Super Saver Sunday!

This one's from Nicole and it's great!! Thanks girlie!!!

Where is Your Money Hiding?

Thanks to Allison for the great Navy Wife blog link (www.happyhousewife.com) !!! If you haven't yet you definitely need to go check it out--NOW!! Well, not quite now, finish reading my thing please....but then go look!

I have to credit them with this fabulous idea...I think...O.o Oh dear...too much blogstalking and now I don't remember where I got this idea from...but in any event here it is!!!

On one of my fabulous blogs it suggested that you really do have money, you don't really realize it's money because it looks like this:

We all have one of these right?? while in the past we have resorted to this jar for fun stuff or a little extra money when times were tight the blog had a great tip for using it that would not annoy cashiers, your bank ppl, or involve you rolling them all up. You know those handy dandy little self checkouts everywhere has now?? The ones that frusterate even me with my 3+ years of cashiering experience?? Yeah those ones? Well they have this nifty little change counter so you can fork in all your change and it'll add it all up and take it all off your bill. :D Of course, you might not want to try this out at Wal-Mart during rush hour...but if you time it right the idea is ingenous!!!
Later on today I'm hoping to go shopping with some birthday money I recieved, and was supposed to buy some things from Bob for me as well. However July seems like it's THE month other than December for expenses. Everyone basically in my family has a birthday this month and I'm flying back to visit my family for a month, and then there's those pesky license plate tags you always forget about till their due...uggg..seriously why does a little green sticker cost over $100???!!! Anyways....there's no money in our account to get myself a present from hubby...not to mention his b-day is this Sunday :S So I decided to go change diving and with just by pulling out the quarters I came up with $25!!!! Woo Hoo!! I plan on spending that on myself at TJ Maxx or Ross and using the change when I go grocery shopping later :) I'll have to send a pic next time of the fabulous outfit I buy with change!!!! :D

Family Dinner Fridays

Thanks to Nicole for sending in this recipe. My dishes have been quite lacking here lately... I guess it corresponds with my mood during this move. But Nicole has sent us a yummy dish to try out!! Let us know how you think it is!


I realize that every recipe I've sent in is chicken....we really do eat other stuff...I promise, I guess it's just that my beef recipes aren't all that interesting, Haha!! :) I'll get to some of them eventually I'm sure ;) In the mean time here is another delicious chicken recipe!!! I usually halve this recipe, works great and makes it so I don't have a million leftovers! And I always use stuffing :)


Creamy Baked Chicken Breasts

8 chicken breasts
8 slices Swiss Cheese
2 Cans Cream of Chicken Soup
1 Can Milk
1 cup herb seasoned stuffing mix or bread crumbs
1/4 cup butter melted

Arrange chicken on a lightly greased 13x9 pan. Top with cheese; combine soup and milk; spoon evenly over chicken; sprinkle with stuffing; drizzle with butter over crumbs.

Bake at 350 degrees 45-55 min.

May serve over rice.



PS. I think it is soo cute that you included a glass of milk with your dinner!! Classic!

Super Saver Sunday!

Ok I know I missed Friday, we literally ate nothing! Just snacked on fruit. We are moving so life is crazy. And it's not one of those TMO takes care of it kinda moves. More like MOMMAFAMBRO CONQUERORS it all kinda moves! LOL Anyways this is the subject of my Saver Tip this week


I just packed up my laundry room where I also keep all of my cleaning chemicals. We have been using up these chemicals to transition to a more budget/eco friendly variety of cleaning supplies and also so that I can cut down on the amount of different chemicals I have to buy. I am a weird woman who HATES shopping in a store and am constantly on the lookout for the most multipurpose reusable something to keep me out of the retail world. (For three years my soul was sold to Wal-Mart and I am afraid I shall never recover! ;-) Anyways I just became disgusted with the amount of extra chemicals that you just HAVE to have when setting up a house. I packed away TWO I repeat TWO BOXES of cleaning supplies that were either duplicates or something I thought I would use!

So my tip for the week is on organization. When shopping for anything, make a list and STICK TO IT! I can guarantee you that those two boxes of cleaning supplies were all impulse buys by either my husband or myself. Stick to your list and unless you KNOW you need it don't get it. This will save you money time and space in your house. Because really who needs TWO Gallons of Windex???

Super Saver Sunday!

Alright guys here it is, my super saving finds of the week! Well, for one Walgreens is supporting our troops and their families by offering a 15% discount on purchases on Mondays! All you have to do is show your Military ID before the transaction!! Of course this excludes prescriptions, tobacco, and alcohol, but there are so many more goodies inside than just that!! So remember Military Mondays at Walgreens

Saving Sighting number 2 this week came from a friend of mine here in Florida. Since I have joined my organic buying club and rave about it all the time she told me about another source of groceries at a deal. It's called Angel Food Ministries. Now at first I thought this was a charity only but no it's for anyone. It acts like a buying club where you place your order for a share and you get roughly $65 for $30!! You can see what's on the menu before you order which is nice. Just go to www.angelfoodministries.com So there you have it!! Save your money and fill your bellies!!

Oops I forgot.

Not to have a family dinner on Friday, but just to blog about it. Honestly my meal planning routine has been shot to you know where ever since my daughter got out of the hospital but anyways. No excuse right? Right.

Now my family is personally on a new healthy eating changeover that is including the extreme reduction if not elimination of meat. No, I don't think cows should be pets instead of a steak on my plate, I am just making the choice with all of the hormones and crap out there to limit our intake of all of that. So most of my meal suggestions will be meat free, so if you want some meat, blog it up and send it to me!! LOL

Ok on to my meal. This is my latest favorite dish.

Allison's Tomato Bisque Soup

3-4 large tomatoes

1 can of tomato sauce

1 small can of evaporated milk

Basil, Bay leaf, pinch of salt, a little pepper, and oregano (I have no measurements here just a pinch and a palm and whatever, think Rachel Ray guys!)

Throw all of this together and let cook for a while, then if you want a really smooth consisteny throw it in the food processor to do up the tomatoes.

Once cooked up take about a half a cup of all purpose flour and slowl add it in to the soup. This will thicken the soup and give you mini biscuits or pastas if you will.

Serve garnished with some parmesean and a little parsley and MMMMMMM GOOD!!!

Super Awesome Finds!!

I don't know about you but I just get giddy all over when I stumble across a deal, a freebie, or any absolutely awesome something. Whether it comes from a friend, a blog, or a late night stroll across the world wide web, awesome deals are just....awesome!!

In a previous post I talked about the Miami Children's Museum offering their Free Friday every third Friday of the month, well I had heard rumors that the Miami Art Museum offered the same kind of deal but wasn't too sure when the dates were. Well today I found out!!

I am a part of a Meetup Group for "Natural Mamas" and we mainly discuss things through e-mail threads. One of these wonderful ladies sent us the e-mail on free events in and around Miami and lo and behold the Miami Art Museum was on the List!! And the best part of all?? Free weekend is this comming weekend!! YAYAYAYAY!!

I am so excited, I love to go and experience art and just get wrapped up in it. My son loves it too as the bright colors and abstract paintings lead to wild imaginations and long discussions. He is my artsy guy. My daughter however could care less. Give her dirt she's happy. But we are off this Saturday to Check it out!! But look for yourself online at http://www.miamiartmuseum.org/

Score #2 TODAY was for Bank Of America customers. BOA has partnered with a few museums around the nation and allow their customers in free on certain weekends! And boy oh boy there are listings in Miami!!! It ranges from the Miami Art Museum to the Miami Science Museum and all around. There are locations in Ft Lauderdale and beyond!! Check it out to see if there is anything cool and FREE near you at http://museums.bankofamerica.com/

With all these freebies around here my social calendar is getting full... well my kids social calendar anyways lol!!!

Super Saver Sunday!

Ok this one is going to totally be a plug for another blog, but there is too much info in this site not to share it. www.thehappyhousewife.com
This is a Navy Wife with half a dozen kids and blogs about living frugally and the deals to get for military. Go ahead check it out and subscribe to her blog it's absolutely awesome!

Family Dinner Fridays

This one's from our new contributor Paulina!

Tofu Cincinnati Chili
I am constantly looking for new ways to sneak tofu into a meal. Last night I experimented with a few other recipes I have acquired, and viola! I made what I believe to be the best chili ever, hands down. Round of applause please. If your family squishes up their noses when they hear 'tofu', try my trick: don't tell them. They'll never know. What's the trick to making the tofu have a 'ground beef' like consistency? Freezing it!
Ingredients:
2 Tbs. Olive oil
5 Cloves of fresh garlic, minced
1/2 of a medium-sized onion, minced
1 Red bell pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 Tsp. paprika
1/2 Tsp. ground cumin
1 Tsp. chili powder (round up to more if you want more 'chili' taste)
1/8 Tsp. cayenne pepper ***optional*** this is where you have complete control over how spicy you want your chili
1 Package of Tofu- Frozen and then completely thawed before cooking
2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
1/4 cube of unsweetened baking chocolate (not too much, literally two pinches to have that famous sweet/spicy duo)
1/2 Cup vegtable stock
1 Can chili beans
1 Can red kidney beans
2 Ears of fresh corn
***Absolutely mandatory to the recipe: Micheal Jackson's "Rock With You" while using the spoon as a microphone: I can't guarantee your chili will be mind blowing (like mine) if you don't do this***
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. Saute garlic onions on med/low heat until onions are transparent

2. Add bell pepper and spices, stir.
3. Now for the tofu: Once the block is defrosted, I like to cut the tofu in three pieces (the size or cut does not matter at all, I just feel it helps me get all the water out). Freezing tofu makes for a completely un-tofu-like texture. It is like a sponge, and soaks up just about everything. Since you want to tofu to hold all your yummy spices, hold the tofu over the sink and squeeze (like a sponge) out all the water it has retained. Once you've done this to all the tofu, just crumble it up with your fingers and put it right into the pot. Any big pieces left you can continue breaking down with a spatula right in the pan.
4. Add apple cider vinegar, chocolate and vegetable stock. Let it simmer for a couple minutes until about half of the liquid evaporates. Here is where it starts looking brown and crumbly like ground beef. Sneaky-sneaky.




5. Add your beans, lower the temperature to a simmer, and let the chili "do it's thing" in the pan for about 45 minutes. If too dry: sprinkle with veggie stock.
6. Meanwhile cook your corn, then cut length-wise (think hard of when you had braces back in middle school and you had to cut the corn to prevent billy/susie from not wanting to kiss you)
7. Serve in soup bowls and sprinkle with corn. Honestly though, you can sprinkle with anything (sour cream, cilantro, chips, love)
8. Eat. Enjoy. (While watching the Bachelorette and loving Jillian).


Recipe by Paulina Underwood, Husband stationed in Charleston, SC

Coastie Wives Corner Proudly Presents.....

Paulina Underwood our newest contributor to Coastie Wives Corner Blog!


About Paulina:
At the age of 22 Paulina ran away from home to join the cicus with her sailor husband. She partakes in the central show every night as the clown. She is famous for her juggling act where she balances various balls, some of which are labeled "family" "home" "sanity".


Translation: At the age of 22 Paulina married a handsome man in the Coast Guard and partakes in military-life transition while enjoying being a stay at home mother.


Follow her at http://monamayi.blogspot.com/

And if you would like to contribute please email coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com

A wonderful Free place to visit in South Florida

One of the first things that we did when moving to South Florida was to look for things to do as a family. Since we had no idea what my husband's work schedule was going to be, I wanted to find as many fun things to do together for the times that he wasn't on the boat. By a lovely accident we happened upon Pinecrest Gardens. http://www.pinecrest-fl.gov/gardens.htm

This is a lovely Botanical Garden that is free to the public and offers walking trails, a petting zoo, a playground, and a splash pad. The Splash Pad costs $3 per child but the rest of the park is free and breathtakingly beautiful. The park also offers different programs for all ages, and of course is available for rental for the perfect wedding location.

I think my favorite park of this amazing place was how wonderful everything smelt. Being a girl who loves the forest, I was beginning to miss the fresh air being in this large city area. But walking into Pinecrest Gardens just smells amazing! Just so clean! Both of my children loved it here, be it the beautiful flowers and awesome greenery, the fun pathways or funky trees to climb in, or the massive amounts of lizards and turtles and all sorts of fun things for little boys to chase after. You definitely have to make this a stop on your list.

Remember to send in your favorite places from where you are stationed to coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com

Super Saver Sunday!... Well Monday

Back when we first started this blog Nicole added her bit on a Super Saver Sunday which included the advice of looking around and asking for ideas. Truer words could not be spoken. With the advances of the internet we now have the world and all of it's crazy ideas at our fingertips. Now they have even created a search engine to combat our information overload from other search engines!! Crazy!!

It is always nice to find a site that is easy to navigate and has much of the information that you want. Well I have one for you. www.frugallygreen.blogspot.com

We are in the throws of a resource and energy overhaul in this country and many companies are capitalizing on the going green movement. This blog dispells all of their commercialism and gets back to the tried and true methods of living life with as few chemicals and waste as possible without draining your wallet. Check it out and see if one or two of their ideas and recipes would work for your home!

Pizza and BBQ?

Who would have thought? Apparently Nicole did since she sent in the recipe this week as a contribution to Family Dinner Friday. And you know what? It looks REALLY yummy!!


Here is her recipe and comments...

This is my personal favorite meal I make. It's SO delicous and easy :) I personally use Cattleman's bbq sauce and the wal-mart brand pizza dough. It doesn't roll well though so I just leave it in the square form it comes out in and bake it like that. It works great! :)




BBQ Chicken Pizza

1 package (10 oz) refrigerated pizza crust
1 1/2 cups (6 oz) shredded Colby and Monterey Jack cheese blend, divided
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1/2 cup barbeque sauce
1/2 cup diced green bell pepper
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Roll pizza crust into a 12-inch circle. Sprinkle crust with one cup of cheese.

2. In small bowl combine chicken and barbeque sauce; toss to coat. Dice bell pepper and thinly slice red onion. Top crust with chicken mixture, bell pepper and onion. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese.

3. Bake 15-20 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Yield 8 servings

Food for Thought.....

Ok to be honest I was not the most careful or paranoid person when I was pregnant with my kids. I drank sodas with caffeine, ate whatever it was that I wanted and listened to my body if it said I was doing too much. Basically I did what my mom did so I figured I was safe. Right?

Moving to South Florida has really changed my perspective on looking at the foods I eat and how they are grown and my family and I have begun to focus on purchasing things that are more responsible for our bodies, our planet, and our pocket book. It just seemed like the right thing to do for us because of all the junk they spray and taint foods and things we use with today. I came across this article today on Sparks people so I thought I would share.


Q. Does eating organic foods before and during pregnancy reduce medical issues for the baby?


A.Research has yet to prove an adverse health effect from consuming the low levels of pesticides commonly found in U.S. food. But for the most vulnerable groups -- children and pregnant women -- going organic whenever possible for fruits and vegetables that carry the heaviest pesticide load makes sense. For organic meat, poultry, eggs, and milk, the direct health benefit is less clear.

Pesticide contaminants pose the biggest risk to children and fetuses. Pesticides have been shown to cross the placenta during pregnancy, and a study by scientists at the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health in New York found a link between pesticide use in New York apartments and impaired fetal growth. Another study, from the University of Washington in Seattle, found that preschoolers fed conventional diets had six times the level of certain pesticides in their urine as those who ate organic foods. A 2003 report from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention detected twice the level of some pesticides in the urine of children as in that of adults.

Few doubt that high doses of pesticides can cause neurological or reproductive damage. With infant reproductive organs still forming and the brain developing through age 12, and with young livers and immune systems less able to rid bodies of contaminants, eating organic is more important for children and pregnant or breast-feeding women.

Just some food for thought on the matter. I would say 97% of our produce is organic or grown out of out little garden in our backyard. When we first started buying organic I panicked at the cost. But then we found organic co-ops and buying clubs. I have been involved in two since being down here and they are great! It's a wonderful way to meet similar minded people and get organic foods at lower costs than in the grocery store.

Like I said I have been involved in 2 organic co-ops since moving down here the first one being K-N-D Organics co-op http://groups.yahoo.com/group/K-N-DOrganicCo-op/ which is founded by a friend and a really sweet deal.

The othe that I have been involved with is Annie's Buying Club http://anniesbuyingclub.com/ this one is a bit bigger of a group but just as yummy food.

So if you are n South Florida check these out for yourselves and your families. And if you are not check yahoo for local organics groups or just google your area to see what comes up! Because who cares if your kids eat their veggies if they are coated in poison!!

Ok that may be a bit harsh, but you get the idea! Remember the old saying, "You are what you eat!" It doesn't just apply to pizza and icecream anymore!!!

Super Saver Sunday!

Oh thank goodness for Nicole!! These past few weeks have been crazy! I will tell you all about it when it is situated and a positive outcome is resolved (because I have faith that it will), but in the meantime here is Nicole Elliot's contribution to Super Saver Sunday!


Super Saver Sunday

At a Coast Guard bbq we were having in celebration of our Ant. Ft. Macon boys coming in 3rd (woo hoo!!!!) we were all discussing phone bills and prices and it got me thinking. I was surprised to find out that the other Coasties there didn't realize that many cell companies provide a substantial military discount. We have Verizon and they give us a 15% discount each month which was super easy to get, I'm not even sure what we did but I think all they required was either a LES or a copy of your military ID. There are so many ways being in the military can benefit you if you only know about them! On our move out here we only stayed in motels that gave a military discount. We recently went to the on-base movie theater and paid $9 total for 2 tickets, a popcorn, and 2 drinks. You can't even get in to the (not very nice) civilian theaters around here for that!!! So what I'm saying is, be sure to always ask about military discounts!!! It can't hurt and might save you a bunch of money!

As always if you have any goodies to post e-mail me at coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com

Family Dinner Friday---Only one day Late ;-)

This week's dinner come's from Nicole and boy does it sound good!


"Here's my contribution for the week. This is a sure kid-pleaser but my hubby LOVES it as well. I would have taken a picture but it's so popular in our house that they devored it before I could get my camera! One thing I love about it is the fact that you probably already have all the ingredients at your house! I usually always serve baked beans with it. "

Crunchy Honey Mustard Chicken Fingers
Serves 4 hungry kids—double up for the rest of the family!

4 small, boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup honey, warmed
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 cup corn flakes, crushed

Preheat oven to 425. Lightly grease a cookie sheet

In a small bowl, mix Dijon and warmed honey together till well mixed.
Put crushed corn flakes in a separate bowl.

Slice chicken into 3/4 inch strips. Dip in honey mustard mix. Then
roll in crushed corn flakes and put on cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until done.


As always if you would like to contribute please send me an e-mail @ coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com! Have a wonderful day!

Ever been to the Everglades?

If you are ever stationed in South Florida or Florida period you must visit the Everglades. There are various locations to hit up but we personally like the one with the most guranteed wildlife sighting. And by wildlife I mean GATORS!!! No there are no cages keeping these large lizards at bay, and if you come out at night you may come across one a bit closer than you want, but the experience is to die for. Close to our house in Homestead, Fl is the Anaghina Trail. I know I have not spelled it correctly but oh well! LOL It is amazing!!



I suggest if you are living down here for any period of time you buy the year pass for $25 since it's $10 a car to get in. That way you can go back anytime, plus it's always great to take your family to and completely freak them out! Also NEVER go during the summer/rainny season unless you want to be carried away by the mosquitos. The wildlife doesn't come out as much anyways because it is so darn hot. But here is a tantalizing shot!!! (BTW no zoom was used in this picture!!)

Oh my goodness!!

As you have probably noticed I haven't posted anything for a bit. It's not totally because I have been slack. We have been in the hospital with my daughter for respiratory distress for the past week. It was so scary and although I am not going to dwell on this issue I must say that with all of the craziness and issues that we have to go through for our "free" health care in the military, it is wonderful to know that they cover emergencies 100%. Because when dealing with this...

You don't want to think about anything else!! (And yes my daughter refuses to wear clothes quite often!!) I will catch back up soon!

Super Saver Sunday!

Ok to be honest I am not in a Super Saving mood today due to some unforseen broohaha with our Home Owner's Association, which completely ruined my cool plans for today of making laundry soap. But I will make it and send out the photos and recipes for next Sunday. Oh well, life happens right?

Ok my big saver tip for this week has to do with party planning. As summer gets closer we tend to have more friends over and get together for those backyard bar-b-que's. One way to cut down the cost of those parties is to make it a potluck. Now for some this may seem like the most common sense idea in the world, but if any of you are like my husband you may benefit from these few tips.

1. When planning a potluck write down all the essentials (plates, spoons, forks, etc.)
2. As the host you should provide the meat ONLY!! (well maybe one side)
3. Don't be afraid to let people know what to bring
4. Always enlist 2 people for the same item (just in case)
5. Keep your list by your phone because there is always going to be that person that calls last minute wanting you to suggest something to bring. This way you know exactly what you may need.

We just had a potluck party at our house this weekend and it went beautifully. My husband coordinated this one and he did do a great job of getting everyone here. Unfortunately quite a few of our guests were at a loss as to what to bring so they called me for suggestions. This is where the list comes in really handy. There were probably 20 people at our house and on our end the whole thing cost $50. Yay for delegation!!

If you have a Super Saving tip that you would like to share, send it in to coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com Have a great day!

Family Dinner Fridays

These are such important posts for me because growing up we always were blessed to eat dinner mostly as a family. My dad worked a lot during the week but he would eat with us when he could and always on the weekends. This was the place where we caught up on the week, talked about our passions and plans, and all in the company of good food!

Admittedly we would always whine as kids to go out to eat, or in my case to just eat "normal" food (my mom likes to try the most off the wall stuff), but I am very greatful that my parents didn't succumb to this all the time. We spent so much quality time around our family dinner table, and I hope to pass this on to my children.

This week's dinner will feature my hubby's birthday dish. He is originally from Texas and comes from a little border town called Del Rio. Needless to say he and his family grew up on and completely love Mexican inspired dishes. So for his birthday I decided to make him Navajo Tacos ( a personal favorite of mine). And of course a sinfully delicious cake.

Navajo Tacos;
Bread: 3c flour, 1tsp salt, 3tsp baking soda, 2tbsp shortening, warm water
Combine all ingredients except water first. Then add water one tablespoon at a time until dough consistensy is achieved. Knead up and let sit for about 20 min. Take tablespoon size pieces of dough and roll them out to form a flat circle. Fry in hot vegetable oil on both sides for about a min or less on each side.

Toppings:
For this dish I used refried beans. I cooked the pintos according to the instructions and then mashed them up with onions, and garlic and let sit in a warm crock pot until time to serve. Wala! Homemade refried beans!!

The other toppings are just favs from the fridge. I wanted to make some guacamole but the avocados were not ripe yet. :(

Better than Anything Cake (The actual name!!)
German Chocolate Cake Mix and ingredients required therein
Caramel Syrup
Toffee Bits
Heavy Whipping Cream
Sugar
Vanilla Flavoring

Bake Cake according to box. After baking poke holes throughout the cake at about 1/2- 1 inch spaces and drizzle caramel Syrup over warm cake. Be generous with the Caramel! Chill cake in fridge until completely cooled.
For the Topping take a chilled metal mixing bowl and pour in about half a pint of Heavy whipping cream, a tsp of vanilla and about half a cup of sugar. Whip on high for a few minutes until whipped cream consistancy is achieved. Be sure to tast the topping to make sure whether or not you need to add more sugar or vanilla.

Spread topping over chilled cake and sprinkle with Toffee bits. Yum Yum!!!

I actually got this recipe from another Coastie wife I met a few years ago. Our kids have been the best of friends for years now and she always made my husband this cake for his birthday. I wanted to continue out little tradition (and have an exuse to indulge).

If you would like to share your Family Dinner recipes and photos please send them to coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com

What to do in DC?

Since I have NEVER been there let's ask Nicole...

Things to do: Come on people--it's DC!!!!!!!!!!! There's a wealth of fun, educational, mostly FREE stuff right at your finger tips. Just hop on the closest metro, ride to downtown DC, and enjoy everything it has to offer from museums, to the monuments, to art galleries, to the botanical gardens. There's even an aquarium! That's actually really nice :) As long as you go in the day time and stick to the main tourist areas it's super safe as well. I went to the Museum of Natural History all by myself and had no problems at all. The place is swarming with police and tourists, so get out there and have some fun!!!

One of the hardest parts about moving to DC for me was the fact that I had lived in Wyoming my whole life and the sheer volume of how much there was to choose from kind of overwhelmed me at first! Plus the cost of living made doing much on an E3 salary pretty hard! The best place I found to shop is the commissary and PX on Ft. Belvoir. SOOOOO much cheaper than anywhere else! Ft. Belvior also has a great gym that's free, you just have to register with them and swipe your id card when you walk in.

Finding a nice place to live can also be a challenge. We and several other Coasties all lived here: http://www.rent.com/rentals/washington-dc/washington-dc-and-vicinity/lorton/the-fields-at-lorton-station/440402/ and were extremely happy with it! It's low income housing but sooo much nicer than all the other "non-low income" housing in the area.

Our favorite part of DC was the amazing church we went to. They helped us out so much as newlyweds and Pastor Bishop is one of the best preachers I've ever heard. They're literally 5 minutes away from the CG TISCOM base so if you're a Baptist, or just looking around, definitely check them out!!!! http://www.lbcforyou.com/

So there you have it!! Go check it out! And remember to send your "goodies" contributions to coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com Thanks!!

Super Saver Sunday!

Well here it is again! Man That week went by so quick. So how did you do on your menu planning? Were you able to stick to it and stay within budget? If not its ok just try again this week. We did not completely follow the menu either partially due to unforseen events and partially due to us receiving some awesome produce from a friend that needed to be cooked right away. Looking back we ate very little off of our menu because of this. Oh well. We can use some of the same dishes this week. Here is our menu for the week...

Breakfast:
Same as before

Lunch:
Sandwiches and leftovers

Dinner:
Meat Loaf and green beans
Navajo Tacos
Turkey Burgers and corn
Baked Flounder and salad
Eggplant Pasta Bake
Leftover Day!!!
Hotdogs and Hamburgers (Cookout Sat Night for Hubby)


I am so grateful to Nicole for helping me out with this project and love to receive her little pearls of wisdom as well. Here is one of her contributions for Super Saver Sunday!!...


My best super saver idea is that I pick everyone elses brains for good ideas!!! I love gathering money saving ideas from friends, online, and through newletters. I get this free bi-montly enzine called Counting the Cost that has great saving tips and tricks. http://www.countingthecost.com/subscribe.htm
There's a lot of great information out there if you just look and ask around!

Too true!! There is a ton of wonderful info out there! It just takes looking around a bit! One of the things that I found while looking and blogstalking ;-) was the success that some people were having with the Dave Ramsey Program. It is a really nice budgeting program to help you take the money you have right now and pay off your bills, learn to live debt free, and save for the future. Now I haven't subscribed to his program but did find his worksheets for free on his website. Since DH is always gone I have just always managed the bills and the budget and that has always worked for us. We have debt but we always justified it with "It wasn't as bad as all those other people!" (I know real healthy huh?)

Anyways one of Ramsey's biggest suggestions is to tell your money where to go down to the very last cent, and this planning should be done with your spouse. I had no problem telling my $$ where to go but we had never sat down together and hashed it out. But really it worked! A huge burden was lifted off my shoulders because now I shared the responsibility of the budget and DH now understood I wasn't just being "mean" when I told him the $$ wasn't there. I am interested in reading Ramsey's book as soon as a friend finishes it, in the meantime check out his budgeting sheets on his website. www.daveramsey.com/fpumember

Family Dinner Friday---Only one day Late ;-)

Fridays I would love to start posting different recipes from your family dinners. I personally feel as though whatever meal it is, that a family meal at the table is the most important meal of the day.



Sometimes though we get into ruts and end up tired of our own repertoire of recipes. That is where Family Dinner Fridays comes in. A good friend of mine told me once to participate in as many potluck functions as possible because that's the quickest way to develop your choices. Seems like a pretty common sense suggestion, which is working well for her as she and two of her friends are currently working on a cookbook. For more info check out the blog http://www.eatatmomscookbooks.blogspot.com/ Now on to the food!!!!

Nicole Elliot was the first to respond to the Family Dinner Fridays request (honestly I think she's my only fan at this point, come on prove me wrong!!). Here are her words on how her dinner turned out....

Since money's been a little on the tight side lately I decided to use Allison's great suggestion from last week's Super Saver Sunday and throw a meal together using things I already had in my pantry. The result was the creation of this meal (I came up with the recipe myself!) and I was so happy that it actually turned out super tasty! Here's the recipe!

Fettuccine Pesto Chicken

1/2 a box of fettuccine pasta
Classico Creations Pesto Sauce
3 to 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Bacon

Cook pasta according to box directions, set aside. While pasta is boiling cut up chicken into small, bite sized pieces. Cook in a skillet with butter about 5 minutes or until the pieces are cooked all the way through. Cook bacon and cut into small pieces. Mix everything together and serve. Enjoy!



MMMM!!Looks great!!!
Here is my own add for this weeks Family Dinner. Unfortunately this was not Friday's Dinner (Little Ceasar's Pizza, which was NOT on the menu this week but life happened), but was a meal I had cooked last week that was so scrumptuous that it had to be photographed! Now with recipes I am not too religious with since I cook by smell and eyeball things a lot. Which is why Rachael Ray is one of my Favs and like her I am not a stellar baker. But I will try to do my best to remember what I put in this bad boy.

Summer Squash/Leftover Casserol
2-3 Yellow squash and or Zucchini
1 1/2 c frozen corn
2 carrots peeled
2 egg whites
1c brown rice
Salt and pepper to taste
pinch of Basil
pinch of parsley
Bisquik (enough prepared to cover the top)

Prepare your rice as instructed minus 15 min (It will finish cooking in the oven
When rice is prepared preheat oven to 350 degrees
Chop all veggies and steam them (for 2 min ONLY!!!)
When rice is cooked, sautee for a few minutes with egg whites
Add veggies and spices
Spread entire mixture into a casserol dish and top with Bisquik mixture

Bake in oven for approx 20 min or until top is nice and brown. Serve and enjoy!! This is a great healthy comfort food too! And my carnivores didn't even complain that there wasn't any meat!!

Super Saver Sunday!

On Sundays I would love for us all to share different ways that we stretch that dollar for our families. I know in these times of economic uncertainty sharing gems like this can be invaluable to all of us. If you have a super saver idea please e-mail me at coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com to share with us all.

Here's Mine

One of the best ways to save is to budget, writing down all of the places you want your money to go and then to write down all of the places that your money went is a great way to keep up with things. After all of that you may still feel a little discouraged at the need to cut corners a bit more tightly. Telling your money where to go is a really great step. Budgeting out every cent before it comes in is a great way to prepare.

One of the areas of budgeting that always got me was in the grocery area. Sure I could always find a great deal to make our money go further, but I really wasn't taking a true look at what I was buying and what plans I had for it. A great way to combat that is to plan your menus.

Now to do this first you should go to your freezer, pantry, or whatever and see what you have in stock and try to make as many meals from that. A great tool to use is www.allrecipes.com Here you can put in the ingredients you have and the ones your don't and it will give you a list of dishes that fit your list. That way you aren't running to the store everyday because you forgot something. If something you want to cook calls for an ingredient that you don't have, no need to panic just write out your shopping list then as you are planning your menu.

Now some people plan their menus for the month. Since a lot of my grocery allowance goes to an organic co-op that I belong to I cannot do that as the produce changes every order. I choose to make my menus a week ahead of time. That way if there is any really good sale on an essential at the store I haven't already budgeted out the money to something else. Here is our family menu for the week.

Breakfasts:
Cereal, Eggs, Pancakes

Lunch
Sandwich, Leftovers, Wed McDonalds $.59 cheeseburgers

Dinner
Navajo Tacos
Meat Loaf with Corn on the Cob
Twice Baked Potatoes
Grilled Chicken and Salad
Chicken Fried Rice
Fried Flounder with zucchini
Leftovers with cantalope

Out of all of that I only have to purchase 2 things from the store, my milk and my bacon bits for the potatoes. This way I already know that I won't need to spend too much this week (like maybe $5 at the grocery store) and hardly anything at McDonalds (with fries and drinks my kids and I usually eat for $5 total!!). As you can see it's always best to have a plan for your money, even your grocery money. So go plan out your menus and have a great week! Don't forget to have a photo shoot for your food too and send it in as we celebrate out first Family Dinner Friday this week!

Historic Fort Macon

This is an awesome stop for those history buffs, and even the kids to be able to climb around an olde fort and have a ball. Admission is FREE, and the beach is right there perfect for picking sea shells or flying that perfect kite. You can make a day of it and visit the current Fort Macon (possibly where you are stationed) and about half a mile up is the public beach access that is suitable for swimming, sand castles, and body surfing.

Make sure to check out the local papers for the dates and times of the re-enactments performed at the Fort. It is truly amazing to watch and interact with volunteers who completely get into character to answer just about any question you may have about the Fort and the battles that it endured.

The North Carolina Aquariums

These are really beautiful places to visit and see all sorts of sealife. It's also one of those great rainy day visits or when the sun is just too hot to bear, scoot inside and check out the Aquarium.

Now our family lived near the Aquaruim at Pine Knoll Shores, but there are two other locations in Roanoke and Fort Fisher. If stationed in the area, getting a family membership really pays off, but if that is not in the budget for you, don't worry the aquariums usually have plenty of free or reduced days to check out the facility, they also have a military discount if the tickets are purchased in advance.

Be sure to check out their calendar and their "What's New" page to find events from fishing clinics, day camps, to toddler activities. It's an awesome way to spend a day. http://www.ncaquariums.com/

Here is another awesome page created by Nicole Elliott with photos from the Aquarium. Doesn't she do a great job? Thanks Nicole!!

So what are YOU doing this Memorial Weekend??

I know that for many of us a holiday weekend for the Military either means BIG cookout with the unit, or just another day because our loved one is gone. If you are anywhere near the Virginia area and love a little history, check out the deal Colonial Williamsburg is giving all active duty and their families!! For Memorial weekend all active duty members, reservists, retired and their families get in FREE!!! http://www.colonialwilliamsburgresort.com/tickets/general-admission

This is truly a wonderful and fun place to visit. I have been quite a few times as a kid and can't wait to go back to enjoy the history of it all.


http://www.history.org/

A Beautiful Stop in North Carolina...

As a native of North Carolina I must say I am truly ashamed to say that I have never personally visited this place, but thanks to fellow coastie wife Nicole Elliott, I have a new number one place to visit when I go back! Not to mention the beautiful digital scrapbook page she did! Check out what she has to say below about Tryon Palace and remember, if you have a juicy find feel free to pass it on with any pictures to: coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com

Tryon Palace:

The Tryon Palace in New Bern is an amazing way to spend a day! They have a military discount for the full package which includes a tour of the palace and 3 or so of the surrounding homes and access to the gardens. The tour guides dress up in period costumes and provide interesting and funny information during the tour. If you'd just have a more relaxing-less learning oriented experience you can opt for just a garden pass which is around $5-8 per person. They also offer many "free days" when you can access the gardens for free--of course these are usually on the weekend and packed full, so the money is well worth it! I have been several times and really enjoyed the tour and the gardens are GORGEOUS! I would go back weekly if I had the money :) I would definitely recommend checking it out at least once, and it's a great place to take out of town visitors while you're showing them the sights :) Check out their website at http://www.tryonpalace.org/

Fabulous South Florida

There are so many things to do in South Florida, the unfortunate side of that is that most of them cost. There are ways though to get around such things if you just know where to look. A friend of Mine turned me on the The Parents Academy, which is a website filled with all sorts of family friendly information from classes, to support groups, to the inside scoop on the free events at the local Museums. One of my favorite is The Children's Museum. Here they have created a child's dominion of real life businesses, places, and events all down to "little people size".

Every 3rd Friday of the month starting at 3:30 they allow anyone to come in and experience this awesome "kid world" absolutely FREE!!! It's well worth the trip and right near the Coast Guard Station in Miami so it's a really great reason to swing by and say hi to my honey (if the boat's in). Check out the website at http://www.miamichildrensmuseum.com/

Let's begin at the beginning...

It was about this time last year when I was completely pulling my hair out. We were moving down here to Sunny Miami Florida. It wasn't the move or the fact that I had not even set foot in our house that we rented already, but the fact that we had not been contacted yet by ANYONE at our new duty station. Since North Carolina had been my home for well.. all my life I had had no trouble picking up and moving when my hubby and I had gotten married because he was stationed IN North Carolina (lucky me!!)

Anyways we arrived in Homestead in the middle of June and spent the majority of the time doing what you do when you move and live on the economy... set up utilities, unpack, test out the gps to see how accurate it is (or isn't), and find a grocery store. After all of the housekeeping items had been accomplished we gingerly went out exploring and knowing no one it was a bit intimidating.

Heaven shined down on us in the form of the YMCA. Being a "Y" kid growing up I figured it would be a good start for the kids and I to make some friends over the summer and for me to continue my fight against the bulge (which I lose more oftern than I win these days)!!! On the counter in the lobby was a flier for a new Charter School starting up, and since I literally cried when I went and picked up my son's "welcome kit" from the public school he was to attend, I immediately jumped on that opportunity.

The biggest relief came when I visited my son's school and the daycare center next door. The director was really helpful and showed me around and told me all about their toddler/pre-k program. I wasn't really ready to put my daughter into daycare, but I was afraid that she would have no one around her other than myself to talk with and I was overly paranoid of speech delays. That's when the director asked me if I had heard of the Meetup group in the area. Meetup?? What's that? And do they speak any english? Some of you are laughing... you should I am a dork.

www.meetup.com is a group hosting site where people of like areas and interests come together and get together!! I found the Happy Homestead Kids group and the Natural Parenting group and immediately we were transitioned to Florida!! We have made tons of friends and explored all sorts of things down here together, so if you are stuck as to how to meet new people, check out Meetup!!!

And we're off...

Ok so apparently I am not the first to think of this (suprise suprise) but we are going to give it a shot anyways in the hopes of easing the lives of a few more families like ours, who do not necessarily know where to look for the answers.

This blog will be a place where we can share all of our positive experiences and exchange needed info of the areas in which we are stationed with our loved ones. Hopefully this way we will be able to build a solid "real world" directory as we move to a new location.

As a fairly new "coastie wife", I sometimes get the feeling that the Coast Guard and their families are left out in the cold when it comes to support, info, and opportunity. This can make life very difficult for everyone involved.

Contacts will be monitored by me through coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com , So come on send me your goodies, your cool finds, your neat tricks that work for your family and we will post them here to share and to always be..

"Semper Paratus"