What a week!

First week back at my Weight Watchers meetings... didn't go so well.  Last Friday I went to weigh in and got the reality check I thought I needed.  After hearing the devastating news, I was all ready to get back into the grove.  However, what turned out to be a great week socially, turned out to be a rough week on the scale.  Ate out with friends Saturday, Monday and will be again tonight.  Add to that Sunday football games at my parents house and I realized I need another goal.  Nothing really beats the motivation of a wedding dress. I will still keep at it, go to my weigh in tomorrow morning, and try again next week. 

I find out on Monday when I start my new job, which I hope is the key to getting back in the grove.  I will be working in the city, which I'm so excited about!  Having a daily schedule again is exactly what I need.  I will be packing my lunch, reading on the train, and walking to the office.  Now, I just need to find some good deals on clothing, since I have to dress office professional (also very excited about).

The hubby asked me if this new job means the end of my couponing.  I told him "heck no!"  Knowing that I can spend so much less than sticker price is exciting.  Saving money means we can use if on more fun things, like going to Disney World together!  I still can't believe that he has never been, but also makes me realize how lucky I am that I have been so many times before.

Today, my couponing hints are: Be on the lookout for the P&G saver this Sunday.  This is a big one, full of coupons for products which don't have coupons available often. 

I went to Walmart the other day, bought three items, before coupons my total was $12.43.  After my coupons, my total was $1.63!  Other than that, I took it easy on the couponing this week.  Today I am going to try and get myself organized and ready for the week ahead.  Hopefully I can let you know about some great deals!

A little closer to the title "extreme couponer"!

Today I went out and made my best effort to date at getting a lot for next to nothing. 

First stop was Target. 
I headed straight for the travel section.  Purchasing clearance items and using my coupons,
I got four packs of shout wipes to go: on sale for $.67 each and used two coupons ($.75 off two),
two wet ones packs to go: on sale for $.67 each ($1 off two),
two Aquafresh extreme toothpaste's: $.97 each and used two coupons ($1 off coupon),
and a sensodyne pronamel toothpaste $.99 ($1 off). 

How much did I end up paying for these nine items?  $1.84!!

Then I went to Shoprite and only paying mind to my list and my coupons I bought:
two Activia Greek yogurts (Free with coupon),
four bottles of Kikoman soy sauce ($1 off coupon),
three cans of Red Pack diced tomatoes $1 off two (use zip code 12204),
one jar of Fransisco Ranaldi pasta sauce (used a .35 off coupon),
two packs of butterball turkey burgers (used 1 $1.50 off coupons),
and one bottle of glade pet odor eliminator ($1 off coupon) 

How much did I spend? $5.38!!


That is all I have for today.  I will let you know what other successes I find in my shopping! Good luck to any others who decide to try it out! :-)

Pardon my absence...

I know I have been gone for a little longer than usual.  Things have been kinda crazy for this unemployed girl.  My number one priority is... ok, I guess I can't pick just one "top" priority.  I have been driving back and forth to Delaware quit a bit in the past two weeks to see my family and help out where I am needed.

When I am not driving, I have been couponing and working on the house.  I have done a few small projects since my last blog, emphasis on the small.  One project was that I finally hung the towel rack in the bathroom.  I know, wahoo, a towel rack.  But, our bathroom walls are tiled, so the thought of drilling into into the wall terrified me. However, I sucked it up and fortunately did not crack the tile.

Major successes I have had this week was with couponing.  I am not yet good enough to classify myself an extreme couponer, but I am excited by the possibilities.  I have been sharing my savings with the hubby and I told him that I was not going to be an "extreme" couponer to avoid stock piling.  Then he said the words "you can stock pile, as long as it can be kept in the basement".  Oh my, it was like getting a free ticket to an amusement park.  Wonder what he will do if I start finding out I can get things like diapers for pennies.  Do I stock pile them for sometime in the future?  Those freaking things are expensive!  Note to anyone who reading this:  if you ever find coupons that you are not using, please send them my way.  Many deals require multiple coupons and vendors put print limits on the computer versions.  I think this has been holding me back.

The hubby is working a double today and tomorrow, so I am going to try and get a lot of work done around the house, possibly attempt a free shopping trip (which would make me an extreme couponer!) and apply to as many jobs as I can find.  This whole job thing is so discouraging.  I have been applying to absolutely everything I can find that doesn't require a degree I don't have.  I am crossing my fingers something pans out before I lose my mind. 

Oh, new topic since my last post: running.  I hate it.  However, I am going to be running a 5k on Thanksgiving Day (I am a poet).  Now I have to run so I don't embarrase myself.  Only problem I can't seem to tackle is that, no matter what, I lose my breath halfway through the second mile.  I'm gonna have to figure that out pretty soon. 

Ok, well I have run out of topics for day.  I will try to post more later in the week.  Hopefully something more interesting, too.

Motivate Me....

I am desperately in need of a routine.  Preparing for my wedding, I had a daily work schedule, kept everything in order, and made a time for working out.  I planned my meals ahead, and seeing the improvement in my eating, and in my appearance was so motivating.  In preparation for my wedding, I lost 65 pounds... the weight of a third grader. 

Then I got married. I've heard about what happens when you "get comfortable", but eekk!

What happened!? We kicked off our marriage with a honeymoon on a floating buffet, which I am sure didn't help.  Finding healthy foods on a cruise ship is not that easy.  You need to mentally prepare yourself before boarding, which I guess I did not do.  My mentality was more along the lines of "yippie, let's celebrate!". 

Now I have been married a mear two and a half months and I am already on my way back up the scale.  The hubby and I have been saying for weeks that we need to get back on track, but we don't seem to be following through.  I have days when I think "I am going to be good and get back into the routine", but then the fact that I don't have a daily routine to plan my meals around, really works against me.  Instead of eating meals, I find myself snacking throughout the day... and not on fruit. 

Before I am back where I started I need to get moving.  That being said, I am going to register for a 5k and set my alarm for Weight Watchers meetings.  So, in addition to my house projects, I will now keep you all in the loop as to my personal couch to 5k and great healthy recipes I come across. 



Before....



After...



Bedroom Reveal.. Finally!

So today's blog is more of a picture blog.  When we saw this house for the first time, the "master bedroom" looked like this:

Notice the room color, the 3x3 closet to the left of the bed, and if you look closely, you may see the wood paneling. 

When we moved in the empty room looked like this (different angle):

More wood paneling, old windows, beige carpet.

Now that the bedroom is done, this is what it looks like:

We got new windows installed about a year ago, but the rest just happened in the last month.  Wall color is dramatically different, which I think makes the room look larger.  It also is a good contrast to our darker furniture.  I used a storage bench that I bought in college for underneath our window. 

Mirror was purchased at Marshall's for twenty bucks, the vase in the corner was clearance at TJ Maxx for ten bucks, then got the branches 50% off at AC Moore.  The lamps were twenty-five dollars each at JC Pennys and the nightstands were part of a coffee table/ end table stand that my mom bought at a yard sale for ten bucks and I painted black.

Now, as my husband is trying to show you, my dad and I removed the old closet (it was where hubby is standing).  We then took the closet all the way back to the peak of the roof.  Instead of spending an arm and a leg on custom doors for the closet, I bought a sliding panel curtain system at Ikea for less than one hundred bucks:

I bought a freestanding Elfa closet system at the Container Store and put it on furniture sliders so it can be easily moved around... why do I want to move my closet you may be wondering... 

Behind the closet is our new storage area... it is much, much larger than the picture shows because it is actually L-shaped, so....

It is storage behind this wall too!

When we moved the walls, we had to replace the carpeting, so my new Berber carpet matches very well, not only the bedroom, but the carpet in the hallway:

After all the turmoil involved in the carpet resulting in dramatic money saving, the new carpet for the whole room was $422  (I saved nearly 50%!) and it was money that was left over from the wedding, so it technically didn't cost us anything... even better!

Total cost for the room renovation:  Dramatically cheaper than I expected! (The baseboard was the most expensive thing, I think.) 

Any questions, suggestions?