Chicken Tacos & Snow Day

That's not my picture (looks good though, huh?), but I just wanted to let you all know that the Chicken Tacos in the crockpot that we had yesterday were GREAT! I think when I make it next time, I won't dump any of the liquid out of the Rotel though, but that was the only thing I would change. It was still good even with some of the liquid dumped out.

Oh, and I also recommend just using 2 chicken breasts. I just used 2, and we had it for dinner last night, had leftovers tonight, and we STILL have enough for another meal leftover. So this recipe really goes a long way.

But like I said, it was a great recipe, and SO easy. I can't wait to have it again.

So we've been snowed in today. We probably have 10 inches of snow or maybe a little more. Church is cancelled tomorrow, so that's a bummer, but I'm hoping the roads are good enough for us to get out to go to Mom's for a while, cause I think I'm going to go crazy stuck in the house! :)

Kroger Trip

I went to Kroger today for their Buy 10, Get $5 off deal.... here's what I got...



1 box of Ritz crackers
1 box of Raisin Bran
1 half gallon of milk
1 tub of Edy's ice cream
1 box of Electrasol Finish gelpacks
5 cans of Rotel
1 jar of Frank's Hot Sauce
1 tub of I Can't Believe it's Not Butter
1 Maruchan Yakisoba meal
1 tub of Daisy Sour Cream
2 cans of Hormel Chili
4 bags of Kraft Shredded Cheese
2 packs of Starkist Tuna
2 packs of Kraft singles (which I for some reason put away before I took the picture)


I got all this for only $10.25!!! I think it was a savings of about 83%. This may be one of my best trips yet. :)

Meal Plan Monday

Monday
Leftover Chicken Pot Pie

Tuesday
English Muffin Pizzas

Wednesday
Buitoni Riserva Pasta (this was on last wee's menu, but we ended up not having it)
Green Bean Bundles

Thursday
Chicken Patties
Tater Tots

Friday
Chicken Tacos
Mexican Rice

Saturday
Beef Burrito Skillet

Fine By Me

So a couple of weeks ago, Anthony had a student who said to him "I hate you". This totally cracks us up because it's like the girl thinks it's going to hurt his feelings or he's going to lose sleep because she hates him. I assure you, he is not. :)

When thinking about what his response to this girl should be, this is the first thing that came to my mind:



I just LOVE this clip, and so appropriate for the situation! I recommend going on youtube and watching the whole scene. :)

She Looks Just Like You

I have been given the comment twice now in the past couple weeks that Bailey "looks just like" me. Now, I have to admit, that I'm not exactly sure what is the appropriate way to respond to the comment.



My automatic response is to say "thank you". But maybe that's not right. Maybe they really think I am not so attractive and are feeling sorry for poor little Bailey.

I have also wanted to say "Well, really, most people we know say she looks more like her daddy, and you'd probably agree if you saw him", but I'm sure they don't care about it for me to go into it that much.



So, what would you say if someone made this comment to you? I guess, for now, I'll just say "Umm, thank you?".

Whatever the right answer is, I sure hope I don't have the snot running out of my nose like poor Bailey. :)

A Woman and Her Food

So we had Schwans Creamed Chipped Beef for dinner tonight. I ordered it back in October as a $10 free food promotion that they were doing, and long story short, it took me till like a week ago to finally get the order because apparently my delivery man had a problem not making any money off of me! But I fought hard and finally got it, and let me say...

It was worth it. It was so yummy. We used to eat this when I was a kid and it was everything I remembered it to be and more. :)

I sound like I'm talking about a relationship here, not food. Oh, but wait, I do love food, so I guess it could be considered a relationship. :)

Anyways, all that to say, I love me some creamed chipped beef, especially when it is free!

Meal Plan Monday

Monday
Creamed Chipped Beef & Biscuits

Tuesday
Baked Potatoes
Broccoli

Wednesday
Buitoni Riserva Pasta

Thursday
Layered Enchilada Bake

Friday
Concession Stand @ RCS Homecoming

Saturday
Cheesy Chicken Pot Pie

A Non-Grocery Shopping Post

I wanted to do a post that was not related to my shopping bargains as much as I love those posts. :) I guess that's the most exciting thing in my life so it's the easiest thing to post about. But I wanted to share a few pictures from the past few weeks.

Anthony got a Casio keyboard for Christmas and we (including Bailey) have really been enjoying it. Anthony wasn't really surprised by the keyboard... he was kind of onto me, but he was still really excited about it. He has been playing pretty often, and hopefully he can keep it up now that he has started up with grad school again for the semester.




And of course, I'm sure all of you know about the massive snowstorm we got just before Christmas. We took Bailey out in the snow, just long enough for me to make a trek (and let me tell you, it wasn't easy!) to a couple of neighbors' houses to deliver some Christmas goodies. We never did measure the final amount, but it was at least 27 or 28 inches, because it was almost as high as Bailey, as you can see in the 2nd picture. We still have snow on our roof, four weeks later!






We've had a few good weeks since Christmas - enjoyed having Anthony at home during his break, had lots of fun with good friends, and just watching Bailey grow and learn new things everyday. We are loving life and looking forward to seeing what 2010 holds for us!

I'm a Harris Teeter lover! :)

So Saturday we trekked over to Crozet and made our first visit to Harris Teeter. (I actually feel like we used to have one in Waynesboro, but I could be making that up... anyone remember? haha). Anyways, Crozet is a little farther than I usually go for groceries, but I figured it was worth the trip for super doubles!

Here is what I ended up with...



What I got for free:
2 botles of Coffeemate Creamer
1 Reach floss (made money on this)
2 Wholly Guacamole
2 cans Muir Glen organic soup
1 Marie Callender's Home Style Creation

Other stuff:
3 packs of boneless skinless chicken breast for $1.66/pound
Crisco Olive Oil - I think I paid $1.99 for this - original price was $6.99
4 bags of Kraft shredded cheese - paid 50 cents each for these, and I got $5 off for my next trip
3 cans of Campbell's Chunky soup - can't remember what I paid for these
Buitoni pasta sauce - I think I paid $1.50 for this

I also bought a thing of sour cream to take to Mom's cause Ashley called and ask me to pick it up since we were having dinner over there - that was in our bellies at this point, so it's not pictured, haha!

Okay, so for final totals...

Total before sales and coupons: $75.45
Total out of pocket: $19.37

Savings of 74%
(81% if I count the $5 catalina toward my next purchase)

Well, I had such a great time, that I am going back again tonight to see if they have restocked some things they were out of while I was there the first time, and to use some more coupons I printed out since then! Oh, and my sister is going with me so this will be her first big couponing trip! I am SO excited! :)

Meal Plan Monday

Monday
Popcorn Chicken Salad

Tuesday
Beef Enchilidas
Rice

Wednesday
Chicken Patties
Tater Tots

Thursday
Girls' Night Out @ McAlister's!!!

Friday
Farmhouse Chicken

Saturday
Savannah Chicken Salad

Martin's & Kroger Deals

Martin's had 4- $1 coupon doublers in their ad this week, so I had to take advantage of it! Here's what I got....



1 bag of Tyson chicken nuggets
1 box of Bagel Bites
2 cans of Healthy Choice soup
2 pints of International Delight Creamer
2 light bulbs
1 Healthy Choice Fresh Mixer
1 Marie Callender's Home Style Creations
1 Heluva Good sour cream dip
1 Yakisoba meal

For a grand total of....



.....$11.17! That is a savings of 75%! I even got a reaction out of the cashier this time. I don't think I have ever had a cashier react to any of my great buys before... I guess they just dont' care. But this girl was like "wow!", so that was fun for me. :)


And there were a couple of things I wanted from Kroger, but it is just way too cold for me to make an extra stop for just 2 things, so I employed my wonderful husband to make a stop for me! Here's what he got at Kroger....



4 cans of black beans
1 box of Gorton's Fish Fillets

For a total of....

.... $3.86!

Today I have Anthony picking up a couple of things from Food Lion for me. :) What a guy!

Also, I found out that there is a Harris Teeter no more than 30 minutes away from me, which I was not aware of. I have been wishing we had a Harris Teeter in our area. This is a little farther than I travel for my usual grocery shopping but since they are having super doubles this week, and I can get oodles of stuff for free, or close to it, we are going to be making a trip over there on Saturday, I think. Anthony said he wants to go to Best Buy to use a gift card he got for Christmas so I think we'll go there as well, and probably eat at Red Robin since we'll be in Charlottesville. I love me some Red Robin. :)

That's all for now. I am enjoying some "me time", watching tv, drinking coffee, and messing on the computer while Bailey is taking a nap. I probably should be doing something productive like cleaning the bathroom or taking a shower (haha, I'm not going anywhere today, who needs a shower?) but oh well. Ahhh, I love nap time. :)

12 Month Well Check

Bailey had her 12 month well check yesterday with Dr. Bob, so I wanted to share her her stats. :)

Weight: 25 lbs. 2 oz. = 90 to 95th percentile

Height: 29 inches = 25 to 50th percentile

Head Circumference: 18.5 inches = 90th percentile

I understand her being way up the charts in weight, because she is still breastfed for most of her calories, but what's up with the height still? Haha! I am a little on the tall side, and Anthony is definitely tall, so how do we have a short child?? Hopefully she starts growing upward soon. :)

She had to have blood drawn, which they normally do at this visit, to check for lead and something else I think. She didn't even cry when they pricked her toe! She had 4 shots today: MMR, chicken pox, flu, and H1N1. Poor baby. She cried a little after the second two. Luckily, they had 2 nurses to do it, so it didn't take any longer than necessary. And I have officially graduated to NOT crying during the shots. Haha.

Anyways, Dr. Bob said she looks great and he was really impressed with her walking. :) I'm one proud mama.

Meal Plan Monday

Monday
I'm spending the night at Mom's so this is probably a "fend for yourself" night

Tuesday
Hamburger Helper
Peas

Wednesday
Dominos Pizza - trying out the new pizza!

Thursday
Baked Potatoes
Broccoli

Friday
Popcorn Chicken Salad

Saturday
Beef Enchilidas
Rice

Reflections on 2009

I had been wanting to do one of these types of things, but hadn't really seen anything I liked... until today! So here we go....


1. What was the single best thing that happened this past year? Hmm... this is hard already! I'm not sure that I have ONE single moment that stands out to me. Every moment that I got to spend being a stay-at-home mom to Bailey has been great. I guess our trip to Baltimore to see the Red Sox play was a pretty stand out event.

2. What was the single most challenging thing that happened? Tyson losing his battle with cancer was hard and my friend Malisa losing her baby Colton. Also seeing my dad struggle with persistent pain, having 2 surgeries this year, and the obstacles that has created for him. But as far as our immediate family of 3, it's been a great year.

3. What was an unexpected joy this past year? My sister's boyfriend James, as corny as it may sound. We all love him and I hope he is around to stay. :)

4. What was an unexpected obstacle? It's not a huge deal but it's kind of been an obstacle living as far away from everything and everyone as we do. It's not that far, but far enough to keep me from going out and running around town or visiting others every day, so that I can conserve gas and money. I wish we lived closer so I could be more social with other "mommy friends".

5. Pick three words to describe 2009. New, Mommy, Learning.

6. Pick three words your spouse would use to describe your 2009 (don’t ask them; guess based on how you think your spouse sees you). Mom, Bargain Hunter

7. Pick three words your spouse would use to describe their 2009 (again, without asking). Dad, School, Master's.

8. What were the best books you read this year? Pick one? Twilight series.

9. With whom were your most valuable relationships? My husband, obviously. He has been unquestioningly supportive of me and any mothering decisions I have made. He's been such a great support and tries to help me out in any way he can, even when he is so busy with school and his master's.

10. What was your biggest personal change from January to December of this past year? Making the transition to being in charge of another person!

11. In what way(s) did you grow emotionally? I think motherhood has made me tougher and more flexible. It used to be that things like cars breaking down or the heat not working would really throw me for a loop and make me really upset. Not so much anymore. I've learned to deal better with life's stresses and try not to get stressed out about the things I have no control over. Having to attend TWO funerals for babies this year has reminded me, in a big way, of what is most important.

12. In what way(s) did you grow spiritually? I think I have probably grown some in the area of prayer, just trying to be in conversation with God throughout the day. My faith has been incredibly strengthened through God's faithfulness in our finances. He has provided in so many ways for us to make extra money here and there. We made it through the year without having to dip into our savings even once, and I really did not think that would happen!

13. In what way(s) did you grow physically? Well, in addition to losing all my pregnancy weight, I also lost about 25 extra pounds. This was kind of just a result of being home, instead of working, where I ate a lot of fried food. But I feel pretty certain that breastfeeding has also played a role. It's been nice to finally see a difference in the way my clothes fit. :)

14. In what way(s) did you grow in your relationships with others? I met a new friend across the street who is also a Christian, and I hope to develop that relationship this year. I also made the "mommy connection" with all my mommy friends from church.

15. What was the most enjoyable area of managing your home? I learned all about couponing this year, and that has got to be one of the highlights of my year. I have gotten great satisfaction from the savings I have gotten from combining coupons with sales. I really feel like I am contributing financially to our family.

16. What was your most challenging area of home management? Keeping up with the cleaning! I've always hated cleaning, especially the bathrooms, but it has been even more difficult since having a baby. I just can't seem to keep up with the cleaning and clutter in the house anymore.

17. What was your single biggest time waster in your life this past year? Definitely facebook. I can say that without hesitation, and I'm really a little ashamed of how much time I have spent on there.

18. What was the best way you used your time this past year? Investing in Bailey... playing, reading, hugging, and kissing. I've tried my best to appreciate every moment, even the hard ones, because I know this time is passing all too quickly. Before I know it, she is going to be a teenager, going off to college, and being walked down the aisle by her daddy and I will be wishing that I could hold my baby in my arms just one more time.

19. What was the biggest thing you learned this past year? To appreciate every single moment with my husband and daughter, and to live every day like it's my last.

20. Create a phrase or statement that describes 2009 for you. Living my dream.