Monday, September 28, 2009

Cute Student Story!

This week I am teaching a unit on clothing words in Spanish. I packed a suitcase and brought it to school to use as an aide. When the first graders came in my room this morning and saw it parked by my desk they were all eager to know what was in it. I told them that we had to get through some flashcards and work and then they would see what was in it. One little boy walked over and looked down at the suitcase and then whispered to me "I hope it has pies in it...I love pie!"

Eat Your Veggies


I purchased an eggplant at Kroger the other day and have since deliberated over how to use it. The last time I cooked with one wasn't stellar and I didn't really want to use that recipe again. After reading multiple recipes, I decided to throw my own version together to make a meatless meal. Turned out pretty well I think!

Saute together in EVOO:
1 diced eggplant
minced garlic clove
Diced onion (I used some red and white onion) and bellpepper (I used red and green)
a sprinkling of salt and pepper
generous amounts of basil and oregano!

Once the veggies are tender, add 1 can Italian style diced tomatoes.

Serve over angel hair pasta with Parmesan and mozzarella cheese to top.

How is that for easy! I thought it was yummy and Ronnie cleaned his plate, although he isn't huge on meat substitutes...at least it wasn't as bad as my huge Vegetable Risotto Stuffed Portabella Mushrooms (on a bed of wilted spinach) when we first got married :) Way too much mushroom- and veggies for that matter!!

Laugh...not so appetizing huh?!

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Packing Up and Moving Out


A week from today we are moving! This makes me feel excited and stressed all at once. More excited than anything though because I am ready to have some semblance of normal back...no more boxes (well at least once we get them unpacked! I am thinking unpacking will be WAY more exciting than packing.)

The packing is coming along slowly, but surely. The dining room is rapidly filling with packed boxes and the other rooms are becoming emptier and emptier. I will be sad to leave our cute little house. What a great home it has been! But we are eager to be closer to civilization, church, friends, work, family, etc. I need to keep this mind so I can stay motivated to pack!


So without further ado...where is my packing tape and labels?

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Hamming it Up


I am still enjoying my new coupon hobby and I am getting some great deals. One that I was particularly excited about was some really high value Sara Lee lunch meat coupons I printed. I was able to print 4 $3.00 off coupons! To my dismay, when I looked for Sara Lee deli meat at the store I couldn't find it...alas though it was to be found not with the rest of the deli meat, but with the special stuff at the counter with the prepared food and more gourmet stuff (ohhh...who knew Sara Lee was so special :) It was $3.98 a package, so i paid $.98 for it. Let me say though that we aren't big deli meat eaters. I feel like every time I buy it I end up throwing some away as it goes bad before we can eat it all (deli meat only lasts 7 days after being opened, sigh). This time I took every precaution for that not to happen- I mean, if I'm going to save all this money buying it I don't want it to end up in the trash. I opened the package and used some in a quiche I was making. I set some aside in the fridge for a pizza later this week and the rest got divided into 4 ziplock bags for the freezer, so I can pull them out as needed. How exciting to have meat for 6 meals for $.98! And still 3 more $3 off coupons to go!!

***Note: for all you facebookers, if you become a fan of Sara Lee Deli they will email you a $3.oo off coupon! (The source of my other 3 reached its print limit, so get this one while you can.)

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

The World of Couponing!

I have ventured into the vast world of couponing! After reading multiple blogs and sites I decided to try and work the savings for myself. Before I started reading up on this I had very little luck with coupons, finding that it was still cheaper to buy the store brands then get something like 25 cents off the name brand. But I am learning so much and saving so much!

Here are a few rules I have learned:
1. Get a Sunday paper and all the coupon flyers in it!!
2. Print coupons online off of sites like coupons.com
3. Match coupons with rock bottom sale prices- Kroger always has a lot of items on sale for a dollar, match a coupon with this price and it costs pocket change.
4. Stock up when you can get something deeply discounted.
5. Plan meals around what is a deal that week

I have been really impressed with Kroger so far. The cashiers have been extremely helpful and have answered LOTS of my questions. My Kroger doubles coupons 60 cents and under so that leads to even more savings.

The first week I tried it I saved $25.76 in coupon and store sale savings. This week I saved $42.93 and spent a whopping $6.75! The extremely low price for a week's worth of groceries can largely be credited to $25 that I got on my kroger card for simply transferring a prescription there. What a deal!

These are my best deals so far:

Wonder hot dog buns FREE (regulary 2.49)
Pillsbury Grands Juniors biscuits FREE (regularly 1.00)
Dove Deodorant $.74 (regularly 4.19)
Old Spice Deodorant for 1.88 each (regularly 3.20 each)
Activia yogurt 4 pack for $.88 (regulary 2.79)

Some other great deals not pictured:
Barlett Pears .99/lb
Peaches .99/lb
Oscar Meyer hot dogs 1.50 (regularly 3.29)
Frozen Steamer veggies 1.00 (regularly 2.15)
Kroger Fruit Snacks 1.00 (regularly 2.00)
Bounty Paper Towels .50 (regularly 1.39)
Kroger Chicken Breasts 1.99/lb (regularly 3.00/lb)

Ronnie says this is my new hobby and maybe he is right. I love a good bargain!