"Enjoy the LITTLE THINGS in life for one day you will look back and realize they were the big things."


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Come on in and sit awhile while I talk about the "Little Things" in life. I will share my journey of everyday life.... homeschooling, raising my children, homesteading, gardening, health and wellness, and real life.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

I Will Share A Well Kept SECRET... Johnny Carino's BARGAIN

Well, I made it through the closet! Hmmm... the reality is only half way... really 1/3 of the way. I never planned to do mine or my husbands, so I made it through two of the four kid sections. I still call that an accomplishment!! Come on... I have a five month old baby in the house along with the others. Maybe I will work on the others over the coming days.

I have also had a revelation regarding what will be the successful routine for her home with homeschooling. Not so much a revlation as it is the same theory that I had from the very beginning. I just had to try a few things to come back to my original idea!! Isn't that the way it usually goes. I was trying out doing the bulk of teaching my second grader and pre-Ker all during my two year old sons afternoon naptime. Great thought, except that if he did not sleep long then that idea was a flop. So, I end up stressing to get it done and all the while shortchanging my little pupils. I decided that my original plan has got to be the route to go. Get up early, get the kids ready first for whatever the day holds and could hold. That means on MOST days get them fed and dressed as if we are going somewhere just in case we are feeling spunky and want to go out. Do my second graders lessons early and have hers done in two to three hours before lunch time. This will allow them the chance to play outside or in the house, do computer stuff, play games, or whatever and still get thirty minutes of school done with my pre-Ker. My older one can help me "teach" which in turn they both learn from and get to do the fun little projects. Also, my two year old will then be sleeping for the really messy craft projects.

Okay, okay.... about the messy projects and my little son being eliminated.... he can participate sometime. The room we work in is carpeted and we hope to change that eventually, but in the meantime we don't really want a disaster are for out learning room. He does do some art with us in his highchair because he tends to be a roamer and destroyer. The less messy stuff we do allow him to do, but let me tell the room has the scars already to show it all. Today it was a dry erase marker run through the carpet... did I mention that the carpet is light beige? Oh yeah, it shows it all. We have chalk stains on the floor from the first week of homeschool. Who knew chalk would stain!?

Tonight I am topic hopping! So, my next topic is saving a dime. Apparently, I have hit on a well kept secret that I shall share with you tonight. We try to save money when dining out. I mean even if we CAN afford it now there is going to come a time when these little ones are all going to require a "meal" of their own or get bigger appetites. Sahara doesn't eat, yet and Caden gets a rather small portion. Of course, Sierrra and Savannah don't exactly eat large protions either being that they are so young. Our favorite place to eat is Johnny Carino's Italian Restaurant, so about seven months ago we discovered that we can eat there for cheaper than our second fav spot, Pizza Hut!!! Imagine that... a nice restaurant and it is cheaper than an all you can eat buffet night at Pizza Hut!! The thing is that if you are familiar with Carino's meals they have regular entre portions and then they have the grandisimo family portions. On Monday nights they offer the grandisimo portion at the regular entre price. An example would be that the regular Chicken Parm would have one chicken breast and the grandisimo would have five!! When we eat out we mostly order water for our drinks to save money and to be healthier. Also, this assures that our kids are not just filling their little bellies full of soda and not eating good. So, the first time we tried out the special we got to the end of the meal and they brought the ticket... to our joy the bill was $13.98 !!! FIVE people ate on that!!! Now things have changed a little and if you want salad you have to pay 99 cents more for that...not per person.... that is for everyone at the table!! Well, yeah wouldn't you pay 99 cents more for salad and NOT COMPLAIN!? The end result is dinner out for about $20 bucks... because the waitstaff has got to have a tip, too. We leave filled with the best bread (free, of course), dinner, and salad we could dream of. Also, Mondays are quiet at restaurants and that makes a good night out for us and the kids love to "entertain" the waitstaff, since they have time to talk with the majority of the place empty. SO, my SECRET IS OUT!! And with that I am off to bed...

Hmmmm... one more bargain...it is bargain season for retailers. Anything you want to buy really. Clothing is what I hit at this time of year. The Children's Place is having their Monster Sale. That is 50% off their sale price!! If you wait it out it goes even lower, but you get less to choose from. It will go down to 75% off eventually... Hmmm.. do you shop or do you wait!?!? I got great infant and toddler clothes at Target last night for $2.80, $1.98,even lower. Their stuff goes fast, so you have to just hit it at the right moment. Happy bargaining!

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