I really miss being personal with you guys, and that is one of the changes that I am making in 2015, going back to sharing a lot of family stories with you.

This is necessarily a family story, but an observation that I had last weekend, I posted it on my Instagram page, and wanted to share with you guys my update:

“Currently, my husband is sitting in his car on the side of the road waiting for a tow truck to come and tow his truck away because I wrecked it. I am humbled to think of all the times Paul does the things for us that are unpleasant. Husbands, in my opinion, don’t always get the thanks they deserve now days, and I am guilty of it. No one was injured, but because I clipped a curb, 2 tires and 2 expensive rims were destroyed which will result in about $1,200 worth of damage. He was not mad or frustrated, he asked if we were all ok first thing, then he met me at the car, transferred kids to the other one and sent me on my way. He stayed with his car for 2 hours waiting for it to be towed, making sure we were safe at home.
Last week, a precious pet died. Paul had to be the one to to do the horrible job of collecting our loved one and burying him ( I am not ready to talk about this) something that I am sure I would not have been able to do. He gets the absolute worst jobs in our home, and does it without complaining. I am so grateful for him, and his service to us.”

In 2015, I am making it a point to thank my husband for all the things he does for us, especially the things that I don’t want to do, or have to do!

Many of you are “newer” couponers, but some might remember the huge donation drive that we did for the people in Joplin Mo. 3 1/2 years ago when their town was destroyed by tornados.

My husband and son hauled all the supplies YOU guys donated and spent some time helping rebuild. It was a great experience for them to work together. My Mom was also driving through at that time and took some amazing and haunting photos of the aftermath and the devastation. These are her pictures in this post.

Today on my site a women named Rachel left this comment:

I live in Joplin. I just happened upon this sight in a Google search for sending coupons to the troops. (lol). And yes, I realize this is an old post. And it’s been almost 3 1/2 years later. But I CAN NOT thank you all enough for any donations or help you might have done/sent. It was unimaginable. You could never dream the amount of Volunteers we had here. The people literally walking down the road handing out supplies, or wanting to help you find what possessions you had left, or clean up the debris. My heart goes out to you all. Our hearts, as a community, go out to you all. There isn’t one person in this town that I have ran into since, that wouldn’t tell you the help that poured in was amazing. We never dreamed that so many people would come to help people they never met. Or send the amount of supplies you did. Thank you, thank you, thank you! And honestly, thank you still doesn’t describe how appreciative we are still. You helped us manage a time in our lives that we didn’t know how to go forward.

I am pretty much still bawling… Couponers are awesome people! I tell you all the time we donate so much! I am so grateful for couponing that has allowed me to be able to give back, because I am no longer struggling to just take care of myself. During this holiday season we should look for opportunities to give back and help one another!

Well, this is what happens when your 4 year old plays with your phone… $108.24 in apps downloaded. 🙁 One was a $99.99 Batman app. Which is crazy because I have a password lock on my iTunes account, if I want to buy a $.99 song I have to put in my password. How she was able to do this with no password is aggravating.

Have you had this happen? Were you able to get the charges reversed?

The past 2 weeks I have had the amazing opportunity to travel a LOT and teach 26 coupon classes in a few different states. One thing that I have noticed in the past few months is the number of “tweens” who are HUGE fans of the show Extreme Couponing.

In each class I have taught there are always a few tweens who came to say “hi” and who basically begged their parents to take them to the class.

I LOVE THIS!!!

My kids friends are completely addicted to the show and ask my kids questions all the time. Of course my kids roll their eyes and do their best to answer questions, but my kids are hardly impressed 🙂

When I was a teen, I was super frugal but didn’t have the first clue about how to use a coupon or where to get them. These kids are the ones helping their parents and in some cases doing the couponing for their families. What a smart and thrifty group of teens! The cool thing for me is to imagine how much better they will do financially in college and after. I wish SO MUCH that I had known how coupon in college and even high school. These kids already know how and are doing it!

P.S. Sorry for my dumb smile… they were in the middle if making fun of me for being shorter then them and I could not stop laughing!

If you like game shows… and you have nothing to do tomorrow during the day… you can catch me, and the kids on the Let’s Ask America game show!

The premise is 4 people at home on Skype competing for $$ by answering questions where people America voted in the answers.

About the Show

“Let’s Ask America” is a daily, half-hour, television game show that lets you, the home viewer, be a contestant on the show on TV from the comfort of your home via web chat.

This is the “behind the scenes” of the kids and I competing. They were troopers, they had to stand there for almost 4 hours… I was pretty impressed with them!

You have to watch to find out how I did! You can check the times in your area HERE.

When we have the chance, we often take a weekend trip to San Antonio. It is really one of our favorite cities. We have been coming here for the weekend since the kids were little, there is just so much to do!

We left late Friday night and as my tradition, I have Paul take me by the Alamo. It is silly, but I always cry when I am here. The reason why is a number of things, the history, the story, the bravery, how young all the men were, having an ancestor who fought here, and just the reverence of the building. I won’t ever get tired of visiting.

We headed to our hotel, and got everyone settled. They were exhausted thankfully and quickly fell asleep. We get 2 rooms now that everyone is bigger and I use a kids travel bed for the little ones.

We have been hosting an 18 year old semi – pro soccer player for the summer and since he was done with soccer, we wanted to take him to see some of Texas. That would be McKinnlee on the far right, towering above my little family! 🙂

It took him a little time to get used to all the kids, but I think he was sad to go yesterday when he left!

The Alamo is right in the middle of the city. Parking can be a little tricky, but if we can do it in “the beast” anyone can find a spot! Across the street from the Alamo is an entire 3 blocks of funky and fun shops. They also have the Ripley’s Believe it or Not venue and Guinness Book of World Records.

On this trip we were able to check out these attractions thanks to the San Antonio passport. If you ever need any help deciding what to do in San Antonio, make sure to check out Visit San Antonio for everything with help from finding a hotel, to finding events.

Sea World is a tradition for us every year and they had the new Aquatica open this year. It is a HUGE water park where you can get up close to birds and even swim with the sting rays.

Paul and I got the last 2 spots to swim with the sting rays for the day and that was a blast! It was $20 a person for about 20 minutes. They were like little puppies all looking for some food! The kids sat on the side all grouchy that we were having all the fun. For $5 you can sit on the side and feed them. which is worth a try as well.

Ok this is what I like the best. You can being a small cooler into Sea World, which for me with all my little kids is a big deal. I love that I can bring in water (I freeze it first so it is cold all day) and snacks. The cooler can’t be bigger than 12 inches on any side.

Plan on spending all day at the park and even maybe a 2nd day if you have the time.

Tradition for us is always to go to Magic Time Machine. This is on of the most bizarre restaurants you will ever go to, and make sure to ask where the bathroom is…. 🙂  The waiters and waitresses all dress up like a character, some have been the same one for 9 years or more.

I usually get a gift certificate HERE. Currently they have a $50 gift certificate for only $30.

Traffic has always been a little heavy on 1-10 into Houston on a Sunday afternoon. But it gives us time to hang out as a family in the car, which believe it or not we like to do.

One my most favorite things in the world is to be on the highway with all the kids, this guy ^^^^ driving and some good music on. If you are thinking of San Antonio, you won’t be disappointed. Make sure to message me with any questions and I can help you plan a weekend trip!

This is my How to Make Emergency Hygiene Kits supply list and tutorial.

These are cheap to make from your stockpile and a huge blessing to pass along to disaster relief. Pin this, share this, email it to yourself so you have it handy then next time something comes up that you want to help with.

How to Make Emergency Hygiene Kits

Assembly Instructions

• 2 unbreakable combs (no sharp handles)
• 4 toothbrushes (packaged)
• 1 tube of toothpaste (6-8 oz., no pumps)
• 2 bars of soap (approximately 4 to 5 oz.)
• 2 hand towels (new towels, approximately 15? by 25?. Please do not use dish towels or washcloths. To sew towels, serge or zigzag the edges of terry cloth to make a 15? by 25? towel.)

* Thanks Tracy and Esmerelda for the pre-made hygiene kits from a previous relief aid drive!

Now that you know How to Make Emergency Hygiene Kits, make sure to start stockpiling these items when they are on sale to have them ready!