Recipe Blog

Www.triedandtruerecipesbytiff.blogspot.com

Still adding recipes, but an easy way to share some.

Gifts from Above

I feel the need to give credit to God for this one.

Down here in Charleston, if you leave something at the end of your driveway, it's for the taking. It's actually really nice because you never know what you're gonna find. I found a baby swing for outside with hooks and everything one time. And this is what I found the other day. A rust-free bicycle with training wheels! Can't find one for that price at a yard sale.

But, I found it by accident because I was taking a back road to go around the trash truck that I was behind and there it was!! Ready to go home with me. Yes, I did stop and ask the very loud easterne european family if they really meant it to go home with me or did their little boy just leave it there. And yes, I was free to have it!! Thank you Jesus!

Don't Poop on the Deck!

This seems to be a fairly regular occurance these days. And no, I'm not talking about one of the animals going #2 on the deck, I'm talking about Ryan, my #2 Child. No pun intended. I mean, why not just go in the potty and get a present? Maybe it's because every time my boys go outside, they feel the need to strip to their bare necessities. And when you're naked and running around, what else is there to do? Play in it? I leave it there, for you to ponder.

James Playing Jacks

So, we bribe our kids. Especially James. James will work towards a goal. James has been in the potty training stage for a while. So, we told him if he went poop on the potty he'll get a present. But like his daddy, he has to see the presents to see if it's worth it. So one day James managed to make a little poop and he got to pick a present from the Spiderman Bag. He chose Jacks. So, I showed him how to do it and this is his rendition of playing the game.

A few days later, I heard the toilet flush upstairs. So, James came down and told me he went poop on the potty and needed his present. So, I went upstairs but couldn't find what he had accomplished. But I couldn't prove otherwise, so he got another present, a matchbox car. But I told him, that he had to show me the poop and not just flush it.

So here comes James again, telling me he pooped and was ready to show me. Sure enough, there was some in the potty but it just didn't look right. Sure enough, James had gone in his diaper and then dumped it in the potty. He didn't get a present that time.

But Alex showed him this really cool present if he went on the potty. So, James carried the present around for two days and he finally went on the potty yesterday. And yes, he went straight towards the present. And yes, he opened it and it is know as the "poop present".

The Pool Again

Yes, Ryan has continued to improve in his swimming. We have allowed him to try swimming without the swimmies, and he does fairly well. Although, not well enough that I don't get a heart attack every time he jumps in. He floats fairly well but has a hard time keeping his head above water. It seems as though breathing is not as important to avid swimmers. So, we work a bit without swimmies and then he gets the swimmies back on so we can all enjoy some time in the pool. As you can see, Ryan is very comfortable laying on his back in the pool. We try to get him to wear goggles because he likes to keep his eyes open underwater.

New Couponing Blog

So, I decided to start a new blog on my couponing efforts. I wanted to keep it separate from my Personal blog so my friends and family wouldn't have to read through a bunch of stuff they didn't want to. The address is http://www.thedaysofcouponing.blogspot.com/.

I'll probably also start a Recipe Blog for the same reason. I sometimes get confused if everything's all together.

Olivia in her Bathing Suit

Nothing exciting here, just Olivia in her bathing suit for the first time. She wasn't too sure about the pool, but was okay for the first few minutes.

So here we are, me and Olivia :)

Watch out CVS!!

Ok. So, you probably know about this couponing thing that I've been talking about. Yes, I was super over-whelmed with it all. I mean, there are good deals to be had at all the grocery stores and drug stores! How do I pick which one?! I don't have time to go to all 10!!! The couponing lady of Southernsavers.com came to Charleston and gave a morning workshop on couponing. It was really helpful to hear the in and out's of it all. I left feeling encouraging and slightly less over-whelmed.

So, I made my list and my transaction scenarios...Then head to CVS with Betsy and Granny Stevens. Are you interested in how I did it??

The Rules:

(1)Have a CVS ExtraCare Bucks card - Free!! Just sign up and you get all the in-store savings.

(2) Make several transactions to minimize out of pocket spending

(3) Buy ALL free items and items that you make a profit on...

Here's what I did:

Transaction #1:

I bought:

(1)Revlon Foundation at $9.99 (CVS gave me $9.99 in CVS money to spend on my next transaction)

(1) Huggies diapers 23 ct at $9.00 (CVS will give me $4 back after I buy 2 diapers)

(2) 4 pack Sharpie highlighters at $.99 each.

I had coupons:

$1 off Revlon

$1.5 off Huggies

$1 off highlighters

$4 off a purchase of $20

$5 CVS Extra Care bucks from a prior transaction

Result: I paid $9.08 on $20.97 of products and got $9.99 in CVS bucks

Transaction #2:

I bought:

(1)Huggies at $9.00

(1) Huggies wipes at $3

Coupons:

$1.5 off Huggies

$.50 off wipes

I used my $9.99 CVS Bucks

Spent $.23 on $12 worth of products and Received $4 back in CVS bucks

Transaction #3: Are you still with me???

I bought:

(1) Airwick freshmatic starter kit at $5.99

(1) Soleil Razor at $6.99

Coupons used:

$6 off Airwick (making that product free)

$3 off Razor

I used a $2 cvs bucks from a prior transaction

I paid $2.96 on $12.98 worth of product and received $3 CVS bucks back from the Soleil Razor

Transaction #4: Anybody there??

I bought:

2 plastic step stools at $2.50 each (seasonal merchandise that was 50% off)

I used $4 in CVS bucks and spent $1.19. Making them $.50 each not incl. tax.

Last Transaction:

Colgate toothepaste at $1.10

(4) VO5 shampoos and conditioner at $.77 each

coupons:

$.75 off Colgate

I used $3 CVS bucks

I spent $.74 on $4.11 worth of product.

I left CVS with no CVS bucks, but I can earn some more next week.

Total Spent:

$14.20 on approximate $55 worth of product and saved $70.

Not bad! See the picture!

P.S. See those backpacks in the picture? They were free when you bought $10 worth of stuff from Office Depot. I had to buy some paper so I got 1 free, then Betsy got 2 for me and Granny got one more for me. So, 4 backpacks for free!

Girl Clothes

I have to admit, that girl clothes are a bit more fun. Although little boys wearing Spiderman clothes is a lot of fun also.

So, this is what I found at our consignment shop. I want to make sure you notice the satin ballerina feet. Not sure how many more uses we'll get out of it.

Where's the camera?

Yes, the camera disappeared the other day. And after many calls to Betsy to see if I left it there and many looks through the diaper bag, it still wasn't found. Finally, when going to get a diaper, there it was. In the ottoman where all the diapers are. As I was uploading a few pics this morning, this is what I found.

As I'm looking through these photos, I'm wondering where I was during this photo shoot. It appears as though James had the camera and he was very good at capturing what Ryan was doing. Here's the thing. The camera was in my diaper bag. they're not allowed to get into the diaper bag. Other things in the diaper bag that they're not supposed to get. Lip gloss. I obviously didn't know this one was missing.

I guess this is hard proof, that they got into the diaper bag and Ryan got the lip gloss. Not sure where the lip gloss is currently.

Thank You , Erin.

When Chris and Erin were here, Chris made a comment about Erin. He said something about keeping the house tidy but followed it up saying "I know Erin wakes up every morning thinking how happy she is to spend the day with her kids, being a mommy".

What a great thing for a husband to say. A husband who knows that his wife is content staying home with the kids. I can say, that this attitude has been a constant struggle for me. Going from having many satisfying jobs to staying at home, has been a struggle. Let me tell you that leaving my kids full time so I could go to work, is not an option, but staying at home full time has its toll. Anyways, to the point at hand. Alex did ask me if I thought like Erin. I took a bit offense because of course I love my children. But that's not the point is it? The point is where my heart and attitude and mind are each morning. So, I've been trying to make some changes in my heart and do a lot more praying for peace. Peace during disciplining. Peace during yelling. And even peace when Alex comes home and the boys go crazy. No picture here, just the mental image of a mom trying to re-align her thoughts.