No School=Chaos

School was out today. I am still not really clear why. I never really had time to check the calendar to find out. I did enjoy sleeping late, which is unheard of for me. Justice came over around 10 to stay with Karley while Heather went to the dr. They played really well. Upstairs is a zoo right now anyway so it isn't like I worried they would mess it up! All was going well until Karley drop the tea pitcher in the kitchen floor. Holy Moly...talk about a mess. I am still in the process of cleaning it up. The floor is still sticky!!
We stopped at Cookout for lunch and then headed to the mall to see the Easter Bunny. Once there, Karley decided she had changed her mind about sitting on his lap...and she refused to even stand beside him! Nice...
The first softball game of the season was tonight. Stressfull...the first one is always the worst...so says Andy. But..............we ended up winning...11-7! So exciting!!

Events of the Day

This morning, Andy and the kids slept until amost 10am. I am not sure what I did to deserve that unheard of amount of peace and quiet, but I'll take it! I snuck out of bed around 7:30am and ate breakfast, snagged the paper and started my couponing cutting/filing ritual. We have free showtime this week so I watched a movie in the process. Yeah me!! I know I said I missed racing, and I do, but it was so nice to be home on Sunday morning doing absolutly nothing...well, almost nothing. I finally got everything filed and started researching the drug store savings programs. That is my new task to master! When everyone finally woke up, we decided we needed lunch. Since we had Red Lobster coupons, Andy, Karley and I headed out. (Justin stayed home to watch Zombieland.) I did not eat properly there, but I ate better that I would have had I gone in with reckless abandon. Progress, right? After lunch we headed to Concord Mills. Unfortunately we forgot about the 4 wide racing at Zmax this weekend. It must have just shut down because of the weather because it appeared everyone was headed away from the speedway. Who knows! We went shopping so Karley could spend some of her money. OMG...she is only a shopper when she is motivated. She wandered around as if she had lost her mind. Finally, hours later, we left with an outfit from the Justice store. Dinner was Wendy's....yes, a whole day without cooking. Score!! It is now 10:45, pouring rain (think "where is my ark?") and Karley is beside me on the couch. She has a strict rule about sleeping upstairs when it storms. I'm fine with that since she had a bad dream last night and I had to climb the stairs to calm her down. I am way to stiff to be climbing the stairs quickly in the morning (much less the middle of the night!!). I'm really hoping that was a one shot deal and she will be back on track tonight.Tomorrow should have been her first softball game of the season. Judging from the weather, I'm thinking that's a no go. At this point we'll be lucky if the field is still there!
My back is hurting from too much computer time :-) so I am off to bed. Dang...that would be after I pack Andy's lunch. Ugh....I hate it when I leave that until bedtime.

My newest obsession...couponing!

I guess I am finally settling into 'stay at home mom' life. My walking has slacked off, mainly to make time for my household chores. I lost 4 lbs last week and I am trying to remember to track, track, track my food intake. It is so much harder now that I am home. I don't really understand it because it really should be easier.

My new thing is couponing. I have been agressive with this on and off over the last few years, but never really had the time to commit to it. Now I do. I also NEED to be successful since we are now a one income family. This week was just what I needed to get me in gear. Triple Coupons at Harris Teeter! My first day, when I used all 20 coupons and only purchased 'coupon' items, I spent $17.00 on $70.00 worth of groceries (see pic above). That was all I needed. I have been back several times already this week. I am also attempting to understand the drugstore programs. Some of it sounds overwhelming but I know that if I can just figure it out, there is lots of money to be saved. I think I already have months worth of foil, ziploc bags, sour cream and bleu cheese dressing and perhaps a years worth of deodorant. I'll not be paying full price for that stuff anytime soon! I am going to attempt to document my couponing here on my blog as time allows. I have starting tracking my grocery expenditures so I can see just how much I am saving over time. I am sure it will actually be better than the chart will show since I didn't start tracking until recently, while I was couponing. I will try to remember to blog about my savings and deals here.

Tennis

Justin is playing tennis for the high school this year. He is mainly and exhibition player, filling in for competitive players if they are out. Two days this week he played competitive and he won 2 out of 3 matches. Hello!! And, I think I can almost understand it now!! Miracles never cease!

Skating Party #2

Tonight Karley and her friends (Justice, Heather and Kaitlyn) had their Second Annual Birthday Skating Party. Not only to we have a party for 100 of their closest friends and family, we collect canned goods for East Lincoln Christian Ministries. It was awesome and the turnout was great. I can't believe my baby is turning 9 in a few weeks! I guess I should be used to it since my first baby is 15 now and starting to drive. Wow...I am getting old.

A Month Later...

Well, it has been almost a month since I lost my job. It all seemed much simpler in my mind. Reality is so much different! I thought I would have tons of time on my hands. I don't! I thought my house would be clean and it's not. It just goes to show you that no matter how much time you have, it's never enough (much like money).
The one thing I have been doing is exercising. I have become an unofficial mall walker. I walk between 3 and 5 miles a day right now. I don't know how long I will continue at the mall. Today I had the urge to run when a peppy song came on and I have never really seen anyone run in the mall. It is a great resource on a rainy day though. It is hard to talk yourself out of mall walking...at least it is for me. I really, really like it. I like the fact that it's a loop so I can calculate laps. There are people and things to look at along the way so it distracts you from the monotony. And there are others there doing the same thing and I find that encouraging. It is almost better that I don't know them because I don't have to talk to them. I can get lost in the music and just workout.
Today I had my weekly WI at WW. I was fat day 2 and I didn't really have alot of hope for a good weigh in. I gained 1.8 lbs. I know it had to do with my food. I haven't been tracking and that is a no-no. Even with that much excercise, I need to track my points to see results. I have gotta pull it together and get back on track. It's 307 days until my 40th birthday and roughly 17 weeks until I have to wear a bathing suit on the beach. I have to refocus on my goals and make it happen!!
Justin just finished optimist basketball. They won almost all of their games and actually played in the championship game!! They lost but I think it is because they thought they were unstoppable. He is currently playing tennis for the high school. He is still learning, but really seems to like it. Karley is starting her 4th season of softball. Andy is coaching his second season. Racing is officially underway for the year. Andy raced in the MidEast race at Bishopville a few weeks ago. He crashed off of a jump and hurt his knee. He finished 4th out of 5 and only ran one lap. Justin didn't race that weekend. We traveled to Connelly Springs this past weekend but no one raced because of the mud. I like it better when they race!!

Day 334...Today I lost my job

After 12 1/2 years at the same job, today I came home unemployed. It was somewhat expected with the current state of the construction industry, but I honestly didn't know until the moment it happened. I'm one part numb, one part excited. I have worked continuously since high school so I don't really know what it will be like to get up and not go to work. I do know I have a to-do list a mile long and it will take me a while to get all of that stuff done. Who knows what the future holds. When Rusty left, I said I would just ride it out and see what happened and I did. Now I guess it is time to get on a new ride. I will get to spend some much needed time with my kids, relax a little, spend some time on me (getting in shape, for one thing), and maybe, when it's all said and done, start a new career. Let the fun begin...