$30 Challenge!

So, we sat down the other night to figure out our budget. DH asked me, how much would I need on an average week for my household budget (personal care items, cleaning, food, etc.), and I said, well, on average here lately, I've been spending between $30 and $40 a week. So we decided that for a while at least that my weekly budget is $30. I'm going to keep track of my progress on my other blog (www.adventuresofacouponqueen.blogspot.com). I'll post my shopping trips, menus, recipes, and everything else I do to stay within that budget. We also bought me a book tonight, that I'm going to post things that I learn from. We bought The Coupon Mom's Guide to Cutting Your Grocery Bills in Half by Stephanie Nelson (The Coupon Mom). We also ordered my very own shopping cart so that I can start taking public transportation more for my shopping trips, and I can walk to the stores within walking distance (within a mile from the house). I can't wait to see where this takes us!

Dawn

Cool contest I found to win free groceries for a year

"Even if you don't want to enter, please click so I get an extra entry!!!"

Hey, I just entered this contest on Cozi.com to win free groceries for a year. All you have to do is put in your email address.

Even if you don’t enter, please click the link to help me win. (I get an extra entry for telling you.) Thanks!

View >>

New Experience.... Home Haircutting!!!

Ok, so Grant decided his hair was too long...

So I began cutting... We decided rather than trying something hard, I'd just do finger length.

Here's the back 1/2 done

All Done!

Crazy man Grant!!! :) Looks good!

Why did you cut all of Pa's fur off, Ma??? Is this what is gonna happen to us if we aren't good???

Lots and lots of hair!

Then he trimmed his beard up... Looks really good!

It's snowing again...

Right now it is 12* with a wind chill of -5*

SNOW!!!

The icicles around the bathroom window


:) Still have to dry laundry somehow, even if it is below freezing outside!



This is the garden :)

Pretty in the snow!

This one is sideways, cause I couldn't get it to turn, but it's pretty nonetheless. It's one of my windchimes.

Pictures courtesy of my wonderful husband who went outside this morning to take pictures for me! We're supposed to get more snow tonight!

Ok, the computer decided to let me post pictures today.


These are during the snow, at about 1 in the morning...

These are the next morning :) So pretty!

With this snow we got about 4 inches, on top of what hadn't melted yet.

This is sideways, but this is an icicle that is growing outside our bathroom window.

Snow!

Well, I was going to post pictures of the snow tonight, but I can't seem to get it to work. I'll try again tomorrow. We have the computer back now. :)

Awesome Shopping Trip!

I went shopping today and got $78 for $27! Mostly air freshners, but mostly either free or for a dollar or two. Below is a link to my coupon blog with pictures and more info.

http://adventuresofacouponqueen.blogspot.com/2009/10/awesome-shopping-trip.html

I am here...

Sorry there hasn't been anything for a while... We're having computer problems. Hopefully to be fixed soon. :( But, I can run it in safe mode and be able to get on the net. At least I have that. My friend who is an absolute computer genius is on the case and trying to figure out how to fix it. :)

Round and Round I Go

Wow... I am having a very very very bad day. Night before last I was pulled over, in front of my house no less, for having a break light out. We didn't know it was out of course, and so I told the officer that. Once I finally got through the stop, I went on with life. Yesterday went as usual, and was fine, and we were planning on my dad fixing the light (it's his car), tonight when I go over there to go to a women's retreat with my mom. Today when we went to go cash my paycheck, I noticed that my license was gone. The last place I had it was when the officier pulled me over. So I called the police station, and they don't have it. I have to wait until 10pm tonight to call and talk to the officer. So we out to get by check cashed and as we pulled into the bank parking lot (I was going to use the atm to deposit my check, as i don't have a license) I got pulled over again. He gave me a warning on both counts (brake lights and no license) and said to get both fixed. So we then went to the O'Reilly's to get the brake light fixed. Finally after 1 hour of working on it, they got the brake light and the turn indicator working, but the middle brake light is still not working. AND, the guy told us that a different bulb would work so HE opened the package, and put it in, and it didn't work, and then HE said that since WE opened the package he couldn't refund it (HOW'S THAT WORK?????) So now we're trying to figure out if we have to go to the dealer to get the right bulbs, or if we're fine without the 3rd brake light. And, I still don't have a license. So now, after we find out if we can legally drive without the 3rd brake light, we're gonna go get me another license so that I can legally drive. I have to work tonight from 5-9:30 and then I'm headed to Kansas for a women's retreat (obviously the devil doesn't want me there!!!!)

::edit:: UPDATE: I called non-emergency police to ask about the brake light, they sent me to the license agency (makes no sense to me, but ok...) they said they have nothing to do with that so to call the driver's license testing center, so I called them and they said they didn't know to call the Highway Patrol headquarters, so I called them and they called me back after doing research and said that by Missouri Statutes it has to be lit to pass inspection, but does not have to be lit to not be pulled over. If it is not lit you must have 2 working brake lights to make up for it. So there you go.

::edit:: UPDATE #2- I'm an idiot! We found the license! So I'm again leaving after work tonight to go to my women's retreat... After all this, I think I'm completely in need of it!!!!!

Tomato Juice!

Washing the Tomatoes out in the sink to get yucky's off...

Sterlizing the jars

Princess helping mommy.... She sat on that stool pretty much the entire time!

Boiling the tomatoes to make the skins fall off.

Ice bath, to loosen the skins.

Tomatoes post ice bath

Peeling Tomatoes

Boiling down for juice

Juicing tomatoes

Pretty Juice!

Filling jars with juice, and some with whole peeled tomatoes

Waiting to go in the canner

Boiling in the canner.

Looking pretty in the pantry!

... And getting caught in the rain...

We were out picking limas when a big storm came up and caught us! DH sent me inside with the limas that were already picked, and he stayed out in the rain to keep picking.


Here's how much came in with me. about 1/4 to a 1/2 the wash basin full.


Here's DH as he came in from picking. He had just dumped the rest that he had picked into the bucket. The crazed look on his face was him laughing at the storm that he had made it!


Now he's trying to be serious. HA HA HA!!!!!


Here's all the green beans that we got. We planted heirloom beans this year, only 2 packets worth, not realizing that they don't reproduce after picking. So this is all we got this year. But next year we'll plant a whole bunch more!!!

Yay! We finally have a computer!

Yay! So we finally had the money to get a computer. It's not the greatest, but it will work for what we need it to do right now. So now I can update more often. We don't have internet at home yet, and probably won't for a while, but I can get on several wifi hotspots close to home. So I know everyone's been wanting to see how the garden's been doing, so here's some pictures (we got a new camera about a month ago too)!

Lots of green beans!!!! They're getting ready for the first picking!
The limas are starting to get beans in them. I can't wait!

There are so many tomatoes out there... now if they would only turn red!!!

The peppers are so big! and I'm amazed at how many can be on such a little plant! This is one side of the plant and the other picture is the other side.

This pepper is huge! I'm not sure I could palm it!

Well that's all for now, but rest assured now that I have a computer at my disposal there will be much more often posts, with plenty of pictures!!!!