Couponing at Rite Aid and Walgreens...

Quote for the Day:

"A penny saved is a penny earned."   --  Benjamin Franklin

No quilts to share today, but did want to share with you my couponing shopping trips to Walgreens and Rite Aid today.  They were good, but not phenomenal.  

I planned on getting more at Rite Aid then I did, but unfortunately they were out of stock of the item and wouldn't issue a rain check since it isn't a "normal stock item" for them.  The manager also told me that they never even received any of that item in for the sale.  At the end of my receipt was another offer for $3 off a $15 purchase for answering a survey, so you had better believe that Rite Aid will be getting an earful from me on this upcoming survey!  :(((

So this is what I did pick up at Rite Aid...

After coupons and Up Rewards, I paid 96 cents out of pocket and got $2.76 back in Up Rewards and the $3 offer for taking the survey...which I always do...it's the easiest $3 you can make!  LOL

So basically, I got free items at Rite Aid...AND they paid me $4.80 to remove them from their store!  :)

My shopping at Walgreens netted me this...

My out-of-pocket was $18.03 after coupons and Register Rewards.  However, I received $3 back in Register Rewards AND will submit to Nexcare for $8.97 in rebate on the bandages....causing my actual cost to go down to $6.06.  :)  

I save us so much money on toiletries and household items by shopping this way, it has really helped our budget!  


Even though we are frugal grocery shoppers, I'm still working on figuring out how best to carry my coupons to the grocery store so that I can save more money on food than we do now.  That is my next goal!  :)

I have finished the book Shattered Silence: The Untold Story of a Serial Killer's Daughter, by Melissa G. Moore, that I had posted about before.  I have to say that the subject matter is very interesting, but I didn't like the way it was written at all.  Even though she was helped by a professional writer, it seemed like it was written by a complete amateur.  That's just my 2 cents worth...I won't even charge you for that review!  ;)


Thanks for stopping by my blog!  Have a great day!


Loretta

Disney Princess quilt FINISHED!!

Quote for the Day:

My granddaughter's birth has made me want to 

create things she will love.
~Billy Crystal

I have a "finish" to show you.  To those of you who are not quilters, a "finish" is a completed quilt.  :)

Over the past week, I have machine quilted, bound, and labeled the Disney Princess quilt that I have planned to give my granddaughter, Sera, for her 5th birthday in Sept.  Yes...I am early in completing it, but that is a good thing!  :)  It is very freeing to have both Andrew's birthday gift (his birthday is May 30) and Sera's birthday gift completed and ready for gifting!  :)  

There have been many gifts that were given late because I just couldn't get them done in time.  (Apologies to my children because their wedding quilts were late.)


So now for the picture show...

A close-up of a princess block...I think this one is Snow White...I'm sure Sera will know which one this is!  LOL

the pieced back...

I prefer to hand quilt so I don't machine quilt very often but kids' quilts really need to be machine quilted because they get some rough usage and get washed frequently.  So here is an up close of the machine quilting...

And last, but not least...a quilt is not "finished" until it is labeled!  :)

The top line is hard to read from this angle, but it says 

"Made for my princess" 

Seraphim Kaelyn Chapman 

With love 

Grandma Flood 

2011  

 

I used my embroidery machine to put a crown on the label using gold metallic thread!  I think it will appeal to Sera's love of "sparkly" things!  :O

 

I'm very excited to give my grandchildren their quilts this year for their birthdays...I'm afraid I might be more excited than they will be!  LOL

Thanks for stopping by my blog!  Hope you have a great day!

Loretta

The Beginning of the Beginning...

Quote for the Day:

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

~Confucius

Easter weekend both Andy and I were on-call for our respective workplaces.  Though neither of us got called in, when you are on-call you can't get too involved in anything at home lest you have to up and leave in a hurry.  And in my case, I need to be clean and presentable when I show up for my job so I try not to get involved in things that will get me dirty or sweaty.  (Nobody wants a dirty, smelly, sweaty nurse taking care of them...at least I don't think so anyway!  LOL)


Because of this, we weren't able to get too involved in starting the kitchen remodel.  However, we did decide to remove everything from the only set of wall cabinets that our kitchen owns, thus preparing the upper cabinets for removal when we get the chance.


From this picture you can see my ONLY counter space and ONLY upper cabinets in this kitchen...

Notice how the upper cabinet doors don't close????  For two reasons...the ones on the left are where my plates are kept...and the cupboard isn't DEEP enough for the plates...so the doors don't close.  As for the middle and right set of doors...there is just too many layers of paint on them...so they don't close!  :(


And how 'bout that counter space???  Yep, Folks...that's ALL my kitchen offers in the way of counter space...at least for now...  :)


We removed everything from the top cupboards...

and put the dishes we will be using during the remodeling project on the dining room table where we can get to them...

We boxed up some things for the yard sale, and boxed other things that we don't think we'll need till we are done with the remodel and put them all in the basement.

Last night I came home from work and found that Andy had mowed the front lawn.  (It looks very nice now.)  I asked him if he had done the back lawn, too, and he said, "no".  Evidently, both the riding lawn mower and the push lawn mower had decided to quit working when he started on the back lawn.  :(((  After dealing with that he said he felt like "destroying something"...so he came  inside and removed the doors from the upper cabinets!  LOL

Hey...ya gotta start somewhere!  LOL  

This weekend we are both off of work, so we are planning on getting the remodel more underway.   I'll be keeping you all informed as the renovation gets underway...whether you want to hear about it or not!  LOL  Stay tuned for ALL the GORY details!  :)

Thanks for stopping by my blog!  Hope you have a wonderful day!  Please leave me a comment to let me know you were here!

Till we meet again...

Loretta

Playing with My "New" Featherweight...

Quote for the Day: 

"Each time history repeats itself, the price goes up."

—Author Unknown

HAPPY EASTER to all!

My birthday was earlier this week, (Thursday, to be exact), so since I had to work that day, Andy took me out to lunch today at Outback Steakhouse to celebrate.  We had a good time and decided to stop by The GW (Goodwill) on our way home.  


I got lucky and found a pair of slacks and a CJ Banks Spring sweater that fit nicely!  :)  Andy was able to fill in his wardrobe needs with 3 pairs of pants and 2 shirts...all Levi's Dockers.  


While there I found this Rowenta iron and picked it up, too.  

I plugged it in at the store to make sure it worked, but was a little nervous about the purchase because I've heard people on the quilting forum I'm on complain about Rowenta irons leaking water.  As soon as I got home, I added water and plugged it in and lucky me...it doesn't leak!  :)  Rowentas are an expensive iron, so I really lucked out and got a good deal!  :)


On Tuesday, I went and picked up my "new" featherweight from the repairman who cleaned it up, oiled and lubed it, and replaced the belt on it for me.  Because I've been working since then, I haven't had the chance to sit down and sew on it, but I rectified that this evening.  


But first...I had to thread it.  Since I don't have a manual for it, I went to the internet.  I thought this picture was pretty funny...notice my netbook in the back there opened to the site with the threading instructions.  LOL

The irony was not lost on me...the machine is 65 years old...but it took the modern convenience of a laptop and the internet to get it threaded!  :)


After practicing on the white strip of fabric that is to the right of the machine, I sewed some precut 2.5" squares together to make some 4-patches...

I need to go online and buy some more bobbins, some new rubber feet for the bottom of the machine and the bottom of the foot control, and a 1/4" foot.  I want to make this the machine I use to take to quilting classes or quilting retreats so I don't have to tote my heavy computerized machine around.


Yesterday I attached the binding to the Disney Princess quilt.  As soon as I make the label and get it attached I will post final pictures!  :)  Stay tuned!  :)


Remember when I recommended the book, "The Help" as a must-read?  Well...today Erin's boyfriend, Dale, sent me this!!!   Oh my goodness!!!  I can't wait to see it!  According to the site, it comes out August 12, 2011!!!  I don't often pay to see a movie at the theater, but I may just have to make an exception this time!  :)

I hope you all have a safe and Happy Easter!  

Till next time...
Loretta

Quote for the Day:

"HUSBANDS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO SELECT GROUT 

WITHOUT A NOTE FROM WIFE."

~sign in home improvement store

This morning Home Depot delivered our cabinets, counter tops and sink.   So I thought I'd share with you what my entryway and dining room look like now...

The entryway...

and behind the loveseat...

 Lady...the ubiquitous dog...always within feet of where I am!  LOL

This is the front of the pantry and shows what the wood looks like!  :) 

(That's a picture of dad on the entertainment center.)

Even some stuff in the dining room...

The countertops!  :)

I can't wait to get started on this project even though it will be a messy one!  :)  And will render our kitchen non-functional for a while.  :(  But that is the price we pay, right?  


It's been pouring down rain today and lots of roads are flooded in the area.  I have to go to work soon, so I hope that I can get through.  


My laryngitis is gone but the voice is still scratchy and the horrific cough just won't go away!  :(  Hope both Andy & I get rid of this crap soon!   It's really hard to sleep when you cough all night long.  :(


That's all for today, Folks!  Thanks for stopping by!  :)  Please leave a comment to let me know you were here!  I love reading your comments!  :)

Loretta

Decluttering and a Book Recommendation...

Quote for the Day:

My second favorite household chore is ironing.  My first being 

hitting my head on the top bunk bed until I faint.  

~Erma Bombeck

TLC was running a "Hoarding:  Buried Alive: marathon today.  I like their show better than A & E's "Hoarders".  TLC's program actually shows the progress the person has made several weeks down the road even though things may still not be perfect.  With A & E's program, they rush to get EVERYTHING done in 3 days and when you are dealing with compulsions, there is no way the behavior is going to be corrected in 3 days.  

Also, when watching A & E's program, "mistakes" are always being made by someone throwing something out that upsets the hoarder.  It is so predictable that it almost seems like they do it to make the show more interesting.  However, it upsets me to watch them upsetting the person instead of helping them psychologically to deal with their compulsion.


Overall, it seems that TLC's participants actually get psychological help and actually make some improvement, albeit over a longer space of time.


Anyway...so this afternoon I was hand quilting on my whole cloth quilt and watching TLC's "Hoarding:  Buried Alive" marathon and just generally trying to rest and recuperate from this cold and laryngitis.   


But you can only watch this kind of show so long before you feel the need to get up and do some decluttering/cleaning of your own... just on the off-side that your house might start looking like what they are showing on TV and the next thing you know it is YOU that is on TV telling people "I don't know how it got this way"!!!  LOL


Thusly, I arose and made my way to my desk to do some decluttering.

My desk has two drawers on the right-hand side...the top is a shallow drawer that holds pens, pencils, etc., and the lower drawer is the size to hold hanging file folders.  However, since I have another file cabinet, I use this drawer to hold miscellaneous office supplies.  Since it is deep, it holds a LOT and things tend to get lost in it... it's like the Bermuda triangle of office supplies!  LOL

You can see the drawer here...looks innocent enough from the outside, right???

Don't be fooled!  Here is what it looked like opened...

All sorts of things just thrown in there.  :(   Just keepin' it real, Folks.


I'm the kind of person that has to remove EVERYTHING and then sort, etc., as I go through each item and decide what to do with it.


So it get WORSE before it gets better!  

I learned a helpful trick a LONG time ago about organizing drawers...


It's best to divide and conquer.  The more dividers you have in the drawer the neater it will stay because things won't roll around and will remain "corralled".   It's not rocket science!  LOL


So for this drawer I took 3 shipping boxes and cut the top flaps off of them and then fitted them down into the drawer...the smallest box sets inside the corner of one of the other boxes.  Then there was a narrow area off to the side between the bigger boxes and the side of the drawer...perfect to stand narrow items up in.


Here are some finished pictures...

Things fit in fairly snugly so as not to allow much movement when the drawer is opened. 


These items were put aside for the summer yardsale...

These were deemed broken and tossed in the trash...

And these items were taken to where they belong and will be stored with like items.  You remember my mantra..."Like items with like items."  :)

And, of course, Lady is never far from where I am...

The gratuitous pet picture...just because I CAN...it is my blog, after all!  LOL  She's like Andy...doesn't like to look at the camera...always looks away just as the picture is taken!  LOL


If you are interested in some good books, let me tell you about what I just finished reading and am currently reading. 


People who know me know that I rarely read fiction.  I like memoirs and biographies.  Real life is so much more interesting than fiction!  However, I ignored my own rule and read "The Help", by Kathryn Stockett.  

EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT book!  I highly recommend it!


I am now listening to "At Home:  a Short History of Private Life" by Bill Bryson.  

If you have never read any of Bryson's books, I highly recommend them!  He is a hilarious author!  He can make anything funny!  


I like to listen to audiobooks while quilting, but at night I like to read after I go to bed.  So on my nightstand right now is "Shattered Silence:  The Untold Story of a Serial Killer's Daughter", by Melissa G. Moore. 

I'm only about 1/4 of the way through this book.  So far it is a little "dry", but the subject matter is interesting.  I really haven't gotten to the "meat" of the book, yet.  I'll give you an update when I finish it.


Well...that's all for today, Folks.


Thanks for stopping by my blog!  Please leave a comment to let me know you were here!


Loretta

It's the Simple Pleasures in Life...

Quote for the Day:

Just living is not enough.  One must have sunshine, freedom, 
and a little flower.  

~Hans Christian Anderson

Sometimes it's life's little pleasures that can make my day.  Like some fresh-cut flowers from my flowerbeds...

Or a porch swing...

And, of course...warmer weather...

Andy & I came down with colds on Sunday night so we haven't felt exactly up-to-par.  But we've both been working, none the less.  It takes more than a nasty cold to keep us down.  LOL  

However, last night at work I suddenly lost my voice.  Just like that.   *snaps fingers*.  My voice was there with me...right where it belonged...till about 8:30 PM.  Then...poof...it was gone.  :(    I turned to talk to my co-workers and to both of our surprise...my voice was not where I had left it.  Weird.  This is only the second time I've ever had laryngitis in my life and it's very inconvenient!  :P 


I did my Rite Aid and Walgreens couponing today and had good purchases/results at both places...

At Walgreens, I purchased these items....

 
My out-of-pocket was $13.11 but I received $11 back in Register Rewards to be used as cash towards my next purchase.  (If you are wondering why I didn't pull the $1 coupons off of the Your Life vitamins and use them, I already had 2-$2.00 coupons and used those instead.)


At Rite Aid, they once again gave me free items and PAID me to remove them from their store!    This is what I bought...

My out-of-pocket was $13.61, but I received $8 in +UP to be used as cash on my future purchases.  I will also receive a $7.99 rebate from Rite Aid.   In addition, once again, at the bottom of my Rite Aid receipt there was an offer to earn a $3 off of a $15.00 purchase by going online and filling out a questionnaire regarding my shopping experience.  This is the THIRD time in a row that I have received this offer/coupon!  :)))   Love it love it love it!  Keep 'em coming, Rite Aid!  :)   All in all, this shopping trip to Rite Aid became a $5.28 money maker for me...in addition to getting some very useful items!  :)

Thank you for stopping by my blog and thanks for listening to me ramble!  :)  Hope your days are filled with simple pleasures and great bargains!


Loretta

Back From Vacation in Maine!

Quote for the Day:

“No man needs a vacation so much as the man who has just had one”

~Elbert Hubbard

Did you miss me???  ;)

We just returned from a week in Maine visiting with Andy's family!  We had a lot of fun and squeezed so much into the week, that now I'm exhausted and ready for a REST!  :)  Unfortunately, I have to return to work tomorrow.  :(

So between getting the bags unpacked, the laundry done, and the bills paid, I also took advantage of the 80+ degree weather today and pruned the rose bushes and the black berry bushes today.  It seems that Spring may have actually finally arrived!  :)

Thought I'd share some of the highlights from our trip...

Last Sunday (our first full day there), my sister-in-law, Tricia, hosted a family gathering at her house to celebrate the eldest sister, Frances' birthday.  There was LOTS of tasty food to eat and plenty of poker-playing going on!  :) 


Andy & Frances (Toots) opening their birthday presents of lottery tickets from their brother, Mike...

Frances opening her gift from Andy & me...a Jadite platter...

She collects both platters and Jadite, so the gift was well received!  :)  That is her daughter, Val, standing behind her looking on!


Needless to say, neither Frances nor Andy won more than a dollar or two on the lottery tickets.  :(


Monday was Frances' actual birthday, so a bunch of us...twelve total, Andy being the only male...went to Hollywood Slots in Bangor and played some slot machines.  A couple of the people in the group won a little ($100-200), but the majority of us just played and had fun...

They don't let you take pictures inside of casinos, so I only have this one outside the entrance from the parking garage.  :(


While we were in the casino, it started snowing outside and as we were leaving Andy pointed out "Paul Bunyan" that stood in the park area across the street from Hollywood Slots.

Andy says he can remember it being there 40+ years ago when he still lived in Maine.  :)  You can tell how tall the statue is because of the power lines in the picture!  LOL

While we were in Bangor, we also visited some thrift stores and found a few "treasures".  :)  

On Tuesday, "everybody" had to go back to work so Mom, Andy & I hit two antique malls.  There was so much to see that it took us about FOUR HOURS to go through them both!  Again, we found some treasures!  :)


On Wednesday, my mother-in-law (Mom, as I call her) volunteers at the local "library".  It isn't what most of us think of as a library, but rather a local group that has gotten together a collection of books in a small room of the Town Hall.  

This is the Town Hall...

And off to the right is the "library" area...you walk down that covered, wooden walkway and the door is on the left across from the "book drop" box...

It is only open a couple hours 4 days a week...all volunteer...but very neatly ordered.  (One of the volunteers organized everything by the Dewey decimal system.)  The whole library area is only about 20 feet by 20 feet.

I went with her and we spent the two hours that is her scheduled time talking and doing handwork.  This little lady is an avid knitter and crocheter.   Unfortunately, we had no visitors during our time there.  :(

While she knitted, I worked on my paper-pieced hexagon quilt blocks that I started a couple months ago.


On Thursday, Andy, Mom & I went to an auction and I picked up a Singer Featherweight sewing machine that I've been looking for for a couple years now!  :))))  

Not only did I get the sewing machine, I also got the table that is made to hold it!  I got BOTH for $110!!!!  A STEAL!!!

The sewing machine purrs like a kitten, but is so dusty that I'm going to have it professionally cleaned and gone through before I actually thread it and sew with it!   These sewing machines only weigh about 5 pounds and are much-sought after by quilters because they are great to take to classes and retreats!  They normally go for upwards of $250 and the tables go for around $175 usually...so you can see that I really did STEAL them!  :)  But, hey...sometimes you get lucky!  ;)


According to the serial number, my little lady was born on November 22, 1946!!!  I'm thinking of naming her "Sadie" after my mother-in-law's mother.  Never met the woman, but I thought that since the machine is a "little old lady" from Maine, I thought that it should be named after a little old lady from there!  :)


Anyway...back to the trip's activities...on Friday, we had a get-together at Mom's with a big turkey dinner to top off a day of playing poker!  

Saturday we left Maine at 10:30 AM and other than a one hour stop for supper at Cracker Barrel, we drove straight through and arrived home at 1:00 AM Sunday morning...14 1/2 hours in the car.  :((((

Andy's family is not big on having their pictures taken, so I basically gave up on that a long time ago!  That's why you don't see many pictures of them in this post.  


Most evenings were spent playing cribbage or poker with his family.  We had a great time and I'm hoping that they did, too!  :)


Tomorrow it's back to the "salt mines" for both Andy & me.  Vacation time is always too short!  


Thanks for stopping by my blog.  Hope you enjoyed your visit!  Please leave a comment to let me know you were here!


Loretta