Whole Wheat Overnight Pancakes

I'll admit I have never made pancakes from scratch BUT when I ran across this recipe I just had to try it. The whole "yeast" thing has got me intrigued. I am picturing extra fluffy pancakes. I'll let you know what we think.


On a side note: I would love to think one day I would be the type of Mom who gets up extra early to prepare a hearty breakfast for her family. I'm sure Alex, Mary and Jeff Stone never got cold cereal served to them by Donna Reed. Oh, I have so far to go!


Whole Wheat Overnight Pancakes


Nutrition Information
Serving Size: 1/8th of recipe (I have no idea how much this makes but I'm sure 8 is a minimum)
Meal Plan: ~180 Calories, 2 starches

I am going to serve this with Low Sugar Syrup.

Fish with Blackbean and Avacado Relish

I know this recipe looks pretty similar to the fish taco recipe BUT this one called for avocado! I love me some avocado and it is on sale this week at Kroger ($1). The recipe calls for catfish but I went ahead and used the tilapia I already had. Remember talipia and catfish are very low in the heart healthy Omega 3s soooo if you are going to try this recipe and will need to purchase fish I recommend trying halibut, orange roughy, or even cod.

Go here for the recipe.

Fish with Black Bean and Avocado Relish

Nutrition Information:
Serving Size: 1/6th of recipe
Meal Plan: 273 Calories, 3 lean meats, 3/4 starch, 1/2 vegetable, 1.5 fat

I am going to serve this with corn tortillas and maybe a side salad.

Mealtime Monday

I forgot to look at the clock when I finished up the meals but my best guess would be somewhere around 1 hour 12 minutes and 42 seconds (time included lots of interruptions and distractions). In that time I prepared the following:

2 Fish with Black Bean and Avocado Relish Dishes

3 Poppy Seed Chickens

2 Mexican Pork Roasts

2 Pork Chilis

1 Whole Wheat Pancake Mix

3 Green Beans

2 Cornbreads

I am excited about this week's menu because it really stretches the buck. I love the fact that the Pork Chili is made from the Mexican Pork Roast leftovers. NO starving children in Africa on my account! (Did that make sense to anyone besides me.... anyways...) The whole wheat pancakes, pork roast, and pork chili could have easily been assembled the day of BUT I went ahead and did some prep work simply for the sake of the blog. Here is a description of my prep work as well as my storage plan for this week's meals:

Monday Night: Fish with Black Bean and Avocado Relish. I seasoned the fish and wrapped them in foil and prepared the relish according to recipe but left out the avocado. The fish and relish are stored in the fridge. Tonight I will Grill the fish and add avocado to relish.

Tuesday Night: Whole Wheat Pancakes. The only prep I did for this dish was to mix all dry ingredients into a ziplock bag. Tuesday morning I will mix liquid ingredients and add yeast according to recipe. The pancake batter will then go back into the fridge for at least 8 hours before I fire up the electric griddle for cooking.

Wednesday Night: Mexican Pork Roast. To prep for this dish I simply rubbed all spices onto pork and then wrapped it in foil and stored in fridge. Wednesday morning I will add pinto beans to crockpot along with pork to cook on low all day.

Thursday Night: Pork Chili. I dumped all ingredients except pork and beans (which will come from Wednesday's meal) into a ziplock bag. I stored bag in fridge. This chili can easily be heated on stove top BUT if my crockpot is clean from the night before I will probably cook on low all day with a little extra water.

Friday and Saturday- Out or leftovers

Sunday: Poppy Seed Chicken. I fully prepped this dish up until final baking and stored in freezer. Saturday morning I will transfer from freezer to fridge to begin thawing. I will then bake this dish up Sunday afternoon.

Mealtime Monday- accountability

What's on the menu at your house this week? Tell Mr. Linky. If you have blogged about your mealtime Monday feel free to leave a link.

Kroger Brags!

What a Kroger Run!!! Can I just tell you that this week I spent $100.16 on 86 items and saved... are you ready for this.......... $114.58 Cha Ching!!! The above is the mountain of plastic bags that grew on my floor as I put away groceries last night. For all you Earthy people- I do have reusable bags I just keep forgetting to bring the darn things, but never fear plastic bags are recyclable.

PS Make sure to get to Kroger before midnight tonight to take advantage of the Kraft 2% cheese deal- Kraft cheese is B1G1 Free this week. Buy 4 Kraft 2% Cheese and get a $3 Catalina. Final Price: $5 for 4 bags of 2% Cheese! I love a good cheese deal! ($3 Catalina deal expires 3/29- that's Today!!!!)

Prayer Request

I spoke with Sara this morning and got permission to share Bradon's caringbridge site with all of you. I ask that you please spend some time reading Bradon's story and then commit to putting this family on your daily prayer list. After visiting with Sara and Donny this morning I can not imagine how one family has experienced so much and manages to still have a smile on their face, let alone simply stand to face another day. BUT they will be the first to tell you it is only by the GRACE, STRENGTH, COMFORT, PROTECTION, PEACE, PROVISION, Etc, Etc, Etc. of their God and Father. He is truly their All in All and Great I AM. Thank you for your prayers.

Sonday Sunday- Guest Post

“Be true to yourself”…boy that’s one statement we hear over and over in Hollywood. The question is, can you be true to just yourself and experience the peace and joy you long for…the kind of peace and joy God intends for us to experience?
Growing up I was always told that the acronym for JOY is Jesus, others, yourself. And that if you prioritize this way, you will experience peace and joy through and through. Well, as minute and simple as it sounds, the World has convinced us much the contrary. They are selling us this “lemon” if you will, that it’s all about “me”.
Through the many experiences in my life I have learned that without Jesus joy is absolutely impossible. Through the loss of my sister’s physical movement (quadriplegia), the death of my dear aunt and all 4 grandparents, infertility, my son’s health issues, and recently my mom’s lymphoma diagnosis, I have managed to find peace and joy in the midst of these trials…with Jesus by my side. Yet those times that seem almost perfect (except my walk with the Lord), my peace and joy is non-existent and anxiety seems to overwhelm me. Looking back it’s crazy how I have had just as much anxiety from tasks unaccomplished and worrying about the future as I did walking with God in the midst of true hardships.
My question for you today is…Are you anxious and joyless? If so, you may need to check and see who your being most true to…You? or Our Heavenly Father? No matter where you look to find that Peace and Joy, unless it’s upward you will be searching a very long time. Stay focused on God and you too will have that Peace Like a River, and you can say “It is well!”

Super Saturday Wrap Up

Here is your official "Fill Envelopes" reminder for those that follow the envelope system of budgeting.

Project of the Month- Hmm... I am going to start researching blog designers and hopefully start working on the blog transformation during the Month of April. (in case your wondering... I have NOT hit my personal blog goal yet, but I have decided to go forth with the new blog design regardless! I'm going with the whole "If you build it they will come" thinking on this one.

What about you? I have spent all day rambling about "MY" plan, and didn't even put up a Mr. Linky to give you a chance to share your plan for April- please forgive me! Anyone thinking about joining me for Mealtime Mondays? What about Tidy Tuesdays.... You know you wanna! Go ahead.. tell Mr. Linky your April Aspirations and we'll be sure to hold you accountable!

Sonday Sunday

Sonday Sunday's continue to be one of my FAVORITE days of the week.


I have loved the scripture memorization and how the Lord has spoken His words to me throughout my weeks. He is so faithful! My prayer for April is that I would be more faithful to spend more purposeful, quality time with my Lord. I'm tired of just saying "God is number 1 in my life"- I'm ready to live it! I ask that the Holy Spirit just take over my whole being and guide my every move- lead me right to God and guide me on His path for my life. Yep that's my prayer.


Tomorrow you are in for a real treat! My dear friend Sara was so sweet to write a guest post for our Sonday Sunday. Sara is not only a talented writer but her life is such a testimony of faith and the Awesome power of prayer (you should hear her story)! Sara wrote this devotional about a month ago but I have saved it for this Super Saturday weekend. I ask that as you read her heartfelt devotional you let it be a reminder to be in prayer for her family. They have just spent the last couple of days at Children's Hospital running tests on their precious little boy. For those of you who know this family- you know what a miracle child baby B is and the all too many health battles he has already had to fight in his short life. Please pray for complete peace, comfort, guidance, and healing as they await test results and seek answers for baby B's latest health scare.

Super Saturday Conclusion

Sorry for the break in posting. Coming up the conclusion of SUPER SATURDAY.....

Familytime Friday

I am looking for ideas for Familytime Fridays. I know craft times will focus on all things "Imagination Movers" in an effort to get ready for the big 5 year old birthday party- although I am still trying to convince Colby that a Jump Zone party would be soooo much more fun (and easy).

What I need help with is devotional time and learning time. I would love a suggestion for a great devotional book appropriate for kids 1 - 5 years old. Any ideas?

As far as learning time- I need all the help I can get! I have to tell you last weekend we showed our house to a family that home-schooled their 2 children. When the mother saw all my scrapbook/craft materials she said "You must home school your children?" Without even thinking, I just laughed and said "Are you kidding!" I sometimes forget not everyone I come into contact with knows about my DRS or my Learning Time failures. I certainly did not mean any disrespect with my response so after I realized what I had said I quickly followed it up with "Even though I will not be homeschooling, I sure do have a respect for those that do" ........... Don't think we'll be hearing from them again!

Thrifty Thursday

Of course my Big Goal for April is to get back on budget- REALLY!


I also have a couple of more lessons I hope to get out in our DRS Couponing 101 series.


As always I have loved hearing your stories of your savings, deals, and coupon highs. This month I am going to TRY to do better about posting the Mr. Linky's so you can share your stories with everyone. I also will TRY to put up a special Mr. Linky on Thrifty Thursday that will enable you to link to your own blog if you decide to write about your deals on your own blog.

Wildcard Wednesday

I have nothing to write.... because even I don't know what Wildcard Wednesday will hold in April.

Setting the Record Straight

I feel it is VERY important to address a certain issue. I have had a number of people come up to me or write me telling me "I don't know how you do it all?!" This completely shocks me every time someone says this to me! I hope everyone who reads DRS knows and understands that I DON'T do it ALL! EVER!!! The last thing I want anyone thinking is that I have it all together! Because that is soooooo far from true. The purpose of DRS is for me to make fun of all my insane "plans" to become the perfect wife, mother, friend, cook, maid, or in other words Donna Reed. I feel most women do suffer with some degree of Donna Reed Syndrome in that we put unrealistic expectations on ourselves and this blog is just a compilation of all my "good intention" plans that I have come up with over the years to achieve the impossible. Some have worked for me in the past BUT I have NEVER been able to do ALL the plans at one time.

My great desire for this blog is to always be 100% REAL that means I want to share my few successes and my MANY failures. I love knowing that I can tell you about when my kitchen is a wreck or when I can't find my dining room table and it keeps me humble to have to admit that I stink at "learning time" or that I lost my patience with the boys. Really- My hope is that by looking at my life you feel better about yours! :)

So in summary- I am NOT in any way Donna Reed!

Day Task Reminder

Day Tasks are weekly chores or activities, not included in the zone work, that are assigned to specific days of the week.

Monday: Library Day, Pay Bills and Office Filing

Tuesday: Vacuum or Swiffer floors throughout house

Wednesday: Clean inside Microwave and Mop Kitchen Floors

Thursday: Date Night (in my dreams!), Swish Toilets (swish v. 1. the action of inserting the toilet brush into the toilet bowl and swirling it around thus cleaning the toilet bowl)

Friday: Errand Day, Project Day, Feather Dust House

Saturday: Change Bedsheets, Family Fun Day, Clean out Refrigerator, Grocery Shop (if grocery game posts early enough)

Sunday: Cut up fruit and vegetables for snacks, Iron clothes for coming week, REST

Daily Routine

Here is the New and Improved Daily Routine designed to help me "Get it ALL done." I highlighted the "NEW" part.

Morning Routine- usually 7am - 8am (Please note I am NOT a morning person, therefore I try to keep my morning routine as light as possible):

• Quiet Time
• Breakfast
• Take Vitamins (Got to refill vitamins!)
• Get dressed for day (wear clothes that match and that are NOT inside-out. Sad, that I have to put this in my routine but you should see how I leave the house looking some days- must do better..... Donna would NOT approve neither does DH!)
• Get kids dressed (see above)
• Dishwasher emptied and refilled
• Clothes in dryer
• Crockpot turned on (if applicable)
• Kitchen and Bathroom counters wiped down

Afternoon Routine- usually take 1-2 hours (this is done during rest time for boys or after work on days I work)

• Zone Work (Flylady says to spend no more then 15 minutes on this)
• Day Tasks
• Fold laundry
• Prepare Dinner
• Straighten up all rooms
• Return phone calls and check emails
• If time- BLOG!

Bedtime Routine- this starts after supper

• Clean up supper
• Pack lunches, backpack and diaper bag for next day (only on work days)
• Start Dishwasher
• Boys bathtime
• Start load of laundry (I do one load a day and alternate between permanent press and regular- but NEVER take laundry advice from me- I am horrible!!!)
• Wipe down toilet (this is done everyday because I live with 3 boys), sink, counters and Spray Shower Cleaner
• Bedtime routine with boys
• Here comes the BIG Change..... 8pm - 9pm SIT ON COUCH!!! This is a biggy for me. Usually the second the boys go down I finish up the house work (IF I finish up the housework) and immediately begin my marathon blogging session trying to get ready for the next day's posts. This means NO quality time with DH*! Well if you remember, this was not sitting well with DH, and I completely agree. Therefore, I have planned in QUALITY time into my master plan. Enter Couch Time- my 1 hour, no excuses, sit if it kills me, couch time! So don't bother checking the blog from 8-9 every night because I will be sitting on my couch with my DH talking or just chilling. (Probably talking- I don't do "chilling" to well..)
• Gather up stuff for next day ex: phone, planner, etc.
• Lay out clothes for next day (work days only- I totally wing it on days I am home:)
• Plan for next day
• BLOG
• Reading time

* I know what all you married women are thinking- And don't worry...... DH has not been completely deprived...... that's all I'm saying.

April Tidy Tuesdays Cleaning Schedule

Effective Dates (Tuesday - Monday); Zone; Supplies

March 31 - April 6; Bathroom and Living Room; Windex, All-Purpose or Bathroom cleaner, Toilet Cleaner and Brush, Tilex or other soap scum and mold killer, Mr. Clean Dry Eraser, Swiffer Wet or mop, Dusting Spray, vacuum, paper towels

April 7 - 13, Office and Playroom, Windex, Dusting Spray, Electrical Appliance Cleaner, All-Purpose Cleaner or other Sanitizer, Swiffer Wet and Dry or mop and broom, vacuum, paper towels

April 14- 20; Outside, Garage, Laundry Room; All-Purpose cleaner, broom, mop, leaf blower (optional), windex, coins for the car wash, vacuum, trash bags, containers to sort: donate, garage sale, keep, etc., paper towels

April 21 - 27; Kitchen and Dining Room; Windex, All-Purpose cleaner, Oven Cleaner (I have an older oven with no automatic oven cleaner), Turtle Wax (to shine sink), broom, mop or Wet Swiffer, vacuum, paper towels. Dusting Spray or Furniture Polish (ex. Pledge)

April 28 - May 4; Bedrooms and Closets; Windex, Dusting Spray, vacuum, Wet and Dry Swiffer (we have stained concrete in our bedrooms), paper towels

Tidy Tuesday

Oh how I enjoyed my ONE Week or should I say 5.25 days of a clean house last week. As I write I am very sad to say that once again my house has started it's rapid snowball to complete chaos. How does this happen?!?! I mean I worked so hard all week to keep it clean... and then ONE DAY of slacking up just slightly and back to PIT! Oh Well....... At least I have a plan to get it back in shape...... The Tidy Tuesday Schedule will post soon!

I am also excited to unveil my NEW daily routine that will enable me to "get it ALL done" AND spend time with my hubby! Yes that's right..... I have penciled DH into my schedule!

April Month of Meals

I think were in for a pretty Appetizing April!!!

Week 1

• Fish with Black Bean Avocado Relish with Corn Tortillas
• Whole Wheat Pancakes and Fruit Salad
• Poppyseed Chicken over Rice and Green Beans
• Mexican Pork Roast with Pinto Beans and Side Salad
• Pork Chili and Cornbread

Week 2

• Spicy Seafood Stew
• Black Bean Soup
• Chicken Manicotti with Side Salad
• Apple Cheddar Meatballs with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans
• Chicken Fajitas with Peppers and Onions and Black Beans

Week 3

• Pecan Crusted Fish with Peppers and Squash over Rice
• Vegetarian Chili and Cornbread
• Taco Beef Pot Pie with Side Salad
• Dixie Pork Chops with Wild Rice and Sweet Green Beans
• Omelets

Week 4

• Shanghai Pasta
• Bacon Wrapped Chicken with Grilled Asparagus and Rice
• Crockpot Tamale Pie
• Sausage and Rice Casserole with mixed vegetables
• Traditional Pizza with Side Salad

Week 5

Stockpile Creations

Mealtime Mondays

There's something fun about this month's Mealtime Mondays! (Anyways, I think it'll be fun, but then again, I'm easily entertained.....anyways.....)

Because this month holds 5 weeks I have decided to use the 5th week to have a "Stockpile Creations" Challenge!!! I have NOT planned a menu for the fifth week in April because I want to challenge myself to use ingredients found in my pantry, refrigerator, freezer, etc. to come up with meals for one week. I am pretty pumped about this challenge because it will motivate me to use up some of the items in my pantry and freezer that have been collecting dust or freezer burn. PLUS I think this will be the ticket to getting me back on track with my BUDGET!
Here is what I'm thinking........ I am only going to allow myself to spend $35 that week. The $35 will allow me to still pick up some fresh produce, milk, and maybe even take advantage of a few sale items from that week. Sounds like fun- huh! Oh, I do hope someone out there will join me in this challenge!!

PS I do feel it is only fair to tell you that I will only be in town for half of the challenge week! BUT I promise to attempt this challenge every 5 week month!

The April Month of Meals Menu is scheduled to post in the next half hour!

Super Saturday!!!

Can you believe another month has come and gone! Wow! how time flies when your having fun!... right? Anyways...... It's time for SUPER SATURDAY!!! As I write this introduction to the day, I only have one post ready to go; soooooo to be honest, I have no idea what our day holds. BUT I do know I have a lot of ideas for April it's just a matter of getting those ideas onto this here blog....... we'll see what happens....................

Updates

I keep thinking of things to tell you guys and then forget to post. So here is a hodge podge post to get you all caught up.

• I took the sweet and sour mango chicken wraps to the recipe exchange party and...... they were just ok. I think if I had had them at home I would have really enjoyed them (although still not as much as the cherry chicken wraps) but at the recipe party they were sitting next to some fabulous chicken manicotti and taco beef pot pie not to mention chocolate chip cheesecake and a mounds cake. For some reason chicken wrapped in lettuce just didn't do it for me last night.
• So if your mouth was watering when you read the above bullet you'll be excited to know the chicken manicotti and taco beef pot pie will be a part of our April month of meals!
• Speaking of April Month of meals.... Tomorrow is SUPER SATURDAY!!! Wow! It has really sneaked up on me! Normally by Friday night I have most of the posts ready to go for the big day BUT I didn't even start the posts until 8pm tonight..... It's going to be either a loooong night or a not so "Super" Saturday!
• You know my fantastic Familytime Friday I was supposed to have today? Well it got slightly derailed. Besides praying for patience, not one thing that I had written about doing got done! And yes I know once again I did not post a learning time activity today But by lunch time I could tell it just wasn't going to happen. Now don't get all nervous that I deprived my boys of a familytime kind of day... Oh no!; we just ended up doing different stuff: playing at the fitness center, treating ourselves to Quiznos at lunch with Daddy, visiting with Uncle Randy and Aunt Christian, and attempting to go fishing as a family (I write attempt because it was too cold and the fish just weren't biting).
• 2 Full Rolls and 3 Half Rolls of FREEE Toilet Paper Left! This just hurts my heart!
• I feel like there was more I wanted to tell you but I can't remember what. So I better get back to Super Saturday business... See ya tomorrow!!!

Craft Time

My big Boy is turning the big 5 this April and is wanting a birthday party at home this year. Every other year we have kept his party low key by hosting the event at the park or last year at gymnastics BUT this year he wants the full 9 yards complete with theme food and party decor! I think this has a lot to do with the fact that Cohen's 1 year birthday was in September and we had his party at the house because it was too cold for the park and he wasn't old enough to appreciate a gymnastic or jump zone etc. party. Of course being that it was Cohen's first birthday I tried to make it extra special and did make a few cute theme related decorations and snacks. Soooo ever since September Colby, my mini Me, has been "planning" his Birthday Bash.

We have known for months that the theme would be "Imagination Movers." Lucky for us, playhousedisney.com has a link called "celebration center" that gives you all sorts of ideas on how to throw a disney themed party. Now of course I have a budget for the boys birthdays (each member of our family has a birthday envelope- the money saved throughout the year goes toward both the party and gifts). Sooo to stretch that budget further we are going to make most of the party decor and favors. And THAT is going to be the focus of most of our craft times from now until the Big Event!!!

Today we are going to make "idea emergency" hats for all of the guests. That is. if Colby likes the idea. He is very opinionated and likes to take control of the craft ideas..... Wonder where he gets that from?

Devotional Time

Today during Devotional Time we are going to look at Ephesians 5:1

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.

Because my oldest loves activities with devotional time here is the plan:
We are going to play follow the leader where the followers (Mommy and Cohen) have to do everything the leader (Colby) does. We'll play a couple of rounds so everyone gets to be the leader.

After we play follow the leader for a little while I am going to read our verse and hopefully we will talk about how we are told to "do what God does" and how we can read our Bible to know how to imitate God.

Throughout our day I am going to try to talk about our verse and try to remember to ask the boys what they think God would do or how God would act in different situations. Should be interesting :)

Familytime Friday

TGIF!!!

Although Mondays and Fridays are "Mommy Days" (days I am at home- not at work), it always seems that by Friday I am worn out from the week, my house is a complete wreck from lack of time and/or energy from my work days, and I have tons of errands to run which usually means lack of attention or patience for my precious boys ................. But not today! Today I have all the necessary ingredients to bake up a great Familytime Friday.

Here is the recipe:

• A Clean House (woopie! I can't remember the last time I had a clean house on a Friday!)
• No errands (Well besides the library to return an over-due DVD and the fitness center)
• Prayer. This is by far the most critical ingredient to the success of our day. This morning I prayed that the Lord would help me keep HIM first and my family second and that I would be patient with my boys and to appreciate and treasure each moment I get to share with them today.
• And of course "A Plan".................. stay tuned for Devotional Time, Craft Time and Learning Time!

Coming Soon to a Walgreens Near You

The following coupon match-up will take place in April but I wanted to let you in on it now so you can be sure to print your coupon before the print limit is reached!

Print a B1G1 Coca-Cola product by following these instructions:

1. Register at My Cokes Rewards
2. Enter Code: 100869373819
3. Click on "Submit", then "Done", then click on Walgreens B1G1 coupon, then "Get It" and finally "Continue."
4. You will be allowed 1 coupon

Here is what you will want to do with your coupon

In April Walgreens is going to offer a "Buy 1 20 oz Coke product Get a Free Candy Bar" deal

Use your B1G1 coupon
Final Price: 2 Cokes and 2 Candy Bars for the price of 1 coke
(I dedicate this deal alert to my new couponing friend who is giving up cokes as part of her new budget but who loved the idea of getting some FREE chocolate!)

Thanks to DealSeekingMom for this deal alert!

Annual Budget Countdown

I shopped at 3 places this last week- Walgreens, Target and Kroger. BUT I also got 2 rebate checks back- totaling $8.68!!!! Yea!!! I tell you what- Rebates are FUN!

Not only do I get to add the Rebate total back into my budget I am also crediting the budget another $5 for my ebay profit on the coupons I sold ($6.05 minus postage and any ebay fees). Woo Hoo, I should be back on track with the budget before we know it!

I know you'll sleep better once I do. I do it all for you:)


Week 12 Damages:

Walgreens:
Total Spent: $0.71
Total Saved: $6.60


Target:
Total Spent oop: $12.93
Total Saved: $18.90 PLUS a $5 Target Giftcard


Kroger:
Total Spent: $79.39 on 54 items
Total Saved: $62.33


Week 12 Summary
Total Spent: $93.03
Total Saved: $87.83


YTD:
Total Spent: $1190.67 - rebate and ebay
Total Saved: $1008.06
Total Left: $3795.65 + $13.68 (rebate and ebay) = $3809.33


Now only about $25 over budget for year!!! I'm getting closer...........

Deal Alert- Target

As always go here to see a list of Target Only printable coupons. Remember you can print as many Target Printables as you want!

PS I have not been able to look at our actual Kroger Flyer this week YET to confirm all these deals are true for our region. So make sure to double check prices before purchasing!

This is the last week to take advantage of the Motts Applesauce deal.

Motts Apple Sauce priced at $1.69

Use $1 off 1 target printable AND $0.55 off 1 from here
Final Price: $0.14 after both coupons

Gillete Shampoos, Conditioners, and Body Washes are supposedly on sale for $2
Use $2 off 1 from 3/1 PG
Final Price: FREE

Note: I DID find these last week. They are on a special display near the face wash at the end of the aisle. Note: It is NOT on an endcap- it is in the aisle but it kind of sticks out near the end of an aisle. Can anyone else describe the location better?



Renu Contact Solution- trial size for $0.99
Go to the coupons.com sidebar to print off a $1 off 1 coupon
Final Price: FREE


Pledge Aerosol Furniture Polish or Multi-Surface on sale for $2.50ish
Use $2 off 1 printable AND $1 off 1 Target Printable (use link above)
Final Price: FREE


Buy 2 Shick Intuition or Quattro Razors at $6.99- Get $5 giftcard when you buy 2
Use 2 $4 off 1 from 3/22 SS
Final Price: $0.98 for 2 after both coupons and gift card

Note: Some people are reporting finding $3 peelies on some of the Intuition Razors!


There are other deals available you can check out here and here BUT I think most of the other deals are for Super Targets- can you imagine if we had a SUPER Target!!!

Deal Alert

Go here to print 2 more $1 off 1 coupons for Coffeemate Creamer!

Deal Alert- Kroger

Here is a list of my favorite deals for the week of 3/25 - 3/31


There is quite a big selection of 10 for 10 deals. For those new to Kroger Shopping- You DO NOT have to buy 10 items to get the deal!

Here are a few of my favorite 10 for $10 Deals:

White Seedless Grapes $1 per lb

Del Monte Fruit Naturals for $1
I found a $1 off 2 recent printable
Final Price: $0.50 each

Fuji Apples $1

Slicer Tomatoes $1 per lb.

Avocados $1 each (yummy)

Hunts Pasta Sauce on sale $1 (I recommend the Zesty Spicy!)
Use $1 off 2 from Kroger 3/22 insert
Final Price: $0.50 each

Hunts Snack Pack Puddings
Use $0.50 off 2 from Kroger 3/22 insert
Final Price: $0.50 each

Rotel and Kroger Chips are on sale for $1 each
Use $1 off when you buy 2 Rotel and 1 Chip coupon from 3/22 Kroger insert
Final Price: $2 for 2 cans of Rotel and a bag of chips

Pillsbury Golden Layers and GRANDS Biscuits on sale $1
There are TONS of coupons available for these for example I found a $o.30 off 2 in 3/15 SS and a $0.50 off 3 in another 3/15 SS
Final Price: $0.67 to $0.70 per can depending on coupon

Ronco Pasta on sale $1
Use $0.55 off 2 from 3/15 SS
Final Price: $0.45 each

Kroger Sour Cream on sale $1
(a lot of my recipes call for low fat sour cream)

Kroger Cottage Cheese on sale $1

Kroger Canned Fruit on sale $1

Kroger Frozen Vegetables on sale $1

Other Deals:

Kroger or Kraft shredded or Bar Cheese on sale B1G1 FREE

If Kraft 2% Cheese is part of this deal there is an additional promotion going on: Buy 2, Get $1; Buy 3, Get $2; or Buy 4 and Get $3 off your next Order catalina will print!

Coca-Cola or Sprite products Buy 3 for $12 get 2 FREE boxes of 13.6 - 16 oz boxes of RITZ Crackers.

Read the fine print on this deal below:
With Card LIMIT 3-12 PACKS WITH $10.00 ADDITIONAL PURCHASE EXCLUDING ALCOHOL, TOBACCO, FUEL, LOTTERY & PRESCRIPTIONS. FREE* RITZ Crackers with purchase. Redeem Instantly *Buy three (3) 12-pack 12 oz cans of any Coca-Cola product and get two (2) FREE boxes of (13.66-16 oz) RITZ Crackers. USE YOUR SHOPPER'S CARD TO REDEEM INSTANTLY. PRODUCTS MUST BE PURCHASE IN A SINGLE TRANSACTION. LIMIT 1 REWARD PER TRANSACTION. OFFER GOOD 3/25/09-3/31/09 While supplies last.

Kroger Milk or Orange Juice 1/2 gallon on sale $1.29
PS You can Freeze Milk!

Kroger Canned Vegetables: $0.50

Quaker Breakfast Bars, Bites, Cookies, or Select Cereals on sale for $1.50 each when you buy 4 (4 for $10 and receive $4 off your final price with Kroger Card- hint- make sure you get your $4 credit on your receipt!)

Look for Quaker Coupons in your 3/8 RP, 3/1 RP, 2/8 RP, 1/4 RP to name a few

Final Price: Most of the above coupons will knock your final price to $1 or less

Quaker Simple Harvest or Instant Oatmeal on sale $1.50 each when you buy 2 (must buy 2 to get the deal)
Use $1.35 off 2 from 1/4 SS or $1 off 2 from 2/8 RP or go here for a $1 off 2 coupon
Final Price: $0.83 to $1 each when you buy 2

PS I don't know why my posts get stuck on double spacing sometimes like on my Quaker Cereal/Bar deal! (it won't let me single space!) If you are a blogger and know how to fix this please help!

Thrifty Tip

Guess what I did this week?........ I EBAYed. Guess what I sold on ebay?........ COUPONS!!!!
I had received some Enfamil catalina coupons from Kroger and hated to see them go to waste so I put them on ebay! AND THEY SOLD!!!! I listed the 3 coupons below with an opening bid of $0.99 and free shipping on a 3 day auction and made $6.05!!! Well technically I haven't been paid YET..... but I am sure the winner will step up soon... right?

I am soooo putting my profits back into my grocery budget to help me get closer to being back on track. Woo HOO!

Deal Alert- Walgreens

Another disappointing week at Walgreens- only because I have been spoiled by all the FREE products in the past. I shouldn't complain- Walgreens is still pretty generous on their deals.

Last Week for the March ES Catalog!!! So get your FREE after Rebate items if you haven't already done so!

The following are my favorite deals with thanks to Money Saving Mom

Hunt's Tomato Sauce (8oz) on sale for $0.39 with Walgreens Flyer coupon
Use Buy $10 of select products, Get $5 back (ES Rebate 29, pg 60)
Best Scenario:
If our Hunt's tomato sauces are usually marked $0.99- Buy 11 to equal $10.89
Use Walgreens flyer coupon to get $6.60 off
Total oop $4.29
Final Price: FREE plus overage after coupon and ES Rebate

Campbell's Soups on sale for $0.79 with Walgreens Flyer coupon
Use this printable for $1 off 2
Final Price: $0.29 after both coupons

Pledge Fabric Sweeper on sale 2 for $7
Buy 2 and use 2 of this coupon for $2 off 1
Submit for ES Rebate #23 for $2 back
Final Price: $1 for 2 or $0.50 each after coupons and Rebate

Nature's Source Cleaner on sale 2 for $6
Buy 2 and use 2 $1 off 1 from 3/1
Submit for ES Rebate #23 for $2 back
Final Price: $2 for 2 or $1 each after coupons and Rebate

Schick Quattro Razor on sale for $8.99
Use $4 off 1 coupon from 3/22 SS AND $4 off 1 ES coupon
Final Price: $0.99 after coupons

Register Reward Deals (RR)

Buy 4 select Kellogg's Cereals on sale 4 for $10, Get $2 RR
Use 4 $1 off 1 coupons (raisin bran or mini wheats) from 2/22 RP
Final Price: $1 each after coupons and RR

Buy 1 Gillette Fusion Gamer Razor at $8.99, Get $4 RR
Use $4 for 1 from 2/8 PG
Final Price: $0.99 after coupon and RR

March Easy Saver Deals
Revlon Emery Boards priced around $1.59
Use $1 off 1 from 2/8 SS AND $1 off 1 from ES
Final Price: FREE after both coupons

Colgate Total Toothpaste 4 oz priced between $2.99 - $3.49
Use $1 off 1 from 2/22 SS or $1.50 off from recent mailer AND $2.50 off 1 from ES
Final Price: FREE after both coupons

Sambucol priced around $12.99

Use $4 off 1 here AND $10 off 1 from ES

Final Price: FREE after both coupons (I don't think you get overages except on rebate and RR items)

March FREE after Rebate ES Deals

Advanced Memory Formula 45 count soft gels for $19.99
Final Price: FREE after rebate

Axe Hair Care $5.99
Final Price: FREE after rebate

Wal-Zyr 24 allergy relief 5 count $3.99
Final Price: FREE after rebate

Extra Strength Headache Relief 20 count gel for $2.99
Final Price: FREE after rebate

DRS Couponing 101- Coupon Matching

If your ready to take your couponing from hobby to proffessional sport- this lesson is for you!

But before we get to the actual lesson let me tell you a little story:

I use to be a "casual" couponer. I would flip through the Sunday newspaper inserts and clip coupons of products that were on that week's grocery list. The rest of the insert would be tossed in the recycling bin. Then IF I remembered to take the coupons with me to the store and IF I remembered to hand them to the checker I might look forward to a whopping $3.00 MAX savings on my receipt. Hardly anything to get real excited about; and to be honest, with this amount of savings it was real hard to find the motivation to even take the time to clip coupons.

That all changed late one night in December 2007. It was around 2:30am, I was up nursing Cohen, so decided to flip through the channels. Not much on at 2:30am so I settled for a show called "100 ways to save money" or something like that. After watching several tips I was just about to flip the channel when a lady came on talking about using coupons. She took the cameras to the grocery store and had them film her shopping experience. As she stood at the register and pulled out a stack of coupons, I couldn't help but think "Man, I wouldn't want to be in line behind that lady." But all negativity toward the coupon stack left when I watched her bill total fall on the register screen after she first handed the checker her club card and then again after she handed over her mountain of coupons. I sat there with my mouth hanging open, when I saw that her total went from $140 something (a typical amount I spent weekly at the time) to less then FORTY DOLLARS- I had to learn more! Well it turned out that professional shopper was none other then Teri Gault, the author and inventor of "The Grocery Game."

I remember the first day I signed up for the Grocery Game's $1 trial month- I spent absolutely all Sunday afternoon trying to figure out "the game." It was a new language. Who knew coupon inserts had names! It was that afternoon that I was first introduced to the concept of coupon matching.... and I've never looked back!!!


Coupon Matching v. The practice of matching coupons with sale items to purchase products at rock bottom price.


I learned that the secret to winning the grocery game, was not just in using coupons but in knowing WHEN to use the coupons. The Grocery Game taught me that most grocery stores rotate sale items and that the best time to cash in a coupon was when the product was a part of the store sale. This would enable the deal to go from good, to GREAT, or even better FREEEEE (something I didn't even know was possible!)


The Grocery Game works by providing gamers with a weekly list of ALL sale items for the participating stores. (Supposedly "The List" includes not only advertised sales but also unadvertised deals as well). THE LIST then locates all available coupons that match the sale items and references them by newspaper insert and date, so gamers can quickly locate and clip desired coupons rather then sorting through endless stacks of coupons.

Not only does THE LIST provide all newspaper insert match-ups it also color coordinates the deals to help you know if now is the best time to use your coupon. If the sale item is BLUE then it is at rock bottom price and would be the ideal time to use your coupons to stockpile on the item. GREEN means the item is FREE after coupons! And BLACK means the product is on sale BUT it is NOT at rockbottom price, therefore unless you need the item now- WAIT until it goes blue or green.

At first I was a little leery of THE LIST. Teri strongly encouraged us players to only use our coupons when THE LIST referenced them. I can remember being real nervous about an approaching expiration date on a coupon for one of my favorite high fiber tortillas. Would Teri remember the tortillas? What if the tortillas never made it to color code Blue or Green before the expiration date? WHAT'S A GIRL TO DO? Well, I bought those tortillas with my $0.55 off 1 coupon without the consent of THE LIST- and do you know what happened? Those tortillas went on sale the very next week!!! Lesson learned- Always trust THE LIST.

For those of you who are new to couponing I think The Grocery Game is a great place to start. You can try the game for a month for $1. After your 1 month trial you will be charged $10 every 8 weeks for 1 list or $15 every 8 weeks for 2 lists. (In our area there is a list available for Kroger and Walgreens)

It does kind of stink having to pay for savings but I have always felt it was well worth the investment PLUS if you have friends that sign up and mark you as their referral you can earn FREE months. And believe me, when you get addicted to The Grocery Game you can't help but tell your friends!

If you just can't stand the idea of paying for THE LIST I have also found good coupon match-ups at the following:
hotcouponworld- Great Site! But very overwhelming. In fact one of my 2009 New Year's Resolutions was to figure out this site! Good luck!
couponmom- Much easier to navigate than Hot Coupon World and good list.

15 months later, my couponing extends far beyond the grocery game. I rely on a network of couponing sites that coupon match with not only coupons from the newspaper inserts but also printables available all over the Internet. I also have been known to figure a deal or 2 out on my own! And of course when I learn of a GREAT deal I always pass it on to YOU!

Bottomline: Learn to coupon match to know WHEN to use your coupons.

I hope you have found this marathon post helpful! Please feel free to use the comment section or today's Mr. Linky for any comments or questions.

Thrifty Thursday

Welcome to another Thrifty Thursday!!

It's a fun day here at DRS! Not only do you have all the favorites: Walgreens, Target and Kroger Deals- today I finally have your next DRS Couponing 101 Lesson scheduled to post!!!!

Plus if that wasn't enough..... I also am going to share a thrifty tip on making a little extra grocery money!

If I may quote Joey from "Friends"......... "How YOU doing?"
Tell Mr. Linky all about your deals of the week!

Clean House- Day 4

My house is still CLEEEEEAAAAN! Thanks for letting me share.

PS I know it has been a slow blog day. But just you wait! Tomorrow is Thrifty Thursday and it is always jam packed with posts. See you then!!!!

Deal Alert- Redbox Code

I forgot to give you the Free Monday rental redbox code BUT I do have a FREE Wednesday Code for you: MMM325 Remember this code is good until midnight tonight. And you must return your rental by 9pm on Thursday or you will be charged $1 each additional night.

Deal Alert

The Container Store is one of my most favorite stores in America. It brings a smile to my face just thinking about the endless organizational projects this store could afford me- if only I could afford it! It is EXPENSIVE!!! So you can imagine how excited I was to find out about this coupon which provides 25% off the WHOLE store! Just follow the link to The Container Store online and click on the 25% off button to print your coupon or to get your online code!

Time Management-Tip

Normally when you see "Time Management-Tip" as the header for a post- RUN!!! Never take advice from a lady who tries to pack in 36 hours worth of stuff into her God allotted 24 hour day. BUT this time you should really pay attention....

Here it is.............. Start with a CLEAN HOUSE! Really....that's it!

I have found that it takes a LOT MORE time to clean a dirty house then it does to keep a clean house clean.

Case in point: This weekend I gave the whole house a bath- I had gotten behind on my zones and day tasks for the last couple of weeks AND we got a call from a family who wanted to see our house (there was the real motivation) so it was necessary to attack the full house. It did my DRS heart some GOOD to see my house in perfect order. It was the first time in a loooong time that I would have gladly welcomed Donna Reed herself into my home.
Well, here comes the point to this story, the next day (a Mommy Day) when rest time rolled around for the boys I did not have to spend the full 2 hours cleaning up because the house was still in order from the day before! Therefore I had time to get a lot more things done. I even had time to get ahead on some blog posts that I normally wouldn't get to work on until after the boys went to bed at night!!! This extra blog time during the day enabled me to................ are you ready for this.........GET IN BED BY TEN O'CLOCK!!!! Woo Hoo!!!
This decent bedtime has provided me increased energy for the day, resulting in greater productivity, thus creating MORE TIME!!! And today is ONLY day 3 of a clean house! By Friday I will be looking for things to do to occupy all the FREE Time my clean house has provided!!!

Now for some of you natural neat freaks this is really just a "duh" post but for me it has been a revelation that I felt I must pass on.

Zone 2- Bedrooms and Closets

Zone 2- Bedrooms and Closets

Day 1-Tuesday

• Dust Master Bedroom Furniture
• Dust Master BR Fan
• Clean Master BR Windows and Blinds

Day 2-Wednesday

• Dust Kids Bedroom Furniture
• Dust Kids BR Fans
• Clean Kids BR Windows and Blinds

Day 3-Thursday

• Organize all Master BR drawers
• Organize Master BR closet

Day 4-Friday

• Organize all kids BR drawers
• Organize Kids BR closets

Day 5- Saturday

• Mop/Vacuum All Bedroom Floors including under bed
• Clean Bedroom Baseboards
• Flip Mattress (Odd months only)
• Organize Hall Closets

Tidy Tuesday

It's Tidy Tuesday Time!

Spring is in the air!! Now is the time most people are thinking about Spring Cleaning- but not us DRSers. We've been ZONE cleaning for 3 months now so our house has already been detailed top to bottom, corner to corner, inside and out............. right? If not, why not start this week with the Zone 2- The Bedroom!!!

I don't know if you call the above paragraph a pep talk or a sales pitch, regardless I feel I must confess that last week's zone was a total FLOP for this girl. But I have all my issues worked out and I am pumped about REALLY tackling this week's zone. Who's In?

Deal Alert

Go here to print $0.55 off 1 any Healthy Ones product. These will double nicely at Kroger for a great deal on deli meat or other Healthy Ones products. As far as I understand you can print off as many as you want!

Cottenelle Countdown

It still saddens me every time I walk by the TP section at Kroger and see that impostor off-brand sitting in what should be my $0.99 4-pack of cottonelle. So what if the replacement TP is only $0.88, it can't replace the rippled softness of the cottonelle or the unequivocal feeling of knowing it was FREEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Last weekend I brought my $0.50 off 1 coupons with me just in case it had all just been a horrible mistake- but no. The reality of what this means to my future budget is starting to sink in. I have called a family meeting and asked all of the potty users in our family to please remember to use the bathroom before heading home from work, school, gym, babysitter etc.

In the meantime I would like to start a countdown of how many rolls of FREE TP I have left. Unfortunately with single rolls, I know my time with FREE TP will be up before I know it and I feel this countdown will serve to both celebrate the time I have left AND bring closure to this chapter in my frugal world. Feel free to use Mr. Linky to mourn your free TP in what ever way you see fit.

FREE TP COUNTDOWN: 6 Full Rolls, 2 HALF ROLLS!
If I'd only known.... If I'd only known.... If I'd only known

Mealtime Monday- accountability

Here you go ladies. Tell Mr. Linky what's on your menu for the week.

Chicken Squares- Illustrated

Here is the play by play for the chicken square assembly.

See below how you use 2 crescent roll triangles to form a rectangle. Then you scoop some of your chicken mixture onto the center of each rectangle.

Next you fold up both ends of the rectangle over the chicken mixture.

Then you'll pinch the sides together to form a ball around the chicken mixture.


Last, you'll sprinkle dried bread crumbs on top. Yum Yum!

Cream Tacos

If ever there was a recipe that my Mom was famous for- this would be it. Anytime we had a big get together Mom always served Cream Tacos. Super simple yet always a crowd pleaser. Plus it is very easy to double or even triple the recipe so it is a great dish to make for a large number of people. (Maybe I should have stuck with this recipe for the recipe exchange party... oh well) The recipe below is my much healthier modified version of the original:

Cream Tacos

1 lb ground sirloin
1 lb 2% Velveeta
1 can rotel
1-2 cans chili beans (I use 2 cans- but I likee some beans)
1/2 package of chili seasoning
1 cup Fat Free half and half or skim milk

Fixens
Baked Chips
shredded lettuce
tomatoes or salsa
jalapeno peppers
low fat sour cream

Directions:
Brown Beef and drain fat. Stir beef, rotel, beans, chili seasoning into crockpot or stovetop or even microwave safe bowl. Cut Velveeta into cubes and stir into beef mixture. Heat mixture in crockpot, stovetop, or microwave until cheese is melted. Stir often! 10 minutes before serving stir in cream or milk. Serve over chips and with desired toppings. YUM YUM!

Nutrition Information:
Serving Size: 1/8th of recipe- used 2 cans beans (not including fixens) could probably easily do 1/10th of recipe for less calories
Meal Plan: 335 Calories; 4 meats, 1.25 starch, 1 fat

Vegetable Soup

I am excited to try this vegetable soup. It was super easy to make. I ended up using canned green beans and corn. I chose not to add any additional salt or water because of the sodium and liquid the canned vegetables contributed. I also chose to spice it up a bit by using Spicy V8 instead of just plain tomato juice.

Go here for the recipe

Quick and Easy Vegetable Soup

Nutrition Information:
Serving Size: 1/6th of recipe
Meal Plan: 121 Calories, 1 starch, 2 vegetables

I am going to serve this with Grilled Cheese Sandwiches. I thought these looked extra yummy.

Sweet and Sour Chicken with Mango Lettuce Wraps

I know we just had lettuce wraps last month, BUT this recipe looked so good to me I just had to try it out. This week I am going to a recipe exchange party and this will be the dish I am bringing for everyone to sample. Pretty gutsy if you ask me- taking a dish I have never even tried- WILD! I'll let you know how it goes over.

Sweet and Sour Chicken with Mango Lettuce Wraps

recipe modifications:

• I used Sugar Free Apricot Jam
• I did not want to purchase Sesame Oil so I just used Canola
• I did buy frozen mangoes- available at Kroger

Nutrition Information (based on chicken mix only):
Serving Size: 1/8th of recipe
Meal Plan: ~140 Calories, 2 lean meats, 1/2 starch, 1/2 vegetable

(When figuring calories on the Mango sauce just know every 1/4 cup of mangoes is around 30 calories)

Chicken Squares

My friend Mary introduced this recipe to me many years ago. The taste and presentation make this dish great for company. It is not a hard recipe, by any means, but the written instructions can be a little confusing, so I am planning on posting step by step pictures to illustrate the chicken square assembly.

Although not Mary's original recipe, I did find a similar recipe here.

Chicken Squares
recipe modifications: I used reduced fat crescent rolls, 1/3 fat cream cheese, and only 2 TBS light margarine. I also substituted bread crumbs for the stuffing

Mary's recipe also recommends serving with a gravy made from 1 soup can of 98% Fat Free Cream of Mushroom Soup + 1/3 soup can of skim milk

Nutrition Information
Serving Size: 1 Square
Meal Plan: ~325 Calories, 2 oz meat, 2 starch, 1.5 fat

I am going to serve this with the above gravy and Niki's Green Beans

Spicy Grilled Shrimp

I was excited to see Shrimp on the menu this week (although I wasn't excited to pay for it- $7.49). This recipe looks quick and easy. I will definetly be putting foil down on my grill so these little fellas down slip through the grill grate.

Go here for recipe

Spicy Grilled Shrimp

Nutrition Information
Serving Size: about 15 medium size shrimp
Meal Plan: 164 Calories, 3.5 lean meats

Although my March Master Menu shows we will have this with Brocolli stir-fry- I am actually going to serve this with grilled asparagus and rice because asparagus was on sale this week.

Mealtime Monday

Welcome to Mealtime Monday. The picture to the left has nothing to do with today's recipes but just brought a smile to my face when I saw them on allrecipes.com. So I thought I would post them here to bring a smile to you. If you want to create your own egg chicks go here for the instructions.


Well it took me exactly 1 hour and 21 minutes to complete the following:

• 
  
• 2 Spicy Grilled Shrimp recipes
• 2 Vegetables Soups
• 2 Sweet and Sour Chicken Mango Wraps
• 2 Chicken Square recipes
• 1 cream taco recipe
• 2 Niki's Green Beans
• 2 Asparagus Packets

The great thing about all these main dishes is that they ALL can be frozen. (I would probably go ahead and fully make the cream tacos before freezing.) Sooo you might consider making a double batch of some of these dishes to store in your freezer for a rainy day. I love having a couple of frozen dishes on hand for when I don't have time to cook and yet don't want to resort to going out to eat OR when I want to bring a meal to a family in need OR for those times when we have been short on grocery money. I am hoping to have enough dishes saved up in my freezer to make it to the end of 2009 once my $5000 annual grocery budget is all used up!!!

Below is the prep and storage recommendations for this weeks recipes.

Monday: Chicken Squares. I fully prepped up until final baking. Although the referenced recipe recommends freezing- I simply stored mine in the fridge.

Tuesday: Cream Tacos: I tossed all ingredients except the milk into a freezer ziplock bag. I stored bag in fridge. Tuesday night- 1 hour before serving I will place in crockpot and cook on high. Stirring often until cheese is melted. 10 minutes before serving I will add the milk.

Wednesday: Spicy Shrimp. I dumped frozen shrimp and remaining ingredients into a freezer ziplock bag. I then stored in freezer. Tuesday night I will transfer bag from freezer to fridge to begin thawing. Wednesday night I will cook shrimp on grill along with asparagus packet.

Thursday: Sweet and Sour Chicken Wraps. I placed all ingredients except cucumber into freezer ziplock bag. (Not sure why I didn't go ahead and add cucumber but for some reason it just bothered me knowing the cucumber would be sitting next to raw chicken for a couple of days- weird- I know). I am going to store in freezer. Wednesday morning I will transfer from freezer to fridge to begin thawing. Thursday morning I will transfer to crockpot and add in cucumber for cooking.

Friday: Out or leftovers

Saturday: Out or leftovers

Sunday: Vegetable Soup. I prepared entire recipe in freezer ziplock bag. I will store in freezer. I will transfer to fridge on Saturday morning to start defrosting and then to crockpot on Sunday morning. Should be good to go by Sunday lunch.

Sonday Sunday

Today in Sunday School we looked at Isaiah 29:13 (words also used in Matthew 15: 8 in reference to the Pharisees- ouch!)

These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, BUT their hearts are far from me.

Lately when I open my bible I seem to be drawn to verses of conviction rather then those of comfort. I think this has something to do with the fact that lately my time with the Lord has been only skin deep. My quiet times might be crossed off my daily to do list, but many times I am so distracted by MY thoughts that they block HIS Words from reaching my heart. I might honor the Lord with my writings but are my words coming from my heart or my head?

The people of Isaiah's time might have looked like God's children by their actions but God referred to them as "these people" rather then "MY people" because he couldn't see Himself in their hearts. My prayer is that I don't fall into the category of "these people" but rather I would let His words penetrate my heart and guide my every action. I want my Heart to lead me to HIM instead of my To Do List. I want my heart to be so full of His words that this Sonday Sunday ALWAYS come from the outflow of my heart instead of any cleverness from my head.

Tales from the Car

So last Thursday Colby had a field trip at school. Now normally Thursday's are a work day for this mama BUT the field trip was 30 miles from school and I wasn't comfortable with someone else driving my baby sooo I took off work to chauffeur my child "safely" in "my car."

I was looking forward to the one-on-one time together on our 30+ minute car ride. I mean it's not too often that Colby and I can talk just the two of us without baby brother interrupting. Unfortunately, I had forgotten about the noise my mufflerless car makes when I drive on the interstate (I guess I had just grown accustomed to it on my lonely drive to work every week). Add in the fact it was raining plus the noise from my windshield wipers and it would have been hard to hear my child if he was sitting right next to me, much less in the backseat. Colby and I spent the first 5 or 6 minutes yelling back and forth "WHAT", "WHAT DID YOU SAY", I'M SORRY, CAN YOU REPEAT THAT" Finally we both just gave up and rode in silence. How sad.

PS While I am writing about my car let me add that I forgot to roll (really roll, no automatic windows here) up my windows last night. So this morning I was greeted with a soaking wet seat. Only thing better will be tomorrow when I open up my car and am greeted with the aroma from day old rain soaked into fabric seats (aka mildew!).

PSS Sorry for the pity party! I can do all things... I can do all things.... I can do all things.....

DRS Bloopers

So yesterday, I had a brief nanosecond when I thought "I should really try to catch up on my zone work," So in an effort to be productive YET still procrastinate, I sprayed the oven down with Easy Off Oven Cleaner (no automatic oven cleaner in THIS house), walked off, and vowed to clean the oven that night after the boys went to bed.

Fast Forward about 6 hours.....
DH had a Men's Night Out with our Sunday School Class, so I decided the boys and I would have a Movie Night. Movie Night at our House ALWAYS means Pizza eaten on Blankets in the living room while watching the movie. Well I had a coupon for Papa Murphys and DH isn't a big fan of the whole "pick up a raw pizza and bring it home to bake" concept so I though this would be the perfect night to give it a try. I walked in Papa Murpheys and ordered half peperoni (boys side), half zucchini, jalapeno peppers, and artichoke (my side) on a deLite crust. I was given my baking instructions and headed home to start the pizza.

Well if you have put the two paragraphs together you have an idea of what happened next..... I set the oven at the recommended 425 degrees and didn't bother with the preheat step. Placed the pizza in the oven, set the timer for 20 minutes and went outside to play with the boys while the pizza baked. My mouth was watering as I walked into the house to check on our yummy baking pizza about 15 minutes into the process. But when I stepped into the kitchen I was met with a horrific smell- I thought "What is that?, Do we have a gas leak?" Then it clicked.... OVEN CLEANER!!!! My delectable vegy laden pizza was trapped inside that oven engulfed in toxic fumes. Arggggggggggg! I don't know what I was more upset about- the fact that I would not get to taste the carefully crafted pizza that sat before me, OR the fact that I had spent close to $9 for the thing. PLUS I still had 2 hungry boys and a mama to feed. Sooooo......................

I punched in a familiar number and sadly drove off. On the way to my destination I stopped at Sonic to pick up a Dr. Pepper to drown my sorrows away (yes, I was a victim of emotional eating/drinking). Next I pulled up to the window, paid my close to $8 fee, and drove off with my Dominos half pepperoni, half cheese pizza.

It still hurts my thrifty little heart to think about the fact that I spent $17 bucks on pizza night and all I got for it was heart burn!

PS Still haven't cleaned that oven!!!

Snack Time

Here is a fun snack idea for the kids.

All you do is dip apple slices into peanut butter and then sprinkle mini chocolate chips and/or sprinkles on top! So simple yet so Yummy!

Craft Time

Colby and I made masks, while.....

Cohen sang us a song.

(please tilt head to the left to see picture)

Learning Time

I reviewed Colors with Cohen when we built God's house. No really, I did!

For Colby.... well... the days not over... I'm sure I'll do somethin to edukate tat boy today.

There is a reason we have not considered home schooling as an option for our boys!

Devotional Time

Colby took charge of Devo time today (no big surprise). He announced that today's verse was going to be "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul." When I tried to add in the "and all your mind" he quickly pointed out that "all your mind" was NOT going to be a part of our verse. No biggie- I'm easy going.... today.

Then he announced that we were going to have an "activity" as part of our devotional time. Ever since we did the blind-fold activity with the Proverbs 3:5 Devotional Time, Colby has felt we needed to have an activity with every devotional time. Today he chose to build God a house out of Legos for our activity. Of course I struggled with the fact that this activity had no connection with our "theme verse"... but I let it go....

After God's house was built we had our 4 minute quiet time. And then sang songs of praise. We sang a song with the words to our verse of the day and then we marched around God's house and sang "The Wise/Foolish Man built his House Upon the Rock/Sand" and then ended our devotional time by smashing the house down when "the House on the Sand went SPLAT!"

Familytime Friday

TGIF!!!

Well today I am going to try to live life spontaneously. I know, I know.. this can be dangerous for the DRS sufferer. The last time I did something "spur of the moment" I almost shut down the blog. BUT today won't be quite as frightening because I have "planned" for this spontaneity. Here is the plan: Instead of writing about what the boys and I are planning to do today for devotional, craft, and learning time; I am going to simply DO these things AND THEN write about it!
Just trying to spice things up around this blog BUT if my spontaneity triggers a DRS flair-up for you just let me know and I will tone down the craziness!

You doing anything wild and crazy with your family this week/weekend?

Deal Alert

It's that time again! KMart is doubling coupons next week up to.... are you ready for this..... TWO DOLLARS. Go here to see a great list of coupon match-up ideas. Last time I did not make the 30 mile commute to KMart for the sale, BUT I kinda think I'll make the drive this time Just for the experience. Anyone up for carpooling???

PS I recommend reading the comments from Southern Saver's Post- Beware!

Annual Budget Countdown

Last week I shopped 4 times. Two times at Walgreens, Once at Kroger, and Once at Target.

Here is a breakdown of the damage:


Walgreens #1

Spent: $2.89
Saved: $42.53

Walgreens #2
Spent: $2.50
Saved: $30.58

Target
Spent: $4.48
Saved: $9.65

Kroger
Spent: $70.46
Saved: $69.86

Total Week 11 Spent: $80.33 WOO HOO!!!!
Total Saved: $152.62 Double WOO HOO!!!
Total Spent for Year: $1111.27
Total Saved for Year: $920.23
Total Left for Year: $3888.73

I made some headway toward getting back on track with my budget this week!!! Now only $55 over budget for the year!!

Change in Plans

I know that I told you this morning that I would try to have another exciting lesson in our DRS couponing 101 series by midnight tonight BUT... it turns out my lesson is turning into a novel. It's like I have diarrhea of the fingers and just can't stop writing about my experience with this lesson. Anyways.... it doesn't look as thought it will be ready to post tonight. And my DRS will not allow me to post a Thrifty Thursday lesson on a Familytime Friday day- would that be WILD & CRAZY or what?!?! Sooooo once again I am postponing this lesson yet another week. In the meantime I am going to try to edit the lesson down into a more "Blogging for Dummies" approved size.

Ohh! I just remembered I have not done my annual budget countdown. So I'll do that real quick....

Deal Alert- Target

If you didn't print your Target printables last week go here to take advantage of some great Target Only discounts. The great thing about Target Printables is that you can print as many as you want.

The Motts applesauce Target Printable does not expire until 3/28 so you can still take advantage of this deal.

Motts Apple Sauce priced at $1.69

Use $1 off 1 target printable AND $0.55 off 1 from here
Final Price: $0.14 after both coupons

GE Energy-Saving Light Bulbs on sale for $1

Use $1.50 off 2 from 1/4 SS or use $0.50 0ff 1 from April All You Magazine

Final Price: $0.25 to $0.50

Note: I did not see this sale advertised in our Target Flyer so I can not confirm it is a true deal in our region. Let us know one way or the other!

Gillete Shampoos, Conditioners, and Body Washes are supposedly on sale for $2
Use $2 off 1 from 3/1 PG
Final Price: FREE

Note: I was not able to find these last week BUT one DRSer wrote in and said she did find them- so good luck!

Buy 5 Quaker products and get $5 Target gift card back

Includes 8-12 qt Instant Oatmeal or Oatmeal to-go bars priced at $2.50; 5 ct. Fiber an Omega 3 bars priced at $2.50; 16 oz Quaker Squares priced at $2.50, 10 ct. Quaker Chewy Bars priced a $2; 6 ct. Quaker Rice Cakes.

Use various coupons from 1/4 RP, 1/18 RP, 2/8 RP, and 3/8 RP

You can use your $5 gift card to purchase more Quaker products for an additional $5 gift card if you want to do this deal more than once.

Target also has Yoplait Yogurts on sale 10 for $5

Big Thanks to MoneySavingMom for posting about some of these deals!