Hush, Hush a Good Read


Since discovering Twilight a couple of years ago I have delved into the Young Adult section at the bookstore. I have always loved fantasy/scifi stories with romance and the young adult section is loaded with them. Who knew?

I received a Borders gift card for Christmas from a friend who knows how much I love to read so I picked up a couple of books that sounded interesting. One of them was Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick. The cover was beautiful and caught my eye. The story has to do with fallen angels. The main girl in the book Nora has suddenly been given a new chemistry partner, Patch, and she is drawn to him and he seems to be to her as well. He appears to be a sort of bad boy. Strange things begin to happen and that's where things get interesting. Will Patch help her or is he the cause?

I found the book to be a very quick read with an interesting story to tell. I cared about all the characters even the one with minor rolls. I look forward to reading the next book as this is the first in a new series. Thank God. I want more. It's always a good sign when I finish the book and I'm invested in the characters and I feel like I'm invested. I want to know what happens next. Now as for my 12 year old I would let her read this book. I find nothing offensive about the story. I think she'll enjoy it. Everyone needs to escape with a good book once in a while. This is definitely a good book and worth anyone's time. Give it a try. You won't be sorry.

Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure


My daughter was lounging around this morning as she tends to do every Saturday. She's always fried after a week full of school so I never really bother her. She was looking for something new to watch so she was checking out the movies on demand. She found Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. She asked me if she'd like it. I practically started laughing just remembering it. I used to love that movie.

She cued it up and before I realized it my husband and my youngest daughter also sat down and we all ended up watching it. It was so silly and funny. They loved it. Everyone needs a good laugh.

If you've never seen this movie let me tell you a bit about it. Bill and Ted need to pass their history project or they will flunk out of school and Ted will be sent to military school. Luckily for them a time traveler named Rufus comes to help them because they are important to the future of the world. They travel through time asking historical characters to help them. They bring them back to their time to help pass the project. It's just so funny and the way they talk is so funny. Everything is excellent or bogus. I would highly recommend this movie for some good clean fun.

Guess Who's Cutting the Cheese Now?

As some of you may know ...

I am a HUGE cheese fan.  I have always loved it.  Maybe it had to do with growing up a few miles from one of the best ... (scratch that) ... THE BEST cheese factory in America.  Cheese has always been one of my fetishes.

When we lived in Oregon we visited the Tillamook cheese factory many times.  That was always a tour worth taking - in my honest opinion.  And since we've left Oregon, I rarely get to enjoy good stuff of this quality.

But that all changed recently.

First, my Grandma hooked me up with 4 pounds of the lovely goodness when we were visiting her in Oregon.  At the time, I was like ... YAY!  Thank you SO much Grams!  Love it!

And then just this week, my Parents (Chris' folks) dropped a huge cheese bomb on me.  They sent over 15 pounds of Heavenly manna for me to eat.  Yes ... me.  I'm not afraid to say I'll probably end up eating most of it myself.  I am the only one in the house who can cut this cheese as it was meant to be cut.

I have always been proud of my cheese cutting abilities, and now hopefully, I'll be doing a lot more practicing.
 

By the way ...
If you ever feel the need to send me anything from the Northwest - say as a gift, or anything like that - please check out the picture above.   Those black cheese packs in the bottom left of the picture - those things are THE BOMB!  Love 'em!  Those are Aged 'to perfection' cheddar cheese.

Al

All the Lovely Little Eggs

Trying to get caught up on some of the happenings out in Oregon while we were there. Here is a quick one that totally surprised me.

Some of you know that I've sold chicken related books online for about 4 years now. So chickens are ALWAYS exciting for me to talk about and see.

So ...

We show up at my Dad's place and they've got a coop and 10 hens. That was cool. Even more cool was that they were all still laying, even in the middle of winter. So I grabbed some shots of his coop, his hens, and the egg gathering.

It was pretty cool too, the girls named a few of the ladies.

Keeley named hers - Eggna
Kait named hers - Cluckla
Alexa named hers - Jessica

 
  
  
  
  
 


Al

Whip It A Really Fun Movie


When Whip It was out in the movie theater I thought it looked good, but I never made it. I really like Drew Barrymore and she directed this so when it came out on DVD I quickly rented it from Netflix. My 12 year old was thrilled. She was dying to see it. It looked like a typical coming of age story so I thought. Why not? I'll watch it with you.

This was a very funny movie. It's about a girl who lives in a small town in Texas. Her mother wants her to do the beauty pageant thing and she's not into that. She stumbles upon a roller derby league and joins despite being to young. She finds something to love. She bonds with the girls on her team and really feels like she belongs and up till this point she has felt like an outsider. She also falls in love only to have her heart broken, but a good lesson learned.

I've always loved coming of age type movies and this one was entertaining and very silly at times. I remember roller derby being on TV when I was younger and yes I did watch sometimes. I loved watching these crazy people go around the track and knock each other over. I have no idea why I liked it, but I kept tuning in.

Now is this movie okay for tweens. My daughter loved it. Again the movie is rated PG-13. I think it's a good rating. There is underage drinking and some pot smoking. There is also a scene where Ellen Page is swimming in a pool in her underwear. However, it looked like a bikini so nothing major there. My daughter is just about 13 so I felt she was ready to watch this. Now my 9 year old is not quite there yet. I'd like to keep her in fairies and rainbows for a little while longer.

Todays Grocery trip!

I think that today I had my best grocery trip yet. Well at least for the amount of items that I was able to get. There was a trip that I had earlier this month that was for yogurt that was free but since that was just for the one thing I guess it is a bit different.  Anyhow...



Today's trip was all this. The total put of pocket was $11.86 and the total savings was $134.23!! That is 92% savings  people! What a blessing! The checker was just shocked at the total savings and how little I spent. And she went over each and every coupon because she is fairly new to the store and she wanted to make sure all the coupons matched up. That kinda bugs me because it can take so much extra time. But I know that I have been very careful and make sure that the coupon wording matches what I am purchasing so I know it will stand up to the scrutiny. It can just take so much more time but I will wait for that kind of savings I guess!
Here  is what I got...
14 packs of Yo-plus yogurt
8 cans of Rotel Tomatoes
2 packs of Knox gelatin
2 pack of phyzeme
2 chobani Greek Yogurts
2 A-1 steak sauce
2 Kraft Bar-B-Q sauce
4 Sundown Vitamins
3 packs of chinet plates
2 packs of Ronzoni macaroni noodles
2 packs Jolly time popcorn
2 bottles Hidden valley Ranch
2 Tyson cooked pot roast
4 Eight-o-clock coffee
2 Craisins Dried cranberries

The things that were free were the chinet plates, and the Chobani Greek yogurts. The things that were free with overage were, the 4 sundown vitamins (4.00 overage) the Phyzeme (2.00 overage) and the Knoxx gelitan (5.22 overage!) That is $11.22 WOW!
The rest just ended up being very little after coupons and sales. 53 items for $11.86!
God is good all the time!

Half Days of School are Pointless

When the girls have a half day of school they're always thrilled because that means after their homework is done they'll actually have time to do what they want. That's truly a rarity with the amount of homework they get.

As a mom I find half days annoying. It takes the regular craziness to get them out in the morning and then by the time I pick up the morning mess and do a little laundry I'm heading out to get them. It all just seems so pointless and stressful. I find myself running around trying to get as much done as I get done in a full day. Man I wish I had super powers like the Flash then maybe it would happen. Oh hey maybe if I had a clone. Yes, that may work. If there were two or maybe three of me this wouldn't seem so bad. However, we live in reality world and there's just little old me running around with my head cut off. Then when I get them home they think they have all this extra time and there's no need to do the homework right away and before I know it the day is over and I'm yelling for them to do their homework. Really what is the point here except to annoy me.

Obviously there's nothing I can do about this. They'll continue to have half days so they can count it as a full day because of teacher meetings or whatever. It just feels good to get the frustration off my chest.

Taylor Swift and Tweens


My girls love music. They rule the radio in the car and for the most part I love that. It's the radio station I like to listen to. However, some of the music is just not what I want them to listen to. Some of it I find myself singing and then I realize what the words are. Not that the girls have a clue what these songs mean, but that's not really the point is it?.

When Taylor Swift came alone all I could think of was wow this girl is really talented and my girls love her. She is a great role model so far. I never get too carried away because celebrities always seem to disappoint, but Taylor seems real. Her songs are sweet and really hit home with my girls. I hope she continues to put out great music.

This is one artist I never get sick of my girls listening too. As a matter of fact I enjoy her music when they're not even with me. I can't say the same about Mylie Cyrus or those other Disney Channel stars. Taylor Swift is just one of those artist for girls of all ages. I love her new song Fifteen. It reminds me of High School. Her music just makes me smile. Keep up the good work Taylor.

Great deals!! God's blessings continue!

So it has been a while since I posted any of my deals. The girls and I went out today and so I decided it was time to share some of the goods!
Here is a deal that I got a couple of days ago at Target. They had this body wash on sale for 2.99 a bottle. There is a Target store coupon in the site for 1.00 off Nivea skin care products and then I used a Manufactures coupon for 2.00 off one Nivea body wash. So I was able to get all 4 bottles for free! And these are big bottles too, 16.oz.



Then todays deals! For all of this I spent a whopping $1.93! The food things (On the right)were purchased at CVS and for that the total out of pocket was .74 and I got back 10.00 in extra care bucks to spend next time. I also paid with 10.00 extra care bucks that I had from a couple weeks ago. The other items (On the left) were purched in a couple different transactions at Walgreens. and the total for all of that was 1.19. And I got a 2.00 Regester Rewards back to spend next time. All of this thanks to Coupons!!

Here is what I got at CVS:
4 bags of Stacy's Pita Chips
2 bags of True North Pistachio crisps
2 bottles of Gatorade
1 green bag tag (this is a tag that when I go in and have them scan it I will get 1 extra care buck for every 4 scans. I needed a filler item so that I did not loose any of my extra care buck that I was paying with.)

And here is what I got at Walgreens:
7 packs of Reach Dental Floss
4 Packs of Reynolds wrap foil
6 boxes of Jello
1 Mens Sure deodorant
2 bottles of Mens Pert Plus shampoo and conditioner in one
I was unable to get 3 more of the mens Sure deodorant because they were out. But the very nice lady at Walgreens gave me a raincheck so that I can get them when they get back in stock! So that will be 3 more deodorants free!! They are onsale with an in add coupon for 1.50 each and there was a 1.50 off manufactures coupon in last Sundays paper! Oh and I almost forgot the Mens Pert Plus I can send in for a manufactures rebate of 2.50. So again between the coupons, rebates and store credits (Register Rewards and Extra Care Bucks) I was paid to get all these things.
God is good in teaching me to stretch our dollars! 33 items for 1.93. that makes them .05 cents each! Not bad in my book!
Have Fun!
Chris

Tweens and Crushes

Now my oldest daughter is in middle school and this is the time when kids start saying they're going out with someone. Of course they're not really going anywhere. They just talk on the phone or should I say text and hang out in school. It seemed like many of the kids in my daughter's class were pairing up last year and if you didn't you weren't one of the popular kids. The girls were especially hard and it made for a difficult year for my daughter.

She really just wanted to fit in and she always had, but suddenly things just sped up and I don't think she was ready. She was on the verge, but not quite there. They had dances at school and she was never asked to dance and that hurt her and me because I hate to see either of my children upset. She's just so shy that it makes things tricky for her with the boys. My husband considers this a good thing. Keep those boys away. Even though she's known them since nursery school things started to change. They used to all play tag in the school yard, but now that's just not cool. Mostly the girls just stand around giggling and talking about boys. The boys just try to be cool. Everyday she would come home miserable and felt that she just didn't fit in anymore. She still had her friends, but they were trying to figure things out as well. This was a really hard year for her. I'm so glad we got through it.

This year things have changed. My daughter seems to be more confident. She doesn't consider herself one of the popular girls, but she doesn't care anymore. They aren't nice and she has no use for them. She has a great group of girls she hangs out with and she's doing well in school.

Now my daughter has a crush on a boy in her class. It's adorable. This boy always goes out of his way to talk to her and get her attention. He is a little bit of a class clown I guess, but I think that's why she likes him so much. He makes her laugh and don't we all need someone who can do that in our life. The problem is she doesn't know if he likes her. It's typical tween drama. All I know is every day she has a new story about something this boy said or did. When she tells me about him there is always a smile on her face and I have to smile to because it is just such a pure feeling. This is the way it should be. Your first real crush should make you feel like you're walking on clouds. I told her that even if he doesn't like her like a girlfriend he is definitely a friend and that's where all good relationships should start. It seems to be making her more confident and that makes me happy. She should be confident. She's a beautiful intelligent little girl. I just hope this crush doesn't crush her. Fingers crossed.

I Really Dislike Rain

Living in New England has taught me that the weather will always change. If you don't like it one day there is no need to fear it will surly change the next day. Whether it changes for the better is another story.

Today it is miserable. It is about 50 degrees which is great. However, it's crazy pouring. It was just rain until I had to leave to pick the girls up from school. It's almost as if it waited for me to exit the house. Driving was horrible especially on the highway. People were either breaking constantly or they were flying. There really wasn't a happy medium.

When I had to get out of the car to get the girls it seemed to crank up another notch. I didn't even think that was possible, but hey apparently mother nature thought it was funny. I was prepared though, I had my raincoat and umbrella. I sent the girls with jackets that had hoods. That didn't save us though because not only is it pouring the wind is blowing crazy so when we got in the car we were all soaked. That wet feeling is miserable so I cranked up the heat. I was freezing.

Finally when we got home we all ran upstairs to change our soaked clothing. There's nothing worse than wet jeans. Yuck. Of course when I finally got all warm and cozy again the dog had to go out. I tell you I really dislike rain.

Twilight Graphic Novel


My tween loves all things Twilight so when I heard about an upcoming Twilight: The Graphic Novel for the series I was interested in it for her and for me. I am a huge fan of comic books and of manga. I have a rather large collection. The twilight graphic novel is being illustrated by a Korean artist Young Kim. This would classify this as a Manhwa. I have seen all types of graphic novels and honestly I would have preferred a manga artist for Twilight, but thats my opinion. I'm sure that it will be beautifully done. The cover looks gorgeous, but honestly a little too gorgeous for Bella. Also remember that since this is in the style of Manhwa the pages will be black and white. They will not be colored only the cover will be covered. Hopefully there will be a few more color pictures here and there, but the story itself will be told with black and white illustrations.

There will be two volumes of the graphic novel. Volume one will be released on March 16, 2010. It is being released as a hardcover. It is available for pre-order at Amazon.com

I look forward to getting my hands on this. I may have to have 2 copies one for me and one for my daughter.

Our Little Rockstars

On our visit to Oregon we discovered the Wii rockstar style game.  This was the first time I had seen it, or knew of anyone who had it.  So we had the girls give it a try. 

And they loved it!

So we snagged a few shots of them playing.  Nick and Keeley seemed to really enjoy it.  Alexa was truly the rock star, getting all the songs down without problems - but she requested that we leave her out of the limelight.  So, you'll just have to stick with these few shots we picked up.


 
 
 
 
 
 
I guess it may be time to get Keeley a guitar soon, and learn her how to play the thing in real life.

Every Little Bit Helps

Yesterday my girl's school had a tag day. Now a tag day is usually held one day a month. The kids bring in a dollar and they are allowed to wear regular clothes instead of their uniforms. The money they collect is usually given to a charity of some sort. This time it was used to raise money to send to Haiti.

My oldest daughter's teacher wanted them to wear clothes that reflected the colors on the Haitian flag. This was a fairly easy task because their flag has many different colors. My daughter wore jeans of course and a red and blue shirt. Both colors are on the flag.

Now my daughter's school is not a large school though they do have about 500 students. So if you think about it they should at least raise $500. Well many of the students brought in more than that and the school was able to raise over $3000.00. This was fabulous. The principal was thrilled and the kids really felt like they helped. It's a good way for them to learn about helping others. My girls have seen some of the news on this earthquake and all the people who need help. They want to help and yesterday they did.

Vampire Diaries: Bloodlines


This episode was great. My daughter loved it. She refused to let me delete it from the DVR. Apparently this episode will require further viewing. She's actually trying to rewatch it right now, but my husband is watching the news.

We learned so much. I love it when shows actually give you info instead of keeping you hanging forever. If you haven't seen this episode and don't want to be spoiled stop reading now.

Okay first off my bad in saying a stranger was coming up to Elena after she got into a car accident. Actually she hit the stranger and he got back up. He appears to be a vampire, but it was not Stefan or Damon. Damon appeared out of no where though and scarred the mysterious stranger away. He saved Elena who then passed out and he thought it would be a good idea to take her on a road trip. She wasn't really into it at first, but then she loosens up. Damon goes to visit an old friend who is also a witch.(I'm loving the witch thing.) He wants her to help get the tomb where Katherine is opened. She claims ignorance at first. The witch calls Lexi's boyfriend who wants to kill Damon basically because he killed Lexi. Elena talks him out of it. Damon was in some serious trouble before she intervened. Before they head back he goes back to his witch friend and kills her for betraying him, but before she dies she tells him a way to get the tomb open. While all this is going on Stefan is worried sick about Elena and goes to Bonnie for help. Bonnie discovers a problem with her powers and ends up getting stuck in a hole outside the old church where Katherine and the other vampires are stuck in a sort of tomb. Stefan comes and saves her and there seems to be a kind of mutual understanding between Bonnie, her grandmother and Stefan. Elena finally returns home and confronts Stefan. He tells her he was the one who saved her from the car accident that claimed her parents, but he was unable to save them. He informs her that he watched her since then because she looked like Katherine. He discovered that they were nothing alike and would have left, but had to know her. Stefan also tells Elena that she was adopted that's why she looks so much like Katherine.

This was a great episode. I really am enjoying this as much as my daughter. My daughter informed me that this show was the talk of the day and I can see why. Damon is definitely the favorite of the brothers all around. My daughter and her friends keep calling Stefan a stalker and I would tend to agree. I really can't wait for more and luckily we only have to wait a week for another episode.

More Big Bend Power Plant Wildlife Pictures

This park is definitely one of the coolest places in Florida.  We've been back here several times.  Here are a few pictures from our latest trip.

And the coolest pics are the last two - a little blurry - but both are shots of jumping spotted rays.  You have to have lightning reflexes ... like me ... in order to get shots like this.  And check it out ... I got two of them.

I am like a puma!

 
 
 


Talk soon!
Al

Vampire Diaries Returns


Tonight marks the return of Vampire Diaries after the winter hiatus. I can tell you that I have one very excited tween in the house right night. She is literally counting the minutes. Of course if I was being completely honest I would have to say that I'm looking forward to it as well.

They left us with a real cliff hanger back in November. When we last saw our heroine Elena she crashed her car and wasn't looking to good. Someone was walking toward her and we couldn't tell who it was. My money is on Damon. I think he'll have to turn her into a vampire or she'll die. I know it's going to happen eventually. I read the books after all. My daughter doesn't know, but she thinks it's Damon as well. They haven't completely followed the books so I have no clue what will happen next. That's half the excitement. All I know is this show is a guilty pleasure of mine. I have a feeling my daughter will be texting her friends through the whole show.

One of her friends just had a birthday and I found a t-shirt with Damon and Stefan on it at dELias. The girls went crazy for it. They all want one. Including my daughter and lucky for her, her birthday's next month.

Well I have to get the dishes done so I can enjoy the show. Will post how it was tomorrow.

Disney with the Joneses

Finally catching up a bit.  Although it's over a month late, I wanted to share a trip we took with the Jones family to Disney.  They visited with us from South Africa for a few days.  It was so cool to see them again - but WAY too short.

I didn't want to put up too many pictures of them, but here are a few shots from our trip.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 


Catch you soon!
Al

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