Harmony 5

Have you ever heard of the group Harmony 5?  Take a listen to one of my favorite songs entitled "I'll Never Walk Alone" ...

For more information on this group you can visit their website at http://www.harmony5.com/.
Thank you for listening!!

Stinger Reaches New Heights

When Stinger was 12 months old I found him on top of my kitchen counter. Despite my mild heart attack nobody got injured! This was the first of many climbing adventures for Stinger. He knows how to use our kitchen chairs to climb on everything. Here he is on the desk...

 and on the kitchen table...

 

I do apologize in advance if any of you come for a visit and all of our chair are laying horizontally on the floor!!!  It is for his safety and for mine!

The Bees Love Milk and Cereal!

Weis Markets also has a great deal this week on Post Cereals. If you buy four you get a free gallon of milk up to $3.99. The cereal is priced at 4 for $8.00.  There are coupons for Post cereal at www.coupons.com and also www.walmart.com.  The coupons at each site are for $1.00 off of 2 boxes.  Please do not let the "Redeem at Walmart" on the coupon scare you. As long as it says Manufacturer Coupon at the top Weis will accept it. I promise.  Of all the Post cereals, what four did the Bee family buy?

 Why, Honeycomb of course!!! Four boxes of cereal and one gallon of milk cost the Bee family $6.00 this week.  If the cereal would not have been on sale and I would have paid full price for everything, the total would have been $17.83!  I love coupons and the Bee's love their Honeycomb!!

The Bees Are Messy

 

For those of you that do not already know Weis Markets has a great deal on Sparkle paper towels this week.  Depending on what area you are in some Weis Markets have them on sale for $5.00 for 6 regular rolls and other Weis' have them for as low as $3.99 for 6 regular rolls.  To make this even better you can go here  http://sparkletowels.com/  to print out a $1.00 off coupon for each pack.  

 

 

My husband had to return some books at a local Christian book store that just happened to be on the same road as the Weis Markets that had them for $3.99.  With the $1.00 off coupon for each pack my total bill for the above paper towels was $5.98!  That is $2.99 for 6 regular rolls!!!  There is a limit of 2 packs per transaction.  And let's face it, we all need paper towels for moments like this..

The Bees Get Amused! Part 2

By now I am assuming all of you have read "The Bees Get Amused! Part 1. Now let's continue...

So, what would you do if your honey wanted to take your child on a big, high, and fast roller coaster!  Well I did some research on the subject.

See all of these health restrictions and warnings. This cannot be good!  Now let's inspect the track.

 Oh dear it has a loop. This is ridiculous!

 And what is with this net?  Is this suppose to catch Bumble if she falls out?? I can't believe Honey thinks this would be a good idea!

According to my research this is just too dangerous.  So what did mama end up saying...

  

 

Well, somewhere in this picture are Bumble and Honey! They were hanging upside down and I was on the ground trying to hang on to my breath!! Here they are before the ride...

 

 

 

And during the ride.

 

 

Poor Bumble!

So did Bumble love it? The first words out of her mouth when she saw me were, "Mommy can I go again!"   All the reasons went through my head again as to why I should say no.  But I answered with a simple, Yes! And I preceded to do so five more times!  So there you have it. Bumble loves roller coasters and mama will just have to accept it!

In the meantime I think I will stick with this....

 

 

Stay tuned for my "Amusement Park Survival Guide"... coming soon!

 

The Bees Get Amused! Part 1

I do not like roller coasters and I do not understand why people do.  I do not wish to be flung around at a high rate of speed or dropped from an insane height.  I like my feet on the ground.  That being said, Honey convinced me that it would be smart to purchase season passes to a local amusement park this summer! 

At the beginning of spring, Bumble was tall enough to ride all the kiddie rides.

  

 

 

Yes she is a Hershey Kiss!

Bumble riding the Granny Bugs!

 

Yes that is Bumble on the train in the back. She was the one lone passenger!

 

Fly that helicopter, Bumble!

 

and don't forget her first carousel ride with daddy! 

Stinger was a trooper as well. He was content just to ride in his stroller.

 

Ok maybe not!

 

Then Bumble grew and was able to ride the some of the bigger kiddie rides at the end of summer.

 

  

Now she is a peanut butter cup! 

 

 

Well we were all having a fine and dandy time until Honey wanted to take our three year old on this:

 

 

 

 

Oh dear what is Queen Bee going to do?!? Should I say yes and subject my daughter to the twists, turns, and high rates of speed that I hate. Isn't she just too young?  To be continued....

 

Honey Bee Flies To Haiti: Part 1

Today's post was submitted by Honey.  Queen Bee gets the day off! Here is what he has to say....

Honey Bee here. This past summer I took a week away from our hive to go to Haiti with a group from our church.  I'm sure you have seen pictures of Haiti in magazines and on the news, but when you are the one taking pictures that could be in National Geographic, it gives you a new perspective on our life in America. I took about 450 pictures/videos so I will be breaking my analysis into several different posts.

The obvious difference when you touch down in Port-au-Prince is that the standard of living in Haiti is far below that of what we are accustomed to as Americans. As our plane was about to touch down in Haiti, we passed over slums. The like of which I have only seen in pictures. That surprised me because I expected the standard of living to be a little higher near the capital city. It was not. As our bus travelled to the Lifeline Mission compound where we were staying, it began to set in just how little Haitians have to "enjoy" in their daily lives.



Please forgive the blurriness of this photo (above) as I snapped it in motion. Nonetheless, this is an example of a roadside market. It is basically a gas station. If you can see the plastic bottle on a wooden stand in the right of the picture, that bottle is full of gasoline for people to stop and purchase. At the stand, they also have basic necessities for sale and even some food items.

 



 

This is what an actual road-side market looked like. People would bring their produce to the main road and just put it on the ground and hope to sell it. The most eye-opening market we went to was in the town of Archaei. (For you history lovers, that is the town where the Haitians first raised their flag after declaring their independence from France.) This particular market had the potential to be dangerous so our guide insisted that if we wanted pictures we should give our camera to our Creole speaking Haitian guide and he could take pictures for us. If I would have had the nerve to take my camera, I would have had him take a picture of the raw fish laying on a blanket in the 100 degree heat and I would insert that picture here. You can use your imagination to picture it, but the description of what we saw does not do the odor justice. It was a smell that I hope I never smell again.

 

 

 

This picture shows the tent cities that are about 3-5 miles outside of Port-au-Prince. After the earthquake in 2010, these tent cities popped up as people rapidly became homeless. The government is gradually moving them into the country side so that visiting dignitaries from other countries do not see them. 

 

We did not see many cows while there, but we saw this one just walking down the middle of the road as we were leaving Port-au-Prince on our way to the mission compound.

 

This is what the majority of homes looked like in the most rural parts of Haiti. There were some rough brick homes in the larger villages, but even they were very basic.

 

 

The last comment for this post regards the general unsanitary conditions that I was absolutely not prepared for. You can see all the specks in the vegetation and that is all trash just laying around. It is common practice in Haiti that when you are finished with a water bag (I will explain later) or any other sort of wrapped product, you just pitch the trash wherever you are. I am not always the biggest fan of our government, but this trip gave me an appreciation for aspects of our government that I had previously seen as unnecessary. (i.e. Environmental Protection Agency)

 

One thing I want to make clear is that after visiting a country such as Haiti, it is easy for us to feel sorry for the residents that live under the conditions I have explained. However, what I will try to reveal in future posts is that the people of Haiti would probably not like to be pitied. Despite the obvious lack of luxury, the Haitians were generally pleasant people that did not complain about the things they did not have. They had the most positive influence on me and I can't wait to share more about them.

 

When We All Get to Heaven

John 14:2-3 reads "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that, where I am, there ye may be also."  With that in mind, we sang this song at church last Sunday morning.  I think this song was sung loud enough that if you lived within a five mile radius of our church and were home at the time you probably heard us!

When We All Get to Heaven

Words by: Eliza E. Hewitt

Music by: Emily D. Wilson

Sing the wondrous love of Jesus,
Sing His mercy and His grace.
In the mansions bright and blessèd
He’ll prepare for us a place.

 

When we all get to Heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!

 

While we walk the pilgrim pathway,
Clouds will overspread the sky;
But when traveling days are over,
Not a shadow, not a sigh.

 

When we all get to Heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!

 

Let us then be true and faithful,
Trusting, serving every day;
Just one glimpse of Him in glory
Will the toils of life repay.

 

When we all get to Heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!

 

Onward to the prize before us!
Soon His beauty we’ll behold;
Soon the pearly gates will open;
We shall tread the streets of gold.

 

When we all get to Heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!

 

 

Baking with Bumble- Honey Peanut Butter Cookies

 I thought it would only be fitting for our first featured recipe to have the ingredient honey in it. We do have an abundance!  Here are the ingredients you will need to make yummy Honey Peanut Butter Cookies:

 

 

1/2 cup butter

1 cup creamy peanut butter

 1 cup honey

2  eggs

3 cups flour

1 cup sugar (plus a little extra to roll cookie dough in!) 

1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt  

 

Since we have all the ingredients lets begin! In a mixer cream together butter, peanut butter, and honey.  Ok, Bumble would you like to squeeze the Honey for me?

 

 

 

Wrong Honey Bumble! Try again!

 

 

Ok that is much better. 

 

 After the butter, peanut butter, and honey are mixed, add the eggs:

 

Mix again. Now we are ready to move on to the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. I let Bumble help with this part.

 

 

 

It's ok if you got some on your shirt Bumble!

 

 

When it is done the dry ingredients will look like this:

 

Next, using your mixer, mix the dry ingredients together with the honey peanut butter combination we mixed earlier. After they are combined it will look like this:

Now you are ready to shape the cookie dough into balls. Don't forget to roll the balls in sugar to make them extra yummy!  Good job Bumble!

Next squish the cookie dough balls with a fork to put the classic "fork marks" in the cookie . This signifies "yes, I am indeed a peanut butter cookie!" These are ready to head into the oven!

Bake them in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Now what shall we do while we wait for them to bake?  How about play with Honey!

 

Wrong Honey, Bumble!

 

 

 

Ok, that is much better!

 

 Now they are ready to come out of the oven.  Let them rest on the cookie sheet a minute or two and then take them off to let them cool. 

 

 

 

Store them in an air-tight container.

 

Warning: These will not last long. I love the soft but chewy texture these cookie have. Have fun baking and sharing these with your family!!!

 

Soup Anyone?

Here is another incredible deal at Weis Markets this week.  It involves a bunch of this...

 

 

Yes, soup!! 



Here is the deal for the Campbell's Chunky Soup Bowls.  These are included in the "buy $12.00 get $3.00 off instantly" that you will find on the back page of the flyer.  They are on sale for $1.50 each, but since the shelf price is $2.39 you only have to buy 6 to meet the requirements. Now I know the picture only shows four bowls but I did buy six.  Honey got to them before I was able to take a picture!! 

The coupons I used for this came in a recent Sunday paper.  The coupon was for "$0.75 cents off of 2." This coupon will double to $1.50 at my store. I used 3 of these coupons. Here is how it breaks down:

Buy 6 Campbells Chunky Soup Bowls= $9.00

                                                                -$3.00 instantly

                                                                -$4.50 in coupons 

                                                               =$1.50 for 6 bowls

 

 

 

If you do not have access to the $0.75 coupon you can find a "$0.50 off of 2" by going to http://www.campbellskitchen.com/Coupon.aspx . Here would be your deal:

Buy 6 Campbells Chunky Soup Bowls= $9.00

                                                                -$3.00 instantly

                                                                -$3.00 in coupons

                                                               =$3.00 for 6 bowls

That is still a great deal!

 

So you are a more tomato or chicken noodle soup person. Me too! It's starting to get cold outside so I plan to stock up.  I love tomato soup with toasted cheese sandwiches on a cold winter evening! Ok lets see what we can do in order to stock the pantry.

 

 

 

Tomato and chicken noodle soup is also included in the sale "buy $12.00 get $3.00 off instantly."  The shelf price is $1.09 and the sale price is $0.75. You will have to buy 12 to meet the requirements.  You will find the coupons for the soup here:  http://www.coupons.com/

The coupon states "save $0.40 on 3 soups".  Using 4 of these coupons you will pay a total of $2.80 for 12 cans of soup! That's $0.23 cents a can!

 

Please excuse me while I reiterate the same thing I did in the last post. For the deals listed above please check your Weis circular to see if this sale is in your area as you may be living far away from me!  Also please know your stores coupon policy. Some stores may not double coupons or may not fully double them. For the deals listed above hand your club card to the cashier at the end of the transaction.  Also only one deal per transaction so if you want to do both of these split the orders up.  Some of these deals require you to print more than one coupon. Most sites only allow two of the same coupons to print per computer so if you do not have access to more than one computer check other sites to see if they have a similar coupon.  

 

So by now you are starting to see how couponing works and how you can save money by stocking up on items you use everyday. Once you learn all the steps and plan a couple of shopping trips I promise it is a fast and easy process.  I know it is a little overwhelming at first but your Honey will be happy with the results! 

 

 Note: These great deals end Saturday at midnight!

 

 



Queen Bee's Guide to Couponing: Part 2

So by now all of you have read Queen Bee's Guide to Couponing: Part 1.  Also you have your list made and have your store flyer for this week.   Well, I'll just pretend you have finished your homework! Now you don't want to pay full price for the items on your list do you?  Well you will need some of these:

Yes, I just shared with you my stash of wonderful coupons.

Coupons come from many places.  One is the Sunday newspaper. Others come from Internet websites. Here are some popular ones:
www.coupons.com
www.couponnetwork.com
www.everydaysaver.com
www.smartsource.com
www.savingstar.com - this links coupons directly to your club card and the savings go into an account. There is no printing. Just clicking!
www.redplum.com
www.bettycrocker.com
www.kelloggs.com
http://www.campbellskitchen.com/Coupon.aspx

Check to see if any coupons from these sites match up with any sales listed in the flyer or on your grocery list. You may want to add items to your list that match up with the coupons if it is a great deal. This will help you fill your pantry! The goal is to buy the items at the cheapest price possible. 

Now I will say printing coupons can get expensive. Think of all that ink and paper. So please print the ones that you know you are going to use or think you will use in the near future. 
Most internet sites only allow you to print 2 coupons per computer.

 So let's see how this works. Here is one deal at my local Weis Markets this week.

Pizza sauce anyone? This sale is listed on the back page of the Weis Markets circular this week.  If you buy $12.00 of certain items they will take $3.00 off instantly.  Each of these jars retails for $1.59 each. They are on sale this week for $1.00 a jar.  I was able to purchase them for just $0.23 cents each.  So how did I do this?  Most people read the line "buy $12.00 and get $3.00 off instantly" and think that the $12.00 is based on the price listed in the flyer. But at my Weis Markets it is based on the non-sale shelf price. Meaning I did not have to buy 12 jars to meet the $12.00 total. I only had to buy 8. Next, I looked through my coupons to see if I had any coupons for Prego sauces. Indeed I did.  I had several "save $0.40 off of 2" coupons that were in a recent Sunday paper. Since I bought 8 jars, I used 4 of these coupons.  So here is how the transaction broke down.

Buy 8 jars of Prego Pizza Sauce @ $1.00 each=$8.00
                                                                         -$3.00 off instantly 
                                                                         -$3.20 off in coupons
                                                                        (each coupons doubles to $0.80)
                                                                         = total price of $1.80 for all 8


For the deal listed above please check your Weis circular to see if this sale is in your area as you may be living far away from me! Also please know your stores coupon policy. Some stores may not double coupons or may not fully double them. For the deal listed above, hand your club card to the cashier at the end of the transacation. This assures you will meet the $12.00 limit. Also only one deal per transaction so if you want to do this twice split the orders up. That is what that lovely plastic stick at the checkout is used for.  Some deals you will find require you to print more than one coupon. Most sites only allow two of the same coupons to print per computer so if you do not have access to more than one computer check other sites to see if they have a similar coupon.

So what good deals can you find by combining the store sales with the coupons from the internet sites listed above?  Again, I will give you some time to accomplish this!

Bumble Learns the Value of a Penny, Nickel, Dime, and Quarter

With all the couponing items that I bought last week, I thought it would be a fun idea to play grocery store with Bumble.   This is a fun way to teach your kids what a penny, nickel, dime, and quarter is.  You will need loose change to put in a wallet, labels, paper, grocery bags, and a marker for this activity.

First, have your child come up with a grocery store name.  Have them write it themselves on a sheet of paper. This will give them some extra practice with writing letters and spelling.
Bumble came up with this: 

Next, label your store items with the price. Show your child what a penny, nickel, dime, and quarter look like and what amount it represents.

 

Now you are ready to begin. Hmmm what should Bumble buy? Please excuse the fact that my daughter is still in her pajamas.  I was too!

 

 

 

 

Let's fill the grocery bag.

 

 

 

Now we are ready to check out. Ok, so how much do I need in order to pay for this? 

 

 

By the end of this activity Bumble could tell me what a penny, nickel, dime, quarter was and what amount it represented. She even wanted to play later that afternoon.  Have fun "spending" time with your child this week!