So, Olivia has been sleeping around 10 hrs a night for several weeks and it has been wonderful. I was beginning to recooperate from the early weeks of getting only 2 to 4 hours of sleep a night....life was starting to look really good! This week; however, "something is rotten in the state of Denmark"! Three of the past six nights Olivia has woken up somewhere between 3:30 and 5:15 am. Sleep, where art thou??
I'm not sure what is going on - maybe teething, maybe growth spurt, maybe developmental milestone coming or maybe just hungry....who knows?! Whatever it is I hope it passes soon because I am tired. Mark is also tired. In fact this morning he called me to tell me Olivia's care provider was not answering her door and in fact it looked like she had moved. It didn't take long before we realized he was at the wrong apartment building! Sleep deprivation at its finest!
October 07, 2010
October 05, 2010
20% off Diapers @ Amazon Coupon is back!
Just got word that the November issue of Parents magazine contains the coveted 20% off Diapers Coupon which if you read my I want to be an Amazon Mom Blog post know that it can be stacked with the Amazon Mom Subscribe and Save Discount of 30% making for slick Diaper savings just in time for Thanksgiving and Christmas as the coupon doesn't expire until December 31, 2010. This time look for the Bright Green Card.
I am hoping that they will have the same in the November Parenting Magazine too with a different starting Letter in the coupon code so that then will stack for ultimate Diaper savings. Remember now you must join Amazon.com/mom to get the 30% S&S savings.
I am hoping that they will have the same in the November Parenting Magazine too with a different starting Letter in the coupon code so that then will stack for ultimate Diaper savings. Remember now you must join Amazon.com/mom to get the 30% S&S savings.
Fire Insurance or Fire Assurance
Hot Topic literally.....
A City Fire Department in Obion County Tennessee let an Obion County Resident's home burn to the ground because he chose not take advantage of the City's Fire Insurance program in advance of his fire. The City offered a Fire Protection Service to County Residents by means of a small annual fee of $75 to those who normally would not have been afforded protection by the City Fire Department. Much to the dismay of some including the family who lost their home, the City chose to abide by their rules of the service and didn't respond to a non participating Obion County resident's repeated 911 requests for help with a fire on his property. They eventually responded only when neighbor called to report the fire had now spread onto his own field the City Fire Department responded only to protect the neighbor's property since he had participated in the plan and paid his fee to the City.
This situation helps remind me of another important type of "Fire Insurance" and makes me sad to think of how many people knowingly and unknowingly choose not accept a "Fire Insurance" of a different nature rather "Fire Assurance" really, that is afforded to us by God and offered by his Son's Jesus death on the Cross. The amazing thing really is that the only fee for this act of Service to us, for which we ultimately are not deserving, is acceptance. This also reminds me of the need to persist and spread the news of this gift of "Fire Assurance" until all have heard and all have been made welcome.
John 3:16 NIV
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
A City Fire Department in Obion County Tennessee let an Obion County Resident's home burn to the ground because he chose not take advantage of the City's Fire Insurance program in advance of his fire. The City offered a Fire Protection Service to County Residents by means of a small annual fee of $75 to those who normally would not have been afforded protection by the City Fire Department. Much to the dismay of some including the family who lost their home, the City chose to abide by their rules of the service and didn't respond to a non participating Obion County resident's repeated 911 requests for help with a fire on his property. They eventually responded only when neighbor called to report the fire had now spread onto his own field the City Fire Department responded only to protect the neighbor's property since he had participated in the plan and paid his fee to the City.
This situation helps remind me of another important type of "Fire Insurance" and makes me sad to think of how many people knowingly and unknowingly choose not accept a "Fire Insurance" of a different nature rather "Fire Assurance" really, that is afforded to us by God and offered by his Son's Jesus death on the Cross. The amazing thing really is that the only fee for this act of Service to us, for which we ultimately are not deserving, is acceptance. This also reminds me of the need to persist and spread the news of this gift of "Fire Assurance" until all have heard and all have been made welcome.
John 3:16 NIV
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
Amazon Gift Card Savings
If you happen to have an Amazon Chase Visa Rewards Card now is a great time to stock up on Amazon gift cards for Christmas or even if you plan on making a purchase on Amazon yourself in the near future. This is because when you use your Amazon Rewards Visa card to purchase $50 or more in Amazon gift cards from Amazon.com during the month of October you will receive a 5% gift card bonus credited to your Amazon.com account in November. This is in addition to the usual 3 points reward for using your Amazon Visa Reward card to make an an Amazon.com purchase. That is like getting 8% off after rewards points and gift card bonus at Amazon.com which is very nice indeed. They have capped the max bonus at $100 per Visa Rewards card but that just means you would have to buy more than $2000 worth of gift cards before reaching the limit of the rewards available. That is a lot of gift cards which will only be an issue for folks trying to buy really big ticket items like a new 3D LED TV or prepaying for your entire year of purchases on Amazon.com or if you have a really long Christmas Gift List. I really do not have this problem but still I like the additional savings on the small amount of purchases I am going to make from Amazon.com anyways so it works out nice for me too.
Check it out for yourself if here for the full details https://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000579861
Also, remember if your planning on buying those discounted diapers I mentioned in an earlier blog post by becoming an Amazon.com Mom you may want to buy a gift card first with your Amazon.com Rewards Visa and then use the gift card to pay for the diapers to get the most savings.
One word of caution. I do not recommend ever using a credit card to obtain a deal unless you already have the money in hand to pay the card off when the bill comes at the end of the month and can also afford to spend the money without harming your family finances. It is simply not worth saving 5% only end up paying the credit card company 19% interest on that purchase down the road. ALWAYS USE YOUR CREDIT CARD RESPONSIBLY.
I know we will be giving out a lot more gift cards this year to thanks to this deal on Amazon.com. I think I might be becoming an Amazon.com addict. I will have to find some deals not on Amazon.com in the near future.
Check it out for yourself if here for the full details https://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000579861
Also, remember if your planning on buying those discounted diapers I mentioned in an earlier blog post by becoming an Amazon.com Mom you may want to buy a gift card first with your Amazon.com Rewards Visa and then use the gift card to pay for the diapers to get the most savings.
One word of caution. I do not recommend ever using a credit card to obtain a deal unless you already have the money in hand to pay the card off when the bill comes at the end of the month and can also afford to spend the money without harming your family finances. It is simply not worth saving 5% only end up paying the credit card company 19% interest on that purchase down the road. ALWAYS USE YOUR CREDIT CARD RESPONSIBLY.
I know we will be giving out a lot more gift cards this year to thanks to this deal on Amazon.com. I think I might be becoming an Amazon.com addict. I will have to find some deals not on Amazon.com in the near future.
Good Morning!
Morning is quickly becoming my favorite time of day simply because it seems to be Olivia's favorite time of day. She is such a good night sleeper that she is just a little ball of smiles and giggles when she wakes up. It is hands down the most precious thing I have ever had the privilege of seeing.
This morning was no exception. All smiles and giggles. But then I noticed something... Olivia was soaking wet. I mean drenched. The whole back of her pajamas, the "waterproof" pad under her, the crib sheet....and I don't mean just a wet spot! And there she was, still, all smiles and giggles. What a sweet little girl we have. I'm so thankful.
Psalm 95:1-3 KJV
O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
October 04, 2010
Baby deals
I have never been much of a shopper. That is a bit strange for a female but God knew I'd be paired with Mark later on and wisely made me the way I am!
With that being said, at times my husband's all-consuming quest for deals does wear off on me and I can get a little crazy with the credit card. That happened yesterday at Walmart - those baby jeans with hearts on the butt were too cute to pass by! I just knew Olivia would want them in her current and next size, plus the matching jacket...and those little pant sets on clearance, and some new teethers (she really wants those).....you get the idea!
Back to deals though - I got a few good ones recently that I'm proud to tell you about. Olivia is 3 months old and I still have not sent out birth announcements. Seriously, who has time for such things with a newborn? Anyway, I had decided not to bother but then I saw that Kodak Gallery was offering 20 free baby announcements and Shutterfly was offering 10 free 5x7 matte cards. So, I designed up two announcments lickety split! I'm hoping to get them mailed out this week to coincide with Olivia's baby dedication on October 10th.
And then, as if the announcements were not good enough, Snapfish was offering at free 5x7 photobook. I had been wanting to make a book for my pregnancy that Olivia could enjoy looking at when she is older. It took me 3 days of working on it here and there when I had time but I just got an email that it is on it's way and let me tell you, it is CUTE! I cannot wait til it arrives!
So, for all three of these I only had to pay shipping so it was probably $10 or less total and I am getting 30 birth announcements and a photobook - woo hoo for deals!
With that being said, at times my husband's all-consuming quest for deals does wear off on me and I can get a little crazy with the credit card. That happened yesterday at Walmart - those baby jeans with hearts on the butt were too cute to pass by! I just knew Olivia would want them in her current and next size, plus the matching jacket...and those little pant sets on clearance, and some new teethers (she really wants those).....you get the idea!
Back to deals though - I got a few good ones recently that I'm proud to tell you about. Olivia is 3 months old and I still have not sent out birth announcements. Seriously, who has time for such things with a newborn? Anyway, I had decided not to bother but then I saw that Kodak Gallery was offering 20 free baby announcements and Shutterfly was offering 10 free 5x7 matte cards. So, I designed up two announcments lickety split! I'm hoping to get them mailed out this week to coincide with Olivia's baby dedication on October 10th.
And then, as if the announcements were not good enough, Snapfish was offering at free 5x7 photobook. I had been wanting to make a book for my pregnancy that Olivia could enjoy looking at when she is older. It took me 3 days of working on it here and there when I had time but I just got an email that it is on it's way and let me tell you, it is CUTE! I cannot wait til it arrives!
So, for all three of these I only had to pay shipping so it was probably $10 or less total and I am getting 30 birth announcements and a photobook - woo hoo for deals!
October 01, 2010
My Wife's Hair Coloring
OK so I am blessed with a low maintenance wife so much so that when we got married and started looking at our our expenses she agreed to forgo getting her hair colored at a salon as she had been accustomed and to color her hair herself at home with a purchased kit. So I have been informed that when she buys a $15 hair coloring kit that includes both color and highlights and she doesn't have time to do the highlights I am not to begrudge the extra expense for the unused highlights. This is because when compared to the cost of getting it done at a Salon the extra cost for the highlights is negligible and this kit is the only one that has the color she likes and also doesn't cause a dermatological allergic reaction.
Needless to say though for me, being the bargain hound that I am, I thought there had to be a better way. So I recently began looking at a way to save money on the coloring she uses, especially since half the kit didn't get used most of the time. Through my searching on the Internet I discovered that there was a market place seller on Amazon.com called American Beauty that just so happened to sell the exact same hair coloring kit Shannon uses L'Oreal Couleur Experte Easy 2-in-1 Color + Highlights 5.1 Truffle Medium Ash Brown and for the low low price of $4.99 plus shipping. All the other hair color shades made in that brand and style were full price so I guess it was meant to be that were were to save on this particular product. The seller had 8 boxes so I pounced and purchased all 8 to help spread the cost of shipping out. The final cost for each kit shipped was $6.18 saving us more than half the retail price for this kit. So now my wife and I have found a happy medium addressing my concerns about the extra cost of the unused highlights and her needs for coloring for at least the next year.
Now we just have to decide where are going to put all these hair coloring kits. Fortunately this is a smaller item but sometimes the cost savings of buying an item in bulk doesn't logically benefit a person when compared to the cost of storage space in your home. Yet I find myself still buying Toilet Paper and Paper Towels in bulk out of fear never letting the supply dwindle as if running out of such things would upset the balance of the universe.
Needless to say though for me, being the bargain hound that I am, I thought there had to be a better way. So I recently began looking at a way to save money on the coloring she uses, especially since half the kit didn't get used most of the time. Through my searching on the Internet I discovered that there was a market place seller on Amazon.com called American Beauty that just so happened to sell the exact same hair coloring kit Shannon uses L'Oreal Couleur Experte Easy 2-in-1 Color + Highlights 5.1 Truffle Medium Ash Brown and for the low low price of $4.99 plus shipping. All the other hair color shades made in that brand and style were full price so I guess it was meant to be that were were to save on this particular product. The seller had 8 boxes so I pounced and purchased all 8 to help spread the cost of shipping out. The final cost for each kit shipped was $6.18 saving us more than half the retail price for this kit. So now my wife and I have found a happy medium addressing my concerns about the extra cost of the unused highlights and her needs for coloring for at least the next year.
Now we just have to decide where are going to put all these hair coloring kits. Fortunately this is a smaller item but sometimes the cost savings of buying an item in bulk doesn't logically benefit a person when compared to the cost of storage space in your home. Yet I find myself still buying Toilet Paper and Paper Towels in bulk out of fear never letting the supply dwindle as if running out of such things would upset the balance of the universe.
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