Good-Bye 2009 and the Whole Decade

As this is probably my last blog for 2009 because I have a lot to blog about and catch up on but frankly I am not going to do it tonight because Cas and I are about to be planted on the couch I just wanted to wish you all a Happy New Year and decade!  I hope you all are enjoying the ones you are with and having a great night!  Cas and I picked up Chinese take out because I have been dying for it and now I am sitting in some pants with elastic in the waste because I ate too much!  We spent part of the day puttting Christmas decorations away and now we are about to relax on the couch and watch some New Year's Eve specials and provided I am not already asleep because I love to sleep and will fall asleep is I sit still for long at midnight we will ring in the new year and decade with some wine and I am sure a ton of the neighbors fireworks that will send Maggie into a nervous breakdown!  Ah then off to bed to prepare for the next 365 days that are for sure to send me into a nervous breakdown!  More on that this week!  I have been in a blogging funk due to "things" but I will be blogging a lot more hopefully!  Hope you all have a happy evening and a blessed 2010!

Merry Christmas!

I hope you all have had a Merry Christmas! I am blogging from a blackberry in Birmingham so when I return I will blog longer and share some photos. I hope you all have a very Merry day!

Wouldn't This Be a Great Christmas Present

Today is your last day to enter for the HP Touchsmart computer that Kelly is giving away!  Go here to enter!  I love the recipe box feature she talks about that would be really neat to use!
If you want another chance go over to McMama's blog to enter!

A Christmas Photo Shoot of Sorts

Last week we had a friend come over and snap a few pictures for us so that I could use one or more on our Christmas card this year.  I just picked them up today......yes a week before Christmas!  Let's not judge others during this Christmas season....K?  Thanks!  Anywho I thought I would share a couple of the out-takes....unedited mind you!  I will post the actual card after they have been sent out!

 

Trying to get Maggie to look in most of them was a chore!  Also, as you can see the color on most of them came out looking terrible!  So off to bed I go to start addressing envelopes! 

A Christmas Funny

It was a romantic full moon when Pedro said, "Hey, mamacita, let's do Weeweechu."

Oh no, not now, let's look at the moon!" , said Rosita.

Oh, c'mon baby, let's you and I do Weeweechu. I love you and it's the perfect time," Pedro begged.

"But I wanna just hold your hand and watch the moon." , replied Rosita.

"Please, corazoncito, just once, do Weeweechu with me."

Rosita looked at Pedro and said, "OK, one time, we'll do Weeweechu."

Pedro grabbed his guitar and they both sang.....

"Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year."

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!!

Gold and Green

I finally picked this up today!  I know a Christmas CD a week before Christmas, right?  I don't buy many CD's but I LOVE Sugarland so I had to get it!  I highly reccomend it! Any other Christmas CD's you have to have or reccomend?

My Life~My Trees and My Cookies?

OK Bloggy Buds and Peeps I know I have missed last Friday and currently am missing today for Show Us Your Life at Kelly's Korner because well frankly if I show you my life it will look like a HOT HOLIDAY MESS!  So once I get back from Cas's family Christmas and I get a few things picked up and have some time to upload pictures and make you think my like is peaceful and organized then I shall share the Christmas Love!  I do have some cookies to share with you and a a tree or two or 6 with you.  So Happy Friday and Merry Christmas from a Howard, a Smith, a four legged Princess, two Siamese, a Momma cat and her wild child cat!  Maybe the cats that have taken up outside wish you the same too but frankly it is too cold for me to go ask them so just assume they sent you Cat Christmas Wishes too or Bah Humbug!  Ah let the Christmas Chaos begin!

Five Question Friday

Five Question Friday

1.  Does Santa wrap the presents he leaves at your house?

When I was growing up all my "Santa" presents were left on the fireplace or in a group at my Grandparents house depending on where we were. Santa even brought my presents to the beach one year as my parents decided that would be a good place to spend Christmas?????  We don't have children yet but Santa will leave the presents unwrapped......may we have a fireplace by then!  Dear Santa could you bring me a house with one?!!!

2. When is your "Big" Christmas Celebration?

Well since Cas's family is so big we always have Christmas at his family's a differant weekend so we are actually in the midst of baking, wrapping and packing as I type look I took a 10 minute break okay.  We have an all day family Christmas party at his Granny's on Saturday.  Everyone eats all day and most of the kids go on a Scavenger hunt to get them out of the house.  Then afterwards we will open presents.  It starts with the youngest to the oldest. There will be about 30 (and growing with two babies on the way) people there so you do the math on how long that will take.  Then we will have Christmas at Cas's parents and Sister and Brother-in-Law and their two boys on Sunday.  Then on Christmas Eve morning Cas and I do our Christmas and then we travel to Birmingham to my Dad and his wife's house.  Our big meal and opening presents in on Christmas Day once my two Step-Brothers make it to the house!  I can't wait til one of us has children so we will have some little ones.  Ahh that tires me just typing all of that...

3. Are you big on keeping tradition every year?

Well I would like to but as we have so many Christmas's and we just started our hom last year our Christmas traditions are slowly changing and/or evolving.  Once we have children I will for sure start traditions and try to keep them up!

4. Colored or Clear lights?

Well we have a couple of trees. All of them have clear lights except for the Peanuts/Snoopy Tree and colored lights are more fitting for it!  I think clear lights are more elegant and I love them but then on fun or childrens tree I think colored is cute

5. Do you decorate outside?

Yes.  I have wreaths on the windows and on the door and I have a sleigh with deer and a Santa and the I have two more snowman on and some lit up trees on the other side.  I dont have anything big for the yard. I have been looking for something pretty but have not found anything I like.

Happy Friday

Operation Christmas Child Stories

I meant to share this a few weeks ago but I have not gotten a chance yet.  You all know we participated in Operation Christmas Child for the second time this year!  We went to drop off our two shoe boxes on our way to Birmingham for Thanksgiving.  Our drop off point was a large church in Auburn and I asked the ladies if I could take a few pictures while I was there and they were so nice and said "of course"!  So I wanted to share with ya'll and show you.

These are boxes that are full waiting to be picked up to travel all over the world

 

Checking my two (green boxes) o.k. so they are a little full but she had rubberbands to go around them

My boxes with some  others waiting to loaded up to start their journey to make a child smile

Discard my face!  I just wanted to show you my stickers.  This was early and I did not fix my hair nor apparently had I fixed my face! at this point.  This is real life people and as I blog this I don't have time to edit this photo to make me look better nor do I think there is a program that would help!  This location said that they had recieved over 3,000 boxes on the day before the last day when I dropped off.  Last year they had reacieved over 5,000.  They knew they would be down some because of the economy.  I had blogged before that I am going to collect things as I see them on sale or have coupons for toiletries (you can normally get most free with coupons especially the travel size) through the year that way we will not have to go buy around the holidays.  Hopefully all of you will join in next year!

I also wanted to share this email with you.  My Dad's wife who works for the Board of Education in the county where I went to school sent me this.  This is from the High School I attended.

Chelsea Students Help with Operation Christmas Child Project

A group of 44 National Honor Society members from Chelsea High School, eight parents, and teacher sponsors Carlene Hooper and Nancy Stroup traveled to Atlanta, GA on December 4 to work at the Operation Christmas Child distribution center.  This ministry, began by Franklin Graham, enables thousands of children in some of the world's poorest countries to receive a Christmas box filled with joy and hope.  Over 850,000 shoe boxes prepared by civic clubs, churches, and individuals had been packed for children.

Students processed each box, removing donations made for shipping expenses.  They also removed items that cannot go into certain countries and   replaced those items with other suitable items.  Finally, they helped tape and pack boxes into crates to get them ready to be shipped all over the world.  The Atlanta Distribution is one of six located in the United States.  This was the third annual trip made by Chelsea High School's National Honor Society. 

"It's amazing to think that what we did here today will make such a big difference in a child's life," said student Lauren Swee.

 "Everyone was overwhelmed at the generosity of so many Americans, and, indeed, agreed that they discovered  the true meaning of Christmas in a huge, drafty warehouse in Atlanta," said teacher sponsor Nancy Stroup.

Cas's Mom also said the had a lady in a local church (his Dad is a preacher) come to some of the churches and speak to try to get some involvement from the members for this charity. She had been a recipient of a shoe box when she was young and the thing she was most grateful for was a wash cloth and soap that she received!  Wow things we all use everyday I really hope!  Hopefully this will inspire you ahead f time for next year!  Merry Christmas!

A Tar-Jay Giveaway

My great bloogy friend and friend IRL Sus is giving away a gift card for her 100th!! blog post!  She is giving away a gift card to Tar-Jay (Target) for the winner.  Now if you feel like you would like to enter and you don't reallly want the gift card email me and I will send you my address and you can send it here!  We take all forms of gifts cards, cash and checks here at the Howard Smith Household!  I love Target and I would love the giftcard.  Chances are I might have the $25 dollars spent before I leave the dollar section so I might not even make it to the rest of the store! Ha!  So go on over here and enter!  You only have until tommorrow night at midnight to enter so if you don't hurry well then that greatens my chance of winning!  :)  Good Day Ladies!

A New Look

Last night this morning around 2 am I found a few minutes to decorate our bloggy home for Christmas.  The stockings that are hung on my frame with care are for Cas and I (far right) Maggie and Tillie on the left and Snittens, Possum and Snoogans at the top.....all of the four legged children!  Can't leave anyone out!

The Bussiest Time of the Year!

Really I still blog!  I swear I do will!  We have just seemed to have become very busy with little things to do during the holiday season!  We had so much to get done for Thanksgiving and it has not stopped  yet!  My great friend Sus even emailed to check to see if we were still alive since she had not seen a blogging obituary on me!  I still have decorations that have not been put out and I keep moving things around and there still is even one tree that is not put up and it is one of my favorites so we shall see if it comes together!  I still have yet to blog any of our Christmas decorations, Thanksgiving or even some of the things we did in the fall!  Ahhh one day bloggy buddies.....one day!  I do have a lot to share I just have to find time to sit and write it!  We had a friend come over and take pictures for us tonight for our Christmas cards.....yeah I realize we are a little late on that too!  We always do Christmas in Macon (where Cas's family lives) a different weekend that actual Christmas and we are having that this weekend.  That is right I have a crap load of presents to wrap AND NONE.....NOT ONE FREAKIN ONE of them is done yet!  Then there is the baking I have to do before we go.  All the women bake or cook like 5+ things to bring to Granny's Christmas so when I get through blogging I have to go and look through some books to finalize what goodies I will be making therefore I shall be going back to the grocery store tomorrow.  We are supposed to be going to a Christmas play tomorrow night too.

Sigh........As Clark Grisswold says......"Tis the Season to be Merry"

Cyber Monday

OK sorry for the lack of posts NONE all last week but I was KIND OF busy!  We have had three Thanksgivings!  I have so much to do this week as well as I MUST finish Christmas decorating!  I will post later and let you know what all we did last week but I must share with you that today is CYBER MONDAY!  I have wanted a subscriction for Southern Living foreva and ya'll know I am cheap so I was looking at deals today on Amazon and they have SL foe $5 dollars!!!  Oh that is something I Cas will be getting me for Christmas!  I just had to share the deal!  It looks like they have some fab deals! 

Five Question Friday

1. Are you a Black Friday Shopper?

Yep!  I started 4-5 years ago and I get up very very early and go shopping by myself.  I usually head to Kohl's 1st!  I love a deal but I do hate the crowds!

2. What was your favorite childhood toy?

Well the Easy Bake Oven is a sore subject with me because while yes I had plenty to play with I NEVER had an Easy Bake Oven!  My daughter will get one very early! Ha!  I played with Cabbage Patch Kids and Barbies.  I even had a lot of little cars I loved to play with and I would ride them up and down the fireplace and the individual bricks were parking places.

3. Favorite Christmas Movie?

Christmas Vacation~Hysterical

Charlie Brown Christmas~Classic

4. What is the must have item on your Christmas list this year?

Money!, laptop, I-Phone, Columns for the House (the dream list)

Maggie and I are getting matching pink snuggies!  I usually get perfume and I love getting pajamas and socks!  Love some fuzzy socks!

5. Do you go all out with the decorations or do you keep in simple?

Since we bought our house last year and it was our 1st Christmas in our house together I went all out!  Each room has a tree! Even the bathrooms have a little one and there is one for the pets in the laundry room!  Each room has somewhat of a theme/color.  Now if only I could get all of it put out and get these boxes put away!  I told Cas the next house we buy I will be scoping out if it has good places to put trees!  I want a big window for our main tree!

Show Us Your Life~Pets (4 legged children)

It is show us your life~Pets this week at Kelly's Korner!  As all of you know that read this little blog we have a four legged daughter Maggie!

I have had her for 10 years and had her before Cas and I met.  She is a purebred Daschund and actually came from near where we live now.  She is very spoiled.......see below

She loves to ride in the car with us and depending on where we are going we like to take her with us!  She sleeps with us every night and is "The Queen of the Queen Bed!"  She has a vast wardrobe and loves her Momma and her Daddy! She loves to be in the kitchen under your feet while you are cooking hoping for food to fall because one of her favorite pastimes is to EAT!  We love her dearly!

We also have four cats!!!!

Snoogans~Blue Point Siamese (bottom~I did not name him! His name has to do with a movie)

Snittens~Chocolate Point Siamese (top)

They came from the same breeder and are half brothers with different mothers and the same baby daddy!

They have a love hate relationship but we are always very amused by them and their big personalities attitudes!  Snoogans was a surprise Christmas present from me to Cas a few years ago! Then we got Snittens the following Spring. Yeah I know you are thinking it is strange for a guy to have a cat but he has always preferred cats over dogs (that is until the Mags) and Snoogans loves him and sits by the door waiting on him when he hears his truck pull in in the evenings.

 

Snittens as a baby

 Snoogans as a baby

 They are talkers!

They are in Cas's lap here in the car.  We used to take them in the car when we went to Cas's parents in Macon until the most horrific car ride ever!  It was a trip for Christmas and I ended up standing on the side of the road in some teeny middle of no where town crying!  Snittens foamed at the mouth the whole way and between the two of them they got sick and and messed up my new coat and some of the wrapping on Christmas presents.  It was about midnight and I told Cas just to either leave me or them on the side of the road!  Obviously as you are reading you can see we all made it back in the car but we ceased the family vacays!

Tillie~Just a Itty Bitty Kitty

I have had her for a while and I had her ever since she was about 6 weeks old, she is the oldest kitty child.  It is hard to tell by the picture but she is tiny, about half the size of the rest of the cats.  She is definitely a different kind of cat!  She also eats more than anyone in this house and will sit at the food bowl when it starts to get low to make sure that you are informed that she is gonna need food! She also LOVES some men!  The second Cas sits down she is in his lap and rolls around and purrs.  Anytime we have male company over she likes to sit with them as well!

Possum~Tillie and Snittens had a litter of kittens last year so he is technically half full blooded Siamese!

Last year as a kitten

As the youngest of the house he is definately the "Wild Man" of the house!  He through the house and jumps over furniture very often!  You never know what he is going to do next!  He loves to wrestle with the other kitties and he loves Maggie too.  They often nap together!

There you have our "clan"!
It is rarely quite around here!
Melissa and Cas plus 5!

Plus 6????
This is Shadow who technically is "Not Ours" but she lives here!  She belonged to someone at some point and she has taken up residence here.  Yes we feed her.  She sleeps on our front door mat every night.  She also runs up when you pull in the driveway and she follows us around the yard.

The END!

OCC~Operation Christmas Child

I have my shoe boxes ready to drop off in the morning.  I just need pencil sharpeners which I have not found yet.  I checked the Dollar Tree and Dollar General so I will check WalMart or Target in the morning.  It is still heartbreaking to me that this is really all some of these children get and there is only so much you can fit in a small box!  I am soo excited that Susannah, Mrs. LG, and Renea are all participating in this as well!  If everyone that blogs just did one.....Wow that is a lot of shoe boxes!

If you want to participate you still have time to put a box together.  Some locations are excepting them through the weekend.  You can go to the Operation Christmas Child website and type in your zip code and it will tell you the drop off locations near you and it will tell you the times that someone will be there to accept boxes.  So you can go and look and see if you would still have time to make a box and drop it off in time!  Don't forget to read about the suggestions for your boxes.  They have things you should put in and things to leave out such as candy that will melt and don't forget to print out your label that you mark boy or girl on and what age range.  Also don't forget to put your $7 in to cover shipping.

From their site:

 INCLUDE YOUR DONATION

Please donate $7 or more for each shoe box you prepare to help cover shipping and other project costs. You can give online by using our EZGIVE option, or you can write a check to Samaritan’s Purse (note “OCC” on memo line) and place it in an envelope on top of the gift items inside your box. If you or your family are preparing more than one shoe box, please make one combined donation.

I did just read that it says no liquid items.......I have bubbles and Sus and I both have shampoo.  I guess I will ask when I get there!  It also says that soap should be in a plastic bag and candy should be in a bag.  Well now I guess I shall go re-work my box...hmm I had my candy in a bag and then it did not fit so I took it out.

This one made me cry!  The children are so sweet and they want to help and how awesome is it that they are being shown at an early age the spirit of giving to those less fortunate!

They also receive a book of gospel in their language with their boxes!

I am also going to include a small letter and a picture of us if I can find one!  If you are participating in this leave me a comment!

 

 

I will definitely start putting things away for next years boxes.  I hope we can do many more next year!

In one of the videos they make the comment:

1 box = 1 child = 1 life = 1 salvation

Thanksgiving

I have posted and shown my Fall/Thanksgiving decor and shared about Thanksgiving but I am going to post the links to each because I am linking up with The Bunnie's Bungalow and Its So Very Cheri

~My Fall/Thanksgiving Decor Post~

~My Thanksgiving Traditions Post~

Thanks for stopping by!

Internet Down

Our internet has been down since last night and this girl has things to do that require it! Trying to read blogs on Cas's blackberry is not working too well! Hopefully it will be back up today sometime!

Sunday Sayings

My great friend Sus is starting a new game!  Two weeks ago I won!  She posted in her blog that the first person to know the the actor that said a certain line and the movie it was from would win a prize.  I answered correctly and I recieved a little goodie package in the mail a few days later!  It is the first blog contest I have won.  I enter many giveaways but the blog gods have not been on my side for winning!  Here are my goodies!

The gummies were gone within an hour 15 minutes of me opening the package!  I love gummy candies!  I always need gum for my purse and I always keep pens and note paper by the computer so I can write important blog reminders!  Ha!  You don't want to forget an awesome blog address or etsy store!  So ladies be on the lookout for her to post today for your chance to win.  Isn't it so much fun to get personal letters and packages instead of bills and junk mail!  Happy Sunday!

P.S. Also don't forget to go and buy papers for the coupons.  I buy two!

It's Starting to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Well really it just looks like this right now!

Maybe by December it will look like this!

Yea right I wish!  I wish I had a fire place and mantle.

We started pulling the Christmas decorations out tonight so that I can get started because we will be gone the next two weekends and I want to get it all done.  Cas put ALL the trees together.....umm that would be 4 of them!  A 5th and 6th stay put together because they are small.  We have a live tree in the den so we will make our annual trip to pick that up the first weekend in December!  So yes there is a tree in everyroom!  Whew a lot to do!  Our tree in the den was a GORGEOUS 9!!! foot tree last year.  We had to open both of the back doors to bring it in and still had to cut some of the top off and it still touched the ceiling!  That was a few months after we moved in and we didn't have as much furniture as we do now so I won't get to bring my 9 foot beauty home this year!  Don't worry I will have my sites set on 8 1/2 footer! ;)

P.S. those ugly curtains are gone and I think I am going to try something new with the gold in the tree this year.  It just didn't have enough umph!

The Worst Sweet Tea~Ever!

Last night when Cas came in from work we finished getting dinner together and I said "we need to make tea"!  So I went ahead and made it! Then the DB poured it in the pitcher and added water and sugar. After eating some of my food I grabbed my tea and drank a big gulp of not so sweetness!  YUCK!  Cas looked at me and asked what was wrong and I was like "OMG our tea tastes like coffee!"  I thought we really needed to clean our coffee maker because that is some foul tea!  Not to refreshing NOR sweet.  After finishing the DB got up and cleared the table and went and looked in the coffee maker and exclaimed that "I(me) was such a dummy because I didn't take the coffee grinds out from that morning!"  Well he being a dummy too would have realized that if I had just made tea there would have been tea bags sitting in there as well!  I sat there and thought back a minute and realized that I had emptied the old coffee grounds and then went back to start the TEA and I played the motions back in my head and I realized that I grabbed more coffee grounds, because they sit right next to the coffee pot, and I put those in there instead of grabbing tea bags!  WOW!  You know he mixed up the "tea" he didn't realize it didn't smell so "tea-ish"?  Gosh really?  I can't be responsible for all of my own actions!  Yes this is a true story and Yes I brewed coffee to go with my delish roast I slaved over crock-pots are the best ALL day! Thank You, Thank You!  I think I might should up my vitamins or something else;)

Operation Christmas and Compassion

I set out to start getting some of my items for my shoe box's today and it is harder than you think.  I know you are thinking what is hard about finding some $1 items and filling a box.  Well when you think about what they really need it would never fit it a shoe box, a full size moving box or even a refrigerator box!  I did off course pick up pencils because that is one of the things that they love to get because they are far and few between and they can write or draw with them.  How many of you have given your child a stack of paper and a marker to draw or write to keep them busy?  That is not even something that some of these children get to do.  Cas and I were talking tonight about this and some other things such as the Compassion Bloggers trip to El Salvador that I am sure many of you have read about at Kelly's Korner as she has had the honor of traveling with them on this trip and is blogging about it.  I also came in to check blogger in time to read that Angie Smith had posted about their being a live feed interview with all of the Compassion Bloggers tonight so I was able to watch a good bit of it.  I had been watching the CMA's and came in here to check on something during a commercial break and read about that so I tuned in and I listened to the rest of it not even going back to the CMA's.  There stories are just so much to take in.  Last season on 18 Kids and Counting with the Duggar family they went to El Salvador as well and I have watched that episode a number of times and I have listened to them talk about the poverty there and they showed many of the children there.  The biggest thing of that episode that has stuck with me was when they went to an orphanage and they showed all of the precious children that are orphans and technically should be adoptable but they said it takes 7-8+ years to adopt a child from there if at all.  It sounded like the government just doesn't make them a priority.  I have been reading Kelly's blog all week with her stories and I a have also been following some of the other bloggers that are there as well.  They have asked for people to step up and sponsor a child or children through Compassion for the cost of $38 a month.  Sometime in the next year or two, when things are financially better I would love to be able to do this!  I went to Compassion's website and they have all of the children that need sponsors and I looked at the children in El Salvador, you can look at a list for any country, and I noticed a lot of the pictures have hearts on them.  I looked to see what that meant and it stated that  they have been on the list for over six months for a sponsor!  It is sad to read and see list after list of them!  So if any of you are able and would want to sponsor a child go visit their website.  I will tell you that I have cried while reading their blogs and watching their videos they have posted.  What a blessing for them to be able to go over and witness to these families and children! 

As far as Operation Christmas Child my friend Susannah is going do some boxes as well.  You can go read about it here!  As Cas and I were talking we decided we can go ahead and commit to this for next year as well.  Since I have been getting so many things for Free with my couponing and a lot of them are toiletries I can start putting some aside for next year. Sometimes I see the Freebies or the next to nothing deals and I don't get  them because we don't need them but I can go ahead and put them away as well as collecting pencils, etc during the after holiday sells when they have everything marked off!  If you decide to do this you can read my previous post on it and go to their website and you type in your zip code and they will tell you where to drop your box or boxes off at.  There should be a church or school close by to you!  God Bless You ALL and to ALL a goonight!

Here is Something to Keep You Busy...

This lady compiled a whole list of things on sale at Wal-Mart.  There is a 119 of them under $1 and 18 are FREE!  I am at a stand still on printing out coupons since I ran out of paper. I must get some today!  Between the Sunday Paper coupns, magazine coupons, coupons from the sores, and all the ones I have printed out I have a lot of them to file.  I have cute most of them so that is a start.  Let's just say if we had a $ for every coupon I have right now, we would have some serious Christmas money!

And her Target list.

Things you made need for your Thanksgiving meal.

Oh What A Day

Oh what a day for the nasty rain...........

Gosh I don't think it ever stopped. Thank you Ida!  Now where do I send the receipt for the row boat and rain boats I need to get from the house to the car?  Oh and convinceing Maggie to go potty in the pouring rain was a "boat load of fun"!  I had to lasso her up and go stand out in the middle of the yard with her while she shook until she decided she better go because Mamma was not taking her back in until she went.  Meanwhile I was getting soaked!  When Cas left for work yesterday he told me not to go anywhere because he did not want me out driving in the downpours because he knows I hate driving in the rain.  It has ended up bad for me before!  Wellllll I decided to save more money and get more items around here I was going to have to start shopping at Publix!

Oh what a day for savings.................

Well we don't have one here in town yet.  They are supposedly building it but they need to build faster.  We have some within 30 minutes of the house.  Their sales go from Wednesday to Tuesday like Winn-Dixie.  I have shopped them before when I in town I have just never made a habit of going.  Well if you read a lot of food saving blogs Publix seems to be a phenomenal place for savings.  So I suited up in my raincoat and rolled the bottom of my jeans up don't you just hate when they get wet and then your whole leg gets wet.......? and grabbed my coupon novel along with the plethora of ones I found online for Publix and ones that went with their BOGO's  of the week.  I set out in the downpour to drive to LaGrange because it was the last day of the sale and there were a lot of things we needed so I had to get there come hell or HIGH water! And high water I did see.  So I gripped the steering wheel and prayed to get to the grocery store to tell about it blog about it.  The Publix I went to, I clocked it, it 30 miles from our house.  Normally I get to LaGrange pretty quick when I go visit a friend so it is really not that big of a deal.  I have to drive no matter where I go grocery shopping.  I made a list off of their website of all of the BOGO's that I had coupons for and I set out to only get that stuff, other than milk because we needed it. 

The Tylenol was FREE and the tape was almost free.  They had a $3 coupon in the Publix coupons inside the store and $1 off online and each box is only $3.99!  Pup-Peronis are for Christmas! LOL I am really sad I did not go ahead and get the chocolate chips that were a major deal.  I have some but I will probably need more for holiday baking! Sigh.......

It is hard to read but it says I paid $37.46 and saved $74.13!

I am pleased but still not thrilled!  I know it could have been better!

A friend of mine, who has a husband and three boys to feed went yesterday and spent $29.70 and saved $124.93!!  She also said had she realized she could have saved another $13.00 on top of that! Now that is what I am talking about!  Until we meet again next time this week Publix!

Everything Has A Place

AND EVERYPLACE HAS A LOT OF THINGssss!

Little Blue Baskets to match the paint color and they came from Dollar General for .50 cents on clearance!  That detergent is thanks to BOGO and coupons!  Sweet!

My plethera of cleaning products that I have stocked yet again to fabulous deals!  Every crafty women keeps 15+ cans of spray paint around....No?  It bothers me that the paper towels are upside down!

This is a peak inside our hall closet.  I had just tried to stop opening it for fear of what I would see or worse, what would fall and give me a concussion or the worst......death from a falling tool!  I don't think Maggie would be able to handle becoming an orphan from a "closet catastrophe"!

I found the shelves at the DG on clearance from there back to school college dorm room type stuff!  They were going to be for the Man's closet but I found them a new purpose in life!  Little buckets contain tools and electrical cords, etc.  Give them a week and who knows what will have married into my little black buckets of beauty from the Dollar Tree.

Oh and I did crop out all the coats that live in their too!  On blueprints to houses they really should label these little nooks with doors "Crap Closets" and not the formal name of "Coat Closets"!  Really you want to tell me you JUST put coats and jackets in there?  LIAR! LIAR! PANTS ON FIRE!

Bucket O' Bug Spray!  Apparently they are shaking in their 6 little legged bodies cause those dad blam ants won't get the heck outt'a here! 

Under our kitchen sink where each tub has a certain category of items.  Funny I should say that.....cause I gave the run down on the goin's on of my method and before I could get these pictures posted I opened up the cabinet and it didn't look so much like this.  Only one other person has posable thumbs in this house!  Guilty???

Pour Some Spices on Love

Take a Bottle Shake it UP.........

(we love some Penzy's)

 

And last but not least this little beauty!  I came up with this a few months ago for all my little backing items, popcorn, salad toppings, etc.  A friend of mine visited this summer and she loved the idea since she didn't have much room in her pantry.  This one came from Target for a few dollars and I hung it with 3M's because I didn't like the look of the metal hooks showing that came with it.  Also, they were scratching the outside of the door.

Cause I need 10 25 more boxes to fill!

If Cas ever goes missing you should check in the rubbermaid boxes.....things tend to get stored shoved in them!  If you put all your junk in boxes and stack them ever so pretty then it looks much better then a pile of junk thrown in the corner or crammed in a closet!  They don't teach that in decorating 101 in interior design scholl?  What?  Really?

There you have "Project Organization"!  Does this project ever end?