Young Living Essential Oils Updates!

I've received quite a few messages asking me about how much I like my Young Living Essential Oils and let me say, I LOVE THEM! :)

Transcript of my side of a recent Facebook chat:

"Personally, I've got this collection --> http://www.youngliving.com/en_US/products/essential-oils/collections/everyday-oils-essential-oil-collection

The oils in this select collection will provide ongoing support for your home, health, and body. We've used Joy, Frankincense, Lemon, Lavender, Peppermint, Peace and Calming, Thieves, and Valor in our diffuser so far.

The Frankincense is ah-mazing because it smells like being completely outdoors in the middle of a huge forest. For me, it's very much like "home" and I can just breathe it deeply, close my eyes, and relax.

The lemon did not work so well in the diffuser BUT it is supposed to be a great cleaner for countertops and etc, so I'm going to pick up a plain spray bottle next time I'm at Dollar Tree and try to titrate that mixture. I love my kitchen when it smells good so I'm looking forward to this.

The Joy is a very strong scent, but it's [known] to enhance romantic feelings.

Thieves is the only one I've tried to use topically thus far because I don't have a "carrier oil" - most people use coconut oil. You're supposed to dilute a few drops into the carrier oil so it's not so hard on your skin. I put Thieves directly onto my sore throat one day though and it was absolutely like it pulled the pain out.

The Peace & Calming diffused okay, but it's crowning glory is supposed to be with the kiddos. [Rub it onto their feet and they'll stop twitching and go to sleep!]"

I also have downloaded these "guides" to the EOs that I own: Click here to see them in my Dropbox.

Are you interested in learning more about Young Living Essential Oils? Message me on Facebook or email me at dowellim@gmail.com. :) If you choose to buy, click this link or input my distributor # (1643357) in the Sponsor ID / Enroller ID boxes when you're making your purchase! Thanks!

Update - Part One

Happy Tuesday everyone!!! Just wanted to begin giving a quick update as to what's been going on with our family and what we've been doing with all of this time we haven't spent blogging :) Thankfully, there have been no upheavals in employment or geographic location since last March...we've just been too busy living life to spend the time to WRITE about it!

The biggest change in our day-to-day family life has come from our decision to start homeschooling the girls. This is, of course, a huge commitment of my time...BUT it's probably the most rewarding thing I'll ever be blessed enough to do. We've been doing this since November of 2013 and have already had field trips (with more planned!), curriculum changes, struggles, science experiments gone wrong, and most importantly - joys of breakthroughs in learning! Follow all of our adventures on The Homestead Academy's Facebook Page!

Dowell Internet Marketing continues to be successful...so much in fact that I've brought in a social media manager to help me keep up with all of the Facebooking, Twittering, Pinteresting, and Google Plusing. :) Between the two of us, we now manage the following accounts:

• Hampton Inn Raleigh - Capital Blvd. North | Facebook | Twitter | Google+
• Hampton Inn Raleigh/Town of Wake Forest | Facebook | Google+
• Holiday Inn Raleigh-Durham Airport | Facebook | Google+
• Hampton Inn Hendersonville | Facebook | Twitter | Google+
• Sleep Inn & Suites - Jacksonville, NC | Facebook  
• The Islander Inn | Facebook | Twitter | Google+
• The Isles Restaurant & Tiki Bar | Facebook | Twitter | Google+
• The Pearl Golf Course | Facebook | Twitter | Google+
• Oceanfront Weddings of NC | Facebook | Twitter | Google+
• Stingy Jack's Pumpkin Patch | Facebook
• The Core Real Estate Partners | Facebook | Twitter | Google+ | Pinterest

It's a never-ending job trying to keep up with which part of North Carolina I'm "in" at the moment, but I love, love, LOVE having this opportunity to work from home in a job that I enjoy doing and get fulfillment from!

The baby just woke, so my time is up for now. I foresee science class happening outside this afternoon, as our temps have soared into the 60* range!

As always, thanks for reading!

All my love,

Accounting Software Feedback Needed!!!

Alright business types - I need accounting software. I'll be the only user, I need it to send invoices, and I could care less if it tracks inventory (because I only sell "services," not goods). I've been using Quickbooks Online Simple Start since I opened the business, but they have a 5 client limit for invoicing, which I can no longer get around. Their cost to continue that service is $39.95/month, which is absurd for the small amount of use I give the software. (I'd be better off just keeping a ledger the old-fashioned way...paper and pencil.) So, I got to looking around at "buy it once and done for 3 years until the software edition goes through the "sunsetting" process" options. I've narrowed it down to Sage One, Quickbooks Pro 2013, and Quicken Home & Business 2013. Any feedback on any of these products??? Thanks!

Knitted Works by Aunt Robin

The following is a sample of items that are handmade by my Aunt Robin. They are all available for customization and/or purchase! If you're interested in finding out more, please email me at dowellim@gmail.com and I'll put you in touch with my aunt!

Again? Really?!?!?

Seems the time has come for my brother's next deployment. This will be #3, and his second time to Afghanistan. I am so proud of my brother for the work that he has done in each deployment and I will always be honored to be his sister. He has sacrificed so much of his own life and of his time with his family for his job, and that job is to serve our country as a United States Marine.

If you've never been through a deployment with someone that's close to you, count your lucky stars RIGHT.NOW and then try to imagine how it would feel if part of your heart was totally ripped out and thrown into a den of wild wolves, where you hoped it would just lay low and survive until someone else was able to come and retrieve it and bring it back to you. Think about your family and imagine how it would feel if you didn't talk to them for a few weeks...not because you didn't have the time or didn't want to, but because you couldn't. They're out of touch, out of reach - you have no idea if they're ok, if they've got enough to eat and drink, where they're sleeping, if they're too cold or too hot, or what their emotions are. Are they scared? Homesick? Do they wish they could talk to you as much as you wish you could talk to them??? Do they look at your pictures at night before bed and did they get that package you mailed a month ago yet? That's just touching the surface of the water with regards to the emotional toll that deployments take. Never mind the phone calls from concerned extended family, the sick feelings in the pit of your stomach when you turn on the news and they're discussing the latest casualties of war, the complete loss and emptiness that you feel if you miss a call on your cell phone and see that the number that had dialed you was only 5 or 6 digits and you know it was him trying to reach you. The military has great support available for spouses who want to take advantage of it, but I've yet to find a great place to connect with other family members of deployed soldiers.

Yes, my brother's married and yes, I know that his wife and kids are his #1 priority now and I respect that completely ... but he's still MY brother. My ONLY brother. He's the one that I grew up with, the one that knows more about me than any other human being on this planet, and one of the only people that I feel "that" connection with - I can talk to him about anything and he has a way of texting or calling me whenever I'm really in need of someone to talk to. He's the one that made me lose my composure by saying "I'm on my way" when my dad had his stroke and I was feeling so scared and alone at the hospital (of course, he's also the one that got me so drunk at our bonfire the night before dad was discharged that I could barely make it to the hospital without throwing up... :) ). He's one of the first people that I ever trusted to watch K when she was an infant, and he was the first person to keep her for an entire weekend so that Scott and I could attend his brother's graduation ceremonies. And every time he deploys, I think of all these things, and more...and it just breaks my heart.

I know what I have to do - I *have* to put on my Big Girl panties and deal with this. I have to stay strong in my faith and use this as an opportunity for spiritual growth. I have to continue to be a dedicated mother to my children and a good wife to my husband. I have to be a good friend to those that need me in their lives. I have to stay focused on my business and keep my clients' companies at the forefront of their markets. I have to mentally prepare myself for weeks with no contact and for the terrible nights laying awake wondering "what if?" We'll do Christmas, again, without him and I'll see the pictures from his girls' birthday party as they will both turn another year older in February. Every time I log into Facebook, I'll look to see if there's a green light by his name. I'll put my yellow ribbon magnet back on my car and my blue star service banner back in my house's front window. And then I'll begin to pray to God that the star stays blue. I'll count the months, then the weeks, then the days, and then the hours until he's stateside again...and until I'll be able to throw my arms around him again and hear him say "I love you Jess."

I learned from the best...

So, the other day I get the following email from my mother:

"Hey Jessica!

This is just one of our snags today. Not too shabby either.....$25.74 actual cost  and we only incurred $8.04 out of pocket. We snagged you some good coupons too, blinkies and others.  : )   The Velveeta is what started it all.... went on sale, plus we had $1 off coupons for each one, then the chips were FREE if you purchase 2 # , same with the Coke, coupon for FREE with the purchase of 2 Velveeta and the Rotel was on sale. The Vlasics, now I know you're drooling....BOGO plus a coupon of .55 off of the first. Just looked at the ticket... pre-tax the Velveeta alone would have been $8.58. Hmmm.

Jim and I both went through the line twice on the above with the only difference being that we only had one round of Vlasic coupons. Hey, we still got 4 jars of Vlassics CHEAP.

OK, your favorite Step Dad just ran the numbers on what we spent and saved today. We did have some items like a gallon of milk that gee, didn't save but .06 on that. Had a $1.00 off Pet coupon that actually did work out to save a whopping .06 over buying the store brand. The Stouffer's Lasagna was not a planned purchase, however it was on sale for $9.99 and we happened to have a $1.00 off coupon on that also. Jim found a good snag on his own....GO JIM!!!!  ..... AA Batteries, should have been $5.60 and we ended up paying .76. Jimmy Dean Sausage was on clearance, $2.10 per roll, we had one .75 off 2. Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls, the 5 packs were on sale for $1.00, had some $1.00 off 2, then the .75 off 3. Philly Cheese and Kraft Chunk Cheese were also on sale, of course there were coupons involved. We stocked up! A couple of miscellaneous items thrown in with no coupon advantage and our final tally was $234.05 worth of goods for only $86.71. That's a 63% savings. The added bonus.... we were out having fun.  : ) 

Love you and wanted to share!

Mom....  Jim too"

And now you KNOW exactly where I learned my skills from...

All my love,

Suuuuuper Doubles!

Good afternoon everyone!!!! My friend Joanna and I had a rockin' good time at Fayetteville's one and only Harris Teeter this morning and I have some great deals to tell you about!

First, as always, here's a picture of "the loot":

Here's a quick list of what I purchased:

*7 jars of Earth's Best Organic baby food (no idea what I'm going to do w/ these yet. I bought all fruit blends so hopefully the girls can eat them as snacks, but if they refuse, I will just donate them to a food drive) - B1G1 so $.50/$.49 each - $1/7 coupon (doubled to $2) = $1.47 or $.21/ea

*Ziploc Big Bags - $1.94 - $1 coupon (doubled to $1.94) = FREE

*Muellers Spaghetti/Thin Spaghetti (4 boxes) - $4 (or $1/box) - $1/2 coupon (doubled to $2/2) = FREE

*Campbells Chunky Soups (5 cans) - B1G1 so $1.13/$1.12 each - 2 coupons; the first was $1.50/3, which doubled to $3/3 and the second was $1/2, which doubled to $2/2 = $.61 or $.12 each

*Smucker's Reduced Sugar Strawberry Preserves - $2.50 - $1 coupon (doubled to $2) = $.50

*Old Orchard Low-Sugar Apple/Grape Juice - B2G3 - $11.80 or $2.95 each - 2 $1 coupons (doubled to $2) ***With this deal, you can't stack two coupons into the "Buy 2" part. One coupon per B2G3 deal is all that is allowed.*** = $7.80 or $.78 each

*Seventh Generation Dish Liquid - $1.99 - $1 coupon (doubled to $1.99) = FREE
 
*Horizon Single-Serve Organic Milk (2 packages of 3 containers) - $6 - 2 $1 coupons (doubled to 2 $2 coupons) = $2 or $1 each

*Feline Pine cat litter (2 bags) - B1G1 so $2.75 each - 2 $1.50 coupons (doubled to 2 $2.75) = FREE

*HT Boneless Chix Breast - B1G2 - Price works out to $1.66/lb. - 3 packages - $3.10, $3.10, $3.12

*Weight Watchers Oatmeal Cookies - $2 - $1 coupon (doubled to $2) = FREE

*Reduced fruits - 3 packages - $1.04, $1.00, $1.07

*Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches - $3.99 - $1 coupon (doubled to $2) = $1.99 (<--OK, I know that's not a great deal AT ALL, but those things are DELICIOUS!!!)

*Bag of Tyson Chicken Tenders - $5.55 - $1 coupon (doubled to $2) = $3.55

*Yoplait YoCrunch Parfaits (2) - $4 - 2 $1 coupons (doubled to 2 $2) = FREE

*CoffeeMate coffee creamer - $1.67 - $.75 coupon (doubled to $1.50) = $.17

Grand Total Spent: $32.46
Grand Total Saved: $109.87

Good luck to you all for the rest of the week!!!! I know I'll be going back to stock up on some more great deals!!!!!


All my love,

"Excuse me, but those don't double..."

I made my first trip to our local Harris Teeter for Super Double coupon week last night, and I didn't do great, but I didn't do poorly either. The Fayetteville Harris Teeter is not one to frequently restock hot items (like the Leland store did), so I guess unless you're there to beat the doors down at 7am on Wednesday morning, you're just out of luck. I ended up only using 16 of my 20 allowable coupons last night, but I was able to give tips and tricks to shoppers along the way. Grocery shopping would take half as much time if I didn't feel like I was somewhat obliged to help the clueless people clutching coupons in every aisle :)

I must have explained HT's rules and the "coupon game" 10 times last night - "No, you can only use 3 on any given item." "Here, see how this smaller package gives you a greater margin of savings?" "Just because that item is pictured doesn't mean that it's the only thing covered by the coupon....if it says "ANY" such-and-such product, you're free to go." and, my absolute favorite (to some people who I had been talking coupons with in the store...they decided to go for it by pulling the blinkies in the Pillsbury refrigerated bread section...) "Excuse me, but those don't double." (I then, of course, proceeded to tell them that coupons that begin in "5" double while those that begin with "9" never do. I also told them how you can go to Food Lion and pull their blinkies and then bring them to Harris Teeter.)

(UGH...Just lost my list that I had typed due to a Blogger error...not typing it again!)

Total Spent: $24.92
Total Saved: $54.83

Have a great day!


All my love,

Shopping at Walmart with Coupons

This will just be a quick post, but it has some points in it that I thought of while I was cleaning out my coupon book at Wal-Mart the other night.


1) W-M stocks just about EVERYTHING! You know those coupons that have been living in your book for months because you simply can't find the product??? You can probably find them there AND they'll probably be at a good price.

2) You can use as many coupons on an individual item as you would like. Harris Teeter only accepts 3 identical coupons. I used 9 tuna coupons at W-M the other night and walked out with 9 pouches of tuna for $.39 each. Not quite as good as a triples deal, but better than letting those coupons expire on 9/30/10 without being used!

3) Your margin of savings will be lower. It's about  50/50 shot as to whether the Great Value brand or the brand name item plus coupon will be cheaper. You win some; you lose some!

4) It's ESSENTIAL to carry a copy of W-M's coupon policy with you. I had it pulled up on my Blackberry the other night because I forgot to bring my printout and I almost had to use it. The cashier wasn't sure about accepting the blinkies I had pulled from Food Lion, but, thankfully, we were able to get it straightened out without me having to "prove" I was correct.

I hope that something here will help one of you save money! Have a great weekend!!!

All my love,

It's SUPER DOUBLES again...

and slacker me just went for the 1st time this morning.... :-/ There was just an overwhelming amount of work that I needed to do to my coupon book to get it back up to date and I was procrastinating! Last night, though, I made myself sit down and do it, so when I crawled into bed a little before midnight, I knew exactly what my plan was for today!!!

Here's the breakdown of deals I found:

*Hamburger/Tuna Helper (6) - Sale price $1/ea - $.75/3 coupon (doubled to $1.50 off 3) = $1.50/3 or $.50 ea
*Cinnamon Toast Crunch (2) - $2.50/ea - $1 off 2 coupon (doubled to $2) = $3/2 or $1.50ea
*Lucky Charms (2) - $2.50/ea - $1 off 2 coupon (doubled to $2) = $3/2 or $1.50ea
*Cheerios (2) - $2.50/ea - $1 off 2 coupon (doubled to $2) = $3/2 or $1.50ea
*Betty Crocker pouch potatoes - $.79 - $.40 coupon (doubled to $.79) = FREE
*Good Earth boxed dinner (2) - $3.50ea - 2 $1.00 off coupons (doubled to $2 off) = $3/2 or $1.50ea
*Progresso Soups (4) - $5.18 or $1.29/.30ea - $1.00 off 4 coupon (doubled to $2 off) = $.79/.80ea
*Campbell Chunky (2) - $1.25ea (and there was a coupon involved here, but I don't remember the amount :( )
*Smucker's Jelly ($2.75)+ Jif to Go peanut butter ($1.99) - $4.74 - $1 coupon (doubled to $2) = $2.74
*Chef Boyardee (3) - $1/ea - $.35/3 coupon (doubled to $.70) = $2.30 or $.76/.77ea
*Mini chocolate moon pies - $2.00 - $.55 coupon (doubled to $1.10) = $.90
*Libby's pineapple chunks - $1.85ea - $1/2 coupon = $1.70 or $.85ea
*Reduced angus chuck steak - $2.87
*Reduced angus chuck stear - $2.99
*HT Whole Chicken ($.59/lb) - $3.16
*Reduced HT "Pick of the Chicken" - $3.88
*Reduced HT "Pick of the Chicken" - $4.28
*Reduced italian sausage - $2.83
*Reduced apple assortment - $1.54
*Green grapes ($.99/lb) - $2.06
*Reduced bananas - $.95
*Romaine lettuce - $2.49
*Yellow onions - $2.99
*Baby bella mushrooms - $2.79
*HT Whole Grain bread - $.77
*Tombstone Pizza (2) - $6.67 - $1/2 coupon (doubled to $2) = $4.47 or $2.33ea
*Green Giant boxed veggies (6) - $.99ea
*Danactive yogurt (2) - $1.99ea - 2 $1 off coupons (doubled to $1.99) = FREE
*Activia yogurt (2) - $1.99ea - 2 $1 off coupons (doubled to $1.99) = FREE
*HT dozen eggs - $.79
*HT whole milk - $3.19
*Off the Bone lunchmeat - $3.50 - $1 off coupon (doubled to $2) = $1.50

And...because I purchased 20 General Mills products - $6.00 off at the register. Also rec'd catalinas for $3 and $2 off next purchase.

GRAND TOTAL SPENT - $74.34
GRAND TOTAL SAVED - $91.01 (<--and this does NOT factor in a lot of the reduced meats/produce I purchased!!!) :)

Abby and I will probably make a go at it one more time tomorrow...I hope that you have all had a great Super Double week thus far!

All my love,

I didn't even plan the last one:

Good morning everyone!!!!

I have a super deal to share with you (and a few other things!). This week at Harris Teeter, MOST Kellogg's products are 50% off. Also, if you purchase 10 Kellogg's products, it will trigger a catalina (read: those coupons that print off at the register and are handed to you with your receipt) for $10 off your next shopping purchase. (SWEEEEEEET!)


Confession - The girls and I didn't go on Wednesday to take full advantage of this deal. I prefer to just stay home a lot when it's so hot out, but when we were forced to go out on Thursday to drop off our rent check, I decided to swing through the HT. By then, most of the REALLY good priced cereals were gone :( We made the best of it though, and came out alright in the end!!!

Just for the purpose of the final total, there was a box of Cheerios that did not make the image above. It was on sale for $2 and I had a $.50 coupon that doubled to $1.00, making the Cheerios $1.00! There also was a container of Welch's White Grape Juice. It was on sale for $3.00 and I had a $.75 coupon that doubled to $1.50, making the juice's final price $1.50.

• All-Bran - $2.17 - $1 coupon = $1.17
• Special K Protein - $1.74 + Special K Chocolate - $1.75 = $3.49 - $1/2 coupon = $2.49 or $1.25/$1.24 per box
• Mini-Wheats (2) - $2.00/ea - $1/2 coupon = $3 or $1.50 per box
• Kellogg's Pop Tarts (5) - 3 boxes rang at $1.09 and 2 at $1.10, so $5.47 total; 2 coupons applicable to this, each worth $1 = Final total of $3.47 or $.69 per box

The final total of my bill after tax was $13.00 AND I got a $10 catalina, so basically, I got all of that for $3.

Now here's the kicker ... the one I didn't even plan!!!! When I got home and was putting away my Pop Tarts, I noticed a promo on the boxes involving codes for different flavors. I flipped a box over and discovered that if you buy 5 different flavors of Pop Tarts (which I did) and put the codes into their web site, they'll send you coupons for 2 free boxes of Pop Tarts!!!! *happy dance*

A few other frugality-related things I've managed recently:

• At the outlets the other day, I went into Izod and bought my dad a $60 golf shirt for $5!!! It was on clearance for ~$10 (they were getting rid of their summer inventory...I guess they don't realize that we golf in short sleeves pretty much year-round here in the Carolinas???) and when I got to the register, there was a promo for $5 off if you texted a certain combination to their corporate store. Since I already pay for unlimited data and texting on my phone, I really had nothing to lose and, so, at the register, I stood there and texted the numbers and then waited for the return message so I could get my $5 off! :)
• Speaking of maximizing your data plan on your phone - I never pay for Red Box rentals (unless I don't take it back after one day). I stand in front of the kiosk with my phone, looking for rental codes. I just keep inputting codes until I happen across one that works! :)
• At Food Lion last week, they had a few good deals that I couldn't resist! While there, I was perusing through their meat section and noticed that one of the big hams they had was set to "expire" the next day. I picked it up, took it to the meat clerk and said "Were you going to mark this down today??? It's sell-by date is tomorrow." He whipped out his label-maker and stuck another sticker on it!!!! I got a $27 ham for about $7.50! Sometimes, I just can't help myself :) And you should always ask about things like this too! The worst they can say is "no."

I hope that you have enjoyed reading this blog and that some tip will stick with you!

All my love,

Container Gardening ROCKS!!!

Good morning everyone,

I took pictures of our container garden last night so that you could all see the growth we've had!

See how the cucumber trails down the steps??? We have seen a lot of growth on this plant, but very minimal signs of fruiting. I was starting to think this was going to be a dud year for cucumbers, until I found THIS:

Here's our super squash plant!!! Apparently these things do very well in half-barrel planters!

This squash has been minimally productive...I think it took the bees awhile to find our plants. We have a lot of flowering, but pollination has been an issue:

Here's my only producing zucchini plant - so far, so good!

Here's a side-by-side of our strawberry and jalapeno pepper plants. We're still collecting strawberries almost daily from that plant, and our jalapeno pepper plant is really doing well in a container of that size!

We transplanted all but 3 green bell pepper plants out of this planter, and these 3 have been producing peppers for several weeks now. I tend to pick them before they grow to grocery store size because I don't want them over-ripening.

Here are our 3 bean plants. They've given us beans for a few nights, but I'm not thrilled with their growth. Next year, I will try them in a container that has more depth than a window box.

We've had a few grape tomatoes ripen thus far, and plenty of blooms that indicate more are on the way. We have harvested no bigger tomatoes though, and I would likely not use this planter for this purpose again next year...I'll just plant my bigger tomatoes in something else and cage them like always...

This is what we refer to as the "down garden." In the back left corner, I am experimenting with a cucumber plant to see if it bears fruit better in the ground vs. in a container. In the front right, we moved the scraggly zucchini plant down and it has flourished in a new home! We may even get meaningful production off of this plant soon!

I hope that you enjoy the container garden update!!!! :) I will try to write more later this week about other goings-on in our lives!

All my love,

By Popular Demand...

Good afternoon everyone!!!! I hope that everyone enjoyed their holiday weekend!

Today, I am pleased to share my dad's recipe for Smoked Cheddar and Jalapeno Bacon Meatloaf!!!

Smoked Cheddar And Jalapeno Bacon Meatloaf

1 1/2 pounds premium ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
3 eggs
1 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup diced jalapenos
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp. Cowboy Flavor Seasoning
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp. Mexican oregano
3/4 cup shredded smoked cheddar cheese
1 cup diced onion

For topping:
4 slices uncooked bacon
1/4 cup ketchup

Mix all the ingredients except the ketchup and bacon in a large mixing bowl. Place into a loaf pan or a round pie plate. Spread ketchup over the meat and lay the bacon on the top. Bake in 350 oven or a Dutch oven for 1 hour.

Enjoy!!!! 

All my love,