My OCD Recovery Anniversary

This autumn is my 4th anniversary of OCD recovery.  I feel better than I have in years and find myself with very few symptoms at this point in my life.  It has been a very hard road to recovery from OCD, which in my opinion, was a reaction to trauma in my childhood. 

What is OCD or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?  I can't explain it better than the OCD Institute can here.

There are many different kinds and forms of OCD, but for me, I had cootie-itis.  Germs or perceived germs completely freaked me out for most of my life.  I constantly cleaned things for fear of 'getting something'.  People frightened me because they may want to shake my hand or worse yet, hug me.  I have been known to come home after someone hugged me and take a shower, many times over, bleach my clothes and everything that they touched. 

My obsessions didn't seem like much of a problem until the last 10 years or so.  I was just known as 'the clean one', kind of a noble reputation if you ask me.  But as life's stresses began to grow in my life, I found myself less able to control the OCD as it began to boss me around more and more.  I had to jump through more and more hoops to satisfy it's requirements to be 'clean'.  I would freak out at the grocery store if someone who looked 'suspect' to me touched my baby in the cart.  The baby would get a good bath and once again, I would bleach their clothes.  (I probably should bought stock in Clorox)

I could go on and on, but my biggest problem seemed to be with bathrooms, any bathroom....but my own.
I was convinced that someday, somehow I would get AIDS or some disease from the toilet seat.  I've read all the articles and evidence how that can't happen, but OCD doesn't believe any of that.  OCD keeps asking, "But what if???" and never lets you rest.  I carried my own wipes or toilet paper in my purse, but it was never really enough.  The germs were on the door handle, on the sinks and  I couldn't escape.  I would itch all day long until I showered.  The germs could jump off the toilet on to me, or worse yet, what if some part of my clothing brushed against the toilet somehow?  And worse, w/o my knowledge??  What if I gave something to my husband?  Then I would be blamed for promiscuous behavior and no one would believe me.

See how it just takes over??  It started out slow, with excessive hand-washing.   However, OCD soon took over, that is why I've decided to 'come out of the closet' with this.

I feel that there are a lot of people suffering with OCD and don't realize it.  More and more people are being diagnosed with it and I'm glad to see it.  It CAN be overcome, if you really want recovery.  You have to work HARD at it, really hard.  It's painful and lonely, but it can be done.  Sometimes medication can get you going on a program that you couldn't do otherwise.  Don't be ashamed if you need meds for a while or forever. 

The church has and continues to be very slow to catch up to the emotional needs of it's congregations.  People like me, Christians like me feel judged and shamed.  If we prayed enough, if we believed enough, if we just spoke scripture, etc, etc......I was made to feel crazy and like a failed Christan!  Nothing could be further from the truth!  Christ came to save me AND my mind, I didn't need to hide from Him!

I'll step off my soap-box now, however, if you feel like I'm talking about you, take a look at the OCD Foundation website.  They also have a website for teenagers here.  Remember, children of OCDer's often have OCD too.

If you need to talk more, I'll invite you to contact me at morriskelly62@yahoo.com.  I'm no professional, but I've been there.

Take care,
Kelly

The New Coupons are here, the new Coupons are here!!!!

Is anyone old enough to remember Steve Martin in "The Jerk" when he runs to the end of his driveway one day, seeing the new phone book that had been delivered to him??  He runs around screaming "The new phone books are here, the new phone books are here!!"

Every first of the month when the new coupons come out, my kids make fun of me as I run off page after page of new coupons.  Yep, I need to get a life.

ANYHOO, don't forget to check out all of my coupon sites for new October coupons!!

Kelly

Totally off the Wagon!!

OK, I'm a loser......

I didn't want to reveal that I had fallen off the $75 wagon until the challenge was over, but I fell off last week.  The following are the well-thought out exuses I am offering:

*I started the month pretty low on groceries, I had been draining my pantry before I knew about the challenge.  My effort to get to the grocery to stock up on some things 8/31 failed.  I was doomed at the start, but hey, I am competitive and jumped in anyway.

*I do not have a garden or any means of garden surplus to munch on or make meals out of.  Lame exuse, but true.

Anyway, I hope you still love me.  I was risking mutany in the Morristribe if I didn't show up with some regular inventory and that's not the point of the challenge. 

I'm glad I did it, frankly, it was VERY difficult for us.  I usually spend about $125 or so, with a fistful of coupons, and that is enough of a challenge for me, to be honest.  There are lots of goodies that I don't buy on that budget.  Dropping to $75 a week also allowed some extra $$$ to buy some bedding that I've wanted.

It feels good to get back to normal.  I'm also SSSOOOOO glad that I've discovered Mary's blog and also her book.  I'm still anxious to try many of her recipes, now that I've got some food to do it with.

Blessings,

Kelly

Funny Morristribe Moments

This is my 5 year-old Isaac and he is quite a special little guy. We call him "Little Man" because he thinks and acts like he's 25. He is amazingly witty and bright and can also be downright hiliarious, mostly without his realizing it.

Meredith and Isaac are very close and often play together for hours. As Meredith's feet took a jump to an unbelievable size 7 (yes, she's only 8), she outgrew most, if not all of her shoes. Her favorite pair of Healys no longer fit her. Isaac was thrilled to hear this and asked Meredith if he could have them. Meredith agreed but pointed out that the shoes were quite 'girly' in nature, pink and white. However, the two of them decided that they would paint the shoes blue to make them manly.

Here is the result. The baby blue just makes it look worse, frankly, but Isaac was thrilled with the results, so as long as he doesn't wear them in public, we're all good with it.

Of the three teeth that Isaac has lost, two of them have been knocked out while playing on the trampoline. Last Thanksgiving was the first one, he knocked it out clean and we never found it. The second one came out the conventional way. But today, as I was wrapping some school up to start lunch, Isaac came in the back door crying with blood just pouring out of his mouth. I couldn't tell what was bleeding at first, but a little rinsing revealed that it wasn't a lip or his gum, but his front tooth. Colin reached for some pain reliever for him and I helped Isaac rinse his mouth with salt water to heal the gum. With Tylenol ingested, I got Isaac on the couch to rest with a big papertowel in the gap. It wasn't long before he was up and at 'em. He also ate lunch with no problem.

We have an odd rule for 'Tooth Fairy Daddy' money. If the child is under 10, they usually get a dollar for a tooth, over 10 you'll get $2. However, if there is trauma or blood involved, you'll get an extra buck. Mark headed upstairs with $3 in his hands for Isaac's pillow. He'll be thrilled.

A couple of funny things Isaac said today just cracked me up. When he asked me why our nanny didn't come on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I answered that she was in nursing school and had to go to classes those days. He thought for a minute and then said "Oh, she's going to learn how to nurse babies?". :) In a later conversation, he referred to something that happened in the past as 'a couple of whiles ago'. He's just a hoot. Love you, Little Man! You make your momma smile.

Kelly

Does Couponing Work if You Only Eat Junk Food??

I just love "Money Saving Mom", I wish I could be as organized as she is.

Nonetheless, here's another fab and relevant article by Crystal.  Take a look and post your comment here at the Morristribe!!

Kelly

http://www.moneysavingmom.com/money_saving_mom/2009/09/hi-there-im-fairly-new-to-following-your-blog-and-couponing-i-love-all-the-great-deals-and-free-stuff-that-you-post-about.html

Drug Store Sunday Savings

Man, did I rake up the savings today at CVS and Rite-Aid!!

My first stop was at CVS, with a $10 EBC's, $5/$25 coupon and a Kellogg's $10 rebate check, plus coupons. CVS had a sale on select P&G products, buy $25 worth and get $10 EBC's back. Wow, this is a lot of math to do in my little brain. I just decided to take it slow and think things through. The store was barren of people early on Sunday morning, so there's no reason to rush.

I bought:

5-Dawn dishwashing liquid, on sale for 1.00 each w/.25 cent coupon for each

Duracell batteries AA 16-pack on sale for $10, coupon for .50 cents

Charmin Ultra-Strong Toilet Tissue 16-pack with .75 cent coupon

Minus $5/$25 coupon

Minus $10 in ECB's

Total OOP was $8.45 and I got $10 EBC's back

(My plan here was to use my $10 Kellogg's check and pay nothing OOP, but they wouldn't take a third party check, oh well.)

Second transaction at CVS:

4 cans of Pringle chips with $1 off 4 coupon

Always pads $2.96

2 Speedstick deoderants on sale $1.99 with .75 off coupons

Axe deoderant overpriced at $3.99, no coupons

2 Bliss chocolate bars, B1G1 coupon

Covergirl mascara overpriced at $5.49 with $1 coupon

Dentyne gum B1G1 coupon

Dove milk chocolate bars B1G1 coupon

Protein bars B1G1 coupon

2 Oral B Toothbrushes B1G1 coupon

Pack of Irish Spring soap $5.99 a compromise over liquid shower gel

Total after $10 EBC's from last transaction:

$27.81

Everything for $36.26

I saved $62.32!!!

Now to RiteAid, where I have 2 gift cards, one at $25 (from a transferred prescription) and the other with about $9 left on it. My goal is diapers cheap.

At RiteAid, I bought:

2 Slim Jims @ $1.39 each (darned these kids!)

14 bottles of V05 shampoos and conditioners @ .69 (with a rebate available, more later)

1 Palmolive dishwashing liquid .99 cents w/.25 cent coupon

2 Kellogg's poptarts 2/$3 with $1.10 in coupons

Jumbo Huggies Diapers on sale for $19.99 with/$2 coupon (with rebate available)

4 Suave shampoos and conditioners @.99 cents each w/coupons

All said and done I paid $6.55 OOP for all of this!

Better yet, the rebates I mentioned?? I didn't even know about these until I walked in the door and picked up a September rebate directory. Low and behold, there was a rebate of $5 on the V05 if I bought $10 worth and a $2 rebate on the Huggies diapers.

Once I receive my rebate, I will have MADE .45 cents on the deal. Isn't this fun???

Keep in mind that I don't do this every week. Actually, I haven't been CVSing for a while, haven't really seen anything in the flyers that I was willing to make the trip for. This week the flyers had things I needed and I had all those EBC's saved up plus the gift cards from RiteAid.

Don't be afraid to get in there and try a few times. It can be confusing and take a bit to checkout, but it's worth it! My son, Eli, said once we were in the van "Wow Mom, I think that cashier was really glad to get rid of you!". LOL! Maybe, but I came in during a slow time so that I COULD take a little more time.

Take care,

Kelly

Kefir Experiment

I wasn't sure what to do with the kefir grains I received on Friday, but after surfing a bit, I concluded that I would put the grain in my sprouting jar, that has a mesh lid, and cover it with 2 cups of milk.

I let it sit on my counter for 24 hours. The smell was wonderful, like a sweet yogert.

Now what do I do with it? I didn't have much in the way of frozen fruit, so I combined the kefir, 2 bananas and a mess of frozen blueberries in the blender and hit 'high'. Three minutes later, I had several children at my feet, willing to try the new smoothie. It was very good, I must say. I had no expections, but I really liked it. I am SO allergic to milk that I cringe at the thought of any kind of dairy. However, my stomach felt great as it went down. I had no burping, bloating or anything - awesome. Even Bereket and Ephy liked it!

I got the 'thumbs up' from them! Now I'm wondering what to do with the larger kefir grains, as they seem to be growing. Shall I split them? Not sure, any suggestions out there?

Kelly

FREE, Free and MORE FREE!

You GOTTA check out all the sweet freebies this week - save that hard-earned cash!


http://www.thethriftymama.com/2009/09/friday-freebie-roundup-13.html

Thanks, Thrify Mama!

Kelly

Wholesome Fun for the Weekend

Well folks, all I can say today is that I am very, very tired.  Mark and I went to look at yet another house in the country, trying to make our country dreams come true.  I just don't know if it will ever happen, always seems to be some obstacle, but we're trusting God with it.

Anyway, after walking all over the property and checking things over, it's a second showing, I was just wiped.  No amount of coffee could keep me awake.  When I got home and our nanny left, I got a short nap....still didn't help.

As I do every Friday, I  went to pick up 4 of the children at co-op, still trying to stay awake on the highway.  YAWN!  As I was there, I got two fun surprises.  Well, I think they were fun, but I'm kind of geeky that way.

One mom sold me some eggs from her chickens, aren't they pretty??  I just love to see the green ones and little cute feathers on them.  I just feel so....organic!  I just want to break out in a chorus of "You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin!! 

OH THEN another friend gave me a kefir starter (the baggie)!  I have always wanted to make kefir, I just refuse to buy the Trader Joe's brand anymore for my big fam, although I did for years.  I used to sprout a lot, but I just couldn't get my hands on a kefir starter.  Whoo-hoo!  Get a life, right?  But I'll enjoy researching how to make kefir tonight and hopefully have some in smoothies this weekend.

I'm gonna make another cup or two of coffee so I can stay awake for dinner. 

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/2005-02-01/How-to-Make-Your-own-Yogurt-Kefir-Chevre.aspx

Have a good weekend,

Kelly

We Have A WINNER!!!

Here is our 'official' stainless steel pot holding all of the entires!  Sorry, couldn't find a hat.

Eli helped me fold all the entries and before he takes off to football practice, he draws the first name....

Meredith draws the second....

Bereket draws the third.....and the winners are.....

Shalissa

Susan L

rskmom

Please email me your shipping info to me at morriskelly62@yahoo.com

Congrats to all and thanks for entering!  I'll do another giveaway soon!!!

Kelly

French Toast de la Crockpot

Isn't this a pretty sight to see first thing in the morning?  Gorgeous french toast that has been cooking all night in my humble crock pot.  Love, love, love it!  The true test, though, is if the fam loves it too.

The kids nummy-nummed this right up!  I highly recommend it, recipe here!  The recipe makes quite a lot, so if you just have a couple of kiddos, I'ld half it. 

Kelly

How To Save Money by Getting Almost Everything for Free!

I was reading this article this morning and I'm still not finished.  But I had to let you know about it!  There are lots of great ideas here!  Take your time and take notes!

http://www.homeeverafter.com/how-to-save-money-by-getting-almost-everything-for-free/
 
Kelly

Slow-Cooker Thursday

I have made lots of new e-friends since I've started blogging and also discovered some fantastic blogs to learn from.  One of them is http://www.crockpot365.blogspot.com/.   I am really lovin' this site!  The author, Stepanie, is coming out with a book called "Make it Fast, Cook it Slow" to be released mid-October.  I already ordered two of them to give away once I get them!

I have a nice, big crock pot, but I think one of the reasons I don't use it as often as I should is that I don't have much counter space for it.  I tend to get it out of the basement to use, then put it back, out of sight.  However, now that I've discovered this blog, I am going to make my 6-week menu plan to include a slow cooker day.

This morning I tried the applesauce recipe and I must say it was wonderful!  The aroma filled the house and the kids just loved it!  I hope to get the kitchen in order tonight and through some more apples in tonight.

Check out this blog and refresh your meal planning!

Also, just an update as to how I'm doing on my 6-week meal planner!  I've decided to categorize my days thematically:

Monday - Casserole/Frozen

Tuesday - Beef

Wednesday - Pasta

Thursday - Slow cooker

Friday - Chicken

Saturday - Flex day (leftovers/eat out)

Sunday - Soup

My thinking is the following.  If I have 6 days with 6 categories, then I'll need 36 meal ideas.  The idea of coming up with 36 different meals stresses me out.  Fortunately for me, my husband likes to have the same meals regularly and not a lot of different meals.  SO, I am going to rotate the same three meals twice, for the most part.  I'm almost done with it, I'll post it soon!

Take care,

Kelly

The 6-Week Meal Plan

OK, don't start crying....it's intimidating, isn't it?  I have been hiding from this project for a long time.  Sure, I've started a time or two, but I always get lost in the details, and then never complete it.  I know it would benefit our lives, I'm not sure what my problem is.

Nonetheless, I am going to give it a whirl again.  Many of the blogs I regularly read are talking about it and making theirs.  What kind of blogger would I be if I didn't come up with a Morristribe version??

So, being the researcher that I am, I found a quick link to explain how to get started here.  Let's try it together, you want to?  I would totally love to hear your suggestions and ideas about how to get this dude done and on the frig, laminated and everything!  Wouldn't that feel good?? 

Here's planning,

Kelly

New Cellfire Coupons just released!

You need to join Cellfire!  I know that some of you are still a little wacked about doing this, but it's SO easy and worthwhile.  Listen, here's how simple it it.  Just go to the link, give them your year of birth and cell number...that's all.  Then you'll be offered a slew of coupons, just choose all of them.  These coupons are good at Kroger in Ohio.

They load right onto your Kroger card and you forget about them!!  Then when you are checking out at Kroger, they automatically come up to the register.  It can be kind of like Christmas, because I tend to forget about them until I'm ringing out, then the cashier tells me that I had a coupon for such and such.....

One day at Kroger, I saw some Hamburger Helper singles that were discontinued and discounted to 74 cents, they were normally about $1.40.  I was pretty happy with that price, so I got all of them that were left on the shelf, about 15 of them.  That should last the kids for a while.  I hate buying that stuff, but sandwiches get old every week when they go to co-op.  ANYWAY, I got up to the checkout and was told that I had a 50 cent coupon off Hamburger Helper!  I got those dudes for 24 cents each!!  Whoo-hoo!

Sign up, it just takes a minute, you'll thank me....really.  Here's a list of the latest releases.

$0.50 off Betty Crocker Cake Mix AND Frosting

$0.40/1 Betty Crocker Cookie Mix

$0.40/1 Betty Crocker Potatoes

$0.50/1 Betty Crocker Warm Delights

$0.60/1 Bisquik Baking Mix

$0.50/1 Chex Mix or Chex 100 Calorie Snack

$0.55/1 Cinnamon Toast Crunch

$1/1 Coleman Natural Bacon

$1/1 Coleman Natural Hot Dogs

$0.25/1 Cottonelle

$0.55/1 Fiber One Cereal

$1/1 Fiber One Yogurt Multipacks

$0.50/2 Green Giant Vegetables

$0.75/3 Hamburger, Tuna or Chicken

$3/2 Huggies Diapers

$0.40/1 Nature Valley Granola Bars

$1/1 Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters

$0.60/2 Old El Paso Products

$1/2 Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

$1/2 Pillsbury Frozen Grands! Biscuits, Cinnamon Rolls or Mini Cinnamon Rolls

$1/2 Pillsbury Grands! Refrigerated Biscuits

$1/2 Pillsbury Italian Meal Breads

$1/2 Pillsbury Refrigerated Cookie Dough

$0.55/2 Pillsbury Toaster Strudel

$0.50/1 Progresso Broth

$0.50/2 Progresso Soups

$1/1 Wanchai Ferry Dinner Kit

$0.55/1 32-oz. Yoplait Yogurt

$0.50/6 Yoplait Cups

$1/1 YoPlus Yogurt

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Giveaway and FREE $$$ at CVS

It's almost Thursday and time to end our first giveaway!! I can't wait to send these books to three lucky winners. If you have procrastinated about entering, you better hurry up!

Later this afternoon, I hope to run to CVS and see what I can nab for free! I completed a survey as a CVS advisor this weekend. It only took me about 15 minutes online and I got $10 EBC's right on the spot! That's about $120 an hour for taking a survey - not bad, you investment dudes!

Then I took a flu survey that I got saw online and got another $5 coupon off of a $25 purchase. So essentially, I need to go spend $25 and get $15 off, saving 60%. Sound like fun?

Check out the flu survey here

Check out how to become a CVS Advisor here

Blessings,

Kelly

The Learning Tree Farm

It's been a LONG time since we've been to The Learning Tree farm!  It's a real working farm with animals, gardens, etc...Hubs saw in the paper that they were having a 'Fall Festival' so we packed up the tribe and took a road trip.

Isaac and Bereket look on as the blacksmith works.

Mark and the kids went out to cow pasture to pet the cows - watch out for cow patties!!

Isaac, Meredith and Bereket swing in the barn - silly children!

The kids loved holding the chickens, they were pretty docile other than what you see in the picture.  This give a great word picture of the term 'pecking order'.  You can't see him too well, but if you look in corner, you'll see the black chicken and all the other birds just pressing in on him.  It seems that the poultry court of law has come down on this dude.  They sat and pressed in the position for quite some time, and were pecking on the black chicken mercilessly.

Finally, we began to sprinkle water from our water bottles on them to disperse the crowd.  It wasn't long before they were back on this little guys back.  Oh well, we tried.

I fell in love with the kitchen garden, just outside the kitchen door of the nearly 200 year old house.

You can see the water pump and an excellent variety of culinary herbs.

We had a great time, the kids took pony rides and we even spoke with Abe Lincoln (an impersonator, of course!)  I love these Fall days!

Kelly

Ephy's 3rd Birthday

Friday was Ephy's third birthday and it was quite a day. In Ethiopia, the conditions are so harsh that birthdays are not celebrated. This was a completely new concept for our newbies.

They have watched with wonder as we celebrated Merdith's birthday last month.

I can only imagine what went through their little minds as they watched birthday party after birthday party

at our pool, with all the games, candy and gifts.....hmmmm.

So as we tried to explain that Ephy's birthday was coming up, Bereket and Rahel were very excited for him.

However, Ephy would not respond to any mention of it. He was really stubborn about it, when we mentioned it, he would turn his little head.

That was until we showed up with a lit cake.....then the smile came.

He blew those candles out like a pro!

He needed a little prompting to start opening gifts, but he got the hang of it pretty quick....look at that face.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for these kids and for little Ephy today!

My Favorite Little Box in the World

This little cardboard box sitting on my front porch is one that can lift my spirits instantly....Amazon!!

Whoo-hoo!  But the BEST news is to come.....

After seeing all the entries in my giveaway, I really wished I could give everyone who entered a copy of the book!!!  So I decided to buy three books to give away to THREE lucky winners!  Smile!

Keep up the entries any way you can and increase your chances to win!  Remember to tell a couple of pals about it too!

Kelly

Bread Making Day

I love to make bread. I used to bake more frequently, but with the arrival of our Ethiopians, we have been in survival mode.

However, with the cool, crisp air of early fall starting to flow through my window, I have really been in the mood for some bread baking. Besides, my boys have been asking when I planned to make bread again and I'm a pushover for my kids.....

I like to grind fresh whole wheat when I make bread. I use the Kitchen Mill by K-Tec grinder. I didn't have a grinder for quite a long time as I saved up, I just bought whole wheat flour off the shelf. Once I had the money saved, I called http://www.urbanhomemaker.com/ and spoke with the owner, Dwayne, who has since passed away. His wife Marilyn still runs the business though and has all the same knowledge! He asked me lots of questions about family size and how often I planned to bake, etc. This really boosted my confidence because it was a sacrifice to buy this puppy, I wanted to make sure I was getting the right one for us AND a good deal. One feature that this grinder has, silly as it sounds, is that if you turn it off mid-cycle, it won't jam up. Do you know how many times I have to turn it off and on?? It's ridiculous, so think about that before buying.

I use a bread recipe from http://www.thecountrybaker.com/ that I love (sorry Marilyn!), see the recipe here! I've made this for years and the fam loves it! Here we are sponging....

And kneading.....actually, my fab Bosch does all of that!

In the oven, lazy Morristribe mom skipped the loaves and just made 12 dozen rolls!

Yummo! The kids took some for turkey sandwiches at co-op today, had some more with our soup tonight for dinner!

During the holidays, I take a loaf worth of dough and braid it (no brainer, 3 strands, you know the routine) and put this herb mixture on top after I've buttered them.

*Brush w/ 2 tsp. of butter 5 minutes before done,

mix 2 tbl. parmesean cheese, 1 tsp. basil, 1/2 tsp. oregano and 1/2 tsp. garlic power

in a measuring cup

Sprinkle on top of buttered tops

It smells FABULOUS and looks really impressive!

Blessings,

Kelly

The Real "$75 a Week Grocery Challenge" Update

I just got home from Meijer about 30 minutes ago, after a day of schooling 7 children, doing a mountain of laundry and making 12 dozen rolls.....oh, did I mention grinding all the wheat too??

Anyway, as tired as I am, I am feeling pretty fantastic about the deals I got at Meijer this week. I had about $120 left for the month to spend so I had to make every dollar count. Meijer had the best deals this week for what our tribe eats. Let me tell you that every cent was screamin' at the checkout, baby!! All said and done, I saved $67.52, a cool 44.9% off, paying just $82.96 for all this!

Meijer had some great sales this week, PLUS Meijer Meal Box had some even better coupons, coupled with my handful of coupons, it was so fun. I really didn't have a meal plan for the week made out, and I know that I did things kind of backwards, but I only had tonight to shop and I needed to get it done. I've got plenty to work with this week, though. Meals should be a breeze.

Some of my best deals were:

#10 of potatoes for $1.99, got 2 bags

#3 apples for $1.29 each, got 6 bags (Mary's dream had me thinking about a great deal on apples!)

Kellogg's cereal for $1.99, buy 5 and get a gallon milk free

Progresso soup on the mark-down cart for $1.09, bought 2 and used a .55/2 coupon that doubled

Oscar Meyer lunch meat, 2/$5 with an additional dollar off two (Meijer Meal Box)

Mott's applesauce on sale for $1.69, coupon for $1.00 off

Red Gold tomatoes were on sale for .79, used coupon .75/2, net price .42 a can, bought 4

Kraft cheeses were on sale for 1/2 off

Campbell's chicken noodle or tomato soup - $0.59
- $0.40/4 from the 9/13/09 Smart Source insert
- $1/4 Meijer Mealbox printable coupon here
- Final price - $0.14 each

Anyway, I had a good time saving this week! I only have about $30 left for the month. I'll make it by the skin of my teeth.

Hope you find some great deals this week! Check out the links at the top of the right-hand column to find the stores best buys - it's all done for you, no excuse not to try! :)

Kelly

Updating "The $75 a Week Challenge"

This is a picture of our Homecoming Day with our new children from Ethiopia. Even though we had traveled for 17 hours one way and stayed in a third-world country for a week or so, we all looked pretty healthy.

After 3 or so weeks on the "$75 a Week Grocery Challenge", the tribe decided to post our latest family picture....enjoy!

I just cracked myself up with this! :)

Kelly

Giveaway Lowdown

Good morning!

I have a bit more of a brain this morning and I'm ready to reveal the lowdown about how to get this great book, "Family Feasts for $75 a Week"! It's a very practical, family friendly book that I am enjoying very much, with many recipes that have become 'family favs' already around here. Mary is a wonderful cook!

I'm still learning all of this 'bloggie' stuff, and I know that there are programs out there that will electronically calculate entries, etc. Let's just keep this simple, shall we?? Maybe I'll research that other stuff for the next giveaway. I'll have one of the kids put all the entries in a hat or something and we'll draw, ok? You'll just have to trust me on this. We're all family here, right? :)

You can earn up to 3 entries into the contest. The contest will end Thursday, September 24 and I will announce the winner of the book on Friday, September 25. At that point, if you've won, you'll need to email me your shipping info and the book will go out right away!

Entry #1: You leave a comment regarding this post. Easy enough??

Entry #2: You blog, facebook or twitter about this contest, linking readers here. BE SURE to let me know that you did this, I'll believe you.

Entry #3: You can become a 'follower' of this blog. If you are already a 'follower', then refer two friends to our blog and tell about it in the comments, please no specifics, ok? I'll just take your word for it! :)

Can't wait to put this cookbook in your hands!

Kelly

My First Giveaway!!

I have been wanting to do a giveaway, but wasn't sure exactly how to do it. Guess what, I STILL don't know exactly how to do it. However, I am so excited about this "$75 a Week Grocery Challenge" that despite my ignorance about giveaways, this book must be given away to a reader!

Usually, giveaways require you to do something or another, this is where I'm stuck. My only desire is to grow this ministry and to reach more readers. Why don't we do this....YOU think of a couple of people that might like this blog. I WILL order the book and then sleep on it.

Maybe by morning I'll have this thing figured out. If you aren't currently a follower, but enjoy reading our antics, consider signing up.

Take care,

Kelly

Field Trip to Young's Dairy Farm

I just love beautiful fall days in SW Ohio! Today's weather couldn't have been more perfect, 74 degrees or so, blue skies, slight breeze....perfect day for a field trip, playing hookie, calling a mental-health day, whatever, just enjoy these kind of days! They won't be around too much longer.

On the way to Young's Dairy Farm, we passed this outstanding sunflower field! I have never seen so many sunflowers together in one place in my life! There were people pulling over to take pictures like I was. There was also a man painting this wonderful scene. The picture just doesn't do it justice.

Once at Young's, we all stopped to enjoy some doughnuts! We just couldn't pass them up!

Then on to the pumpkin patch, what a cute little setup! Isaac, Meredith and Eli are such fun!

Later, we fed the 'slobbery' goats, as we call them. The kids always feel sorry for the little goats, the bigger ones are so pushy and selfish. They worked hard to make sure the baby goats were fed.

How's this picture for depth perception? I laid very uncomfortably on boulders to get this shot.

Morristribe Mom goes for her shot, although the children were creaming her at Putt-putt!

Eli and Colin enjoyed hitting a couple of hundred golf balls as I played putt-putt with the little ones. All in all, it was a great day of bonding with my children!