Tuesday, August 26, 2014

At the Tone, Leave Your Name and Message, I'll Get Back to You


Last week, I made a break through on one of my brick walls.

You see, I have a line of WOMACKS.
My 3 x Great Grandfather, Lewellen SNEAD from Halifax County, Virginia, married a Rebecca WOMACK from Halifax County, Virginia, on 20 January, 1849.
Rebecca's parents were Abraham and Tabitha Jane(nee HUDSON) WOMACK.
Abe was born in 1755 and the speculation is that Abe's father was also named Abraham WOMACK.
This is were this line of WOMACKS ends for me.
This WOMACK line comes off my mother's maternal Grandfather's lines of VASSAR and SNEAD.

But last weekend, while searching around on my mother's paternal grandfather's mother's line of DRISKILL(or DRISCOLL) I made a find.....which led to another unexpected find.

My 2  Great Grandmother, Mary Agnes DRISKILL, was born in Halifax County, Virginia in 1838.  Mary Agnes's Great Grandfather was named Daniel DRISKILL born 1730 in Campbell County, Virginia.
He married a woman named Ann WOMACK born in 1745 in Campbell County as well.

So it seems I have 2 lines of WOMACKS on my mother's side of the family.  It could be that these 2 liens are actually the same line but I have yet to connect Rebecca's line to Ann's line of WOMACKS.

There is much WOMACKS in AMERICA research already done as well as a fair amount of questions, undocumented info and speculation among the WOMACK information stretching from America back to the British Isles.

Even so, I have been able to connect Ann's branch back into a well documented part of the line.....one of the first WOMACKS to come to the New World, William WOMACK from either Lincolnshire or Norfolk, England.  This Womack is purported have come to Virginia in his teens or early twenties(1640's) and eventually died 1 Aug 1697 in Bristol Parish, Virginia Colony(a Crown Colony by the time this ancestor arrived).  Still not sure on whether during his lifetime this Parish was considered in Charles Cittie or in Henrico County.  If this William WOMACK is the one who is purported to have owned land in the Bermuda Hundred then it's Henrico County.

This William WOMACK had a son named ABRAHAM and as families were apt to name their successive generations after themselves, it's possible my other WOMACK line(the SNEAD/WOMACK line)with 2 Abrahams that I know of)is also connected to this WOMACK(on the DRISKILL side of things)line.
But I digress.....

Anyway, I started filling out the tree of WOMACKS with siblings/ancestors on this line from documented source material and on a branch sprouting from my 6 x Great Grandfather, Richard WOMACK JR.(William's grandson), instead of following his son/my ancestor James WOMACK, I started down his son/my ancestor's sibling Richard WOMACK III's branch.

While my branch of the family tree pretty much stayed in Virginia, Richard III's branch meandered around the South--from Virginia, to South Carolina, to Louisiana, to Georgia, to Texas, back to Louisiana, to Texas, to Arkansas, and back to Texas and finally the line led me to Oklahoma.

Richard III's 4 x Great Granddaughter was a woman named Abbie Lillian WOMACK.
She married a man named Charles Bailey MEEK from Arkansas and they settled in Oklahoma.
Nothing special here, except Abbie & Charlie MEEK were the grandparents of  James Scott BUMGARNER.


You may know him as James Garner the actor.

Or from this tv series of the 1960's HERE.
(That's Adam West in this clip, pre-Batman days.)

Jim went on to star in the popular series The Rockford Files in the 1970's, a series of very popular tv commercials in the 1980's for Polaroid, as well as 50 Hollywood films throughout his long career.
He died last month on the 19th of July at 86.

I use to love to watch the Rockford Files with the Hubs when we were young, as well as in movies.  I always thought James Garner was a good actor.
I had no clue back then that Jim was my 8th cousin through our shared ancestor, Richard Womack, Jr., born in 1674 in the Colony of Virginia.

You just never know what you will find when you start researching your ancestry!




Sluggy



 

Monday, August 25, 2014

What's Happening at Chez Sluggy This Week

I've got lots to do here at Chez Sluggy this week.  Some run of the mill stuff and some projects comprise what I need to get done.


This Week's To-Do List--

*  Finish cleaning #2 Son's room
*  Clean out & organize Hall Entry Closet  done
*  Clean out & organize Hall Linen Closet
*  Write 5 Letters
*  Complete car donation to ARC  done
*  Call motel to make reservations for September
*  Call Boarding Kennel for October
*  If time for it, start in on Garage Cleaning/Organizing  done
*  Finish load to Salvation Army  done
*  Finish straps on the nightgown I sewed
*  Reconsider how to proceed with the Etsy store and eBay
*  Work on a home project this weekend with Hubs(probably the Garage)


And here is what's on tap for this Week's Blogging Schedule--in no particular order

*  TWOTDT/Food post  done
*  Post about the Kitchen cleaning/organizing I did last week  done
*  1 or 2 Posts on my Road Trip in July
*  Something Genealogy? done
*  My Shopping this Week-probably a trip to Rite-Aid  done
*  Update on what I got done this Week

What do you have on your plate this week?

Sluggy
 

This Week on the Dining Table

The "This is What Happens When I Leave Home for 2 Weeks" Edition........
 


 
 
When I came home July 25th from my road trip, this is what my little gardenia bush looked like.
Yes, Hubs is the plant killer.
Sigh
I have been diligently watering it, it has shed most of it's curled up, dried leaves but there are some nice new green shoots now so it's hanging on.  I just might coax it back to life.


 What was planned last week--
 

1.  Pulled Beef Brisket Sandwiches, Sugar Snap Peas
2.  Beef Pie-my version of a Shepherd's Pie but with cornbread on top
3.  Roast Chicken, Carrots, Potatoes and Onions
4.  Pot Roast with leftover veg from Roast Chicken and leftover brisket
5.  Chili, Tossed Salad
6.  Tuna Noodle Casserole, Green Beans with Red Peppers Saute
7.  Leftovers-assorted

 
And this is what actually happened--
 
1.  Pulled Beef Brisket Sandwiches, Sugar Snap Peas
2.  Beef Pie-my version of a Shepherd's Pie but with cornbread on top
3.  Roast Chicken, Carrots, Potatoes and Onions
4.  Pot Roast with leftover veg from Roast Chicken + mushrooms and leftover brisket
5.  Leftover Beef Pie
6.  Tuna Noodle Casserole, Tossed Salad
7.  Leftovers-assorted
 
Everything but the Chili happened.  Didn't need it as we had tons of leftovers to eat.....and we are still eating them! lol
  
Last week I made trips to 2 different grocery stores and the Bakery Outlet and spent $114.20 on $291.58 worth of groceries/toiletries for just shy of a 61% savings rate.
Add in the Rite-Aid spending/savings and my weekly total spent becomes $126.84 on $391.37 of goods for a 67.59% savings rate.
With all shopping/spending I am at $395.79 for August so far.  I have $4.21 left in the food budget for this month.
Who am I kidding that I can lower our budget to $300 a month for food?!? lolz  I keep saying I'm going to do it but it never happens.

Going into this week, in leftovers we have.........2 helpings of Beef Pie, some BBQ brisket, half a roasted chicken with veggies, a hunk of Pot Roast, 2 helpings of Mac and Cheese, and 2 helpings of Tuna Noodle Casserole.

Here is the plan for this week......mostly it' centers around using up the leftovers......

1.  Teriyaki Salmon, leftover Mac and Cheese, Spinach
2.  Pork Tenderloin Sammies, Honey Carrots
3.  ?  Might get some Lobsters or have Hamburgers on the grill Labor Day weekend
4.  Leftover Roast Chicken, maybe I'll make a soup with it, or?
5.  Leftover Tuna Noodle Casserole
6.  Leftover Beef Pie
7.  Leftover Pot Roast Sammies

No eating out planned this week but getting take-out one night for the weekend is a possibility since we have no plans for Labor Day festivities.

Food Waste--a grilled piece of chicken that got pushed to the back of the fridge and forgotten until it was too late to eat it.  ewww!

Other than lobsters if we go that route, nothing "needs" to be purchased for this menu.
There isn't much tempting me to go into the grocery stores this week....maybe another watermelon or some corn on the cob or another .99¢ lb. whole chicken.  And we need some fresh produce.....hmmm.
I'll be trying to keep my money in my pockets this week. I don't NEED to buy those things so maybe I'll just not.
Wish me luck! 8-)
   
What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?
Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten that week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?
Do you have any money left in your food budget this month?
 

Sluggy

Sunday, August 24, 2014

More Rite-Aid Talk

So I went up to Rite-Aid last evening to get another free Alba lip balm before the offer ended and to buy a container of Tide for cheap(to try to get to the $30 mark-after coupons-to send for the $10 rebate visa card).



1 x Tide on sale=$5.94
1 x Alba lip balm 20% wellness discount=$2.95
SubTotal....$8.89

I used a $2/1 Tide Load2Card that came off for this order....

$8.89-$2=$6.89 + .42¢ tax=$7.31.

I had a $25 Amex prepaid card with $7.57 left on it so I paid with that and no OOP for me.
I received $3 +Up Rewards for buying the Alba lip balm and I am almost to the amount I need for that Tide/Gain $10 Rebate.
And there is .26¢ left on the Amex card.
I have $18 in +Up Rewards going into the week of August 24th.

Then I hit Rite-Aid this morning and did these deals......


2 x Werther's sugar-free candies on sale=$3.00
4 x Mentos candies on sale=$2.00
2 x Cover Girl eye shadow BOGO50%=$5.08
SubTotal.....$10.08

Coupons Used
2 x $1/1 Werther's sugar-free candies IPQ=$2.00
1 x $3/2 Cover Girl items ManQ(P&G insert 7/27)=$3.00

This is how it was suppose to go but......

When the cashier gave me my total it was $3 less than anticipated.
So I checked the receipt after I paid........


Evidently I had an identical $3/2 Cover Girl items electronic Q on my Load2Card account and it came off as well as the paper ManQ I handed the cashier!!!
So instead of $3 off my $5.08 Cover Girl purchase I got $6 off.
HUH?!?
And then I got a $2 +Up Reward for buying 2 CG items......so Rite-Aid paid me $2.92 to buy these eye shadows. lolz

This is what I mean about this whole Load2Card program......nothing ever goes as planned.
I KNOW I have Qs to use and they don't come off the card half of the time, or things come off that double my savings, when they aren't suppose to do that.
It's Krazy....

So add another Q used to my tally.....

Coupons Used
2 x $1/1 Werther's sugar-free candies IPQ=$2.00
1 x $3/2 Cover Girl items ManQ(P&G insert 7/27)=$3.00
1 x $3/1 Cover Girl items Load2CardQ=$3.00
Coupon Total......$8.00

$10.08-$8=$2.08
I paid with $2+Up Rewards and paid .08¢ OOP.
Plus a roll of Mentos is the Savings Star freebie this weekend so I'll get back .50¢ into my Savings Star account on 1 roll of the Mentos.

I don't eat this flavor of Mentos(I only like the cinnamon ones)but they will make nice stocking stuffers.....remember there are only 123 more days until Christmas.  8-))

I received back $4 in +Ups($1 wyb4 Mentos, $1 wyb2 Werther's, $2 wyb2  Cover Girl)
Spent $2 +Ups, get $4 in +Ups back instead of spending down my +Ups by $1, thanks to the Load2Card goof.

I now have $20 in +Up Rewards and have spent $12.68 total on $140.20 of items last week.

This week's OOP total so far is .08¢ on $16.76 worth of items.
Except for getting 2 bottles of Tresemme later this week(2/$8, use 2 x $2/1 ManQ-today's inserts-which will cost $1 OOP+tax to roll $3 in +Ups)I am done with Rite-Aid deals this week.  Not much that is a good buy this week that I want or need.
I'll be spending some time this week getting my scenarios ready for next week's deals as they are a bit better.

I'm sorry if I am boring some of y'all with all this Rite-Aid stuff.
I tend to not do Rite-Aid for months on end and then go back to working the deals for a couple months.  As soon as the +Ups I have accumulated are spent down I'll probably stop doing Rite-Aid until the Winter Holidays when they are some really cheap/free/good deals.

Sluggy
 

Friday, August 22, 2014

Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da


Before.......

After.......

 

As of last Saturday Hubs and I are empty nesters.
Well sort of.
Our youngest child went off to college that day for the first time.

#2 Son couldn't leave this two-bit, provincial town fast enough!
Yes, he has been ready to move on socially and academically for years.
He found his high school and this town stifling.

I hated to tell him that the town his college is in is even smaller and may be more stifling. lol
But then again, within the University will be larger opportunities for growth and people who haven't lived here their entire lives and he will find his niche and blossom.
And if he doesn't find it there, there are a myriad of other schools he can try on.

While we are not truly empty nesters yet, since our son will be back living here during school breaks, this "last child out of the nest" event has signaled the end of our active childrearing days, and has ushered in a new phase in our lives.
The "let's get nekkid & drink anytime we want and carry on like kids if we want" phase.

We do still have one dog left so we can't fully be free and just pick up and go, travel, etc. anytime we want yet.  But she's old and not looking real well so we are close. ;-)

I waited to talk about sending our last child off into the world for a bit instead of jumping right on this as a blog post earlier this week.
Because from everything I've ever heard about how mothers react to this event, I really didn't feel anything that fit into the stereotypical reaction.

I've always heard and seen that mothers, in particular, greet this new phase of life, with dread and gloom.  Many women sink into deep depression when their last kid leaves home.
Being a stay-at-home mom or a working mom, neither seem to matter in regard to a mom's reaction to not having children in the house anymore.

My own mother had a very difficult time when I left home to go to college.  Of course she had other "things" going on in her life that also led to her depression and her suicide attempt in the Fall just after I left home.
Most mom's don't resort to attempting to end their lives when their children fly the coop, but I have seen and heard that most moms do have some level of emotional crisis when this empty nest event occurs.

So I waited for the letdown to happen this week.
I waited for my eyes to mist up as I gazed into #2 son's bedroom or thought of something that reminded me of him.

And it never came.

Don't get me wrong, I love my kids!
And it does seem strange to not have kids in my house after the last 23 years of yelling at, cuddling, picking up after, cooking for and washing their piles of dirty clothes.

But I just didn't see the end of this phase of my life as something to dread and mourn over.

Maybe I am just strange......I don't know really.

Sure, I think about them a lot and when certain things happen or I see something, it makes me think about one or more of them.
But I never burst into tears at some insignificant moment, or think I no longer have a purpose in life.
Well at least so far.....

All I feel is excitement really.
Excitement for my kids being "out there" in the world and excited for all the opportunities they may have and excited to see how they craft their own lives now with the tools, that hopefully, their parents helped them to develop in their formative years.
I'm excited for them to realize their own dreams and potential.

And excited for myself, for what new experiences await me with all this new claimed free time to myself.


But first, there is the issue of detritus.
The detritus of my youngest son's old life as manifested in his now vacant bedroom.


His room doesn't look so bad/filthy on the surface but you can't see all the crap under his bed or in his closet.

And on Sunday I began digging out his old room in preparation for a thorough cleaning and fumigating.

Now remember, this is the child that was hoarding a collection of plastic spoons from the school cafeteria, for no reason other than he was bored so he started taking spoons home.

During my initial survey of the filth in his room, I found this......



Oh Goody!
A new collection!!

8 containers of deodorant and/or body sprays, some with product still in them, and one not even opened yet.
I wonder how many more will be unearthed in the coming weeks?

Stay tuned.........



Sluggy-so over child rearing(& dog wrangling too)