My first try at The Grocery Game:
So I decided to sign up for the free trial at The Grocery Game (thanks for the suggestion, Jess) and tonight I did my first grocery trip on “the rules.” It took a ton of prep time since it was the first time and because my coupons were in need of reorganization. But the shopping itself went pretty well (and since Eric kept the babies, I was alone!). And overall, I think I did very well. I did have to buy a number of things not on “the list,” but even still, my totals (from two stores) were $155 spent and $99 saved. And I won’t have to buy a number of things for a very long time. Nice!

And because I really like my title tonight, I will now share other “first try” moments from my life that I consider significant…

Age 18 – my first flight (to Chicago) on our Senior Trip. I was very nervous. It hurt my ears (always does).

Sophomore Year (high school) – My first international experience. We went to Montreal (I’m not sure Canada is really “foreign,” so I went with “international” instead.) for a missions trip. There was a house we drove by everyday that looked, to me, like the Gingerbread House in all the fairy tales would look. Good memories.

May 2004 – my first try at…well, maybe I won’t go into that one right now. (hee hee)

Age 10 (approximately) – my first hot air balloon ride (and, so far, only one). It was fantastic. But really loud. And I’d do it again in a second.

Freshman year (college) – First kiss. Sadly, it was not good. And though I kissed him again, it never got good. I was so glad to discover, when I first kissed Eric, that kissing can be SO much better than that first one. I had wondered a little. (And yes, I’ve only ever kissed two men – outside of acting roles…that’s really okay with me)

Junior Year (college) – I think that year is right…but anyway, that was the first time I swam in the ocean. On a family vacation at Hilton Head. It was so fun. The first time I saw the ocean was in Australia (in 1996). I thought it was a little absurd that I’d had to fly halfway around the world to see the ocean. But it was worth it.

Dec. 2008 – my first overnight hospital stay. To have twins. It was crazy and awesome and scary. And it was nice to go home so nurses stopped bugging me all night long. Of course, then the twins were the ones bugging me to feed them, but that’s another story…

2001 – my first “professional” theatre job. I was the dramaturg for a production of West Side Story in Dayton. (A dramaturg is someone who does research into the play/playwright/themes and acts as a resource for the actors and a liaison/educator for the audience). It was incredibly fun. I miss the theatre.

Okay, I think that’s a decent list, since I’m thinking these up off the top of my head, and I need to go to bed. Have a happy Friday. Hope you aren’t snowed-in where you are!

My MIL has been in Africa for a week. She is coming home next Tuesday. So far things are going well…her last update was from Sunday. They went to church (a 4-hour service) and had a whole fish for supper.

Still been swimming against the tide, mentally/spiritually/etc. I am starting to find words for the ache and what it may mean, but still not ready to write it down. On the other hand, maybe writing it down is exactly what I need to do…that always helps me (read: “forces” me) to figure out what I mean. We shall see…

We did make it to Bible Study yesterday morning. It’s really hitting home this time. Why we aren’t living the Christian life as the bible describes it and what we need to do about it. Good times! Sadly, one lady at my table is a little difficult in that she talks a lot, but doesn’t stay on topic and tends to ramble. I know I need to work on my attitude toward her, but her rambling is very frustrating to me. Any suggestions?

OH! And yesterday, I bought myself some pants! I have been needing to exchange a pair of jeans my mom got me for Christmas, but haven’t made it to the mall. So yesterday, because the babies’ naps were messed up from Bible Study, I decided I had time. So I went to the mall and exchanged the jeans. Then I stopped in another store on my way out and used my $25 Visa gift card from Christmas (a stocking stuffer) to buy a second pair of jeans. YAY!!!

AND IN other news…the babies are sleeping better again. No midnight or 2 a.m. wake-ups. The last couple of days, Alex has been waking up at 5:30, but going back to sleep until 6:30-7:00. I do like sleeping. It’s very nice.

Also, they have figured out how to turn on the cd player in the living room. The cabinet door is baby-proofed, but it opens enough for them to get their arm inside and push buttons. And they’ve figured out which button turns on their Toddler Tunes. Which they LOVE. So we have toddler music playing all.the.time now. And there is much dancing (them) and singing (me) along. Good times!

I’ve recently ordered some bible song cds, too. I’m looking forward to mixing things up!

I talked to my friend, Ghena, yesterday. It was a really great conversation, though only about 25 minutes. I just love good friends who can say so much in such a short time. Thanks, Ghena!!

My chore list has been going well. I’ve discovered that what I chose as my 5 daily chores are really the ones I need to do every day. If they are done, my house feels “tidy” – as if someone could drop in and I wouldn’t mind. It was really good to get so many other chores done in one week for once, and it was amazing how much free time I still had (really free time, too, since I didn’t feel like I needed to be doing something else). Hopefully, I can continue with this pattern!

And finally, I am trying to figure out how to cut our grocery budget. Have any of you ever tried that herculean feat (and succeeded)? What did you do? Or what have you heard that seemed to work?