Lists and Lists of Things to Do

I have OCD which is not always obvious but does has it's hands in every area of my life. It is usually evident when you see my endless lists with more items than I can ever get done. Here are my lists from this past weekend which started out getting accomplished and then it fell off.....

I am getting ready to start on the lists for this weekend and my budget for next month. Post results later.
 Meals this week have been hectic. Tuesday I was back at work and Logan had portfolio night at school. Phillip picked them up from the sitter, fed them and then headed to the school. I raced to the school and caught up with them just as they walked in. It was great to see Logan's progress over the year and he was excited to tell us about all his art work. Once home I fed the tiny one some more baby food mixed with cereal and I had a bagel with cream cheese for dinner.

Last night I tried Alton Brown's Pan Seared Steak with one of the gifted steaks I have left. I served that with baked potatoes that were also gifted and a green salad. I have been determined to perfect steak one day and while this was a step in the right direction it was still a little rare close to the bone. This is an issue that I run into every time, mainly because I am so afraid of overcooking it. This time I followed the directions on the recipe exactly and it still was a little rare. The flavor was great but I need to figure out how to get it medium instead of rare without overcooking the outside.

It was pretty much the same routine after dinner except the tiny one would not go to sleep! He went to sleep an hour later than normal and woke up from 2am-4am overnight. The lack of sleep will catch up with me this afternoon I am sure.

Another Spate of Panic

The intense sense of panic came back yesterday. Phillip received another rejection letter for yet another job which is slowly eating away at his confidence. This is a source of stress for me but the lack of employment is also a financial burden for us. We made it the first year with a mixture of his small disability check each month, my paycheck and the $10,000 unemployment that he received over the year. We found out quite suddenly at the beginning of this year that he was not eligible for any more unemployment so we scrambled selling off a couple of large items at the house to make all the bills. By enrolling in school he started receiving a small amount from Voc Rehab and we got a decent tax return. I knew these amounts would be enough to pay the bills for 6 months but had pushed this from my mind. Next month marks the 6th month since we got the tax return. We started discussing options yesterday as I just am at a loss for anything else we can cut. We do not have cable, I pay $8.65 a month for Hulu and Netflix and this money comes out of my paypal account which generally is funded by something I have sold during the month. When it is not raining we hang out the laundry to cut our electric bill. We also keep out air conditioner on 79/80 during the day and 85 at night. This page is all about how I am feeding us for what many consider a drop in the bucket. I also try to run all my errands and trades on my path home from work so I can conserve gas. My lunch budget basically allows me to eat out with coworkers/friends once a week and I skip some weeks. This technically could be cut out and I have convinced my friends to mix in picnic lunches with our days out. I trade for as much stuff as I can as well as grow some foods, participate in a food swap and a produce co-op.
Anyway when Phillip reminded me that he was not sure how we would make it through the month I went into panic mode. I started to breathe shallowly and had to talk myself down. Once I made it home we talked through some options. He is testing with another agency this weekend and will be in summer school for the second summer session so there is hope of some income. The other option was for him to get a job at the gym he has been working out at. The membership on this gym is $10 a month which could be cut out but it gives him a place to go during the day as well as a way to stay in shape. They are hiring but only pay $10 an hour. This would be some extra income but definitely not enough to pay the sitter so he would have to work the evening shift after I came home. It is a 24 hour gym so they do have some overnight shifts but then he would have to keep the kids until I came home and then sleep for only a couple of hours before work. I am not sure how long he could keep that up as well as how much sleep he would actually get with the kids home in the evening. I asked if they had something part time, only a few hours each evening so he would not be soo exhausted but still make a little extra money and we could just try to figure out the rest. The other option would be to overlap work schedules for a couple of hours in the evenings so I would pay the sitter for part time although it would cost the same amount he would make. We hashed out a lot of options but I am not sure any conclusions were reached. We also had to talk about another issue which I can not discuss yet. I am hoping it will be resolved soon so I can clear the air and we can get on with our lives.
These next couple of months will be the most interesting in our saga thus far!

Books from May 23rd through 26th

There was a trashy romance in order for the weekend and so I started and finished Highland Thirst. It was ok for what it is.

I also finished listening to The Last Olympian, which was a really good book. I am still sad that the series is done, but interested in the spin off series now.

This one has been on my list forever so I decided to check it out and thumb through it. $5 Dinner Mom One Dish Dinners Cookbook is not worth it. There were not any recipes that made me want to purchase the book or even try them.

I am still reading Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life and hoping to finish it if not today then tomorrow. It is deep but a good read that makes you think about how you treat yourself as well as others.

Since I finished listening to the last Percy Jackson book I started Deliver Us last night. It is a sad, sad true story of the Texas killing fields along I-45 between Houston and Galveston. After finishing it I might need another trashy romance.

Birthday Weekend

Saturday was my 40th birthday....It was a lot rougher turning 40 than 30.  I am not totally sure why it bothered me more than 30 but it did. Originally my friends, sisters and I were going to plan a Vegas trip for my 40th but then Clark surprised us and Phillip got his pink slip. Plans had to adapt and Vegas was put on hold.

Anyway I chose to celebrate my birthday by taking the kids to the Fort Worth Nature Center to see snakes. The Dallas Fort Worth Herpetelogical Society brings snakes and frogs out to the nature center once a year and talks to anyone who wants to listen about them. Logan was excited to go and it was a fun trip. After looking at snakes we took one of the shorter hikes offered around the grounds. I had never been to the nature center so I thought we would drive around it to see the lay of the land for future hikes. Due to all the rain this year the Trinity river has risen and covered a good portion of the trails. After hiking we went to lunch at McDonald's so we could eat, play and meet up with Loralee. She came home to play with Logan which always makes his day. On the way home I stopped by the oil change place so they could check a leak I have developed and then by the library. An exciting 40th birthday!

Dinner on Friday evening was pizza and pizza bread as Logan calls it. I used some pizza dough I bought on clearance as well as the remaining sauce from last pizza night. The toppings were half pepperoni and half ham. The pizza bread was made by brushing butter over the dough and topping with Parmesan cheese, minced garlic and Italian seasoning.

Pretty tasty dinner.

Anyway, I had 1&1/2 ham steaks left from the pizza so on Saturday I grilled those and served with asparagus which I sauteed in butter/olive oil and garlic. It was a nice, simple dinner for my birthday. I did bake some brownies for dessert, they did not last long at all.

Sunday was church and then lunch with some friends. We headed to the #1 bean place Rosa's and had a nice lunch. I was hoping for a nap once home and that was almost going to happen until Turbo woke up Clark and so we instead played, cleaned and ran a couple of errands. Dinner was a couple of baked tilapia filets that I found in the bottom of the freezer. Phillip's filet gets a butter cracker topping and mine usually just gets a tiny bit of blackened seasoning. This was served with a garden salad which is what I really wanted for dinner.

Yesterday was a day at the house again playing with the kids and cleaning. The kitchen got a good clean up including cleaning out the fridge which is always a chore but sorely needed.  I even weeded through the condiments in the door!

 I need to oil soap the cabinets still but will be happy with what I managed to get done so far. Phillip grilled out burgers for dinner and I had mine with some chips.

I was planning on putting some chicken in the crock pot this morning to make Cream Cheese Crock Pot Chicken but I spent too much time goofing around with Clark and rounding up my stuff. I will have to think of something else to use up the leftover corn that is in the fridge.

I am also thinking about my June menu as more planning is in order since I know I have gone over my grocery budget again this month. I will post totals hopefully tomorrow.

Frustration With Appliances

I know I have said this more than once but having items that should last break is beyond frustrating to me. All of the appliances we have purchased for our home should last a whole lot longer than they are and it is really angering me. Last night I went out to use the grill for a few hot dogs and the ignition button broke off. How can a button that is pushed once to light the grill when I am actually using the grill break? Phillip looked back and the grill was purchased 1 year ago on Tuesday, the day before the button broke! A grill which we paid a decent amount for and bought the commercial version should last longer than 1 year!


That rant will come back up I am sure considering how many of our appliances Phillip is having to fix lately. Last night on the way home I swung into the thrift store just for a peek around and found this

I have really wanted this book for a long time and just could not afford to pay what they were selling for. This copy is in like new condition other than that green smudge on the dust jacket. It makes me happy and so I am considering this my birthday present to myself.

Logan wanted hotdogs when I got home and was peering in the freezer. I know he has put in a lot of requests lately but hey if he will eat it and we have the stuff to make it why not. I ended up using my grill pan on the stovetop with a lid on it to keep in some steam. The side was corn and Logan had a leftover pancake. It was again not the best dinner I have ever had but it was easy and super inexpensive.

Baths and playtime were in order after dinner. Logan and I have been standing in the hall kicking a ball back and forth to each other the last couple of nights. He enjoys it and Clark usually giggles while we play but last night he decided to crawl back and forth between us. It was not too much longer before Clark went to bed and Logan chose a book to read. We read Stone Soup last night which I remember from when I was a kid. It is always nice to tell him about when I was little which he finds funny.

Books from May 19th and 20th

I finished the Mindful Meditation audio book yesterday and turned it in. While at the library I picked up a book they had on hold for me.

Last night I "read" Dog Shaming. It was an easy thumb through, I say "read" because there is not that much text.

I also started listening to The Last Olympian yesterday. I am really sad that it is the end of the series and hoping it will live up to the expectations I have now.

Today I "read" The World of Postsecret. This one also makes me sad as he thinks this is the last Postsecret book he is  putting out. The secrets I have read over his many books have mad me cry and laugh and they will be missed by me.

This leaves me finishing up I used to Know That which I hope to do tonight.

My goal has been to clear up the books on my currently reading list on goodreads and I seem to be making headway. I have added new ones in the mix but still have managed to go from 41 books in the pile to 37.

Tuesday in My World

My boss/coworker/work mom and I went to lunch yesterday to celebrate our mutual birthdays this month. We had a couple of coupons for free specialty rolls at our favorite sushi restaurant so we called on our way and they started on our order. It was a nice lunch and I was happy to spend the day in the sun having some sushi. After work I dropped by the library quickly to turn in the 2 books I finished and check out another that was on hold for me. After this I rushed to pick up the kids from the sitter and get home so they could play some while I got dinner ready.

Phillip did not have any school work yesterday and since the kids were not home he started on a ton of projects that needed to be done. It has been really crappy that a ton of our stuff has suddenly started malfunctioning at the same time but helpful that he can fix most of it so we at least save on the labor.

Dinner was a casserole with the leftover bacon because Phillip did not want chicken, leftover macaroni and cheese with a little additional pasta I cooked quickly and steamed broccoli. I made a quick cheese sauce and tossed it all together, topped with some shredded cheese and popped it in the oven for a bit. It was tasty and there were almost no leftovers. The broccoli I steamed was from the last basket I picked up. I had put a lot of the veggies up in the freezer for just such a time as this.

I tried to watch the end of the Voice but it just kept going and going so I had to give up. I got the kids baths and to bed. I was able to read a little bit before I fell asleep.

Emotional Post From the Weekend

I left this out of the accounting for the weekend and then decided it needed to be said. Logan had made me cry several times over the last couple of weeks and sometimes I think I need to see myself the way he sees me. Before we headed to the housewarming party I was trying to find something in the mound of clothes that looked "nice" and fit me. Needless to say I have been many sizes over the past few years and most of the clothes were still in my closet. Finding something that is stylish, looks nice and fits me from my own closet has become quite a challenge. I have been hoping to lose some more weight and really need to work out the ab area to get rid of my mom pooch but needless to say time always gets away from me. Weight wise I am only a couple of pounds from my pre Logan pregnancy weight but I was already trying to lose 20 pounds then. The number is what I have decided not to focus on and I just need to look ok in my clothes. This of course is not what was going through my mind when everyone else is ready on Saturday and I am still digging through piles of clothes thrown all over my bed. Phillip asks me what the issue is and nearly yelling I respond " I am ugly that is the problem". He just stares at me but Logan jumps in and say " Mama, you are not ugly you are pretty. I love you and you are pretty." This still nearly makes me cry. In my state of utter distress my 5 year old still thinks I am pretty.

Books This Week

I finished Tim Gunn: The Natty Professor . I liked it, I can not say it is on the list of the best books I have ever read but it was good.

I also finished The Battle of the Labyrinth. This series is really, really good and I am sorry that there is only 1 more book. I downloaded the last in the series and will start it probably tomorrow when I finish the book I am currently listening to.

I decided to start listening to Guided Mindfulness Meditation . Not completely sold on this one. The discs are helping me slow down but listening to someone tell me what yoga poses to be in is not working for me. I need visual cues so I know if I am the correct poses.

Lastly, I am trying to finish I Used to Know That and get it off my list. It is full of interesting information that you may or may not have learned in school and is a good refresher.

Menu So Far This Week

Saturday was a little spastic. The boys and I went to the library for our weekly trip. Clark fell asleep on the way and slept for 3 hours total, it was out of the ordinary but guessing he needed it. Once we were home from the library Logan and Phillip left to go get their hair cut and I worked on the house some. I made a batch of rice crispy treats and a batch using Trix. Once the boys were home we got ready and went to a friend's house warming party. I took the treats I made earlier in the day and we had a great dinner of brisket and sides there. It was nice to see a lot of people we know but do not normally see outside of the workplace. Logan had a great time with the other boys on the trampoline. We made it home fairly early so the boys got baths and then Logan started work cleaning his room. I put Clark down to sleep and I went back to work on my closet. I had cleaned everything out of it earlier in the day and I needed to purge and put back the stuff I am going to keep. Sometime in here Logan put himself to bed, it got quite and I went to check on him only to see he was asleep. This quite time  cleaning enabled me to nearly finish listening to my book. The cleaning was put on hold when I was just too tired to finish.

Sunday we went to church, had lunch with friends and then home. The tiny one took a small nap and Logan played in his room. I was able to finish the closet project. The purge took out 4 pairs of shoes and between 1/3 to 2/3 of my clothes. These were sorted for some yard clothes, some to donate and a bunch to post in my trade group. That project is still in the future since it is a large number of items. During this final stretch of clean up I was able to finish the book I was listening to and download another but I did not start that one yet.  Logan requested pancakes for dinner and he helped me make them. It was nice to have an extra set of eyes and hands on the pancakes while I cooked the bacon. Dinner was simple but delicious!

Yesterday I left work a little later than normal and sprinted by the grocery store. I keep vowing to not go by again as it is wrecking my totals for the month but I needed some bread and vinegar. While there I found some formula on the clearance rack and after coupons and a rebate check it was $1.99 which I absolutely could not pass up. Left the grocery store and completed a trade for more formula. I was able to trade 1 roll of toilet paper for another container of formula. It dawned on me yesterday that I only have 2 more months of making sure he has enough formula for the month! No formula will be amazing for the budget. By the time I made it home the boys were starving so I used some refried beans, some of the leftover fajita chicken over the top of tortilla chips and grated cheese over the top of that. I put that in the oven to warm and melt the cheese while I reheated some leftover "taco" rice I had. This was super quick, yummy and easy to clean up. After bath time and some electronics time for Logan we read a couple of books and then I wrestled with the tiny one trying to get him to bed.

Tonight I am planning on using the rest of the fajita chicken, the leftover macaroni and cheese and some steamed broccoli in a casserole for dinner. We will see if something else comes up but I think this will be dinner.

Walk in the Neighborhood and Sleepless Nights

Last night it was a little humid but not nearly as hot as usual for this time of the year so I grabbed the boys and we went for a walk. I felt a need to walk when I got home from work and the boys always love to get out. Logan right away yelled hello neighbor and ran over to give one of the neighbors a hug. After a couple of laps around the block we noticed a cardinal trapped in a net. The house at the end of our street has put up some plastic mesh over their garden to keep the birds out and this cardinal got stuck on the outside of the fence in the mesh so we had to rescue him. Logan was the traffic lookout and I went on the lawn to take care of the bird. It took some work as he was scared and scared of me but we got him out and he immediately flew into a nearby tree. Once home Logan got some chalk and drew on the driveway and I worked at keeping Clark from eating leaves.

Dinner was Logan's request as Phillip and I just were not hungry. He wanted Mac and Cheese so I just made a pot of homemade mac and cheese. Nothing fancy but it took care of dinner. Both kids were sleepy and gave me almost no trouble going to sleep. That ended quickly when we had a bed wetting incident and then the tiny one refused to sleep all night.

Needless to say I am pretty grumpy today as I would have liked to sleep!

Meals From the Last Couple of Weeks.

We have had a lot of our go to staples the past week and a half. Sometimes these just happen because I do not have to think hard about them and I generally have all the stuff at the house to make them.

May 7th: dinner was what my leftover group call Crack Pork Chops. I think all of us were traumatized by over cooked dry pork chops growing up. This recipe was a wind fall for all of us as it comes out good every time! So Ranch House Crock Pot Pork Chops and rice were dinner.

May 8th: I used the leftover rice, the rest of the leftover smoked roast, a couple of ears of corn taken off the cob, some carrots, mushrooms, some snow peas out of the freezer, 2 eggs and a few mushrooms to make a fried rice. Of course my veggies are not the same as those in the recipe and I used Teriyaki sauce but this is the template I followed for this fried rice dinner. It was especially good and yielded no leftovers to put up.

May 9th:

I used these clearance ingredients to make pizza. It was some of the best homemade pizza I have made. Phillip liked the whole wheat crust and said the sauce tasted really good. I only used half the jar of sauce and will freeze the rest if I do not use it over the next couple of days.


May 10th: This was Mother's Day and we had lunch/dinner at Grandma's house with Phillip's family.

May 11th: For the life of me I can not recall what we had,.....it will come to me at an odd moment.

May 12th: Tuesday, Phillip was taking a final and was not home. I picked up the kids from the sitter and bought some beans and flour tortillas from Logan's favorite place, Rosa's .

May 13th: Dinner took a little bit but was worth it. I had some spinach I wanted to use (bought on clearance) so I made stuffed shells. I used some ricotta cheese, 1 egg, the rest of the large shells, some shredded mozarella, spinach and the rest of the ground turkey. Served with some homemade garlic bread using some sliced bread that was getting a bit stale. I wanted to get a picture but just did not before we ate it.

May 14th: Last night I used some "fajita" marinated chicken I bought on clearance to make fajitas. This used up all of a head of lettuce I had on hand, some cheese I shredded from a block, sour cream I also had purchased on clearance and the rest of the refried beans from Tuesday night.

Not sure if you can tell from the picture but it was 4 large chicken breasts so I have a ton left over. I am going to freeze some of it now that it is cooked and use the rest in different dishes this week. I am not sure if I have any tortilla chips but if I do nachos is an option. My mind is not totally made up yet on what dishes I am going to make.

Current Books

I have finished a couple and started back into some that were half read previously.

Listening to The Battle of the Labyrinth which is in the Percy Jackson series. It is good, I am a bit sad that this is the next to last one in the series. I know something huge is going to happen in the last one and I am not sure I am prepared for it.

I am also finishing up Tim Gunn: The Natty Professor, I really like Tim and I like this book. It is a fast read and although there are some passages to make you think the book itself is not overly deep.

Still reading Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life.

Quick post of the books from the weekend!

I finished the introduction to the recipe book Budget Bytes and looked through at the recipes. I was just not impressed. There was nothing that jumped out at me and said I need to own this book.

I am still listening to Occult America in the car, nearly finished. It has been interesting in parts and some parts I have almost tuned out.

The book  I just started reading at bedtime is Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life. It has been a good read so far but I am not that far into it.

This book is still in process, Bet the Farm. I am still liking this one, it is something I have been interested in for quite some time. The return to farming has been something I enjoy.

This Morning and Mother's Day Surprises

Last night we had Ranch House Crock Pot Pork Chops for dinner served over steamed white rice. This is always a tasty meal and this night was no different. The leftover rice and smoked roast will probably go into a fried rice recipe tonight.

It was a busy night trying to get the boys baths and ready for bed while trying to clean up the dog's throw up, mop the kitchen floor, list some items on Amazon and clean out Logan's train drawer. It mostly happened and we made it through. Clark woke up at 1:30am and stayed awake until 3:30am which I thought was going to make today a snooze fest but I have held up soo far.

The exciting thing I wanted to show off is what Logan's class gave to their moms/grandmas this morning.

This is actually his hand traced and cut out. They also handed these to us!

I almost cried! It was soo special to get these from Logan.

May 7th books

I finished the book by David Rakoff last night and read a book to Logan I purchased at his school's book fair. It was on his favorite subject....Trains! I read a little of the history behind how the next book came about which not surprising was through a blog! I seem to unwittingly pick up books all the time from bloggers, maybe it is the whole I tried this for a year thing that fascinates me. The current book I am reading at night is Budget Bytes by Beth Moncel. This book fits in with my budgeting concerns and after I get through the history will be a fast read. If I like the recipes I will put it on my to buy list. At work I am trying to finish up Bet the Farm.

I am trying to think of a better way to link the books in case those who may read this do not have a goodreads account. I love goodreads as it helps me keep up with where I am in a book in case one of the kiddos takes my bookmark out. It also suggests books to me which can be addictive.

Wednesday Night and Yet Another Trip to the Store

On the way home from work last night I had to stop to get some meds for Logan. His allergies are really bothering him right now and the night before was a cough fest through the night. A trip through Target got me the meds I needed and the quickest trip I think I have ever made to their store. I used the gift card so there was nothing out of pocket.  Once home and a few snuggles from the kids I started into the fridge, freezer and cabinet until it hit me that we still had some leftover smoked roast Phillip had made for the church's potluck on Sunday. I used the leftovers and some fresh mushrooms that I had on hand to make this Beef Stroganoff recipe. This is the easiest recipe and tastes wonderful.

This is the beginning of the process, the rest went very quickly. I used penne noodles since I also had those on hand. The smoked roast gives it such good flavor.

It was a completely rare night in that both kids slept through the night but I still did not. I find myself waking up at the times they normally get up listening for them. I know this will wear off as Clark starts sleeping all night on a regular basis. Forever more I think I will  have to listen for Logan when he does get up to go to the bathroom. He actually sleep walks and has been known to go the bathroom in random spots.

Before bedtime I started a cake to bring into work for my coworker/boss/work mom's birthday today.  I waited to let it cool for 30 minutes and it did not stick to the pan but totally fell apart. I could not have saved it even with tons of frosting so this morning I just went by Target and purchased a cake.
I actually took a picture of the cake this morning but my phone card is still deleting stuff randomly.

May 6th Books I am Reading

    I know as if I do not have enough going on I am going to start putting the books I am reading and listening to on here.  Books have always been a huge part of my life and I would love to share them with everyone. There have been some strange and bad ones lately but a few gems. I generally have several going at one time as I read during lunch at work most days, listen to an audio book in the car driving back and forth to work, read to the kids in the evening and usually have one I read before bed.
Currently I am almost finished with Don't Get Too Comfortable by David Rakoff and about mid way through Occult America in the car.

Don't Get Too Comfortable is a fast read and has some amusing points. Occult America has been informative for me which is something I like in a book.

More Stuff and Totals

Monday, Monday, it is the day that has a bad reputation. It is not my favorite day as it is always hard to get back to work knowing I did not accomplish everything I wanted over the weekend. This Monday was not out of the ordinary and since the kids were home with Phillip I completed a couple of trades after work. I needed 2 rolls of tp for the trades so I swung into Kroger on my way. This is what I ended up purchasing

Kroger Purchase:
1 large bottle of juice
1 pkg toilet paper
2 cans of refried beans (Logan's favorite)
$3.26

I used 1 roll of toilet paper at each trade which worked out to 14 cents a roll as I had a coupon on the package. The trades netted me a can of formula and about a half a package of diapers. Dinner was pigs in a blanket with ranch style beans. It is quick and one of the boy's favorites.

Tuesday started with having to reroute my morning and being late to work. I had to drop Logan first and then take the tiny one to the sitter. The work day was not all that unusual but then after work I ran by Target to get some stuff for a birthday party and some bread for sandwiches.

Target Purchase:
1 can formula
2 loaves bread
1 box cake mix
1 can frosting
1 Ricotta cheese
2 pkgs shredded cheese
1 pkg hand soap
$16.33 SNAP

I will be reimbursed for the hand soap as I picked it up for a coworker. Dinner was another of the gifted steaks that I grilled out, sweet potato fries that I cooked on the grill after tossing with a little olive oil and sprinkling with curry, and corn on the cob. I have 3 ears of corn, a few ribs of celery, some apples and a head of lettuce left from all the produce I purchased last month.

These trips to the store put my monthly totals at

$65.29 SNAP
$79.90 Cash

I am not counting the cash back from the apps or reimbursement yet. I will as soon as I actually have the cash in hand. 

Updates From the Weekend

I managed to locate the Kroger receipt!
Kroger Purchase:
1 Little Debbie Snack Cake (Oatmeal Creme Pies to be specific)
1 Juicy Fruit Taffy ( Free item from Kroger downloads)
3 Kool-Aid Juice boxes
1 Milk
2 blocks cheese
1 pkg sliced colby jack
bananas
2 packages chocolate donuts
1 pkg bacon bits
1 pkg diapers
1 pkg ice cream sandwiches
1 pkg baby wipes
1 pkg feminine napkins
2 pkg dishwasher detergent
1 pkg toilet paper
1 women's deodorant
2 men's deodorant
1 generic Velveeta
4 large bottles of juice
2 containers oatmeal
1 box generic Bisquick
1 box tea bags
1 jar spaghetti sauce
4 boxes fruit snacks
$48.96 SNAP
$23.75 Cash

I went home and used several of the rebate apps I have loaded on my phone to get money back. I got $7.95 back on Ibotta, $.25 on Checkout 51 and $1.50 on SavingsCart. I also uploaded the receipts to receipt hog for points.

When I was checking out and now that I am typing the list I feel the need to justify the purchases which I should not. Why should I feel obligated to say the purchases cover 2 snack days at Logan's school? These are the items I chose or Logan chose to get us through  all the breakfasts, lunches and dinners for the month along with his turn at snack day.

Going Back to Thursday, the Ant Invasion and May Beginning Totals

Thursday was the start of  4 days of nonsense that I do not want to repeat. Got up on Thursday for work, a day I needed to be in early for a meeting. The first thing to not work out was the fact I discovered ants in the glasses/bottles cabinet. They were the small "sugar" ants and I could not place where they were coming in but knew it was not the usual spot near the sink. I started pulling stuff out but decided to abandon the job for a later time. Next thing to go wrong was trying to iron pants for the day only to discover a strange greasy spot on EVERY pair that I was going to wear. After a frantic wardrobe change and Phillip telling me I do not have time to deal with the ants I get out the door. The routine is to take the tiny one to the sitter first and then Logan to school. I can then jump on the highway and head to work. This time when dropping off the tiny one the sitter closed the door and told me she needed to tell me something. I admit selfishly I started to panic thinking she was going to quit on us after almost 6 years. The news was not that but it was some bad health news for her husband. She will be flying back and forth to Atlanta while he gets treatment. I of course could not tell her I was in a hurry while she gave me this news so the only choice was too really hurry Logan to school and then race to work. The meeting had started but I had not missed anything once I arrived at work. Phillip went on another interview which we are praying leads to employment and then he headed home to deal with ants. He thinks he found where they were coming in and took care of the issue, he also took all the stuff out of the cabinets and started running them through the dishwasher, wiping the cabinets down and putting the stuff back.

Dinner was a not so fabulous affair, so uneventful I can not remember what it was.

Friday was payday, jumping for joy! I went ahead and paid the bills and made out my budget for the month. This month there is no choice but to stick to the budget. On the way home I went by Sprouts to take advantage of their 72 hour sale.
Since our SNAP is not loaded until the 3rd this purchase came out of the month's cash. After this I went home, unloaded and put these items up. The boys and I then loaded up to go to Target for some formula and other items I had coupons for.  Between the coupons, WIC and a gift card I had from previous purchases we got out of there for nothing. The total was $1.58 before the gift card. Pictures are going to have to become habit but at this point they are not so I will just list the purchases.
Sprouts Purchase:
6 containers of blackberries
1 watermelon
3 bags of  chips
1/2 pound of bulk great northern beans
8 chicken thighs
$19.13

Target Purchase:
1 can Similac
2 packages of Horizon peanut butter sandwich crackers
2 Hotwheels which Logan was going to pay for out of his money
2 packages of dog treats
nothing out of pocket

While in Target I noticed a couple of other sale items that I could print coupons for so we decided to come back once that was taken care of.

The downside on Friday was Phillip had decided to replace the filters on our microwave vent a hood since we had some and they were in need. He was able to get the facing off with no issue as we have been very careful with it. We purchased it as a floor model 9 years ago and one of the clips was broken which is why we got such a deal on it. Getting it off turned out not to be the issue, as he was washing it the other clip broke so there was no way to put it back on. The cheapest he was able to find one online or locally was $30.00 so that is what we did. It arrived Saturday and was installed yesterday. The whole situation just upsets me not only because of the unexpected expense but just the fact that nothing is made to last anymore and since most of our items are about the same age they seem to be going out in concert now. We have already replaced parts on the dryer, dishwasher and the oven. Now the washing machine needs some work as well as the ice maker on the fridge, this was just the icing for me. 

Saturday I tried to put all this out of my mind and just get stuff taken care of. The tiny one decided that 5:30am was a good time to get up so we played until 7:00am when everyone else got up. I did manage to get us out of the house a little after 9:00am so I could get by the post office before it was busy to mail off some items I sold. We then went by the library and put some stuff in the dropbox. After this we headed toward the church. Phillip was there weedeating and had hoped to take Logan with him to visit Loralee but we did not hear from her before he left. I went ahead and took Logan to play and dry my pants! I managed to drop a cup on tea in my lap while in the car. Luckily it was not sweet so the sugar did not make me sticky, just needed a little bit of Mr. Sun as Logan says to dry out. I stopped at the dealership also to report my mileage to Hyundai as part of a class action lawsuit. They reimburse all Hyundai owners from certain years for misrepresenting the MPG on the cars. If I am on that side of town I stop in and this was one of those days.

After leaving to head back to our side of town the tiny one and I stopped at JoAnn's to get some supplies for my Etsy sale. He fell asleep after leaving the store so I managed to get business taken care of at the library in silence. Once again stuff I had turned in was not checked in and was just put back on the shelves. I talked to the librarian I know this time and I think she has addressed the issue now so hopefully this does not keep happening. Clark was still asleep when we got home so I started work on my Etsy sale but found Phillip was going to have to go to the junk yard to get a couple more buckles for me. This meant I could lay down and rest a bit which I happily did. I really did not get to sleep but resting was nice.

Clark was really happy after his nap and he played great while I cleaned up their room. He of course wants to be nosy and open the drawers that hold his brother's toys but he is not tall enough to see in. It will not be long and I will hear more "MAMA, he is touching my stuff"

Phillip came home without Logan as they convinced him that he needed more play time with his friend. Once it was time to meet Logan we all piled into the car and headed to the meeting spot. We were all disappointed to see the field of bluebonnets had been mowed down. Phillip decided we should stop by Target on the way home since we would be passing it and take care of getting the items I had coupons on while the gift card sale was still going on. Sooo Target saw us come through again. This time it took a little pestering to get the deals that were advertised. They were in the process of changing out the signs for the new ad cycle. I wanted to be sure what I had planned was still viable so I asked an employee working near the baby stuff. She scanned the diapers for me and said yes the buy 2 get a $10.00 gift card was still valid. We picked up the 2 we wanted and along with another can of formula and some q-tips headed to check out. The cashier said that they did not ring up with the gift card promo and asked me about 4 times if I wanted him to check on the promo.  This required me to repeat myself 4 times that yes I wanted him to check on it. He eventually got another employee who scanned the diapers with her PDA and said yes I should get the gift card. Persistence pays off!
Target Purchase:
1 can Similac
2 boxes 96 count diapers
1 box q-tips
$34.04

After all the running around on Saturday I did not want to go home and cook so I took some money out of my lunch budget and we had dinner at Rosa's. It was a nice, quick family dinner.  The small bit of info I had forgot while out Saturday was that Sunday was potluck at church so I had to make a blackberry cobbler once home. Phillip had smoked a roast the day before so he was covered. Once home Clark got his bath while Logan played for a little bit. Then Logan got in the tub while I got the cobbler in the oven. Logan was out and getting ready for bed and Clark was asleep by the time I pulled the cobbler out of the oven.

Sunday morning the kids slept until 7:30am which was still earlier than we had to get going. We played for a little bit and then Phillip made cinnamon sugar toast for breakfast. After church we enjoyed potluck and then headed home. Both kids were asleep when we got home so we laid down also. It lasted about an hour which was glorious. I wanted to finish my grocery shopping now that SNAP was available. The kids and I loaded up and headed to the store while Phillip took his math final online. The Kroger receipt is not in front of me so I can not give an itemized list or SNAP totals right now. Some of the items I had gone for were not available so I will be out again before the end of the month which is fine. Several of the items I purchased had additional rebate offers on some of the apps I use so I will break those down also.

Needless to say the weekend felt a bit hodgepodge. I am hoping this week settles down a little and I have a feeling with more rain moving in it will. Tonight I need to take care of my monthly calendar so I do not miss anything or have to prepare at the last minute like the blackberry cobbler.