Goodwill Gold!

I had survived the hunt through aisles packed with crazed shoppers, and was waiting patiently in line with the other "thrifters". It was Goodwill's 50% off day, and I had scored a few Old Navy tops, some Gap jeans, a metal scroll-design candle sconce (that will soon get a coat of paint!), and a really cute fabric shoulder bag. And then there it was... hanging on the wall behind the registers at the very bottom of the rack. I noticed the color first (I envisioned it with a little black dress or with a brown jacket and jeans in the fall) and then even from a distance I could tell it was good quality and had been well taken care of (if used at all!). A manager was going around collecting hangers and I caught him and asked him to pull it down for me. When he first handed it to me I mostly just thought it was a REALLY nice bag and great find amongst the outdated and well- worn handbags usually found at Goodwill. And then I turned it around. And that's when I saw it.

Michael Kors.




Yes, that Michael Kors.


Now, I'm not too much of a brand name snob, and by NO MEANS would I ever care enough about a brand name to save up money to buy something like this when I can get a great bag at Target for fifteen bucks. But there's just something about knowing that some woman paid almost as much for this bag as I do for a car payment and I found it at Goodwill... it's sort of like winning a shopping Oscar or retail Super Bowl.

Retail Value: Around $230
I paid: $20

I've researched online for all the things to look for to spot a real Michael Kors bag, and everything I see leads me to believe this is the real deal.


SCORE!!!!

I'm going to try to link up to Southern Hospiltality, one of my fave blogs to share my deal! I'm a goober and cannot for the life of my figure out how to get her fancy shmancy button up so you can go directly to her site, but here's the link: http://southernhospitalityblog.com/weekly-treasures/

Rest

There is something so wonderful about relaxing on the couch with a good book after a crazy day at work. What makes it even sweeter is to look beside you and find your two favorite boys curled up next to each other sleeping...



I guess UFC just wasn't that interesting!

MEGA Productive Weekend 2010

So I'm back to work after one of those long weekends where I could use another long weekend to recuperate. You know what I'm talking about. However, I am SO excited and relieved about all that got done and would like to share some of it with you! Please bare with me, its going to be a long one. :) There were even a couple suprises along the way...

First up, I took Friday off to do some of those super un-fun things that come along with getting married like spending your morning at the DMV to get a new license. But I'm glad to officially be Dana Wyatt!

We got our joint accounts at the bank and Adam promises not to use my paycheck to buy any new drums...

Now on to the good stuff. Our house was needing some serious TLC, so my first step was buying something I've been wanting since we painted the kitchen MONTHS ago: curtains! The picture doesn't show the color well, but I swear they're not gold. More of a beige with brown designs. I love them! (Please excuse the mess on the table...)



Just need to get some stuff up on the walls and it will look so nice in there.


Ok, now prepare yourself. The wallpaper you're about to see may or may not cause damage to your eyes if not your spirit. This was our hall bathroom BEFORE the hours and hours of miserable wallpaper removal. Ugh...



And the very classy light fixture:



So now onto the after shots! This first one was taken during the painting process, just to give you an idea of how great this color looks with the tile (Adam and his dad put this tile down last year and I think they did a fabulous job!)



Some creepy guy helped me paint




And now the results! I've only included pictures that don't show the mess thats in the middle of the floor. haha. We've gone with bronze fixtures and we really like the new lighting. Hope to get a cool framed mirror at some point.







Ok, so Adam and I have done a pretty good job with figuring out how to share a home. Compromise, sharing, communication, blah blah blah. But we have two other individuals at our home who had not yet had the privelage of meeting and learning how to coexist quite yet. That would be Conan, the world's goofiest dog, and Jonesy, the world's most handsome cat. I had been preparing myself for their initial meeting, but was not ready yet. And I knew Jonesy wasn't. He hasn't been in the presence of another animal since the day I brought him home from the shelter almost two years ago. Conan's seen and been around cats, and his only desire is that they would play with him and be his friend. Jonesy wasn't even aware that silver mini-horses like Conan exist.

Until Saturday.

I spent the few seconds of the first sighting cowering in the bathroom and screaming. I HATE angry cat sounds and there were plenty of those. Poor Jonesy hissed and growled like I have never heard before. After Jonesy ran to hide in the kitchen and Conan calmed down, I summoned the courage to grab my camera and go in for a closer look.






Conan was bored and his feelings were hurt, and Jonesy was in a to-the-death staring contest with the Evil Silver Beast. Let's just say the 30-minute or so introduction left no one with scratch marks or missing limbs, but the Wyatt animals are not BFF quite yet. Better luck next time.

Back to the house!

The living room will eventually be painted, but one thing we (with a little help) could accomplish this weekend was to change out the seriously out-dated and dust-covered ceiling fan. We HATE gold, so it was definitely time to throw in some nickel accents. Out with the old...



And in with the NEW!!





Now, these pictures have only given you a small idea of the work that got done this weekend and the places we had to go/errands we had to run (and the laundry. Oh, the laundry!). We even squeezed in a suprise lunch with my parents and church on Sunday morning AND I accomplished some batch cooking of grilled chicken for future dinners. However, there are always kinks in any good plan. There's always the thing you didn't see coming. And they happen when you have the LEAST amount of time (energy and patience) to deal with them.





Yes, we got rolled.

Yes, we set the toilet paper on fire for speedy removal.

And yes, Yard Roller, you dropped your watch. No, you cannot have it back.

Overworked much??

Ok, so here's the sign that I've been working like a maniac this week... Keep in mind that I work for the Medicaid Waiver program...





And yes, just in case you were wondering, I did send this letter out. In fact, I sent out about twenty of them.

Praise Jesus for Fridays!

One month!

Happy one month anniversary to us!! We are choosing to celebrate any and every milestone and I can't believe its already been a month. It's still so fun to be sharing a home with my best friend, even with all the learning and compromising that's going on. I don't particularly love going to sleep while the drums are being tuned and I miss having my sweet cat curled up next to me at night (why must my husband have allergies??), but I know Adam couldn't care less about watching anything on Bravo and he may or may not literally lose his mind if I keep untucking the sheets on his side of the bed. But, we kind of like each other and all, and we make it work :)

The house is slowly but surely coming together, but don't you dare even think about going in the spare room. You may never be seen again... Our upcoming projects include painting and getting some more pictures up on the walls. Still needs some work, but its home! We welcome visitors!

I have officially passed the point of no return when it comes to couponing, which is one of the reasons I even wanted to start this thing. I get SO inspired by the money-saving blogs I read every day, and I wanted to encourage my family and friends as well! Over the weekend I created my coupon binder and I will definitely follow up with a more detailed explanation of how I'm using it once I get a feel for things and see how I can use it most effectively. But for those of you who are interested in getting started, here is some of my best advice for beginners (which was me just a few short months ago! If I can coupon while planning a wedding, you can do it, too!)

1. Buy at least TWO Sunday papers for the weekly coupon inserts (although some weeks there aren't any inserts, usually on holiday weekends). I always want *at least* two copies of every coupon because when stores run "buy one get one" sales you can use a coupon for both the item you're paying for AND the free item. Also, ask around and see if your friends, families, or co-workers would be willing to give you their coupon inserts (I am lucky enough to have my mom send me her leftover coupons and my step mother-in-law does the same! I also swipe them from the paper we get at my office. haha)
2. Don't shop at Wal-Mart unless you absolutely have to. Since couponing, I've only needed to go to Wal-Mart once (in about 4 months). Besides my own personal dislike for Wal-Mart, its important for you to know that you will spend SO MUCH MORE money shopping there. Trust me on this one. Plus, its always so crazy busy, I hate waiting in the long checkout lines, and REALLY hate running back and forth from side to side when I forget things...
3. Find a local grocery store that doubles coupons. Here in the Chattanooga area both Bi-Lo and Publix double coupons daily. If you are in the area and shop at Bi-Lo, be sure to hang on to your receipt and take the online survey listed at the bottom. Each month Bi-Lo offers a different free item when you complete the survey. In the past few months these items have included tomato paste, manadarin organges, and this month is was Bi-Lo brand 2 liters (which are GREAT for taking to church events). I would say that I've gotten 6 or so free 2 liters this month.
4. 95% of the time I only buy things when they are on a great sale AND I have a coupon for that item (the only things that I break this rule for are milk, maybe eggs, etc). This really isn't a tip, more like a goal...
5. Products are usually at their "rock bottom" price every 10-12 weeks. When something is an incredible deal, buy enough to last you and your family 3-4 months. This way you'll NEVER pay full price for anything and when you run out of something you can go "shopping" in your own home stockpile!
6. This is kind of a no-brainer, but something that does take a little change in planning. Base your meals on what's on sale for the week in combination with what you already have. This will cause you to have to think creatively AND possibly work with new ingredients/cuts of meat, which I really enjoy!
7. This isn't really a coupon tip, but just a money-saving piece of advice. Put a little effort into your food. Buy fresh produce when its on sale and cut it up/cook it yourself. Stop paying extra for boneless skinless chicken breasts and buy bone-in split chicken breasts. Cut the meat off yourself, and then make your own homemade, preservative-free, low-sodium chicken stock in the crock pot using the bones (and some veggies, seasoning).
8. Get organized and look online for helpful websites/blogs. These have been SO important to me and have given me leads on the best deals. I do my own coupon match-ups, but the blogs I read have given me a heads up on some awesome sales I may have missed on my own. **You can find the links for some of the blogs I read at the bottom of this page.**
9. Request samples online because they usually will send a coupon with the sample. These coupons are usually high-value AND they most likely will have an expiration date forever away.
10. Contact the companies that have products that you enjoy. Most of the time they will send you coupons or free samples! A few months ago I probably got coupons from 40 or so companies simply because I emailed them and said "I like your product!". It was like Christmas in my mailbox...

Okie doke! There's your homework assignments! More to come on the aforementioned and fabulous coupon binder. Have a great day! Eat a piece of cake or kiss your spouse one extra time in our honor today. As for us, we will celebrate with salmon for dinner :)

The start of something good!

Well, here it is. My first blog post! Look how technologically savvy I am! I have just been thinking lately about how my family and friends are literally all over the place these days, and it would be nice to have a way to let everyone in on what's going on in our life...not to say our life is all that exciting. haha. Nonetheless, I'd love to share what God's doing in our life, what we're learning and experiencing, and hear from the people we love and who love us! I'm much better at expressing myself in writing than in other ways, so you may actually get more information out of me this way. ha.

God is forever and perfectly good and thankfully it was in His plan for Adam and I to marry, and we did that just about three weeks ago! It was a beautiful and special wedding and we had so much fun spending that time with family and friends. We spent a wonderful week in North Myrtle Beach, and I can't tell you how fun it was to finally get to go on a vacation with my best friend!

Now we're home and trying to make sense of a life together, and its definitely a learning experience! I have to admit that I've recently developed a new pet peeve. I cannot stand when people ask me "how's married life?" only to mock me when I say "it's great!". "I'll ask you a year from now" they say... "just wait. You won't be able to stand each other eventually" they say. I'm sorry that your marriage sucks (or sucked), but that doesn't mean they all have to! Sure, marriage will be difficult, but life lived alone is difficult! Why wouldn't I want someone else to go through it with? Adam and I will both tell you very honestly that we can drive each other absolutely nuts but when I get my goodbye kiss in the morning or my "welcome to the no-work, at-home part of our day" hug in the evening, I am so beyond thankful that we have each other for the rest of our lives. What a blessing! It's worth the effort, its worth the compromise. And I can almost guarantee you that those people who are so incredibly negative about marriage never invited God into their's. I pray that God will always be our center and we look to Him for guidance as we do life together.

Ok, so not the most graceful or meaningful start, but a start nonetheless! One thing that we talked about before we got married is how excited we were to have an opportunity to start a family legacy of our own, and this involves the way we live, eat, spend our money, love others, whatever! And I hope that's what this blog is all about. I am so passionate about saving money and can't wait to share with everyone how we're living frugally AND abundantly! I'm sure you'll hear all about my "extreme couponing" (hahaha), and I'm looking forward to sharing my adventures in becoming a domestic diva :)

Hope your day is blessed!