And my day!!

Today is also my birthday.  My 31st, to be exact.  I don't like 31 already.  Why?  It's such an uneven number!  And a prime number at that!  I suppose I don't have a choice but to be 31 for an entire year though.  Ah well...364 days to go.

My day in food...

Tim Horton's iced cinnamon roll for breakfast!  Brian had an appointment with his spine surgeon today, and TH is right around the corner.  Couldn't have planned that better if I had tried!

Lunch was Red Robin....YUMM!!  They emailed me a coupon for a free birthday burger.  Once we got there and told them we were celebrating three birthdays (mine, Noah's, and Hannah's on Monday), we were given the royal treatment.  The staff sang us a catchy Happy Birthday tune, and we got three free sundaes!  Very nice...

For dinner, since we had a huge lunch, we are just having pie.  Berry pie...blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries!  Yay for birthday pie!

Maybe 31 isn't so bad after all...

Eleven already?!

Noah's day...my firstborn.  My guinea pig.  I hope we haven't messed you up too bad.  I don't have a whole lot saved for therapy bills...  You got your father's eyes and your mother's teeth.  Let's hope you've also got some good things from us!

Some of my favorite "Noah" memories...
- When we lived in PA, we walked to the playground almost every day.  One day, you were standing at the top of the slide, screaming your head off.  I came rushing over, expecting to find an injury or maybe a bee or spider or something.  Nope.  There was a fly on the slide. :P  You were very cautious and a bit scared of things.  It's a good thing you got some siblings to help you get over that!

-Also in PA, when we first learned that Nick was your brother, for sure...you were only 2, but seemed to understand pretty well.  You and I made letters for your name and Nicolas' name out of construction paper and artfully arranged them on your bedroom door.  We also finger-painted a swirly-blue dinosaur for Nick.  I remember that day like it was yesterday...the day you and I embraced Nick in our hearts when we hadn't even met him yet.

-When you had just turned 5 and we had just moved into this house...I went into the bathroom one day to find a jigundous terd in the cat box.  Knowing right away whose it was, I called you in to see what you had to say about it.  You told me the cat did it, and I told you, "If we have a cat in this house that can poop that big, we have a problem!" 

-You got to be there when both Levi and Esther were born, and cut both of their umbilical cords.  How very special!  You have always loved your siblings so very much!  They were your favorite when they were babies, though I think Esther will remain your favorite for all of your life.  It makes me smile to know they will always have an awesome big brother to look out for them.

-You are my best eater.  Your taste buds are growing up and you'll eat pretty much anything I make.  Veggies, meat, casseroles, whatever.  With a house full of complainers, I soooooooo appreciate that you appreciate good food!

I hope you know how very special you are to me, and that no matter how big you get, you will always be my little boy.  My little boy, dear to my heart, for you were the first piece of it to walk outside of my body.  Love you, Noah!

Four years (and a day)

A day late and a dollar short...Levi's 4th birthday was yesterday!

It was such a busy day! He went to school, and brought his favorite snack (cinnamon bagels with cream cheese!) to share with friends. I had school on both campuses and then rushed home to make the birthday dinner he requested...more bagels. I tried to convince him that he really wanted bagel SANDWICHES like everyone else, but that ended up with egg, sausage, and cheese on the floor and only the bagel in his belly. I should have just listened to him. Ha.  He requested chocolate chip cookies for dessert, and we were all happy to help him eat them!

Yes, I know it's sideways.  Turn your head.

Achievements for the year...we finally ditched the diapers/pullups! We learned that you have sensory processing disorder, and maybe some other alphabet soup diagnosis...but none of that changes who you are to us and in our family. We have learned that different is not bad...just different!

What I love about you...

• You make me laugh.  Every. Single. Day.  You are the funniest kid ever!
• Crash hugs!  Just warn me first...
• Your strong emotions.  There is never a doubt where anyone stands with you!
• Your amazing acrobatic abilities.
• Your awesomely awesomeness!
• You are mine.

I'm so glad I get to be your mom, Levi!  Four is going to be a wonderful year, I just know it!

Nick

Today is my Nick's birthday. As happens every year, Noah and Nick will be the same age for 9 days. I have two 10 year olds!

You are so loved, Nick. I only wish you knew...

Our family is never complete without you. We love you and miss you very, very, very much. I do hope that while we are missing you, you have a wonderful birthday.

Love you, kiddo.

Why?

Hannah joined me in watching the movie "Amazing Grace" on Netflix streaming. The movie tells the story of how the song was written by John Newton, a slave trader. It was a very good movie, a bit graphic in spots, but I don't think the ugliness of the past should be hidden from children. How will they learn from history if they don't know what happened?

She has been so unexposed to the ugliness of racism that all she could do is ask, over and over again, "But why, Mom? Why would people do that to other people? They're just people with different skin!"

I'm glad she can't understand. There is nothing to understand about one color of man hating another color...as if anyone has any control over the color God has given them!

Great deals!

Over the past 7 or 8 years, I have developed a method for shopping sales and coupons. Here are some from Rite Aid this week...

Diapers and pullups...regularly $12.49, on sale for $8.99. I also had coupons for these, totalling $7. Total cost: $28.96 or $7.24 per package.

I know, a strange combination for the picture. The Axe body spray are normally $5.99, and after sale, UP reward, and BOGO coupon, I paid 75 cents each. Noah and Nick will each get one for their birthday. They're reaching the "stinky age". LOL

Rite Aid paid me a dollar to take the contact solution away. I paid $7.99, had a $1 coupon, and will get $7.99 back in a Single Check Rebate.

The Maalox cost me a whopping 34 cents after my 20% super-customer discount and a $5 coupon from the Sunday paper a few weeks ago.

Vitamins and supplements are often BOGO at Rite Aid. Rite Aid also will take a coupon for each item, even if it is the free one in the BOGO deal. I got the Cholestoff (yes, I have high cholesterol...and I don't eat much of the things that normally cause that!) for $7.75 each. They were originally $21.49. I had a $4 and a $2 coupon. The melatonin (for Levi to sleep) and vitamin D (for Brian's bones) were also BOGO, and were $13.99 and $11.49 respectively. I had a $3 coupon for each, from AllYou magazine, making the average cost of them about $4 each.

Now for the good stuff. Our snack bin has been running low, and while we don't "need" this stuff, it was also on great sales. The Reese's and Almond Joy pieces were on sale for $2.88 each, normally $3.99. I also had a $2 off 2 coupon from watching Video Values on the Rite Aid website, making them $1.88 each.

Pringles were on sale 2/$3. I had a $1 coupon for them. They are Brian's favorite.

Another favorite for movie night...mixed nuts. These were BOGO at $5.99. I also had a $1 coupon.

The trail mix was 2/$3, with a $1 UP reward with purchase of 2.

Edy's ice cream...regular $5.29. Sale for $2.99 with a $2 UP reward. UP rewards are coupons at the bottom of the receipt, for use on your next purchase. They are the equivalent of cash. Total price: $1.98 for 2 containers of my favorite brand of ice cream!

Dixie plates and bowls...BOGO. Normally $3.99 each and I also had a $3/2 Video Values coupon, making the total price 99 cents for two packages. I have one more of those coupons, and hope to find some plates at a different Rite Aid tomorrow.

All in all, a great week for shopping at Rite Aid! Posting like this is a ton of work though, so don't count on this breakdown often. But I wanted to give any readers (do I have any??) an idea of how I shop.

Menu planning

I used to plan one meal of the day, and got out of the habit. Last night, I had some dead time in class, so I decided to plan for this month. It makes my life so much easier, though it is such a small thing. It eliminates the "what's for dinner, what do I feel like eating, what do I feel like making, what do I have ingredients for" dilemma at the time of day when I have the least amount of energy.

What I did first was to make a list of meals: our regular meals, things I either have all the ingredients for already or just need one or two things, and a couple different meals mixed in.

Then I sketched out the month, filling in days I know there are things going on. Four of the kids have birthdays this month, and they get to choose the meal on their birthday (or another close day if the birthday doesn't work out), so I left those open for now.

Next, I started filling in the days. My school schedule helped decide where to put things. Monday is very meat heavy, things I can put in the crockpot, since that is my long day of school, and I am not a big meat eater. Yesterday, they had boneless pork ribs and potatoes with BBQ sauce in the crockpot. Tuesdays, I have class until 6:50, so those are simple, quick meals. Any high prep meals need to land on the weekend.

This is what I came up with for this month...
T, 1...grilled cheese and soup
W, 2...lemon pepper chicken, rice, veggie
Th, 3...blueberry pancakes, sausage, cantaloupe
F, 4...spaghetti and meatballs
Sa, 5...leaving this open for Nick's birthday meal, if we have him
Su, 6...turkey breast (on sale this week), mashed sweet potatoes, other sides
M, 7...beef roast in crockpot
T, 8...meatball subs, salad
W, 9...Levi's birthday! He'll either pick box mac and cheese or chicken nuggets. Maybe both.
Th, 10...Levi's party at McDonald's.
F, 11...Frnech toast, bacon, fruit
Sa, 12...leaving this open for Nick's birthday meal, if we have him
Su, 13...family bday party...chicken riggies!
M, 14...venison and eggs (blech. Glad I'll be in school for this!)
T, 15...PIZZA!!! I'll pick it up after school. This is my birthday meal.
W, 16...Noah's birthday (and mine). He'll pick something fun.
Th, 17...pot pies
F, 18...tacos
Sa, 19...Pampered Chef party!
Su, 20...Hannah's birthday meal. Her birthday is the 21st, but that's my long school day, so she gets her meal a day early.
M, 21...burgers
T, 22...cheesy chicken and rice bake (will make before school and have Noah put in so it's ready when I get home)
W, 23...cheese chowder (YUM!)
Th, 24...Noah's friend party at Chuck E Cheese
F, 25...macaroni and cheese, veggie
Sa, 26...sausage ziti, salad, garlic bread
Su, 27...leftovers
M, 28...pork chops, mashed potatoes, veggie