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Favorite Deals of the Week

Posted on October 31, 2009 by auburnchick

I went grocery shopping yesterday and took advantage of a few good deals.  I thought I would share my favorites.

Uncle Ben’s Rice
B1G1 @ $1.49

Used: $1/2 mfr
Paid: $.25 per box

Near East Rice
B1G1 @ $2.19

Used: $1/2 mfr
Paid: $.60 per box

Mueller’s Pasta
B1G1 @ $1.49

Used:  $.55/1 mfr and $1/2
Paid: $.20 per box w/first coupon above and $.25 per box w/second coupon

Green Giant Frozen Vegetables
B1G1 @ $3.49

Used: 1 $.60/three mfr AND 1 $.40/1 mfr AND $4/4 Publix coupon off of four General Mills Products
Paid:  $.50 per item

Pillsbury Ready to Bake Cookies
$2 each

Used:  $1.25 mfr AND $4/4 Publix coupon off of four General Mills Products
Paid:  NOTHING!!  This was a MONEYMAKER of $1

Filed under: Saving Money | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Happy 66th Birthday, Dad

Posted on October 30, 2009 by auburnchick

Departed from this earth since April 2001 but living on in my memories…

 

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: | 2 Comments »

My Week – In Picures

Posted on October 30, 2009 by auburnchick

The cookies were buy 2, get 1 free, making them $.50 each! The cereal was $.75 after my $2 coupon! Woo Hoo!

This is one of those nyla bone things that we've had for about three years. Pele cared not one iota about it until Molly dragged it in from the yard. Now they take turns with it.

Molly thinks everything belongs to her, so she's waiting for Pele to make a wrong move and drop the bone. He's watching her out of the corner of his eye.

I'm a happy girl, yes I am, yes I am!

Pele and Aubie love hanging out in Rooster's digs.

The Mr. woke up to find a flat tire on his work car. Great way to start the day, eh?

More candles! I paid $.19 for each set of two! It was such a great deal that I went out the next day and got six more, using up all of the coupons I had (can't let those coupons go to waste!!).

While shopping at Target yesterday, a lady behind me in line had one of these in her buggy.

I honed in on the red clearance price sticker...

Don't you just want to make a waffle now?

It folds and stands up for easy storage!

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

My Crazy Brother

Posted on October 28, 2009 by auburnchick

Yesterday, while I was pulling out photo albums for Chicky (she’s designing her senior ad for the yearbook), I came across her academic portfolio.  It is a snapshot of some of her best work and assessments from first through third grades.

The first thing I saw when I opened the binder was a self-portrait that Chicky made at the beginning of first grade…

You can see how much she enjoyed soccer way back then, and she had only played one season!!

Now, finding that picture was fun, but the next thing I found was even better.

It was a writing sample from third grade.  I scanned the pictures because it will have more of an impact than my typing the words out (read both pages)…

Page 1

Page 2

You could have heard us laughing all the way down the street.  I couldn’t even get through the first page without stopping several times to catch my breath.

 

The funnier thing?  I have a picture of Rooster biting his toenails!!  Chicky found it after reading this story.

There was a third page attached to the above story…

 

You may be wondering what this is.

Well, it’s a graphic organizer.  Students in this day and age are taught different strategies for organizing their ideas during the pre-writing phase.

Given my adoration of everything educational, and my children’s academic success over the years, it was icing on the cake.  We laughed even harder, impressed at Chicky’s thoroughness even in first grade.

Filed under: Christian | Tagged: , , , | 2 Comments »

Inside the Ring – With God

Posted on October 27, 2009 by auburnchick

Hulk Hogan was on the Today Show this morning, and I prepped myself to half-listen while I did other stuff in the house.

He was there to promote his new book, My Life Outside the Ring.

Now, I’m not a wrestling fan, and I can’t say that I know the man personally, but you’d have to be from Mars to not have heard about his troubles in recent years…the breakup of his marriage, his son’s jail term for his involvement in a car accident, and estrangement from his daughter.

As I listened, I thought, “Yada, yada, yada.”

I’m sorry if this sounds uncaring, but it is so typical of Hollywood stars.

What caught my attention, though, was when Hulk Hogan recounted how Laila Ali, daughter of Mohammed Ali and Hulk’s co-host on American Gladiators, called him and invited him to attend her church.

Say what?

I was surprised for several reasons:

A.  She invited him to church.
B.  He went.
C.  He talked about it on national TV.

He talked about how he learned that joy comes from within, and that it was the Spirit of Christ living in his heart that helped him change his life.

I have a problem with his first statement because it is very New-Agey.  The purest form of joy comes from a gratefulness of what the Lord has done from us…redeeming us from the punishment of hell, not from any “power” within us.

Yet, I also found myself happy that he seems to be going in the right direction…turning toward God rather than away.

He also mentioned that his son is doing well…”walking with Christ.”

When faced with trials, many people turn away from God, seeking self-reliance and other “fixes.”

Hulk Hogan was led in a different direction…the RIGHT direction.

He has a long way to go, and I pray that he will study and pray and that God will illuminate Hulk’s heart to bring a true understanding of what redemption is.

I don’t know…maybe he does understand.  That’s not for me to decide, for only God knows the heart.

The important thing is that Hulk Hogan is in the ring with the Lord now.  They’re tag-teaming, and no opponent will be able to stand against him with God on his side!

Filed under: Christian | Tagged: , | 3 Comments »

Free Tuna and Other Finds

Posted on October 26, 2009 by auburnchick

If you’re like me, Mondays are usually not good days.  We’ll just say that my alarm and I don’t get along very well.

That’s one reason why I find it refreshing to have Mondays off…just to make the adjustment easier.

Today, though, I woke up knowing I would be making a visit to my local auto repair shop.

Joy, joy (said sarcastically, of course).  I feared the worst, thinking that my car needed either a new starter or alternator…pricey parts.

Fortunately, all the car needed was a new battery.  Woo Hoo!  So, that news started off my day well.  I even managed to get in an hour of knitting while I waited.  Woo Hoo!

Oh, and if you’ve ever had problems starting your car, you know the sweet joy that comes over you when it purrs as you turn the key.

From Sears, I drove to Hobby Lobby, where I used a 40% coupon to pick up a skein of yarn for my newest project.  I’ll post pictures when I’m done, but no hints before that!

From Hobby Lobby, I went to Publix where I picked up three bottles of spices for $.49 each (saving $1.50 per bottle)!!

As I was leaving the parking lot, I got a call asking me to run by a restaurant to pick up money for an ad for Chicky’s high school soccer team’s program.  We are allowed to sell advertisements to help offset the player fees.  What an unexpected surprise!!

It was turning out to be a good morning, but the fun was only beginning.

I went to Target next, picking up the following goodies…

The soap was on sale for $7.29 each (ouch), but I had $1 mfr coupons.  The great thing about this purchase was that I got a $5 Target gift card, which I used to purchase the dog food.  Of course, I had $3 mfr coupons on the dog food, so they were only $1.26 each, leaving a little money on the card.

Next, I ran to Walmart, where I picked up the following…

Now, I know what you’re thinking.  I have dogs, not cats.  Why would I purchase cat treats?

Well, my friends, it’s because I cannot turn down a free deal.

One of the recent inserts had coupons for FREE cat treats.

Yep…totally free.

You know what I’m gonna do with them?

Feed them to Molly, who thinks she’s a cat anyhow.

No, seriously…I’m going to donate them.

The Green Works dish detergent was $2.98, and I had a $2 coupon.  How often do you find a large bottle of detergent for under a dollar?

After leaving Walmart, I went home to eat lunch with Chicky.

Now, I’ve gotta tell you something.  The longer you do the couponing thing, the more observant you become while you’re in stores.

You notice everything that’s on sale, making mental notes of prices because your mind vaguely remembers seeing coupons somewhere for those items.

That’s what happened today during my first (yes, I’m saying FIRST) trip to Target.

I had noticed Clean & Clear products on sale, and my heart dropped.

On Sunday, Chicky had purchased the facial oil wipes.  Before she left, I discovered that by registering at Clean & Clear’s web site, I could download a $2 coupon (of course, I printed two coupons by hitting my browser’s back button).  She had only used one of them.

Target had them marked on sale for $3.23!!  I just knew Chicky had paid more.  I couldn’t wait to get home and see.

Sure enough, she paid $4.99!

Ugh.

Here’s what I did.

I registered the other three members of my family and printed out six more coupons.  So, I had a total of seven because of the one that wasn’t used yesterday.  When I went to Target, I bought eight (one without a coupon) and turned around and returned the extra (since Chicky had already opened the package she bought yesterday) to Publix, getting my full-price back.

I don’t think Chicky will need to go shopping for this item any time soon!

Are you exhausted yet?

Yeah, so was I, but I wasn’t done shopping!

I went BACK to Publix one more time, returned the above-mentioned facial wipes, and then got these…

I had $1 mfr coupons, and these were priced at $.99.

So I got them for free.

 

There’s almost nothing better than getting something for free.  It’s like finding hidden treasure.  It’s there if you just look for it.

Then, it was time to go home, where I opened one of the packages of tuna and treated myself to some tuna salad.

Filed under: Saving Money | Tagged: , , | 1 Comment »

I Think I’ll Pay Next Time

Posted on October 25, 2009 by auburnchick

We’ll subtitle today’s post “Soccer Chick Makes Another Attempt at Being a Hairdresser.”

Yesterday, Chicky welded scissors, treating Your’s Truly to a much-needed trim haircut.

She did warn me, however, that she probably didn’t cut it evenly, so she agreed to straighten my hair after church.  We figured that any mistakes would show up better…and boy did they!

First, the before picture, since some of you wanted to see how my hair looked after the cut…

My hair is a lot curlier than the picture shows.  I had just dried it to prepare it for the straightener.  Rooster’s response when he walked into the living room and saw my hair like this?

“Whoa!  That’s some big hair.”

Gee, thanks honey.  Way to make a mama feel good about herself.  I love you too, by the way.

But, I digress…

Chicky got to work, finishing a couple of layers before exclaiming loudly, “Oh my…”

Uh oh.

“Is it bad?” I asked.

She didn’t say anything, so I grabbed a small mirror…

You don’t need glasses to see a couple of problems near the bottom of my hair.

Most glaring was the huge chunk near the middle.  It was about an inch shorter than the rest.

Looking at the right side of my hair, you’ll notice that it’s longer than the left side.

Now, let me ask you a question.

How would you have reacted?

Would you have cried or yelled?

I am not your typical gal.

I laughed…

And laughed…

And laughed.

I saw Chicky’s face relax, and her eyes got a sparkle in them.

I instructed her to run get my camera.  I’m always thinking about my blog, you know.

She finished straightening my hair and then began the process of evening things out.

This was when I started holding my breath.

I tried to remind my self of my prenatal classes, when I learned to breath through the painful process.

Every whomp (that’s what thick hair sounds like when you cut it) made my heart sink.

While Chicky was cutting, one of her friends arrived at the house.  They had plans to go shopping, but Chicky had to finish what she was doing first.

The other friend, who I adore, took one look at my hair and said, “Oh my.”

Um, thanks, but that’s not exactly very reassuring.

And then I started laughing again.

The sight of two teenagers leaning over my head discussing how to “fix” it was hysterical.

The conversation went something like this:

“Chicky, what are you doing?” asked her friend.

“I’m fixing it,” Chicky responded (insert a DUH from me).

“No, you need to add texture,” her friend said.

“Does texture mean that you’re trying to hide the boo boos?” I asked.

“No,” she said, “I cut my dad’s hair all the time.  Trust me.  I know what I’m doing,” she said.

Um, okay, I think.

Back and forth they went until they were semi-happy.

The result?

Flash on (I couldnt decide which picture I liked better)

Flash on (I couldn't decide which picture I liked better)

Flash off

Flash off

Chicky did a terrific job with my hair, and she could charge big bucks by hiring herself out to straighten other people’s (just don’t cut their hair…they’ll sue).  She inherited my hair, so she has loads of experience with a Chi (that’s the brand of straightener).

In the end, I will probably go to a professionally-trained hairstylist next time.  In the meantime, I going to beg Chicky to straighten my hair for a while.  My hair is wayyyyyy big at this length, and I don’t really feel like reliving the 80’s.

Filed under: children | Tagged: , , | 4 Comments »

Soccer Chick is a Hairdresser!

Posted on October 24, 2009 by auburnchick

Lately, Chicky has been trying to get me to schedule a haircut for myself.

Being the cheap gal that I am (except where chocolate and yarn are concerned), I’ve brushed her off.

However, the other day, I casually told her that she was welcome to grab a pair of scissors and give me a trim.

I’m either dumb or brave…maybe a combination of the two.

Today, Chicky had some free time, and she said, “So, Mama, when am I going to cut your hair?”

Um…er…now…I guess?

You should have seen her face as she grabbed the scissors from the hair cutting kit I use for Rooster’s hair.  She had an evil gleam in her eye.

Mischievous is a word that adequately describes Chicky.

Rooster grabbed the camera to capture the process…

See how long my hair is…was?

Chicky looked like a professional as she handled my hair and the blades…

My heart fell as I heard the zip of a thick wad of hair being cut.  Chicky proudly held up the lock she had just removed…

Oh my…what to say…

Six inches of my locks…gone…

I wanted to scoop my hair off the floor and reattach it…

But, Chicky is practical, much like her Mama, and she had this classic response…”It’s hair.  It will grow back.”

So true, so true.

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , | Leave a comment »

My Week – In Pictures

Posted on October 23, 2009 by auburnchick

Well, I worked four days this week, leaving little time for pictures.  But I did manage to snap a few…

Chickys post-game meal last weekend...that girl was HUNGRY!!

Chicky's post-game meal last weekend...that girl was HUNGRY!!

Its cool enough in the mornings for hot chocolate. Like the mug? It came from Starbucks and reminds me of the cables I love to knit.

It's cool enough in the mornings for hot chocolate. Like the mug? It came from Starbucks and reminds me of the cables I love to knit.

I bought these bags this week for $1 per bag (I saved 83% on each bag). Wanna trick or treat at my house this year?

I bought these bags this week for $1 per bag (I saved 83% on each bag). Wanna trick or treat at my house this year?

Pele is sooooo happy its Friday!!

Pele is sooooo happy it's Friday!!

Filed under: Pets, Saving Money, soccer | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

GREAT Deals at Target!

Posted on October 22, 2009 by auburnchick

So, I haven’t posted super in-depth shopping tales because I was worried that maybe I was starting to bore you.  But, Tabby told me she misses my stories, so I thought I would share my latest and greatest.

This week, I scored BIG TIME…two different days…at Target.

I got the stuff below for $1.08…

The next day I went back to Target and did even better by only paying $.52 for everything in the picture…

Everything in both pictures was free.  All I paid was tax.

Now, I know you’re wondering how in the world I do what I do.

First off, I am subscribed to Attention Target Shoppers.  It’s a free website that lists the latest and greatest Target deals.  By using Google Reader, I am able to keep up with posts on all of my favorite shopping sites.

Now, the way I got everything free was that I was able to capitalize on HUGE coupons that were money makers on several items, thus allowing me to use the overages to help pay for the other items.

There were $1.50 mfr coupons off of one Degree deodorant or body spray and $3 Target coupon off of one Degree deodorant AND one Degree body spray.

The body spray was on sale for $3.29, and the trial size deodorant (located in the travel size bins), only cost $.97.  Many times, coupons will specify “Excludes trial sizes,” but my coupons said “Any size.”  Thus, I bought the cheapest items I could find.  By using a $1.50 mfr coupon on each deodorant and mist (saving $3) and stacking them with the $3 Target coupon, I made $1.74.

It might make more sense if I list it this way:

Body Mist:
Deodorant:  Total:		 $3.29
$0.97
$4.26

Subtracting Coupons (“Q”)…

Target Q:
Mist Q:
Deo Q:
Total:		 $3.00
$1.50
$1.50
-$1.74

See how that works?

I did something similar for the Ponds facial wipes, although I did not have a Target coupon to stack.  Instead, I had a $1.50 mfr coupon.  The wipes were the trial sizes and only cost $.97, so I made $.53 on each one.

The dog food was $4.26, and I had a $3 mfr coupon (from last weekend’s paper), making it only $1.26.  However, I used the overage from the other items to help pay for them, so I got them free.

I also had $3 mfr off of the Neosporin Lip Balm.  It cost $3.34.  Again, the overage from my other deals was substantial enough to pay the remaining $.34.

In my second picture, you’ll note the absence of the lip balm.  Thus, I had to find “fillers” to help offset the overage.  You see, Target doesn’t like its items zeroed out.  So, I got two loaves of bread and a trial size soap (which we had also run out of) for free.

God’s timing, as usual, was perfect.  We had run out of dry dog food (yes, all of those free bags were GONE!), and we also needed bread…and we needed both items to get through the week until the Mr. got paid.

What an awesome God, and what an awesome week for shopping!!

Filed under: Saving Money | Tagged: , , , , | 2 Comments »

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