Psst… want to save up to $46?

Hey! I just learned a clean little secret about Lowe’s. They have quite the selection of cleaning products plus air and water filters to help keep your home spic and span inside and out. And they’re sending out up to $46 in savings so you can really clean up. Get your coupons before they’re gone! Go to vocalpoint.com/Lowes.

advent calendar

This season has already been different enough to get my schedule out of whack.  My dear brother and his sweet family has move from the Iowa to here to Georgia.  And most of my spare time has been in helping them move.  The other is finding deal for Christmas. Way tight budget this year.  I always loved advent calendars.  espeically the ones you one up and find a surprise.
So when I saw a post from my favorite coupon blogger, Jenny at Southern Savers about an advent calendar she did.  Here is the link to the project.

Now she has a hand machine that cuts it all out for her.  None of which I have... but I do have a computer and a printer and scissors. I have yet to finish cutting out my boxes.  So my project is yet to be finished.  I also found another Blogger who has done advent calender and has ready made stuff about Christmas from her advent calendar which I will copy from also. Her blog is shannonmakesstuff.blogspot.com and her is her final advent calendar. And her is a link this blog posting.

And then I have a dear friend from my MOPS group who came up with a wonderful advent calender and her pockets are full of wonderful biblical stuff (for lack of better words on less than a cup of coffee.)  I spent some time yesterday copying these down.  So I'm hoping that I can finish my project soon. So I can post the final project. I found a template to make a box.  Here is that template. And I'm still working out how to make the star. Hopefully I will be able to show you the final project soon and content of boxes.
Here are a couple more links of some advent calendar. http://impressyourkids.org/advent-calendars-beyond/
and http://www.icanteachmychild.com/2010/12/advent-boxes.html and http://confessionsofahomeschooler.blogspot.com/2010/11/advent-activities.html.  Would love to know if you have any other blogs that have advent ideas.

sweet lovely "yumo" pumpkin bread

This is a family favorite!  Caleb has declared this to be "yumo", especially the cookies.

But not only am I going to give you the recipe I use, but if you painted your pumpkins like I did mine you can cut them up and use that instead of buying the can stuff.  Most canned Pumpkin is 16 oz which equals 2 cups.

This is how you do that... cut pumpkin half, take out seed and stringy stuff, place on cookie sheet. Cook in oven at 350 for at least an hr.  (The bigger the pumpkin the longer. I had one big one that each half I cooked for 1hr 45 min.) Drain as much as the clear liquid as possible.
Place in blender or mixer until it is pureed.  A quick mixer tip.  "Place a lint free towel over your mixer and bowl to help cut down on having to clean up splatter." 

From here you can use or freeze.

side tip.  I often have batter left over and I make drop cookies from the batter.  cook for about 8-10 min at 350. 

Pumpkin Bread (from Betty Crocker's)
Pre-heat oven to 350.
1 can (16 ounces or two cups) (I use a touch more than this. probably 2 1/2 cups)
1 2/3 cups sugar
2/3 vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla (my vanilla is stronger than most... add 3-4 teaspoons to equal my 2)
4 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour (or whole wheat flour) (mine uses all-purpose)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt (or less)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (or more)
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoons baking powder
optional: 1/2 cup nuts and/ or raisins.  (Mine has neither.)

I will give you their directions and mine.  Since I cook 4-6 batches I do mine so I'm out of the kitchen a bit quicker.  My bowls are not big enough to hold two batches.  This will yield around 3-4 large loaf pans.

Instructions:
1.  Move oven rack to low position so that tops of pans will be in center of oven. (very important! I take out one of my racks and place it over the sink for a "dryer rack")  Heat oven to 350.  Grease bottoms of loaf pans with shortening. (I use spray canola oil.)
2.  Mix pumpkin, sugar, oil, vanilla, and eggs in large bowl.  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Pour into pans.  (Here I differ quite a bit. I do all the dry ingredients in as many bowls as I'm doing batches.  Then as I'm mixing I add in liquid ingredients that I whip as needed.  That way raw eggs are sitting out a much less time.  You will have to mix on a higher speed for longer.  And I'm not in the kitchen that long.  It does mean more dishes, but that is what dishwashers are for.)
3.  Bake 8-inch loaves 50-60 min, 9 inch loaf 1hr10min- 1hr20min, until toothpick comes out clean. Coll 10 min in pans on wire rack.  Loosen sides of loaves from pans; removes from pans and place top side up on wire rack.  Cool completely before slicing.  Wrap tightly and store at room temperature up to 4 days, or refrigerate up to 10 days. (This is easily frozen.  Thaw in the fridge)

Baking time for mini loaves:
Amount of batter:               approximate time bake time at 350.
1/4 cup                                             15-20 min
1/3 cup                                             15-20 min
1/2 cup                                             25-35 min
3/4 cup                                             35-40 min

Food Storage

Many of you know I am a huge couponer.  In order to take advantage of the best price, I often have to "stock up".  Many people say they don't have room for this.  And as far a fresh, refrigerated, and freezer foods.  This maybe true.  I did get a half chest freezer because my little side by side did not have enough room to store much at all.  I like to freeze a lot of things. Some things that may surprise you that freeze well is cheese and liquid non dairy creamer.  Some kids yogurts freeze well, but most yogurts do not.

I found this great brochure at Publix a while back and just refound it while I was going through stuff.  I hoped that I could find it online to share with you but it looks like no one has it.  It is called   "The Food Keeper, A Consumer Guide To Food Quality And Safe Handling"  It is developed by Food Marketing Institute.   It has so much great information in one place.  If you go to Publix ask for it!  But on their website it does have a place where you can search by food product.
http://www.fmi.org/consumer/foodkeeper/
In a yellow area you can put in your food product and out pops how long and where it should be stored.
Looks like this:
To search for a specific food, enter a search word here:

Search:

 Once you have done your search it may
Like this:

Food	Refrigerator	Pantry	Freezer	Special
Dips, sour cream based	2 weeks		Do not freeze
Sour cream	7 to 21 days		Doesn't freeze well	Cover tightly. To prevent bacteria from spreading to leftover cream, don't return unused cream to original container. Keep covered.

But here are some other helpful links
Cornell University links and USDA links seem to be the most helpful.
Cornell University:
http://counties.cce.cornell.edu/chemung/nutrition/#safety

http://blogs.cce.cornell.edu/herkimer/files/2009/04/Web-Sites-for-the-Home-Preserver-20091.pdf
USDA:
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/fact_sheets/Focus_On_Freezing/index.asp#8
Food Safety.gov
http://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/preparing/index.html
Fight Bac!
http://www.fightbac.org/
UGA
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/freeze.html
FDA
http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm093704.htm#basics

Our Jack-o-lantern House

This is the second year we have made our house look like a jack-o-lantern. I got the idea from Family Fun Magazine.  Here it is on there website.  But we executed it differently.  We used the whole house instead of two windows.
I used orange and yellow plastic table clothes (you know the kind you find at the dollar store. Behind the orange I used brown paper.  You can use either craft paper or the paper that you use to wrap packages to ship them.  Another idea is using black trash bags.  Then we just taped it all together and then on the windows. It is not the prettiest looking inside.

But it is getting the job done.  We used both duck tape and scotch tape.  Last year I just used scotch tape.  Next year I'll think ahead and get some painters tape.

Here is what it looks like during the day.  Because of using the orange and yellow you can still see it during the day.

Airshow at Dobbins this weekend

We did this a couple of years ago.  We had a blast.  They do have free parking at Whitewater.  But if it like years past waiting for the shuttle took way to long.  So we paid $5 to $10 to park across the street and walked. Pack food and snacks and water.  Bring sunglasses and sunscreen. Last time we went there were jumpys but they do cost.  There is a ton of free stuff to do and see. First Act starts at 10 am.  For more info go here.

Pedialyte Coupon

With cold and flu season already starting, this is a great coupon.  $1.50 off any pedialyte product.  They have new singles out that look like juice boxes. That means you don't have to throw way over half the bottle! Sweet! See Pedialyte's website to view all varieties and flavors.  Big Thanks to my friend Maggie for sharing.

Free Museum Day

I saw this on one of my most favorite blogs Southern Savers. And thought I would share. 
On Saturday, September 25th Smithsonian Magazine is sponcering it's 6th annual FREE Museum day!
There are tons of Museums that are a part of this.  To find out which museums that are near you go here, and fill out your address.   To get your free ticket go here.  Fill out the form and you will be emailed a ticket.  Remember to print out your ticket and take it with you!  Some museums it is free per a household and some it is only 2 admission free. 
To get updates follow them on twitter and facebook.

Parents Night Out

Holt Road Baptist is doing their Parents Night Out this Friday 6:30-10. for $5 a child and $15 max per a family.
I strongly suggest making a reservation since last time they did fill up. 

Yellow Daisy Festival

This weekend is the Yellow Daisy Festival at Stone Mountain. 
If you don't have a yearly pass the car admission it $10. It is an massive Arts and Crafts Festival.
A lot of people go to this.  So if your not very good with crowds then I would skip it.    Here are the dates and times. There are other great things to do in the park and plenty of places to picnic.  They have a great playground on the on back side of the park.
Dates: Sept 9-12
September 9    - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
September 10  - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
September 11  - 10:00 am - 7:30 pm
September 12  - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm

Thomas Play Date At Toys R Us

Here is something to do this weekend.  A Thomas Play date at Toys R Us Saturday the 11th from 11-1.  It is free and you do get freebies and a story time.  It is just making it our of Toys R Us not making any other purchases that can be hard. But hey that is why they do it.

Y block Party is open to everyone.

FAMILY NIGHT BLOCK PARTY!!
Saturday, August 28th
6pm to 9pm
McCleskey-East Cobb Family Y
Front Soccer Fields
FREE Event for you and your family!
We are providing you with a night of fun to include................

A LIVE Band to rock out to!!!
A 22' Dual Action Inflatable Slide!
The Insane Rock Climb Obstacle Course!
and ...A Primary Castle Moon Bounce!
The Balloon Lady will be there to make a special creation
just for you!!!!
We'll throw in some free popcorn to munch on!
Ice Cream and Drinks will be available for purchase
(all proceeds benefit PWY)
Come join us and bring the family!

Crape Myrtles

I don't know if you are like us or not.  But we inherited a very overgrown yard.  We have several Crape Myrtles in our yard.  And some of them are so tall you don't see the flowers until they are dropping onto the yard.  I'm clueless about plants.
I got this article from Walter Reeves blog and it has a great link to UGA article on Crape Myrtles.
How and when to prune and how to start a new tree.  Right now is the time if you are wanting to start a seedling.  And winter to early spring is the best time to prune. Read the articles to know more.

Parents Magazine Subscription $4 (Coupons!)- from Deal Seeking Mom

Deal Seeking Mom had this on her blog and I thought I would share.  Read more about the deal and the coupons in this magazine here on her blog.  This is a great Magazine and a great deal!

New Garbage Company in Town

There is a new garbage company in town. American Disposal Services.  We saved over half of what we were paying quarterly. We did have to sign a 1yr contract which keeps our rate at the same price for a year.  There was a solicitor going door to door in our neighborhood.  We double checked all info and decided to try them.  We also had to pay for the 1st quarter up front.  We are hoping that their price doesn't go up to match what we had, but hey this year we are saving a good deal of money. They pick up the trash once a week on the same it was before. We love having the 64 gallon recycling container.  We have used their service for about a month now.  They don't seem to have gotten a schedule down yet.  Each week they have come a different times.  But at the end of the the day the trash and recycling has been picked up.
Individual Subscription Services include:

• 96 gallon trash containers (Toters)
• 64 gallon Single Stream Recycling containers (Toters)
• Yard debris collection
• Bulk item collection upon request *
• Pay your bill online, over the phone or by mail

* Indicates fee when applicable.

House Party, Kleenex Hand Towels, and Soap Making

If you haven't heard about House Party, you are so missing out. Their Web Site http://houseparty.com/
Manufactures have realized that the home parties by the various multi-level companies is a great a to Marketing tool.  That being said.  You will not be asked to buy anything at a party or asked to sign up and join anything.   This is Manufactures promoting a new product.  You have to sign up for every party and fill out a questionair. Then they will contact you via email to let you know if you a finalist.  Be quick on the draw at this stage.  If you get this email you will need to to reply quickly.  There are only a certain number of parties.  Here are some up coming parties:   Spartan Sagas Tailgate House Party  Sponsored by Michigan State University September 18, 2010  My Thai Kitchen® House Party Sponsored by Simply Asia Foods September 25, 2010  Beyblade Let It Rip House Party Sponsored by Hasbro  September 25th, 2010  Sabra "Share The World" House Party  Sponsored by Sabra  November 13, 2010

This weekend I got to host a Kleenex Hand Towels House Party. They sent me full size products to give out, an artist portfolio with kid art supplies watercolors, markers, and crayons. And a $10 dollar Visa Card. I opted to make soap for my craft for the party. And while the soap was setting we played lego rock band.  The menu consisted of jello jigglers, oreo pudding, cookies and gold fish. (all boxed made stuff).  Below is the recipe for the soap craft.   The Kleenex Hand Towels  work great. They are soft and very absorbent.  Below is the Soap recipe they gave me and some picture of the soap we made.

Soapmaking

Letting kids make their own soap to use during bath time isone way to give them ownership over their hygiene habits.  Using soap flakes, mix about 11⁄2 cups of flakes with 3⁄4 cup water.  This will be the base of your soap bar. Add food coloring of your choice and mix until the soap reaches a color you’re happy with.  When correctly mixed, the soap should resemble play dough.  When it reaches this stage you can shape it.  Allow the kids to hand-shape the soap, making small bricks and using cookie cutters to create shapes, or allow them to press the soap into candy molds with fun shapes such as cars, animals, snowmen etc. Use vegetable oil on your hands and pan spray on molds to keep the soap from sticking.

A  couple of hints.  They no longer make Ivory soap flakes.  I had to buy Ivory and make my own by using a cheese grater.  There are soap flakes out there, supposedly  Hispanic stores may carry.  It takes about a 1/2 hr for soap to set and come out of the molds.  You will want to them to set again for a day before using or packaging. 

 

Below are some of the soap creations from the party. 

Free Movie- Kung Fu Panda

Powers Ferry UMC
is having a movie afternoon showing of Kung Fu Panda
Thursday July 22 1:30- 3:-30
RSVP by July 19th to Michelle 770-973-5271
michelle@powerumc.com
(popcorn and Sno-Cones after the movie)

A Day out with Thomas

Great Smokey Mountains Railroad
Bryson City, NC
A Day out with Thomas
July 23-27 & July 29-August 1
Tickets are $18 for ages 2 and up
Event is rain or shine. 
Train rides are approximately 25-minute train ride with Thomas the Tank Engine will depart every 45 minutes.



Other Activities are:

• The opportunity to meet Sir Topham Hatt™, Controller of the Railway 
• A Thomas & Friends Imagination Station; featuring stamps, temporary tattoos, hands-on arts and crafts activities and coloring sheets.
• Storytelling, video viewing and live music
• A special display at every DOWT location celebrating 65 years of Thomas the Tank Engine
• 2010 commemorative merchandise and giveaways, including a mini-view finder giveaway that tells the story of Thomas’ upcoming adventure, Misty Island Rescue

We did this a couple of years ago in TN.  It was a blast.  So if your child is Thomas Crazy it is definatly woth the money.  Bring your own snack to help offset some cost.

This time of year just crazy

So again... I really need to make back up post... This time of year is just crazy for me.  My son's birthday. And  family beach trip. The planning for these two events seems to take most of my time.  Last year I didn't sleep for two days before his party. (I was also working on a VBS too last yr.)

I have many post that I have to write: Responsibilities for kids according to age.   Birthday party planning.  Cake decorating.  Planning vacations with family. Stenciling plastic. Making Superhero capes.I'm hoping to get caught up when we are at the beach. :)

This weekend at Toys R Us they are having a Thomas Playdate, this Saturday 11-1pm  We won't be able to make it.  But these events at Toys R Us are great.  They are free and usually you get a freebie. We won't be able to make it.

4th of July

 I'm not entirely sure what we are doing for the 4th.  It depends on other family members. 
Atlanta on the Cheap has a great list of the big 4th of July events this year.
Last year we did a couple of things.  City of Marietta for day events, ate dinner at the Varsity, and then went to the fireworks in Alpharetta at Wills Park.  The fireworks last year were perfect!
This year the City of Marietta's parade and fireworks is on Saturday the 3rd.  The parade is at 10am.  Get there early so you can park and walk to the square.
Alpharetta's festivities start at 3pm on the 4th and end with the fireworks at Wills Park.  They do have a swimming pool at the park $3 admission.  But it seems that most of the other children activities are free. Bring a meal or buy from the vendors.

Let me know if you all have other places you like to go to for the 4th of July.

Yummy Strawberry Glaze

My favorite Aunt in Florida made this wonderful pork loin for us with a Guava Glaze. 
She took her recipe from a recipe from Bobby Flay.  Bobby's is Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Guava Glaze and Orange-Habanero Mojo.  But she does not do the Mojo or mint.  It is soooo good!

I in turn changed up this glaze to a Strawberry Glaze.

I will give you both recipes.

Guava Glaze

Heat grill to high. Brush pork with oil and season with salt, pepper, and cumin, to taste. Grill for 3 to 4 minutes. Turn the tenderloins over and brush with guava glaze and cook another 4 to 5 minutes, brushing with the glaze every few minutes. Remove from the grill, brush with more of the glaze and let rest for 10 minutes.

Guava Glaze:
1 cup guava marmalade
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons orange juice or water
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Strawberry Glaze
Use on chicken or pork.  I used mine on Chicken.
Rubbed chicken with salt, pepper and cumin to taste. brush on glaze.  grill. brush on glaze as you turn. 
(I'm not 100% on quantities here since I just added and mixed things together. Sorry)
1 cup strawberry jam (mine is homemade... see freezer jam recipe)
1 1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lime juice
pepper to taste
 

All Natrual weed and bug Product

Really I need to to start on my back up of blogs, but that will happen later.
But for right now I will tell you about an amazing product(s) out there for gardening.
The product line is called

Pharm Solutions

Worlds First USDA / National Organic Program Certified Organic Pesticides
Non Toxic Weed and Grass Killer Organic Horticultural Oil Organic Deer Repellent; Organic Fungicide

http://pharmsolutions.com

When Smith & Hawkins stores were around I got this great product from them called Indoor Pharm. It is meant for your indoor plants to helps with fungus and spiders etc.  But I used it on my outdoor container plants.  It worked great for two year until I ran out.  I have tried the stuff they sold at stores and have not liked the results as much as this product.  That being said.  They have a whole line of products mainly all for gardening.

Not sure the shipping cost but the 1 Liter product ready to use is around $13.
I think that this next time I might get the Veggie Pharm. 

Other products they sell are Organic Weed Killer, Weed Pharm, Rose Pharm, Flower Pharm, Garlic Pharm, Oil Pharm, Deer Pharm, Fungus Pharm, and Fish Pharm.

Bedtime and Morning Routines

Recently I ask on Facebook about age appropriate chores, and did you have any favorite resources. I have gotten a few comments and am still doing a bit more research.  I really do believe that chores are essential in a child's development and many others do to, but alias the only thing most people can agree on.  And I will say this parenting can be so different for each child and family situation.  So what I am about to post may or may not work for you and yours.
My son did real well with the Bedtime Routine Chart that I made him while in preschool.  I needed to tweak and add to it since he will be going to Kindergarten and add a Morning Routine Chart.  I laminated it with contact paper and hung it on his wall in his bedroom.  I hung it low so he could take a dry erase marker and check what finished.  Now he will just go to the list and make sure he has done everything.
The charts I just put together quickly in word and added their clip art.  Feel free to copy, adjust, and change wording.

Trader Joe's: Now Accepting Coupons & Here are Some Coupon Matches

Trader Joe's: Now Accepting Coupons & Here are Some Coupon Matches

Here is a link to one of the blogs I follow. The Thrifty Mama.  This a great post about Trader Joe's!

Cellfire Cinderella Free Money on your Kroger Card

Thursday June 17 at 3pm eastern you can get your free money.  Last  week I got a $1 off my shopping.  Which is great for produce and milk. I believe you can win up to $10 dollars.  Just register your Kroger Card at Cellfire.

Lego Build at Toys R Us - Saturday

My son is just getting into legos and this look like it could be fun. Particicapting Toys R Us is having a Lego build.  It is this Saturday the 19th, 12-2pm.  There will be prizes and giveaways.

Run for Recovery 5k

Feeling nervous about saying I'm going to do this. It is for a good cause.. or should I say two good causes.   Helping those recovery from addiction and my health.

Date:	Saturday, September 11, 2010
Time:	9:30am - 12:30pm
Location:	Kennesaw State University
Street:	1000 Chastain Road
City/Town:	Kennesaw, GA

Run or walk this scenic 1 mile loop three times to complete this course; see the growth and progress on the third largest state campus in Georgia.

All proceeds benefit the KSU Collegiate Recovery Center where students in recovery from addiction can find a peer community of abstinence and academic support. 

Here is the Website and here is the Facebook page.

Balsamic Roast Pork Tenderloin

Balsamic Roast Pork Tenderloin
I don't remember where I found this recipe but it is quite yummy! I think I might try grilling this today.

Ingredients
1 lb. pork tenderloin
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil, plus additional for baking sheet

Directions
1. Rinse pork and pat dry. Stir together vinegar, garlic, and pepper in a cup. Place in a large heavy-duty resealable plastic bag with pork and seal, turning until coated well. Marinate at room temperature, turning bag occasionally, 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degree F. Arrange rack in middle of oven. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
3. Remove pork from marinade and place in pan. Pour marinade over pork; season with salt. Roast, turning pork halfway through, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in center of pork registers 150 degree F and vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.
4. Let pork stand in pan 10 minutes before carving into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Makes 4 servings.

Free Movie at the Y- East Cobb

McCleakey - East Cobb YMCA is showing
"Alvin & the Chipmunks the Squeakel" Saturday, June 19th at 7:00 PM

Bring your family, Friends and neighbors along with your blankets and lawn chairs to enjoy a fun evening of delightful enterainment and comaraderie.

Concessions will be available for purchase.

McCleakey - East Cobb YMCA
1055 East Piedmont Rd
Marietta, GA 30062
770-977-5991

Skinny Cow $1 printable

 Skinny Cow has a $1 off any product on their Facebook Fan site.  After you click the Like button go to Fan Exclusive tab.  Click the picture to print your coupon.  Don't forget to hit your back button to get a second coupon.  CVS had the one cupper on sale for $1 last week.  We will see if they or Walgreens will this week.

Veggie Garden

There is nothing like bumping around in the dark and stubbing your toes.  That is what I am doing with a veggie "garden" this year.  All of this was started from my son wanting to plant some things.  I don't think our crops will have a high yield this year.
(warning tangent) But if your like me and are experimenting with growing your own produce.  Not a bad idea. I've read several blogs about cost analysis about growing your own veggie garden (none of which I can find now) and it gets cheaper the longer you do it. The first year you still save but the amount is minimal. But it is a great way to eat healthy. (now back to point)
Since this is my first year doing more than a tomato plant I have been well bumping around in the dark as to when (and some hows) of growing veggie.  Thanks to my Aunt Sandy, here is a Vegetable garden calender for Georgia. It was done by UGA. It is a pdf. so print and put with gardening stuff.  I might just input stuff on my google calender (geek alert). Happy Growing!

$4 AMC tickets- KGB like Groupon

So I saw this on Southern Savers blog and I thought just in case you didn't see it there I would also post it since it is such a lovely deal.
$4 for a movie ticket instead of $12.50 at AMC on kgb. Sweet! I don't know about you, but we love going to the movies.  The catch, you can only get one ticket, it is only good for Atlanta and metro areas, and it will be mailed to you... allow 2-4 weeks of delivery. Last time I checked there were just under 2000 tickets left. and just over 3 days. 

Kraft Coupons... from First Taste

 This is a great website, Kraft first taste. They have coupons just for new Kraft products.  You can only print each coupon once. Here are the 6 coupons I just got.  They do like getting feed back on their products. And their surveys are short and to the point, usually 3 to 5 questions.

New KOOL-AID Fun Fizz Drink Drops. A fun and delicious way to get kids to drink water. Plus, it's just 5 calories. Each drink drop dissolves into a fizz kids will love to watch and then drink! Drop it! Watch it! Drink it! Get $1.00 off

New KRAFT HOMESTYLE DELUXE Macaroni & Cheese Dinner. Delivers homemade taste in every bite. Its rich and creamy cheese sauce finished with a crunchy breadcrumb topping will make it a new family favorite. Get $1.50 off.

New KRAFT 100 CALORIE PACKS CHEESE BITES. Lets you savor cheese bites with big flavor in perfectly satisfying, 100 calorie portions.  Enjoy this wholesome snack anywhere, anytime. Get $1.50 off.

New DIGIORNO® Deep Dish Pizza. Great at lunch time with a taste experience you'd expect from a restaurant. It's microwaveable with a delicious buttery and flaky crust and juicy toppings. Get $1.50 off.

OSCAR MAYER Deli Fresh Shaved Meats. Sliced, packed and sealed at the peak of freshness. Get $1.50 off.

Free Taco Bell Limeade Sparkler

I saw this and thought that other would like too! It is a free Taco Bell Limeade Sparkler your choice of cherry or classic.  It is a regular 16 oz drink and no other purchase required.  It is limited one per a person. You have 6 days to use and can print out 2. A little patience is needed it is a smartsource coupon and takes a little while to print. What a good way to cool down.

Vaca in Sunny Flordia

   So some of you may know that we have been on vacation in sunny Florida. Thanks to our gracious family giving us some of their timeshare point allotment.  And some of you may know that we used to live in the Tampa Bay area so it has been nice to see some old friends and family.  And some of you are saying and what is the point of this post.  Boy she is rambling and why do we care.  One.. that is the reason ... not so many post on the blog.  And mainly ...here is it is...  most of moms have to deal with "vacations" a time when really our work is doubled. And we need a quite hotel room for a day and night after our "vacation".  I've figured out that a lot of that is due that we feel like it is on our shoulders to make it a perfect experience for everyone else. (Cue "awh" music)
   This vacation was very impromtu and because most of the planning time that I had landed on the last several days of school, had to finish my cake decorating class, Dr visits and other errands time was not on my side.
   If I had one more day I think I would be coming home to a nice clean house, but oh well.  It looks more like a tornado hit. What really was a life saver was all my "stocking up" from my couponing and freezer meals. We still had to buy things while we have been here.  But meal planning has been supper easy and cost effective.   So to the relaxing part.  ( I know right three paragraphs later and she is finally making a point.) Keep meal time easy.  Frozen meals are great for this, just like at home. Get your family involved with meal time. It was so nice to grill out and let the boys do most of the work. Lunch was a couple of sandwich choice or leftovers. Also so many times we over plan things to do on our vacations. Which almost became the case here. Instead we are using our traveling days to double as "site seeing" (or people seeing) days.  I did do research on local parks.  That way if we needs times to stretch our legs some where else there was a quick inexpensive option.  My hubby loved being able to scope out some of the places just in case. 

Canning Adventure Plus Coupons for You

For the past couple of years I've been doing the freezer jam. Kind of like canning but not quite.

Today I went to a House Party Sponsored by Ball. (Thanks Tracey for the invite! Had a blast!)

We made Salsa and Pineapple Upside Down Cake Freezer Jam. With our wonderful goody bag that we got to take home we have $2.00 coupons for Ball New Canning Discovery Kit. It is $10.00 at Walmart.  There should be Coupons for this and other Ball products in the June 6th paper. I havn't gotten this yet.  I did get the utensil Set and the Blue Book guide to preserving. The book it great! It has information on every method of food preserving and recipes.

But here it is. I have 5 to 6 extra $2 coupons for those of you who think they want to start canning.  Let me know if you want them.

Product Description Foodies who love new cooking techniques will appreciate this low-cost starter set. A modern product design/ trendy recipes attract new consumers to trial using existing kitchenware. Kit Inclusions:

• Polypropylene rack with separate, fitted lifter that works in standard stockpot
• 3 Pint jars
• Illustrated, simplified canning instruction Recipe book
• Bounce-back coupons for additional jars

I think is it great. Grow your own tomatoes and have too many. Can 3 to 5 jars of salsa. Fresh all Natural. Careful. You might get hooked!

Crystal Light at Vocal Point

This is a site I have not been disappointed in, Vocalpoint.  They send samples and coupons and and leave a comment on their website about the product. I can't wait to get my free samples of Crystal Light, and find out what coupons that I get. Register and get your free Crystal Light.

Hair Glorious Hair

 So many of you know I've trying to find a salon  that would donate hair to the oil spill. I got tired of having to grow it out for locks of love.  I had a few more inches and that would take most of the summer. Well today I found one and one that wouldn't brake the bank. Great Clips.  Not all Great Clips are recycling hair so call.
This Great Clips is in the Merchant's Exchange Shopping Center. (on the other side of the dollar theater) Their phone number is 770-578-0929.  A cut and shampoo $18(before tip)!  Always remember to tip your hair stylist. My stylist was Charlotte. She is awesome! She does a great shampoo and and a great cut!

Parent's Night Outs

Holt Road Baptist Church is having their Parent's Night Out tonight.  Register on Website.  $5 per a child from 6:30-10 pm.  Pizza, crafts, games, and a movie.

East Cobb United Methodist is having their Parent's/ Kids Night out Tomorrow Night. May 22nd 6:30- 10pm at the fellowship hall. It is a project of Girl Scout Troop #2451.  (ages 18 months—8 years) An evening of fun and games, movie & snacks. Reservations are not necessary. Contact: Jody, Co-leader at 404/308-7057 
There is a lot I don't know about this.  I've put in a call.  I don't know if there is cost or what kind of food is being served. But here are my assumptions, Since it is for a Girl scout project it is most likely free.  Since it says snacks I would feed your children supper before they go.  
Update:  I have gotten a call back form Jody and it is a donation based.  And it is just snacks.. so feed the kiddos supper before they go.