The Art of Couponing Returns!

Thought I'd share the free deal I found from Southern Savers this week at Publix (you still have time to cash in on this).

We're free at Publix! Crest toothpaste and Oral B toothbrush!

Right now at Publix, both the Crest toothpaste and Oral B toothbrush are $2 each. If you are like me, and you are a frequent Publix shopper, you should have received the "Savings are Stocking Up at Publix" mailer. It looks like this:

Yay! Free money at Publix!

Inside this booklet there were coupons for $1 off Crest toothpaste and $1 off Oral B manual toothbrushes. Remember, these are store Qs, so you can couple them with the sale + manufacturer's Qs to get the BEST deals.

Right now you can find manufacturer's Qs for both in variations of -.50, -.75 and -$1. Luckily, I had them in the $1 value.

So, $2 sale price, minus $1 store Q and $1 manufacturer's Q = FREE.

I got lucky and we have an extra mailer that came to the house (mom also spends lots of $$ in Publix) so I'll be getting more, but this time it'll be .25 cent for the toothpaste.

Either way, the toothpaste is getting donated, but I'll keep the toothbrushes :)

Christmas Wishing and Fun Internet Distractions

Have any of you heard of pinterest.com? It's wonderful fun. I'm not as developed on there as I'd like to be, but I'm using it right now to come up with my dream Christmas Wish List for 2011. I think it's still invite only, so if you would like one just let me know. It works well with Google Chrome which is my browser of choice. I have plans to eventually do a board on pinterest for all of my books, my dream home, etc. What types of boards will you create?

I am going to blog today!

I'm rereading over my goals and I'm epic failing here in the tenth month of the year. That's why I'm thankful I was tagged in this post. I'm going to try and get back on the goal-driven horse...

I'm a ham sometimes. This is me today at work riding the "horse"...yeeeeeah. Please note the AL state flag in the background...

So here goes:

1. Do not give up on the home search. We can't be married with parents and pets forever. It's getting to that point in my life I'm really wanting to consider our family growth extension plans aka babies...and I just can't even think about it without having a home for our possible future family members. So I want to continue to look at homes and even apartments. It's just a challenge because I don't want to live in an apartment when most of the mortgages are cheaper than rent...

2. Find more things to give thanks about aka complain less. Sometimes I catch myself venting more than I like doing. I need to revive the spirit of my old blog- Thank You Have a Nice Day.

3. Get a library card. CHRIS! Help me here LOL. I want to start checking out more books rather than buying them. I want to be a library supporter.

4. Clean out a box from my dorm. I know that when I moved home for the summer after my freshmen year there were at least two boxes of stuff that never made it back with me when I moved into my sophomore-senior apartment. I want to dig those out, have a few laughs, clear some clutter and scrapbook any items left over. I know I have some old high school photos in there I want to use to make some stuff with.

5. Get back to goals in general. I want to start back to seriously working on my original goals I set for 2011.

What are your goals for the rest of the year?

Caturday Saturday: Our mommy just can't get her blog in order, but we're still precious edition

Caturday Saturday: We're back, and super lovable.

This was last Saturday. I woke up to a gang of kittehs who were hungry.

Also last Saturday, Scooby made her way into the attic...yes ATTIC!!!

A classic shot of Elliot watching Sunday NFL.

Scooby and toy.

I love this one haha. From last night.

Let me tell you a secret...

Such a sweet brother/sister pairing.

Remembering my grandmother

This week my family said goodbye to our sweet grandmother, Alma Blackburn Barry. She was one of the kindest people I've ever known. I think my father said it best when he notified his friends on facebook. He said, "All her life, she truly had a servant heart and took care of all those around her including her family, friends, and strangers who were in need. It didn’t end with people though as she loved animals and gardening. She cared for dogs, cats (her favorites), birds, squirrels, and even the raccoons that would come to her door looking for food. If someone or something was hungry, she fed them, if injured or hurting; she cared for them or got them help. She was loved by many and will be missed by all that knew her. I love you mother, God Bless."


When I think of my grandmother, I will always think of cats. She loved to tend to animals. In fact, I'm pretty sure word got around that she would care for them. I can remember her taking care of kittens that were dumped on a side of the road, left for dead. At her home you could always find a humming bird feeder and pans of dry food and water out on the grass. 


I loved to hear her stories, especially ones that involved my dad's youth. I can't ever remember seeing her angry or upset, just smiling and always wanting to serve.


It touches me deeply that friends and family are making donations to the Lee County Animal Shelter in Albany Georgia. I cannot think of a better way to pay tribute to her legacy. 


She didn't invent an ipod or ipad, but she invented in me a spirit of caring that I hope honors her memory.

Eleven in 11: Evaluating September

I don't know how the year is going by so fast...this is crazy!

The breakdown:
1. Volunteer opportunity- I love these ladies! I'm thinking about possibly taking on something else though too. Any suggestions?
2. The weight loss one- So, last week Tim and I started back to WW together. I hate that he can have basically double my points. In the first week he lost 10 lbs! I lost 2 of the 7 I had gained back. Overall, I'm still doing great for the year.
3. Plan and take honeymoon- We went to Amelia Island. Collectively, Tim and I decided that we simply didn't ever have a honeymoon. While the trip was a FABULOUS trip, it just wan't a honeymoon. We missed the boat 3 years ago, and it isn't something you can just have 3 years late. It's ok though, we still loved vacationing! You can see our recent trip photos from here and here.
4. Trying four new recipes- I managed to make one thing: Buttermilk Blue Cheese Smashed Red Potatoes

5. Blog three times a week- I need to set aside a set time for this I think, that's the only way it is going to get better.

6. Student loan- Check!

7. Savings!- Check! 

8. Read 52 books- Still 51 to go...

9. Facebook birthdays- I love facebook's new birthday feature. It makes this tons easier!

10. Visit 12 new restaurants- I had Smokey Pig BBQ for the first time this month! Ha! I didn't actually go to the restaurant, but I did get it delivered by Tim. It was decent :)

11. Etsy- I have some ideas now that football season is well underway.