Counting Down the Days

... until my parents are moved back to town.

 ... until our 4 year wedding anniversary.

 ... until my mother-in-law's visit.

 ... until we find out if we're having a boy or girl in October.

{Q. What do you think we're going to have?}

 ... until Father's Day.

{Q. What are you looking forward to?}

Fru-gal-i-ty

"Frugal" was not a word that I paid much attention to when I learned it in middle school.  It's not one of those appealing sounding sort of words... to me at least.  But having been a stay-at-home mom for almost 2 years now, discovering the benefits that come from the lifestyle defined by that word, has definitely piqued my interest as of late.  I'm just beginning to navigate this world of frugal living and it's already paid off!

I've been looking forward to sharing with you my wealth of knowledge on the different ways to save money, but for this post I'm going to focus on the discoveries I've made on how simply being a mom pays off!

1. {amazon.com/mom} A couple months ago I noticed a 20% OFF Diapers coupon in an issue of Parents magazine from amazon.com.  Gregg and I had been talking about trying to find some way to save on diapers like looking online to see if we could buy them in bulk.  Well, I came across this coupon, went online and ended up joining Amazon Mom.  I saw a notice that said I'd save even more if I signed up for Subscribe and Save.  After reading the terms and conditions, I decided to do it.  When I went to check out on my order of diapers, I was surprised by how much I saved!  Joining Amazon Mom plus signing up for Subscribe and Save in combination with my coupon took the original price of a 140 count box of size 4 Huggies diapers from $41.69 to $16.79 and shipping and handling was free!  I picked the option of receiving a box of diapers once a month through Subscribe and Save and when I got an email notification letting me know when my next box of diapers was going to be shipped, I was given the option to move the date further back since we didn't need more diapers quite yet.  I still got the Subscribe and Save discount and without the special coupon, I pay $21.45 with free shipping and handling, saving me about $10-$20.

2. {enjoytheriderewards.com} I don't know how long it took me to notice the yellow "Enjoy the Ride Rewards" sticker on each package of Huggies diapers, but when I did, I started peeling them off and collecting them.  I finally went online today to see what the codes do.  Just for registering on the site I got 10 points.  Each code I entered earned me either 7, 9, 13 or 34 points.  Every time you enter a code, you're asked to enter in the name of the retailer you bought the diapers from.  I knew the most recent ones were from amazon.com and I remembered that a friend bought us a pack from Costco.  In my effort to be honest, I tried to remember where we first started buying our diapers before I discovered Amazon Mom, so I guessed Vons and was surprised when I received double bonus points through a Safeway Mother's Day Promotion good until May 31, 2011!  So through 8 codes plus registration, I earned myself 171 points.  You can spend your points on sweepstakes, their online rewards catalog or even donate them towards their Every Little Bottom charity.  There are also several ways to earn extra points on their site (i.e. watching videos, taking polls, etc.).   

3. {shutterfly.com} I've been using Shutterfly to make my photo books ever since I received a free 10 page photo book promotion through buying my wedding dress at David's Bridal.  I only had to pay for shipping and handling!  So a book that costs about $30 I got for about $5.  Well recently, to my surprise, I received an email notifying me that I could get 50 free 4x6 prints from them for Mother's Day if I ordered them by 11:00 pm on May 9, 2011!  So that's what I did and I only had to pay $3.08 for shipping and handling.  Now I can make my grandma the mini photo album of recent pictures of Leala I've been wanting to give her.  They offer great deals all throughout the year and if you sign up as a Shutterfly member on their website, you get 50 free 4x6 prints.

You veteran moms out there, feel free to share any money saving tips you have discovered!  And you young moms, if you've discovered ways to find affordable maternity apparel, that would be a great tip as well!  In fact, if I get enough feedback, I may combine your tips and mine in a post all its own!  =) 

Project Thankful

 {photo found here}

Today I visited my friend's blog to see if she had posted anything recently and really appreciated the thoughts she shared in this post.  I have been feeling blessed a lot lately!  I even told Gregg this evening that I feel like a spoiled child with the things God keeps giving me and our family!  Just today I was thinking about the story of Job in the Bible and how much God had blessed him and I remembered what Satan told God:
 

"You have always put a wall of protection around him and his home and his property. You have made him prosper in everything he does. Look how rich he is!  But reach out and take away everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face!"

I thought to myself, "What if God takes away all my possessions?  Would my attitude towards Him change?  Would I stop praising Him?  Would I get mad at Him?"  Unfortunately, looking back at my track record, I would probably defame God's character... until the trial passed and I could see a little more clearly.

It's bothered me lately too that when asked what I'm thankful for I'm always listing the things I possess.  Would I still be thankful if those things got taken away (my husband, children, health, safety, etc.)?  What if my foundation for feeling blessed and being thankful were built on God's character alone?

I'll never forget this one teaching from one of our pastors at our church!  He asked if we loved God for the things He gave us, or if we loved the Giver Himself?  Boy, did that cut to the heart!  I am often guilty of loving God for the good things He gives me rather than just for who He is.

I think assigning myself "Project Thankful" is in order so the next time I'm tested in this area, I will have a strong foundation to stand on, built on the Giver and not on the things given.

Little Treasures [First Edition]

Yesterday I felt like the character, Lauren, in Robin Jones Gunn's book Echoes, excited about the little treasures I found at a rummage sale.  Unfortunately I didn't get to take home a little kitten (chapter 12).  How-ev-er, I did score 2 books plus a cool toy camera for Leala and 1 book for me!

I'm always on the look out for story books containing moral lessons to help me creatively teach Leala character building truths as she grows.  Though she's not reading yet, I see building her book collection little by little now as a wise investment into her future.

The Carrot Seed was the first book I loved!  The illustrations and story are very simple, but I think the lesson is so big!  I think this book teaches a valuable lesson about having faith like a child, especially when faced with those who are critical.  It also reminded me of this story Amber Hutchins shared recently on her blog about her own daughter's experience with planting seeds.

I think most of us are familiar with the Beatrix Potter's classic Peter Rabbit story.  I am more fond of the classic illustrations I remember from my childhood that Beatrix Potter created herself, but the story is still the same.  I liked that the book description on the back cover said the story was a lesson on obedience [wink].

I found a book for myself as well titled Wild at Heart.  It was a recommendation actually by a guy from the Young Adult's Group Gregg and I are a part of at church after sharing with him that I felt it would be a good idea to read some books on raising boys if that's what I ended up having in October.  He said Wild at Heart would be a great book to read to help me in my goal to raise a boy to be a man.  I shared my find with someone else at the rummage sale and after explaining why I was getting the book they replied, "Oh, so you're having a boy?"  [laughs] My mind has been so set on our baby being a boy that I forgot that I hadn't actually found out for sure what we're having!  We find that out June 7th.  [smile]

Before leaving, I thought visiting the children's books one more time would be a good idea since I noticed one of the volunteers still putting them out on the table.  On my way over, a toy camera caught my eye.  Now investing in my daughter's moral character through story books is one thing.  But if I brought a toy camera home too, would my husband agree that it was a necessary purchase?  Well, I came to the conclusion that investing in my daughter's creativity was important too.  Besides, Leala loves getting her hands on my digital camera.  Maybe she'd grow up to enjoy taking pictures too.  Not only that, but awhile ago I saw an ad for a toy digital camera and I made a mental note that that would be a cool toy to get Leala when she was older.  There wasn't a price tag on the camera, but my total purchase came to $3.50, so yeah, I scored a deal there!  The only thing was, I was buying the camera on faith, not knowing if it actually worked.  I sure hoped it did!

When I got home, I scrounged for the couple of AAA batteries I saw the camera took.  I tried turning it on, but it didn't work.  I checked out the camera a bit more to figure out how it functioned and discovered that it actually took a total of 4 batteries.  So I went scrounging around the house for 2 more.  I tried turning the camera on again, but nothing.  But I couldn't give up quite yet... and sure enough, it turned on!  There were about 200 "free" photos already on there from the previous owner, but the camera could take up to 1,000 and there was a handy dandy delete button.  Once Leala noticed what I had, she took interest in it and loved it!  It was so cute I had to take pictures!

Q.  What are some of your favorite children's books? 

Q.  Do you have any parenting books that really helped you out?

We've Moved!

Not only have we moved locations, from a 1 bedroom apartment on one end of town to a 2 bedroom at the other end, but my blog has moved too!  I've been working on this blog's design and pages for about a month now and decided that today was the day for it to go public!  It's still a work in progress, so check back for new stuff.

Xanga has been my blogging home for awhile and was the way I was keeping in touch with some online friends, but now with the brilliant invention of social networks like Facebook, I have other ways to stay connected.  I have more customizing freedom on Blogger, it has so many more cool features, and most of all, no involuntary ads!  Oh, and anyone can post comments!  You don't have to have a Blogger account to leave your thoughts.  How great is that?!

One of the cool features are the pages I'm able to create, totally separate from my blog entries!  I just posted the story of how Gregg and I met on "The Fields Family" page and will be working on Leala's story.  I think I'll even give the baby-in-the-making a spot on our family page.

I'm excited about the endless possibilities this blog holds and hope you will be blessed when you stop on by for a visit!