What $3 Can Get You

I've been really trying to get the hang of this whole Grocery Game coupon thing and am starting to have some breakthroughs.

Yesterday I got all of this and only spent about $3 out of my own pocket! My victory was aided by a combination of sale prices, coupons, register rewards (lump sum coupons for purchasing certain items on previous shopping trips), and my Walgreens gift card loaded with rebates. I also have about $8 in rebates that I earned from these purchases that I'll cash in at the end of this month!

There is one thing missing from this picture - 2 little bags of chocolate chip cookies that I got for the boys as a surprise snack when they got in the truck after school. They were ecstatic and weren't quite so ravenous when we walked in the door!

Next time I go to Albertsons for groceries I'll have to take a picture of what I'm getting with my savings there. It's not been near as exciting as yesterday's Walgreens trip. Albertsons doesn't double coupons and they haven't been running the greatest sales, but I'm still saving a pretty good penny there.

Our budget allows for about $500 a month for groceries, but at this point I'm only spending about $250. We do have to take into consideration that I'm feeding one less adult, but we have enough food in our pantry to feed him, too. Our freezer is full. Eventually we'll buy a deep freeze, but for now we'll just make due.

RIP Humpty Dumpty and Friends

12 Humpty Dumptys sat in my cart
12 Humpty Dumptys had a great start
Until little Maverick grabbed on with his hand
And we looked at the floor to see them all land

It was actually 11 Humpty Dumptys because 1 had already fallen to his death an aisle earlier. I noticed him as I circled back around looking for pita bread. Apparently he could see the handwriting on the wall and decided to die alone.

As we were checking out, the checker picked up an empty carton of eggs and asked if I knew it was empty. I told her "yes, we were the cleanup on aisle 19." Not 30 seconds later, they were calling for a clean up on aisle 20 - "egg on floor." Needless to say I was ready to get out of the Commissary!

I did get charged for the empty carton of eggs so I told Maverick that I will be deducting that wasted $1.20 from his lifetime savings! I also told him that was his last shopping trip for a while - at least 2 weeks :o)

Just so you know, I didn't stop and take a picture of the eggs. I found this on google images so apparently I'm not the only one who's experienced this mass humpty dumpty murder!

Fun Friday

I'm trying to get myself psyched up for a trip to the Commissary. I'm going to try to go as early as I can to beat some of the day after payday crowd and am praying that the little boys are in a half decent cooperative mood. I don't have near as many new things to search for this week like I did the last time I went and was trying new recipes so hopefully that will make our trip much smoother. Depending on how long we spend at the Commissary, we may brave the waterpark for a little while.

No major weekend plans on the horizon unless we venture into New Mexico to take advantage of their Tax Free Weekend. Texas' Tax Free weekend doesn't happen until the 15th. I have my Old Navy Stuff and Save Bag - I somehow made the lottery this go round - and am contemplating using it on Tax Free weekend, but I have to weigh the crowds with the 6.25% tax savings. I can almost handle the tax more than a Just North of the Border Tax Free Weekend crowd! Texas only gives Tax Free on clothes and backpacks so the deals aren't near what you would get in SC on a Tax Free weekend.

To the Commissary I must go....

Mother's Day and More

I mentioned in my last post that LT and I would be attending a military formal in about 3 weeks - 6 June to be exact. I've been on the hunt for the perfect dress for a few weeks. Yesterday I spent my mother's day on a solo shopping trip to the mall and David's Bridal. It was quite fun and somewhat relaxing.

I scoped out Macy's selection, which seems to have dwindled since I last browsed there. Then I went to Dillards and actually tried on a few there. I found one that I sort of liked, but it needed to be hemmed and I wasn't exactly sure how the sleeves were supposed to lay, on the shoulder, off the shoulder, one on - one off, etc. I tried that dress on 2x thinking I might be able to decide on it, but I just couldn't! I decided I would just risk it and look a few more places before I spent the money on it. I even considered buying it and returning it, but that seemed like a bit of a hassle and there was the whole in need of being hemmed thing. Any time a garment needs an alteration, that plays heavily into me not buying it!

So I ventured to David's Bridal hoping to find something. I decided while I was there that they aren't trying to sell things to people like me. Most of the dresses on the racks were either 4s or 24s. Even though there were dresses that I liked, there was no way I could try one on and get any idea of what it would really look like. Then there's the whole having to order it, risk it not getting here in time, needing to get it altered in some way, etc. Why not just stock one in every size so those of us who can't wait 6 weeks for a dress and want to actually be able to try it on in our size can have a chance of buying a dress? That's a no brainer to me! I guess they make money charging people an extra fee to expedite shipping on a dress they don't have in stock.

I took the few dresses I found in my size that I liked to the dressing room and started the process. I tried on a couple of things that were okay. They'd work if I didn't find anything else. Then I tried on THE dress. I put it on and walked out of the dressing room to look in the mirrors, which cover every wall and door of their dressing area. I fell in love. I really did feel like the queen of the ball in it! It was everything I wanted in a dress - sleeves of some sort, not low cut, flattering, I can wear a real bra with it and it needs no alterations! I walked back into my dressing room and looked at the price. I had to walk out and look in the mirrors again to be sure it was worth the price.

After I took it off, I asked the guy if he could hold it for 24 hours and he could only hold it until they closed yesterday. I had him hold it so I could call Jake and see if he was willing to spend that kind of cash on a dress. He said the price was fine if he thought it was something I would be willing to wear in the future to other functions with future units. I think it's a stand the test of time sort of dress. I wish I could wear it every day!

I walked back into David's Bridal to pay for it and walked out with my new dress in hand. If only June 6 could be this weekend! Here's the dress I bought - in Navy. Their picture in Wine shows the detail alot better.

Wonders Never Cease

The boys and I had a pretty fun day today. It began with a trip to the local Carl's Jr for lunch and play time with our friends the Puleos. Their dad is in the Middle East for a year so we try to get together to play and chat when we can. There are 3 Puleo boys - 5, 3, and 3 months and of course their Mommy, Summer. Bailey loves playing with the oldest boys so they had a great time while Summer and I chatted for an hour or so. Maverick even got to play around the play area since he's a walker!

Then we headed to the El Paso Outlet Mall for some shopping! It was a beautiful day to be outside and an even more beautiful day hitting the deals at the Gap Outlet. Jake and I bought a few things there a couple of weeks ago and I apparently signed up for their email list so I got a 20% off coupon that expired today. It was a good shopping day all around! I got 7 long sleeve shirts for the boys for the fall, 2 pairs of crop pants, 2 long sleeved t-shirts and 2 short sleeve polo shirts for $65! I don't always find that many things that I like or that fit so getting the bargains made it even more worthwhile. Bailey also managed to snag a Buzz and Woody shirt at the Disney Store.

I was a little hesitant to drive all the way to our outlets with the boys by myself because I figured they were going to be tired and grumpy. I told Bailey before we got out of the car that we were going to go to 1 store for Mommy and then we would go get a cookie. He was the most well behaved he's been in quite a long time on a shopping trip. He seemed perfectly content just hanging out while I looked for my size on the racks. I think his favorite part was when he got to stand on the bench in the dressing room and sing and dance with the loud, funky music while I tried on my finds. He did get to ride the quarter operated merry go round and a Thomas the Tank Engine ride.

On the way back over the mountain, they both fell asleep. In my effort to let them sleep as long as they could, I rolled the back windows down in the van and left them in the van in the garage until they woke up. Maverick woke up first and then Bailey woke up a little while later when Jake opened the garage door to pull his car in after work.

I forgot that I took these pictures of the boys playing outside one day this week. Several days of temps in the 70s have made our playing outside a necessity! The boys almost always need a bath after they come in from digging in our half gravel back yard. Maverick thinks he's big stuff now that he can play outside with his big brother. Bailey didn't want Maverick in the house with him at first, but after Maverick got out a couple of times, he kept begging him to come back inside to play. He loves his "Bro Cole!"

A Little Trip to Target

Monday night, we were sitting around doing nothing so I asked Bailey if he wanted to go to Target. I guess I expected him to absolutely refuse, but he perked up and said "Gotta get my shoes" then ran off to find his shoes. My real intention was to go to Target for a peaceful walk around and maybe dig through some clearance racks to see if I could find a good deal or two, alone! I didn't really want to take him, but after asking, I had no choice. I think deep down I was hoping Jake would tell me to go and he would keep the boys. Not quite how it panned out!

I told Bailey that he had to sit in the buggy and behave and then I used the old cookie bribe. Surprisingly, he sat in the front of the buggy, the actual seat part, for most of the ride. He did climb back and forth between the front and back a few times during our trip to Target, but I'll take that over him screaming or me trying to carry his big butt any day! The only fit he really tried to throw was when I tried to make him try on shoes. That was a serious No Go!

As I was looking for good deals, I saw some bunny ears headbands in the $1 area. I put them on and Bailey laughed. Then he put them on and left them on the rest of our trip! The proof is in the picture. It always surprises me when Bailey will wear something on his head because normally he throws a fit and immediately throws hats or toboggans on the floor. I ended up buying 2 pairs of bunny ears so he and Mav could have their own. We're at that point where we need 2 of everything to minimize fighting. Although, Maverick has learned to hold his own and is relentless when trying to take something out of Bailey's hand.