Happy Anniversary!

Last friday night Luke and I celebrated our 11th anniversary. I just can't even begin to tell you how fast time has gone! My cute Mom watched Gracie so Luke and I could go to dinner and our cute friends Megan and Richard hooked us up with movie passes to Nights in Rodanthe which I highly recommend! But make sure you bring a case of kleenex's! Saturday was my cute friend Michelle's 11 year anniversary! So Happy Anniversary to her and Troy and it was also Suz and Karwin's on the 25th! September is a great month to get married! My favorite season too!



My cute, cute, cute friend Chellie sent Gracie a huge care package full of Scarlet's clothes and they are just adorable! I am going to take a bunch of pics so I can post them so all of you can see just how cute she is! The package couldn't have come at a better time. Luke's work has been cut back to 3 days due to the economy and I was getting stressed and this sure has made my stress ease up a bit! Thank you sooooo much Chellie and Scarlet! We love you!!!!!!

Today Stephanie and Harli came out and took a bunch of pics for her Photography class and they turned out soooo cute! She took a bunch on a dirt road and on the railroad tracks and I never realized just how beautiful it is out here lol! Isn't this the cutest pic ever! Steph needs to do this professionally!



I have so many pics to post and my memory card is downstairs and we all know that means I am too lazy, but I promise to post pics soon. Saturday night my little brother Mark and our friend Jeff came out and we played Rock Band 2 until all hours of the night and it was a blast! I never knew I was so into the drums! Great game! Lots and lots of hours of family fun!

My original doctor that has taken care of my diabetes for about the past 10 years decided to only take pediatric patients from now on, so he referred me to a new doc named Dr. Faux and I see him for the first time this Thursday and I am nervous! I hate new docs. I get so used to the ones I have had forever and I am not good with change. He looks like he is 20 years old! I guess that means I am just getting older! Hopefully he will be able to help me manage my health as well as Dr. Brown did! Wish me luck! Sorry for chatting your ears off tonight. Hope all is well with everyone and thanks again to my cute Chellie! Love you!

Quick Tip....

Just wanted to let you all know about shortcuts.com! You have got to check it out if you frequent Smith's for groceries. It has different coupons on the site daily, so check back often and you can store up to 20 on your fresh values card. My favorite have been the diaper coupons. All you have to do is load your fresh values card number in the website and then add coupons to your card. It automatically loads them on there and you can also use coupons you cut from the paper too! So I add a huggies coupon from shortcuts on my card then I use one from the paper too and it is like using double coupons! Great savings!!!

My new addiction lately has been eating a can of Campbell's chicken noodle soup and instead of adding water, add milk! So yummy!!!!!! You have got to try it. Now that the weather is getting cooler, it is time for more soup!

So Grateful for Strangers!

Tonight, Luke, Gracie and I were eating out at a restaurant and Gracie started choking on a potato so I started smacking her back, thinking that would do the trick. Well, it didn't and she started turning blue and I literally freaked out! I didn't know what to do! I stuck my finger in her mouth and couldn't feel anything, so Luke immediately put his finger all the way down her throat. Meanwhile a sweet, sweet lady sitting across from us saw the drama taking place and hopped up and grabbed Gracie and was going to do the Heimlick on her, but at that moment, she started breathing again. I have never, ever felt such panic in my life and felt so helpless! My mind was just blank and I didn't know what to do! I told that sweet lady/angel that I was so grateful she was there and she said she didn't do anything, but I told her that her acting so fast made me feel so much better. Apparently she used to run a daycare and has dealt with that situation in the past. I am sooooooo grateful for her!!!!!!!!!! So give your kiddos an extra hug for me tonight!

For All You Hound Lovers.....

This is too beautiful not to share. Please take a moment out of your busy day to read and enjoy!


A Dog's Purpose (from a 6-year-old).

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker 's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's Death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, 'I know why.'

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation.

He said, 'People are born so that they can learn how to live a good Life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?' The Six-year-old continued, 'Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long.'

Live simply.
Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly.
Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:
When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.
Take naps.
Stretch before rising.
Run, romp, and play daily.
Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Be loyal.
Never pretend to be something you're not.
If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.

ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY!

DAISY

PEANUT

DUSTY

MILLIE & SADIE

SADIEBEAR & LISA a.k.a. MOM

My Piggies are Raw!

My poor piggies are raw! It is from when Mark and I went to Lagoon and I walked around the park all day with wet shoes on from the rides. But if I had to do it all over again, I would in a heartbeat. It just sucks being a diabetic, because it will be months before these babies are healed! Ouch!





I would be so ungrateful if I didn't take a minute and pay tribute to all of the lives that were lost 7 years ago today. The tragedy that happened that day took so many innocent lives. We are so blessed to be alive and to live in a land where there is freedom. I bow my head to those heroes that died and also to the ones that saved lives. Even dogs rescued people and to me they are also true heroes.

Yesterday was Luke's bday. He got shoes, shirts and some games. We are giving trees to each other for our bdays this year since we are in the new house with no yard.

Karwin is coming home on Sunday! Wahoo! It seems like he has been in Iraq for years now! We have missed him so much and are so glad he is finally going to be home again with his cute family. Hayden and Addison will be so excited to see their Dad! And Suzanne will be grateful to have her hero home too.

I haven't posted much lately because my time has been consumed with homework that is going so slow. I am so frustrated by this memory loss. It doesn't get along with homework very well, but we just take it one day at a time.

And last but not least my cute friend Michelle had surgery this week and I want to tell her how much I love her and am truly blessed to have such a special friend! I hope she has a speedy recovery and is back on her feet in no time!

Gracie is just so cute. I can't get enough of her! Her are her latest photos! Enjoy!

More Coupon Info....

Lots of you requested more info on saving money with coupons and today I was watching Studio 5 on KSL and every Wednesday at 11:00 am they are going to give us tips with coupons so you will have to stay tuned. They gave out some fun blogs to look at so I will post them so you can all check them out. One of them is a single mom with 3 daughters and she has set a budget of only 800 bucks a year for groceries! How cool would that be? You have got to check her blog out. It is:
www.jane4girls800dollarannualbudget.blogspot.com/
another great one:
www.notgoingwithout.blogspot.com
and one more:
www.frugalisfab.blogspot.com

All of these links are on the right hand side under fav websites on this blog
One of these ladies on one of these blogs got 81 items at Walmart for under 9.00! Can you believe that! Next time you are in Walmart, buy the All You magazine at the check out stand. It is full of great coupons and it is only 1.97 an issue. I just subscribed to a year the day before I saw a great sale on pinchingyour pennies! I spent 20 for a year and you can get 37 issues for the same price right now on pinching your pennies! That website also has great deals happening all over the internet, great christmas present ideas, so check back often! The September issue of All You hasn't been that great, apparently I missed the August one that was so fabulous, but if it has great coupons, I figured why not try it out right? If I like it when I get it, I can always go and buy more at Walmart.

Make sure you are all saving your coupon inserts you get in Sunday papers. I know it doesn't seem like 50 cents here or 75 cents there will save you much, but you would be so surprised! I am learning so much from my cute friend Steph and I have already saved hundreds! Ask your neighbors, relatives and friends for their Sunday coupons if they don't use them (most people just throw them away). It is great to have doubles and triples of the same coupon, that way you can buy three of that item when it is a great deal. You will start to accumulate a lot of coupons fast, so you will need to start filing them to make it easier to find them. Mine are stored in a shoe box with index cards and it is a great file for me. I just go through them every now and then and pull out the expired ones. Make sure you cut out each and every coupon! The only ones I don't cut out are coffee ones. Even if it is something you don't use brand wise or have never tried, cut it out! For example if you cut out a hormel chili coupon for 75 cents off and you never use that brand, what happens when they go on sale for 99 cents, won't you try it for 14 cents? I know I would and you might find things you like you never tried! It is also nice to start stocking our food storages for how expensive everything is getting! So cut out everything!
The ads come out every Tuesday for Smiths and Macey's here. You can plan out all of your meals for the following week depending what is on sale and what you have coupons for. Once I get them I look at everything and see if I have coupons to match anything that is already a great deal. My new favorite website is www.pinchingyourpennies.com. If you go into that website into forums, click on screaming deals and go to Utah, it will pull up different stores so go into the store you shop at and it will tell you what the hot buys are that week and what coupons to use with them. They don't do Walmart, but the more I have shopped around, I am saving lots more at Smiths that I do at Walmart and apparently as of today, according to pinchingyourpennies.com, Walmart will no longer accept more than one of a certain coupon per purchase. Anywhere else you can have 10 or more of the same coupon and you can use them on each item which has been so great. I got 6 suave deodorant's for 19 cents. Not a brand I have ever used, but for 19 cents, I will give it a try! At Smith's a few weeks ago, they had pert plus (huge bottles) for 3.31 and I had a coupon for 3 bucks off. I had 5 of them so I got five bottles for .31 cents each! Now Luke will have shampoo for life but you can't beat deals like that! Smith's is by far my favorite. If you have small kids and buy diapers and such at Smith's make sure to have the cashier sign you up for baby points and for every dollar you spend, it turns into baby points and once you reach 200, they will give you 10 bucks! Same with pets, have them sign you up for pet points too! I am just full of info tonight lol! I am so anxious to hear the deals you are all going to come across, so please keep me posted and if you have any questions, I am always right here!!!!! Good luck!