Twelve Years Old

I can hardly believe it, but Jackson turned 12 years old today. Here's a look back at past birthdays:

First birthday cake

One year old

Two years old

Second birthday cake

Five years old, last birthday as an only child

Fifth birthday presents; he had the hardest time walking in those sandals

Six years old

Seven years old

Eight years old

Eleven years old

Twelve years old, sporting his new Timberwolves hat from Abby and Jason, eating birthday brownie sundae.

Being Two

Can wear a person out.

New Month, New Grocery Budget

After only picking up a few groceries last week, I definitely needed to do a big grocery shopping trip. And since it's a new month, I have a whole month's grocery budget to work with. I only saved 32%, or $102.07 by shopping the sales and using coupons. Here are the best deals this week:

Duncan Hines brownies: $0.99-$0.50 coupon=$0.49 each
Duncan Hines frosting: 2/$3, used coupon for free cake mix when you buy 2 frosting
Also bought Pillsbury cake mix for $0.77
We have two birthdays coming up in the next month, so it doesn't hurt to have these on hand!

Cinco de Mayo deals:
Old El Paso taco shells (1) and enchilada sauce (2): $1.25 each
Old El Paso chiles: $1.00
Used coupons for free taco seasoning when you buy 2 Old El Paso products

Kool Aid: This is nice to have on hand to drink something different once in awhile. It's not something we drink a lot.
On sale for $1.66-$1/2 coupon=$1.16 each

Kellogg's cereal: $1.97-$1/3 coupon=$1.64 each

Snacks/treats:
Oreo Fudgees--$2.99-$1.00 coupon=$1.99
Nestle Crunch and Baby Ruth--2/$0.88-$0.50/2 coupon=2/$0.38, or $0.19 each
Toasteds crackers--$3.19, found tearpad coupon in the aisle to save $2 on a deli item when you buy Toasted. Since I already planned to buy deli ham for school lunches, it's like paying $1.19 for the crackers.

Chips (I don't normally buy five bags of chips in a shopping trip, but this price was right this time):
Lays--$2.49-$1/2 coupon=$1.99
Tostitos--$2.49-$1.00 coupon=$1.49
Sun Chips--$2.49-$2/2 coupon=$1.49 each; also had a coupon for free Sierra Mist when you buy 2 Sun Chips

Forty by Forty, Part Two

The next ten goals for my 40 by 40 list:

Adventure in our local area (these are all things I can do without traveling far, and this is where the courage comes in):

12. Kayak

13. Snowshoe

14. Cross country ski

15. Polar bear plunge (a little unsure about that one!)

16. Hike to Tettegouche High Falls (I haven't done this since we first moved up here, three years ago)

17. Go snowmobiling

18. Go four wheeling (there are tons of trails up here for snowmobiling/four wheeling, and also a place to rent them since we don't own either one)

19. Hike the Split Rock hiking trail again (the five mile hike our family did in October 2009)

Personal interest:

20. Take a photography class

21. Learn how to use my sewing machine