My 19 Year Old is in College

My 19 year old son is almost done with his freshman year of college at UNC Charlotte.  He has done remarkably well for his first year.  I am not talking about his grades.  He has done well with his grades, better than he did in middle and high school.  But he has also done well in the rest of freshman year.  

He achieved the Freshman 15. For many that means, as a freshman you gain at least 15 pounds.  My son has lost 15 pounds.  He always did things the opposite of what he was expected to do.  It is not because he didn't receive enough food.  I make sure that he has plenty of foods to eat.  My son decided to become a vegetarian.  He has walked to plenty of classes and plays lacrosse on the school's club team.  

He has a roommate and a very small dorm.  He has kept is a lot cleaner than he had any of his rooms since he was little.  He has learned how to do college style laundry.  Only wash what really needs to be washed and wear some things more than once. Just wish he would have practiced that all those years I did his laundry.  

He has been able to rely on others instead of always thinking he needs to be in charge of everything.  When he came home for Christmas break his car died.  He is saving up for a car while in college.  Can we say how proud he is for this and so are we.  

He has made a variety of friends, hasn't partied with drugs and alcohol.  He does not smoke and he participates in dorm activities.  This is good as they are trying to get the students off on the right foot by providing substance free activities for the students.  

He has only skipped a handful of classes.  He turns in his homework.  He shares with others the bounty he has and offers his room to those who need it.  He is a great kid and a wonderful young man.  

I was afraid that he would be struggling in college as I was afraid I had done too much for him.  He is able to take care of what he needs to take care of and still needs me to help him out on a few occasions.  I have to admit that I love this about him.  He is independent but still needs his mom.  

Yesterday he found out he was accepted to transfer to another school.  Only thing was, his younger brother wants to go there without it being a school his brother went to.  He wants to be independent of his brother.  I certainly hope my youngest wins this point.  But I am not sure that I am ready for my 16 year old to be old enough to go off to college.  It was hard for the first one, it will be worse for the second one.  

Taking Care of the Written Word,

Dannielyn

 

The Storehouse Update

The Storehouse Update

Mabel's Labels Perfect for Hospital Stays

I have been lucky to receive Mabel's Labels for letting others know about these incredible stickers, tags and iron ons.  I have enjoyed picking out my cool designs, awesome colors and mail time has been a lot of fun for me.  I had an opportunity to share my Mabel's Labels with a friend whose son is about to have his 38th surgery in April.  He is an 11 year old boy that at first glance, you can hardly tell he is so ill that he needs another surgery let alone his 38th surgery.

Mom is busy getting ready to go on this three week trip to Cincinnati, Ohio.  I order some shoe labels with his name and a cute fish design as he just received a fish tank for Christmas.  I thought they could use the labels for his bag, books or games that he will be taking.  I also had the opportunity to order iron on clothing tags with the same design  for his clothes in an effort to find them in the event the clothes get set off to the side.  You never know what will happen in a hospital.

It made me think of other parents that I know that have children in the hospital for long term illnesses, surgeries and therapies.  Mabel's labels would be a great asset for keeping their belongings labeled and easy to locate.  If you have someone in your life who has a child in a medical situation such as this, consider buying some Mabel's Labels for them.  It is a wonderful idea, cute and dependable product and because it is run by mothers like us, they send their best wishes for a speedy recovery with all the products they send.  I was able to forward the email Mabel's Labels sent me to about their prayers and best wishes for this little boy to his mother.  I made her feel blessed that strangers in Canada are praying for her son.

Taking Care of the Written Word,
Dannielyn

Free $10 Gift Card to No More Rack

Hey gals and guys,
Do you want to save money and receive a $10 gift card at NO MORE RACK? It is true, you can receive a $10 gift card to apply immediately to any order.  NO MORE RACK has great deals every day!  Check it out quickly.

Taking Care of the Written Word,
Dannielyn

Purex Crystals Fabric Softener

You have to try this fabric softener as soon as you can!  In fact, if you comment on this blog post you could win a free Purex Crystals Fabric Softener.  I have two freebies to give away.

You will like the fragrance of Purex Crystals Fabric Softener and you will love that it is 92% natural.  No oil based fabric softener leaving residue on your clothes and it is safer for your family and the environment.

Click this link to find out more!

Remember, leave a comment telling me you clicked the link to be eligible for the free Purex Crystals Fabric Softener.

Stockpiling Moms

I have to admit that I do love to get freebies and samples in the mail.  In fact, it is nearly an obsession of mine.  The thrill of the hunt, the magic of timing for the offers and the wait for the mail is intoxicating.  Coupons are another great thrill for me.  I love when I am able to get something for nothing or next to nothing.  But then I look at the blogs and emails I receive from freebie, samples and coupon clipping mothers.  I read some of their shopping stories and wonder, why did they need to buy all of that stuff?  What are they going to do with it?  What about the excess?

I imagine you are beginning to think that I am a hypocrite.  I am nearly obsessed with my freebies and samples and so totally taken by my couponing, how could I judge another person.  Well, judge I am not.  I simply wonder.  I know some of them save for later occasions such as next Christmas, birthdays and the like.  I know that some of them have a number of family members and that is how they do their shopping.  I know that some of them give the items away to readers.  YEAH!!! but I don't.  Here is what I do.

Mother's To Be Go Bags
I made up a bag for a friend from church who was going to be having their second child.  I got a small fabric bag from Target a long time ago.  I never used it.  It was a little bigger than a half a sheet of paper.  I put the following items in the bag: 2 bottles of water (for dad), 2 zone perfect bars I had a coupon for and only paid 50 cents for both (for dad), shampoo and conditioner for mom and dad (samples) , 2 toothbrushes (free from dentist), toothpaste (sample), men's razor (free sample), shaving cream (free sample), tissues (free sample), nail file (free sample), lotion (free sample), face cleanser (free with coupon), body wash for mom (free with coupon), body wash for dad (free sample), chap stick (free with coupon) and a small puff for the wash (free with purchase).

This mother had not made her bag at the time that I gave it to her.  It was about 3-4 weeks before she was due.  She loved it.  Best of all, she loved how it was nearly all free.  I have begun to do this for all the mom's to be at our church.  My little ministry.  I might change up a few things depending on my samples and coupons that I have available to me.  But I love to make these little bags up.  In fact, I found some cloth diapers or burp clothes that are designed for boys or girls and have folded it in half and sewn it up and put a ribbon handle on it and of course, the clothes and the ribbon was next to nothing with clearance prices and coupons.

I also love to make little college care packages.  My oldest son is in college and a high school friend lives on the floor below him.  I make him a care package and send along some of my great deals for her.  I had an opportunity to pick up a full size Nivea body wash with a smaller size attached.  I had a coupon for $3 off the full size and Target had them clearance priced at $3.50.  For 50 cents I had a large and small body wash.  Luckily I had four of those coupons and was able to get four of those great sets.  She is set for body wash for quite some time.  

Filling out the samples that a college student would love with their address is another great way to share the love of the samples and freebies.  I have sent constitution copies to my history buff son, poetry posters, texting kills rings, cheez-its, planters coupons for free nuts, Kleenex samples that he ended up giving to Julia and he loves it.  It is mail he is not expecting and it is something cool and unique.

But the best one has to be giving your samples to food pantries.  I have received diabetic coupons for free meters that I give to the food pantry where I volunteer.  So many of the clients do not have one that is easy for them to use.  They aren't always aware that they can get a new one.  Samples of formula are always needed for moms who are struggling to obtain formula and food to feed a baby.  I have gotten t-shirts that I didn't need and took them to the clothing closet.  Someone would love to have a new t-shirt to keep them warm.  I receive printed information that I donate for a resource library for staff.

I enjoy these opportunities to share the wealth. I hope you are able to sue these ideas to share the wealth with other!

Taking care of the written word,
dannielyn

Lady of Proverbs 31 Saving at Krogers

As a Lady of Proverbs 31, I try to save as much money as I can grocery shopping.  I like to think that I am "like a merchant ship, bringing her food from afar, she gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls".  Of course, I do not have to get up to meet the merchant ships to gather my food from afar (Proverbs 31:14-15).  I only have to go to the local grocery store.  But I do like to save as much as I can while feeding my family.  I use coupons and request samples of new products to see if I like those items.  I try to buy what is on sale and stock up if possible.  I scan newspaper and online ads to see what store has the best deals for my grocery dollars.  I have even contacted the manufacturer of my favorite products to see if I could obtain some coupons for the items.  I have been pleasantly surprised by the amount of savings I achieved by doing these few tasks.  But sometimes it feels like I need to do even more to save even more on my grocery budget.  Unfortunately, I don't always have time to go from one store to another for great savings.  There are times, I have too many things to accomplish and I have to find one store that does it all for me.


Luckily for me, Kroger is one such store that offers incredible deals to stretch the grocery dollar even farther than it would normally go.  Kroger offers a Deal of the Day from February 25, 2011 to March 12, 2011 in their Cartbuster program.  The Deal of the Day is available each day while supplies last.  In addition to the Deal of the Day, Kroger offers big savings all over the store.  But to make this even better for a Lady of Proverbs 31 is you can add your coupons to add to your savings on your families needs.  But Kroger is not done with the great savings.  You can enter for a chance to win the Deal of the Day for free!


Check out Kroger's web site to check out the Deal of the Day, current advertisement and pick out the coupons you need.  You can print the coupons out or use the electronic coupons they offer.  Your shopping cart will be busting with items you bought at a fraction of the cost.  


The Lady in Proverbs 31 worked diligently at all tasks she undertook.  She "watches over the affairs of her household" and you can too with a bit of help of Kroger (Proverbs 31:27a).  I look out for the items my children need.  I have one picky eater and a college student that no longer eats meat.  I have to find great deals on items my picky eater with braces will actually eat.  It can get very expensive purchasing some of those items.without coupons.  Sending care packages to my college son can be expensive depending on the items in the box.  You do not know how relieved I am when I can save more than what the postage costs to send the package.  


I hope you will check out your local Kroger store and take advantage of the incredible deals from today to March 12, 2011.  You will be pleasantly surprised by how much you will save on the foods your family loves, even the picky ones!

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms Kroger CartBuster blogging program, for a gift card worth $50. For more information on how you can participate, click here.” 

Taking care of the written word, 

Dannielyn

Saving money and Getting Freebies

I love to be able to save money on everything I purchase.  Sometimes that is not possible, there is simply no coupon or discount I can use.  This is a real bummer, but it is not the end of the world.  I have been using my facebook account to obtain freebies and coupons to such a degree that my friend from high school asked me if my account had been hacked.  I was thrilled to explain to her what I use my facebook account for and she asked for more details.

I would love to share those details with you now.  If you want to know how to get freebies and awesome coupons but do not have the time to scour the internet for all the freebies out there, that is just fine.  You don't have too.  You will be able to check out blogs that have done all the work for you.  You just click on the offers you want and fill out the form.  Here is the list.  It is in no particular order and it is not all inclusive.  There are many others out there that do such a great job.  There also some that focus on particular areas of the country.

You will need to place these names in the search box and pull them up this way.  I have not linked them to their individual sites.

hip2save
mojosavings
frugal living and having fun
bargain blessings
my savings . com
stockpiling moms
for the mamas
I love to gossip
coupons on caffeine
free sample agent
sweet free stuff
absurdly cool freebie finder
savings and giving
stl mommy

It's a pretty good listing of what you can check out to get started.  What is really great is almost every site has information on how to save money with coupons and where to get the coupons.  It is like a one stop shop for goodies.

Taking care of the written word,
dannielyn

The Storehouse Update

The Storehouse Update

Taking Stock of Busy Days

I tell you what, I have been busy doing so many things each day that sometimes I am simply exhausted.  Mentally and physically exhausted.  I have a freelance writing business, try to do my best to keep up with social media tasks, my coupon and freebie searches, keep up with the home and family and volunteer at The Storehouse.  

The Storehouse is a food, hygiene and clothing pantry that serves the hungry and homeless in Henderson County, NC.  I am working as a media specialist and the program development director.  Simply put, this job is right up my alley.  Lots of writing involved.  But oh, the days can be so very busy.  

I have been rather surprised to find out that some of our volunteers are without water, electricity and at time live in tents.  They have no regular source of food other than what they receive from the local agencies.  I was shocked and very sad.  

If you are looking at some of the excess you have in your home, try to thin the extras out and give to your local food shelters.  There are a lot more people hurting than you might think.  

Taking care of the written word, 

Dannielyn

Amazon Kindle Free E Books for PC

I love a good book, but there are times when getting to the book store or library is not possible.  So many times I needed something to read but the stores and library were closed, hey it was after 9:00 at night when this need to read took over.  I found over a year ago that you can read Amazon Kindle books for free even if you do not have a Kindle.  They will allow you to download Kindle for PC.  There are so many good books to choose from and the titles of the free books change all the time.  Here is what you need to do if you want to get a book for free on your PC.

Go to Amazon.com and click on Kindle Ebooks.
Click on the left hand side list of options on Free Ebook Collections
You will see a paragraph with the limited time promotional and classics.  Click either one of these for the types of books you are interested in.  I always check the limited time promotional books first.
Click on the book you want to download and Amazon will instruct you to click to buy the book.  If you do not have the Kindle for PC downloaded it will instruct you to do so now.  Once that is downloaded all you will have to do is click on the download for Kindle for the PC.

The next time you choose a book, you will only have to click the book, click to buy and click Kindle for PC.

I do a lot of writing where I need to have access to a number of classics and found this to be a great source for me.  If you have a college or high school student that is in need of some of these classics for school, this would be a great alternative to having to buy books.

Taking care of the written word,
Dannielyn

Mabel's Labels

A few months ago I received an opportunity to become a BuzzMama for Mabel's Labels.  I received this welcome kit that included a shopping list, babystitter list, two pens with highlighters attached to the other end in Pink, my favorite color, a cool bag and 15 stickers with my name on it and color and design of my choosing.  I received coupons and brochures.  You can check out Mabel's Labels here http://mabelslabels.com or by calling 1-866-30-mabel.  They have some incredible items that are cute, secure and long lasting that you just have to check it out.

I love the products that I have received as a BuzzMama.  I received them free, but I cannot say enough good things about these products.  They are better than any labels I have come across before.  If forced to say one thing that needed to be improved upon with the labels, it would the small variety of design choices.  The options available are cute, but could certainly be expanded.

Well, anyways, I will list the types of products that they have and let you begin your search for the labels, tags and organizational products you need to make your home and children organized too!

Sticky Labels--for toys, dishes, bottles and more
Skinny Minis--just like the Sticky Labels but smaller for smaller items.  Love them!
Iron-on Clothing Labels--adheres to just about any fabric, keeps the items coming back home
Tag-mates--an alternative to iron-on
Shoe Labels--place inside shoe and will not rub off on the socks
Bag Tags--metal tags for adult and child bags
Cord Control--label your cords and know which one to unplug
Curbsides--label your cans before they blow away to find them easier next time
Classroom Pack--teachers and students alike can benefit from this pack of 60 labels
My 411 Wristband--great for field trips, amusement parks or the mall, anywhere a child could get lost
Allergy Alerts--place on food containers, travel gear to remind caretakers of severe allergies
Combo Packs, Camp/School Packs, Neat Freak Combo pack--check out all they contain online
Write On Stationary Kit-everything you need to have cool correspondence
Return Address Labels-just what you think

And there is so much more that is not listed.  You have to check them out.  I did and I am very happy I did!

Taking Care of the Written Word,
Dannielyn

An IEP for Molly

Today I participated in an IEP for Molly.  Molly is not her real name, I changed it to protect Molly.  But Molly is a bright young girl with a lot going for her, however she has a diagnosis of autism.  She is high functioning autistic, perhaps Asperger's syndrome, but she does not want to be called autistic.  She does not think of herself as autistic and therefore no one else should.

At first glance at Molly, she is pretty, social and alternates between social and shy.  But when you look at who she really is, you will see that she is only 'trying' to be social. She does not seem to understand what a true friend is before announces that she has all these friends.

I have to wonder if children who are artistic often find themselves wanting what they do not know they want?  Do they seem to strive to be like the others even when they do not fully understand that they are not like the others?  Will the others see Molly as who she is, uniquely Molly?  I certainly hope so.  She is a beautiful girl with a lot of potential.  She is very lucky that the proper diagnosis was placed on her conditions so that she can find the best solutions to what is the attributes of autism.  I hope that Molly doesn't see herself as autistic, but as a very special young lady with a world of possibilities a head of her today and all of her tomorrows.

Taking care of the written word,
Dannielyn 

The Storehouse Update

The Storehouse Update

What Have I Been Up To!

I have been so busy since I last posted on this blog.  I have been working on social media and other great tasks at The Storehouse.  It has been a very busy time working at The Storehouse, helping with Blessings in Boxes and freelance writing.  I will be adding more things to this blog very soon to make it fit more of what I want it to be like.
I will keep you posted on more of the changes coming along.

Taking care of the written word,
dannielyn