Frugal Friday - Learning about Couponing with an Ebook

This is a guest post from my friend Sharon. 

More and more people are getting into couponing.  But, in order to be successful, it takes some time to learn how to coupon effectively and get the best deals.  While you can just take the coupons you get, go to the store, and buy the product, if you wait for sales or watch flyers, you can save more money than just the face value of the coupon.

For this reason, I decided to create a book on Canadian couponing.  I have had friends ask me to help them get started but there is a lot of information and it can be difficult to go through it all.  I had already written a few other kindle books so i decided why not write one specifically aimed to Canadians?  I know there are many websites/Facebook groups for couponing as well and I have included links to these.

I used the alphabet to organize this book and it definitely it not an exhaustive guide.   But I have included a lot of information in this book to help you get started with couponing, with getting the best bang for your buck and a variety of sources to help you get started and find your coupons.

Even if you are not Canadian based, you may find this book helpful if you are trying to learn about couponing.  There is terminology, information on getting good deals and many other bits of information that are universal regardless of where you live.

Wordless Wednesday

1946 Caldecott Honor book - and the last one on my list to read!!

Miscellaneous Monday - The Power of Books

A couple weeks ago, while the hubby and I were out and about town, I received a text message from my dad’s cell phone.  I wasn’t certain it was from him, as my mom will sometimes text me from his phone instead of her own, depending on which is handier at the moment. The text asked about a book:

The princess and the goblin. A book. Started to read in the second, maybe third grade. Never got to finish it, had to turn it back in to the bookmobile. Could never find it again. Have u ever heard of it?

The name sounded familiar, but I wasn’t certain.  A quick search on amazon brought up a Victorian fairy tale by George MacDonald.  It is available as a free Kindle book (The Princess and the Goblin). I texted the info back and within moments my phone started ringing.

Photo from Morguefile.com

My dad, who recently celebrated his 59^th birthday, told me that he had started reading this book when he was young – perhaps in first grade.  The bookmobile would visit the Catholic school he attended.  Either the nuns at school or his mother at home had given him a fear of returning a book late, so he returned the book without finishing it.  Being a young child, he didn’t realize that he could renew the book or request it so he could check it out again.  Fast forward over fifty years and he is still thinking about the story and wondering how it ends.

How amazing is that? 

In libraryland we often talk how important books are in a child’s life.  We are asked to find books that a patron read and loved as a child, but can no longer recall the title or author.  My dad’s story is just one example of how the written word can stick with a person throughout his life.  Dad told me that over the years he would think about this book from time to time, wishing he could read it to the end. 

Miscellaneous Monday - So, You Want To Be a Youth Librarian

I’ve wanted to do a post that takes the reader on a journey through my typical day at work. There are two reasons I have yet to do this. 1. I have found that I don’t really have the time to take photos for the post. 2. The few times I started a list of activities I was doing that day, I was soon so busy that I wasn’t able to write everything down. Usually the list was abandoned within three hours.  

 I am one of the lucky few who can say I love my job. I am a librarian. More specifically, I am the Assistant Manager of the Youth Services department at my library. I’m sure most who read that will just see the librarian part and assume I get paid to read books all day, with the occasional craft thrown in (if they noticed the youth part). My job is so much more than doing crafts and reading books.  

 While it is true that there are times when I do read on the job, usually I am reading picture books I have chosen for storytime. As for crafts, more often than not, I quickly put together a sample that will be used during a program. The library field often requires Master of Library and Information Science degree to be titled a librarian. I obtained this degree knowing that I would be required to do much more than read books and complete crafts.  

 So, what else do I do? I have many tasks to take up my time. Here is a sampling of those duties:

• I research and prepare book lists, called bibliographies, for children of all ages.
• As a youth librarian, I plan and present programs for children aged 3-18, though not all in one program! Conceivably I could plan and present programs for infants and toddlers as well, but we have others in my department who usually do those.
• I order books, magazines, and audiobooks for teens for four of our seven locations. At one time I ordered those materials, as well as CD-ROMs, DVDs and music CDs for children aged 0-14 for five locations.
• I attend conferences, workshops and webinars. Sometimes I even present at these events. Topics are of a wide variety, including readers’ advisory, database training, programming on the cheap, early literacy, and violence in the workplace. I’m expected to be an expert in most things related to youth. This goes beyond children’s and teen literature and includes cognitive development, education, literacy, trends, and interests.
• The library is part of a community, which means it is important, as a youth librarian, to have a presence in the community. I visit schools and daycares, and facilitate their visits to the library. I must know what is happening in the communities of which our system is part – local, regional, state and national. For example, when a school closes its library doors, or drops art from its elementary curriculum, we strive to fill the gaps.
• In keeping with being involved with the community, I serve on the board for a local chapter of a national literacy organization. Others in my library are active in local business associations, Kiwanis, Rotary, and similar organizations.
• I maintain the youth collections. While I am directly in charge of the teen collections at four locations, I also help with weeding the children’s collections that my staff members maintain. This includes doing an inventory of materials, checking to see that the items are on the shelf and pulling those that need to be replaced and/or withdrawn.
• I help to maintain the bulletin board and display decorations at one branch. This might not seem like a lot, but the bulletin board is the length of the children’s department…about one third of the building. It’s freakin’ long.
• At all locations, reference and readers’ advisory questions take up a portion of the day. At some locations the questions often seem non-stop. Is your child looking for a book to read? Does little Taylor have a project due at school? If you visit my library when I am working, I will be there to help. If you are a teacher, I will help you find materials to use in the classroom.

These are just a few of the activities that fill my work week. I attend meetings, deal with staffing issues, observe others’ programs, answer emails, write grants and even assist at the circulation desk from time to time.  

 When I get home from work, or during my lunch breaks, I use the time to read books, blogs, journals and other professional resources. I listen to audiobooks in the car and on my iPhone. Most of the books I read are written for people under the age of 18. These can easily be considered work related activities, but I very rarely do them on work time. Luckily, I enjoy this part of my field.  

 So that, in a nutshell, is what I do as a youth librarian.

Miscellaneous Monday - Five Fun Youth Party Themes

As a youth librarian, I am always looking for fun program ideas.  I’ve noticed that a lot of our programs would make fantastic children’s parties.  Here are five fun ideas that go beyond the traditional party themes. (Links are to my Pinterest boards for those themes).

1. Superheroes

A great theme for preschoolers through tweens.  Design your own superhero, complete with logo and mask. Hold a trivia contest and run an obstacle course.

2. Supernatural creatures

This is sure to delight tweens and teens. Trivia, snacks, crafts and a zombie apocalypse drill.

3. Spa Day

Give manicures and pedicures, make jewelry, lip gloss, bath salts and more, sip mocktails from fancy glasses. Tween and teen girls will have a blast.

4. Upcycled Crafting

Upcycling is all the rage! Crafts made from materials that would normally be recycled or thrown away, such as egg cartons, bread tags, floppy disks, and cereal boxes.

5. Mad HatterTea Party

Show a whimsical side with a tea party inspired by Alice in Wonderland.  Giant tissue paper flowers, brightly colored sweets, and a game of “flamingo” croquet.

Miscellaneous Monday - First Book and Summer Slide

This was originally posted on my Ama Reads blog. 

For the past several months I have been a part of a Local Advisory Board for First Book.  This organization is important to me not only as a youth librarian, but also as someone who very nearly became an English teacher.  When you throw in the fact that I cannot remember a time when books were not an important part of my life, it is understandable that I would want to be involved with First Book.

A non-profit organization that provides access to new books for children in need throughout the United States and Canada, First Book strives to alleviate the illiteracy issue plaguing our nation’s poorest residents by partnering with organizations, classrooms, and other groups in the community.  In addition to providing books, First Book raises funds to use for grants.  If you work with children in an area with a high level of poverty, you may be eligible for a grant through First Book. 

As school lets out children are susceptible to Summer Slide.  While this is an issue for all youth, it is especially so for those in low-income areas.  With little or no access to quality books or even computers, these children are at a disadvantage. Over the summer months, children in low-income households fall behind an average of 2 months in reading. Thankfully most libraries have free Summer Reading Programs that can help alleviate the educational divide, but unfortunately, many children may never step foot in a library. 

This is where First Book can help.  For instance, the local chapter of First Book has a program called Food for the Brain Campaign in which they visit a number of community meals and nutrition sites and give new, free books to the children attending, providing those from low-income households with reading materials.  By going to where the children are and giving them books First Book helps to fight Summer Slide.  

Want to help support First Book?   Local Advisory Boards are made up of people from all walks of life - teachers, librarians, business owners, retirees, parents, grandparents... anyone can volunteer.  They can use donations of funds or of time, whether ongoing or only once.  Check out their website to search for a Local Advisory Board near you.

Scent-Sational Saturday - June Specials!

It's June!  Celebrate the warmer weather with the fruity scent of Mango Cooler - June's Scent of the Month!  All Mango Cooler scented items are 10% this month. This seasonal scent is only available for the summer catalog, so stock up now!

 

Thankful Thursday

We’ve been having a bout of mostly warm temps here the past week or so.  I even broke down and turned on the central air last week!  Which brings me to today’s topic of gratitude.

I am thankful for sunny days. Days when the weather cooperates and I can sit outside and read a book or play with the pups.  I am also very thankful for central air conditioning.  Without it the temps inside my house would climb several degrees higher than those outside.  Not only would that make me miserable and headachey, but it would be unhealthy for the furkids.

I’m also thankful for rainy nights.  I love listening to the rain and feeling a slight mist come through the open bedroom windows.  I love the smell in the air just before it rains, and the scent of the rain falling. 

While it does get hotter than I like, I’m thankful I live in a place where bad weather rarely kills.  Yes, we can get tornados in our part of Ohio, but the likelihood for twisters is slim compared to the Plains.  Additionally, when we have experienced tornados, they haven’t been nearly as devastating as the ones recently experienced in Oklahoma.  My thoughts are with those who have lived through those storms, and with the friends and family of the humans and animals who did not survive.

And on that note, I’ll end with the gratefulness I have knowing every day I can snuggle with my pups when I am at home and I can hear my husband’s voice on the other end of the phone.

Tuesday Tastes - Sunday Dinner

On Sunday the Hubby and I went to his parents’ house for two reasons.  One – to do laundry.  Our washing machine died on us a few weeks ago, so we’ve been going there every two weeks instead of paying at a laundromat.  Thankfully we can afford to buy a new washer once I get paid on Friday.  Yay!  The other reason we went to the in laws’ was to celebrate Mother’s Day.  Instead of going out to dinner, we came over and I made a meal.  Originally it was going to be just the four of us, but one of Hubby’s sisters and her family came over as well, so I made dinner for eight.

After a few discussions as to what to make, Hubby and I decided to make spaghetti.  Nice and easy.  Of course, I can’t just use a jar of sauce without doing something to it.  Using a jar of Trader Joe’s Roasted Garlic red sauce as a base, I added the following to it: 1 large can of crushed tomatoes with basil, 1 bag of frozen roasted peppers and onions (from Trader Joe’s), 1 large Vidalia onion, 1 ½ pounds of sliced baby Bella mushrooms, 1 ½ cups shredded carrots, ½ pound sweet Italian sausage, ½ pound hot Italian sausage, minced garlic, Italian seasonings, and red pepper flakes. 

So. Very. Delish.  Seriously, I love my pasta sauces.  I rarely brag about myself and really mean what I am saying, but this is one case where I really do believe it.  My pasta sauce rocks.

In addition to spaghetti, we had cheesy garlic toast and a large salad with my homemade vinaigrette dressing.   It’s so easy to make.  I don’t know the exact measurements as I usually just go with how it looks and/or tastes.  The main ingredients are: balsamic vinegar, Mrs. Dash seasoning, garlic (minced and/or powdered), and extra virgin olive oil.  I will sometimes add flavored vinegars, such as raspberry, or some honey and mustard. 

For dessert we had fresh red raspberries and strawberries with vanilla sugar over vanilla bean iced cream with whipped cream. 

Of course, I don’t have any photos of the yumminess.  Instead I am going to share the recipe and photos for Garlic Croutons.  I made these with bread leftover from Sunday’s dinner.

Mmmmm. Roasted Garlic bread

Garlic Croutons

Ingredients:

• Dense bread (my local grocery store sells a roasted garlic bread that is perfect)
• Olive oil
• Garlic powder
• Italian seasonings
• Onion salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400*F
Cut the bread into cubes

Cut the bread into cubes

In a quart or gallon sized storage bag, put olive oil, garlic powder and Italian seasonings.  The amount depends on how much you are making.  I used about 1/3 cup of oil and a teaspoon of each garlic powder and Italian seasonings.


Add bread to the storage bag and close bag.  Coat bread.

Coat with olive oil and seasonings

Place bread cubes in a single layer in a baking dish or sheet pan.  Sprinkle a bit of onion salt on top.  For a more garlic taste, use garlic salt instead.

Single layer in a baking dish

Bake for approximately 10 minutes. 
Let sit to cool.  Once cool put in a storage container or bag.  Enjoy.

Ready to eat!