Terrific Shopping Trip!

What a nice day!  Happy Memorial Day everyone!  My brother, sister-in-law, both grandfathers, an uncle, and I are all military veterans (hope I didn’t miss anyone!).  Plus we have many friends that have either served or are serving in the military now!  We cannot forget about the people working or have worked for the military as civilians (including my husband).  Thank you to you all!

Hubby and I decided to get out of the house today, so we forced took the boys to the outlet mall to walk around a bit not realizing they were having some terrific sales!

I’m talking sales on top of sales terrific!

My husband was the first to find a deal he was interested in…41% off of the sales prices at the Kenneth Cole outlet store.  He’s able to dress down at his new job, but he still likes to pair his jeans with some nice shirts.  He found two wonderful shirts.  The regular retail price would be $139.00, the outlet price was $99.96, the sales price was $69.94, but with 41% off we got them for only $41.26 plus tax (total came to $43.74).  That’s a $97.74 savings off of retail and a $58.70 savings off of outlet!

I found what I wanted in Coldwater Creek.  I’ve always loved some of their clothes, though it is hit or miss because some of the styles are kind of old for me (I think), and I’m not always fond of the fabrics they use in all their clothes.  Needless to say I was able to find some terrific deals on a complete outfit minus shoes, which I got elsewhere.

I got:

• Interlock Tee: Regular retail price was $24.95, outlet price was $19.95, sale price was $14.99…price with 50% off: $7.49
• Stretch Twill Pant: Regular retail price was $49.95, sale/outlet price was $39.99…price with 50% off: $19.99
• Jacket (decorative not for warmth): Regular retail price was $69.50, outlet price was $44.99, sale price was $19.99…price with 50% off: $9.99
• Genuine Stone Necklace: Regular retail price was $59.95, sale/outlet price was $34.99…price with 50% off: $17.49

Isn’t this gorgeous!

The regular retail price would be $204.35, the outlet price was $139.92, the sales price was $109.96, but with 50% off we got them for only $54.96 plus tax (total came to $58.26).  That’s a $149.39 savings off of retail and a $84.96 savings off of outlet!

I went to Factory Brand Shoes to find some that had a heel high enough so the pants wouldn’t drag, but still be low enough not to put pressure on my bad knee and hip.  I found some wonderful and very comfortable sandals (What’s What by Aerosoles…I love Aerosoles!  They are my absolute favorite shoe brand!).  The outlet price was $59.99 with the sales price at $29.99 plus tax (total came to $31.79).

I still have to be careful with them right now since my poor toes *pout* are still bothering me from hitting them, but they are so comfortable that I’ll probably be wearing them all the time once the toes are all healed up!

They had lots of other good deals going on, too, but I purposely did not go into too many stores.  I just don’t need that much stuff and I have other uses for our money.  However, one good, new outfit that is totally compatible with my current wardrobe, and can be interchanged to make other outfits, which are either dressy or casual, is always wonderful…especially at these prices!

The Veggies Are Growing…

…but not a whole lot!  I think because I wasn’t able to plant them on time due to the strange cold weather we had at the beginning of the planting season, they are just not doing well.

I got about 5 beans, 2 radishes, 3 raspberries, and a bunch of nothing else!

• The other radishes went kaput!  They were not growing, which I wasn’t really surprised about since it was the first time I’ve attempted to grow them.
• The beans are producing, but not that much.  The last time I planted them in containers, I had a huge amount of beans!
• The cucumbers are flowering and a few are producing little cucumbers, but again not as many as in previous years.
• There are flowers on the cherry tomato plants.  This is the first time I’ve grown cherry tomatoes…I’m still holding out for them, but not expecting too much right now.

I can’t think of anything that was done differently than other years, where I grew a lot of produce for my family.  The only difference is the weather.  *sigh*

I’ll keep on trying!  That’s what is great about gardens…if something doesn’t work it’s not the end of the world.  I always have next season!

Menu Plan–Week of May 23rd

Meal Plan–Week of May 23rd

• Sunday: Leftovers
  
• Monday: Lasagna with salad
  
• Tuesday: Breaded fish served with stuffing and broccoli (moved forward from last week)
  
• Wednesday: Chicken mixture (chicken, salsa, seasoning blend veggies, cheddar cheese) served over rice (moved forward from last week)
  
• Thursday: Pasta with sauce and mozzarella cheese
  
• Friday: Whole herbed chicken
  
• Saturday: Hotdogs and beans
  

What’s in your meal plan?

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I’m A Little Behind…

…with my blog posts. It was the first week of the summer college term. So I’m afraid my blog went unmonitored last week while I got myself into my new schedule. I’m back this week though feeling as though I have my class schedule handled!

I have three posts I’m getting ready to go out for this week already: one about a couple of weddings, this week’s menu plan, and an update about my container garden.  I’m sure I’ll have a few more!

Summer 2010 Classes

My two 6-week summer classes officially started yesterday.  There is definitely a lot of work to be done in a short amount of time since they are essentially 16-week courses cut down to the 6-weeks.  But with a little organization, they shouldn’t be too bad!

As long as I stay on schedule!

The Victims and the Criminal Justice System class is broken up into three 2-week sections.

• Module 1 is due by May 30th and includes chapters 1-4; one multi-paragraph sourced assignment w/two replies to other students; and a quiz
• Module 2 is due by June 13th and includes chapters 7-13; one multi-paragraph sourced assignment w/two replies to other students; one discussion question w/replies; and a quiz
• Module 3 is due by June 25th and includes chapter 5 and 16-18; one multi-paragraph sourced assignment w/two replies to other students; one discussion question w/replies; and a quiz

The Sociology of Law class is broken up into three due dates.

• The first half of the work is due by June 5th and includes Modules 1-6; chapter 1, sections I, II, and III; chapter 2, sections I and II; multiple websites and law cases; 3 discussion questions; and a 2-part exam (one w/multiple choice and one w/an essay)
• A research paper is due by June 14th
• The second half of the work is due by June 25th and includes Modules 7-12; chapter 2, sections III and IV; chapter 3, sections I, II, III, IV, and V; chapter 4, sections I, II, and III; multiple law cases; 3 discussion questions; and another 2-part exam (also one w/multiple choice and one w/an essay)

Needless to say I’ll be very busy the next 6 weeks, but I’ve tried to leave time in the schedule so I won’t feel overwhelmed.  From yesterday (May 17th) through June 11th, I’ve scheduled out the work on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.  This leaves the weekends open for me and the family, and Tuesdays and Thursdays open for my volunteering schedule.  Starting on June 14th, I’ve schedule school work Mondays through Fridays.  The boys will be out of school by then so I’ll no longer need days off for volunteering.  At this point in time, I’ll only have 2 weeks left of classes anyway.

Here’s hoping I don’t get too bogged down once I really get into the classes and get behind in the work!

My Poor Toes!

Five weeks ago I was shutting off all the lights before going to bed.  I ended up hurting all four small toes on my left foot by hitting a chair leg and moving them all straight out to the left.  Very painful!

I didn’t do anything about them other then elevate my foot and put ice on it.  It started feeling better a couple of weeks later so I really didn’t think much of it.  Though I’d get a bit of a twinge every now and then, but nothing really as bad as when I first hurt them.

Last Tuesday I decided to wear some shoes that I haven’t worn for a while.  They are kind of chunky and tight fitting, but really comfortable once you get them on.  Unfortunately, my toes didn’t think so!  They’ve been as painful as when I first hit them ever since!

I decided it was time to see a doctor to make sure they weren’t fractured anywhere, so I stopped by an urgent care office to have them checked out just in case they were worse than I originally thought.  I was really hoping nothing was fractured!

And thankfully they are not fractured!

I was told that since there is a lot of tissue in the foot/toe area, there could be some damage causing swelling inside that are pushing on nerves, which is causing my pain.  This would also explain why it’s hard for me to determine exactly which spot the pain is originating from.  The nerves are radiating it out so it feels like the whole area is painful.

I was told to take it easy, keep off it as much as possible, and that it should be alright in another 2-3 weeks.  Though with how hard it is for me to keep off of it, I expect to add another week or two to that healing time just to be on the safe side.  I’ve also been icing it down.

I’m really happy it wasn’t anything worse, but I’m still crossing fingers that it’ll heal up soon!

Menu Plan–Week of May 16th

Meal Plan–Week of May 16th

• Sunday: Pizza rolls and fries
  
• Monday: Chicken with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese served with noodles
  
• Tuesday: Pasta and sauce
  
• Wednesday: Homemade soup (chicken broth, cheese tortellini, corn, cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes)
  
• Thursday: Chicken mixture (chicken, salsa, seasoning blend veggies, cheddar cheese) served over rice.
  
• Friday: Breaded fish served with stuffing and broccoli
  
• Saturday: Chinese food takeout
  

What’s in your meal plan?

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Clothes Decluttering

Laura over at I’m an Organizing Junkie just did a post about purging clothes.  This jump started me to get to the massive amount of clothes we have, but never wear!  I knew the boys’ closets could use a good emptying out and mine is about ready to declutter, too!

Generally what I do is hang all the clothes from one side of the closet.  Anything that has been hanging out on the “wrong” side for too long is obviously something I won’t be wearing anytime soon!

I went through the boys’ closets, the boys’ drawers, and my closet (not my husband’s clothes, just mine).  I ended up with two garbage bags and a few piles of clothes to get rid of!  In addition, my oldest son had about a garbage bag worth of good clothes to pass down to his brother!

Here’s a picture:

So far I’ve had interest in some of the clothes.  I’ll be donating the rest.

Laundry Rooms

Along with all the other plans I’d like to do to my house, having an actual laundry room would make the chore so much more enjoyable.  Actually, it won’t, but it could be easier to get through!  Right now my washer and dryer are in a kitchen closet.  I have to fold my laundry in the space provided on the top of the washer and dryer, and hang up clothes, hangers, and non-dryer items in the grooves of the wire shelf that is too high to reach things comfortably.

I found some laundry rooms that inspire what I want someday:

Photo source can be found here.

In this laundry room, I like the storage cabinets, the cubbies w/baskets, and the long counter for folding clothes.  Lots of space for laundry supplies and no need to squeeze everything into one tight spot! Though I would probably want the washer and dryer separate from the counter.

Photo source can be found here.

What I like about this one is the television (for something to keep my mind off of laundry while I’m doing it), and the clothes rods.  You can definitely remove the ironing board…there’s none of that in this house!

Basically if I had a counter to fold clothes, reachable and hidden storage space for laundry supplies, an area to hang the clothes comfortably, and the washer and dryer were not squeezed into one tight space making it almost impossible to clean around them, then I would be very happy!

Truck Loan…Paid!

Well, it’s almost paid!  I’m not on the account so my husband called and got the payoff amount.  I’ve since prepared everything to mail the last payment off next week!  Yay!

The total payoff came to $643.78 with a $0.11 per diem, but I expect we will get some money back.  It’s through a credit union and they automatically opened an account with $5.00 when my husband got the loan.  Now that we’re closing out the whole account, we should get that back plus any interest.

I am so excited to finally have a loan completely paid off!

By the end of this month we should have the title in our hands!