Friday, October 29, 2010
Adoption update
In case you didn't get a chance to check out adoption blog. We have a few fun things going on. Feel free to check it out here.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Losing my will to shop
So, this month has been insane for us. I really can't believe it is almost over! It has been amazing stuff going on. I had a birthday. We did our Spaghetti dinner fundraiser. We have been working on lots for adoption. We had the youth fall retreat. I've been babysitting Mondays, Tuesday School on Tuesdays along with House church, Wednesdays have Awana, Thursday I get to meet with a couple of awesome girls from our student ministry, and every weekend is booked out through December.
I feel like every one we know lately is in this mode. The go, go, go mode. I think sleep has gone down on the priority list, working out hasn't happened. My DVR is almost full since I never watch it any more. My house is messy, my yard needs work, there are projects to do. Homeschooling has even been struggling (thankfully we are in preschool and a lot of our learning can be accomplished in two days of focused school).
In the midst of all this my grocery shopping has taken a back seat. I have seen some amazing deals coming through that I have passed on simply because I haven't had a chance to get to the store. Praise the Lord for my stockpile. I haven't had to do much out side of dairy and produce shopping this month. Somehow, I have been way under budget the past two months for groceries. I think I have enough of a stock to get me through the next month and then I will have to start kicking it back in gear. Until then I apologize for my lack of posts and enthusiasm. It will be back some day when life slows down....
I feel like every one we know lately is in this mode. The go, go, go mode. I think sleep has gone down on the priority list, working out hasn't happened. My DVR is almost full since I never watch it any more. My house is messy, my yard needs work, there are projects to do. Homeschooling has even been struggling (thankfully we are in preschool and a lot of our learning can be accomplished in two days of focused school).
In the midst of all this my grocery shopping has taken a back seat. I have seen some amazing deals coming through that I have passed on simply because I haven't had a chance to get to the store. Praise the Lord for my stockpile. I haven't had to do much out side of dairy and produce shopping this month. Somehow, I have been way under budget the past two months for groceries. I think I have enough of a stock to get me through the next month and then I will have to start kicking it back in gear. Until then I apologize for my lack of posts and enthusiasm. It will be back some day when life slows down....
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Trench Coat for only $20 (or less) shipped
Target's deal of the day is this spiffy trench coat for only $20 shipped! But it gets better. Go to Moneysavingmom.com and see the details to get it for only $18 shipped. This was originally $49 plus, it is really cute.
The Arrows- In The Words of Satan- Kinetic Typography (Finished)
This weekend we went to the Fall Youth Retreat with our church. The topic was spiritual warfare. In one of the sessions they showed this video. I love how real this is. It is a song about the lies Satan tells. If you have a few minutes to check it out it is worth it. Enjoy.
Menu Plan Monday
Monday- Baked Chicken, Mashed potatoes, and green beans
Tuesday- House Church, tater tots
Wednesday- Island chicken and stir fry
Thursday- Ethiopian restaraunt
Friday- Personal pizzas
Saturday- Chili
Sunday- Youth Group, pizza
Monday, October 18, 2010
Menu Plan Monday
Tuesday- House church Angel chicken
Wednesday- Island chicken and stirfry with rice
Thursday- Baked chicken, green beans, and potatoes
Friday- Mini pizzas
Saturday- Fall youth retreat
Sunday- Chili
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Because I'm sure you were curious..
For my birthday this year I was given mostly money. So, what do you ask did I do with all that cash? I thought you might ask. So here is my birthday loot.
As a kid my friend's grandma had one of these bad boys and I always wanted one. So, I figured there is never a better time than the present. So I got an apple peeler, slicer, corer!
I am excited about this one! My current blade started chipping and this should help make cookies even easier. I do love making cookies.
There you have it. What I ordered for my super exciting birthday. I know, I know it takes all kinds, but this stuff really is fun for me.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Tips and Tricks to my Fave stores
I will be starting a series on some of my favorite and most shopped stores. Some of the tips and tricks I use when shopping there and how to score some great deals. Keep your eyes peeled for some exciting stuff coming up.
Free Cottonelle wipes
Yet another full size freebie. This one is for you and a friend. Sign up here and they will send you a coupon for a free package. I know this is legit since I got mine in the mail yesterday. :)
Free Advil
Here is yet another freebie. Go here to sign up for a free bottle of Advil. I know we can always use more headache medicine. The noise level at our house is crazy with 3 boys. Enjoy!
Free slime
Chronicle books is offering free slime. If you are interested go here and check it out. I have a few little men in my life who will be thrilled with some slime. I'm thinking possible stocking stuffer. :)
hey dum dum, give me gum gum
Extra is giving away free packs of gum in honor of national dessert day. Get yours here while they last!
Revamping our financial goals
Dan and I have always wanted to be good stewards with our finances. Sometimes we do better than others. Sometimes we just plain fail. If you know me well you know I love to plan. I love to plan and plan and change my plan. I have several friends who laugh every time I mention a plan for a baby or a house because these are two items we can't seem to plan for. We are almost perpetually pregnant (or paper pregnant.) Yet our house we planned on moving into for only a few years and maybe having one child is staying constant. We have tried to sell and that is obviously not God's plan for us at this point. We have the goal of trying to pay cash for all large purchases and staying out of debt. However, we haven't always done our best with that. At the moment we are debt free aside from our mortgage, but that is all through God's grace and nothing we did.
So, we decided to take a financial freedom class at a church in our neighborhood. We have read some books by Dave Ramsey and we like his philosophy. However, we are outside of his babysteps a bit. You see he has a seven baby step program. But, saving to pay cash for an adoption isn't on there. :) So, we have to go off the path a little to make that happen.
Dan and I took a good look at our budget last week. We realized we are spending far too much if we need to be saving. So, we are going back to our cash plan. We have been using the credit card for all our purchases and paying it off each month. The great part about that is that we get cash back which has been great. We have not been living outside of our means, but we are not saving what we want. So, we are hoping by moving back to cash for our spending we will be saving a little more each month. The only exception to this rule will be gas. We have a gas card and we get 5% back on gas. I don't want to pull my kids out of the car every time I get gas just to give them cash so we will continue to use the credit card for that.
So, with all that said here are a few of our goals for the next year
-PAY CASH FOR OUR ADOPTION- by far this is the biggest goal. We can't do this on our own at all, but God is faithful and we are believing he will provide. We have had a few fundraisers and they have been amazing so far. We know God is in control of this one.
-START SAVING FOR OUR NEW HOME- This was something we had been planning on for this year, but with the adoption this got put on hold. We are hoping to have 15-20% saved before we buy our next house. This may not seem like a lot, but for us this is a lofty goal.
-CLEAN OUT THE GARAGE- How is this a financial goal, you ask. Well, if you have seen our garage you know it is a clutter nightmare. We have cleaned it many times only to fill it back up. I am hoping to sell/donate a lot of what is out there. I'm hoping this will help us reach goal number one.
FUTURE PLANNING- One of the things we know we need to get going on is saving more for retirement, get more going for the kids college funds, get a will taken care of, and make sure we have all our insurances and that big person stuff in order.
So, there they are. They may not seem like much, but for us we think they are attainable, but lofty goals. I will keep you updated as we make progress.
So, we decided to take a financial freedom class at a church in our neighborhood. We have read some books by Dave Ramsey and we like his philosophy. However, we are outside of his babysteps a bit. You see he has a seven baby step program. But, saving to pay cash for an adoption isn't on there. :) So, we have to go off the path a little to make that happen.
Dan and I took a good look at our budget last week. We realized we are spending far too much if we need to be saving. So, we are going back to our cash plan. We have been using the credit card for all our purchases and paying it off each month. The great part about that is that we get cash back which has been great. We have not been living outside of our means, but we are not saving what we want. So, we are hoping by moving back to cash for our spending we will be saving a little more each month. The only exception to this rule will be gas. We have a gas card and we get 5% back on gas. I don't want to pull my kids out of the car every time I get gas just to give them cash so we will continue to use the credit card for that.
So, with all that said here are a few of our goals for the next year
-PAY CASH FOR OUR ADOPTION- by far this is the biggest goal. We can't do this on our own at all, but God is faithful and we are believing he will provide. We have had a few fundraisers and they have been amazing so far. We know God is in control of this one.
-START SAVING FOR OUR NEW HOME- This was something we had been planning on for this year, but with the adoption this got put on hold. We are hoping to have 15-20% saved before we buy our next house. This may not seem like a lot, but for us this is a lofty goal.
-CLEAN OUT THE GARAGE- How is this a financial goal, you ask. Well, if you have seen our garage you know it is a clutter nightmare. We have cleaned it many times only to fill it back up. I am hoping to sell/donate a lot of what is out there. I'm hoping this will help us reach goal number one.
FUTURE PLANNING- One of the things we know we need to get going on is saving more for retirement, get more going for the kids college funds, get a will taken care of, and make sure we have all our insurances and that big person stuff in order.
So, there they are. They may not seem like much, but for us we think they are attainable, but lofty goals. I will keep you updated as we make progress.
Free paper dolls
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Adoption blog
If you are curious how our spaghetti dinner went you can check it out on our adoption blog!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
$4.99 Leapster games!
Right now Leapfrog.com is having a sale on their leapster games. Many are marked down to just $9.99 from $24.95. But it gets better. Use the code febleap5 and it will mark each game down to $4.99 each! (up to 5 games). I bought a few for Christmas gifts. Both my big boys have leapsters and love them. I was really excited that Cars was included in this because I know Asher will be really excited about that under the tree this year. Also, backyardagains was included which is great because ours has gone missing and it is a favorite around here.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
birthday wish list
Just in case any one is interested. My birthday is coming up. So, I thought I would help you all out a little and give you a peek at my birthday wish list. I know you have been just dying to know what I am hoping for. :) So here it is, folks, Abby's birthday list for 2010.
This is my favorite planner. It keeps all my stuff together and I need some paper brains.
I love my stand mixer. I got it for my B day a few years ago, but I would love one of these dealies to go with it. It is supposed to scrape stuff off the side as it mixes. OOOO AHH.
I really want to read this. I think it will be a great read especially with our adoption going on right now. I have heard great reviews.
With all the scary stuff about plastic storage containers I would like to get some glass ones. Plus, I feel like they would hold up better.
We recently bought a new camera. We love it. But before we go to Ethiopia. I want a zoom lens.
Speaking of Ethiopia I need luggage. We bought one set when we went on our honeymoon and it is pretty well done for. I love the color of this. Pink would be a first choice, but this is fun.
Since we are staying in our house, and baby girl will be here soon. One of my other items to wish for is this wardrobe. We have realized that we are just flat out of closet space. Levi have no closet and with a little girl coming we will need some where to hang all those dresses. So, mommy will move into a wardrobe, Daddy will move into the closet in our room and Levi and little girl will share a closet in their room. Sounds like a plan, huh?
Less tangible wishes would be:
To bring home our baby girl!
To lose a few pounds while eating lots of cheesecake.
A bigger house with a smaller mortgage.
While we are at it how about world peace.
Dan has informed me that my wish list is boring, but it is my wish list so I get to pick what goes on it. If I had free reign of Target I'm sure I could come up with some fun new clothes, hats, scarves, jewelry, or other fun stuff. However, I tend to be more boring and practical. So, there you have it. All my wishes for my birthday. Fun times.
Another vocalpoint freebie!
Vocal point has another freebie up for grabs. This time it is a free box of Barilla pasta. If you are a member make sure you log in to account to get the goods. If you aren't a member yet what are you waiting for? There are lots of freebies to be had so sign up!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Fall fun
One of my favorite times of year is fall. I love the weather change before it gets bitter cold. I love the leaves, the colors, the pumpkins, the candy, the free burritos on Halloween, and of course as you all know this kicks into high gear my love affair with hot chocolate (with whipped cream and sprinkles soooogood). One of the things I love to do is take the kids outside and take pictures of them in their fall duds and with the changing seasons and all. So, this weekend we went out and got a few shots. There was little cooperation from my little men so we will go back out and try again, but we did get a few good shots here are a few I liked.
Me and my boys
Bridge
Asher
Levi loved Daddy's hat
Cheese
So much handsome
couldn't get them all to look at once
Me and my honey
Could he be any cuter?
That is my pink hair. I like it.
Peekaboo
Ok, maybe it was more than a few, but I just love these little ones and I have to show them off.
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