It seems that shopping with coupons is the new trend.  Coupons are all the rage among my friends, and our discussions are laced with terms like “doubling,” “stacking,” and the debate between manufacturer vs. store coupons. Honestly, I never knew that saving a few bucks at the grocery store took so much time, concentration, and the ability to sort through the complicated maze of terms. There is a method to it all, and it’s quite an involved method. There are websites that can help you (www.southernsavers.com is my favorite). There are even workshops that you can attend to learn how to be a coupon “extremer”. Who knew!?!

One of the first concepts I learned is about the three month rotation. Apparently, coupons and sales run on a three month cycle. When you see an item on sale and you have coupons to stack with it (making the item a STEAL), the you buy enough for three months. Then, three months later,  it will be on sale again and you will have more coupons. In other words, you stockpile. Sounds easy enough, right? I mean, it all makes good sense. The only problem is that your basement will begin to look like this…

In case you can’t see them all, there are 39 boxes of cereal in that picture.

Yes, I said 39.

Overboard much?

I think I still have a few things to learn about the couponing process. Like maybe how to buy only what we need.

Anybody want to come over for breakfast tomorrow? I hope you like Cheerios.

Thank you, Lor, for a day of rest! We needed it! Jonathan is off work today, and just fired up the smoker for baby back ribs. The weather is gorgeous and fall-ish in The Ham today, so I’m out for a good long walk. Got Travis Cottrell going on my iPod. I’m walking, worshipping,and writing, all at the same time – the trifecta!!! Hope you have a restful day planned. “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you REST.” Matthew 11:28

1. Jonathan and Mary Anneliese are gone on a little Daddy/daughter date. They are at a Samford soccer game. He’s been waiting for the season to start so that they could do this. Precious!

2. Today I made a salad from lettuce (of course), shoe peg corn, black beans, a chicken breast covered in BBQ sauce, fresh cut cilantro, and homemade ranch dressing. I might eat it for lunch everyday next week. Cilantro is delightful in a salad.

3. I bought a new Nike sweatshirt at Academy Sports this week. I have worn it everyday since. It might be the best investment I have made in my wardrobe in years. It is the perfect fit and the perfect weight. And it was on sale. Maybe I should go pick up another one. 🙂

4. Jonathan is smoking baby back ribs tomorrow for our Labor Day meal. I am inappropriately excited about it.

5. I have been using The Message translation of the Bible for my Bible study lately. I know that translation purists (like me, sometimes) scorn The Message. After all, it was translated by one person as opposed to a team of scholars like most Bible translations. However, it reads so beautifully that I have really received a tremendous blessing by reading it. I think it definitely has a place in a balanced Bible study time.

That is all.

I have just returned from four days at the beach with eighteen of my girlfriends from church. What a great group of crazy, fun, Godly, intelligent, fashionable, thought-provoking, beautiful-on-the-inside-and-out friends God has blessed me with. We have laughed and stayed up way too late. We ate tons of seafood and slept late. We solved the world’s problems, or at least a few of our own. The water was gorgeous and the weather was hot, hot, hot! It was a delightful time!

I’m home just in time to unpack and repack for a little family outing this week. Be back later to tell you about it!

Our school year at Hill Prep has started again! Today was our first full day, and it was so good to be back into our regular schedule. We are still tweaking our schedule of activities, and I came across a fun opportunity today that I wanted to let you know about.

The Birmingham Zoo’s Education Department offers homeschooling science and art classes for 1st-12th grades. They also offer classes for younger children. You can view info about the classes online at www.birminghamzoo.com. Of course, all of their classes involve animals and their habitats.

Fall classes start on September 7th and run through December 10th. There is a fee for classes, with a discount for zoo members. At $8-10 per class for zoo members, I feel like this is a good deal. we will definitely be participating in some of the art classes, as well as a few science classes. Both of my girls will love it.

Some of the science topics include:

• Tropical Rainforests
• What Is A Wetland?
• Cycles In Nature
• Grasslands
• Living Earth
• Population Dynamics
• Taiga and Tundra

Topics for the art classes include:

• Tints and Shades Desert animals
• Cut Paper Aquatic Animals
• Acrylic Painted Predators
• Chalk Drawing Prey Animals
• Acrylic Painted Birds
• Line Drawing Australian Animals

For the preschoolers:

• Alabama Animals
• Water Birds
• Monkeying Around
• Down On The Farm
• Fuzzy Animals
• Lined Pattern Snakes
• Print Making Pigs
• Mixing Pink Tempera Painted Flamingos
• Cut Paper Animal Masks

Does this sound fun, but you are not a Birmingham reader? Check the website of your local zoo. I bet they have similar offerings.