“Just One Moment Please While I Put You on Hold”

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How many times have we heard those words! And then we’re probably on hold anywhere from 5-45 minutes or longer. And yes, we were really on hold for at least 45 minutes one time. The great thing about cordless phones is that when we hear those annoying words, “Just one moment please while I put you on hold,” we can still go about what we need to do around the house and not be stuck sitting in one spot for what seems like forever. I put my cordless phone on speaker mode and take it from room to room with me as I continue doing what I need to do. I can still unload the dishwasher, go to the laundry room and put a load of clothes in the wash, dust or whatever. And if your cordless phone battery goes out from all that time spent on hold (LOL) then it’s really easy to recharge or replace it! 🙂

The Coupon Queen

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Diane is a friend of mine who I think of as the “coupon queen.”  She is amazing and has couponing down to a science.  Several years ago there used to be a grocery store that would triple coupons up to 75c.  $1.00 coupons would be doubled.   Diane would buy huge amounts of groceries worth anywhere between $150 and $300 and would pay amounts like $19 or $24, etc.  She did this time and time again.  I did save a large percentage of my grocery bill, but I would pay something like $15 or $20 for $70 worth of groceries.  It was fun seeing how much we saved every week, and Diane and I would be excited over how much each other had saved.  Now stores only triple coupons up to 39c and double up to 50c.  I must admit that I don’t use coupons now as much as I used to.  For one thing, I don’t buy as much processed food.   I try to eat fresh produce and “cook from scratch” (I wonder where that saying came from) as much as possible.  But Diane is still saving huge amounts and still amazes me with her savings.

If you’ve never tried couponing before, find someone who does and give it a try.  It’s fun having someone to share experiences with, and it’s great to save on your grocery bill.

Baby Slings Are Great!

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I wish baby slings had been available when my children were babies. Everyone I know now who uses one thinks they’re wonderful. Our daughter has one that she uses with our grandson. The great thing about using them with a newborn is that the baby is cradled up next to the mother (or daddy) and feels the warmth of her body.  The mother then has her hands free to do some things that require two hands such as typing or doing things around the house. Another neat thing about the slings is that they can be used for newborns all the way up to toddlers.   They come in all different kinds of fabric patterns so anyone should be able to find a color and pattern that they like.   If you know of someone that has a baby, tell them about baby slings. Or maybe you have a baby, maybe you’re expecting a baby, or maybe you need a baby shower gift.  A baby sling would make a great gift!

Fossil Rim Wildlife Park

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If you’ve never been to a wildlife park, I recommend going to one. We like to go to Fossil Rim Wildlife Park close to Glenrose, TX. It’s been named by USA Today as one of the ten great places to go on a safari in our country. We’ve been there quite a few times over the years and always enjoy it every time. The first time I went was probably twenty years ago with a bunch of public school teachers for a teacher’s workshop. A teacher friend and I signed up for this workshop together and had a lot of fun! That’s when I first became acquainted with it. Then in later years we took our family, one year took our daughter and son-in-law with us, and one year took my mother-in-law with us. It was fun seeing everyone’s reaction to the animals. One time I went with a dear friend of mine, Denice, who you see pictured We both had our sons with us and enjoyed the animals through the eyes of her young son. Now that we have a grandson, I can’t wait to take him when he’s old enough. 🙂 Go to the link below for more info:

http://www.fossilrim.com/

Boys & Remote Control Toys

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When our son was younger, he loved to play with remote control cars and helicopters. And I enjoyed watching him play with them. There’s something fascinating about the way they give the appearance of moving all by themselves. His dad enjoyed actually playing with him. One time we went out to the park to fly his helicopter. I must admit it did have one or two crash landings, but it was a lot of fun to fly. If you’ve never flown RC helicopters then you might want to check them out. It’s a lot of fun for every family member, no matter what their age.

Ground Turkey Sausage Patties

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I tried a new recipe this week that we liked and it’s healthy. It reminded us of very mild sausage and was tasty. (Our son thought it was beef.)

1 lb ground turkey

1/2-3/4 cup chopped onion

4 garlic cloves or 2 tsp chopped garlic (I used the kind in a jar)

1 cup instant oatmeal

1/4 cup skim milk (I used 1%)

1 egg

3 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce

2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp oregano

salt & freshly ground black pepper

Mix and form into patties. Cook in a little bit of olive oil in a skillet until done.

(For an even healthier version, spray a loaf pan with cooking spray, press mixture into pan, cover with foil and bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 5/10 minutes until the top is brown and the center’s not pink. I haven’t tried this yet.)

Traveling Through Our Country

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Traveling to various parts of our country is so interesting. There’s such a vast array of scenery. You can travel to Florida and watch the ocean tide coming in or the beautiful sunset. What a relaxing way to spend an evening! In Colorado you can view the majestic mountains and snowcapped peaks. That’s an awesome experience! Or you can drive through the flatlands of Kansas or the northwestern part of Texas close to Lubbock and it seems like you can see forever. (Some driving through this area might use the best radar detector they can find because there are speed traps in even the tiniest of towns.) And if you cross the Mississippi, then you witness a grand river that flows through our land. Imagine the early explorers who traveled along that river! There’s such a variety of scenery in our great land and surely something to please everyone.

Florida Fun

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We have been to Disneyworld in Florida two different years.  We had a blast both times.  We went to the different parks in Disneyworld plus we went to Universal Studios.   One year we rented a car and drove to the Kennedy Space Center and several beaches on the east coast.  Another year we rented a car and drove to the beach at St. Petersburg on the west coast.   If you’re planning to go to Florida, you might consider a Florida rental vacation.    Whatever you do, plan to spend several days (we spent a week) because there’s so much to see and do.

End of Season Clearance Sales!

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I enjoy going to the end of season clearance sales.  My favorite sales are the ones that are 75% off.  Last summer I went to a really good sale.  I got four skirts for less than the price of one because I had coupons too.  I think with tax I paid under $60 for the four skirts, and they were originally $60 skirts.  I had already decided I wanted to get some new skirts, so it wasn’t an impulse buy.  And I try to buy mainly things that I know will go with something I already have and will complete an outfit.

When our daughter was in college, she worked for the Gap.  She would get fantastic buys on end of season items.  A couple of times she was able to get things for $1.99.  I remember one time she got her brother three pairs of boys shorts for a little over $6.  And they were nice shorts.   So she’s good at finding bargains too.  We both get excited when we find really good deals and we’ll add up what the original value would have been.  It’s fun figuring out how much we saved!  Now that she lives in another town, we can’t wait to email each other about the bargains we find!  🙂

Branson, Missouri

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I have never been to Branson but I’d like to go. My in-laws went a couple of times and really enjoyed it. In fact, I know quite a few people who’ve been and have really liked it. Branson is famous for world-class entertainment, fun parks, and other attractions. They have a museum based on the Titanic. I’d like to see that. Maybe some day we’ll get to go there on one of our family vacations. Who knows, maybe Baby J (and our daughter and son-in-law) will get to go too. That would be fun! 🙂

September – “Have a Plan” Month

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I was waiting at an intersection not long ago and I noticed this billboard.  It had a fuzzy aerial view of a town.  Then it had an arrow pointing to a certain spot with the words, “You are here.  Do you know where your family is?”  My first reaction was, “Well, yeah, I know where my family is.”  But then I noticed in small print down at the very bottom of the billboard it said, “Have a Plan.  Go to READY.GOV”  Then I realized the point of the billboard was that in case of an emergency (such as a terrorist attack, etc.), you need to know where your family is in case things get crazy.  With the sixth anniversary of 9-11 just days away, I think it is good to have a plan.  When I taught first grade, we had a fire drill every few weeks.  We never had to use it for the real thing, but we were ready just in case.  So this is what I call “fire drill time.”  If something did happen, we would be in panic mode which is not an easy time to be thinking clearly.  That’s why it’s so important to think about things like this when our minds are clear.  I hope we never have to use our plans, but if we do then we’ll already have our plan in place.

Flipflops Burn Customers

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This is so weird about the flipflops from Wal-Mart burning people.  I think it’s “allergic contact dermatitis” instead of chemical burns.  But in any case, it seems like to me that there’s something wrong with the materials used to make the flipflops if several people are having problems with them.   Go to the links below to read more info.  (I plan to write another post later about my experience with another brand of flipflops. )

http://www.snopes.com/info/inthenews.asp

http://www.consumerist.com/consumer/health/at-least-nine-cases-of-walmart-flipflops-burning-customers-heres-the-latest-295327.php