new "hobby" *spam post*

I use Avon products for my psorasis.  I don't wear a lot of makeup.  I don't use expensive stuff in my hair but I do use Avon for my psorasis and I LOVE the lip balms.  I am also branching out and trying their deodorants, hair removal cream, and a little bit of makeup.  I have become an Avon rep.  My reasoning is because I use the products.  Instead of paying full price I can get a discount and maybe make a few sales.  I do not want to be one of those pushy sales reps so I sent out an estore grand opening email and posted the link on my FB page.  I put up some flyers and business cards in local businesses on bulletin boards and I started a free ad in my city's information website.  I also put flyers on 10 of my neighbors doors. We were walking to the park anyway so no biggie. 

I don't plan to go knocking on doors, begging my friends for orders, spamming people constantly.  I am just going to do the basic getting my name out there thing and take it from there.  The reason that some of my new customers (I have 2 actual customers, 2 soon to be customers, and 3 possible customers) quit buying Avon is because their rep was overly pushy.  Not going to be me.  I don't like to sell.  I am not going to kid myself and say I am going to get rich doing this. Nor am I going to make this a full-time "job".  It is a HOBBY for me.  Something else to do.  Maybe make a bit of money but mostly just get a discount on products we already use.  For my local friends I am able to offer a discount.  I cannot do that through the website with direct shipping though :(. 

I am going to post my website here and just say that you can order (if you choose, no pressure or sales pitch) and have the items shipped directly to you.  In keeping with my thrifty ways, you can also have free shipping with any purchase amount.  I have a shipping code available.  You can contact me through the website or post a comment here and I will give that to you. 

youravon.com/jewers-bass







~Jess~

thankful for today 11/10 and 11/11

high 60's in November...YES!

my mom and dad

my pretty little neice

a little extra spending cash

K cleaning her room without me asking

products that actually work on my psorasis

getting rid of our old TV to someone that can actually use it

kids going to bed without a fight

being pretty smart

being cheap!  (I read a couple articles over the last few days that are predicting food prices to rise dramatically in 2011.  I am glad I am cheap enough to only buy sale items and build a stockpile to hopefully offset some of this cost for us...temporarily anyway)


~Jess~

Today I am thankful for

good food
good friends
the awesome weather for November in the midwest
dirty dishes (because it means that we are fed.  This was on a plaque my grandmother had above her sink.)
the lack of snow
my dad's mr fix-it abilities
the ability to give to those in need even though we don't have alot ourselves.  We have enough that I can surely donate to help others and that is a huge blessing.



~Jess~

thankful for today

Today I am thankful for:

being able to get back to a more normal routine.

hanging out with an adult...even if the kids are there as well and even if we are just going to Aldi.

Volleyball tonight.  My once a week hour of time where I get to have guilt free fun adult time

Diet cola.  I need that jolt in the morning.

a freezer full of food. cupboards full of food

a roof over our heads

the gorgeous November in the Midwest weather we are having. 

Our kitten purring.  I love her purrs.

clean laundry

having Christmas shopping almost all done. and about 1/3 of the wrapping done!



~Jess~

7 days of thanks

So I am jumping on the bandwagon late and not exactly like others, but when do I do anything like "normal" people?  I don't even grocery shop like a normal person!!!!

So anyway you are supposed to come up with things everyday that you are thankful for.  It is supposed to be like 5 things.  I might have 5, I might have more.  IDK.  I will do this for the next 7 days.  Maybe more.  Who knows.  I got lots to be thankful for.

Today I am thankful for

Hubby and him getting up with the kids this morning so I could sleep in.  I won't mention his going to take a nap once I did wake up ;)

My kids~even if they do not understand what be quiet or use your inside voices means.  Apparently their inside voices are 198 decibles...you don't want to hear their outside voices...trust me!

Hubby's job~he has been off since 10/18, when he had knee surgery.  I am thankful that he still has a job and they need him back ASAP and are willing to work within his limits until he is 100% functional again.  He is about 75% now and getting a bit better everyday.  I am thankful he is going back to work tommorrow.  As much as I love the guy he is driving me nuts with this 24 hour constant being home stuff.  I need a break.....from him!

That I get to be a SAHM (stay at home mom).  Sure money is tight sometimes, sure the kids make me crazy somedays, sure winter is coming and that means we will all be struck with cabin fever and will probably be crabby but I get to be home with them and spend every waking second with them.  I love that.

our financial savvy.  HAHAHA yeah it is a silly thing to be thankful for but I am.  I am thankful that we both had the foresight when we were younger to pay our bills on time, not rack up thousands and thousands of "stupid" debt, and manage our money well.  I am thankful we bought a modest house that we can still afford on a single income.  Our financial history is what is getting us through R not having an income while he is off.  We had some money in savings but we were able to negotiate with our bank because of our payment history and were able to have them help us out in being able to afford everything while he is lacking an income.  Yep...we have had 0 income since R's paycheck the week of his surgery.  We are surviving though.


~Jess~

spoiled!

ahhhh.  My parents.....I love them dearly.  They try so hard to "make up" for what we lacked as kids by buying myself, my brother, and our children expensive gifts.  Sometimes for birthdays and Christmas, sometimes just because they can.  Most people would be pleased by this.  I am torn.  I do love the gifts they give us however I am trying to raise my children to not be materialistic in a materialistic world.  It's tough when they are given extragavant gifts.  In turn my gifts pale in comparision.  When the kids spend time with my parents outside of my presence, they are given just about anything they ask for and even some things that they do not ask for.  Grandparents like to spoil grandchildren and I am fine with that.  The issue comes in when the kids have the "I wants" or the "Gimmies" after some time with the Grandparents. 

I am trying very hard to raise my children with the thought that clothes from garage sales and thrift stores are fine.  New clothes are for birthdays and Christmas (and probably for school when K starts next year.  I pretty much have her set already but we will do a little of the traditional BTS shopping.  Basically I am trying to teach my children to spend their (and their parents') hard earned money wisely. 

That being said.  Friday my parents brought over Pizza for my birthday dinner (my birthday was actually Tuesday but we celebrated late).  They also brought me a pricey gift....a new Sunbeam stand mixer.  I admit I have lusted after the Kitchen aid stand mixers for some time.  I am sure that my mom knew that but also looked at the sunbeam as having a bigger motor and was cheaper.  The kitchen aid mixer I like is about $300 with a 325 watt motor whereas the Sunbeam has a 350 watt motor.  I like the kitchenaids because of all the extra attachments you can buy, meat grinder, shredder/slicer, ice cream maker, etc etc etc.  The Sunbeam doesn't have those options.  It does come with bread hooks (which work ok but make the bowl bounce around quite horribly).  I don't need the bread hooks because I have 2 (yes 2!!!) bread machines (both bought used at the thrift store for $7 total and both work great).  I really don't need the attachments a kitchen aid comes with.  I have a vintage hand slicer I got from an auction and it works fantasticly.  I have a nice shredder I bought at a garage sale brand new.  I have access to a meat grinder whenever I would need it (and I have yet to need it).  Really, I don't even need a stand mixer because I have a good hand mixer that works fine for what I use it for.  (I do most of my stirring and mixing by hand anyway).  I really do not have a place to set out the stand mixer and leave it conveniently to be used until the spring when I am adding a base cabinet and countertop to the kitchen. 

I couldn't help but think what an extravagant gift.  I could use the $98 they spent in so many other ways.  That $98 is just about 1/2 of my monthly grocery budget.  I could stock us up on meats with that.  I could buy all the pantry staples I buy from Walmart for months with that money. 

In the end after much internal debate and discussion with R, I decided to keep it.  It goes against my thrifty nature totally.  But the thought of upsetting my mom when it was a well thought out gift was on deciding factor.  Also the desire for a kitchenaid and the practicality (as well as the additional costs associated with the attachments I desired but really didn't need) won out.  The Sunbeam will work fine for what I will use a stand mixer for.  I don't need it for making bread because of the bread machines.  I don't need it for shredding or slicing.  Because I don't can, I don't need to slice up dozens of cucumbers at a time.  Because we don't eat a lot of cheese, I can use my hand shredder for the little bit I do need.  Any meat I want to grind, I can take to my father in law and use his grinder.  I have never had to grind up any meat yet. 

In the end I feel slightly hypocritical.  I didn't ask for this expensive gift and I will use it frequently BUT I already had a vintage stand mixer that worked ok, I just wanted something better.  Maybe hypocritical isn't the right way of putting it.  I feel bad keeping an expensive gift when I don't buy expensive things for my kids very often.  The last expensive thing they received was a doll house last year for Christmas.  It was about $100 and their most expensive gift. 


~Jess~

stocked up

Winter in Wisconsin can be rough.  Cold, freezing rain, snow, sleet.  It's par for the course here and I do like Wisconsin so I stay.

I live in town so it isn't like I get standed at home for days at a time.  I just don't like to leave if I don't have to so I tend to stock up on our basics before winter.  Especially since having the kids.  I don't like to have to take the kids out in the cold if I can avoid it.  Sure I can wait until R gets home and then run to the store and get what we need but it is even easier to have him stop on his way home at the gas station for milk and bread.  The gas station a couple blocks away has great prices on fresh staples like milk, eggs, bread, bananas, etc.  That is easiest for fresh stuff.  For canned goods and my baking supplies I buy from Aldi.  Aldi is in the next town over which isn't a long drive but I dislike making that drive in the winter so just before the snowflakes start to fly I make a trip and do a massive stock up buy.  Today was that day.  I spent $48 at Aldi, $36 at a local to that town store, and $33 at Walmart. 

At Aldi I bought all our basic baking supplies and some other pantry items we were low on.  Noodles, canned mushrooms, tomato sauce and paste, broths, etc.  They also have 0 calorie butter flavored cooking spray and yeast right now as seasonal items.  I use both of these items regularly so I stock up on them as well.

I originally planned to use my "points" at the other store to get my inlaws a 20 lb turkey as one of their christmas presents but my plan was foiled so I used up my points and stocked up flour, cheese, frozen pie crusts, pumpkin and cherry pie filling, cake mixes and a couple other things that I needed that Aldi doesn't carry.

Then it was off to Walmart *just* for spaghetti sauce and dish soap.  I try not to buy much from Wal-mart.  It isn't that I am one of those "down with Walmart" people.  I just find better prices by shopping sales at my local stores and shopping at Aldi.  There are a few things from Walmart that we really like their brand of so I stock up on them once every couple of months.  I ended up getting what I went for PLUS

BBQ sauce (they were clearancing out the GV brand of BBQ sauce and had 6 bottles left at 75 cents a bottle.  I only had 2 left and knew I would use one bottle for K's birthday Baby Back BBQ ribs),

corn dogs (the kids LOVE these.  We don't eat them often so I bought some for quick lunches)

popcorn chicken from the deli (the kids think this is a treat.  I am ok with 'meat' being a treat.  Better than a candy bar!)

Baby back ribs for K's birthday dinner. (she requested them)

4 jars of spaghetti sauce

an extra bottle of dish soap

At least I got out of there only spending $33.  It used to be that R and I could go once every other week and come out with $200 of 'stuff' and still have to go to the local store for some groceries and we didn't even have kids yet.

My grocery budget monthly is $250 but I have been a bit lax on keeping track.  I am sure I have gone over lately with stocking up but I need to get back at tracking it.  I have a houseful of groceries now so I can keep it pretty low. 

I am working on cutting down on my diet soda habit so that should save us quite a bit, even though I drink the generic diet cola.  I like the super chill brand.  It takes like diet coke, which is my biggest downfall.  I cannot resist an ice cold diet coke.  I need to cut down.  Don't think I will ever completely eliminate it but cutting back would be very helpful!




~Jess~

looking for something new for dinner or dessert?

Click on over to my new recipe blog.  I started it yesterday and have worked on it most of the day.  So far I have a few recipes posted and have posts scheduled (one a day) up through 12/16!  Some are desserts, some are appetizers, some are meals, some are just meat.  Every post is scheduled to appear in the morning.  Many yummy recipes to come.  Most are ones I have found and tweaked.  Some are family passed down recipes and some are what I want to try.  I mainly started this for myself to make my menu planning easier.  I can just click on chicken and have # of chicken recipes come up.  Same for beef or whatever. 

Happy Cooking and Baking!

~Jess~

poor neglected blog :(

I am back.  I will try to blog more frequently.  Things got hectic.  R hurt his knee again, the garden produce had to be processed for the freezer and sewing had to be done, R had surgery a couple weeks ago.  He is on the mend and life is returning to "normal".

my first post back I am going to blog about menu planning.  If you don't know what it is, here is a pretty good article.

I am trying out monthly menu planning.  I am different in that I don't follow my menu to a T.  I just write out 30 meals on the calendar and cross them off as I make them.  It gives me room to make what we are craving that day. It leaves some simple dinners for volleyball league nights, or nights when we have been running all day and I just don't feel like cooking a big meal with lots of ingredients and prep time. 

I also mostly just plan the main dish or meat and let the kids pick the veggie or side that day.  They like having a say in what we eat and they seem to eat better when it is something they were able to choose.  They have to try so many bites (1 bite for each year old they are and usually after a couple bites they decide they like whatever it is) but at least there is one thing at dinner they picked and they will eat.

IF you would like to see any of my recipes, let me know and I will post it.  I am going to work on posting these or linking to the ones I copied.  If there are any in particular that you would like to see sooner rather than later, let me know and I will get to it ASAP.

My November meal plan is
grilled pork chops (made yesterday)
stuffed shells (made today)
roast
ribs
lasagna rolls
manicotti
steak strips with gravy over egg noodles
hamburger gravy with mashed potatoes
spaghetti and bread sticks
breakfast for dinner (eggs with mushrooms, onion and green pepper, sausage and pancakes)
ham/mashed potatoes/glazed carrots
burgers/sweet potato fries
baked chicken with twice baked potatoes
meatloaf for the kids and I /chili for R
soup and grilled cheeses or grilled ham and cheese sandwiches
au gratin potato and ham casserole
chicken cacciatore
ring bolgna/mac n cheese
grilled steaks
cube steaks and fried potatoes
tater tot casserole (r's 1 night to cook)
tacos
mock beef wellington
caramel french toast with eggs and bacon
blts
chicken nuggets/noodles
sloppy joes
stir fry
hamburger helper
Baby back ribs

I started into December as well.
Swiss steak
grilled brats with potato salad
homemade pizza roll
goulash
BBQ baked chicken
chicken parmesan
pizza hot dish
meatballs in gravy over egg noodles
salisbury steak
country fried steak
baked pork chops in mushroom gravy
BBQ meatballs with mashed potatoes.
chicken and dumplings.

the best part is that there are very few ingredients I will need to buy to make any of these meals.






~Jess~

my clotheslines

These are my clothesline lines before, except where the blanket is hanging from the swingset.  That one I just put up so I could hang out all the quilts.  The clothesline in front had to be sacrificed for a playhouse that is attached to the swingset on this side.  The post became legs for the playhouse.

I needed the clothesline space though so I improvised.  I attached the boards from the tore down clothesline to a tree and the backside of the post for my other clothesline (which is also attached to the garage).  It works but is just temporary.  Next year I am getting a "real" clothesline!

view from the other side. 

~Jess~

What I am making today.

I get the pretend maple syrup.  You know the cheap stuff.  I believe it is $1.49 at Aldi.  I dislike the real thing.  Yuck!    Anyway, we are having breakfast for dinner and I am making my own homemade strawberry pancake syrup.

Strawberry syrup recipe

If this works out I plan to make my own syrup from now on.  I will buy the maple flavoring and make my own artificial maple syrup.  It should cost pennies to make and be a bit healthier than the stuff I buy.  My girls would eat waffles and pancakes every day if I would let them so we go through a lot of syrup.

cooking the syrup

I changed the recipe a bit.  I only added 1/2 cup of sugar and add 1/2 package of strawberry flavored jello (mostly for color but a little for sweetness too).  It seemed a bit too thin so I added a 1/4 tsp of cornstarch to 1 tbsp water and stirred it into the syrup mix.  I strained out the leftover strawberry mash and we are putting that over angel food cake for dessert tommorrow!

~Jess~

meat sale and wrapping tutorial

I went to a meat sale today.  I spent $65 and got

That is just over 32 pounds of meat.

or

an average of $2.03 per pound.

The average is higher than I would have liked due to R wanting baby back ribs.  Without the ribs it would have been $1.75 average...much more to my liking, but R works hard so I can stay at home so he deserves a "treat" once in a while.

Once I got home with all the meat, I proceeded to wrap it into meal sized portions.  Here is a tutorial on how I wrap meat.  I wrap this way because the meat stays fresh longer and prevents freezer burn for a longer time frame.  I cooked ribs last night that were from April 2009.  They got misplaced in the freezer.  They were still as fresh as the day I froze them.  That's some good wrapping!

First I take a piece of Reynolds Freezer wrap.  Place it waxed side up.

Then I stick my meat about 1/3 of the way in from a corner.  This paper wasn't ripped square but you can get the idea.

Then I fold the first corner over the meat, pressing down to flatten the meat and release any air.

Then I bring in the sides. Again squeezing out any air.

I fold the sides in to make a point at the opposite end and I crease the folds, squeezing out any air as I crease.

Bring the wrapped meat over, flipping it onto the creased area.  Again sqeeze out any air.

bring the end over the top of the wrapped meat.

The very edge of the paper should be just a triangle shape.

Secure the triangle using one piece of freezer tape.

label the package with type of meat and date packaged.

For meat with bones I do it essentially the same but I add one step.

I place meat on plastic wrap.

Wrap the meat with the plastic wrap, making sure to squeeze out as much as as possible.

and then proceed with the wrapping.

Ta-Da!  lots of meat wrapped and ready to freeze!

bottom 2 shelves.  Very bottom is all ground beef

2nd from botton is (from left to right)

in the box: Ham, pork ribs.

white wrapped: beef roasts

 clear packaging: ring bologna

top box right side: pork chops

bottom box rght side: Bratwurst

top shelf: chicken, frozen pizzas

2nd shelf: veggies, fries, onion rings,

3rd shelf: steaks, pan of muffins that I need to wrap, cottage cheese (I buy it marked down and freeze it for use in lasagna), homemade strawberry freezer jam.

freezer door

margarine, breadsticks, homemade waffles, ground turkey, butter, pizza sticks, pearl onions, cocktail weiners

garlic bread, juice concentrate, pie crust, cheese, sausage links.

~Jess~

quilts and more quilts.

I am covered in quilts.  HA!  but seriously, I have one almost done for a friend for Christmas.  Just need to tie it.
O's is done and waiting for tying.  Matching pillowcase also made...on a whim.  The pillowcase matches the back of the quilt
square are cut for K's quilt and mostly cut for the youngest neice's quilt.
Instead of tying the quilts which is probably one of the most relaxing things to do, I decided to "fix" the quilt I picked up yesterday.  I had a sheet that was *almost* big enough so I used that for a new back.  By new back I mean I just sewed it right onto the quilt, over the old back.  There is one corner of the old back that is in good shape so I left that corner exposed.  IDK.  It seemed like a good idea.  Kinda show what the quilt originally looked like.  It looks a bit goofy IMO, but this is a HEAVY quilt and will be a good winter quilt for us.  I stood on the scale with it and it added 10 lbs to my weight.  YIKES! I think it is going to be too heavy for O though.  Originally she wanted the quilt but I don't think she will like the bulkiness of it.  I think it will be alright.  I do NOT do show quality quilts.  I do utility quilts.  Ones that are meant to be used.  They are not perfect but they are made with LOVE...that's what's important..IMHO.

the back-ignore my fabric mess.  That is next on my list of things to tackle.

different view of the back

the top.

~Jess~

surprise dig n save trip

I adore the dig and save outlet in Madison.  If you are in Madison and have a couple hours to spare, check out ST Vincent de Paul dig and save outlet at 1900 S park st.  They are open from 10-5.  I believe they now accept debit cards but cash is best. 

A few scores today.  There were more however the rest are quilt stuff which I will take pics of later.  One of the quilt things I picked up is a completed quilt that the backing is tore in a couple spots.  I plan to fix that. 

purple hoodie for Kait and a shirt for Kait

this is going to be the backing for my youngest neice's toddler bed quilt

Levi and Gap carpenter shorts for R

shirts for Liv and Kait (SO, Old Navy, Children's place and something else)

childrens place and Levi shirt for youngest neice, hello Kitty shirt for Liv,children's place pants for youngest neice, peace shirt for K

Gap shirt, skirt and some PJ pants for K, Dora PJ shirt for O

Gap and Lands' End fleece for K and/or O, Sweater Dress K had to have.

pants, PJ pants, shorts for K

Between mom and I we FILLED the trunk of her car for $40.  Sweet!

~Jess~

house is done and more

The contractor finished the house on Friday.  Hooray!  Now we started planning for a deck for next spring and rain gutter. 

Today R and I blanched and prepped 36 ears of corn for the freezer.  We also chopped 5 vidalia onions for the freezer and added 2 diced green peppers to our freezer stash of green peppers.  We planned dinners for this week too.

It has been 2 weeks since my surgery and we are finally getting back into the swing of things. 

I started a Christmas present quilt and have a tote Christmas present pieced.  I just need to do some more sewing.  I scored a huge bag of fabric (25 lbs or better) for $6.50 at a local thrift store.  Some of that will become potholders for Christmas gifts, as well as totes and quilt squares.  I have a ton of sewing to do before Christmas!

the next couple of months are winter prep mode around here.  Not only do we do outside winter prep, we also do inside winter prep stuff.  Which is stocking the freezer with the delicious veggies of summer so we can enjoy them in the winter.  We also stock meats and whatever else we feel like (zucchini bread actually freezes really well!). 
~Jess~

updates

It's been a long time since I update the blog. 

The house is coming along nicely.  Unfortunately, the contractor needed just a bit more siding and a window got broke on the way to the house so we are waiting for those two things for the project to be completed.

The week before last was an awful week here.  Monday was the only good day.  Tuesday I went to the ER and was admitted.  On Thursday I had surgery to have my gall bladder removed.  I came home Thursday afternoon. Also on Tuesday my Grandma passed away and due to my surgery I was unable to attend the funeral.  Friday a limb fell from a big tree in front of the house and hit the front porch.  It caused minimal damage however the tree needed to be removed.  Saturday we had some people come over to help cut down the tree and one of the guys was injured pretty badly (broken wrist, bruising, gash above an eye).

Saturday night K and I went to see Montgomery Gentry at a local theatre, however I just could not get into it.  I was hurting and worried about my friend and didn't enjoy the concert.  K did manage to get 2 feet from Troy Gentry however.  That was a highlight. 

Thrifty things:
I scored a new printer at the thrift store for $3.  It is identical to what I had and just bought a bunch of ink for.  I was glad for that.  I couldn't return the ink because it was a 4 pack and I used 2. 

I have been collecting fabrics and flat sheets from garage sales and thrift stores for quilt making.  I currently have a full large tote box.  I will be making 5 quilts for Christmas and 3 tote bags so I am trying to do it cheaply. 

Late in August we are having a cookout/house is done party.  Trying to plan for that on the cheap has proved to be interesting.  Will post more about that once I get some RSVPs back and know how many people plan to come.

~Jess~

Walgreens this week (so far)

by the numbers:
10 mens gillette bodywash
6 Herbal essence products
Total retail price: $73.84
my OOP $36.90 (includes $3 for a Father's day card)
RR banked up as of right now $30.50
My oop if I count the RR as cash=$6.40 ($3 was a card so essentially only $3.40 on body wash and hair care stuff)
total amount saved as of now:$49.45

amount of transactions left to do
6 for hair products
2 for bodywash

Then a couple for super cheap mountain dew for R.  That is the reason I am banking up the RRs.  Soda is on sale 4/$14 and get back $4 in RR so I can get 4 12 packs of soda, use 3 of my $4.50 RRs and pay 50 cents plus tax OOP and get back $4 in RR..which I will use in the following weeks on pullups. 

My OOP could have been less if I was rolling the RR into multiple transactions, BUT with only one Walgreens in town I try to stay lowkey.  They all know me by now though :)


Rumor has it that the new rewards program Walgreens is going to limit the Register Rewards.  That is the reason I am stocking up on this stuff now. The only thing I still would like to stock up on is some women's bodywash.  Just waiting for a good (FREE) sale!

~Jess~

curbside find from the neighbors

They were throwing it out so I asked if I could have it.  They said I could so here it is.  A new outside toybox..for free!

So I know I said I was going to do a spending challenge but K got sick and we had some things going on this weekend.  We didn't spend a whole lot but I am not doing a challenge right now.

We went to a parade on Saturday and a lady had a float that was advertising her homemade laundry detergent.  I was lucky enough to get a sample.  It is EXACTLY like mine, which I thought was super cool.  Then I let a little of my "inner hippie" out when talking with the neighbor tonight about the laundry detergent.  She was out in her yard and asked if we went to the parade.  I said yes and then she asked if  got a sample of that laundry detergent.  I said sure did. She said she ended up buying some and I said it is just like the stuff I make.  That shocked her that I make my own and I told her it ends up costing about $2 for a 5 gallon bucket since I have to leave out the borax (Rodney and Liv react to it).  I offered to teach her to make it if she wanted and she said she was going to try this stuff out and if she liked it she would have me teach her.  Cool!  I love to share my knowledge with those who are receptive :)

~Jess~

upcoming Walgreens deal

next week Walgreens will have Herbal Essence hair care for $2.99 and get back a $2 RR and gillette and old spice men's bodywash $4.49 and get $4.49 back in RR.  After coupons this stuff will be free (only paying tax).

I ordered coupons from the coupon clippers dot com.  Great site.  I have used them multiple times.  Excellent customer service. 

My plan is as follows:

1 herbal essence $2.99-$1 coupon=$1.99 + plus tax OOP get back $2 RR

then:

2 gillette bodywash $4.49 each-buy one get one free coupon-$2 RR from herbal essence=$2.49 + tax, get back $4.49 RR

I am going to bank up the $4.49 RRs and use them to get soda for R which is on sale 3/$12 and get back $4 RR when you buy 3.

3 12 packs $12
2 on sale dish soap (I need it anyway and I will need a filler to bring the cost up the the RR amount) $1.98 (99 cents each)

$13.98 + tax total
-$4.49 RR
-$4.49 RR
-$4.49 RR
= $.51 + tax and get back $4 RR


When it is all said and done I will end up with:

11 total herbal essence shampoo and conditioner
10 gillette body wash
4 old spice bodywash
6 12 packs of soda

all for about the regular retail price of the soda (which I would be buying anyway).

I haven't done Walgreens in a while so this is a good week to jump back in.  After this I will only need to pay attention to deals on cold medicine and pain relievers for awhile.  We will have plenty of the other stuff again.





~Jess~

menu planning

I have always been against menu planning.  It is just not for me.  I hate knowing on Monday that I am going to have chicken stir fry on Friday.  UGH!  I like variety and spontaneity in my meals.  That being said I am going against myself a bit and giving it a try.  I am not planning out day by day rather I am picking 5 weekly meals and making them when I feel like it.  I will make sure I have those ingredients on hand on Monday and go from there.  Some people plan out Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks but we are making it easy and starting with just dinners.  Some people menu plan based on what they have on hand and what is on sale.  Some plan around on sale meats.  I am planning around our fresh veggies.  A little odd, perhaps.  But I hate to waste fresh veggies.  We have plenty of meat so I don't need to plan around whats on sale.  Whats on sale has already been stocked in my freezer.  I am not planning for weekends because we never know what is happening on the weekend until the weekend so I will wing it. 

We have a lot of food in the freezers and cupboards so look for a no/little spend on food challenge soon :)  like starting Friday.

This weeks menu

beef roast with mashed potatoes and carrots

beef and chicken shishkabobs with pepper, onion and mushrooms, chicken rice as a side

BLTs with mac n cheese

grilled chicken bacon ranch salads

tacos with spanish rice

easy, right?





~Jess~