A Thankful Heart.. A Full Pantry... Blessings to share

Today I had a blessed two hours alone to visit the dr's office(check up and flu shot)and run through Aldi to get some needed supplies. I realized after running out of both butter and margarine and cleaning out the fridge that it might be time to re-stock the larder.

So, I did have a list but I was in a hurry. And I dislike going to our Aldi because it's hard to get in and out of there with kids... with the cart return, the box/bag issue and the speed with which you have to maneuver through the check out. Anyway, I traveled the aisles at a leisurely (but still fairly fast) pace and filled the cart. Thinking of the food pantry drop off and of our own upcoming holiday feast I went ahead and bought extra stuff. So, today I spent more than I have ever spent at Aldi... $62.60. Can you imagine how much I would have spent at a regular grocery store for the same products?

And now I have canned pumpkin, cranberry stuffing mix, green beans, and gravy mix to add to our neighborhood Food Pantry box.

$25 dollars for a Charitable cause

Today there was a 'donation' rummage sale at the local high school for a young girl who has cancer.

We got there half an hour before closing time and there was still plenty of good stuff to choose from.


I picked through many piles of children's clothes and stuffed a big Gap bag full. Some of it will be passed to another little girl we know who's parents are having a hard time financially. The rest will get stored away for my own children.



We did pretty good staying away from toys (even though there was a huge Barbie jet liner that looked vintage from my childhood.) I picked up a few paperbacks for the kids and two Shrek 3 toys that we missed from the McDonald's happy meal days. I also found a Magnadoodle to replace our worn out and warped one. Oh, and I couldn't resist this floral tray.




I also found a few more Christmas tins, a cute basket, two pretty little plates, and a pretty framed floral print. The Krispy Kreme box was sort of an accident. I was just going to buy one.. but, they wanted me to take a whole box. They had many boxes left over. So, for five dollars I took a partially empty one. Good for the cause, bad for my hips.



And then there's this skateboard that Big Girl couldn't resist. She begged both of us for it. Even though it's a training one I see lots of scraped knees when I look at it. Daddy however saw no problem and I gave in. I'm probably going to regret it before long.

Where there's a Goodwill, there's a way

Yeah, ok. Lame title.

I ran into a friend today as I was unloading my children from my car. She asked what we were up to and I told her that we'd just been Christmas shopping at Goodwill. It was scary for me to admit to new friends that I do indeed buy some presents at Goodwill but I figure if I scare them away so be it. (Besides, most of the time I buy new stuff at Goodwill anyway). And she told me that she'd never been to a Goodwill.

This is a friend who, when I compliment a piece of furniture or an outfit, tells me she got it off of a curb on trash day or from a garage sale. I was a little stumped.
So, I gave her directions to the nearest Goodwill. I'm hoping she checks it out.
And then I let her in the house to bag up some of Big Girls outgrown clothes and shoes for her own little girl before I store them in the basement for the garage sale that it seems like we'll never have.

**Another rant for another day** If I got rid of everything that is earmarked for a garage sale or ebay we'd have a nice clutter free house. I am not a person that can organize clutter. I have learned this the hard way. Reminder: Nag hubby to craigslist or ebay stuff or just take it to Goodwill**

Did you know that some Goodwills will even let you buy Gift certificates? And now Save-A-Lot too? And Big Lots? All really good ideas for gifts to give to hard to shop for (but frugal minded) people or just to give as gifts in a charity basket.

I did find some new socks, new belt and a video game system of some kind (for hubby) for presents. I also couldn't resist some cute shirts and new shoes for Little Guy and some books for the kids and I. I spent 28.00. That's a far cry from the $128.00I spent at Kohl's this morning (well, ok... $45 after Kohls Cash Back bucks and Discover Card cash back gift card). I am already planning on taking two things back. Tell me someone-- why are men so hard to shop for?

8 Things Meme

Crazy 8's Meme and Blog Bling!

Sahmmy says tagged me for this Meme.


8 things I'm passionate about

1. Raising nice, healthy, happy, Christian children in a happy home.
2. Family dinner together every night... even if it's just Mac-N-Cheese.
4. Reading... blogs, books, etc.
3. Family... I talk to my Mom almost daily and we see my in-laws frequently.
5. Vacations. I love to travel with my husband.
6. Hot Chocolate with some instant coffee.. every morning. Beats Starbucks.
7. Chocolate... with peanut butter or coconut preferably
8. Having a loving relationship with the best guy I know.. my beloved Husband.

8 things I say often

1. Get -off of- the table.
2. Excuse me? Who do you think you are talking to?
3. Where does that go when you're done with it?
4. Please stop (yelling, squeeling, yodeling, etc.)
5. No throwing food.
6. Thank God you're home. (to my husband) Or sometimes it's "Tag! You're it."
7. Did you wipe, flush, wash your hands after you went potty?
8. Don't make me chase you.. you smell like poop! (to the little guy)

8 books I've read recently (Not counting the thousand Dr. Seuss, Sandra Boynton, and David Shannon books I read daily right?)

1. Currently Reading- Mary Hunts' "Debt-Proof the Holidays."
2. Also Currently Reading-- Mike Yorkey's "21 days to a thrifty lifestyle : a proven plan for beginning new habits"
3. Another Currently Reading- Robbi Courtaway's "Spirits of St. Louis II : (return of the Gateway City ghosts)"
4. Just finished- Katherine Ramsland's "Ghost: Investigating the Other Side" (eh)
5. Nora Ephron's "I feel bad about my neck" (very eh)
6. Melissa Nathan's "The Nanny" (decent read)
7. Laura Moriarty's "The Center of Everything" (excellent)
8. Sue Monk Kidd's "The Mermaid Chair" (ok)

8 things I want to do before I die

1. Pay off my mortgage.
2. See my children graduate high school, college, get married to decent kind people and have a child or two.
3. See Scotland.
4. Lose weight.
5. Live happily (with enough money) in retirement.
6. Downscale to a smaller house with some acreage maybe after the kids are gone.
7. Make seitan.
8. Visit my friends in Kansas City.. eat At Hein Vuong Restaurant again and see the Thomas Hart Benton's that I miss.

8 songs I can listen to over and over again

1. "Yellow"-- Innocence Mission (Glow)
2. "Lost Cause"-- Beck (Sea Change)
3. "Good Good Things"-- Descendents (Somery)
4. "As Far as you can Go"-- The Devlins (Drift)
5. "Come on Eileen" -- Dexy's Midnight Runners
6. "Sweet Jane"-- Cowboy Junkies
7. "Not a Pretty Girl"-- Ani Difranco
8. "Reflecting Light"-- Sam Philips

(I have more... Sparks/ Angst in my Pants-- Tracy Chapman/ For You.. and all of Lucinda Williams Car Wheels album.)

8 things that attract me to my friends--first 4 are for best friends, second half for playgroup pals.

1. Humbleness
2. Wit
3. Genuine-ness
4. Flexibility
5. Morality
6. Laid Back
7. Comfortable in their own skin
8. Un-flakiness


8 things I learned in the last year

1. I'm getting old faster and faster.
2. Children grow so fast.
3. No one loves you like your own parents.
4. Boys can be fun!
5. My girl is good at gymnastics.
6. Coupons don't always save money.. sometimes they just waste time.
7. I need down time everyday... even if it's only fifteen minutes.
8. That I miss visiting my Grandma in her own house.



If you just finished reading this and it seems like an enjoyable waste of twenty minutes to you... TAG! Your turn to Meme.

The Day After...

Feeling a bit strung out and tired after last night's Halloweening.. and we're still not over this nagging yuck of a cold.

After a quick dinner of some thrown together black bean chili- I got the kids ready for their big night.

Big Girl was thoroughly enjoying her third year of trick or treating. It was a far cry from the first year when we only went to four or five houses and although she has always been an excellent talker.. trick or treat was 'trick tree'. This year she had a joke ready. A joke of her own creation.
"How much does a jack-o-lantern pay?" Answer: "None. Boo!" yelled at top volume.

Get it? Yeah, me neither but she sure thought it was a laugh riot. ; )



I really loved her costume. My mom made the dress and the cape. I bought the cauldron bucket, broom, hat, and striped tights at various stores for 1.50-1.00 apiece. Hopefully next year she'll want to be a witch again.

Little Guy's costume was a 75% clearance purchase from last year courtesy of Grandma.

You should see the huge bag of candy we have! I've limited her to two pieces a day but at that rate we'll still have candy until next Halloween. I'm going to have to cull and send the extras to work with Hubby.

Trick or Treat: Free Socks.

I made the once a month trip to the regular grocery store to fill my prescription and get name brand and specialty things that I can't get at Save-A-Lot or Aldi. So after I picked up my husband's requested jar of Light Miracle Whip, generic tums, whole wheat saltines, granulated tvp crumbles, 2 twelve packs of the good store brand pop, a brown bag of aged but sale bananas, and my prescription I headed to the cash register. On the end of the check out aisle my eyes wandered to a nice row of pretty socks with a coupon nearby. The socks were on sale for one dollar per pair and they had a handy hang tag of manufacturer coupons for 1.00 off. So, I bought my limit of free socks.

Monsters & The satisfying crunch of sprinkles under your feet

While Little Guy was napping:



A monster got loose in the toy room.

And persuaded me to bake Halloween cookies with her.
This is the cookie baking aftermath.

Now for the broom and the dish rag.