My Recent Coupon Trip!! :)

So, I thought you all would enjoy this experience I had last night with my new "hobby" of couponing!!
I had printed 10 Buy One Get One Coupons from the Glade website. ( Hint:You can use ONE Manufacturer coupon for EACH item you buy, thats ANYwhere!! So, if you ever have a buy one get one Coupon and the store has a BOGO sale, you get both FREE!! )

These Glades are $9.99 EACH at Walgreens and Walgreens has their own in-store coupon for $4 off one of these! So, You pay $10 for 2, then use one $3 Q making it $7 for 2, THEN you use Walgrrens ad Q for -$8 ($4 off EACH) making you PROFIT $1...you only pay tax (the -$1 goes towards your tax)! So, here's what happened...
I have a Walgreens on either side of my house about 3 blocks each way and decided to go to the one on my way home from work yesterday! This particular Walgreens is kinda small and the other is a HUGE 24 hour Walgreens. So, I go in the store and thought to myself, I should probably not confuse the cashier by getting sooooo many of these (Glade things) at once, but then I thought, WHY NOT?! There is not a limit on these and I am doing nothing wrong by getting all of them! I KNEW better, but I did it anyway! Sometimes cashiers get cranky about coupons which is RIDICULOUS to me since it isn't coming out of their pocket AND the store gets reimbursed for the coupon, so the store STILL makes their money! And, if manufacturer's didn't want you to use their coupons, they wouldn't make them, they are there to USE!!!
So, I got 16 of them and also 9 OLAY Botanicals body wash (clearance for $1.39 - $1 coupon I had for EACH). I get to the checkout and the {older} cashier just looked at me like I was crazy. I say older because I have been warned NOt to go through lines with "older" cashiers as they will scrutinize your coupons and try to give you a hard time for no reason!! I told her I have tons of coupons and she said okay.
Well, it wasn't okay because when I gave her the BOGO Q'a she called the manager to "make sure" I could use that many! THEN, she called the manager again when I gave her the $3 Q's telling me she didn't think I could use them since I had used the BOGO and I was getting 2 for the price of 1 already! I said, yes you can, she DID NOT like that :) The manager said I could (after some hesitation). Then the cashier totaled it and I said I have more Q's and handed her the Walgreens in-store Q for $4 of each and it scanned for -$64 (16 @$4)...the cashier FLIPPED out! She looked at me and said "Oh, that isn't right, you can't take THAT much off your order"!!!
At this point, there was a line behind me and she was making sure everyone heard her! I asked her why and she said it "just wasn't right to take that much off my order"...seriously that was her answer!! No, reason, it just "wasn't right" LOL !!
So, the manager comes over and doesn't appreciate my Q's either and just says (as she's SHOVING my bags at me) "Here, just take them!" So, I DID!!! I paid $19.87 and saved $193.23!!

Here's the kicker, when I got home I realized she rang up one of my BOGO Q's as $0.99 instead of $9.99...I actually should have only paid $10.87. So, the more I thought about it, the madder I got and couldn't believe how they treated me, like I was doing something SO bad and HORRIBLE because I used a bunch of Q's! I decided to call the OTHER Walgreens and ask the manager exactly what the Q policy was for Walgreens, i.e. could you use manufacturer coupons AND Walgreens coupons for the same item. He said OF COURSE I could!! He said, "If the register takes all of them, it is perfectly fine!" So, he asked me why, if something happened in his store. So, I tell him exactly what the other Walgreens did to me and how they STILL didn't give me all my Q's and he said "You come right over here with your receipt and bags and I will take care of it!"
I headed right over.......end result.....he REFUNDED me $51.09!!! He said the Apple Cinnamon ones I got (6 of them) were clearance at his store for $4.00 and so he gave me CREDIT BACK for all those on top of my additional $9 they owed me!!!...........I am still in AWE!
I just kept telling him over and over how grateful I was and that I was FOREVER his customer! He just said there was NOTHING wrong with using Q's AND the Walgreens store coupon, even if it goes into the negative, just get more stuff to cover the overage! I had one more BOGO for these that he GLADLY told me to go use, so he rang that up and I paid $0.84 for BOTH!!!!! YAY!!
So, I have been to other Wags to do this through out the week and here is the grand total from all week...40 Glade and 9 OLAY Botanical Body Washes and 1 Air Wick plug in (this was clearance at $0.50)....pocketed $31 CASH back on my debit card!!!!
AND I found my favorite Walgreens!! LOL I am going to give most of them to my mom and sister for their daycare and some others to friends, etc so everyone can enjoy the FREEBIES! Here was my kitchen table "displaying" all my goodies!! LOL Paul almost passed out this morning when he saw it and then heard I MADE money off it!! (He was asleep when I came home last night!)

Tag

I guess I should FINALLY do this, since I have been tagged twice already (Sorry it took so long....Carrie & Christy :)

My Husband

1. What is his name? Paul Sidney Hunter

2. Who eats more? Paul

3. Who said, "I love you" first? Me

4. Who is taller? Paul, by a few inches

5. Who is more sensitive? Paul

6. Who does the laundry? Me

7. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I am NOT a morning person so I guess Paul, since I always wake up on the WRONG side off the bed....kinda cheesy, I know!!

8. Who pays the bills? We both work, but I actually take care of paying them, if we want to have electricity!!! LOL

9. Who cooks more? Paul, Monday thru Friday he has dinner hot and waiting on the table when I get home from work!! No, this is NOT an exaggeration, if I am late, he will call and say "Hurry up, I've had to heat your plate up like 15 times to make sure it is hot and waiting for you when you get here!!"

10. Who is more stubborn? This is a tough one, we are both very stubborn, but I have to say I am very, VERY stubborn!

11. Who is the first to admit they are wrong? Me because I NEVER have to say this...I am ALWAYS right!

12. Who has more siblings? Equal, we both have 1 sister and 1 brother

13. Who wears the pants in the relationship? ME, of course, who did you think?!?! :)

14. What do you like to do together? watch movies and just spend time relaxing together.

15. Who eats more sweets? Me, especially since the pregnancy/Emmie

16. Guilty pleasures? Paul - Cigars, Me - (this is fairly recent) Driving all over town to rack up on all the FREEBIES I can get at CVS and Kroger...I'm not kidding!! LOL

17. How did you meet? Grab a cup of coffee, this will take a minute....I went into Starbucks to buy a thermos (one of the guys at work had a really good one and they said they got it from Starbucks) for hot chocolate (I had never in my life drank coffee). I was standing in line to check out (there was a long line) and Paul walked in behind me to get a coffee. He made some lame joke or something to talk to me :) and we started talking about how funny it was that I was in Starbucks and actually HATED coffe. He is a coffee lover and told me I had to at least try something, so he bought me an iced frappuciano. We started talking, sat down at a table and talked (about 2 hours) until the store made us leave because they were closing!! I gave him my card and he called the next night to go have dinner. The rest is history!

18. Who asked whom out first? Paul

19. Who kissed who first? Me...shocker, huh?!

20. Who proposed? He did....another GREAT story...my birthday, July 5 (remember that date!! :) 2006. I called out sick from work that day and before he came home, he made my sister call me and go to a store because she just HAD to have something from a TJ Maxx and she couldn't find it down there. It took her ALOT of convincing to do, but I finally left the house. An hour later, I came home to red rose petals strewn from my deck door all the way upstairs into the kitchen. When I walked in the kitchen, Paul was standing there with a chair in the middle of the floor with one rose in the chair...Oh, did I forget to mention the 20 DOZEN red roses in vases all around the kitchen..huh, can't believe I forgot to mention that...so, there were 20 DOZEN red roses in my kitchen with candles lit all over and Paul standing there. He took my hane and got down on one knee and proposed..I cried (obviously) and said yes!! The funny thing is, we had talked about getting married, but it SERIOUSLY never crossed my mind that THIS was the moment until he actually got on one knee! I was thinking to myself (when I walked in the room), man this is a GREAT birthday present!!

21. His best features and qualities? Sweet, Loving, VERY Romantic, Extremely Selfless and very genuine

22. Tag, you're it. Who do you tag? any of my friends on here who haven't been tagged yet!! ( I know that was a generic answer, sorry)

CCCCCCCold!!!

This is for all my Andalusia friends who THINK it is cold there.....




This was taken on my phone camera in my car on the way to work...



When I passed a bank this morning it said the temp was 3 degrees...UUUGGGGHHHH!!!!! I absolutely, positively HATE cold weather...MISERABLE! So, when you go outside today in your nice 30-40 degree weather (I USED to think that was freezing!) just think, it could be worse!! LOL This is ONE reason I am ready to move back home!! :)

New Hobby!!

So, I have begun a new hobby this month! I don't usually make New Year's Resolutions, but I did this year!! While I was home with Emmie, I caught an Oprah show with the lady from couponmom.com on there. If you have never visited her website, you should because you are missing out on some AMAZING, FREE advice, coupons and all other sorts of goodies! I have started using her money saving tips and started using coupons. Now, normally I am fairly frugal when it comes to shopping, especially grocery shopping. I absolutely hate going to the grocery store because it seems like every time I go, the bill gets larger and larger and the amount of groceries get smaller. I know a lot of you won't be able to get some of these insanely ridiculous deals like I do because you don't have certain stores in your area, BUT you can still get some great deals and strategies fore saving lots of money! I go to Kroger (a grocery store) and CVS and Walgreens all the time. I won't bore you with the details of all my endeavours the last couple of weeks, but I will tell you, I have saved an average of over 75% with ALL my groceries and drugstore purchases AND I have even MADE money on some!! I have walked out of stores with tons of FREE stuff! Yes, FREE...and not silly things, but actual products I buy normally.
Here is just one example:
I went to Kroger last night and this is what I got
4-4 pak Cottonelle Toilet Paper - PAID $0.50 for ALL 4 (two boxes were FREE)
3-boxes Lean Pockets - PAID $1.75 for ALL 3
3-boxes Hamburger Helper - PAID $1.25 for ALL 3
2-boxes Rice-A-Roni pasta - BOTH boxes FREE
Total out of pocket was $3.32 for everything!!!
That's just one example, I have already in a few weeks, gotten 5 tubes of toothpaste FREE, 8 Garnier shampoos and conditioners FREE, 4 boxes of 100 count packets Splenda FREE, etc....the list goes on!!

It's crazy the amount of money I have been WASTING over the years by not using coupons!! So, anyway, I encourage you guys to look at this website (www.couponmom.com) and search the Internet for some great money saving coupons/deals, I know I appreciate the money saved in this economy!! If you have any questions or want to know more details, email me and I'll tell you how I am doing some of it, and it is all legal...LOL I told Paul last night, I felt like I might get arrested because I am walking out of the store with so much stuff for FREE!! So, now my new hobby is coupon-ing...Emily says that it isn't a hobby, but it is to me!!

I don't care for posts too much without SOME sort of picture(s) to look at, so I thought I would put some cute pics of Emmie this morning before going to daycare...she got another one of these cute hats from Grandmother at Christmas, SOOOO cute!!




It's TOO early for pictures, Momma!!

Did I forget something??!!

Okay, I hate to admit this, but I hope you mommies (and even others) can relate to this at least on some level!! So, I have realized being a new and first time mommy brings about many new challenges. I have always taken pride in my ability to have a great memory. I can remember the smallest detail of almost anything, I can even recall most of my high school friends' phone numbers!! But, I am finding now that I seem to forget a lot more since Emmie was conceived! When I was pregnant, I swear, sometimes I would even forget some of my client's names when I would see them (which is SOOOO unusual for me)!! It would take me a minute to remember it!

Paul works a 4 a.m. - 1 p.m. schedule at work and so he isn't there in the mornings to help get us off (but is nice because he picks Emmie up from daycare by 1:30 at the latest). So, with Emmie starting daycare last week, I am still trying to get in the groove of the morning rush of getting myself ready and her ready and feed and our lunches packed (which I normally have forgotten to un-freeze hers and that takes a while!), walk the dogs, etc. I like to work a 7-4 schedule at work so I can miss the rush hour traffic here, which now puts me getting up super early...at the latest is 5 a.m.! I am starting to think I may have to get up even earlier...YIKES!!
Well, this morning was even more of a rush, as my stepdaughter was with us for the first time since Christmas break AND for the first time I've had to get her, Emmie and myself ready and off to school, etc. She had gymnastics class last night right after school until 7:15 and when she got home she had a horrible headach and had to go straight to bed because it was so bad! She had a good amount of homework to do and didn't get to do it because of the headach. So, this morning was very, very stressful trying to get her up at 5 to get dressed, fed AND homework, feeding Emmie, getting her ready for daycare and her bag packed and getting myself ready, all to walk out the door by 6:20!! Obviously we ran a little late this morning and (the whole point of this long blog...:) I got to work and realized a couple of things. One, I forgot my homemade chocolate chip cookies I wanted so bad to have after lunch beacuse I did so good last night and didn't eat any thinking I would save those calories for the daytime instead of late at night before going to bed, and two (the BIG one..) I THINK I forgot to brush my teeth!!!! I have never!!! As much as I don't want anyone to know that, I couldn't help but laugh at myself when I got to work and drank my coffe and thought...hmmmm did I brush my teeth? I seriously don't know if I did or didn't, that's what is so sad, I can't remember!! So, hopefully Emily (if you read this today, don't get to close LOL :) and eveeryone else will not get to close today and I can sort of hide from everyone today!!
Anyway, I hope I am not the only one who has done something like this!!!

Emmie's 4 Month Check-Up

Emmie had her 4 month check up on Friday and I wanted to give an update. She weighs exactly 11 lbs (7%), 23.5 in (25%) long and her head circumference is 15 in (8%). The % next to each one is what percentile range she is in for her age group. As you can see, her weight and head are still fairly small, but her height is great! The doctor said she looks like she may be above average on her height considering she is still so small but so long! The doctor was extremely pleased with her development and said she was actually right along where she should be (which is 2 months ahead of her adjusted age!!) So, she is doing great and is just perfect!! She does have ONE flaw, but it isn't anything to be concerned about. She has a slight pigment variation on her stomach from where the skin pigment didn't develop all the way when she was in utero, but it is barely noticeable and isn't too large. The doctor said when she is older we may send her to a pediatric dermatologist, but it wasn't anything that would affect her health. He said Paul may appreciate it when she gets older, as Emmie may not want to wear a two piece bathing suit!! LOL I said if that was the ONLY thing wrong with her, after all she went through, I was 100% happy with that! As far as her developmental skills she has learned, she is chewing on her hands and has been for a few weeks (now I know why babies always have to wear bibs even when they aren't eating)!! She looks around when you walk into a room and talk to her, she is rolling over from her front to her back, she is starting to reach for toys and watch them when you move them in front of her.....and she is beginning to get a little 'TUDE!! This morning I put her in her car seat and she decided she didn't want to go in it, so she kicked her legs out straight in the car seat and pushed and "locked" herself into position so I couldn't bend her to strap her in!! AND she gave me an attitude about it the whole time!!! It will never be the same again, I'm afraid!! LOL

THEN, after all the fussing at momma, this is what she did.......

She THINKS she's funny!

Here is a little video I got of her flipping over, she still isn't even worried about flipping from back to front, she doesn't like being on her tummy and loves playing on her back, so she has yet to even try flipping from back to tummy yet!!

You can't argue with this!!

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celeb - Collage - Morph
I KNEW it!! Emmie looks more like me!! Paul gets jealous when people say that, but here is the scientific proof (thanks Shonna for sharing), and YES, I do think this IS scientific proof :) LOL

Emmie Pictures

I had Nikki take Emmie's 3 Month Pictures and wanted to share them with everyone. As always, Nikki did an AMAZING job with them and I just LOVE them all, but here are a few of my favorites!! I have a slideshow on the side that you can click to view them all also! Hope you all had a Happy New Year!!