Shingles, peas and icy roads...

Isaac came down with a nasty case of shingles about a week ago. The rash started after a full day of playing outside so we didn't think much of it and we were leaving for the weekend the next day. It progressively spread and got more painful. It didn't itch as much as there was increasing pain. This picture shows part of it but it goes around to his back. In this picture the blisters are scabbed over and it doesn't look so inflamed but just 4 days ago it was bad for him. I was going to the chiropractor and he is also our expert on all ailments so I took Isaac with and Dr. S. knew what it was immediately by the path it followed along the nerves. He tested him and he is on drops for the virus causing this. We also checked out EarthClinic.com and found how others have dealt with it and after several applications of Apple Cider Vinegar and 4 days on the drops I am happy to say Isaac feels normal. The pain is gone and he can move and function normally. I know shingles can really affect your life and by the stories I read some people deal with them off and on for up to 20 years. Dr. S. said he'd treat Isaac for the next 4-6 months to make sure the virus is under control. Praise the Lord for the knowledge God gives!

Here is a picture of my new ice pack. I guess the trip down the water slide wasn't such a good idea for someone as out of shape as me! I had crunched my neck in the van the week before but when I tried to slow myself down on the water slide by putting my arm up I hit my elbow pretty hard and it compounded the neck injury I already had. I have been to the chiropractor three times this week and have to go next week too! It is progressively getting better but the pain and stiffness is still there. Dr. S. recommended peas because they are cheap and easy when you are out of your home and need to ice something. I love them because they move around my neck unlike the hard ice packs we have at home.

The first adjustment caused me to cry out and sob. I cried for about an hour. Moriah was worried because she hadn't seen me like that before. I have NEVER been in such pain in my life. I've been in two roll-overs (over 200 stitches once), gave birth 8 times and various other bangs and bruises but cannot recall this level of pain. Each time he adjusts me it gets easier to bear. Yesterday, Kevin went along to get an adjustment too and we drove on icy roads and blizzard conditions to get there but it was worth it just to have a little more range of motion. We saw many cars in the ditch and barely made it through the streets of Valley City for the slushy conditions. The people of that town are fighting flood waters and didn't need this hassle.

Thankfully we are on the mend and even though I could do without the disruptions to my week, I saw my older kids fill in the gap and help kids get their school done. Also, thankfully, we are almost done with school so a few unproductive days doesn't hurt right now. I have three kids done with math and 2 almost! Jordan got in some driving practice because she drove a couple times so there were some positives. Hopefully all your weeks were less eventful. Blessings!

Meet my new...

Nephew! His name is Lane Edward and he's only 3 hours old in this picture. My brother, his wife Chris, their kids; Levi, Hunter, Brayden and now Lane!

I got to hold him although I threatened to keep him if I got him in my arms.

He was so snuggled down in his blankets, everytime I tried to pull them away to get a good picture he cried so I'll post another picture after I get him at home.

Weekend get-a-way...

Rebekah and Moriah under the mushroom of water.

Rebekah coming down the water slide. The water park at our hotel.

We went to an Encouragement for the Home School Family Conference. We stayed at a hotel with a water park and the kids had a great time. We got there early Friday so they could swim and it was a good thing we got there when we did. We planned to stay two nights but there was a misunderstanding when I made the reservations. I thought we were getting a two room suite for a certain price and when we got there they had two two-room suites reserved for us because you are only allowed 6 people per 2 room suite. I have to say it was ridiculous. The room was huge!!!! We would have easily fit in the one suite but they would not bend and we had to pay for both but they did allow us to cancel the other night. It was a big disappointment because I made food for all our meals (crock pot meals) and had planned to spend last night swimming and just having a good time for two days.

The water slides were quite large and my kids just climbed the ladder and came down. I was amazed at how Gideon, Moriah and Rebekah went down them over and over. I was especially amazed after I went down the yellow one. I was terrified and do not plan to ever go down a water slide like that again!!!!!

The conference was wonderful and a huge encouragement to us all. Isaac said he wished he would have taken notes at the sessions he went to for young men. I pray my kids and husband and me remember what we learned and implement some changes to help our family become less "me" centered and more "Christ" centered. Check out their website at www.Titus2.com. They have some great materials. Kevin purchased some for our family to enjoy so as we finish each book or CD we could give a review of what we learned from it.

Swimsuit search...

We started the swimsuit search about a month ago. Jordan and Emily both needed a new one. So, we narrowed it down to two choices that the girls would even consider and this is what they have. You might think that THAT isn't a swimsuit, but it is a swimsuit. I bought the pattern from a company in Canada, and the material from ebay. The material is 4-way stretch lycra made especially for swimsuits. They feel like swimsuits. I started cutting out the patterns Monday night and Jordan started sewing Emily's yesterday and finished it today plus started her own today and finished about 10:30 tonight. She made the leggings for them too out of black lycra swimsuit material. I think they are beautiful. Jordan is so talented. She sews so well for someone who has a mother who cannot sew a thing! I'm in awe of her talent. This was her first sewing project following a pattern. She's always made up the pattern for her other projects. I picked out a blue pattern identical to Jordan's suit for myself. We may try to get it sewed up tomorrow. We have need of swimsuits Friday night so it's nice the girls have something now. I don't usually swim when we go somewhere because I haven't had a suit for a few years now. It might be fun if I got to jump in with the kids and I won't be worried about my swimsuit looking low or showing too much flab in one of these! They were so cost effective especially since we bought the pattern. I bought 2 patterns: one size XS, S, M, L, and XL all in one and one for girls size 8,10,12,14. I plan to have Jordan make Riah and Bekah suits too. The older girls suits were about $70-80 cheaper each than buying the suit already made from the website! We saved a lot making them ourselves and buying the material on ebay.

Last concert...

Sigh... I wish it weren't over. Symphony has been very enjoyable for me. The concert today was so good! I'm going to miss the concerts. (A big apology to my parents; I thought I had told them the date of the concert, well, I did in a Jan. email but I really thought I had mentioned it since.) Life is sometimes so busy!!!! This week was an especially busy one in school and in activities. And then Thursday I crunched my head getting in the van to put Lena in her seat and I spent Friday in quite a lot of pain. It crunched my neck real good. I couldn't get into a chiropractor so have had to live with it. I won't be in town until Thurs. I can't wait to get some relief!!!!! Needless to say, I'm not that great on communicating with people. I tend to put it off until later and then I remember at 11 p.m. or later! Can anyone relate? I'm notorious for waiting until the last minute. I sure wish I would have called to check if they had it written down. I made a big assumption! I added some pictures of the girls together and Jordan and her conductor and Emily sitting with her stand partner before the concert. Jordan does have her chamber concert April 14th at noon. She is in a trio and then another larger group. It will be so neat to see her play. She sat in the back this year and while the concerts are enjoyable we don't actually see Jordan playing the songs. April 14th for any who are interested. All I know is that it is at Sanford Health. We don't know where exactly yet but she has one practice before then so we'll find out then.

Coupon madness...

Well, not madness but it might look like that to some. I did some ebay shopping for coupons and found some great ones for Muir Glen Tomatoes ($1 off), Tom's of Maine ($2 off), Seventh Generation ($1 off) and Jimmy Dean Sausages ($1.50 off 2).

Forgive me for boring you. I am a detail person. Now, Newman's Own does have an organic line. These are not part of that. I emailed them and found out what is in each of their sauces looking for MSG and other additives. I couldn't find anything I didn't like except soybean oil (we avoid soybean oil, except for mayo right now). If you go to the website for Newman's own you can find some $0.50 off coupons for any product. I chose to buy the spaghetti sauce because we have been without it for so long. In one Walmart it is $1.88 and in another it is $2.97. I bought 7. It made it a little more affordable to have spaghetti. We ate it for supper last night and for lunch. The tea is only $2.28 a box but with my $1 off each one it makes it a real good deal. My kids really like to drink a cup of tea before bed or when they wake up.

This is my best deal I guess. There aren't many coupons for tomatoes out there so when I got a $1 off in my weekly papers I checked online and found some for sale on ebay. These cans are $1.38 each at Walmart. With the cost of coupons I spent $0.69 on each can. I bought 40 cans yesterday. About 2 weeks ago we used up our last jar of home canned stewed tomatoes so this was good timing. I use 4 quarts of tomatoes to make up chili so I will have to use 8 cans for one pot of chili. Again, my grocery budget doesn't allow for me to buy some things like this very often. I didn't get many tomatoes in my garden last year or else I wouldn't be buying them at all.

I bought 16 packages of Jimmy Dean natural sausage made without MSG or other additives. A local grocery store must have bought these and they didn't sell because they have had them for $2.99 each for several weeks now. I noticed the expiration date is use or freeze by Feb. 2011. Good news for me. I was able to secure 20 ($1.50) off 2 coupons for just $1.25 on ebay hoping to find these All-Natural ones. I was not able to find them in any other store. So, when I went to Econo last night for a package of hamburger I was pleasantly surprised to find them still in stock. I only used 8 coupons because you have to buy 2 for each coupon. I have 12 coupons left. It makes them $2.25 each and the regular sausage is over $4 for one!!!! Crazy! If they continue to have them each week I may buy a few more but I thought 16 was enough for now. My plan is to have them on hand for egg bake since we have chickens now that actually lay eggs :) With our family size we do have to make up two packages each time. It is a special treat because I cannot afford to make two pans of egg bake when it starts out over $8 just for the sausage. I also picked up some little smokies (all-beef, and no MSG). I am planning a cook-for-a-month in a day soon so needed these for a recipe for that. Plus, I had a coupon $1 off the Earthbound Organic lettuce that I got online somewhere!

Tom's of Maine stuff was $2 off each item. I stopped at Swanson's (local vitamin/nutritional store) and found floss for $2.39 (I got three, one already is in my room), 2 deodorants that were on sale (aluminum free), and fluoride free toothpaste. The toothpaste wasn't my first choice in flavor and other ingredients but it was cheap with the $2 off and fluoride free which is a big must for me. The bandaids were only 50 cents off but Target had them on sale for $1.88 and the razors were $2.94 at Walmart for 10 and $2.59 at Target. I got my feet wet buying one at Walmart and found them cheaper at Target. I had a coupon for $2 off each!!! Not a bad deal! The Seventh Generation products which Target carries were $1 off each with a bonus Target coupon for $1 more off. I like to stock up on these when I can get them for so cheap. I also got a fingernail clipper and a tweezer for free at Target again and when I paid the machine spit out two more coupons for $5 off two Revlon products. We'll see how many times I can get that coupon. See, fingernail clippers are only $2.24 and so was the tweezer so I made $0.54 on buying them.

In all yesterday, I spent about $139.00. I saved $92 in coupons which was more like $72 in savings since I had to buy some of the coupons. I did purchase a package of hamburger, two baby wipes containers, copy paper and plastic protector sheets, two packs of notecards, M&M's and crackers plus everything in the pictures. It took several trips to the van to carry it all in! Couponing for us seems to be a necessity. With the debt we incurred when Isaac was sick over 2 years we have to try to cut back so that we don't have to cut back! Does that make sense? We still want to live life. Someday we will be free from that debt-load and I pray our somewhat frugal living will be part of the reason why.