Excuse # 5,892

My blogging has been rather poor! I truly enjoy having a way that I can connect with all of you and air my opinions, concerns, gripes, and just life in general. I find it sort of theraputic, since Brad knows everything that is going on and I NEED to be able to talk to someone else (rather talk at) it works well with me. I try to be positive most of the time and be entertaining as well as realistic. I'm trying to help you all with your coupon ventures as well (but this is not and will not be the source of my blog).

The last month has been incredibily difficult for me, both emotionally and obvisouly physically. Although I have been through the whole not being able to do anything before (July- late September) this time has been so much harder on me. I am so thankful for the church we are attending, because those gracious souls took one more stress away from us! I can not say thank you enough for your help!

I have finally accepted the fact that I have been quite depressed through this and honestly just didn't want to be where I was. (I did have a lot of GREAT memories through the month, with the holidays and family visits, but they were difficult to be get to a place I was comfortable.)

I am starting to feel better about everything now knowing that on tuesday I can start the process of getting back to my normal life.

With this I didn't feel comfortable enough to really blog about anything, I didn't want to air every grievance, or just whine and pout and be negative. I want this to be a happy place and somewhere that you can come and get a quick laugh and then move on with the rest of your day. I plan on finishing my coupon posts here in the next 2 weeks or so (as long as everything continues to get better), but have not done any grocery shopping since thanksgiving, so I'm pretty much going to have to start from scratch again, so we can start again together, just remember to be patient! I'm also planning on on posting about the last month (possibly year) in the near future.

I have several goals for the new year;

1. Be more family oriented, plan fun things to do with the kids, go on more dates with my hubby, and enjoy each other.

2. start walking (and hopefully eventually running again) for nothing else but enjoyment and to feel better about myself.

3. become more frugal so that we can pay things off and provide a better life for our family. Be able to do the things we want to do,whenever we would like.

4. Blog atleast every other day.

5. become more active in our church and community!

These are all goals, not promises, things that I want to work on for me to be a better person. I know that they will take time to get in the habit of doing them, but I think they are all worth it. I am going to be realistic that I am going to fall off the band wagon, but I will just climb back on and try as hard as I can!

I hope that you all have a great year and get everything you hope for! Thanks for sticking with me through all my excuses and rants!

Life sometimes not so fun

We all know that life has its ups and downs, and most of the time everyones life is like a roller coaster. We all have times when it seems like we are on that great climb to greatness and then we kind of sit at the very top for a while before we start to take that plunge to the bottom, only to start climbing again.

I feel like Im starting that accelerated downfall after the 3 month climb to the top. The last 2.5 to 3 months have been very good to the Warren household. We started with Brad getting an AMAZING new job in mid september. We were lucky enough to find a house that was close to his work, in a great section of town and move in 3 weeks later about a month before we had planned, a huge blessing considering we were living 150 miles apart. We were lucky enough to not have to move our stuff alone and had a moving company move and pack all of our stuff, nerve racking but great all at the same time. Brad and my relationship has been so much easier since we have been here, so much less stressed! I feel like we are finally where we are supposed to be! Life has been good!

Then I had surgery on December 2nd and I was looking down that steep fall! I was so lucky to have my mother in law keep the kids for several days and then come help take care of me! I can't tell you how much that meant to me, I missed my kids, but KNEW I was not going to be able to take care of them yet by myself. Tammie helped in so many ways, making meals, bathing the kids, playing and keeping them occupied, getting me food,meds and ice, and other menial tasks (this is not to sound degrading, it just by definition fits so many things I talk about, housework, mothering etc). Sadly though she had to leave! And the actual turn downward began.

I am so lucky to have a great hubby, he loves the kids and works so hard to provide for us. He works hard and comes home and works even harder. The last week has been very trying on my patience, just because I am crabby and set in my ways. Although Brad has been great and done so much, I like things done in my time and my way. I get anxious when the floor is not vacuumed as often as I see fit, and if there are dishes in the sink. I can deal with a messy house as long as those two things are done, but if they are not done the way I do it, then I flip out! I try to keep my mouth shut so that I'm not complaining and make him feel like hes not doing a good enough job, because he is!

With this flip out comes bitterness, anger, guilt. and frustration. I have had a really hard time emotionally with the fact that I can't do anything, I get frustrated that I can't take care of the kids the way I need and want to during the day, and that I can't carry things from one room to another or at all. The guilt that I feel about being able to take care of my kids and do the work that is my responsibility has overwhelmed me. I'm apprehensive about telling Brad what needs to be done, because I know that he is tired and is doing more than his fair share, but I feel like so much is not getting done, and I can not crawl around on my knees and vacuum the whole house, or stand on my foot to put up the dishes. I know his priorities are different than mine, he gets antsy when there are toys all over the floor, or the trash is stuffed in the trashcan too full, or there are coke cans left on my night table.

I understand he is under just as much stress as I am, I understand that he is trying to make sure that everything is getting done and he just like myself just physically can't do it all. He is worried about me and my healing correctly and quickly. He is worried about the kids being taken care of and loved and played with. He is worried about having to do the grocery shopping, driving me around for atleast the next 4 weeks as well as everything else! I know I need to give him a break because he is doing a fabulous job, but im so tired of having to rely on everyone else! I wish I could just do that jeanie thing and nod my head and it would all be over so that we could get back to normal. I just want to be able to take care of my family and go back to our normal routine! I just want my sanity back! I don't want to be so stressed that every word we say to each other is snippy and spiteful meaning it or not. I don't want to dread the return from work because I know the stress is overwhelming on both our parts. I want to rely on me and only me! I want to be able to get back to the normal. I want to smile and not bitch anymore, and with that I am calling this quits, enough for one day, actually for a lifetime, bt i'm done with this!

A break from coupons for what is really important

When Brad and I moved to Nashville in mid October we were expecting to have to go to several different churches before we found one that we would be able to settle with. We figured that it would take us several months to find somewhere we wanted to call our church home. Boy was I wrong! I mean I was TERRIBLY wrong! 1 visit and we were comfortable!

We started going to this church after we took the kids trunk or treating there, after all we had just moved and it was literally just down the street. We ended up missing the majority of the "treating" but that was okay, the members that remained immediately came to us and invited us to join them, much like any church would do, but this is not what has amazed me about them.

As most people know I grew up in the Episcopal Church, my dad is a priest so we were always very active in the church for obvious reasons. I enjoyed several things about this church, especially as a child, but then as I have gotten older, and been able to see the "behind the scenes" way the church is SOMETIMES run, and honestly how snooty it CAN be, I have decided that although the service itself is comfortable, this is not necessarily the way I want to raise my kids. I appreciate more than I can explain the people that I have met and continue to stay in contact with, everyone of them has had an undeniable influence on the person I was and still am. I have met so many amazing people, but most of that was because of the position my dad was in and not for who I was, I can not tell you how many times I was introduced to people as " this is Bryant Kiblers daughter", not really allowed to be my own person, or discover who I really was. Once I had been around people for a while I could sort of let go, but unfortunately when you are a priests family member your whole life is a public spectacle. Never once can I remember someone coming to the aid of my family, whether someone was sick, or when my mom had surgery when we were preteens, or when we (I) just needed someone to be there.

Now I am 29 years old, I have tried the Baptist church and felt like I was going to hell after each service I attended. Some of them not as bad as others, but I always felt guilty for having a glass of wine here, or not tithing 10% of gross income when I could not even pay all of our bills. I'm sorry but I know where a lot of this money goes to, I can't give if I can't even provide for my family, and I'm sure that God would not condemn me for that. So I stuck with what I was comfortable with, the key word was stuck. I knew the church, how the "seasons" worked, I knew what it stood for, and felt comfortable with that, this left me to only have to worry about the people part.

So when we got here my anxiety about finding somewhere that I felt comfortable with just so that the kids could grow up in a church and get the information Brad and I could not remember was important. But just somewhere as a filler was important, I was not expecting to find what I have always wanted, especially so fast and in such a big city. We started attending the Crievewood United Methodist Church down the street from our house, and just like the trunk or treating, people sought us out! I sort of expected a small amount of this, but I NEVER expected to have the amount of warmth, welcoming, and hospitality that was shown to us, it was like we were the only new family in a church of 10, where there is no way not to know you were new.

We immediately began attending Sunday school, and that is where my heart just melts. Within that very first meeting I had the contact information for all the moms in the class to contact with any questions I had, and an open invitation for play dates. I was so excited to know that there were kids in the neighborhood that were the same age as my munchkins, but that would also grow up with my kids in school and church! I was comforted to know that several of these families had grown up in this church and neighborhood and loved it so much that they either never left or returned after being away for a short time.

As we all know I had surgery at the beginning of the month, this was shared with my Sunday school class as I had asked for prayers for patience and a speedy recovery. We have been to this church MAYBE 2 months, we are not members, have not mentioned that we would like to become members, but I am eternally greatful! These families, that barely know us, have taken time out of their busy days, and schedules to help us! The class has setup a meal chart for us, so that we have a hot healthy meal every other day or so. Although 1 meal does not seem like a lot, let me tell you how much stress it takes off of myself and Brad, since I can't place ANY weight on my right foot for the next 3-5 weeks. Brad is having to do pretty much everything, kids, cleaning, cooking, shopping, etc so that meal we just have to heat and serve is a TREMENDOUS help to us. Every time I think about the generosity of these kind hearts, I literally get a lump in my throat and hold back the tears.

This is the way I want my kids to be raised, to know that we help ANYONE that we can, no matter how menial the task may seem. I want them to understand, that being a good Christian is not about just going to church and saying you believe, its in the way you conduct your life and the actions OUTSIDE the church your participate in. I want them to know what being a good steward is truly all about, and just after this short time in Crievewood UMC I have seen this, I know that I have found a home that I am not settling with, but completely comfortable with!

Thank you Crievewood UMC for giving me what I have always been looking for, yet never able to find! Thank you for opening your heart to my family and making us feel so very comfortable and welcome. Thank you for making us feel like we are part of the Crievewood family and that we matter! I can't thank you enough!

couponing: what I use to help me

Howdy readers,

I am sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you. I am finally off pain meds and able to concentrate without my head falling off from dizziness.

Over the years I have tried to use coupons, and like most people that I have talked to did not save any money and honestly spent more on items I normally would have and gotten products that I never used. I wasted a lot of money, I did not understand how to get the most out of the coupons. I had decided that it was just a waste of time, and I knew I spent more money than I saved, by a lot!

Now I knew that manufacturers and retailers still made a profit after the use of the coupon. I understood the cost of production and how that works, and how it relates to actual price of the product. See most people don't think about all the things that go into making a product. There is of course the things that everyone thinks of, the actual product, and packaging, but most people don't think about everything else that goes into making a product. We forget about, the cost of products to actually make the product being sold, the labor costs to make, package, load, and deliver said product. We forget that the company is having to pay for the utilities to make that product, the electic, water, trash, gas, rental of truck and mileage to and from store. There is a lot that goes into the price of a product. I know more info than you care to know.

But what I did not know was that you don't just use a coupon to use a coupon. Couponing is as some people say an art, the art of stacking coupons on an item that is already on sale, when you do this you can get items for very little or even free. I did not know how coupons actually work, meaning I did not know that the manufacturers, pay the price of the coupon back +$.08 to the retailer, as long as they are used correctly. So to me, it is actually better for the store to use those coupons, they make more money in the long run, however if you do not use them correctly, that is fraud and illegal, and the store does not get reimbursed.

The very first thing I suggest you do to become an avid couponer is to pick one store and one store only to start with. When you pick more than that, I feel that you become so overwhelmed with all the stores different policies and procedures, and finding the deals, that you are more than likely to get burnt out and just give it up. So start small with one store. Get online and research your stores coupon policy, this is very important to your success and feeling good about what you are doing. If you can't get the polocy online, go talk to your stores customer service manager, they are generally more happy to help you in the beginning than have to someone that doesnt understand trying to rip them off because they don't know what is going on. Remember just because the register allows a coupon, does not mean that you are using it correctly.

I also recommend that you find a few (no more than 5) blogs to read and help you find those good deals that are out there. I say no more than 5 because once again you will get overwhelmed, and honestly a lot of the blogs repeat the same information. Some of my favorites are; hip2save.com, addictedtosaving.com, freebies4mom.com, Iheartpublix.com (she also has one thats called Iheartkroger.com, but I haven't used or looked at this one since I prefer publix), and totallytarget.com . I subscribe to these through an rss feed in my google reader (you have this if you have a gmail account, its just called reader on the top left of your screen when signed into your account.) With this being said, I would go ahead and set up an additional email account that you use only for signing up for freebies, and your couponing "stuff."

Obviously, you can get coupons from the sunday paper, but there are several websites that post coupons as well; coupons.com, redplum.com, smartsource.com, and of course you can go to manufacturer sites to see if they have any promotions going on. Facebook also has manufacturer pages, where they have samples and/or coupons. (I have also added my favorite blog sites to my friends on facebook, they post lots of deals there as well)

I'm starting to get unfocused, so I'm going to stop here. Next time, I will pick up where I left off and go into organization of the coupons you have.

Good luck with couponing, until then next time!

Coupon Abbreviations.

Coupon abbreviations that you should know. You will see most of these on blogs that you are/will follow.

• $1/1,$2/1, $1/2 etc.= This means the amount of discount compared to the number of products to obtain that discount. for example $1/1 is $1 off of 1 item, $2/1 is $2 off of 1 item, $1/2 is $1 off of two items. With this you have to purchase the number specified to recieve discount.
• AC= After Coupon
• AR= After Rebate (you pay out of pocket, send reciept in and get a check back to you)
• BC= Before Coupon
• Blinkie= a machine that dispenses coupons in the store, usually in front of the product. There is usually a red light on the side that blinks.
• BOGO, B1G1, B1G1F= Buy one get one free
• B2G1= Buy 2 get 1 free
• BFTE= Box tops for education, These get sent in and the school you designate gets a so much money per "top"
• B&M= Bricks and Mortar, refers to a store building as opposed to an online store
• CAT or Catalina= coupons that print out of register after your purchase, usually based on what you purchased. (whatch expiration dates)
• CPN or Q= coupon
• CRT= cash register tape, your receipt
• DCRT= dated cash register tape
• DND= do not double
• ECB= extra care bucks from CVS, this is money that can be used on your next purchase that prints after you purchase that day. They do have expiration dates.
• ES= easy saver, Walgreens montly coupon/rebate book, located in store.
• ETA= edited to Ad
• ETS= Excludes travel sizes
• EX or X= expires on
• FAR= free after rebate, (pay out of pocket and then get reimbursed )
• Filler= items you buy in order to meet required amount to use coupons or get a deal
• FS = free shipping
• FLIP= food lion internet printables
• GC =Gift cards
• GDA= good deal alert
• GM= general mills
• Hangtag= coupon that is hanging from a tag around a bottle or jar
• HTH= hope that helps
• IP or IPQ= internet printable
• IVC= Instant value coupons, walgreens monthly or weekly coupons
• JEDI= The cashier that you want, knows what is going on
• MFG or MFR= Manufacterer
• MIR = mail in rebate (pay out of pocket and get reimbursed)
• MC or MQ= Manufacturer coupon
• MM = money maker, making money after coupons
• NED= no expiration date
• NWPN= no wine purchase necessary ( Publix coupon)
• ONYO= on your next order
• OOP= out of pocket
• OVERAGE= money you earn when coupon exceeds price of item ( store specific to whether they allow overages)
• PEELIE= coupon that is stuck to a product like a sticker. intended to be used then
• P&G= procter and gamble
• PSA= price starts at
• POP= proof of purchase (upc code)
• Q or CPN= coupon
• REGIONAL= deal in only specific area
• RC= Rain check, out of sale item, store allows you to get item when restocked at sale price
• RP= red plum insert in paper
• RR= Register rewards, walgreens money coupon after a purchase to be used towards next purchase, has CLOSE expiration date.
• SCR= single check rebate, rite aid
• SP = stock pile
• SS= smart source insert in paper
• STACKING= using more than 1 coupon example, 1 manufacter coupon, 1 store coupon, 1 competitor coupon on 1 item.
• TEARPAD= pad of coupons placed in the store usually in front of the item.
• TMF= try me free, (usually pay first and then get rebate, can be stacked with coupons for even more savings)
• TRIPLE= tripling a coupon in value
• UPC= universal product code, bar code
• UPR= up rewards, a catalina coupon to use at rite aid
• WAGS= walgreens
• WSL= while supplies last
• WT= wine tag (publix wine club)
• WYB= when you buy
• V= valassis coupon insert found in sunday paper ( same as red plum, smart source, etc)
• X= expiration date
• YMMV= your mileage may vary, may not be worth the deal based on mileage you have to travel.

Coupons 101

We have all seen coupons in some form or fashion over the years, but coupons have started to come in many more forms in the last few years.

When I think of a coupon I typically think of the traditional coupon which I find in the newspaper, or is sent in the mail by a manufacturer.

Do not print this coupon it is for demonstration purposes only and is NOT valid!

(Thanks to BlueDogBakery.com for this image)

However, coupons come in many forms and can be tangible or just codes. Here are a few types of coupons you will likely see;

• manufacturer coupon- typically by a brand for a specific product, coupon will say manufacturer coupon
• retailer or store coupon- a coupon offered by a store for specific item or amount off a product(s)
• peelie coupons- a coupon that is stuck to a product like a sticker to try to get you to buy item right then
• printable coupons- coupons that are online that you can print out and redeem at a store for a specific item, typically a manufacturer coupon. (I will post websites I use for these at the end)
• catalina coupons- coupons that print from the register after your purchase, usually based on your purchase.
• electronic coupons- coupons that can be loaded onto your loyalty card (i.e. Kroger card, cvs card etc.) from the Internet.
• loyalty cards (Kroger plus card, cvs card)- discounts that are typically automatically deducted from the price of an item if you buy the allotted amount.
• mailers- coupons sent you via snail mail for a specific product.
• online coupons/promotional code- usually a code (series of letters and/or numbers) that you would enter upon checkout of an online purchase.

The definition of a coupon according to wikipedia is a "ticket or document that can be exchanged for a financial discount or rebate when purchasing a product."

Coupons are typically used by a company and/or retailer to try to entice you to purchase a specific product. The coupon by itself is not always a good deal, as the coupon alone usually specifies a specific brand/size/amount that you have to purchase to get the discount allotted. The savings come when you learn to look for sales and stack those coupons to get even better deals.

How a coupon works.

We are going to use the coupon I posted at the top again to understand how to look at coupons.

The most important thing about a coupon is understanding what that coupon is saying. There are 5 main things that I look for when looking at a coupon;

1. Whether the coupon is a manufacturers coupon or a store coupon, you can see that this one is a manufacturers coupon. (You will want to know this based on your stores coupon policy, I know I can stack a store AND manufacturers coupon for even more savings.)
2. When the coupon expires, I look for this so that I know how much time I have to find a good deal. (From what I have seen so far, most coupons will be good for about a month)
3. What the coupon actually is for, and how many items I have to purchase to obtain the discount. This coupon is for $1.00 off of 1 (or $1/1) bag of dog treats.
4. I also look for a minimum size on the purchase, I am learning, that I can get somethings for free, because of the no size exclusions. (I get trial sizes of deodorant/laundry detergent for free because most do not excluded trial/travel sizes)
5. In the middle there are usually guidelines on how to use the coupon, whether you can pair (stack) it with another coupon or not. It will also say how many coupons can be used per transaction (total purchase) or purchase (one item).

***I want to remind you all that I am still learning and am not trying to give you incorrect information. To the best of my knowledge, I am giving you correct and authentic information. Once again, make sure that you do your own research, and check with your stores on their policies!***

This next part we are going to go through how the coupons actually work. I want to to give credit for this to Hip2save and AccuGraphix both for content and graphics. We will be using this bar code for the next explanation (this has probably been the most important info I have used)

UCC prefix (NSC) - This number will always be a 5 or a 9. These numbers have to do with doubling if you store will allow.

EAN UCC prefix- These numbers tell the register what type of coupon it is. (whether this is a peelie or an insert coupon, although I have not looked at this)

UCC Company prefix (EAN UCC company prefix)- positions 2-6 (3-8) this group of numbers identify the manufacturer (brand), these must match the product you are purchasing and is how the computer validates your coupon.

Family code- The next 3 numbers are the family code. For example, I'm going to give you two different groups of numbers, from two different coupons. Both for Pampers products, but one for wipes and one for diapers

ucc prefix UCC company code Family code value code (we haven't gone over yet)

wipes

5 37000 462 50

diapers box

5 37000 481 82

As you can see Prefix code is 5 both could be doubled, if your store allows

UCC Company Code is the same both are PAMPERS brand

family code is different, this shows what the exact product is that can be purchased.

Value Code- The last two numbers in the group are the value of the coupon, what you need to purchase to get said amount. These numbers do not necessarily tell you the exact amount off, as they are a code and there are more than 100 codes for a full list of the values go here or here.

Check Digit- This is the very last number, and is somehow calculated by the rest of the digits in the bar code system. It will change but I do not really understand the purpose of this number!

I highly recommend you visit Hip2Save Be A Confident Shopper post and her coupon newbies info. (She is one of my favorite bloggers and I use Collin's help A LOT!!!!! She is very funny and realistic) as well as AccuGraphiX "The Bar code people" which is where I got a lot of my information.

Please remember, that I am still learning and I am to the best of my knowledge giving you correct information, to aid in your ability to get the most out of your couponing. Please check with your store(s) to get their policy. Just because you can ring up a coupon, does not mean that you should! Make sure to do your research!

Thanks again to Hip2Save, Accugraphix, and bluedogbakery for your help!

Couponing first post in the series

I need to come up with a good name for this series, any ideas?

As I promised WEEKS ago, I am now starting my series of posts on couponing. I have been doing a TON of research and compiling of information to make sure that I relay all the correct information. This being said I am still learning myself! I am finding and learning new things every time I turn around! I have several websites/blogs that I refer to daily! (All of which I will be including in these posts. Just not exactly how each post will pan out exactly, I'm winging it). Please make sure that you check with all the stores around your area for their policies. You should be able to find these on their websites or by just going to the service desk and talking to a manager.

There are several things you should know about couponing to be successful.

1. You WILL feel overwhelmed at first, it is okay, I still do today and I have had great success in just over a month.

2. You will have to put sometime and effort into collecting coupons/finding the deals each week. I spend about an hour every day or so.

3. Do NOT try to get every deal.... ever (no matter how good you get at this), this will make it impossible for you to be successful! (and then I would be worried about hoarding and wasting money on things you won't use)

4. If you are doing this correctly you should be that crazy person at the register with ATLEAST 30 coupons.

5. Be proud of yourself, not embarrassed and ashamed. I have found the last two times, people are more curious about how I save so much than having to wait in line while the cashier is scanning all my coupons. Be polite, patient, and open with your experiences and savings and you will find that people are more entertained than bothered.

6. Do NOT try to start with both the grocery store and drugstores at the same time. Pick your most used grocery and start there, I would recommend using just that for about 6 weeks, so that you have it down pat, before throwing in 1 drugstore.

7. Most importantly be prepared to make mistakes! Understand that this is not an easy task and you have to figure out what works best for you.

8. Most importantly HAVE FUN!!!!!!!

I'm hoping that friday I will be able to make a coherent (I'm having foot surgery thursday) post about either why you should coupon and/or how coupons work. Please let me know if there is something specific you want to know, so that I can research and find the best place to put it in this series!

Happy couponing (and learning)!

Today I feel like

Today I feel like the worst person on the face of the planet. I feel like I have given up on someone entirely too early. I feel like I have been selfish with my feelings and my hurt. I feel like I have not given her a chance.

Today I just want to curl up in a corner and say that I am sorry, for not being there, not understanding, not being the friend needed.

Today, my heart is breaking even more than it has before. I am so sorry my dear friend.

I'm not sure where to even start with my apology as I am nost sure it will even do justice for the neglect and undesereved doubts! I am so sorry!

I found an awesome deal!

I found an AMAZING deal today at my publix today!

But just so you know, whatever you do, DO NOT take pictures of the isle signs! I did this today so that I could get my coupon binder in order of the store to make more efficient and I got told that I was NOT ALLOWED to take pictures, this occured in isle 5 of 13. So as you can imagine my next 8 isles were written out and kind of combobulated.

But anywho, the point! My mom bought me an oral b power toothbrush for xmas from target, it was marked down from $70 some odd bucks to 34.99, and then I had a $10/1 coupon from the p&g insert to make it 24.99, which I though was a pretty good deal. Just the brush and no replacement "head" brush thing.

So Brad decided that he wanted one, so when I was going to the store today, I was looking at all the booklets that publix has and noticed that they had $10/1 oral b coupon for the toothbrush and then I had another from p&g coupon from todays paper for $10/1, so i dedcided that I would look. thinking that it would be way more expensive, boy was i wrong!

Publix (in my nashville store) had an oral-b vitality power toothbrush for 26.99. (now I am still learning, but my store will allow you to stack a store coupon (which has an LU # usually on the bottom) and a manufactures coupon (which says manufactures coupon on top), I checked with the cashier before she wrung them up and was told that I should be able to do them both and the computer would beep if it was not allowed, which it obviously did not)

so

toothbrush 26.99

store coupon -10.00

manufacture coupon -10.00

_____

total price 6.99 before tax

what an awesome deal!

Now this being said, should I find out from a reader that we (cashier and myself) made a mistake with this I will be returning to the store to fix my error!

As I am still very much learning, and still somewhat overwhelmed, please make sure that you check with your store to see what their rules and regulations are! I have not been able to find them other than what the staff has verbally told me and from what I can tell all stores are different!

I'm too tired to write!

I know I promised several people my coupon hints and sites yesterday, but to be completely honest I am too dang tired to even think about putting together a coherent and useful post about couponing. I'm sorry, hopefully tomorrow will be the day!

But I do have to tell you about this horrible melt down we had yesterday and ask for you advice!

Yesterday my sweet, adorable, can't do anything wrong (he he he) 5 yr old threw this MASSIVE fit, in public.........in target! Now I'm not just talking about crying, I can deal with that, but SCREAMING the ENTIRE way through target. Now, this has become something that has started over the past year, but has never happened in public and never to this extent. We make sure to tell her that fits are not okay and that they are not exceptable. They also mostly occur when her way has not been gotten. Typically when a fit begins, she is sent to her room to calm down after given the option to either stop fussing and talk about the situation or go sit in her room. When sitting in her room she is to sit in the very middle without any distractions so that she can think about what is going on. (We are trying to get her to work on feelings when they are starting and through them so she understands what is going on in her brain and express them, but we are not anywhere close to this yet.)

What worries me most is that lately when these fits start it is also starting to begin with aggression, usually hitting something like the door when she is walking out of it, or snatching as hard as she can so that her arm is wound back and propels all the way around the front of her body. This is in NO WAY acceptable and will not be tolerated. When this sort of out break begins she is once again told why that action is not acceptable and told to either explain why she did that action and to calm down or go sit and think. If the fit is completely out of wack and is drawn out excessively or we are told no she wont sit in time out SEVERAL times, she will recieve a spanking and an explaination and be put in timeout until she is calm enough to sit and talk about why she responded the way she did, and the action(s) that landed her in the punishment she received. I am not one that likes to spank, so we try not to use this route unless absolutely necessary.

I know that I have a problem with yelling and I am very actively trying to work on this, I am trying to use an athoritative/calm voice. We explain to her that she is NOT a bad girl, but the choice she made was not the best choice to make. I don't quite know where to go though, I feel like the whole situation is getting worse, and I can tell you that I really don't think timeouts are working, by the time she calms down, she can't even remember what she is so upset about. I have tried taking away toys for negative attitudes and this is not effective, I don't think spankings are effective either. I am at a loss for what to do. I have also tried making her do things that she doesn't like, ie sweeping, cleaning, basically manual labor and this has no effect, she finds a way to like said chore.

I would really like to nip this attitude in the butt before it gets any worse. Please offer any advice you can give! Anything that may have worked for kids in your family, things your parents did with you. I love my daughter very much and want her to grow up and understand why we can't act certain ways, and have good morals. I am just lost.

has to be one of my favorite

This age that Tyler is currently at, has to be one of the most fun.

They have yet to learn to talk back, but are still learning what is okay and what is not. They are also learning new skills and things every day.

They still think that everything is funny, and will still let you cuddle.

Tyman is really funny right now. He is learning like crazy and just has the best personallity I could ask for.

Here is his latest new adventure/heart attack for mom, because it never takes place at an opportune time. Usually when standing right by some table with sharp edges, or even more fun, jumping off something, like say oh a brick fireplace, or a bed that is taller than him.

But enjoy

The craziness it has returned.

To be completely honest, after we moved to Nashville I was sure that our life was going to slow down and we would be able to relax, boy was I wrong! Was I ever wrong! And I can't tell you how thrilled about it I am! I think that we are all so very happy in our new surroundings. I think that we finally feel like we are where we need to be.

So we finally got here on Oct 8 and we have been on the move ever since. Of course the 9th was brads 30th birthday so we unpacked and set everything up for the next two weeks. On the weekend of the 23rd we went to visit my mom for her birthday, and then mid week the same week we went back to Kentucky, to visit my dad. The day we returned we took part in all the halloween festivities, which I might add lasted for 3 days.

The next week was normal and just getting used to everything. Then Brad was one during the week for army stuff. And then this past weekend was abby's birthday party, which was crazy, fun but crazy. This weekend Brad has army all weekend. We have a birthday party and we are going to be preparing for thanksgiving, which is in a week.

I am so very excited that my grandparents and mom/ stepdad are coming for thanksgiving. So next week we will be busy as little bees. Then my birthday is wednesday and I am taking the kiddos to tammie for the weekend, while I have surgery on my foot. Tammie will be here the following week while I recover to help with kids and myself while brad is working. I will be unable to do anythng for two weeks, so she will either take Abby back with her, or Brad will be staying home with me. All of this depends on how I am feeling. We will then have 1 week until christmas. Can you believe it one week till christmas?

I think that maybe after valentines day we may actually slow down enough to catch our breath!

I know this post is completely unorganized! I am sorry, I just needed to post something so that I could get my brain around the next several weeks.

Today is a day of thanks!

Today is veterans day, a day that I am so very proud of, yet for so many reasons, makes me so very sad.

Today we and I do mean we, myself included, actually take the time to say thank you to all those that have given up so much for this country, for the world. We as a society acknowledge on this day that we could not live like this alone. We acknowledge all those that have served, are serving, and will serve in the United States Armed Forces. Veterans day and Memorial day are really the only two days that most people acknowledge what our servicemen and women have given up for us!

Our servicemen and women don't just sign a contract when they join the military, they for lack of better words sign over themselves and their lives to every citizen for their chosen time in service. When you sign that line, you are telling everyone in the world, that you want to be here to serve them, you want to put everyone else before you. No matter what job you hold, you want to be here to honor and protect those around you, before yourself.

It does not matter if that service member was/ is a quartermaster, or a musician, or an instructor. It does not and should never matter if that member has or has not been in hostile territory. We have all given you our word that we are going to do what we need to do to protect you the citizens of the Unites States, and our brothers and sisters in arms before ourselves.

Each member has a very important job in the military no matter where they are located, or how menial or demanding they have, we all support each other. Some service members are used in very dangerous positions in all parts of the world, but they could not do that job without their counterparts that are cooks, a much more laughed about job. Those Cooks cold not do their job without the truck drivers, whom bring the supplies needed to feed all the soldiers. The truck drivers can't do their job without the petroleum specialist, which take care of everything that has to do with fuel. Musicians are often laughed at and told that we just play our instruments and what are we going to do with the enemy? T he soldiers that have been able to sit and listen to the Rock Band perform while they are deployed and just being able to sit and relax, or their families while they are deployed being able to let their hair down and be entertained. Although I was never deployed, I can't tell you how many people were impacted by the music played from all musicians. I can not explain to you the emotions that I have seen coming from soldier and their families. The moral that so many provide is immeasurable.

What people forget is that we are all trained together, and then are sent off to specific jobs. We are all trained to shoot a rifle, we are all trained to throw a grenade, we are all taught hand to hand combat, we all have to pass basic first aid, we all have to pass the same tests, at anytime, we all have to be able to pass tests that we train for in addition to our specific jobs.

Today take the time to appreciate all service members, those who have given their life to protect us, those whom have never seen a day of combat, those whom have said I want to be a protector of this country no matter the price, I want to opportunity to serve you and protect you which is the greatest gift from God! I want to help keep you safe and comfortable! I want to honor and give my all, no matter how menial my job, I will give 110% all the time, I will give my heart to do the best job I can!

Today and every day, take the time to understand, that a service member is doing everything in their power to make this world a better place, one step at a time, one job at a time, with the support and understanding of all our comrades no matter what!

Thank you all who have served with me, served before me, and who have served after me, for helping to mold the person I have become, for helping me to understand what a true family is, and for giving me the OPPORTUNITY to serve you! Your hard work, effort, and heart will never be able to repaid.

I'm getting better

Remember a couple days ago when I was talking about how people get all theis stuff with coupons and B1G1's and save just as much as the spend or more.

Today I accomplished this and I can not be more thrilled. (and I only bought things we normally eat) Today I spent $ 49.92 with tax and everything, and I saved..... drum roll please................ $45.78!!!!!!! I also have a semi packed pantry with stuff we (mostly kids) eat all the time.

On my list today was

2 boxes of Kix cereal (which my kids almost never get) $3.11

4 boxes of cheez-its $5.26

4 boxes of "premium" brownie mix $4.46

2 tubs of breyers ice cream (brads fav before bed snack) $4.99

8 640z bottles of juicy juice (we got through this like crazy $13.40

2 bottles of kens ranch dressing $3.29

2 loaves of arnold 12 grain bread $3.89

plus some other normal items for $15.07

= 53.47

-7.5 in coupons (some doubled)

=45.97 before tax!!!!!!!!

I got $38.28 in free stuff, that I would normally buy! I think I may actually be getting the hang of this. It is all about timing. If you can get the things that you use all the time, when they are on sale and stock up on them ( if they wont go bad of course) then you can save a TON of money! I can not tell you how dang excited I am about this!

29 items later, and I still have money in the bank! That newspaper subscription paid for itself in only a week.

In two weeks I have saved

$53.25 /$29.89 was coupons. this is first trip spent $200 not good:( Beginners frustration

$17.20/$9.10 was coupons. 2nd trip spent $41 getting better

$45.78/7.50 was coupons this is todays!

=116.23 thank you Publix and coupons! I will get better so that I can save more than I pay, just you watch and see!!!!!!

Things I can not do with kids.

Things that I can not do with kids....

a. Cook, My sweet loving toddler likes to try to help. By opening the oven door, pulling on the stove. (with gates up and locked out of kitchen he screams bloody murder) needless to say, I don't get much cooking done by myself.

b. Shower at the new house, Tyler tries to climb on the shower door, on the toilet, on the sink by pulling on the basin and pulling himself up like a pull up bar. Opening drawers under the washer and dryer and pulling things out. jumping off the hearth of the fireplace ( I would lock the door, but this child is into EVERYTHING, he climbs on the bed and then jumps off, and to be honest I can't hear him or Abby yelling when I am on the far side of the house and the water is running, I'd rather be telling him no constantly than have him fall

and break his neck and me not know about it, atleast I can keep him from climbing on everything)

c. make any sort of rational thought

d. carry on a conversation

e. go to the grocery store and get everything on my list and/or everything I need. Between one screaming and the other pulling everything off the shelf that she THINKS she needs and my telling her no, its a hopeless cause!

f. type on or use the computer, Tyler thinks he needs to do it all for me. Making for very unreadable info. He is trying to help me now.

g. have any mommy time.

h. take a bath.

i. enjoy any meal that I really want to eat. Tyler watches out for my calorie intake by helping restrict the amount of food I eat, I can't even hide food, he is just that good.

j. talk on the phone, hi, hey, hi, hey, hi, hey, ahhhhh, oooooo, go, go, go, no, no, no, hi, hey,hi, no, no, hi, hey!

h. read a book or anything substantial.

Now I know that there is SEVERAL things that I would like to do and momentarily cant, but I would never trade it for the world! I love my life and the stage we are at! I know that my time will come and I will wish these times back, or be able to giggle at someone else who is going through this. But I love it!

things i love

things I love....

my hubby....hims is very silly and i lubs him

the munchkins

the cackles that come from said kiddos when the really get going...it makes my heart jump.

our new house

NASHVILLE

baking (of course this doesnt happen enough because of said kiddos)

reading nonsense i enjoy not thinking

food esp cheeses and carbs

that ive almost lost the sweet tooth ive developed

the 20lbs ive lost i almost and do mean almost fit into my skinniest jeans in the last 5 years....i mean they button and are comfy as long as im standing but when sit they cut the belly. but its going fast

i did the first exercise today since july.

my life right at this point even without local ladies to hang with

this post brought to you via my cell....im sorry in advance.

Family time

We all know that family time is important, and we try to take every minute we possibly can together.

The history of the situation, I worked at MaggieMoo's for almost 4 years. I absolutely loved my job and the people I worked for and with! Brad was working in a factory, making minimum wage with maybe 25-30 hours a week. This was a very difficult time for us. I knew that I would not be able to work after Tyler was born, we would not be able to afford child care for both children. I mean really not be able to afford it. We were just making ends meet as it was. I was picking up all the extra shifts I could and not spending a lot of quality time with family! I loved my job, and at times to this day I miss it alot, but know that I am in the place that I need to be!

I officially left MaggieMoo's about two weeks before Tyler was born, although the entire pregnancy was pretty catch me if you can at work. I was just too darn sick to function, even with meds. About the same time we got the best news that we could have gotten at that time. Brad was being picked up for Military Funeral Honors full time. Financially this was great for us, becuase with taking Abby out of day care and the insurance we would no longer have to pay, we were able to almost make up our old income, which was an awesome feeling. That we would able to make ends meet and not completely stress was a huge relief.

Obviously this was very exciting, we had returned to GREAT insurance, which was and continues to be a huge relief. There was a huge downside to this though. Brad was working 10 hour days 7 days a week, so there was not very much family time. We were all stressed because we wanted him home, the kids were missing his rough housing and aggrivation. I was missing the support that he gives and the little bit of a break he would give me. I felt like a single parent and I hated it. By the time he would actually get home he would be so tired that all he would want to do is read and relax. I just wanted some time to myself.

Since we have moved here to Nashville, everything has changed. Brad has had off a federal holiday, several weekends, and is home most nights. He is able to play with the kids much more. Not too mention how much happier he is in general. I THINK, notice I said think, that he feels like he has a purpose and gets to something that he feels good about. Not to mention he gets to practice more than he did.

We are all so much happier and we just got here. We get to do things as a family and are not too tired to just sludge through it just for the kids. Our lives are so much more fullfilled all the way around! I am so thankful for this opportunity! It has been perfect for us, no if someone would just buy our house!

What to post

Today I have no idea what to post about! No stinking clue, whether to talk about the kids, hubby, life, what I am officially just here today!

UMMMMMMM.....hmmmmmm... I guess I will talk about my new thing I'm trying to get into, coupons and using them. Yeah I know right, we just moved to nashville, and the only thing new I have done, is starting to collect coupons? Something is wrong with this picture, I should be out meeting people, doing something fun, but no my new thing, coupons. Whatever I guess, it sort of gives me something to think about.

When we lived in Milan our options for shopping were quite limited, walmart and a sort of very ghetto grocery store. So we went to walmart, it was great we could get everything we needed in one store plus more. Which was the problem, the plus more. Now that we are living in Nashville, our shopping options have drastically increased. They have walmart store that is just groceries, its called the fresh market, great right cheap, stuff none of the extra don't needs. Life should be perfect, yeah, it kind of sucks, I'm big on customer service and anyone that really knows me can tell you that is what will make my mind about where I go, not the price or ease, the CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!! I take this VERY seriously! But anyway, walmart sucked! Absolutely horrible, yes it had almost everything we needed, but when we couldn't find anything, sorry can't help you, and not so much as a word from the girl at the register, what was she too worried about, take a guess, what is my pet peeve? Oh yes you guessed it, her dang cell phone! YOU ARE AT WORK, HELP SOMEONE! so needless to say, we are NOT going there.

Across the street from that dreaded store, a publix, a HUGE publix, with AMAZING OUTSTANDING service. Downfall, for the most part more expensive, this is taking me some getting used to. See budgeting for the old store and the new store are completely different! I spend quite a bit more money at the publix, but the service, quality, and amount of items carried is well worth it. So I have started trying to get into this whole couponing thing, which is very odd. Some people save 50-75 % each trip, which is blowing my mind, how do you get all the things you need when you have to buy 2 of something to get $.55 off, that you would normally never use two of, isn't that just wasting it, isn't it better to just buy that one item. Now I completely understand, if it has a shelf life or can be frozen, but not everything is this way! I am completely blown away by how people do this. I am at a loss for words, dumbfounded. Last time I went, I had clipped coupons, infact $53.00 worth and used them, not all the items I would usually but, but would eventually eat or the kids liked, and I still spent over $200 for two weeks of groceries! I want this knowledge, I want to be able to go to the grocery store and not spend a life savings on the things I need or want. I want my kids to eat healthier for less, which is a completely different story that I am not going into today.

I guess what I am asking is to PLEASE send all your advice and knowledge my way, I could use it! And explain all those silly codes to me as well! Thanks

I'm just not sure.

I'm not sure where to start this one, so just bear with me!

In general I think that I am a pretty good person! I think that I put 150% into my friendships. I try to help everyone as much as I can, and be there WHENEVER I am needed. I know that just like everyone in the world, I can be a bitch, I know the things that tend to make me that way and TRY to steer away from them. I know that in the past (esp. college) I was not the person I wanted to be. I'm not going to say I regret that person, because it has made me who I am today, but I am going to say that I lost out on several opportunities and great friendships that I could have had. I'm going to say that I was very unsure of who I was, who I wanted to be, and life in general. I know that I made a fool of my self and made a LOT of people very uncomfortable, for this I can not tell you all how sorry I am. I know that I made stupid, irresponsible, and inconsiderate decisions. I will never be able to take my actions back, and I can guarantee you I will never forget how they made me and the people around me feel! That is a PROMISE!

With this being said, I have over the years taken a look at my life and been very selective with who I COMPLETELY open up to. I am always nice, polite, and generous with everyone, but I hide a lot of me to protect my heart, and the scars from my past behaviors. I am almost always a more reserved person than I would like to be, but I am just not comfortable enough to let go of my heart. I do not have the confidence that I want to have to overcome hurt and disappointment. I do not feel confident enough with who I am to show my true colors and let my guard down.

When I do, it is a very special bond that that person and I have! That person for lack of better words has "earned" my complete confidence. There are only a hand full of people that know the true me. These people are people that I would trust to raise my children, these people are people that I know I can tell ANYTHING to and have no ill feelings. Those people are people that I would give my life to help and protect them.

At this moment in time I am very confused, almost hurt. I don't know what to say, or who to talk to about my issue, but I am extremely sad. I'm not sure what I have done, or not done, I not sure what is going on, I am just completely confused and lost. I'm not sure where to go from here. I am just so glad that I am in a new city, where I can make new friends, and have new experiences.

I am not going to give up on anything, however I am not going to be reaching out like before. I will be here when needed and continue to do whatever I can to help, but only when called upon. I wish that I could be a bigger person, but I just can't get my mind to let me do it. I just can't let it go at this point, yes in time I will, but it will be a while!

We are now officially Nashvillians!

Sorry it has been a while, but the good news is that we are now officially moved into the new house, in NASHVILLE! I can't tell you how happy I am to be most importantly to have my family back together, but also to actually live in a city (oh how I have missed that, I am afterall a city girl)

But back to the week we are finishing! It has been a bear, not completely horrid, but frustrating and anxious! Last week was full of not packing, but going through everything to make sure where it was and if we needed it. Trying to get rid of things, not knowing what cords went with what, and what they did, but knowing I had a HUGE box of things that had not been used in who knows how long. What I'm trying to say is that I did everything by myself and tried to explain over the phone what things were to brad, which was a complete no go!

The real craziness started on wednesday, I had an orthopedic appt, which was not great. My foot has not changed at all! Then I had to drive the kids to Tammies, power wash the house and all outside toys, pack all the stuff I was going to bring to the house which included, everything that was liquid, food, jewelry, filing cabinet, toys, animals, and just organizing. Wednesday we also gave our cats away since we can't have pets here, which was really sad.

Then thursday came, and the stress and anxiety went throught he roof! The movers were supposed to be at our house by 9 am. Brad had a meeting in nashville at the same time, so I was going to have to do all the suppervising and relaying of information on my own. Well the movers didn't show up in Milan until 4pm! Talk about stress, then we had to just sit there while they packed all of our belongings. We were not allowed to take anything out of cabinets/drawers/closets, so it was so uncomfortable for me to just sit there and let them do it. They finished packing the ENTIRE house in 5 hours! I left to get the kids at 830 friday morning, as we HAD to be at the new house to let the cable/internet guy in or so we thought! So the kids and I got here about 1030 and the appt was between 1-3. So at 230 I called brad to see if he had heard anything from them and he called them and after an hour, they didn't have us on the books at all, so Brad scheduled another appt for the 13th, the remeber the 13th I'll come back to it.

The movers were hoping to leave the old house by noon on friday, they didn't leave until 6pm, and then it took them 3 hours to get here. So we unloaded the entire truck unitll 2 AM. Saturday was a long day! An extremly long day I mean from 6AM until 3 AM, then up again at 630. I spent all day saturday unpacking the kitchen! Since the beds were all made and put together, I figured that that was the next most important room to unpack. I love my kitchen, I mean LOVE the kitchen! It is much smaller than the other one, but has much more usuable space! Yes it is old, but I love it! While I was doing all of this work, Brad was busy trying to get the tv fixed so that the kids could watch movies, since we weren't going to be getting cable until wednesday the 13th. With the kids entertained for a while it helped us to be able to get more done. So I completely finished the kitchen, and worked on boxes in the living room and dining room. And then it was bed time.

Sunday we got a call on our way out the door to go to target from the AT&T guy, saying that he was supposed to install everything on monday the 11th, but had an opening today and wanted to come do it! Of course we were both game, but was really confused since they told us the 13th, he had it scheduled for the 11th and they came on the 10th, this after sending someone on the 7th when we had scheduled them on the 8th and not showing. Needless to say we got cable and internet, and we are thrilled, but man is at&t confusing!

So after the cable guy finally left we ate lunch and then went to target to get some kid proofing items that we needed. Let me tell you how much I love our target, it is HUGE and has anything you could ever need ok well almost. After target and dinner, the kids and Brad watched a movie, and I locked myself in our bedroom and organized it. I was starting to have a panic attack because it was so cluttered. But our room is clean and organzied, Brad has clean dresser drawers that actually have some space, and there is not one box in our floor! Thank heavens!

So now the only rooms left to get done are Abby's room, the dinning room, and the basement which I am not looking forward too. I don't understand how so much stuff fit in our other house, this one is just bigger than the other, but the basement is the full size of the house, and it is PACKED as well. I'm glad we chose this house, compared to one that didn't have an unfinished basement! I will try to take some pictures/video of the new house so you can see what it looks like tomorrow!

Oh and by the way, since we are all together, I have the computer back so you will hear from me more!

The last two days

The last two days have been full of trying to keep my house clean, and getting things set up for our move to nashville. As with the army we are in a hurry up and wait period. We have a house and Brad has done an amazing job of getting everything set up to be switched over to our name. He has had all our paperwork in for the movers to come for several days. He recieved an email saying that they had got the request, but now they have to send everything "up the chain" to be approved and then it comes back down the chain to contract out a moving company. So now we are in limbo. The good thing is that Brad will be able to live in our house, and be close to work, saving us LOTS of money in gas. The kids and I will also go up friday and help him get everything situated, take him some staple items, pots and pans, air mattress, food (we have to have our deep freezer defrosted before they will take it), uniform, towels/washclothes, etc.

So we are working with all the different aspects of our busy hectic lives. And as usual something always has to go wrong with something. Nothing with the house is bad, last night Abby and Tyler were "walking" through her room when they ran in to each other. Mind you Tyler is literaly half as tall as she is, but somehow when they collided it broke her tooth. Like not just chipped the top, but the enamel came completely off the front of her tooth. Now she is not in pain and she has done a pretty good job of not touching it so she is going great. We will go to the dentist tomorrow morning and probably get the tooth capped to cover the nerves. No big deal, it is a baby tooth, so it will cause no major damage.

Then Toby got all the tile laid in the bathroom and is coming tomorrow to grout the floor and finish the craziness, that is our second UNUSED bathroom. So maybe before we move I will actually be able to take a shower in there for the first time since we moved here in April of 2007. The good news is that it will be done and behind us.

Tyler is growling at me, I guess that is my cue to yet again cut this to an end and go play with BABIES! And no offense that is sometimes so much more fun!

I actually have time to breathe?

I can not believe it, I am actually sitting down with time to breathe how ever short it is I am going to enjoy it.

I have to start off by saying a HUGE Thanks to by brother-in-law Toby! He has graciously given up a portion of his extremely busy schedule to come help us finish some upgrades we started on our house. Now my dad and Brad started tiling the 2ND bathroom right after Tyler was born, I'm talking the week after Tyler was born, which has now been 17 months. Brad has been so busy with his old job that he has just not had the time to complete it. So Toby has offered to come finish it for us, and I truly can not tell him how much I appreciate his time, work and effort.

Now Toby has a heart of gold and is a true gentleman! Respectful, loving, and funny to boot. Although I have never seen it, I can tell he is sensitive when the time is right. He takes care of his mother like I have ever seen any young man do. He is family oriented and just a joy to be around.

Tammie, is an angel that I am never going to be able to replace, she has at the drop of a dime turned her life upside down to help me with the kids. She has them today, so that I can clean make sure my house is in order before the move. Last week she gave up a day of work to come watch them so that I could go to the doctor to have a routine check up, no second guessing, just instantaneously. I know that I am going to be only 2 hours away from her, but she is going to be missed tremendously.

After getting midway through my cleaning today, our realtor called saying that someone was going to look at the house today. Let me remind you that we only last night put the house on the market. She is pretty excited about it, saying that he had to find one this week, but I'm trying not to get our hopes up. I'm trying to be realistic and know that it could take months for the house to sell. I can't tell you how happy it would make me if it sells earlier though. I will be more than happy to not have two house payments to pay.

After the realtor put her sign in the yard, the neighbor came over asking about it, and said that she and her sister where looking to buy as well. At this same time we had some lady also nearly cause several wrecks as she was trying to get the information from the sign. So we may be lucky enough to have interest early, but from what I understand, most of the interest will come early and then die down and have no interest for a while. So we will just have to wait and see what we have in store. I'm leaving everything up to God, and knowing that what is best for us will happen when it needs to happen.

But for today my breathing time is over. I must be on my way to go meet my munchkins! I have enjoyed the quiet today, but it is very very weird! I miss the LITTLE noise.

And now it begins!

The adventure is finally beginning to start.

We have found a house to rent in the nashville area! It is going to be perfect for us, lots of space, and an unfinished basement for the kids to play in, a huge front yard with covered patio in the back, very close to brads office, 10 minutes to downtown, and 10 minutes to brentwood. Also in the exact area we were trying to get one. (I will post pictures when I can get them on the computer that Brad has temporarily stolen to do homework.) The actual house itself is just bigger than the house we have, maybe a 100sqf.

We also have finally gotten our house on the market. Today a very sweet and honest realtor/broker (not exactly sure what that all means but) came to the house to look and give her opinion. She was very patient, asked all sorts of questions, explained EVERYTHING, spent probably two hours with us going through everything. Needless to say I think she is going to work her butt off to try to get this house sold. We are very lucky in the fact that we have quite a bit of positives in the house. Although old, we have just over 2 acres of land, are close to all the new stores, just outside of the city limit, in a safe and established neighborhood, and a single level home with an open floor plan just to name a few. We are very hopeful that this house will sell quickly, but then again completely realistic that it may take months to sell.

We were not planning on moving so soon, as we had figured it would take us several weeks to find a house that we could afford and would be in a good safe neighborhood. But I truly think that God has us under his wing and is taking care of us. I don't think I have ever felt so content with where we are in our lives. It finally seems that we are where we need to be. It feels like everything is falling into place as it has always been planned this way. We know that we are going to have tough times, but we will be okay. Everything is going to work out how it is supposed to work out.

I'm so very sorry! I'm going to have to go, I am getting side tracked, I want a fresh warm biscuit and a yummy fresh warm doughnut. That is all I can think of! Thank you food network!

The sweet things that kids say

Abby Kate is 4 going on 25, I think it is a girl thing but I'm not sure. Most of the time she and I butt heads like crazy, and she will admit to you that she "listens to daddy better than mommy!"

Most of the time she is too rough for me, and not to mention TOO loud, but I still love her, and when I can get her to sit still long enough to snuggle I try to take every opportunity to do so. That is unless Brad is here, she is very much of a daddy's girl.

The whole point of this post is how much she is learning and her cute little brain and the way it works. Abby started a new school this fall that we are all absolutely in love with! I am actually very upset that she will not be able to continue here esp. since they are trying to get the certifications to be a homeschooling umbrella school.

She is so interested in the teachings that she is learning from the bible. They have weekly bible verses that they have to memorize and she spouts them all off randomly. But that is not the coolest part.

She was learning about the story of Noah's Ark and she just loves it!

She will explain to you that God choose two of each animal to go on the ark. She understands that these were the only creatures to survive the great flood. But then there are those silly unicorns, and she has it all figured out! When she came home to tell me the story, she asked me what I thought about why there are no more unicorns, before telling me the story. Of course, I was not exactly sure how to answer this, and I just told her that they were imaginary animals. The response I got has made me chuckle every time I think about it.

Her response, was that Noah tried to get them on the ark, but they were not doing what they were supposed to be doing and goofing off so the missed it. Of course this is pretty good thinking for a 4 yr old, and I asked her where she got that and she said that Mrs. Missy at school had told her that she was not sure, so Abby came up with how they didn't make it on the ark. (I'm assuming they were learning the letter U this week, as they started off with all the "bowels") Since this conversation, when she is not listening and misses something, this is what we talk about, how the unicorns were not doing what they were supposed to be doing.

Then Abby has really been concerned (for lack of a better word) about how babies grow in the mommies tummy and how they are born. She understands that she and her brother were both cut out of my belly and that that is not the normal way babies are born. They are either "pushed out or breathed out" which again makes me laugh.

The very first week of school they talked about how God made all things in 6 days and rested on the 7th "and when he saw what he made, he said and it is good." They talked about this process for a week or so and so it all made since to her. Now granted, the bible never specifies how long a day was, (which always threw me for a loop as well as a kid) and she has very little awarness of concept of time. She understands that there are so many days in a week and the new day starts when you get up in the morning, but other than that little bit, it is all irrelavent to her.

While at her nanny's this past weekend, she and nanny were talking about babies and why it takes them so long till they are born. Nanny tried to explain to her that God wants to spend all that time on them because he wants them to be perfect, and it takes a while for them to grow to that. Abby just doesn't understand this, because "but God made the world in 6 days and rested on the 7th and it was perfect, so why can't he make a baby in 6 days?"

I know every person says that kids say the cutest things, but sometimes, I truely wish I could record things whenever I needed, like carring around a tape recorder in my back pocket.

This is just one of the wonderful reasons I truly enjoy being a mommy!

I love my ABBY!!!!!

Finally

I finally got the computer back and want to write something, but I really can not think of anything worth writing.

Brad got home friday night after work and we went out to dinner. We had mexican, I will be so happy when I live in a town, that can serve more than just beer. Upon returning from the restaurant, we were outside long enough to give the dogs water and move the trash can back to its proper place, when Brad got stung by a yellow jacket, on the lip!

We have had the bug people come spray for these like 3 times and they just will not go away! This is making life hard, because they are making homes right where the kids can play, which in turn means I have 2 very fussy,stir crazy kids, not to mention mommy! Tyler being the worse of the two, since Abby goes to school two days a week. But anyway back to the sting!

Luckily Brad is NOT allergic to bee stings, but man did his lip swell up! He immediately came in and took about one and a half times the benadryl the bottle tells you to take. (my mom said he could even take more, she is a nurse practitioner) But I am sure glad he didn't take more, he was out almost immediately. I was kind of understanding, but kind of upset as I just wanted to spend some time with him, needless to say he went to sleep at 7pm on friday night. If you ask him he was just dozing, but that was not the case, I would say his name maybe 5 times before he would wake up, and no I was not whispering, as any of you that know me know that whispering is not something I know how to do.

Needless to say I didnt get to spend any time with him, but when he woke up saturday morning he was so much better. His lip was still a little swollen but not enough that you could tell just by looking at him, and the pain had gone down tremendously! So all in all my big baby is doing so much better!

The process of moving.

We all know that moving is stressful no matter what! Luckily ours is not quite as bad as normal. We do not have to go through the process of actually packing boxes and trucks. Another great thing about the army.

The stressful part for us is the actual finding a tempory place to live while we wait for our house sells. Our issue is that Brad and I think completely differently. He is looking for the cheapest place in a good neighbor hood which is great, but more than likely means we will end up in an apartment. Now dont get me wrong apartment offer a lot of good features, not having to fix things or pay for those fixes, no lawn care, most have pools and/or playgrounds. But more than likely any apartment that will work for us will not be on the bottom floor, which means me and my gimp butt is going to have to lug a 28lb child up and down stairs anytime we leave, in snow, rain and heat. And my biggest issue, when bringing in groceries I would have to climb stairs mulitple times, and most importantly, leave young children in a building that I may/maynot be able to see. As well as them being unsupervised, which I can tell you is NEVER a good idea.

If we felt comfortable enough to rent our house that would take a olot of the problems away, we would have a bigger budget to spend on housing, but there are too many uncertainties that we can't afford with renting. I would love to take the quick way out of this payment, but what happens a year down the road when the tennant decides thay don't want to live/rent here anymore. Then we will be stuck back with two mortgages and be hurting even more than we will be selling. What about repairs as well. We would be responsible for those as well. Granted Nashville is only 2 hours away so we could get here to fix things, and we have lots of very handy family here. But they are not responsible for fixing everything that breaks, and I WILL NOT rely on them to do so. That is just abusing them and their abilities. For this reason we think it will just be easier in the long run to just sell the house, and not have to worry about it. We realize this could take a while, but if we can make it work then we are going to be golden.

Idealy we would be in a house, and this maybe completely possible! But we are going to have to do a lot of looking. I also have no problem being in a townhome, that I would have a designated parking spot, and not have to climb stairs to get in the house. That way I could atleast keep a close eye on the front door of the house and leave it open and hear the fighting mongrels! We would also have a little bit of a back yard so that the kids could play, and be somewhat restrained. We also want to be fairly close to Brads office so that we are not spending even more money on gasoline getting two and from work. Now I know this is being picky and "snooty", but I honestly have the best interests of our kids at hand (and my sanity). I just want us all to be happy, and as I have said before, the first part maybe hard, but the long picture is going to be well worth it. The opportunities far out weigh the negative for our family, and it is only temporary. We can do anything temporarily! As long as we are all together and healthy, we will be great!

I appreciate your thoughts, prayers and support! We could not do this successfully with out them! Thank you so much.

Newly promoted Staff Sergeant Warren

Remember yesterday when I told you I was going to make a post daily? Remember that? I do and am now kicking myself in the head. Okay not really but you know. Back on point, I fully intend to get something posted everyday no matter what it is! You will have to bear with me though, I will be posting from my cell phone. That's right thank goodness for my android. This means that spelling and grammar and editing are pretty much out the window for the most part.

Brad told me quiet a while ago he was going to be taking our computer to work with him for a while so that he would be able to do homework in his spare time. A completely legitimate excuse right? Right!

Now we do have another laptop, but it is confined to a desk with a screen that does not stay up, it is being held up by the wall behind it, (not to mention that it poops on itself anytime you try to open more than one tab and just use any sort of Internet. But hey no big deal, the apple computer is just a luxury I don't really need it, I can do everything I need to do on the old one or my phone). This computer has also been designated as Abby's computer. So whether she is using it or not we get yelled at for touching it and then she immediately decides that she needs to play some type of game because we sit down at it. You know she is only 4 for another 2 months!

But again back to point, Brad is getting promoted with this new job which is amazing! If we were still "Real Army" not just national guard, he would probably have just gotten promoted as well, so we are still on the same track that we should be. (As you can tell I am extremely proud of him). Brad's new job is and AGR job, which is Active Guard Reserve. This means that he is active duty military but is paid by the National Guard. We get all the benefits of active duty military, minus the moving, (and hopefully as many deployments! It is very unlikely with this unit, so as long as he doesn't transfer he should not get deployed.)

A lot of the reason we got out of the military was the constant moves and threat of deployments. I know for me personally, we were told that we were on the list for a tour in Korea which would not have been a problem if I had not been expecting, and him scheduled to go as well. I know that A LOT of my friends have sacrificed their time with their families to do as they needed, but I had an extremely hard time with, especially being dual military! I can not tell you how proud I am of all the WONDERFUL parents that have graciously gone overseas whether it was to participate in missions in hostile territory or to serve a one year tour in Korea! These men and women have my utmost respect and admiration! Thank you for being brave enough to do something that I could not emotionally do!

The active component of military offers so many great benefits, most importantly being health care! We all know how horrible health care can be, both with coverage, monthly payments, co-pays, and deductibles! The health care the military has can not be beat. Yes it is frustrating having to get referrals for everything and only having a handful of doctors/clinics to choose from, but if you are patient you can find something that will work for your situation. The positives FAR out weigh the negatives! The health care is one of the best benefits you can get. Not to mention the stability! Unless you are trying to get out (even then it doesn't always work) you really can not get out until your contract is up. There are obviously ways out, but as long as you are doing what you are supposed to do, just like at every other job in the world, you can't be let go just because the company is down sizing, or your position is being abolished.

Active military is not for everyone! It is going to be frustrating and hard at times. But when you have a positive outlook and know that you are doing the best you can, the military can only make your life easier. We know that for our family, no matter how much others don't agree, that it is the best for us. The benefits far out weigh the negative. The fact that we are secure financially, with health care, and are able to confidently take care of our kids makes the military the right place for us. We are so thankful for this opportunity that has been bestowed upon us.