1st Blog Award!

I have been blogging since February and I have become quite addicted and find it very enjoyable. I really enjoy journaling all about my life and all of the simple things the Snyders do. I began the blog to help me keep a record of our crazy life and share it with our families and friends. I have met a few others along the way and I think it is great when other people enjoy my blog too. I LOVE reading other people's blogs and love it when you all read mine. Today however is a 1st in my blogging career. Today Lindsey over at Fillies and Juleps has awarded me with the Sugar Doll award!

I must say, I am very excited to receive my first award! As part of the award I am supposed to tell you 10 facts about me, so here goes:

1. I am a compulsive sale shopper. I am such a sucker for a good deal!

2. I am obsessed with children's books. My classroom is filled with thousands I have purchased (many at yard sales), my child has hundreds and one day I think it would be great to write one to add to the collection.

3. I can't leave my house unless I have made my bed. No matter how late I am.

4. I have never tried potato salad, chicken salad, ham salad, macaroni salad, or any salad with that type of consistency.

5. I LOVE TV. As much as I love to read, blog and do other things, I have quite the TV addiction. I DVR most things so I can watch them once C is in bed or when I have time. These days I love Top Chef, Criminal Minds, Brother's & Sisters, Friday Night Lights, Tori & Dean Home Sweet Hollywood, Project Runway, and I am a little embarrassed to admit that my new show is Pretty Little Liars. Ok, this list is long but there are many more. Maybe I need an Intervention.(oh yeah, I like that show too! )

6. Stuart and I had our first kiss on Derby Day 2002.

7. I worked at Keeneland in college during Spring and Fall meets as a pari-mutuel clerk.

8. I love to grocery shop. (One of my favorite parts is coming home and putting it all away. I love to organize my fridge)

9. I found out I was going to be a mommy on Election Day 2007.

10. Fall is my favorite season. I love the weather, the colors, the activities all of it!

Thanks for the award Lindsey!

I now pass it along to some lovelies that I enjoy reading:

Sara over at Southern Comfort

Abby over at Babbling Abby (Her blog is the first blog I ever read and why I am addicted to blogging!)

Terri over at The Flannagan Family

and Britt over at Dave and Britt Plus One

Happy Wednesday!

Snyders Visit The Low Country

June 25th Stuart and I celebrated our FIVE year anniversary. We decided to celebrate we would take a trip. We LOVE to travel to new places. We usually have nothing on the agenda but checking out the sites and finding great local places to eat. This trip was no different.

We went to Charleston SC. We stayed at a fun little Inn right downtown in the middle of it all. We parked our car on Wednesday and did not move it until we left on Saturday. We walked everywhere. There was plenty of history to keep Stuart interested, beautiful architecture, GREAT shopping and fantastic seafood around every corner. We LOVED it there. Below are some pictures of our trip. I took hundreds so here are a few to illustrate the week. If you notice we are child free in the photos...WE WERE. Clark stayed with my mom and dad while we were gone. I am pretty sure he had an equally great time with his mamaw and papaw.

The lovely Inn we called home for a few days.

This guy was very excited about oysters on the first night.



Me- At Fleets Landing-
We had to dine on the water our first night!

We ate breakfast rooftop each day!

We loved eating on the roof.

Even at 8:00 am it was already about 90 degrees!

Please remember it was about 100 degrees!

We took a lot of self- portraits!

A view of the city from our ferry.


Stuart on the ferry to Ft. Sumter.

He did a WHOLE LOT of THIS!

He LOVES stuff like this.

(Don't tell him, but I enjoyed it too.)

We ate lunch at Jestine's Kitchen.

It is a tiny little place that we heard was a "must do".

It has been on The Travel Channel and in many magazines.

Stuart's meal-

As soon as we had the first bite we understood why it made all the lists!

There is a constant line to get in.

We made it there right before the line started.

By the time we left it was all the way down the block!

Our last night we enjoyed a dinner at Hank's Seafood.

It was a wonderful place to celebrate our anniversary!

As you can see we enjoyed every minute. It was HOT, but we survived. We missed our boys but knew they were having a GREAT time. (I might have called at least three times a day just to make sure) We even went out on the town one night with some friends from college who live there. We enjoyed that too. So, to sum it all up, we relaxed, shopped and ate WAY too much. I love traveling with this guy. I love that we don't need a plan we always seem to find things to do and have fun doing it. In the midst of all the sightseeing and eating I also read TWO books. I have not read a good book in a while so that was a highlight too! As we drove home through six states we started planning the next trip! yay!

Have I mentioned I LOVE SUMMER!?!

1st Dental Visit

Clark had his first dentist appointment today and I was THAT MOM and I took pictures of the whole event! So here is Clark's 1st dental appointment in pictures!

He was a little nervous at first.

Then he noticed all of the cool things there were to do!


But, before he could get to into anything they called his name.

He LOVED the ship mural. He had fun finding all the fish!


This nice lady even gave him a new toothbrush.
He had a little trouble understanding he could only have one...



She cleaned and polished his teeth as he SCREAMED louder than I think I have ever heard.
(No pictures of that. I had to hold him down)
He was very glad when she let him do his own fluoride.



He was even better when she let him pick out a new ball!

Here he is. He made it through round one.
He thought it was time to go, but we had to wait for the dentist.


He was not to happy that he had to lay back down until...

He noticed the TV on the celling!
He was too busy crying the last time to notice it.

Hey Mom, this is not so bad after all!

Listening very intently to Dr. Jackson.


Dr. Jackson was WONDERFUL!
He counted his teeth and of course there were more tears, but it was not too bad.
At this point he is ready to GO.


He got to join the NO CAVITY club!


He even got a "CHOO CHOO THOMEES" sticker!
Here he is with all his loot!


Bye Bye Dentist!

See you in 6 months!

It was a wonderful office and I am so glad we went. We will definitely be going back. Following Dr. Jackson's orders we will continue to brush- I learned a few tricks for that! We will also not be having so much milk in between meals.I was very proud of my big boy. He did very well for his first time!

Father's Day & Super Savings

Today is Father's Day and I am overly blessed with the wonderful fathers I have in my life. First of all I have one amazing dad who has been such a wonderful role model and mentor. I have always thought of myself as a "daddy's girl" and I just love my dad to pieces. Anyone who knows him would understand why. Not only does he love his 3 children, he loves the Lord, LOVES my momma, ADORES his grandsons. He makes me laugh, calms me down when I am upset and has always supported me in what I do. He was at all my recitals, ballgames, and events. He helped me win science fair ribbons. He carried all of my stuff up 3 flights of stairs the day they dropped me off at college, and held my mom and cried in the parking lot on the way out. He walked me down the aisle the day I married Stuart and was there when I delivered Clark. I know I have put him through a lot, I know I was not an easy child. I know I made many mistakes that broke his heart, but I always knew he loved me and I still do.

I am also married to an amazing dad. I have loved Stuart for a long time, but I fell deeper in love with him after seeing him with our son. He is an outstanding daddy. He loves Clark with such a deep passion. Changing diapers, feedings, weekends alone with Clark are not a problem, he never complains and acts like it is his delight to do these things. My heart melts every night when he puts Clark to bed. I am so grateful that I get to experience parenthood with Stuart and that I have him by my side on this journey. He is and will continue to be an excellent role model for our son. He loves him unconditionally and with his whole heart & I am so blessed to get to watch this love grow each day.

So today I just want to remind those two wonderful men that I love them very much and I thank the Lord everyday that I have them in my life.

Now that I have soaked the key board with tears, I am going to switch gears and talk about another very emotional event of the day. My new obsession COUPONING! I have always clipped coupons and have always been so excited to see the savings. Now I am even more obsessed because of the deals I can get with Extra Care Bucks and Register Rewards. It has become like a drug for me! (yes, I know that sounds over the top, but I was jittery on the way home- so excited from the bargains.)

SO...On that note, here is the rest of our day today:
Today is Father's Day and Stuart had to work ( reason being, we are going on vacation next week and the work has to get done sometime). So Clark and I went to church and then took Stuart lunch at work. Stuart and I dined on Sushi in his office while Clark might have had a Wendy's kids meal. After lunch, Clark took a nap and I scoured the paper for coupons and mapped out my deals at CVS and WalGreens. I was very excited for Clark to wake up so we could go!

He FINALLY woke up at 4:00 and we headed out the door.

We hit CVS first. Here is what I bought:

Huggies Diapers (which we don't usually buy, but for this price!) :

$19.99 per box

earn $10.00 Extra Care Bucks

-$3.00 MF Coupon (Thanks Mindy!)

Total : $6.99

I did this twice! I turned around and used the $10.00 ECB on the second box!- I had to use my mom's CVS card to get the second box, but she allowed it! (Thanks Mom)

Paper Towels

Sale Price: $6.97

-$2.00 MFC

plus I combined this with the second box of diapers and used the ECB and got them FREE!

Total: FREE

Colgate Toothpaste

Sale Price 2.99 each

Earn $2.00 in ECB for each

2 $1.00 off coupons

Total: FREE

CVS Ibuprofen

Sale price $3.99

earn $3.00 ECB

Total : $0.99 (used Flex card- no cost to me!)

Crest Whitestrips

Sale Price:$31.99

-$10.00 store coupon

-$10.00 MFC

Total: $9.99

GRAND TOTAL before coupons and ECB: $88.93

GRAND TOTAL SPENT: $33.92

Now, I know I am not an expert at this YET, but I am pretty excited about my savings!

Next, we drove across the street to WalGreens. Now please remember I am doing all of this with a two year old. A very well behaved two year old who waited patiently while mommy went through numerous transactions to use all of the coupons at the same time. He was WONDERFUL!!

Noting that, here is what we got at WallGreens:

Lysol Products
Sale Price: $2.99
Register Rewards (per item) :$1.00
-$1.00/2 MFC
Total: $1.49 each

Lysol Toilet Bowl Cleaner
Sale price: $2.99 BOGO
-$1.00/2
Total: $1.99 FOR TWO!

Jello (needed to make THIS)
Sale price: 2 for $1.00
-$0.50 MFC
Total: $0.50 FOR TWO!

Old Spice Body Wash & Deodorant
Sale price $4.49 each
RR earned: $4.49
MFC- Free deodorant
TOTAL: FREE (BOTH!)

Gillette Body Wash:
Sale Price: $4.49
RR earned: $4.49
TOTAL: FREE

RePHresh Tampons (NEVER HEARD OF THESE!)
Sale Price: $5.99
RR: $5.00
Total: $0.99

Nivea Body Wash and Lotion:
Sale price: Lotion: $7.99
Body Wash :$5.99 (Free with lotion)
-1.00 MFC for both
Total: $5.99

Fillers (to be able to use all rewards and coupons)
Gum
Sale Price :$0.99 each
Sippy Cup (for good boy patiently waiting in cart)
Sale price: $3.99
Total: $5.99

GRAND TOTAL before coupons and RR; $65.85
GRAND TOTAL SPENT: $26.66

So, I was very pleased with today. We are stocked up on cleaning supplies for a while, and I think Stuart is good on body wash. I enjoyed my couponing today as you can tell!

The US Open is wrapping up so I am going to go spend some time with Stuart. Today was yet another wonderful summer day!! Tomorrow Clark has his first dentist appointment, which should be very interesting! I will be sure to share how it goes!

A Snyder Saturday

Today Stuart had to work so Clark and I spent the day together. It started out as a rainy one and our early morning yard saleing had to be postponed. So we just laid around in our jammies and watched a little Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, ate waffles and read our new library books. At about 10:30 it began to clear up so we got in the car and drove around town to see if there were any sales out there. We found a few and I spent a whole $2.50! I did get a new pair of grey New Balance tennis shoes for C- they are a size 9, but I'm sure it won't be too long until he needs them. My deal of the day however was a pair of plaid shorts from CrewCuts (which is one of my favs!) for only FIFTY CENTS! I kind of felt like I was robbing the poor old lady, and I was smiling all the way to the car!

After our yard sale adventure we came home and had lunch. Meal times are getting a little more challenging as Clark now tells me what he wants and does not want! The other night all he would eat was yogurt and cheese. Today he wanted nuggets and apples and I could manage that. We ate, read the library books AGAIN and then he went down for a nap. I am not sure what it is about these library books but he is loving them. We have a case of probably 100 board books for him that he does not get that excited over, but the library books- Whoa. We have read the book Yummy, Yucky I bet 20 times today. He reads them and then puts them all back in his little bag we take to the library. 20 minutes later he gets them out again. So funny! I do love it though, I just find it funny.

During nap, I finished up all of our laundry. There is now not a stitch of dirty clothing in this house except for what we are all wearing. I even washed all sheets and towels. I have folded piles of laundry everywhere that I WILL put away tonight while Stuart watches golf. In between loads of laundry, I looked through cookbooks to find a fun dessert to make for dinner tonight. I found one of my old favorites: Raspberry Delight and decided on it! It is a recipe from my mom and I use to love it. I have not made it in years and I am pretty sure Stuart has never had it. So, after nap Clark and I ventured to WalMart to pick up all the necessary ingredients.
(I might have bought a few dresses for $9.00 too- shh!)

Before he went to sleep he helped me with a load or two!

Required ingredients we picked up!

Raspberry Delight:
2 1/4 C. Flour
3/4 C. Butter
2T. Sugar
In a bowl, combine flour, sugar, and blend in butter with a wooden spoon until smooth. Press into an ungreased 9x13 PAN. Bake at 300 for 20-25 minutes, or until set (Should not be brown). Cool.

Filling:
1(8oz) pkg. softened cream cheese
1C. Confectioners Sugar
1tsp. Vanilla
1/4 tsp. Salt
2C. Whipped Topping
In a mixing bowl; beat cream cheese, cof.sugar, vanilla, and salt until smooth. Fold in whipped topping and spread over cooled crust.




Be sure to give your toddler juice that goes with the theme of what you are making!

Topping:
1(6oz) pkg. Raspberry Jello
1 C. Boiling Water
2 (10oz) pkgs. of frozen raspberries
Dissolve Jello in bolling water; stir in raspberries. Chill for 20 minutes or until mixture thickens. Spoon over filling. Refrigerate until set. Cut into squares.
yields: 12-16 servings (less if Stuart Snyder is present!)

This what the little man did while I worked on the yummy creation.

So, as I type this we have steaks and corn on the cob on the grill and raspberry delight in the fridge. Stuart is home from work and our evening will consist of dinner and bath night for C. After C goes to bed it will be putting away all of the laundry pictured above while Stuart watches the US Open and I will hopefully get to read some of my new book! It was a low key Saturday which is a rare event around here. Have I mentioned I LOVE SUMMER?!!