Last night, around 3:00am, Zach let out a loud yell. Not so much a scream, but more of holler as they say.

It woke me up obviously. I’m not accustomed to my darling Zach yelling in the middle the night (a certain baby boy on the monitor I’m very familiar with however- ahem).

So I roll over and shook him awake.

Me: “Are you okay? You just yelled.”

Zach: “Oh, that was just my battle cry.”

Me: “Your battle cry?”

Zach: “Yes, I’m a warrior.”

And at that he drifted back into a deep sleep.

Can I just say that I love my husband?

I love that he dreams about being a warrior. I love that he has a battle cry. I love that he is a man.

A real man.

I love that he can fix most anything and that he isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty.

I love that he is willing to fight for our family.

I love that I can ask him to draw a flower, grow a flower or buy me flowers and that he can and will do all three.

I love that he makes me proud to be his wife.

I love that he is stronger than an ox.

I love that he is a man of courage, honor and integrity.

I love that he loves me and can show me that love without hesitation or embarrassment. He’s so very good at loving me well.

I love that he loves our babies so much. He is truly the best daddy in the whole wide world.

I love that he learns more about how to be man and a warrior through God’s Word every day.

I love that not only dreams about being a warrior, but that he is one.

My warrior.

My hero.

Hands off girls, he’s all mine.

Love to all,

Category: Family., Random., Zach. / Tag: husbands, love, Love of my life, marriage, Zach. / Add Comment  Email This Post

Growing up I always had bright blonde hair. It wasn’t platinum by any stretch, but it was a pretty shade of blonde. The older I got, the darker it got. It went from bright blonde to more of a honey blonde and then to a carmel blonde and finally to a dirty, dirty blonde.

After two babies and breastfeeding hormones pumping away (ha, get it? I crack myself up), now it’s dark blonde. Apparently my hormones don’t like pretty blonde hair. They like mousey blonde/brown hair.

I’m told that this is normal, is it? Is this yet another way that I’m a total weirdo?  Has this happened to anyone else?

Before Brother was born and I worked part-time I would visit my trusty and talented hairdresser for all of my coloring needs. But now, our budget simply doesn’t allow it. Zach has begged me to go, to bite the bullet and pay the money, but I just can’t. Once you become insane about {not} spending money, dropping $100 on hair just doesn’t make sense to me like it once did.

At first, I was in total deniel that I even needed color. I figured that I would “get used” to having darker hair. In fact, I went nearly 6 months without any coloring help at all.

It was a sad, sad time.

Then, it occured to me that maybe, just maybe I could do it myself. All I had to do was follow the instructions on the box, right? I mean, how hard could it be? So, I bought a highlighting kit. When I got it home and read the directions I saw the cute little cap. It was then and there that it became clear that in no universe could I hightlight my own hair. Patience is NOT my bag, it’s just not. And, let’s face it, my darling husband isn’t exactly hairdresser material.

So I gave up for a few days and declared that having pretty hair was a thing of the past.

But then, I thought of my friend Candyce. Candyce is one of those people that knows something about everything. So, I emailed her and gave her the scoop.

To my delight, she knew exactly what to do! She gave me detailed instructions on what to get for an all over color. Forget the highlighting kit! Putting a bunch of chemicals all over my head like shampoo is much more my speed.

Like a good little student I followed her instructions to the letter. After my babies were in bed I went to get this sacred box of beauty. When I got home I did exactly what the kit said to do.

And, wait for it…

It wasn’t terrible.

It wasn’t great, but definitely not terrible.

I tried to convince myself that it was totally awesome to have semi strawberry blonde roots while the rest of my hair was kind of a mix between brown and blonde splotches. Ever positive, I figured that it could be worse.

After a week or so, I went back to the store and got another kind. A lighter shade this time. At first I was timid to go too blonde because I felt like my hair was practically black.

Dramatic much?

And then, WAMMMOOOOO! It was great. In fact, it was kind of awesome.

So awesome that I’ve been using a box to color my hair for months now. The last time I got a haircut the hairdresser actually commented on how great my color looked. Imagine her surprise when I told her that it was from a box! Ha!

But like every little story there is sometimes controversy.

Cue: Last Night.

On my weekly trip to The Wal-mart, I casually looked for some color. I’m not true to a brand or even a certain color, I like to keep my options open in the world of hair coloring.

I had a price match and coupon for Loreal Healthy Look so I grabbed a box. When I got it I realized that it was on clearance for $5.00. Double score.

*Note to self: When buying hair color, never, ever, never, ever, never, ever buy it if it’s on clearance. Got it?

When I got home I innocently put on my chemical shampoo (that’s my pet name for my hair color. Isn’t it fitting?), waited my 10 minutes and washed it out.

As I got out of the shower I noticed that it looked a little dark, but no worries, I figured that when it dried it would be lighter and brighter.

Um, no.

It was brown.

That’s right.

Today, I was a brunette.

I would like to think that I looked like my bestie Sandy, but I fear that I did not.

For one thing, there are no tropicial flowers up in here and secondly, the sun hasn’t shined in months it seems. Well, and the obvious, that Sandy is a supermodel, and I am sadly, not.

Honestly today I really didn’t even think about it much. Something about chasing babies really takes my vanity away, in fact, I barely noticed it. But when Bitzy and Brother went to sleep I remembered.

Oh, did I remember.

I said to Zach, “So did you notice that I’m a brunette now?”

Zach: “Um, yes. It looks, um, great.”

Me: “Oh, come on! It looks nasty. Just admit it.”

Zach: “It’s not brown, it’s just darker. You’re so dramatic.”

Me: “I’m so not dramatic! Ah! It may not be brown, but it’s BY FAR the darkest it’s ever been.”

Zach: “I’ll give you that. But you look beautiful no matter what.”

Me: “Now that’s convincing. I’m going to The Wal-mart, be back soon.”

This time around I didn’t even take a coupon. It’s true, I admit it. Granted I still had a price-match, but I was on a mission to lose the brown, I could not be bothered with a coupon.

I found the most expensive box they had. It was $7.97, which in the world of hair coloring is a lot. And it was gold. It looked very fancy. It was the one.

It does say it’s “Superior” and “Luminous” after all. Granted, I have absolutely no idea what luminous means, but it sounds delightful.

Then, I did the whole routine and WALLLLLAHHHHHAAAAA, I’m blonde again.

Hallelujah!

I’m not cut out to be a brunette friends.

Long live the boxed blondes!

Have you ever had any hair dye disasters? Care to share?

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Crazycakes, Positivity, Random., Zach., homemaking / Tag: beauty, Friends, hair, Zach. / 8 comments  Email This Post

Okay my peeps, Mama needs your help.

I’m normally pretty confident in my decorating, but this time, I’m stumped! Help me decorate my house!!!!

The following pictures show you the staircase which highlight my gorgeous babies at 6 months old. I love every single thing about these pictures, but I’m struggling with what (if anything) should go between them.

What do you think?

Is less more?

I was thinking maybe several pictures between the two? A collage perhaps? But I don’t want to take away from the amazing pictures…

See? I need your help.

Take a look at the space….

Also? I MUST figure out a way to organize the toys that are overtaking my house. Look at Picture #2. Any ideas on how to make that shelf more presentable? It looks so messy! Drives me bananas!

Help, Help, Help!!!!

Love to all,

Category: Random., decorating, homemaking / Tag: decor, decorating, Help / 17 comments  Email This Post

I don’t consider myself especially crafty. Creative, sure. But crafty? Nah.

I do, however, own a glue gun. So that’s gotta mean something, right?

Anyway, as you well know I am all about saving cash. So, a few months ago I began making my own laundry detergent. It’s simple, works well and it’s CHEAP.

In fact, I’m such a fan that I made a fresh batch for some of our precious family members for Christmas.

Recipe (I took some ideas from several websites and then came up with my own):

One bar of mild soap. I use Castle, but Ivory would work too.

One cup Borax

One cup Baking Soda

Several drops of Peppermint Oil

First things first. Get an air tight container. I used Glass Jars for gifts and for my own I use a bucket with a lid (out of reach of babies- obviously).

Then, grate your soap with a cheese grater very finely. The finer the better. (This is a pain, but hang in there).

Then mix the soap with Borax and Baking Soda.

*Note, you can also use Washing Soda. Both work, I just prefer Baking Soda.

*Double Note, for your home use triple recipe for a large amount.

*Triple Note, I’ve made liquid and powder and I personally prefer the powder. The liquid recipe is the same you just cook the soap down until it’s liquid and pour into a bucket with powder mixture.

*Quadrupole Note, I bought all the ingredients with price matching and coupons (’cause I refuse to pay full price for anything these days), and it came to $.003-$.006 per load (depending on whether you use one or two tablespoons). Like I said, CHEAP.

Use 1-2 Tablespoons per load.

This is a super cheap and natural alternative to harsh detergents! Plus, they make super cute gifts!

Love to all,

Category: Random. / Tag: Crafts, Homemade / 8 comments  Email This Post

Brother: “Hey you, get outta my toy!”

Do you ever look at your life and think you’re dreaming? Do you look at the pictures of your spouse and/or your babies and think that there’s no way that they’re yours?

No? Just me?

As if I needed another confirmation that I am completely crazycakes.

Sometimes at night when all is quiet and the babies are nestled snug in their beds I look at the pictures on the walls and think, “Are those my babies? When did that happen? Could it be?”

You see, they are my dream come true. Really and truly, they are.

The messes and diapers and tantrums and nap strikes and books and hair bows and vomit, are part of that dream. Granted, some of those things aren’t exactly fun, but they are part of the job. And now, at this very moment, I’m living the dream.

Bitzy is currently choosing to jump in her crib shouting “Zoom, Zoom, Zoom” rather than taking a nap, while Brother is sleeping soundly in his crib snuggled with his lovey. As I watch them on the video monitor my heart swells with gratitude.

I have always dreamed of being a Mama, but now that it has come true, it’s almost more than my heart can bear. It’s too wonderful, too amazing. I am simply in awe of how magnificent they are.

When I sit back and really think about the intricacy involved in creating a human being, I am stunned into thankfulness. How God so masterfully knit these beautiful creatures together in my womb and so generously gifted them to Zach and me. We are not worthy of such amazing gifts. But by God’s grace He continues to help us love and care of these babies.

I am humbled by the gift of them, I really am.

Life is so precious, I want to soak them up and memorize them every single day.

Thank you Lord for the gift of my children, You are so good.

Love to all,

Category: Crazycakes, New Baby, Random., Zach., bitzy / Tag: babies, Jesus, thankfulness / 1 comment  Email This Post

Brother Bear was asleep and missed our smushy face pic!

So yesterday was my birthday.

It was a perfect day full of Jesus, Zach and my babies. The perfect combo pack.

The funny thing is though, no matter how old I get, I always think I’m 22.

I don’t just pretend, I really think it.

When someone says, “How old are you?” I immediately think that I’m 22.

But not just me. Everyone I know is apparently 22 as well.

For example, not too long ago I was out to dinner with my lady friends and one of my dear darlings said that she went out on a date with a guy who was really nice but older than her. When I asked how old and she responded that he was 38.

38?

“You can’t go out with him! He’s 16 years older than you! He’s way too old for you!”

Then, all of my friends looked at me like I was a crazy person (more than usual).

“You know that I’m not 22 any more, right?”

“Oh my. You’re not? How old are you anyway?”

See? Everyone is 22 forever.

In my defense, 22 was a darn good year for me. I met my Zach, graduated from college, moved to Louisville, started my first job, met some of my best friends and lived on my own. It was quite eventful, but so wonderful.

Now that I’m, ahem, not 22, every year continues to be eventful…and wonderful.

In my old age I am beginning to become more thankful for birthdays, because well, the alternative is grim. But then I get greedy, panicky almost. Like I have to super pumped to get older because I’m so frantic about something happening to me and leaving my babies and Zach.

So, with gratitude I celebrate another birthday full of wrinkles, sags and headaches!!!!

Being 22 isn’t so bad after all! Keep ‘em coming!

Love to all,

Category: Crazycakes, Family., Friends, Random. / Tag: birthdays, Family., Friends / 3 comments  Email This Post

This picture has absolutely nothing to do with this little story. Just thought I’d share some eye candy.

Ha! You thought I was going to say that I just started running again didn’t you?

Now THAT would be very sad story.

Because friends, that means that I would have died.

I think I’m too old to run.

That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Anyway, my sweet little precious ones have given me a run for the money this week.

Between Brother teething and Bitzy struggling with being very off schedule since Christmas and trying to get back on schedule, it’s been a doozy of a week.

This Mama is very excited for Daddy to be home with us this weekend.

But then, in the midst of the exhaustion, as I nursed and rocked sweet Brother bear to sleep, as his eyes got heavier and heavier he unlatched, locked eyes with me and smiled the most beautiful smile. Almost as if to say, “I love you Mama, goodnight.”

What a gift.

And then, as I tucked Bitzy into her crib with her blankies after rocking and reading, she sleepily whispered, “Goodnight Kanga, I love you.” And I smiled and said, “Goodnight Sweet Roo. I love you.”

And that my friends, is what it’s all about.

Have a great weekend friends!

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Family., Random., bitzy / Tag: bitzy, brother, motherhood, Tired / Add Comment  Email This Post

The culprit

My very first post about poop was many moons ago. Read it here.

It’s sweet that I thought I was a Poopologist then. Ha, aha, ahahahahaha. Since then, I have earned several doctorates in the subject. In fact, almost every single day I wake up with a nice stew of pee and poop all over me.

Nice, eh?

You see, my sweet Brother bear has gone from being the best little sleeper ever, to, well, NOT the best little sleeper ever. Sure, he’s no Bitzy. He doesn’t hate sleep with the sincere hatred that she did as a baby, but still, I feel like we’re on a slippery slope.

{more to come on that later}.

All that said, he normally wakes up ready to eat, snuggle, cuddle around 6:00am. If I just feed him and lay him down in the crib he’ll scream his brains out, however, if I bring him into bed with me (Zach is long gone at this point) then he’ll eat and go back to sleep for another hour or two.

And clearly I don’t mind the snuggles, not one bit.

What I do mind? Him waking up every 3 hours during the night. You got that right. The child is 7 months old and he goes to bed at 7:00pm and wakes to eat every 3 hours until 6:00am.

What I mind more? The fact that his tiny little size 3 diapers simple cannot hold the massive amounts of excrement coming from his sweet little booty. I’ve tried double diapering, bigger sizes, changing him during the night…nothing works.

No matter what, ever single morning as I breathe him in and try to memorize the way his chest rises and falls, I also smell the sweet smell of baby poop as it oozes all over me.

Yummy, no?

Ah, motherhood.

Someday when I’m old and grey I will miss many things about my babies being tiny…but I have a feeling I will not miss being pooped on every.single.day.

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Family., Random., Zach., bitzy / Tag: bitzy, brother, motherhood, poop / 2 comments  Email This Post

There are many things about this picture that I love…and then some others that I find extremely disturbing.

As I always try to find the silver lining, let’s start with the positive. In fact, my friend Bethany has taught me the rule of PNP (Positive, Negative, Positive). So here we go:

Positive: Bitzy is having a blast. She’s a sucker for the playground. And the swing? Around 8 months old she began her love affair with swinging. Then, as suddenly as it started she banned all swings everywhere. Just the sight of them started her saying, “No, no, no!” Just recently she has shyly ventured back in. We’re starting slowly but surely. Kids are so strange and funny about things…

Negative: Will you look at me? I look like a frumpy Mommy. I may as well have on mom jeans. If I ever needed some motivation for Weight Watchers this is it. Well, and maybe a makeover from What Not to Wear. And I look old? When did I get so old?

Positive:  The owl hat. The cuteness just makes me die and go to heaven. Whoever came up with the concept of the owl hat needs a Nobel Prize. It just slays me. In case you need more evidence, here’s a picture of Brother wearing his too.

My Mama, AKA: Gammy got the sweet owl hats for my babies for Christmas. If you’d like to order one go here. (Linda has no idea that I’m doing this, so, SURPRISE Linda! I love the hats!!!).

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Crazycakes, Family., Random., bitzy, mama / Tag: bitzy, brother, fun, Lindas Lids, Random. / 4 comments  Email This Post

Me: “Hey Bitzy Boo, would you like some water baby?”

Bitzy: “NO THANK YOU MAMA, JUST A POLAR BEAR.”

Me: “Hmmm…OK. Well, I don’t have a polar bear, but I do have some water. Would you like some?”

Bitzy: “LET ME SEE,” as she taps her chin, “NO WATER, JUST A POLAR BEAR.”

Me: “Okay, I just need to run into the dining room for a minute and pick up our new polar bear, one second.” (I walk into the dining and count 1-2-3). “OK, here’s your very own polar bear named Polly! Hooray for Polly the Polar Bear!” as I hand her a pretend polar bear.

Bitzy: “NO MAMA, A REAL POLAR BEAR, NOT A TEND ONE. PLEASE MAMA. CAN I, CAN, CAN I?”

Me: “Here’s the problem. Polar bears live in the North Pole with Santa. It would be really hard for our family to have a pet polar bear. But I do have a pretend one named Polly. Wanna play with her?”

Bitzy: “NO THANK YOU.” Then she sits in the floor and puts her face in her hands. “I’M SO, SO, SO SAD. I MISS MY BABY POLAR BEAR.”

Me: “I know baby, it’s hard. I wish we could have a pet polar bear too. Maybe we should move to the North Pole with Santa.”

Bitzy: She totally brightens up and says, “GREAT IDEA MAMA. ME, YOU, SANTA, LEONARD, DADDY AND BROTHER WILL LIVE AT POLLY POLAR BEARS HOUSE WITH HER GRANDMA. IT WILL BE AWESOME. I SO CITED!”

Me. “Of course it will be. I’m so glad we worked that out. Now, how about some water?”

Bitzy: “SURE MAMA. SOUNDS GREAT, I VERY THIRSTY.”

Whew.

Love to all,

Category: Crazycakes, Family., Random., bitzy / Tag: bitzy, Converstations, funny, Two / 3 comments  Email This Post

I’m gonna get all Billy Mays on ya (may he rest in peace). Just imagine me talking in my most salesmaney, excited, youarenevergonnabelievethedealihaveforyou voice. Because friends of mine, the time is now.

It’s a brand spanking new year and it’s time to start saving some money.

While Zach and I are saving a ton of money these days with couponing, we are still not happy with our budget. We’re (actually, I am), spending way too much on random things that really should be accounted for. “But it’s on sale! It was almost free! We really need it! We might need it someday! I only paid $8 for a $60 item!!!” (that we have no use for- ahem).

One thing I’m learning with couponing is that even if it’s a great deal, it doesn’t necessarily mean we need it.

This whole couponing thing has really brought out my inner shopaholic.

So, starting today, we’re getting reacquainted with our old buddy, Dave Ramsey.

If you’re unfamiliar with him, he’s a famous radio host and a money managing genius.

He believes in a cash only system and discourages debt at all costs. His story is truly inspiring.

We have been on the program before and saved a ton of money while paying off quite a bit of debt. Now, our only debts are student loans and our house payment.

While I’m thrilled to have no credit card debt, having a house/student loan payment are still costing us a fortune. So, Mr. Dave Ramsey himself is gonna help us.

Financial freedom, here we come!

The bad news? Since I’m a stay at home mama now (praise Jesus), and Zach is a hard working sole provider, we just do not have a ton of  ”wiggle” room in our budget. That is going to make achieving financial freedom all the more challenging.

But guess what? I know that we can do it! And I know that you can too!

Here are some ways that we are cutting back and easily reliving some tension off of our tight budget.

Couponing- I recommend price matching coupled with couponing to get the maximum effect. I have written 3 previous blogs about price matching and couponing. Read them Here, Here and Here.

Shop At Home- This is what I call a “click through” site. Let’s say that you are going to buy something on Target.com. Rather than going straight there you go to  Shopathome.com first. When you get there you type in “target” and it will give you a list of coupons/deals. Then you click on the target tab and it will activate a percentage off of your online order on Target. That’s right!  Just because you clicked through their site first, you save a percentage off your order. Right now, Target is offered 6% back. So basically, you are “earning” 6% back on your online order to Target just for going to Shopathome first. Amazing. I just got a check for $45 for basically doing nothing but clicking through. It’s like free money!

Swagbucks- Swagbucks is search engine basically. So rather than doing a google search you search through Swagbucks. When you do you “earn” swagbucks just for searching. So just for doing your normal everyday Internet searches you get paid! I’ve gotten several Amazon gift cards this way. Easy peasy!

Ebates- Ebates is exactly like Shopathome. I normally do a search on both to see who has the higher percentage back. I just got a check for $11 from Ebates. Again, free money!

Rebates- I’m a big fan of rebates. Sure, they are work, but you get a free product and often make money in the process. Take tonight’s haul below. See the box of Bissell Stomp and Go? It’s on the corner and it’s blue. It was $4.98 at The Wal-Mart. I used a $1 off coupon making it $3.98. I’ll fill out this form and get $4.98 back via a check in the next few weeks. It’s like delayed satisfaction. Last month I “made” $65 in rebate money. So not only do I get to try out a free product but I make money in the process.

In other news, here’s my haul from tonight. I want to show you beautiful people that it’s possible to coupon, save money and eat well. Check this out.

I know that this stuff isn’t organic…but it’s not Ramen Noodles either. This stuff to me, is normal, healthy(ish) food, mixed with some other amazing deals.

Here’s the list:

7 lbs. of Gala Apples

3lbs. Cuties

12 Weight Watcher Smart Ones

6 Boxes of Cheerios

4lbs. of Bananas

2 Green Peppers

4 Bottles of Suave Shampoo

1 Suave Deodorant

2 Reach Floss

2 Boxes of Visine

9lbs. of different varieties of Steak

2 500ml bottles of Listerine

2 Boxes of GE Lightbulbs

1 box of Bissell Stomp and Go (rebate form linked)

2 bottles of Purell Hand Sanitizer

7 cans of Chicken “Nuggie” Soup as Bitzy would say

6 packs of gum

2 Pictionary Card Games (For our gift closet)

1 Package of Dole Frozen Blueberries

6 Packages of Scotch Brite Antibacterial Wipes

The pre-tax retail for all of this was $189.76. Tonight after price matching and coupons it was $82.11. That’s a savings of 56.7%. I’m thrilled with this savings based on the produce and meat that I bought.

You can coupon and be healthy, it just takes some effort!!!

We can do this friends, I just know it!!!!

Here’s to saving money!

Love to all,

Disclaimer: If you click on the Shopathome link and you become a member I will receive a credit for $5. This, in no way, means that I’m telling you this information to receive compensation. Rather, I want you to earn more through this site as I have. It’s totally awesome and I want you to benefit from it too. Same goes for Swagbucks and Ebates. I get a referrel credit, but I totally believe it’s a quick and EASY way to earn money. I have not been paid a dime by Shopathome, Ebates or Swagbucks for this post. These words and opinions, are all my own.

Category: Confessions., Family., Random., food, money / Tag: coupons, Dave Ramsey, savings, The Walmart / 2 comments  Email This Post

Bitzy is a baker!!!!

Every single day I wonder why in the world God has blessed me so incredibly. I am selfish and prideful and rude and arrogant and many more horrible sinful flaws. I do not deserve these little angels.

They are so perfect, so innocent.

They rely on Zach and I for everything. In a way it’s incredibly comforting to know that I am able and willing to provide for their daily needs, but also their need for love, comfort and encouragement.  But in another sense it scares me to death. I am not qualified for this position! I didn’t take a test or study for this job. Somedays I feel so unprepared.

Brother all snuggled at the park!

This week as Zach has been on “staycation,” my job as a stay at home mommy has been exponentially easier. Right now we’re playing a man-to-man defense which is WAY easier than my usual zone defense Monday-Friday.

To tell you the truth I’m so nervous for Monday! Including the weekends he’s been off for 9 whole days!!!! Even though we didn’t go on a fancy vacation, it has been amazing.  We went to the park (even in the freezing cold), the zoo, the science center, and even had a few PJ days (my personal favorite).

An added bonus was that Brother decided this week that he hated taking naps. So, unfortunately we had a few days that he screamed his ever lovin’ brains out for an hour. If I were here without Zach I cannot promise that I would have let him cry…but with Zach I was strong, and yesterday our sweet baby boy slept for 3 hours straight for nap!!! Amazing.

So tomorrow to further increase my nervous nerves we’re heading back on the Weight Watcher train. It’s been a full month of debauchery, but it’s time to get back on the system. And, in case that wasn’t enough we’re going hard core on the Dave Ramsey Financial Freedom plan.

I’ll be writing more this week about all of these fun things:).

Hopefully I’ll still be in my right mind to write!!! Ha!

Have a happy Sunday!

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Family., Random., Zach., bitzy / Tag: bitzy, brother, Family., love, staycation, stories, Zach. / Add Comment  Email This Post

If you have been following my little blog for awhile you know that every so often I get all sudsy and clean on my own personal soap box. It’s not often that I get my feathers ruffled, but for the past week or two, everyday there have been little comments, facebook posts, or conversations with people that have culminated in me becoming very frustrated.

Ya see, I’m gonna need to complain a little.

About what, you ask?

Well that would be about People Complaining.

Ah, complaining.

We call it many things, “getting something off our chest,” or ” being authentic”, or as we said in 1993, “Getting Real.”

To me, it’s called, COMPLAINING.

Now don’t get me wrong. I know that life is hard. Really hard. Disturbingly hard sometimes.

I know that each day isn’t easy and filled with bubbles and big bowls of Milk Duds (what I would do for a Milk Dud right now). I know that. And I know that sometimes offhanded comments are made about physical aches and pains or how the baby was up all night and you’re tired or about how the house is a wreck or about how your husband forgot your anniversary or how your baby boy refuses to take a nap and screams endlessly (oh wait, that would be MY child).

I get it.

I really do.

What I don’t get?

The constant, negative, need to complain.

I know that we all want to be heard…to be acknowledged. But is complaining really the best way?

I don’t know if I’m just attracted in some weird way to stories of heartache and tragedy, but I feel like I’m constantly hearing stories that sting my eyes with tears.  A story about parents losing their three precious children in a car accident. One about a baby boy being born with a congenial heart defect that lived only 5 short years before going home to the Lord. A story about a 5 month old baby inside his mommies tummy who died as his mommies kidneys and heart began failing due to the stress the pregnancy had on her body. And my least favorite (and the one that produced the most tears) a story about an innocent couple that were carjacked, kidnapped and subsequently tortured and murdered. No reason, nope none at all. Just the wrong place at the wrong time.

All this said, it makes my napping woes seem a bit less serious, no?

It’s this little thing I like to call perspective.

So many people say, “it can’t get worse” about simple things like disciplining their toddler or their car breaking down. And then, I hear stories, these horrible stories, and remember that oh yes, yes, it can.

In an instant, a heartbeat, everything, and I mean everything, could get worse. Like, way worse.

So friends, today, I encourage you to bite your tongue when you begin to complain. Remember that somewhere in this great big beautiful world someones daddy is dying, a child is starving, a terminal diagnosis has been made, someone’s heart is breaking and that in an instant your problems could become much, much worse.

So today, try to enjoy your life. Regardless of the hand you’ve been dealt. No matter how bad you think you’ve got it, remember, it could always be worse.

And if you’re feeling really, really up for a challenge stop focusing on all the awful stuff, and remember how amazingly blessed you are. Because, you are ya know, you really are.

What will you do today to celebrate how blessed you are?  Let’s chat about it!  Do tell!

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Family., Positivity, Random. / Tag: Happy, love, perspective, Positive / 1 comment  Email This Post

I’m a little late to the party on the whole 2012 thing.

What a surprise, I know.

You see, Zach is on “staycation” this week, which is honestly the greatest, greatest, greatest thing ever. Why must he work I ask? Why can’t we just live on love? Why can’t be heirs to a bazillion dollar inheritance?

Questions for the ages I tell ya.

That said, things like writing a little story have been far from my mind. I’ve been too busy playing peek-a-boo and tea party. Which in my opinion are activities far more important than writing.

Does that hurt your feelings? Don’t take it personally.

So now that I’m officially four days overdue in writing the obligatory New Years Resolutions blog post, I figure that I’ll just skip it. I mean, clearly I want to lose weight (who doesn’t?), pray more, love harder, be better. Of course. But, resolutions just seem so, how you say, cliche.

Last year at this time I wrote this post. While we haven’t written a children’s book (yet!), we have successfully accomplished all of our other goals which makes my heart happy.

Some highlights from 2011:

We birthed the worlds most precious son. He is truly a blessing straight from the hand of God. To say that we are in love with him doesn’t do our deep love justice. He is truly amazing.

Our Bitzy has grown and changed so much in the last year. She is incredible. Last year at this time she was grunting and pointing, now she is singing songs and counting to 25. She’s simply a miracle.

In the past year our house payment has doubled and our income has been cut in half, yet we have still managed to not go into debt. This to me is a major accomplishment.

I have begun what I like to call, “The Great Coupon Adventure” and I love it. It’s saved us a bundle and it’s very, very, very fun.

But more than anything, I am grateful that in 2011 God taught me so much about who He is. About what a loving Father He is, how much He loves us all and how available He is to us. I am so amazed that I get to be His daughter.

So friends, as we begin the journey into 2012 I wish you all good health, happiness, and more than anything, love. Sweet precious love.

Thank you all for helping make 2011 amazing. Here’s to making 2012 even better!

Love to all,

Category: Family., Random., Zach. / Tag: bitzy, brother, Family., Friends, new years / Add Comment  Email This Post

In my mind, everything is a Hallmark moment.

So, obviously everything is set in candlelight. Apparently, in my mind it’s always dark outside, hence the candles.

Also? There are children laughing and tiny feet pit pattering all over the house. There are no naps in my mind and memories.

And there is always, and I mean always, pie. Any kind will do. Just pie. P-I-E.

While my life is beautiful and fabulous and I would not trade it for a zillion trillion bazillion bucks, it’s not always picture perfect. And sadly, there are hardly ever pies.

In fact, it’s more like a circus around here than anything. A wonderful and entertaining circus, but still yet, a circus.

There are tantrums and tears, messy meals and lots of screaming. Mainly the happy sort of screaming, but still, a scream is a scream. And when you multiply the happy screams with the sad screams with the hurt screams with the idon’tknowwhyiamsadijustam screams, that’s a whole lotta screaming.

I do it love though. Every single bit of it. It may not be perfect, but it’s perfect for me.

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Friends, New Baby, Random., Zach., bitzy / Tag: Family., memories, real life / Add Comment  Email This Post

Have I mentioned lately how much these two slay me? So freaking precious.

I’d like to introduce you to someone. He is a very special addition to our family these days.

His name is Leonard.

You see, he’s a magic elf.

He has randomly visited our house over past few weeks, dropping off gifts and promises of what’s to come on Christmas morning.

While we’ve never seen him, as he prefers to visit during bedtime/naptime hours, we love him and speak of him fondly.

In fact, every time a certain man in a brown uniform comes to the door Bitzy asks if the boxes are from Leonard. Sometimes they are, and sometimes they are whisked away quickly to Gammy’s room (AKA: Santa’s workshop).

Talking about Leonard and Santa Claus is pure old fashion fun. Bitzy and Brother are still too young (in my humble opinion) for Elf on the Shelf, plus, I’m not so into the naughty/nice part of Santa. I prefer the anticipation of Christmas, the gifts, and the spirit of fun and giving. With all of our talk of Leonard and Santa we’ve been talking much more about how it’s Jesus’ birthday! We’re having Him a party full with balloons, a birthday cake and candles. We’re talking about how the wise men brought presents and that’s why we do too. I’m not sure how much they are actually soaking in, but seeing as how my Bitzy is such a little sponge these days, I’m hoping she’s getting it all.

Since our babies are so young we’re going to celebrate Christmas morning tomorrow, so tonight is our Christmas Eve. I have Jesus’ birthday cake baked, as well as cookies for Santa. We picked out a big round onion for Rudolph to eat too!  All the presents are wrapped and (I think) we’re ready!

So tonight when daddy gets home we’ll decorate the cake, cookies and party it up for baby Jesus. After it’s all done we’ll get cuddled, read the Christmas story of how Jesus was born in a manager and then read The Night Before Christmas.

While all of this has been a lot of work, I’m so overwhelmed and grateful for the opportunity to begin creating traditions and memories for our little family. In fact, today as I was mopping I thought, “We are creating memories for our children that they will always remember and cherish. We are the memory makers.” Tears stung my eyes at this opportunity and responsibility.

More than Leonard or parties or cookies, I want our babies to remember being loved and wanted and wrapped in our arms as we treasured the gift of the baby Jesus.

On this Christmas Eve Eve, may you snuggle close with you family and friends and soak it all up, every single bit of it. Because friends, this life, this beautiful, wonderful, mysterious, fun life is indeed a gift.

Love to all,

Category: Family., Random., Zach., bitzy / Tag: birthday, Christmas, elf, Jesus, leonard / 1 comment  Email This Post

I love Christmas.

Like, a lot a lot.

Before I had babies, I really liked it. But, now? Oh, it’s just magical.

In the next few days, I’ll detail more about our Christmas adventures, including random visits from Leonard the Elf, our visit with Santa, and how we are trying to share the magic of Santa with the truth and beauty of Christ coming to Earth as a baby boy.

But for now, here is our Christmas house!!!! To say that I love it is an understatement.

I think it’s the twinkle lights…they get me every time.

Well, and this little reindeer. He’s a dreamboat.

Our Christmas dining room where we will host a family Christmas Eve breakfast.

“The Magic Stairs” as we call them these days.

Ah, the mantle. All my life I’ve dreamed of decorating a mantle for Christmas, and now I can. Have I mentioned how much I love our house, mantle and all? LOVE IT.

Tiny details like this throughout the house.

And our 9.5 foot tree…TA DA.

Bitzy and I sitting on the fireplace just snuggling. My babies are the best Christmas present ever.

And as Bitzy says about 100 times per days, “Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a good night!” Ha!

Love to all,

Category: Family., Moving, New Baby, Random., Zach. / Tag: Christmas, decorating, Home / 1 comment  Email This Post

Last night at “The Wal-Mart” (I feel like this blog is turning into only posts about “The Wal-Mart”, what can I say, they are my people), I happened upon a scene that was burned into my mind and I’ve thought/prayed/obsessed about it all day.

My beautiful Bitzy and Brother were tucked securely in bed at home with Daddy while I went couponing.

You see, when I go on my deal adventures I’m focused and quiet. I do not talk on the phone, or make new friends while shopping. I stick to my list and try to get out as soon as possible. Just because the deals are the best at “The Wal-Mart” doesn’t mean that I like it there.

So as I was searching in one of the aisles for a certain kind of coffee creamer, I see a man and woman (probably around 30ish) with a toddler in the cart, a teenage son and adolescent daughter coming toward me. Their clothes were dirty and they smelled like a stew of onions and trash. They were talking loudly and cursing. Then, the toddler began yelling “Out! Hungry! Out! Hungry! Out!”

For those of you with babies/toddlers, this is a common occurrence. These little angels do not like to be trapped into anything, much less in a big store where they dream of running and pulling every last thing off the shelves.

So the child says “Out! Hungry!” probably 10 times or so and the Mama grabs the child’s arm and says, “You better shut up before I punch you in the damn face!”

At this point I’m right beside them. Tears were literally stinging my eyes when I turned around and looked directly at this scene. The toddler immediately stopped crying and put his tiny hands over his face in defeat. The rest of the family carried on like this happened all the time.

I couldn’t believe it. I was completely frozen.

I am so blessed to live in a happy world of imaginative play and happy dances. I live in a fun, kind, supportive environment. I would never, ever, ever in a billion zillion years dream of speaking to my babies that way. And growing up I was never treated that way. You see, I grew up in a happy house too. So call me sheltered if you will, but if the alternative is abusive and harsh, then I’m choosing sheltered all day long.

So in my frozen state I just stared. I couldn’t peel my eyes away from this scene. In fact, one may say that I was burning wholes through these folks. And now in hindsight I regret not speaking up. I should have gone straight to the child and told them that they are beautiful and wanted and loved by their Father in heaven. That they are valuable and cherished by Jesus.

I should have gone to the parents and told them that they only have a few short years to bathe their children in love and encouragement before they must go out in to the world. That they are the memory makers. They are the ones that could be and should be their children’s heroes. “Don’t waste it!” I should have said.

But I didn’t.

And now here I sit, thinking and praying for that child and wondering how many more hear those harsh words every day as I sit in my happy house.

Sometimes life just doesn’t seem very fair like that.

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Family., Random. / Tag: children, wal-mart / 6 comments  Email This Post

These, my friends, are my most favorite jeans in the land. Gap Long and Lean jeans. While I may be long, lean isn’t exactly a word I would use to describe myself. But alas, if Gap wants to call me lean, then they have my permission.

It’s possible that I *may* be a jeans hoarder. I admit it. I have fancy jeans and jeans that I bought on clearance for $3. I love them all in their own way. But these jeans? They are perfection. Especially after 2 or 3 wears, they are like buttah.

Although I have 4 different pairs of these jeans in different sizes and washes, these are my most favorite. They fit the best, I feel good (and skinny!) in them, and they are very comfortable.

Which is why, I may or may not have practically burst into tears when I discovered an innocent fray in the left knee of said jeans.

NONONONONONONONONONONONONO! Take any other pair of jeans! Please! Just not these! They are my forever favorites!

But alas, the fray has continued until a hole is coming any day now.

When I showed Zach he tells me that holey jeans are “cool and hip.” “Maybe you should try still wearing them”, he says.

Clearly, he doesn’t know me. This is evidence.

I may be many things- but hip, I am not.

I am not cool enough to wear holey jeans. I’m just not.

As if that isn’t bad enough, this morning I put on my favorite, favorite, favorite yoga pants (not that I’ve actually done yoga in 2 years mind you), and there is a hole in them too!!!!!

Oh the cruelty!!!!

So here I am left to wallow in my holey clothes.

Holes hurt my feelings.

Do you have any favorite clothes that are unwearable now? Do you share in my agony?

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Family., Random. / Tag: clothes, jeans, Zach. / 10 comments  Email This Post

Classic Bitzy.

Me: “Hey! I have an idea. Let’s go downstairs and eat bacon and read books!”

Bitzy: “UMMM…MAMA, DO ME A FAVOR AND MAKE ME SOME OF PIGLETS HAYCORN COOKIES FIRST. AND MILK AND BOOKS. OKAY MAMA? RIGHT MAMA?”

Me: “Sure thing! I just made you some, here they are.” (we are playing pretend you see. In fact, we’re playing pretend about 95% of the time).

Bitzy: OH MAMA. THEY ARE DELCIOUS MOMMY DARLING. YOU GOOD BAKER COCO. MAMA IS YOU NAME COCO MOMMY?”

Runs in the other room laughing.

Me: “Yes! My name is CoCo for sure. Mommy CoCo needs you to come downstairs and eat bacon. I know that baby CoCo is hungry, right?”

Bitzy: “MINE NAME IS NOT COCO. IT’S PRINCESS DARLING DARLING. RIGHT MAMA?”

Me: “Okay Princess Darling Darling, would you like to eat some royal bacon?”

Bear in mind that I am pushing bacon harder than the meth addict at the Wal-Mart because…

A. Bacon is awesome.

B. Brother is fussy and ready for a nap. In order to feed him and give him said nap, I need for a certain 2 year old to be still for about 6 minutes downstairs while I get Brother to sleep upstairs.

C. She is starving even though she doesn’t know it. A sure fire way of knowing that she’s hungry is her incessant begging for milk. She’s ALWAYS been a milk addict, but when she’s hungry it goes from “I WANT MILK!” to “I WANT MILK MAMA, MILK, MILK, MILKY, MILK!” And if she’s really starving it goes, “I WANT BRUDDERS MILKY MILK. I WANT HIS CAKE.” You see, she insists that “Brudders milk” tastes like cake. Granted, she has barely eaten cake in her short life, but really? My milk tastes like cake? Maybe I should market my magic cake milk.

And I digress. Back to the story.

Me: “Listen baby, we really need to go downstairs because Brother is fussy and Mama needs to put him down for a nap.”

Bitzy: “NO WAY MAMA. MY BABY IS NO SLEEPY. HE IS HAPPY BOY! HE MY BABY BOY, BABY BOY, BABY BOY. BRUDDER AND SISSY ARE BEST BUDDIES. MAMA! I WANT MILK. MILKY MILKY. PWEASE MOMMY, I NEED MILKY. BRUDDERS MILK. NOW MOMMY PWEASE!”

Me: “Baby, let’s have a happy day, not a sad day, OK? Don’t make me put you in time out. I’m going to ask you one more time to go downstairs OK. Do you understand?”

Bitzy: “SURE MAMA. BABY COCO DARLING DARLING LOVES BACON AND BABY SOOOOOO MUCH. AND CINDERELLA TOO. WES BEST BUDDIES.”

Me: “Great! Let’s go Darling Darling.”

Bitzy: “NO NO NO NO NO NO! MINE NAME IS SISTER BEAR, NOT DARLING DARLING. YOU SILLY MAMA.”

Clearly, my method isn’t working. I try a different approach.

Me: “Oh Bitzy! I think that Santa may have left a very special prize for you last night. Let’s go downstairs and get it!’

Bitzy: “OH SANTA! I LOVE HIM. HE IS SOOOOO NICE! HE GOT RUDOLOP AND ELF TOO. HE IS SO SWEET MAMA! OKAY LET’S GO MAMA!”

Me: “Great idea! Let’s go!”

Meanwhile I scan the room for a toy, book, crayon, ANYTHING that she hasn’t played with for awhile and may have forgotten about, but I got nothing.

So we get downstairs (finally) and she says, “OKAY! WHAT MY PRIZE MAMA?”

Me: “Guess what?! Santa brought you a baby brother! Sweet Santa! He brought you the best Christmas prize ever!”

Bitzy: “YOU SNEAKY MAMA. YOU TRICKED ME AGAIN! HOW ‘BOUT BACON TIME?!”

Clearly, this ain’t our first rodeo.

Love to all,

Category: Crazycakes, Family., New Baby, Random., bitzy / Tag: bitzy, brother, Day in the life / 3 comments  Email This Post

Get ready folks, I’ve been obsessing. And you know what happens when I obsess.

I start fussing.

I would like to think that I’m not a “fusser.” I don’t fuss at Zach much and even with Bitzy I tend to be gentle in my approach to discipline. We do not raise our voice in this family in anger, it’s just not how we function. I think that all of us would fall in a heap on the floor from heartbreak if someone spoke angrily.

But friends, I’m ready to raise my voice all over the world wide web because I’m extremely disappointed.

(Which is way worse than angry).

Remember the head shake that your daddy gave you when you screwed up in high school. That head shake was worse than any spanking I was ever given.

In fact, that head shake was one of the many reasons why I made it out of the mountains drug and alcohol free with a college degree. Heaven forbid that I disappoint my family.

And now, I’m majorly shaking my head all over the place.

So, here we go. Hold on tight.

The other morning I was innocently checking the news (people.com) when I read that Michelle Duggar of TLC’S 19 Kids and Counting had suffered a miscarriage.

And right then and there, my heart broke.

Babies shouldn’t die. Not in the womb or otherwise. It’s unspeakably heart wrenching.

And then, just as if it happened yesterday, I remembered the day I found out that the baby in my womb was gone.

And I sobbed.

I cried for me, for the Duggar family, for my girlfriends who have lost a baby and for all the other mommy’s out there who daily remember the babies they lost.

Because friends, losing a baby is painful. Both emotionally and physically. It’s something you never fully recover from.

And through tears my eyes glanced at a few comments on the article.

“I hope she learned her lesson.”

“What does she expect after having so many children?”

“Maybe God is trying to tell her something.”

“She deserves to lose a baby. The Earth is overpopulated, she is selfish.”

“Enough is Enough.”

I honestly couldn’t believe my eyes.

Was this some kind of joke? Were these people serious?

I was/am HORRIFIED that so many people are rejoicing in the pain of this family.

Why in the world do you care how many children they have? How exactly does it effect you?

I’ll tell you how- it doesn’t.

The Duggar family is living debt free, they are home educating, they are raising Godly children who are adding joy to this great big world. Why exactly does that make so many people mad?

Again, I am completely stumped at why the response to a fellow mother/human being/sister in Christ losing her baby is to accuse her, as if she has done something wrong.

As if, her losing the baby has somehow validated your stance in which they have too many children.

Is that what it takes to “prove your point?” A baby dying?

Well congratulations.

Michelle Duggar’s heart is broken and now you feel like you’ve been righted, like you won a prize or something.

Shame on you.

Shame on every single one of you.

Get off your high horse and feel something other than arrogance.

For instance, try putting yourself in her place.

Most of you probably have at least one child, nieces or nephews, cousins, a neighbors child, hopefully you have a child somewhere in your world. Now think about how sad you would be if that child were no longer with us. And now think about Michelle Duggar losing her sweet baby.

And feel sad.

Lose the validation.

Lose the vanity.

Lose the attitude.

And feel sorry.

Not just for the baby that is lost, but for being so insensitive and downright rude.

And then take a swig of compassion and empathy.

Love (and a long, hard headshake) to all,

Category: Random. / Tags: no tag / 24 comments  Email This Post

My girl? She’s pure joy.

My boy? He’s a bundle of amazing love.

And me & Zach? We are thrilled, blessed, amazed, humbled, and overjoyed at the absolute gift of being their mama and daddy.

Pictures courtesy of Lee-Ann Fenwick Photography

It’s overwhelming really. The intense exhaustion, emotion, daily responsibility of dressing, feeding, playing, and mostly loving these tiny humans…I will admit, it’s a lot of work. But, more than anything it’s amazing. Completely amazing watching them grow each day.

No place else I’d rather be.

Love to all,

Category: Random. / Tags: no tag / 1 comment  Email This Post

Here is a snapshot into the most wonderful theatrical production of the day (so far):

Stage Right: Bitzy runs into the kitchen with a pink toboggan on her head, topped with a tiara, pushing LuLu the doll (from the LadyBug Girl book series) in her pink baby stroller.

Bitzy: MAMA, MAMA, THE WUF (wolf) IS HERE. HE GONNA GET ME. STAINGER DANGER WUF! GO AWAY! HELP MAMA! HELP!!!!

Mama: Yeah, go away Wolf! Mama will save you!!!!

Bitzy: OH MAMA! YOU SAVED ME. I WUV YOU THIIIIISSSSSS MUCH. WAIT. DO ME A FAVOR? WAIT ONE MINUTE WHILE I GO CHECK ON MY BABY. SHE’S CRYING IN MY SUITCASE.

Mama: Oh, of course. I think I’ll have a tea party while I wait.

Bitzy: A TEA PARTY? WIT ME? HOW ‘BOUT SOME CUP-CUPS? WANT SOME PINK OR CHOCOLATE?

Mama: Hmmm…how about chocolate? It’s my favorite.

Bitzy: NO MAMA! ELLOW (yellow) IS YOUR FAVORITE, NOT CHOCOLATE! REMEMBER MAMA? RIGHT MAMA?

Mama: Oh, I’m so sorry! You’re right. How about a yellow cupcake?

Bitzy: SORRY MAMA. GOLDYLOCKS JUST ATE IT ALLLLLL UP. IT WAS ‘LICIOUSY (delicious).

Mama: That’s OK. I think I’ll have a banana instead.

Bitzy: SORRY MAMA. THE MONKEYS ARE HERE AND THEY NEED BANANAS FOR THEIR FULL TUMMYS. OOOOHHHHH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH. MONKEYS ARE SO FUNNY.

Mama: Monkeys are funny. Are they your favorite animal?

Bitzy: NO WAY MAMA! ELEPHANTS ARE MY FAVORITE. THEY HAVE BIG NOSES. AND THEY ARE PINK! MY FAVORITE COLOR!

Mama: Oh, Elephants are pink? I didn’t even know.

Bitzy: YES THEY ARE. FANCY NANCY IS HERE. CAN YOU GET HER SOME GRAPITY GRAPE JUICE PLEASE MAMA. SHE THIRSTY.

Mama: Sure thing Fancy Nancy. Does she want a cupcake?

Bitzy: FANCY NANCY IS BYE BYE. DORFEY (Dorothy) ELMO’S FISHY IS HERE. SHE IS HUNGRY FOR APPLES.

Mama: OK, sure thing Dorothy. An apple is coming right up!

Bitzy: MAMA, I GOTTA GO CHECK ON MY BABY. I BE RIGHT BACK. IT’LL JUST BE ONE MORE MINUTE. BE PATIENT MAMA. I COMIN’ RIGHT BACK.

Mama: OK, sounds great. I’ll be patient.

Bitzy: OH NO! THE WUF IS BACK. HE IS MY STAINGER DANGER. HELP MAMA, HELP!

Mama: Oh baby, I’ll save you.

Bitzy: OH MAMA. YOUS MY BEST FRIEND ALWAYS. YOU ALWAYS SAVE ME MAMA?

Mama: Yes baby, Mama will always be your best friend and protect you always and forever.

Or as long as she’ll let me anyway…

Love to all,

Category: Random. / Tags: no tag / 4 comments  Email This Post

It’s in the way he looks me in the eye when I talk. Like, really looks at me. He listens to what I say like it matters. Like there is no place he’d rather be than sitting still listening to me.

It’s in the way that his feet curl up next to mine at night and we both drift off to sleep.

It’s in the way that he gazes at me in the mornings before he leaves for work as I nurse our son and tells me that we are the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen.

It’s in the way that he unloads the dishwasher for me some days before work, even though he’s running late.

It’s in the way that he disciplines Bitzy when she tells me “no” and gently teaches her to always respect her Mama.

It’s in the way that he always brags on me and our babies in public, like we’re the apple of his eye.

It’s in the way that he prays with me and asks God to help me teach our children to love Him with their whole heart.

It’s in the way that he makes me laugh until I run to the bathroom willing myself not to pee on myself.

It’s in the way that he works so hard for our family in order for me to stay at home with these beautiful babies every day.

It’s in the way he always says “thank you” for the lunches and dinners that I make him each day, telling me what a wonderful cook I am.

It’s in the way that he tells me how beautiful I am, even when I feel horrible about myself.

It’s in the way that he loves me. All of me. No matter what.

I pray that every girl on earth should feel as treasured by their husband as I do. I do not deserve such a wonderful man, but I am sure grateful.

“I am my beloved and my beloved is mine.”  Song of Solomon 6:3

Love to all,

Category: Random. / Tags: no tag / Add Comment  Email This Post

Well friends, in the quest to spend little and save as much as possible, all while building a stockpile, I am learning a lot. I am no where near an expert (quite the contrary), but I am learning more and more every week. What took me 3 hours 2 months ago, now takes me 1. To me, that’s progress.

A few weeks ago I wrote a few other blogs about saving money. Check those out too Save {part 1} and Save {part 2}…some of this will be repetitive, but hopefully it will all be helpful.

*No pictures in this post, I’m rushing to finish before naptime is over!

So many of you have asked about my process of couponing, what I buy, how I get the coupons, etc. So this week as I went through the steps of a weekly grocery list I wrote down what I did in order to best explain what I do and how I do it.

Let me reiterate again, I am NOT an expert. This is just my mangled, disorganized way of saving a freaking ton of money.

1. I have the Sunday paper delivered to my house. I get out the coupon inserts and clip, clip, clip. I do NOT clip everything. There are some things I do not want even if they’re free. Ha! Also, my sweet Mama sends me two sets of coupons each week from her papers in North Carolina. And, I also frequent Coupons.com to get online coupons.

2. Then, I throw away the entire paper except for the sales ads. Because, well, I’m more of a People.com person than a newspaper gal. Does that make me a bad person? Probably.

*Side Note* I exclusively shop at Wal-Mart because of the price matching + coupon policy. Remember this. If you play “the drugstore game” and get all the Extra Care Bucks/Register Rewards and such then good for you! I do not have the time nor the patience to play. So…I only go to one store, once a week. Also, note that my particular Wal-Mart price matches the final price of the drugstore (I understand that some stores do not do this). For example, if a razor is normally $9.97 at Wal-Mart and it’s on sale at CVS for $7.99 and when purchased you earn $2.00 in Extra Care Bucks, that means at CVS and at Wal-Mart your final price is $5.99. With a $5.00 off coupon (which I had), my final cost on a $10 razor was $.99. Not bad at all. Does that make sense?

Also, note that our Kroger here only doubles coupons up to $.50. If they doubled up to $1, I would most likely go to Kroger too for their deals. They DO NOT price match though, remember that. Typically, I save anywhere from $100-$150 per week on price matching alone, then other $50-$100 with coupons. So, the major savings is with the price matching.

3. Then, I scan all the sales papers. In my region the main stores that have competitive prices are CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Mejier and Kroger.  Almost always, Wal-Mart has the cheapest price for regularly priced items in health/beauty and food (let’s face it, I’m not exactly shopping for electronics). So in the rare event that I cannot find something on sale or a coupon, Wal-Mart is the cheapest option. Now, as I’m scanning the sales papers I’m mostly interested in the killer deals. I am personally trying to not only buy groceries for weekly meals, but for our growing stockpile as well. So, I’ve got my eyes peeled for the cheapest food/products I can find. I only stockpile what I can get for free or very close to free (which is shockingly quite a bit).

As I said in an earlier post, I do not meal plan and then go shopping. I cook our meals based on the weekly deals and/or my stockpile.

4. That said, as I’m scanning I think of what we really need. Are there any essentials that have to be purchased this week? For us, it was dog food, so sale or no sale, coupon or no coupon, our doggies had to have food.

5. The more that I shop and save the more I crave spending as little as possible. So, one item that I would have liked to get, not an essential, but a want, would be Kraft Singles. I am a sucker for cheese and crackers and my Bitzy is too. So this week they’re on sale for $2.50 at Kroger. That’s quite a bit less than Wal-Marts $2.98 price. However, about a month ago I got them for $1 apiece in a 10 for 10 mega event that Kroger had. So, clearly I cannot pay more than $1 apiece. Again, you have to figure out what needs you have verses what you want. This will really help you plan your attack. I want the Kraft singles, however I’m not willing to pay $2.50 for them. They can wait. There isn’t a right or wrong way, you just have to figure out YOUR way.

6. As I scan the ads I write down all the items that are great deals, then I write down the sales price and what store the deal is from.

7. After my list is complete, I go through my coupons to match them with the sales items. If there are items that I do not have a coupon for (there always are) I go online and find one. Almost always I can find at least one. If you go to the company’s website they will often have a coupon tab or you can try Facebook. If you “like” their page a lot of companies will give you a coupon. Also, many of the awesome coupon blogs out there have a “Coupon Database” (iheartthemart, southernsavers, krazycouponlady) and you can type in what coupon you need and they’ll tell you if there is one. It’s pretty amazing.

*Side note* With online coupons you can only print 2 coupons per computer, FYI.

8. Now that you have your list and coupons in order make a final list. Organize by section in the store (Healthy/Beauty, Food, etc). Then, go back and match each coupon with your item to make sure that you’re all set. Make a column on your list giving you YOUR final price. This way, at checkout, you’ll know if a coupon didn’t go through based on the final number.

9. If you find a free and/or great deal on something that you will use and you want to stockpile it, consider buying extra coupons on Ebay or a coupon clipping service. I was able to get 50 boxes of Finish dishwashing tablets for $8.50 last week thanks to the $2.00 I spent on Ebay to get more Finish coupons. Now I have a 3 year supply of Finish tablets. They are normally $3.98 and I paid $.17 per box.

*Side note* Before we moved to this house I would never have been able to stockpile due to lack of storage. Now I have plenty of room to build a good stockpile, if you don’t, it’s fine, only buy what you need and enjoy the savings! If you do have the space consider building a stockpile for things that you regularly use, like say, dishwashing tablets (which I use every single day).

10. After I’ve gone through my list and matched with coupons, then I go back through my coupon binder to see if there are any coupons that are expiring soon that I would like to use. If so, pull those coupons and go back through the ads to see if those items are on sale. If so, add them to your list!

*Side Note* While there are generally not coupons for produce and meat you can get great deals on meat that is discounted because it’s expiring soon (I buy and stick in the freezer). Also, you can price match the meat prices per pound. A few weeks ago, a store in town (I can’t remember which one) had Butterball ground turkey on sale for $.99 per pound. Wal-Marts price was $3.98 per pound. When I went to get the turkey there was a coupon attached to the package for $1 off. Making it FREE. So I got 10 pounds of Ground Turkey for FREE. Then, last week KMart had Butterball Turkey Bacon on sale for $1.00 apiece (normally $2.98 at Wal-Mart), I had several $.55 off coupons making them $.45 each. Also, I have found that Mejier and Aldi almost always has the best prices on produce. A few weeks ago Aldi advertised their whole pineapples for $.99 and Wal-Marts price was $4.99 apiece (who in their right mind pays $5 for a pineapple?). So, the deals are out there, you just have to look for them!

11. Once you get to the store, DO NOT STRAY FROM YOUR LIST. If you see something you want, remember it and look for the coupon later.

12. Lastly, hand your coupons to the cashier individually. I know this is somewhat psychotic but I have found that it proves to be worth it. A few weeks ago a $3 coupon didn’t scan and I didn’t realize it ’til later, after I had already lost the receipt:(. So, from then on I vowed to hand each coupon to the cashier to make sure that it scans.

Now, to give you some REAL examples, here are some samples items from my shopping trip last night.

20 Smart Ones- Normally $2.98: Kroger had them on sale for $2.00 apiece with a “if you by 10 you get $4 off” deal. So, if you buy 20, you get $8 off. Right? So, that’s a total of $32. Then, I found 2 $4 off if you buy 10. So, now I have price matched 20 Smart Ones for $32, with $8 in coupons, making my total $24. Then, when I got to the store there was coupons on the product for $3 off when you buy 10 (so I was able to use 2 of them). So, I ended up getting 20 Smart Ones for $18. My price without coupons or price matching would have been $59.60.

2 Scrubbing Bubbles One Step Cleaner Refill- Normally $3.98: CVS had them on sale this week for $2.50 apiece. I had a Buy One Get One Free coupon make them $1.25 apiece.

2 Visine Dry Eye Drops- Normally $3.45 apiece: Walmart.com has a Visine coupon for $3 off (I printed off 2). I paid $.45 each.

5 pounds of Honeycrisp Apples- Normally $1.97 per pound: Mejier had them on sale this week for $.99 per pound. So, I saved 50% on apples.

6 Boxes of Uncle Bens Whole Wheat Rice- Normally $2.88 apiece: On sale this week for $.99 (I forget where), I had 3 buy 2 save $1 coupon making my final price: $.49 per box.

Is this helpful? Do you see that you can eat well and still save money?

I truly hope that you have found this to be helpful. I am having a blast saving money and I sure hope that you will give it a shot…it’s so worth it.

Love to all,

Category: Confessions., Crazycakes, Random., food / Tag: coupons, Family., money, save / 7 comments  Email This Post