Diaper Duty

Everyone who knows me knows that I love little ones. On most Sundays, I am typically found mauling a baby or toddler at church. I have recently even signed up for nursery duty once a month. Might as well!

There are even times when I take a child or two home with me to enjoy for the afternoon, between services. They bring me great joy. Usually I'm pretty wiped out, but its fun.

Tonight, I will be taking a little baby girl home with me to keep overnight. Her name is Miley and she is just about 10 months old or so. I had told her mother recently that if there was a time here and there when she needed help with her girls, to let me know.

I haven't kept a baby overnight in.....well never. Except my own. So that would be 11 years ago that I had a baby that age. Alec will be twelve in less than two months.

And most people who know me also know that I LOVE to sleep. Naps are a favorite as well as sleeping in on Saturdays.

But it's okay. Change things up a bit for my old self.

When going over the baby's schedule and such the other night she told me, "Oh, and she does sleep all night."

I said, "Good! Because so do I!"

And you can read all about it in my next post.

****

Happy first day of spring everyone.

Blessings & Curses

While a song played in my head this morning, it made me think of the blessings and "curses" that I've received lately.

I was blessed at the grocery store again, by receiving that spectacular $8 coupon from my Dad. FORTY dollars is the total that I have saved in the past 5 weeks, just from him getting those and giving them to me! If you don't know what I'm talking about, see my posts "Show Me The Money" and "Coupons 102".

I was cursed when one of my teeth lost a very big filling and I had to visit the dentist for repair. I do not like going to the dentist. The smell, taste and sounds. Too much ick.

I was blessed when I took little Abraham by the hand Sunday morning and took him down to children's church. What a sweetheart he is.

I was blessed when an online friend of mine told me how uplifting it is to view my profile on FB. She has suffered heartache from the loss of her beautiful thirteen year old daughter almost three years ago. See my post "Remembering Allison". I am certainly no one special, just trying my best to serve the Lord and acknowledge Him in all my ways.

I was blessed when I decided, very spontaneously, to visit an aunt and uncle that I haven't seen in awhile last weekend. They are truly remarkable.

I was cursed, like most of us in this half of the world, when we lost an hour due to daylight savings time. Add to that two very sleepless nights and ugh, not fun.

I was blessed when I bought some Nyquil, took a dose and slept like a baby after those two sleepless nights. Ahhhhh.

I was blessed last Friday when I took off for the afternoon with Alec and walked around downtown Lapeer while he rode his bike. What a gorgeous day it was. And I love spending that one on one time with any of my children.

I was cursed when I woke up last week with that so-not-so-special kink in my shoulder/neck area.

I was blessed to look up from my desk at work last week and see Krista pulling into the parking lot. She had surprised me with a visit along with bringing me my favorite Tim Horton's coffee.

I was blessed when Rachel and I spent the whole day together on Saturday. Craft show, visiting family and going to the movies. Super fun. Just the two of us while John, Matt and Alec went to Autorama.

I was blessed at church when a message was delivered about family and had impacted so many of us. I was able to go and pray with my kids.

I was then cursed while I was lovingly trying to pray for them and they were complaining of being tired and jerking their backs in discomfort. They had spent all day at church for practice with the youth and were turning into whiney three year olds.

I was blessed when I visited a woman's blog and read through her beautiful posts. She in turn visited mine and posted a lovely comment, along with posting a link back to my post about "Always Waiting" on her blog. Someone who is also passionate about the Lord = instant kinship.

I was blessed when Mason and Micah saw me at church, started jumping up and down together and began shouting to me, "I want to go to your house!" Of course Micah then says, "I want a treat!" He knows that I carry treats in my purse for him. The bribery has worked. He loves me.

I was blessed to remember that Hope and I share a "birthday". The day she was born quiet and the day I was born again, both on March 2nd. Her, three years ago and for me, it was six years ago. March 2, 2003 I had hope born into my life. Three years later Kristie named her precious angel Hope.

And I will end on that beautiful note.

Always Waiting

A sign that I really like a song: When I play it over and over. This is the latest song for me that I love listening to.

I have always been like that though. Even in the days of "Blondie" or "Fleetwood Mac" or "Mariah Carey"....and on and on. Listen loudly and repeatedly. Sometimes I wake up with a song playing in my head. This morning it was "Born to Be Alive", it was a one hit wonder back in 1979. Loved it. Road my bike listening to it on my small portable radio.

But the music that I listen to today and have listened to in the past six years has meaning, substance.

This song, by John Waller titled "While I'm Waiting" says so much about how we live. Mostly, how we are to live.

We are always waiting for something. Even before I came to Christ I was always waiting in expectation for something.

As a young girl, waiting for the tooth fairy to give me money under my pillow, for Christmas morning, for the end of the day at school so that I could go home.

As a teen, waiting for that special someone to call, for my time to finally get my driver's license, get a job and graduate high school.

As a young woman, to get married (okay, a really young woman there), have a home to call our own and of course, babies.

And on and on.

Still, I live waiting.

More often it includes the Lord now. Waiting for Him to show me something. Waiting for Him to do a work in my life and the lives of others around me.

Waiting on Him. Waiting for Him. That Blessed Hope.

I love the words of this song.

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience
While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait

I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve you while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting on You, Lord


If you haven't seen the movie "Fireproof" yet, watch this clip. What an amazing movie about marriage. They used this song.

Turn up your speakers!

Coupons 102

To gain a better understanding of (and to keep me hyped up about my coupon/sale savings), I searched for some older sales receipts from Meijer to compare them to the last two trips.

I was very excited last night after my shopping trip. Not only did I have coupons, but Meijer also had their 10 items for $10 and get the 11th item free (I took advantage and got 33 items) AND if you used your Meijer card, you saved 15% off general merchandise. I knew it could mean big savings.

Since the newspapers from last weekend did not have any coupons due to the "holiday", I had to dig into my still very meager supply of coupons. Not for long though ~ I am due to receive 400 coupons in the mail here sometime within the week. I bid on them on ebay. Wa-hoo! I paid $10 for all of them and plan on saving a bundle.

Anyhow. Armed with a serious list of this week's menu, sale items and coupons, I headed out.

When my shopping was near the end, I felt like a hit the jackpot. Two tall stands full of reduced produce came into sight. Strawberries, blueberries, red peppers and mushrooms, even dog bones, all marked anywhere from .23 to $1.29.

Then. Then! My Dad goes through the checkout and GUESS what he got? Go ahead, guess.

You got it, another $8.00 coupon to be redeemed when you spent over $105, and he practically jumped for joy as he handed it to me. That was a large part of our conversation on the way home. Two weeks in a row? Sa-weet.

So all this to say, I am really starting to get a good handle on the "savings today" section at the top of my sales receipt. I gathered a few old receipts to compare. This is what I found:

9/22/08

Total Meijer Promotions 13.14
Total Non-Coupon Savings 17.02
Total Coupon Savings 9.25
Savings Total 39.41

10/07/08

Total Non-Coupon Savings 25.94
Total Coupon Savings 5.10
Savings Total 31.04

12/15/08

Total Meijer Promotions 1.59
Total Non-Coupon Savings 27.11
Total Coupon Savings 8.50
Savings Total 37.20

**You can see the pattern, not much in coupons**

Now here is where it gets fun.

2/09/09

Total Meijer Promotions 8.00 (my coupon from my Dad)
Total Non-Coupon Savings 48.84
Total Coupons Savings 37.13
Savings Total 88.97

2/16/09

Total Meijer Promotions 21.13
Total Non-Coupon Savings 61.37
Total Coupons Savings 27.45
Savings Total 109.95

Now THAT is exciting.

If I could only be as excited about my treadmill, which is hollering for me as we speak.

Crow Happy

You know you are getting older when:

Most all of your kids are the same height or taller than yourself,

The music of your youth is now being labeled as "oldies" or "flashbacks" on VH1,

You either need a nap to get you through the day or you are ready for bed at 9:30 p.m.,
(wait, haven't I been that way since I was like, 12?)

No matter how much makeup or hair color you use, you still look in the mirror and go, "wow, WHO is that?" and not in a good way,

You are old enough to be the latest teen idol's mother,

And lastly, when your youngest son looks at you and out of nowhere says, "Mom, you have crow's feet!" as he stares at your face.

Lovely. As if I didn't already know that. Thanks Alec.

On the up side and just by coincidence, I was reading tidbits in my new magazine I had just picked up at the store and this small article was titled "Why Crow's Feet Make Us Smile." I read on with interest...

It said that research reported that crow's feet on a woman's face are a sign of happiness. In the study, 20 people were shown an image of a young woman's face - first, unmodified; then, with crow's feet digitally added. Then they were asked to rate her happiness. The results: When crow's feet were present, viewers perceived the woman as nearly twice as happy. "Fine lines in the corners of the eyes indicate a broader, more natural smile," so says the female M.D., "People associate this type of smile with greater happiness."

Okay, so I'm really happy!

Show Me The Money!

We are always looking for ways to save money. Especially in today's tough economic times.

A week ago, we were invited to go have dinner with a couple from church at their home. As we were talking over our scrumptious chicken stir fry, the men talked about men stuff while the woman and I spoke about women stuff. Our discussion somehow lead to grocery savings.

She asked, "do you clip coupons?" I admitted that I do, but don't find that I save a ton by using them.

She went on the explain how much she saves, how much she gets for free and so on.

As Arthur (on the King of Queens, of course) once said to Doug after Doug presented him with his whole water-filter-pyramid-scheme, "This is me leaning in with interest", I too leaned in closer, not missing a word. That and I'm half deaf.

She tells me about a website where you can purchase coupons for a few cents each. She continues telling me about how she purchases Sunday newspapers and goes over all the sale circulars that come out weekly. Meijer, Kroger, even CVS and Rite Aid. By matching up the coupons with all that is on sale, including buy one get one free, there is much to be saved.

Seems like a no brainer. I certainly knew about the whole going to different stores because of their sale items could equal big savings. I just didn't want to take the time to go from one store to another. I'm comfortable with doing my "one-stop shopping, one night a week".

Well, since then, I've spent a lot of time researching different websites that offer a ton of information on this. I'm going to give it a few months and see if it in fact makes a difference.

If you are interested in checking into this yourself, here are a few websites that I have found along with the one that she directed me to:

www.thecouponclippers.com
www.hotcouponworld.com
www.couponmom.com
www.thegrocerygame.com

Here's to big savings!

***

Tonight, I matched up a ton of coupons with the sale ad, mainly at Meijer. I got so many items for practically nothing and several for free! I saved FORTY-FIVE dollars. In coupons. Before, on a typical shopping trip, I might save $3 - maybe $9.

Forty-five! That, was awesome.

I intend on handing a stack of coupons to the cashier each week.

Cha-Ching!

***

Oh, I can't forget to mention these very neat tidbits.

I hadn't shared with anyone of my new interest in coupon savings yet. Two days after that dinner, when I pick up my Dad for our weekly grocery excursion, he hands me a piece of paper with four different websites on how to save big with coupons, that he "just so happened to catch on the news" and had thought about me. (!)

Today, my Mom stops by at work and "just so happened" to have an abundance of coupons that she thought I could use. (!!)

Tonight, while at the check out, my Dad excitedly hands me a coupon that he had received after checking out. Its one of those printed from that little coupon do-hickie at the register. It said, "save $8 of your purchase of $105 or more". Well, he never spends that much and immediately knew that I could benefit from it. "Just so happens" that the computer generated it for him and I was behind him in line? (!!!)

Very. Cool.

Vacation For Three Please

Visions of summertime danced in my head.

I know, I'm just like the next person here in northern America. Sick of the cold. Tired of the snow. Sick of being cooped up in the house. Tired of wearing heavy coats. Sick of saying "brrrrrrr!". Tired of complaining about the weather.

February comes and we can't wait until May. I think we should just take February, March and April right off the calendar. Go from snow to 60's, 70's and a little of the 80 degree temps. I'd be cool with that.

So, here I was with my visions of summertime. Warm weather. Green grass. Sounds of the outdoors. I start looking online for a place to vacation. Like we used to. Sweet little cottage on a lake in Somewhere Up North, Michigan. I find a charming little place on a sandy beach in Tawas. One place we've never stayed. Perfect.

Then I start to wonder. Who will actually be going this year? In years past, of course, it was all six of us. What wonderful memories of those vacations. I'm not trying to be all Pollyanna, but it really was great times. Kids taking their bikes, swim suits and fishing poles. They could hardly wait to get to our destination to check out who is sleeping where and then scout out the surrounding area. It was one week away from everything, doing the simple things. No phones. No computers. Only us and the great outdoors. It was my job to read an entire novel and oh yeah, cook. While sitting in a lawn chair outside, I'd hear "Mom, look!", "Mom, watch me!". The kids loved every minute of it. John would take the kids out in the boat, fishing and swimming. Real. Good. Times. I looked so forward to it every year.

Last year we bumped things up a few notches and went to Key Largo. All six of us (well seven ~ Krista). Beautiful vacation. And I certainly hope not our last as a family.

But things are already looking different this summer. As I propose our vacation spot to the family at dinner the other night, I hear immediately, "I'm not going." That would be Mr. Matt. He's got a job and he ain't a missin' a week of the almighty dollar that could be earned. He is working on paying us back for the money he borrowed with his whole truck thing and he is anal about it. He wouldn't dream of paying less or even skipping a month to go with us. In my mind, I'm thinking, "oh, you're going!".

Rachel, due to a cranky mood disorder that struck her not long after I came in the door from work, quickly piped up, "I'm not going either".

And at that, Alec wide-eyed and excited says, "Well, looks like it will just be the three of us!".

The visions that must've run through that kid's head. You can just imagine.

This is all without Josh even knowing about it. He was at school. But I'm sure that I already know the answer. He gets a one week paid vacation and will most likely spend it on some bike trip that he is hoping to do with a friend, or whatever else.

Maybe he'll surprise me and say yes. Maybe.

But I cannot imagine going on vacation with one child. That, my friend, will not happen. Not yet and hopefully, not ever.