Finally Fall

So we headed out to Zion National Park this past weekend to scout out a little cooler temps and see if the leaves had changed yet. It is, after all, almost Thanksgiving. Here are a few things you can expect on such an expedition...

Bryson experimenting with new tricks on our camera

Two little munchkins camping out in the leaves (one is having a little bit more fun than the other)

Avery gearing up to fill her diaper

Parents who have significantly scaled back on their ridiculously long excursions (this is Emerald Pools, shortest hike on the map)

And a bonus shot from the other day at the Sugar Loaf

I would like to brag that Ella completed the entire Emerald Pools hike on foot (it's about 2 miles the way we went). We also saw five Bambis, one of which crossed the trail right in front of us. I won't say who, but a close family member once accused us of trying to kill her by taking her on this exact same hike because it was so intense. I'm not saying who...but you know who you are.

Ok, us too...

After much discussion, we are joining the massive privatization movement. You know the drill: leave your email address and I'll send you an invite.

Busy Little Elves

Ta-da! At last, the prototype.
Yuletide meets princess in this Christmas tutu designed to put a little extra sugar where there's a lot of 3-year-old spice. Oh yes, those are rhinestones.
I saw this idea at the What Women Want Expo and thought a tied-together tutu looked like a manageable project. I'm making one for each of my kids and my nieces this Christmas so we will have a festive little fairyland...

Coupon Conquests Cont.

I clipped. I calculated. I conquered.

Here's what I came home with today for a grand total of $12.72:
18 Betty Crocker cookie mixes
9 cans Progresso soup
8 boxes frozen Green Giant vegetables
4 boxes Chex cereal
4 Knorr sides plus veggies
3 boxes Betty Crocker potato mixes
2 boxes Macaroni Grill pasta mix
2 boxes (8ct) GoGurts
2 packs Trix yogurt (6 ct)
1 Skippy peanut butter

And they sent me home with $15 of store vouchers. I have probably been to Albertson's four times in the past week, and I can't guarantee that I won't go again. I get home, look at my receipts, and think "Why didn't I get 25 of that item???" and then I'm back on the calculator figuring out another 95 cent list. Oh, I am definitely addicted...

Assorted Halloween

Our camera's been having issues lately, so I've only got pictures of Ella's spooky Halloween lunch. We had a few friends over and ate yummy treats, which Ella thought should be followed up by present-opening. Wrong kind of party, but my kind of girl!
For the memory bank: Our ward had a fantastic Halloween party this year replete with a chili cookoff, trunk or treat, the works. It was completely packed and a great way to celebrate Halloween Eve, an oft overlooked day. Fortunately, Devin was out of town and Bryson got promoted to the chili judging committee. Unfortunately, Ella went to the feel-the-yucky-brains-and-eyeballs activity first during the kids games and refused to participate in anything afterwards, including three-legged race and beanbag toss.


Picture of the day: All partied out.

I Heart Coupons

OK Coupon Queens,
I'm really feeling the love for Albertson's this morning as I stare and stare at my stocked pantry shelves. It wasn't like I made a killing like some of you have posted, but I was just shocked how much I brought home for $50:

-40 cans of baby food
-20 cans of vegetables
-2 3.5-lb. pot roasts
-10 lbs potatoes
-2 lbs carrots
-5 cans of Progresso soup (1 of which was 15 cents)
-4 boxes of good cereal (meaning not Malt O Meal, which is good too, but less so)
-Also, construction paper and parchment paper, which weren't on sale

I'm curious how much this would have cost at Wal-Mart or CostCo, just to know if the coupon thing is really a good way to go. It seemed like I got a ton more food for the money though. Plus, in a twisted kind of housewifey way, it was kind of fun.

Next, I made a stop at Harmons to pick up 5 California Pizza Kitchen pizzas for $15 with a $15 mail-in rebate, so they were free. That was definitely a good deal.

I'm planning to give my coupon days a 6-month trial period to see if it's worth it. But since this was week 1, I think I already dig it.

*This post brought to you by grocerysmarts.com*

Dear Construction Workers,

Thank you for the new sidewalk that goes up Flying J hill. I thoroughly enjoyed not brushing shoulders with moving cars and trucks this morning while running. I also appreciated not having to dodge potholes, since I'm not so talented at that either. Also, Ella would like to add thanks for the new road. She would like to ride in the Bobcat sometime if you could work that out.
Sincerely,
Green Family

A-maize-ing Fall Fun

Spoiler alert: It's not really corn.
Despite the hype, the Staheli corn maze is actually made up of some sort of tall wheat grass. But you can't blame them for the misnomer. Who would want to go to a wheat maze if they marketed it as such? Sounds lame.
When we pulled up in the parking lot, Ella practically hit the ground running. And then she didn't stop until we were buckling her back in to go home. With such attractions as the redneck trampoline (a mattress surrounded by bales of hay), horse tire swings, petting farm, slides, and a sandbox full of corn, how could the actual corn (wheat) maze even hold a candle?

Do Ella and Ailee look worried? We actually paid additional money to stick our sweet little kiddos in a train made of water buckets that was going 100 miles an hour while being driven by a 12-year-old on a tractor.

Let the record show that taking pictures in a dark, dusty place is next to impossible. And getting Ella to hold still for more than 5 seconds IS impossible.