My New Hobby

I used to think of myself as a couponer. I would snip a coupon here and there and if I remembered to use it, hallelujah! I saved .40 cents. Little did I know of this secret sisterhood of women, who are truly couponers. They work at it, often clocking tons of man hours scouring their neighborhood stores for the hottest deals and bringing home bags of items at nearly no cost out of pocket to them. How do they do it and more importantly, how can I do the same? This is my new hobby. It consumes every bit of time that I have left to myself these days. I am a long away from becoming a couponing goddess, but I am learning every week from all the mistakes I make.

It started about 6 weeks ago. I got a newspaper subscription and started clipping away. Then I joined a coupon train, where I can get the coupons I need like for diapers or grocery items in exchange for coupons I don’t need like make-up or junk food items. Then I got a magazine subscription to the All You magazine for almost nothing and now I have access to even more coupons. And lastly, I stay very close to the internet and websites such as Hot Coupon World and Mommy Savers. There, I hear of all the best deals first hand. And for a newbie, I haven’t done too bad for myself.

The biggest strike against me is time. I never have enough time to get from store to store to get my deals. And when I do, I am rushing either because I’m with the kids and they are cranky or because I need to get home so that I can feed Maya or so that Esteban can get to work. And so every week, I throw together my spending scenario for the week. Careful planning is very important, but rarely do I have time to devote to this step. Then, I try to find or trade for the coupons I will need to make my deals even sweeter. I get to the store and instead of being prepared, I’ve forgotten my list, I’m fumbling through sales circulars, trying to find coupons, and finally shocked at the register because the I’m not paying what I had calculated spending. But every time I go, I learn something new and it takes time to become good at something so I don’t give up.

Today’s shopping excursion was yet another learning experience. I took Jayden with me and he was carrying on, yelling hello to anyone who passed by and flinging my circular all over the place. Yet I was still careful to remain focused. I was very careful to find all the advertised items I had planned on getting and sticking to the plan. I was careful to use all my coupons without forgetting any and I was careful to use my extra care bucks (ECBs), which are part of the store’s incentive program. And when I get to the register, surprise! I owe way more than I thought I would. How could that happen?

I ended up using up more ECBs than I wanted to. That was not the goal. The goals are to spend the least amount out of pocket as possible as well as to roll/grow the ECBs (basically free money given back to me by the store for my purchases). When I got home, I quickly tried to figure out how I went wrong and realized that my spreadsheet formulas (yes, you read this right) were incomplete. Even though I was unhappy with my trip, it wasn’t a total loss. I brought home a package of Zantac, two containers of Purex, four body washes, a toddler’s Dimetapp and two bottles of Robitussin. My subtotal before tax was $46.46. I used $12 worth of coupons and $4 worth of store coupons. My balance was $28.46. I used $25.49 in ECBs and my total cost out of pocket was $2.98. My out of pocket was great, but I spent $25.49 in ECBs and only earned back 16.99 in ECBs. So I’ve learned yet another lesson this week.

It is easy to become addicted to saving money and getting free items so I try hard to keep things fun, celebrate successes and not go overboard getting things I don’t need. I do have quite a stockpile, but they are all things I normally use and would normally pay full price for. It’s hard to know when you’re crossing the line when the line is different for everyone. I just ask that God bless me while I dabble in couponing. I don’t want to become that lady who just bought 37 razors or 98 bottles of shampoo. Ha-ha!

The Prince and Princess

Here's my little prince enjoying a beautiful Florida day. He wasn't a big fan of his kiddie pool when he first got it, but he loves it now. He got the water table for his birthday from his padrino and as you can see, he thinks it's another pool. He plays with it with water or without. Daddy is giving him a good hosing down and he was enjoying every minute of it!
Here's my little princess. As you can see, she's really growing and everyday she gets stronger and learns something new. She loves Jayden and is always delighted by his silly antics. It's almost impossible not to get a smile from her. My girlfriend, Limary, sent her this outfit from PR and she was just too cute in it.

God has been too kind to bless us with these two little rascals. I am so thankful to have them and am desperately trying to enjoy every little moment.

Toilet Paper

Jayden is a huge helper. He is always trying to help with one thing or another which almost always means extra work for me. He always helps fill up our basket with toilet paper in the spare bathroom. This morning, we were out in my bathroom and I showed Jayden the empty roll and asked him to bring mommy another one. He looked at me for a minute so I repeated my request and he took the empty roll and left. It took him several minutes to come back, but when he did, he was empty handed. Ok, I guess he didn’t get it.

A few minutes later, I went to the spare bathroom to get the roll of paper myself and I found evidence that he had understood what I had asked him to do, but decided to go about it a different way. Here’s what I found.
I guess he got tired of pulling on the roll and realized that it wasn’t coming with him to my bathroom and gave up. Good boy. I would have been really upset if he had unwound the entire roll! Ha-ha!

Night Time Fright!

It was long past bedtime, but I just can’t go to sleep knowing that Jayden is awake so I was in the office working on my latest hobby, couponing. Jayden heard me clicking away at the computer and flies out of his bed.

Jayden: Mommmmmy!

Mommy: Go to bed.

He doesn’t know that I’ve gotten up to peek in on him and I’m impressed. He’s actually going to bed as asked the first time. On the way to bed, he find his sandals and picks those up and takes them to bed with him. Great. Yet another thing I’ll have to remove later.
About 10 minutes later, I hear Jayden crying. I go running next door.

Mommy: What’s wrong?

Jayden: Ca-ca.

Mommy: Where’s the ca-ca.

Jayden gets up and comes over to the door and gives me a plastic thingy he’s holding so I take it and throw it away. He’s still upset though.

Jayden: Ca-ca.

Mommy: Jayden come here. (He comes over and I double check his diaper.) You are not ca-ca. Go to bed.

But he won’t go. He’s standing there with a weird look on his face. I climb over the baby gate and ask him where the ca-ca is. He’s been using ca-ca to describe anything undesirable. He looks to the dresser. I look and see nothing. He must have seen something. I get down on the floor and look under the dresser, but I see nothing except random toys.

Jayden: There is.

Mommy: Where?

I look and sure enough, there’s a large insect on the dresser. I quickly kill and discard said insect and then try to get him to get in bed. This turns out to be mission impossible. Almost every toy he owns is in his bed. And as if that were not enough, he’s got two pairs of shoes and socks in bed too. Lordy! Last night, it was the same. I went to tuck him and the light was on. His latest obsession is sleeping with the light & ceiling fan & the radio on. His bed was covered with toys and plushes and shoes and socks. There was barely any room for him to sleep. It took me a long time to take out all that stuff, including his entire collection of legos and musical instruments. What a little boy!

Today’s episode immediately took me back to the days were Jayden would cry and all I could tell was that he wasn’t hungry or in pain. Other than that, I would have to guess at what was wrong. It was so wonderful to be able to have him tell me in his own way that there was something in the room that had frightened him. I’m so happy his list of words is growing.

What Are The Kiddos Up To?

Maya had her 4 month check up today. My baby girl weighs 15 pounds and 1 ounce. I can’t believe she’s doubled her birth weight. Wow! She’s 25 ½ inches long and a wiggle worm. She is very active and moves around quite a bit. She got five vaccinations today. Ouch. She actually did so well. I gave her some Tylenol prior to the shots, but after she woke up from her afternoon nap, she was running a fever and super cranky. I gave her another dose of Tylenol and soothed her until she fell asleep and lay her in her swing. She’s teething and although I can’t see anything, I could swear I feel something in her little mouth. Even though she’s teething, she hasn’t made any attempts to chew on me while nursing, YET. Her nipple confusion is mostly gone, but there are times when she’s just not interested in nursing. She likes to watch TV and sometimes I find myself having to re-position myself so that she can still see so that she’ll stay latched on. If not, she’ll pop off every 30 seconds and turn towards the TV. Little Maya is already rolling over. When I put her on her belly for tummy time, she’ll roll right over onto her back. She’s so cute!

As for Jayden, potty training is on hold. We still talk about the potty and show him the potty and watch potty training videos but we’re not pressing the issue. I’m certain he’s ready because he always tells me when he has to go. And he wants to do EVERYTHING himself, without my help. I’ll give it another month and try again. Jayden wants more and more attention as the days go by, it seems. I find it harder and harder to get anything done. Now, if I try to sneak away to the kitchen or to the computer, he comes running to get me. “Sit, mommy!” he says as he pats the sofa. If that doesn’t work, he grabs his sippy and sits on my lap. He’s wasn’t feeling very well. He’s got a cough and a runny nose and is sneezing quite a bit. Unfortunately, this means it’s only a matter of time before I get it too. How awful. It’s so hard to take care of the kids on your own, especially when you’re not feeling well and they are feeling even worse.

What's Jayden Up To?

Staying home part time was one of the best things I could have done for me and for my family. I love being home with the kids and keeping house. I've even been doing a little bit of baking and I can't wait for the kids to be a little older so I can share kitchen & baking time with them. Here's a recent family shot.Being home more often has done wonders for my relationship with Jayden and I’m so happy for that. When Jayden wakes up in the morning, he comes running to our room and he used to ignore me and go straight to Daddy, but not anymore. Now, he smiles at me and comes over to my side of the bed. In the mornings when I get us ready for the babysitter, we always end up making some noise and Daddy wakes up to say good-bye but Jayden will have none of that. He makes sure to stick by my side so I won’t leave him behind. And when I do leave him home with Daddy, sometimes he follows me to the door and cries. I always spot his long sad face in the window, waving good-bye. It breaks my heart.

Jayden is growing and learning so much. He seems to be saying a new word every time I chat with him. It’s so great to be able to talk with him and to have him understand. It’s hard to keep it together when I tell Jayden to stop it and he responds with pop-it. He’s so darn cute. Jayden also mimics everything he sees us do. One day, I saw him take my slipper and hit the wall. I wondered why on earth he was doing it. Some time later, I grabbed a flip flop and squashed a bug on the wall. Eureka! Yesterday, we took a nap together and he even tucked his little hands under his chin, like mommy. It was so hard not to laugh.

We've had a potty chair in the bathroom for a while. About a week ago, he used it out of necessity and sheer luck. I’ve been trying to get him to use his potty ever since, but he boldly stated No! He would not use the potty and since that day he’s been true to his word. That doesn’t mean that Mommy has stopped hoping. When Jayden goes to bed and he’s desperate to get my attention, he says Mommy, ca-ca. Of course, I go get him and there’s usually nothing in his diaper. I then take him to the potty. He removes his pajama pants and diapers and sits down. A second later, he gets up and turns the ventilator on. A second after that, he closes the door. Yet another second after that, he gets tp. After about 5 minutes of this, I realize he is never going to go potty. He’s playing me. Back to bed he goes. Yesterday, I was trying to shower and he came to get me frantically calling out ca-ca, ca-ca. I fly out of the shower and take him to the potty only to find that he’s already gone. So much for taking a shower. He does love the Elmo Potty Time DVD. He watches it over and over again. Last night, I moved us all into my bedroom to settle down and signal that bedtime was nearing. He called out Elmo, Elmo, Elmo until I played the DVD. Now when he poops in his diaper, I always tell him he should tell mommy when he has to go poopy so he can use his potty like a big boy, like Elmo.

Here's my little man doing his favorite thing. Hanging out with the guys in the garage! He loves the ride on mower and most of his push toys are out there. Notice how red his cheeks are. He gets quite a work out when he goes outside. In fact, he came in with that black ring around his neck for the very first time. My baby is growing up!

Maya Turns Four Months Old!

Four Month Shot:

My baby girl has turned four months old. I don’t know where the time goes and I wonder how she’s gotten so big. The other day, I looked at her in her car seat and she was huge. How did that happen? Where have I been? I try to cling to every moment and yet time seems to slip right through my fingers. But I guess you can’t hold on to the moment forever so here we are. Four months old already. I’m so happy that I write about these special times so that when she’s Jayden’s age, I can go back and remember every last detail of her infancy.

To celebrate, I took Maya to get her ears pierced. Here she is crying hysterically after the deed was done.

Unfortunately, they did not get the holes right and I was mortified. I went back the next day and they attempted to fix the situation, but still got it wrong. I couldn’t blame the girl, because she was trying really hard and it’s difficult to come in and fix something that someone else loused up. I gave Maya a dose of Tylenol, just in case and pushed her around the store until she was sleeping. This made it easy to take a good look at Maya and mark the spot and finally on the second try, she got it pretty close. For getting her little ear poked three times, Maya was doing great. She flinched a little and barely cried.

And after all that, even now, I’m still worried about the holes not being even. It’s so hard to look at her and tell if they are or not because her cheeks are so chubby, you can barely see her ear lobes. Plus, her ear lobes are shaped a little differently. I tried so hard today to check and double check and triple check. I wish I would have had the sense to see that Maya was being fussy and call the whole thing off, but I was so anxious to have her ears pierced. I am tempted to take the earrings out and letting them heal and trying again in a few months, but I am going to wait until Maya’s four month check-up and see what Dr. Jill has to say.

The past month has been full of challenges and emotions. Maya has been struggling to nurse and suffering from nipple confusion. We’ve had our moments, but I’m still hanging in there and I’m happy to say that she is still nursing and my milk supply is still here. This weekend has been the best weekend yet, with very little struggle. Hurray! I have an order of bottles in and hope to receive them soon. They are supposed to help with nipple confusion because in order to get the milk out, she will have to use the same sucking action that she uses when she nurses. Let’s hope they help.

Maya is also showing signs of teething. She is drooling quite a bit and is moaning and gnawing at anything she can get her hands on. I broke out her teether and instinctively, she’s been grabbing it and trying to soothe herself with it. She’s doing a pretty good job of it. I tried to feel her gums and couldn’t find anything, but it could be another couple of months before one breaks through. We’ll see. Poor girl was really struggling tonight, but I rocked her and then I let her nurse even though she had already eaten and she was finally able to get to sleep.

Although she used to sleep at least 6 hours straight through the night, Maya stopped when I went back to work. I read that it sometimes happens when moms return to work. Maya seems to eat less in the daytime and nurses more in the evenings. With that said, she’s back to waking every three hours to nurse. Wow, this is so hard to do especially on days when I work. But I wouldn’t trade nursing for sleep. At least not yet!

Little Maya is very active and very vocal. She kicks around in her play yard and swings her arms at the toys hanging above. She can reach them and hold on to them.

I can see that she’s going to roll over soon. She already tries when I lay her on her belly. She loves Jayden and just stares at him and his shenanigans. She even shows interest in the TV. She is super alert and wants to see everything around her. She turns her head towards all sounds and boy does she spend a lot of time smiling. I’ve never seen anything like it. She’s always smiling or laughing. And boy does she squeal with delight! She’s always cooing about something. Nursing gets lonely at times ‘cause I have to shut off the TV or she’ll turn away from me to watch it. If I look at her, she pops off the nipple to smile or laugh. If Jayden is making a ruckus, she wants to see why. I say she’s just plain nosey!