I'm not extreme, but I love couponing!

I'm not an "Extreme" coupon-er, but I do love a greeeeeat deal.  I have a friend who keeps me posted on really good deals (thank you Christy!).  This is the most recent one.  Thought I'd share.  Here's the breakdown...

$4.99 (price of ea. bottle of detergent)
x 12
-------
$59.88 total full price

I ordered coupons from ebay.
$4.00 off a purchase of $20 or more = $12.00 total
$2.00 off ea bottle of Wisk = $24.00 total  (I have 2 left)
--------
$36.00 total off in coupons
--------
$23.88 total after coupons

CVS was then offering a $10 gift card for every $30 spent.  I got 2 gift cards ( I had to get 3 $1.00 deodorants to get the purchase to the minimum)  = $20.00
deduct that from total after coupons and you get

$ 3.88
+ 4.13 (cost to purchase coupons)
---------
$8.01 Grand total to purchase 12 bottles of Wisk

That comes to roughly .67 per bottle!!!!!!!!!

Jesus take the wheel

To say that I can sometimes be a distracted driver might be an understatement.  I am distracted by the radio, my phone, and my thoughts to list a few.  There are times in my life that I have been reminded that I'm not in control and that I have Jesus looking out for me.

Last week I was going to pick up my daughter from swim practice.  It was dark outside.  As I was driving, I noticed a car in the oncoming lane.  The car was traveling as fast as I was only this car was not staying in its own lane.  It kept coming into my lane until I had to intentionally and greatly swerve to avoid an accident.  I was scared out of my wits.  The other driver never even put on their brakes. My thoughts instantly went to my family and all the "what ifs".   

I was so thankful that I was not distracted.  In fact, I was actually quite focused on my driving that night.  I don't think this was my doing at all.  If it were my doing, I'd be peeking into people's houses to see how they decorate.  Or I'd be looking at my phone. Or..or..or..  I believe that God kept me focused so that  I could avoid that accident. 

Psalm 32:8   I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you

God's not done with me yet!!!!!!

1986



What a year this was!  Here are some facts from that year...

*Ronald Reagan was President

*The Space Shuttle Challenger exploded

*Chicago Bears were the Super Bowl Champions

*"We are the world" was the top song

*Oprah hit national television

*a gallon of gas was 93 cents!!!!!!

*dozen eggs 87 cents

*gallon milk $2.22

*1st class postage stamp 22 cents

This is what the hair style was..for both women and men

I was recently reminded of another event that happened in 1986.  Mark & Sheila Beeson answered the calling to bring a church to the Michiana area.  They, along with a handful of other people, started Granger Community Church www.gccwired.com.  From the bottom of our hearts, we THANK YOU for your obedience and for your faithful leadership.  Mark & Sheila have always had an undivided heart for Jesus.  They have helped change THOUSANDS of lives and advanced God's kingdom.  We are excited to see the next 25 years with you!

Mark & Sheila Beeson





Scrumptious Tuesday

I am a huge fan on Meatloaf.  Both the singer and the food.  Today I will give my favorite food meatloaf recipe and perhaps another time give my likes of the "other" Meatloaf.

Rempel Family Meatloaf

1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
1/2 C crushed buttery round crackers
3/4 C shredded cheddar cheese (I also use shredded colby/jack)
1 (1 oz) package dry onion soup mix
2 eggs beaten
1/4 C ketchup
2 TBSP steak sauce


*Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
*Stir the ground beef, crushed crackers, cheddar cheese, and onion soup mix in a large bowl until well combined.  Whisk the eggs, ketchup, and steak sauce in a separate bowl until smooth.  Mix the eggs into the meat until evenly combined, if the mixture seems too dry, add a little water.  Press into a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
*Bake in preheated oven for 45 - 60 minutes.

You're always going to have people like that in your life

Even with purple, ill fitting teeth, I love this girl!

I have to admit.  I was shocked, hurt, angry, sad the day my first child came home and said someone wasn't being nice to them.  Not just a "not nice" that she could easily fix the problem herself but "not nice" to the point of being bullied.  That was a wake up call for me. 

From the moment we have our babies, we desire for them to have the best and be the best.  We automatically go to thoughts of "WOW, this baby could make a HUGE difference someday!"  We raise them with the values and morals that, we believe, Jesus wants them to have.  We want our kids to obey and honor us, their parents, but want them to obey and honor Jesus even more. Jesus doesn't just want you to be "nice" to everyone, He wants you to "love" everyone.  The "love" part is much harder to do than the "nice" part.

For a little bit now, our 7 year old, Reagan, has been having trouble with another girl from school.  To make it even harder for Reagan, this girl lives and has mutual friends in our neighborhood.   Our Reagan is an emotional little girl.  She has been blessed with the ability to learn well and easily.  I love those qualities of Reagan, but not everyone does.  We have had numerous talks about this situation.  While I'm not shocked anymore about this (going through this with my older kids has somewhat prepared me), I still am sad and sometimes angry. 

I had enough of this last weekend.  At our dinner time, I announced that I am going to call this girl's parents and discuss this situation with them.  My husband quickly said that was not the best way to go (I was once again reminded why God gave Tim to me..he balances me so well).  One of Reagan's sisters said "I am NOT going to toilet paper their house the next time I DO NOT go out after dark" Again, Tim shot this idea down too.  We left the table with heavy hearts.

Later, I walked in on Tim and Reagan talking.  He told her that there is always going to be kids like this girl in Reagan's life.  Reagan needs to learn how to handle these type of people.  He confided that there are people like that in his life and also in my life.  THEY ARE ALWAYS GOING TO BE THERE. If we let them, these people will steal our joy just because they see it hurts us and that makes them feel better.   I later talked with her and told her that while we need to be friendly to everyone, we do not need to be friends with everyone.  We always need to be nice to everyone.  Who we have as friends matters because our friends have an immense influence on what we do and say.

Such an amazing little girl!

I'm sitting here and I think how sad I am that my little girl has to go through this.  I can't be there to fight her battles.  Unfortunately, she has battles as young as 7.  I'm so thankful for our family and the closeness we have.  Reagan knows that while she's at school by herself, she's NEVER by herself because we are ALWAYS here for her and will support her with love and prayer.

Rori is adorable!!

Rori is now over 2 years old and just growing so fast.  She is an immense joy in all of our lives.  Here are some pictures to share how she's doing.

Rori with her favorite animals

I asked her if she wanted to go for a walk and she ran and put this on her head and said "ready to go"

her most favorite way to hold Cookie

this is how she prefers to sit in the carts

with "shebe"

with "awwust"

praying before we eat

with "Rea Rea"

Scrumptious Tuesday

This is my favorite way to prepare a pot roast.  I put it in a crock pot early Sunday morning and it's ready when we get home from church! It is sooooo goooooood!

FLAVORFUL POT ROAST

2.5 LBS Beef Chuck Roast (I use other varieties of roasts too)
1 envelope Ranch Salad  Dressing mix
1 envelope Italian Salad Dressing mix
1 envelope Brown Gravy Mix
1/2 C water

In small bowl, combine salad dressings &gravy mixes; stir in the water and whisk to combine.  Put half mixture on bottom of crock pot.  Place roast in crock pot and pour remaining mixture over top roast.  About the last half hour break roast apart so it can absorb the seasonings.  Cook on medium heat for 6 hours or so.