New Blog!

I've created a new blog that will strictly be dedicated to my coupon deals, shopping trips and recipes. Please follow me on my new blog here.

Consider it Pure Joy will still exist to serve the purpose of more of my HES posts and a place to post about my family life and things that the Lord is teaching me.

Thanks so much for being a reader of my blogs!

~Heather

Great article on HES

https://acrobat.com/#d=bRuOK4Ejpa4C5yWrwisfTg

The above link takes you to a great article on HES and probably the most up to date one that we have on the internet. If you do read it I am in the 50% of people that have unclassified HES.

http://www.patient.co.uk/doctor/Hypereosinophilic-Syndrome.htm

I also found this link above today and think that it's one of the best artitcles by far that I've ever read on the web. If you're one that likes to read about weird medical stuff! :)

HES/Heart valve issues

Dear friends,
I don't even know where to begin other than to say that I'm requesting prayer. You all have graciously accompanied me in my journey and I'm thankful for that. Your friendship and prayer support mean more to me than you guys know. I'm not one that hides what's going on with me, so I'm writing a detailed note so that you understand the "why" behind my disease and prayer request.

Today I found out that one of my heart valves is leaking. I had an echo cardiogram in February and it was mostly "normal" so this has progressed since then. I've not been feeling well for around 1 month and have had several symptoms, so honestly I'm not at all surprised by this finding...however, I won't lie...I do feel a bit numb today with this news and am desperately clinging to Jesus as I sort through this. I'm being referred to a cardiologist and will update you as necessary.

My disorder, Hypereosinophilic Syndrome (HES), is known to attack organs. So far, only my gastrointestinal tract was affected up until about 14 months ago (8/09). It was then that I started wheezing for the first time ever in my life so that leads us to believe that my lungs have been affected. Then in February of this year a heart murmur was detected for the first time. Like I said, about 1 month ago I started having problems wheezing again and had a weird heart beat. Brian would listen to my heart and could hear the murmur and knew that it was louder. I could also feel it and sometimes I can hear it in my head...even today.

The concern with this is that HES is known to cause heart damage and almost always starts with the heart valves. My doctor's are doing everything they know to do, but the reality is that HES is so rare (as of now there are only about 250 reported cases of HES world wide!) and poorly understood so there are a lot of unknowns. What we do know is that heart problems are the leading cause of fatalities with this disorder. Sorry to bear such ugly news, but I'm a realist at heart.

Eosinophils are white blood cells that react to infections and allergies in the body. They are released and fight off those invaders and then they go away. Up until now I've been tested several times and have no known allergies or infections that are causing my over abundance eosinophils. Therefore, it is assumed that I have an autoimmune disorder...meaning that my body is fighting itself for no known reason. Eosinophils release granules in the body and it's those granules that damage the organs. They harbor in the tissues and they stay there a long time and cause inflammation of those tissues. This is why I have stomach ulcers all the time, it's also why I wheeze and now (I'm assuming because it's not yet confirmed) that they've caused the damage to my heart.

There are meds that help to decrease the eosinophils and that's why I'm currently on a certain chemotherapy. However, my chemo has now caused problems with my blood. My red and white cells are pretty much bottomed out. My doctor lowered my dose of chemo and put me on iron since I'm now anemic hoping to increase my blood counts a little bit.
I'm kind of in a catch 22 in that we don't want the count too high as it will allow my disease to progress faster, but we don't want them too low either!

Okay, so now you all see why I need prayer. I'm bummed today, but I will jump over that hurdle and get over it. I know that the Lord is in control, that He has ordained my steps and that He has my best interest at heart. I admit that the enemy would really like to take hold of my thoughts, so please pray that I can take those captive and live for today. Please pray for healing, wisdom for my doctors and pray for our marriage as this is sometimes very difficult on it. I also need prayer for energy and physical strength as this has made me really tired and weak. As of right now we haven't told the kids anything so pray that they have understanding and little or no fear and that we have wisdom in what to say...if anything...

Thanks for your love & prayers and for reading my very long note! :)

In Him,

~Heather


***It's been awhile since I've written an update on here. First let me say sorry about my book review. It's obviously not going along like I had hoped....but, I will finish it! I'm determined! However, it will be at least another 2 weeks before I start on it. In the meantime, I'm attending the True Women Conference in Ft. Worth next week and hoping that I'll have even more to share when I get back!

Biblical Womanhood Chapter 1

As mentioned in my previous entry, I'm reading a book and doing a review on it. I've read this entire book already, but have been thinking about what to write for each chapter. My review of chapter one is short and sweet.
The author opens the chapter by making this assumption...wimpy theology makes wimpy women.
Wimpy theology simply does not give a woman a God that is big enough, strong enough, wise enough, and good enough to handle the realities of life in a way that magnifies the infinite worth of Jesus Christ. Wimpy theology is plagued by woman-centeredness and man-centeredness. Wimpy theology doesn't have the granite foundation of God's sovereignty or the solid steel structure of a great God-centered purpose for all things.

In the beginning of this chapter the author gave a few examples of what wimpy theology is NOT. My only complaint is that I wish he would have given a few examples of what wimpy theology actually is and what it looks like.
It is my opinion that wimpy theology is anything we do that waters down God's Word to make it fit what we want it to say. I've been in a few churches that would, sadly, fit this description. These are the kind of churches that you get one of the "feel good" sermons from and very rarely hear more than a few verses from the Bible read. This type of theology also does not challenge you to become more in Christ. This wimpy theology leads people astray...normally straight to hell...all the while they are doing their good works and deeds. I know that may sound harsh to some, but that's truly how I feel...and this is my review and my blog! LOL!

Now, how does this fit into Biblical Womanhood??? The author states this...God's ultimate purpose for the universe and for all of history and for your life is to display the glory of Christ in its highest expression, namely, in His dying to make a rebellious people His everlasting and supremely happy bride. He created us as male and female precisely so that we could display the glory of His Son.
God created male and female to display more fully the glory of His Son in relation to His blood-bought bride. Therefore, true womanhood is a distinctive calling of God to display the glory of His Son in ways that would not be displayed if there were no womanhood.
Don't buy into the ways of the world. Remember from the introduction that there are many voices calling out to us trying to get our attention? Listen to the Voice of Truth! How??? Dive into His Word. Read it, study it, learn from Him. This is NOT wimpy theology!

Biblical Womanhood Introduction

Biblical Womanhood Introduction:

Earlier this summer I was gifted a book from Revive Our Hearts Ministry in exchange for writing my thoughts about each chapter. The title of this book is 'Voices of the True Woman Movement~A Call to the Counter-Revolution.' Over the next few weeks I'll be sharing my thoughts on this book with all of you. I'm really excited to have this opportunity and hope that what I share leads you into a deeper realization of what a "true woman" is supposed to look like through God's eyes.

Introduction:

Most of what I'll share from the Introduction will come straight from the book. Anything that I take directly from the book will be highlighted in green.

One of the great challenges in our day is the vast number of voices vying for our attention....
So much is determined by which voices we hear and heed: our sense of who we are and why we are here; the way we relate to others; the choices we make; the way we spend our moments and years; the ultimate outcome of our lives.

Conflicting voices were an issue all the way back in the garden of Eden. The voice of God: "You are free to eat from every tree but one-if you eat from that tree, you will die." (Notice that NO choice was given here...just my 2 cents). The voice of the serpent: "you won't die-in fact, you'll become like God!" Which to listen to???

Eve was led astray by listening to the wrong voice. And she proceeded to become a voice that echoed the deception of the Serpent himself as she influenced her husband to choose to reject the voice of God.
God to Adam: Genesis 3:17 "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, "You shall not eat of it," cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life."

I don't think it would be overstating the case to say that most if not all of the pain, dysfunction, and distress we experience in this broken world comes as a result of listening to voices that counter rather than affirm the voice of God.

The author continues to draw attention to the fact that for many years (mainly since the 1950's) voices have been calling out to women in many negative, self-absorbing ways but are packaged to be appealing and good for us. Those voices sound like this..."have it your way", You deserve it", "It's about you." These voices are heard all throughout our culture-in best selling books, magazines, commercials, movies, t.v., songs, etc. and unfortunately the vast majority of us have listened to them and fallen for their lies.
Revive Our Hearts ministry was born out of a burden that Nancy Leigh DeMoss had for women. She had a vision for "a counter-cultural revolution in which women would reject the voices of this world and incline their hearts to Christ and listen to His voice."

Out of that vision the first ever "True Woman" conference was held. The chapters in this book are each highlighting portions of that conference that took place in October, 2010.

I'm very happy to announce that my chemo is working! My eosinophil count is 100!!! Normal is 100-300 and mine has previously been as high as 6000 before so this is a HUGE praise! This is the lowest that my count has been in 3 years! I'm currently being weaned off my steroid meds and should be steroid free in less than one month if all stays as is. This is wonderful since the side affects of the steroids aren't very pretty. I will stay on the chemo indefinitely and I'm okay with that since it seems to be a good treatment that is working. The side effects I have from it aren't that bad...just a little bit of nausea, some loss of appetite and energy, but I'm hoping that will also level out some.
Thanks so much to those of you that have kept me lifted up in prayer. It has been a very humbling thing. I'm starting to feel much better and can only give my Lord the glory for that! This has been one of the biggest trials of my life, but I have been able to lean on Jesus in ways that I never did before. I've learned to appreciate the little things and not sweat the small stuff...but, most of all, I have a renewed urgency to serve my Lord, share His love and soak in His Truth. Going through this kind of trial has really reminded me of how short and fragile life is. The Bible verse that I've leaned on during this time has been James 1:2-4 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." Am I mature and complete yet? No, not even close... but I have been able to come to a place where I can consider this journey that I'm on as a "joyous" one because I know that I'm exactly where He wants me to be so that He can accomplish His greater purpose! That, my friends, puts a smile on my face! :)
Thanks again for your continued prayers.

HES update July 2010

7/1/10
I attempted to apply for SS Disability and learned yesterday that I don't qualify. I knew that I wouldn't qualify for SSD because I've been a SAHM for most of the past 15 years and don't have enough work credits in. However, I thought I might qualify for SSI. Unfortunately, my husband makes too much money and that puts us over the income bracket for SSI. The gentleman that I spoke with did say that my HES would qualify me otherwise. Medical expenses aren't figured into the equation either. I was told that I need to work four years to get all the work credits in to qualify for SSD. I'm not sure what I'll do, what I can do, or what the Lord wants me to do...BUT, I do know one thing...
"My God shall supply all my needs according to His glorious riches in Jesus Christ!" Phil. 4:19

In other news, I found out that nothing is wrong with my back/upper leg bones. That is a huge praise since the medicine that I've been on can cause bone loss. The doctor that I saw told me that people that have autoimmune disorder sometimes have pain in the exact location that I'm having it. He said it's probably just inflammation and there's nothing they can do for that other than give me steroid shots directly into it. I could take anti-inflammatory meds, but with my disorder I can't take those or they'll cause more damage to my stomach. I opted not to get the shot for now, but can go get one anytime I need it.

7/6/10
I had another appt. with my Hemotologist today. My blood counts are off a little bit. She said that we'd wait another month and check them again then. I'm really not sure what she meant. I do know that my Red count was extrememly low and my white count is apparantly not what she'd like it to be. I wish I was a doctor so I had more understanding...or do I? At least I know that the Great Physician is my Father. :)

New eCoupon

Proctor and Gamble has decided to bring back their eCoupons. They were discontinued last year, but now they're back! Go here to get them loaded to your card today!

Couponing advice

For those of you that are brand new to couponing, or those of you that have only been seriously couponing for less than a year please let me give you some words of advice.

Couponing should be fun. Make it fun or it can become stressful and you aren't helping anyone when it is stressful. When you spend so much time on it that it's interfering with your every day activities you know you've gone too far! Take a break, think about the purpose behind why you coupon shop and then start over again.

In the beginning couponing can be very overwhelming. It takes tons of time to learn and understand everything that comes with couponing such as different store policies, etc. I suggest that you take 2-4 weeks just to familiarize yourself with everything before you begin shopping. This gives you time to start collecting your coupons, get them organized and read coupon blogs.

Remember that the whole point to couponing is to SAVE money. It is so easy to get off track here! Trust me, I know from experience. In the beginning I was getting such great deals that I didn't think I could pass them up. I got what I like to call a "coupon high"...I learned quickly that I still had to stay in my budget. Know your budget BEFORE you walk out the door. Make your list, know what you're buying and how much you'll be spending. It honors the Lord when we stick to our budget! Also, remember this...you don't have to get every deal. All the deals will always come around again.

A few other pointers. I actually pray before I shop. I ask the Lord to help me have self control and stick to my budget, I pray that the kids would behave, I pray that the store is well stocked with the items on my list and I ask that the Lord would would open my eyes to see the marked down items. It always amazes me that this works! Just this week I was shopping and noticed laundry soap marked down to a ridiculous price. I had two coupons for that soap and got it for just over $1 each.

Lastly, I pray for my cashier/s. I pray that they are having a good day, that my load of coupons won't overwhelm them, that they scan my coupons accurately and that I would be able to share my money saving tips with them.

I hope these tips help you. If you have any other tips for beginner couponers feel free to leave a comment below!

~Heather

COUPONS!!!

Hello and welcome to my blog! If you are here for the first time after attending last night's coupon class I'm so happy to have you here. There is a plethora of information that I've put together that will hopefully help you get started in your couponing adventures. Be sure to read all the tabs above to re-cap on last nights class.
If you have a question PLEASE feel free to leave me a comment (click on comments below this post) and I will be happy to answer them.
Thanks again for attending the Coupon class!

~Heather

HES update

I went to the doctor again this week. My blood count looks good, but I'm still having significant tissue/organ damage (skin and stomach), so my chemo has been increased again. Now I'm on 1500 mg. per day of Hydrea. I also had an x-ray because of some back pain. My doctor wants to see my bones to see if they are okay since I've been on prednisone for over 5 years. I'll hear back sometime next week to see what, if anything, they find.

Coupon Class

I got 2 bottles of Old Spice men's body wash, 3 bottles Suave body wash and 2 pkgs of candy at CVS today for only $5.10 (including tax) AND they paid me $10 to come back again...so tomorrow I'm going back to get 2 bottles of Pantene shampoo for FREE and they'll pay me $2 just to take them out of the store! Wanna know how I do this? Come to my coupon class on June 18 to find out! JABC ( on the corner of Sunshine and Jefferson Ave. in Springfield, MO.) at 6:30 p.m. I'm predicting this class to be about 2 hours long.

Let me know if you're coming so that I have a good head count! You can either leave a comment or email me at bhnothnagel@att.net

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

What do you ask of the Lord today?

A challenging question, that's for sure. In my selfish pride I would ask for material things...things that have no lasting value, but serve a purpose to provide some sort of feel good pleasure at the time only to be quickly replaced by the next feel good thing.

I loved being challenged by this question today...and guess what? Scripture has provided a great answer...

Psalm 27:4
One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek Him in his temple.

I hope this challenged you as it did me. :)

COUPON CLASS

I'm excited to offer another coupon class on June 18 at my church. I'll cover the basics of couponing including:

How to organize your coupons
Stacking coupons
Different types of coupons
Building a stockpile
I'll cover coupon shopping @ Dillons, Walgreens, CVS and Target
Where to find coupons
And much, much more!

If you'd like to attend please leave a comment (found below) or email me.

This class is absolutely FREE to you, but I really need a head count!

New blog title!

I'm excited about my new blog title and layout! I have been wanting to change my blog title for a long time, to better reflect who I am. It took me awhile, but I finally found a title that fits well.

It wasn't that long ago that I learned that I was going to have to have a medical procedure that I wasn't happy about. I called one of my friends on the way home from my doctor appointment and was telling her about it and I remember saying to her, "I don't like this and I don't have to like this!" Of course, right then, the Holy Spirit whispered in my ear, "Heather, you have to consider it pure joy." I'm so thankful that I have Him living in me whispering encouraging words in my ear, giving me comfort and teaching me to be more like Jesus!

So, whether it be something as difficult as a medical procedure or something as simple as getting great savings on groceries, I'm determined to "consider it pure joy" and a blessing from the Lord to grow me to be more like Him.

National Eosinophil Awareness Week!

As many of you know, I have a rare autoimmune disorder called Hypereosinophilic Syndrome. This week marks the 3rd annual National Eosinophil Awareness Week. To observe the week I purchased an Eosinophil T-Shirt that I'll be wearing. I'm hoping to maybe hold a fundrasier next year.

If you'd like to read more information on Hypereosinophilc Disorders or to read my story, you can click on the Hypereosinphilic Syndrome tab at the top of this page.

Under Construction

There's some changes happening on my blog. I'm excited about my new layout. It's still under construction, but I'm hoping that this will help clear the clutter and bring better organization to my readers. Some of you like to read everything that I write, while others had rather just get to the coupons stuff, recipes, or possibly read about our adoption process. When I complete this project you'll be able to easily navigate to whatever you want.
I'm hoping to have this all finished in another week. Thanks for bearing with me while I get it all up and running.
Edited to add...a HUGE thanks to my brother-in-law, Michael, for giving me some pointers and teaching me a few things on my computer! Thanks, Michael!

Were It Not For Grace

In 1992, when I was 19, I got the incredible experience to travel to Barcelona, Spain with a mission team. I thought that I would be used by God in a mighty way while I was there...afterall, isn't that why He called me to this mission trip? Boy, was I young and arrogant! To my disappointment, after spending five weeks in the streets filled with Olympic athletes and tourists, I only got to share my salvation with a few people that would listen. One woman prayed to receive the Lord as her Savior. I was really disappointed with this outcome. I didn't understand why the Lord would send me across the world to share His Word and only have one person be saved.

Our mission team had some guest evangelists that came and spoke to our team a few times during those five weeks. One man, I don't even remember his name, spoke on the subject of grace. I had been a Christian for several years already at this time, but really lacked knowledge in this area. Honestly, there were some things that he spoke about that confused me. I knew that I couldn't just pick up the phone and call my dad, my pastor or my friends and ask questions. Of course, this was at a time when cell phones weren't carried by just everyone! For the first time in my life I had to depend on just God. It was one of most incredible journey's that the Lord has ever taken me on! I realized many years later that this was the very reason that I went to Barcelona. God had to take me out of my comfort zone in order for me to truly learn how to lean on Him and Him alone.

That 5 weeks in Barcelona has been a time that I have reflected on many times during my life. I can't believe that it was 18 years ago! My understanding of grace as I know it today started during the summer of 1992 and continues to overwhelm me today! I don't understand why my God chose to grace me with His love, His salvation, His mercy...but He did...and I'm so grateful for it.

If you'd like to understand more on this topic I would encourage you to open your Bible to the book of Romans and start reading. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you learn.

I would also suggest that you take a few key words in the Bible and compare them and their meaning with other passages that use the same words. For example, you could look up the words: Grace, Love, God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, Word, Truth, Life... find every verse that those words are in. Find out how that particular word is defined each time it's used. Make sure to know the context that the word is used in too. This is a very eye-opening exercise to do and I'm sure that anyone that does this won't regret it!

The Bible (God's Holy Word) tell us in Ephesians 2:8 "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;..." Wow! This means that there is nothing we can do to earn God's grace, we can can't work for it, we can never be "good enough"...we only get it because He gifts us with it. For this reason we have grateful hearts...for this reason we want to do good works.

This is and has been one of my very favorite songs for several years. It's a wonderful reminder to me that I would be nothing without Him...Were it Not for Grace...

Dillon's 4/28/10

Had a good trip to Dillon's today. I spent $46.87 and saved $95.61. That was a 67% savings plus I got a coupon good for $4.00 off my next visit. There's a total of 71 items that I bought making an average spent of .66 cents per item!

I'm not going to post everything I bought. You can click on the photo to zoom in and see it all better. My little helper had to be in the photo too!

Captivate Us

Communion

I had one of those "out of the box" moments a couple Sundays ago that I want to share. For those of you that aren't aware, my Pastor is battling a terminal lung disease. He needs a lung transplant sometime this spring or early summer in order to live. It's been a very bitter-sweet time for our church family, but I believe that we're growing because of it.

We had communion a couple weeks ago. My youngest son, Jacob, decided to take part in this service. Since he's fairly new to taking part in communion he had tons of questions as the deacons and elders were passing out the little crackers and the grape juice. When it came time to eat the crackers Jacob didn't see the deacons eating. Jacob is still short enough that he couldn't see over the congregation very well. He was concerned that they didn't get to have some crackers. (My husband is a deacon so I'm sure he just wanted to make sure that his daddy would get some!) I was explaining to him that the Pastor had passed out the crackers to the deacons & elders and to watch in a few minutes and he would see that our Pastor would do the same thing with the juice.

Just then, at that moment, when our Pastor passed out the juice to his deacons and elders the Lord did something miraculous... Let me pause here to say this...I love it when He, the King of all Kings, reaches into the innermost being of my heart and speaks to me!... I sat and watched our Pastor serve his sheep. A moment of bitter-sweetness welled up in my heart as I wondered if this would be my Pastor's last time to serve his deacons and elders. I wondered what he was thinking, what he was feeling. I wondered if the rest of the congregation was thinking this same thing. Then my thoughts turned to my Savior, Jesus. I began to think of the Last Supper. For the first time since I've taken part of communion I wondered what Jesus was feeling, what He was thinking, as He served His disciples. He knew that one would betray him, He knew that one would deny Him 3 times, He knew that this would be one of the last intimate moments that they would have together, yet he embraced the moment, loved them and served them anyway. He not only served them by giving them bread and wine on that day, but he gave His body and His blood so that they.. so that WE could have an eternal relationship with Him.
Two weeks later I'm still thinking about what I witnessed on that day. I'm so thankful that the Lord gave me eyes to see something knew. I'm so thankful that He chose to serve me too!
Matthew 20:28...."the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Thank you, Jesus!

HUGE savings @ Dillons and KMart!

I saved bundles at Dillon's and KMart today. It was such a HUGE savings that I decided to take some photos of my shopping trips today. (I know, it is kind of weird to take photos of my loot, but to each his own...besides, this gives my hubby a good look at exactly what I accomplished.)
For those of you that are coupon sceptics that think I run all over the place and waste tons of time and gas couponing let me tell you this...It only took me about 1 1/2 hour to plan and another 1 1/2 hours to shop. I left the house at 8:45 a.m.(took my daughter to preschool before shopping) and returned home at 10:30 a.m. You can do this too...it's not hard, but it does take a little bit to get the hang of it. It is WELL worth the time and effort!
There are 3 photos below with the details on my purchases listed below each photo.

First Dillon's trip photo...***6 yogurt and 3 pkgs of lunchmeat are missing from this photo. I dropped them off to my dad before coming home and taking this picture.

Dillons: (prices shown are sale prices, not regular prices)
6 cans Grands biscuits .98 each
4 bags Steamfresh frozen veggies $1 each
2 bags Lays Kettle chips $2 each
6 rolls Farmland sausage 1.64 each
8 pkgs. Farmland lunchmeat $1 each
3 Buddy Bars (soap) .99 each
1 jar grape jelly $1.25 each
4 pkg. McCormick seasonings $1 each
1 box tampons $2.99
10 Yoplait yogurt .99 each
1 box Fiber One yogurt $2.89
6 tubs I Can't Believe It's Not Butter .98 each
Total before coupons (already subtracted Dillon's rewards) = $63.51
I used lots of coupons!
Total after coupons (what I paid) = $18.76 plus tax
Total savings of 81% or $83.00

**I also got a coupon at the end of my transaction for $4.00 off my next Dillon's purchase. I got this for buying 6 Grands biscuits.

Second Dillon's trip photo

Dillons: (went to another Dillons to get more lunchmeat)
7 pkgs Farmland lunchmeat $1 each
1 pkg. Sara Lee Turkey lunchmeat $2.29
Total before coupons (already subtracted Dillon's rewards) = $9.29
minus
7 $1 Farmland coupons -$7.00
1 $1 Sara Lee coupon -$1.00
Total after coupons(what I paid) = $1.29 plus tax
Total savings of 91% or $14.23

Both KMart transactions are included in this photo.

KMart: (KMart is doubling coupons this week up to $2.00...this means that a $2 coupon is worth $4.00)

1 box Tampax $4.49

2 Ziploc round containers 2/$5

2 Ziploc square containers 2/$5

2 boxes Special k cereal 2/$5

1 20 oz. Mountain Dew $1.49 (not pictured)

Total before coupons $20.98 (plus tax)

Minus:

2 $1.50 Ziploc coupons doubled -$6.00

2 $2.00 Special K coupons doubled -8.00

Total spent = $6.98 plus tax

KMart: (had to do 2 transactions because their computer was having issues)

2 boxes Special K cereal 2/$5

Total before coupons $5.00 plus tax

Minus:

1 $2 Special K coupons doubled -$4.00

Total spent = $1.00 plus tax

Hydrea/Silver Dollar City

Shazam! Things have moved a bit faster than I was previously told. My doctor called yesterday and decided to have me go ahead and start my chemo. So, I just took the first pill of Hydrea (Hydroxyurea). I'll take one every day. According to what I've been told I will be on this the rest of my life since HES doesn't go into remission and isn't curable. I'm still being weaned off the prednisone. I'm hoping that this doesn't make me sick. I'm sure that only time will tell.

On a brighter note...
I took the kids to Silver Dollar City today. They had a lot of fun. We got season passes so we plan to go back several times this year. The boys really liked the rides Wildfire and Powder Keg. Emalee and I rode some kiddy rides and she had fun. We got rained out at about 2:30, but didn't leave the park w/o first eating a funnel cake! I forgot to take my camera, although I'm glad about that since I didn't have much storage space for it. Next time I'll take my fanny pack so my money, phone and camera are all secure and in one spot!

I-HES (Idiopathic Hypereosinophilic Syndrome)

Finally...my blood test results are back and now we know what kind of HES I have. It's I-HES, aka, Idiopathic Hypereosinophilic Syndrome. There's too much involved in explaining it, but I found a link that does a pretty good job. http://www.orpha.net/data/patho/GB/uk-IdiopHypereosinophSyndr.pdf
The results of this test were to determine what course of treatment (medicines) I should be taking. I will be taking a chemo called Hydrea and will start in a couple of months....or whenever I'm completely wheened off the prednisone. I'll update my blog when I start.
I've heard pretty good things about Hydrea as far as tolerance of it goes, so I hope that I'm one of those that tolerate it well.

Local blogger

I just wanted to point out something that Mandie, a local Spfd, MO. blogger is doing on her blog. Mandie started blogging about 1 year ago doing local coupons matchups. Her blog has been so helpful to me in that I no longer have to spend MY time doing that anymore and just visit her blog to see the coupon match ups and other great deals.
Well, Mandie started doing something new on her blog recently that I think is pretty cool. She now has a master list of prices on products and compares them to other local stores. Here's an example that I copied from her blog. This is for the frozen boneless/skinless chicken on sale at Dillon's this week...

If you buy 10 3lb bags of generic chicken at Walmart: $64.80
If you buy 10 3lb bags of generic chicken at Aldi: $62.90
If you buy 10 3lb bags of Tyson chicken at Walmart: $71.80
If you buy 10 3lb bags of generic chicken at Dillons now: $49.80
Possible savings: $22.00!!

Mandi does this with several other items too! I think this is so helpful. So, if you're one of my readers I highly recommend that you hop over to Mandi's blog at http://www.iheartcoupondeals.blogspot.com/ and check it out. When you're there just click on the "price check" tab at the top of her page to get to her price check book.

Resurrection Eggs

(I got this post from southernsavers.com)

This is a great Easter activity to do with your child/children. During this busy time of year, much like Christmas, the reason that we celebrate Easter can sometimes get lost in the fun of the Easter egg hunts, the Easter Bunny and of course, the candy. My kids have enjoyed doing this over the last few years.

What you will need:

5 plastic eggs of various colors
Picture of a donkey (print one from your computer)
Goldfish cracker, or other cracker your child likes to eat
2 small nails
Small rock (grab one from the yard)

Hopefully you should have most of the items already so if you have to buy the eggs the whole activity should cost around $1.

Open the blue egg. Let the child hold the donkey. (Use a picture of a donkey printed on
your computer to go in the blue egg) Read Matthew 21:1-9
Jesus was coming to Jerusalem for Passover. Some people cut palm branches from trees and
handed them out for people to wave. Some people laid their coats on the street like a carpet.
Jesus rode into the city on a donkey. “Hosanna! ” the people cheered as they waved their palm
branches. Some people cheered, “Hail to our King!” Jesus rode through the town on a donkey
because when a king rode on a donkey it meant he would bring peace. God loves us so much
that He sent Jesus to set us free and bring us peace.

Open the purple egg. Let the children eat the piece of cracker. (Use a gold fish, a ritz bitz,
or any cracker your child likes) Matthew 26:17-19, 26-30.
Jesus and His disciples (the 12 men who helped Jesus tell others about God) celebrated
Passover together. They went upstairs to a room in a house in Jerusalem. Jesus washed His
disciples’ feet to remind them that they were to care for others. Then Jesus and the disciples
shared a special meal. Jesus knew it would be His last meal with His friends. Jesus knew He
had to follow God’s plan for His life and die for our sins.

Open the yellow egg. Let the children hold the nails. (Show them how to make the 2
nails into a cross.) John 19:16-22
Jesus had to be nailed to the cross to die for our sins because it was God’s plan. The people
who loved Jesus were very sad. Jesus did not deserve to be punished. He had not done
anything. Jesus died so that we could be forgiven. The Bible says in John 3:16,”For God so
loved the world that He gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish
but have everlasting life.”

Open the green egg. Let the children hold the rock. (Use a rock from your yard)
Matthew 28:1-2
After Jesus died one of his followers wrapped Jesus’ body in cloth and put it in a tomb. The
tomb was a special tomb cut into the rock in a hillside.. A big stone was rolled in front of the
tomb to close the entrance. Guards were posted to guard the tomb. Jesus followers were very
sad that Jesus had died.

Open the orange egg. It is empty. Matthew 28:5-8
Early the next morning a lady named Mary Magdalene went to visit the tomb. When she came
to the tomb the big rock had been rolled away. The tomb was empty. It was good news! Jesus
was alive! Jesus went to heaven to be with God. Jesus was punished for our sins so that some
day we will get to go to heaven to be with God and Jesus.

K Mart Super Doubles!!!

I'm so excited! If you haven't heard already, K Mart will be having a super doubles coupon week starting April 4th! They will double coupons up to$2 meaning a $2 coupon will be worth $4.00! There are many deals where you can score some completely free or incredibly inexpensive products. Unfortunately, unlike previous double coupon days, K Mart has put a limit on the number of coupons you can use to only 5 per day. Also, you have to have a K Mart rewards card in order to qualify for doubled coupons. So, I suggest going out right now, before April 4th and sign up for your rewards card. Then, keep an eye out for any high value coupons that you see for products that you would like to buy. www.coupons.com has a great $2 coupon for Nivea body wash today. I don't know what the regular price is, but I'm sure that this would make for free or close to free body wash!

Pizza Crust Recipe

We love homemade pizza at our house. It's filling, inexpensive, and easy-to-make! Best of all, though, in our opinion, it's so much better than carryout or frozen pizzas!
I've tried many different pizza crust recipes and this one is not only our favorite, it's also one of the quickest to make. The pizza, from start to finish, can be ready to pop in the oven in less than 30 minutes.

Pizza Crust: (this makes one pizza crust..I always double this recipe)
1 Tbsp. active dry yeast
1 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees F.)
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 1/2 cups flour

Dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the rest of the ingredients in and mix.
Dump onto a floured surface .
Knead into a smooth dough (five minutes or so).
Roll out and press down onto a greased pizza pan.

Add toppings. (Have fun and be creative with this! Our favorite variety is salsa or barbecue sauce, diced cooked chicken, and cheese.)
Bake at 450 degrees F. for around 12-15 minutes until the crust looks crispy and lightly browned.
Bythe way, you can make up a double or triple batch of the pizza crust dough and freeze the extras if you don't need it. This speeds up the preparation even more as all you have to do is pull out a bag of dough and a bag of chopped cooked chicken in the morning and then put the pizza together right before you're ready to eat. You can also freeze the pizzas already cooked but I doubt it would ever stay uneaten long enough to make it to the freezer around here!

2 new recipes

I have 2 new recipes to rave about. Today, I decided to get creative and made my own homemade croutons. I'd been planning on making them for weeks. I've been saving the heels from our bread and finally accumulated enough to make croutons with. I didn't have a recipe so I just winged it and here's what I came up with.

Melt 1/2 stick (really depends on how much bread you have) butter in a 9X13 casserole dish. Add garlic salt, garlic powder, parsley to taste. Toss uncooked bread crumbs in butter mixture. Cook in oven @ 200 degrees until dry.

I also wanted enchiladas yesterday. I really didn't want to go buy enchilada sauce so I went online and looked up some recipes to make sauce. I didn't have everything they called for so wound up experimenting again. I'm happy to say that I've come up with an enchilada sauce that is VERY, VERY similar to Mexican Villa's enchilada sauce. I think I'll keep this recipe to myself, but for immediate family members that really want it let me know and I'll email it to you. I think I could bottle and sell this stuff!

Latest update

I heard from two of the doctors in Cincinnati today. There are four doctors working on my case. All four of them have agreed that I do have Hypereosinophilic Syndrome (HES). The biopsies of my upper and lower GI's have shown significant infiltrations of eosinophilis in my stomach, esophagas and intestines. The colon was fine. There was evidence of ulcers and inflammation caused by the eosinophils in all those areas as well.
My heart looks great! I do have a minor heart murmur, but they don't think my disorder has caused this so that is a HUGE praise!
I'm still continuing to wheeze and have shortness of breath. One doctor thinks this could be caused by inflammation in my esophagas, the other doctor thinks that it's reactive airway caused by the eosinophils in my lungs (this is what I think too). The only way to know for sure is to do a lung biopsy and I don't think we'll be doing that.
So, what does all this mean? What course of treament will I take?
I'll try to summerize what I've been told and add today's update to that....

HES is as close to Leukemia as you can get. There are 3 types of HES. I will have one more blood test to determine what type I have. I'll have the blood drawn here and then sent to a lab that specializes in looking at chromosones/genes/cells. There are different treatments for each type. I'll have some kind of chemotherapy for treatment (most likely Hydrea or Gleevac). I will stress that HES is NOT curable. It does NOT go into remission. I will ALWAYS have to take some form of medicine (chemo's and steroids) for the rest of my earthly life (that is if the Lord chooses to not heal me). I'll start treatment as soon as the blood test determines the type that I have...those results will take another 2-4 weeks.
They're also trying to decide what to do about my wheezing. Right now I'm on inhalers for that. I should know more on that in a few weeks too.
In the meantime, my doctor wants me weaned completely off of the prednisone that I've been on for 5 years! Yay! I can't tell you all how happy that makes me! : )

Well, that's it. When I find out more in a few weeks I'll be sure to let you all know.
Thanks so much for keeping me and Brian lifted up in prayer. I was really stressed about this a few weeks ago, but the Lord has washed me in His peace and I'm so thankful for that!

Here's some HES info. links:

http://www.aaaai.org/patients/gallery/hypereosinophilic_syndrome.asp
http://www.apfed.org/hes.htm
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/202030-overview
http://hypereosinophilia.info/FAQs.htm
http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/svc/alpha/e/eosinophilic/about/default.htm

Shepherd's Pie
1 1/2 lb hamburger, fried with salt/pepper

15 oz can mixed vegetables

1 small can cream of mushroom soup

1/2 C. milk

2-3 C. mashed potatoes

2 Tb butter

Dash of garlic salt

Mix hamburger with veggies, soup, garlic salt and milk. Spread into 3 Qt pan (sprayed). Place mashed potatoes around edge of pan or cover entire pan with potatoes if desired. Drizzle butter (optional) over potatoes and sprinkle with pepper. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes, until potatoes lightly browned.

Holy, Holy, Holy

Open any Baptist Hymnal and the first hymn you'll most likely see on page 1 is Holy, Holy, Holy. It started as a poem, written in 1826 by Reginald Heber who was a student at the time. Later, in 1861 John B. Dykes set a tune to these words making it the complete song that we know today.
I decided to post the words of this awesome hymn on my blog today as a reminder to myself of God's Holiness. In the culture that we live in, the business of our day, the troubles that we have, the projects to get done....I sometimes just need to stop and remember the Holiness of the God I serve.

Holy, Holy, Holy

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee;
Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity!

Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore Thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee,
Who was, and is, and evermore shall be.

Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide Thee,
Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see;
Only Thou art holy; there is none beside Thee,
Perfect in power, in love, and purity.

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All Thy works shall praise Thy Name, in earth, and sky, and sea;
Holy, holy, holy; merciful and mighty!
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity!

Hypereosinophilic Syndrome

Photo of Hypereosinophilic Syndrome

The phone rang this morning and to my surprise it was Dr. von Tiehl from Cincinnati Hospital. He had the lab results from all my blood work and gave me the results. They tested me for EVERYTHING that one could ever been tested for....all cancers, HIV, leukaemia's, autoimmune disorders, allergies, parasites...everything turned out negative. That was good news.

With all of those tests and looking at my past medical history it was concluded that I have Hypereosinophilic Syndrome (HES). This is what I thought I had. I'm not a bit surprised.

This is an EXTREMELY rare disorder. Roughly 1 in every 200,000 people have HES. That's about 150 people in the entire United States of America! It is not curable, but there are treatment options. Things are still being learned about this disorder and treatments are still being researched. It's hard to explain the disorder so if you'd like to learn more you can go these websites...

http://www.aaaai.org/patients/gallery/hypereosinophilic_syndrome.asp

or http://www.apfed.org/hes.htm

or http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/202030-overview

orhttp://hypereosinophilia.info/FAQs.htm

or http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/svc/alpha/e/eosinophilic/about/default.htm
As far as my treatment goes I won't know what we'll do for a few more weeks. We're waiting on some test results to get in before we decide the best treatment plan. I'll also have an EKG and an Echo cardiogram on Feb. 23rd to determine if any heart damage has been done and the extent of that damage. Treatment all hinders on these results along with the biopies of my GI tract that were done in Cincinnati. In a few weeks I'll update my blog and let you know what treatment options we decide.

My trip to Cincinnati

Well, where to begin??? WARNING...THIS IS TERRIBLY LONG! Although most of our trip revolved around doctor appointments I really enjoyed spending time ALONE with my hubby. It's been way too long since we've had several days alone together. The last time was when we went to get Emalee and before that it had been several years. I sooo wish that we could do this at least once a year, but it's just hard for us to find a sitter for that long. Anyway, I'm looking forward to those days when the kids are grown and we get to do this every day. Of course, when that happens we'll be missing them and want them back!

We arrived Monday evening and didn't really do anything. We walked up the street to a restaurant named Big Boy's (I've never heard of it but it reminds me of a Shoney's) and we had dinner there. We then went to a little gas station and grabbed some bottles of water, a few snacks and called it a day.

Tuesday was my first doctor appt. This was with the Gastroenterologist (Dr. Kushner). He's supposedly one of the best Gastro's in the world. We were told by several nurses and hospital staff that people from all over the world come to Cincinnati for eosinophilic issues. He wasn't overly friendly, but I felt that he listened well. He basically asked me all my history and symptoms. He then examined me...the usual eye, ear, nose, mouth check. Then he listened to my breathing and my heart beat. That's when he said that he could hear a heart murmur. I told him that I've never been told that I've had one before, so he listened again to make sure. Yep, I have one. What does this mean? I don't know for sure, but I will have an Echocardiogram and an EKG sometime soon here in Springfield to check it out.
Anyway, he went over some of the scopes that I've had here at home and decided that he wanted to go ahead and do a colonoscopy too so then I got scheduled for that and we were done for the day.
We were back to the hotel by 10 a.m. so we decided that we'd better make a day of it and have some fun! We got a taxi and went to the "Back to Genesis Creation Museum"...oh my was it awesome! I would love to go back. It took us 5 hours to go through it and we still weren't done, but we were tired and I had to get back and rest up for Wednesday. The museum starts out at the beginning of Genesis when God created the world and walks you through the main points of creation, adam and eve, sin, the flood, tower of babel, Christ, salvation, etc. It not only gives the Biblical answer behind questions such as evolution, but it also gives the world view. Very cool for believers, but also very inviting for unbelievers as well. There were life like figures of several Biblical people and then other people in history, like Martin Luther, that were great historical figures of the early church. There was a garden of eden, a serpent, tree of life, noah's ark....these were all big display rooms that you walk through as the story is being told or read. There were dinorsaurs too! If you guys ever get to Cincinnati (it's actually across the border in Kentucky) I would HIGHLY recommend that you go visit. Here's the website www.creationmuseum.org/
We did go to the revolving restaurant in our hotel this night too. It was very cool, very romantic and a bit pricey, but worth it just to say we went! I think our dinner was about $65 for both of us which included an appetizer, salad and entree. Here's the website for it. http://www.radisson.com/covingtonky Our room was up on the 13th floor facing the Cincinnati skyline. It was a great view!

Wednesday was an extremely long and tiring day. We arrived at the hospital at 9 a.m. We had a seminar with another family that was all about eosinophilic disorders. I knew almost everything already that was taught, but Brian really didn't know as much so it was really good for him to get educated about it. After the class we were given a tour of the eosinophilic center research lab. There's a whole wing that's strictly devoted to eosinophilic research. One of the leading pathologists in the world heads the department along with 4 other world renowned doctors (2 of them are the dr's I saw). It looks like a huge science lab. There's tons of freezers, refrigerators, mice and lots and lots of scientist/doctors that are working on different eosinophil assignments. So little is understood, but just in the last 3 years they've made HUGE strides in understanding eosinophil disorders. In fact, I donated my blood and some extra biopsies to their research center. I figure that whatever I can do to help would be beneficial in the future..if not to me, then to someone else!
After the seminar I had my allergy/immunology visit....First, we met the allergist (Dr. von Tiehl). When he walked in the door I was shocked by how young he was. He's probably 30 years old at the most and already one of the top doctors in his field. I could tell by our conversation that he really knew his eosinophil stuff! He was very friendly, easy to talk to, we could actually joke with him and laughed about things...it was great! We visited for about 60-80 minutes. He took tons of time with us. He asked my whole medical history again, typed it all out himself on his computer too. None of the doctors would say a definite on what they thought was going on because they can't. They all work together as a team, review my information, all my blood work and biopsies and then they have a meeting to discuss what they believe is happening. Just the fact that they all work as a team is so encouraging. My doctors here don't really do that. I have information coming from one doctor that the other doctors aren't even aware of. At this hospital NOTHING is left out. They all get the exact same information. In the rare case that "science" doesn't back anything up they all make an educated guess together. Dr. von Tiehl actually said (his exact words)...."You've been jerked around by other doctors way too long. We'll do our best to get to the bottom of this." Now that, my friends, was encouraging : )
I had a complete skin allergy test that showed NO food allergies. I only reacted to ragweed. This is good because we now know that food is not the culprit. The bad thing is that we don't know what the culprit is now.
I also had a lung function test and passed with with flying colors. I'm not really sure how my wheezing plays into all of this? The Dr. wasn't sure either other than my "asthma" must be well controlled now. All I know is that I'm still short of breath, not wheezing though. After that I gave lots and lots of blood. I'm pretty sure that they took 9 viles and then one more because she forgot one and I had to be re-stuck! Ouch! That was the one for the research lab and I really wanted to do that so I took the extra poke anyway : /
By the time we got back to the hotel it was 6 p.m. and I still had to prep for my colonoscopy. Needless to say, the rest of the evening was spent on the potty. I felt sorry for my hotel neighbors because I was flushing the toilet all the time. The last time I remember getting up it was 3:30 a.m. That may have been too much information!

We were at the hospital early on Thursday. I had to be there at 6:30 a.m. I was the first patient to be seen. I don't remember much other than the nurses were exceptionally nice. I was actually looking forward to getting some sleep! I had my upper endoscopy and colonoscopy back to back. I had to stop eating by late Tuesday night. All I could have was clear fluids. Because Wednesday was such a long day w/o many breaks I didn't get as hydrated as I should have, plus I had quite a bit of blood taken too. After I woke up I could tell that I wasn't feeling right. I thought it was just the anesthesia, but I now know that I was dehydrated. Right when we were about to leave I about fainted. They had to put me back in a bed and gave me another bag of fluids. Our driver was already there. I felt so bad because he had to turn around and leave only to come back later. Fortunately, our hotel has a partnership with the hospital for free shuttle transportation or we would have been out about $60! Still, I felt bad that he had wasted his time. Once we got back to the hotel I just slept. I think I slept until 6p.m.?? Anyway, when I woke up enough Brian walked to Subway down the street and got some dinner for himself. He got me some too, but I just didn't feel like eating. I drank A LOT though and still found myself overly thirsty the next day.
Friday was just travel. We slept in and left around 10:30 for the airport. Our flight was a bit delayed due to a pressure valve issue. Then in Memphis our flight was delayed again for just a bit. We got all the way to our gate in Memphis and then they changed the gate! I hate it when that happens! Our new gate was on the complete opposite side of the airport.

We were glad to see the kids. Emalee wasn't so sure about us coming home. She doesn't adjust well to change so it took her a bit to adjust, but after that she was fine.
I won't know anything for 2-3 weeks. I'll let you all know as soon as they call me. For those of you that prayed for me I really appreciate it.

Another song...

These are some of my very favorite songs sung by my very favorite singer, Dennis Jernigan. He used to come to my college, SBU, every semester and do a concert. It wasn't a typical concert though, it always wound up being more of a worship experience. I'm grateful for the many worship/praise songs of Dennis' that I've been able to hear and sing over the past several years.

I'm sure I'll add to this list over the next several days but these two songs are very special during this time in my life. The first one makes me think about my pastor who is fighting a progressive lung disease right now. He's taught me so much, has pushed me to be more like Jesus and has always spoken truth into my life and the lives of those he's touched...He is one of my hero's. There are many hero's in my life, but this song I dedicate to Pastor Craig Fields. Thank you Craig, for loving JABC. We love you, too!

The second song is a favorite of mine. When I just need to be still this is the song that I listen to. Sometimes I just need Jesus to hold me and I often forget that if I'd be still long enough He's always there to wrap His arms around me, comfort me and give me peace.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kFscV906jM (You Are My Hero)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4_mc8srZCs (If I Could Just Sit With You Awhile)

While I'm Waiting

This is a great song and a wonderful reminder that we should remain steadfast while we wait upon the Lord.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-M7oGrOa2I

In Christ Alone

This is one of my all time favorite songs. Here's a link with Natalie Grant singing it and I posted the lyrics below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MA9WbEn-Nj8&feature=related


In Christ Alone lyrics

In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
this Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
when fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone! who took on flesh
Fulness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones he came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied -
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave he rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine -
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the power of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath.
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.

My thoughts on being prepared in season and out of season...

II Timothy 2:4 Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season..."


Okay, many of us know that this verse deals with Paul writing Timothy and giving him instructions to be ready/prepared to share the gospel during any season of life Timothy is in.

I'm not one to twist Scripture so please understand that I'm not saying that this verse means anything different than what God intended for it to say.

HOWEVER...I find it to be a really cool thing when I read a verse and then starting thinking about other things in my life that I could apply it to...I believe that when that happens it is the Holy Spririt teaching me something new...that's what I'm going to ramble about today.

I've cooked 2 1/2 dozen pancakes, 30 Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins and 30 Banana Bread muffins today. I have a bunch of other things on my list to get baked too. I try to keep a little bit of a stockpile of food in my freezer and pantry. For the most part I do this to help myself out when I need something quick to make or for those lazy days that I don't feel like cooking. It not only saves me time, but money too because I'm not as tempted to run out and get fast food.

The pancakes and muffins are going to be froze so that my parents will have access to them while I'm in Cincinnati. I never even thought of this verse meaning that I, as a wife & mother, need to prepare things for my home! I'm usually "in season" around here, but there are times in life that we are all "out of season." Going to a hospital in Cincinnati for 5 days is not a part of my usual agenda and is definitely an "out of season" time of life. I was trying to think of other times in our lives that are "out of season." Having an illness, having a baby, going to out of town meetings, etc.
I think that baking or cooking meals and snacks ahead of time is a wonderful way to let our family know that we love them and are thinking about them....in my case it's helpful to my parents too since they'll be watching the kids for me.

So, what do you do to help your family or yourself out for those "out of season" times? Please leave me a comment sharing your ideas.

Incase you're wondering these are the other things I plan to bake & freeze over the next few days...

French Toast
Zuccini Bread Muffins
Blueberry Muffins
Pizza Crust
Maybe a casserole or two!

Help for Haiti

Update: Thanks to all of you that participated in our fundraiser. This was really fun to do and was definitely a new experience and challenge to us. After adding what we saved in groceries along with the comments you left on this blog we raised a total of $75.00 to donate to Extend Global for the express purpose of providing the physical and spiritual needs of those affected by the earthquake in Haiti. Thanks again!

~Brian and Heather

We've all seen it on the news and web by now. Haiti has been so devastated by this earthquake and most of us will never know or be able to comprehend the turmoil that they are going through during this time. What will we do?
1. Praying is something we can do. Our God is powerful and mighty and shows Himself to people when we call on His name.
2. Do you feel that praying isn't enough? Do you want to do more? We can also GIVE. I went grocery shopping yesterday and saved 62% on my groceries. I've decided to donate that saved amount to Extend Global (see below).
3. Do you want to do more but don't have many resources? Some of us have very limited resources and don't feel that even the smallest monetary donation would amount to much. I just read a quote from another blogger, Crystal, that said, "Even if it seems like it's a drop in the bucket, remember that a bucket of water is made up of that--drops!"
So, this brings me to my subject. In cooperation with other fellow couponing bloggers across the country we're teaming up to help Haiti. It's simple and it doesn't have to cost you one penny! Visit http://www.moneysavingmom.com/ to find out just how this is done. All it will cost you is a bit of your time!
Here's my offer to you... Leave me a comment telling me what you're doing to help. Be creative. For every comment I get I'll donate another $1 to Extend Global. I do have a limit of $200. So, tell your friends, family, facebook it...whatever it takes!
***This deal ends at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 16, 2010.

***Extend Global is an evangelical mission agency committed to meeting the physical and spiritual needs of people around the world. Primarily, they do this by sending short-term teams to meet those needs. You can visit their website at http://www.extendglobal.org/
Thanks for helping meet the needs of people in Haiti!

Dillons 01/14/2010

(click on image to zoom in)

I had a great trip to Dillons yesterday. I got 54 items, spent $35.64 and saved $57.97. That's a 62% savings. My bill was $93. 61 before coupons. The picture above is everything that I got except for 3 pkgs. of Old ElPaso Taco Season that I already put away and 2 bottles of International Delight Creamer that I gave to my sister. Note: the kids needed milk and already drank some by the time I took a picture!