7-19-10

7:30AM

I've got sooo much to do and need some energy to
do it all!

Yesterday I got 4 boxes of stuff weeded out
and a load of laundry done and dried
right before it rained. That's the problem
with line drying, having to keep a careful
eye on the weather. I almost forgot
my clothes out on the line when
the storm was approaching.

While it stormed here I didn't think
it was too severe. But when we left
to go to Newark and headed down Morse Rd.
by Easton they had lanes on Morse Rd.
closed down due to downed power lines
and trees. Some smaller trees were
completely blown over.

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Yesterday on the way to Newark we stopped
in a Speedway. I snatched up a bunch more
coupons hanging from their 2 liter pop bottles.

Pop is on sale at Kroger this week so that's
why I grabbed a bunch.

KROGER GROCERY LIST

7UP 2 liters .88 cents each
times 2 is $1.76
minus $1.00 off 2 coupon
makes it .76 cents for 2 or .38 cents each!

Kroger large eggs .88 cents

Wonder Classic White Bread .88 cents

Kroger Salad Dressing .88 cents

Kroger Apple Juice 1/2 Gallon .88 cents

Crayola 24 Count Crayons .25 cents

Paper Mate Write Bros. Pens 3 for $1.00

Iceberg Head Lettuce .88 cents

Crayola Markers 10 Count $1.00

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MEIJERS

Bi-Color Corn .15 cents each

All Meijer Brand School Accessories 5 for $1.00

Paper Mate Write Bros. Pens 10 pack 3 for $1.00

BUY $10 worth of Kelloggs, Keebler,
Sunshine or Eggo products,
Get $10 off 3 packages of
Fruit of the Loom Basics
(includes t-shirts, socks and underwear)

2 Kelloggs Pop Tarts 12 count
2 for $5.00
minus $1.00 off 2 coupon
makes it 2 for $4.00 or $2.00 each

2 Eggo Waffles
2 for $3.34
minus $1.00 off 2 coupon
makes it $2.34 for 2

10 count Kelloggs Fruit Snack $1.99

Total value before coupons $10.33

7-8 pack Fruit of the Loom girls/boys socks
$3.99 times 3 is $11.97
minus $10 when you buy $10 worth of Kelloggs
Makes them $1.97 for 3 pkgs of socks
(21-24 count)




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11:00AM

3-in-one recycled sweatpants.

Been going through clothes weeding them out.
If I see pants that still fit around the
waist but have holes, then I cut the bottoms
off and make into shorts. I zig zag stitch
around the bottom of the shorts.
The extra bottom pieces become rags and
the elastic becomes pony tail holders.

Not school attire but an extra pair
can be wore around the house to play in.






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11:30AM

Getting ready to head out to go
to Meijers.

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1:00PM

Back from Meijers. Here's the run down.

8- 70 page spiral notebooks
reg. $7.92
paid $1.20

3- pkgs 10 count pens
reg. $3.57
paid $1.00

1 compass
reg. .99 cents
paid .20 cents

2 two pack large erasers
reg. $1.98
paid .40 cents

2 pks 2 erasers and pencil topper erasers
reg. $1.98
paid .40 cents

3 packs Fruit of Loom Socks (21 total pairs)
reg. $12.87
sale $11.97
minus $10 when you buy $10 of Kellogg products
minus $2.50 in coupons on packages of socks.
paid FREE plus .53 cents in overage!!
found .50 cents coupons on packages of socks.
Only 2 will double to $1.00 each.
the other one will remain at .50 cents.

Took 3 more coupons off other sock
packages in case I make another
trip to Meijer to get free socks!!

1 Kellogg Fruit Snack
reg. $2.29
paid $1.99

2- 12 count boxes of Pop Tarts
reg. $5.98
paid $4.00

2 Eggo Chocolate Chip Waffles
reg. $4.50
paid $2.34

$42.08 TOTAL BEFORE SALES & COUPONS

$11.00 I paid

$31.08 Savings


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1-2:00PM

My friend Kendra & Dewaine stopped
by and started marking off the area
where our new fence to go.






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MONEY SAVING TIPS

I keep an ice cream bucket in the freezer and put any vegetable that is left over in it. Sometimes it might just be a tablespoon. When the bucket is full I make veggie soup. I save gravy the same way to use as a base for stew or casseroles etc.
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Spaghetti Sauce Seasoning Mix
by Patti Chadwick

Want to make your own spaghetti sauce that is quick and easy? Get the taste of homemade and the ease of a mix by making your own Spaghetti Sauce Seasoning Mix.

* 2 tablespoons Italian Seasoning

* 2 teaspoons salt

* 2 teaspoons garlic powder

* 1 teaspoon pepper

* 2 teaspoons seasoned salt

Mix all ingredients thoroughly and store in small airtight jar in a cool, dry place.

Quick Spaghetti with Meatsauce

* 1 lb ground beef, browned

* 1 bay leaf

* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

* 12 oz. thin spaghetti, cooked

* 1-1/2 cups water

* Grated parmesan cheese

* 1 large can of tomato puree

* 1 6 oz. can of tomato paste

* 2 tablespoon minced onions

* 1-1/2 tablespoons of Spaghetti Sauce Seasoning Mix

Mix together all ingredients except spaghetti and cheese. Bring mixture to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 1/2 hour. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Serve over hot spaghetti.

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Easy Oven Cleaner

On the day before you plan to clean the oven, sprinkle baking
soda into the bottom and spray it with water. Close the door
and leave it over night. It is astonishing how the soda will
release the dried-on gunk. Your oven will need wiping out and
not much more!
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More pics of the 1974 Charger.

If you think outside the box like we
do then you can see past the dirtiness
and some repairs it needs.

7-18-10

Yesterday while at Henderson Kroger I got
70 sheet 1 subject notebooks for .15 cents each.
I don't know if this is at all Kroger stores
as I did not see it in their ad. It
was not in the clearance section as I
found it in the seasonal isle with
the school supplies.

In today's paper in the USA Weekend section
there is a coupon to get a FREE
12 ounce Smoothie or Frappe.
Jonathan's all excited because he's
been begging me to get one and I wouldn't
because of cost.

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11:20AM

Just got up not long ago. I feel like I have
a hangover and I haven't been drinking!
Race tracks will wear you out! We were at
National Trail Raceway 6-7 hours yesterday.
It was warm out there but at times we'd get
some cloud cover which was nice.
I think the best idea I had for keeping
cool was the spray bottle filled with
water. We used it in the bleachers and while
walking around. I'm gonna add some photos
and videos from last night but I will keep
them at the bottom of the page to not to
interfere with other postings I make today.

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1:00-1:30PM

Sewed up a few more smaller rags for
around the house. I used and old holey
bath towel. I got 7 rags made from it.
Could have been 8 but the last part
was too holey to do anything with.


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Here's an easy recipe to make pickles.
I like recipes with videos.
The recipe is also written below
the video.



Refrigerator Pickles Recipe

8 cups sliced unpeeled cucumbers
2 cups sliced onion (optional)
2 cups cut bell peppers (option - can also add banana peppers)
1 Tablespoon salt
1 and 1/2 cups white vinegar
2 teaspoons celery seed
2 teaspoons mustard seed
2 cups of sugar

In a large Plastic or Glass Bowl (do not use metal bowl) combine cucumbers, onions, and peppers. Sprinkle them with salt and mix them well so that the salt covers as much of them as possible. Cover with towel/paper towel and let stand for 1 hour. After that drain off the juice that forms in the bottom of the bowl.

In another bowl combine your sugar, vinegar, celery seed and mustard seed. Stir that until sugar is completely dissolved.

Place cucumbers in a bowl or large gallon jar and pour vinegar mixture over them. You may want to stir them just a bit. Cover and put in refrigerator for 24 to 48 hours. These should be good for up to six weeks
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So much to do around here and so many
To Do lists to accomplish.

Will start working on fence this week.
Still need to call the "call before you dig"
people to mark the ground.

I still have the basement and pretty much
the rest of the house to clean and weed
out, which is gonna be long and tedious
task.

Then yesterday I twerped up and said
that I would paint my mom shutters like
I have nothing else to do. But I figured
I'd lend a helping hand down there
so they don't have to worry about doing
it or paying someone to do it.

I was asked to help pick out a color
that will go with the house.

Here is an approximate house color.
I call it a medium green.


And here was some suggestions
I had for the color of shutters.

A pale yellow or pale yellow green
since these colors sit next to
one another on a color wheel making
them analogous colors.






Or how about a cedar color to
go with the deck color.
Cedar is a reddish tone
and is a complimentary color
on the color wheel.





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3:30PM

I have decided today to start doing
closets. Starting with Jonathan's room.
I yanked off those sliding doors and they
will go into basement storage!
I've got to get the clothes better
organized around here. The kids each
have large closets in their rooms
while we have a smaller closet.
In our closet I took out the shelf
and now have two hanging bars for
clothes in there.

If you're not handy enough to install
a second bar in your closet they make
bars you can hang from the one already
in there.



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5:30PM

Getting ready to head to Newark.
Going to check out a 1974 Charger.
Tony's been wanting another MOPAR
so bad. I'd be willing to get
rid of 3 cars to replace 2 of them.
(One Dodge muscle car and another Explorer)
Any old Dodge muscle car is VERY hard
to find for cheap. It's almost like
a Cadillac of all muscle cars!
So can't wait to see this one, LOL,
at $1250!! Probably one of those
you want to run from. But ya never
know and it doesn't hurt to check out.
Here is what a 1974 Charger looks like restored.


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8:15PM
Just returned home from Newark
and driving through thunderstorms.

My anniversary gift to hubby. (see pic below)
Told Tony if I could get some money
knocked off the price I'd have the
car towed home. I got $50 knocked
off the price which is better than
nothing and can be applied to the $80
tow bill to tow it from Newark
to Columbus. Even the tow will be discounted
due to Tony knowing someone who has his
own Tow company. Will get it next week
since Tony is on call at work this week
and it would be too difficult with the pager.

To get a Dodge Charger for $1,200
is like finding a needle in a haystack,
especially in the condition like this one!

Tony has always been a Mopar man.
But since me and him have been together
he has only been around Pontiacs thanks
to me. So now I feel he deserves to have
another one to play with after all these
years. He's like a little kid all over
again! Anything to make my honey smile,
just as long as it doesn't cost too much,
LOL!

Will now sell the blue Trans Am for
anyone interested $2,500.
I sold it for that amount once before.
And I know it's worth it after
checking out other Trans Ams for
sale in the same price range that
were pieces of crap!!





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Me watching the second round
of the jet cars. VERY LOUD!


Snakebite, we have this car
as a friend on Myspace.


Both kids got autographed frisbees from
the FasLube driver.




Jet 4 wheeler




Jet Truck



Coolbus was a wheel stander.



Blastro, the world's fastest mini van.


View of the track from bleachers.


This Trans Am is ALWAYS at the track.
I learned about this car 4 years ago
when the people bought some chairs
from us off of one of the Yahoo
groups I belong to.
We are parked in front of them
just past their tents.



This was the jet truck. Check out the
windows of the building shaking from the
pressure of the jet blasts!!


Cool Bus Wheelstander

7-17-10

Anyone for Zucchini, lol??
This big bubba came from a
friend's garden. I wanna
know what she's feeding these things!



8:30-9:00AM

Moving a lil slow this morning til
I can get all the kinks worked out
of my back.

Today we need to stop by Kroger
and get stuff packed up for the
racetrack later on today.

Last night we shopped around
for one of those pop up shade tents
to take to the track.
We had one a couple years ago but
due to down force winds in a storm
in got crushed. Kind of like
when you stomp on a pop can.

It pays to shop around and be able
to save money. We originally got
our one tent from Marcs years ago.
We stopped in there. They wanted
$100. Stopped in Big Lots and their
cheapest was $150. Last stop was
Walmart where we found one for $49.
So we saved $50 to $100.



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9:30AM

So I am sitting here trying to fill out
all this paperwork from the contest.
I probably shouldn't do it this early
as I am screwing up a few areas.
Tony also has to fill out a paper
since he will be traveling with me.
Then I have to find a photo to send
with everything.
One part I don't understand is that
they give you transportation from
the airport to the hotel. Ok then
how to you get from the hotel to
their office building???
We will be responsible for meals
and any baggage costs.
Then I have to figure out how
to have Fed Ex come here and pick
this envelope up to express air mail it.
I have never done
this before so am clueless.
When I did the Betty Crocker contest
all we did was fax everything to them.

I am still sooo nervous about everything.
It's probably a once in a lifetime thing
to do so don't want to back out now.
I have panic and anxiety attacks so
this whole ordeal will be very interesting
if I get through it all.
And that is the main reason I won't
enter the Pillsbury contest as everyone
encourages me to do. I wouldn't be able
to handle the traveling and tv publicity.

It would be soooo nice if they would just
let us drive down to Cincinatti since it's
not too far away! Because the thought
of getting on any airplane makes me sick
to my stomach!! I know it wouldn't
be a very long flight from Columbus
to Cinci

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I know I am a sucker to buy all sorts
of cream soups in a can to keep in the pantry
for all sorts of meals.
These soups can run .50 cents
to over a $1.00 a can depending upon
manufacture. Here is a dry mix that
you can store and keep on your shelf
til needed.

Cream of Whatever Soup Mix

Make this mix up in advance and use in casseroles and other recipes calling for canned cream of whatever soup. This makes the equivalent of 9 cans of soups.

2 cups powdered nonfat milk

3/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup instant chicken bouillon

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried thyme leaves

1/8 tsp. sage

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. paprika

Mix all ingredients together well and store in an airtight container.

To use

To make the equivalent of one can of cream of something soup:

Mix 1/3 cup of soup mix with 1 1/4 cups of water. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook for a few minutes until thickened. Watch carefully and stir constantly to prevent sticking.

You can add celery flakes, mushroom pieces, small shredded bits of chicken, for what ever kind of soup you are using. This has no fat like purchased soups. The sodium content is much less than the canned soup also.

This can also be used in casseroles by just mixing the soup and the liquid and not cooking it before hand.

When mushrooms are on sale or marked down get them slice them thin and dry them for use in soups like this.
This is a heart conscious recipe.

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Here is another fabric softener tip of mine.
Instead of buying a bottle of Wrinkle Release,
I put a tablespoon or two of fabric softener
in a small spray bottle filled with water.
I mist it on clothes and gently pull the
fabric. I do this while wearing the clothing.
Then stand in front of a fan for about
30 seconds to dry.

Double duty purpose, I also use this
same bottle to spray in my hair
as a detangler.

It costs about $3.00 for a bottle
of wrinkle release and $3.00
for a bottle of detangler.
Now imagine how many homemade spray
bottles you can make with some of
those cheapie fabric softeners on sale.
Like the Suavitel, Walgreens sometimes
sells for buy 1 get 1 free.
That one bottle would last you for
years to make these 2 things!

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2:30-3:00PM

Just back from Kroger and grabbing a bite
to eat before heading out in a lil bit.
It sure is warming up there!

For those of you who like the Topsy Turvy
planters they are in the clearance section
at Henderson Rd. Kroger.
$2.99 and they have peppers, strawberries
and tomatoes. I didn't get any
as I don't like the upside down method.

I made up 8 ham and cheese tortilla
roll ups to take for our supper
tonight at the race track.
Kids love these things! I usually
put softened cream cheese mixed
with ranch powdered dressing on them.
This time around I used ranch chip
dip to save some time (and money).
Used about half for the roll ups
and the rest can be used for our chips.

Here's another handy tip I do.
When visiting these fast food joints
we usually pick up too many napkins.
Instead of throwing them out I
tuck them in my purse for car rides.
You just never know when kids will
have messy hands, faces,
a runny nose, or in my case recently,
decide to pick a scab off and bleed
everywhere.
Here they are inside a zippered
makeup pouch in my purse.

You can see a bunch of papers below
my pouch. A lady at Kroger was giving
out free Excederine samples, Fiber One
samples and a bunch of coupons, yeah me!



To save even more money when traveling
we also carry a cooler in the truck
full of drinks. Much cheaper than buying
drinks at a gas station or fast food.

We buy Kroger's (store brand) pop in cans
and water to save even
more money. Then get Kroger chips and snacks
so there is no one hungry on the car ride
and no unnecessary stops along the way.

And as for little kids having to go to the
bathroom constantly I carry empty pop bottles
with lids! Of course this may not work for
little girls with different equipment.

So we wouldn't have to buy ear plugs at
the track (because jet cars get extremely
loud) we borrowed some head phones from
Tony's work and from my step dad.
So there's another savings.
In the past we've bought these foam ear
plugs at the track for ridiculous money.

To keep cool we purchased a portable
shade tent with carrying case.
I will take along hand towels to wet
down in the cooler and put around
our necks. I also will be taking along
a milk jug of tap water and a spray bottle
to mist off if need be. So there's more
savings because we won't have to sit
in the truck with the air conditioner on
guzzling gas.

Talking about gas. I've been seeing it
for $2.70 to $2.75 a gallon.
Happened upon a Kroger gas station last
night on Olentangy which still had gas for
$2.44. Used my Kroger card and got
an extra .20 cents of making
it $2.24 a gallon.
So be sure to use to fuel savings
from grocery stores!
I saved .55 cents a gallon by keeping
my eyes out for cheaper gas and using
my Kroger Plus card!

So there you have it, my thrifty
savings for today.

Tomorrow I will have a run down
from all the sales adds I received today.
There seems to be good deals at both
Meijers and Kroger this week!

Well it's 3:30PM so should be getting
things in gear to head out within the
next hour.