the grocery game

ok - so I don't' know if any of you have seen or heard about "The Grocery Game" but we had a bit on our news about it and I decided to check it out...let me tell you EVERYONE SHOULD PLAY THE GROCERY GAME!I went to Kroger this past Tuesday and my original total was $108.00 but after following Teri's list, clipping a few coupons and finding some other coupons online I only paid $35. Seriously - I was amazed. I got some really great stuff too:4 boxes of Honey Nut Cheerios (the name brand kind for $1.13 each), 5 Weight Watchers smart ones, 2 Air wick thingies (normally 10 bucks I got them for .99c), a roast, two packs of chicken, 2 things of toilet paper, 2 things of hand soap, waters, bran cereal, 2 packages of tea, 2 oscar meyer deli creations, a bertolli frozen pasta bag (normally $8 got it for $2) and a bunch of other stuff I can't really remember. The theory is to stock up on things when they are at rock bottom prices so that you have it in your cabinet when you need it and you aren't forced to buy it at full price when you run out. She also says that warehouse stores (walmart) aren't really the cheapest places to shop because they don't run sales like the grocery stores do and they don't do double coupons like kroger. The double coupons are great - for example tea was on sale for $1.50 each but I had a 60 cent coupon that was automatically doubled (kroger doubles all coupons up to 60 cents) so I paid 30 cents for the tea - you'd never find that kind of deal at Wal-mart! Plus, I hate shopping at Wal-mart...Anyway, if you go to the site (www.thegrocerygame.com) you can pay just $1 for a 4 week trial and then after that you have to pay $10 every 8 weeks (or 15 if you choose two stores)...which sounds like a lot but if you save $75 dollars a week and spend $1.25 a week on her list you are still saving $73.75...sounds like it's worth it to me.Also, you do have to start getting the Sunday paper because you need the coupons they have in there. So, if you buy it out of the stand that's 1.25 plus the 1.25 for her list - $2.50 for hundreds of savings potentially. I just started so I dont have the amount of coupons I will in a few weeks and some of the stuff on the list I just don't buy. If there was stuff I really wanted but didnt have the coupon, I just looked it up online and found most of them to print off. My two lists I used for the trial are Kroger and Walgreens. You'd be really surprised at how cheap stuff at Walgreens can be - I always thought it was an expensive store.Anyway, enough rambling on about it - I've been very impressed and I hope ya'll give it a try. Happy Shopping :)Oh and yes, this is Bethany - it's not a phishing ad, lol.

blog from myspace I forgot to post on here

To say that life has been crazy the past 7 months is an extreme understatement... we have faced things that I never dreamed we would for a time much longer than I ever imagined possible. Through it all though - God is still SO GOOD. We have come to realize how blessed we are and how great our friends, family and church family are - all to God's glory.
We have an amazing group of friends and family. My parents have been overly amazing in helping us through our difficult time as has Ben's...where would we be without their love to fall back on? When things are difficult you have no idea how much it means to just get an email saying "we're praying for you" much less a great meal and uplifting conversation that so many have provided over the past few months. To those of you who have been there for us, and you undoubtedly know who you are, thank you and may God bless you for the way you have blessed our lives. God has an amazing way of using difficulties and trials to show us how much others love and care for you and I now have a greater love and appreciation for so many loved ones - I know it has all been worth it to come to these realizations.
I haven't updated on Jackson in a while so here goes: We don't have his "6 month" check up until May 5 (Cinco de Mayo -woohoo) but we did take him in for a weight check when he turned 6 months and he weighed a little over 19 lbs. He is growing so fast and I can't believe how much fun he is every day. We now officially have a crawler. You put him down and he'll play sitting up for a little bit and then he gets over on his tummy and off he goes... so there's never a dull moment in our house. He's trying to pull up on our laps and the window sill, he just doesnt have the strength to do it all the way yet. So, we'll see how long it takes before he hits his head trying to get up on stuff. He just started waving and his new favorite thing to do is roll the ball back and forth.

There have been a few times in the last week where he's turned to Ben and said "da-eee" and Ben swears he's saying daddy - who knows but we'll let him have it :) Jackson has decided that he's the funniest person he knows because he'll be sitting in the floor and just start cracking up for no apparent reason - probably some inside joke he has about me and ben ;) He's obsessed with being outside and I'm serious when I say obsessed. He'll crawl up to us and I'll pick him up in my lap and he starts jumping up and down and lunging toward the doorway and won't stop until you get up and then as we walk toward the back door he reaches out for it and nearly jumps out of your arms - thank goodness it's almost summer!
Jackson got a new high chair from his Nonni and it could not have come a moment too soon - he was getting stuck in his bumbo. Because of an incident that I will not go into detail over, we got a 25 dollar gift certificate toward any fisher price purchase and so on my "Mom morning out" today I got Jackson some new blocks that he loves. I've become quite the coupon queen lately and I"m nearly obsessed with seeing how good of a deal I can get, lol. Like today at Target I also had a $5 off any toy purchase and the 25 gift certificate so I got him the blocks and some bath toys for .99 cents. It was awesome. I also got some Dove shampoo and conditioner for .50 cents. It made my whole day. So, if you have any awesome coupon sites or deals you know of - hit me up. It's my newest job title: Coupon clipper extraordinaire :)

Six Months of Parental Bliss

Our sweet little boy is 6 month's old today and I can't believe it - it still seems like I had him yesterday. Here he is sleeping in his crib after a long day of playing with mom and dad.

Being six month's old is hard work...




Bethany

Happy Easter Everyone

We're just waiting on the Easter Bunny...

Playing with some eggs...

And praising Christ for dying on the cross to save our sins.

Here's wishing everyone a Happy Easter!

Love,

Ben, Bethany and Jackson

Sitting up

Well, our little man is starting to sit up all by himself. I can't believe he is already becoming such a big boy...can't he just stay 5 months old forever? This is such a fun age and it seems like he gets more fun everyday. Here are a few pictures of him sitting up from earlier today. I kept thinking he was going to fall over in the pictures where he is leaning but he kept his balance and pulled himself back to sitting up straight. I must say I'm a little sad about it though - the more he can do by himself the less he needs mom to help him - now I know why people have more than one child...time really does just fly by.


Here he is leaning over and looking at Ben

Looking up at the cat in the chair

And my favorite :)

Big Boy Day

Today, Jackson reached a big boy milestone. Not only did he get his second round of shots, he graduated to his big boy carseat. Our old carseat was rated for up to 21 lbs. and Jackson is now approaching 18, so I guess we could have waited, but honestly, getting him into that old one was becoming more like stuffing him into it. Bethany got online and found a really great deal on the Britax Marathon LATCH car seat with the Crocodile cover. This car seat was recommended by several people we know and let me tell ya- it's money well spent. It has a lot of really great features that make it so much easier to use than any other one I've ever used. I find it to be a really 'common sense' car seat. Needless to say Jackson loves his 'First Class Ride'. He's finally able to see out the windows as we drive, and he didn't make a peep all the way to the Doctor's office this morning. Also, this is a convertible seat so he can stay in it up to 65 lbs. We're excited to have it.

- Ben

Jackson Jumparoo!

Last weekend we decided that Jackson was ready for a new kind of toy. Lately, his legs have been getting very stong, and he is kicking everything that his little feet come in contact with. He has kicked his bouncey seat, or "Spidey Seat" as it's known in our house, until it barely works anymore. So, we took a trip to Target and bought the Galloping Fun Jumparoo. At first he didn't know what to do- he just kinda looked at us and then down at his horse and looked back at us with confusion. However, it didn't take him long for his legs to find their rhythm and he began to ride it like he was Zorro and it was Toronado. He really loves it now, espically the horse's mane. It's made of yellow strips of felt that look like hair, and he loves to run his fingers through it. It's good to know he cares for his trusty steed. He also has developed a fondness for pulling his mother's hair... but that's another story. I'll let Bethany tell that one.
- Ben