Monday, April 23, 2012

Menu Plan Monday


Hey y'all! How was your weekend? B and I were busy with spring cleaning, I swear it never ends.

We finally took the time to rent a Rug Doctor to clean our carpets. We have been wanting to do it for several months but I was waiting on the right time. When I checked Rug Doctor's website and found several coupons I knew it was the right weekend. We were able to save $14, only making it $50 to clean our entire house and a couch. I found a $5 mail in rebate, $2.50 off the machine, $1.50 off of cleaner and the Dollar General {where we rented it} had a $5.00 off any $25.00 purchase. So it was a great deal - it took several hours to complete but it was well worth it!

Sunday was our normal running errands and laundry - normally this includes a grocery store run but not this weekend. I am happy to say that we are still running on the grocery run we did last week when we started the self imposed $60 Challenge. One thing this taught me is B and I wasted a ton of food before. We ended up having left overs two nights last week, so that allowed for one meal to run over to this week. Also, to be fair we are still freezer/pantry shopping this week. By using what we already have on hand this is what our weekly menu plan looks like:

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

What's in your purse?

Earlier this year while I was reading one of my favorite blogs called A bowl full of lemons she featured a purse quiz that I have been eager to take ever since. I am not a girly girl, but I LOVE having a nice handbag. A nice handbag doesn't have to be expensive or name brand all the time, but it has to be functional to your needs. My purse is like my mobil home for real. I never leave the house without it. So, today I finally took the time to hop over to What Does Your Handbag Say About You?

According to my answers, my handbag says.....

Monday, April 16, 2012

$60 Challenge

I like to think that I always get the biggest bang for our buck. I honestly hate spending money. But, even more I hate wasting money. Last year I began cutting coupons - extreme couponing? No! But, I coupon enough to know that I was over paying for groceries seriously. I think overall it's hard shopping and cooking for just two people. I swear no matter what we do we always have left overs and we always throw food away at the end of the week.

B and I are trying to cut back expenses, mostly because we have a mile long list of things we would like to do to our house and I would much rather invest in our home than our bellies {unless it's my belly and only if it is housing a baby, which ain't happening right now, so it's time to cut back}.

So after seeing how much we spend monthly on food, including groceries, eating out, lunches out, etc I quickly realized we have a major spending problem. Even though I love to cook sometimes it's just easier with a busy schedule to grab something out. We need to get in a routine and stick to it which seems to be difficult for B and I sometimes.

Monday, April 9, 2012

Oreo Bon Bons

One of my favorite things about the internet is the ability to get inspiration and ideas from tons of talented people in the blogosphere. Recently, I stumbled across a blog called Jamie Cooks It Up! When I stumbled across the blog the other night I literally spent two hours looking at every recipe she has posted. I love finding great cooking blogs because I get so tired of cooking the same stuff week after week.

When I ran across her Oreo Bon Bon recipe I knew I wanted to try it ASAP. I'm not a huge fan of cake pops. I know they are all the rave right now, but personally I can't see taking the time to make a cake just to crumble it up and mix in a little icing. These Oreo Bon Bons are extremely simple to make and are delicious!

You will need the following:


Sunday, April 8, 2012

Coat Closet Re-do

One blog I follow on a regular basis is The Nest Effect written by Tiffany. This year she has started monthly challenges to get organized in 2012. So far she has tackled time organization, financial organization, and paper clutter. I had planned on participating in all her challenges but the first few months of the year were extremely hectic for us so I wasn't able to keep up.

The April challenge is closets and when I saw this I knew I had to make sure I followed. B and I are normally clean individuals. However, our builder basic home has a lack of storage. Well, let's back up. I think it has a lack of storage, but the truth probably is the fact that B and I don't use our storage to the max potentional. As seen below in exhibit A...

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Easter Weekend

Hey y'all! It's a beautiful Saturday in Indiana! The high is suppose to be 67 degrees but it's a bright and sunny day - I love days like this! B and I are getting ready to pack up Nevaeh and Moby to go enjoy some family time with B's mom side of the family. Every year we get together to dye easter eggs, play games, eat a delicious pre-easter meal and have a blast. His mom gives prizes for egg decorating (prettiest, most creative, etc) I can't wait - I am determined to win a prize this year! Every family function I am in charge of the sweets - I love to bake so I don't mind. I made some quick and easy recipes this time, I can't wait to see which ones everyone likes.

Monday, April 2, 2012

Cleaning Out Our Junk

Is it really April already? Where has these past few months gone? I know I haven't posted in a few months but life has been a little crazy around here. Training at work took me away for several weeks, then I caught the flu which put me down for a solid week. It hasn't been pretty over here! But, I am back and ready to blog my heart out :)

I have a few things to post about since it's been forever and a day but I am going to start with our junk. Extremely interesting right? Like most houses in America we have a drawer in the kitchen with is 100% used to hold junk everything we believe is important. This drawer/counter top on any given day normally looked like this