Blogger Spotlight... Julie LeClercq

My friend, Julie LeClercq, is one of the sweetest, smartest ladies I know.  And, she is a fellow mom of mutliples.  She and her husband, Manny, have darling 2-year old triplets!!  Please check out her blog, http://leclercqfamily.blogspot.com/.

Question #1:  How do you take your coffee? 

With flavored creamer, but if that's not available, sugar and milk

Question #2:  How long have you been blogging? 

Since the day we announced we were pregnant with triplets

Question #3:  When you first began blogging, what did you hope to accomplish with your blog?  How, if any, have your blog goals shifted as you've become more experienced? 

At first the blog was intended to keep family and friends informed about our pregnancy.  Now, the blog is a mixture of keeping friends and family informed of what's going on with our family, sort of baby book/memory book type thing for my kids, and also a goal of helping others- whether it be through our infertility story, higher order multiples, etc.

Question #4:  Red wine, white wine, or depends on the occasion, meal, etc.? 

All wine, often.   But, I stick to red with meat and white with seafood and fish.  I also like red in the winter and white in the summer.

Question #5:  Ultimate vacation spot?  Is this somewhere you've been, or hope to visit someday? 

Italy.  I've been and it's my favorite country.  There are plenty of places I hope to visit one day though.

Question #6:  Cheez-its or Cheese Nips? 

Hmm, don't do a lot of either.  Cheez-its.

Question #7:  Describe the perfect date night with your hubby. 

Dinner at a fancy restaurant (Ludivine, The Ranch, Coach House) discussing the details of each of our dishes, maybe a drink or two at a wine bar, and then staying the night in a hotel with no monitor in our ear and the opportunity to sleep in the next morning.

Question #8:  If you could invite one celebrity, past or present, to dinner, who would you invite and why? 

Oprah- She's fascinating and has done so much for so many.  

Question #9:  What is your favorite charitable organization? 

March of Dimes- I start my new job with them next week!

Question #10:  Name three things that you are passionate about in life. 

My family, children in general, and food.

Question #11:  If you could spend the day by yourself, with no phone, email, carpool, errands, etc., how would you spend your day? 

A massage and pedicure, a nap, and reading a book with a nice glass of wine.  

Question #12:  What advice would you give to someone that has just begun blogging? 

Blog often or people lose interest.  I don't blog often enough!

Question #13:  What is one of your favorite family traditions? 

Having gumbo on Christmas Eve- a little unique and ties our family to our Louisiana heritage.

Question #14:  Name three baby items that you thought you had to have pre-kids, but now that you've had kids, realize you didn't really need.  Name three baby must-haves.

Must haves: boppy, monitor, lovey

Not necessary:   car seat positioner/accessories (just use blankets), bottle warmer (just use warm water in a cup), wipes warmer

Question #15:  What is your favorite drink from Sonic?
Classic cherry limeaid

Blogger Spotlight... Alyssa Siler

I thought it might be fun to highlight some of my fellow bloggers.  They each have different reasons for entering the blog world, and their posts are often funny, witty, thought provoking, inspiring and informative.  I hope that you might be able to find something interesting for yourself in my favorite blogs!

Let me introduce my friend, Alyssa Siler.  Her blog, http://notesfromthecastle.blogspot.com/, is a joy.  Check it out!

Question #1:  How do you take your coffee?
Bleh. I don't take it at all.  My husband, on the other hand, needs about three cups in the morning just to be human.

Question #2:  How long have you been blogging? 
For a couple of years.  I took last year off from my personal blog to keep up the Mrs. Oklahoma blog after I won that title.  I just passed on the crown in January and started back with my blog recently.

Question #3:  When you first began blogging, what did you hope to accomplish with your blog?  How, if any, have your blog goals shifted as you've become more experienced?
I originally thought it would be a family scrapbook of sorts.  I figured it would be the perfect place to document things going on with Hayden, funny things she said, pictures, etc.  I still do talk about my family but I have found that it has become a great outlet for me to....well, to be me!  I have always dreamed of writing a beauty column and I have kind of started to do that with certain posts focusing on products I love.  I'll also share craft and decorating tutorials that I have found.  Some days are just completely random thoughts.  I hope that it has become a blog with personality that people enjoy keeping up with.

Question #4:  Red wine, white wine, or depends on the occasion, meal, etc.?
 Let me put it this way:  If it isn't so fruity and frou-frou that you can't taste the alcohol, I don't want any part of it.  I'm just not really a drinker. Try as I might to like wine and champagne, I just don't.  My husband thinks it totally unromantic. Lol   Now give me a frozen strawberry whatever or any after-dinner drink with "Oreo" in the title and we're talking!

Question #5:  Ultimate vacation spot?  Is this somewhere you've been, or hope to visit someday?
BER-MU-DA.  We went there eight years ago for our honeymoon and I've been dreaming of going back ever since.

Question #6:  Cheez-its or Cheese Nips?
There's cheese involved in both so neither can be that bad.  I'll say Cheez-its.

Question #7:  Describe the perfect date night with your hubby.
If we are being fancy (a rarity), dinner at Signature Grill.  If it's low-key, then dinner at a more casual place and a romantic comedy movie at AMC.  He's really good about seeing rom-coms with me while I completely refuse to see any man-ish movies.  It works out great!

Question #8:  If you could invite one celebrity, past or present, to dinner, who would you invite and why?
Read question #9 first so this answer makes more sense.  She's only considered a celebrity in the cystic fibrosis community but, Beth Sufian.  She is a lawyer who, while battling CF herself, fights tirelessly for the rights of others with the disease.  Her work is all done pro bono and she has helped so many fight their insurance companies to get access to meds and equipment that are vital to their health. I met her briefly at a CFF conference in D.C. but I find her inspiring and fascinating and I'd love to talk with her in depth.

Question #9:  What is your favorite charitable organization?
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.  Our daughter Hayden, who will be five in July, was diagnosed with CF at birth.  It is an ugly disease with a current life-expectancy of 37.5.  It causes the lungs, and other areas of the body, to fill up with a thick, sticky mucus.  This causes lung infections and inflammation and a loss of lung function.  The medical research has come leaps and bounds in recent years and it is projected that, by the year 2020, the science books will need to be re-written where CF is concerned.  The science isn't possible without donations, however.  Ryan and I are so proud to be a part of the only foundation putting 90 cents of every dollar donated straight to medical research.  They WILL discover the drug that will save Hayden's life.  I am so confident of that.  For more info on Hayden and CF you can watch this video I put together by following this link:  http://www.onetruemedia.com/otm_site/view_shared?p=c89fe0db215424f80618fe&skin_id=701&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=text_url

Question #10:  Name three things that you are passionate about in life.
Being a part of making CF stand for "cure found", leading worship at my church, and spending way more time and money than necessary at Hobby Lobby.

Question #11:  If you could spend the day by yourself, with no phone, email, carpool, errands, etc., how would you spend your day?
Do I have to??? Please don't take my laptop and IPhone away!

Question #12:  What advice would you give to someone that has just begun blogging?
Don't put too much pressure on yourself to become a blog-writing machine.  I did that in the beginning and became so caught up in creating a new post everyday that I was ignoring other things I needed to be doing.  What?? My family wants dinner again tonight???? That sort of thing.

Question #13:  What is one of your favorite family traditions?
My father passed away last year, so our tradition of an annual father/daughter pumpkin carving we had when I was growing up is near and dear to my heart.  He actually carved a pumpkin with Hayden the last year before he became ill and I will always treasure those pictures.  I want to start that tradition with Ryan and Hayden this year.

Question #14:  Name three baby items that you thought you had to have pre-kids, but now that you've had kids, realize you didn't really need.  Name three baby must-haves. 
Things I didn't actually need: a wipie warmer, the Diaper Genie, and a separate cradle outside the bedroom.  Things we would not have made it without: the swing, the swaddlers, and our car to drive around at night to put her to sleep!

Question #15:  What is your favorite drink from Sonic?
LemonBerry Sprite!! It's a mixture of strawberry lemonade and Sprite.  It's so refreshing and caffeine-free which is good for me right now while I'm preggo!

Casual Chic

I'm still fascinated by the newly married Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.  I can't get enough of all the media coverage, all the details of her dress, the wedding, the jewels, Pippa, Harry, the bridesmaids and pageboys, the crazy hats and fascinators (see here, so bizarre) - basically all of it!  I even purchased the Collector's Edition People magazine!  Did/does anyone else's mom have a drawer with important magazine covers?  To name a few, my mom had the Jackie Kennedy cover, the Challenger explosion cover, the Princess Diana cover.  Actually, as I type, I'm noticing that these are all really tragic news stories... All news worthy, sure, but kinda eery.  Maybe I'll start my own drawer, but I think I'll start with the fairy tale of these royal lovebirds :)  The magazine is on newstands now.

This week, it was "news" that the royal couple had returned to their normal lives, and that Kate was spotted grocery shopping at her local market.  This is all public knowledge, now, but I learned some fun new tidbits about her that I love.  Things of note:

• She wears a ponytail holder around her wrist - glad I'm not the only one!  And, I wonder if her mom gripes at her about it like mine does me.  It drives my mom crazy!
• She loaded her own groceries in her car, even though she had personal bodyguards with her - love that :)
• She not only does her own shopping, but she cooks!  Supposedly, The couple will not be employing chefs, butlers, valets or any other type of help beyond their security detail.
• They live in a 1500-square foot farmhouse!  Maybe my favorite detail.  In case you missed it, I hope to build my own farmhouse someday.

Here are some fun pictures of Kate on her grocery store run.  She looks sweet and happy.  As if I really know her...  :)



She is adorable.  Darling, and casually chic in her skinny jeans and ballet flats.  I wonder what was on her grocery list?!?  Maybe someday she'll author a cookbook - wouldn't that be awesome!

Couponing, Week 2: What I've learned

Little by little, I feel like I'm starting to get the hang of this whole couponing thing.  In a post earlier this week, I mentioned my trip to Homeland.  I didn't have the camera handy at the time to include with that post, but I did actually snap a picture of my purchases.  I got all of this, including several packages of meat, baby food, tons of produce, plenty of snacks for the boys, lunch items, and laundry detergent...  for $116.  This will completely get us through all of this week and hopefully, at least through the middle of next week.  The only things we might have to stop for between now and then are milk and formula, which is pretty normal for us.  We drink a lot of milk, maybe 4-6 gallons per week!  Remember, though, Hiland milk is on sale at Walgreens through Saturday, May 7th, for $2.69/gallon! :)

So, what I've learned this week:

• It's important to begin establishing a stock pile.  If you don't cook often, it may take a bit longer to do this than those of us that cook regularly.  But, stick with it and gradually, you'll only have to buy a few extra items for your recipes.  
• Below are a few quick examples.  I do cook quite a bit, and these are a few items that I typically buy, or have, on hand:
• Large white onion (chop it up finely and freeze if you don't cook often, and you can pull it out when needed.  This is a great staple that adds some great flavor to many recipes)
• Medium red onion (great on burgers)
• A few ripe tomatoes (great for salads, BLT's, burgers, or even sandwiches)
• Lettuce (again, salad, burgers and BLT's)
• I always have butter, sugar, eggs, flour, cooking oil and vanilla on hand, for sweet treats!
• Plenty of salt and pepper
• I almost always have hamburger meat.  If you find a good price on meat, stock up and buy 3 or 4.  These freeze great, and are easy to pull out and whip up something for your family.  Same goes for chicken!
• Let's say you're hungry for hamburgers, but you're out of hamburger buns.  Save yourself a trip to the store and just grill the meat as you normally would, but instead, serve the hamburger patties without the bread.  Serve with macaroni and cheese, corn on the cob, or some tater tots.  Add lots of mustard, and enjoy :)  Your kids are sure to enjoy it as well!
• Taking your lunch helps save money!  My kids are pretty picky, or I guess typical 4-year olds, when it comes to eating.  They like the really healthy stuff, like corn dogs, macaroni, chips, and cookies - things like that! :)  In a perfect world, I would make one family meal and everyone would eat it.  Unfortunately, that isn't the case in our house.  So, there is often quite a bit left over from dinner.  As I clean up the kitchen after dinner, I've been packing tomorrow's lunch using the extras from tonight's dinner.  This helps me because, 1) I don't have to rush around in the morning to get lunch ready, 2) it saves money, and 3) food doesn't go to waste.  Try it for a few days, it isn't so bad!
• When making your grocery list, consider what your meals might be for the week, if not longer.  Often, you'll see plenty of snack-type foods that are on special, but that won't feed your family for dinner.  I think it's okay to load up on snacks when the prices are good, but don't forget the healthy stuff, too!  Here are some links for chicken and beef products:
• Click HERE for a $1 off coupon for Pilgrim's Pride Chicken products (can be found at Homeland)
• Click HERE for $1 off Red River Angus beef products (can be found at Homeland)
• Click HERE for $1 off Smart Chicken coupon
• Click HERE for Birds Eye Steamfresh veggies
• If you've started following the various coupon blogs, you'll see that they often will share different success stories of their grocery trips.  But, one thing I'm noticing is that they seem to be smaller trips with only a few items at a time, not bulk trips like I did this week.  It may be that they've been doing this for so long, that they really only need a few items.  If that's the case, that is great!  But, personally, I just don't have enough time to make several small trips - I've got to knock it all out while I'm there, and hopefully, include as many good deals as I can in one trip.  They must have a bigger freezer than I.
• Slowly, but surely, my coupons are stacking up.  Remember to look each Sunday for the coupon inserts in the paper.  Also, check online for other coupons.  I listed some of my favorites from one of my earlier posts.  Click here for those suggestions.

Good luck to all of you that might also be starting this journey!  Feel free to share any tips and tricks that you've learned along the way :)

Regan