Are we REALLY thankful enough?

Do you ever stop to think just how blessed you are? I make a point to thank my husband for being our provider, to thank people like the lady that cleans our church, the person at a checkout working on a holiday so I can enjoy a meal, and to be thankful to God for all that he does for me and my family. Do I always get it right, by no means, point is that I try and so do many of you.

However, some of us will complain about the least little thing and not even really realize how we sound. My house is roughly 1400 square feet, it has a carport, and a little over 1/2 an acre, in a rather decent subdivision. Now, I realize that to some 1400 square feet is small and to others it is big--matter of opinion and current circumstances I assume.

There are things in my home that need to be fixed or that I would like to upgrade. Sometimes I get frustrated because my yard is not nearly as clean and landscaped as I would like. Some days I want to take my used SUV and just dump it along the side of the road somewhere because I don't want my husband to have to pay another repair bill. Sometimes, like a few days ago when a rack in my closet broke, I just wanted to throw out all the clothes that fell on the floor and start over......then I come to reality and realize just how blessed I am.

Yesterday as I was cleaning our office I was watching Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. If you have ever watched the show then you know that obviously they will bring you to tears and once again they did not fail to bring out that emotion in me. As a matter of fact, "tears" is a mild word. I was literally sobbing as I watched the story of the family about to receive their makeover.

They were a family of 7 living in a 600 square foot house. Many, many things in their home were broken. Children were sleeping wherever they could. The parents could not shut their bedroom door because it was broken off the hinges. BUT the video they submitted was so moving that I could see exactly why Ty Pennington and his crew chose this family.

They were a family overflowing with love for each other as well as their community. The dad was a coach and the mom was going to school for her master's degree in education. They said that they felt like they were put on this earth to serve others. *me:bawling* Each night they sat, all 7 of them, around this table that had to be shoved into the corner. Their dresser drawers were broken, clothes stuffed into a closet, floor rotting--you get the picture.

Do you know what that did to me? To know that there are people right here in my community that must be living that way or those who don't even have a home! What right do I have to complain about the stuff piled up in my back yard or the weeds growing where I want a nice little flower bed??

Like that e-mail goes:
Thank God that I have a sink full of dishes...that means we had food to eat.
Thank God for that pile of laundry....we have clothes to wear.
Thank God for those little hand prints on the wall...my daughter is happy and healthy.
......and all the other daily nuisances that are really signs of the blessings God has given us.

Sitting there yesterday crying my eyes out, I asked God to please show me how to help others in need. That has always been a passion of mine, especially troubled teens. So join me and ask God to show you what you can do. I am sure he will answer and show us just what we can do to make a difference in someones life.

Blessed beyond measure,
Tara

FREE 4x6 Prints

Just getting back from a wonderful vacation in the Tennessee mountains and I am anxious to develop our pictures. I have seen two great online deals so far and wanted to share them with you:

Office Max is offering 75 FREE 4x6 prints when you sign-up for their photo services, excluding $3.95 shipping and any applicable sales tax.

Publix has a deal this week of 30 FREE 4x6 prints when you open an account, good through 4/30/09. I did notice that they use Snapfish so I'm not sure if you would qualify if you already have a Snapfish account.

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter,

Tara

Free Kids Music Downloads

Mega Brands has six different kids ALBUMS available for FREE downloads. Take a look and I am sure you will see some familiar songs. You can click HERE to go directly to the download site.

You can download each album OR just pick the songs you'd like to download, that was a little quicker than downloading the entire album.

Have fun listening!!

Tara

Winter Clearance, Easter Dresses, Shoes, Hairbows, and Coupons

What do all these have in common? Thought you'd never ask, they are all fabulous finds that I found this week.

Kohl's had many racks of winter clearance this week, some 80 to 90% off! My friend Amy is moving to Montana :-( and I am heading to the mountains where snow showers are expected :-), so this was a great sale for us or it is a great time to stock-up for next year. I found a 3/4 sleeve shirt for $2.80!! AND I got to spend some quality time with a great friend before she leaves.

Sears also had several racks of women's clothing for $9.99 and 7.99 AND take an additional 40% off the clearance price...got a really cute pair of pants in there for $6. I hope I will have time to swing back by there before I leave as they had some really cute sweaters.

Ross had some super deals on Easter dresses for little girls. I got the most adorable dress for my daughter for $9.90. Then, I found matching shoes at Payless. Speaking of Payless, ALWAYS ask if they have the size you are looking for in the back. They did not have Madison's size but the sales clerk checked the other Payless in town and they had them. She gave me a $3 coupon to go to the other store. The shoes were already on sale for $12.99 then I was able to use the coupon for $3 off!!

My friend Krista of Princess to Princess Hairbows & More took the dress and matched it to ribbon to create an adorable hairbow--the finishing touch to Madison's outfit!!

And to top off my week, my friend and member of Royalty Coupon Trains, Crystal sent me a Random Act of Kindness envelope filled with coupons!!

Blessings,
Tara

Publix Deals 4/2 to 4/11

Whoa!! What a sell at Publix. I am heading to the mountains this week for a family vacation so I probably won't be able to get in on these deals, but I hope you all will.


Buy One Get One Free Deals
A.1. Steak Sauce
Athenos Hummus
Banquet Brown 'N Serve Sausage Links
Bantry Bay Mussels
Breyers Ice Cream
Cool Whip Whipped Topping
Del Monte Tomatoes
Diner's Choice Mashed Potatoes
Dove Chocolate Easter Eggs
Duncan Hines Brownie Mix
Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Cake Mix
Emerald Nuts
Et Tu Spinach Salad Kit
General Mills Cereal
General Mills Chex Mix
Ghirardelli Chocolate Chips
I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!
Keebler Club Crackers
Kellogg's Cereal
Kraft Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner
Kraft Mayonnaise
Kraft or Seven Seas Dressing
Lay's Potato Chips
Lipton Family Size Tea Bags
McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract
Medium Shrimp Ring
Mott's Apple Sauce
Mrs. Paul's Breaded Fish Sticks
Mt. Olive Pickles
Nabisco Baked Snack Crackers
Ocean Spray Craisins
Ocean Spray Juice or Juice Cocktail
Orville Redenbacher's Popping Corn
Ragú Pasta Sauce
Ronzoni Pasta
Smithfield Bacon
Swanson Broth
Thomas' English Muffins
Tropicana Orange Juice or Juice Beverages

Buy Theirs Get Ours Free Deals

Quoted from sales ad:
"DISCOVER PUBLIX BRAND QUALITY. GUARANTEED.We're so confident you'll like Publix brand products, we'll let you try ours for FREE! This week we've designated three national brand products and their Publix brand counterparts—buy the national brand, get the Publix product FREE. This deal is good for just a week, so hurry in and see the in-store display for details."

Products available for this week's buy theirs get ours free deal:

Buy Quaker Quakes Rice Snacks and get Publix Rice Snacks FREE
Buy Tostitos Natural Yellow Corn Tortilla Chips and getPublix Greenwise Yellow Corn Tortilla Chips FREE
Buy Newmans Own Salsa and get Publix Greenwise Salsa FREE

Check out all the other great deals at the Publix site by clicking HERE.

Have a great week,
Tara

$10 Kohl's Card Arrived!!

While we were away having an awesome time at Winterfest, my Kohl's gift card arrived in the mail. YAY!! I was going to take a picture of the card, but I forgot before I used it and the sales clerk kept it. Yes, it was "burning a hole in my pocket" and I have already used it.

I was in need of a new black belt and I found one I liked on clearance for $8.80!!

If you are lost as to how I received a FREE $10 Kohl's card in the mail, you can read all about it HERE.

Blessings,

Tara

*I am having one of those moments where I am forgetting to tell you all something--just thought I'd share that thought with you.*

Winterfest 2009

Have you even been in an arena with 20,000+ teenagers worshipping God? That is what I did this weekend.

I had the honor of attending Winterfest, a youth conference in Tennessee, with our church's youth group. This is my 3rd time attending Winterfest and I have to tell you that each year I come back truly amazed at the ways in which God blesses these kids.

Winterfest is a conglomeration of music artists, drama and dance teams, ministers, and other individuals coming together for one purpose: Seeing young people's lives transformed for the glory of God. This years' theme was 212^ (degrees) because:

At 211 degrees water is HOT...

At 212 degrees water BOILS...

which produces steam which can power a train..

Just ONE degree!!!

How much more can God do, if we step it up just ONE degree??!!??

Jentzen Franklin, Tommy Bates, Reggie Dabbs, Eddie James, Excalibur, and Casting Crowns (just to name a few) were all in the house!! Talk about exciting!

Jentzen Franklin preached the first night and made sure to get the audiences attention from the start. He talked about the Spirit of Python, accompanying him on the stage was an actual python! He explained how a python literally sucks the life out of his prey. He related this to several people that society considers as "having it all." Kurt Cobain was one example, he had a group come out that resembled Nirvana and then he showed Kurt Cobain sitting on his couch and how he eventually turned to suicide to end his pain. Jentzen even read Cobain's suicide letter. This was just one of many scenes he created to present his point.

Eddie James and Excalibur performed the 2nd night. Eddie James is an anointed man of God with a love for teens that is hard to match. He and his ministry have taken in teens from all walks of life. He has over 40 teens living in his homes. They have all become saved, they have walked away from drugs, alcohol, homosexuality, prostitution, etc and are serving God. They are some of the most talented kids I have ever seen.

Every speaker, musician, and drama team member did a phenomenal job. After Tommy Bates spoke on Saturday night, kids were praying everywhere. Our kids were standing on the arm rests to reach other kids in our group just to be able to pray for them. Remember, this was stadium seating, people don't just go around standing on arm rests--that was God.

There is always a service on Sunday; however, our youth pastor chooses to do a service with just our kids at our cabin before we leave to come home. This always adds an even more personal level to an already amazing weekend. As a part of our service, he opened the floor to anyone that wanted to give a testimony of the weekend. One-by-one several students and adults stood to tell what God had done for them this weekend.

I won't disclose the specifics of what some of these kids are going through, but I will tell you this: Kids (teens) go through SO much more than we can imagine. We have kids in our group that their parents don't go to church and they have to beg on a weekly basis just to be able to come on Wednesday nights, kids whose parents curse God with no regard to their children, kids who seem like they have it ALL together yet they contemplate suicide, kids who think that they are not beautiful or good enough because they don't feel like they fit the image that society tells them they should, and the list goes on and on.

This experience changes their lives and our lives. The first thing my wonderful, God-fearing husband did when we got home last night was to sit down on the kitchen floor and hold our daughter. He had her look into his eyes and he told her, "YOU are Daddy's princess. You are beautiful and I LOVE YOU."

That is what kids need--PURE LOVE!! They just need to be loved through every mistake, every hard time and to know that there parents believe in them. They need to be inspired to reach that extra degree but NOT rebuked and held to a standard of perfection that is unreasonable.

Fanning the flame,

Tara