More savings!

If you read the previous post, I told you about my savings at CVS.

Well, I went back to CVS to use my $5 Extra Care Bucks that I received for buying the Pantene and John Freida Poducts (remember, I only paid the tax on those items).

The kids are going away to camp next week, so I was looking to buy some candy for a care package.  The Starbursts were priced 2 for $5.  (Usually they are $3.69 each.)  So I decided to get those, proceded to the register and only paid 10 cents for both bags.   KaChing!

I also had a $10 gift card to Kohl's that I received through the mail in my pocket.  I drove over to Kohl's and looked around.  What's popular right now are the socks that are cut really low, so you don't really see that you are wearing socks.  There were some priced at $13 with a sign that said, "Buy 1 get 1 half price."  I didn't want to spend the money buying two sets, so I picked up the six pack of socks thinking it would ring up as $13 and I'd pay $3 plus tax for 6 pair off socks.  I would be fine for that.  But, actually, the socks rang up for $9.75 (the buy 1 get 1 for half price price per set).  The total was $10.43.  I handed the girl my gift card.  She said I owed nothing!  The gift card zeroed out the cost of the socks, so I owed nothing!  How great is that.

So let's recap the last two days:

• For 74 cents I bought 2 bottles of Pantene Conditioner and 2 bottles of John Freida Shampoo/hair product.
• For 10 cents I bought 2 large bags (20% more than usual) bags of Starbursts
• For zero cents a six-pack package of socks

This is a grand total of 84 cents!!!

I love to save.

CVS super deal

I just have to share this because it makes me so happy to save money.  I love a deal, coupons, being frugal, pinching pennies.... 

Today the girls told me they needed conditioner.  They like Pantene.  I noticed that in Sunday's paper  that if I bought 2 Pantene products at CVS I'd get $2 in their Extra Care Bucks.  So I headed over to www.southernsavers.com to see if I could get any other deals.  Well, John Frieda Full Repair is on sale for $5 and there are $5 off coupons in the P&G thing from Sunday (that equals FREE), and then I'd get $3 ECB for the John Frieda. 

So I headed over to CVS.  I scanned my card at the Coupon Tower and it spit out a $3 off coupon because my birthday is this month.  Yippee!  $3 I didn't know I'd have.  Then it gave me a $3 off coupon on $10 of cosmetics.  I also got a coupon for $4 of Allegra.

I got my 2 things of Pantene and 2 John Frieda products and went to pay.  I had $1 off coupon for the Pantene, the 2 $5 off coupons for the John Frieda.  I used the $3 birthday coupon.  And the guy also took the $3 off cosmetics coupon that the Coupon Tower gave me just moments before.  I didn't even ask for him to do that.  He asked if I had any other coupons.  I said no.  He looked at what I had in my hand.  He practically pulled it out of my hands.  He said shampoo/hair care was cosmetics.  I'm not going to argue.

I ended up paying 74 cents (the tax) for these products.

Then...with my receipt I got $5 Extra Care Bucks to use the next time I shop!  They paid me $5 to shop today.

 

I'm going back to get more John Frieda (free) b/c I have 2 more coupons. Thank you CVS for the great deals this week.  I'll use the $5 to buy camp treats for the kids.

The File

I have a two drawer filing cabinet that I got at target around when we got married.  Just your basic metal filing cabinet.  I've decorated it with the children's "magnet art."  Each year in elementary school, my kids bring home some art that has been turned into a 4x5 magnet.  I digress...I try (try) to keep my papers in order.  I do find that I make a big stack before getting around to filing.  If only I filed as I went along, it wouldn't be such a chore. 

Anyway, yesterday I got around to filing almost all of the stack.  Some stuff I filed, some recycled and some for the shredding stack.  I also pulled papers out of files that were super old and put them in the shredding stack.  This website http://www.onlineorganizing.com/NewslettersArticle.asp?newsletter=go&article=672 gives you great guidelines about what papers you should keep and for how long. 

I do have a folder that says "Taxes 2011."  Whenever I have something that might needed for our taxes at the end of the year, I file it away here.  I have donation receipts, receipts for car tax, stuff like that.  It's nice to have it all in one place.

So, as a summer chore for my kids, I've set up a shredding station to shred all of the papers that might have personal information.  Big trashcan and shredder.  Too bad my shredder is broken!  I'm off to buy a shredder.

Notebook and Pencil

It seemed like for the longest time I would always need a piece of paper and pen or pencil while driving around in the car.  I'd have a thought I'd want to remember; I'd hear something on the radio that I'd want to jot down.  I'd scramble around looking in my purse or glove box trying to find a napkin or old receipt to write on.  Then, if I did find a scrap of paper, I'd have nothing to write with.

Than maybe a year or two ago, I decided to dedicate that compartment in the driver's side door to a small notepad and pen and pencils.  How wonderful it is!!  Now, whenever I'm in need, voila, I have what I need.  I actually have several little notepads in that side compartment.

How often have I heard, "Mom, do you have a pencil?"  Now I have a pencil.

Also, if I'm waiting at Marta for carpool or pick-up with Caroline, we can play hang-man.

Cursive Hand Writing

It makes me sad that cursive hand writing will no longer be taught in school...at least that's what I've heard.  My three kids "learned" cursive at some point in the third grade.  I don't think they were taught, but they just did pages from the cursive book they had.  They were not required to do actual class work in cursive or anything like that.  The girls can mostly write in cursive.  Thomas really can't. 


A couple of summers ago, I had them practice writing their names in cursive so they'd have a decent signature.  The girls picked it up...not Thomas.  I've decided this summer to continue reinforcing cursive handwriting.  Each child will do a cursive handwriting page a day (some copied off the internet).  Thomas has a funky signature.  I hope to fix that.

Why do I even care?  They really should be learning to type!  I did buy a typing tutor program for the computer; the school even has a link to a typing program.  I tried last summer to have them learn.  The problem is you need consistent, dailyish practice to learn.  We are here and there all summer... Maybe I'll have them learn typing when school starts back up; it will be part of daily homework.  Don't tell my kids this, they don't know yet.

So to answer my question-- "Why do I even care if they can write in cursive?"

• Their grandma's write them letters in cursive, and they can barely read them. 
• I think everyone should have a cursive, legible signature. (Yes, I know, your signature doesn't have to be legible...it can just be squiggles.  Believe me, I've seen all kinds of signatures, I know.)
• I'm old fashioned this way.

First Time Obedience Summer

When the kids were about 8,7 and 4, I noticed that I was repeating myself over and over to get the kids to do what I wanted.  This is not very "teachery" of me...as a classroom teacher, I expected first time obedience from my classroom students.  Here I am with my own daily "students" allowing them to not obey me the first time!!  I should be ashamed.  So...I declared that particular summer First-Time-Obedience Summer!!

Before school let out for the summer that year, I gathered the kids together and, first of all, apologized for not being the parent that I should.  Secondly, I told them that I was sorry that I had not insisted that they obey me the first time that I asked. And, thirdly, that when school let out, they were going to have to learn how to obey me the first time I asked.  It is going to be First-Time-Obedience Summer!  Yippee!

So...how did we go about this.  Together we thought up some consequences that could happen if they didn't obey me the first time and put them on a list on the fridge.  We talked about them.  I think I even asked them which consequence they thought they should receive if they didn't obey me the first time.  Then we even practiced how to obey the first time...that might mean
1) How to respond (Yes, mom).
2) Role play giving a child an "order" and he/she following through.
3) We even talked about, "What if I'm in the middle of something, Mom?"  What to say to Mom if they need a few minutes to obey (may I finish this first?)

How did it go?  Well...for the first weeks of summer, before I asked the kids to do anything, I would say something like, "Remember, this is first time obedience summer...I'm getting ready to ask you to do something....I need you to obey me the first time..."  I really wanted them to succeed, to obey me the first time, to remember to obey me.  It went great!  They picked up on the obeying the first time right away.  Not too many consequences had to be doled out.

Now that they're older, we might have to have a refresher course.  Sometimes all I need to say is, "Do I have to ask you a second time?" which is technically asking a second time!  Hmmm, this might be another First-Time-Obedience Summer.

Paula Dean Sangria

We had this refreshing drink at my friend's house not too long ago.  She gave me the recipe, and I can't wait to try it at home.  With this July weather we're having in June, I think I'm going to make a batch.

Paula Deen Sangria

1 cup suger
orange, lime thinly sliced
1 liter dry red wine
club soda

1)Put sugar and 2 cups water in a small pan. Boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.  (This makes a simple syrup.)  Add oranges/limes to syrup and cool to room temperature.  Chill overnight.
2)In large piteher mix syrup and fruit and wine.  Pour Sangria in wineglass (with ice if desired) and top with a splash (or more) of club soda. 

Very refreshing!