Operation Write Home...

My friend JenMarie recently participated in a blog hop for Operation Write Home. This is an organization that collects greeting cards and provides them to men and women in the armed forces so they can send notes to loved ones at home. I thought, what a great way to put the cards I make for fun to a good use. So I went to the site and checked out the details, gathered 30 cards and mailed them off this morning!

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ crockpot bbq chicken, chips, pickles

Tuesday ~ pasta, salad, bread

Wednesday ~ honey coconut salmon, green beans, ramen noodles

Thursday ~ hot dogs, tater tots, apple slices

Friday ~ eat on the go!

Visit Org Junkie for more recipes!

Meijer at a glance... 3/28 - 4/03

Here are just a few of the deals at Meijer this week. Be sure to check out the Meijer Mealbox for extra savings on various items. Also, for more deals check out your local ad here!

I Can't Believe It's Not Butter... $1.50
.50 Printable
.60 from the 3/28 RP

Philadelphia Cream Cheese... $1.25
.55 Printable

Sara Lee Pies... $3.00
$1.00 Printable

Tropicana OJ... $2.50
$1.00 from the 3/14 SS
PLUS $1.00/2 via Meijer Mealbox

Wheat Thins... $1.67
$1.00 Printable

Cheerios... $1.99
$1.00/2 Printable
$1.00/2 from the 2/21 SS

Kellogg's Cereal... $2.50
{$3.00 off instantly at checkout wyb 4}
$1/2 Kelloggs Cereals Select Varieties 3/7 RP
$1.50/2 Printable
$1.00 Printable

{yummo} chicken salad!

I have been wanting to find a chicken salad recipe that wasn't too mayoish tasting...{I'm not a huge fan}. So, I found a recipe that was close to what I wanted and tweaked it a little. I think it turned out pretty yummo!
Ingredients:
1 cup shredded chicken
1/3 cup light mayo
2 Tbsp sour cream
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp honey
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cup seedless red grapes, sliced
1/2 rib celery, thinly sliced
1/4 cup walnut pieces
1/4 cup shredded cheese
dash of salt and pepper

Directions:
Combine the mayo, sour cream, lemon juice, honey and sugar. Stir in chicken, grapes, celery, walnuts, cheese, salt and pepper. Add more mayo if needed. Enjoy with some lettuce on a pita!

Creative Corner...UNITY simple scrapbook challenge

I created this layout for the Unity Simple Scrapbook Challenge USCSSC01. I used the title {wishes} for the pictures of the Superbowl and my friend Jamie's birthday.

Recipe:
Paper ~ kraft, cream, pacific point, K&Company cut 'n paste mat pack
Stamps ~ unity's amazing me!, june 09 kom: perfect in every way
Ink ~ memento rich cocoa, copics
Accessories ~ twill tape, cord. button, circle punch

Toy Story 1 & 2 DEAL...

I saw this on Slickdeals.net and just had to share! Toy Story 1 & 2 were just re-released yesterday and Toys R Us has a great deal running through Saturday. If you buy both Toy Story 1 & 2 Blu-ray/DVD combo packs they are only 16.99 each. Pair that with a $10 coupon for Toy Story and a $10 coupon for Toy Story 2, the cost comes down to $6.99 each for a grand total of $13.98 {mine came to $16.70 with tax}!

In addition to getting the movies for a deal, each one comes with a coupon code to get a free movie ticket for Toy Story 3 coming out in June! {With movie tickets ranging anywhere from $6-$10...you can't go wrong with this deal!}

{book}marked

Not only do we utilize our local library for themed books that coordinate with the time of year, like seasons, holidays, etc...we also get "just for fun" books. We have read these over and over. I just love when Little Bit gets to where she can just about tell me the story! Here are a few of our favs right now:

Piglet and Mamma by Margaret Wild

Flip, Flap, Fly! by Phyllis Root

If You Give a Pig a Pancake by Laura Numeroff

Thank You Bear by Greg Foley

Do you have a favorite book that you would like to share? Little Bit and I are always open for suggestions!

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ scrambled eggs, biscuits & gravy, strawberries

Tuesday ~ southwest roll-ups, rice, corn

Wednesday ~ hot dogs, tater tots, apple slices

Thursday ~ tilapia sticks, green beans, mac & cheese

Friday ~ leftover buffet

Visit Org Junkie for more recipes!

fabric scrap {basket}...

I saw this tutorial for a fabric scrap basket and thought it looked fairly easy and super cute! So I tried it out, just using some fabric that I had on hand. I just love how it turned out! It found a home next to my sewing machine and holds my scraps...just like the name says...LOL! Maybe once it gets filled up I can create this cute little doll quilt.

Meijer at a glance... 3/21 - 3/27

Here are just a few of the deals at Meijer this week. Be sure to check out the Meijer Mealbox for extra savings on various items. Also, for more deals check out your local ad here!

Quaker Cereal, Chewy Bars & True Delight Bars... $1.69
{$5 off wyb ANY 10 Items}
$.75/2 Quaker Chewy Granola Bars 2/14 RP

Kellogg’s Cereal... $2.00
{Buy any 3 Boxes and receive (1) Free Gallon Milk; Buy any 5 Boxes and receive (2) Free Gallons Milk; Buy any 7 Boxes and receive (3) Free Gallons Milk.}
Includes: Froot Loops, Apple Jacks, Corn Pops, Smorz, Cocoa Krispies
$1/2 Kelloggs Cereals Select Varieties 3/7/2010 RP

Toaster Strudels... $2.00
$.55/2 Printable
$.55/2 from the 3/7 SS

Aunt Millie’s Healthy Goodness Bread 16-20 oz... $1.29
$.55 Aunt Millie’s Healthy Goodness Bread 1/10 RP
$.55 Healthy Goodness Bread Printable

Oscar Mayer Bacon... $3.64
$1.50 Printable
$.75 from the 3/21 SS

Hillshire Deli Meats... $2.50
$1.00/2 Printable
$1.00/2 from the 3/14 RP

Morning Star Burgers... $3.00
$1.00 Printable

Kellogg’s Fruit Snacks 10 ct or Yogos 4.2-4.9 oz... $1.89
$1.00 Printable

Keebler Wheatables Crackers 8-10 oz... $1.99
$1.00 Printable

Ziploc Bags & Containers... $1.89
$1/2 Ziploc Brand Bags 3/21 SS
$0.40 Ziploc Brand Bags 3/21 SS
$1/2 Ziploc Slider Bags 2/21 SS
$0.55 Ziploc Slider Bags 2/21 SS
$1.50/2 from the 2/21 SS
$1.50/2 from the 3/21 SS

Huggies printable coupons...

WOW! You can print $3.00 off 1 Huggies diaper coupons from THREE different sources right now...hurry before they are gone!
Start off at Coupons.com for the first $3 Huggies coupon {which you should be able to print twice.} Visit the Huggies Facebook page for another $3 Huggies coupon. Finally, print two of this new $3.00 Huggies coupon {after printing once, just use your back button and it should print again!}

Pair these coupons with the $1.50 Huggies coupons available from Target.com to save even more. My local Target has Huggies Jumbo packs regularly priced at $8.99! So with coupons I would only pay $4.49 per pack for name brand diapers!!!

{sew} cute pincushion!

I have a larger pin cushion that sets on a shelf in my sewing room, holding the majority of my pins. I wanted a smaller one that I could have by the sewing machine when working on projects. So I decided to make one! I used this tutorial to create this little cutie! I used a 5 1/2 inch circle to create the base as in the tutorial. Instead of a felt circle for the top, I cut out a felt flower using my Cuttlebug and the Flower Layers #3 die from Sizzix. Since there is a hole in the center of the flower, I added a chocolate chip corduroy button to hide the hole and add some extra pizazz!

Creative Corner...fabric key chain

I have {sew} been in a mood to sew lately! I have a purse in the works which I hope to finish in the next few days. BUT in the meantime I wanted to finish something quick. I found this tutorial for a fabric key chain and just had to try it. It is far from perfect but I am happy with it.

I used Alexander Henry fabric Mocca-Red which can be found at your JoAnns! I just love the bright bold colors in this fabric {granted you can't see much of it on the key chain...but it is still pretty great!}. I found a red with white dots fabric to coordinate for the inside...which you can barely see in the below pic.
If you are looking for a fun way to spice up your key ring, or just a fairly easy sewing project...try this one out!

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ alfredo pasta w/mushrooms & spinach, salad, garlic bread

Tuesday ~ turkey tacos, refried beans, rice

Wednesday ~ crockpot chicken & dumplings, mashed potatoes, green beans

Thursday ~ creamy mushroom & chicken soup, bread

Friday ~ leftover buffet

Visit Org Junkie for more recipes!

Creative Corner...necklace

Check out this necklace I made at Michaels yesterday...for FREE!!! They had a Fun With Beads make-it take-it event in the store. There were several projects to choose from and an employee from the jewelry department was there to assist.

I found out about this from the emails I get from Michaels on a weekly basis. The emails include info on sales, events, project ideas and coupons! You can sign up here to start getting these emails yourself.

Meijer at a glance... 3/14 - 3/20

Here are just a few of the deals at Meijer this week. Be sure to check out the Meijer Mealbox for extra savings on various items. Also, for more deals check out your local ad here!

10 for $10 get the 11th Item FREE!!! I've only listed a few of the many $1 deals...

Aunt Millie’s English Muffins 6 ct

Meijer Ground Turkey 16 oz

Green Giant Boxed or Poly Vegetables 7-12 oz
$.60/3 Green Giant Frozen Boxed Vegetables 2/7/2010 GM
$.60/3 Green Giant Frozen Boxed Vegetables 3/7/2010 SS
$.60/3 Green Giant Frozen Boxed Vegetables 2/21/2010 SS
$.50/2 Green Giant Frozen Boxed Vegetables

Del Monte Tomatoes 14.5 oz
$1/4 Del Monte Canned Fruits/Vegetables 2/7/2010 RP
PLUS$.25/1 via Meijer Mealbox

Pillsbury Grands! Biscuits 12-16.3 oz
$.40/3 Pillsbury Grands! Biscuits 1/3/2010 SS
$1/3 Pillsbury Grands! Biscuits 1/10/2010 SS
$.30/2 Pillsbury Grands! Biscuits
$1/2 Pillsbury Refrigerated Grands Biscuits
------------------------------------------------

John Morrell Off the Bone Sliced Ham or Turkey 9 oz... $2.50
B3G1 Free John Morrell Lunchmeats 1/31/2010 SS

Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks... $1.67
{Buy any 2 and receive a $1 Catalina; Buy any 3 and receive a $1.50 Catalina; Buy any 4 and receive a $3 Catalina.}
Includes: Fruit by the Foot, Roll Ups, Gushers, Stickerz
$0.50/2 Betty Crocker Fruit Shapes Select Varieties 3/7/2010 SS
$0.50/2 Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks Select Varieties

Nature Valley Bars 7.4-8.94 oz... $1.99
$.40/1 Nature Valley Granola Bar 3/7/2010 SS
$0.40/1 Nature Valley Granola Bars

Kellogg’s Cereal... $1.99
Includes: Frosted Mini Wheats Bite Size, Frosted Flakes, Rice Krispies, Apple Jacks, Froot Loops, Raisin Bran
$1/2 Kellogg’s Cereal 11.4 oz+ 3/7/2010 RP
$1/2 Kellogg’s Cereal 10 oz+ 3/7/2010 RP
$1.50/2 Kellogg’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereals
$1.50/2 Kellogg’s Cereals 11.4 oz+

General Mills Cereal... $1.99
Includes: Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Honey Nut Cheerios, Lucky Charms, Cocoa Puffs
$1/3 General Mills Cereals 2/7/2010 GM
$1/2 General Mills Cereal 3/7/2010 SS
$0.75/1 General Mills Fiber One Cereals
$0.55/1 General Mills Reeses Puffs Cereal

Yoplait Yogurt Cups 6 oz or Whips 4 oz... $.50
{$1 Instant Savings WYB 10 Cups}
$0.40/6 Yoplait Yogurt Cups

Kraft Cheese Singles 10.7-12 oz... $2.00
$1/1 Kraft Deli Deluxe Slices
PLUS $1/2 Kraft Singles or Kraft Deli Deluxe Slices – Meijer Store Coupon

{check} this out...

Bears, bears and more bears...oh my! The last couple weeks we have been focusing on BEARS!

Goldie and The Three Bears by Diane Stanley

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.

Polar Bear and the Rainbow by Moira Butterfield

Thank You Bear by Greg Foley

Teddy Bears, Teddy Bears by William B. Winburn

Bears on Chairs by Shirley Parenteau

{don't forget...utilize your local library for reading and AV material!!!}

Here are a few activities to go along with the bear theme:

teddy bear sorting...Gather a variety of teddy bears then count them and sort them by categories ...color, size, ones wearing bows...

three bears sorting...Gather 3 sizes of like items...we used 3 cups, 3 bowls and 3 spoons. After reading The Three Bears story, Little Bit sorted them into small, medium and large, then decided which one was for papa bear, mama bear and baby bear.

puzzle time...Put together several bear puzzles, including a Melissa & Doug bear dress up one.

bear puppet...Put together a bear paper bag puppet {Martha Stewart...bought on clearance awhile back at Walmart}

snack...teddy grahams!

Creative Corner...Scrap Club

February always makes me think of sweet stuff {like sweet tarts and chocolate of course!}. So what better title for the month...{SWEET}. What a yummy color scheme too....pink, red and chocolate!

If you are interested in joining scrap club, check out more info here.

Coupon Commotion...

I stopped in JoAnns today to see what goodies I could find since this is their coupon commotion week! This means if it isn't on sale there is probably a coupon you can use on it...and you can use more than one coupon in a single transaction! Here are several coupons you can print, plus there is usually an ad right as you walk in the door that has more coupons!

One great find I came home with is a 7 spool pack of Gutermann sew-all thread. Each spool contains 110 yds of thread. The colors are black, white, cream, grey, navy, red and tan. It was $6.49 and I was able to use a 50% off coupon for it, so $3.25 for 7 spools of thread {about $.46 a spool!}.

Blog Inspiration...

My friend JenMarie recently updated her blog design and I just loved the color combo...so I decided to use it as inspiration on my next card. I came up with this...my stamp club swap for February. I used the Flower Layers #3 die from Sizzix and cut out 2 flowers. One in felt! and one in cardstock. I also dot embossed the cardstock flower. Some ribbon for "leaves" and a button in the flowers center to finish it off!

it feels like {spring}!

The weather was awesome today! So off to the park we went. Little Bit had a blast...she wanted to slide and slide and slide! She looked so cute in her pig tails {which she requested!} so of course I had to snap some pics!!!

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ turkey chili, peanut butter sandwiches, carrot sticks

Tuesday ~ chicken caesar burgers, tots, salad

Wednesday ~ orange-ginger tilapia, green beans, potatoes

Thursday ~ leftover buffet

Friday ~ italian beef, chips, pickles

Visit Org Junkie for more recipes!

Meijer at a glance... 3/07 - 3/13

Here are just a few of the deals at Meijer this week. Be sure to check out the Meijer Mealbox for extra savings on various items. Also, for more deals check out your local ad here!

Aunt Millie's Old Fashioned Bread or Buns... B1G2 FREE

Coffeemate... $1.50
B1G1 Free Printable
.75 Printable
.75 in the 2/7 RP

Barilla Pasta... $.89
$1.00/2 in the 3/7 SS

Ken's Salad Dressing... $2.00
$1.00 in the 3/7 SS

Post Cereal {select varieties}... $2.00
$2.00 Printable {for Post Natural Advantage, if included in sale}

Light n Fit... $.40
$.75/6 Printable
$1.00/10 in the 2/21 SS

Sweet Potato Casserole

I was not always fond of sweet potatoes until I tried them one Thanksgiving a few years ago. My grandma makes a yummo sweet potato casserole...similar to this one. Try it for yourself and let me know what you think!

Ingredients:
casserole...
3 cups sweet potatoes
1 stick butter
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

topping...
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup flour
1 stick butter
1 cup brown sugar

Directions:
Peel & cook sweet potatoes until tender. {If you prefer to use canned that is ok.} Drain potatoes and mash, add butter. Beat eggs with milk and add to potatoes. Next, stir in sugar and vanilla. Pour into 9x13 baking dish.

Combine topping ingredients together and sprinkle on top of potatoes. Bake at 350 for 30 to 40 minutes.

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ alfredo pasta w/mushrooms & spinach, garlic bread

Tuesday ~ meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans

Wednesday ~ turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, corn

Thursday ~ italian beef, chips, pickles

Friday ~ leftover buffet

Visit Org Junkie for more recipes!

It's National Craft Month!!!

March is National Craft Month! There could not BE a better time to get those creative juices flowing and do something crafty!!! I am going to try and create to my heart's content this month! {I have a lot of ideas swimming around in my head!} I am sooooooooo excited to be kicking off the month by attending an overnight crop...yay!!!

Apparently clouds are all the rage, so I thought I'd try to incorporate them into a project. I started out with some SU kraft for the card base {love me some kraft!!!} and some ledger type paper from We R Memory Keepers. I cut clouds from a piece of American Crafts Everyday Howdy paper. Then I stamped a Michael's $1 butterfly on the cloud and paper pieced the wings. Some grosgrain ribbon and sentiment finish off this {airy} card.