Walgreens :)

Well I did it!

I went bargain shopping at Walgreens today...I've been looking at their ads and figuring out things to buy & I was set. The kids and I headed off and wouldn't you know they were OUT of what I really wanted--Colgate Toothpaste simply because it was such a GREAT deal...so we hoped back in the car and took off to the other Walgreens across town and they were fully stocked! :)

I have been reading Money Saving Mom and she is all about saving with coupons! It's hard work and a little (lot) overwhelming at first. I definitely don't know all there is to know about it, but she swears that once you get good at it you should never have to pay for beauty products...I'm talking soap, shampoo, razors, shaving cream, toothpaste, deodorant, toilet paper, etc. She feeds a family of 5 on only $40 a week for crying out loud--that still remains a mystery to me, but using double coupons and coupon stacking, which by the way I had no idea you could do, at Kroger is working and lowering that grocery bill.

She suggests starting small & that's what I did only two items this week...here's my BIG finds today:

5.8 oz Colgate Toothpaste was $3.49 with $3.50 in register rewards & I had a $1 coupon

Schick Quattro Refill was on sale for $8.99 with $3.00 in register rewards & I had a $4 coupon

Basically paying full price would have cost me $12.48 plus tax...with my coupons I saved $5 taking the total down to $7.48 & I got $6.50 in register rewards (which is money I can spend for up to two weeks at Walgreens)...SO my grand total today was .98! :)

HOLY COW--it's kind of fun and addicting...so be frugal and use those coupons people!

Sleepover!!

Just last week BOTH of my kiddos were in heaven--they each had a sleepover on Thursday night. Jones had his new best buddy Wesley to our house & Laynie had her best buddy from VB over to Momos for the evening. After a night of boys, I have determined that boy sleepovers are MUCH easier on Mommy than little girls! No fancy bubble baths to run or toes to paint...no all night giggling sessions either! Jones & Wesley played and played--Power Rangers, play doh, dinosaurs, cars, etc. They went outside and rode scooters, played with the dog, had popsicles, shot baskets...did I mention ride scooters? After a good bath and movie they were pooped out and feel asleep within minutes...ahhhh! Easy on Mommy! :)Now I heard through the grapevine everything the girls did and let's just say Momo had to do ALOT more work than I did, but the great thing about Momo and Grandad is that they loved every minute of it. I heard they ate pizza, went to the mall, bought finger nail polish, swam in the pool, painted nails, had a bubble bath, went out to eat, baked a cake, frosted the cake (however the girls wanted), had a tea party, watched a movie, giggled for hours, and FINALLY went to sleep...whew, it makes me tired just looking at the list! :) Thanks for letting the girls stay Momo & Grandad! It was definitely one of the highlights of summer for Laynie.

Cousins Week

If you are wondering what in the world has gotten in to me & why I have posted at least two new items over the last couple of days, it's because I'm by myself once again this summer & have some time on my hands! :)

It's cousin week at Momo's which can mean only one thing--our kids are extremely excited...they do VBS before lunch, usually have lunch with Memaw, swim after lunch, have plenty of popsicles and get to watch movies too (I don't even want to know what time they go to sleep at night)...quite a fun week wouldn't you say?

Have fun guys!

Summer Friends

To me, one of the best things about summer is getting to visit with friends!

I'm so lucky to have had two of my best friends for as long as I can remember! When living in VB, I finally got another chance to be close to one of them again, Leigh Ann. I honestly don't remember a day in my life without her. Forever growing up it was Leigh Ann and Beth Ann this, Leigh Ann and Beth Ann that...we would instinctively answer a question someone at church would ask us even if they called us the wrong name...after all we both had curly dark hair, our dads were the coaches and we even dressed alike on occasions...so there was a 50% chance they knew who they were talking to! :) Well luckily our kids had a couple of years to play together so they will always be friends as well! :) Maybe because their Moms force them to be, but maybe not~especially in the boys case--Jones & Bryant are buds!Now shortly after living in VB I became friends with AMY, & it just so happened that our kids were best buddies too! Laynie has really missed her friend Beckah and Jones still blames things on Avery even though we never see him anymore...poor guy! :)Thanks Momo for letting us host our friends at your house for some swimming fun! :)

Now if I could just make contact with forever friend #2, my summer would be set! You know who you are and where you live...when will we see each other again my friend? :)

Cookout

On Saturday we had a cookout complete with wonderful food, fishing, family, & fun! All my aunts, uncles, & cousins with the exception of Leah and my brother Robert were able to meet at our Aunt's house in NLR. I just LOVE it when we all get together! :) We had our children with us ranging from Kindergarten to College! The kids had a blast just hanging out and playing--can't you tell from the picture above? I will admit that growing up we had to take many, many cousin pictures thanks to Aunt Becky, but I don't remember us getting to make a silly picture...that's the only way group shots work at my house with the promise of a silly picture to be the last one! This was by far the best silly photo I've captured yet!

The highlight of Laynie's trip was catching not 1 but 2 fish off of the dock! :) I just happened to have walked down when the big catch occurred...Trey was with the kids the majority of the time (just to make sure they didn't accidently 'hook' someone)! I'm not sure who put the worm on Laynie's hook, either Trey or my dad...and I saw Luke take the fish off the hook for her...so she had a good time catching the fish without doing any of the yucky stuff! :) I will say the fish were not biting at all, but Laynie stuck with it until she got one...patience may be a virtue of hers!Jones however began the day fishing but once he decided he probably wasn't going to catch anything, he moved on to bigger and better things like the paddleboat! Thanks Nick & Barrett for taking Jones for a spin!Unfortunately I didn't get a group shot of my cousins, but I did get one of Brandi & Kurt with us who were actually the reason for the big cookout...we don't get to see them nearly as often as we would like, but when we are all together as I said earlier...it's really one of my most favorite things! Thanks Aunt Wanda & Uncle Gary for hosting us all!

World Cup Day

As you know Jones went to CCS Soccer Camp last week...he had a great time and learned to do quite a few little soccer drills! Friday was World Cup/Water Day meaning if you had a Soccer Jersey you were encouraged to wear it and the last few minutes of camp there would be a water gun fight! :) Well lucky for us, Jones' Daddy used to travel to Mexico quite a bit for work and on one of his many trips he picked up an official Mexican Soccer uniform complete with ball and all...the team jersey is from Guadalajara. Needless to say, Jones looked super duper cute dressed in his soccer dudes, but the highlight of the day was DEFINITELY the water gun fight because once it began the sprinklers on the field magically started spraying the kids as well! :)Now being the sentimental Mom that I am, I HAD to look back through my photos and find a picture of Laynie wearing this particular Soccer jersey as well...she was a soccer player for her 3rd Halloween in October of 2005! How cute is this little stinker??? You can't really tell it here, but she has about 5 braids in her hair for a cool soccer hairdo as well...I can't believe she was so little and has grown up so fast on me!A big THANKS to Daddy for buying us a soccer uniform so many years ago...both kids were able to look the part very easily!

Where to Shop?

The budget has been tightened...so where should I grocery shop for the MOST savings? For many, many years I would have said Wal-Mart, but after a few recent discussions I've heard shopping Kroger's ad & using coupons there is the way to go. Did you know Kroger even has a website that let's you add coupons right to your Kroger card? I really like that feature & they will e-mail you a copy of their weekly store ad--love it! :) However, I'm a little skeptical of saving there, but we'll see. I also heard you can combine digital & paper coupons for more savings...maybe I just need to follow my friend around when she shops at Kroger to see the proper way to save money there!

Any comments on where to save the MOST would be appreciated, not that I expect too many comments since no one seems to leave them anymore...oh wait, maybe that means nobody reads this blog...nah, that couldn't be right, could it? I know you guys are dying to hear what I have to say, right? Or maybe that's just my parents... :-)

FYI if you're in my area check out these Kids Eat Free Specials:
Monday & Wednesday--Stromboli's
Tuesday--Shorty Small's from 5-9
Tuesday--Slim Chickens
Thursday--Moe's after 4

I imagine there are even more out there so I will research that & add to my list! I heard Zaxby's & Firehouse does 'kids eat free too.' I'll check those for sure! :)

Soccer, Baby!

CCS Soccer Camp is where Jones & I are hanging out the rest of the week--maybe I will actually learn a thing or two--World Cup 2020 here we come! OK maybe we're not quite ready for that! :) Jones' Daddy was the Soccer Dad yesterday and braved the overcast day...I was Soccer Mom today in the HOT, blazing sun! Jones is having a good time, asking his coach too many questions at times (shocker), but at the end of the day as long as he kicks the ball in the net at least once--it's all good!

Free digital slideshow made with Smilebox

June--(Part Two)

Week Three: VBS--As it does every summer, Vacation Bible School sent us into a crazy, but fun week. We ended this week with a visit from Uncle Robert & Aunt Danielle & celebrated Father's Day Weekend with a family cookout. This year things were much, much, much different in the VBS department than ever before...we did a Holy Land theme at our church...at first I was a bit skeptical, but it turned out really well. Every child in attendance and worker got to dress in Biblical attire...it was actually pretty neat. Laynie & Jones both had a great time.Happy Father's Day to a really awesome Dad! :) I'm so blessed to have a husband that enjoys his kids as much as my hubby does!

Of course I didn't take any pictures while my brother was here...how terrible is that? I always take pictures of everything, but failed to get a picture this trip...ahhhhhh it makes me so mad! I will say it would have helped my children to see a picture of Uncle Robert & Aunt Danielle with them other than at Christmas. When I originally told the kids they were coming for a visit, they were a tad bit confused...Jones actually said, "Why are they coming Mom? It's not Christmas, yet." We love to visit with them, we just wish we could see them more often, guess it's our turn to make it down to Tucson, huh?

Week Four: Laynie attended Science Camp and had a great time...Jones and I hung out during the day & worked on some math skills/writing (not his favorite thing to do), but we also played tons of cars & on the Wii as well. We took a couple of programs in at our local library--The Balloonman & the Spoonman--both were very fun!We ended the week by seeing TOY STORY 3 in #3D! Toy Story is a favorite of ours around here, and we all loved the movie! :)