Couponing and Saving Up

Over at Moms By Heart they are always a buzz with great deals, free finds, and other tips in running a smooth, frugal household.  Right now they are doing a Stockpile Challenge - just urging you to add to your supplies one week at a time, with just $10 at a time.

Easy enough.
I thought I would challenge myself to see what I could do with $10 today.

Here is my stash-



















How it breaks down

4 Bags Halls- 18 pcs. from Dollar Tree - $1.00 off 2 bags coupon ($2.00 spent)
2 Bottles Palmolive / Dollar Tree - $.25 per bottle coupon ($1.50 spent)
3 Bottles Softsoap / Dollar Tree - - $.35 per bottle coupon ($1.95 spent)
4 Boxes Cheez-it / $1.25 ea @Stokes Assoc. Foods - $1.00 off two boxes coupon (spent $3.00)




that left me with $1.55- so I grabbed an extra candle at the dollar store that I found gave off a good amount of light and not too much scent during a recent power outage. (Some of the emergency candles we tried didn't give off very much light, so I am planning on slowly adding these to my stocks.)

(note- the MBH website doesn't buy a lot of snacky foods, but we use these snacks during football season and when my teenage boys have friends over- so I am always looking for a way to have extras on hand without breaking the bank!)

That left a grand total of $9.45 spent- (not including tax)
I look at that picture and I am amazed! Imagine every week adding a surplus like this.
What a great feeling. I love the bite size chunk this is- just enough to feel like I am doing something, but not so much I get overwhelmed.

Check out their website for more INCREDIBLE deals.

I have been couponing on and off for a few years now, but this was a nice reminder of the rewards waiting if you give it a little bit of effort. Every time I find my deals, I am glad I made the effort.

Happy clipping!

Growing out a Bob

You may remember my happy bob that switched up my hair after a long streak of long hair

It was a great change, and I loved playing with the highlights my hairdresser added-

but the short stacking in the back  made it hard to pull back.

I prefer a ponytail when I work, and the back layers looked great, but weren't super flexible.

I had it very long in the front, with one strand longer on the right side only for an asymmetrical touch.

After a year and half, I was ready for a shift...and ready to grow the back out.

My hairdresser thought it would be fun to add ombre melt aways, while we slowly matched the back to the front.  I loved the first cut!

Although it felt shorter, because I lost my long, detached pieces in the front of the A-line, the look with

the blended ombres was so fun- and quicker at the salon to accomplish.

I celebrated with a pic on Instagram that hit Pinterest and Twitter all at once (not bad for an old gal).

I even spent a few days leaving it naturally curly. My lifeling quest is to come to terms

with all the natural curl.  Someday.

Last month I postponed my hair appt (yikes) because the length in the

back has finally passed the collar of my shirt.

A huge milestone in the growing out phases of a serious stacked A-line. I want to give it

another month to get a bit more length before I trim the edges and shape it again.

The ombre highlights are still here...and I love them.

You may not see that big of a change, but in the back some of these layers have grown two inches or more, and it still has a style that feels fun and fresh.

The ombre highlights are more dramatic with a little more length of the darker shade.

(so easy to touch up to cover gray hairs.....I am in love with that).

Curls created by wrapping hair around a curling wand from Sally's Beauty Supply.

Major love how the wand curls look.

See that silky, shiny hair?

Let me say I did a coconut oil treatment on my hair

as demonstrated here on How Does She. ( great blog!)

(Basically slather on 100% coconut oil, kitchen grade, and let it sit under a shower cap or plastic wrap for 20-30 minutes, or heated for 15. Wash and style as usual).  Once you get the hair a little more conditioned, the ends will stop breaking and you will notice the growth better.

I think my hair looks great, and it felt great the minute I stepped out of the tub.

On day two, or after a long nap, you can opt to try a messy updo found on The Small Things Blog.

Not as great as hers, but I love the random feel of it,

and it is perfect for days that I want to wrap a scarf around my neck a few times.

Every day, basically.

Not sure what I am going for, but just a longer, casual do that I can leave down or messy bun up

would be perfect.

Jessica Alba inspired? Maybe.

I love her length in this picture and it looks great with the dark/carmel mix colors.

The quest continues....

I am brushing, massaging, oiling, and loving my locks to promote a little more growth.

We will see how they respond!

Book Picks of 2012

Several years ago I discovered setting a goal for how many books I could read in a year sort of pushed me to read more than usual.  While I love Shelfari.com and the groups they have to promote this idea- the group "50 Books in a Year" is very daunting. 

I have never read quite that many (unless you count picture books to the kiddos), but I have found that 35 is a nice number that pushes me to read a little quicker and try different genres.  This also includes any audio books that I listen to, usually that is about a half dozen a year.

I did hit 35 this year- and I am going to weed through them and give you my top picks. (Not in any particular order, I can never pick a 'favorite' because that changes day to day.)

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

This is a great little book with a strange twist on the retired life.  When Harold receives a mysterious letter from a friend that he knew decades ago, his life of chair sitting and TV watching gets turned upside-down.  I loved this sweet book, it was unexpected, simple, and warm.  It leaves you to ponder what parts of yourself you give up when you don't live life with a purpose, and it leaves you inspired by an every day man who decides to walk for a cause.  Lovely sentences such as "He walked so surely it was as if all his life he had been waiting to get up from his chair."  and "Everyone was the same, and also unique, and that was the dilema of being a human being."  remind you not all writers are created equal. Perfect to warm your heart on a wintry day.

The Night Circus by Erin Mortgensen

I read this book completely blind, meaning I had no true review or summary to go off of.  I loved it that way, so I will say very little here, too. You probably have heard people talk about it by now, anyway...suffice it to say it is different from most books you have probably read this year.  It is imagiative, luxurious, and sensual (but not graphic in any way), and written in a way that makes you want to read it all the day you pick it up.  The plot isn't necessarily stellar or shocking, but there is enough other bits of story telling fun and written loveliness that you won't care. After ward, enjoy the Night Circus pins and fan based trailers all over the place online.  Pure escapism......

Born To Run by Christopher McDougal

My brother has been trying to get me to read this for a year- and this was the summer I tackled it.  It is amazing, with feats of fitness described that are almost unbelievable, statistics that will leave your jaw on the floor (the more you spend on running shoes the greater your chance of injury???really????) and just  loads of inspiration that will make the runner happy and the non-runner want to run.  Lots of non-fiction trivia that is informative and interesting.  I did enjoy this a lot. (bit of language peppered throughout) It got me running again, even if it's just slowly, after almost a year hiatus.

For the historical fiction fan who loves stories about stories read:

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton

For the new age thinker who wants to deepen their thinking of self read:

A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle

The Best-Seller you should skip:

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Unrealistic, vulgar, raunchy and unbelievable.
Twist and turns, yes, but you hate everyone so bad who cares which way they go anyway?

Happy Reading!

see my complete book shelf and read more full reviews at

shelfari.com/ramonareads/shelf

Sunday Morning Swedish Pancakes

This is a funny title, because I am a descendant of a Swedish grandmother, so I should be a pro on Swedish treats. I am not. This is not even a 'family' recipe.

One day I stopped by a friend's house and she was just finishing up breakfast, and it smelled divine! She threw a couple pancakes on a plate for me to try (I used syrup, but my we usually use Lignonberry jelly on them too) and they just melted in my mouth! I love breakfast food, so this quickly became a staple in my kitchen.

Now my family usually makes them on Sunday mornings. (But we have been known to make them for dinner when we are needing pure comfort food).
I am trying to teach my boys how to make them, so they can enjoy them whenever they want.

Here is the recipe:

SWEDISH PANCAKES
4 eggs, well beaten
pinch of salt
4 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup of flour
1 cup of milk
1/3 cup melted butter

Beat the eggs so they are nice and bubbly

melt the butter and let it sit aside for just a minute so it isn't too hot

 whisk in everything but the butter, making sure it isall mixed nicely

once mixed well, whisk in the butter

it may appear to have small clumps- that's okay.

Some of the eggs may set when in contact with the hot butter that you add.

Using about 1/4 cup of mix, make a circle on a hot griddle

Fret not if the first one falls apart...these are buttery and thin, and if the grill isn't hot

or greasy enough yet you may have a mishap....

Oops!

Save it anyway, it will still taste yummy.

Roll onto a plate, and use any jelly or syrup of choice.

We always sprinkle with powdered sugar (sometimes that is sweet enough for some people)

Side note:
I save my old Parmesan Cheese bottles to use for powdered sugar-
these work better than any sprinkler I have ever bought

You don't need to butter, these-

just roll up, fix up, and enjoy

Makes 12-15 pancakes, depending on size-

so if you are cooking for more than 3 or 4 people you may want to double

Enjoy!





Family Photos & Christmas Cards

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all in blogland.

Found this cute layout on ETSY and for a few bucks I bought the template.
Drag in drop in my own program, and we were ready to print.
Every year I look forward to the cards that greet me in the mail, and they hang well into January on my wall. Last year I declared my cards a nuisance, and skipped the whole process. (ok, I made a computer print out to send replies to any card I got, but it was lame.) I was surprised how much I missed the correspondence and responses in regards to my cards, so this year I did them early.

Pictures are the key, however.... and we got some good ones this year.

The boys, in tough guy mode......

Me and my guy
all edited up in a photo I am loving....

Plus more of the kiddos
My oldest- looking way too grown up
and way too cool

My super-teen-middle-child
He is finding his own
and embracing his style, which I think is great

My baby, who is not a baby at all.
Why must you all grow so fast?

I was lucky to have my sweet sister-in-law take my photos for me
(locals send me a message if you want some too. She is GREAT)
and she took what we had on a blustery cold day and made magic.

Can't wait to get them up on the walls and enjoy them all.

She took a few candids of my boys while they were goofing off at the park,
 and one caught my son's eye, so he gave it a makeover for his own use.

I love what he did to it! (note: let your kids edit their own stuff!)


And finally another of the boys, my personal favorite

I can't get enough of those faces. (hug kiss hug kiss)

If you need family pictures...JUST DO IT!

you will thank yourself later

The Life of Pi : My version of Symbols and Ideas

Last night I headed out to finish up some Christmas shopping with my 13 year old son, and we decided to see "The Life of Pi".  I have a LONG history with this book.  I read it probably close to 10 years ago, and debated it with friends at the time. A couple of years later my book club read it- and discussed and debated it then, too.  A recent reading of "Beatrice and Virgil" brought me back to Pi and Martel's means of storytelling. 

Now, the film.  I wasn't sure it could be done, but it has been.

The movie is a glittering visual of the book come to life. In some ways, the visuals nicely unfold where as with the book your mind is trying to conjure up the image (I even bought an illustrated copy to assist me on this journey after reading the novel the first time).  Fans of the book won't be diasppointed. 

But I thought the movie would make a conclusion for me. I thought it would help me decide what to think.  It doesn't.  It leaves you left open and raw and wondering what it all really means.  So here is what it means to me, after 10 years of reading, debating discussing.  It may be something entirely different for you, and that is the way Martel intends it to be. As a Christian Mormon faith filled person I am moved by the message of this story.

SPOILERS on all accounts from here on out.

First off, it is important to note that Richard Parker, the tiger, is indeed Pi.  There are many clues to this fact. He admits that he must say this to the reporters when they dig deeper and demand the truth from him. As he crawls on the boat watch his hands, his mannerisms....he is a tiger.  In the beginning of the story you are given another clue- the priest in the chapel approaches the young Pi and says "you must be Thirsty...." (this was the REAL GIVEN name of the tiger).

At first reading, I felt this view of himself was only to allow Pi to deal with the sin of eating meat.  We know what an offense this is to him.  After viewing the tiger's consumption of  the goat ( an unexplained event presented by the director through the bars of the cage in the movie) he may see this carnivore lifestyle as completely animalistic and a means to survival.  He ate fish meat as well as the meat of the cook's (hyena's) body, while choosing to throw his mother (or the zebra) over board.

 Pi also must 'train' the tiger, as we must harness the animalistic nature (human nature) inside ourselves, in order to survive the elements of the world.  On further thought I feel the tiger represents any offense that distances us from God.  Often we do these things under 'justified' circumstances, as a means of survival.  Our lifestyle of sin becomes the daily norm.

At some point, however we must stop.  We must surrender to God and confess that we give our life if He wants it.... we give all we have.  Pi does this during the storm.....

After that confession, or coming face to face with God (Pi says he has seen God's face- while Richard Parker, the sinner inside himself, is afraid to see it and hides), God provides the miracle for which we can live righteously again.  In the story, this is the island.  The waters are fresh, the vines are edible, and Pi finds solace and hope again.  He may live on the island forever to hide there from the elements of his journey- or so he thinks.  He is shown a clue (the tooth in the fruits of the trees) as to the detrement of hiding on the island.

We too, can not hide only on the miracles of God.  We must experience the miracles, allow them to change us and nourish us, and then get 'back in our boats' and face our journey.  Remembering the miracles provides us with the hope and sustanence we require as humans to press on.

Eventually, we all must let go of the natural tendancies, or human/animal nature, inside of oursleves.  Pi was exhausted and surrendered completely as Richard Parker left his side.  I find it interesting that the tiger did not try to reconcile or say Goobye- it just left. Pi later reveals this was hard for him, he had grown close to Richard Parker, and wanted a way to say goodbye.  Imagine ourselves, seeking a cerimonious fanfare as we leave sin behind.....it just doesn't work that way.  Often times we just wake up and simply stop sinning.  The animal inside us just walks away, regardless of how attached to it we may feel we are.  I feel Pi had been worn down and became humbled in a way that the sin had no more need of him.  The sin moved on, finding others to engulf.  Part of us may want to thank that nature, for it has taught us and saved us in many ways, but our lives take a turn when we let it go.  We then become a missionary, one who shares their story...a 'good story' of how we were saved. 

The last part of the story always troubled me most.... the line "And so it is with God" spoken by Pi after his audience chooses the 'animal' story over the horrific human story of survivial.  I have read one viewer say this is our choice as humans, to simplify religion down to simple symbols that we can relate with and attach to, as we ignore the bloody and painful realities in the true history of religion.  I find a lot of power in that opinion of the story as a whole, and I agree this is one of the layers of the story, but I am moved to believe something far more personal in the end.


All of us travel a journey of survival.  We fight the tigers within ourselves that draw us to sin and to choose lifestyles below our belief system.  We are given miracles to save us and we are eventually taken to a place of humility where we see the face of God, and we become sanctified. As a new, saved being, we continue on our journey once and again are required to hold on with hope and endure to the finish.

  In the end, we too will have an audience for our journey's story.... one who will judge our story and deem it good or not.  No doubt our story to our final audience will be one of justified actions, simple symbols and sugar coated explanations that we hope paint ourselves worthy in God's eyes.  However, He of course, knows the truth. He knows the good as well as the bad. He knows the blood, the cursings, the leaving of beliefs to survive.  But to Him, it doesn't matter. We win approval as He chooses the symbols of ourselves, the better story, and allows us to forever live in the glory it brings us.

This is a story of power and one of true art, which is all too rare in the media of today.  I hope my ideas (they are just ideas- I am NO EXPERT) open your mind to the possibilities of this story.


 Happy reading. Happy movie viewing.

 Merry Christmas

Because I missed You

Whether or not you missed me, I missed you.  This time of year I am usually making a blog book to print.

I am usually re-reading all my posts of the year and smiling on all the good (and bad) times.

Where is it?

Why did I stop?

I am here.

I am posting random things that make me smile.

A big brother photo bomb at Sundial Bridge

Am inspiring back yard retreat desinged by my Aunt and Uncle (can I copy it?)

A costume that would get me into the Night Circus

(read the book if you haven't yet.

just do it)

My mom enjoying her newest grandbaby, sharing a lullaby

A random photo of a random cute cowboy who just happened

to be in charge of the crew that laid the sod in our yard.

(Yes, my hubby knows I took this.  He just rolled his eyes.)

The entryway of my Aunt Anita's (yes, with the above backyard) lovely home.

If that's not enough to make you want to redecorate your whole house I don't know what is.

She is AMAZING.

And finally, me and my favorite man

at the San Antonio Riverwalk

just enjoying the sights.

Now let me soak it up and look at all of these agian...

......it's a start.

Girl on Fire - Young Womens Girls Camp

Stopping in for a post that others can reference easily- I have had a few people ask for details about our girl's camp this year- and it turned out great.

We had a "Girl On Fire" theme, with the our girl's being on fire with the spirit of their Heavenly Father.  The theme turned out to take on a life of it's own (as often happens with these ventures) but here are a few of the details.

We had all the girls bring a dark t-shirt, and we we had stencils and cardstock for them to cut out and use as negatives on their shirts. A little bit of bleach....and you are done....

Make sure to put cardboard in the shirt, and lay it flat- this will keep the bleach from soaking through to the other side.  Girls cut out their names, used swirls and butterflies, and really made their shirts amazing.

This is the front of my t-shirt and the back of my hoodie.  I made these without the cute swirly stencils, so the girls could see them before we started, but once the girls saw each other's shirts they really got into this project. It was a huge success.  If you know someone with a Cricket cutting machine you could do amazing things with this- just go light on the bleach, lay them in the sun as you spray, and if you carefully lift your stencils they can be used again and again (let them dry a bit in between uses).

For more detailed step by step instructions on bleaching, I refer you to fellow blogger and crafty inspo site Burlap and Denim.  (Her shirts are so cute- I am impressed!)


We also used vinyl stickers with the mockingjay logo and young women's logo and decorated our 'lanterns'.  With the stickers on (you can also wrap twine, cut tape, or cover any other way you desire), we sprayed a light coat of spray paint on the jar. When you remove the stickers and vinyl, the paint reveals the 'etched' looking designs.

We added a battery powered tea light candle, and with some bent wire they were good to go.  The girls carried these out every night, brought them to night devotionals and testimony meeting, and used them in their tents. We didn't have to worry about fire anywhere, and they looked amazing in the dark.


One of our crafts was soda tab bracelets.  Again, the girls went crazy once they figured out what to do with the craft (I recommend having at least 3 or 4 leaders trained before you go- it isn't hard, but needs to be done right for the bracelet to lay correctly.)

I am not going to give you a tutorial here, but you can watch several great ones on You Tube or go to ehow.com for step by steps.  Just make a few before hand and be prepared to help them start and finish them off.  Even our Beehives just adored these and made several while at the craft table.  Start saving tabs now!!! (hint: Progresso soup tabs are large, and they make a great end tab so the other end can toggle through it- so easy to put on and off!)

We also had a Hunger Games style activity, with a Tracker Jacker station (teams with colored stickers that were the stings when stuck on eachother) a battle station (pool noodles or other funny swords can be used) and races for bread, etc.

In the secret sister mailboxes (a shoe organizer hung at our pavillon) I  gave the following goodies: this little parachute themed note containing glow sticks for them to wear at night

And a little extra treat

One night we had a 10 Virgin faith walk, based on the script and painting by Gayla Prince. This was especially effective in the dark night, through the trees and brush. (The girls made their lanterns that day and were actually given their tea lights by the first virgin).  It was awesome to have them come to the 'feast' in the middle of the hills and place their lights at the portrait of Christ. After we were done they enjoyed the fruit and french bread loaves at the table. It was a great night.

We had a picture night and devotional on local temple grounds, and our campground was by a lake, so on our final  night we closed by singing late into the night with our lanterns on the dock.  It was an amazing camp..... and I hope these ideas can help someone else out there!


-UPDATE-
I am no computer wiz, so officially adding files completely boggles my brain. I am adding photos here, all in just a jpeg format.  My hope is that you can click on the picture and at least save it, then insert into your document (I use Microsoft Publisher) and go from there. The sponsor envelope I used on legal size envelopes, then added the glow sticks.  Good luck- hope it helps!

click here for our next year's camp theme- Brave Girls Only