Deals, Qtips, and Other Reasons to Ramble

1. Do you remember the Will Smith song, "Summertime?" As you read this, sing that to yourself, because my summer vacation officially begins TODAY!!! I've been singing it in my head all morning long ... "Summer, summer, summertime ..."

2. I know some of you literally roll your eyes every time you see another picture of groceries or see another post about coupons. However, there are so many ladies in my church that are beginning to coupon, it makes me even more excited! Here are some of my recent deals:

CVS trip this week: Spent $5.45 out of pocket. Total savings: $70.60! Even if you hate me for all of these couponing posts, you've gotta be impressed with that! Oh, and I still have $10 Extra Care Bucks for next week!

Bi-Lo this morning: I had a pretty decent trip altogether, but toilet bowl cleaner was my big find. Lysol toilet bowl cleaner was B1G1 for $2.89. I had 8 $0.50 off coupons that doubled to $1 making each bottle $0.45 apeice! That's $3.60 for 8 bottles, which are usually $2.89 each when not on sale! Other notable deals - I got Smart Balance oil for $0.62 after sale and coupon and found a Macaroni Grill box dinner on clearance for $2.39. A $1 off coupon made it $1.39, which is great considering they are usually $4.79. I've been wanting to try one but have never been willing to pay almost $5 for a box meal!

And, finally, Food Lion. I typically don't like to shop here because they don't double coupons, which makes it hard to get a good deal. However, they had Quilted Northern B1G1 for $4.99. With 2 $1 off coupons, I got each package for $1.50. The Chinet plates were on sale 2/$4. I had 4 $2 off coupons from coupon inserts in a previous Sunday paper, so that meant FREE paper plates!

3. On to the great Qtip debate. Here's how the whole discussion came about - one night I was about to give Camryn a bath and commented to Jason that she really needed one. Then, I just randomly threw in there, "Plus, her ears need cleaning." Jason gave me a horrified look and said, "You don't clean her ears every day?" I gave him one of those are-you-crazy-looks and told him no. He then got a double horrified look on his face and said, "You clean yours every day, don't you?" Well, you've probably already figured out by now if I don't clean my child's every day, I don't typically clean mine every day. After that night, I didn't think he was going to get within 10 feet of me ever again.

Judging from your comments when I originally asked the question, you guys are about half and half - like us! Jason cleans his ears every day (sometimes multiple times!), and I clean mine several times a week but not EVERY day. Camryn's get cleaned after each bath during the week. So, there you have it! Now, how many of you are surprised that the germaphobe, clean-freak isn't the one who cleans hers every day! :)

4. Today as I was walking out of Walgreen's, I was so deep in "coupon thought" that I got to the entrance of the store, raised the remote control to my car, and pressed the unlock button for the front doors of the store to open. They opened, by the way.

5. If you think about it next week, say a prayer for a group of our youth who leave for a missions trip to Barbados on Saturday! Pray also for the parents and families who will put their children, husbands, etc. on a plane to fly to a foreign county for a week. This is an incredible group of youth and adults who are going, and I know God is going to use them for His glory while they are there. Their goal is to see 100 salvations while they are there. But, we know God is capable of FAR exceeding that goal!

6. The countdown to Keller is still on! My sister had a great checkup on Tuesday, so we are waiting for any moment now!

7. I am sooooo craving Mexican food right now. But, Jason has had it so much lately, I don't think he wants to see another quesadilla or enchilada for the rest of the summer! Anybody want to go with me? Maybe I should take Lindsay, order the hottest thing on the menu, and see if we can give Keller a little nudge!

8. I'm running into a bit of a storage problem because of all of my coupon shopping. I'm building these stockpiles but have nowhere to put them! My pantry and the cabinets under our sinks are overflowing right now, and somehow I've got to find a home for 8 bottles of Lysol toilet bowl cleaner!

9. Why is it that kids can turn it on and turn it off depending on the day of the week? A couple of months ago, I took Camryn to my office to meet some of the ladies there. She embarrassed me terribly, because she clung to me for dear life, buried her head on my shoulder, on my leg, and anywhere else she could hide, and wouldn't speak a single word to anybody. Yesterday, we had a picnic for our department, and wouldn't you know it, she was the belle of the ball. She smiled and she waved and she sat in laps and she engaged in elaborate discussions about her breakfast and Flinstones vitamins, and basically charmed the pants off of everyone.

10. Are you still singing "Summertime?" Me, too! :)