Downtown Adventures: A Good Samaritan

Today, as we were walking to catch the bus to the library... a man in a business suit, who was driving  through the neighborhood, stopped and motioned for us to please wait. Hesitant, I paused our walk.  He then rolled down his window, and asked if KB was my daughter... I answered she was - curious to what he was getting at. He then said he's seen us walking in the neighborhood before... and felt God impressing upon him to give us money for lunch. He then handed me a $20 and drove off. Wow... I am in shock! Thank you, whomever you are!

Thirty Days of Thanx :: Day 13

Tonight I am thankful for God's ever faithful provision

and a lesson of reaping & sowing... 

Blessings: Amber necklace

 

God is so good!!

Adventures...

What a busy 3 weeks it has been!  I left the beginning of the month (June 2nd), and spent the next 2½ weeks visiting family in Kentucky, and attending my sister's highschool graduation. Then the Monday before I came home, my husband called me from his brother's phone, to let me know he had been terminated from his job - and they had taken his phone.  Though we knew a job change was something to anticipate for the near future... we didn't expect it to come quite this sudden, let alone in the manner it did. So, once again we're living by faith - trusting that all things work together for good... even though we don't always understand the purpose or reasoning behind the circumstances. Facing that unknown future can become a little daunting a times... but we've been here before, and know that God is good ALL the time... and will be faithful to get us through this rough patch, just like he did our last one! :-)

"As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him." 2 Samuel 22:31

Happy, Happy, Happy, Happy

Growing up in a family of all girls (whose mom dressed us alike on various occasions)... I love  matching mama/daughter dresses. Of course being frugal, I prefer to find them gently used...  for a portion of the price. - Enter... eBay! The only thing about eBay is, of the few Mother/daughter sets that actually exist at any one time, the average size of the mommy's dress is usually a large or XL  - way too big for me...

Thanksgiving Challenge: Day 9

Watching God work out all the details, allowing us to not only celebrate Thanksgiving in Kentucky with my family... but spend a total of two-weeks up there with them!! Yay!!

B got a job!!!!!

PRAISE THE LORD!!!

After a *long* [15 month] journey down the dark, proverbial tunnel (aka unemployment)... we can see light! Starting this coming Monday, B will be employed (full time) as a tech with a software company!! ~ Yay!!!!!!!

God Provides: KB's new fluffies!!!

Thanx to a very generous gift, from a very dear friend... I was finally able to order KB some much-needed, new diapers!! I was able to get 2 dozen, brand-new, Chinese prefolds (a HUGE blessing, since ours were handed down from Marmee, are really old, and are quickly becoming thread bare!), several new Thirsties covers, as well as a bonus purchase of a $10 [purple] diaper pail liner... and still remain well into the limits of my monetary "allowance"!! After some research, I decided to order from: Nickisdiapers.com... as they had a trustworthy & professional looking site... the best price for the UBCPF (by the dozen)... and FREE shipping! :-) Then.... I found a separate seller, who had two of the (v1) covers, marked for almost 25% off of the going price..... with no shipping!!! So I was able to get two more covers (the next size up!) to add to my stash.... and only because of the splurged pail liner, did it put me a few dollars over my spending goal!! I am SO excited! Thanx again, JAM.... you're the best! :)

Date night....

We decided to make our dinner our last week, the kick-off to a newly formed, weekly trend.... and use Thursday nights, for a regular date-night, just me & B!! yay! Since money is tight, I am always looking for frugal and creative ways to pull this off.... and as always, the Lord has provided. Over the last week, I have found a buy-one, get one Blizzards at Dairy Queen... a coupon for six free wings at Buffalo Wild Wings... and (the best one!) a Bo-go coupon for Sweet Tomatoes! Whoohoo! I can't wait to use them!

blessed.... grateful.... excited!!!

Tiph Chatzistamatis is blessed beyond words.... overwhelmingly grateful.... and OH.SO.VERY excited!!!

Over the last few weeks, B has been building a website for a friend's new business he's co-constructing. In order to help him get more done & make his time most efficient, I have been helping him put the product up (basically just a bunch of copy/paste) . Grateful for my help, and knowing how much I wanted (and was *praying*) to be able to go see Heather & the baby.... B decided that he'd give me $1 for every product I finished. So, I set to work. (part of the reason my blogging has been lacking lately.)

Jump to present day.... afore mentioned friend called us this afternoon, asking if we wanted to join his family at CiCi's for dinner (their treat!) Blessed already, we joined them. Throughout dinner conversation of business & personal... his wife (a fellow homebirth mama) asked me about Heather, my new nephew, how things were going, etc. and asked if I was going to be able to see him. I shared with her, that while I had hoped to get there, due to our current financial situation, it just was not looking possible. We enjoyed the rest of our dinner, and then went our separate ways. Just as we were arriving home, B's phone rang. It was the husband of the couple, asking B if we had found a plane ticket for me... ??? B told him that while looking, we had found one for just around $150, but didn't/couldn't' get it. They talked a bit more, and then I heard him say "hold on". Next thing I know, his phone was on speaker and the friend was telling me to go buy a ticket, up to $200, and they would pay for it. I was so overwhelmed, I was literally speechless! I am not usually an overly emotional person, but was so happy, grateful, and excited, I just could not hold back the tears!

This afternoon, I didn't think I was going to get to see them anytime soon... and now I am buying my ticket, to go for a whole week!! (AND the ticket is looking like it's going to be $10 less than I originally thought!!) yayayayay!!! ::happy dance::

God is SO good.... ALL the time!!!

I can't wait to meet this little guy!!! <3>

Discounts.... and Valentines Day!!!

I know, I know... those two things really don't seem like they should go together.... but when your hubby is out of a job, and money is tight (or if you are just a tight-wad... ahem! I mean frugal with your money).... then, any little trick is well worth it! -- And I think this one will knock your socks off!

Restaurant.com is currently running an awesome
coupon code (expires 2/19)... for 70% off!!

-- Just use the code: PREZ during checkout!--

That's right! The already awesome discounted prices... just got even more affordable! :-) But what's even more exciting is.... since we had postponed celebrating our Valentines day (due to sickness, & holiday rush, etc.), we were able to get a $50 gift card to our local The Melting Pot Restaurant (which Restaurant.com would have normally sold for $20).... for only $6!!!! Procrastination (even though planned) has once again paid off!!! hee,hee!! ;)

Off course, per the rules of Restaurant.com, the $50 card is only valid with a $100 minimum purchase.* ~ But since we were, once again, being frugal.... my hubby had already redeemed his Am-Ex reward points, getting us another $50 gift card.... which we will pair with the above deal (totaling $100)... and eat oh.so.very.well!!! --

So, we get to have a fabulous & romantic Valentines Dinner, at a fancy restaurant (which also has sentimental value - it's where we went the night we got engaged!)..... All for just $6 + tip!! -- I am SO excited!! God is SO good!!

(Now to get everyone - namely Mother-in-law - well, so we can pick a time/date to go....)

* (Excludes alcohol. 18% gratuity added before discount, 1 cert. per table, No split checks. Not valid on holidays.)

Our Food Blessing!

God DOES provide!! Don't believe it? Check this out!!

Sadly, B is still out of work... so our funds - even for groceries - is extremely thin. But don't you love how, just when you start to worry & lose hope... God does something that is so amazing, it just knocks your socks off?! Over the last 3 days, we have been blessed to experience this first hand! So now, as I look around my kitchen.. this is what I see....

My Kitchen Table...

A 360 of My Countertops...

What a mighty God we serve!!

We gather together...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Give & it shall be given unto you!

During the Missions Conference last week, we were encouraged to pray about what the Lord would have us give as our Faith Promise (Missions) offering this year. We heard many testimonies on how God blesses those who give by faith. And tonight, we were blessed with the opportunity to witness this first hand!!

This afternoon, B had to turn in his hours for last week (Mon:10th -Sun: 16th).... and despite getting off early on Monday evening for Missions Conference... ending earlier on Tuesday (he actually got to church in time for the preaching!)... not working at all Wednesday (which was a blessing, since we had our last night of the Missions Conference & International Dinner)... getting home by 7:00pm on Thursday... and not working at all Saturday (which was another blessing, because we had a missions trip to Hope Children's Home!)... he still clocked over 50 hours of work last week!

God is SO good. We trusted in him.. and he's already providing the extra work to be able to give!! ~ Praise the Lord!!

Job!!!

I just realized I mentioned something the other day about being grateful for B's willingness to work such long hours to provide for us... but I never posted to tell you, B GOT A JOB!!! It's only through January... but it's decent $$ to pay the bills until something else come around!

Shortly after we received the "no go" call from Best Buy.... my MIL received/forwarded us an email from a family acquaintance, who has a flourishing [seasonal] business of putting up Christmas lights/decorations for [mostly] commercial properties. They were looking for some some extra help, at least through Thanksgiving -- apparently that's when most companies want to have their decorations in place by(read - crazy busy!) ... and for as long as through January (for take down/cleanup/storage).

Friday afternoon/evening, B put in the call.... and after a short conversation, they scheduled a time the next afternoon to pick up some paper work. Apparently his 1½ years of landscaping experience & many years of annually assisting in putting up his dad's crazy light displays were impressive... because they pretty much hired him on the spot! Saturday we went and picked up the paperwork (liability stuff), filled it out/returned it on Sunday, and he started working with them on Monday morning! The Lord is SO good! It's hard work and long days....but it's honest work. And with as much as he "complains" (for lack of a better terms).... he seems to like it a lot! Actually, he cracks me up when he comes home and shows me the "battle scars" he received while fluffing garland/wreaths, walking through shrubbery, stringing palm trees, or just going up and down the ladders & bucket trucks. ;-) He says it has a lot of similarities to his landscaping job... but it's nuch different than what he was was expecting it to be. ~ Though a good different!, it seems!

So far this week (three days).. he's already put in around 38 hours of work! (Thankfully he gets paid overtime.!!) He did get a slight refresher this morning - he didn't have to go in until 1:30 today - but then it was back to work. I think he possibly has tomorrow off (that would be nice!)... and I know he definitely has the weekend off.... so I am looking forward to that! As much as I appreciate everything he's doing to provide for us... we do miss him!! :-)

Anyway, thank you all SO much for all your prayers during this little adventure! God defintitely heard them... and we are eternally grateful!

Shepherds pie...

Last night we were blessed to be given some food... and though most of it was non-pershiables... tucked in the top, was a little 1lbs chub of ground turkey! So tonight for dinner, I made a very simple & delicious Shepherds pie...

Ingredients

• 2 lbs ground turkey
  
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• Garlic powder
• 1 can cream soup (recipe calls for cream of potato, but I used Onion or mushroom, and it was just as good!)
• 1 small bag frozen mixed vegetables
  
• Mashed potatoes (enough to cover a 9 x 13 pan)
• Grated Cheese (cheddar, colby, jack… your choice)

Instructions:

Brown turkey on stove top, add onions during the last 3 minutes of cooking, I also season with some garlic powder. Mix turkey and onions with the cream soup. Spray a 9 x 13 pan with nonstick, then spread the turkey mixture in the bottom of the pan. Then layer the corn on top of the turkey, finally spread the mashed potatoes on top of the corn. Bake covered for about 25 minutes @ 350 degrees. During the last 5 minutes of cooking uncover the casserole and sprinkle with grated cheese.

Sour Cream Chicken and Stuffing

Once again, God provides! - Tonight we had Sour Cream Chicken and Stuffing for dinner (recipe found on AllRecipes.com)... and other than the salad... everything I needed to make it, was given to us. (yes, I even had the can of cream of celery. - lol!). It was SOO yummy!

Ingredients:

• 6 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
  
• 1 (6 ounce) package dry bread stuffing mix
  (I used Stove Top, Chicken flavored)
  
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
  (See below how to make this from chicken broth!)
  
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of celery soup
  
• 1/2 cup sour cream
  
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
  
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice (optional)
  (I actually used white vinegar.)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Line bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish with chicken breasts. Spoon prepared stuffing mix over chicken. Mix the cream of chicken soup, cream of celery soup, sour cream, curry powder, and lemon juice. Pour mixture over top of stuffing.
3. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for approximately 1 hour, until chicken juices run clear.

Note: If you are in a situation, like I was, where you only have a can of chicken broth, and not cream of chicken.... you can make your own... and it works!! Here's what you do:

A gift-card family night

Tonight we spent some well-needed quality time.... my having a family night... almost completely paid for with gift cards!

We hit Starbucks... where I had the first wonderful glimse of one of my favortie sesons... fall!! B and I spit and enjoyed our first "Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino"of the season! Yum!!

Build-a-bear, to get Boo's birthday present. (There, after the gift card & $5 off coupon, we we able to get about $12 worth of stuff for a little over $4!!)
Bath & Body works, to buy a body cream & shower gel in my favorite new scent... Rainkissed Leaves™ - Where I not only had a $27 gift card (from returns)... but then, they were running a buy-one-get-one-50%! - So I even still have $11 & change on my card!!

What an awesome day!

As you know, babywearing has become of my hobbies (& passions) since I had KB. I am always looking for new ways to comfortable carry my baby, and new carriers to try. I typically wear KB on my front, in the ring sling (which she *loves*!!).... but with VBS starting tonight(!), was looking for a technique/carrier (like a wrap), so that I could carry KB on my back. While we were out with my MIL today (She likes to kidnap us occasionally - which I appreciate getting out of the house!), and when I mentioned my mission.... she just so happened to have Pitter Patter (one of our lovely baby/children's consignment shops here).'s number in her phone. I called, and sure enough... they had a wrap! I was able to get lovely heather-grey wrap for right at $20! They had a beautiful, (used) Natural colored Maya ring sling... which brand new run $45-$60..... marked $22, and then reduced (hence the red line through it) for only $11!! ::amazed look:: Given the awesome price, I *almost* bought it... but then decided against it, due to our current finances. But I did let the ladies know in my baby group, in case it could bless someone else!!

The other cool thing about my trip, was that I also was able to talk with/educate the gal working today, *all* about babywearing - complete with demos! :-) I gave her the info for one of the local babywearing groups, for when mommies come in with babywearing questions. (she says she gets a lot of them, and doesn't have clue as to what to tell them!). and even found the clip in "Mommy Magazine" which also gave her the gal-in-charge's number, reference! She was so happy to have met me... and I was so glad to be able to share & help! :-)

God is providing once again... we were invited to a housewarming party this evening, at which dinner is to be served.... our 10 nights of meals are being stretched & multiplied before our very eyes!