We have passed the halfway point on the deployment. There are no words for how much we miss Hubs. We miss him for so many reasons it would be impossible to list them all. There are the serious reasons ( I am missing my best friend), to the silly ones, (nobody can open spagetti jars right now), funny reasons (need a partner in crime) and even kid reasons ("just wait 3 months until your father get's home" lacks bite.)
The kids miss him just as much as I do. I realized this last night when Haley sprayed the cat with Daddy's cologne. This met with intense disapproval from 2 sources. First the cat was NOT happy to be smelling that way. This led to a sharp increase in tongue baths with the resulting logarithmic increase in hairballs. Oh goody. I was also not happy to know that the very expensive cologne I had gotten Hubs for a Christmas present was being wasted on the cat. Especially as it made me the unlucky recipient numerous hairballs. (Good thing I have a steam cleaner!)
But when she snuggled the squirming, frowning cat and said, "Barney smells just like Daddy" it was hard to get too mad. Which the little rat had counted on, I'm sure. I did have to admit that night when I went to bed and got a faint wiff of cologne as I drifted off I did have a smile on my face. Until the cat started barfing on the bed. Nothing like a late night hairball to ruin the mood.
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Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Sunday, May 23, 2010
My Favorite Steals
Where is the best place to....
Buy glasses? Zenni optical online. Glasses start at $8. Yep, I've actually gotten them here and they aren't any different than other pairs I've paid $200+ for. Go here.
Get discount coupon codes for online purchases? Retailmenot. ALWAYS check here before you buy anything online.
Learn about discount shopping and find all the best deals in one spot? Moneysavingmom. Go here.
Of course you already use Swagbucks...don't you? If not you're just missing out of free stuff. Check my link at the top of the page if you haven't joined yet. Doesn't cost anything and you can see my running total of Amazon cards just from internet usage. No surveys or anything. But if you are buying something go through Swagbucks link on their shopping page and get 1SB for every $2 spent. (At most stores anyway.)
Have a thrifty Sunday.
Buy glasses? Zenni optical online. Glasses start at $8. Yep, I've actually gotten them here and they aren't any different than other pairs I've paid $200+ for. Go here.
Get discount coupon codes for online purchases? Retailmenot. ALWAYS check here before you buy anything online.
Learn about discount shopping and find all the best deals in one spot? Moneysavingmom. Go here.
Of course you already use Swagbucks...don't you? If not you're just missing out of free stuff. Check my link at the top of the page if you haven't joined yet. Doesn't cost anything and you can see my running total of Amazon cards just from internet usage. No surveys or anything. But if you are buying something go through Swagbucks link on their shopping page and get 1SB for every $2 spent. (At most stores anyway.)
Have a thrifty Sunday.
Wrapping It Up
Well, we survived the garage sale. Since I haven't had one is awhile I was a little rusty. (By little, I mean little like the Titanic was a "little leaky.") It never occurred to me that people would actually start showing up at 6am for a sale advertised to start at 7. BTW, WHAT is up with you people??? 6am for a garage sale? REALLY? Seek professional help...quickly. Aside from that disturbing fact, I tried to keep things as easy as possible so I bought stick on price labels and tried to gather things to sell that I thought someone might actually want.
Mostly, I thinned out my "coupon freebies stash" from the pantry and put out the extra hairspray, shampoo, body-wash, razors etc... that we won't need any time soon. I also managed to save the Coach purse my daughter tried to sell for a dime and her sister's favorite outfit she had labeled "make offer." That girl scares me...pretty sure she'd sell her sister if the price was right. Or even close.
As always, I was surprised by what sold quickly. 4 boxes K-Y jelly went in a jiffy. Hmmmm, don't even want to think about that one. So did the tubs of Vaseline. All the body-wash and lotion went but only half the make-up. (Interesting since it was all clearly sealed.) Where else can you get a brand new lipstick for a buck?
Only a few deodorants sold, although by the end of the day I wanted to GIVE them to a few people. Garage sale-ing in 90 heat is a rough sport apparently!
All of the cleaning products went but candles were hit or miss.
Kids clothes shocked me. The good Gymboree stuff wasn't touched but Hannah Montana t-shirts flew off the rack, even the ratty ones. I could make a snarky comment here but the facts speak for themselves I guess.
Kids' sporting stuff was a big hit. Water toys, not so much. Books went at a brisk clip but probably aren't worth bothering with for as little as people want to spend. Better to donate them.
In the end I made $252. I had to sit out there from 7am to 11am. We did have steady traffic due to the neighbor who placed an ad in the paper for a "multi-family moving sale." I made enough to buy my iPhone so I am very happy about that. Now I just have to come up with a method to pay for the monthly service contract and I'm golden.
None of this changes my basic belief that it is better to just donate the stuff. I could have saved myself 2 days worth of work preparing and cleaning up not to mention that I STILL have a bunch of stuff to take to donate. Yep, one garage sale every 15 years is plenty for me. I was tempted to sell all of Hubby's tools to one man who asked, but I resisted. I also didn't sell his golf clubs even though somebody offered me $8 for them. I just couldn't sell out the clubs of a man stuck in a tent defending our very freedom and way of life. At least, not for less than $12.50.
Mostly, I thinned out my "coupon freebies stash" from the pantry and put out the extra hairspray, shampoo, body-wash, razors etc... that we won't need any time soon. I also managed to save the Coach purse my daughter tried to sell for a dime and her sister's favorite outfit she had labeled "make offer." That girl scares me...pretty sure she'd sell her sister if the price was right. Or even close.
As always, I was surprised by what sold quickly. 4 boxes K-Y jelly went in a jiffy. Hmmmm, don't even want to think about that one. So did the tubs of Vaseline. All the body-wash and lotion went but only half the make-up. (Interesting since it was all clearly sealed.) Where else can you get a brand new lipstick for a buck?
Only a few deodorants sold, although by the end of the day I wanted to GIVE them to a few people. Garage sale-ing in 90 heat is a rough sport apparently!
All of the cleaning products went but candles were hit or miss.
Kids clothes shocked me. The good Gymboree stuff wasn't touched but Hannah Montana t-shirts flew off the rack, even the ratty ones. I could make a snarky comment here but the facts speak for themselves I guess.
Kids' sporting stuff was a big hit. Water toys, not so much. Books went at a brisk clip but probably aren't worth bothering with for as little as people want to spend. Better to donate them.
In the end I made $252. I had to sit out there from 7am to 11am. We did have steady traffic due to the neighbor who placed an ad in the paper for a "multi-family moving sale." I made enough to buy my iPhone so I am very happy about that. Now I just have to come up with a method to pay for the monthly service contract and I'm golden.
None of this changes my basic belief that it is better to just donate the stuff. I could have saved myself 2 days worth of work preparing and cleaning up not to mention that I STILL have a bunch of stuff to take to donate. Yep, one garage sale every 15 years is plenty for me. I was tempted to sell all of Hubby's tools to one man who asked, but I resisted. I also didn't sell his golf clubs even though somebody offered me $8 for them. I just couldn't sell out the clubs of a man stuck in a tent defending our very freedom and way of life. At least, not for less than $12.50.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Against My Better Judgement
My kids have gone to the neighbor's house to play. I actually have some time to do whatever I want. The irony is that I can't, because I once again put my size 8 1/2 foot in my ever so accommodating mouth.
Let me preface this by saying, I understand we all have our thing. I totally get the thrill of the hunt. I mean for you it might be Fendi purses, or stickers for your scrapbook, or whatever. Since I have been known to fly to the store in various states of undress just to get free TP or toothpaste, I can't exactly throw stones.
And yet, I don't understand garage sale people. I have tried, oh yes, I have. But it is too much gambling for me. I want to know what the deal is before I will leave my house and trek across the town. Sure you MIGHT find an ugly Elvis watercolor that just happens to be covering a priceless original copy of the Declaration of Independence, or, more likely, you may not. It's all UNK. I just don't have the patience for you-never-know. Plus the whole haggling thing is just not part of my genetic make-up. So I avoid garage sales on principle.
As far as having one, well hubs and I tried it once. We made a couple hundred dollars. We sold all the movies he had acquired and the vacuum I had acquired. Said vacuum was just an innocent by-stander I had been using to clean out the car, but in the heat of the moment Hubs sold it for $15. "It was old," he said, "and not very good." Actually I'd had it a year and it worked just peachy. Which is why after 15 years I still remind him about the vacuum he sold for $15, and then had to replace for $250. Not that I'm bitter or anything. Moving on.
Luckily Hubs learned the fine art of tax deductible donations and voila! No more garage sales for us! It all goes to the Goodwill. I do have to photography and inventory everything, but that's it. No setting up, taking down, counting change, or buying new vacuums. It's almost painless.
So why am I wasting my precious free time getting ready for a crummy sale this weekend? Absolutely, no freakin' idea! The neighbor asked and before I could say "HELL NO!" I heard myself saying "sure." I blame it on residual cleaning fumes in my house, I swear they've pickled my brain. So pray for me this weekend as I prepare to pay through the teeth to get people to take my junk. What the heck, maybe it's time for a new vacuum.
Let me preface this by saying, I understand we all have our thing. I totally get the thrill of the hunt. I mean for you it might be Fendi purses, or stickers for your scrapbook, or whatever. Since I have been known to fly to the store in various states of undress just to get free TP or toothpaste, I can't exactly throw stones.
And yet, I don't understand garage sale people. I have tried, oh yes, I have. But it is too much gambling for me. I want to know what the deal is before I will leave my house and trek across the town. Sure you MIGHT find an ugly Elvis watercolor that just happens to be covering a priceless original copy of the Declaration of Independence, or, more likely, you may not. It's all UNK. I just don't have the patience for you-never-know. Plus the whole haggling thing is just not part of my genetic make-up. So I avoid garage sales on principle.
As far as having one, well hubs and I tried it once. We made a couple hundred dollars. We sold all the movies he had acquired and the vacuum I had acquired. Said vacuum was just an innocent by-stander I had been using to clean out the car, but in the heat of the moment Hubs sold it for $15. "It was old," he said, "and not very good." Actually I'd had it a year and it worked just peachy. Which is why after 15 years I still remind him about the vacuum he sold for $15, and then had to replace for $250. Not that I'm bitter or anything. Moving on.
Luckily Hubs learned the fine art of tax deductible donations and voila! No more garage sales for us! It all goes to the Goodwill. I do have to photography and inventory everything, but that's it. No setting up, taking down, counting change, or buying new vacuums. It's almost painless.
So why am I wasting my precious free time getting ready for a crummy sale this weekend? Absolutely, no freakin' idea! The neighbor asked and before I could say "HELL NO!" I heard myself saying "sure." I blame it on residual cleaning fumes in my house, I swear they've pickled my brain. So pray for me this weekend as I prepare to pay through the teeth to get people to take my junk. What the heck, maybe it's time for a new vacuum.
Mailbox Mania
This week's freebies:
1 full size Dove conditioner
1 Kraft summer sampler (coupon for free hot dogs, barbecue sauce and small samples of drink mixes and crackers)
2 sets travel size shampoo/conditioners
1 coupon for free box Macaroni and cheese
Also $110 worth of Schwan's food for my party Saturday. Can't wait for that!
Sort of a slow week. How did you do?
1 full size Dove conditioner
1 Kraft summer sampler (coupon for free hot dogs, barbecue sauce and small samples of drink mixes and crackers)
2 sets travel size shampoo/conditioners
1 coupon for free box Macaroni and cheese
Also $110 worth of Schwan's food for my party Saturday. Can't wait for that!
Sort of a slow week. How did you do?
Thursday, May 13, 2010
I Feel So Cheap
I have sold out. I allowed myself to be used in such a cheesy way I am embarrassed to even admit it. But as a Catholic I know confession is good for the soul. So here is the shameful truth out there in the electronic universe for all (well both of my readers!) to see.
Forgive me, I've been VERY lonely---try not to judge me too harshly.
I actually...watched Oprah today. There I said it, let the cards fall where they may.
I can't stand the woman and detest almost all of the things she stands for. I find her arrogant, obsequious, condescending, and not even mildly amusing which should carry a mandatory prison sentence in one who so forcefully inserts herself into so many aspects of life.
And yet, at 4pm today, I literally canceled actual plans to sit in front of my TV. Oh, honesty is a bitter tonic!
Why, you ask? What possible topic could make me override all of my principles like a hot knife through Jello? Dare I confess? I sold my principles for a chance to glimpse perfect 6 pack abs. Oh yes, it is just that cheap and tawdry. It wasn't a riveting Nobel laureate (well OK, most of them are bogus!) or a frank social issue discussion. Oh no. It was just a twenty year old flashing a sexy white smile and his ever so scrumptious pecs.
In my defense, I'm almost, er, somewhat, positive Mr. Lautner is of legal age and further he clearly gets paid very well to let women ogle him, but still. Oprah? Plus, most of the show was her usual annoying interview crap (or rubbish as Robert-sexy-British-accent-on-demand-Pattinson would say.) There were just a few shots of the aforementioned pecs. I am left feeling more than a little dirty and oh so very used. I think I might be a pervert. I have a crush on the same guy my 12 year old daughter likes. Oh, how the mighty have fallen!
The only pathetic excuse I can offer is-- I have always had a serious pec fascination and he does have a VERY tasty set. Plus, I am a total sucker for the "happily-ever-after" romance ala Twilight. I have always hoped Scarlett would get back together with Rhett and that every ending will be a Disney ending. (It's OK to have scary villains as long as everybody rides off into a sunset with a prince at the end!)
Well that, and Hubs has been gone a VERRRRRRRY long time.
Forgive me, I've been VERY lonely---try not to judge me too harshly.
I actually...watched Oprah today. There I said it, let the cards fall where they may.
I can't stand the woman and detest almost all of the things she stands for. I find her arrogant, obsequious, condescending, and not even mildly amusing which should carry a mandatory prison sentence in one who so forcefully inserts herself into so many aspects of life.
And yet, at 4pm today, I literally canceled actual plans to sit in front of my TV. Oh, honesty is a bitter tonic!
Why, you ask? What possible topic could make me override all of my principles like a hot knife through Jello? Dare I confess? I sold my principles for a chance to glimpse perfect 6 pack abs. Oh yes, it is just that cheap and tawdry. It wasn't a riveting Nobel laureate (well OK, most of them are bogus!) or a frank social issue discussion. Oh no. It was just a twenty year old flashing a sexy white smile and his ever so scrumptious pecs.
In my defense, I'm almost, er, somewhat, positive Mr. Lautner is of legal age and further he clearly gets paid very well to let women ogle him, but still. Oprah? Plus, most of the show was her usual annoying interview crap (or rubbish as Robert-sexy-British-accent-on-demand-Pattinson would say.) There were just a few shots of the aforementioned pecs. I am left feeling more than a little dirty and oh so very used. I think I might be a pervert. I have a crush on the same guy my 12 year old daughter likes. Oh, how the mighty have fallen!
The only pathetic excuse I can offer is-- I have always had a serious pec fascination and he does have a VERY tasty set. Plus, I am a total sucker for the "happily-ever-after" romance ala Twilight. I have always hoped Scarlett would get back together with Rhett and that every ending will be a Disney ending. (It's OK to have scary villains as long as everybody rides off into a sunset with a prince at the end!)
Well that, and Hubs has been gone a VERRRRRRRY long time.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Mailbox Mania
I just had to post what I've gotten free in my mailbox this week:
1 bra from Victoria's Secret
1 coupon for box Kraft Macaroni
1 jar coconut oil
2 sets Pantene shampoo and conditioner
1 Gillette Razor
1 Secret Deodorant
1 Olay Body wash
And it's only Tuesday! This is why I don't mind "junk-mail." I usually get a whole bunch of goodies. Plus most of the samples come with very high dollar coupons that lead to more free or cheap stuff. Whenever a company launches a new product there are usually good sales at the beginning. It always cracks me up that I spend FAR less buying only name brand products then I used to spend on generics.
Also, I have to say that we've finished the free pack of Oscar Mayer Turkey Bacon from last week. I'm a believer. I wasn't too excited to try it but it's SO MUCH BETTER than I expected. It got crispy (even in the microwave!) and wasn't nearly as greasy as regular bacon. In fact my kids love to pop a few pieces in the microwave to eat for breakfast. It's quick, not messy, and we all agreed it tasted great. Have you tried it yet? What do you think?
1 bra from Victoria's Secret
1 coupon for box Kraft Macaroni
1 jar coconut oil
2 sets Pantene shampoo and conditioner
1 Gillette Razor
1 Secret Deodorant
1 Olay Body wash
And it's only Tuesday! This is why I don't mind "junk-mail." I usually get a whole bunch of goodies. Plus most of the samples come with very high dollar coupons that lead to more free or cheap stuff. Whenever a company launches a new product there are usually good sales at the beginning. It always cracks me up that I spend FAR less buying only name brand products then I used to spend on generics.
Also, I have to say that we've finished the free pack of Oscar Mayer Turkey Bacon from last week. I'm a believer. I wasn't too excited to try it but it's SO MUCH BETTER than I expected. It got crispy (even in the microwave!) and wasn't nearly as greasy as regular bacon. In fact my kids love to pop a few pieces in the microwave to eat for breakfast. It's quick, not messy, and we all agreed it tasted great. Have you tried it yet? What do you think?
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