tortilla chips by cutting corn tortillas in quartered triangles and frying in a pan with some vegetable oil.

Yum!

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Menu Plan Monday- September 15


I had a great shopping trip at Kroger this week and I have menus planned for the next two weeks. Here is what will be cooking this week.

Breakfasts
Cereal, milk, fruit
Toaster Strudel
Bagels, cream cheese, juice

Lunches
Soup and Sandwiches
Chips & homemade salsa (recipe)
Chex Mix
pickles
fruit

Dinners

Monday- Chicken Tacos, cantaloupe

Tuesday- Spaghetti, meat sauce, rolls, grapes

Wednesday- Hot Dogs, beans, tater tots

Thursday- Pork Chops, Parmesan rice, veggie

Friday- leftovers

Saturday- Chicken Quesadillas

Sunday- Chicken Stew, Rice, veggie



Be sure to visit I'm an Organizing Junkie for more Menu Planning Monday ideas!

Kroger Score


I went to Kroger Saturday evening to take advantage of the Back to School Rewards promotion. I got some really good deals. Here a list of everything I got:

12 Campbell Soups
2 Select Harvest Soups
1 Totino's Pizza Rolls
1 Tropicana Orange Juice
1 Kroger Pie Crusts
2 Betty Crocker Fruit By the Foot
2 Old El Paso Taco Dinners
7 boxes Nature Valley Granola Bars
7 boxes Fiber One Bars
4 boxes Multigrain Cheerios
8 packages Hillshire Farms lunch meat
4 Sara Lee Smooth and Soft Loaves of Bread
1 package of hot dog buns
1 package flour tortillas
2 gallons of 1% milk
1 bottle of Soy Sauce
2 Cantaloupes
1.82 lb white grapes
1.76 lb bananas
1 package of grape tomatoes
1 tub light cream cheese
1 Sour Cream
5 Pillsbury cresent rolls
7 Toaster Strudel
1 Kroger vegetable oil
1 lb bulk Italian sausage
7 Chex Mix bags
4 boxes frozen Green Giant vegetables
1 Sunday paper

I had to do this in two transactions because I had 60 items for the promotion, and you have a limit of 3 Back to School Rewards per transactions. The promotion was to buy 15 participating items and get $3 off your order.

I received a total of $12 off for the promotion. I also had a $7 off coupon from Kroger for a $70 transaction.

I had coupons for everything except milk, sour cream, cream cheese, pie crusts, produce, oil, OJ, soy sauce, baked tortilla chips, flour tortillas, sausage, Sunday paper, and hot dog buns.

My total before store savings and coupons was $222.87. After coupons & savings my OOP was $78.88. I have now spent a total of $257.50 for the month of September. That leaves me only $22.50 left in my cash envelope. I will use that for produce and milk for the next two weeks. With my full pantry and freezer, I should be fine for the rest of the month. If I can just lay off the deals........


To see how other did for the week, visit Super Savings Saturday at Money Saving Mom!

Friday, September 12, 2008

CVS Trip


Here is my CVS trip for the week. I had three transactions on two cards.

1st transaction
1 Loreal Skin Genesis $5.99
1 Right Guard Xtreme $2.99
1 Revlon nail polish $3.99
1 Chex Mix $1.00
1 Trident Gum $1.00

Minus
$1 Loreal Q
$1 Right Q
$2 Revlon CRT
$1 Chex mix Q
$0.75 Trident Q
$2/$10 CVS coupon
$5 ECB

Total OOP $2.56 (too high)

Recieved $2, $3, and $5.99 ECB

2nd Transaction
1 Revlon nail polish $3.99
1 Trident Gum $1.00
1 Loreal Skin Genesis $5.99

Minus
$ 1 Loreal Q
$0.75 Trident Q
$2 Revlon CRT
$2/$10 CVS coupon
$5 ECB

Total OOP $0.33

Received $3, $5.99 ECB

3rd transaction

1 Garden gloves (75% off) $0.49
1 Right Guard Professional $6.99
1 Right Guard Xtreme $2.99
1 chex mix $1.00

Minus
$1 Right Guard Q
$1 Right Guard Q
$1 Chex Mix Q
$2/$10 CVS coupon
$5.99 ECB

Total OOP $0.68

Received $2, $5 ECB

For more Xtreme savings visit Super Savings Saturday at Money Saving Mom!

There are more great ideas at CVS Super Stars over at The Centsible Sawyer.

Geraldo Rivera on Hurricaine Ike

You gotta love Geraldo Rivera. Click below to see him covering Hurricaine Ike. He is standing on a sea wall and gets knocked over by a wave.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FziScjyf4Ic

At least he can laugh at himself!


Thursday, September 11, 2008

Loving the Moment







Recently, my family took a trip to the North Georgia Mountains. It was just
for the day. We took my 82 year old mother as a Mother's Day gift. It was a couple of hours drive to visit Amicolola Falls. The scenery was beautiful and we had a relaxing picnic lunch.




It made me realize that the moments spent together are much more meaningful than any materialist gift we can give to each other.



Take time to find the beauty in the world around you!

Check out Nora's blog and see how others are Loving the Moment.

Free Duncan Hines Carrot Cake


Check out the Cherry Picker blog and see how to get Duncan Hines Decadent Carrot Cake for free!

Go here for the post!

Never forget...

Our nation will never be the same.

To all the heroes of 9-11-2001 and beyond, thank you for your service and sacrifice.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

What are you reading?



I thought I would share what I am reading right now. I saw a preview a few months ago of a movie coming out on September 26: Nights in Rodanthe. It seemed like the perfect "chick flick" or date movie, and I was looking forward to the movie opening. At the time, I didn't realize that it was a Nicholas Sparks book.

When Tropical Storm Hanna went up the coast last week, The Weather Channel was showing coverage of the storm on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The reporter was on location outside the house used in the movie, and he talked about the Nicholas Sparks book. My interest was rekindled and I bought the book this weekend.

I wondered, "what are other people reading?" Are you reading a good book right now? Post about it on your blog and leave a link below. If you don't have a blog, just tell me what you are reading in comments.

Please remember to include a link in your post back to A Stitch of Faith.


Tuesday, September 9, 2008

New Blog


Check out Sheila's blog Frugal Georgia Mom and her newest blog The Faithful Follower. On her new blog she has a weekly post, Count Your Blessings, that I plan on posting in next week.

Contour Monitor


Check out Mommy Making Money to see the current deal on Contour Monitors and an upcoming deal on this monitor at CVS.

Wal-mart Coupon Policy

Here is the link to the official Wal-mart Coupon Policy. I recently had to e-mail the corporate office about two different cashiers not wanting to accept internet coupons. I got a call from my local store manager who apologized and stated that this was a "training issue". I now carry a copy of this policy with me to Wal-mart. I would suggest if you have problems, just ask the cashier to page a manager and have your coupon policy ready and visible.

http://walmartstores.com/7655.aspx

I hope to research other stores and have those links in the future.

Monday, September 8, 2008

What's in your mailbox?

Here is what I have received in my mailbox in the last week.




Visit Nicole at A Call to Higher Places and let her know what's in your mailbox.

My Favorite Things



This week my favorite thing is my set of Rachel Ray Furi Santoku knives. I had been coveting these knives while watching chefs on The Food Network. This set was at Tuesday Morning recently for $49.99. Quite a splurge, but I really wanted them. They really do make food preparation so much easier and more enjoyable.



LOVE
them! So worth the price.

Be sure to visit Fiddledeedee and see more My Favorite Things!

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Frugal Star Trek Uniforms


Next Sunday my husband is directing a skit at our church. It is using Star Trek as a metaphor. We are studying Proverbs and the subject next week is initiative. We needed uniforms for three cast members. It is almost impossible to find long sleeve shirts this time of year in Georgia, and when we did, they weren't the right color and cost a fortune. So, I remembered that Walgreens carries t-shirts for $2 each. I thought that I could by an extra one for each shirt needed and fashion long sleeves. When we checked our Walgreens, they had just the right shade of blue (for McCoy and Spock) and gold/yellow (Kirk). I used my serger to make the long sleeves, and with a little heat-n-bond, I attached the gold lame bands and Star Trek chest emblem. Not too bad! One shirt done and two more to go.

I got 6 T-shirts for $2 each and my Walgreens had $3/10 coupons for their grand opening, so I got all six for $9.54. Add $1.50 for the gold lame from JoAnn Fabrics (at 40% off), and I will have 3 uniform shirts for about $12.

Menu Plan Monday-September 8


Well, we didn't exactly follow the plan last week, but we did okay. This week we will be very busy getting ready for a skit at church. I will be working on some quick costuming while my husband finishes writing the script. Oh yeah, I guess we have to figure out set decoration, too! Anyway, we need some quick meals and crock pot meals....

Monday
Cowboy Hash and Eggs (didn't make last week)
Salsa
Toast

Tuesday
Sandwiches
Pretzels
Fruit

Wednesday
Crockpot BBQ pork
Buns
Oven roasted potatoes
fruit

Thursday
Crockpot Chicken Wings
Rice
Beans

Friday
Homemade Pizza

Saturday
Leftovers or Sandwiches

For more ideas be sure to visit I'm an Organized Junkie!

Saturday, September 6, 2008

CVS Superstars!

Here are two transactions today at my CVS. I was excited to find the 75% off coolers. My son and hubby needed new lunch boxes.


1st transaction

Personal cooler $1.75 (clearance 75% off!)
Pringles $0.88 ea
CG outlast lipgloss $9.99 ea (BOGO free)

Minus
$2/$10 CVS coupon
$0.30 Pringles coupon (8/31 P&G)
$ BOGO free CG lip coupon (8/31 P&G)
$2.00 ECB

Final OOP $0.71


2nd Transaction

Larger personal cooler $3.25 (clearance 75% off)
2 Dawn Hand Renewal $0.99 ea
Febreeze Noticeables $6.99

Minus
$2/10 CVS coupon
2 $1 Dawn Hand Renewal coupons (8/31 P&G)
$5 Febreeze Noticeable coupon (8/31 P&G)
$2 ECB

Final OOP $1.80

Not too bad!

Take a look at more CVS Superstars at The Centisible Sawyer.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Sewing Day

Sewing Day!

I have been so busy lately with work and deal seeking, that I haven't allowed myself any time for my sewing hobby. I had the day off of work today. My sweet husband helped with household chores last night so that I could have the whole day to spend in my sewing room. I was able to spend a leisurely day alone while the family was at work/school. Here are some pictures of my sewing room and the project I worked on today.


First here is a picture of my little room. I am grateful to have a space where I can leave everything set-up and close the door.

Here is my wonderful Janome 6500P and my beautiful Quilter's Dream sewing table and cabinet. This table was well worth the investment.


Here is the closet in my sewing room.....

Where I have just a little bit of fabric.....

I still need to get busy with some organizing...

Here is one of many projects that I need to finish...

Some day it will be this....


But, the organizing and bigger projects needed to wait some more. Today, I wanted a project I could finish in a few hours. I recently read about this magazine on one of my favorite blogs Anyone Can Quilt

And this is the project I chose for today...

It went pretty fast and this is what I ended up with...Pretty cute!