25 grocery challenge

Here's what I got...
(1) Huggies diapers ($13.00)
(1) Huggies tub of wipes (FREE)
(1) Febreze Air Effects (1.50)
(2) Mayfield ice cream tubs (2.99/each)
(4) cans Campbell's Great for Cooking soups (.80/each)
(2) Softsoap handsoaps (.29/each)
(2) bags Goldfish crackers (.50/each)
(1) carton eggs ($1.30)
(4) tubs Sabra hummus (.99/each)
(2) Mennen deoderants (.16/each)
(1) Covergirl eye shadow (.49)

Total before sales and coupons: $86.02
Total after sales and coupons: $33.85

As you may have noticed, my $25 a week challenge has been quite a challenge this month. The beach trip, Finley's birthday party, being out of town and poor planning on my part have all been contributors. I have decided to spend only $25/week in the month of April (no matter what)and try to do a stockpile challenge for the month of May. That means I will only buy produce, milk, eggs and bread during the month of May. I know I can do it if I shop wisely in April. It's a great way to force yourself to try new recipes and use those ingredients in your pantry that have been sitting there unused for who knows how long. Wish me luck!

This week we're having...
Baked ziti (I didn't end up making this last week. I think I was going to make it the night I did Zumba and came home so sick and exhausted from the exercise that I told Joey he was on his own. He probably ate cereal)
BBQ grilled chicken, mashed potatoes and corn
Honey chicken stir fry and rice (new recipe!)
Beef stroganoff and broccoli
Leftovers

Happy Couponing!!!

Prayers for Baby Jemma

Please take a minute to say a prayer for the Douglas family. Jason (Daddy), Kim (Mommy, AOII sorority sister, and fellow blogger), Abby (big sis #1), Lyla (big sis #2) and Baby Jemma (strongest 2 week old that ever lived) need your prayers now. Baby Jemma has had complications since her birth two weeks ago. Kim and Jason were told things would get worse before they got better and things are currently "worse". Please pray for a fast and full recovery for Baby Jemma and only good news and progress from here on out. Remember Kim and Jason too. They are dealing with all of this at the hospital while they have 2 little girls at home. SO many people are praying for you guys and thinking about you daily, me included. The Dambros are sending love, thoughts and prayers your way and we can't wait to celebrate the news of Jemma's homecoming :)

To read about Jemma's progress and the hilarious happenings in the Douglas family (seriously, Kim's blog is awesome and always makes me laugh out loud) go to http://mommakimtastic.blogspot.com/

Kindle Book Review: Firefly Lane

My cousin's wife Staci told me about Firefly Lane. It was so good!!!! Truly my favorite kind of book. Not too deep, not too tragic, but it made me laugh out loud and cry. It's the perfect beach read. I'm getting lazy with these book reviews so here is a description from Amazon.

In the turbulent summer of 1974, Kate Mularkey has accepted her place at the bottom of the eighth-grade social food chain. Then, to her amazement, the "coolest girl in the world" moves in across the street and wants to be her friend. Tully Hart seems to have it all — beauty, brains, ambition. On the surface they are as opposite as two people can be: Kate, doomed to be forever uncool, with a loving family who mortifies her at every turn. Tully, steeped in glamour and mystery, but with a secret that is destroying her. They make a pact to be best friends forever; by summer's end they've become TullyandKate. Inseparable.

So begins Kristin Hannah's magnificent new novel. Spanning more than three decades and playing out across the ever-changing face of the Pacific Northwest, Firefly Lane is the poignant, powerful story of two women and the friendship that becomes the bulkhead of their lives.

From the beginning, Tully is desperate to prove her worth to the world. Abandoned by her mother at an early age, she longs to be loved unconditionally. In the glittering, big-hair era of the eighties, she looks to men to fill the void in her soul. But in the buttoned-down nineties, it is television news that captivates her. She will follow her own blind ambition to New York and around the globe, finding fame and success...and loneliness.

Kate knows early on that her life will be nothing special. Throughout college, she pretends to be driven by a need for success, but all she really wants is to fall in love and have children and live an ordinary life. In her own quiet way, Kate is as driven as Tully. What she doesn't know is how being a wife and mother will change her...how she'll lose sight of who she once was, and what she once wanted. And how much she'll envy her famous best friend....

For thirty years, Tully and Kate buoy each other through life, weathering the storms of friendship — jealousy, anger, hurt, resentment. They think they've survived it all until a single act of betrayal tears them apart...and puts their courage and friendship to the ultimate test.

Firefly Lane is for anyone who ever drank Boone's Farm apple wine while listening to Abba or Fleetwood Mac. More than a coming-of-age novel, it's the story of a generation of women who were both blessed and cursed by choices. It's about promises and secrets and betrayals. And ultimately, about the one person who really, truly knows you — and knows what has the power to hurt you...and heal you. Firefly Lane is a story you'll never forget...one you'll want to pass on to your best friend.

Stuff My Daughter Says

(23 months)

"Where'd it go?"
"Ouch, he stung me!" (from the bumble bee song)
"Yo Ho...Let's go" (from Jake and the Neverland Pirates)
"You scared me!" (when I jump out of one of the rooms along our hallway when she runs past...trust me, she LOVES it)
"No touch"
"I miss you Mama/Dada" (this one is our favorite)
"Dada's at work"
"Mama, where are you?"
"Meeska, Mouska, Mickey Mouse!"
"Clean it up"

Lately, all she wants to do is sing songs. Her favorites are Itsy, Bitsy Spider, ABCs, I Caught Myself a Baby Bumblebee, 3 Little Ducks, this phonics song I found on Youtube and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. She can say a lot of the words and she loves to do the hand motions. She won't do it on command, so I'm going to try to secretly tape her singing the words.

You want to know what stuff my daughter does???? Well, today she knocked the fish tank over after I told her repeatedly "No touch!". The counter and sink were covered in fish water. Bleck! Needless to say she got a long time-out for that one. I was literally 2 feet away and I had just turned my back after telling her not to touch Nino when I hear the sound of water sloshing and gravel spilling down into the disposal. She stayed in time-out until I cleaned everything up and I made her come out and apologize to Nino. I could tell she was embarrassed and thought it was ridiculous to apologize to a fish, but he had suffered serious trauma and I felt it was only fair.

25 Grocery Challenge

No picture today...too many frozen things. There were a lot of good deals this week.

Here's what I got...
(1.67) lbs. bananas
(1) package strawberries
(1) head of lettuce
(1) tomato
(3) Pepperidge Farms 3 layer cakes ($1.55/each)
(3) packages Perdue chicken breasts
(1) Visine drops
(1) Visine soothing wipes (FREE)
(2) boxes Weight Watchers ice cream bars
(1) package Weight Watchers ice cream cups
(2) Pillsbury crescent rolls
(1) Philadelphia cooking cream
(1) package Oreos
(1) French's Worcestershire sauce (FREE)
(1) box Publix Frosted Flakes (.50)
(2) boxes Ritz crackers (FREE)

Total before sales and coupons: $86.08
Total after sales and coupons: $38.93

As usual, meat and produce killed me ;) I spent $19.02 on a little over 4 lbs. of chicken, 1 tomato, 1 head of lettuce, 1 package of strawberries and 4 bananas. Geez! I hope chicken breasts go on sale again soon! Last time I bought chicken it was $1.99/lb. Unfortunately I ran out before it went on sale again...a couponer's worst nightmare ;)

This week we're having...
Breakfast for supper
Angel chicken pasta
BLTs and chips
Baked Ziti and garlic bread

We're eating at a friend's house tonight so no cooking for me :) Yay!

Happy Couponing!!!

You're going to a foam party?

(The girls went to a foam party one night at Club La Vela. One of the girls said she would only get knee deep in foam because of STDs.)

Every year from now on I'm going to try to find a group of kids to chaperone on Spring Break. It is a great opportunity to get a free beach trip! The girls were so good. We had absolutely no trouble out of them. I was so relieved! I won't bore you with every little detail of our trip, but there were definitely some highlights. Carrie and I took the kids to Seaside one afternoon. We shopped, ate BBQ for dinner and then laid a blanket on the grass and listened to a band while Finley and Connor played. We had lunch at Pier Park in PCB and did some more shopping. We took long walks and went swimming. We took the kids to the beach one day. The water was too cold for us, but we had fun letting the kids experience the sand. Finley strolled her baby doll up and down the sidewalk in front of our house and we flagged down the ice cream man for a Powderpuff Girl with bubblegum eyes. The weather was perfect so we spent the majority of our time outside, which made Finley happy. We sat on the balcony and blew bubbles and we even took the kids to a nice restaurant. The restaurant idea was kind of a disaster, but lesson learned. It was a great week, but I am so glad to be home! Here are some pics from the trip...

Catherine's 21st!

Goodness, I guess my sister will start drinking since she's now legally allowed to do so ;) Ha! Now that she's 21 she's legally allowed to do everything she's done since she was 16 :) We went to The Olive Branch in Birmingham to celebrate with friends and family. She got to celebrate her actual birthday while on Spring Break. I can't think of a more dangerous combination.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CACK CACK!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!