OH! For the Love of Puff Corn!

This past holiday season I held my first cookie exchange.  I was a little nervous, as it was my first time.  However, it proved to be quite a success and I am now planning on "Mandy's Annual Cookie Exchange" to join our other holiday traditions. 

    One of the goodies that my friend Allison brought, though, has proved to become an addiction of mine.  If I weren't so weak in the sweets department, it wouldn't be an issue.  And this is no ordinary snack.  The fact that the recipe really is 'too easy' makes it even more difficult to ignore.  I also use the word "recipe" loosely because I'm not sure if something that only has, mainly, two ingredients could be considered a recipe.  The funny thing is, I had heard of almond bark.  Heck, I had used it quite a few times.  Almond bark could almost fall into a category similar to that of bacon.  Many times I've heard my husband, Jeff, and several friends (you know who you are, wink) say "Everything is better with bacon", (of course, Jeff says the same thing about cheese too though).  This new "recipe" holds true to that for almond bark.  

    Another great thing about this snack is that it can end the fix of someone who has a sweet tooth, as well as those who prefer a salty snack.  As my friend Allison said, "People either love it, or they hate it."  I definately fall into the "love it" catagory.  Oh, and I almost forgot to mention (and I can't make this stuff up) but this was such a hit with many of the "Exchange" participants, that it caused a shortage of Puff Corn at the local Walgreens, which at the time was the only place here in town you could get it.  I'm not kidding, I sadly admit, that I even went so far as to speak with the manager to find out what day of the week the Cheetos guy came to 'replenish' their stock.  I can happily say now though, that I have since noticed the local King Soopers now carries it as well.  That is, until next Christmas.   It was a big hit to those at the exchange and many others have since asked how to make it, so here it is.

Ingredients (a.k.a. "recipe"):

1 4 oz. bag of BUTTER flavored Chester's Puff Corn

1/2 of a package of vanilla almond bark.

Colored Sugar Sprinkles (red & green for Christmas, pink & red for Valentine's Day, you get the idea)

Lay wax paper out on your work surface and dump out and spread the Puff Corn into a single layer.  Melt half of the package of almond bark either in the microwave or on the stove top as directed on the package.  When melted, drizzle the almond bark onto the Puff Corn and mix up with a spoon or spatula.  Sprinkle with colored sugar (don't be chintzy!).  There ya have it!  When it cools just break it up into bite size pieces!

Just Because I Graduated College Doesn't Mean I'm Smart

You could say I did it because I'm blond, or because I have six kids and lost my mind somewhere along the way, or for the real reason, pure, simple stupidity.  One of the jokes between my own mother and myself is the fact that I graduated from college and that, for some reason, I have the hardest time figuring simple things out.  I'm writing this as I am taking a break from my most recent frustration, or what my husband lovingly has come to call "The Happenings of Mandy", that as an end result, has me taking apart our dryer. 

Many mom's (not to exclude myself, of course) have accidentally washed crayons.  Only a few months ago I found myself 'googling' how to remove melted crayon from not only the inside of the drier, but from the clothes as well.  Of course I didn't notice until I had put a second load into the drier, because I am not efficient enough to immediately start folding laundry once its out of the drier...it takes me a few...days.   My frustrations with the "Crayon Incident" are easily trumped by my latest "accident". 

If I wanted to play my own version of "the blame game" I could blame my husband, but I will take full responsibility.  I could blame him for the fact that he has always had a 'no table cloth' rule at our house.  I finally convinced him that it was easier for me to clean up the table if we had one, reluctantly he agreed, but with one stipulation.  It had to be a vinyl table cloth.  I winced, but agreed.  I have long hated those things.  It is near impossible to find one that isn't tacky and the kids like to play tug-of-war with them.  But, it was a compromise. 

Looking back, I can now say, without question, dispute or argument...vinyl table clothes are not "machine washable"...and especially "dry-able" for that matter.  From this incident I did realize one interesting, useless fact though....I have a pretty big dryer.  I am a big gal and I can easily fit over half of my body into to remove the inside back panel.  I guess I know what I'll be doing tonight after the kids have gone to sleep.  I won't be sipping a hot toddy or cuddling up to a good book.  I'll be picking plastic off a piece of metal that looks like a giant cheese grater.  

Wearing Thin...

During grandma's visit over the holidays, she had purchased a couple new pairs of jeans for the boys.  Last night as we were picking out what to wear to school today, I caught Sutton admiring the 'scratch' marks or 'wear' marks on some of the new pairs of jeans.  "These are kinda neat", he said.  

With four boys it has become custom that Sutton, our oldest, usually gets the newer clothes and the younger boys, of course, are blessed with his hand-me-downs.  It's been a while back that I figured out why thrift shops don't usually have many boys jeans, but we have only recently run into this little 'snag'...holes in the knees.

Girls jeans can be quite simple to patch.  You can put pretty little flowers on them and they can become "stylish" or even cuter that what they were before.  This is not necessarily the case with boys.  

As I looked last week at the pile of jeans on my dresser that were otherwise in pretty good shape, and most importantly, still fit them, the light bulb over my head slowly but surely began to flicker.  

What if I put the patches on the inside?  So, with about 10 iron-on denim patches and about eight pairs of jeans I whipped out that thing that maybe gets used once every couple of months (twice if I'm feeling ambitious)...the iron.  I cut the patches to fit the holes (making sure to cut rounded edges on the corners), turned the jeans inside-out and made sure that those obnoxious white strings that now replace where denim had once been were straightened out.  

The pairs that were so worn and no longer had the strings were put into another pile for shorts for next summer.  The great thing about patching the jeans this way is that not only are the patches "invisible" but Sutton can still wear his favorite jeans and they are now also re-enforced with the patch.  It also works great with jeans that are starting to wear thin but haven't quite ripped yet because it serves as a reinforcement for them then as well.  The patches also tend to stay on longer as well, there's not as much to catch on or rub up against.  

I guess this could be seen as a way of being thrifty and trendy at the same time.  It has long been a joke at our house how, when I was a kid, my mom once refused to pay fora pair 'ripped' jeans when there were plenty my closet.  No, it's not the same, but it works...

Free One Year Subscription to Magazine

I belong to a few money-saving groups and by far the best has been moneysavingmom.com   I just signed up for a free one-year subscription to Better Homes and Gardens and it took only a few minutes.  I also belong to BHG.com and get their daily e-mails that contain so many wonderful ideas and recipes, but thought getting the actual magazine would be nice too.  I am posting the directions to get the free subscription.  It doesn't have to be to BHG, there is a selection of other magazines as well as coupons you can use your 'points' for discounts at restaurants as well.

You can get a free magazine subscription from RecycleBank right now. Here’s how:

::Sign up for an account with RecycleBank, if you don’t have one already.
::Join the eBay Green Team, to get 50 free points.
::Learn about PET plastic bottles to get 30 free points.
::Explore the Future-Friendly Home to get 25 free points.
::Answer a question about water consumption of dishwashers (refresh the page if this one doesn’t come up for you at first) to get 10 free points.

You’ll then have earned 115 points — enough to get a free subscription to Better Homes & Gardens, Everyday Food, Parents, Country Living or Good Housekeeping magazine.
Or, you can also choose to get a $3/1 Kashi product coupon for just 90 points, which should net you a free or almost-free box of Kashi cereal at Walmart or other stores.

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Birthday Party on a Budget

With six kids we host a birthday party on average of every two to three months.  I don't want to short change any of our kiddos in the celebration department, but it can really add up.  Our oldest son, Sutton, recently turned seven.  During the couple of weeks that lead up to his birthday, he and I brainstormed to come up with a fun idea of something different to do to celebrate.  In the past we have done the big parties such as bowling or going to a kids fitness center but typically we have parties at our house and grill out with close friends and family.  I wanted to do something special for him, but keep it well within our tiny budget.   

Sutton made the list of who he wanted to invite.  There were four friends and I thought, even if we went to a movie and had lunch, by the time we bought the movie tickets, the popcorn, drinks, etc. we were still going to shell out quite a bit, and he still wanted to include his brothers in the celebration as well.  So we came up with the idea of a Drive Inn Movie night at our house.  

I made the invitations on our computer and made them look like pillows and invited the kids to wear their p.j.'s, (this alone was nice because after the party was over, the transition for our kids to go to bed was already half done!).  There was one concern I had though, this was going to be the first time that I hosted a party where there were no other adults other than my husband and I.   I was trying to figure out, "How do I keep nine kids busy for three hours?"  I have to admit, it was a lot easier than I had first thought.  Each child had their own cardboard box that they could decorate to look like a car (I got the idea from Family Fun Magazine).  After gluing and coloring, their vehicles were complete and we moved on to the next project while my husband went to pick up the pizza.  

For the second activity, each child had their own white pillow case to decorate.  I wanted to keep it as simple as possible because we did have smaller kiddos that were participating so I bought a package of fabric markers for them to use instead of paint (less mess and less dry time).  I also had bought little plastic bowls for each child for fifty cents each and wrote their names on them with a sharpie.  The pillow case and bowl were part of their goodie bags that they got to take home with them.   After we ate pizza, sang "Happy Birthday" and had homemade cupcakes, it was show time!  While the kids "parked" their cars in front of the television I popped some popcorn and filled their bowls, ( I didn't realize this at the time, but with them sitting in their "cars" while they ate and watched the movie, it cut down on kernels on the floor tremendously).  I didn't even need to  rent a movie.  Sutton wanted to show his favorite movie, "Shorts", so that was easy enough as well!

All in all, I think the evening went rather well.  Sutton had the party he had imagined, there were smiles all around and laughter filled the house.  And we managed to only spend roughly $45, so averaging $5 per kid.  Now the next question is, "Will I be able to do it again next month?"

Mac n' Cheese SCORE!

So... I have become a coupon / bargain FREAK.  I think you have to be with a family as big as ours with only one income.  I usually have to mentally prepare for my trip to the grocery store two, sometimes three days in advance.  Unfortunately, we were running short on the three staples:  bread, milk and eggs.  So this morning while our older sons were at Sunday School I made a quick trip and couldn't believe what I came upon....Kraft Mac n' Cheese......CHEAP!  There was a display case with their new Cheesey Extreme and with coupons attached to the display case for 55 cents off the purchase of two.  They were also on sale so that if you bought 10 of them they were 49 cents each.  No....could this be FREE CRAFT MAC N' CHEESE? (King Soopers doubles coupons up to $1 so it would've been $1 off 2 boxes that are 49 cents each!)  My heart was racing...could this be???  I stopped an employee walking by and she couldn't grasp the idea of me using more than one coupon.   "Um, it's 55 cents off two, not ten."  She clearly was not coupon savy...so I ripped off 5 of the coupons from the display case and headed to the register.  To my dismay they would only allow three of the coupons to be used in one transaction but in order to get the 49 cents per box price I had to purchase 10 in one transaction....BUT they were still only 20 cents a box!  So...needless to say, on the way home from picking the boys up from Sunday School we made one more stop at King Soopers and I bought 10 more boxes using three coupons and then Sutton bought 10 boxes using three coupons.