A Money Saving Tip: Scallions...all the time!

I was recently watching The Next Food Network Star on Food Network and learned a neat tip. One of the contestants, Melissa, said that if you put the white bulb of a scallion into a glass of water, that the scallion will continue to grow and you will always have green onions. I put her tip to the test after picking and using some scallions from my garden. I placed the white part of the onion in a glass of water about a week ago, and imagine my surprise when I noticed it today and it has grown green onions several inches tall! How cool is that? Do you have any money saving tips? Leave a comment and let us know!

Places You Should Know: ScrapbookSteals.com

The genius creators of BabySteals.com, who we love here at Adventures, are launching a brand new and very fun site...ScrapbookSteals.com! The first "steal" will be available sometime this week. You'll see everything scrapbook related, with a new steal posted daily at 9 am MST (11 am Eastern). I can only bet that this venture will be extremely successful! If you are a scrabooking enthusiast, click over to ScrapbookSteals.com and sign up to be notified when the site launches. And don't forget to check out the daily steal at BabySteals.com, posted every day at 9 am MST!

Recipe of the Week: Ricotta Pasta Mixture

As you probably know by now, I've been on a bit of a maternity break after delivering our second daughter on May 7th. She's been a wonderful addition to our family, but as some of you can relate, my workload has been doubled. Now more than ever, my dinner preparation needs to be quick and easy, as well as delicious. Here's an easy recipe for a mixture that can be incorporated into many different pastas.

Ricotta Mixture for Pasta
1 cup Ricotta cheese
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
salt and pepper, to taste

Mix all ingredients together.

Recommended additions and uses:
Add 1 pound cooked, chopped shrimp or 2 chicken breast halves, cooked and chopped or shredded. For a vegetarian option, add sauteed mushrooms and spinach, or roasted red peppers.

I like to toss this with whole wheat Rotini and add some extra cheese. This mixture is also wonderful stuffed into cooked jumbo shells, topped with some mozzarella and your choice of sauce, then baked until warm. The options are endless. Make it your own and enjoy (with some crusty garlic bread, of course!).

New giveaway!

Come back later on tonight for a new giveaway!!!

My Reading List for the Summer

As usual every single night, I was reading a story to Parker before bedtime; he is 2 and ½, so he is at that point where he has his favorite books, knows where he hides them, and is disinterested with the rest. As I sat there watching him eagerly search through his piles and piles of books for something ‘fresh’, I tried to remember the last time I read a book that kept me in bed all weekend long and put me to sleep at night…

Then a few days later when I was out to brunch with my best friend, I seemed to hit an intellectual roadblock; we are both in theatre-her in directing and me primarily dramaturgy at the moment-and she was telling me about her reading list for the year. Her list is filled with new plays but also a ton of novels that I have heard of but never took the time to read. As she was going on and on about Animal Farm and the concepts and themes that can still be intertwined in today’s society, it hit me: what they say is true, kids make you dumb. At the ripe young age of 25, there are a ton of things that I, of course, would love to do with my spare time and hard earned money, but can’t because of the costs of having a family. But does that mean I should sacrifice any of my intelligence? Should I stop teaching myself just because I graduated college and don’t pay for the education anymore? Should I not utilize what I’ve learned after almost two decades of schooling (I mean, someone had to pay for it)? So with that, I decided to research and come up with my own list of 10 novels to read by the end of the summer.

I compiled this list based on lists by publishers, critics and even my own interests:

1. Ulysses by James Joyce
2. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
3. The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Allison Weir
4. Murder in the Cathedral by T.S. Eliot
5. The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway
6. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
7. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
8. Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates
9. Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin
10. Animal Farm by George Orwell

I currently have a list of 42 total novels I want to read by the end of the year. I think it’s important for all of us mothers to take some time for ourselves, even if it’s in list form! Some women have gardening, others crafts, I have chosen reading.

Have you taken the time for yourself lately?

How I Coupon 101

The best thing about the world of couponing is the vast ways we can organize our coupons in order to fit our needs and save us money. It's not like couponing is some super-secret way of saving money-it's right there, every Sunday in our papers and now thanks to the internet, everyday in the palm of our computer mouses. Sure, like anything in life, it takes time and minimal effort. But if you tackle it head-on, couponing will be one of those efforts that turn into a weekly hobby. I love sitting down every Saturday morning, clipping my coupons, organizing them, and writing out my grocery lists. Below is how I organize my coupons and gather myself before I do my weekly grocery shopping.

First and foremost, I go to the dollar store every Saturday morning and get my Star Tribune early edition and get my coupons and circulars. I separate the coupon inserts from the weekly circulars and get clipping.

I organize my coupons in a Case-It binder; it has compartments and an easy over-the-shoulder strap to keep with me whenever I need it. I keep it in the car all week until the latest sets of coupons come out. You never know when you need to make a quick run to Target and regret you don't have your coupons when you see a great clearance rack.

I then use the 9 to a page baseball card sleeves that are 3-hole punched to hold my coupons. I then use regular tabs to sort my coupons into categories: Grocery, tolietries, cleaning, pet, baby, and misc. To know exactly what coupons you have and the ability to see them right away instead of digging...it's really the best way to coupon, really. Never again will I use a pocket organizer!

On Saturdays when I get my inserts and circulars, I go to A Full Cup, Coupons.com, and other sites to find the printable coupons. I print, clip and organize.

Then, I make my lists for each store, put the coupons that I intend on using in an envelope organized by store, and zip up my Case-It and I am ready to go the next day!

How do you coupon?

Giveaway: (5) Sets of Dove Ultimate Visibly Smooth Deodorant!

Now that it is officially summer, it's that dreaded time when women have to be even more meticulous of their underarms than ever. We hate having to check the underarms every single time we want to wear a tank top or a short sleeved shirt, fearful that the boss or significant other (or just the rest of the cocktail party) can see our 'five o'clock shadow'. Wouldn't that be great if there were a product that could help us ease our minds and perhaps, make the daily underarm shavings disappear? Well, now there is-Dove Ultimate Visibly Smooth Deodorant.

Dove has combined Pro-Epil complex with natural extracts to make your underarm hair smoother, less visible, and softer than ever before, enabling you to go longer between underarm shaving. It also helps heal and help prevent those nasty red bumps from shaving too often in such a delicate area of the body. And as always, it offers 24-hour odor and wetness protection that we also need as busy mothers, trying to juggle everyday life. The last thing we need to worry about at the end of a long day of work and/or chasing after the kids is smelling like a dirty locker room while hosting the neighborhood BBQ or while attending the weekly book club. We need products that help make our lives easier, since we spend majority of the day helping other achieve the same goals!

Want to try it? I have something even better-I have (5) sets to giveaway! Each set contains (1) stick of Dove Ultimate Visibly Smooth AND (25) $2/1 coupons for you to share and stock up! It's as easy as leaving a comment here! You have until July 1st, 2009 to enter! There are also BONUS ways to enter!

• First and foremost, leave a comment here with a valid email address!
• To earn an additonal entry, become a new follower to my blog! You can sign up by going to the tab at the right hand side, about halfway down the page.
• to earn another entry, post my button on your blog!

It's that simple! Have any questions? Feel free to contact me :)

Explaination of the Silence...

As you can see, things have been a little quiet around Adventures lately...for one thing, Jodi had her baby! I will get the details out to you soon-so please keep her in your thoughts!

What's great about the concept of this blog is that it wasn't just created for baby and kid deals. It was also created to discuss the ups and downs of being young mothers. I have two children, a job, and many, many stresses in life. And even though it seems to be our DNA, as mothers and women, to be able to take care of everything, sometimes it's harder than other times. Some weeks are harder than others, some minutes can be so hard to get through. And having a group of women to share and understand each other's frustrations also seems to be in our DNA. We gravitate to others who are in similar situations as ours because we need someone to understand for a moment that we aren't perfect, that we are not super beings. I lost my support group today for the only reason I can comprehend to explain was because she was either just as frustrated, or doesn't want to take the time to understand. And that is unfortunate, to have so much power that you can just strip someone's support system away in a blink of an eye. So essentially, I am alone now.

To be honest, I don't have many friends that I physically see on a daily basis. With life being the way it is and the joy of the internet, we can now have friends that we talk to everyday; we have come to appreciate that some nice words written down electronically can mean as much as a hug.

Life hasn't been good to me over the years. I graduated from college, I became pregnant and decided to stay at home with my children while my husband worked and got his Masters. We moved back to Minnesota and I got a job, let my husband run off and work on the Obama campaign out of state, lost my job, got a new job, and am now the breadwinner. I take care of everything now. And to be honest, it's a lonely job. It really is.

So now, like life, I am looking for the next chapter. While it takes two people to end things, it also takes two people to fix them. I guess I would be willing to repair that relationship, but I don't think she is; but, like everyday, I don't have the time to dwell on it much longer. I have a house to clean, kids to feed, a job to prepare for, etc. Maybe it's a pride thing, I don't know. But I always believe in karma and what we do for ourselves to deserve that karma. Maybe I've just been working myself to the bone lately. Even though I have my children and husband and family, there is still this loneliness that is inescapable with motherhood. We just have to find ways to keep ourselves balanced, I guess.

Stay tuned...giveaway

I am going to be giving away (5) sets of the new Dove Deodorant tonight....stay tuned!

New Place to Coupon: Hot Coupon World!

I've been reading a lot of money saving posts at MSN Money, and they recommend various sites to help you save money by couponing. Coupons.com, Smartsource.com, RedPlum.com, and another site called Hot Coupon World. Hot Coupon World is much like AFC-they have seperate forums for each store, a coupon generator, etc. I think it's important to have as many resources at your disposal as possible. So check out Hot Coupon World today!

There are many sites out there...more and more seem to pop up every single day. Are there any sites that you go to a weekly basis to search for deals? If so, leave a comment and let me know!

Review: Thomas the Train Circus!

My family and I were fortunate enough to be selected by MomSelect to see the Thomas the Train Circus here in Minneapolis last Saturday, May 3rd. The kids were so excited to go-they were talking about it for at least two weeks. The circus was a lot of fun-this was the first time we have taken the kids to a large venue, and the speakers were a little loud and alarming to them at first. But they slowly adjusted and in the end, were sad that it was only 90 minutes long. Check out the Thomas the Train Circus website and try to see it when it comes through your town! Here are some pictures below:

Food for your Friday...

The latest code for Restaurant.com is BONUS and will get you 60% off your order. Also, with each order, get a $15 Dale and Thomas Popcorn gift card. Code good through Sunday, April 26.