Freebies

Who doesn't love getting things free? Recently someone suggested to me that if there is a product I love I should let the company know, especially if it's normally great but something is wrong with it this time. They will often send coupons for your feedback. So I thought I'd try it out. Here's what's happened so far...

Jason LOVES Honey Bunches of Oats, it's his favorite. Recently we found something unusual in one of the boxes. I sent Post an e-mail telling them how much we love Honey Bunches of Oats, and the great quality we have come to expect from this cereal. I mentioned that we were concerned that we had found a small twig in one of our boxes. I immediately received an e-mail thanking me for my feedback an apologizing for the problem and informing me that they would mail me a coupon for a FREE box of cereal.

Our family uses Pampers Diapers. I know these are the most expensive brand, but Mikey got nasty diaper rash from Huggies and all of the generic brands leak really bad so I end up using twice as many diapers. I'm not usually loyal to any brands, but in my experience it ends up being more costly to use other brands. So when I recently had about 10 diapers from one package all lose the velcro tab thingy before I could even use the diaper I decided to let Pampers know how much I love their product, and how disappointed I was in this recent manufacturing flaw. Within 20 min I had an e-mail back telling me that they were sending me TWO coupons for $10 off a package of pampers. That will make 2 free or close to free packages.

I used to think, "no big deal" when a product that I love and was mostly of great quality had a fluke, but I've come to realize that they want to know when these issues come up so they can make efforts to improve the product even more. They enjoy rewarding you for sharing your experience with their products. And I really don't mind getting free products for taking five minutes to express my appreciation for the products that make my life easier or more enjoyable.

Epiphany

I feel kind of silly and almost dumb for not figuring this out sooner. I guess it's hard for Mom to realize that she's just like her kids. I've always known (at least as much as I can remember) that when you make something into a game kids are more likely to want to participate. Makes sense why would anyone willingly do something that's not fun? Yeah like me...

So my house is pretty messy, unless I know I have company coming, then I quickly see how much I can get clean before they get here. I dread spending money on food, cause I feel like I waste so much money on something I'm just going to have to spend more money on next week. I get bored cooking the same foods all the time.

Tonight while I was cooking dinner it hit me that in the last month or two somethings have started to change for the better. Why? Because I've made them into a game. I hated grocery shopping because I'd make a menu using as much of what I had on hand as possible and making a shopping list with just the "necessities". I'd go to the store that had the best prices on the most things, but I would often pass up on a "necessity" because I wasn't willing to pay the price. But now I get excited to go grocery shopping (unless I have 3 kids in tow). Using coupons and the resources that I've found through some of the couponing blogs I follow, I can not only afford what I need, I've even been able to find room for some extras. It's become a game and a challenge to see how much money I can save on the things that I buy. I will never pay full retail for groceries or household items again. I have a whole box of toothpaste (15 tubes I think) now, easily a years supply (even if my kids smear it all over the bathroom again) that I paid less that $5 for. I've started collecting a years supply of toothbrushes and floss that I've gotten free, because I wait for it to go on sale and then use a coupon. If I continue to buy things before I need them I'll never have to make that last minute trip to the store for that one thing we ran out of and have to have. Also by stocking up on things it make being charitable much more affordable. For example this last weekend I got toothpaste for 13 cents. I could have donated 13 cents to a shelter but what could they do with it? OR I could donate the toothpaste that I bought for 13 cents and save them $2-3. I LOVE being able to share what I have with others and next time the Boy Scouts come around for their annual canned food drive I can give so much more. Instead of worrying about the $10 that I'll have to come up with to replace the food we give away, I can be excited to share $10 worth of food for which I only paid $2. Now when I go shopping I can easily afford to pick up one or two extra and put it in the box that I have set aside just for things like the BSA canned food drive.

I love having the freedom to be generous without worrying that I'm going to harm my family. I know that the Lord will never let us suffer for taking care of His other children and I believe that learning this skill is one of the ways He has blessed me for my previous efforts in charity. It's kind of amazing to look at life and recognize the Lord's hand in places you wouldn't normally expect. I'm reminded of the Parable of the Talents. When you use what the Lord has given you he will increase it beyond comprehension, but when you try to hide it, He'll take it away. I have always be blessed with a generous and charitable nature. When times were hard on our family and I felt like we had nothing left to give, I gave anyway and now I have more to give that I had thought possible.

Another part of my epiphany was how much I love to cook. I've always enjoyed cooking and baking. I remember making meatloaf and mashed potatoes for my family at least every other week or so when I was still in elementary school. It wasn't until after I was married though that I learned how to cook without a set recipe. I thought there was only one was to make meatloaf, spaghetti, tacos..etc. I learned from my parents how to make something and we made it the same way every time. So food just got kinda boring, until I learned how to make things MINE. For example I wanted to make chili for a church social, but I didn't have time to soak the pinto beans, so I decided to find a recipe online for chili. Have you ever looked for chili recipes online? It took me hours of looking at one recipe after another to finally make a choice. For almost very recipe I would have most of the ingredients, but be missing one or two. I was getting pretty frustrated when it finally occurred to me that all of the recipes had several ingredients in common and the rest was up to my personal taste. Oh you mean there's flexibility in cooking?!?!?! I tried something new and it was a hit everybody, most importantly my husband loved it. This opened up a whole new world to me. Cooking became fun again. I've now added a new challenge to my cooking, to make each meal as inexpensive, yet still tasty, as possible. Expensive things like meat need to be stretched and inexpensive things like rice need to make up more of the filler. I bought a pot roast last week (2 1/2 lbs) that has already made three meals and I have enough for a fourth. I've had a lot of fun trying to see how many meals I can make out of this one piece of meat, but that's another post in itself.

So now that I've rambled on about my epiphany, and have had more while writing, I'll try to sum up the point I was trying to make. Games are not just for teaching kids how to work, but for moms too! Attitude truly is everything!

Need help...

so for dinner tonight I kinda made up my own recipe (I often do), but now I don't know what to call it. It's kinda like a pot pie crossed with a calzone. It's in the oven cooking right now so we'll see how it turns out. In the meantime maybe somebody can help me come up with a name.

Here's the recipe:

Filling:

1 can beef gravy

frozen mixed veggies

shredded beef

mix whatever proportions look good to you. too much gravy will make it hard to fill.

Crust:

1 package dry yeast

1 tsp white sugar

1 cup warm water

2 1/2 cups bread flour

2 tbs olive oil

1 tsp salt

Mix water, sugar and yeast let sit until creamy, about 10 min. Mix in flour, salt and olive oil. Let rest 5 min. Separate into about 6 portions. make into flat rounds, not too thin or they'll break open. add a couple spoonfuls of filling and fold in half over filling and seal edges. bake at 350 for 15-20 min.

I HEART Coupons!!!!

Our local grocery store is having a killer sale this week. Not only are items on sale, but when you buy 10 "participating items" (over 200 to choose from) you get $5 off. So when I bought 96 items today and 90 of them were "participating items" I got $45 off before we even took into account the sale prices or my coupons. :)

(Have I mentioned yet that I LOVE coupons? cause I really, really, really love my coupons. I've started to feel naked if I walk into a store without them.)

So anyway my total BEFORE sale prices (you need a store card to get the sale prices) was $180! Wow I never pay that much money in a single shopping trip. My grand total after sale prices and coupons? Hehehe I'll let you know on Monday. In the mean time I'll let you guess how much I paid.

been a while... oops

I just noticed that my last post was more than 2 weeks ago. :/ In all fairness it's been quite a long couple of weeks. The 26th and 28th I taught the boys preschool in my home (we have 5 moms that rotate teaching). Then on the 29th I had my gallbladder removed. The surgery went pretty smoothly other than the nurse missing my vein with the IV and giving me a nasty looking, and painful bruise. I'm still recovering, but I'm mostly back to normal. I have to be careful lifting things and it still hurts to touch the incision sites. I am so grateful to my mother-in-law who flew out and spent a week with our family so I could rest and recover. Not only did she keep my kids happy and safe so I could rest but she again cleaned my house from top to bottom and did all of our laundry (she did this two months ago when I had the baby).

So that's my life in a nut shell right now. Kids are all happy and healthy, I'm recovering from surgery and Jason loves his job and is doing great (we're totally praying that he gets this raise that he's been recommended for) he even got a bonus for perfect attendance (how many employers do that?!?!).

Oh yeah more changes coming tomorrow, not sure what yet. We're meeting with the Bishop at 9:30am...

Hee Haw Farm

Today we went to the farm with the preschool kids and moms. We had a great time. They had several large slides. The boys both liked the potato sack slide the best. We also got lost in the corn maze and got to pick out pumpkins. The boys also really enjoyed the hay ride. Due to carrying the baby most of the time and my camera being dead I didn't get many pictures. I used my cell phone to take pictures of the boys in the Corn Box, you know like a sand box but with corn. I'll try to add pictures when I get them uploaded. Oh and Joseph LOVED the petting zoo, I couldn't get him away to join the rest of the kids. I think next time it'll be better with just the family so we don't have to try to stay with the group. (Left: Joseph dumping corn on his head in the corn box. Right: Mikey digging in the corn.)

Surgery

I feel kind of guilty that I haven't written anything for a while, not sure why I feel guilty.

Anyway, life has thrown us a bit of a curve ball this last week or so. I've finally given in and decided to have my gallbladder removed. I've been having problems with it every pregnancy, but this one was worse. Previously the issues had taken care of themselves after the baby was born, not this time. After five attacks in 6 weeks I need to do something. If it were just effecting me I'd tough it out longer and see what happens, but the meds that I end up needing to take transfer to the baby through my breast milk and he ends up really drowsy and lethargic all day. It breaks my heart to see him like this. Most of my attacks have been in the middle of the night, but yesterday I had one at 6am. So as Jason's getting ready for work I had to make a really tough choice:

a) take my meds that make me drowsy and dizzy, almost like I'm intoxicated and farm my kids out to my friends until I was capable of caring for them again.

b) try a lesser pain killer that might not work, but still allow me to care for my kids.

Jason taking time off work isn't an option, so I chose b. I really feel like I've taken advantage of the few sisters in my ward that are willing to watch my kids. I've had so many dr appointments in the last year or so. I'm not sure if they feel that way, but I don't really have anyway to repay them. Sometimes I wish somebody would ask me to help out with their kids, just so I feel like I'm doing something to pull my own weight. But I'm getting off topic, luckily yesterdays attack was mild enough that the motrin was able to take care of the pain. It scares me to think what would happen if I didn't have anyone to help with the kids and I had to take the Lortab, knowing me I'd suffer through the pain although who knows what would be worse.

So next week my Mother-in-law is flying out for a week to take care of my kids so I can have this thing taken out. I'm slightly worried about complications, but worrying doesn't help, so I'm ignoring that part of my brain. Surgery is scheduled for Friday. wish me luck. :)

I will not cry over spilled milk...

...or spilled oatmeal. I chose to be happy despite the chaos around me.

I woke in a great mood, my kids let me sleep in until almost 10am. I got up and fed the baby. After eating for 20 min he decided he needed to show me how much he ate by emptying the entire contents of his stomach all over the front of me. Ok so maybe he ate too much or I didn't burp him soon enough it's ok I've got plenty more where that came from. I couldn't shower because Jason was already at work, but I've got Cucumber Green Tea scented baby wipes "bathlike fresh" so it's all good. I get myself cleaned up and dressed and get the baby cleaned up and dressed and head upstairs to assess any damage that may have happened while I was sleeping. Looked good at first glance. Sat downs to feed the baby again and he spits up again (this is the 4th time he's spit up since emptying his tummy, I'm surprised there's anything left). As I'm feeding the baby I look to see what the older two are doing and notice the mountains of oatmeal in the hallway. Oh dear, no need to cry or shout, it won't help anything. They wanted something to put into their dump trucks, so they had filled the trucks and dumped oatmeal all over the hallway (our oatmeal is in a 5 gallon bucket, so there's lots). Our hallway is now paved with oatmeal and I've got a fussy baby, so it's going to stay that way for a while. Maybe I can clean it up while the boys are at a birthday party in 45min. Probably not. I'm probably going to go for a walk to keep the baby happy and to keep my sanity, cause most of you moms out there understand that there's no use cleaning up a mess before the kids go to bed, because they'll just remake it the second your back is turned. I usually hope that sleep will reset their little brains and they'll lose interest in the messes they had made the day before. Starting the day fresh I can hope for a mess free day... someday it'll happen and if I'm lucky that day will come before all of my kids are out of the house. I can dream can't I?

Today was a good day!

Today was good. Not because of anything out of the ordinary, but because I chose not to let the little things get me down. I didn't dwell on the things that my children did that drove me crazy, I didn't dwell on the rude cashier at the grocery store (I had three kids in tow give me a break lady!), nor did I dwell on the fact that I had used last weeks sale paper to make my grocery list and so I left the store practically empty handed (I did find something on clearance that I'll need eventually and with my coupons I only had to pay tax! I heart coupons!)

Today we attempted grocery shopping, it's gonna have to wait until next week when the boys are in preschool again (they are on break this week) and I can shop with just the baby. We had a relatively quiet afternoon, where amazingly they didn't get into anything they shouldn't have! (I'm still trying to comprehend this.) This afternoon while the baby slept we decorated cookies. The boys have been invited to a birthday party and since money is pretty tight until next paycheck I wanted t figure out something the boys could make. Jason suggested cookies and Mikey wanted the kind that could be frosted. So Sunday we spent the afternoon rolling, cutting and baking cookies. This was my first time doing this with kids, all I have to say about the experience is OY VEY! Jason wasn't feeling well so he wasn't much help. I got everything set up and ready to go, then I got sick and it took almost an hour to get started, so of course the baby woke before we were done and wanted to eat and poor Jason just isn't quite plumbed right for that job. So needless to say I was kind of dreading decorating the cookies without another adult, but God is good! The boys did great with the cookies, they had fun and didn't make any intentional messes. Their cookies are very sprinkle laden. They are so excited for the party tomorrow and to give Jonas his cookies (I just hope his mom doesn't hate me for loading her kid with sugar :) ).

We (I) took too long with the cookies and clean up so I didn't have a chance (AKA forgot to make time) to prep anything for dinner, so we used our discretionary money to eat at Carl's Jr. The kids got to play and get rid of some energy before bed and Jason and I were able to have some uninterrupted adult conversation.

While putting Samuel to bed I discovered he really likes the song, "Apples and Bananas". Every time I sing it for him he grins. I've tried singing other songs and he seems indifferent, but this one really gets his attention. He's too cute! I love my happy smiley baby, he's had such a calming influence on our home.

After putting the boys to bed Jason needed to leave for a meeting and Joseph came upstairs and asked for water and insisted that Mommy had to get it for him. He held my hand as we walked to the kitchen and then held my hand as we walked down the stairs back to his room. I'm not sure why it hit me so profoundly tonight, but holding his hand is one of the greatest things on earth. He was holding it because he loves me, not because I'm forcing him to like when we cross the street, but because I'm his Mommy and he's my little boy. I can't count the number of times I've been told to appreciate this time I have with them while they are young, because it won't last and nights like tonight make me simultaneously joyful and sorrowful. I'm joyful for the little moments that I have now, yet sorrowful for the future when those moments will be nothing but memories, it breaks my heart to think that someday my boys won't be little any more and won't need their Mommy to hold their hands. I know that they need to grow and be independent and I would be even more sorrowful if they did need me to hold their hand through everything in life. I am so grateful that my father in heaven sent me such wonderful children. They maybe a handful, but they are loving and kind and generous and happy. They are a constant reminder to me to do my best so I can remain worthy to have them with me for eternity. I love my boys!

Coupon Binder Organized!

This isn't my binder, but mine looks kinda like this. I've always hesitated to cut coupons because anyone who knows me well can attest that I am completely unorganized and I often lose small things (I even worry I'll lose one of my kids). So when I went to the couponing class and was introduced to this method of organizing coupons I realized that this is something I can do. I have a place for every coupon I cut or print and with the help of the shopping wizard @ savvyshopperdeals.com I know the best sales to combine those coupons and I never have to worry about trying to remember where the coupons are. If you're interested in creating your own here's the link to her recipe: http://savvyshopperdeals.com/utah/blogs/article_b474df5e-b499-11df-bb8c-001cc4c002e0.html

I bought my zippered binder at DI for $2 and used dividers I already had and then bought the baseball card sheets at Wal-Mart for about $6. I'm so excited to go grocery shopping now. It's no longer a chore, but a challenge to see how much money I can save. I feel like I've turned grocery shopping into a game. I've been wanting a hobby for a long time, but everything seems to cost money. This may be spending money, but it's necessary spending. Dude, how many hobbies are there that you can justly justify every penny you spend and say that because of your hobby, you spent less money than if you didn't have that hobby? It's also cool because the kids have started getting into it to, so maybe they'll be more cooperative in the grocery store? A girl can dream can't she?

Couponing

Two weeks ago I went to a Savvy Shopper class. The local newspaper has this awesome program that makes couponing really easy. Amy, the Savvy Shopper, creates a list each week of all the best deals from all of the local stores and the national chains like Target, Walgreens, and Rite-Aid. She even tells you what coupons to pair with sales to get even better deals. I learned so much at the class, but feel like I missed a lot too, so I'm planning on going to another this month. I love the binder that she uses to organize everything and I've been working on creating my own. So far these last two weeks I've been able to save an average of 50% on the things that I've bought, I've even gotten quite a few free things just by knowing where the right sale was and combining it with the right coupon. This has been a great way to stock up on things for our food storage. I'm hoping that eventually I'll be able to get great deals on everything I buy, but it takes a couple months to get a system down and to get the right coupons acquired. I've been having a lot of fun, and it's a hobby that costs money, but on things that are useful to the whole family.

Just a side note, another Mikey quote from this afternoon:

Mikey: Mommy I think I need an ice pack. Can I have a popsicle for my face?

Me: Why?

Mikey: My face hurts.

Me: Why does your face hurt?

Mikey: I was under my sheet and it was too heavy on my face.

Me trying to keep a straight face: Ummm I think you'll be ok.

Oh yeah and if any of you are interested in that website it's www.savvyshopperdeals.com.

~Happy Shopping~

Still Learning

I've been trying to personalize my blog and I'm hoping my web savvy computer programmer husband can help me out. Enjoy the slide show, the pictures are old, I'll try to get more recent ones and some of the new baby soon. trying to figure out how to get them off of Facebook so I don't have to upload them all over again.

Cute Kid Stuff

I think trying to focus on the positive has started to work a little bit. :) Today hasn't been too different from ordinary, but I've been able to stay pretty calm and relatively upbeat. I'm grateful because it's given me the opportunity to notice and appreciate some of the cute things my kids have said and/or done today.

Joseph's quote for today, "You see that blood right there? That's from a mosquito doing a somersault."

Mikey's quote needs a little bit of background. We have an extra bedroom in our home that we've made into a playroom for the boys and I try to get them to keep their toys in there to avoid me tripping on things. Today they decided that there was an imaginary army in the hallway that they needed to battle, so out came all of the "army vehicles". Our conversation went something like this:

Me: Please take those back into the playroom.

Mikey: But there's an imaginary army that we need to fight.

Me: Ask it to move into the playroom.

Mikey: But it's a mean army.

Me: It's YOUR imaginary army it will do whatever you want it to do.

Mikey: Army please move to the playroom. Walk and wait in front of the door so I can run you over.

Me: *stifling laughter*

I love that my boys have such active imaginations. They are content to play for hours without any adult interference. Watching and listening to them play makes me grateful for the lack of TV in our home. Instead of just acting out what they see on TV they really do make things up. I can't wait to see what they come up with next. I love my boys!!!

I won a Giveaway!!!

Today has been rough. I was late getting the boys to preschool because Mikey couldn't find his shoes. I had to carry the baby because the stroller was left in the car (the car was in Orem with Jason at work). The baby cried all day except when he was eating or sleeping in my lap. I was late picking the boys up from preschool, because Samuel was eating. Oh yeah and it was raining and I had to carry the baby to pick up the other two.

That was all before noon. I won't go into the rest of the day, because that's not what this blog is for. So one thing I'm grateful for today is... I won a giveaway!!! Since I was kind of stuck in my recliner all day holding the baby I was cruising couponing blogs (couponing has become my new hobby. I might share more about this later.), I found a new one (MyCouponLibrary.com) that I really liked and today was the last day to enter her giveaway. I got an e-mail about 3 hrs later telling me I had won a $25 gift certificate to The Garden Path in Orem. It's a florist and since I'd much rather receive flowers than by them for myself, I'm re-gifting it to my husband. :)

I'm also grateful that my children are happy and healthy (with the occasional exception). I'm grateful for a loving husband who tries his best to help me to be happy. I am grateful to my Father in Heaven who loves me and has blessed my life so richly.

Oh yes and I'm also grateful for the cookies that my husband just walked through the door with. :)

I have a blog?!?!?!?!?!

So it seems like EVERYBODY has a blog and so I've kind of avoided it so as to not be following the crowd. But the last few days I've started seriously considering it just for my own uses. Anyone is welcome to read, but I'm writing for me. I have so many thoughts jumbled around in my head and I need somewhere to let them out. I have many journals, but I never remember to write in them, and I almost always have the computer nearby and it seems that I'm always in the mood to write something when I'm at the computer.

I've been trying really hard lately to recognize the blessings in my life. I'm not sure how many other stay at home moms have the same problem, but it seems like being with kids all day and trying to take care of a home is so emotionally draining that it's very easy to fall into the Devil's snares of self pity and depression. I often find myself questioning my own self worth and whether or not I'm a good mom and doing the best for my kids. I question all of my relationships in general. So to try to combat all of this negativity I've decided to find at least one thing that I am grateful for in each day. I originally chose to do this until the end of the year, but why should I limit myself? So thus the title of my blog, "The Sunny Side of Life". I want this to be a place where I can share my blessings and uplifting things in life. The title actually comes from a song I learned at girls camp. It has always brought a smile to my face and pleasant memories, so hopefully just reading the title of my own blog will boost my attitude. I might ramble a little bit, but I've found that that's how I think best by just sitting down and writing usually by the end I'll have figured out what I needed to say, but the process it therapeutic and without the process I wouldn't get to where I needed to be. So PLEASE ignore any grammar mistakes! There will be lots.

I hope you all will enjoy reading, and maybe you can share your uplifting thoughts and stories with me.