What else says summer fun like frozen yogurt?? I am not sure, well not for this family anyway!

Today a local self-serve frozen yogurt (which seems to be the craze these days) is having FREE family fun from 4-8!!

That is FREE yogurt for everyone, face painting, door prizes and coupons for more yogurts in the future and we all know how much I love coupons!!

So that is what we are doing today for Family Friday!! What are you doing with you kids??

Heather

So today I am trying to figure out how to do some fun cool things with my kids today and tomorrow. I think I have tomorrow pretty well planned…..the Farmers Market ( I am really wanting to make some blackberry jam)

But what to do today, I took all four of them (I am watching my nephew) to the dairy yesterday to have what I thought was some VERY expensive ice cream $2.50 a scoop I remember only 2 years ago it was $1 a scoop, they make it right there you think it would be cheaper I guess not!

We couponed at Publix yesterday and went to Chick-fil-a for the free Thursday breakfast item.

So this Friday I am at a loss maybe the park, walk at the lake, to the playground, maybe I could take them out to lunch…..

What are you doing with your kids today???

OH the dog days of summer……relaxing not having to do anything, hanging out with my kids and getting to the store before they sale out of everything I want!! I love summer and since I would for the School System then I enjoy working 193 a years and the other 172 I am off (my hubby gets jealous but that is ok)

This summer I don’t have much planned in the way of doing things that my kids will find exciting, cleaning out closets and going through clothes. But it is something that has to be done!

VBS is this week and family night is tonight I can’t wait to see my babies on stage! We are hoping to get to the movies tomorrow to see Pirates of the Caribbean, I picked up some of those $9 Fandango tickets so all 5 of us should be able to see it for less than $30.

What are your big plans for summer????

I am super excited this weekend we were picked to host a Capri Sun House Party from House Party.com. So Family time is going to be SOOOO much fun this weekend!! We have games and stuff planned for the kids, games and prizes and you know I am excited about giving out the coupons

I can’t wait to post pictures for you guys!! What fun stuff are you doing this weekend???

I am so happy that September is FINALLY here!! This was a HOT HOT HOT summer especially when the air went out! Georgia is known for the ability to have 4 seasons a year as well as 4 in a week!! So with Fall just around the corner. We are planning our weekends with Fall Festivals. I love going to these~the smells and tastes~ our favorite is an Apple Orchard in Elijay. They have the best Apple Cider Doughnuts and homemade caramel sauce…..YUMMY!

This weekend is my neice’s 8th birthday and I have a big surprise for my Mother-in-law (I can’t say it on here cause she reads my blog). This time of year makes me want to help people more than normal, the holidays are coming up and this is when alot of people can have issues!! This year for Christmas I will be taking my kids to the store handing them $25 and telling them to pick out presents to donate to our Local Shelter. I want them to see that giving can be more rewarding than receiving. 

Do any of you have any great plans?

How about wonderful Festival in your area you would like to share with others??

So for today family friday I am going to tell you about the FUN filled weekend we have planned.  We are leaving this afternoon to go see my MIL and SIL and niece who camp during the summer in Tennessee. I am so excited because she is taking us to Splash Country~ A water park close to Dollywood in Pigeon Forge. So that is what we are doing to spend time together as a family!

What are you doing for Family Friday???

Couponing Together

I have to say when I started dabbling in the idea of Couponing, my kids and husband thought I was well crazy!! My first Sunday paper I bought the double pack and I sat down and cut out EVERY coupon. Then I put in a little coupon holder (which I use now to carry my coupons based on my grocery list to each store). I went to the store with no plan and bought everything I had a coupon for. I thought I was going to save a bundle, but I didn’t???? So I came home very disappointed, then a friend of mine suggested I be a fan of a page on Facebook, Southern Savers. I went to her page and I was blown away. I read everything and watched videos, I googled other couponing sites. The reason I started couponing was for a Thanksgiving trip to Disney this year so when I searched Couponing to Disney I was surprised to find a blog that was all about what I was trying to accomplish. So I set out on what has now changed my life forever. My Husband and I ARE NOT savers by nature, we are spenders and that has gotten us into trouble several times, but saving up for this trip so NONE of it went on a credit card has been big.

So here I am almost a year later and we have a weekend routine. Saturday’s we buy the early edition of the AJC and the Gainesville Times and we go through which has the best coupons. We take out ALL the sales papers and start looking for the best buys and the best deals. Couponing to Disney has a coupon database that I use when I see a great deal to see if I have a coupon to match it. Sunday mornings the paper is delivered to my house and then when we are out shopping we pick up at least 3 more. We always go to Rite Aid and CVS (when we go) as soon as they open on Sunday morning. Stuff goes fast at these places. I do my Publix Shopping on Thursday s and Kroger or Ingles Shopping on Sunday after Rite and CVS. If the off chance I go to Target it is usually on Sunday evenings or Monday afternoons. I no longer clip my coupons I keep then in a 26 pocket file folder as whole inserts. I have inserts dating back to March 14^th. I have run out of room so in the front of my binder I page protectors that I slip my inserts into, then I have baseball card holders for any coupons I get in products, print off the internet, receive from the company or ones that I cut out of inserts thinking I would use and then didn’t for whatever reason. This is also where I put all the ones from the blinkies in the grocery stores.

The front of my binder contains rebates that I have printed off and I have already addressed and ready to go. All I have to do is put in the receipts and a stamp and they are in the mail. I keep my receipts for up to 2 months. I keep then in the middle pocket of my 26 pocket file folder. That way if a rebate comes out I can go through my rebates and check dates and products and I might not have to buy anything else. On the side of my table I keep envelopes, return address stickers, stamps, magazines that contain coupons, pens, scissors, and the loose change jar (although my kids sometimes sneak the quarters out)

On Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning we begin going through the ads and coupons and our pantry to see what we are getting low on. The key to great couponing is never running out of the products you use all the time that way you are never in a situation where you have to pay an outrageous price for it. Example we haven’t needed to buy Toilet paper in 3 months and we won’t need any for another 2 month why; because I bought a bunch when I could get the 12 pack of double rolls of our favorite brand for only $2.99. Ok I didn’t need 5 months’ worth of toilet paper but instead of buying the one deal and then running out and having to pay $6.99 a pack I saved us $21 and over time that is a lot of money when you think about how much toilet paper you buy and the good thing is it doesn’t go bad like food. Most items go on sale in cycles it is 6 weeks most of the time. If it is at its lowest price this week STOCK UP cause it might not be this price again for 6 weeks. This does vary store to store item to item. Freeze what you can, bread, cheese, butter, even milk freeze great. Here is a list of things that freeze well and things that don’t.

Once I really got into couponing I realized my closet was over flowing with shampoo, deodorant and body wash and 100′s of other things. What to do with it all?? I gave some of it to friends and family but I wanted to do something else so I started donating to a local shelter. I am thinking about expanding that to the Humane Society as well I can always run up on cat food for almost FREE and I don’t have a cat but that have lots so it is something we are going to discuss.

We make a game out of going to the store the kids wander up and down the aisles with us looking for sales tags, tear off pads, blinkies and even clearance stuff. We have fun and at the end they are treated with some of the money I saved my smart shopping and coupons. Our favorite part is when we hand over the coupons and the price starts going down and down and down. It is a thrill to know from a little bit of time I was able to save anywhere for 50%-98% sometimes the whole trip was FREE except for tax.

What do you do together??

I want the family friday post to be about something about my family a funny or even sad story! Something neat we did or so place really interesting we went. I also want you guys to send me your family stories so I can share them as well!

I know so of what I am going to write today is already about in my About Me section. but here goes……..

My husband and I have been together for 15 years!! Which might be all that great be next May we will have been together half my life. We started dating when I was just 16 he was 21. It was a whirl wind romance (Ha Ha Ha) and in November if 1996 I gave birth to the most beautiful baby girl, Taylor (13). We married in March of 1997 and in January of 1998, I had a handsome little fellow, Hunter (12). And then last but not least in 2001 we had our little chunky monkey(we called him that because he only weighed 4.15 lb when we brought him home) Colby (9). There have been some really tough times here just like in every other marriage and every other family, every day an effort that we have to put forth. Taylor is so smart and talented. She is in all advanced classes and she plays in the band. I couldn’t be more proud of her. Hunter is special as well, he was diagnosed as autistic when he was 5, he suffers from mild mental retardation and depression. Hunter is a sweet soul who loves everyone and doesn’t understand why everyone doesn’t love him. If everyone could have that same kind of unconditional love for people then wouldn’t the world be a better place! Colby~um words can’t describe him~he was so sick when he was born, he was born by emergency c-section 8 weeks early. I was devastated. But he has not let it keep him down, he is always wide open this one is 100% boy. I joke and tell people that if he had  been born first he would have been an only child. He has an imagination that doesn’t stop from the A-Team to Zeke & Luther, he does and pretends to be it all.

My husband is my best friend!! We tell each other everything. I always try to make his day a little brighter, He always calls me at just the right just to say hey or tell me I look very pretty. He is not the same selfish man I married he has changed into this wonderful happy family man!! We have a wild crazy household but I wouldn’t have it any other way!!

Now on to why I coupon…….like everyone else it is to save money but we are saving for a trip to Disney World in November (8 days, 8 nights @ Disney’s Port Orleans Hotel~7 day park tickets with dining included) I am so excited about it and so are the kids. We are doing ALL IN ONE BIRTHDAYS for our celebrations!! Isn’t that great I even have something super wonderful and top-secret planned for the night we eat at ‘Ohana’s can’t tell you what it is~my daughter reads my blog~I just know they are going to LOVE IT!!

So that is my family in a nutshell……what is your family like????

I wanted this post to be about my family and what is inportant to me. So to understand this picture I should give you some background……My husband and I have 3 great kids, but we thought we could share our love with more so we signed up to be foster parents!! It took a a year before we got a child she was 10 and full of life! 2 months later little baby Bella (above) was born on July 9th(today is her 1st birthday so this post is to deicated to her) she was born to a mother addicted to drugs and was taken away from her. At 4 days old she come home from the hospital to our family. She went through the regular baby things as well as some withdrawals. We loved he so much!! She was with us until she was 6 months old and then life has away of changing. I was unsure if I wanted to adopt but my husband was all for it. I had considered taking a job in a different State and before the interview they came and took the children and placed them in homes where the families wanted to adopt. I guess God knows when it is right and when it is not. After that we decided that maybe we were not cut out to be Foster Parents, but have spent the last 6 months loving our own children more, cause you really figure out what is important in life, I truley believe Bella was here for a season to help our family. It was a time in my life I will never forget and even though as she grows up she will have no memeory of me the fact that while she was here we loved her more than anyone else could is enough for me. So  Happy Birthday Sweet Bella!!

Do you have a great family moments you would like to share??