[null, null, null, {"document_url": "http://mosshouse.blogspot.com/2010_02_01_archive.html", "unformatted_src": "http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_inFd4FxenKY/S3h_DbXF9SI/AAAAAAAACPU/FaqiPLr-OmI/s320/DSC08265.JPG", "src": "http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_inFd4FxenKY/S3h_DbXF9SI/AAAAAAAACPU/FaqiPLr-OmI/s320/DSC08265.JPG", "formatted_filename": "DSC"}, null, null, {"document_url": "http://mosshouse.blogspot.com/2010_02_01_archive.html", "unformatted_src": "http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_inFd4FxenKY/S3YcYA_nlnI/AAAAAAAACPI/UPANblzgVx0/s320/DSC08224.JPG", "src": "http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_inFd4FxenKY/S3YcYA_nlnI/AAAAAAAACPI/UPANblzgVx0/s320/DSC08224.JPG", "formatted_filename": "DSC"}, null, null, {"document_url": "http://mosshouse.blogspot.com/2010_02_01_archive.html", "unformatted_src": "http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_inFd4FxenKY/S3CsUHfkzVI/AAAAAAAACPA/wVLntIXcBDY/s400/DSC08216.JPG", "src": "http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_inFd4FxenKY/S3CsUHfkzVI/AAAAAAAACPA/wVLntIXcBDY/s400/DSC08216.JPG", "formatted_filename": "DSC"}, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null]

Overheard at the Preschool Today

Philip, is that toothpaste dried on your face?

No, I think it's just dirt from being a little boy.
Posted by Renie Moss at 8:30 PM 2 comments: Links to this post 
Valentine's Day Candy Overload MOMMY!  Did you know that the stick in Lick-a-made is candy too?!
Posted by Renie Moss at 4:54 PM 1 comment: Links to this post 
Big Girl Bed Time We are trying to accomplish two things right now.  (1) Helen to sleep through the entire night entirely in her own bed and (2) reclaim a little space in our little home, perhaps combining Helen and Philip into one room within this year.  In order to accomplish one or both of these tasks, we removed the crib gate from Helen's crib, making it a low day bed.  So far so good....sort of.
Posted by Renie Moss at 9:29 PM No comments: Links to this post 
Couponing Meal So I know this is typically a family memories blog but since we started to clip and use coupons for our grocery shopping, it has become a huge part of our family activities. Take the meal shown above. That's pulled pork BBQ nachos with black beans and Bobby Flay's Queso Sauce. Here are the ingredients along with the price we paid for them:
1 box Velveeta cheese - 93 cents
1 can Rotel diced tomatoes/green chiles - FREE
1 tub Lloyd pulled pork BBQ - $1.25
1 can black beans from ALDI - .$.49
16 oz. cheddar/jack cheese - $1.50
Bag of corn tortilla chips - $.99
tablespoon of chili powder - FREE
tablespoon of Kosher salt - not sure what I paid for this a while back but it's just a tablespoon.

The queso recipe calls for red onion (didn't have it) and green onion (didn't have it).

Total price for this meal was $5.16

We have about 4 cups of amazing queso dip left over for anytime we feel like hardening our arteries again soon. There is also enough BBQ left for Big Philip to have a BBQ sandwich tomorrow for lunch.

So, these are brand name products for free or next to nothing all from couponing at Publix. Our grocery bill each month has gone from $550 to about $350. We do not set foot in Walmart because Walmart will not double coupons that make their everyday low prices NOT the lowest compared to Publix. Anyone not convinced yet?
Posted by Renie Moss at 6:28 PM 4 comments: Links to this post 
Rainy Saturdays

It's been raining for a few days now. I realize this is nothing to complain about compared to our family and friends suffering "snowmageddon" in the northeast. Would it be considered in poor taste to say that we would love to have about ten of the 36 inches that have fallen in the DC area today? We would really love to make a snowman.

Because of the rain, we have to make up things to do in our very, very tiny house. It's actually quite entertaining so I spent this afternoon observing differences in personalities between Helen and Little Philip.

Helen is such a little girl. For my friends that believe in the nurture argument about gender differences, Helen is living proof that nature often takes a commanding lead. I am not a girly-girl, never have been. There were no dolls in my room growing up. I had science test kits, dug in the dirt, built forts in the woods (by the way, thanks Wildwood Walmart for establishing your presence directly on top of my once beautiful fort. I'm still that bitter twelve year old). Enter Helen into our lives. She loves dolls, loves babies, and pulls my necklaces off to try on all the time. In a word, she is all girl. She also has an outstanding sense of imagination. This afternoon Helen disappeared on me for about five minutes. I was in the dining room tagging toys and clothing for an upcoming consignment sale. I went into the kitchen and found Helen sitting in my chair at the table. She had her baby doll firmly clipped into her booster seat. She asked me for a bowl and spoon. I asked her if she needed a bib too to which she replied uh huh (we are working on please and thank you but it's a struggle). She then commenced to feeding her baby. It was so adorable. After catching that little moment I decided to film Little Philip for comparison. Little Philip is a realist, and black and white kind of guy. He has virtually know concept of how to play make believe. If he had happened upon his sister, he would have wondered what in the heck she was doing, maybe even offering to dump real oatmeal into the bowl rather than try to comprehend make believe oatmeal. Instead, Little Philip was happily coloring in the living room, singing his Letter People songs, talking to himself about the characteristics of each letter person. To him, the Letter People are very real. To us, they are practically nauseating. Every night he listens to the Letter People music CD. He has us put his CD player on random (he'll come out a fuss if the songs go in order) and sleep mode. If he is still awake when the music stops, he will come out and tell us to turn it back on. Meanwhile, Helen is snoozing within a minute of going down. However, she'll be up in about three hours. Philip will be out cold. My children seem to be polar opposites right now and it is so intriguing to watch how these differences play out each day.
Posted by Renie Moss at 8:18 PM No comments: Links to this post 
Overheard at the Moss House

At bedtime, just before prayers, a conversation between father and son...

Daddy, did you know there are three Gods?

Really Philip?

Yes, God the Father, God the Son, and then the broccoli said the Holy Ghost. He made a mistake. It's the Holy Spirit.

Some people say Holy Ghost, Philip. Broccoli wasn't wrong.

But most people say Holy Spirit, right Daddy?

Apparently, Little Philip watched Veggietales at school today.

Posted by Renie Moss at 9:35 PM 1 comment: Links to this post