Projects

Here's a little sampling of the things I have been crazily working on in the past week - remember how busy I said I've been? I wasn't lying!....(sorry about the photo quality - they were mostly with my phone)

I made this today. It's a knot blanket for a friend's birthday coming up this week. I think it's my favorite blanket I've ever made (and I've made about 30 of them!).

These are the t-shirts that I made for my three-year-olds (7 of them). They have their names, the name of the school & 2010 on the backs! I also made 8 tote bags (exactly like the t-shirts) for my 4 year olds. I can proudly say I came up with this little saying on my own :)

I did three Father's Day projects with both classes this week, one of which was this card that looks like a shirt & tie. Another was a tin can covered w/ scrapbooking paper, which says "My Dad 'can' do it all!" (I know it's early for Father's Day, but we only have two weeks of preschool left!) - and the last one was a card w/ their footprint on the front w/ a poem, and a survey (answered by the kids) about their dad's favorite things on the inside!

These are the 2 different photo albums for my classes, too. The solid colored ones are for the 3s. I just wrote their names & then embellished with stickers. The patterned ones are for the 4s. I bought the albums at Wal-mart, but didn't like the covers, so I added scrapbook paper to make them a little prettier!

Help?

I'm a finalist! Go here and vote for the name that I created (Take a Walk on the Wild Side) to help me win some free bling! Thank you so much!!!

PS - I haven't fallen off the face of the Earth...graduation time at preschool is pretty much like our 2nd Christmas of the year - so much to do, so little time!! I'll be back VERY SOON! Give me another week, ok????

Idol Chat: Top 6

Sorry I've been sparse with the idol updates. I don't have a ton to say about the show this week - I love country music, but most ppl opted out of the country vibe. This week tends to make it or break it for so many of the contestants, so that's probably why.

1. Lee - You're Still the One - best song choice of the night, IMO. He's a true star.
2. Casey - Don't - I was glad to see a departure from his normal style. I thought this was his best performance
3. Crystal - No One Needs to Know - this is my favorite Shania song ever and I was really disappointed. She took so much of the spunk out of this song. It was too slow
4. Mike - It Only Hurts When I'm Breathing - I'm not a fan of Mike's "sappy love song" rut, but Shania was in tears, so I guess it was good
5. Aaron - It's In the Way You Love Me - I thought he sounded good but looked sick or on the verge of tears.
6. Siobhan - Any Man of Mine - Am I the only one who thinks that the judges all must've been ON something. I thought she murdered that song - what a horrible song choice! Of all the contestants to NOT do a country vibe, I would have picked her, yet they gave her accolades! I just didn't get it AT ALL

I think it's a toss-up between Siobhan and Aaron, but my bets are on Aaron to go

We have a winner!

Using Random.org to generate a number, the winner of my giveaway has been selected! Entry #17 was Missy! I'll be contacting you via email! Congratulations!

Result: 17 Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Scrubbing Bubbles

I'm a member of a really awesome consumer group called BzzAgent.com (see the link in my right side-bar if you'd like to join)! They send you a product, ask you to test it out & then rely on your word-of-mouth opinions to make a "buzz" about the product.

The most recent product they sent me came about 2 weeks ago. I'll say that I've been a bad girl & hadn't done anything with it until today, but things have been quite busy around here, so I hope they'll forgive me!

I took it out of the box and was really impressed with how easy it was to set up! There aren't a ton of complicated parts (the unit, the refill & the hanger) & there's really no assembly to do (the 3 parts just need to be snapped together! You just hook it up to the shower-head and you're good to go! I will say that I was a bit disappointed that the starter kit didn't come complete with the 4 AA batteries that are required to run the unit, but I understand that this is the same kit that consumers buy in the store, therefore they would also not receive batteries....and that beggars can't be choosy!

I plan to update in another week with another review of how well the unit cleans my shower. I am especially interested in this, with my hard water issues! In the mean time, if you would like to try one out for yourself, I have coupons for $3 off & I would be glad to send them to my readers! Just leave a comment with your email address & I'll be in touch! This coupon would be a great deal, especially when stacked with a retailer coupon (Target, Rite-Aid, etc)!

Another Great Day at Rite Aid

This week is a fabulous week for Rite-Aid savings!! Sorry it's a bad pic but here's what I got at Rite-Aid this week, followed by the breakdown!

Purex 3-in-1 laundry sheets (2 pkg): reg $8.99 ea, on sale for BOGO, (2) $2/1 coupons from the Sunday paper plus a $2/1 Rite-Aid video values coupon: $1.50 each
GE Reveal Light bulbs (two 4-packs): reg $5.29 ea, on sale for $3 ea, $4 SCR on 2, (2) $1/1 coupons from the Sunday paper: FREE
TGIF Potato Skins: reg $2.19, on sale for $.99, $1.50 printable coupon: FREE (plus $.51 overage)
Kotex Ultra Thin Liners: reg $4.49, on sale for $3.49, SCR for $3.49, $1 coupon: FREE (plus $1 overage)
Old Spice Body Wash (2 bottles): reg $4.79 ea, on sale for $3.50, $1 SCR/2, BOGO coupon from Sunday paper: $1.25 ea
Rite-Aid brand antacid: reg $3.99, on sale for $3.59

I also used a $5/$25 purchase that came with my new Rite-Aid Wellness Rewards card

In total (after single-check rebates are returned), I bought $48.81 worth of merchandise for $3.11!!!!!

Don't forget to check out my giveaway here!

A Giveaway: Swarovski Pearl Bling ring

I'm so excited to be hosting my first-ever giveaway on my blog!

A few weeks ago, I won a ring from ChunkyBling.com. You may remember the post where I blogged about them; they're an online designer/seller of awesome chunky jewelry designs. When I got the ring in the mail, I couldn't have been happier! You see, originally, I was supposed to get a Swarovski crystal ring, but the designer emailed me and said that they were out of the particular bead needed to make the type of ring that I had won... She asked if I would like to choose a ring from their Swarovski pearl ring line instead. I was super excited since I immediately fell in love with this ring & thought it would be the perfect accessory for a dress that I'm wearing to a friend's wedding in May.

Now I have a second ring, exactly like my own, to give away to one of my lucky readers! There are several ways to enter & you may submit as many entries as you like, but the first is required! Please submit a separate comment for each entry method used.

Ways to enter:
1) Go to the Chunky Bling website & enter their Name that Bling weekly contest. After doing so, come back here & submit the jewelry name that you entered in the contest. (REQUIRED)
2) Become a fan of Chunky Bling on Facebook
3) Blog about this giveaway & then comment here with a link to your blog entry
4) Tell me how you found out about this giveaway (Do you know me? Did you find me through a giveaway site?)
5) Share a personal connection you have (self, friend, family member) with infertility
6) Become a follower of my blog (or let me know if you already are one!)

Chunky Bling has also set up a coupon code exclusively for readers of my blog! Enter TERI805 at checkout to receive 15% off your order through May 2nd.

One winner will be chosen via Random.org at noon on April 25th (EST). Good Luck!

Rite Aid Deals & updates

Things have been crazy around here. Preschool is very busy & becoming slowly more stressful as the end of the year/graduation approaches. We just found out yesterday that we're getting these my-boss-has-gone-off-the-deep-end evaluations at some point before the end of the year. Seriously. These evals are like 5 pages long & rate you on about 50 things on a scale of 1-5 where she says "3 is good, expect lots of 3s" - um no - a 3 is NOT good - a 3 would be like her child bringing home a C and I know that is not acceptable. Especially when the next category up says that a 4 is "above average" - so that shows you right there that 3 is just average. I'm not worried about it though. I certainly don't care what she thinks when I've gotten glowing recommendations from principals and fellow teachers over the years. It just makes me mad that she thinks she can come in and pick apart our teaching techniques when A) no one is required to be a certified teacher at our preschool & therefore they don't have the benefit of years of college preparation in planning and implementation and B) she herself was about as lazy as they came when she was a teacher at our facility. UGH!

I released my evaluation stress with a bit of retail therapy after work today. I went to Rite-Aid to take advantage of a few sales/coupons & also to spend my $20 gift certificate that was to expire at the end of the month.

Brita Filter: $21.99 - $2 Video Values coupon = $19.99
Ziploc Slider Bags: originally $2.99 each, on sale for $1.99 each, coupon for BOGO: $1 each
Puffs Plus: originally $1.99, on sale for $.99, coupon for $1 = $.01 money maker
Complete Contact Solution: originally $9.99, on sale for $7.99, single-check rebate $7.99: FREE
Schick Hydro Razor: originally $9.99, on sale for $8.99, coupon for $2 off, single-check rebate $6: $.99

I used a $5/$20 Video Values coupon plus my $20 gift certificate & ended up spending $12.67 out of pocket on $49.95 worth of merchandise. I will be getting $13.99 back in single-check rebates, making this trip a $1.32 money maker!

I plan to go back tomorrow to take advantage of the $6 off zyrtec coupon I found online plus the $2 off zyrtec coupon I printed off the Rite Aid Video Values site.

Giveaway coming soon!

Keep your eyes peeled for a giveaway next week & an update, too - I'm so sorry, but I haven't really had anything blog-worthy just yet...

Idol Chat: Top 9

Much to my surprise, I wasn't too enthralled by yesterday's show. I am a HUGE Beatles fan, so I was excited for it, but only a couple of performances really "did it" for me this week! I did love seeing the little extras to learn more about their personalities. It makes me kind of like them all and not want to choose someone to go home....

1. Lee - Hey Jude - G keeps saying he sounds just like the guy from the Counting Crows. I love the gravelly-ness of his voice. I thought the song was awesome, but agreed that the bagpipe was a bit out of place.
2. Casey - Jealous Guy - I wasn't familiar with his song so it was a little harder for me to get into but I thought he was really great again last night. I like how he held back a bit to highlight the vocals.
3. Crystal - Come Together - good solid performance for her. Very much in her vibe, but nothing super outstanding about the song in general.
4. Mike - Eleanor Rigby - I agreed with the judges that there were certain parts that just didn't do it for me, but the break down at the end was awesome - it almost put me in mind a bit of Gangster's Paradise (which is kinda weird, I guess).
5. Katie - Let it Be - this is such a pure-vocal song that her rendition left me feeling a little flat at the end. I was expecting a little more power behind her voice, etc, but the judges loved it, so what do I know?
6. Siobhan - Across the Universe - I thought it was nice that she held back and didn't scream this week, but I was definitely sleepy by the end.
7. Tim - All My Lovin - Definitely Tim's best performance, IMO. I like that he was playing the guitar...he may have bought himself one more week???
8. Andrew - Can't Buy Me Love - I liked the vibe of the song (especially the funk near the middle) & that it was still enough like the original, yet showed some of his personality. However, I thought that the trumpets along with the acoustic guitar made it sound kind of disjointed.
9. Aaron - Long & Winding Road - very true to his style, but when will he break out? I think he's treading into dangerous territory by setting himself up as the "ballad guy".

Bottom 3 Tonight: Katie, Andrew & Tim/Aaron (though I am going to say Tim for the record, just because he's been to the bottom 3 before and Aaron hasn't)
Going home: Andrew

Idol Chat: Top 10

Sorry I haven't updated about my life in a while - I promise I will very soon!

When G & I were talking about last night's show, I asked him if he knew what the theme was. He said, hopefully not "Boring" LOL! Here they are from the best to the worst (in my opinion, of course!)

1. Lee - Treat Her Like a Lady - Lee was awesome last night & totally rocked the house! Great vibe for him & I LOVED it! What a confidence builder for him
2. Crystal - Midnight Train - neat to see her doing something different & I agree with Simon for her to be true to who she is. I'm glad to see she can be versatile! That's talent!
3. Casey - Hold On, I'm Coming - besides the fact that he looked like he was hopped up on something, I really liked this performance. It seemed a little safe, but I loved seeing him rock out on the guitar & I did like that he had more energy than in weeks past.
4. Mike - Ready for Love - although I'm tired of him doing sappy love songs & really hoped to see him embrace his inner soul, I thought he picked a good song for his voice. He had a great, clean pitch/tone, but it seemed a little bit boring.
5. Katie - Chain of Fools - First of all, what was with her outfit? Her hair and earrings (BIG!) were cute, but her outfit was horrible. I agreed with Simon that it did seem somewhat robotic & put her back into the "old" vibe...she should've done a Christina or Alicia Keys song, IMO. Definitely not as pitchy as past weeks.
6. Andrew - Forever - so much better than weeks past, but I didn't think it was as super-wonderful as the judges said. I think they just liked that he went for the acoustic vibe again since that seems to work for him.
7. Aaron - Aint No Sunshine - perfect vibe for him - I felt like he should've built more throughout the song but overall another solid (albeit predictable) performance for Aaron. I still think he's adorable.
8. Siobhan - Through the Fire - Pitchier than I've ever heard her be. Not the best song choice, IMO & I've had enough with the screaming, really. I was very "bleh" about this performance.
9. Tim - Sweet Love - It seemed like Tim had some mic issues at the beginning of this song. He looked kind of uncomfortable (maybe because of the "connect" advice that Usher gave him - he was almost looking creepily at the camera). Even so, it was one of his better performances.
10. Didi - What Becomes of the Broken Hearted - I thought this was an interesting song choice & came across as very show-tunesy. It was very disjointed throughout & I just didn't get it. And what makes me sad about that is that she has such a neat voice but she chooses terrible songs to showcase that. If she makes it through far enough, I think her saving grace would be when the judges choose the songs for them!

Bottom 3: Tim, Didi, Katie/Andrew (can't decide - if I had to choose, I would say Katie)
Going home: Tim

Idol Chat: Top 11

It seems we're back to the old, torturous idol of past weeks now....I wasn't really a HUGE fan of too many performances last night. In order from best to worst...

1. Crystal - Bobby McGee - I was sitting at my computer last night while watching idol & for a few moments, I forgot that I was even listening to an Idol contestant. She's just so much more consistent than EVERYONE else on the show & while I may not always love her song choice (she's sort of in a rut, IMO), she knows who she is & stays true to that each week. I predict her to win this season.

2. Casey - The Power of Love - I have to say that it's a pretty sad night when we couldn't find anything better than a good rendition of Huey Lewis to come in at #2...I love the rasp of his voice (perfect for that song) & how he's showing more versatility each week.

3. Siobhan - Superstition - Dear Siobhan, just because you can shriek every week doesn't mean you should. That last note did not make my ears happy. Sincerely, Me

4. Lee - The Letter - I liked the bluesy, big-band vibe of the song. I felt like he got into it more than in past weeks but it was a bit safe. I'm still a Lee fan and I would've put him above Siobhan if I hadn't let the judges persuade me by their comments about the two contestants.

5. Didi - You're No Good - I LOVE Didi's voice & I do think that she was better than the judges gave her credit for (just KIND OF pitchy), but I do agree that the slowed tempo of the song made it very dramatic & theatrical almost.

6. Aaron - I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing - great song choice for Aaron again, but he's becoming predictable in that he always chooses the ballads. I'd like to see more personality from him by rocking it out or something. I think he's so adorable :)

7. Mike - When a Man Loves a Woman - I loved the sincerity and power in Mike's voice, however I do feel as though he's plateaued somewhat. I would love to see him really knock it out of the park next week.

8. Katie - Big Girls Don't Cry - I have no idea what the judges were hearing last night but that performance was a hot mess - does anyone agree with me? She was just pitchy and all over the place. I've been expecting so much more from her based on what we'd seen in the past.

9. Andrew - Heard it Through the Grapevine - I thought the performance overall was kind of safe and didn't really have any big elements to show off what he could do. I do think it's good that Miley got him to ditch the guitar because I have a hard time seeing how it would have really fit with the vibe of the song. There was nothing particularly outstanding about his performance & it lacked energy.

10. Tim - Crazy Little Thing Called Love - I agree with the judges that it was kind of corny, but I sort of missed Kara's point about how he's strutting around & sliding around up there like he's an established star & he's not - isn't the point to ENTERTAIN? It was an OK vocal, but not winner material. This song is always the kiss of death (David Radford - cutie crooner several seasons back performed it and got cut that week!) **VFTW candidate still

11. Paige - Against All Odds - not much to say about this one. She totally butchered that song - it was pitchy and all over the place throughout. There really were no positive elements other than she looked really cute.

Bottom 3: Paige, Tim & Andrew.
Going Home: Paige

Idol Chat: Top 12

DH & I agreed that last night was BY FAR the best (finally!) Idol episode so far this season...I wasn't bored to tears, despite the fact that I'm not too well-versed on Stones songs, so I only knew about 5 of them. I didn't completely agree with the judges on some (so you'll notice that my favorite was not their favorite)...I think it's that whole thing where it sounds so much different at home & they'll see that when they watch it back. I just didn't get a couple of the performances like they did! Share your thoughts & comments! DISCUSS! (Remember! These are just my/our opinions!!)

Here they are from my favorite to least favorite!

1. Didi - Play with Fire - what a come-back! I didn't know her song but I loved the intensity & passion in her voice. Defintely her best performance since Hollywood!
2. Crystal - You Can't Always Get What You Want - She's a great performer and she performs like a true star who knows herself and her strengths/limitations. She chose a great song, but I felt it was a bit safe. She's my clear pick to win the comp, but I think she's in danger of all of her songs sounding the same over and over. I think next week she might need to ditch the guitar and really rock it out or do a ballad to surprise everyone.
3. Aaron - Angie - what a doll & from (sort-of) central PA, so I love that, too! I thought the song was a PERFECT choice for him...right before Simon said that he sounded like a Justin Timberlake or something, I told G that he sounded like Jesse McCartney or Nick Carter...
4. Michael - Miss You - loved to see him rock it out and go soulful/bluesy after his serious song last week. The falsetto was pretty good & I love his confidence. I didn't think Simon should be preaching to a brotha' about his corny dancing!! :)
5. Siobhan - Paint it Black - I was excited to hear that she was doing this song because it's my favorite Stones song (like I said, I don't know many) & I thought it was a great match in that the song is pretty dark & she's so mysterious & different. I was kind of disappointed & didn't really get why the judges were going so crazy over it. I know that musically, she changed the intro by switching up the time signature & I didn't like it at all, which I guess they did (this is the only reason I put her ahead of Lee, because her musical talent is evident). I wanted to see her really rock out & I didn't think that she really did.
6. Lee - Beast of Burden - I loved the John Mayer/Dave Matthews vibe that he has. I did feel like he was holding back a bit, but I did love how his version of the song let the lyrics & vocals shine without all the bells & whistles. I think it suits him perfectly!
****I think these 6 could be the top 6!****
7. Katie - Wild Horses - I thought she did better than the past few weeks, as she was finally strong throughout. We loved how she held back at the beginning and really let it build throughout the song. She's got such a pure, trained tone to her voice that we like, but she's inconsistent.
8. Paige - Honky Tonk Woman - good song choice for her (maybe a little corny, surprisingly Simon didn't say that) & amazing that she had laryngitis. She is definitely the diva of the show, but like Katie, she's inconsistent, especially with song choice.
9. Casey - It's All Over Now - G & I had big hopes for Casey but we thought that his song fell flat - his was one of the the ones that we just didn't "get" like the judges did. We loved the bluesy, almost country/southern rock version of the song, but we weren't impressed with his performance & almost felt like he got lost in the song or behind the beat at times throughout. (As Randy would say, I'm still a fan, dawg!)
10. Andrew - Gimme Shelter - I wasn't familiar w/ his song & he really felt like he was holding back. The song needed more intensity, but much better than his past 2 weeks.
11. Lacey - Ruby Tuesday - I'm afraid this might be the end for poor Lacey. She's one of those ones that just hasn't seem to have gotten her stride yet. The song was a good choice for her, but I felt like it almost had an old-timey vibe to it that made it kind of forgettable, especially as early in the show as she performed. It got better through the 2nd chorus & I agreed w/ Ellen about the whole sitting/standing thing!
12. Tim - Under My Thumb - Oh Tim...dear Tim. What can I say? You're cute but you single-handedly turned off every Rolling Stones star with the beach rendition of that song. VFTW or not, I'm afraid his days are numbered.

Menu Plan Monday (Sunday)!

Here we go with another week's menu! We haven't gotten the details all worked out yet, but here's what it's shaping up like so far...





Sunday - Meatloaf,* peas & garlic mashed potatoes
Monday - quick leftovers from Sunday's dinner before set construction crew @ G's school
Tuesday - chicken fajitas
Wednesday - family night w/ G's family?
Thursday - G's doing dinner! Sloppy joes maybe?
Friday - heading up to my parents' house, so we'll have a late meal of lenten fish dinners when we get there! I am so excited!
Saturday - extended family spaghetti dinner! I'm making Paula Deen's Toffee Gooey Butter Cake for dessert! Yum!

*Mom's Tried & True Meatloaf Recipe

2lb. ground beef
1 packet Lipton Onion Soup Mix
2tsp salt
1 cup bread crumbs/cracker crumbs/oatmeal combination
2 eggs
1/2 c milk
big squirt of ketchup (1T) plus some for the topping
1 small onion, chopped

1. Heat oven to 350
2. Mix all ingredients & shape into a loaf, smear ketchup over the top
3. Bake 1.5 hr on a wire drip pan, inside a baking dish
4. Remove from oven & let stand 5-10 minutes before cutting
YUM!

Idol Chat: Top 16

Before I start posting about the lowdown of this week's Idol shows, I have to throw a question at you...for those of you hanging in there with me, does it bother you that I haven't blogged about IF? For those of you who are IF, would you like to see more posts or does it provide some strange comfort that I'm IF and NOT blogging about it, exclusively? Please give me your feedback...I know this is an IF blog, after all, but I also know that there's life outside of & apart from infertility & I want to know where you stand! Thanks!

Now for the idol recap...next week, I'll start up w/ the more in depth coverage of the individual performances, but for now, I'll just do my overall rankings!

The girls were once again very boring in my opinion...:
Crystal (the line there shows how head & shoulders Crystal is over the other girls...in my opinion, while they are all very talented, the other girls just pale in comparison to her (and I never thought I'd say that!)
********
Lily
Siobhan
Didi
Lacey
Katelyn
Katie*
Paige* (VFTW candidate)

I think Crystal, Lily & Siobhan are the only 3 truly safe ones tonight!

The guys (from the best listed first):
Big Mike
Tim (never thought I'd see him up here!)(VFTW candidate)
Todrick
Alex
Casey
Lee
Andrew*
Aaron*

I think that it was a very mixed up & backwards night for the guys...some of the better ones in my opinion are down at the bottom (Casey, Lee, Andrew) while some of the weaker ones really excelled (Alex, Todrick, Tim - although Alex still does look like a deer in headlights). I don't think Alex or Todrick are completely safe tonight either, though, simply based on prior performances.

Menu Plan Monday!

I'm so excited to be back to menu planning - I don't know why, but it always seems that when my life is busier, I menu plan less...which is ridiculous since it makes my life SO much easier during the week. If I get a full-time job next year, the one thing I must be better at is meal-planning so that I can continue to make fresh meals each night (meaning cooked, not from a box/package).

Here's what this week looks like:
Sunday - Multi-grain angel hair w/ homemade meatballs, steamed snow peas
Monday - Creamy White Bean Chicken Chili (omitting the green chili peppers this first time)
Tuesday - Skillet Chili Macaroni
Wednesday - Pretzel Crusted Chicken for MIL's birthday
Thursday - leftovers?
Friday - on my own since DH will be in NYC chaperoning a trip to see Wicked (**jealous**)

More savings and a recipe!

Ok, I can take it...raise your hand if you're sick of hearing (reading?) me blog about my Rite-Aid savings and nothing else...anyone?? No? Ok, great, then I'll continue to tell you about them. I do promise to throw in a few posts about other goings-on in the upcoming weeks, though, ok? And I plan to be better about MPMs (menu-plan Mondays), too!

Today, I made a quick pit-stop at Rite-Aid to take advantage of a couple of great sales they were having. When all was said and done, I walked out of the store with $32 worth of merchandise for $8.20 - that's a 75% savings!!! I'll insert a pic later when G comes home and lets me use his camera phone or camera (the camera part of my phone went kerplooey!)
As always seems to happen, I go in to Rite-Aid, coupons in hand, in hopes of getting just a few specific things, which my store just never seems to carry (certain sizes of certain brands...Scott Extra Soft TP in the larger multi-pack sizes, for example). Today was no exception, but I made the best of it anyway. Here's the breakdown of what I got....

• Charmin Basic 12-pack - reg. $8.49 - $1 coupon = $7.49
• 2 - 20 pack Kotex liners - reg $1.49 each - on sale for $.99 each - $2/2 coupon = $.02 overage!
• Excedrin 24ct. - reg. $4.99 - free product coupon = free!
• Finish Quantum Dishwasher Tabs - reg $6.49 - clearance 50% off - $1 VideoValues coupon = $2.24
• 2 - Kashi Heart to Heart cereals - reg $4.99 each - on sale BOGO - $1.50 printable coupon = $1.74 each!
• I also had a $5/$20 Video Values coupon!

And I'll leave you with our dinner plans for tonight...even though G & I are now Methodist & therefore no longer need to abstain from meat on Fridays during Lent, we were both raised with meat-free Fridays, so we continue the tradition in our home as much as possible. G is ecstatic because tonight for dinner we're having Pioneer Woman's French Onion Soup! It takes a while to make (mostly in the oven) but the results are well worth it - this soup is amazing!

Bloggin 'bout bling!

If you know me, you know that I love to shop, but I don't love to spend a lot of money...that's why I love the convenience of internet shopping. There are always thousands of options (and discounts!) right at your fingertips! A while ago, I stumbled upon ChunkyBling.com & I think it is just awesome! The pieces are both trendy & affordable! You can find everything there from chunky jewelry to interchangeable beaded watches and interchangeable charm necklaces. You can even host an online jewelry party to share with your family and friends! You definitely need to check out this site! Look them up on facebook for more info, as well!

Was going to do MPM

Hey everyone! I was going to do an MPM this week when I realized that it would only look like this:

Sunday - stromboli leftovers from Thursday
Monday - Chinese leftovers from Sunday's lunch
Tuesday - family night w/ G's family ?
Wednesday - lasagna leftovers from Saturday
Thursday - Roast Chicken
Friday - Broccoli & Cheese rice

--and that's pretty boring, right?

I had heard from another online couponing buddy that Wal-mart (ack! My least favorite place to shop!) would be discounting their V-day decor/gifts to 75% off on Saturday. My mom and I headed over to try and find some good end-of-year gifts for our kids at great prices! We ended up finding 4-packs of heart-shaped sunglasses (you have no idea how much 4-5 yr-olds love those things!) and 6-packs of stampers, both for $.50 a package. That came out to about $.12 per pair of glasses and less than $.09 per stamper. This really helps me to stretch my gift giving dollars for my kids since it does come out of my own pocket! I usually end up spending $2 per child (I have 15 students), so the fact that I've just used about $.21 per child so far gives me some wiggle room!

Using coupons, I also got a 1lb package of lunch meat for $1 (using $2 off Land-o-Frost printable), Cetaphil daily face wash for $.87 (click on the "my Cetaphil" in the bottom left corner to take their survey, then you'll get a $5 printable in your email), a cute Schick razor for $.98 - a $4 value, 2 Reach dental floss for $.03 overage each & a free travel size Downy Wrinkle Release. We also paid full price for a couple small things. In total, we got 22 items for $17! That's well under $1 per item, including meat and cheese on that bill! Not bad at all!!

Almost there!

I can very excitedly say that cheerleading season is almost over and I couldn't be more anxious for it to end! We've had so much drama with the girls (I know, I know, it's par for the course when you throw 25 middle school girls together) that I'm just ready for a break! I haven't decided yet if I'll do it next year or not. A large part will depend on whether or not I get a regular teaching position...as much as I would love to work with the group of 7th graders we have this year, I still feel like the cons outweigh the pros...I'm just SO exhausted!

Today was a pretty good shopping day at Weis and Rite Aid, so I thought I'd document my savings for you! I didn't need much from Weis but when I saw some of the great sales that paired with my coupons, I couldn't pass them up! I stuck pretty closely to my $50/week budget, only going over by $4.03.

Some of my best deals were:

• 2 free bottles of International Delights coffee creamers (free product coupons, originally $1.50 each)
• Wheatables Crackers, originally $3.69, on sale for 2/$4, plus I had 2 coupons for $1.50/1 box, so I got each box for only $.50!
• Chicken breasts were on sale for $1.69/lb.
• Lipton Onion soup mix (originally $1.39/box) was on sale for $1.25/box, plus I had a coupon that doubled to $1/2 boxes, making mine $.75/box
• Free 1/2 gal of chocolate milk w/ purchase of 2 gallons of white milk
• Finally, the small size bottle of Tabasco sauce (originally $1.39) was on sale for $1 & I had a coupon for $1/1, making it free!

In all, I spent $54.03 on $87.75 worth of groceries, with a 38% total savings ($33.72)...which isn't great, but after looking at my bill, most of what I got was produce

At Rite Aid, I wanted to take advantage of a couple rebates and free-product coupons. I spent $8.91 OOP for $32.72 worth of merchandise. 2 of the products qualify for Single-Check Rebates, totaling $9.99, making this trip a $1.08 money-maker! Here is the breakdown:

RiceWorks rice chips reg. $3.29, on sale for $2.50, $1 off coupon: $1.50
Stacy's Pita Chips reg. $3.29, on sale for $2.50, free product coupon: free!
Always Infinity 18 ct reg. $5.29, free product coupon: free!
Advil Liquid Gels 40ct reg. $6.99, on sale for $4.49, $2/1 mfg coupon, $1 SCR: $1.49 after discounts
AMO Complete contact lens solution reg. $9.99, on sale for $7.99, SCR for $7.99, $2 mfg coupon: $2 money maker!
3 packs of gum @ $1.29 each (used for filler to fulfill my $5/$25 coupon)

Between the two trips, I scored $120.47 worth of merchandise for $52.95, a 56% savings...not my best trip, but definitely not bad at all!!!

As for the infertility world...I'm waiting on AF to possibly get started on our FET cycle...you probably won't hear much from me on that, though!