Mid-Month Budget and Shopping Update

I felt like I was having a really slow month and then it ramped up!!  I got a little caught up in some sales and couldn't get my act together all at the same time so I had a few trips.  Sadly, I wanted to make it back another time but there wasn't enough time to make it happen.  How has your month gone so far??

CVS $0.18 and CVS $0.13

Confusing but I got the free Essence Body Mist on my CVS card with my medicine and then I got another one on my husband's card and it cost $0.05 more.  Who knows what happened but I got to get them and only pay tax so they will make a nice little gift.  I didn't even think about taking a picture because it was just a little bottle...sorry!  You can see it in the next picture.

CVS $0.48

I went to the store as the snow was starting to come down because there was deal I promised to get my mother in law for my father for his Christmas present.  I know it sounds silly but she asked for suggestions and I found them on sale at CVS and let her know.  She just had foot surgery and isn't getting around as much so I got to go in and grab them with a free Essence Body Mist.  My couponing friend told me that I need to scan my card and get a few roll of Rolaids so I got them too!!  Got to use lots of my ECBs from Thanksgiving and my mother in law is going to pay me back too :)

Aldi $38.92

I am a super lucky Aldi shopper.  I had no idea what was on sale and didn't even check the flyer online but I knew that I needed milk since we had been out for a few days while there was a yucky snow storm.  I knew that we needed some but I didn't want to buy it if we were just going to loose power like we always do....jokes on me because we didn't loss power.  I headed to the store as soon as the storm passed and it was the day that the chicken was on sale for $1.49 per pound.  If I made it earlier, I would have bought more but there were only two packages left.  We got a ton of the normal stuff like nacho tortilla chips, pretzels, butter, milk and pepperoni.  I grabbed a head of lettuce because we were supposed to have tacos.  I added another 10 pound bag of potatoes (even though I already have two at home) because I can't pass up $1.99 for the bag!!!  I was also really excited to see the popcorn there because we were nearly out and it was cheaper then everywhere else for about $0.20 and I didn't have to make another trip. 

CVS $0.00

I love when I have ECBs and there are deals that come up to buy something that I normally wouldn't pay $6.29 for like these TUMS.  They were on sale for $3.99 so I used a $1 printable coupon and $2.99 in ECBs to pay nothing out of pocket and got $3 ECBs back.  I wanted to go back and buy two more bags but by the end of the sale came before my time allowed me to get back.  I have a little longer to spend my ECBs because I rolled them into a new deal so I am excited to see what I can get over the next few weeks.

Harris Teeter $6.46 and
Harris Teeter $8.18

I had tons of evic offers and zvr coupons so I broke this out to two transaction on the same day to make sure that everything worked and it did!  WHAT!?  I never get that lucky because something always falls through through the cracks or it only comes up on one kind/flavor and I pick the other one.  I was super glad to see the oatmeal on sale because my husband just used up the last of his and forgot to tell me!  UGH!!  A couponer's nightmare to have to buy something last minute.  It all worked out okay and I got a bunch of great deals.  Probably went a little crazy with my purchases getting things that I didn't need but it is hard to pass up a good deal and in some cases they were money makers and even gave back Saving Star in addition!  I think that I get $1.75 back in my Saving Star account but they haven't cleared yet so I don't know if I calculated that totally correct.

Giant $1.63

I had my $10 credit which people were having a lot of problems with this month but I was super excited to get it because I had to get the deal on the Ocean Spray at $2 each.  It is the lowest pricing that I have seen in awhile and my husband drinks through so much of these that I can't keep the stockpile full.  I was super excited to get a $0.50 u-scan coupon off one bottle of the Cran-Grape too!  I got a Giant Canola oil which was on sale for $0.50 off and the u-scan added a $1.50 so I got it for $2 instead of $4.  We don't have a back up container and the half price deal was a little too good to pass up even though I should have gotten another bottle of Cran-Grape.

Giant $1.54

I sent my husband back to get one bottle of Cran-Grape with the u-scan to get the great price but the sad part is that only gets you one bottle at a time.  Who can pass up on that deal?  Well, we couldn't and my husband went into the store to get the papers so he took the opportunity to grab one at the great deal.  I didn't take a picture but I think that you can figure out what it looks like from the above picture :)

Harris Teeter $1.33

I grabbed some more coupons and went back to Harris Teeter to get some deals that I couldn't pass up.  I had some great money makers and coupons that I didn't know I would ever use and I got some great deals.  I had a buy one, get one free on the shave gel so I got two more which I donated to NVFS because we don't use.  There is nothing better then getting some for free to share with others.  I sometimes pass on the deals but I thought that this would be a really good donation.  I got a great deal on the Venus shaver which got wrapped up for my cousin for Christmas.  She understands the strange presents that she gets come from the heart even if a little weird :)  Of course, the evic zvr coupons didn't come off so I had to get the customer service people give me back the credit for $5.1 cash so this was the total after I my money back.

Harris Teeter $0.36

I got a great deal on some more of the same things and the evic zvr coupons didn't come off this order either but I got it the next time I went back to the store so I got all this for pocket change after my discount.  Isn't that great deal on walking out with this much?  Plus, I got two Axe and Venus shaver for Christmas gifts .  My son is really into the snowflake Ritz so I was glad to grab a few more since he has already finished one box!!

Harris Teeter $1.17

I made one last trip to the store to get more of the Quaker Oatmeal for my husband.  One of them had a coupon on it to get a free Muller yogurt when you buy 2 Quaker products.  I bought a few of the money makers to cover the cost.  I had one more thing that I was going to get but I had my son with me and I couldn't remember what it was so I just grabbed a bottle of cranberry ginger ale for Christmas dinner instead because I needed a little bit more to cover the overage and it was $1.  The total was mostly tax and got me a bunch more of the deals!!

Total Retail $328.50

Total Savings $268.12

Total OOP $60.38

How has your month been going?  I think that I did pretty well so far but there are a few more things on my shopping list including:

Green beans

Zucchini

Cheddar Cheese

Dinosaur Oatmeal

I hope to get everything and stay way under budget but I guess we will see how it goes with company in the house for a week so wait for the update at the end of the month to see how it went.  Hope you all have a happy holiday!!!

Thrifty Thursday: 7 Ways to Do the Holidays Cheaper

Looking for a cheaper way to do the holidays?  Well, I always am!!  I try to make the most with the money that we have to get the most for our friends and family.

1.  Set Budgets:  Make sure you look at how much money you have to spend for the season so that you aren't working to pay off things in the new year after all of the dust settles.  Always better to not spend more then you wanted to or could afford to!  This is the hardest thing for me to do because I feel like I should get something for everyone and spend as much as I can.  That is not what the season is about and anyone that is your friend should understand that.  I talked to a few of my friends a few years ago to set limits on the present giving or to only give presents to the kids.  It makes a big difference in the budget and my favorite gift is to have my son happy!  Of course, I do the next step which is also why it is hard to set a budget.

2.  Shop all year: Doesn't this sound like a silly thing to say?  Why would you be spending to save?  I try to stock up when I see things on sale or clearance for good prices.  They had an end of the season clearance on some things at CVS after summer was over.  I got a lot of things that I knew that I would be able to use for birthdays and Christmas including balls, travel activity packs, outside toys, and insulated cups.  I got some deals at Target with clearance and coupons. It is easy to save at least 50% on toys that you know your kids will be interested in (or their friends for birthdays).  Stock up on crayons, markers and backpacks with the back to school sales or after they go on clearance.  Shop for summer items after the warm months are past.  My favorite is to shop the day after all holidays like Christmas, Halloween, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day and Easter.  There are tons of things that aren't season specific on sale.  After Halloween, I bought a big box of goldfish with a picture of ghosts on the box so it was 30% off with the same goldfish crackers inside.  Stock up when you see the deals and not when you need something and you will save lots of money.

3.  Stay Organized:  I keep a Rubbermaid bin in the closet with all of the presents that I get in it.  If there are any presents are too big, they go on top of the container so I always know where they are.  I can't tell you how many years my mom bought things and hid them in her house and didn't find them until long after the holidays which is a huge family joke now.  It was really funny because we didn't know about it until after we moved out of the house when we were older and we asked her who she was hiding the presents from since we weren't there digging through her closets.  No sense in getting it if you can't find it or don't know you have it!!  I have another Rubbermaid bin underneath with all of the gift bags and ribbons.  Sadly, the paper goes in the basement because it is the only place to fit the neat Rubbermaid wrapping paper holder.  There is a plastic top that goes on top and a bin that holds labels and curling ribbon but it is all currently in use so excuse the mess.  I stock up on paper the day after Christmas to get them half off to refill anything that got used up during the year.  They don't sell ones like this anymore but there are other brands out there that are just as neat (of course, I am partial to this one).

4.  Keep a Notebook:  I have a notebook with each person that I have to buy for with a list of birthdays first and the people's names listed by month of birthday.  Then, there is a Christmas section with all of the people that I have to get gifts for.  If I get something during the year for those people, I make sure to write it down and set it aside.  I write the retail price it would have cost and the price that I paid.  Some people keep a notebook with gift ideas of what they are going to get people but I normally keep that all in my head until the items are purchased and accounted for but you can do whatever works best for you.  This way I know if I have gone overboard with one person and move things to other people who might not have gotten enough (or they quickly turn into their birthday presents) or else I know who else I have to shop for.  I just used something that we got for free and now it has gone to a great use.  I put a little post it note in to divide the years so that I can flip easily back and forth to see what I gave people last year.

5.  Get Creative:  It might take a little more time but figuring out homemade gifts is always great.  One of the best gifts that I got was a picture frame with a bunch of pictures of my family out visiting DC (Thanks Lynn).  I would have just kept the pictures on the computer and my cousin printed them up and framed them.  It isn't very expensive to print a few pictures and get an inexpensive frame (or look for a sale during the year).  Make a gift basket with things that might not cost a lot of money (heck, if you coupon then it will be even less) so that the family can make dinner or have a movie night.  Baskets make the presents look like so much more but you can get a movie, popcorn and candy for under $10.  I know because I did!!!  See my basket all wrapped up and decorated to exchange.  You didn't think that I was going to give away a present, did you?

6.  Make Homemade Gifts:  If you know how to knit, crochet, cross stitch or sew, find a project to work on through the year to give homemade gifts.  My friend, Amy, used to make us a cross stitched ornament every year.  Those are the only ornaments that get pulled out every year without fail and make it on the tree.  It makes you remember those times and the special people that made them.  My mom quilted my tree skirt and even made a little tag on it just to remind us, in case we ever forget.  I used to knit and made scarves, blankets and dish cloths for many Christmas gifts.  Sadly, both Amy and I have put aside our crafting since having kids but there is always hope for picking it back up again as they get older. 

I did get a little crafty and made Cookies in a Jar for the teachers at my son's school.  I made the jars and covered with a little blue and white checked fabric.  I tied some of them with gold elastic band and then I did them with some blue raffia.  I attached the recipe so that they can make the cookies after I put a little blue marker on the edges.  I thought it was pretty and functional and threw in a set of cookie cutters even though I gave them chocolate chip cookies.

7. Sell things that you don't use anymore: This is a great way to pay for the things that you want to buy.  I love to use Craigslist because it sells local and people come and get it.  Santa did some shopping on Craiglist this year too!  Others love the Ebay auction to get the price up and sell for the most money they can get.  I always intend to sell on Ebay and then those things sit in the basement collecting dust and not getting sold.  It is a great way to make room for the new stuff and get rid of the old stuff before you get more for the holidays and there are a lot of others looking for great stuff around this time of year!

I also have a bunch of kids stuff that I take to a consignment store.  They give you cash upfront for the items that they want and then they sell them at the prices they see fit.  Use anyway and get cash in your pocket so that you don't have to spend more money!!  There used to be a Once Upon A Child consignment store that worked the same way but it doesn't seem to be in NOVA anymore but there are others in the VA and MD area.  Glad I checked because I wanted to take some stuff over there this week...I guess I will have to move to option number two.  There is another one called Kid to Kid in Centreville which I only visited once but have never sold anything there.  I might have to check it out.


I hope that you find lots of ways to do the holidays cheaper for you so that you have a Happy New Year staying out of debt.   Do you have any tips for others??

Kid Science: The Mangrove Tree Book

The Mangrove Tree: Planting Trees to Feed Families by Susan L. Roth was a book that jumped out on the shelf when we passed it in the library so I grabbed it.  My husband and I had a trip to Florida before we were parents and we learned about mangrove trees on the strangest tour of the everglades that I had ever had.  One of the people on the tour actually asked the person to stop talking so that we could ride of the boat more.  It became a big joke between us because the tour guide was a little in love with the mangrove trees and we had never heard of them before... for the longest time I thought he was saying mango trees and I was wondering where the fruit was.  I thought that the book would entertain my husband (and teach my son a little science).

In this book, there are two stories going.  One is the simple kids story that you can read through with the wonderful pictures.  It is a short story that is very melodic that young kids will like.  It has a lot of repetition and still provides lots of information about the mangrove trees and how they were introduced to the area to help people live better.  

On the other side of the page, there is a more detailed and factual information that is great for the older kids.  The book takes place in Eritrea, an African country, in a little village called Hargigo.  The families and animals were hungry because of the dry climate but it all changed because of the mangrove tree.  The animals eat the leaves of the trees and with a mix of mangrove seeds and dried fish, the animals started producing more milk to feed their young.  The animals started to live longer and have more offspring.  The people use the mangrove branches to cook food and there is more meat and milk so the children are healthier.  The roots of the trees provide hiding spots of small fish, crabs, shrimp and oysters so the fisherman catch more fish to feed their families.  All of the life in the small town had improved and they introduced this into many other struggling towns to help those towns see the same positive changes as Eritrea.

The book talks about lots of different science including carbon dioxide to oxygen change that plants help facilitate.  It goes through the process of fertilization and how the women used iron rods and bags with holes to help slowly fertilize the trees while they were growing.  All of the science information is mixed in with the story so the kids won't even know how much they are learning while listening to the story.

It is hard to read both and keep the rhythm going but I did read both parts and still managed to enjoy them both.  At the end, there were pictures and descriptions about the actual growing of the trees which seemed to interest my son a lot.  It is always interesting to know that the information that they read is real and pictures certainly let them know that.

I was going to do some activity to go with this book but we were busy with Halloween and didn't get to do something mangrove tree specific.  I did find an interesting page online that I would love to share for anyone looking to do an activity following reading this book. Please check it out here.  It is a PDF document from the RIF (or Reading is Fundamental) which goes through a few different things including a snack, craft and more.  I hope that it is helpful if you want to add another dimension to the education with this book.  There is also some information on the publishers website for teachers but it aimed at around 3rd grade level but there are some things that can be taken from it to be used for younger kids.

If you are looking for a little bit more, it might be a good book to read in the spring and plant a little cup of grass.  My son and I did that activity here if you want to see more about how different things affect the grass growing.  

It would also be a great book to read before visiting Florida where there are many of the mangrove trees to see or even more locally if you are going to an animal petting zoo to see goats and sheep because the children may better appreciate why these animals are important to our survival because out in the suburbs, we certainly don't see that everyday.

I hope that you check this book out at your local library or book store soon.  We enjoyed the book and I hope that you do to! 

Shared on Mom's Library at Pounds 4 Pennies

Kids Cooking: Snowman Sweet Snacks

My son was begging me to make something out of his Christmas cookbook that he got from Grammie (Thanks Grammie).  I was trying to get him to help with some things that I had to make in the kitchen but he was set to making his recipes.  He picked the snowman sweets and made sure that I knew by leaving the book with my cookbook in the kitchen.

While my son was in school, I grabbed all of the ingredients out of the cupboard to get ready.

I decided to cut the candy corn so that I was even more ready since I had a few extra seconds before I had to leave to pick my little man up.  Who knew that this was going to be one of the most difficult parts of the directions because the candy corn stuck to the knife.  I tried to two different ones in case one kind would be better then another but the cut made them small and thin so some broke...my son didn't mind playing clean up on those that we didn't use.

I decided to make it a little different because I thought that my son would be more likely to eat it if we put a marshmallow outside inside of white chocolate.  Plus, I am all about using what is in the house so feel free to microwave a little white frosting or make something white to dip these in to work with what you have around.  While I was melting in the microwave, my son made the sandwich with whole wheat Ritz (working again with what we had) and peanut butter.

Then, I dipped them into the marshmallow because it was a little hot and really messy and put them on a piece of parchment paper because I had a scrap in the drawer leftover from the last time that I used it.

Then, my son used the mini chocolate chips to make eyes and the candy corn to make the nose.

Then, we decided to do one single cracker that wasn't a sandwich just in case because I didn't want to pull out everything again if he didn't like them with the peanut butter but the top broke off in the thick marshmallow so I used the candy corn ends to make him hair.  What do you think?

My son made a huge mess but ate about one and a half so it was more the entertainment of making them then the actual eating but he had a blast and I would totally do it again but we are going to move on to another recipe sometime soon.  I hope that you check out these cute snowman sweets (and if you can get your kids to wait until they dry, extra congrats to you because it didn't work for me).

Snowman Sweets

Round crackers (like Ritz)
Peanut Butter
Melted White Frosting or Chocolate
Candy Corn
Mini Chocolate Chips

Spread peanut butter on crackers.  Top with another cracker to form sandwich.

Cut the ends from the candy corn and discard (or eat). Cut the remaining pieces of candy corn in half lengthwise.

Place the white chocolate or white frosting in a microwave safe container and microwave at 50% power for 1 1/2 minutes.  Remove the container from the microwave and stir the chocolate or frosting until it is completely melted. If using frosting, you may want to try in 30 second intervals.

Using a fork or your fingers, dip each of the sandwiches in the melted white stuff.  Allow the excess to drip off and then place on waxed or parchment paper.

Let your child (or yourself) decorate the snowman with the mini chips and candy corn.  Let it stand for 30 minutes until set (if you can get your kids to agree).

Shared on Mom's Library at Pounds 4 Pennies 

Menu Plan Monday 12/16

Monday- Pasta with sauce and garlic bread
Tuesday- French Dip Sloppy Joe with homemade fries
Wednesday- House Autry Chicken tenders with mac and cheese
Thursday- ?
Friday- ?
Saturday-  Leftovers/Breakfast for Dinner
Sunday- Homemade Pizza/Sausage Tortellini with garlic knots

This is my last week without company...okay, they are coming at the end of the week so I was trying to take it easy.  I was going to do Sloppy Joe french dips last week but I opted for the Salsa Sloppy Joes because both my husband and I wanted them and it used up the end of the salsa and tomato paste in my quest to clean out the fridge.  I have two days empty at the end of the week which really isn't done on purpose but if we don't make it to Santa this weekend then it is the last time that we will be able to make it to see him before family comes to town so we might just go crazy and get take out or something on that night.  If not, I will come up with something like chicken nuggets or leftovers.

Do you have anything fun planned this week??  Do you have family coming into town?  Do you plan to have a slow week before they come so that you can get yourself in the mood to jump in the kitchen when they get here because there is going to be lots of people and lots of things to do and cook so I am looking for a little break before it all happens.  Hope that you have a fun week planned!!!

Weekly Goals 12/15

I feel like I did a lot this week because I changed my strategy a little so that I would stop forgetting things.  I don't know if you do this but go downstairs to grab one thing and forget the other.  Both of those things needed to go to school but I will have to make two trips into school because I was so silly that I forgot one because I was rushing.  I wrote a list one night on the back of an envelope when I was falling asleep.  The top was all of the things that I had to do this week and the bottom of the list was the things that I would like to get done this week.  I was stuck inside for a few days with the snow and couldn't do a few things on my top list so I moved to the bottom list to get it done.  I was pretty excited to get most of the things done on the list and add a few others.  Here is hoping that next week goes nearly as smoothly!!!

Hope you had a great week and have plans for the coming week!

This week:

Family Goals

• Spend time with family- We got to do a lot together this week and we even got to go visit a friend that was up visiting with her new baby so that was super fun.  We also had our outing to the Toyota dealership to get my husband's truck fixed which is always fun because they have a kids playroom and doughnuts.  My son never wants to leave!
• Get to preschool on time every day- We had a good time making it to school this week even though we had a snow day and a delayed day at the beginning of the week.
• Go to Holiday library program- It was a fun program with all three books about Gingerbread men and then they were able to make a gingerbread house out of a paper lunch bag.  It was really fun for my little man especially since
• Go to Holidays around the World at the library- We all went and got to listen to the music and watch my son play every musical instrument with a smile and funny face.  Then we went to Wendy's to have a special lunch with the whole family.

Personal Goals

• Cut coupons- I cut all my coupons and got the things a little more organized in my coupon basket.
• Get last weeks coupons- I got last weeks coupons and got them all cut!
• Get coupons on Friday- I went looking and didn't find them by the time I went home at 2 pm so my husband went to check and got them.  YEAH!
• Shut off computer 6 nights to save energy- I shut it off every night and kept it off many days so it is acting really great this week.
• Sub at preschool- I was supposed to go in on Tuesday but it was a snow day so it was pushed back until Wednesday.
• Clean the fridge- Excited to get the fridge cleaned out so that I could don't be sad to open it and now it is shiny and clean.  I put some other pads on the bottom shelf to hold containers so that the shelf isn't scratched and then there is another for meat so that if it leaks, it will catch the gross yuck so that it doesn't get into the fridge....like I just cleaned out.  I didn't empty the shelves in the door and clean those but they were pretty clean.
• Make pancake mix- I made the mix and filled up the container so that I was ready for more pancakes which I hope to make soon and get in the freezer so that I am ready when we have visitors to pull out a quick pancake for my little guy.
• Go to Jazzercise- Woo Hoo!!!  I made it and I didn't think that I would with the week the way it was playing out but I put it as a priority on Thursday.
• Finish reading the last Beverly Lewis book in the series- Done and review is posted.
• Start reading the new Kathy Reichs book- I got started on her book but put it off a little because sometimes the books are a little graphic before bedtime but I haven't gotten to anything too stressful so I am still reading it before bed...cross my fingers that I can make it through and still put it down at bedtime.

Home Management Goals

• Clean dishes, counters and floors at least 5 days of the week- Between my husband and myself, we got the kitchen cleaned every day but sometimes it wasn't until the end of the day.  It was another messy week in the kitchen and I am not sure exactly why but we cleaned it up and got everything back in order.
• Clean dishes one night and not wait until the morning- Ummm, I really need to pay better attention to this but I know that on Sunday night we got everything cleaned except a cheese grater which was soaking to get off mozzarella cheese....who knew it was so hard to get off?  Then, we got it all done on Monday except one dish soaking to get the baked stuff off.  We did pretty well the next night and then it snowballed into more on the counter and only making a dent at night before going to bed.  We normally got them all done in the morning but it was hard to keep up.

Blog Goals

• Post one post everyday (schedule 7 posts so that can spend more time with family)- I got everything posted for the week even though it wasn't with a ton of time to spare.
• Review book reviews completed during the week (if done)- I got all my book reviews posted and return my books to the library.
• Work on a few posts to work ahead for the coming week- I still need to get some work to get the week with visitors scheduled but I did get a bunch of things done this week so I will call this a win :)
• Post Sunday Weekly Goals, Menu Plan Monday, Kid Wednesday and Thrifty Thursday Tip- Done!

This week:

Family Goals

• Spend time with family
• Get to preschool on time every day
• Go to Holiday library program
• Go to Playdate at a friends house
• Go see Santa hopefully

Personal Goals

• Cut coupons
• Get coupons on Friday 
• Shut off computer 6 nights to save energy
• Cut and freeze chicken
• Sub at preschool
• Drop off donation at NVFS
• Get gift cards for teachers from the class
• Bring in teacher gifts
• Go to Jazzercise
• Clean house for company
• Go to Cookie Exchange (after making cookies)
• Finish reading the new Kathy Reichs book
• Start reading the next book in the pile

Home Management Goals

• Clean dishes, counters and floors at least 5 days of the week
• Clean dishes one night and not wait until the morning

Blog Goals

• Post one post everyday (schedule 7 posts so that can spend more time with family)
• Review book reviews completed during the week (if done)
• Work on a few posts to work ahead for the coming week
• Post Sunday Weekly Goals, Menu Plan Monday, Kid Wednesday and Thrifty Thursday Tip 

The Longing Book Review

The Longing (The Courtship of Nellie Fisher, Book 3) by Beverly Lewis was the third and last book in the series of the Courtship of Nellie Fisher.  I was a little hesitant to pick up this book after the disappointing predecessor but still curious.  The great news is that I wasn't disappointed until it was over.

Nellie Mae Fisher has broken up with her beau, Caleb Yoder, and is still yearning for the life she left behind with the end of their relationship.  She no longer had a potential husband and father to her children so her life was a little off track.  She decided that she was joining the New Order and uses her faith in God to lead her and support her while she is still mourning her lost sister and relationship.  While Nellie is dealing with issues within her family over the changes in the church, Caleb's family has a tragic accident.  Neither of them can forget the their love even when dealing with everything going in their lives.  To find out more, you have to pick up the book and read for yourself.

I thought that this book was great and it more then made up for the last book in the series.  It was a great community centered story about how all of the Amish came together to support each other in their times of needs even if they might have differences in religious beliefs.  I am not sure if it would have followed the first book in the series so I still think that you should pick up that second book to make it to this great part of the story.  I hope that you pick this up at your local library or bookstore.  I don't think that you will be disappointed!