An Important Note

Emma Lee wrote her first completely-on-her-own note yesterday. She sounded out all the words and posted her warning in the kitchen for me to find. Can you read it? My favorite word is the "beackos."

oh no do not step rit ther beackos it is! wet yogert
Kerri Johnson silt it you do not wunt too giet wet do you wunt to no

(Translation) Oh no. Do not step right there because it is wet yogurt! Kerri Johnson spilt it. You do not want to get wet do you want to? No.

Choo-choo

My mom was in town last Monday, and the girls and I decided to go back with her to spend the rest of the week at my parents' house (largely due to the fact that my car died and was in the shop.) I've been dying for a chance to let the girls ride Amtrak because I've done it so often and thought that it would be really fun for them. This was the perfect opportunity (especially when my dad offered to pay for it!). We had so much fun and they did so great! I guess I can check that off my "Things the Girls Need to Experience" list.

Waiting - they gave the girls a Curious George book about a train & a Thomas coloring book.

 


We're all so excited!

Due to my oversight that we were not on the train that has a full dining car, our dinner consisted of things you find in a vending machine. Having their choice of chips, crackers, and candy for dinner made the girls even more excited. :)

Finishing up the ride with a little movie.

Loving CVS

I haven't done a coupon post in a while and today I had my best CVS run ever, so humor me! :)
 My total was $68. After coupons were scanned, it was brought down to $12. I used $12 in ECBs, and got $14 in ECBs back! Basically, I got $68 worth of stuff for a $2 profit! Plus, a bonus was I got a super nice cashier who was just as excited as me that I saved so much. I love CVS! :)

Here's the stash!

My two favorite sites for CVS coupon matchups are Money Saving Mom and Southern Savers. They do a great job every week of mapping out the best CVS deals. Also, they normally have the list ready a day or two before the sale starts, so you can get prepared and go as early as you need to on Sundays if you are afraid of CVS running out of something.

Strawberry Heaven

This recipe is definitely a keeper!! It was inspired by this cake at my favorite baking blog (although mine's not nearly as impressive!!). Use a white cake mix, add in pureed fresh strawberries, and bake. Layer cake and strawberries, brushing each layer with a simple syrup (1 cup sugar & 1 cup water boiled and cooled). Use cool whip for icing, and top with more fresh strawberries. Serve with some vanilla bean ice cream for a little slice of strawberry heaven! Yum, yum!

Not Exactly What I Had in Mind

Apparently, "Go upstairs and clean your room." really means "Go upstairs and make an even bigger mess." Gotta work on that!

A Round of Thank Yous!

I know it's a little bit after the fact, but I was trying to wait until I had a total to give you. Thank you to all who supported our last adoption fundraiser by placing an order. We raised close to $450 for our and the Hambrick's adoption! An extra special thank you goes to Shawna Johnson, Lindsey Bullard, Rachel Robbins, and Ada Farmer for putting on the party for us and contributing some of their sale's profit! Finally, a big thank you to Patricia Shipe for hosting the party in her lovely home.

*Also thanks to Jenn for remembering her camera. I hate it when I forget mine! 

Slowly but Surely

We got our biometrics appointment today - May 3 at 8:00 am. I'm so excited to finally have an appointment, I don't even care that I have to get up early enough to be somewhere at 8:00 am! We are slowly but surely getting everything needed for our dossier to be completed and compiled. I'm so ready for this part to be over because the next part will be being matched with a child! I think that will make it seem "officially real."