"I felt the wind of Lance Armstrong!"

This week, the biggest bike race in America, the Amgen Tour of California, came riding through our city. We set up camp for a couple hours on a street corner hoping to catch a glimpse of the famous Lance Armstrong. As another onlooker was quoted saying, "we felt the wind of Lance." Good luck figuring out which one he was in the swarm of cyclists that sped by so fast we hardly had time to turn our heads to watch them round the corner we had carefully scouted out for "the best viewing" we could find. For future reference, if I want a picture of Lance, I'll get one off the internet and set my camera down so I can more fully enjoy the gust of energy that radiated off the road during the race. We had a great time out in the California sunshine drawing with chalk and anticipating the arrival of the cyclists with other enthusiasts.

Happy Birthday Aubrey!

Aubrey celebrated her third birthday this week. She is SO excited to have "bigger eyes, bigger fingers and bigger toes." We love you Aubs!

Just the Two of Us

This past weekend, Adam took me to Disneyland...just the two of us. My parents and brother were kind (and brave) enough to come and watch our three girls. Adam and I had a wonderful time. We got to ride all the rides we'd hoped to and enjoyed some time to be together without worrying about all the many things you stress about with the little ones.



We also were fortunate enough to get to meet up with our good friends Jenn and Ryan. Thanks for a fantastic weekend guys! Can't wait until next time. :)

By the way, in case you didn't know, Disneyland has a fantastic Baby Care center. I am still nursing my baby (hooray for making it 10 1/2 months -that is longer than the time I was able to nurse my first two combined!) and so had to take a couple "breaks" throughout the day. The "Baby Care" center is fully equipped for such stops. They have a nice little curtained room with a chair, table and an outlet; sinks to wash "equipment" in, and in case you actually have your baby with you, they have a plentiful supply of about anything you could have forgotten including baby food, diapers, binkies, desitin, lotion, bottles, etc. How awesome! (These come at a charge of course, but that they have them is fantastic!) They also have changing tables, high chairs and a microwave to heat up their food. Very cool and thought you all should know about it. I was impressed.

Finally got it!

Aubrey got a bike for Christmas and we went 'round and 'round and 'round the block pulling her and pedaling her feet for her...well, it finally clicked and now I'm chasing her 'round and 'round and 'round the block!

Drummer Boy

My rockin' brother Quinten has been learning to play the drums. He had a recital last week and I'd say he has some "sweet skills"! Way to go "Quicket"! I'm so proud of you!
(Be sure to pause the music on my blog before you watch this.)

Into EVERYTHING!!!

Sweet little Allie is ten months old already and she is into EVERYTHING around here! She empties every drawer and cupboard she can get into and has an extra sense that tells her when the baby gate is down or the bathroom door is open -and then she bolts for them! She became quite skilled at pulling off her socks so she could climb up the slide of the jungle gym we used to have set up in our front room (it has since had to be relocated back outside). She pulls books off of bookshelves and underwear out of baskets ...and still she is so cute and loveable that we can't help but smother her with kisses!

Celebrating Seven Years!

This coming Monday, Adam and I will be celebrating our seventh wedding anniversary! Adam and I both agree that had we known then, what we know now, about what life would bring us to this point ...we wouldn't have traded it for anything in the world! Je t'aime mon amour, a la lune et retour!

Puddle Hunting

On a given day, you are sure to hear me say (multiple times) to my children, "Stay out of the water!" "Don't Splash" "Please don't get wet!" and in the back of my head, I hear my mom's voice saying "Let them be kids. They'll wash. It'll dry." Just yesterday, in fact, I scolded them for getting their shoes wet just before getting into the car. Well, today I took your advice mom and "let loose" a little. It was raining outside, and so we went out prepared. We put on the rain boots you prepped them with at Christmas and planned on jumping in some puddles. I asked the girls to simply do me the favor of tucking their pants into their boots (to minimize wetness) and we found ourselves scouring the parking lot at the stores and intentionally walking through every puddle, large or small, that we could find. The fun continued once we returned home and we went puddle hunting again on the way to the mailbox; you know what? It was fun. (And they stayed dry!) While I still believe their is a time and a place to be wet, I must say, thanks Mom, for being the soft whisper in my ear reminding me to let my kids be kids...at least some of the time. :)

More Gymnastics

"Hey Grandma! Look what I did at gymnastics this week! "

Storytime

One of our favorite weekly activities is our trip to the library for story time. The librarian reads four or five stories and sings a song/dance with the kids in between each story. The girls love it; especially little Allie. She starts clapping as soon as we walk in the room. She loves music and I couldn't be happier about that! :)
We have had some beautiful weather here lately and consequently have been out riding bikes and visiting the park on a daily basis. Is it bad to have spring fever in January?

How I saved $83.91

Okay. So I was quick to brag about my "free" shopping trip a couple months back and a little less quick to answer many of your questions about how I did it. Let me remind you that I did not invent this game, nor have I perfected, but I am most happy to pass on a bit of what I have learned from others along with a few things I've learned along the way. I will begin by saying that after half a year of playing the "coupon game," it is hard for me to pay full price for just about anything anymore. To make this as simple as possibile, I will say it is as easy as 1-2-3.

Step 1. Gather Coupons.

Pull out all the ads and coupons from the Sunday Newspaper and make yourself a chart/list to compare prices with. (Example: I make a column for each store ad - Walgreens, Target, Rite Aid, etc. -then I list the products I'm interested in purchasing along with the sale prices. Next I match my coupons to the items on sale and then highlight or circle whichever store has the lowest price after all discounts are given.)

Consult the internet. I love "moneysavingmom.com" Scroll through it a bit to get a feel for the website and it'll start to make more sense to you then a quick glance would do. I use it mostly to be sure I've found all the best Walgreens deals (which are posted every week -see, a lot of the work is already done for you!). There are also links to many, many internet printable coupons that sweeten your deals. You can also often find great restaurant deals, budget meal ideas, and free samples. It's worth checking out, but you've got to give it some fair investigation to really see what it has to offer. There are many great sites, such as "coupons.com" that you'll want to be sure to register for. I'd recommend getting a separate e-mail account for a "junk e-mail" to keep ads, etc. separate from personal e-mail. For any of you looking for more than groceries, the "Today Show" posted a few sites to save on bigger items. I haven't used them much, but here they are: "bradsdeals.com," "couponmom.com," "promotioncode.org," and "grocerygame.com"

Step 2. Go Shopping!

I used to be a "one stop shopper." I refused to go to one store for milk and another for bread and cheese. I didn't have the time nor the patience for such things. Now, I not only go to more than one store, I often visit four or more and some of them for just one item. Time and effort has saved me a bundle and I am lucky enough to live in very close proximity to all the stores I like to frequent so gas is a non-issue, and neither is travel time. (Just car seat in and out time becomes the hassle here.) The stores where you will likely find your biggest savings is the drug stores; Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, Longs. They often send out "store coupons" which you can stack with "manufacturers coupons" and sale prices to maximize your savings and even get FREE stuff a lot of the time. They also do a lot of in store credits with purchases and rebates. Be organized with your shopping list and coupons separated and ready to go for each store to minimize the hassles for you. Go in, get what you came for, hand over your coupons, and enjoy your savings!

Step 3. Fill out your rebates!

Don't forget to send in your rebate receipts or you won't get your money back. Do it timely too or you may miss out. Most of them can be done online and it's really super easy, it just takes minute or two.

A few other tricks/tips I learned along the way:

*Buying in larger quantities, where appropriate, saves money. Learn what foods keep or can be frozen for future use.

*Stalk up when things are on sale. If you see a good deal on something you know you will use, get it now, while it is cheap. This concept was tough for me to grasp at first. I really thought it would save me money to buy only what I needed, when I needed it. I was wrong. Tried and true - build yourself a "storage;" it'll save you money not to mention the awesome feeling it is to look through a recipe and actually have the food on hand!

*.50 cent savings adds up to big savings. This week I tallied my stack of coupons to be worth over $10! ($10/week x 52 weeks/year =$520 year in savings) Folks, that is a lot of money! That is saving $10 a week in any way, be it coupons, sale items, eating out one less time, whatever, $10 a week saves $520 /year. I saved $83.91 this week ...hmmm, that would be over $4000 in a year -holy smokes! I'd rather keep my $4000 and do a little more run around. To see how little things add up to big savings for you, here's a few other places you might save:
-Dry Cleaners. I found a .25 cent/item coupon on the back of my grocery store receipt yesterday. I usually dry clean 2 items for Adam each week so with that coupon alone, I can save $26 a year. We eat about 1 box of mac 'n cheese week. I used to buy it at regular price of $1.49/box. Now I buy it in bulk for .54 cents/box and save $50 a year on mac n' cheese. I am sure we eat at least one box of cereal a week, and you probably do too. The avg. box is around $3.75. I buy it only when it is less than $1.75 saving at least $104 a year (but it really is more since we eat more than one box a week and can find it for $1 /box at times). I have just shown you how to save $180 a year, saving money on just three items. And I'm sure you live on more than cereal and nac 'n cheese! So get out there and start saving!

***The biggest and most common question you will find yourself asking is, "Is this a good deal?" Knowing the answer to that is half the battle. I never used to know how much things cost so I never knew if something was a good price or not. I am learning and am much better at that now and know when to pick something up at another store when I know it's cheaper there. One such store is Costco. Many things are less expensive there, but some things aren't the deal you'd expect. I have been making a list of prices of a variety of items there so that I can reference it when I see something on sale somewhere to know if I am really finding a good deal or if I can still get it for less at Costco. I will happily share it with anyone who wants it. I don't know how to post it here as it is a Word document so send me an e-mail or post a comment here and I'll send you a copy of it.

Happy Saving!

P.S. I mentioned saving $83.91. My total spent was $66 this week; that's much more than a 50% savings -wahoo!

Happy Anniversary to my family!

(Computer time around here is VERY limited these days, thus you get several posts all in a day.)

Seven years ago today, my family (my parents and siblings) were sealed together for time and all eternity in the Salt Lake Temple. Happy Ever After to you all! I love you!

Just for fun, I thought I'd share this e-mail from my brother Miles who is currently serving a mission in Toulouse, France (4 months until he returns!). This was his Christmas e-mail:

Well the holiday season is in full swing and we are preparing for Christmas this Thursday. We are lucky to have some eating appointments coming up, there always appreciated, especially at this time of year.

Last night after zone conference, the Toulouse and Montpellier zones stayed in Toulouse to put on a special show, for members and non-members alike. It was fantastic! We formed a choir of approximately 35 missionaries and sung Christmas Hymns, had a special video presentation on the life of the Lord with the song, "Come thou fount of every blessing" which was an amazing rendition. Some of the missionaries had the oppotunity to share some Christmas stories, special musical numbers, and two were chosen to bear their testimonies about Christmas. The elder that bore his testimony stated it as the best Christmas that his family had ever had. He told of his family and of their love for one another. He told of some of the struggles that come with living in a part member family. He spoke of his mother and her unyealding faith that she showed in taking her children to Church on her own every week for more than twenty years. He mentioned two beautiful and nearly perfect sister missionaries that came to his door late in 2000. He told of countless other missionary visits before and the hope that the family had in these two sisters without trying to get there hopes to high and then being let down. He continued as he talked about the charished Apostle Elder David B. Haight who reached out with pure love towards his this elder's father. He spoke of the stake conference where thay met and their unannounced meeting that followed shortly there after. The storied continued with the sisters coming over to watch the "Special Witnesses of Christ" video and the testimonies that were born afterwards. His father accepted to receive the lessons from these loving sisters giving them just one shot. The day of the appointment came and this elder and his sister were quite anxious to hear the outcome, dad came home and sat the children down and announced the news, he was getting baptized! Shock filled the room and joy overwhelmed the family, the date was fixed for Christmas Day 2000. Christmas came, as did nearly three hundred people to watch him enter into the waters of baptism. This elder can still remember perfectly the image of his father dressed all in white standing in the font, he can still remember the joy that radiated from his mother's face. The story ended with the family being sealed for all time and eternity in the temple by the hand of Elder Haight. Thank you dad, I love you.

The finalé of the evening followed immediately after the testimony, with a sister missionary singing the most beautiful and most powerful version of "O, Holy Night" that I have ever heard in my life, it was perfect because that is the favorite Christmas song of my dad.

I'd like to thank Sister Sites and Sister Still who helped my dad along this path, I'd like to thank Elder Haight who took the time to reach out to him, I thank my brothers and sister for living as examples, I thank dad for making this decision and for being the greatest dad in the world, and mom, thank you for everything, thank you for enduring and for never giving up. I love you!

Merry Christmas everyone! I love you!
Elder Marsala

By the way; Elder Marsala could use some fan mail so anyone who knows him, or even those who don't, please take a minute to support an elder and send him a letter:

Elder Miles Marsala
France Toulouse Mission
4, Rue Alaric II
Compans Caffarelli
F-31000 Toulouse
FRANCE