Deals this week - July 21

There are not a ton of great deals out there this week, so other than a few school supply items I plan to take this week off.

In order to stay within your set budget each month, there needs to be weeks that you spend zero on groceries. Take your random kitchen items and make random meals. I have plenty of them, but I won't bore you. Want to share your go to weekly meals?

Deals I noticed in the paper:

Office depot - use these to hold your coupons in your purse!


Target


And lots from walgreens



Composition book


Backpacks



Erasers

Im excited about what I am doing with school supplies this season!!! I have a good friend who serves as a missionary/teacher in Pane Honduras. She is an amazing selfless woman who has given up all of the convenience of the
American life for she and her son to serve others on a volunteer bases. I have known her for about 8 years and she has always talked about her desire to serve in this area. I am so inspired by her obedience and patience as she watched God pave the way to move her to Honduras.

Let's be real and honest. I am just too selfish of a person to do the work she does. I place alot of value on materials and convenience...internet shopping, a vehicle in the garage, air condition. I can't imagine giving those things up for an undetermined amount of time.

So how can I support her? School supplies are really expensive there, so a school supply drive we will have!!!!

If you are in town drop offs can be made at first west and first west fairbanks or I can pick up. If your not in town, you can donate $ and I will shop for you. Do you know how many kids you can provide for with just $5???

I know that I could never do what she does everyday, but this is what I can do.

Remember the day craft box.

This out of date recipe box was passed down to me from a cowoker moving out of the country.



Since recipes can easily be found with a quick google search these days I didnt have a huge need to store recipes, however I liked the shape so I wanted to use it for something.

I remembered seeing a pin about writing a note about your children and/or family on an index card everyday of the year. Jotting down what you did that day, something you noticed, or their current likes and dislikes. What a perfect box!

Modpodge/scrapbook paper/wooden letter






I LOVE how it turned out!! Now lets see how many days in a row I can remember to do this!!!

Chalkboard menu

I am obsessed with the presentation of meals. Really with any type of presentation.

The last few times I've had people over and created a "dinner spread", I felt like something was missing. I wanted some type of personalization. My table only seats 4 (1 highchair) so really just 3 therefore a tablescape is out.

I typically lay all my food items across the bar countertop buffet style, so this is where I needed the extra punch. I'm sure I didnt come up with this on my own, I must have seen it somewhere but I dont know where.

Chalkboard menu:

I took a wooden picture frame from goodwill and painted the wood with color of choice and the glass with chalkboard paint





This project was actually an all day event. It took several layers of chalkboard paint to cover the glass. You will need to paint both sides so that any streaks you create will still be black.

I painted a layer, let dry, held the glass in front of a window to check for streaks, and painted again.

Loved the way it turned out!

Cartwheel at target

Cartwheel is a new way to save at target that can be very overwhelming at first glance. Its actually much easier than it appears.

What is it? It is basically an extra percentage of savings on selected items. It can be stacked on top of target coupons AND regular coupons (all 3 can be used on 1 item).

1) You select the items you want to save on (you will have a limit of item offers at a time)

2) You add to your cartwheel list

3) You have one barcode to scan at the register for savings on all of your selected items.

Lets get started...

Step one - download the app. Its quicker, easier, and you dont have to print out anything to bring in with you to the store.



I was overwhelmed with the app at first so I chose to go the print out route, which caused 2 registers to freeze while checking out. Lesson learned. App only for me!!

Step two- browse offers.



There are a ton of offers. You can browse specifically or all offers. If you have trouble getting to the menu page, swipe to the right.

Step three - select your offer by touching the item and selecting "add"



Be mindful of the expiration date.

Once all your items are selected, go shopping!!!

Step four- select "my bar code" and show to cashier BEFORE using other coupons at check out.



And thats it!! Savings on all of your selected items are subtracted.

Tips:

As with any coupons, dont buy items just because you save. Look for items you are going to buy anyway (diapers)

Maximize savings by stacking with other coupons

A target red card is a MUST. It is simply a debit card attached to your checking account. No extra fees. With this card you save an additional 5 percent on your total bill!!!

Never buy anything from target without searching to see if savings are available.  You can do this while your walking in.  Sometimes I feel like everything in the store is available on cartwheel!!

Mexican Tilapia Bowl

I found a recipe for a fish taco bowl and made a few alterations that work best for my family. The run down follows:

Mix the following

1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper



Spray Casserole dish and add 4 tilapia filets. (I use the individual wrapped frozen fillets and defrost in water)

Spread season mixture over both sides of fish



Broil for about 10 minutes until fish are done.



In the meantime, dice up onions and bell peppers and sautee in EVOO

Serve over a spinach salad with steamed corn, black beans, sauteed peppers and onions and a couple of drizzles of EVOO



D immediately confirmed this healthy awesomeness. He rated it a 9 and said that 1point could easily be earned with some type of healthy dressing option. The bottom layer of spinach was dry. Perhaps I should layer next time.

Here she goes again.......issues


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

MOM THOUGHTS..

Wouldn’t it be lovely if we actually had time to do all of the things we post on Pinterest.  At one time I had to boycott the site.  It started to make me a little depressed and guilty for not doing every cute art project with my child or cooking all of the new “easy” recipes for my husband.  I have not yet mastered the art of simply keeping up with life and now this manipulative website wants to remind me of all the possibilities out there beyond my restricted walls?  Unfortunately, I also have a sickness of being determined to do even more.  I typically feel overwhelmed and anxious of the fact that I never feel like I can “catch up”.  That feeling battles the procrastination side of me that dims the Must Do To Do list and welcomes the Must Do BC I Want To list.  Hence the reason I never catch up.  Those Must Dos remain stagnant and lingers in the back of my mind while I joyously research the best couponing deals.

Deals this week.

There a lot of great deals this week that allowed me to stock up on items that my family regular uses rather its on sale or not.
Kashi and Special K cereal on sale for 2.50 at Walgreens compared to $3 at Walmart (i had a few $1 off coupons collected from the back of previous boxes).



Also at Walgreens, chex mix bogo ($3.17) plus I had a couple of 50 cents off 1 and 60 cents off 2 so I got them for $1.08 and $1.28.



Plus....a great price on water. $1.99!!



Rite aid has the crest mouthwash on sale for 4.99 with a $3 up rewards. Use a $1.10 coupon from coupons.com and score it for 89 cents.



Plus reach toothbrush on sale with up rewards and coupon from coupons.com



Cvs has tampons with $3 extra bucks plus $3 coupon from coupons.com equals $1.99.



These are just a few highlights. Let me know if your looking for even more deals!!!

I served seared Tuna last night!! I've posted my recipe before and it is soooooo good. Garlic ginger (found in the Asian aisle) is the key. This is not something that can be made unless someone else is in control of the kids. You have to really watch the tuna when it's in the skillet. Total time is only about 25 mins.
I pour a mixture of rice vinegar, balsamic vinegar, garlic ginger, and season with salt and pepper. Use the back of a fork and press into the tuna a bit.



The rice vinegar and balsamic vinegar are totally not necessary. I just had it, so I added it.




Heat evoo on med heat for about 3 mins until hot and then place the tuna.




I added celery.




If you want it good and seared it takes about 3 to 4 minutes per side.

After removing from the skillet, I reseason with salt, pepper, and soy.

It is great over a spinach salad with balsamic vinegarette dressing.




And for an update on the family. We are trying out a new sticker chart strategy with RL. We really need to get her in the habit of picking up after herself,
Poopooing in the potty (and not her panties or the floor) and also keeping her clothes on.

I let her help decorate it.



I started out by giving her a sticker for anything she slightly did good. I wanted her to get the hang of it. The p stands for prize ( 10 stickers equals a trip to the prize box) and the t stands for tea party (which she loves). This is also a good way to reinforce letters and counting.

Yesterday was Ruddick's 6 mth bday and I totally forgot. Mom fail. He is just now getting the hang of rolling over. Both of my kids were "behind" in this milestone. RL actually had to attend physical therapy when she still wasn't pushing up at 6 mths. I am so thankful that Ruddick is progressing.

*****i intended to include a super cute pic here but he fell asleep before I got one ******

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone