The way we see it...

Back to School

2011-10-27T20:45:00.009-05:00

I love back-to-school. I don't know if it's my obsession with organizing goodies, school supplies, good deals at the stores, or what. But I love it. It's like a second "New Years" to me. I always get a nice, new planner for my birthday, and I loooooooove to sit down and get everything all filled out for the rest of the year. Dance, tumbling, sports, church, preschool, family activities, birthday parties, etc. This is my planner for this year. It's my all-time favorite planner that I have ever received. It's from Erin Condren, and I just love her stuff!! It's hard to find planners with enough room in them when you have a larger family. So glad to find one that works! Obviously, these are pics from her site. Because obviously, I'm not Paige McDaniels. But...this is the design I got. Fun!

School started mid-August for Logan and Peyton, and September for Addison and Austin. Logan is in 4th grade this year, and it's the first year he has more than one teacher. Peyton is in 1st grade. Their teachers are w.o.n.d.e.r.f.u.l. It's something we pray about every single year, and I truly feel we have been so blessed in this area. The boys are at a new school this year, and we are so excited about it. It was a tough decision to make, but we're SO glad we did it. The back-to-school fairy left slap watches for the boys this year. Crazy fairy forgot to take pictures. Nice.

Both of the boys are doing great in school. We couldn't be more proud!!

This fall is the first time that Addison and Austin have attended preschool on their own. They went with me while I taught a semester, but that's it. It's been a big deal around here! I have been so blessed to be able to be at home during my kids' early years. I wouldn't trade it for the world. That being said, I also feel very blessed that I'm getting a little bit of time to myself. It. Has. Been. Amazing. The little ones started preschool going two days each week. These are the pictures of their first day.

And this is how Austin felt after I made him pose for 13 first day of school pictures. Sigh.

The back-to-school fairy visited Addison and Austin, too, and she actually remembered their pictures!

A Rapunzel Barbie for sissy.....

And a big pickup truck set for the littlest mister....

The little jars are Hershey Hugs and Hershey Kisses, with a note that reads "Hugs and Kisses for the First Day of School". These were the first day of school teacher gifts this year.

We made the decision to move them to a different program last month, so now they're only going once a week. (Insert a little bit of a sad face here). That's okay, though!! They loooooooove it, and so do we. I'm teaching them preschool curriculum at home throughout the week, too. It's a heavenly situation, and I couldn't ask for more.

Fall is in full swing now! I'm hoping to continue this blog catch-up soon, so I can actually blog in "real time"!

Seven in 2011 - Part 2

2011-10-23T19:06:00.006-05:00

For Peyton's party(ies) this year, we did the traditional little family celebration at home, plus dinner out at Los Cabos for dinner - just Jason, Peyton, and me!

For his "friends" party, we booked a Rainforest Discovery Party. I've never been to a party at this particular place, but it looked pretty cool. And as it turned out - it was!! The kids all got to wear safari hats and take a tour while learning all about different animals.

They got to feed fish, pet and hold snakes, rabbits, and skunks. (Thank goodness they had been "de-sprayed")

There was a cockroach eating contest as the lizards quickly devoured the insects. There were also several fun games for the kids to play.

Finally, everyone went to King Louie's Den, where we ate cake, opened presents, and sang Happy Birthday!

Hope you had an awesome birthday Peyton!!!

Seven in 2011 - Part 1

2011-10-23T18:30:00.007-05:00

Peyton David Baker. Child #2. My most favorite Peyton in the whole wide world. (That's what I tell him almost every day) Peyton has been so excited to turn seven this year. I'm not sure why, and when I ask him, he doesn't really know why either. BUT....he's so excited about it. Peyton brings laughter and love to our house every single day. He is so unique - I can't even describe. But let me try....

- Peyton joined our family on a very peaceful note. That lasted approximately 5 weeks. 9 months of colic followed. 3 months, my rear end. This kid doesn't do anything 1/2 way.

- Peyton talked in the 3rd person for what seemed like forever. And I secretly loved it. The grammar freak in me didn't even care. It was so stinking cute. P.S. - he still pronounces piano "pinano". LOVE.

- Peyton is awesome with his siblings. All of them. Especially his sister. He has one of the biggest imaginations I have ever seen, and he will sit and play pretend with Addison for hours.

- He is always willing to help. Especially if it involves something new and different to do! Here is a picture of when we were at the gas station and he wanted to wash the windows.

- Peyton does everything with extreme intensity. He has been that way since birth. When he loves he loves HARD. When he cries, he cries HARD. When he's mad...watch out. When he's happy, he can hardly contain himself. I think that's great, because you never have to wonder about him.

- He has some pretty wicked fashion sense. All of my children have been trained to look for good resale shops, and he's probably the best at it. The only challenge is when the ONLY thing he REALLY wants in the WHOLE store is the bright blue silk shirt with yellow palm trees on it. Sigh. He also loves him some hoods, snuggie blakets, and my slipper things that warm in the microwave. :)

- Peyton is allergic to milk. The specialist thought he would outgrow it, but I don't think that's going to happen. With my family history, he doesn't have much hope. :( I write about this, because there was a period of time when Peyton was just kind of sick. No doctor could figure him out, so they just wrote a bunch of prescriptions. That's another soap box for another day, but it just all reminds me that he is so healthy now. And I'm so grateful.

- He is just like his Dad. There are days (and I'm sure there will be many, MANY more) that I curse this fact. Jason wasn't exactly an angel back in the day. Hah! :) But....the rest of the time, I'm loving it. Because if for no other reason, I know he will grow up to be an awesome dad and husband.

- He is as handsome as can be. And he's a bit of a ladies man. (See the above comment about being like his dad). Every day when I ask him what he did at recess, it always involves a combination of the following words. I. chased. the. cheerleaders. OR The. cheerleaders. chased. me. Sigh.

I love this kid. I love how he makes friends in 3.2 seconds with everyone he meets. I love that he still loves to cuddle up on the couch. I love how he says "sorry mam" when he's REALLY trying to get out of trouble. He brings an element to my life that I cannot imagine not having. Peyton David Baker - I'm so glad you're seven. I hope it's everything you hope it will be!

Happy Birthday to Addison! (Part 2)

2011-10-03T20:06:00.002-05:00

I love birthday parties. I always have. I love planning, digging for ideas, decorating, and even stressing a little. This year, we decided to do a fairy garden party for Addison. And yes, I said we. Before I go any further, I want to share a little bit about the hubs.

Jason is the most hands-on guy I know. He has been that way since the birth day of each of our kids (well, even before that). He deserves his own post, and someday, I'll do it. BUT...the point is, he's really into anything that has to do with our kids. Including birthday parties. So, as much as I would like to take credit for everything, I can't. Not only did he come up with some seriously creative ideas, he also did his own shopping and designing of the party favors. I got to stand back and watch him buy wedding bubbles, clean them out, re-fill with fairy dust that he found somewhere, tie ribbons around it all, and make it all so special for his little girl. He also could have sat back during the party, but he didn't. He was leading the crafts, helping with food, and giving Addison memories that she will never forget. I. Love. Him. (So don't ask why I didn't get a single pic of the guy - I think he had the camera)

So.....Addison's Fairy Garden Party!!

Dessert table: Toadstool cake, fairy cupcakes, fairy wands, magic marshmallows, pixie sticks, magic potion (punch). A BIG thank you to my parents for letting us crash their house. We were in mid-move, and no way could I deal. It was so perfect!! They helped decorate and everything! Another big thank you to PaperDoll Designs for designing and printing the invitations, cupcake toppers, and all of the label cards!

Addison was so excited that Grandma Baker and Aunt Kristen drove down for her special day!

Each of the girls got their own set of fairy wings and a butterfly wand. When the girls arrived we looked up their "fairy name" on the fairy name generator. We labeled their goody bags with their new name, and then they got to decorate them.
Another craft was decorating a flower pot for their own fairy garden. Each girl got some dirt and seeds, and of course......fairy dust to make it grow. And in case Addison ever forgets how awesome her brothers are, I will just show her this picture.

Birthday Song Time!
Addison and her fairy friends - what a super fun day!!

Happy Birthday to Addison! (Part 1)

2011-10-02T21:02:00.008-05:00

My baby girl turned 4 this July!!

Crazy. I know every mom says that for every birthday that their child celebrates, but I'll say it anyway. She's growing up way too fast. I want to keep her little forever! She definitely makes me reconsider the homeschooling thing - and even Jason does a little bit too. :) There's just something about little girls. Maybe it's because she's the only one out of four. Maybe it's because she's so girly. Maybe it's because she's a Daddy's girl. Who knows. But I love her soooooo much. A few reasons:

- She's sweet. She loves on babies, puppies, kittens, dolls, and anything else that will allow her to. (In this case, it was a skunk)

- She's sassy. She puts her hands on her hips, turns around, and struts off. And looks really cute doing it.

- She's a cuddler.

- She loves to sing. Her current faves are "The B-I-B-L-E", "Jesus Loves the Little Children", and "Firework" - by Katy Perry. (Weird combo, I know)

- She loves herself a good mani/pedi. And she always busts me if I go without her.

- She loves her Daddy. Big Time.

- She loves her brothers. They drive her crazy sometimes, but on the weekends, she always, always, always makes herself a pallet on their bedroom floor.

- She's the queen of dress-up. And NO ONE is exempt. (Poor little dude)

- She's kind. She can be ornery and sassy, but never ugly.

- She's my "good eater". She tries everything. And she loves salad. She and I are the only ones in our house who do.

- She still uses a paci. THERE. I said it. I feel soooooo much better now. And the really, really funny thing about it? I have discovered a rather large amount of closet paci users her age out there!! There will be a support group one day, some sort of 12 step thing, I guarantee it. Until then, we're cool with it. And so is her dentist. So - all is well!

Jason and I took her out for a special birthday breakfast. Just the three of us. It's a new thing we started with the kids this year. With four, we're always looking for opportunities to do one-on-one activities with them. Addison chose BBD II for her breakfast. Too funny.

Addison wanted a dollhouse REALLY badly for her birthday. Sooooooo.......Jason, her big brothers, and Logan's friend (who thought he was just going to have a very "boyish" sleepover - hah!!) were so sweet and got it completely set up for her the night before.

Addison - we love you so much!! You make us laugh every day, and we can't imagine our lives without you. Thank you for bringing pink into the house!!

Summer Lovin'

2011-09-23T08:58:00.009-05:00

We loooooooove summer around our house. As soon as the weather stays anywhere above 80 degrees, the pool gets filled, the kids swim all day, and we all get to enjoy the easy going schedule. This year was one of the easiest I've had in. a. long. time. It was almost a little weird not chasing a baby around or going through 158 swim diapers in a season. Quite nice, actually! We always make a point to schedule some fun activities for everyone, but we also make sure to have plenty of time to just relax and enjoy the season.

Going to the zoo is one of our favorite things to do. A big thanks to Pappy and Grammy for the season passes! We will go even more now!

My Aunt Carman has a great set-up at her house - about 20 minutes away. She has a big horse, a miniature horse named Ella, a couple of rabbits, some goats, ducks, and chickens. I think I remembered everything! The kids and I went out there for a day and they. had. a. blast. They didn't want to come home! They got to help feed all the animals, ride the little horse, make trail mix, go out for pizza, and then veg out and watch movies with their cousin Hunter. It was seriously one of their favorite highlights of the summer. Definitely something they haven't done before!

As a mother, this seemed to be a big summer for me. I'm not quite sure why. I think it just really felt like all 4 of my kids hit big milestones or something. One of the biggest for me was that Logan went to his first overnight church camp. I clearly remember my first church camp, and not only was I much older and dorkier, but I think I was homesick the whole time. I also sort of remember being so excited that I hurt my ankle, because I got to use crutches for a day. I had an obsession with crutches. Hmmmm..... Now that I just typed all that, I realize that I had some issues. Good thing Logan doesn't. Logan LOVED camp. We have an awesome children's ministry at our church, and although I missed him terribly, I knew he was in great hands. Logan has already accepted Christ as his Savior, so I was excited that he got to use that week to really grow in his relationship with God. I am also thankful that I got that "first child away at camp" thing over with. Next summer should be easier.

We also visited every splash pad in town (it seemed like it, anyway), took a trip to the Big Apple at VBS, enjoyed more swimming lessons, had a blast doing sleepovers, stayed up late watching movies and eating pizza, went swimming almost every single day, and LoVeD summertime!! We also had a couple of fun birthday celebrations mixed in - those recaps are up next!

Springtime!

2011-09-12T13:29:00.008-05:00

Everyone around here was so excited for the snow to finally melt, the leaves to start turning green, and some warmer weather to stick around. The Baker household had some fun times this spring!

Making flowerbeds...

Going to the park...

Loading up on goodies at the church Easter egg hunt...

potty training.....(the training part wasn't fun, but the end result was great)

drawing family chalk portraits......every.single.day.

being a princess at the ballet and tap recital...

belting it out at the 3rd grade school program...

celebrating achievements at the Awana Ceremony...

enjoying waaaay too much sugar at Logan's end of year party...

and super yummy pizza at Peyton's...

and F.I.N.A.L.L.Y. getting to swim. Wow. Sometimes I'm just not sure about this girl.
Next....Bring on summer!

Winter 2011- Ski Trip

2011-09-09T22:01:00.008-05:00

We decided to take a winter vacation this year - a ski trip! We thought it would be the best idea since we NeVeR get snow here. Funny. (See previous post!). Just as the snow melted, we loaded up and headed to New Mexico. Jason is the only one who has skied before, and therefore, he was the only one who didn't get to spend the first two days in ski school! Everyone loved it, and we'll definitely be making this a regular thing.

The littlest mister wanted to wear his brother's ski boots. All. The. Time.

Peyton's class hit the lifts at the same time as mine. And yes. I may have been in a beginner class. Maybe.

Logan worked really hard ALL DAY long at ski school - time for a break!

The instructors teach kids to ski with no poles. It's a pretty funny sight to see!

Miss Addison went to childcare while Daddy was skiing and Mommy was trying to learn how! She had a good time, but she says she's ready to go with the big kids next time.

The boys wanted to ski with us, so Jason and I followed behind on the lift. I thought I was going to have a heart attack watching two of my kids riding up a mountain. With no restraints of any kind. And they were kicking their legs all over the place. And...they kept looking back at us. Never. Again.

Three of my favorite guys - going for afternoon boy time. I didn't get invited. It was probably a good thing (see above).

Little SnowBunny headed to childcare.

Lots of hugs after a busy, busy day. We all slept well at night, that's for sure!

Watching the big boys go down the mountain. That's about as close as he cared to get!

Who knows where we will head to next. Skiing was something everyone enjoyed on some level, so it's definitely a family affair - our favorite kind!

Winter 2011 - Snow, Snow, and More Snow!

2011-09-09T09:50:00.004-05:00

I'm going to try to catch up the first 3/4 of the year, so I guess I'll start at the beginning! This past winter was definitely a snowy one. Oklahoma set all kinds of records for crazy weather. Low temps, inches upon inches of snow, and a lack of preparation from the state (we're not exactly used to snow around here) caused a two week break from school.

Went to get a few things from the store before the blizzard. Guess I wasn't the only one!

Personally, I loved it. We had so much fun in the snow, our family got to practically live in our pajamas in front of the fire for two weeks, we made many batches of snow ice cream, and I'm pretty sure we caught up on every single movie we had been wanting to watch.

Snow Ice Cream!

Of course, it was inconvenient at times, as this momma was starting to have some Target withdrawl, but I'll take snow over ice - any day. Jason grew up in the Chicago area, so driving in it isn't a problem for him. Thank goodness! Right before the snow hit, it seemed everyone was in a post-holiday craze, the flu was spreading all over the place, and kids were SO ready for some snow. I love how God steps in sometimes and creates circumstances that force us to stay in, spend time with the ones we love, and rest our bodies. Happy Snow Days!

(P.S. - I have no clue how I ended up with ZERO pics of my kids playing in the snow. Sigh. Maybe they're somewhere around here and I'll find them one day.)

Blogging.....again?

2011-09-04T00:22:00.002-05:00

Well, I'm going to give this another go. For the past year, it's been one thing after another with computer issues, but I think we're finally set! I'm really wanting to blog again, but put the entire thing on a family emphasis. I can make books out of these posts - a journal of sorts - and I think that would be so fun to have as a keepsake. Heaven knows my last 2 children don't even have a baby book. They do, however, have a gift sack in their respective bins that is crammed full of all kinds of lovely baby things. Organized? No. But, at least it's there. I could do worse.

Wish me luck! I've got a lot of catching up to do.

What's Up?! (And School News, Too)

2011-03-13T21:03:00.003-05:00

Heeelllllloooooo friends! I know- ridonkulously long time since I've been on here. Computer issues, haven't taken the time, etc., etc., etc. Anyway, I'm here now, so grab a cup and catch up with me.

The big question everyone keeps asking me (which is totally cool, by the way) is what's going on with school? Well, I guess I'll just start at the beginning and go from there!

I'm going to preface this by saying that as always, I'm just putting my thoughts out there - hardcore truth, peeps. :) Seriously, though, I'm not going to give you any fluffy answers here or beat around the bush about the whole thing. It is what it is!

After much prayer, thought processing, researching, and so on, we made the big decision to home school the kids for this school year. We began in August, and it was so great!! I truly love (d) it! We had various reasons for our decision, and we're all really glad we did it. A few of our favorite parts:

- no morning rush
- playing outside more
- "doing school" outside when it was nice
- getting to take off and go do something if we wanted to
- private speech therapy for the boys during the day
- more relaxed evening time
- incorporating scripture into our learning
- naps (Peyton was still napping daily at that point)

We thoroughly enjoyed our time together during home school. I love teaching, and I loved watching them learn! I was fortunate that both of my boys were above grade level academically, so I didn't have to worry about them struggling much. Thank goodness! I would have felt horrible.

Fast forward a few months.........

I still loved it. We all still loved those above mentioned "favorite parts". But...some parts were not so great. And these were the parts that Jason and I decided that if they became an issue, we would be making some new decisions. Does that make any sense?

- the kids wanted to hang out with friends
- I wanted to hang out with friends
- the kids wanted to do co-op classes
- I wanted to do co-op classes, but they were all during nap time. I did find one that ran in the mornings, and I'm only going to say this once: When the kindergartner started breastfeeding, we were done. And no, I'm not kidding.

Those are just a few, but the main scoop?

We said from the beginning that we want our kids around other kids and families who have the same value system as us. I'm going to tell you something. I was wrong in my thinking that the kids at school did not have those values. I shouldn't have been so dumb as to think that every child is somehow perfect. To be honest, there were a few incidences last year that really made me question the whole thing. BUT, I'm going to tell you this. I'm okay with the boys coming home and asking questions about something they heard at school. You know why? Ok, I'll tell you.

First of all, there will come a day when they don't come home and ask about stuff so much anymore. I don't want that day to be when they're 18 or older and have just been thrown into the real world. It took me several months to realize that my kids have a better grasp of how to figure things out than I thought. And it's because they've needed to. When they have a question, we discuss it, pray about it, and look for the answer in the Bible together. It's AWESOME. We want them learning as they grow and as they're exposed to a little at a time, not all at once when they leave the house!!

Second of all, I was originally concerned about the homeschooling stereotype. Oh well - that probably deserves its own post, but not today. BUT.....did you know there's a public school stereotype?????? I didn't!!! Unfortunately, I quickly found out. I'm going to say right now that in no way are all homeschoolers like this, but almost EVERY ONE that I was around believed this: Public school kids are bad. Public school kids are evil. Public schools are so out of touch with God that you might as well admit that Satan runs them. Public school parents don't care. Parents cannot call themselves Christians and then send their kids to public schools. Public school parents are selfish. And get this: many also feel the exact same way about private schools. Listen here peeps, I don't do discrimination. Not at all. And that's what that is - just a different kind. A scarier kind, if you ask me. And a BIG fat thank you to my sister for pointing it out. It got so bad, that I actually found myself almost believing it a little. To the point that I had a complete meltdown thinking I was a horrible, ungodly mother for wanting to send my kids back to school.

Please hear me on this - EVERY ONE of those comments above came out of someone's mouth - to me. After a while, I realized what was going on, and I did not like it one bit. My kids were being exposed to this crap. My kids were hearing comments like this, and they knew it was wrong. Fortunately, it was only once or twice for them. So.....we decided that we would rather them come home asking about most anything other than that junk. Seriously!

Ok, I'll finish. (Thank goodness, huh?!) They both started back at "evil school" in January. THEY. LOVE. IT. God has been involved every step of the way, just as He was in the fall. They both have awesome Christian teachers, and very quickly made awesome Christian friends. I couldn't ask for more.

Am I glad we home schooled? Absolutely. For all the same reasons I mentioned last spring. Peyton wasn't physically ready, I wanted Logan to have some more spiritual growing time, and so on. It was a great semester! And so is this one! A big thank you to everyone who has supported us in both endeavors. You know who you are, and we love you!

Peyton's 6th Birthday

2010-08-16T11:43:00.003-05:00

Once again, I'm slightly behind in posting about a birthday. In my defense, I've been completely focused on school for the past couple of weeks. Today is our first day (the kids are outside right now in case you were wondering), which I'll blog about in the next day or so. But.....so far so great!

My sweet little Peyton. There is so much to say about him - it would take pages upon pages. He is my kiddo who put me through 39 weeks of HORRIBLE pregnancy sickness, followed by another 9 months of colic. But.......fast forward a few years, and I am the proud mother of a hilarious, cuddly, strong-willed, kind-hearted social butterfly. I cannot imagine my life without him.

Peyton wanted to do a pool/play party this year - much like his sister did. We had a big cook-out without approximately 40 guests(!) and had A BLAST. Below are some pictures from the big day. Happy Birthday Peyton!!

Facebook Fast

2010-08-05T22:25:00.002-05:00

Our church is in the process of moving to a new "ministry center". By the way, I'm insisting on staying old-school Southern Baptist and therefore, I'm calling it the new "building". Just to be stubborn. Just because I can.

As a part of this move, our pastors have encouraged us to participate in a 40-day prayer and fasting "thing". I'm sure it has a name, but I have no clue what it is. Anyway, there are daily scriptures and prayer suggestions to go along with the fasting. I learned that there are different ways to fast. You can fast from food, of course, but you can also fast from anything that occupies your time/mind and has the possibility of keeping you from prayer, etc. (And I'm quite sure I just butchered that explanation). I spent several days trying to decide what to fast from. I thought about fasting from laundry and housekeeping, but decided against that one. I thought about the food thing, but aside from the fact that I'm a pig, I actually do have blood sugar issues, and that might be really bad. I thought about Diet Coke. Hmmmm......that's a medical necessity these days. I mean, you wouldn't fast from your blood pressure medicine, would you? Same thing in my book.

So that doesn't leave much - except Facebook. Listen here folks. I. Love. Facebook. I do. I love keeping up with everybody. I love instant messaging with my friends late at night. I love seeing what people are up to. Because, you know, I'm nosy like that. I love to post crazy status updates. Now, I will say that I don't spend a ridiculous amount of time on there. I really don't. I mean, I have 4 kids people. I really only get on for a bit in the morning, at naptime, and late at night. But.....I realized that yes, technically, I could use that time and focus on this prayer/fast thing. So, I'm off FB for 40 days (well, 39 now). And I won't lie, I'm missing it. Isn't that so ridiculous? Sigh.

So......I'm going to post some of my random thoughts and goings-on for the last couple of days. Just to hear myself type.

1. I ended my summer Bible Study last night, and I was kind of sad. It was so great to meet with these girls every other week all summer. I really got to know some new people, which I love!

2. Had a hot date with the hubs tonight. A hot date to eat at Buffalo Wild Wings and then to shop for Peyton's birthday. Oh well. We were together - sans kiddos. It still counts.

3. Peyton is turning 6 tomorrow. He is so stinking excited. I'm going to try not to forget to wrap his presents tonight.

4. That reminds me that I forgot to play Tooth Fairy. Twice. Nice, huh? Fortunately, it was either raining or windy both times, and I got away with explaining that the Tooth Fairy cannot fly under those conditions.

5. I'm finishing up Peyton's birthday party for Sunday. It's going to be a big cook-out/swimming party. Praying for good weather - for sure.

6. Logan had 1st/2nd grade camp at church this week. He LOVED every minute of it. They went to the water park today, and I was the mom who forgot the sunscreen. Fortunately, the teachers were kind enough to take care of it for me. However, they forgot his back. Oops. Anyway, he had an amazing time, and we are so blessed to have an amazing Children's Pastor and team.

7. Apparently, I forget things quite frequently.

8. BUT.....I remembered my sister's anniversary on Tuesday. And I was the only relative who did. And she and Ben were SHOCKED that it was ME who remembered.

9. I'm contemplating bangs again. Any thoughts?

10. Jason bought me a new (to me) minivan last week. I love it, even though I didn't think I wanted a minivan again. He's so awesome.

Ok, I'll stop. (Oh wait, is there anyone still reading?). But.....since I don't have FB, watch out. This is about to become the most annoying blog in the world. And I know you'll just love it!

A Big Day For A Little Girl

2010-07-22T19:52:00.007-05:00

I'm a little late in posting this, but my sweet little Addison turned 3 on July 16. THREE! I'm freaking out. What happened to this little girl?!

The past 2 years, we have stuck to having small family celebrations. She's our third, and therefore, she doesn't get big parties until she can actually realize what's going on. Sorry, sissy.

The night before her birthday, we got a new dog. I found a precious little beagle (and maybe something else?) on Craigslist. The boys named her Lily, and she's just the sweetest thing ever. We discovered recently that Austin's dog allergy seems to be gone, so we went for it. Here's Addison and Lily!

Also on Thursday night, our friends, The Kaisers, came over for dinner and an early celebration since they couldn't come on Saturday. Addison got an adorable new ballet bag and hair accessories! (extra fun since Jen is Addison's ballet teacher!)

Good night to my two-year old!

The week of Addison's birthday, she attended Princess Camp at the dance studio where she takes ballet. It was super cute. Each day, all of the girls got to do lots of dancing and make fun crafts. On Friday (which was Addison's birthday), they had a special Mother/Daughter tea party. The girls got to dress up like princesses, and Cinderella made a surprise appearance! I think Addison thought she was neat, but that's about it. She wasn't near as excited as some of the girls - she was waaaaaaaay more excited about the cookies. The morning of her birthday, my parents brought over a Disney Princess dress-up trunk, so Addison went as Belle. What a fun day for her!

On Saturday, we had her big party. It. Was. A. Blast. We had 16 kids in our back yard, their parents, and some of my other adult family. I'm very, very glad the weather was good! The kids played in the sandbox, the kiddie pool, the tire swing, the fort, the zip line, the swingset, the big pool, and the slip'n slide. I didn't buy a single thing for this shindig except for the cake and decorations. Oh, and my super fun party favors from Karen at PaperDoll Designs. Jason did buy a last-minute pinata - Tinkerbell. The picture is below, but that was the scariest looking Tinkerbell I've ever seen in my life. It was disturbing.

The Cake!

Scary Tinkerbell

Birthday girl!

Make A Wish!

Jason's mom wasn't able to come down for the actual party, so we were all excited that she could come down later in the day. Grandma and Addison got to have some special shopping time together, and we all enjoyed her visit. I didn't get any pictures - sorry. :(

A big thank you to everyone who celebrated with us!! We so enjoyed having our friends and family share in the special day.

What I'm Up To and a Few Fun Pictures

2010-07-09T14:57:00.001-05:00

THIS......

.......is what I've been up to. And listen here peeps - that's just Logan's stuff (but not all of it!!) and a little bit of Peyton's stuff. Lots more kindergarten to come. Oh, and sister is doing Tot School, and I haven't even started on that yet! But.....it's going to be tons of fun, I just know it. We're starting school on August 16, so it's crunch time!

Last week, my sister and brother-in-law came to visit. It was sooooooo nice. I don't get to see her much, and although we talk often, it's always great to actually BE together. I totally cried when she left. It was extra nice that my parents are down the road, because we could all be together without much traveling. On Saturday, my mom took Mindi and I out for a nice dinner and lots of shopping. Thanks mom! It was great. Also, if you didn't already know, my brother-in-law, Ben, is a completely amazing artist. Here's his website. He also happens to be completely amazing at photography. Yeah for us!!! Yeah for family pictures!!! Here are a few:

We also had a ton of fun on Independence Day. We just hung out and relaxed for most of the day, but when 5:00pm came along, it was party time! We headed out to our friend's house for the annual 4th of July bash. The kids had a blast, we ate waaaaaaaay too much, I tried not to freak out about my children catching on fire from sparklers, Addison peed her pants twice from all the excitement, etc.

Uncle Ben and the kiddos

Hope you're having a GREAT summer so far!!

A Quick Check-In

2010-06-24T22:36:00.002-05:00

I had really, really good intentions of blogging this week. And then we started VBS. And I quickly became a pansy and now I hardly even do any laundry or dishes. Sigh.

I will say that my mom brought us dinner Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Isn't that so super nice? I was thrilled to say the least. And Logan said "I could get used to this!". I told him not to.

I am teaching recreation this year at our Saddle Ridge Ranch. Yes, I realize that many of you are probably chuckling just a bit right about now. I was in total shock when I saw my name on the assignment sheet. At first, I thought our director must have forgotten me. I looked all through the various age groups, etc. And then I saw it - and I started sweating. Recreation? What?! But you know what? I'm totally loving it. First of all, it's only for 15 minutes, which is perfect. I teach the same thing 5 times each day, with a 15 minute break in between each group. And thank goodness, because it's been approximately 146 degrees in Oklahoma this week.

The kids are loving it, although Addison prefers to hang out with her Pappy and Grammy all day. Plus, Jason's working over there, so she's sweet-talked her way into hitching a ride to my parents house twice this week. Tomorrow is the last day, so although it's kind of a bummer that the fun week is coming to an end, I'm ready for a day off!

I also started a new Bible Study this week (on Ruth) with the girls from church. We alternate weeks with our husbands, and we meet at someone's house for the study. Last night, we did our introduction, and our group is just so great. I know most all of them, but there are a few that I don't. I love getting to know new people!!

On the homeschooling front, all I can say is that Jason and I have been extremely blessed the past couple of weeks. I have two good friends that have sold (and given) me their curriculum for next to NOTHING. I cannot even describe our excitement about that. Homeschooling is not cheap, so this is a really big deal! I plan to start really looking through everything in a week or so. The kids are super excited, and so am I. I must admit that I'm still a bit scared about the whole thing, but I also think that once I have my plans made, I'll feel better.

Ok, hitting the hay. VBS in the morning!!

PS - I've given up on giving up Diet Coke. It's just not gonna happen peeps. I only drink 1 in the morning, and sometimes one in the afternoon, but I just can't quit. Aaaaaaaaugh!!!!!!! Find me a 12-step program.

Monday's Random Thoughts And Updates

2010-06-14T20:07:00.002-05:00

I don't have any mind blowing posts at the present time (although once I watch the latest episode of Toddlers and Tiaras, I'm sure I will). Therefore, you get to take a little trip inside my crazy brain. FUN for you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And possibly a little dangerous.

1. I fell off the bandwagon with the Diet Coke about a month ago. I'm back on. I'm not saying that I will never drink another Diet Coke, but I'm most definitely not going to drink it every day. I was only drinking a can in the morning and another one in the afternoon, but I could tell a huge difference. I'm going to try to stick with my organic tea - at least for the caffeine fix. Yuck.

2. I cooked a Pioneer Woman meal tonight, and now my husband loves me even more. Because in reality, if I cooked like her every night, he would think he died and went to heaven. And then I would be sending him to fat camp, because she uses ingredients like bacon grease, butter, and cream. A lot.

3. I also made pumpkin muffins tonight, which are currently my favorite muffins (that I can make). I'm staring at them and salivating and trying to force myself not to eat one. Eating muffins gives me muffin tops.

4. I think I finally decided on all of my home school curriculum stuff. This is after talking to (or harassing, whatever word you choose) several homeschooling moms, researching online, deciding what's best for my own hooligans, and trying to stay within somewhat of a budget.

5. I bought some great home school stuff from my friend Karen. She gave me a killer deal.

6. You should check out my friend Karen's website. To. Die. For.

7. Peyton needs a haircut. He's looking a little trashy. Sigh.

8. Jason used all of my GOOD (read: expensive) hairspray. What the freak?! My sister told me to buy him a bottle of Rave and call it good. P.S. - Do they still make Aqua Net? Just curious.

9. The kids are all doing well. Healthy, having a great summer, etc. They took swimming lessons and promoted to the next level. They'll be enrolled in the school year program starting in August - they're super excited. I'm excited because swimming is an excellent way of releasing boy energy.

10. The parental units are moved in. Hallelujah. Seriously, all babysitting references aside, it's great having them here. Jason and I are both very close to them and we really enjoy each other. The kids are in heaven and love nothing more than to spend the night with Pappy and Grammy. And yes, the reinstatement of regular date night has been absolutely fabulous.

11. I'm currently in the middle of 3 books, and it's driving me crazy. I'm determined to finish one of them by tomorrow night.

12. I'm getting new eyeglasses, and I'm going to try ordering them online. I know the company checks out and all, but ordering frames sight unseen (bahahahaha) is a bit of an adventure. This could be a new post all on its own. That being said - they're SUPER cheap. Like $20 cheap.

13. I'm currently on the hunt for some inexpensive silicone muffin tins - with 6 muffin holes (or whatever). I'm super excited about starting Muffin Tin Monday. Is this not the most fun thing ever? I'm planning on keeping Mondays pretty light starting in the fall, so this will just be a fun little thing to do.

14. Hmmmmmm......I think that may be all. That was deep, wasn't it? I think I'm just going to go make another big jug of water and my fat-free popcorn and go plop down on the couch. I would much, much rather grab a pumpkin muffin or 5 plus a Diet Coke and go plop down on the couch. But I won't. I will be strong. Well, at least until the morning.

Off To Work! (Part 2)

2010-06-04T21:53:00.006-05:00

Now that you've all seen the fabulous binders, I'll take the time to enlighten you on how it all works. Which, by the way, I know you've been on the edge of your seat from the excitement. Hold on to your shorts (or your long denim skirts, for my fellow homeschooling homies) - here it comes.

Like I mentioned earlier, I've been spending waaaaaaay too much time and brain energy attempting to figure out a workable system around here. I mean, the truth is, anything will work if you're consistent with it. Which I'm not. Consistent, that is. I'm only a good girl if I have something really good that is easy to keep up with. You'll know what I mean when you see my kitchen floor. Until they come up with an affordable robot that cleans your floors really well while you sleep and is non-toxic, then the mop gets a little lonely out in the garage. I'm just sayin'. Does this make any sense to anyone else? Am I the only weirdo parent?

Anyhoo...where was I? Oh yes - the "system". First of all, I'm a HUGE believer that if we tell our kids why we do/don't do things, they're much more likely to do or not do things for the right reasons. Jason and I really want the kids to realize that doing these chores is about much more than earning some allowance or that it's just something they have to do because their parentals threatened them with punishment if they don't. Do you see what I'm saying here? We have driven in their brains that we all work around here because we're a team. We help out because we love our family, and helping is a way that we can bless each other. Those behaviors are the kinds of behaviors that God wants to see in us. It may sound corny and a waste of time, but I have to tell you that all 4 of my kids (yes, even crazy little Austin) LOVE to help out and work around here. I can literally think of maybe one or two times that someone whined about it. Even so, we still remind them daily of this principle. As you saw, it's even typed on the yellow daily sheet. (And I'm fully aware of the fact that because I just typed all of that, my boys will rise up in chore revolt first thing in the morning and make a complete fool of me. I'll keep you posted.)

I tried to be very specific with each assignment. The first page in the binder is the yellow daily sheet. Those are things that must be done each day, separated by chunks of time during the day. It looked a little more user-friendly to type it in little sections like that. I didn't list every single thing that they are responsible for each day, but mainly the stuff that they'll forget to do. They know that these jobs are their contribution to the household. Well, plus things like brushing teeth and showering. That's their contribution to themselves and those who have to be near them. There's nothing grosser (is that a word?) than that kid dirty hair smell. Please tell me you know what I'm talking about. It freaks my kidless sister and I out. In fact, she went into an elementary school recently and almost barfed because of the dirty hair smell. Ok, I'm sorry - I got a little off track - I get a touch of ADD in the evening. And at lunchtime too.

The 10-minute speed clean is something I started several months ago. Every day after lunch, I set the timer for 10 minutes. The kids clean the living room as fast as they can, and I tackle the kitchen. If they get done before time is up, they help me. If one of them gets the crazy idea to complain about helping out, etc., they will have a consequence. Another biggie around here is making sure the punishment fits the crime. If they choose to not participate in a family-oriented job, then they don't get to participate in a family-oriented fun activity. They may lose swimming time, movie time, game night time, etc.

The next two sheets are just detailed instructions for cleaning up their bedroom and the kitchen. The thing is, "Clean your bedroom" is a little vague for kids. If you think about it, they won't know exactly what to do unless someone tells tells them exactly what to do! We take that for granted sometimes - the fact that we assume they know what they're doing. They don't. At all. Little angels.

The final two pages are a list of jobs that can be done for money. Each job pays 25 cents, and they can earn up to $5.00 each week. The details are on the top of that sheet, but basically they can pick up to 4 jobs each day to add to their total. I assigned specific days for specific tasks for one reason only: if I don't, this is what I'll hear: "No fair Logan! You got to vacuum yesterday! Nuh uh Peyton - you did! Moooooommmmmm!!!!!!" See? It's for my own sanity, really. Your children may be civilized enough to not need the extra detail. But if they're not - you now have a solution.

So that's about it, I guess. I put each sheet in a sheet protector because then they can use a dry-erase marker to check off the lists each day. And of course, draw all kinds of crazy artwork all over the place. By the way, it kills me to not kindly say "You're drawing all over your nice, organized binder sheet protector. That doesn't look very neat and tidy anymore." But I haven't. Not once. I may have been eating more chocolate because of it, but I haven't said anything. I just clean it all up at the end of the day, put the binders back on their desks, and we start over the next day!

I have high hopes for this little system of ours, but I'll totally let you know if it all goes down the pooper. Like a wad of dental floss my 18-month old created. But that's a story for another day.

Off To Work!

2010-06-03T13:29:00.005-05:00

If you know me at all, you know that I tend to be just a tad bit of a perfectionist. I'm sure in some ways, that's good. Other ways...not so much. For instance, I've been throwing ideas around in my head for over a week about how to perfectly coordinate the kids' jobs. What jobs for free? What jobs for pay? A big family chart or individual charts? Re-usable or disposable? How should I word the jobs so that everything makes sense? I know - a little much. I think I may have issues.

I knew what I didn't want, which helped a little. I've learned from experience that it's well worth it to spend a good deal of time up front if it will save me loads of time later. And let me tell you - I spent about 3 hours on these puppies. I knew I didn't want to have to write out a list each day, and I knew that I didn't want to have to continuously buy stickers or whatever. Nothing that has to hang on the fridge. Oh, and nothing that costs an arm and a leg.

So...after days and days of intense "job" analysis, this is what I came up with:

My boys kind of freaked out when they saw them. Because, let's face it, daily tasks seem waaaaaay more fun when Spiderman, Buzz, and Woody are involved. (Those are 3-ring binders, by the way).

For today, I'm just going to post pictures of what is inside of these for now. We will add to them as time goes by. Tomorrow, I'll explain how and why I came up with the lists. I'll also explain how everything works.

Each list is in a sheet protector. Not to be nerdy, but so that they're re-usable. Yeah! Ok, the lists are below. And if you're wondering what's up with the last one, it's one of Peyton's. He can't read very many words yet, and I wanted him to be as independant as possible. Therefore, I drew some fabulous pictures next to the instructions for each page. (And he only had to ask "What's this?" twice so far today!)

Some New Habits

2010-05-25T15:17:00.003-05:00

I know it's summer break now and all, but around here, we're using this time to s-l-o-w-l-y train our family into some new habits. Our thought is that if we make some changes now, fall won't come as such a shock. Will it work? Who knows. But if nothing else, my house should be a little cleaner and my children should be a little kinder!

This week, we're working on a couple of different things. First, and most importantly, we're working on realizing how our words, facial expressions, tone of voice, etc. affect each other and how they make God feel. This is something Jason and I are having to be very diligent with when it comes to the three older ones. And let me tell you this - that's a hard thing to do. It's much easier for us to say "Be nice to your brother" or "We don't talk that way" or "Fine...pinch her back". You know what I mean, right? We've never allowed meanness in our home, but I'm starting to see some of the attitude shine through, and we know we need to put a very quick stop to it.

I've always been a very huge fan of explaining the "whys" for pretty much everything. I don't want them to not do something only because we said not to. What's going to happen when we're not around? They need to know why. Over the past few days when someone's words get ugly, we've been stopping whatever we're doing, going over to them, stopping the behavior, and making them not only apologize, but also ask for forgiveness from their sibling and from God. It may sound weird and a little much, but it's working, people. And for that, I am extrememly happy!

Second on the list is re-vamping some of the chores. I'm trying out some things every few days, and as they get used to it, adding some more. The kids have always been expected to help out around the house. The older boys clean the living room and their bedroom up at the end of the day, and everyone is responsible for cleaning up their own dishes, etc. Because of time constraints during the previous school year, I haven't been too hard on them in the evenings. There was already so much to do. Not anymore! Below is a list of chores for now. Like I said, I will more than likely be adding some things, and I will most definitely be getting it more organized. I don't have any sort of schedule for it yet.

As far as allowance goes, the older boys would get money for cleaning the living room and their bedrooms each day. Any other work is to be done solely because they're part of the family. They do have opportunities to earn extra money by doing side jobs if they want to. I haven't decided how to work the allowance thing into our new list yet, but we'll get there!

Here's what we've got so far:

Logan (8):
- daily personal hygiene stuff
- put own laundry away
- spiff up the hall bathroom with Clorox wipes
- help Peyton pick up living room at night
- clean up own dishes after each meal/snack
- help Peyton completely clear table after dinner
- help Peyton clean up backyard at the end of the day

Peyton (5):
- daily personal hygiene stuff
- put own laundry away
- help pick up kitchen floor
- help Logan pick up living room at night
- clean up own dishes after each meal/snack
- help Logan completely clear table after dinner
- help Logan clean up backyard at the end of the day

Addison (2):
- daily personal hygiene stuff
- put own laundry away (I stick around for this, but she totally does it on her own)
- help pick up her own toys out of the living room/hallway/wherever she dumped them
- clean up own dishes after each meal/snack

Keep you posted!

Thanks, Ben

2010-05-21T11:16:00.001-05:00

Um....how do I say this? I have SERIOUSLY been spelling curriculum wrong for the past few days? Are you freaking kidding me? I am sooooooo anal about spelling and grammar. The spell check didn't even catch it! Aaaaugh! It wouldn't be quite so bad if these posts were not completely centered around educating my own children.

Oh well. A big thank you to Ben who mentioned it to my sister who mentioned it to me. I can now go about my day in peace.

So much to do...

2010-05-20T20:28:00.005-05:00

Can I just say that I had no stinking idea how much homeschooling material was out there? Seriously! First of all, you can't just home school. Oh. No.

Let's see: You first need to pick a "method". Charlotte Mason, Classical, Traditional, Montessori, Unit Studies, Waldorf, unschool....and the list goes on. Oh, and let me remind you that I literally began this journey approximately a week ago. Therefore, follow any of my suggestions at your own risk. For all I know, I'm preparing to lead my children down the completely wrong, uneducated road. My luck will be that I somehow completely forget to teach math or something.

Ok, back to the point (yes, there is one somewhere in here). At this moment in time, I'm going with Unit Studies. Why? Because I closed my eyes and went down the list and that's the one I landed on. And also because I've taught them before with preschoolers, my mom has taught them, they're less expensive than some of the others, and you can easily teach multiple ages with them (or so they say). Seeing how I've got a 3rd grader, Kindergartner, and preschooler, I think this will work out much better than some of the other options. I also like my life to run fairly structured, but I most definitely want my kids to get a little messy and have as much hands-on opportunity as possible. I'm not a fan of putting a bunch of workbooks in front of them. But that's just me. I'm sure it works for some people.

So that's about all I have so far, and I'm starting to look at various Unit Studies cirriculums. Once you pick the method, it makes sifting through the catalogs and websites much easier. My main goal is to accomplish this little adventure of ours without going broke. Let me tell you this: You can spend thousands of dollars getting super cool kits for 3 kids. Thousands. Yikes. I think I'm going to get some #2 pencils, notebooks, and some crayons and hope for the best.

I'm also starting to put a list together of how I'm going to schedule my day/week/month/year/life/sanity and the tools I need to do it. This part is FUN because I am an office supply junkie. Or a nerd. Whatever floats your boat. I've been loving this blog that my friend Jen pointed me to. And she uses these:

Exept hers are brown. And I found these super cute colored ones (at JoAnn Fabric). Basically each kiddo will get one, and they will have up to 10 different "assignments" in them for the day - to do in order. These handy little carts eliminate the "how much is left" questions, and also help keep everything in a general organized state. I also love that they have rollers, so if one of the kids needs to go into a different room to work on something, they can drag their little station along. What a great idea! I'll post later about what goes in them - Addison and Peyton's will be filled with less "schoolwork" and more things like puzzles, coloring books, etc. I was thrilled.

Well, I feel like I'm making a little progress each day. I found out today that one of Logan's friends at school is home schooling next year, too. He home schooled before and loved it so much that they're going back to it. That was encouraging, for sure.

Also, a quick thank you to all of the really great encouragement you all have given me over the past few days. I have had at least 10-15 people in the last 48 hours tell me how cool they think all of this is, and that they know I'll do great at it. You have no idea how much that means!! I haven't heard anything negative at all - and to be honest, it wouldn't matter, but it's still nice. It's interesting to me how many people would like to home school or are at least considering it at some point.

Ok, enough about school. The season finale of Grey's is on tonight, and my DVR is calling my name. Adios!

Getting Started

2010-05-18T21:24:00.002-05:00

As you know, we just made our little decision to yank our kids out of public school and keep them at home away from all civilization forever. I really think it's going to work out quite nicely!

Seriously, though, Jason and I were really trying to figure out exactly how to tell the kids about our new plans. We knew Logan wouldn't care one bit. He absolutely loves school, but he doesn't have any hard core ties there. He is a very secure kid and easily adapts to pretty much any situation. He knows we have tons of fun together anyway, so why would this be any different? Little does he know what's in store. Muahahahahahaha. (That's an evil laugh, in case you didn't catch on to my crazy typing) Peyton? A whole different story.

Let me tell you just a little bit about Peyton. That kid makes friends with every single person that crosses his path. Young or old, human or animal. It doesn't matter. He promptly asks them all about their lives and then, as any normal person does, he invites them over for a playdate or sleepover. You have no idea how many stranger children I have disappointed by informing them that we won't be able to oblige at this time. Let me give you a couple of examples. And these were both today, within about 1 hour of each other.

My Grandma and PaPa Mathews just moved to Tulsa (my dad's parents). We're all super pumped because we didn't get to visit often. Anyway, Peyton, Addison, Austin, and I paid a little visit to my Grandma this morning. You know, just to show her exactly what she's been missing not having three (Logan was being brainwashed at evil public school today) crazies running around her joint. I was attempting to keep Austin in the kitchen with his snack and thought I would check on Peyton. I walk into the bathroom, and I see him and my Grandmother standing by the mirror. By the way, my grandmother has her mouth wide open and Peyton is inspecting each tooth. This is what I hear: "Gwamma - do you have any GOLDEN teeth?" What the heck? My 5 year old is having quite a detailed interview with my Grandma about her previous dental work. Geez. Oh, and what makes this even funnier is that Peyton would give just about anything to have golden teeth. That's just who he is (scary) and to be honest, he requires his own post for another day.

Scenario #2. We leave my Grandma's place and head to the park. Oh, but wait. Austin pooped his pants, and since he's my first kid and all, I completely forgot to pack the diaper bag. So we run home to change him, and THEN go to the park. Peyton is all irritated that there are no kids there. I told him he has 2 siblings and he's just going to have to make do. Well, about 20 minutes later, and cutie little girl and her mother come skipping along the trail with their Longaberger picnic basket (I'm totally not kidding about this whole picture). What does Peyton do? Well, he goes straight over to the girl and asks her to play. That's so sweet, right?! And then she tells him that she has to eat lunch first. Ok, still fine, normal conversation. And then....."Oh, fun! Hold on a minute. MOM!!! I'll be right back. I'm going to go have a picnic with HER, ok?" Um - not okay. Not okay because I have no clue who they are, and REALLY not okay because he totally just assumed that they would want to share their food with him. Sigh.

So, back to the original story. This is the child who we had to inform that he wasn't going to "big school". He was swinging in the backyard when Jason comes to tell him that we have fun, exciting things to tell him. Jason continues on with the explanation while Peyton stares at him - mouth slightly hanging open and eyes not blinking at all. At the end, all Peyton had to say was "Um, are we going to go somewhere every day? Am I going to do school Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday?" We tell him yes. He says okay. Phew. Survived that one. For now.

So we're all on the same page. I inspected the homeschool law for OK (which took about 3 minutes - not exactly high standards, if you catch my drift), started digging around for cirriculum ideas, picked my mother's brain for awhile (she's a crazy awesome teacher if you didn't know), read a bunch of blogs, etc. And then it all seemed a little overwhelming, so I made a nice high-calorie dessert and sat down to catch up with the Duggar family. And that's no joke. And you can make fun of me all you want, but those Duggars? All 21 of them? They're super cool in their own way, if you know what I mean. Ok, fine, you probably totally disagree. Whatever.

Next up on the list is to start running the house just a little bit better. After talking with some friends who have a ton of kids, I realized that I still tend to do way too much for mine. They're very capable of many things, and they're about to find out all about it. Very, very soon.

Big Changes For The Baker Six

2010-05-17T19:47:00.003-05:00

Ok, first of all, I realize that I am a complete blog slacker considering it's been since Thanksgiving since I graced you all with my fabulous writing. I guess I've just been wondering what the heck to write about - who knows. My random thoughts usually go on Facebook anyway - lucky for you. Not so lucky for my Facebook friends.

I honestly don't even know how to begin this post. And heads up - it's probably going to be long, so be prepared. Or just log off your computer. Whatever you think is best. Have you ever really, really, really felt like God was telling you to do something? Well, I haven't. Not only have I never really, really, really felt that (other than the day-to-day wisdom I gain from Him), but I've never exactly told God "No Thanks.....but I have other plans." P.S. - probably not a wise idea - I'm just sayin.

Well, that all changed a few weeks ago. Out of literally nowhere, I had this crazy feeling that we should home school our kids. What?!?!?!?! Um....I don't think so. First of all, I don't have a desire to grow my hair long and part it down the middle. Second of all, we're fairly cool people (in my opinion), and fairly cool people don't home school. Third, I don't want my kids to be weirdos. Fourth, for the first time in a looooooooong time, I was going to have a school year where I only had to deliver and pick up children at ONE location. ONE drop-off time, and ONE pickup time. And in between, I would only have 2 kids at home. And my parents are moving here. Do you see where I'm going with this? A freaking break people!!! At last!!! So, again, no thanks.

But for whatever reason, I found myself thinking more and more about it. I talked to Jason about it. (Who, by the way, not so politely declined as well) I started digging around a little. I just couldn't get God to stop leading me down that path. Slowly, I realized that although the stereotype of a home schooler isn't always GREAT, it's just that - a stereotype. And I'm not a big fan of stereotyping anyway (wasn't that what I was doing?). Besides, molds were made to be broken, weren't they? I realized that I can still attempt to be "in the know", busy, social, trendy, and fun - all while teaching my kids at home. As a matter of fact, the first thing I did was find all of the local social activities to participate in. Jason and I chatted again, and he totally agreed that aside from the regular concerns (social skills, being bored, not being exposed to ANYTHING in the real world, etc.), we should totally go for it. The reasons we didn't want to homeschool were all selfish, if you want to get real. And you know me - I like to keep it real around these here parts.

The first question that I think everybody asks is "Why? Why in the world would you want to do something like that? Your kids will be totally unsocialized freaks of nature." Or something along those lines. I know some people respond with "This is what's best for our family", or " It's just what God wants us to do", or "Whatever - you're the freak of nature". Here's the deal: those answers are all great - and probably true. Well, except maybe for the third one. Maybe. But I don't mind getting a little more detailed. So do you want to know why we're getting all freaky and home schooling? No? Too bad. I'm telling you anyway.

- First of all, we're not anti public school in any way and do not judge ANYONE for choosing public school, private school, home school, or daily instruction courtesy of PBS. Or Nick Jr. Just want to clear that up right here and now. Our kids will probably end up back in public school anyway - just later on down the road.

- Logan has had a good public school experience, but I just didn't seem quite as thrilled about it all this year for some reason. And he's got an awesome teacher, too.

- Peyton is supposed to start kindergarten this year. We held him out until he was 6 (which is highly recommended these days anyway), but the dude still naps 2 hours a day. Trust me, by day 3 or 4 of public school, he'll be toast.

- We like to be involved. We like to participate as much as we can at church, we love to go do things as a family, we love to hang out with friends, etc. During the school year, we have to put so much on hold because although we love to be involved, we refuse to be running around all over the place every night. So church activities stay, but pretty much everything else goes. And it kind of stinks.

- Although we don't want our children completely out of the loop on what the world is like, we also don't care for the fact that some 2nd graders have been discussing rolling around in bed naked together. In art class. And lunch. And recess. And that's not all, folks. There's much more where that came from. I know, I'm no fun.

- We realize that as parents, God has given us the responsibility to disciple our children. It's been getting a little hard to have meaningful family Bible study in the evenings when the kids are so blasted tired and have homework out the hind end.

- We want our kids to have a really good chunk of time (including some or all of the elementary years) being discipled throughout much of the day. They're not ready to be salt and light yet. They're kids - and kids are impulsive. And it's just not their responsibility yet.

- We want our kids to be able to learn at their own pace. Not be held back or feel like they can't keep up. Whatever the case may be.

- It will be fun. We can do all sorts of fun things around Tulsa. I mean, the casinos are great for teaching math, aren't they?

- We can take vacation during the off-season when the prices are way cheaper and the lines are way shorter. And that people, is the real reason to home school if you ask me.

- There are more, I'm sure, but that's what I'm pulling off the top of my head. Everybody has their own reasons.

So here I sit on this Monday evening wondering what the heck I am getting myself into. Honestly, I'm totally freaked out about the whole thing. It's weird, because on one hand, I feel a total peace because we both know this is what we should do for our family at this point in our lives. On the other, it all still seems so crazy. I know that God will lead us each step of the way - He already has. I know that my kids will be perfectly fine. I know that I will be fine. It's just new, you know?

I'll post tomorrow about what our initial plans are, as well as what the kids think about this whole crazy adventure. Stay tuned...... (because I know you can't stay away for long anyway).

So Thankful

2009-11-25T12:58:00.002-06:00

Every year at Thanksgiving, we all go around the table to announce what we're thankful for. I think I always say something like "my family, my friends, etc." (Although now that I'm aware of that, I'll probably change it up this year!) The thing is, sometimes we have to really think awhile to fully realize our blessings. After giving it much thought, here's what I came up with. Oh, and yes, some may seem like a joke, but seriously - I'm thankful for everything on this list! (And much, much more, I'm sure)

1. God (I mean, obviously. And it would be weird if I didn't list Him first)

OH BY THE WAY - these are in no particular order, so don't get all worked up about it.

2. My husband. Jason is the best guy in the world. He can be all studly and go work all day and then come home and play babies with his daughter. Oh, and he can cook really well. Oh, and he's hot.

3. My parents. Not just because they're great people, but because they taught my sister and me how to have a great family. Thirty one years of unconditional love - it's the best.

4. My sister. Mindi and I are the best of friends. And that's all I have to say about that.

5. My children. All 4 of them. They're healthy, they're happy, and they are sweet, sweet kids.

6. My church. Jason and I could have never imagined finding such an incredible church when we moved here. Awesome people, awesome place.

7. My friends. There are some that I hardly talk to, but when we do, it's like it was yesterday. There are some I talk to everyday. There are some who are just like me and some who are nothing like me. Some are young and some are old. But they're there. Always.

8. Diet Coke. My other best friend.

9. A house to live in, a car to drive, food on the table for every meal.

10. My dog. He's kind of ugly and smelly, but he's fun. And he sits in the window like a cat waiting for me when I'm gone. My kids don't even do that.

11. Stretch pants. I don't even do yoga, but I LOVE me some yoga pants.

12. Target. My second home. They are super-cool about coupons, so I shop there for free (or REALLY close to it) quite often.

13. My life. It's really great. I don't live in a huge house or drive a fancy car, BUT....I get to be with my babies every day. All day. Even with my part-time teaching job, I get to hang out with them. I couldn't ask for more, and my husband makes it all possible.

14. My neighbors. Most of them are elderly, so 1. It's quiet. 2. They sit on their front porches every day and watch my kids while they ride bikes. It's free babysitting, really.

15. My washing machine. Thank you dear mother. I can now cram approximately 84 items of clothing into my washer.

16. Knock-off purses, wallets, sunglasses, t-shirts, etc. They're the only way to go. Illegal? Maybe. But I'm not the one selling them.

17. Tide Stain Release gel-pacs. With 4 grubby kids, they're a must. Oh, and Oxi-Clean. Same reason.

18. Freedom. I cannot imagine life without it.

19. Anything with the word "instant" on it. I try to shoot for the organic instant, but in a pinch, I'm thankful for the chemically loaded stuff as well.

20. Peyton's continued health improvement. Having a kid with food allergies is not exactly easy, but oh well! He's so much better off than he was at the beginning of the year.

21. Along with #20, I'm thankful that I can easily find allergen-free foods. I cannot imagine having to deal with this 10 years ago.

22. Crayola Color Wonder. If you don't know what that is, you quite possibly don't have a 2-year old like mine. They're markers, etc. that only work on special paper. Thank you Crayola. From the depths of my heart.

23. My kid's teachers. They. Are. Amazing.

24. The kids in my class. And their parents.

25. The kid in my class that informed me that when I bent down real low, he could see my bootie. At least SOMEONE had the guts to tell me. Geez!

26. My boss. If my kids are sick and I have to call in, it's no big deal at all.

27. Coupons. They are now my life, and I love them. The latest have been my wipes purchases. $0.27 per box (see #12). Oh yeah.

28. And last, but certainly not least: I am so thankful that I wake up each day with the people that I love. I am thankful for the assurance that even though I don't know what life will throw at me, God is in control. He provides for my needs, and comforts me. I can stand on His promises and never fear. And for that, I am eternally thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

What I'm Thinking Right Now

2009-10-19T23:05:00.002-05:00

I have such random thoughts sometimes:

- There is no Diet Coke in the house. Must run to gas station before Jason goes to work so that I don't have to load 4 kids in the car to satisfy my caffeine fix.

- I really wish my 11 month old would learn to find his own paci in the night. I mean, seriously, it's 2 stinking inches from his face! I know I could just leave him to figure it out on his own, but whatever.

- The weather turned out perfectly today.

- I have a great husband.

- I took a bite of my husband's ice cream, which TOTALLY grosses him out. I didn't tell him immediately, either. I'm such a rebel.

- My kids are awesome.

- I'm still laughing at the fact that when Peyton saw bras at Target, he called them boobs. Close enough, I suppose.

- I love my job.

- I'm really ready for my parents to move here. 7 months and counting. I've made fabulous summer plans for myself.

- I have approximately 82 loads of laundry to do tomorrow. Approximately.

- I need to find Halloween costumes for the kids and myself. I hate that Halloween costs as much as Christmas. That's just wrong.

- Ribs or Swedish meatballs for dinner tomorrow?

- Decide about dinner tomorrow before 5:00pm tomorrow.

- I'm trying to figure out why Addison only eats one really good meal per day.

- Logan is such a smart kid.

- Why do people think it's so "trendy" to say things like "Oh, my life has been so crazy lately!" or "Oh, it's just been so crazy around here". It drives me nuts, really.

- I would REALLY love some donuts right now. White frosting with sprinkles. They've been my favorite since I was 2.

- Logan's birthday party is Saturday. We should probably get planning on that. My sister made KILLER invitations.

- I should really go to bed now. I always stay up too late. I mean, you know....my life has just been crazy lately.

Such a Slacker

2009-10-18T21:22:00.002-05:00

I am the ultimate blog slacker. I look on my friend's blogs, and on their blogrolls, I am always at the bottom. Well, maybe I'll be at the top for a few hours!

I'll try to give an update without being too boring. Grab a snack, this could take awhile.

Let's see.....first of all, I'm working part time. I'm teaching preschool again (3-year olds) three days a week. Peyton went to the school last year, and I loved it so much that I decided to go too. It's been a huge blessing in so many ways. I get to do what I love, I only work about 18 hours/week, the 3 younger ones are right there with me, and I'm getting paid for it! Peyton is in pre-k (we decided to wait on Kindergarten, since he just turned 5 on August 6), Addison is in the 2's class (which is just 2 doors down from me), and Austin is in the "Bunnies" class.

I knew Addison would be fine - she can totally hold her own. Austin was the one I was worried about. I have never left my kids at that age, so I was quite nervous at first. Well, I had absolutely no reason to be. He is seriously in a dream situation. First of all, there are only a few kids in there. Second, his teacher is TO DIE FOR. Third, he's spoiled rotten. When we get home, he expects to be held and cuddled every stinking minute! Fourth, the nursery room is super fun and cozy. Basically, it's probably better than home. Especially on
Fridays, when it's just him and one other baby. He doesn't know WHAT to do with himself!

**Just a side note: If you need a preschool and you're in Springfield, MO, you MUST, MUST, MUST go to RidgeKids at Ridgecrest Baptist Church. It's amazing. Seriously. Words cannot describe. And I am majorly picky. OK - just wanted to share. :)

Jason is doing really well with work. He continues to be busy with Handyman Connection, but because he's so freaking awesome (aren't I so nice?), he's building quite a customer base of his own. We've had several people from church hire him, and then you know how good word of mouth goes! It's been great for him.

Logan is doing great at school. He's in 2nd grade now and just turned 8 on October 9. I had a little moment with that one. You know, mom issues. And mark my words - the boy will be taller than me before too much longer. I realize that's not saying much, but still. He's very smart and kind, and he's just as sweet as he's always been!

Peyton continues to be the funniest thing ever made. He never quits. Come to think of it, he's been going since he was born. He absolutely loves school, and the highlight of his day is after care. Yes, you heard that right...my kid WANTS to go to latchkey. There is nothing wrong with latchkey at all. The point is that he's obsessed with it. My dad came in for a visit, and Peyton practically ignored him because he was on a very serious mission to get to after care. He goes for about 20 minutes after school while I finish up in my room. Also, he wants to be a truck driver when he grows up, live in the trailer park on the outskirts of our town, and drive a bright yellow low-rider truck. That's all I have to say about that.

Addison is 2, but Jason and I are convinced she already has the hormone thing down pat. I always wanted a girl in my mix. The more girls, the better. Well, I got my girl. I got my girl who wears her ballet skirt and tights with no shirt and a baseball cap on backwards. I got my girl who is so independent, she does things that most 4 year olds don't do for themselves. I got my girl who loves her baby dolls, but also sings songs to the Rescue Heroes. And finally, I got my girl who will wear her pretty black shoes straight out the back door and straight into the biggest mud puddle she can find. I guess that's what having 3 brothers will do to you!

I know I already talked about Austin in the first part, but here's a little more info. He'll be turning 1 next month (boo hoo). He looks like the perfect mix of Logan and Peyton when they were that age. He growls. Alot. I don't know why, but he does. Also, he loves peas, but not carrots. That probably doesn't seem like a big deal, but I am the only one in my house who loves peas, so I'm super excited.

I'll stop for now. (Do I hear shouts of joy?!) Be back soon!

I love Summer.

2009-07-06T22:47:00.003-05:00

We had such a great weekend - I hope you did, too! We spent 2 evenings at our friends' house, and the boys had quite an experience. ALL of them. By that, I mean that Jason helped our friend (along with several others) put on one amazing fireworks display. It seriously was right up there with the ones that an actual town will put on! Of course, I was scared to death. I could just see Jason getting on one of those "I Can't Believe I Survived" shows - you know the kind where they look so bad that you really CAN'T believe they survived?. And then I would be on one of those incontinence commercials. And it would say "This is not an actor...". You get my point. It was a great time, though. Logan and Peyton set off several explosive devices, Addison ate enough cookies to feed an army, and Austin just sat there smiling and drooling all over the place. Oh, and threw in some occasional massive spit-up, of course.

Our family has been having such a great summer. Jason has been super busy with work - mainly constructing an addition on our local dance academy. It looks awesome. If you live around these parts, you need to get your booty up there - it's called Jenks Dance Academy. You can thank me later.

The kids and I have been having a blast. The routine of the school year is good and all, but I so enjoy having them home. We all hang out in the morning while watching either Boomerang cartoons, Thomas, or Barney - depending on who got lucky enough to grab the remote first. Then it's a leisurely breakfast (a definite change from the school year!) and usually a day filled with swimming, swinging, playing in the sandbox, hosting playdates, or taking trips to the library. It's all flying by much too quickly.

On another note, thank you for the numerous e-mails about Peyton. We are so blessed to have many amazing people in our life that care so much about him. He is doing very well - I cannot even describe the difference. I am learning so much, too. Just a quick tidbit: Did you know that food allergies can even cause nighttime problems? Peyton was having nightmares (almost a night terror-type) and pains in his legs quite regularly. Taking him to the chiropractor helped, but as soon as the casein was gone, it all stopped. CRAZY. He's becoming quite educated as well, and it's incredible how quickly kids can figure it all out. Just tonight, I decided to get them kid's meals for dinner. This is a RARE occasion in our house, so it was met with loads of excitement. Logan said he wanted McDonald's, and Peyton replied quite indignantly "Logan (pronounced Wogan) - McDonald's fries have casein in them. We're NOT going there."

Well, I should hit the hay I suppose. Jason's working late again and it's always hard for me to get to sleep. I'm such a pansy. Good night!

Peyton's Final (hopefully!) Update

2009-07-02T20:11:00.002-05:00

I know I haven't posted in a month - I guess I've just not taken the time! Peyton and I went to the specialist today, so I have great news to share!!

First of all, the appointment got moved up by 2 months, which was a complete blessing. I'm telling you what - you have to get just a little bit psycho (well, politely psycho) to get your voice heard! My friend's dad is a doctor, and he really gave me some excellent advice. Thanks Lloyd!

Second of all, there are two of these specialists in the state of Oklahoma, and I was so thrilled to be 15 minutes away from one of them. I love how God works - even in the small things!

Over the past few weeks, we have done an intensive/extensive elimination diet. No soy, gluten, eggs, casein (protein from dairy), or nuts. Let me tell you that I thought we might not have much to eat! Basically, if it came in a box or bag, we didn't eat it. After several days, we began to add in 1 possible allergen at a time. We were to watch for reaction(s) and then re-eliminate the food for 2-3 days, followed by another re-introduction.

I won't bore you with every single detail, but when we got to the casein, things went downhill BIG TIME. Since you probably don't care to know the consistency, color, smell, etc. of my child's poop, I'll spare you the nitty-gritty. I will say that he had a large amount of blood though, and that's definitely a problem.

We pulled casein back out and he did great. We felt like we probably had our answer, but we had to go to the specialist anyway. There was still a chance he had other problems (disease, disorder, etc.) . Jason and I firmly believe that this is where our prayers and the prayers of all our friends and family were answered. Peyton was supposed to have a scope done to find the rest of the problem.

Well, as of today, there is no need for a scope. After much discussion (and the fact that Peyton gained 2 whole pounds!), the doctor diagnosed Peyton with casein allergy. That's it!!! In fact, if he has another flare-up, he'll undergo more extensive allergy testing - nothing very invasive. We are SO thankful. Yes, having a child with a food allergy will involve more diligence and proactive care on our part, but who cares? In the grand scheme of life, it's just so minor.

One more thing - our nutritionist is the BEST. I love her so much. We really hit it off from the beginning, and she is incredibly knowledgeable. If you're in the Tulsa area and need a good one, her name is Amy Puls.

Again, thank you for praying for Peyton. Those prayers were answered today.

Just some fun pictures

2009-06-02T20:57:00.004-05:00

Just thought I would post some fun pictures! Have a good night!

The Latest

2009-05-31T20:39:00.002-05:00

My, have we been busy. I'm going to attempt to give all of the updates person by person here, so bear with me!

As far as the entire family goes, we're all doing great. Life as a family of 6 is definitely getting easier - and personally, I'm very relieved. I wasn't sure about all of that "large family" business. A little scary - seriously. Our only current "challenge" is deciding what the best solution is for our living arrangements. We're in the process of buying this house, and we didn't know I was pregnant when we moved in. Jason and I have taken it as a sign, though, that this is the house for us. We just need to get creative! Austin is still in our room, which is perfectly fine, but the time is fast approaching that we will no longer care to be roomies. No offense to the little butterball, but that's just how it is.

Also, in case you didn't know, my grandmother passed away at the end of April. We were completely expecting it, but it was obviously still very hard on all of us. Mindi and I were the only grandkids, and she totally adopted Ben and Jason. Jason had the opportunity to spend alot of time with her. He would go to her house frequently and just hang out. Those two had a very special bond. Jason and I were very blessed to spend her last moments with her.

In other news, my parents are definitely moving here next summer. We knew it would happen eventually, but no one knew for sure when. Aside from our little clan being here, my dad's brother also lives here. Oh, and I'm holding out hope that my sister (who is in NY) will move back, too. Hey - a girl can wish, right? Jason and I are really excited about the whole thing. It was really great, because they had a serious chat with us about it all. They did NOT want to move here if Jason wasn't totally up for it. How many in-laws will do that?! Anyway, because we are so fortunate to all have a very close relationship, they're headed this way. Yeah!!

Jason continues to do AWESOME at his job. He does the majority of his work through Handyman Connection, but he is also building his own customer base. Right now, he's working on an addition for the local dance academy. I'm not kidding you - that guy can do just about anything. Yes, he would probably be embarrassed by all my bragging, but it's so true. He's incredible. He gets up with me in the morning, cooks breakfast, takes Logan to school, works hard all day, comes home to help out with supper if I need it, and then just totally throws himself into our family. I'm so lucky.

I'm cruising along with my usual gig. I feel as though I have finally been able to get back in the swing of things lately. It's been so nice! I've had quite a bit of catching up to do, but the list is getting shorter every day. I started running a couple of months ago, so that's my current "project". I'm hoping to do the Tulsa Run in October, but we'll see. It's LONG. Yikes. Also, in the fall I'll be teaching 2 days each week at the preschool. It's a great deal. Peyton, Addison, and Austin will all go (for free!) while I float around the classrooms. On Fridays, I'll be trading babysitting duties with a girlfriend so that we can each have a whole day to ourselves every other week. It's a perfect situation, and I'm super excited about it.

Logan just finished 1st grade and is really looking forward to the summer break. We always have a blast when school is out, so I'm looking forward to it, too. Logan did very well at school this year, and he says his favorite class is P.E. His favorite subjects are math and writing. He also LOVES to read. Jason and Logan (and occasionally, Peyton) were very involved in Cub Scouts this year. It was quite fun for both of them. Also, on Passover Sunday, Logan became a Christian. Jason and I were so thrilled. I don't think we realized what a special feeling we would have as his parents. He will be baptized this week, and Jason does a special Bible Study book with him each day. Logan also became involved at Awanas this spring at church and already finished his first book. He's really come out of his shell - he's doing so great!

Peyton had a GREAT year at preschool. We absolutely love, love, love his school. I had quite a time finding him a good place to go, so it's been a huge relief. He was so devastated when the school year ended! We're continuing to do some work with Peyton's nutritional issues, but he's definitely getting better. He is eating like a horse and he's finally ADDING some weight, which is a huge relief. He'll be going to a specialist in the next month or so, just to check for any kind of problem with the structure of his digestive system. We are so thrilled that 1 of the 2 specialists in the state is about 15 minutes away. He has had many tests ran, so we know he's not allergic to anything at this point. Currently, we're doing an elimination process with certain foods (dairy for now) to find the ingredients that he's intolerant to. There's a big difference between allergy and intolerance. To be honest, it's taken some time to get used to the process, but it's totally worth it. Jason and I were in agreement that we would take the time to "get to the bottom of it", even if that meant loading up with vitamins/supplements and spending many hours researching. It's been completely worth it, and we're glad we didn't just medicate him.

Peyton also got to start Cubbies this spring, which is the younger Awanas group at church. He loves it, and Jason teaches in there each week. It's worked out so well, because now the boys each have an activity that they do with their Dad.

Let's see - who's next? Oh yes, that would be Addison. Oh my. There's just so much I can say about this girl. She is absolutely a hoot. She has grown up so much in the last six months. Even though she is not quite 2, she is always helping to cook, clean up (including putting her own dishes in the sink), check on Austin, and anything else that the older boys do. We are constantly amazed at what a big girl she is. Of course, because she's not quite 2, she also has random moments of needing to still be the baby. We have to remind ourselves of that from time to time! Addison loves playing with her babies, playing outside, going for walks, and watching Barney. She also loves to sing and dance (she's beginning Baby Ballet in the fall), and now, she also enjoys imitating the boys when they play boxing on the Wii. It's quite a sight. It truly is a blast having a little girl running around - even if she is onerier than the boys!

My little Austin is 6 months old now! It has gone by so fast - it's shocking. Like most 4th (or more!) children, he has gotten the shaft - at least a little bit. I just got his portraits taken for the first time (Logan had about 8 by now), he almost always wears onesies (Logan and Peyton were always completely decked out in jeans, etc.), and he eats in a pink highchair (we're not convinced it's worth it to pay for a new cover - he doesn't seem to mind). I just have to say that he is the happiest baby I think I've ever known. That kid is always smiling and squealing. He just goes with the flow of our crazy lives, and as long as he's not away from his mommy for too long, he's set. He's also a chunk, and we LOVE it. We're always squeezing him - he's just so much fun. Oh, and in case you're wondering (I don't know WHY you would wonder), HE IS IT. THE LAST. THE YOUNGEST. EVER. I'm serious. If something crazy happens, I'm sueing. Mark my words.

Last, but certainly not least......Max. Maximus. Maximillion. Maxipad. (Hey - you call your dog what you want, I'll call my dog what I want) He's one cool dog. And he completes our little group. Oh, and he sleeps right between Jason's and my feet. (Is that gramatically correct? Mom? Jen?) And he follows me around everywhere. Yes, he fits right in. And he's great.

Well, that's about it. Good grief. I think I covered all the important parts. Are you still there? Are you still awake? Hello? Have a good night!

Teacher Gifts!

2009-05-19T22:51:00.003-05:00

Ok, so my friend Jen and I decided to connect with our inner Martha Stewart and make some really fun clipboards. We saw them on Etsy for $15.00 and realized we could do SO much better. Didn't we Jen? Hee hee. The funny thing is that we tend to think we could do SO much better quite often. And sometimes, we don't do ANY better. At all. But hey - we try.

Anyway, this is how the clipboard started it's boring life:
And THIS, my friends, is how it looks now:

I actually bought 4 of them. These are the 2 I have finished so far. They're for Logan and Peyton's teachers. Aren't they just too fun? They actually make me WANT to write a to-do list just so I can stick it in this clipboard. Well....almost, anyway.

Hopefully I'll get around to finishing the other 2 in a few days. They're a bit time-consuming, but really fun to make. I hope the teachers like them!

Getting Organized

2009-05-09T12:34:00.006-05:00

I know I haven't written in awhile, but it's actually been for a pretty good reason! I've been spending alot of time lately sorting, organizing, evaluating current systems, reading, etc. After having Austin, I spent SO much time wandering through my days - taking life one hour at a time. Only within the last couple of weeks has the fog been lifted - and I'm very glad.

We also have been so busy with Peyton's nutrition stuff. I'll post the latest updates on that within the next day or so. The ever-growing list of supplements had begun to create some confusion around here! Because all 4 kids take various vitamins, etc., I really needed a system in place. Jason cooks breakfast every morning, and that's one of the times that they take everything. We were both getting a little overwhelmed.

I decided that I would start my household overhaul with the simple task of making a re-usable list of the vitamins and supplements. I wanted something that would be in plain sight, fun and colorful, and easy to follow. I came up with this:
I got some scrapbook paper and stickers and went for it. I put it inside a sheet protector, put magnetic strips on the back, then hung it on the refrigerator. I have a marker hanging right next to it. We can easily check off the list and clean it off at the end of the day!

I'm eager to start this! It's these little things that make life so much easier around here. As I work my way around the house, I'll be posting my problems and solutions. If I'm feeling really brave, I'll post before and after pictures. Let me give you fair warning - some of them will be really scary.

Have a great Saturday!

Max

2009-04-22T22:09:00.002-05:00

Well, I made the leap today and found my family a dog. We are now the proud owners of a carkie (cairn terrier/yorkie mix) named Max.

He is ADORABLE. He is so sweet and perfect with the boys. Addison and Austin haven't met him yet, so that should be interesting. So far, he's just been checking everything out. We did give him a bath, flea treatment (just in case, although we didn't see any), and a good brushing.

I'll post pictures in the next day or so. He really is cute. And free. That was the best part. Gotta love Craig's List. It took quite a while for us to find what we wanted for free or really cheap, but we finally did! I'm wondering if we should really name him Maximillion to stick with the whole "ending with an n" thing. Hmmm.....

Inappropriately Chubby

2009-04-19T22:14:00.005-05:00

That's how I would currently describe myself. I'm taking the plunge here and telling the whole world (well, or at least my 3 readers) that I seriously need to stop painfully stuffing my midsection and butt into my jeans. And my pajama pants. And my undies, for that matter. It's just so scary. And like I said above, inappropriate.

If you know me at all, you probably know that I've always been thin. It's true. It's just never been an issue for me, really. Well, it's an issue now. I've been pregnant or nursing or postpartum since 2006, so needless to say, the metabolism/hormone combination has taken a good beating. So much so, in fact, that I believe I no longer have any metabolism. Is that possible? Is it possible to take 3 days to digest a meal? I think it may be.

Anyway, here's the deal. I'm not pregnant, nursing, or postpartum anymore. I AM planning on swimming this summer though. In an actual bathing suit. I am also planning on bending over and not ripping the butt of my pants. I would also like to bend over and not black out. I'm dangerously close to that last one. I think I saw "floaters" yesterday when I reached down to pick up Austin's burp rag. So sad.

I'm the type of person that will whine about something for awhile. I will also have good intentions of accomplishing goals, although it sometimes takes me some time to get going. However, when I'm ready, I do it. Well, I'm done whining and ready to go. I have never been okay with buying bigger clothes. That's dumb. I mean, come on. Am I seriously going to spend money on new clothes because I cannot stop stuffing my face? How ridiculous is that? Like I said before, I just stuff my face and then stuff my butt and other surrounding squishy parts into my regular clothes. When that no longer works, I stop. Although, I would LOVE it if someone decided that maternity clothes were "in" for regular people. That would be AWESOME.

As of tomorrow, I'm beginning South Beach. I'm ready and excited. I will admit that I have gorged myself all day today. I mean GORGED. I feel a little nauseous as a matter of fact. Again, so sad.

Well, I just thought I would share. Since I'm SURE you'll be SO curious to know how it's going, I will be posting about the whole dang thing. :)

Oh, and one more thing - I already exercise alot, and will continue to do so. I'm actually starting training for the Tulsa Run that's held in October, which is a 15k. It's just that from now on, I will reward myself with a highly tasty celery stick after working out. Instead of a highly tasty candy bar.

Have a good night!

Oprah

2009-04-16T23:16:00.003-05:00

I think I have a love/hate relationship with her show. I used to watch her quite frequently, but it's actually been a few years since I was any kind of "faithful" viewer.

I had the idea a week or two ago to start recording the shows to watch at night occasionally. I'm kind of wondering if it was such a great idea.

Let me give you a fair warning: if you haven't watched this week, I'm about to spoil your fun. A few nights ago, I decided to watch the episode about motherhood. I mean, I figured this could be really great, you know? Oprah said they were talking about how mothers REALLY feel, etc. I was so excited. Fast forward about 3 minutes into the program and I was completely let down. If you've read my blog long at all, you know I keep things pretty real around here. I have never claimed to have it all together, and I certainly have never pretended like motherhood is perfect every day. BUT - I was really disappointed that there were so many women "confessing" that being a mother just really sucks. I couldn't believe it!!!

I began to wonder how I would feel if Logan was sitting next to me on the couch. Or how the children of these women would feel if they heard what their mothers were saying. I'm not talking about things like admitting that you don't bathe your kid every day. That's just real life sometimes. I'm also not talking about the feeling of being alone and overwhelmed that we get occasionally - that's totally normal! I'm talking about complaining about your kids and how they're just a big pain in the butt. I'm talking about the mothers who said that they need to practically be drunk to handle their kids. And they were laughing the whole time! And so was the audience!

I did learn something from Oprah that night (and the rest of this week, for that matter). First of all, I learned that I won't be watching her show unless she's interviewing someone super interesting. I didn't make my decision off this one episode. The rest of the week was quite disturbing, too, in my opinion. Second, I learned that I am so thankful for the fact that I thoroughly enjoy my children. No, they are not perfect all of the time. Not by a long shot. But would I ever wish they were "out of my hair"? Never! I also learned that I am so thankful that I have a great group of "mom friends" who feel the same way. I hope that the moms who spoke on Oprah can find some friends like mine. Maybe if they step back and see their children as blessings instead of burdens, they won't feel so frustrated!

So thank you Oprah. Thank you for helping me realize that when you surround yourself with positive people, you'll be much less likely to complain so much. Thank you for helping me realize that I truly have better things to do with my time (well, at least most of the time).

Yoga

2009-04-06T21:22:00.002-05:00

So......I tried yoga tonight. For the first time - ever.

I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before, but just in case: I am not coordinated. Oh - and I have no balance either. Not a good combo when you're attempting yoga. I was laughing so hard at myself as I was doing tree poses and warrior stuff. I was also making a mental note to NEVER do yoga outside of my living room. I wouldn't even let Jason come in and watch me. He may never look at me the same way again. I just couldn't have that, you know?

Anyway, I think I'm going to stick with it. Without going into a bunch of boring schmoring weight loss crap, let's just say that I need to lose a few pounds. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that 15 pounds would not be too much. Therefore, I'm doing running/walking intervals 5 days a week and now I'm going to do yoga 3 days a week, too. According to Denise Austin, I can be fit in 21 days. We'll see I guess. I mean, I would REALLY hate to embarrass myself in a bathing suit this summer. With that being said, I've decided to believe Denise Austin. She better be right.

Oh - and one more HUGE piece of news: I no longer drink Diet Coke. Good grief, I really never thought I would say that. I seriously hated the first 3 or 4 days, but I'm happy to report that I'm no longer gnashing my teeth. According to the lady from Flat Belly Diet (no, I don't have the book - I saw it on Oprah's website), you can lose quite a bit of flab by cutting out a few things for a week. Soda was one of them. I don't know what the other things were. I pretty much ignored the rest of it. :) ANYWAY - I'm just a water girl now. Like my friend Mellany pointed out, I guess I will no longer have Coke Reward codes to enter. Therefore, I will apologize now to my friends and family. You will no longer be getting fabulous Coke Reward gifts for Christmas. You will have the pleasure of not sitting next to a fat girl by the Christmas tree. Take your pick.

Ok, that's all the mind-stimulating information I have for you today. We'll see what tomorrow brings!

Addison's Update

2009-04-03T13:08:00.004-05:00

I'm SO excited to report that I took Addison to the pediatric cardiologist today, and she's doing great! The hole in her heart has closed, which they were pretty sure would happen. The pulmonic stenosis (the "sticking" and narrowing of the valve) has actually improved, which they did NOT think would happen! The best case scenario that they gave me was that it would not get any worse. That's all they were hoping for. That would have been fine, as she would not require surgery with the problem being at that level, but I'm really excited that it's actually healing.

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers! We don't even have to go back for a whole year - and that's just for another routine checkup. Yeah!!

The BE Well Method

2009-03-31T11:45:00.003-05:00

The BE Well Method is what we're using in our family to make sure we all get the proper amount and kinds of nutrition. It's a really easy system to follow, and the kids love picking something from each category. Basically, you should pick 1 thing from the "B" group and 1 thing from the "E" group for each meal AND snack. Of course, you can do more, but the idea is that they should be even amounts. For example, you should not eat way more protein than carbs or more carbs than protein. Also, 2-3 times a day, you should pick a vegetable from the vegetable list to add in. This is the hard part for us. I must say, veggies are not a hot item around here. I'm the only one who really loves them!

As a side note, notice where corn and potatoes are. NOT in the veggie group. They're actually considered a carb. So don't do what Jason does and count corn and potatoes as part of the daily veggie allowance. That's cheating. :)

The kids have been completely excited about the whole program. We've made a commitment as a family to try new things. The fact that we're all in it together is a really big deal! Our rule is that you must take 2 bites of everything on your plate. That way, at least they do taste the new stuff, and I don't get all upset that no one is eating what I made!

The other thing I was doing wrong was making their snacks too small. These are actually a "mini meal" (for adults, too). Alot of times, I would give them a banana or some graham crackers or something like that. Those were healthy choices, but they didn't contain nutrients from both groups. Since I've changed this, I've noticed a really positive difference. The "I'm hungry" whining has stopped. You know - the kind that kicks in about 30 minutes after they just ate.

Ok, here are the "groups". We have a handy little chart with columns which works really well. Then you can just pick from each column for meals and snacks!

The "B" Group: Building Foods
- lean meats including: chicken, turkey, pork, beef, fish, and shellfish
- eggs
- nuts and nut butters
-beans
-dairy (cheese, milk, and yogurt)
-soy milk and protein products (**note from me: Make sure you really read the labels on this stuff. Some of it is highly processed)

The "E" Group: Energy Foods
-grains including: cereals, breads, pasta, rice, tortillas, and crackers
-starchy vegetables limited to potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, peas, and lentils
-fruits and fruit juices: juice limited to 4-6 oz. per day. And only drink juice WITH food. Not in between

Non-Starchy Vegetables
-tomatoes, lettuce, spinach, zucchini, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, asparagus, onions, peppers, cucumbers

Nutritionist Visit - #1

2009-03-29T19:26:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, I'm very impressed with Peyton's nutritionist, Amy. She's very knowledgeable, and we're really on the same page. What I mean by that is she is very much into sensible, natural-as-possible food. No sugar-loaded Pediasure, etc. I love this woman! The other really cool thing is that her instructions are not just for kids - they're for adults, too!

I have gotten TONS of e-mails about my last post. It's so encouraging to me to know that so many of my friends and family feel the same way I do about this stuff. It makes the journey so much easier! I've decided to post some of the details of my visits with Amy to share with you. Partly because it just gives me an outlet to write about what's going on with Peyton, but also because I know you guys will love this info. And hey - it's free! I'll just pull some of the important parts of our discussions and pass them along to you. Keep in mind that this stuff is coming straight from the horse's mouth. It's not just MY opinion or anything like that. This is what the nutritionist says to do. Most of it is common sense anyway, but it gives a fresh spin on things, I think.

This past week, we discussed some very basic eating and drinking habits. Jason and I do most of these things already, so it was nice not to have to overhaul too much yet. We will meet with Amy the week after next, and in the meantime, Peyton will be doing some food intolerance/allergy testing. This is a MUST anytime you're dealing with food issues of any kind. And in case you didn't know this, I'll tell you! If you or your kids have ANY kind of behavior issues (including ADD/ADHD), I HIGHLY encourage you to have them extensively tested for food intolerance/allergy. It is PROVEN that many kids with ADD/ADHD and similar disorders have food problems.

Ok, here are a few points. I'll post some more tomorrow. :)

1. Eat Breakfast Everyday.
2. Eat Every 3-4 hours with balance.
3. Balance your meals with the BE-Well Method. (I will post the details tomorrow, but it's basically a protein/carb + vegetable combination)
4. Do not eat or drink between meals (she counts a snack as a meal, by the way). Water is ok.
5. Learn to respond to hunger appropriately, with balance, add treats only after a balanced meal or snack has been eaten.
6. Be active between meals.
7. Exercise everyday.

**My favorite (well, and least favorite) point of the week? School lunches are quite possibly the worst thing for kids to eat. Ever. Well, great. I guess it's time to stop slacking off, huh? I told Logan he will only be eating at school 2 days/week from now on. He was bummed, but he understood. He wants to be healthy, too.

I Forgot One!

2009-03-27T08:36:00.002-05:00

Thanks to my friend for reminding me about one of my most favorite "habits". The chiropractor!! It's true. My kids go to one. It started when Peyton was about 4 weeks old and I was willing to try anything to treat his colic. It definitely helped.

I will honestly tell you that I don't fully understand why and how it all works exactly. I just know that it does. The chiropractor can explain everything waaaay better than I ever could. I have tons of examples I could give you, but a couple stand out to me more than the others.

Like I said above, it helped Peyton's colic. Also, he had acid reflux, and after he was adjusted, his body was able to "get it all out" if you know what I mean. It was nuts. Also, all of my kids sleep much better when they're not "out". I can really tell a difference. Addison was about 1 week old when she got her first treatment. Age is not a factor!

I really encourage you to give it a try. When the body is "in sync" (don't you love my medical terms?), everything else just works better.

Here in Jenks, we go to Russell Prentice. No, he has no idea that I'm promoting him here. He's REALLY good. He's great with the kids, he has a playroom in the office, and you hardly ever have to wait - at all. Also, when he's done, the kids get a vitamin C. Don't laugh. They love it!

Again, share your experiences here if you have any. The more we can learn from each other, the better!

Why I Do The Things I Do

2009-03-26T22:48:00.004-05:00

I was so excited today, because I got to go to the nutritionist with Peyton. I'll post details on that within the next day or two, but basically, my gut is telling me that he has some sort of food allergy or intolerance thing going on. I have no idea what. Anyway, it was an awesome appointment, and I seriously could have just visited with her for hours. Before I post on our current and future experiences in this new little "journey", I want to give you some background about our beliefs in this area. First of all, I've had numerous people ask me about the things we do with/for our kids. Second of all, I post random opinions throughout my blog, but I think it needs to be all in one spot. It just makes more sense that way.

Also, I am in no way an expert. I will say that I have done a massive amount of research on most of it, though. It's just fun for me. I will also say that there are plenty of people out there who make even more healthy decisions than I do. Right now, I just do what I can. And I don't make any decision without really looking into it first. These aren't just random ideas I have or anything. :)

Let me make something VERY clear. This is what WE do in OUR family. We do feel very strongly that what we are doing is right, but I will not judge someone else for having a different point of view. In fact, if you feel like arguing with me, go ahead. Just keep it nice, please. This is going to be in a sort of "FAQ" form. These are questions that I get from people alot, so I think it will be easier. Here we go!

1. Why do you do all the natural, "alternative" stuff?

Well, and I'll try to keep this short, I stumbled upon it all through trial and error. Logan was not a healthy child between the ages of 1 and 3. In fact, he had so many ear infections, respiratory infections, etc., that he had antibiotics 24 times in that time period. He also did breathing treatments. I didn't know any better. I did what the doctors prescribed. I deep cleaned my house with chemical cleaners to "kill the germs". Finally, I had enough. Logan had a round of croup that had lasted over 15 days. No amount of breathing treatments or oral steroids would cure it. I said "What the heck?!" and called the natural doctor in our town. He did a complete work-up, gave me orders to overhaul everything that he ate, everything that he breathed, and anything else that could go into his body. The doctor did needleless acupuncture and sent us on our way. Logan slept 15 hours that night without one cough. No more croup. Ever since that day, I've implemented more and more natural "habits". And ever since that day, Logan has been sick MAYBE a handful of times. He still has ear fluid trouble, but he also has a very small ear canal and scar tissue now. The fluid never gets infected, though. Our other kids are extremely healthy, too. And trust me, it's not genetic luck.

2. What kind of vitamins do you use? Honestly, I tend to hop around a bit. Typically speaking, I buy Animal Parade vitamins for Peyton and Addison. Logan takes GNC kids multis (he needs more iron). All of the kids take probiotics DAILY. I buy Garden of Life, or if they're out, I buy Country Life. Our main philosophy is that whatever we buy, it has to come from the health food store. You can find vitamin information easily (just compare labels), so trust me when I say that vitamins from Wal-Mart are not even close to being the same as vitamins from the health food store. You get what you pay for, so don't waste your money. Yes, we spend quite a bit of money on vitamins and supplements. We're okay with that. It saves money in the long run, and it's very worth it to us to keep our family as healthy as possible.

3. Do you only buy organic? Yes and no. I try to buy as much as possible. Except in rare cases, I have always bought organic beef, chicken, eggs, yogurt, and baby food. My kids don't drink milk, so I don't worry too much about that. I do buy 1/2 gallon of organic to use in cooking, though. I could spend hundreds of dollars at Whole Foods every week if money was never an issue. Because money IS an issue, I just try to eliminate the really "bad" stuff. Hormones, antibiotics, etc. Our most recent overhaul has been to eliminate any artificial colors and sweeteners. They're everywhere!

4. Do you never buy "bad" food? Oh my goodness. Currently in my pantry, I have a box of organic "fruit by the foot". Right next to that is a box of Pop-Tarts. Moderation people. The kids each get to pick out one "junk" item each week. I'm fine with that. I don't deny them McDonald's, it's just that we only go about 1 time each month. Sometimes I make Kraft Mac and Cheese - with organic milk. Yes, I know that's like people eating a whole pizza but insisting on a diet soda. Whatever! Like I said, I do what I can.

5. Do you vaccinate? Yes. I DO NOT vaccinate according to the "recommended" schedule. We feel that there is WAY too much evidence out there proving that injecting a baby with so much at one time is overload. I actually have a friend that's a doctor and a friend who has an autistic child that can give me REAL case stories. Of people they actually know. Freaky. So don't worry. My child won't give your child the measles or anything. We just do 1 or 2 at a time, and we wait several months in between (after 4 months). And we don't do flu shots or chickenpox shots.

6. If you don't use chemical cleaners, how do you kill all the germs? Well, hold on to your hats. WE HAVE GERMS. Millions of them. Everywhere. And you know what? That's okay! Our society has become so "clean" that we're almost TOO clean. We aren't supposed to disinfect everything. I had a very hard time accepting this. It just didn't seem right. Currently, I clean with vinegar, baking soda, Basic H, and Method (in the bathroom - it's addictive). That's it. And so far, we don't smell too funky or anything! Another perk? I don't have to freak out if one of my kids touches the mop bucket.

7. Are all of your household items "natural"? No. Again, I think I would love it if they were, but they're just not. The kids all use natural bathing products, and I USUALLY always use all-natural stuff in the laundry. Unless I run out or get lazy one week - which happens. I don't use anti-bacterial hand soap anymore, so that's a biggie I guess. We wash our hands very frequently and use hand gel (not anti-bacterial), so I didn't want that on our hands. Otherwise, I just use regular stuff and just try to eliminate fragrance, etc.

8. How do you feel about medicine? It depends. I think Americans are so used to taking medicine for everything that we don't stop to think about what we're taking anymore. Like everything else, there's a time and a place. When we get a cold, we take a spoonful of honey (only over age 1), run the humidifier, and sometimes use baby Vicks. I also keep homeopathic cold tablets on hand. On the other hand, I just had a big-dog antibiotic filled last Sunday. I somehow got strep, a double ear infection, and a sinus infection all at the same time. I felt like I swallowed razor blades - the blisters on my throat were really bad. Each day got worse, so it was time to get some good 'ol fashioned drugs. Thank goodness! So we do both. We try to go without drugs, but we'll never NOT take them.

I think that pretty much sums it all up. Like I said, those are the questions that people ask me the most. In a nutshell, Jason and I firmly believe that people will be very pleasantly surprised if they "cross over" to this way of thinking. We have seen with our own eyes how lives can be transformed. I know it's much easier to go to the doctor, get a prescription, and go on your way. Let me tell you that it does take a lot of time and effort to do things this way. The good thing is that it's much easier now than it used to be! There are so many things easily available - even at Wal-Mart.

If you have a success story, please leave it here for the rest of us. That kind of thing ALWAYS helps!

What's Going On Around These Here Parts

2009-03-23T22:38:00.004-05:00

It's been a busy few days around here! As I mentioned in my last post, the kids and I went to Nixa for a few days over spring break. My mom came back with us Saturday morning before she headed back Sunday.

We had a great visit, although as usual, it went by very quickly. There are so many people to see, and with 4 kids in tow, I seem to always "leave someone out"! Things were going smoothly until Friday morning. I woke up with a sore throat, but didn't think much of it. The day went on, and by late afternoon, I had a 102 fever, too. I rarely get sick, so I thought it must be a quick bug of some sort. Wrong.

By 7:00pm, it was up to 104, even with medicine. I thought my head was going to explode. I somehow made the trip back the next morning - thank GOODNESS my mom was with us! By Sunday afternoon, I was in tears, and headed to the ER. As it turns out, I have a double ear infection, a sinus infection, and strep throat. Fabulous. To top it off, they had to give me an antibiotic shot. If you haven't heard by now, I'm a huge pansy. Yes, I cried. BUT - I don't think the nurse saw me. I asked for pain medication. The doctor said "For your throat?" I said "Yes, but mainly for my butt - that shot hurt really bad". Sad, I know. And I couldn't get any because I drove myself there. I made a mental note for next time. Take the bus if Jason's busy.

Enough about that - yeah, I'm dog sick. There's nothing I can do except wait for the antibiotics to do their job (I think they're starting). Oh, and hope my children will cut me just a tiny bit of slack.

The big news of the week??!! Drum roll please.....Austin sleeps through the night consistently now. 12 glorious hours, baby (ok, I do have to shove the paci in a couple of times a night, but I don't count that). Thank you Lord. Thank you alot. The older boys stay up until about 8:00 most nights, but the babies are down between 6:30pm and 7:00pm, and no one wakes up until at least 7:00am. I just cannot express enough excitement here. This is how things used to go around here, but having 2 little ones so close in age means that it's been a VERY long time since I slept that much.

Oh, and I'm very fully aware of the fact that tonight, they will all be up all night long. Just because I got on here and said something.

That's about it for now! I'm finishing up my 7th load of laundry for the day, and then I'm hitting the hay!

Hot Fudge Sundaes

2009-03-19T20:52:00.002-05:00

I've had a touch of writer's block lately - obviously. I've been digging around in my mind, trying to figure out what it is I want to do with this blog. The two blog carnivals I participate in have new hosts, which is totally no big deal really, but it's making me wonder if I want to try something new. I'm not sure yet!

One thing I do know for sure is that I want to get back to writing more about my family and the day to day stuff. This blog was starting to be about frugality more than anything. Not that there's anything wrong with that at all, but there really is so much more to my life than that!

Ok, anyway, I want to write about what I did tonight. Many of my readers already know this, but in case you don't, you should know about my grandmother. She's 86 years old, and she's very close to the end of this life here on earth. She's wonderful. She currently lives in a nursing home where she's being cared for and kept as comfortable as possible. You see, she has cancer in her liver, lungs, and bones. They're quite sure there's more, but she's opted out of any more testing/treatment. We all know that there's just not much time left with her.

This is the second time I've come back to MO since we got her diagnosis. I got to spend a great deal of time with her a few weeks ago, but I felt like I left with something "undone". I couldn't decide what it was. I wrote her a long letter, we talked, hugged, etc., but I just had a feeling that I was forgetting to do something.

I took the kiddos up to see her this morning, which was great, but obviously a very brief visit. I was going to try to go up tomorrow by myself, but ended up going tonight after the babies were in bed. As we were talking, the nurse assistant came in to get her ready for bed. I went behind the curtain and waited on the other side. We were still chatting, and then it "hit me". I realized that this very well could be the last time I see my grandma. What are you supposed to do in this situation? I've never really known ahead of time that someone was going to die very soon. I've been at a loss. I didn't want to start bawling, so I was praying really hard for some sort of direction. I didn't want to look back and wish I would have done something different.

I asked her if she still ate dessert. Weird, huh? The thing is, when my sister and I were growing up, we went to DQ with them all the time. Anyway, she said "All I can get, why?". I said "Great, what do you want? I could go for a treat, too." (Since I'm on a diet and all) She said that she would love a hot fudge sundae from Braum's. Oh- one more thing. My grandma was always very in control of her figure, and hot fudge sundaes were a rare treat, and even then, she only ate about half. So.....

Fifteen minutes later, she was in her nightgown devouring her entire double dip hot fudge sundae, and I was sitting next to her eating my low-fat Reese's Cup (extra cups) mix. It was great. It was the best time ever, as a matter of fact. When I walked out, I had a much better feeling.

I don't know if I'll see my grandma again, but if I don't, I'll know that we shared some ice cream together - one more time. And it was my favorite ice cream ever.

Works For Me Wednesday - Greatest Tips

2009-03-03T22:00:00.000-06:00

If you didn't know, WFMW has a new host - We are THAT Family. Also, with this being the first Wednesday of the month, there is a theme - and it's Greatest Tips. I'm supposed to re-post or come up with a new tip that's my favorite. This is going to be hard!!

I think I'm going to have to go with my homemade laundry stuff - hands down. Not only does it work, but it's sooooooooo cheap. I've done the laundry detergent for awhile, and the fabric softener for a couple of weeks now. The links are below.

What about you? What's your favorite "works for me" tip?

Laundry detergent

Fabric softener

OH MY GOSH - I deleted my stuff

2009-03-03T21:42:00.002-06:00

I DO NOT know what I did! I was trying to re-do my labels on my posts, and instead of deleting the labels, I deleted the posts! All of my writing for about the first 50 posts are totally gone. Does anyone know ANYTHING about this kind of thing - oh yikes.

Frugal Friday - Another GREAT laundry recipe

2009-02-19T22:55:00.004-06:00

I spent quite a bit of time over the past couple of weeks digging around for more homemade household recipes. I haven't done any new ones in a while, so I was having withdrawal.

Last week, I found an awesome recipe for fabric softener! Let me tell you that I am a Downy and Snuggle FREAK. I have a sick obsession with fabric softener, so I'm quite hard to please in this area. Anyway, I found a few different recipes, but the one below is my favorite. It's very inexpensive and the clothes are soft. Because of what's in it, (or maybe what's NOT in it) there is not a really strong smell. They do smell fresh and clean, though.

A couple of thoughts:

1. If your family has sensitive skin or you don't want fragrance, just buy all-natural, unscented conditioner. If you have a Whole Foods (Wild Oats) nearby, you can get their 365 brand of conditioner for about $3-$4 for a good size bottle. I recommend buying all-natural anyway, but that's just me. You can get scented - it's just not loaded with chemicals!
2. If you don't care what kind of conditioner goes in, just go with the cheap stuff. It works just as well as anything else, and you'll just be saving even more.
3. I store my homemade fabric softener in my Downy bottle. When I pour it in the fabric softener thingie, I fill it up with my stuff - I don't add water.
4. Make sure you shake it up before each use.

Okay - are you ready? Here you go!

6 cups water
3 cups vinegar
2 cups hair conditioner

One more thing - I cut this recipe in half, and that filled up 1 Downy bottle. Have fun!

Works For Me Wednesday - Sleepytime Tea

2009-02-17T22:50:00.003-06:00

I think I have finally found the best way to end the day. It's called Sleepytime Tea, by Celestial Seasonings, and it's my favorite addiction. Well, aside from my morning Diet Coke Addiction. And my Grey's Anatomy addiction. And my Reese's Cups addiction.

A while back, I wrote a post asking for help on how I could settle myself down and get to bed at a decent time. One of my readers suggested this tea, and I just bought some a couple of weeks ago. I'm not a big fan of tea, but I thought I would give it a shot.

It's great! I love the fact that it's safe and natural - the valium wasn't working out too well for me. :) I can drink this tea and it's just so calming - it really does help you drift right off. And the best part? Because it's not a sleep-aid, you don't wake up feeling all weirdo.

Have you ever tried this tea? Are there any others that you recommend? Share them with us!

Putting It Into Perspective

2009-02-17T21:06:00.004-06:00

Recently, I started subscribing to a newsletter from Living On A Dime. I just read today's e-mail, and it was really great.

She was talking about the economy. Who isn't, right? Well, her point of view was a little different. In a nutshell, she was basically telling us that most people in our country are living quite well - despite "these hard economic times". Many Americans are spending and playing just like they always have. High dollar cell phone purchases, expensive jewelry (charged, of coure), massive holiday spending, weekly golf games, etc. The point was that there is nothing wrong with those things - at all. It's just that there are statistics out there proving that even though people are losing their jobs, homes, and cars, many of them don't slow down - one bit.

I think what stood out to me the most was the information about how wealthy we REALLY are - compared to the rest of the world. She mentioned pastor Bob Coy, who quoted facts from the Global Rich List website.

Check this out:

If you make $35,000/year, you are in the top 4.62% of the richest people in the world
$50,000? top 0.98%
$75,000? top 0.82%
%100,000? top 0.66%

Kind of puts it into perspective, doesn't it?

Frugal Friday - Foaming Hand Soap

2009-02-13T10:37:00.003-06:00

I LOVE Bath and Body Works hand soap. I especially love the foaming kind because it's not near as messy as the regular stuff.

This week, I found out that you can refill these foaming soaps yourself! When they're gone, just rinse them out really good, and then put a small amount (about 1/8 of the bottle) of your favorite shower gel in the bottom of the dispenser. Just fill the bottle the rest of the way with warm water - slowly - and shake! Now you have a brand new bottle of hand soap for a fraction of the cost!

I'm sure you can use any foaming hand soap dispenser, but I like the Bath and Body Works kind the best. They're clear, so you can see what you're doing, and I personally think that they "foam" better.

If you don't have any of these already, you could always buy some already filled to start out. They're almost always on sale for $2-$3 per bottle anyway. Happy saving!

Works For Me Wednesday - Netti Pot

2009-02-10T22:25:00.003-06:00

For your reading pleasure, I'm going to tell you how wonderful it is to cleanse your nasal passages and sinus cavities and blow snot all over your sink. Are you ready?

Enter the Netti Pot. Quite possibly the best invention ever for anyone who has a variety of sinus issues. A few things that come to mind are sinus headaches/infections, dryness, congestion, allergies, and even that stuffy, swollen, dry feeling you get when you're pregnant.

My sister told me about these awhile ago after she saw Dr. Oz do some special on Oprah about them. We decided to try it out about a year ago when Jason had some pretty severe allergy symptoms. It's just the craziest thing, and it works beautifully.

Basically, you fill the little pot (which looks similar to a very small gardening water can) with warm water and 1/2 of one of the little enclosed salt packets. Then you stick it up your nose, tilt your head to the side, and it drains out the other nostril. Fun, huh? It gets better. If you're a Netti pot newbie or if you don't follow the directions and use too much salt, your eyes may burn and water, and there is a slight chance that you may tinkle a little in your pants. Not that I personally know ANYONE who may have done that, but I think it may be a possible side effect. (Oh, and it's not stated on the box) :)

The idea is that you flush out all kinds of gunk that shouldn't be up there that can cause you problems. Jason uses it almost daily, and I use it when I really need to. (See explanation above) We really only take cold medicine if we have to, and we've noticed that just using the Netti pot will usually take care of any problems we may have.

Have you used a Netti pot before? Do you love it? I noticed they have them for kids now. Has anyone tried those? Let me know!

Taking The Cake

2009-02-09T23:19:00.003-06:00

I just have to tell you about my cake. Only because this is a huge event for me, and to be honest, I was very proud of myself. :)

Logan's Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet was tonight, and all the moms were supposed to bake AND decorate a cake for the silent auction. I was sweating profusely.

Solely because I did not want to embarrass my family by baking an ugly cake, I googled around and found an idea for this "camping cake". It's a double-layer cake with green frosting for the grass, decorated graham cracker sleeping bags, graham cracker crumb dirt, pretzel stick and candy campfire, and cornflake/marshmallow shaped pine trees!

It was quite a project, but I'm happy to report that it turned out to be so adorable. I was quite pleased with myself, and my children wondered who I was and what I did with their mother!

Frugal Friday - (Sort Of) Free Workouts

2009-02-05T22:08:00.003-06:00

I found a treasure this week. As I've begun working out, I've been looking for ways to exercise with variety - without paying for a gym membership.

I do love to walk/jog, but I'm a pansy and hate to do it if it's anywhere below 40 degrees. Plus, as you probably know, you're supposed to alternate aerobic with strength stuff. (Don't you love my immense knowledge of the terminology?)

Enter "On Demand". Because our Internet is through the cable company, we get a dirt cheap cable package with a free On Demand channel. Yes, most of these are pay-per-view movies, but there is a whole section of free stuff. I found the exercise department a few days ago.

There are probably over 30 different programs to choose from. So far I've found a "walk 2 miles in your living room" program - complete with early 90's clothing and hair, "Fabulously Fit Moms", and even "Bridget's Boot Camp". Apparently Bridget is one of Hugh Hefner's girlfriends. Whatever. She obviously has a killer body, so I'm in.

If you have a cable or satellite package, you might check into this. You never know what you might find!

Do you have frugal workout tips to share? Pass them along!

Works For Me Wednesday - Zim's Crack Creme

2009-02-03T22:00:00.001-06:00

I don't know about you, but it seems like every winter I'm fighting rough, super dry, cracked hands. I know part of it is that I wash my hands so much, but the cold weather can't help.

I have tried everything to fix this. Organic soap, Vaseline, Neosporin (which, by the way, does heal the cracks pretty much overnight), regular hand lotion, you name it.

A couple of weeks ago, I remembered this stuff called Zim's Crack Creme that we used to buy for Jason in the winter. There are a couple of different formulas, but I think the spray works the best. Also, sometimes you have to go to a pharmacy or grocery store to get it. Let me tell you that it stinks really bad and makes your hands feel kind of sticky and funky. Don't you want to run out and buy it now?

Stinky, sticky, and funky aside, it's the best hand-healer invented, in my opinion. You will wonder how in the world it works, because your hands don't feel soft or anything after you put it on.

Have you used Zim's before? Do you have other suggestions for dry, cracked hands? Let me know - I'm always open to trying new things!

I'm Shakin' In My Boots

2009-02-02T21:24:00.002-06:00

Actually, I'm barefoot, but there's no catchy expression for that. And I'm certainly not barefoot and pregnant.

I'm shaking, because for the first time in over 2 years, I....... drum roll please..... worked out. I mean really worked out. The cutesie lady on "Fabulous Fit Moms" kept saying things like "You can do it!" and "Come on Fabulous Moms!", and my favorite "Feel The Burn!". Let's just say I was feeling the burn approximately 80 seconds into the workout. I wanted to wad up my too-tight workout pants and throw them at the cutesie lady.

So that's why I'm shaking. I'm being very literal here. I was shaking throughout the whole workout, and I'm still shaking now. Just so you know, I was done about 30 minutes ago. Getting out of the bed in the morning should be a real adventure.

Frugal Friday - Cheap Chicken

2009-01-29T22:18:00.004-06:00

When Austin was born, our Sunday School class at church brought meals for our family. One night, one of my friends brought this really great tasting chicken over, along with some yummy side dishes.

I asked her for the recipe a few days later, and she laughed. I couldn't figure out what was so funny, but apparently the chicken was one of those rotisserie chickens from Wal-Mart! You know - the ones in the heat cases that cost about $5.00 for a bird?

I was so excited. For one, I didn't have to learn some new, fancy recipe. For another, it's a great "take-out" option - especially if you grocery shop at Wal-Mart in the afternoon. You can grab dinner on your way out!

We've been eating these probably once a week for quite a while now. I'm hooked. Jason's starting to lose his excitement over them, so I'm trying to scale back a bit. :)

So you have any other cheap quick-dinner ideas? I would love to hear them!

Works For Me Wednesday - Sleeping Through The Night

2009-01-27T22:32:00.004-06:00

First of all, sorry to all you non-parents out there. After today, I'll post about something other than pooping and sleeping. I promise.

Second of all, I am fully aware that I am likely cursing myself for saying that this works for me. We all know that tonight my precious 2-month old will be up at least 4 times.

Ok, now that I got that out of the way, let me tell you what's been working for me. Good 'ol "Baby Whisperer". I don't follow everything in her book, but one of the things that's been my favorite has been her suggestion of "tanking them up" before bed.

Here's how it works. Oh, and if I'm the last person in the world to try this, don't tell me. I'd rather think I'm a genius. :) When your baby is at least 6 weeks old, and assuming there are no health problems going on, you start tanking them up at night. What that basically means is that you feed them before they go to bed (for us, it's around 8:00pm), and then a couple hours later before YOU go to bed.

When you do that feeding, you don't wake them up or anything. You go in quietly, pick them up, feed them, then put them back down. No burping, changing (unless you HAVE to), chatting, etc. They don't even wake up!

Doing this helps your baby sleep later (that's the theory, anyway). So far, it's working great for us. I had a bit of trouble at first, but Austin was right at 6 weeks old, and I think he was too young still. He would poop his pants, I would have to change him, he would wake up, blah, blah, blah. Not good. We tried again this past week, and it's working now. He eats around 10:30/11:00 and has been sleeping until about 5:00 or so instead of 3:00. Jason usually does this bottle so I can sleep a longer stretch.

Have you tried this before? Did it work for you? I'm curious! I'm also curious to know when you stopped doing it. I wondered about that, but for now, I don't really care too much. Sleep is sleep in my book!

Sunday Sermon

2009-01-25T22:28:00.002-06:00

I don't know how many of you out there go to church regularly, but if you do, don't you just love it when the pastor preaches and it seems like he wrote it just for you? Sometimes I love it, sometimes I don't. Today was one of those times.

Just last night, Jason and I were talking about life. I was admitting that I feel like I'm just keeping my head above water since Austin's been born. I worry about giving each kid enough quality time. I worry about forgetting important "to-do's". I worry about the economy, and how it's affecting us. I worry about not doing a good-enough job around here. Worry, worry, worry. That's how I am, and that's how I've always been. It's probably my biggest weakness. Thankfully, it's not Jason's. Don't get me wrong - he gets concerned and worried when it's time to be. Just not all the time like I do.

Guess what the sermon was about today? Yes, I know you're smart enough to catch my drift here, but humor me. It was about fear - and worry. I wanted to run out of the church with my tail between my legs. Fortunately I didn't. Instead, I had to take a good, hard look at myself. For the first time, I realized that when I'm worrying about all of these other things, my focus is not where it's supposed to be - on God.

So now, I'm worried that I worry too much. I've got a long journey ahead of me. It's tough to change your ways, you know? I'm the kind of person that likes to be in control of my life - all of it. If I'm depending on someone else to take care of something, I try to find a way to fix it myself. I will say that I have gotten better over the years, but I still have a long way to go.

My new plan is to take 1 or 2 worries that I have and try to just turn them over to God. I'm going to have to do this frequently to get through the list, I'm afraid. I have to trust that if I do what I'm supposed to do, then the rest will be taken care of. My life isn't really mine to control, try as I may.

Should be an interesting week!

2 under 2

2009-01-23T22:37:00.004-06:00

I seriously cannot believe that I haven't blogged in forever. I'm not even sure where to begin, so for today, I think I'll just write about what everyone wants to know about, anyway. Life with 2 under 2. Oh, and their poop. I'm throwing that in for a bonus.

First of all, let me just say that I cannot possibly fathom why someone would intentionally space their children less than 3 or 4 years apart. It must be one strong woman. Personally, I thought I had the parenting thing pretty much figured out. Hah! I was slightly off. I knew what to do with multiple children when there was only 1 baby around. But two? A whole other ballgame. Those lovely bouncy seats and swings are useless when your 18-month old can get to them. I find myself constantly saying things like "Addison, don't poke your brother's eyes!" - or - "Addison, Austin cannot eat cookies" - or my personal favorite - "No, Addison, I'm not taking Austin out of the swing so you can put your baby doll in". That one is usually followed by a lovely tantrum of some sort.

I do feel as though I've done a fairly good job of trying to get everyone on the same routine. That whole thing is finally working itself out. There's only a few problems with that. Two of them can't help themselves. The kids eat at the same time, but if Addison gets done before Austin, she just has to wait in her highchair until he's done. That's when the kitchen floor gets "decorated" with highchair tray leftovers.

Another oddity - they always seem to poop at the same time. Before you ask, no - that was not any routine plan I came up with. Completely Mother Nature on that one. Here's the gig (since I know you're dying to hear all about it):

1. Change Austin first. If I don't, his poop comes out his clothes.
2. Keep Addison happy while changing Austin. She doesn't like dirty diapers and sometimes tries to take them off herself.
3. Bag Austin's diaper, run out to garage to throw it away.
4. Wash hands.
5. Run in to change Addison.
6. Hold Addison down on floor while she tries to escape with a dirty, smelly butt.
7. If she does escape, try to keep her from sitting on Austin's face.
8. Change Addison's diaper as quickly as possible.
9. Pick up Austin so Addison doesn't sit on him.
10. Bag diaper, run out to garage to throw it away.
11. Wash hands.
12. Take 2 Valium and hope for the best.

Seriously, though, I do feel as though I'm catching my breath a little. Everyone tells me that having kids close in age is hard at first, but really great later. How long is "at first", I wonder? I'm so pleased that aside from a few spells here and there, Addison LOVES her baby brother. She just doesn't like it when he's in her way. Or with her parents. Or drinking out of her old bottles. Or rocking with her mother in her rocking chair. Other than that, though, she doesn't mind one bit!

I better go for now. I think the changing table is calling my name. :)

Austin's Birth

2008-12-07T21:35:00.004-06:00

As promised, I'm finally getting around to posting about Austin's birth. Don't worry - I'll leave out the gross stuff (not too much since I have C-Sections anyway), so sorry to disappoint any weirdos out there who actually enjoy that kind of thing. If you really need to know how long it took me to pass gas, etc., just call or e-mail. :)

Ok, so here we go. I was scheduled for my c-section on Tuesday, November 18 at 7:15 am. Everything went according to plan, and for the first time in medical history, things actually got started on time. I have the most wonderful doctor ever. I was really nervous about the surgery due to the fact that I have some sort of panic issue as soon as my spinal blocks take effect. I don't know what my problem is - I'm just paranoid, I guess. Anyway, I usually have to be in the O.R. by myself (without Jason, I mean) for quite a while - until the spinal takes effect. This time, though, my doctor let Jason come in for the whole thing. It was so nice. That being said, I still had my usual freaking out moments, so as soon as Austin was out, I received my hefty dose of "antianxiety" medicine. That's code for "Megan no longer has a care in the world". The reason I'm adding this in is because this birth story is more Jason's account - I was quite out of it for a good 24 hours.

Austin was born at 7:28am - 15 minutes of "labor" is not too bad, is it? :) I love hearing that first cry. I always cry myself. It's like everything comes together at that point, you know? With my other 3 kiddos, Jason got to hold them, but I was able to see them for awhile. All of the post-birth cleaning, etc. took place right next to me. At our hospital here, though, all of that is done in a little room off the O.R. So I literally saw Austin for about one second. Jason did go with him, though. Ideally, Jason would have hung out with Austin while they finished things with my surgery, gone to the nursery with him, and even would have given him his first bath. Then Jason would have brought him to me in recovery so I could feed and bond with him.

Things didn't go that way, though. You see, when babies are born "the other way" ( I refuse to use the "v" word in my blog - sorry to be a dork), they naturally get a "squeeze" that helps clean out their lungs. Not so with c-section babies. It's quite common for them to cough and breathe a little faster for awhile after birth. When Austin took his first breath, he actually got an air pocket trapped behind his lung, as well as fluid on his lungs. I guess he was really struggling to breathe correctly. His chest was "caving in" with each breath. Jason said you could see his ribs every time. Because of this, they immediately called our pediatrician who drove right up to the hospital. Things were severe enough to warrant a stay in the NICU. Because of this, I got to hold Austin for about one minute or so, and that was it for quite a while.

Let me say something before I go any furthur. I know that there are babies out there who are in the NICU because they are fighting just to live. I saw those babies. I saw the babies who were the size of Jason's hand. I saw their mommies cry. I saw their daddies falling asleep over the NICU cribs because they didn't want to leave. I thank God that Austin was not one of those babies. But let me say something else. At that point in our lives, we didn't really do a great job of putting everything into perspective. When it's YOUR baby in there, it's still really hard and scary. Ok, just wanted to get that out. :)

Because I was unable to get out of bed all day, Jason flew into action. If he wasn't helping me recover and giving me updates on Austin, he was in the NICU with Austin. He was reading to him, changing him, working with the doctors and nurses, you name it. I don't know exactly what all went on down there, to be honest. All I knew is that I wanted my baby and I couldn't have him. Jason took great care (and wisely so) to "sugarcoat" things for me a little. I found out a few days later that he was really scared and had no idea what to expect. Let me just tell you that I never saw it - not once. The one time he let on was right before I got to go see Austin. He needed to let me know about all of the tubes and wires so I didn't lose it. I cannot express enough how awesome he was the whole time. I saw a whole new reason why we're together. I couldn't have done any of it without him.

I was able to go down and see him later that evening. I kept asking when we could hold him - they didn't know. The nurses and doctor were sooooooo wonderful, though. Around midnight, the nurse came down to my room and told me that even though it was so late, we could hold him now if we felt up to it. We went down and held him for the first time. Even though it was for a short period of time, it was perfect. I will never forget it.

Austin ended up staying in the NICU for 2 days, and we were so thankful for that. They didn't expect him to recover so quickly AT ALL. All I know is that we had tons of family and friends praying for him. As hard as it was to see him in there, it was somewhat reassuring to know he was in such good hands. The nurses treated us like gold, and they even made him a little scrapbook sign for his "bed".

On Thursday, he was released to the regular nursery. Not surprisingly, we chose rooming in. I don't think we put that baby down unless we needed to go to bed! We came home on Friday, and he's not had a problem since.

Logan, Peyton, and Addison are doing well with him. Of course, we're figuring out our new groove, but each day does seem to get smoother. Once again, I'm so thankful that we have a healthy, happy baby!

Our Newest Addition

2008-12-03T19:40:00.003-06:00

Introducing....Austin Benjamin Baker

On November 18, we were so pleased to welcome Austin into our family. He was born at 7:28 am, and weighed in at 7 lbs. 5 oz. (my biggest baby by far). Isn't he precious? We didn't decide on the first name until after he was born. We're terrible at name decisions. Peyton did tell me the night before that he wanted the new baby to be named Austin, so that pretty much sealed the deal. His middle name is that of his "Uncle Ben" (Mindi's husband) - all of our kids LOVE him, and we know Austin will, too.

On my next post, I'll blog about all the daily grind info - you know - eating, sleeping (or not), pooping, blah, blah, blah. In the mean time, enjoy the pictures!

I'm Back - Is Anyone Still Out There?

2008-12-03T19:39:00.001-06:00

Yes, I know it's quite insane that I haven't blogged in over a month! It's been so crazy around here, but hopefully I'll be able to get back on track now. I hope everyone had a wonderful November!

Frugal Friday - Only A Dollar!

2008-10-30T22:17:00.003-05:00

If you don't already (or haven't recently), you need to embrace the frugal beauty of the good 'ol dollar store. There are different names, but this week I'm focusing on The Dollar Tree.

Do you realize the hidden treasures of this place?! For the first time in a few months, I went last night. Logan's class is having their fall party tomorrow, and I'm in charge of providing goody bags for 25 kids. Even going to Wal-Mart can add up quickly. Everything seems to come in quantities of 12 or 20, which means I have to buy way more than necessary. I decided to start at the Dollar Tree, just hoping to find the bags. Even shopping 2 days before Halloween, I found a pretty decent selection. Not only did I get the bags (25 in pack!!), but I got foam stickers, candy, and spider rings. Just for further info, I did end up having to go to Walgreens to get the rest - last minute is last minute, after all.

Anyway, aside from this particular trip, I always seem to find very excellent deals. First of all, let me make one point. Not everything is actually a bargain. Especially on snack stuff. Second, I've never bought any kind of cleaning supplies, clothing, or health and beauty products there. I'm sorry - I just can't bring myself to do it.

Here are a few of my favorites: (this is really a very small sampling of what you can get your hands on, though)
1. Gift bags - they even have those really huge ones that are usually $5.00 or so at Wal-Mart. Last year I found really nice looking ones at Christmas. Saved me a bundle.

2. Along with the gift bags - tissue paper. White, colored, themed, etc. Good size packs.

3. Holiday decorations. Ok, not really nice ones. Please keep in mind that I have almost 4 kids, and the boys love to decorate with the tacky stuff. Each holiday, I run up there and buy those fabulous window clings so they can decorate the back sliding glass door. I think that sometimes you can find nicer things, but I wouldn't plan on decorating your whole house or anything. Just my opinion!

4. Books. You would be really surprised, trust me. Some weeks are better than others, but I have found some really nice hard-backs there. Also, they carry a big selection of kids books. One important note: Twice now I have bought a kids book that had a couple of misspelled words in it. Maybe not a big deal if it's for a baby or something, but definitely not good for any kid learning to read. Besides, that just bugs me knowing that it's messed up. I guess that would explain why it's at the dollar store!

5. Birthday gifts. We go to a ton of birthday parties every year. I try to stock up on presents when they're a good deal at Target or something, but it seems like I end up needing more anyway. Last year, The Dollar Tree had several different superhero and princess puzzles, games, crayons, and coloring books. I made up some really nice gift packages for just a few bucks.

6. Baskets and storage bins. I'm sort of an addict with these, so you may not get near as excited as I do about them. In case you do, though, hit this store first. I always, always, always find cute, handy plastic baskets and Sterilite brand storage bins.

Do you go to the dollar store much? If you do, let us in on your tips!

Works For Me Wednesday - The Timer

2008-10-28T22:12:00.004-05:00

I will admit right now that in no way did I come up with this idea on my own. Flylady and many other home management gurus will tell you to try this, too.

Basically, I have ADD. Ok, not really, but I do tend to "lose my focus" from time to time. Jason will just stand there and chuckle at me, because at any given time, the dishwasher will be open with half of the dishes put away, the washing machine will be half way full of dirty clothes (with the piles sitting right next to it), and I'll be cleaning out some random closet at the same time. It gets pretty scary sometimes.

Enter the timer. My new best friend. I simply set it for anywhere between 10-30 minutes (depending on the job and what time I have available) and I DO NOT allow myself to quit my specific job until the timer goes off or I get done, whichever comes first.

I know this may sound extremely simple to most of you out there. But I have to believe that someone else in this world shares my disorder. Since I cannot laugh enough at how every kid has some sort of psychological issue these days, I'm going to invent one for myself. I'm calling it "GYHOOYBAPA". It stands for "Get Your Head Out Of Your Butt And Pay Attention" disorder.

Mark my words that there is actually something similar out there with a very specific treatment plan involved. Including medication, of course. For now, though, I'll use my timer.

Do you use a timer? Are you naturally focused? What works for you?

Frugal Friday - Free Books

2008-10-24T11:30:00.003-05:00

I realize that this week's frugal tip may seem very obvious to most of you, but personally I tend to forget about some of the free services out there!

One of those free services would be utilizing your local library. The kids and I were really good about going on a weekly basis, but lately we haven't gone at all. Logan gets library books from school, Peyton gets book order, and we just have so many books at the house that I guess it just seemed unnecessary.

This week at MOPS, one of our moms was talking about the library and it made me realize how much we're really all missing. Aside from free book check-out, there are movies, CDs, and numerous programs for the kids.

I love buying new books as much as the next person, but checking them out at the library really does make more financial sense. Also, if there is a book I'm dying for, I can always buy it after I know for a fact that it's really great. Or if I feel like it's something I'll read or refer to many times.

If you have any other good perks about using the library, let us know!

The second thing I want to suggest is using Paperback Swap. I haven't used this yet, but it's a highly recommended website. I think that you basically trade books with other people. I may check into it more and let you know what I find out.

If you've used this site before, let us know how it worked for you! Have a great weekend!

Works For Me Wednesday - Mouth Medicine

2008-10-21T21:00:00.003-05:00

This week's tip isn't exactly something you'll probably use on a regular basis (I hope not anyway), but it's good info to keep on hand.

A couple of days ago, Peyton got these really small white sore-like things (2 or 3 of them) on his tongue. They're similar to canker sores in that you can get them from various irritating foods, drinks, etc. Anyway, as adults, we typically let them run their course and deal with the pain. Not a 4-year old. He seriously was up every 30 minutes or so screaming - all night long. Jason and I tried everything we could think of - ice, orajel, sore throat spray, Tylenol, etc. Nothing worked.

I took him to the doctor the next day because it hurt him so bad to even eat and drink. It was really weird, because they didn't really look that bad. The doctor said to mix equal parts Benadryl and Maalox together and "paint" it all over the tongue. I've heard of using Maalox for a diaper rash, but never for the mouth.

Basically, I guess the Maalox neutralizes the acid and takes the sting out, and the Benadryl helps with the swelling. You can do it as often as needed because it's not swallowed. Amazingly enough, the pain was gone after the first application. We did it a few more times that day after he ate or drank, but that was it! The doctor said you can do this for any kind of mouth sores or irritation.

Just thought I would share! If you or anyone you know needs a good concoction for mouth medicine, you have one now! :)

One more note: About the diaper rash - Maalox, Mylanta, etc. work really well for the bad rashes. They take the red and sting out and neutralize the acids. We did this with Logan a few times. Just do the Maalox, let the air get to it for awhile, then do the rash cream.

Me and My Bright Ideas

2008-10-20T22:29:00.002-05:00

Don't you just love it when you have those moments where you wonder where you left your mind? Well, that happened to me tonight.

Jason usually takes Logan to all of his Cub Scout stuff, but I'm going to take him to his den meeting tomorrow. It also happens to be Logan's snack duty week. It also just so happens that I get super creative "mom" ideas at the worst times. Yesterday would have been one of those times.

When it comes to mom "duties", I always like to make sure that my kiddos take the fun, yummy, etc. stuff to parties and what-not. You know, so everyone says "Oh my gracious...who brought the fabulous...?" Then my kids or I can say "Oh...no big deal - my mom (or I) does that kind of stuff all the time." Are you following me here? It's a load of crap, really. I may need some kind of professional help. Who knows.

Anyway, I found out that at the last den meeting, the snack mom brought pigs in a blanket, which were re-named "scouts in a sleeping bag". Yikes. So last night I asked Jason if anyone had brought fun, homemade (from scratch) cookies or cakes yet. That would be even cooler, and I had Halloween treats on the brain. He said no. Oh, and just to add to my stupidity, I asked while Logan was in the room.

Fast forward to this evening. Oh - and one more point. Peyton and I slept about 3 hours last night because he wasn't feeling good. Ok, back to this evening. At dinner, Jason asked Logan what he wanted to take for snacks. I'm sure you know where this is going. Being the genius that I am sometimes, I did NOT see where this was going. "Oh...I think homemade Halloween cookies would be good.", he says.

After choking on my roast beef, I pasted a smile on my face and nonchalantly said "No problem - I'll have some fabulous pumpkins and ghosts made up for you and all of your buddies."

So after rounding up the recipe from my mother-in-law, I spent the rest of the evening making sugar cookie dough. We'll hopefully finish them tomorrow. Hey - someone has to set the snack bar, right?

Oh, and I apologize in advance to the next snack duty mom. These cookies are going to be fabulous. It's no big deal, really. I do it all the time. :)

Frugal Friday - Doubling Up

2008-10-16T22:45:00.002-05:00

I know there are tons of people out there who do a wonderful job of freezing meals ahead of time for their families. I am not one of them - yet!

I don't know why this has been such a hard thing for me to get into. Maybe it's a lack of knowledge - not that a quick Google search won't give me everything I need to know. Maybe I just don't think about it. I have gotten somewhat better. When I find bread on a good sale, I freeze that. Not too impressive, I know.

Anyway, I am going to start making a more conscious effort with this. I guess I'll buy some of those foil pans to freeze stuff in. Basically, from what I've read, the easiest way to start is to just make double of your meals. I do think that many of my recipes leave me with a great deal of extra ingredients. You know - you only need 1 cup of shredded cheese, even though the bag has 2 cups in it, etc. Lasagna is the first thing that comes to mind. It really only takes a few extra minutes - you're making the meal already!

Even if you do this only every once in a while, you'll save time and money - and not just down the road. You won't throw out leftover ingredients - you know how you only need 2 green onions out of the whole bag? Ok, if you have any good tips, pass them along!

Works For Me Wednesday - Awesome Stain Remover

2008-10-14T22:11:00.003-05:00

My big excitement for the week (sad, but true) is that I found possibly the best stain remover ever invented.

OxiClean (the powder stuff in the tub). I'm a stain freak and hate having even the tiniest spot on our clothes. For some reason, though, some of our stuff has been getting weird spots on it. It's almost like a grease or something. I have no idea. My solution is to buy a new red front-loader. In the mean time, I'll have to go to Plan B.

Addison had 2 shirts that were particularly bad - I was going to just throw them away. I decided to give the OxiClean a shot. I just filled a big bowl full of hot water, threw in some OxiClean, and waited several hours.

Guess what? Totally clean. You would never know there was even anything on them! I was quite impressed. If you need a super stain remover, try this stuff first. Any thoughts or suggestions for the rest of us? Post them below!

Frugal Friday - Target

2008-10-09T22:59:00.003-05:00

This week, I just wanted to tell you about some awesome deals - just in case you "need" anything from Target.

I went grocery shopping tonight, and as always (when I'm alone), I browsed through all of the home stuff. Well, let me just tell you that there is quite a load on clearance right now. And I don't mean 30%. I mean 50% and 75% off - good stuff.

When we decorate the house, we always do it super slowly, buying one or two things at a time. The kitchen is kind of our current project, and we're doing the Tuscany type color schemes. Anyway, I found a beautiful 24" clock - normally $80.00 for $19.98!! There were actually 3 or 4 of these. I also got a cute surfer clock for the kid's bathroom - normally $15.00 on sale for $3.74.

The point is to get to Target ASAP is you want some good home decor for dirt cheap. Off the top of my head, I remember seeing tons of picture frames, those decorative ball thingies, lampshades and posts, and of course clocks. These clearance sales almost always run nationwide, so it shouldn't matter where you live. There are also some other good deals in the other sections, but the home stuff happens to be where I dug around tonight. If you find anything good, let us know!

Oh - one more note. If you haven't really clearance shopped at Target before, look on the end-caps. That's typically where everything is. Sometimes there will be a few things mixed in on the inside aisles, but look at the ends first. Good luck!

My blog

2008-10-07T13:32:00.001-05:00

Ok, weird things are happening on here with my layout. Posting seems to be working ok, but I'll have to work on the rest of it! Hopefully most everything will come through - thanks!

Election Prediction

2008-10-06T10:42:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, Logan and I were working on various projects in the kitchen. As we were talking, he got on the subject of the U.S. Presidents. How many, some of their names, what number they were, etc. Then we started talking about the upcoming election, and how we will have a new president soon.

He asked me who would be the next president. I obviously told him that I don't know yet, but it will either be John McCain or Barack Obama. He just kind of stood there for a minute, thinking. I asked him what he was thinking about. His response? (Please keep in mind he's only almost 7 - so don't be offended (Mindi))

"I think John McCain will win." I asked him why he thought that. "Well, his name sounds much nicer."

There you go - we shall see, I suppose.

You must go see....

2008-10-05T22:08:00.002-05:00

FIREPROOF!

I have to take a few minutes and try to convince you to go see this movie. Our church reserved our local movie theatre tonight, so Jason and I decided to go and check it out. Hey - other than the $14.00 popcorn and soda combo, we had a free date-night!

Let me mention a couple of interesting points. First of all, we thought about going several days ago, but didn't give it any kind of serious planning. Second, for some reason, yesterday I thought about checking into it again. I mean, if your church (that you totally love) is encouraging everyone to go, it must have some kind of value to it. Third, I happened to be talking to a good friend of mine last night (about totally unrelated topics), and she mentioned the movie. She basically told me to go no matter what. So there you have it - we were in.

You can check out the website for all kinds of information, but really it's just an incredible film about marriage - from the same producers as "Facing The Giants". We don't usually get into all that stuff (other than the occasional book reading), but Jason and I both loved it. Oh, and the main character is played by Kirk Cameron. We both left with much to think about, and we're also going to get the corresponding book that's available. Another interesting point? The timing was quite perfect, seeing how the baby is due in about 6 weeks. If you're a parent, you know how no matter what your level of experience, having a baby always adjusts the home dynamic.

If you have seen the movie or if you go, let us know what you think about it. There are several other materials online, too. I know how hard it can be to get to the movie theatre sometimes, but check out the website at the very least.

Frugal Friday - Taking a Little Break

2008-10-03T08:51:00.003-05:00

This week, I decided to scale back on the frugality a little bit. I'm sure those of you who spend a great deal of time figuring out how to save money will understand this.

Yesterday was grocery shopping day around here, and to be honest, I just didn't feel like spending my usual chunk of time going through the ads, price comparing, coupon comparing, etc. I thought for sure I was going to spend waaaay more than I should. I threw all the ads away without even looking at them - I knew once I got started that I wouldn't stop! :)

I loaded up Peyton and Addison and headed to Wal-Mart. I did pull out coupons for what was already on my list, but that's it. I didn't even take my box with me. Guess what? It went super fast, and I actually came in a little under budget. Weird, huh?

Here's the point: Sometimes it's okay to not be so frugal. To take a little break and start over the next time. I have to say that sometimes I get a little burned out, so these breaks are a good refresher. Do you take occasional guilt-free breaks?

Works For Me Wednesday - TV Shows

2008-10-01T07:10:00.004-05:00

Let me say that I realize I may be giving a very outdated suggestion here. I've been doing this for awhile now, but I've heard several people say lately that they didn't know about it.

I think most people out there probably have DVR, but I know for a fact that many do not. We are one of those. Our cable company doesn't exactly let us use those for free. It's not really a big deal usually - unless I miss one of the few shows that I watch in the evening.

Last Thursday, I worked a jewelry party and missed Grey's Anatomy. Yes, the season premiere. Yes, I know - I should have re-scheduled my party. :) As bummed as I was about missing it Thursday night, I was able to hop on the computer on Friday night and watch it there.

I honestly don't know how many networks do this, but ABC has free online episodes of almost all of their big shows. You just click, sit back, and watch. There are very few, limited commercials, and you can pause, etc. all you want.

Just thought I'd pass it along! It may work for some of you!!

Rise and Shine

2008-09-29T07:26:00.002-05:00

Well, I did it. I got my buns out of bed at 6:30am this morning, fed Addison a quick bottle, put her back to bed, and started my day.

Getting up at 6:30 isn't anything major, I know. And yes, I realize that anyone out there that works outside of the home is REALLY rolling your eyes right now. Sorry. That being said, it's a big deal for this mom. It was dark out, cold in the house (thanks to 3rd trimester heat issues), and warm in the bed.

Anyway, I have to admit it was a much, much better way to start my morning. I'm sure I'll somehow manage to still be rushed getting everyone out the door, but it should definitely be better. And if nothing else gets accomplished today, I got a nice, hot, uninterrupted shower in. Honestly, that's worth it in itself. :) Have a great day!

Frugal Friday - Charlie's Laundry

2008-09-26T10:44:00.004-05:00

This week, I have more of a frugal question for you. Has anyone tried Charlie's Laundry Powder before? From what I have read, it's highly concentrated, works super well, and costs about 3 cents per load.

The reason I'm looking into it is because as much as I love my homemade detergent, it would be kind of nice to have something pre-made for the same price. Not to mention the space factor.

Ok, so if you've tried it, let us know. Is it good? Bad? Only okay? Thanks!!

Works For Me Wednesday - Method

2008-09-23T22:26:00.004-05:00

Ok, so I know I'm a dork for this, but I get very excited when I find a new cleaner that works. I've mentioned before that I really try to only use non-toxic cleaners as much as possible around the house. One thing I've had trouble with is finding a good bathtub/shower cleaner. One that will work on the tub part as well as the walls, etc. of the shower.

This past weekend, I decided to give Method tub and tile cleaner a try. It's so great! It removed soap scum, rinsed off really easily (you don't even have to rinse if you don't want to), and left the bathroom smelling nice and minty for several hours. I was in heaven. Oh, and in case you're wondering, I am not being asked by Method to write this! :)

If you've never tried Method before, they make really great stuff. They recently started making bath and body products, too. I haven't tried the kids/baby products yet, but I plan on buying some within the next week or so. Yes, it's pricier than Johnson's or Baby Magic, but it's safer, too. I'll post in the future on all of that sort of thing, but start watching the stores over the next few months. President Bush passed a law banning the sale of chemically loaded (baby and kids only, I think) products starting in 2009. Yeah!!

Anyway, I think the biggest selection of Method products can be found at Target, but I got mine at Whole Foods (I was there for vitamins, anyway). Do you like Method stuff? Are there other brands that you love that are slightly less costly than others? Let us know!

Teacher Of The Year!

2008-09-20T15:38:00.004-05:00

Just in case anyone thought I brag about my mom's teaching abilities just because she's my mom, read this!!

Basically, she won the Wal-Mart "Teacher Of The Year" award in Nixa, which was quite a big deal. Anyone who knows her, has worked with her, or has had kids in her class knows what a wonderful teacher she is.

In no way am I opening a forum on public school vs. private school vs. homeschool education here, but let me just say how wonderful it is that kids can go to public school and have awesome Christian teachers like her.

Congratulations Mom!!

Forgetting the MomAgenda

2008-09-13T23:16:00.003-05:00

Note to self: Do not go to church without MomAgenda in hand.

Here's why: Jotting important dates on the weekly bulletins does not typically work out well. Here's what I've got tomorrow - (oh, and of course Jason has to work).

1. Nursery Duty - This isn't a big deal, and I love working with the kids. The problem is that I literally throw up when I have to change other kid's diapers. Newborns are ok, but anything above 6 months is a serious issue. And the older they are, the worse it gets. No, this isn't a pregnancy thing. It happens anytime. Here's the kicker - I think we're in with the 3 year olds now. I'm PRAYING that they are all potty trained. Would it be terrible to page their parents for this? I'm not sure.

2. Breakfast duty for our class (for approximately 30 people)

3. Church picnic including inflatables, etc. for kiddos after church. AKA- tons of fun and sugar for kiddos right during naptime.

4. Bring a side dish or dessert for picnic.

Let's just say that I haven't left the kitchen for the past few hours. The only thing keeping me going is the most wonderful thought of our church picnic. If you have never been to a fried chicken picnic at a Southern Baptist Church, you haven't lived. I'm not kidding. I suppose just the thought of going to church should keep me going, but I must be honest here. It's the fried chicken picnic.

Have a nice Sunday!

Frugal Friday - Chipping In

2008-09-11T22:01:00.003-05:00

This week's Frugal Friday idea comes from Jason, so thank you to him!

A few times in the past, we have needed to rent (or even buy) something for the yard, house, etc. One thing we have found to be very frugal (for everyone involved) is to chip in with other people. For instance, a few years ago when we lived in a new neighborhood, several of us on the block were working on our new yards. We all needed an aerator, so instead of each person renting their own on separate weekends, we picked a weekend and did it together. We were able to rent it for over 24 hours, so we all picked a time frame and got it done. It was such a money saver!

There are many other items you can share, depending on your situations. Jason is pointing out to please make sure the other people in your family or neighborhood are responsible people! You don't want to make the mistake of "sharing" with someone who trashes everything. You may actually end up in a financial bind!

Basically, anything that you can rent for a period of time will work. Assuming you don't actually need to use it the entire time, that is. Power washers, carpet cleaners, etc. work well. Also, any kind of item that you may need, but really only use every once in a great while will work with this plan. Camping gear, power tools, and certain kinds of yard equipment will cost much less if you can work it out to chip in with someone else.

Can you think of other things that you can chip in on? Share them with us!

Works For Me Wednesday - The Paper Chain

2008-09-09T22:08:00.003-05:00

Having a very impatient 4-year old around the house has made us get very creative in our "waiting" methods.

Peyton has yet to really understand the concept of a calendar, and even explaining how much time is left for something seems to be a little "out there". If there is any kind of event in the near future more than 2 or 3 days away, we seem to have mass confusion.

When Logan started school, Peyton was asking several times every day when he was going to start. Answers like "Two weeks", "14 days", "After we go to Nixa" were not flying - at all. The poor little thing was starting to wonder if he would ever get to start school!

One morning, I remembered how I used to make those paper chains in school. You know - the ones kind of like a garland made out of paper strips and taped or glued in loops together? Well, Peyton and I made one for a back to school countdown. We made enough loops for each day remaining before school and hung it up. Every morning, Peyton would tear off a loop, and then we would count how many were left.

It worked so well! It was a very visual, easy-to-understand, and fun way for him to play the waiting game. I think we'll do these for other activities as well. How about you? Do you have some good ideas for "count-downs"? Share them with us!

Star Of The Week

2008-09-08T20:05:00.000-05:00

Logan gets to be "Star Of The Week" at school this week. Each week, a student is highlighted, and they get to tell all about themselves, bring something for show and tell, be the line leader, bring a favorite book, and bring a special snack to share with everyone. It's a huge deal for a first grader!

Logan's first project was to color and fill out a poster all about himself. I thought I would share what he wrote - I only helped with one of the questions. Oh, there are a couple I'll leave out, only because I do try to not give out too much detail about where we live, etc. It's pretty cute - enjoy!

I am 6 1/2 years old.
My birthday is October 9.
I am in this grade: 1st
I get to school by Mom or Dad.
These are the members of my family:
Jason, Megan, Peyton, Addison
When I grow up I would like to be a songwriter.
I am a star because...I have a good class.
I show others I care by...Playing with them.

These are a few of my favorite things
Color: orange
Animal: dolphin
Food: Oatmeal
Book: Berenstain Bears
Sport: Soccer
Thing to do in school: recess
Thing to do at home: Hang out with my family
Three super-cool facts about yourself:
1. I have moved 7 times (I had to help with the number on that one - yikes.)
2. I am a fast runner.
3. I travel to Missouri alot.

Back to Blogland

2008-09-07T23:34:00.002-05:00

Yes, I'm still alive. Thank you for the nice reminders regarding my lack of blogging lately! Hey - at least you care!! :)

I'm basically going to recap the past week for everyone, so this will be Works For Me Wednesday, Frugal Friday, etc. all wrapped up into one. I'll be back to normal this coming week.

I don't know about the rest of you, but the beginning of the school year really takes its toll on us. It doesn't really matter how organized and prepared we are, there are always adjustments to be made, a million papers to fill out, and just a general re-doing of things. I do feel as though we are getting into our "groove" - finally! Peyton started preschool this past Wednesday, and he absolutely loves it. His teacher, Miss Amanda, is awesome, and he wakes up every day excited to go. He's going three days a week, from 9:30-2:30. I do think Addison's been a little lost without her sidekick, but we've had a blast just the two of us.

Our biggest, craziest event of the week involved our car. We have been driving a Pathfinder - slightly older model, super low miles, and no payment. We loved it and REALLY did not want to get rid of it. We were trying to figure out some possible way to hang on to it, but with baby #4 coming in a little over two months, it was just not happening. Besides, Jason really needs his pickup for his job.

We decided to start the process of selling the Pathfinder and looking for a minivan. We knew we were going to have to have a payment (and obviously more insurance), but we really didn't see any other way. If you haven't found this out already, it's pretty hard to get a used minivan that's in really good condition. Jason and I aren't that picky, but food stains, holes or tears, and general stinkiness do not fly with us. We knew we were going to have to find something barely used or new. Yikes.

On Tuesday morning at 11:00, I listed the Pathfinder on Craig's List. No pictures or anything - just a good ad (if I do say so myself). I was going to call AutoTrader later in the day. Well, by 1:30 pm, I had a buyer. I could not believe it. I also had 2 or 3 other people wanting to see it. That day. Mr. Summers came over with his wife around 6:00pm, left a deposit, and said he would be back in a couple of days to finish the deal. Jason and I were floored. Elated - but a little panicky, too.

Jason spent the next 48 hours test-driving almost every minivan he could get his hands on. We were trying to decide what to do, but we found a 2007 Nissan Quest - fully loaded - that he loved. And for Jason to love a minivan says alot For whatever reason, we couldn't seem to come to grips with everything. It was very odd - like we both had some weird feeling about the whole thing.

Jason came home that night and said "What in the world are we doing?" "Yes, we'll have a nice chunk of change to put down on a new car, but we're still going to have a payment and higher insurance. This is going against everything that we have been working so hard for". I couldn't have agreed more. I guess old thinking hangs around sometimes, and we just assumed we were doing the right, and only, thing. We were so wrong.

Jason got on Craig's List again, and then I looked for a few more hours. In the end, we found a great, older model Suburban that we were able to pay cash for. Yes, it's older. Yes, it has several miles on it. BUT - Yes, we love it. And no, we won't be writing a check to an auto lender in 30 days. It was custom ordered and only had one local owner. We felt a total peace about the whole thing. I am so very thankful that Jason came home and made that decision for us. It was probably one of the best things we've done.

So there you go. That was our frugal purchase on Friday, and I can honestly say that Craig's List works for me! Now - if anyone can tell me how to successfully park a Suburban in a busy Target parking lot, I'll be good to go.

Overdue Updates

2008-08-26T23:39:00.003-05:00

It has been brought to my attention that I have failed to give many updates on our family lately. Not to bore anyone or anything, but I do feel a slight obligation to our families and close friends to do this at least once in a while!! :)

Here's what's been going on around our house -

Jason: He continues to be busy at work, learning new things every week. He's been with Handyman Connection for about 5 months now, and he really does enjoy it. He loves the work and the flexibility. Part of the whole experience has really been figuring out how to stay consistently loaded with clients, which gets better all the time. He splits his time between bidding and "doing", so it's been one big scheduling lesson! We continue to be amazed at the demand for this kind of work in our area. Personally, we would never consider paying someone $200.00 to put a coat or two of paint on 2 bedrooms, but you would be shocked at the number of people who do! He's met all kinds of people and always seems to have some pretty good stories!

I mentioned the flexibility, which is probably one of the biggest perks. He has the opportunity to take Logan to school at least a few days a week, and he can usually take a day off if needed. He is also getting very involved with Logan and Cub Scouts this year. It's their "boys thing", and he loves it. He's such a great dad.

Me: I'm just chugging away around here. School just started, so that means it's time for another routine adjustment. It's all going well, though, and I love the predictability that fall brings. I'm still enjoying being around for the kids every day. I'm so thankful for that. I mentioned a few days ago that I joined Silpada Designs. So far, it's going really well. The Tulsa area is a wonderful market for this company. I love sales, and I really love making some good money working a few hours each week. Home party plans, etc. really are a good way for moms to make money while still staying home with the kiddos. Not to mention the fact that I get some "girl time". Pregnancy is going well. I'm sure this happens to most people with several kids, but I honestly forget about it quite a bit! I guess I'm just so busy. I'm very thankful that I feel well, and the baby is just as healthy as can be expected at this point. I'm scheduled for a c-section on November 18.

Logan: Logan just started 1st grade. I cannot believe it. (Does every mom say that?) He loves, loves, loves school. We are very fortunate to live in one of the highest rated school districts in the state, so he's in a very good place. His teacher, Miss Hildreth, is wonderful. Logan loves learning and loves everything about going to school. He's even riding the bus home tomorrow, which, of course, is HUGE. I'm not a big fan of school buses, especially if you're home with the kiddos, but I'm really not a big fan of sitting in the car line for 20 minutes, either. No, I'm not exaggerating. We're giving it a try and hoping that he likes it. He'll only be riding in the afternoons, but it should help with the transportation issues. Logan's growing every day, and funny enough, is considered tall for his age. If you've seen Jason and me, you would realize the irony of this. He currently has no teeth on the top front, either. I love that stage. It will make for a great school picture! Of course, Logan's also an awesome big brother and looking forward to #4's arrival. My sister jokingly named the baby Gilligan (since we all end with "n" and we don't tell our name choices), and now Logan calls him that all of the time. To other people. Even in public. Thanks, Mindi.

Peyton: Oh, my little bundle of energy. He is seriously fireball, hilarious, and kind-hearted all rolled into one. Peyton turned 4 on August 6, and he will be starting preschool next week. Around this time last year, I posted about our previous preschool experiences. Not so good. I was seriously considering some sort of telecommute system with RidgeKids in Springfield (quite possibly the best preschool in the whole wide world). Jason and I have heard great things about the pre-k program at Logan's school, so we enrolled Peyton in that. Apparently, there is one teacher who is really not considered to be so great. Yes, that's who Peyton got. We went to the "meet the teacher night" to give it a fair shot, but no deals. Without trying to be overly critical here, there were some definite disorganization issues. In fact, I got an e-mail last week about how great Peyton is doing in her class, etc. Peyton never went to her class.

Anyway, I dug around and got him into a highly recommended Christian preschool in our town. As soon as I visited, I felt a total peace about it. We had open house tonight, and it's just going to be so great. He will go 3 days a week, and he's so very excited. He's been wearing his backpack around for 2 weeks and riding his bike to school every day (which, by the way, is right next to our mailbox). We made a paper chain to count down the days. He can't wait! In the mean time, he's been Addison's little buddy, so I'm really not sure what she's going to think about all of this!

Addison: Addison is 13 months old now. She continues to be the center of our world. The only problem now is - she knows it. The boys live to make her smile and laugh, and as soon as she shows any kind of displeasure, they're right there to fix it. I think we may have a slight problem on our hands here. Peyton goes into her room every morning, crawls into her crib with her, and snuggles and plays with her until I go get them out, usually around lunchtime. (Just seeing if you were still paying attention)

She is still really pretty mellow and very easy to console. We soooooo lucked out with her, I think. It's either that or the fact that I treated her for colic before she could ever show any signs of it (like Peyton did - bad). My #1 mothering recommendation? Get yourself a copy of Harvey Karp's "Happiest Baby on the Block" book. You can thank me at a later date. Addison is getting to be such a big girl. She's started walking some, but again, the boys spoil her so much that she really doesn't have a need to walk. She eats like a pig, too. I mean that with love, but really - she's a pig. A typical breakfast would be a good sized bowl of oatmeal, 1 or 2 scrambled eggs, and usually a carton of yogurt. It's pretty funny. I'm trying to somehow make things not so "Addison focused" around here, because she's in for a very rude awakening in 3 months. It's just so hard because she's (and will always be) the only girl, and she really is still a baby herself. We'll keep working on it, though!!

That's about it, I guess. We're all doing well and we can't believe we've been in Oklahoma almost a year now. It's crazy. Take care!

Works For Me Wednesday - Go To Bed Early - But How?

2008-08-26T22:55:00.006-05:00

I can tell you what I already know. I know for sure that if I can get my butt in bed early (between 10:00 and 10:30), I'm much better off the next day. That works very well for me, as I'm sure it does for most everyone. My challenge is actually doing it.

I'm serious here. I think my body is weird or something. Being a nightowl while 6 months pregnant with 3 other kids in the house is not a good plan. Not by a long shot. I can honestly say that I'm a little jealous of the moms who easily plop into bed around 9:00 every night. You can always tell who they are. They pleasantly hop into the shower in the morning, greet the day with a happy attitude, and do not get frazzled with the morning routine.

Personally, I plop into bed between 11:00 and midnight, shoot out of bed in the morning in a panicked state, jump into the shower using every "energizing" product available, and then proceed to get everyone ready for the day. I am also very thankful that big sunglasses are back in. Mine are big and black and hide any and all dark, puffy circles under the eyes. I will say that I do have the happy attitude, though. No one likes a grump in the morning, and no one wants to see other moms in their pajamas at school. That did happen to me once - and then I learned my lesson. Do NOT take your kid late to school while wearing mismatched pj's. Your kid will inevitably need you to walk him in that day. And you will inevitably leave your fabulous sunglasses at home. Yikes.

Here's what I need to know: If you're one of those people who easily goes to bed at a decent time, how do you do it? Do you follow some sort of routine? Are there certain things that you do NOT do? Do you drink a bottle of wine or take illegal drugs? Ok, just kidding about that one. I really would like to know, though.

I have the Ferber book for the kids, and he talks about how our bodies get into these cycles. I know I can break the habit, but it's so hard! My nights are MY time, you know? So help me out here if you can. Oh, and if your plan involves waking up at 5:00 am for a 2 mile jog, forget about it. Sorry to disappoint. :)

Frugal Friday - Looking Ahead To The Holidays

2008-08-21T19:57:00.005-05:00

I just really started working on Christmas this past week. I think the realization that I will have a brand new baby around the house (on top of the other 3) during the peak of the holiday season has finally set in.

I'm trying to make sure I include everything since this has really been the first year of our thorough planning, etc. It seems like I'm always forgetting something - teachers, neighbors, family photos, cards, etc.

As I was thinking about what exactly to get some people on my list, I realized that I overlooked a really great way to get really nice gifts for a really small amount of money (if any). Really, you say? (Ok, I overdid it, didn't I?) If you don't know me well, I must inform you that I am a home party junkie. I love hosting them, I love going to them, and I love selling the stuff for them. I've worked for a couple of companies over the past 10 years or so. My current fave is Silpada jewelry. I won't use this post to sell to you (don't worry), but it is awesome stuff.

Ok, the plan. If you know someone who is a consultant for some party plan company, give them a call. First of all, they will love you for hosting for them. This is their income, by the way. Second, as a hostess, you get really good deals. Every company is different, but almost all of them offer items of your choice for free or half-price. Third, your friends and family will love to attend, especially since they can Christmas shop from someone's couch while eating someone else's food. Ok, that's one of my favorite parts, but whatever floats your boat will work.

Since we're only at the end of August, you really could do this a few times between now and Christmas. I'm serious here. I'm not trying to be tacky. I really know tons of people who do this every year, and I personally got a huge haul of Discovery Toys a couple of years ago for my own kiddos. My consultant friend was thrilled! Find a company that you like and go for it.

There's just another way to save around the holidays. And on top of that, your gift recipients will really be excited! Let us know - do you do this? Has it worked well for you?

Works For Me Wednesday - The Wipeoff Board

2008-08-19T22:28:00.003-05:00

Being an organizing junkie, I'm always looking for new and fun ways to "keep it all together". I do love job charts, etc., but sometimes things change from day to day. Yes, my kids typically have the same responsibilities every day, but there always seems to be something that is not included on the regular chart.

For instance, we have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so Logan will not be checking his lunch before he goes to school in the morning. He and Jason had Cub Scouts tonight, so our evening routine was different. These kinds of things drive me nuts when we have to adjust the regular charts. I'm anal - I know.

The thing I have found to work very well is a wipe-off board. Mine is about 1 1/2 feet by 2 1/2 feet. I can write a list of what needs to be done in the morning, and the kids check it off. I then just need to erase it and do a new one for the evening. It's so great. I can add or delete whatever I need to - no biggie.

That's what works for my routine - how about you? Do you keep lists for your kids before school and bed? Let us know!

Realistically Frugal E-Book

2008-08-14T22:23:00.000-05:00

I am so excited to finally announce that I have completed my eBook! All you need to do is click on the link to the right to get your very own copy today!

The eBook is a 29 page guide packed with tips and ideas for loving the frugal lifestyle - all in a very doable, realistic design. Yes, you can still go out, and no - you will not be living on mac and cheese.

Sticking with my love for frugality, you get the book for an incredible price. Following just one or two steps in the guide will save you money immediately! From the kitchen to the grocery store to your utilities, it's time to get saving. I have even included step by step directions for how to make your very own laundry detergent!

Enjoy this book - I know you will be very eager to jump in and join in!

Works For Me Wednesday - Another Use For Scissors

2008-08-12T22:10:00.003-05:00

As much as I love feeding my children, I honestly don't particularly love cutting their food up all the time. Logan is getting to the age where he doesn't need as much help, but we still regularly slice and dice for the other two.

When we ordered pizza a while back, Jason couldn't find a knife, so he just grabbed my kitchen shears. It was the best dinner-time discovery ever! You can cut up almost any food for the kiddos so quickly and without so much mess. I'm so used to using these now - I carry them with me when we go out to eat! Hopefully that doesn't count as carrying a concealed weapon.

So you have any other uses for these handy items? Do you have any suggestions for speeding up the "preparing" of the food for kids? Leave your comments to help the rest of us out!

Works For Me Wednesday - Magic Eraser

2008-08-05T21:43:00.003-05:00

Let me just say that if you have not spent the $3.00 or so on a box of Mr. Clean Magic Erasers, you must! Oh, and not the generics - they don't work near as well.

These wonderful white rectangles will seriously clean almost anything. I think they are usually advertised to clean crayon, etc. off the walls, but that's just the beginning.

I have used these for several different projects, which I'll list below, but my new favorite is for cleaning the microwave.

I am not very good about cleaning my microwave at all. I clean the outside all the time, but the inside is a completely different, scary story. When I had some hot dogs explode inside a couple of weeks ago, I really had no choice but to give it a good scrubbing. Along with the hot dog parts, there was a good amount of very old, baked on food particles all over the place - even the top.

I wiped down the entire inside with a damp rag, and then took out my handy dandy magic eraser. I was totally shocked at how well it worked. There were a few spots that I had to really scrub, but the rest of it just required a good wipe-down with the eraser. The whole project took about 5 minutes.

That is my time-saving tip for the week. If you've ever spent half an hour scrubbing out your microwave, you've got to try it. Here are a few other things I've used my magic erasers for:

1. Smooth-top stove
2. Paint drips on the top of the refrigerator
3. Crayon, marker, and pencil anywhere where it shouldn't be
4. Various unknown substances stuck to the counters, etc.

Do you have any other uses for these things? Let us know!

Frugal Friday - A Huge Resale Event

2008-07-31T20:13:00.004-05:00

On another Frugal Friday post, I mentioned that you can find awesome deals on clothing when you go to the resale shops. And I'm not talking junk here. I mean nice, name-brand items for your whole family.

I'm always on the lookout for good buys - and I am extremely picky. What's the point of getting something for a low price is it looks really bad, you know?

In case you didn't know, there is a HUGE resale event twice a year called Just Between Friends. It is a franchise operation, so they are held all over the country. You can look up the closest spot on their website. Anyway, the sales are typically held in August and March, I believe, so you don't have to worry about digging so much for the right season. Items sold include baby gear, furniture, toys, clothing, shoes, accessories, maternity, "Dad's spot", and miscellaneous things for the home.

The really great thing about this sale is that they are very picky about what they take. You don't have to worry about getting something with stains or holes. Also, as far as shoes go, they have to be brand new. As an extra perk, they always run a "presale" day, and if you volunteer your time, you can shop before the public. I highly recommend that. It's well worth your time.

Different areas have different turnouts, of course. It usually depends on how long the sale has been around. In Springfield, MO, I think they've been going for two years now. That's not long at all, but it was still a good size. Here in Tulsa, it's so big that it's held at the fairgrounds, and women are lined around the building just to get in the door. I haven't been to this one yet - it's August 23. Would I be weird if I camped out the night before? Hmmm...

As we look ahead to the beginning of school and fall weather, you might try to find this event in your town. I don't think you'll be disappointed at all. One more example - I found my Baby Bjorn brand new in the box for $20.00. How's that for frugality?!

Works For Me Wednesday - The Flight Plan

2008-07-29T21:52:00.000-05:00

I want to thank everyone so very much for your help last week regarding my flying "issues". I am happy to report that I did very well - only a couple of very minor freakouts. Here's what I did - maybe it will help someone else!

First of all, a friend of mine suggested I visit this site about the fear of flying. It's basically an online "course" written by a pilot. It's completely free, and you just pick a topic to "study" and he gives you a very detailed lesson. I think one of my biggest problems was that I did not know what to expect and what was or was not normal. This site went through each step of a flight, even giving audio and video examples. This was so helpful - I highly recommend it.

My other aide was my Dramamine. Yes, it helps with the motion problem, but it also knocks you out a little. At least enough to where you don't care. It was my little lifesaver, and one of the only safe things to take when you're pregnant. There was one slight problem with the Dramamine, though. My flight coming home was majorly delayed.

It was bad. Aside from the regular frustration of figuring out how in the world you're getting home, I had to do it in my drug-induced stupor. Yikes. :) I didn't know it was delayed, so I took my pills about an hour before take-off, only to find out 20 minutes later that I would not be flying for another 5 hours. Oops.

Oh well. I did make it home and actually managed to control myself on the plane. The lovely gentleman sitting in front of me on the returning flight was a pilot, so he and I became the best of friends. Well, I thought we were anyway. After a lovely delay, possible cancellation, etc., Jason and the kiddos picked me up in Tulsa a little after 1:00am Monday morning.

Good times.

Almost Over

2008-07-27T11:56:00.006-05:00

Mindi and Me

Well, my getaway is coming to an end. It's 1:00pm here in New York, and I'll be heading to the airport here in about 4 hours! It's been so wonderful to get away for a few days, but I am definitely ready to see my family. It's so funny how quickly you get used to the craziness, and how it actually seems kind of weird to be without it after awhile.

Times Square

New York is an incredible place. I'm sure many of you have been here, so you know exactly what I'm talking about. One of the things that stood out to me is the much faster pace here. When we were in NYC, I was so surprised to see how quickly everyone moves. Eyes forward, very focused, and very speedy. There is no "method" to how people walk around on the sidewalks, so you just weave in and out as you can. Also, intersections are insane. I noticed that many of them had traffic police along with the stoplights because many drivers pretty much disregard the typical "rules of the road". You know - massive honking, cutting in front of people, driving offensively. What was very interesting to me, though, was that as crazy as the drivers were, everyone really paid attention. I saw practically no one talking on cell phones in the car (it's against the law here, anyway), and the drivers really watched the road.

Rockefeller Center

I also loved to see how people dress. You can tell the citizens from the tourists almost immediately. You can also easily tell the difference in income levels, and what part of town in which people live. As I was shopping through the stores, it was so funny because I knew that at this point, what is trendy in NY is not even close to being trendy in the midwest yet. I actually had a hard time buying clothes because of this! The other interesting thing about the people? Seriously - there are hardly any overweight people that live in the city. The only big people I saw were the tourists. Honestly, isn't that so interesting? It just goes to show how getting off our butts and walking around for awhile can make quite a difference.

World Trade Center Site

The landmarks were amazing, of course. To me, the most powerful stop on our tour of the city had to be the World Trade Center site. I have always been very interested in all kinds of historical events, and when I study different periods in time, I find myself imagining what the people must have seen and felt at that moment. Of course, most places are read about in a book, and if you actually get lucky enough to visit the area, the event was so long ago that it is sometimes hard to "put yourself there". Not in this case.

Yes, 9/11 was almost seven years ago, but it didn't matter. The area is now under construction, and there are no longer posters of missing family members around. Still, it was quite indescribable. Standing in the street, I could truly "feel" what it must have been like to see thousands of people running, trying to find safety. Of course, I have no idea. I wasn't actually there, and I will never pretend to know what the people went through. But I definitely could tell what I would feel as a by-stander, you know? It was an unforgettable experience.

Those are a few of the highlights about the city. The weekend was great all-around. Lots of sleeping in and nap-taking, a fabulous pre-natal massage, shopping, shopping, and more shopping. My sister and I have always been so very close, so it was great to be able to spend a few days with her - just Mindi and me. Well, and Ben. He's great too. :) I'll be back to my usual blogging next week - see you then!

Frugal Friday - courtesy of my brother-in-law

2008-07-24T19:51:00.002-05:00

As you know, I'm in New York for a few days. I left my handy list of Frugal Friday ideas at home, and I thought I may not have any thoughts for today. Lucky for you, my fabulous brother-in-law, Ben (who really likes to be called Benji) remembered some things that he used to do to save money.

I know that personally, I'm terrible about being frugal with the heat/cooling system in the house. I love it to be super warm in the winter, and pretty cold in the summer. When I'm pregnant, which seems to be most every summer, it's especially bad.

Ben said that when he was in graduate school, he would turn the heat off in the winter whenever possible and just really bundle up. Long underwear, heavy blankets, you name it. I guess you can really save some money doing this! He said he would not run the A/C in the summer, either. I'm not sure how he stayed cool - I didn't ask. :) I know that I've read before that when it's above 90, fans do not do any good.

Do you do this? What about if you have kids? I do feel like I could probably sacrifice some of my own comfort, but I guess I'm worried about the kiddos, you know? Let me know how you save money in the various weather!

I did it!

2008-07-24T19:43:00.002-05:00

Well, I'm sitting in my sister's living room as I write this. Yeah for me! I want to thank everyone for their very helpful and kind comments. A friend of mine suggested a website for people afraid of flying. It's written by a pilot, and it's free. Basically, it went through every aspect of a flight, including the various noises and "feelings" that you experience. It was so great! I think a good portion of my fear came from not knowing what to expect. It was really nice to have a general idea of what was going on. Oh, and one more thing - the Dramamine was awesome. I was able to just "doze" and not get so worked up. I highly recommend it!

Thank you again for all your help. We're headed into big NYC tomorrow, so I'll definitely post on that, too. It will be my first trip, and I'm really excited. Especially for all the shopping. My main goal is to score an imported designer bag - you know - the "real" ones for the bargain price of $20.00. :) Ok, fine. Our country's landmarks will be nice, too.

Works For Me Wednesday - Help! You Tell Me What Works!

2008-07-22T21:35:00.003-05:00

This week I'm asking you to tell me what works. You see, I'm flying to New York early Thursday morning, and I'm scared out of my wits. I don't know why I have such an unnecessary fear of flying. I know all of the statistics - you know the ones - flying is safer than driving, the pilots are smart people, blah, blah, blah.

It doesn't seem to help me a whole lot. By nature, I worry - alot. I have flown a few times before, and it was totally no big deal. I don't know if it's because of 9/11 or because I have kids now or what. But I could really use some advice.

Here's what I have planned so far. First of all, I am fully aware that God is in control of everything. I really do. I guess my human brain still thinks I should be in control of something. Second, Jason has given me some good, common sense suggestions. For instance, he reminded me that if the flight attendants are not looking worried, then chances are everything is fine. That being said, he did not mention what exactly to do if they do look worried. Third, I am buying a nice-sized box of Dramamine. Hey - it knocks me out a little and it does help with motion issues. Oh, and it's pretty much the only knock-out drug that's safe to take when you're pregnant.

That's about all I've got. This trip (I'll post about it later) is an awesome opportunity that only comes along every once in a very great while. You see, my fabulous husband gave me this trip for Christmas. Four whole days with my childless sister in Albany, including one full day in NYC. There will be lunch outings, lots of shopping, movie watching with Rotel dip, and a fabulous trip to the spa. Sleeping in, sleeping in quiet, well hey - just sleeping. I absolutely do not want to spend two of my four days in panic mode, you know?

Ok, spill your secrets. What helps you or the people you know? I know there are tons of people out there who really don't like to fly. Oh, and please do not tell me stories like "My brother flew and the plane crashed, and he survived!". These stories are not what I mean when I say "help". Thanks! Oh - and I leave super early Thursday morning, so comment soon!

Probably the Best Diaper Deal to Date!

2008-07-19T12:16:00.002-05:00

I have to let you know that I've been really digging into the Target coupon system lately. They are very similar to Walgreen's in that they stack store coupons with manufacturer's coupons. The better thing is that Target has nicer stuff and a much better selection.

Anyway, I regularly follow "A Full Cup" to catch the latest Target sales and coupon ideas. They also give you all of the Target store coupons right there, so you can print off several at once. Here's the main point: Most Target stores (both of ours in Tulsa, too) will let you use more than one Target store coupon at once, plus the manufacturer's coupon. Below is an example of what I did yesterday.

First of all, Pampers and Huggies wipes are on sale for $5.00 for the big pack. I think the sale ends today.

Target store coupons printed:

several $5 off purchase of Pampers diapers or training pants PLUS one pkg. of wipes
several "receive $5 gift card with purchase of Pampers diapers or training pants PLUS wipes"
several $2.00 off Pampers Easy Ups training pants
several $1.50 off Pampers Splashers - swim diapers

**All of these coupons expire 7/31

Manufacturer's coupons used:

a few $1.00 off diapers or training pants
1, $1.50 off splashers

**These expire 7/31, too. Please note - I did not have NEAR as many coupons as usual. I didn't do a very good job of gathering the monthly Procter and Gamble section that comes out the 1st Sunday of each month. Even though I got a killer deal, it could have been even better!

Here's what I did, step by step:
1. Picked up 3 packs of Cruisers, 6 packs of wipes, 2 packs of Easy-Ups, and 1 large box of Splashers. Total retail of $100.00 and some change.
2. Put them in my cart and headed up to the front. Here's the important part: finding a good cashier. I personally know the names of the good ones in my town, so I look for them. Otherwise, I look for someone friendly.
3. I split this up into different transactions. One pack of diapers/easy-ups/splashers and one pack of wipes each.
4. After ringing up the 2 items, I gave her 1 of each coupon. Here's the breakdown:
Easy ups and wipes: Total retail - 16.64
- 1.64 for wipes sale
- 5.00 target coupon
- 2.00 target coupon
- 1.00 man. coupon
total oop (out of pocket): $7.00
get $5.00 gift card back. This was the most expensive transaction, because after this, I can also use the $5.00 gift card from the previous transaction to pay for it.

Let's say that I did that exact same combination for the second transaction, okay? Instead of paying $7.00 oop, I would only pay $2.00 oop because I could use the gift card that I got from transaction #1.

That's what I kept doing, just combining different products and coupons. Keep in mind that the total retail of everything was a little over $100.00, right? Well, when it was all said and done, I spent $15.00 and some change. How's that for a killer deal? I plan on going a few more times until the end of the month. If the wipes go off sale, it will just be $1.64 more. Hey - $3.64 is pretty darn good for a pack of Pampers and jumbo wipes!

Let me know if you have any questions!

Frugal Friday - School Supplies

2008-07-17T21:00:00.001-05:00

Well, we're looking at about 3 weeks or so until school starts for us. I cannot believe the summer break is almost over already! We like to do our school supply shopping fairly early for the best selection, so I went ahead and printed off the supply lists for the boys. Yikes!

When we were in Nixa, I really thought the list was long. That was nothing. Here, almost all supplies are community property for the year, so you bring in tons of stuff. I do realize that this saves the teachers money later in the year, and since my mom is a teacher, I really do understand. I also realize that doing things this way prevents some kids from being embarrassed if they don't have the "good stuff". But still! Just for a quick example, among many other things, Peyton takes 2 packages of construction paper, 2 sketch pad tablets, 8 glue sticks, 3 rolls paper towels, 2 boxes of Dixie cups, and 2 containers of Clorox wipes! Logan brings 3 packages of markers, 12 erasers, and 40 pencils - just to give you an idea. Oh, and I almost forgot - new backpacks and lunch boxes, of course.

Obviously, we'll be doing some major shopping this weekend, but I'm definitely planning ahead for next year! Some things, like crayons, glue, etc. are very cheap at this time of year. Other things, like baggies, Dixie cups, hand sanitizer, etc. can be bought anytime. What I'm going to do is keep this list (it only changes slightly each year) and do my coupon shopping throughout the year. Doing this will make a very big difference come next July! I only wish I had thought of it sooner!

If you have some ideas on how to save on school supplies, let us know! I'm only shopping for two of my kids this year, so I know I personally would love to hear some tips for the future.

Happy Birthday To My Baby Girl

2008-07-16T19:11:00.001-05:00

I cannot believe it, but Addison is 1 year old today. We have had such a wonderful year with her. It seems like everyone blogs about their birth story on their kid's birthday, so here you go. Oh, and staying true to form, it won't be your typical synopsis. :)

First of all, I have c-sections. Something about pelvic bones and infant's heads do not fit together well for me. I will admit (and I know there has to be someone else out there with this opinion) that I almost prefer it this way. It's predictable, and most importantly, there is no extreme pushing that forces your body to poop in front of about 10 various people.

As much as I prefer my surgeries, an odd thing has been happening with each birth. It seems that I freak out in the O.R. a little too much. I do not know why that is. I know what is going to happen. First, someone inserts a not-so-small needle into my spine, hoping to hit the right spot. Oh, and I'm not supposed to move. At all. Don't you love how you always need to sneeze right at those times? A few minutes later, I feel nothing below my chest. That's when the problems begin.

You probably know by now that I have some slight control issues. I absolutely hate not being able to "get out" if I need to. Lying half naked on an operating table unable to move, and knowing it - I tend to mildly panic. Ok, fine. I majorly panic. I'm always super paranoid that the doctor will start cutting and the spinal block will wear off. Or I'll stop breathing. Or I'll die. Who knows what goes through my head, really. A c-section takes a very small amount of time to perform, but to me, it seems like forever.

Apparently, with Addison, my wonderful obstetrician and husband decided that I was a little out of control and needed some "calming medicine". One word: AWESOME. That was the best 1/2 hour of my life. I do remember hearing her cry and seeing her while Jason was holding her, but that's it. The next hour or so was a little fuzzy, too. That's because I started the Demerol right around the same time as the happy juice.

So that's my birth story. Isn't it fabulous? I remember 2 parts about it - but hey, they were the important parts. Happy birthday, Addison!