This summer we went crabbing not once but twice. The most recent being this past labor day weekend. For those of you who don't know the crabbing technique it can be really tricky. There are several crucial steps to take in order to make crabbing a success.
1. Drive to the grocery store and find the cheapest pieces of raw meat. (This usually turns out to be Chicken necks. Yes, in Louisiana they sell a whole pack of just chicken necks)
2. Pile in the car at 6:00 a.m. Drive to designated crabbing spot. (Literally the side of a road where you just pull over, Sometimes you see other people and say," Hey they look like they're catching something let's stop here)
3. Tie chicken necks to a long piece of cotton string. Throw the neck into the ditch, I mean body of water.
4. Wait, Wait, Wait...... Feel something nibbling..... Pull in the line
S L O W
5. Gain the assistance of fellow crabber to help with the net. (This step can be done solo but if you have help they get to share in the victory as well)
6. Pull the net up and HOLLER "I GOT ONE" or two if you're extra lucky.....
Now this may seem a little primitive and I guess it is. It's one of those things you can actually see your forefathers doing in order to survive. However they probably didn't drive the kids an hour south in the car with a DVD player and pull up in the swap in a SUV.
Still, there is great satisfaction in "catching" your own supper. We took the crabs back to Nana's House and boiled them that evening. The first time we went the crabs were much bigger than last weekend. Probably because it was earlier in the season. But the size doesn't matter it's the fun that counts. We had a couple of gator sightings along the way. They were actually right along the road both times unfortunatley (or fortunatley) they were dead. Victims of a hit and run. The alligators actually live in the ditches that you crab in. It seems like when I was a kid I saw a lot more gators there. Makes me wonder if it has something to do with the hurricanes.
We had a great time and I had not done this since I was a kid. During Labor Day we went crabbing with our Aunt Joyce, my cousin Amy and her son Gabe. Gabe is Kaylee's age and it was so fun to watch Kaylee and Gabe actually catch a crab together. Just the two of them. The other fun thing to watch was when Amy(who is my age) FELL into the water. She lost her flip flop in the mud but David came to the resuce with a net and found it. She provided much entertainment for the morning.
Some friends of mine told me because I am so frugal(I know they meant cheap) I should be doing the grocery game. So I tried it. At first I didn't see many results but after some planning the game is really starting to "pay off" The game works like this. There is an on-line listing of the week's specials for each area's local supermarkets. The game pairs the items on sale with coupons that have been in past newspapers. Sometimes two months ago. So you have to start by collecting multiple sets of coupon booklets and then save them until needed. The web-site makes a weekly list and tells you when the coupon ran, how much the item is on sale for and your final price. Sometimes the item ends up being free. Two weeks ago was my best value yet. But I didn't think to take a picture of it so it's not as much fun to see. So I will tell you how I did this week. 
