A New Blogging Challenge

After taking a break from pretty much any type of blogging. Partly due to 'wedding recovery' partly due to dial-up. (this WWW thing gets less and less dial-up friendly) I (Carolyn) am feeling compelled to do another 'Project 365' - The thought of not having a theme or focus appeals the most but I can not seem to shake the idea of a theme of 'Things That Make Me Smile'.  

This might sound odd, but having such a theme present itself kind of freaks me out. As in what lessons might God have for me through the next year? But I have learned, that when you can not shake an idea it is best to go forward. What is going to happen, is going to happen. For some reason I am to be working on finding the smiles that come. Guessing many/most days will be easy. So many cute kiddos on my life, who knows, there may be a new one or two by the end. (Big Smile at that thought!) 

Scheduled start date is June 1st, Abigail's high school graduation, seemed an appropriate day to start. 

This time I will be a bit more gracious with myself. If I miss a day, oh well. I can post two on another day. 

So, it is now 'out there', no more ignoring the idea what won't go away. Off I go on another adventure. 

Here is the link (no posts yet) to 'A Hodgepodge of Smiles'

Christmas Cards about to go out...

Cards are printed, only one typo found. Address collecting going well,  putting together a new address book in the process. On the back of our cards is this blog address which has me thinking one thing... over and over and over.

Time to do some blog updating. My desire is to work on this blog, it really went by the wayside during our season of weddings. There are no wedding pictures. no current family pictures and most importantly no little people pictures (Caleb, Joe or grandbabies!) Seems like it is time to work on changing things here. 

So, starting next week, the plan is to start getting some new content up. But whatever does or does not get posted The Marks Family would like to wish you a very 

Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year! 

Still here!

I know this blog has not been updated in way too long. It is something that has been on my mind for a while and I am hoping to start blogging again this summer.

But when taking this picture on Sunday I could not resist posting it. It cracks me up whenever I look at it. It shows the different girls personalties very well.

It is overwhelming to think of starting to work on this blog again. So much has happened.
We had three weddings in a very short period of time (9-24, 11-5 and 1-1)
Grandbaby #1 was born (Logan Archer Nettrouer on 3-15-12) and Grandbaby #2 (a girl!) is due this August.

All that to say - our family is still growing, 

just is new ways!  

Project 365

What is a Project 365? It is when you take 1 picture a day for a year, often with a theme or particular goals/guidelines in place.

Abigail & I each started on on August first. Here are the links...

This is mine, the plan is to focus on our homeschool, Hodgepodge Acres Academy

Here is Abigail's, she is keeping her theme a bit more open. For doing this project, working on our homeschool co-op yearbook and reading a couple books on photography she is going to earn a elective credit.

Just thought I would share, and show I can still make a blog posting! :-D

Bargain/Couponing Links and Tips

For a little while now I have been meaning to put some of this info in one place as I seem to find myself recreating it every now and then. So, today is the day I start! [it is about a week later now. I think it is finally done. It is very rambly, but I hope you can pick some nuggets out of it all. I hope you enjoy your couponing journey!]

First, the blogs I use...
I use several. Some I subscribe to via e-mail, many also have a FB page, I also have a 'favorites' folder and every couple of days I try to skim through them when I feel I have the time. The ones I am currently using are...

Adding in here - If you are just starting out I would strongly suggest only following one or two of these for starters. I believe I put them in the order of how often I use them.

The Krazy Coupon Lady - I probably use her site the most, I 'like' her on Facebook. This blog is based in ID, but most the deals still work just the same. She also seems to have the most information for 'coupon virgins'

Frugal Living NW - I often check in here if I want the local scoop. This blog is based in the Portland area. She also often posts other articles that help with the frugal living lifestyle. Also on Facebook.

A Thrifty Mom - Also based in ID. She seems to be the most complete (exhaustive?) on a regular basis.

Hip2Save - A fun site. She lets you know about good coupons to print off. Also often lets you know of good deals to get online. I also have a soft spot for her as her hubby is in the USMC. Ooh-Rah! :) Also on Facebook.

Coupon Mom - I love her data base. If I am looking for a particular coupon, this is where I head. For my area I go to the by region (Northwest) option. If I have a Wal-Mart shopping trip planned I try to head here to see what on my list there just may be coupons for.

Surviving the Stores - A new one for me. Seems to be a lot of duplicate info from my other sites. I do have this one on Facebook as well. I have gotten a couple of deals through this one that have not shown up elsewhere.

Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs - Ok, she is more a DIY paper craft site I just came across yesterday. But she mentioned shopping in McMinnville as well as going to Bible study, and over all just seems cute, so I thought I would add her to my list, just to see what she has! I mostly just keep up with her on FB.

Ok - I know there have been several tidbits I like to share with new couponers, lets see how many I can remember now. These will be given in no particular order.

• Stockpiling - This is what really makes couponing worthwhile. Figure what your need for a particular item for 3-6 months, and try to get that much. The goal is to get enough to last until the next great sale. I have been doing this with diapers with Joey, amazing how nice it is to have cheap (I should say, inexpensive, they are all Huggies) diapers waiting for me in my closet. Ok, over all I look forward to NOT having a 4+ month supply of diapers in my closet, but you know what I mean! Dennis and I regularly stockpile... cereal, salad dressing, soups (I really like Progresso) BBQ sauce, toothbrushes, deodorant and the list goes on. Last week Oatmeal was the great bargain, I spent $2.40 for 6 large canisters. Wish I had, had more of those coupons!
• Learn to shake it off - Sometimes a deal just does not work. Its all good. I know in those early days I would get quite worked up, it really is not worth it.
• Buy multiple papers - I would suggest at least 2 for everyone. Here, get the Sunday Oregonian. Dennis and I regularly get 4 papers, occasionally 6 (hence the 6 canisters of Oatmeal!)
• Give it time. When you first start try to commit to hanging in there for a particular length of time. Three months would be good. Please do not give up after your first attempt just because the store was out of toothbrushes.
• Be polite - don't clean out a store (this applies more to drug stores) of a great deal on the first day. Think of others.
• Know that a store will run out of the great deals sometimes. Get rainchecks when you can.
• You don't need to clip all your coupons! (at least not until you need them) I have a Rubbermaid-like hanging folder box, I file my coupon inserts by date, most recent to the front. I do try to clip a few coupons that I KNOW I will want to use deal or no deal. That said, I am working on a Krazy Coupon Lady style coupon binder to keep track of my loose and printed coupons. They are taking over!
• Cut yourself some slack - if you are overwhelmed with life and the idea of following through on the latest bargain makes you feel a bit queasy. Take a break. The world will not come to an end! BUT do keep buying your papers, otherwise you will kick yourself later down the road. (Trust me!)
• It is good to know that there are not always coupons in the paper holiday weekends. Check your favorite blog, or just take a peek in the paper before buying multiple copies.
• Sunday comics - multiple copies make most families happy. I also make my kids save these to wrap birthday gifts with.
• It may take a while to get your computer/printer set-up working. Took Dennis a few hours of trying things. But oh so worth it when you get there. Great coupons online. We have a b/w laser printer so toner goes quite aways. I often come across ladies complaining about the amount of (color) ink they go through. Might be wise to learn how to print your coupons in b/w. Also good to know you can print your coupons on the back of used paper you were going to toss anyway.
• I remember! (I knew I had one more) Try to pick one or two stores to do most of your couponing at. If you try to get every deal within a 30 mile radius you will drive yourself crazy! My favorites are Albertson's and Rite-Aid. They are both very friendly to couponers. I also keep my eyes open for deals at Staples (I got so much free and cheap printer paper last summer!) as well as Wal-Mart. Our Wal-Mart does not have all the great deals the others do, but if I am in the right frame of mind I will take some coupons in and see if I can get lucky. Last week, it was free Tucks, don't know if we will ever need them, but if they are free, worth having on hand. I personally will not do deals at the WalGreens here in Mac, never works. Amelia has done ok a couple times. I will do Safeway from time to time.
• Know your own frame of mind. If you are in the mood to bite someones head off, probably not the best time to be doing a deal you are not sure how it is going to go.
• One last thing - be nice to those in the stores. It does not take much for all couponers to get a bad name.
• Oh! One more last thing - cashier profiling. I did this before I even knew it had a name. Coupon deals generally go better with young guys. Otherwise just get to know your cashiers. There are a couple at Alebertson's that I will always choose to go to if they are available. I know they are on my side!

A Day in the Life a Broke Bargain Shopper!

Just got done posting this as a note on FaceBook, decided it would make a good blog entry as well. Not terribly exciting read I am guessing, but it is part of our lives here. Trying to get what we need for less with as little inconvenience as possible... (meaning, some deals take more time, I have been known to decide they are not worth the effort the amount saved)

I know I need to post the links to the 'bargain blogs' I currently follow. The plan is to put them into a note so they are in one place for future use. Along with that I am hoping to jot down some of the hints/tips I have come up with over the years. Life is just crazy, as usually so it has not yet happened. (Hopefully later today) I did think I would post about my shopping yesterday to maybe give a realistic idea of how a 'coupon' shopping day might go. :)
Tuesday - started with the task of catching up/balancing checkbooks. Most went well but a mathematical error was found leaving the main account a bit leaner then it was before. Yikes! But life happens, and on we march. When the checkbook is quite so lean, bargain shopping has to be closely assessed as no matter how good the bargain (unless a $0 out of pocket deal of course!) if there is not the money for it, it is NOT a bargain.
I needed to be in town around 1:00, was running late but did grab a few coupons I was hoping to use before running out the door. Mostly I was wanting to get $15 in Rite-Aid Up-Rewards used this week as I am thinking I will not get to any Rite-Aid shopping next week. I left with 2 BOGO Special K coupons, 2 Crest coupons, 4 Gas-X coupons and 2 Wet Ones coupons to match up with deals at Rite-Aid as well as 6 Soft Soap coupons to use at Albertson's.
First trip through Rite-Aid, got my 4 boxes of Special K, could not find the crest that was supposedly on sale (I was going off the blogs), Gas-X was out and in the process of looking for the Wet-Ones I lost one of my coupons. (I just tell myself that someone that needed it more than I found it and used it, I can not consider it being swept up and thrown out!) The cereal was $4.79 a box, I got $4.49 off twice (the max 'free' value), and the Wet-Ones were $1.99, my coupon was for $1 off. I used my $10 Up-Reward, and paid $1.17 out of pocket and in turn received a total of $9 in new Up-Rewards ($1 each for the cereals, $4 for a combo cereal thing - I think, and $1 for the Wet-Ones) and I still had my $5 Up-Reward that is close to expiring. *sigh* what to do, what to do... I remembered that the had the boxes of Huggies on sale, not a bargain deal, but very competitive. Oh! and I had received a 10% off one item coupon on my first receipt. So I went ahead and went back in, grabbed a box of Huggies on Sale for 19.99, used the 10% bringing it down to $17.99, used the $15 in Up-Rewards and left paying $2.99 for the box along with a new $2 off Up-Reward. Yay!
A word of caution here - do be careful to not 'double-dip' your $ off next purchase rewards (Up-Rewards at Rite-Aid, Catalina at Albertson's or Safeway...) Generally you count them towards the item you received them for.... I am using them as an example here of what I choose to do with little cash on hand, but rewards about to expire.(I hope that makes sense)
Another exciting thing about shopping yesterday is they have an offer currently running http://www5.riteaid.com/resolution-rewards where as a good portion of my purchases are counting toward a $20 Up-Reward. The 1st transaction gave me $39.16 credit, and the Huggies gave me $17.98 (I already had $20 credit, so I only need to 'spend' another $22.86 to receive $20 in store credit!) Sometimes, when being careful, it feels like Rite-Aid is paying me to shop!)
Later in the day as I was heading home I did manage to swing by Albertson's in anticipation of a great Soft Soap deal. The blogs were saying... Soft Soap on sale for .99, use your .35 cent coupons making it .64 cents a bottle - I have done better, but as I have two little boys we often seem in need of more liquid soap so off I went to get it. Disappointment hit when I realized that the coupon for was 8 oz. and up, and the bottles on sale were 7.5 oz. and below. Ugh! I was glad to see a huge refill bottle of Albertson's brand liquid soap on Sale/clearance. Probably ended up paying about the same per unit, but was too tired to check at that point. (ok, had to check, If I had bought my 6 bottles I would have paid $3.84 for 45 oz, in stead I paid $3 for 40 oz. - so as long as I have containers to pour into, I did do better - had there been the expected doubles... I would have been more sad!)
Anyway, a very long post I realize. But I wanted to show that 'things happen', it is best to expect it. Bloggers can be wrong, stores change things, and rarely you can lose a coupon. :p But to end the day with aprox. 2 weeks worth of Huggies, 4 boxes of cereal, a container of Wet Ones to toss in the car and the liquid soap we needed for $7.16 out of pocket on that particular day. It is worth it. :)

Oh! I just remembered! Since I was in Newberg anyway I was also able to get 2 - 2# blocks of cheddar for 3.99 each. :) (at Freddies)

Merry Christmas from The Marks



Abigail, Amelia, Dennis w/ Rebekah, Carolyn w/ Joseph, Nicole, Caleb, Charlyn, Seth



Here is our crew as of December 2010 ~ Twenty-Five years ago Dennis and I were less than a month from getting married. Had you told us that Christmas that someday we would have this beautiful look group of kids, we would have laughed at you and told you that four was the max! God sure takes us on different journeys than we plan or expect. Glad we did not know about this large thing then, but there are for sure no regrets on this side of it. (Good thing, huh?!)

As I write this I believe half the kids have put up something on their own page (just click on the names near the top of the page) Hopefully more will happen before this link goes out.

So much happens in a family this size it is hard to know what to share. Much of it seems routine... The toddler (Joe) is now walking, running of course, oh, and crawling out of his bed! The pre-schooler (Caleb) is asking "why?" about everything (Carolyn forgot how exhausting the why stage could be!) A new one (Abigail) is learning to drive, another (Amelia) is getting ready to graduate, one (Charlyn) has moved out (ok, that is new!) and another (Nicole) can't wait for when the time is right.

As routine as much of it is, it never gets old. Ok, almost never. Carolyn is looking forward to no longer being in the diaper stage, maybe by next Christmas?! Having little ones and big ones at the same time makes us appreciate the stages all the more. We know how fast it goes, even if the 'starting line' is drug out for 22 years.

Anyway... on to updates, as was mentioned, there should be updates on the kids under their names. If not right away, VERY soon. Hmmm, maybe all pages will need to be done before gifts are opened?! Going to have to ponder that idea.

Dennis continues to find his job as police Captain rewarding and stretching. Always something new to learn. He is the chair of the Elder board for our church, Bethel Baptist, here in McMinnville. Always challenges there, as well rewarding times. Not much free time in his life these days. When he gets a chance he still loves to disappear with a book, or sometimes just chopping wood gives a much needed change of pace (as well as exercise!)

Carolyn continues to work at homeschooling the school age kids (this year, Amelia 12th, Abigail 10th,

Seth 7th, Rebekah 4th & Caleb in Pre-K) She has a picture in her head of how the perfect homeschool day should go, and keeps trying to achieve it. In the mean time finds satisfaction when everyone gets their math done all in the same day. Quilting continues to be her favorite outlet even though the time for it is not there as much as she would like. (check out the "Q" link) For the first time she and the school age kids joined a homeschool co-op (ELT, Enjoy Learning Together) here in McMinnville. There are age appropriate classes for all. Even Joe enjoyed his time in the nursery. Everyone is looking forward to going back in January for winter term. Through ELT Carolyn has joined a book club, 'having to read' is a good thing! The fellowship with other ladies is also welcome.

Come 1-11-11 Dennis and Carolyn will be celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary by spending a week at the beach. Can't wait! We can not ever remember leaving all the kids for that long, and very much look forward to giving a try!

Please do feel free to be in touch with us! Time flies by, but we treasure time spent with friends.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!



Visiting Grandmas



On Saturday Dennis and I were able to visit both of our grandmas. Grandma Jones is on the closer side, geographically, we were able to take most of the kids along. 'Papa & Nana' met us there. We had a great time, and were able to take several great pictures. After visiting Grandma Jones the kids headed home and Dennis & I headed to Portland to see Grandma Marks. She has been sick the last couple of weeks so we thought it best to spare her the ruckus of our crew! We forgot to take pictures there, but did have a lovely visit with both Grandma as well as Dennis' Aunt Dolores.


 

 My cousin's son, James Bamford, painted this picture of Dennis from a snapshot taken at a family gathering this summer. It was our Christmas gift from my parents. Very cool!

 





For Joe it was all about the candy canes!



Done!

Christmas Cards are ordered! Very curious to see how they turn out. I did them in a kind of hurry, taking advantage of Wi-Fi at Les Schwab while having my tires rotated. (this is huge for us still on dial-up!) Should have them soon!  Tires were done before me, I would say that makes this a win-win! :)

God and Christmas cards

Yup, God and Christmas cards. Unique title, I think anyway, let me explain…

 

A little while back I heard of a promotion put on by Shutterfly where a blogger could get 50 free Christmas cards for blogging about Shutterfly's wonderful products. I love photo Christmas cards so got excited I figured I would go ahead and fill out the form even though our family blog had not been updated in several months. (But now that I found I can blog via e-mail, updates just might happen more often!) Anyway... off went the request and while I was not really expecting to hear back, I was hoping. Nothing came. I saw friends blogging about their free cards and figured that my little blog had not impressed the ‘powers that be.’ 

 

A couple of weeks ago (if that) I was wrestling with the Christmas card question. Somehow, someway Dennis and I have managed to get quite a long Christmas card list (150+, not counting ones he takes into work) Conquering such a list can be quite daunting. Both the cost, and the work involved. Cost was the big part effecting me this year, I love getting beautiful photo Christmas cards like these http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards and these  http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards , they are fun to make (in spite of dial-up!) and fun to give. But, the cost does add up. Finally the decision was made that for the first time in 20-some years we were going to make the conscience decision to not send Christmas cards. Instead focus on our much neglected family blog and send a link out to any and all friends with which we have e-mail or Facebook contact.

 

Then, yesterday evening (Wed 12/8) I find in our family e-mail this ....

Reminder: Shutterfly's 50 Free Christmas Cards Promotion

Wow! I must have missed the original e-mail, or it went the way of spam or junk mail. Who knows? But  now, what to do with my decision to NOT send Christmas cards. Aurgh! :)  So, as you have guessed, I am going for the free cards, who knows what else I will end up getting along the way!  I am also excited to see they have a huge selection of graduation announcement cards (http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/announcements/graduation-announcements) as Amelia is graduating this coming May.

 

So, at this point the plan is to go ahead an update the blog. I hope to have an entry for each of the kids. And then with my 50 cards I can still send something to those on my list I do not have e-contact with, like our grandmothers. So, if you are a die-hard Christmas card lover, just ask, I might have one to spare, just for you! J

 

In conclusion. God allowed me to see that I do not have to do things just because I have always done so. It is ok to change. He also showed He cares about me by allowing me some low cost Christmas cards. It is always nice to be reminded that God cares about the little things that are important to us.

 

Added Note: There is still one more day to register for this deal. If you are interested go here http://bit.ly/sfly2010 , registration closes Dec. 10, 2010

Testing...

Just trying to blog via e-mail. :) Want to see if it works!

Our Crew, May 2010

Sir Joseph. (15 mos) He is just way to cute for only one picture. The one on the left shows him with a stash of granola bars he was quite pleased to find and haul around! He was not so happy when mom confiscated them. (Yes, he did get one) The picture to the right is Joe having his 'breakfast' one morning. A sister stuck him on the counter to keep him out of the way and gave him a cookie. He was quite a happy camper. (Looks like I need to work on a good picture of him smiling)

I just love this picture. Caleb is my 'fixer-man' Here he is working one one of his (Joey's?) toys. Fixing to his hearts content. You can tell how intense he is with his task due to how far out the tongue is sticking. He loves to wear hats of any kind, and as this picture shows, he does not wear pants almost all the time now. A year ago I was wondering when we would make it over that hurdle.

This is Rebekah with her friend for a day, Elise. Elise's mom and dad travel around doing concerts (her mom plays the harp) After a Sunday AM concert, during which Elise sat with us, Beka was able to invite Elise over for the afternoon and than to attend AWANA with her in the evening. They had a great time and were fun to watch.

They were also very excited to discover they were born the same month & year.

(This was actually in April, but too cute not to share somewhere)

Our mowing boy. Seth loves to mow, we are hoping this is a love that lasts a long time! The weather has not been conducive to a lot of mowing so far this year, but when he can he is out there. Never a lack of grass to mow here at Hodgepodge Acres!

Yup, another driver in the making at our house. Good job Abbs, and just ignore mom when she taps her leg.... It is nothing personal!

Amelia dressed in Regency costume. She had a great time going with a few friends and help demonstrate ECD at a homeschool 'round-up' in Salem.

Charlyn and her car! After MUCH looking the right one was found. She has enjoyed it very much. Esp at the gas pump after months of using 'the truck' and/or Suburban. (or Scuburban as Caleb would say!)

Nicole was counseled to pray more specifically. So upon graduating Ecola her prayer was to have a vehicle within a week. That weekend 'Uncle Greg' loaned her this truck! She is very happy with her little truck and is now working hard to make it her own.

Nicole Graduation

Ok - I forgot to load the pics in opposite order of how I wanted them. So here you have it. A picture of Nicole and I during a walk on the beach on our way home after her graduation, followed by a picture of her with showing off her diploma from Ecola Bible School. Ecola was a great experience for Nicole, if you want to know more she would LOVE to tell you all about it!

Some Pics...

Dennis & Carolyn at a couples retreat in early February. We had a great time at the beach!

Abigail and her friend Laura, getting ready to leave for dance class.
This was on Abigail's 15th birthday.

Amelia waiting to go into surgery. (it was a couple hours later than scheduled)

She enjoyed receiving flowers from Papa and Nana.

Charlyn and Jonathan Jaquith, ready to go out for the evening.