Conquering Walgreens

What a week we've had! If the 4 snow days were not enough, we were blessed with 1 more this past Wednesday. My very sweet husband got out the leaf blower and made a walkable path in the backyard, but it wasn't for us... it was for Bella! Diva Bella hates the snow and my hubby had to make a place for her to - ahem - do her business.


Unfortunately, I spent a good deal of time in bed due to a severe cold and throat infection. Needless to say, my husband has spent a great deal of time taking care of our whole family taking over the cooking and grocery shopping.

One of my goals for the new year is to get our grocery and drug store expenses under control. After four weeks of trial and error, I think I finally made some serious headway.



These items cost a total of $100, but with weekly deals, Walgreens rapid rewards, and coupon stacking I bought all of these items for $45. The Excedrin, Secret Deoderants, Olay Moisturizer, and newspaper were straight up free.

We've also reduced our $200 per week ($800 per month) grocery bill to $100 per week. This still isn't exactly where I would like it, but we are very close.

Support Independent Music

The lovely Amanda Shires is in the process of Fan Funding! You may know Amanda from her work with Thrift Store Cowboys and/or Rod Picott. Amanda has also collaborated with Denton favorite, Doug Burr, DeVotchKa, Gary P Nunn, and Billy Joe Shaver. She is a seasoned fiddle player and I can't get enough of her. In addition to being talented, Amanda is beautiful, caring, a great writer, and the wittiest person I know. Support the release of her 3rd album NOW by donating to the cause!

http://amandapearlshires.blogspot.com/

Oh yea - look for Amanda in "Country Strong" out now! Look for the girl in the blue dress :)

“Shires is a damn talented and idiosyncratic song-writer...She is a fiddling maestro. At times her energetic, jittery vocals and eccentric lyrical subjects mark her out as a young female heir to the godfather of strange, Mr. Tom Waits. In her more conventional moments Shires sounds like the weird young niece of Dolly Parton.”

-Americana UK

Mango

Meet my new friend, Mango! He lives at Barton Creek Cave near San Igancio, Belize. Mango once belonged to the British army. When Belize gained their independence from Britain, the new land owners of Barton Creek attempted to release him back into the wild. Without fail, he always came back. Unfortunately, he has to be kept on a chain because he can be somewhat destructive. Mango has a hankering for sunglasses, water bottles, and throwing bowls!

A Birthday and a Groundhog

Happy Groundhogs Day! Come on Spring.

More importantly....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my amazing husband, Colby.

Life is so much better with you in it.

Newlywed Tip of the Week

What you think is gross, someone else thinks is perfectly OK.

Case in point, I walked into the kitchen one afternoon to find my husband drinking orange juice from the bottle and placing it back into the refrigerator. He swears he didn't actually put his mouth on it. Later that day, I found one of my stepsons with his head in the sink drinking water from the filtered water spigot.

Is it really that difficult to use a glass? Oh well :) Maybe I should just join them!

The Best Day of My Life

A few favorites from the wedding....
















To see more pictures, go to our photographers blog: Lindsey Shea Photography

Try It Tuesday: Homemade Laundry Soap

I'm in love... with homemade laundry soap. Thanks to my thrifty friend, Brit, I have learned to make my own laundry detergent for around .2-.9 cents per load! When I first read about it, I was very intimidated because I didn't know any of the ingredients! Borax - what the heck is that?!? Fels-Naptha - I can barely spell it much less know what it's used for! Well, it turns out this laundry soap is amazing. It has worked miracles with doggie accidents, clothes covered in clay, and all my cleaning rags.

To learn how to make your own laundry detergent, visit Raising Four Little Ladies Wright.