Wishing our daughter a Happy Sweet 16!

I can't believe our baby girl is 16 today. Where does the time go.  Wasn't I just 16?  :-)  We had a great day celebrating as a family.  I'm so thankful that the kids had off of school today so we could spend the day together. 

Happy Birthday Tiffi.  We love you so much. We are so proud of you and so thankful God gave you to us. 

Our first family photo. April 22, 1995

Us today. 16 years later.

Trying to tackle the Couponing Craze!

So, I have many friends who have seemed to master the Coupon Craze.  I'm in awe of their savings at the grocery store, drug stores etc.  So, I thought I would give it a try.  I never quite mastered it like my friends, but was happy with the savings I received.

Now, TLC has a new show on called Extreme Couponing.  Bill & I watched the 1st show.  He was in awe. He did not get the whole coupon craze until he watched this show. He wanted to save 90% or more on our grocery bills.  So now he's hooked.  And addicted to trying to find the best deal.

I have only 2x's saved MORE than I spent at the grocery store.  Last week I saved $20 more than I spent. I did a little happy dance at the check out lane & hollered.  They all smiled at me. Here is a photo of what I got.

Total retail price: $100.96.  Total spent: $40.64. Total Saved: $60.32

My dear friend does wonders at Walgreens.  So I thought I would try. I don't typically shop at Walgreens.  But they had some good sales.  Here is my 1st trip to Walgreens.

Total retail price: $62.65. Total spent: $17.64. Total Saved: $46.01

And now Bill is on a roll.  He's been searching and searching for the best deal.  Today we went to Target. We were armed with about 30 coupons.  I was nervous.  After some confusion with the computer not taking some of our coupons (we caught this before we left the store so I went back inside to get a manager and she fixed the problem and gave us money back), we ended up saving 90%. Our best shopping trip to date!

Total retail price: $39.45. Total spent: $4.06. Total saved: $35.39.  

Several people have asked me on Facebook how I do it.  This is an email I sent to them.

This site really explains a lot to beginners. Just click on the link at the top of her site that says beginners.

http://thekrazycouponlady.com/

It takes a lot of work. We buy 2 Sunday papers so we have 2 coupons for each item we want. You can use a manufacture coupon on each item in the BOGO's at Publix (yes, even the free item). You can also "stack" coupons by using a store coupon as well. So, you can use a manufacture coupon AND a Target coupon on 1 item (at Publix and at Target).

The Target coupons are found on their website at the bottom (it says coupons).

Today, we had 5 Degree manufacture coupons for $1 off. And we printed 5 Degree Target coupons for $1 off. So we saved $2.00 on each deodorant. They are on sale this week for $1.99. So we got them for free. :-)

We had about 30 coupons when we checked out. The key is to stick to your list. If you buy something not on sale or something without a coupon, it will mess up your percentage of savings. :-)

And always make sure you know how many coupons you are using and for how much they will total. Today at Target not all of our coupons scanned. So I went back inside and told them and they figured it out and gave us $6.50 back.

OH, and you can "like" pages on Facebook (like Lysol) and they will have coupons. If you have more than 1 computer in your house, try to print coupons from each computer. Some sites limit the amount of coupons you can print from your computer.

I hope this helps. I will compile a list of other sites we have found that are really helpful in our coupon savings adventure. So check back soon.

Good luck & Happy Couponing!  

Ethan Met His Future Wife Today!

It was fun introducing Ethan & Ellie Grace to each other. They were shy at first, but slowly warmed up to each other.  It took 1 time of us putting Ethan's arm around Ellie Grace and then he kept doing it himself. He's such a stud muffin.  :-)  We even said "Give her a kiss Ethan" and he did.  Several kisses.  They are just too cute together.  Here are a few pictures.  Enjoy!

Qiong Has a Family!

Remember Qiong, a recent Waiting Child of the Week?  She has a family!  We want to thank you for sharing her story and for your prayers.
We ask for your continued prayers for the family who has made the decision to bring Qiong into their home and for Qiong, as she prepares to unite with her family!

Busch Gardens

Our Disney Annual Passes expired. :-(  I'm sad about that. But also relieved.  Disney is so much fun, but a lot of work with 4 kids.  So we chose to take a little Disney break.

Well this weekend it was beautiful out.  Bill priced out annual passes at Busch Gardens.  And so we decided to go.  We got up there late, (around 4 PM) but we still did a lot and had a lot of fun.  We have not been in years.  It was a nice change from Disney.  BUT, nobody can compare to Disney. I did miss a lot of the things Disney has to offer (for example, sparkling bathrooms).  :-)

Here are a few pictures from our afternoon. 

URGENT! Little girl needs a family!

Please pass this along if you know of anyone who is homestudy ready and would want to bring this little girl home.  Thanks!


From China.  Birthday:  September 30th, 1997
August 4th, 1999 – a 2-year-old girl sits along the roadside and waits for her parents….
The little girl tries to stand, but stumbles and falls. She has rickets, and her crooked legs make it difficult for her to walk, let alone stand.
Two locals happen upon the frightened child. They pick her up and scan the nearby marketplace for a clue, any trace of the person who has left her behind. They take her to the local police station. After an extensive search fails to locate the child’s parents, she is brought to the Social Welfare Institute. With no note left beside her on the roadside, she enters the orphanage with nothing but a pretty white coat wrapped around her, blue shorts and the petite red shoes on her feet. She is given the name *Qiong. And a birthdate: September 30th, 1997.
Two years later, at the age of four, Qiong begins preschool. She listens to directions well, and teachers describe her as “active and loving.” She can put her coat and shoes on all by herself and happily assists the other children. When the teachers say, “It’s time to go outside,” Qiong is the first one to line up at the door, an eager smile always on her face.
Caretakers dote on Qiong, and teachers enjoy her helpful and charming attitude. Qiong has a roof over her head and a bed to sleep in at night.

What Qiong doesn’t have is the warmth and love of a permanent family.
At age 5, Qiong can walk, run and jump with great ease, her rickets all but healed. She likes cooking meals with the help of her caregivers and enjoys reciting simple Chinese folk rhymes. Her favorite rhyme is, “Little Tadpole Looking for Mamma.” “Little tadpoles are looking for their mamma,” she delivers with great pride. “Little tadpoles are looking for their mamma.”
Qiong excels in school and is loved by all around her. Qiong has an education, and she has many friends to play with.
What Qiong doesn’t have is a brother, or a sister to laugh with forever.
Four years later, Qiong starts the 3rd grade. She thinks school is just “so-so,”  but studies hard anyway. She wants to be a painter someday. “Qiong has a good state of mind and is polite with other people,” her caregiver says.
By now, many of Qiong’s friends have gone home to families in the United States. But Qiong remains at her boarding school, waiting for the day when a loving family will come for her, and she will have a home forever.
“My daughter is very sad Qiong doesn’t have a family yet,” says Beth Flanders, who brought her daughter, Quinn, home this past summer. “Quinn and Qiong grew up together. I met her when I was in China. She’s very bright and friendly. We pray for her to find a family every day.”
Today, at 13 years old, Qiong prays for a family too. After all these years, she still carries so much hope with her. “It doesn’t matter if I have brothers or sisters,” she says. “A family to love me will be very nice.” A few moments later Qiong clarifies her statement slightly: “It would be nice to have a big brother and a father who will protect me.”
On September 30th, Qiong turns 14 and loses her international adoption eligibility. Six months from now, Qiong’s hope of having a family of her own will be lost forever.
“All I want is a family,” Qiong says. “Just a family.”
A 13-year-old girl sits on the steps of her school, waiting for a family……
Share this story on your Facebook page, blogs and other social networking sites.  Let’s find Qiong a family…before it’s too late!
*To be considered for Qiong, families must have a homestudy.
Click here for more information on China’s eligibility requirements…

For more information on Qiong, contact Erin Mower at erinm@holtinternational.org
*Name changed


Taken from Holt's blog  http://holtinternational.org/blog/2011/03/as-the-time-goes-by-urgent-qiong-needs-a-family/

A Boy & His Trains

I am enjoying having a little boy in the house.  Watching how he plays is so different than how the girls play.  He LOVES anything that can move, make noise etc.  And he LOVES to read.  Today he wanted to play with his trains that he got for Christmas.  The track got moved and was not put together.  So I put it together for him and he is sitting in his room, watching the trains go and reading a book about trains.

I could not even get him to eat his lunch because he wants to play with his trains.

He's all boy & I love it.  And he's growing up fast.  And his speech is coming along well.  He says "Oo Oo Rain" for Choo Choo Train.

OK, he just came back for more food.  :-)  Enjoy the pics

See my trains?

"oo oo rain"