Help for the dreaded Christmas Card

Well for me it’s getting to be that somewhat dreaded time of year again- no not the Holiday’s-but time to send out Christmas cards! I don’t know why- but it’s something that I don’t particularly enjoy.
Last year though I did something different and it drastically helped! I ordered photo cards from Shutterfly. I used to spend a lot of time picking out the right card and then have to print out pictures to include in the card. Not only was that costly- it took more time. I don’t know about you- but during the Holiday time- I’m busy enough so anything to help in that department is greatly appreciated in my book!
I went by Shutterfly’s website the other day to check out what they have to offer this year and I was so happy with what I saw! They have so many choices for photo cards- you can pick from 1-2 or 3 pictures to have on your card. They are so fun to look through and play around with.
There were 4 things on their site that caught my eye:
They have photo calendars. I think those would be such a fun gift to give to Grandparents. I can just imagine how fun it would be to see those cute little faces on your wall every day!
Here’s a link to check them out for yourself :http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars/wall-calendars
They also have Thanksgiving Cards. I’m hearing of more people that are doing this instead of Christmas cards. Here’s the link for them: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/thanksgiving-cards
Another thing was Christmas invitations. I think it would be really nice to have beautiful invitations for your family. You can see them here:
http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-invitations
The other thing is regular Christmas cards. They truly are beautiful and have so many options to choose from. There is something for everyone and every kind of card you could possibly want. Here’s the link to that: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards
I’m going to find it hard to pick just one design but I’m sure going to have fun doing it!
Check them out for yourselves!

Grocery comparison

I bet you're glad you're sitting down when you see that I'm actually posting aren't you!!
Mark and I spent a good deal of the day comparison shopping between 3 stores.
Since my store that I used to go to is closing I wanted to check my options.
We went to Walmart, Meijer and Aldi. I was really surprised with the results between Walmart and Meijer. Here's the breakdown:
Savings going to Walmart over Meijer- $9.44
Savings going to Aldi over Walmart- $12.59
Savings going to Aldi over Meijer - $ 22.03

There were just a couple things that Aldi didn't carry so I put in the largest cost since I'd have to go somewhere else.

This makes my choice pretty clear- Aldi is in my future for groceries!

Here's the items: And the stores will be Walmart- then Meijer- then Aldi
Buns- 1.13 - 1.19 - .85
Bread- 1.13- 2.15 - .79
mayonaise -2.36 - 3.05- 1.99
ketchup -1.58-1.19-1.29
rice packet - .86 -1.59--.79
pickles - 2.12 -2.65 - 1.49
mushroom soup - .92 - .90 - .59
chicken soup - .92- .92- .59
ravioli - .84 - .94- .73
spaghettios - .84- .89- .73
spaghetti sauce - 1.48 - 1.75 - 1.19
spaghetti pasta - 1.00 - 1.09 - .90
pizza sauce - 1.00 - 1.65 - 1.65
chunk chicken - 1.76 - 2.58 - 2.58
tuna - .72 - .79 - .59
tomato sauce - .32 - .55 - .25
stuffing - 1.08 - 1.69 - .89
cheeze it's - 2.38 - 2.29 - 1.49
wheat thins - 1.98 - 2.89 - 1.49
peaches/cup - 2.04 - 2.00 - 1.59
flour - 1.58 - 1.92 - 1.49
salt - .42 - .54 - .33
sugar - 2.64 - 2.59 - 2.49
brown sugar - 1.74 - 1.79 - 1.29
veg oil - 2.98 - 2.49 - 1.99
granola bar - 1.98 - 2.29 - 1.69
pop tarts - 1.25 1.59 - 1.16
sausage - 1.88 - 2.00 - 2.00
sandwich bag - 2.48 - 2.99 - 1.95
plates - 1.98 - 2.49 - 2.29
toilet paper - 3.68 - 3.80 - 2.35
potato chips - 1.75 - 2.39 - 1.29
lunchable - 1.12 - 1.00 - 1.12
ham meat - 3.48 - 3.00 - 2.99
block cheese - 3.88 - 3.79 - 3.60
shredded cheese - 1.98 - 2.24 - 1.50
cheese slices - 2.08 - 2.69 - .89
orange juice - 1.46 - 1.79 - 1.79
ice cream - 5.98 - 5.99 - 4.99
frozen veggies - 1.00 - 1.25 - 1.19
cream cheese - 1.56 - 1.89 - .99
spreadable butter - 2.12 - 1.17 - .99
margarine - .58 - .62 - .59
butter - 1.98 - 1.98 - 1.89
eggs - .98 - 1.59 - 1.39
crescent rolls - 1.76 - 1.59 - 1.49
------------------------------------------------
Totals: Walmart: $80.78
Meijer: $90.22
Aldi: $68.19

The Mama Test

THE MAMA TEST
I was out walking with my 4-year-old daughter.
She picked up something off of the ground and started to put it in
her mouth.
I took the item away from her and I asked her not to do that.
'Why?' my daughter asked.

'Because it's been on the ground; you don't know where it's been,
it's dirty, And probably has germs,' I replied.
At this point, my daughter looked at me with total admiration and
asked, 'Mama, how do you know all this stuff? You are so smart.'
I was thinking quickly and replied, 'All moms know this stuff. It's
on the Mama Test. You have to know it, or they don't let you be a
Mama.'
We walked along in silence for 2 or 3 minutes, but she was evidently
pondering this new information.
'Oh.....I get it!' she beamed, 'So if you don't pass the test you
have to be the dad.'
'Exactly,' I replied with a big smile on my face.

Best chili ever!

I found this recipe for "best chili ever". It sounded promising so I tried it this afternoon.
Wow!!!! It doesn't lie. The flavor is just incredible. I was worried at first because I tasted it before I let the flavors simmer and it was NOT good!
Let it simmer the whole time and wow- I was floored!!!! I'm not a real heat lover so I toned it down with some tomato juice.
I think you'll love it as much as I do!

Best Chili
Ingredients:
2 1/2 lb. lean chuck, ground
1 lb. lean pork, ground
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped onion
8 oz. hunt's tomato sauce
1 cup water
1 can beer (12 oz.)
3 Tablespoons chili powder
2 Tablespoons instant beef bouillon (or 6 cubes)
2 Tablespoons cumin, ground
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons oregano leaves
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon coriander, ground
1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa
1/2 teaspoon louisiana hot sauce
1 teaspoon cornmeal
1 teaspoon flour
1 teaspoon warm water
Directions:
1. In a large saucepan brown 1 1/4 pounds of the ground meat (the beef and the pork), drain the fat.
2. Remove meat (the beef and the pork). Brown the rest of the ground meat, drain all but 2 tablespoons of the fat.
3. Add the garlic and onion, cook and stir until tender.
4. Add the other half of the meat and the tomato sauce, water, beer, chili powder, bouillon, cumin, paprika, oregano, sugar, coriander, cocoa, and hot sauce. Mix well.
5. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer, covered , for 2 hours.
6. In a small bowl, stir together the cornmeal and flour, then add the warm water and mix well.
7. Stir into chili and cook, covered, for an additional 20 minutes.

Picture of the week

I put this on facebook so most of you have seen this already- but this is so cute I decided to post it here too:

Halle started reading her books and I looked over and saw this:



How cute is that! She's convinced he likes to listen to her read. I think it might have something to do with that box of cheez-it's sitting right next to her!