Friday, December 19, 2014

Share The Love: Bloggers Edition


The below blogs help me pass the time and give me something to look forward to every morning. I have been following each of these ladies far before they have expanded on their family but love the regular baby updates.



Is there a favorite blog that you look forward to reading?

Monday, December 15, 2014

CVS Coupon Haul Week of 12/14/14: Saved 95%


Please excuse the lack of excitement on my blog but my husband and I are both studying for finals as well as getting ready for a two week vacation. Beginning after the new year I will be reviving my blog. Now, on to the couponing: Yet again, I have purchased these items using only printable coupons and CVS coupons proving that you do not need to buy a million paper inserts each week to get a good deal. In a few of these hauls you will see multiple items please remember we are not hoarding products. My husband and I keep what we need and make regular donations to our local Catholic church.

- - - 

(2) Colgate MaxClean Smartfoam Anticavity Fluoride Toothpaste Effervescent Mint 6 oz: $3.99 on sale for $2.99
Xtra 2x Concentrate Laundry Detergent Mountain Rain 45 fl oz: $3.49 on sale for $1.99
Revlon Marchesa Design Tweezer: $12.49
Revlon Luxurious Color Diamond Lust Eye Shadow Plum galaxy 0.028 oz: $5.79
(2) Nivea Men Pure Impact 3-In-1 Body Wash 16.9 fl oz: $5.79 on sale for $5.00
CVS Probiotic Dietary Supplement 15 one-a-day vegetable capsules: $11.99 on sale for $9.99
Excedrin Extra Strength Pain Reliever/Pain Reliever Aid 24 caplets: $5.49 on sale for $4.99

Manufacturer Coupons:
(2) $2.00 Off Nivea Body Wash - Nivea.com
$1.50 Off Excedrin - Coupons.com
$3.00 Off $10 in Revlon Tools - Coupons.com


CVS Coupons:
$2 Off $8 in Body Wash
$7 Off $17 in Revlon Cosmetics
$2 Off any Pain Reliever
$2 Off 2 Nivea Body Washes
$1 Off Xtra Laundry Detergent

Used $26.00 in ExtraCareBucks

Paid:  $5.25 + received $23.49 in ExtraCareBucks

 - - - 
Retail Value: $58.81



  Paid Out Of Pocket : $5.25
($23.49 in ExtraCareBucks left over for next week)

Saved: $56.08

95%

Monday, December 8, 2014

101 Things in 1001 Days *UPDATE*


I am now 325 days into my 1001 day challenge. Let's see what my progress looks like:
Married Life & Home Life
1.       Start a family
2.       Renew vows at our church so our marriage is recognized by the church - We are planning this for our 5th Wedding Anniversary 9/17/2016
3.       Purchase a new bed and bed frame
4.       Finish decorating our apartment
5.       Purchase extra seating for living room (recliner or love seat)
6.       Go to church 20 times
7.       Purchase two new sets of blinds to match the new one
8.       Wash dishes and have a clean sink for two weeks straight   - I was able to complete is primarly because it's BBQ season and we are using the kitchen less.
9.       Get my husband’s Family Crest made into a pendant for his necklace
10.   Give the same pendant for my brother-in-laws 25th birthday
11.   Have 10 outdoorsy dates during summer - Two down, ten to go - 20% complete!
12.   Purchase a new Bedding Set
13.   Take a romantic weekend away
14.   Get all of our paperwork organized
15.   Organize the storage closet
 
Finances
16.   Be debt free
17.   Pay off the Corvette (Step to complete #1)
18.   Have $20,000 liquid savings in the back
19.   Have $10,000 in my new 401K - 40% Complete
20.   Spend any overtime income – 1/3 Cash - 1/3 Debt - 1/3 Savings – for one year
21.   Put $1,000 into savings in one month
22.   Do not purchase any clothing for three months - Now that I have quality pieces I don't need to shop as much
  
Hobbies
23.   Be up to date with my scrapbooking 2012-current
24.   Increase my book reading challenge every year
25.   Read all the books on my book shelf - Our book shelf is now overflowing BUT I have not purchased any new books in months
26.   Add 50 new amazing recipes to my recipe book - 42% complete!
27.   Make a cake that tastes great and looks great
28.   Make 25 recipes out of my cookbook collection - 8% complete!
29.   Read all the Harry Potter Books - Thanks to my mom I own all but one so I can start reading them soon!
30.   Purchase a professional camera
31.   Blog at least 10 times a month for a full year
32.   Only use good quality pictures on my blog for a full year
33.   Finish Madison’s Quilt
34.   Cook Thanksgiving Day Dinner - Complete - Thanksgiving 2014!
35.   Make 3 recipes from Pinterest
36.   Create 3 DIY crafty items from Pinterest - 33% complete!
37.   Complete outline for my book
38.   Start writing my book
39.   Make 5 new flavors of ice cream
40.   Purchase a Cast Iron Skillet
41.   Create a watermark for my photos
42.   Acquire 25+ followers on my blog/bloglovin - 60% complete!
  
Adventure & Travel
43.   3rd visit to Aruba - In the planning stage!
44.   Visit 5 new cities - Annapolis, MD April 2014 - Tacoma, WA November 2014 - Niagara Falls, Canada - 60% complete!
45.   Have a vacation somewhere new outside of the U.S. -  BOOKED!!!
46.   Visit home twice during summer
47.   Visit Katherine in Texas/Seattle -Thanksgiving 2014 - Complete!
48.   Go on a cruise - In the planning stage!
49.   Go to the beach 5 times in NY or NJ
50.   Visit home 5 times - Christmas 2014 is BOOKED!!!
51.   Have 10 family members visit - Dad, Julie, & Mom - 30% complete!
52.   Have 10 friends visit - Bobby & Jenny October 2014 - 20% complete!
53.   Purchase 3 adventures form Groupon/Livingsocial
54.   Go camping - August 2014 - Complete!
55.   Go snowmobiling
56.   Go to Niagara Falls - October 2014 - Complete!
57.   Go to a Aquarium
  
Personal & Fitness
58.   Go to the gym 100 times - 39% complete!
59.   Get fit and keep fit for a whole year
60.   Give up alcohol for Lent
61.   Give up chocolate for Lent
62.   Run for 60mins without stopping on the elliptical
63.   Run for 90mins without stopping on the elliptical
64.   Go to the gym three times a week for three months straight
65.   Get a new tattoo
66.   Find three new hiking trails around my house - Found two - 66% complete!
67.   Go on a hike 20 times - Two hikes down, eighteen to go - 10% complete!
68.   Juice 15 times in one month
69.   Prepare a weeks’ worth of lunches every week for a month - Finally started packing Paleo lunches for myself
70.   Complete 3 fitness challenges from Pinterest
  
Work & Education
71.   Get into a four year school - Fordham University - Complete!
72.   Be on track to graduate within one year
73.   Complete 2 full years at my new job - 50% complete!
74.   Get 2 raises
75.   Change my major to Accounting - Minoring in Accounting - Complete!
76.   Work 100 hours of overtime - As of 12/5/2014 108.5 hours of OT - Complete!
  
Fashion & Beauty
77.   Put energy into my work outfits for one month straight
78.   Wear a dress during summer 25 times
79.   Learn 5 new hairstyles
80.   Using the new hairstyles, style your hair 20 times
81.   Keep 10 items from Stitch Fix Boxes - 50% complete!
82.   Wear each Stitch Fix item 20 times - 15% complete!
83.   Learn 5 new makeup techniques - Complete!
84.   Use the new makeup techniques 10 times - Complete!
   
Random
85.   Spend a white Christmas with my family here in New York
86.   Have a garage sale
87.   Repair the Audi to 100%
88.   Buy my LV purse
89.   Use our Fondue Set
90.   Use our Pressure Cooker
91.   Use our Mini Pie Maker
92.   Use our Food Processor
93.   Send out birthday cards to family & friends for a full year
  
New York Living
94.   Visit the Empire State Building
95.   Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge
96.   Have pizza at my Husbands favorite pizza place in Brooklyn
97.   Explore Central Park
98.   Go to the Central Park Zoo
99.   See a Broadway show - Jersey Boys April 2014
100. Go to Coney Island
101. Visit 5 other New York landmarks/attractions

I was able to cross out a lot more than I thought but, there are still a lot to go!

Friday, December 5, 2014

CVS Coupon Haul Week of 11/29/14: Saved 100%


This haul was done with a combination of online coupons and CVS coupons, no need to buy the Sunday paper! Please note that some of the items above are for donation purposes.

- - -

Speed Stick Men's Gear A/P Clean Peak Renewal 40 fl oz: $5.99 on sale for $3.99
Triaminic Day Time Cold & Cough Syrup Cherry flavor 4 fl oz: $9.49 on sale for $5.99
(2) Schick Slim ST3 Triple Razors 8 razors: $12.49
(2) Nature's Bounty D3-400IU Tablets 100 ct.: $5.99 on sale buy 1 get 1 free
Simple Sensitive Skin Experts Radiance Cleansing Wipes 25 wipes: $7.79 on sale buy 1 get 1 50% off

Manufacturer Coupons:
$2 Off 1 Speed Stick - Coupons.com
$1 Off 1 Triaminic Product - Triaminic website
Buy One Get One Schick Disposable Razors - Coupons.com
(2) $2 Off 1 Nature's Bounty Vitamin - Coupons.com
(2) $2 Off 1 Simple Cleanser - Coupons.com

CVS Coupons:
(2) $3 Off $10 in Razors
$1 Off $5 in Vitamins
$2 Off Simple Face Care

Used $18.20 in ExtraCareBucks

Paid: ONLY TAX $2.62 + received $20.00 in ExtraCareBucks

 - - - 
Retail Value: $67.42




  Paid Out Of Pocket ONLY Tax : $2.62
($20.00 in ExtraCareBucks left over for next week)


Saved: $67.42


100%

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Thanksgiving 2014 in Seattle

One of my best friends was very generous and offered to host us for the Thanksgiving Holiday in Seattle. Joe's brother also lives locally so we were both very excited to get this vacation under way. Although the trip went a little faster than I would have liked we had a great time catching up with everyone and enjoying some down time. 

Washington welcomed us with snow which was a great surprise because we missed our first snow of the season back home. 


On Thanksgiving Katherine and I spent the day preparing our very first Thanksgiving feast. (Which was well received!)


Although I have already been to Seattle we decided to do some sightseeing and show Joe around town.

Space Needle


I highly recommend the EMP Museum. We spent a couple hours wondering around and could have spent many more.






Last but not least we visited Pike Place Market.




To round out a long day in Seattle the boys took us for a ride on the ferris wheel at Seattle's waterfront.




It was an incredible trip that we will never forget. A HUGE thank you to Katherine for being an amazing host, it was so great making memories with you after two long years apart.

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Please Stand By....


I know this is a little early this year BUT I will be talking next week and a half off from the blog scene. Usually around Christmas I will announce that I will be missing in action for the following weeks due to holidays and vacation. A couple of months ago we made a rash decision to travel not only around Christmas but also around Thanksgiving. As you can imagine with being mid semester at school and trying to prepare for an early vacation, I am just a tad scatter brained. Please be patient and be sure check back the week of December 1st for some vacation recaps!
 
Happy Early Thanksgiving to ALL!

Friday, November 14, 2014

101 Things in 1001 Days: #26 - Add 50 New Amazing Recipes to My Recipe Book


- - -

Chicken and Artichoke Panzanella


Ingredients
 
2 cups skinless, boneless chicken breast, diced, cooked
2 cups artichoke hearts (frozen or fresh) 
3 large tomatoes, cut into small wedges
1 cup black olives, halved
3/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
 

Panzanella Vinaigrette Ingredients

 

2/3 -cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
1 tbsp. freshly pressed lemon juice
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions
  1. Preheat a grill to medium-high.
  2. Drizzle some olive oil on the artichoke hearts and season to taste.
  3. Grill the artichoke about 2 minutes on each side, or until golden-brown. Then transfer them to a large salad bowl.
  4. Add the chicken, the tomatoes, the olives, and the fresh basil to the bowl, and toss to combine.
  5. In a small bowl, combine the ingredients for the vinaigrette. Season to taste and mix well.
  6. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad, toss, and serve.
- - -

#26 - Add 50 new amazing recipes to my recipe book

42% Complete

Monday, November 10, 2014

Sunday Funday?

(this is all clean laundry)

Has this ever been you?

Before the weekend Joe and I both agreed that this weekend was going to be dedicated to chores. We have multiple vacations in the near future and we need to start preparing. Saturday we started off strong by making a hot breakfast and running to the bank, library, gas station, and grocery store. Then things came to a screeching halt. Joe and I decided to take a little break and catch up on a TV show or two. This lead to an afternoon nap and I did not get back on my feet until 6pm! Usually I would be embarrassed to admit I slept for hours during the day but we have no kids yet so we might as well take advantage.

Our sleep filled Saturday caused us to have a less than relaxing Sunday. Six loads of laundry and some house cleaning later it was 9pm on Sunday night. This morning I am still exhausted but feel great that I am going to be going home to a clean house. (Even if it's not until 11pm)

Now, I can focus on packing for vacation!

Friday, November 7, 2014

Friday Favorites: My Favorite Work-Out Video


My current work-out obsession is this video:

Bikini Ready - Cyndi Whitmarsh

This work-out takes only 20 minutes and requires only hand weights. I tend to get frustrated with home work-outs because I rarely feel “worked-out” afterwards. This video is the only video I have tried that truly makes me sweat! I have been doing this video three times a week and really enjoy it. In the beginning I made the mistake of doing it right before I had to drive to pick up Joe from the train station and I cannot explain how painful it was to get into my truck. I don’t consider myself out of shape but I need to condition my muscles more on a regular basis. The video really works your muscles and you will continue to feel it a few days after.

Give it a try and let me know what you think!