Lions and Tigers and RATS Oh My!!

The rat slayer....



There is nothing that gives me the creeps more than rats. Well, I take that back, snakes are up there in the same league. Now, mice, I can handle. Sure, they are gross, but they are normally terrified of you and run the opposite direction. The rats I am talking about are Tennessee River Rats...the kind that are as big as most peoples cats. We have had some rat issues on our street here for the past several months....do I have an idea why...yes....can I say anything about it.....no. Any who, the rats are here and we have to deal with it. The other night, David and I were both in a DEAD sleep when a noise woke both of us up. It wasn't a light scratching sound, or the sound of little mice feet scurrying around...oh no, this was much more. It sounded like the rats had rented sledge hammers and were making there way through our bedroom wall....thank goodness they are on the outside and not in our actual house because I think I might die if I saw one in the house...but they were trying to get in. So what do two responsible homeowners do in a situation like this? Pound on the wall a couple of times and go back to sleep. That will teach them. Oh, and David bought some poison and a HUGE rat trap, cause we will need it, and put them out the other night around the outside of our house....we had our first victim...poor chipmunk didn't know that trap wasn't for him! Super sad! Oh well, maybe the word got out to the rats and they moved on. At least, that is what I am hoping for!

To Save...Or Not To Save.....

So as you know, I went to the Thrifty Sisters workshop last Thursday night and it was really neat. I went out and bought a binder with like 100 baseball card holders in it and started organizing my coupons. I spent like an hour getting all my coupons organized and then picking out the ones I was going to use at Publix based on what they had on sale. Granted, I am not one of those coupon ladies that ONLY buys things that I have a coupon for....if I did, we would live off of apple juice and canned goods....so, I did buy lots of stuff that wasn't "a deal" but come on...we need some meat in our lives at the Higginbotham House!! So, besides what is pictured, I got 12 pounds of chicken, and all of my refrigerated items were already put up before I decided to take this. I had bought a lot of produce, several cans of biscuits and crescent rolls, fruit, cheese, etc. My total was like $147.00, but with my coupons, it brought it down to $67.00, which seems like alot compared to the coupon diva's out there, but I got a TON of stuff and was rather proud. So what did I do with my savings of $80.00? Did I put it in a savings account, or away for a rainy day...nope, I bought some new clothes. I mean, I would have spent it anyway right?? :)

What an honor....

At the Junior League meeting last night, I was totally surprised when they announced me as the Member of the Month for last month. It was a HUGE honor and I was totally humbled to get that award, especially when there are so many others that deserve it. Like this girl....

The horse show would have NOT HAPPENED without Ms. Meg. She worked so hard and "showed her pony" with the best of them. She is one of my best buds and when we are together we always have a laugh. Meg is one of the most dependable people that I know and always there to lend a hand. She has a big test coming up, so ya'll throw some prayers up for her!! I know she will do well though...she always does!

Tennessee Weekend

Well PRAISE THE LORD, Bama got lucky this weekend!! That one was a real nail biter!! I love football weekends most of the time, but about this time of the season I am getting burned out because we go to all the home games. However, due to work conflicts, we missed the last home game. So, I was fired up for a Tennessee weekend! My morning started out nice and early at 5:45 a.m., when Cristi came over to meet me for our 6:00 run. We ran 10 miles....yes, that is right, 10 miles Saturday morning BEFORE we went to the game and probably walked 10 more!! This is our last big run before the race on Saturday! Anyways, we headed off to Tuscaloosa and met up with our usual tailgating group. Couch was there, which was nice, because I never get to see him any other time but football season and miss him terribly. He was one of my best guy friends in college! We had a nice discussion about aging this weekend and how we couldn't stay up quite as late as we use to! I guess that goes for everyone though. That ballgame was INTENSE as well! David shouted his voice out in the first half, so he was kind of quiet in the second half minus his hardcore clapping that he did which sounded like the skin was ripping off his hands, but that is a whole other story. When that last field goal was blocked that stadium was as loud as I have ever heard it. Everyone was giving high fives, hugging strangers and kissing babies! What a wonderful game! Roll Tide!!



Our smallest tailgater...

Our latest purchase

For David's birthday, he had asked for a new camera...normally when he says something like that I start to sweat and have heart palpitations because his idea of a new camera cost like $5,000.00. Oh how relieved I was when I realized the camera that he wanted was nowhere near that much! So, I bought him, (actually got him a giftcard) the camera. It came in a couple of days ago, and we played with it very briefly. The main thing that I like on it so far is the display screen will flip out and turn around so when you are taking self portraits, you can see yourself and you don't cut off your head or someone elses. Now, this camera does a lot of other neat stuff, but this was just the first feature that I found that I liked. I am still going to have to have a crash course in how to use it. Anyways, here are a couple quick pics of Wilson with the new camera!

Workshop Update

So we just got back from the Two Thrifty Sisters workshop and it was wonderful!!! They had so many good ideas about saving money, combining coupons (which I didn't know you could do), getting register rewards, raincheck, the list goes on and on! And, to top the evening off, Micah and I BOTH won door prizes! I got a free haircut and she got a free facial. WHOOOT WHOOT!! I have been a coupon lady, but never knew exactly how they all maximized their coupon spending, but boy they do! Fun fact, which everyone else probably already knows but me, but did you know that at Publix for their buy one get one item, if you only buy 1, it is half price, and you can use a competitors coupon and a manufacturers coupon as well, so you are basically getting the item for free. I know!! I almost passed out! I will start posting some of my finds so you guys can get them too! Hope everyone has had a great week so far!!

Free Workshop

Tomorrow, after baton, I am heading to Athens for the Thrifty Sisters workshop. I am really excited about going to this workshop for several reasons. I am always looking for a good deal, and they are the queens of saving money. Most of you probably do that "register reward" stuff at Walgreens and other places around, but for some reason I can't get my brain around how that works. So, I e-mailed the ladies at Two Thrify Sisters, and they said they would discuss that tomorrow evening. The event is free...but you have to bring either a can food item or cosmetic for local shelters. Hope to see some of you there!!


This is their original post if you have questions....
Thanks to Crystal and the nice folks she worships with at Sardis Springs Baptist Church, we've got another workshop coming up for anyone who wants to learn more about saving money! It's FREE to you, it's open to anyone who wants to join us, and this time it's in the evening, so all you working Thrifty Sisters and Brothers can join us when you get off work.
Here are the details:

Making Cents out of Stretching Your Dollar
A Two Thrifty Sisters Workshop
Thursday, October 22
6:00-8:00 p.m.
Sardis Springs Baptist Church

Once again, we are asking only this for admission: The donation of either a food item for our local food bank or a health/beauty item for our local women's shelter. And if you stock up on stuff when it hits the rock-bottom price like we do, you probably have plenty of mac-n-cheese and toothpaste you can give away, anyway!
We'll be talking to you about lots of ways to save money, figure out sale shopping and couponing, live within your budget, and still have fun while doing it. We're also planning to have some fun door prizes and take-home info.
And we want your input, too! Is there something specific you want us to explain or address? Shoot us an e-mail or leave us a comment, and we'll try to work it into the workshop. We want to share all our trade secrets with you, and we want to learn from you, too! And if you're a business owner who is interested in doing a giveaway or discount for workshop attendees to help get the word out about your business, let us know and we'll see if we can work that in, too.
We're excited about the opportunity to help y'all learn how to stretch your dollar, to have a fun night, and help some people who are less fortunate at the same time. We're also really grateful to the people at Sardis Springs Baptist Church for making this possible. Sardis Springs Baptist Church is located at 18310 Ala. Hwy. 251 in Athens, and you can call them at 256-232-2056. Go here to check out their website and get directions, too.
We hope lots of you can make it!

Always Try On...Even When Tired

I decided to do a little Christmas shopping and in the midst of buying for others, decided to buy myself a nice pair of black running pants that were on sale. I was super excited, because I love a good deal. However, I had a buggy full of stuff and and been shopping for a couple of hours so, I skipped the dressing room and just thought...if they don't work, I'll take them back. (On a side note, I do not think I have EVER returned anything....even if it didn't work, its still hanging in my closet....because I ALWAYS try stuff on....) So, I was about to go run tonight when I remembered my new pair of pants in all the Christmas bags that I stashed away. So I put them on, they looked decent, felt decent, so I yanked the tags off. It wasn't until I caught a glimpse of myself as I was doing the "butt check" (ladies, you know what I'm talking about...how does my butt look in these pants??) that I realized they had this lovely little design right across the back of them. The funny thing was when I showed them to David and he told me it looked like I had a tramp stamp, which is one of those tattoos that everyone got there for awhile so when they were leaning over, their tattoo showed on their backside. Anywho, he got a kick out of it, and I am now going to be wearing shirts that cover this up...oh, and I had to run with my hand on my pants to keep them up tonight....so the moral of the story is, ALWAYS TRY THINGS ON BEFORE YOU BUY....EVEN IF YOU ARE TIRED!

Showing my pony...

This year, I am the chairman of the horse show out in Priceville...so since Wednesday, every spare moment outside of work has been consumed with this event....They have this....I guess you would call it a saying in the Racking Horse world, when they are competing where at a certain point in the show, they announcer says, "Show Your Pony" and that is the time they are suppose to make the horse go as fast as it can. Well, being the goofballs that we are, Meg and I got a kick out of the whole, "Show Your Pony" thing and it is quite a regular phrase we use these days. Rachel, our co-hort, even made us "Show Your Pony" visors which I wear ALL THE TIME! So, enough about that...last night, we were in charge of the dinner for all the horse people, and so I decided to take a quick picture before the chaos started...we had a great time together...but it is exhausting! Oh, and Meg is REALLY exhausted after holding up all of the Apple Lane Farms Sandwiches...thanks Macho Meg!

New Recipe

So last night, I didn't know what to make for dinner....I had some chicken thawed out, but didn't want to do the normal stuff that I always fix. I bought 2 big things of Velveeta cheese when they were on sale at the grocery store, and I had some rice....so I thought of some kind of recipe using those would be good. I don't know if you guys are a fan of KraftFoods.com, but if you are not, I highly recommend it. They have a search section of their website where you can put in up to 3 ingredients that you have on hand, and it will pull up all these recipes for you. That is where I found this Chicken and Rice with Broccoli creation. Now, David is not a fan of ANY vegetables, but I guess since these were smothered in cheese, it made it bearable for him. So, if you need a simple recipe...try it out!!

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

1 can (14-1/2 oz.) chicken broth

2 cups instant white rice, uncooked

1/2 lb. (8 oz.) VELVEETA Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped broccoli, thawed

Make It!

COOK chicken in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat 5 min. or until chicken is done.

STIR in broth. Bring to boil.

ADD rice, VELVEETA and broccoli; cover. Remove from heat. Let stand 10 min. Stir until VELVEETA is completely melted and mixture is well blended.

School Lunch Fun!!

So on Friday, I was in Athens for work, and decided at the last minute to eat lunch with Bree and Kate. They didn't know I was coming which made it even better because they both got soooo excited. However, they were both disappointed when I didn't check them out...but I told them I had to work and maybe we could do it another day. Anyways, we feasted on a lovely BBQ sandwich lunch and some pretty good brownies with chocolate syrup on them. YUMMY! Actually, for a school lunch, it wasn't that bad. Although secretly, I was hoping that it would be square pizza and corn day...with peaches....that was always my favorite lunch! What was your favorite school lunch?

Bedtime Drama

For all of you real parents out there, I know that bedtime can be a struggle at your house. Little ones wanting to stay up just a little longer...one more drink of water, forgot to brush their teeth, etc. Well, yes, I know you have it rough, but we don't have a walk in the park either at our house....take a look at what is now becoming routine at our house at bedtime...

Girls Night Out!!

There's nothing like a good old fashioned Girls Night Out to rekindle the old friendships and also create new ones. Tonight, I ventured to Rachel's house for a lovely GNO. Of course there are some great friends of mine that were there, but there were also several ladies there that I did not know before, and now I feel like we are old friends! That's the thing about girls....we can connect with anyone at the drop of a hat and act like old friends even if we've only known each other for an hour! We all decided tonight that this will be a monthly event where we will get together for lots of fun. I hope Rachel doesn't mind....I think we nominated her to be the hostess because she did such a great job! So, if I don't see you before then ladies, I hope to see you next month! WAHOO!



Me and Rachel...thanks again for a wonderful evening!! :)


The group...

Miscommunication of the Day...

Here was mine and David's conversation today while shopping in Express....

David: I need more buttwipes....I am turning over a new leaf
Anna: Oh, I didn't know you used buttwipes...
David: What??
Anna: Huh?
David: Did you say buttwipes?
Anna: Yes, you said you need more buttwipes.
David: No, I said I need more button-ups, I am turning over a new leaf
Anna: Oh, well that makes more sense.

We are so cool.....

It only took us 2 and 4 years respectively to take part in the "craze!!!" And by that, I mean we had a big night at the Higginbotham House. After much deliberating and denying his true inner nerd for 2 years, David broke down tonight and switched from being a faithful Verizon customer, to an Iphone user. I know, I know....everyone else already has one. Excuse us for being slow...and on another note, I watched Twilight for the first time tonight. I thought I would wait until all the intial hype wore off, but that doesn't seem to be happening, so I borrowed the movie from a friend and watched it. Now, before all you faithful Twilighter's burn me at the stake, hear me out. The movie was good, but maybe it was too hyped for me. I mean, I will not be going out and buying any Team Edward shirts or anything like that, but I did enjoy it. So yes, we are behind, but that is okay....we let everyone else work out all the kinks in stuff before we try it!

Ahh....the plans

As most of you know, we own a river lot in addition to the two that we just purchased a couple of weeks ago. We are selling that lot, and if you are interested, check out this blog for more information...


Anywho...we went out to the new lots today to walk around, in the rain mind you, because before a couple of days ago, we had never walked on the new property...just around it. It is really grown up, and I'm not a fan of gigantic snakes, so we just looked at it from the street. But actually, once you get in the middle of it, because there are so many trees and its so shaded, there is really not that much grown up stuff there....I digress, so we tried to picture where the shack was going, but we couldn't really see that far due to the trees....the guy that is doing the clearing should start in about 2 weeks, so we will be able to tell where everything is going to go then. Hope everyone enjoyed their rainy Sunday!!

Skate Castle 2009....whoop whoop!!

Friday night was suppose to be an exciting night of going to Misty Hollow Farms to do their Haunted Hollow, where basically you walk through the dark woods and people try to scare the crap out of you...however, after months of anticipation, I called yesterday and because of all of the rain we have had, they have a ton of trees down and its "not safe" to go through...wasn't that the whole point anyway?? :) So, we decided after a lovely dinner at Alfonso's to go to the Skate Castle...yes, you heard me right, we went roller skating...the conversation when we pulled into the parking lot went like this...

Anna-"I am really excited about skating...."
David-"Yeah, I think it will be fun"
Anna-"Oh good, its not crowded, there are hardly any cars here....wait, the kids that come here can't drive...nevermind."

So, we asked for a senior citizens discount when we paid, were denied, and then started out on a wonderful adventure. I remember being an awesome skater, could bust a move like it was nobody's business. So, I tried re-living my past...no such luck. Be sure you check out the video...its got me almost biting the dust, and then it has it in slow motion too...well worth the watch!

However, we did have so much fun! I highly recommend going back and doing one of those activities that you did as a kid. We laughed so hard the whole night, it was a hoot!

Here is David starting off the night with a little video game action at Alfonso's


Here we both are, showing off our snazzy skates...

Skate Night 2009 - from David Higginbotham on Vimeo.

Check out the new blog!!

David launched his brand new blog last night and it is AMAZING!!! You have to go check it out and let me know what you think! You can get to it here....don't forget to add it to your google reader, if you use that! Hope everyone has a great weekend....