Great Savings at Publix

I went to Publix yesterday and spent 15.46 including tax and saved $18.49 with coupons and the special price savings. I forgot to take a picture but this is what I got.

1 jar of Valassic pickles $1.45 (.55Q) made it $.90
Publix candy corn $1.67 (this was a penny item) made it $.01
Idahoan Augratin Potato $1.34 (Q for free) made it free
3 Martha White Blueberry Muffin Mix $.99/ea (store Q B2G1) made it $1.98 for 3
Colgate Wisp $1.50 ($.50Q doubled) made it $.50
Chips Ahoy Cookies $2.50 ($1Q) made it $1.50
3 Coke 8pks, 12oz bottles $4.49ea (B2G1 + $1.50/3Q) made it $7.48 for 3
Glad kitchen trash bags $4 ($.75 store Q + $.50 manuf.Q doubled) made it $2.25

This wasn't too bad. I love using coupons. Helps me be able to stay at home with my babies.

What I Learned Watching My Kids

As parents it's our responsibility to teach our children all we can. We teach them right from wrong, to say please and thank you, how to count and so on. Have you ever stopped and thought about what we can learn from them or what they can remind us of. I have a 2 year old and a 5 month old and I was watching them play the other day and it occurred to me that sometimes we as adults forget things, little things, big things, important things. I thought as I watched them playing and laughing that they are living life to the fullest. They aren't worried about tomorrow, they just live for today. They trust us and know that we will take care of them. They have faith and believe what we say, they will be provided for. They laugh often, smile most of the time, play hard, give lots of hugs and kisses, tell us they love us, talk to us all the time and so much more. The more I watched it made me realize how much we could learn from them. We should be living for today, as we are not promised tomorrow, we should have faith and trust and know that God will provide our every need and believe in him. We should be spending time with those we love, talking to our family, friends and most importantly God on a regular basis. We shouldn't worry so much about the things out of our control or anything really, we should simply turn it over to God. Watching my kids reminded me of these things. My kids may not be in school yet and may not know how to read and write yet, but they have the most important things down. We can learn alot by watching our kids and listening to them.

Hairbows

I love making hairbows for my little girl. Everytime I start to make them she wants to help. So I give her some ribbon and a hair clip and she plays. She says "I'm making hairbows mommy". Even though she doesn't know how to make them she thinks she does and it's time we have together.

Many of my friends told me I should start selling hairbows. So I have started an etsy shop, http://www.etsy.com/shop/CaitlynCorner.

I hope to have a tutorial on making hairbows soon. So check back often.

Chicken Casserole

I love dinners that you can make on a budget. This chicken casserole can easily be made for less. especially if you buy the ingredients on sale. Once you make the casserole just open up a few cans of vegetables or cook some fresh veggies and you have a meal. Not much prep time, inexpensive to make and really good. Can't beat it.

All you need...

1 pk chicken (I used boneless, skinless chicken breast, about 3 pieces)
1 - 8oz tub sour cream
1/2 stick of butter (give or take a little)
1 sleeve of Ritz Crackers (you may want to use 1 1/2 to 2 sleeves)

Cook chicken till done, either on the stove or in a crock pot. Cut chicken into small pieces and place in a casserole dish. Mix a can of cream of chicken soup, a can of water/chicken broth (from the water you cooked the chicken in) and the sour cream. You can mix all of this in a bowl. however, I prefer to mix it in a pot over low heat. Pour the mixture over the chicken. Next crush up the ritz crackers into small pieces. Melt the 1/2 stick of butter in a frying pan, add your crushed crackers and make sure the crackers are coated with the butter. Spread the crackers over your chicken and mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until the casserole bubbles around the edges and the crackers on top have browned some.

Hope you enjoy. If you try it leave me a comment and let me know what you think.

Yummy Sausage Balls

Have you ever made sausage balls? They are so delicious. They are good for breakfast, snack or to have at a party. Best of all, they're pretty easy and inexpensive to make. If you use coupons or find the ingredients on sale that's even better. All you need is:

2 cups of Bisquick

2 cups of finely shredded cheese ( I use sharp or or mild cheddar)

1 roll of sausage (I use regular or mild)

Use your hands to mix all together in a large bowl. This takes a little time because you need to make sure it's all mixed well. Then roll the sausage mixture into balls and place on a well greased baking/cookie sheet. The size of the sausage balls is up to you. Then bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes. Then enjoy!

VBS

Our church just finished Vacation Bible School for this year. We had a kick off with games, moonwalk, a dunking booth and food. The kids loved it. Then a week long VBS every night from 7-9. It was a blast but very tiring. It was all worth it especially when a little girl got saved.

At our church we generally come up with the VBS theme rather than purchasing one from the store. This year I was in charge and our theme was On the Farm, Working for Jesus. I came up with the outline and we made the decorations. We have a penny march and puppet show every night. This year we had 3 puppets, Bubba, Ellie and Jeffro. They were a big hit with kids. Of course, each night, there was a lesson, crafts and each class practiced their song, skit, etc. for Friday nights commencement. On Friday night the kids and their family and friends came to see what they learned. It was precious. Each class got up and had a part and then there was supposed to be a slide show of the kids during VBS. But of course we had technical difficulties so we didn't get to show it. The parents all went to their kids classrooms and got the crafts and then went to the fellowship hall to eat. We also had a friendly competition during the week with the penny march. If the boys won the penny march then I would get a pie in my face. If the girls won then my husband (the pastor) would get the pie. Unfortunately, I got the pie in my face so that was done in the fellowship hall too.