March 2016

Checkout the New Pampers Savings in this Sunday’s Paper (4/2/16)!

“This sponsored #ad was made possible by #PampersSavings. I was compensated for my participation in this campaign, but all opinions are 100% my own.“

Hello again, savvy savers! No two ways around it, diapers and wipes can be just plain expensive. It’s frustrating to have to spend so much money on something that just gets thrown away. But if you’re anything like me sometimes you just need a simple, on-the-go disposable diaper choice. No mom-guilt needed here!

So the question becomes, how without too much hassle can you save your family money on disposable diapers and wipes without going broke in the process? Hands down, clipping coupons! As couponing is one of the best ways to save money on diapers and wipes. Plus, there are almost always coupons available.

With this in mind, Pampers will be offering big savings in this coming Sunday’s paper (April 3, 2016) for an insert from P&G, with two high value coupons. There will be a rare coupon offer good for $3.00 off two bags, or one box of Pampers Diapers OR Training Pants. Additionally, with Summer just around the corner, be on the lookout for a coupon good for $1.00 off Pampers Splashers Swim Diapers.

What’s really awesome about these coupons is that all Pampers Diapers and Pants are included in this particular offer (Pampers Diapers, Pampers Swaddlers, Pampers Cruisers, Pampers Baby Dry, and Pampers Easy Ups), except of course the trial/travel sized diaper packs. But then again, trial packs rarely are! So, get your scissors, binders, and savings envelopes ready, as these coupons can be used at any mass, discount or grocery stores where Pampers Diapers are sold.

A quick savings tip: Be sure to check your local papers for any available drugstore deals you may be able to pair these awesome money-savings coupons with this coming Sunday! We’re all about rolling savings in our household.

For more than 50 years, parents have trusted Pampers to care for their babies. I can wholeheartedly recommend this brand because this is the brand both my parents used and I would feel comfortable using myself, as Pampers offers a complete range of diapers, wipes and training pants designed to provide protection and comfort for every stage of baby’s development. An important factor to mom’s and savers everywhere!

Also, be sure to visit Pampers online to learn more about Pampers products, join the Pampers Rewards program, receive news on upcoming sales and coupons, and to find ideas and information to help your baby get the most out of love, sleep and play.

For more information, you can also visit Pampers social media channels on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Here’s to saving,

“Please note, this sponsored #ad was made possible by #PampersSavings. I was compensated for my participation in this campaign, but all opinions are 100% my own.“

What I’ve been loving in March

Ah, March…

The month of March end this Thursday. From warmer spring weather to a myriad of holidays, March is always such a great month for myself and my family. As we leave behind cold winter weather for warmer Spring days ahead, I just wanted to take pause and reflect back on why March was a month of blessings for my family and myself. So, here’s a list of the top 12 things that I’ve been loving this month.

March is the month when Mother Nature bursts forth into full technicolor bloom. Here at home our crocuses, hyacinths, wisterias, and daffodils are already blooming. Soon they will be joined by tulips, hyacinths, jasmine, lilacs, and crepe myrtles. The streets of my small hometown will soon be lined with blooming pear trees and azaleas. Mississippi is coming alive with bees, blooms, and the best of what this season has to offer!

We Dr. Seuss’ birthday was celebrated on March 2nd. We attended our local country library to hear a live reading of “The Cat in the Hat” and many other beloved Seussical children’s books as part of the Read Across America birthday celebration. This rally was amazing, and truly brought to life Dr. Seuss’ mission to making literacy fundamental and fun for children across this nation.

It’s said that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. Yet again, Mother Nature didn’t disappoint this year as March saw a lot of weather extremes, from highs in the 70’s, lows in the 20’s, three tornado warnings, and even an afternoon where Daniel’s school dismissed early due to flash flood warnings. Oy!

Here in Dixie, Daylight Saving Time began on March 13th. And while we will have more sunlight, more time this Summer to enjoy the great outdoors, loosing an hour of sleep was a bummer. One point of consolation, early morning sunrises that rival any beachscape I’ve ever seen. Waking up early to soak in the beauty of simple moments of solitude is something I’ve been really loving this month.

This month my family celebrated Saint Patrick’s Day simply at home with a feast of corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, and soda bread. There’s something to be said for the comfort that one pot dishes can bring to the soul. And not to be outdone by any corned beef and cabbage platter, my husband Daniel celebrated the day in his own way. He printed, colored, and rocked his very own Shamrock. This month I’ve really been loving my husband’s playful nature.

The first day of spring was celebrated with the Vernal Equinox on March 20th. On this day, day and night are equal everywhere, and I took this time to finish a few last minute ETSY shop orders, including this Easter Egg Wreath. Taking ordinary materials and turning them into something funky and fabulous is something I have been loving this month. Around this same time like many other Christians the world over, we celebrated Holy Week, Palm Sunday, Passover, and finally Easter Sunday, in a very quiet manner on March 27. We smoked hams, broke bread as a family, and spending time in fellowship with friends and neighbors.

Also this month my family and I were given the awesome opportunity to try out Airhead’s new birthday cake flavor taffy as part of their #airheadsepicbday 30th anniversary celebration, from February 29th thru June 29th of this year. Shockingly, the birthday cake flavor tastes just like fresh, homemade buttercream icing. Though I’m not a huge candy fan our crew loved them. This candy is surely not part of our journey into semi-crunchy nation, but you need a few fun departures every now and then! Be sure to checkout Airhead’s birthday bash inline, and enter for a chance to win $10,000 in cash and prizes as well.

And of course it wouldn’t be a proper change of season without switching out threads in my capsule wardrobe. This month marked a year from my first Spring capsule, and it was nice to see the progression of this current seasons capsule compared to my capsule a year ago. While I love everything about capsule wardrobes, my absolutely favorite part? The small teal polka dot boxes from Thredup that arrive when I need to replace a staple piece here and there. Yeah, I’m a fan of shopping from home, and with free return shipping it’s a no-brainer in my book!

And as a side note, I’m a brand ambassador for Bulu Box. And this past month I was given the opportunity to review the new Double Scoops products from Bulu Box. Let me just say, wow ladies. These. Are. Amazing.

As a skeptic when it comes to anything involving unmentionable innovations, this product surprised even me. These two scoops help keep your cones right where they belong, pun intended. They are an affordable, modest means to transform the way you can look and feel this season in thinner fabrics, dresses, and blouses. The best part? They are comfortable.

I tried the peach color, but they come in different shapes and colors, and are even waterproof. Yes—you can use them in a swimsuit. These scoops help ward off the effects of both motherhood and gravity in a simple, simple way. Each box even comes with tape so you can essentially use these with lower cut necklines as well. To find out more about these scoops, click here.

And I didn’t want this month to end without again sharing that this past week, March 20th, was the tenth anniversary of National Puppy Day. Though I’m a pet-parent to several amazing fuzzies, my Sassy, our six-year-old Shih-Tzu, will always hold an extra special place in my heart. She was an adopted baby, and there is not a day that goes my when she has not been a blessing to my life. Even as a puppy, the day she chewed a foot long hole into my brand new jute dining room rug. I still loved her even then.

National Puppy Day is a reminder for our family to #adoptnotshop when it comes to pets. Every life is important, and my husband and I take the stewardship of our fuzzies very seriously. We believe in being good parents to children and pets, too! We have to look out for everyone in the kingdom, you know?

This past month I’ve been able to spend a good amount of time of my favorite hobby, reading. I was very honored to be asked to be a member of Ruth Sokup’s book launch team for her upcoming release, Unstuffed.

Do you feel your life, home, and office are stuffed to the brims with things, papers, and piles? Then you are in luck my friend! This book speaks to the need from all walks of life to slow down and evaluate ways to clear both our homes and lives of the unnecessary abundance of cluttered that causes chaos, over-spending, time management conflicts, and feelings of being rundown in our minds, lives, and homes.

Ruth offers readers practical tips and time-tested advice for finding joy in living lives less stuffed with joy-busting clutter. This book is divided into lessons. Each lesson walks you room-by-room, obstacle-by-obstacle through your home, allowing the reader to create a strategy and mindset for last cleaning, organizing, and living success.

This quote, especially spoke to me:

“But here’s the truth: A busy life is not the same as a meaningful one. Athletic, successful or talented children do not make us more important. Activities, obligations, and commitments do not make us count. If we’re looking for the answer to our frustrations, despair, and hopelessness in a full calendar, we will never find it there. In fact, quite often, the fuller our calendars become, the emptier our hearts feel.”

The book also contains a fun, interactive quiz to help you determine how much is too much, when it comes to personal and business commitments, the daily drudge of “life clutter.” A particular point of interest for me in this book was it’s chapter on friendships and interpersonal relationships. Though Ruth does not engage readers in the art of making friends (though I feel this would have added greatly to this book), she does speak of the necessity to seek friendships that will remain vital to your well-being. And in the reverse, knowing the best ways to ditch unhealthy, one-sided friendships in order to devote time to cultivating nurturing, lasting friendships instead.

This book is a true, transparent look at how one can unclutter all aspects of your life. I highly recommend this book. If you’d like to read Unstuffed, it’s currently on pre-order at Amazon for $9.89, and will be released on April 5, 2016.

This month I was also given the opportunity to review I Want It All: Exchanging Your Average Life for Deeper Faith, Greater Power, and More Impact, by Gwen Smith.

The book intrigued in it’s simple but profound central question, “Do you struggle with sleepy faith syndrome?” If you are anything like me, the answer to this question may be an astounding yes.

The author discusses with readers her views on how easy it can be easy to dismiss God’s plans with diminutive thoughts that ordinary women, women like ourselves, cannot make a huge difference in the body of Christ, manifesting in an I can’t attitude to life.

The author gives readers a different, refreshing perspective. Stating that despite our personal shortcomings, God created each woman in the brethren of Christ to be equipped with the disposition, spirit, and ability to lead our families and communities towards lives of abundant joy, courage, and influence. We can each create new, lasting seasons of gratitude and change in our own lives. We can each be mirrors of proactive social change too!

The author leaves readers with a central note, that one can have it all when you abandon your self-loathing for a live of grace-filled purpose and significance.

I Want It All will ignite a fire in your heart to experience more faith and impact as you move forward in this next season of life, and was the perfect start to the Spring season of renewal in my own life as well.

This has been one of my favorite Women’s Christian non-fiction books I’ve read thus far this year. If you’d like to check this book out, it’s currently available on Amazon for $9.99 shipped with Amazon Prime or $9.49 on Amazon Kindle.

Lastly, I was also honored to be apart of the book tour for Sisi: An Empress on Her Own, by Allison Pataki.

This is a beautiful story. This book is woven full of drama, suspense, unrequited romances, and guilt. This book is also surprisingly based on the life story of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, or Sisi as she was known to those dear to her. Elizabeth the woman, lived a fascinatingly dangerous life fatally intermingled with the ill-fated Hasburg dynasty during its final decade of decline. Pataki beautifully illustrates the better half of Sisi’s life, giving readers a tender glimpse into the mentally uncertain life of the empress.

With each chapter the reader will hope for lasting solace and fortune for the often spoiled Sisi. As I read this book I found a great deal of empathy for Sisi, as I longingly wanted her to abandon family, title, duty for a life less forced exploitation. This book is no less than a saga of words, emotions, and song.

Pataki shows the corrupt, gritty details of royal life in a way that still leaves the sophistication and romanticized spledor this dynasty is known for with each forthcoming page. The fantasy of being a Hasburg, both the grandiose and the grotesque, remains unaltered all it’s splendor. Pataki is a stickler to historical detail, which makes reading this and any of her novels a highly enjoyable experience.

So, if your looking for a refreshing take on history, this is the book for you. Currently, this book is available on Amazon for $18.48 shipped with Amazon Prime, and $13.49 with Amazon Kindle for those who wish to pick it up this Spring.

So, folks that’s what I’ve been loving this month in March. How has your month been for you? I’d love to hear about your moments, suggestions, and tidbits as well.

Here’s to April,

The Benefits & Guide to Juggling

Guest post, by Daniel (The LadyPrefers2Save’s better half).

Spring break is just around the corner. That means no school for a whole week! Kids home for a week and looking for something to do. This may be the article to help keep your sanity, and look like a pretty cool parent to boot. How? Teach them to juggle. Balls never need batteries, they’re cheap, and will keep your kids doing something productive and healthy. “I can’t juggle!” you say. That’s fine, I’ll teach you and you can teach your kids.

So, you may be asking why Juggling? Well juggling is a really good exercise for life. In fact, there are a lot of benefits to this sport too! Juggling can help you with the following life-boosting skills:

Brain growth: Juggling has been scientifically proven to help your mind grow larger, prevent gray matter deterioration in the elderly and help with focus issues with children with ADHD.

Posture: The average person spends 8-12 hours daily at a computer, causing your neck and back to become unaligned. You can combat this unhappy hunched back situation by juggling is perfect. As juggling forces the proper body and spine alignment used to stand up straight, relaxing neck muscles, and correct hand-eye coordination.

Anxiety: Juggling can help users learn ways to de-stress, aid in anxiety relief, and help relieve computer screen eye strain.

Focus: Juggling helps users focus various muscles, including neurological related muscle groups, and through regular practice and focus can be an overall, built-in reward. Consider this, one of the worlds premier jugglers, Reid Belstock, transformed by juggling. He sited focus and developing time management skills as the two major benefits to juggling:

Being an adaptable learner: The act of Juggling helps your mind adapt to learning new sequences of movement, and when you gain the learning to learn idea, you’re on your way to being a super learner.

Relaxation: Juggling is like meditation for the mind. Juggling is like Active Meditation, in that it helps you focus on the present, be more aware of your surroundings, positive self awareness, and helps you be aware to shapes, colors, and space in new ways. be aware of yourself.

So with this in mind, how do you start?

First find three balls that are about the same size. Tennis balls, racquetballs, and even baseballs will do, but I recommend tennis balls or bean bags. The following steps are laid out to help you train your brain to do to things at the same time. The balls will travel in a pattern similar to an infinity sign. Don’t rush yourself. So take a deep breath and let’s start.
Take one ball and toss it from your right hand to your left. The ball should be at a comfortable height. The hand that is about to catch should not need to move much to catch the ball. This will make the next few steps easier if your throws are consistent.
Once you can throw the ball back and forth at least 10 times without dropping it, pat your stomach once with the hand right before you catch the ball. This will help you prepare to make the second throw. Do this until you can go ten throws in a row without dropping the ball. Go for two pats before you catch and ten throws without a drop.
Now you are ready for two throws. Throw the first ball from your dominant hand. At the top of the arc of the first throw, throw the second ball behind the first ball. It should happen at an equal cadence of 1, 2, 3, 4 or throw throw catch catch. Take your time.
This is the last step. Place two balls in your dominant hand and one in the other. In the hand with two balls, hold one with your first two fingers and your thumb. Hold the second with your other two fingers and your palm. Start with the ball between your first two fingers and thumb. Make the same pattern you have practiced. This time instead of stopping, make another throw. It should follow a pattern of 1, 2, 3, 4, or throw, throw, throw, catch. You have just completed a cascade pattern.

So, that’s it folks! Take your time. If you run into issues go back a step. All things worth doing, take time and effort. Believe in yourself. You can do this on your own first or even try to work on this as your kids do. Whatever you choose to do, have fun.

I will post a quick video to give you a visual of the instructions.

Your friend,

Daniel

Welcome to the week’s Happiness is Homemade Linky Party!

Welcome to our party!
Happy Easter ♥

We had a really fun party last week with so many great posts.
Here are some of our favorites …

This Week’s Features

Paleo Zucchini Breakfast Cookies from Joy Food Sunshine

Liquid Pearl Eggs from Little Miss Celebration

Fish Tacos with Cumin and Honey by Tornadough Alli

Easter Egg Process Art from Pre-K Pages

Meet Our Hosts

Want to follow us?

We’d love that!

♥

Just click on the circle to connect to our blogs!!

The rules are so simple! Make sure you visit a few other blogs and make some new friends along the way. Feel free to link up your favorite recipes, crafts or your latest DIY project. We want you you share it all! As always, please make sure to follow your hosts and co-hosts!! Link up your posts, make some friends, and earn the chance to be featured at Happiness Is Homemade Link Party!

We will feature the favorite posts each week!

Plus, every feature will be pinned to our
Happiness is Homemade Pinterest board!

Disclaimer: Adding your link to this link party gives permission to all 12 Hosts, along with any co-hosts, guest hosts, and participants of Happiness Is Homemade, to share your posts and pictures via social media and as features, roundups, etc. with an explicit link back to your original source. Therefore, linking up you agree to allow us to use your images on each of our blogs in features relating to Happiness is Homemade Link Party.

2 Comments

Meal Plan Monday (3/21/16-3/28/16)

Happy Monday, savvy savers! This week is starting off to a sunny, cool, and somewhat stressful start here in Dixie.

Early Saturday morning, my husband and I discovered a pool of water under our side-by-side fridge. This was soon followed by loud clicking sounds and fridge’s compressor stopping . After having a repairman out the same afternoon and $168.00 later we were informed that our old, faithful fridge had seen it’s last. This was truly saddening to my zero-waste heart!

With our fridge inoperable, hubby and I scrambled to move food items around as quickly as possible, including 80 lbs. of frozen, marinated poultry! We also decided to not purchase a new fridge immediately. Mind you this was not an economic decision, but a matter of practicality. Thankfully, with clever planning, sorting, and cramming we were able to make everything from the freezer fit into our deep freeze, and the contents of our fridge was transferred to our under counter kitchen fridge and electric wine cooler. What could not fit, a handful of larger, bulk items from Sam’s Club, were gifted to our neighbors.

The upswing? Not having a fridge will save our family of three over $30.00 annually in power charges, lower our household carbon emissions, and help us maintain a more minimalist home. While I’ll have my feelers out for a fridge in our local online classifieds should a cash-only fridge purchase should come available down the road, I’m in no hurry to run out and purchase a new fridge. Total non-consumer score!

But this does mean that this week’s menu and subsequent menus for the foreseeable future will reflect our need to eat down our food stockpile. We will have to consume everything we have on-hand first, so our week-to-week purchases aside from dairy and produce will consist of rebate app deals, freebie coupons, Zaycon meats (as available), and Amazon Subscribe and Save deals only.

The cost of this weekly menu is only $8.59, and it feeds a family of three, with leftovers rolled into lunches.

Here’s what we purchased this week:

Dollar Tree:

Chicken Leg 6-pack bag, $1.00 (submitted for $0.25 rebate from Shrink App)
64-ounce Bleach Jug, $1.00 ( submitted for $0.25 Mobisave App credit)
String Cheese 3-pack, $0.50 (submitted for $0.25 Mobisave App credit)
Spent: $2.50, plus applicable sales tax
Submitted for $0.75 app rebates
Final Cost: $1.75

Walmart:

Tony’s Pizza, $1.98 (submitted for $0.25 Mobisave App Credit)
2 Mr. Pibb 2-liters, $2.00 (submitted for $0.25 Mobisave App Credit on the purchase of 2 drinks)
Italian Deli Loaf, $0.50 (submitted for $0.25 Mobisave App Credit)
1 Gallon 2% Milk, $2.98 (submitted for $0.25 Shrink App Credit)
1 Head Cabbage, $0.69 (submitted for 20% back on the SavingStar App)
1 Head Iceburg lettuce, $0.98 (submitted for $0.25 back on Mobisave App)
1 Roma tomato, $0.33 (submitted for $0.25 Checkout51 App Credit)
1 Avocado, $0.88 (not pictured) (submitted for $0.25 iBotta App Credit)
1 Dozen Large eggs, $1.98 (submitted for $0.25 iBotta App Credit)
Ivory 3-bar pack, $0.88 (submitted for $0.30 Mobisave App Credit)
Ajax dish soap, $0.88 (submitted for $0.25 Mobisave App Credit)
Aspirin 60-count bottle, $0.88 (submitted for $0.50 Mobisave App Credit)
Hand soap, $0.88 (submitted for $0.25 Mobisave App Credit)
Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soap, $2.98 (submitted for $1.00 iBotta App Credit)
Used $4.14 Coin Star Voucher
Used $1.60 Walmart Savings Catcher Rebate e-gift card
Used $4.10 balance on Sam’s Club/Walmart gift card
Spent: $10.96, plus applicable tax
Submitted for $3.80 in savings app rebates
Submitted for Receipt Hog /credit ($0.10 value, used with code drog2894)
Submitted for Walmart Savings Catcher (received $0.22)
Final total: $6.84

This weeks shopping total was: $8.59 for $24.32 worth of groceries.

Monday
Breakfast: Avocado, Banana, and Almond Milk Smoothies.
Lunch: Salad with strawberries, almonds, string, and Italian dressing.
Snack: Strawberries and String Cheese.
Dinner: BBQ Cola Crockpot sliders with corn on the cob and green beans, with Crystal Light.
Dessert: Gluten-free brownies.

Tuesday
Breakfast: Cereal, with Almond milk.
Lunch: BBQ Cola Crockpot sliders with corn on the cob and green beans, with Crystal Light leftovers.
Snack: Strawberries and String Cheese.
Dinner: Crockpot Creamy Greek Chicken with steamed green beans and corn bread.
Dessert: Gluten-Free Brownie ice-cream sandwiches.

Wednesday
Breakfast: Avocado, Banana, and Almond Milk Smoothies.
Lunch: Crockpot Creamy Greek Chicken with steamed green beans and corn bread.
Snack: Strawberries and String Cheese.
Dinner: Crockpot Chicken Curry; steamed peas, steamed rice, and crystal light.
Dessert: Gluten-Free brownie ice cream sandwiches.

Thursday
Breakfast: Cereal, with Almond milk.
Lunch: Crockpot Chicken Curry; steamed peas, steamed rice, and crystal light leftovers.
Snack: Strawberries and String Cheese.
Dinner: Grilled tarragon turkey burgers served with sweet Potato Fries and Crystal Light.
Dessert: Brownie flurries with leftover brownies.

Friday
Breakfast: Avocado, Banana, and Almond Milk Smoothies.
Lunch: Grilled tarragon turkey burgers served with sweet Potato Fries and Crystal Light
Snack: Strawberries and String Cheese.
Dinner: Crockpot Orange Chicken with Almonds, Steamed Peas, and crystal light.
Dessert: Brownie flurries with leftover brownies.

Saturday
Breakfast: Cereal, with Almond milk.
Lunch: Crockpot Orange Chicken with Almonds, Steamed Peas, and crystal light.
Snacks: Strawberries and String Cheese.
Dinner: Chicken mole; served with steamed rice, corn, and Crystal Light.
Dessert: Brownie flurries with leftover brownies.

Sunday
Breakfast: Cereal, with Almond milk.
Lunch: Chicken mole; served with steamed rice, corn, and Crystal Light.
Snack: Strawberries and String Cheese.
Dinner: Spiral Honey Crockpot Ham, macaroni and cheese, green beans, and rolls.
Dessert: Apple Cinnamon muffins.

This past Sunday’s 1-hour freezer cooking prep:

This morning I tried to pair and purpose part of the 40 lbs. of chicken purchased from Zaycon foods, so I made several new crock pot-ready freezer meals, made from stockpiled veggies and chicken breasts already on hand.
I prepped three meals of Creamy Greek Chicken.
Also, I’ll be making DIY Greek yogurt for additional snacks as needed.

So this weeks last step was of course to put the menu on both our chalk menu board and my Living Well Spending Less Planner menu section for the remainder of March.

So, that’s what we will be having this week. I’d love to hear what’s on your menu as well!

Here’s to Monday meals,

Welcome to this week’s Happiness is Homemade Linky Party

Welcome to this weeks Happiness is Homemade Link Party!

This party is hosted on 12 popular blogs, so before linking up this party be sure to mosey on over to each of your party’s hostesses and say hi! This is a party, so let’s mingle. ♥

This Week’s Features

No Bake Birds Nest Cookies from Love My Messy Mess

DIY Portable Lego Table from Our Peaceful Planet

Mississippi Caviar from Family Food On The Table

Burlap Table Runner for Easter from The Country Chic Cottage

Meet Our Hosts

Want to follow us?

We’d love that!

♥

Just click on the circle to connect to our blogs!!

We will feature the favorite posts each week!

Plus, every feature will be pinned to our

Happiness is Homemade Pinterest board!

2 Comments

Happiness is Homemade 24 Favorite Easter Recipe Round-up!

Good morning, savvy savers! Spring has sprung here in Dixie, and I cannot believe it!

Easter is nearly here and that means it is time to start thinking about your menu. The Easter weekend gives us plenty of opportunities for feasting whether it’s appetizers before the big Easter Sunday meal or family brunches during the weekend. Several bloggers have gotten together to bring you our Favorite Easter Recipes. From delicious brunch, dinner and, of course dessert recipes you’ll be sure to find something to add to your Easter menus.