The Third Celebration!

Yesterday we celebrated our wedding for the third time but this time here in Michigan! We had a reception open house at the Elementary school where Buzzbee's mom had decorated the gym. It looked wonderful!

The Beautiful cross stitch Buzzbee's Aunt Bean made for us. It's a masterpiece and won first prize in the fair!

Pretty candle votives and heart shaped peppermint patties

I wore a white sparkly gold dress I had bought on impulse in highschool with Raisin.

The gym decorated

The Dessert table

The food table

The lovely cake made by Buzzbee's Mom

The menu consisted of apricot chicken (loved it) broccoli and cauliflower cheese stuff, rolls made by Grandma Rose, pasta salad, spinach salad with strawberries, with lemonade and apple punch to drink.. as well as coffee. For dessert we had wedding cake that Buzzbee's mom made and brownies and apple tarts that Buzzbee's Aunt made. It was all do gooood! yummm. I ate too much.

I met a lot of Buzzbee's family I had not met before. His family is very different from my extended family. I have a lot more cousins and people my age. It was a good time though. We started playing euchre with Daisy and Turtle (the newest couple) but we had to start cleaning up. It was good though because they were winning. And I don't like to lose.

Daisy and Turtle (Dating 1 week.)

Cocoa Packets for favours! yummm

We received a lot of nice things for our home. Some of the things we really liked were mixing bowl set ( I have been desperately needing some) loaf pans. (now I can return Buzzbee's mom's pan) Pizza Stone (Very excited about this. I am going to make cookies on it tonight probably) Slippers... so many nice things.. I think there are only two things left that we need to purchase sometime and that is a colander and rolling pin. I am hoping to find an inexpensive marble rolling pin somewhere. My mom said the superstore sold them for 10 dollars but we don't have superstore here. I know bed bath and beyond sells them for 20...so I am still looking. Let me know if you know where I can get one.

Well, it's time for me to get ready to leave. Buzzbee and I are going to red lobster today to celebrate Thanksgiving!!!
Yes today is Canadian thanksgiving. Since I can't go home for Thanksgiving we will have the turkey of the sea instead.. I think that's lobster. I will write a list of my thankful things when I get back tonight.
After red lobster (we have a gift card) we are going to the mall to look around and then the movies at 4:30pm. (That's the cheap time) The Town is what we have chosen to watch. Buzzbee and I are unsure if it will be an okay movie to watch...but I will cover his eyes as well as mine when there are scary/inappropriate parts.. but Ive heard a lot of good things about it.
So we will see. I will tell you if I reccomend it or not.
We have been waiting to see a movie for a long time and didn't actually see one last month because nothing good was out.
Next month we will see Harry Potter.
okay i best be off.

toodaloo!

Hello folks!
I am so glad it's the weekend! YAY! I love sleeping in. Maybe a little too much. I could have slept till at least noon but it was such a gorgeous day we had to get up. Plus we had a million many loads of laundry to do...
I spent most of the day doing the laundry but since it was so nice out I was able to hang out the laundry on the line.

I made chicken broccoli divan..minus the chicken and plus the tuna. The chicken was looking a little sketch so I opted for tuna instead. It was delish if I do say so myself. Buzzbee and I hung out at his parents house today and  lazed around.

Tomorrow is an exciting day! It is our Michigan Wedding Reception!
We had a smaller wedding in Canada and many of Buzzbee's extended family were not able to attend because they didn't have passports etc. It should be a lot of fun! I am looking forward to it. I am not wearing my wedding dress because it is in Canada and my mom is not able to come anymore. But I am wearing a a white sparkly dress that is similar to a wedding dress.. so I think that will be good enough.
I don't know how i am going to do my hair yet. Probably curled and half up as usual. OH right. I was going to make some white flowers to put in my hair. I better go and do that now.

Well, that is all for now. After the weekend is over I will post some more crafts and pictures from the reception!

Good Night!

Sheridan Trails

Hi Friends!
I am guest posting on Andrea's blog today! what an honour.

Andrea Staley 

Here's Andrea-
Today I am showing everyone how to make a pumpkin out of laundry duct! Check it out. Also, check back later tonight...late late tonight for another post from me. So come see Andrea's blog Sheridan Trails!

My First Guest Blogger

Introducing Andrea! She is my first ever guest blogger. She has some embarrassing and hilarious stories that she shares on her blog, so I invited her to share with all of you guys. She moved from Michigan to Wyoming...weird, I know. I have no idea what she is going to write about. Check out her almost daily hilarious real life stories at Sheridan Trails
But here she goes!


Thank you Melissa!
I decided to write about our awesome trip we took to Florida.
For spring break, sophomore year in college.
Remember that? It was pretty crazy.


So I have a cousin that lives in Daytona Beach, FL.
Every year he has invited my siblings and I to come down to his house for spring break.
Joe (my brother) has gone down a few times, and I thought it was my time to go too.
But because I am WAY last minute about everything, I didn't even start thinking about a spring break trip until the weekend before.
I was dinking around on my computer and looked up tickets to Daytona from Detroit.
And guess what, round trip...they were like $100 bucks.
ONE HUNDRED BUCKS!


So I call up my cousin Scotty...on Monday.
Ask him if we can come down...on Thursday.
He said yes (bless him).


Then I asked Melissa if she wanted to go too.
She said yes.

So we booked the tickets, packed up, and WENT TO FLORIDA!!!!!!
FLORIDA!!!!!!


So we were on a pretty tight budget for this trip, so we stayed at my cousin's house.

It was cool.


It was also bike week when we went down.
Which was pretty hilarious.


He let us use his car.
And we could drive on the beach.

We were basically the only ones on the beach.
I guess bikers don't like to tan.
We laid out EVERY SINGLE DAY on the trip.
I got royally fried.
Melissa got royally tanned.


Then we bought this hemp self-tanner crap.
And turned orange.


One of the draw-backs from this trip was we had to watch basketball.
Every night.
It was a little much.

So one day, after the beach, we went to the dollar store.
And got crafts.
Like velvet coloring sheets. I got a tiger and I think Melissa got a dolphin...or the other way around.
And THAT was fun.


Soo that trip was fun. we did WAY more things.
Um like eating at Wendy's with coupons, and um buying ice cream cones, and watching notting hill a bajillion times.


When we got back, we were fried like 60yr old tanorexic women.
And we looked GOOD.



Thanks Melissa for letting me write a post for you.
It wasn't that funny, but I think that was one of my favorite trips EVER and I was able to spend it with YOU!!!


MISS YOU!!

Does the Body and the Soul Good.

I follow Mandy's blog She Breathes Deeply and was inspired a post she wrote about doing worship yoga. Melanie over at Adorkable also was going to try this and so I thought "hey, maybe they are on to something"
I used to go to flow classes at the gym in Canada which is like pilates/yoga. I miss it. So today while I took Drew outside to play in the bushes I did a few poses that I remembered. I didn't have any worship music with me but I prayed and listened while also doing the stretches. I felt gooood. Really good. It definitely feels good to stretch and practice holding poses which builds strength.

First I did some deep breathing with hands stretching to the sky and back down.
I found some pictures to help illustrate the poses. These are from Women's Health Magazine.

Child Pose: stretches hips, quads and back.

1. Kneel on the floor with top of feet on the floorand knees about hip-width apart. Sit on your heels. 

2. Lay your torso between the thighs and bring your forehead to the mat.

3. Extend arms straight in front of you, hands on the floor.

4. Close your eyes and breathe deeply. Stay here for at least one minute. This feels especially good in your lower back

Downward Dog: stretches glutes,quads, calves,back and  strengthens arms

1. From the child's pose move into an all fours position

2.Press firmly through your arms and hands and lift knees off the floor and straighten legs

3. Try to press your heel into the floor if you are able.

4. Focus on pressing up through your arms and torso so that your hips and bum are pushing into the sky

5. Relax neck and head while breathing deeply. Hold pose for a minute. This is great for strength, flexibility as well as circulation since the heart is lower than the hips.

Cobra Pose: Stretches lower back, shoulders, glues, chest and abs

1. From downward dog lean forward almost in pushup position and slowly lower your body to the ground.

2. Place top of feet flat on the floor and push straight up through the hands and arms while keeping hips securely on the ground. 

3. Keep head facing forward and feel the deep stretch in your lower back

Sun Salutation: stretches and strengthens whole body

1. Place back leg straight behind with foot facing to the side as seen above.

2. Place other leg in front while sinking down. Do not allow your knee bend over your ankle. Make sure they are aligned. It should be a 90 degree angle

3. Stretch through your finger tips with your arms at shoulder level. For a deeper stretch continue to sink down deep through your legs and raise your arms straight over head.

4. Hold this pose. 

AHH.. that is better. All the while you are doing this praise Jesus and thank him for everything and anything you can think of. We have a wonderful God who is worthy to be praised.. in EVERYTHING we do. 

I plan to put a few more poses up later. I am going to try this again tomorrow morning and try to remember some other poses.

Too Good Not to Share

I follow Clipping for Cash and a while back there was a promo code for a free 20 pg photo book from Picaboo! I made one but then realized the code was expired.. well good news! its back up and I am getting ready to order as soon as Buzzbee gets back and gives me the credit card. You have to pay for shipping which is 8.99 but well worth it. The book itself is a 40 dollar value!
I am making a little coffee table book of our wedding.
So go to picaboo, and make your book...it's so fun and easy!! You can do a ton with it.. really make it unique! And then when you are ready to order type in the promo code 1FBLGB-7W. YAH! 

Counting Pennies

  Being newly married and not being able to work can be a struggle but I am doing my best to help our family save money in any way I can.
Sometimes its the small little changes that can add up and save money without even noticing.
So here are some of my favourite ways to save money here and there.

• Coupons! I think I am the coupon queen! I spent some time gathering coupons online only to find out the computer lab on campus wouldn't let me print them. I need to get some ink for our printer so I can print them at home. There are a few websites that offer easy access to coupons. I am testing out a few different sources and will give a review on the ones I try. I also am going to come up with some sort of coupon organizer.. either a binder or wallet thing. I like this one.

• Also, look in your weekly grocery ads and match up with any coupons you have for super savings!

• Another thing you can do is go to your favourite store or one that you do a lot of shopping at and sign up for savings and newsletters! all you have to do is search on the site and put in your email and you will find savings in your inbox! Stores that I have signed up for are Walmart, Target, Home Deopt, Ruche, LimeRicki,  Bath and Bodyworks and Meijer.

• Cheap Dates! Buzzbee and I have gone on a movie date once a month since we started dating and continue to do so. We both signed up for a Frequent Movie Goer pass which is FREE! Use it everytime you purchase a ticket of 4$ or more and you get points added on to your card which earn you free concession items! It actually adds up pretty quickly. We just got them in the mail so we are going to use them sometime this month. Just look on your local movie theatre website for any kind of club or newsletter you can sign up for. Every little bit helps. With the Frequent Movie Goer pass you also get coupons in your inbox for concession and also twighlight deals.
• Another suggestion on movie going is to find out when the matinees are or super bargain times are. We discovered that the ticket is almost half the price between 4-6pm. So if the movie if showing at that time we go!

• Change your lightbulbs! Buzzbee and I bought the eco friendly lightbulbs.. you know the kind.

• Unplug things when not in use and be sure not to leave lights on! Buzzbee and I were very happy with our electric bill last month! We unplug the television and all those electronics when not in use. I have heard that tvs and computers use power even when they are not on so its best to unplug them especially if you are gone for the day and perhaps at night.

• Library card. Get one. The library is a great resource and its free... if you are unlike me and can manage to return items on time. Remember, the library not only has books but movies, dvds, internet, newspapers, magazines etc! I definitely need to get one sooon! Also.. sign up at borders! you get points and discounts.

• Cable...if you can live with out it, you can save. If you can't live without it maybe you should give it a try. Buzzbee and I decided not to purchase cable because we realized that the shows we do like to watch are online anyways! We can hook Buzzbee's computer up to the tv and watch from there and its free! abc.com allows you to watch and we also use hulu.com. Although you can only use these sites if you are in the United States... i know I know.. I used to be frustrated with that but now that I am here its good. Also, consider getting netflix! That way you can watch exactly what you want when you want. 9 dollars a month! (I believe)

• Meat Sales! Hutch's has a meat sale once a month. We like to buy the meat while its on sale even though it comes in large quantities. We divide up the meat into smaller portions and zip em up in freezer bags for convenience. We also buy meat on sale when we go grocery shopping and freeze it or cook it that night.

• Shop around the perimeter of the store first. This is where all the good food is. All the snacks, and processed foods tend to be in the middle aisles but the outside aisles are where the fresh food is usually. Keep your eyes on the lower and upper shelves. The pricier name brand food is usually eye level.

• Another fun way to save a few cents is to bring your own bag shopping! Some places that give you a rebate when you use a reusable tote are:
• CVS- $1 off after 4 visits when you use a tote. (You need to buy a tag for 99 cents that is scanned with each visit.
• Kroger- 4 cents a bag
• Target- 5 cents a bag
• Real Canadian Superstore-( For my Canadians,) I know you get some sort of cash back when you buy their bags and use them.. and also my mom uses the superstore gas station because you get money back on your reciept to go toward groceries and I know she actually has earned quite a bit. I can't find any info about it online, but just go and check it out for yourself!

I thought this was fun. In case your hubby does the grocery shopping. It's a Men's Everday Tote!

• I am probably going to make myself a few totes for groceries as soon as I get my sewing machine.
• Bring your own mug to Starbucks and recieve 10 cents off! I find starbucks to be quite expensive but I would prefer to use my own travel mug anyways so I would save the 10cents.

And.. Here's a freebie! Check out this website! Grace to you (US only) You can get a free book if you haven't recieved anything from them before. I am getting Anxious about Nothing by John MacArthur. I love getting mail! especially free mail!

DewDrop is napping. Boy was he tuckered out. We ran around the backyard for quite some time. Chasing a butterfly and throwing around the ball. After he ate he came sat on the couch and snuggled up to me and fell asleep in two minutes flat! I usually rock him to sleep. I put him into his bed and he didn't even wake up. oh.. hold that thought.. I think I heard something in his room.. let me check. Nope. hes out like a light!

Well that's all for now. Buzzbee and I are going grocery shopping tonight after his game. I wasn't able to get coupons printed out but we will see how much I can save today. We will probably go to Aldi's.

Have a Wonderful Day!