Vacation, Vacation, Vacation!

Count 'em... THREE vacations!

First off, to celebrate Zach's bday/finishing 2nd year/1st anniversary we took a daytrip to Orlando- just the two of us! We're going to Universal Studios to see Zach's #2 and #3 favorite things (Harry Potter and Third Eye Blind) with his #1 favorite (ME!). I've read all but the last Harry Potter book, so I'm in good shape to really appreciate Butterbeer and Zonko's. Universal's Summer Concert Series is really the reason we're going- Zach has loved Third Eye Blind for years and was so sad when they came to MSU's Bulldog Bash the year after he graduated.

Next, we went to St. Simons Island and Little St. Simons Island (just off the Georgia coast) for my uncle's wedding! What great time to see all of my mom's family.

Finally, we'll be in Pensacola for Independence Day. My dad is flying to Gainesville to drive with us to Pensacola to see Zach's family. I think the guys are planning fishing trip, and you'll be able to find the girls floating in the pool, spending time in the garden, cooking, eating, or any combination of all the previously listed activities.

LOTS of pics later!

Paper Anniversary

So we just celebrated our one year anniversar! One year? Seriously???? I am so blessed! More on the mushy gushy later... I was thinking about how we should celebrate this milestone because this is one of the few BIG anniversaries. It's like your birthday- the following ages are the ones worth celebrating in a BIG way: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 16, 18, 21, ... , 50, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, etc. See that big gap between 21 and 50? That's how I feel wedding anniversaries will be like. The 1st anniversary is special, and after that, the next big celebration will be on the 50th anniversary! haha Probably only the older couples can really attest to that.

So what special things typically happen on a first anniversary? Well, we didn't have a wedding cake, so we don't have a one-year-old piece of cake in our freezer. It's too soon to renew wedding vows. We don't really have enough expendable money to take a special trip. The traditional first anniversary gift is paper, so I wanted to think of something creative to do with this...

Did you know that I keep a meticulous google calendar? It's partially because I'm sentimental and partially because I'm forgetful. I love looking back and seeing what happened on a certain day or being able to look back and see when my last dentist appointment was. If we go on a date, sometimes I even put which restaurant we went to and who we went with. I keep it for my own pleasure, but now I'm using it for an awesome (if I do say so myself) first wedding anniversary gift for Zach (and, ok, it's for me, too!)

Have I mentioned that I'm super sentimental- almost to the point of it being a hoarding issue. I've kept ticket stubs from movies, football games, concerts and bib numbers from races and cards and other little mementos from things Zach and I have done together over the past 6 years we have been together (I even have the very first birthday card he ever gave me in 2005- this was before we were even dating. but let's be honest, it was heading that way!). Now I'm finally going to remove them from the box they've been sitting in and use them in this gift!

I took this idea from one of my favorite blogs and modified it a bit. It's a calendar journal... I already had all of the tools and materials at home, so that was a big bonus! For my version you'll need:
*about 400 index cards (one for each day of the week, 12 for each month, and extras just in case)
*long, narrow basket to file cards in
*rubber cement
*date stamp (i used a martha stewart kit and had to place each letter and number individually... it took a LONG time, but i am so pleased with the "messy" way it looks)
*ink pad
*collection of ticket stubs, pictures, old menus, cards etc

Glue collection of sentimental items to index cards for width (enough to make 12 separators for each month). I put items on the front and the back, and I attached items so that the card could still be opened and the message inside could be read.

Stamp the date Jan 1-Dec 31 on index cards. Start with your wedding day (ours is June 19, 2010) and write what happened on that day. Continue for 365 days (it's ok to skip days in between) and finish on your first anniversary (June 19, 2011).

Optional: I started the calendar with June 19th instead of Jan 1st, so I needed one extra month separator since June is technically in here twice. The very first item in my basket is the card I'm giving to Zach on our first anniversary.

This would also be a great grooms gift. You won't have to think back for that first year you were married- you can just keep track of it as you go! I'm looking forward to this year when we will add to each day and remember what we did on that day one year ago. As I was going through my calendar from the past year, I can really see how the Lord has shaped us and brought us closer together and to Him. We have been blessed with some amazing experiences, and these are the highlights from our first year of marriage:

*Honeymoon in Chattanooga
*Trips (for business and pleasure) to Lake Keowee in SC, Pensacola, Jackson, Delray Beach, Starkville, Skiing in Maryland, Philly, Savannah, Charleston, Cincinnati, Washington DC, Texas, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio
*A job for Stacey
*A church home
*Visits from family and friends in Gainesville
*Date nights with new couple friends
*Reunions with old friends
*A Bulldog victory over the gators at the swamp
*A bowl game (MSU)!! And a national championship title (Auburn)!!
*A 5K, 15K, and a half marathon
*Weddings and funerals
*Mission trip to Nicaragua
*Zach starting and finishing his 2nd year of medical school

So excited to see what the next year of marriage holds!

And I have to brag on my wonderful husband... he MADE me a bouquet of origami roses.

They are stunning and precious, and I love them so much! They are very "me". I love the different patterns on the paper, the no.2 pencil stems, and that they are positioned on top of a candle. So creative!Back off anthropologie, these are MY flowers! (Don't they look anthropologie-ish?) He said each one took about 15 minutes. The process is very meticulous. I had him show me how to make one but decided I didn't want to learn. I love the mystery (and that my husband can be crafty like me!)

Couponing

So I had been skeptical of this new fad, couponing. I thought it was excessive (who needs 47 bottles of mustard), wasteful (why drive to 7 different stores 3 times a week) and led to hoarding (have you seen Extreme Couponing where people store 78 tolls or paper towels under beds and in their showers). But now that I've taken a whack at it for about a month, I'm hooked! I can't dedicate myself entirely because I simply do not have the storage space or the mouths to feed, but the principles and strategies I'm learning now can be applied years down the road when we have little ones running around! I ONLY buy things that I need. I will stock up on expensive or free items if they are a good deal, but I haven't bought more than 4 of anything. And when we run out of space to store things, I'm done until we clean some stuff out.

Sure, it's a little embarassing to walk up to the check out counter and ask to checkout 7 separate times. And, ok, I've had the cashier call up the manager of several occassions. But, I can handle a little embarassement for the sake of saving a substanial amount of money. I buy 2 newspapers each Sunday at the dollar store (that's a savings of $1 right there!), and I more than make up that cost! I'll sit down and plan out shopping trips (this does take a bit of time, but it goes faster once you've honed your eye for what to look for). I always plan my menu and make a shopping list before clipping coupons- this way I really stick to only buying what I need. I do still buy some groceries at full-price. Sometimes there are little coupons not featured on websites because they don't yield really really high savings, but saving 50 cents is 50 cents is your pocket. So if there is an item I need on my shopping list and a coupon for it, I'll still clip it and use it. At Publix, I generally spend the same amount that I save (so if I spend $60 on groceries, I have savings that equal $60). That can really add up!

These are some of my favorite sites:
Coupon Chaos Mama
i heart publix
coupon chix
southern savers

I only shop at CVS, Walgreens and Publix. And these are a couple of my shopping trips from this week:In all, I spent $28.25, saved $50.78, and have $6 in RegisterRewards to use next week!

CVS

First transaction,

2 Dial soap
1 Covergirl Lip gloss
1 Covergirl mascara
1 Covergirl waterproof mascara

Total $40.05
Total after sale $30.76
Total Manufacturer Coupons: $10
Total Store Coupons: $4
Total Spent: $18.43 (includes tax)
*Since I spent over $15 on Covergirl, I received $5 ExtraBucks to use towards another purchase.

Second Transaction,

2 bottles of vegetable oil (BoGo)

Total $10.58
Total after sale $5.29
Total Store Coupons: $5
Total Spent: $.29

CVS Trip Summary: Spent $18.72, Saved $31.91!!

Walgreens (I had $5.99 in Register Rewards from the previous week to use this week)

First Transaction,

1 Colgate 360 Toothbrush
1 bottle of Alcohol
2 Jello Instant Pudding Mix
2 rolls of aluminum foil

Total $10.94
Total after sale $9.94
Total Manufacturer Coupons: $1
Total Store Coupons: $3.50
Total RR: $5
Total Spent: $.73 (includes tax)
*I received $2 RR for buying Colgate toothbrush

Second Transaction,

1 Colgate 360 Toothbrush
1 box kraft mac and cheese
1 Nicole by OPI nail polish

Total $13.47
Total after sale $8.47
Total Manufacturer Coupons: $.75
Total Store Coupons: $.80
Total RR: $.99
Total Spent: $6.37 (includes tax)
*I received $2 RR for buying Colgate toothbrush

Third Transaction,

1 Colgate 360 Toothbrush

Total $3.99
Total after sale $2.99
Total Manufacturer Coupons: $$.75
Total Spent: $2.43 (includes tax)
*I received $2 RR for buying Colgate toothbrush

Walgreens Trip Summary: Spent $9.53, Saved $18.87, RR to use next week $6!!

Pattycake

So I made this a little while back, and it's too unique not to share with y'all! My mother-in-law's garden is producing like crazy, so they brought us a care package of garden goodness the last time they were down. Here are the pattypan squash:

I have never ever cooked with pattypan squash before, so I headed to the internet to find a good recipe! I found some typical gratin or stuffed recipes that called for squash. But then I came across this really unique recipe for a cake. Plus, the name is just precious- Pattycake! Love it! So here it is...

::INGREDIENTS::

3/4c sugar
1 egg
1/2c flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4c nut meats (I used walnuts)
1 tsp salt
1c pattypan squash, grated
1 tsp vanilla::DIRECTIONS::
Beat egg and sugar. Add the rest of the ingredients. Pour into greased pie pan of 8 inch cake pan. BAke at 300 degrees for 45 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped topping.

It turned out to be a pretty salty cake, but that might be able to be toned down by using different nuts. I only used one round cake pan, but it might be nice to bake a couple next time and fill the cake with something sweet to counter the salty!

I also calculated the nutritional value per serving because I was curious: 8 servings, 124 calories and 1.7g fat per serving. Not too bad!

Friday Funday!

The Bulldogs came to Gainesville this past week, and we were so excited! They faced the Florida Gators in the Super Regional, and the winner would be heading to Omaha for the College World Series. I took off work on Friday, and we fueled up on good ole American cuisine before heading to the baseball stadium! blue box mac and cheese, hot dogs and beer. YUMMM!!! Well, we all know how the series turned out, but we still had a great time cheering for our Bulldogs!

Let me introduce you to some of our new friends: We met Jeff and Kelsey at my work Christmas party. Jeff also works for Mactec, and he and his wife are both from Georgia. Jeff graduated from Georgia Tech and has gotten an on-line broadcast meteorology degree from MSU. They both go to our church, and we love having "couple friends" to do things with! The four of us went to the game on Friday. Saying that we melted and baked in the sun would be an understatement!
Poor Kelsey is bright red from being out at the game. It was a depressing 11-1 loss but still nice to be surrounded by fellow Mississippians! I saw some of my parent's neighbors in Starkville and a dear fellow roadrunner, Christin Reeves!

This is a pic of our one and only run that game... thank goodness the next two games were much more exciting!

Zach and I had a double-header in frisbee that evening (we beat the only undefeated team in the league, and then lost by 2 points to another great team). After frisbee, we scarfed down some dinner and met back up with Jeff and Kelsey to see the movie Bridesmaids. HILARIOUS! Even the boys liked it! Phew it was a long but fun-filled day! I think our eyes were closed before our heads even hit the pillow that night!

But wait! The fun continues! ALL WEEKEND LONG!

Saturday was a very productive day filled with cleaning, cooking, grocery shopping, the usual... Annnnnd the Bulldogs pulled out a victory! Who's keeping score? That means that the winner of the next game goes to the World Series! It's anybody's game!

That night I got a call from another set of "couple friends", Jenn and Joel, asking if we wanted to go see the new X-Men movie with them. Yes, we had gone to a movie the night before, but we went anyways! We hadn't even hung out with them before, and we really enjoyed getting chat before, during and after the movie with them! We've already planned another double-date for the near future!

Sunday, we went to church and were given 4 tickets to the final game in the Super Regional. A nice couple we've gotten to know at church said they just couldn't sit in that heat anymore and offered us their tickets right behind the 3rd base dugout (score!). I have to make a note that they are Gator fans, and it was so kind of them to offer us their tickets since they knew we were not cheering for their team! Jeff and Kelsey came with us again, and we enjoyed this game so much more than Friday's! Even though we lost, it was a great game and our family even got to see us on TV! Zach took me for some consolation ice cream after the game... I was so pooped from the fun-filled weekend (2 baseball games, 2 frisbee games, 2 movies) I went to bed at 8:30p. Yup, 8:30p.

We have such an exciting week! Zach's birthday is on Thursday! Zach takes his boards on Friday! Zach's family is coming to visit on Saturday! Our one year anniversary is Sunday!

Guest Post: Beastmode!!!

Hello followers of Stacey's Blog. This is Zach Greene. Seeing as it is called "the greene scene", I should probably throw in my two cents every once in awhile. Now that issue is settled and we can move on to the meat of the post.

There are plenty of reasons that I am proud of my wife. I would like to share one of them with you tonight. Stacey and I have been very active lately. We recently started a bootcamp, and believe me, it is super tough. It is one month long and only $20 (thanks LivingSocial). For the past 3 days we have been grueling it out in 100+ degree heat. Well I believe that the past 3 days are starting to pay off.

Stacey and I also participate in the Gainesville Ultimate Frisbee League on Friday afternoons, and our team was 0-3. This Friday was a different story. Stacey and I went out there battle tested. (note: we went out about 30 minutes early to warm up because we were so sore from bootcamp).

The game was very close, but we were losing 6-4 as halftime drew near. Our team, Beastmode, was on offense and the windy conditions meant that our opponent was going to try a zone defense. Stacey was very far away from the disc, playing her role, which was to spread the zone out by standing in the endzone. It is kindof boring but the defense can't ignore her or we would throw the disc deep to the 5'4" Stacey. Well, in classic fashion, we turn the disc over and Stacey is a good 50 yds away from pretty much everybody. She started sprinting back towards the action to cover somebody. The competition out there is pretty good and if there is an open person, its easy to score a goal. Stacey ran to the open person to guard them, and it just so happened to be a 6'3" guy with lots of experience. In the game of Ultimate, you have 10 secs to throw the disc once someone starts guarding you. Stacey guarded him masterfully and when he only had 2 secs left to throw, he made an ill advised pass that resulted in a turnover. I was on the sideline cheering her on and I promise that had she not sprinted to guard him, they would have scored.

Thats not all!!!! As our team regained possession of the frisbee, Stacey went back to her mind-numbing job of standing in the endzone to stretch the zone out. As the zone spread out, our teammates with the disc found some openings and we started to move upfield. There Stacey was, standing all alone in the endzone. The pass was completed and Stacey scored the point. She had caused a turnover on one side of the field and scored on the other, all in the same point. In the game of Ultimate, we call that a "bookends". I'm so proud of her, and I love her too!!!

That point may have changed the game. We went to half losing 6-8. It got out of hand after half and at our lowest point we were losing 6-11. Our team kept motivated and we went on a 6 point run taking the lead 12-11. We ended up winning 15-13. Who knows, if Stacey hadn't saved that point, we might not have been able to make the comback. Go Beastmode!!!!!

She is coming along very quickly. This is her first time playing competitive ultimate (I'm not counting intramurals). In contrast, I have been playing competitive ultimate for 3 years now, including 1 year at MSU, and 1 year at UF (I was part of the UF Ultimate National Champs 2010 team). That being said, this was easily one of my proudest moments playing the game.


The other Greene,

Zach