She sure is NIFTY!

P.S. Never knew my face was this fat! My mom looks cute in this picture so I will sacrifice a fat-face pic of me for a good one of my mom...it is her birthday!


Happy Birthday to my Mom, Joni! Today is her special day and I wanted to give her a shout out! (Holla! as Ellen Degeneres would say) I'm not going to say how old she is but she doesn't look a day over 49! She is the best mom and I appreciate her so much. She is always there to listen to me and she is never quick to give unsolicited advice but always has some when I ask. She is beautiful inside and out and I am so proud to be her daughter! I love you mom!

My goal for the next year is to spend less money on groceries. I am so sick of coming home from the store and feeling like I don't have much to show for the money that I just spent. There are so many resources out there for money saving ideas and coupons that it is a waste for me not to take advantage of them! I have been getting some tips and tricks from a few really good "couponers" that I know. After a lot of research and some preperation I felt somewhat ready to make my weekly grocery trip.
I had a few rules for myself:
1. Follow my list. I had a VERY detailed list! It included what I was going to buy, prices of what I was to buy, how many of each item and what coupons I was going to use for that particular deal.
2. Only buy things that were on sale. I was not going to be "brand picky" for most items. I just wanted to get the best prices on things that brands don't matter on. (Black beans, tomato sauce, etc.)
3. Get as many of each item on sale that I could afford. My secondary goal for the year is to build up our food storage, which up until now has been non-existent!
So I headed out, with both kids in tow. I went to my usual store (Harmon's) so I would be able to find what I needed. Eventually, when I get better at this I may start shopping at other stores that my "experts" say have much better deals. It took a little more concentration than my normal shopping trips but the end result was worth it!
I saved $89.53 by only buying sale items and using my coupons! My reciept was longer than both of my arms reached out! I had some things that I normally wouldn't buy and that makes for a little more variety in my pantry. Also, my storage shelf downstairs is so much fuller than it has been! It is a really exciting and empowering thing to make your dollar go further! I love it! I hope to do more of this in the months to come!
Here are some of the websites that I used this week to fuel my deals:

This is what's up...

So, long time...no post. We have been really busy, what with the holidays and all. December was a crazy month. Travis was so busy with work and he had to travel a few times during the month. I had really crazy days at the salon. Some holiday parties and festivities. Needless to say, we were finishing quite a bit of our shopping on Christmas Eve. We vow never to do that again! (wishful thinking:) BTW Walmart is NUTS on xmas eve! We spent Christmas Eve at my Dad's and had a really yummy dinner, as usual, and my girls got the funnest gift from them...a huge playhouse that blows up with a continuous fan. It is so cool!




Anyway, Christmas Eve and morning were so much fun with our kids! Skylar is finally "getting" it. It made it so much more exciting! We left out cookies and milk and sprinkled reindeer food on our yard and the girls were so cute! They got what they wanted, a Dollhouse. It was fun to set up all of the furniture and things that go with it. They play with it all the time! Travis got me a new camera which I am so excited about! Hopefully I will take lots more pictures than I did the last year!


Later Christmas Day, we went to Trav's parents and the party was on! Opening presents there is so crazy because there are so many of us now. It is a lot of fun!



A few days later, my Mom and Don came into town. We met up for a great dinner at Outback Steakhouse and then opened presents the next day. My mom gave me the greatest pictures of me and my Grandma. It was a really awesome gift! I still can't believe that she isn't here anymore:(


So now we are looking forward to a new year. We will remember 2009 for some great memories and some sad ones and we can't wait to see what 2010 will bring.