Christmas 2010

Christmas 2010

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Has It been a YEAR??

Really? Has it been a real year since this post:

the belly grows!!

It is scary to think that in less than a month....20 days to be exact at 5:41am my little Lena will be one years old. Where did time go?

She is walking around, babbling like crazy, chasing her brother and chasing the cat. She is silly and so calm. It is so amazing how different she is from Ryden when he was little. He was full of crazy energy and was never stopping just like today! She is calm, mellow, and has this Zen about her.

We are doing a cute little butterfly theme for her. Kind of like flying into the new year of her life. What am i going to do w two toddlers?!?!?!?!

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Clearance Shopping!

How about some clothing savings?
The stores are sneaky. They put all the brand new items in the front of the windows so you come in to shop. Sure, they catch your eye and you so need it but did you ever wonder FURTHER into the store?

Towards the BACK? That RED or YELLOW sign on that rack? See it? Big word marked CLEARANCE!

GREAT GREAT RACKS! That is where you will save SAVE SAVE! Sure they are the end of season items, or in many cases, perfect for the season you are in. Many stores are always a season or 2 AHEAD of what it is now. Stock up for next year or get ahead for the kids that grow like weeds. if only you can apply Miracle Gro to their clothes huh?

Example: I went shopping Tuesday. (Don't tell hubby!!) And boy did I score at Carter's! for $65 I got:
3 pairs of Lena pants
2 pairs of Ryden pants
2 shirts for Lena
a toy
a Melissa and Doug toy for Ryden (not included in total above)
St. Patrick Dress for Lena

FULL RETAIL PRICE: $135!

Plus Lena's birthday shirts and her St. Pat day dress were on sale so they were less than what the tag said :0) The Melissa and Doug truck? I got that for $18 since I had a full saving card from the clothing order beforehand.

See? Clearance is not scary. It is GREAT! it does not only work for clothes as you can hit clearance in ANY store. What is nice is when in the grocery store I shop, they do clearance alot of the time. You can then stack a coupon ONTOP of it and save even more money!

Once, I had .75 off a pack of Tic Tacs. They were on clearance for.....75 :0) FREE for me! See, its not scary. You never know what you will find.

What is nice also is toys go on clearance in stores 2-4 times a year. That is a GREAT time to stock up for birthdays, holidays, a random toy for doing well for something, etc. You really can NEVER go wrong for Clearance.

It does not work? Well, you only paid like $3 for it so don't worry!

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

shop on amazon?

http://livingsocial.com/deals/21336-20-amazon-com-gift-card/social_share?ref=addthis-share5&amp%3Brui=21508757

A $20 giftcard for only $10!!

I am a amazon.com user. Now that I have a Kindle, I find myself using it all the time!

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Saving Money...The Couponing Way :0)

Saving money. It is something we all NEED to do at one time or another. It can be as simple as not getting that Starsmucks Coffee in the morning and can go all the way to getting $1000 of food and items for a couple hundred bucks.

I am not THAT good but I know my way around a sales ad and coupons. Those two items are a match in heaven. If you are looking for ways to cut money on your weekly food bill, that is a place to start.

'But where on earth do I get coupons?'
-The sunday paper! For a price of a small barely anything Starsmucks Coffee (i am assuming there on the price) you too can start the coupon game. Also in that paper, your grocery stores weekly sales ad.
-don't want to pay for them? Well go to your handy dandy search engine and type in coupons! A TON of websites will come up where you can print them right from home. Neat huh? Just make sure your local store will take them with no problem.
-Take to the internet and email world! Go onto your favorite brands websites and look for coupons and deals. Email them and ask for coupons. Tell them how you love their products and would like some. The worst they could say is no right?

'Okay so what do I do?'
-Well you need a system. You need to get a organization system that works for you. Some do a binder (me now), some do envelopes and a coupon holder, some do index cards and a box. It is up to you how to do it and how you can make it easy for you.
Next, you need categories. Examples? Frozen, Cleaning, Shelf Items, Bathroom, etc.
I had sub categories in my main ones personally. You have to find one that works for you.
- Find that sales ad! See what is on sale and make a shopping list. Yes, like a old lady taking the entire lane in the store up while trying to read a list.
-Match your coupons to the sales on your list. Do not be afraid, they will work.
-Check out your stores' website. More and more stores are letting you load coupons ONTO your Club Card. (Club Card you ask? That annoying little tag thing on your keys!) Sign up for one and get some coupons on it! A store near me will let me not only load coupons ON the card but will ALSO use PAPER ones ontop of it! So I save EVEN MORE!
-Stick to your list! It is easy to be tempted and it will happen but control is a big thing.
-Always carry your coupons with you! No matter what store you go to, bring them. You never know when you will find a sale and that coupon making it a steal.

'What happens at the register?'
-First, you get your stuff on the belt. Make sure you Club card is up front so they scan it.
-Hand your cashier your coupons. I personally do not like putting them on the belt as they may slip to the black hole so I hand them to the person.
-Watch the items being rung up. Make sure things are being rung up correctly and do not be afraid to speak up!
-Make sure your coupons ring up correctly! You also will start to get excited when the total drops :0)

'How do I know I am saving?'
-Many stores will tell you on the bottom of the receipt. They will circle it or say it to you as part of their job. A nice perk at the end of the transaction.

'Do you know about Double or even Triple Coupons?'
- Oh a nice feature! Many stores will have double or triple coupon days or do it all the time. They normally have a cap on how high they will double which is mostly $1 but they are always a nice little surprise!

'Rain checks? Worth it?'
-YES! If a item is on sale but not in the store, GET ONE! And if it is a REALLY good deal, get as many as you can. Sure you can make a extra trip later on in the week but the rain check is like a promise. A promise that says ' I can have this pasta for .59 and I can get this can of soup for .89'
-Also, you can use a coupon on that rain checked item :0)


I hope this helped out a little bit for you. Those are some FAQ that many people have. Feel free to contact me or leave a comment if there is something you are curious about :0)

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Lena's Invite via Shutterfly :0)

Flutterfly Fun Blue Birthday Invitation
Shop birthday cards and invitations at Shutterfly.com.
View the entire collection of cards.

Monday, January 3, 2011

2011... A Fresh Start

So, I have a plan. A plan to update this blog more often. I plan to do 2 post per week at least.

1 post about my shopping savings and how I came across them. The times are tough and everyone... yes you there... can cut money somewhere. I joined a site for a free trial (comment w/ your email if you would like a invite :0) ) to see if it will save me even MORE money. Let's hope it works out. Everyone LOVES to save money right?

Another post will be about whats going on. Pictures, stories, rambles, the normal stuff. How the kids are growing, how my hubby is driving me nuts, etc.  Have a question? send it in! Want to see something covered? Send it in!

I really want to try and do this. I want to have a blog that really gets out there. I want to reach and help other parents out in any area that I can. I know it will be fun :0)

Friday, December 31, 2010

In one year...

A baby



A potty trained toddler


A Preschooler

A Wedding















A Organ removal
A long awaited family reunion out of the country


Next year? I plan to update atleast once a week. More pictures. More randomness. More family drama. More love.

2011 is going to be HUGE!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Ahh the life...

Ear Tubes. Crawling. Cleaning. Vacuuming.

That has been my life recently.

Ryden had ear tubes put in a couple weeks back. He gets such extreme ear infections that are painful and long weeks of fighting to get meds in him. So finally, we got tubes in his ears. He is defiantly better since!

Lena is mobile. We are crawling all over the place and pulling up like crazy. She is currently ripping up her diaper holder on the coffee table.

So now, everything is cleaned everyday. Talk about a pain! Ryden likes to leave little things all over so he is starting to learn he can not do that.

We are going to visit Canada soon! Can not wait to go see family! Great Great Gramie (for the kids!) Lena is over the moon excited to see them! She was so touched when we decided to name Lena after her. It is our first real family vacation so wish us luck!

Sunday, October 31, 2010

PayBox.me

PayBox.me

there is a new payment center opening up soon. Get in on the ground floor and you can get a nice pretty balance when they go 'live'. Sign up for a $50 bonus. Have your friends sign up under you for a extra $5 bonus. Then, sign in each and everyday, watch your balance grow!

Once they hit over 2 million users, they will go live and you will be able to use the money. They just started in September and I was lucky to get in early. My current balance? $590.14.

If anything, you just took a moment in your day and signed in so what will it hurt?

Thursday, October 28, 2010

And then..it was November....

Yes. November is here on Monday. Where on earth did time go? Oh that is right...a baby, a toddler, a husband, a lost of apendix.

Yup. Lets add in the extra fun of a surgery for mommy here. On Sept 27th, Jameson took me to the ER for pain. I could barely stand it was so bad. This was after I took Ry to the dr for a ear infection. My mom stayed with the kids and I went to the hospital. A few hours later, it has to come out.

Now when one hears they have to have  surgery and they have kids, they would assume 'lets hope all goes well so I see them again.' No not me. Instead I go 'shit! How the fuck are we going to afford this?!?!?!?'

I do not have insurance. We can not afford it. The kids are covered sure. I am not. The bill is now up to over $20,000. Jameson makes just a tad too much for me to get help from the state. So now I have to contact the hospital and see if they have some charities that can help me out.

This. Sucks. Ass. If you ever lived w/o insurance you know it sucks. If you never had to experience it, you are lucky.  Maybe I can find a way to sell something on here to help w. the bill.

My Lena Beana Head is officially 8 months old today. She is trying to crawl. She wants to walk. I am screwed when she becomes mobile.

Ryden I think is officially potty trained! *dances in delight* He will go all on his own, wipe his butt most of the time and is dry waking up most nights. I am excited. It is a big thing for us as I have been working on this for over a YEAR!