Join me on a journey of being frugal

Money is bittersweet. It's great to have it, but when you are grown up and have bills to pay and a family to take care of, it's a pain to sit down and run through everything that needs to be paid off.

As you know, I stay at home while my husband works. This will soon change though. Come October or November, we will be renting a house with nothing included. Our current apartment has free water, maintenance, lawn care, and pool care. Why move when there are so many things included here? It's my sister's house for rent and our apartment is full of noisy college kids, not to mention we're upstairs.
Now add in my dental care. I have been to the dentist a total of two times in my life, the first time only being a couple years ago. My family was never able to afford insurance [instead alcohol was a higher priority for them] and by the time I was a teen and had a job there was no way I'd spend my money on my health. I had to have new clothes and pay for my car and time out with friends. It wasn't until my son came along and I felt my teeth getting worse. Finally I contacted my in-law's dentist and I had an appointment. Around $4700 is the price I have to pay for parent's and my own neglect. That includes X-Rays, Cleaning, two root canals and sixteen [!!] cavity fillings. I will also need all four wisdom teeth pulled but that's done by a specialist and a whole nother bill.

So how will we make it through this? We have a son, which is by far our biggest priority. Thankfully I still breastfeed or else I would be spending way too much money on formula. We also have two cats that need food, litter, and check-ups. In a couple months we will be in a house. It will be further from my husband's job and we only have one car. I can get a job but it would have to be part-time, close to my in-laws so they can watch my son and be done by 1PM so I can go get my nieces from school. Mind you, my in-laws are near my husband's job and my nieces are by my [future] home. After being with them, I will have to pick up my husband from work...Thus lots of driving and gas. But there is no way we can pay for my dental bill with one income. Between a rock and a hard place? Yes. Is most of the country suffering the same circumstance? Absolutely. But how will we get through it? That's what I'll write about. Enjoying life, having what you need and some of what you want while getting by paycheck to paycheck.

[photo credit: myself. Lately my iPhone is my go to source of photography even though I have a nice Nikon collecting dust. I swear I'll get to adding more pictures when my brain is on track again]

Whoa! Where have I been?

The photo of my son above shows pretty much how I've felt lately.
It has been a whirlwind of a few months. I hope to get back into blogging because I have so many things to discuss!

First off, I quit my job of 4 1/2 years the Friday before Easter. Since then my husband started a career in Accounting, after being a stay-at-home-husband-turned-daddy for over a year. It was a tough transition. I was so used to being around a lot of noise and constantly "on the go" and suddenly I stopped it to be home with my son. I am forever grateful I did, and my husband stepped up to take on a job. All the while he got his AA degree! It may not seem like much but I couldn't be happier for him.

My darling son is now a little over 5 months old. He has 5 teeth and 3 more poking through. How on Earth he has all these teeth baffles me. This had led to many screaming, restless nights. We'll see what the doctor says at his next check-up. We also estimated that our little man is about 20lbs., we already had to transition him to a new car seat. He now sits up and can roll around to his right. We're still working on rolling to the left. I caught him saying "Mama" on film and currently he's saying "Ba".

In financial news: I understand many families are struggling just to find a job, and I just up an left mine, where I was very secure. Now, we continue to live paycheck-to-paycheck but took away a job and added more months to our sons age, making money very tight. Where we can, we pinch our pennies. After much discussion, we chose to be a one car family and sold my car to a dealership. While it is nice only worrying about one car, my husband must depend on me to drop him off and pick him up from work. Luckily his parent's home is a short distance from his job so I am able to visit them after dropping him off.
I have also begun couponing. While, I am nowhere near the "extreme" seen on TV, I have Excel spreadsheets of my coupon inventory as well as a large coupon binder (My shop will soon carry these!). My mother-in-law and I are working on said binders.

I really hope to chronicle more of my adventures in being a SAHM [including breastfeeding, homemade baby items, meals, organizing tips), dealing my low-income finances, and trying to be the best wife I can be for the best husband.

Hipster Animals

Just stumbled upon this tumblr blog of 'hipster animals'. These drawings are too funny, and spot-on! Like their facebook page here and check out their online store!

Pinterest

I was recently introduced to Pinterest while reading through one of my most favorite blogs, Young House Love. If you have yet to check it out, it's AMAZING. You have to have your invite "accepted" before you can really do anything of your own but it doesn't take too long to be accepted. Until then you can check out other's pinboards. You can view my boards here. I'm still new at it and working between my son's naps. Love it though!

 

[Photo Credit: WallflowerStudio ]

Easter Weekend

How was your holiday weekend? Robby had a great first Easter. Friday was my last day of work and now I am a stay at home mom working on Amazon and Etsy. My husband starts at his new job today as an accountant. We are so excited!
On Saturday we took Robby to meet some dogs that were for adoption. We currently have two cats and our apartment only allows two animals but there is no harm in looking. My older sister on the other hand found a handsome dog named Otis.

Sunday marked another first for my son. He rolled over for the first time! My husband and I had him on his tummy when suddenly he rolled over! When I went to video tape him attempting again he cried. Fortunately my husband got a couple more on video later on. Here he is holding his head up super high. My baby is getting so big! [3 months already!]

Robby was a bit crabby on Easter and wanted to constantly be held. My husband decided to go out and grab a Kolcraft Wonderbug from WalMart. While it is super cute, my son is still a bit small for it.

For Easter dinner we went to my parent's and also had an Easter egg hunt!

 Enjoying his gifts from Mom Mom!

Easter Special

10% off today and tomorrow only at my Etsy shop. I do custom orders too :)
Use the code ORANGE10 at checkout.

Pay It Forward

Etsy.com has this lovely little thing where you "pay it forward". Here you can feature other sellers in a treasury. If they are also part of the "pay it forward" group, they must feature you in their treasury. While I have yet to sign up for this group [will tonight!] I will do my own pay it forward. I was recently featured in StellaPearl's blog. She makes some of the cutest hair accessories! Check out her etsy shop. Click on any of the images from her shop below for more information on that product:

Don't you just love her quirky mannequins? Remember prom is coming up soon as well as wedding season! And today if you purchase from her shop be sure to use the code: 3041BAB for 15% off!

My son's first laugh

For the past month my son has been talking...a lot. He will also giggle in his sleep but never actually did it while awake. Over the weekend I decided to sing a little excerpt from The Wiggle's song "Fruit Salad" here is what happened:

So glad both me and my husband were able to witness it! Hopefully we'll both be with him when he says his first word, takes his first step, and all those other firsts! 


sidenote: pay no mind to the mess around our little apartment. After returning to work our place has turned upside down BUT I put in my two-week notice on April 8 to spend some more time with my wonderful son before he grows up. I had seen Toy Story 3 for the first time last night and I'm so glad I made this decision. The part when Andy's mom stands in his room after it's cleared out made me cry...all over my son since he was asleep in my arms!

A Spring Giveaway

Christina over at Christina's Adventures is having a lovely spring giveaway. Also check out her etsy shop where I found this cute clipboard:

Weekend in review

It was a gorgeous weekend after having some wild storms down here in Florida.

-SATURDAY-

Lazy Saturday morning with my two handsome boys

Visiting the local nursery. Robby must be dreaming of mama...

Enjoying my afternoon picking out herbs for our mini garden

A family picture at my sister's house during my niece's 8th birthday party

Robby with his older cousin Tyler

Robby's first picture with Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop. Apparently my Mom was the only one ready for a picture.

Feeding my wild boy

Giggles for Pop-Pop

 -SUNDAY-

We visited my in-laws. My sister-in-law came to town. She is due May 15th with Robby's cousin Connor. Afterward we came home and rested since Robby thought 3am was time to get up last night. We also took the time to have Robby paint his first picture with his feet:

He wasn't too happy.

His first masterpiece!

He really enjoyed getting his feet washed off in the sink though. I swear he'll be a good swimmer. Before bath-time my husband, Robby and I laid on our bed and played "Hi my name is Joe!" Robby didn't join in until we started kicking our feet in there. I'm sure if anyone were to peek in our windows they would have thought we were crazy.

Nursing

This photo shows one of my most favorite things about nursing:

I love it when my son holds onto my top. His hands are so tiny, yet I can't believe how big they've gotten in 2 1/2 months. I swear there is nothing better than the bond that nursing gives. Sometimes it feels burdensome; going out in public, being on a schedule, stopping whatever I'm doing, I still wouldn't trade it for anything. He'll only be this small for a short amount of time and soon I'll be the uncool Mom, Daddy will be the fun one doing all the boy things (even though when he's hurt, emotional, or just plain lovey Mommy will be the one he wants to be around). So for now this is my time with him. Something he and I can bond together with before the next 9 1/2 months fly by and he's a big one year old.

Already sucking on his shirt (he wasn't in a onesie for once!) and pulling on his toy rings.

Girl Crush

The last few days that I have been home I have gotten pretty comfy with netflix while I nurse my son. I cannot help but watch any movie that comes up starring Audrey Tautou. She's gorgeous and an amazing actress. So far my favorite is "He Loves Me He Loves Me Not". I have also seen Amelie, Priceless, A Very Long Engagement and Happenstance. All of which are amazing movies. Surprisingly I have not seen The Davinci Code, which I think is her only movie in English.

Spring Break

This Spring break is a lot different from the last 4 I've had. The past Spring Breaks I actually worked [preschool teacher]. This year since I am only working part-time, I'm not needed at the school. Which is OK since I get to spend time with my handsome little man and my husband is able to buy inventory for his business. Over the weekend we took Robby to his first library, where we discovered how noisy his stroller is. Then we brought him to his first park while being happy/awake. Other times he had slept through the trip or cried. He got to see his first ducks:

It was a wonderfully bright weekend. We even got to accomplish some Spring cleaning. Monday started off the week with rain. Lots and lots of rain. This is nice for our mini garden but stinky when I want to take my son to the nursery. Our cilantro plant decided to tip over though and our cats are upset they can't play on the balcony.

And Robby's new trick this week: grasping and playing with his colored rings!

Hopefully I'll be able to get back into the blogging scene. Returning to work has slowed myself down a bit and when I return home I want to spend my time with the wonderful boys I missed all day.

Walks

My son loves being mobile. If he is awake, he has to be in motion some way, some how. I'm sure he'll have me chasing him when he's able to walk. Until then, he needs to be walked, bounced, vibrated, swung, rocked and taken for a walk. If not that, he loves laying naked and "talking" while laying on his changing pad. Today he was getting a bit fussy and, since I live in an apartment I had to grab the mail a few buildings down, I decided to take him for a little walk around the complex. Needless to say, he loved it so much that he snagged a little nap:

 Even though he's getting so big so quick [11 lbs already!] seeing his cone shaped head reminds me how tiny he still is. And as much as I hate living in the Florida heat, it's nice to take my son out in just his onesie instead of piling on the jackets!

One month?!

 

 I cannot believe a whole month [and two days] have passed since my son was born. Robby has completely changed my world and I wouldn't have it any other way. In the month he has been around he has already been to a wedding, celebrated 3 family member's birthday days, gone to many restaurants when Daddy and I are too tired to cook, and received tons of love from family and close friends. By two weeks old he reached one pound over birth weight and we have mastered the art of breastfeeding. His first smile while awake was February 8 and this was when he was laying butt-naked on his changing table...his favorite thing to do. His neck muscles are also developing so well. When he's being burped he loves to look around.

In the coming months I look forward to starting him on cloth diapers, watching him pull the cats tails, force me to chase after him [giving me a good workout], doing arts and crafts, and giving him a lot more kisses!

But for now I relish his chubby cheeks, his little hands on my chest when he nurses, his coos, and how adorable he is as he takes his naps in his farm chair.

A whole new world

I never could have imagined what being a new mom would be like. I've heard the stories, read the books, but nothing truly prepared me for parenthood. They say people don't change over night. That may be true...until you have a child. Going out is quite the adventure. In Robby's 3 weeks and one day he has made an hour long trip to and from Orlando, numerous restaurants, Target and Wal-Mart, and his grandparents and great-grandparents homes. Just about all of these trips have included changing diapers in the back seat of cars or public restrooms, and nursing in the backseat of cars, public restrooms and once while eating dinner out. Having a nursing cover is quite the blessing.
My husband, changing table, walls, floor and I have been peed on by quite a powerful stream and wet poo has made it's way sliding down the changing pad all over my son's back and also in a nice fresh batch of bath water. I've woken up to see my son's face next to a pile of spit-up. And let's not mention the evening time when we're trying to ready dinner and my son has a screaming fit where nothing works to soothe him [COLIC!].
My shirts have seen dryer days [breast milk let downs...] and my eyes have seen longer nights. Our family members have seen a nicer Marleena in the past as I now have become a crazy mother; sanitize your hands, don't don't his hands, don't kiss his face, if he's asleep stay away, you cannot carry him around in public, you cannot carry him if you've had alcohol, stay out of his face, if he's fussy/hungry hand him right back to mom. I know this new-mom phase will diminish but at 3 weeks old I can't stand the idea of anything happening to my precious baby [though I have clipped his finger while trying to clip his nails and my husband shot gripe water straight done his throat last night because the syringe is horrible.]

But at the end of the day it's all worth while. To see my son so calm as he nurses, and those moments that, while awake, he'll smile at me when I talk to him. He's the best thing that's ever happened to me.

Robby's Birth Story

These past 11 days have been a whirlwind. I am proud to say that I am the mommy of a gorgeous, healthy baby boy!

A few weeks ago my husband and I went to a local Chinese restaurant. While there I had gotten a fortune cookie. The fortune had said "The next full moon will bring an enchanting evening". The next full moon at the time would be January 19th. This was 4 days after my due date. January 15th came and went. I understood that most first time pregnancies take a bit longer, but I was anxious. I met with my OB on January 18 and set a date for January 21 to be induced. I was upset though because I wanted my son to pick his own birthday. On January 19th, the full moon was out and I had gone to bed around 10pm. At 11:22pm I woke up with a sharp cramp. This was unlike any other pregnancy cramp I had. These continued through the next few hours and I could not sleep. I practiced my Lamaze breathing, which was working. By 3:30am the contractions were closer together so we were off to the hospital. Walking while contracting was so painful, the easiest way for me to breath through them was while laying down. When I was checked, I was 4 cm dilated. The contractions continued to shorten in time in-between and grow in pain. My intentions were to go through my entire labor with no medication. By the time I hit 6cm I had already been in labor for 7 hours. At this point I could no longer handle the pain. My legs hurt so much and I couldn't focus on breathing. I then made the decision to get an anesthesiologist in. While prepping for the epidural, my husband stood in front of me with the nurse. He got extremely weak and had to sit down on the floor. Because he nearly fainted, he had to watch everything from behind me. I could not feel the needle but the medicine shot a quick pain down my back. I was then given a catheter. After being given the epidural I was able to relax. I still felt pressure and watched my contractions on the screen, but no pain. It was expected that I would have a morning baby but once I hit 9cm, my contractions slowed down and I was starting to fall asleep. This is when a low dose of pitocin was administered. At 11:45am (just over 12 hours of labor) I was finally at 10cm and began pushing. My OB was in the hospital but had 3 other patients who came after me that he was also checking on. In the delivery room when I first began pushing was my husband, nurse and myself. It was so relaxing and between contractions we were talking and joking. Around 12:15pm my OB came in. My husband had my [lifeless] left leg and my nurse had my right. For some reason I had absolutely NO sensation in my entire left leg but when need I was able to move both legs. I was able to feel my son's head and they said he has my hair. At 12:33 I had my last push and my BIG boy was born. 8lbs, 9ou and 22 inches!! I couldn't believe it and I see now why I had gotten so many stretch marks and I was nothing but belly. About 2 hours postpartum I was asked to get up and try to use the restroom. I felt like a newborn animal learning to walk. My left leg was extremely shaky. By the time I got to the toilet I got very dizzy and fainted against the wall. I was alone. A few moments later my nurse came in to see how I was doing where I had fainted again. I then needed a wheelchair, my husband was worried and I was forced to lay back down in bed. Another hour went by and this time I was capable of getting up and using the bathroom. I was then wheeled off the my birthing suite where I spent the next 48 hours.
Breastfeeding was a challenge in the beginning. My breasts were very sore and getting him latched was very difficult. After coming home, my mother-in-law spent the first few nights with us. She helped me learn some tricks for my sore breasts, such as warm compresses and massages. At 11 days old my son is a master nurser. He latches on by himself and though the initial latch hurts for a moment, the feeding goes very well. If he is asleep and it's nearing a feeding time, my boobs will let me know by becoming Niagara Falls. Robby was able to reach his birth weight within one week. We are still waiting for his umbilical stub to fall out.
Here is my handsome little boy about a week after being born:

Two Days Until Eviction

In a few short days, maybe even hours I will have traded everything for love. Today, I am 40 weeks and 4 days pregnant. Yesterday I had a doctor appointment and made an appointment to have my son born on Friday, January 21. So far this was never the pregnancy I anticipated. I was told that first time mom's typically deliver up to a week late. In my hopes to have as close to a natural birth as possible I would really like for my son to pick his own birth day today or tomorrow. There is no going back if I enter the hospital Friday morning to be induced. I have tried just about everything [except castor oil] to naturally induce labor. On Friday, if Robby has yet to show, I'm sure I will be given Pitocin. This is a drug that helps get the body in gear and bring on labor. Unfortunately unlike natural births Pitocin will take you from 0-60 in a matter of minutes, making breathing techniques harder to achieve. I am determined to go Epidural free though. After decades of being around the risks and cons continue to outway the pros. However, if I am laboring for hours beyond belief and I have hit a point of unbearable pain then the Epidural remains an option.

So here's to hoping a easy natural labor soon or a very smooth induction Friday. Either way I will have a son this weekend. I can't believe it!

{photo credit: Rennie Ellis}

Do what YOU want to do

My Modern Met

My current babies

For the next few days these will be the only "babies" in my and my husband's life. In the top photo is our fat cat "Poutine", a well deserved name. In the bottom photo is our younger, fluffy cat "Panthro". When we first adopted her we swore she was a he, thus getting the Thundercats name. After discovering our mistake, we just kept the name.

Poutine was adopted from a local shelter. Her name was originally Ana and of the four rooms full of cat crates she stood out to me. Even as they were closing down for the night and the other cats were curling up to sleep, she knew she was going home so she stood right at the edge of her cage waiting for me. Panthro came from an old co-worker of my husband's. His female cat mated with a local stray. My husband couldn't pass up a free kitten to befriend our other cat so he brought her home.
I am not too sure how the furbabies will react to a new member in the household. Poutine, I think, will be more curious. Panthro might hide for a few days. I just hope they don't get too jealous!