My $100 Christmas for 24 people

*** Spolier Alert for Family Members - Do not read!***

Between Dear Husband and I, there are 6 nieces, 4 nephews, 8 siblings (4 blood and 4 in-law), 4 parents, and now, 1 child. And dare I forget to mention The Crazy One. Even he has a stocking that Santa likes to fill. Plus this year, we decided to adopt a child. Even though we are staying on a budget this year, we know there are people out there who have NO budget for the holidays.

The first thing I did was head straight to my credit card's rewards program. There, I had enough points for $200 Visa gift card(GC) and a $20 Walmart GC. Score! Along with those I had a $20 Best Buy GC that I received for purchasing a video game for Dear Husband's birthday.

Here are my purchases. Not everyone is bought for yet. I still have 2 nephews, 1 niece, and 1 couple (sister and brother-in-law) left to buy for. But I'm feeling very good about what I have accomplised with very little spent out of pocket.

First thing I bought was $100 worth of credit to Picaboo for only $35 on Groupon. This will pay for photobooks of Little Man for both sets of parents (and one for us too!)
3 Star Wars Panckae Molds from Williams Sonoma - $63.44 or $21.15 per couple. My goal was $20 per couple, so I was very close.



Twister ($11.65-$3.00 Hasbro Rebate) to shared by nieces #1 & #2, and nephew #1
Elefun ($13.77 - $3.00 Hasbro Rebate) for nephew #1
Spider-Man Memory ($5.30 - $2.00 Hasbro Rebate) for nephew #2 (he's got more coming...)
Chutes & Ladders ($3.18 - $2.00 Hasbro Rebate) for Adopted Child (he's getting more too!)
Pitcureka ($10.60) for niece #3
Funglish ($16.95) for niece #4 (It was orginally $19.99 + tax but I had a 20% one toy coupon)
Total for that trip was $61.45 but I am getting $10 in rebates and I also recieved a $10 GC to TRU since I spent more than $35 on Hasbro games.

Next trip was to A.C. Moore to pick up an art set and paper for niece #1. After being allowed to use two 50% of one item coupons, I spent $13.49.

Target has great clearance sales on clothing for kids. I purchased 2 pants and 2 long sleeved tops for $13 for Adopted Child. That's $3.25 a piece!

Today I went back to TRU because I had a $10 GC burning a hole in my pocket, and one of the toys on my list was on sale.
Iron Man Rocket Boost ($10.89 -was on sale for $14.99 and I had a $5 off coupon ) for nephew #2
Friendship Bracelet Craft Kit ($10.59) for niece #2
Sesame Street On the Go Purse ($13.77) for niece #5
Tap a Tune Drum ($10.59) for Adopted Child
My workbench ($22.25) for Little Man (Christmas)
Crawl & Play Tunnel ($31.79) for Little Man (Birthday)*
Total for Christmas Gifts this trip $68.09

*The reason I bought Little Man's birthday gift now, was because I had a coupon for a $10 GC if I spent $75.



Total for Christmas Gifts so far.... $254.47
Thanks to my Visa GC, I only spent $54.47 out of pocket. And I am getting $10 back from Hasbro!

What I have left to spend:
I still have a $20 GC to Walmart, a $20 GC to Best Buy, and a $10 GC to TRU and I have 5 people left (as mentioned above) to shop for. I am trying not to spend more than $100 total out of pocket, and it looks like I will make that goal.

Oh and if you're wondering what I'm getting Dear Husband, we've talked about it, but aren't sure what we're going to do yet.

All I Want for October is My Two Front (Bottom) Teeth

About 2 weeks ago, I had a dream that Little Man had his bottom tooth. The next day, he was chewing on my finger and, whoah! Guess what I felt trying to come through?  I couldn't see it, but I could definitely feel it! By the end of that week, I could feel not just one tooth, but two teeth trying to poke through.

Now, the teeth aren't all the way out yet, but they are definitely visible. It's crazy and sad to think that I will never see that toothless smile ever again. I get a little teary-eyed thinking about how fast he is growing up and changing...

Boo!

It's been awhile, but with school and trying to keep up with such a mobile baby boy, I haven't had much time to update.
But today, during Little Man's second nap (I think we're officially down to 2 naps a day!) I am taking the time to write.

I am officially counting down to Halloween. It is one of my favorite holidays. I love dressing up and decorating. And on Halloween night I love to see the costumes the kids in our neighborhood come up with. (Although sometimes I feel so old because I don't recognize the character a child is dressed as....)

Little Man during my "photo shoot" of him
 for Halloween cards for the Grandparents

This year, I am making our costumes. I decided due to his blond hair and his affinity to hit things, Little Man will be Bam Bam Rubble.

So that means Dear Husband and I are going to be Barney and Betty Rubble.

All 3 costumes are relatively easy to make, so instead of shelling out $20 each (at minimum), I'll have all 3 of dressed up for less than $15. Woo hoo!

To add to Little Man's first Halloween fun, we picked up some pumpkins at a local nursery to carve later this month. (Dear Husband and I learned a few years back that you shouldn't carve a pumpkin more than 2 weeks before Halloween because rotting pumpkins on your front porch are not attractive!)

Not our pumpkins, but you get the idea...

I will try to remember to post pictures of our creations. I also want to throw out there that my pumpkin will be better looking than Dear Husband's. Don't feel bad for him; It's one of the few things I can actually do better than him....

Crawling Fever: Little Man Has It

Little Man has reached a milestone that is both revered and dreaded by every mother I know: Crawling (or more accurately, "creeping").

I am excited for Little Man, since he would sit and whine and try so hard to get whatever toy that was just out of reach. Now he can get on all fours and crawl over to whatever he desires.  Normally this includes wires, The Crazy One's bone, Dear Husband's shoes, or The Crazy One's water bowl (see picture below...)


(Little Man wants The Crazy One's water bowl)

I was one of those mother's who thought, "The later he starts to crawl, the better", but I enjoy watching him move towards his desired object with quick efficiency while hearing the "slap, slap, slap" of his palms on the hard floor.

However, as much as he is enjoying this new found freedom, he is already moving on to the next feat: Pulling up.  He tries so hard to pull up on the coffee table, me, or even his crib. I'm not sure I'm ready for that, but we'll see when the time comes!

School Daze

Tomorrow I officially start a new chapter in my life: I am going back to school.

It's been 2 1/2 years since I've stepped foot in a classroom.  I dreamt last night that I was late for my first class, and then, due to to much socializing, I completely missed my second class.  I hope that dream does not come true!

I am nervous about school tomorrow for many reasons.
1) I am taking anatomy and physiology. I have not taken a science class since junior year of high school (11 years ago!) and have not biology since freshman year... ugh!


(My anatomy book. I hope it is easy to understand!)

2) I am going to a school I have never attended before. I am not familiar with the campus, the teachers, the students, etc. I have a hard time accepting change - tomorrow will be no different.

3) I am leaving Little Man for the whole day. Every Wednesday, for the next 15 weeks, I will be away from Little Man for the majority of his awake time. As much I know I will enjoy the break of motherhood to focus on me for a little bit (let's face it, all mothers need their "me" time) I will miss him terribly.

4) I am leaving Little Man alone with Dear Husband every Wednesday for the next 15 weeks.  Dear Husband has not had much alone time with Little Man. A few hours here and there, while I go to the gym, or get my nails done.  Once, I was gone for a large part of the day, but I was easily accessible if Dear Husband needed to call me.  I know he can handle it, but it'll take me a few weeks before I'll really be at ease with the situation. Which is silly because Dear Husband is a wonderful and attentive father.  Now that I think about it, he should be fine.

So Crafty

Dear Husband has been wanting a tie dye tee for a few weeks now. He even looked in a shop while we were on vacation that specialized in tie dye tees. After perusing the inventory, we were impressed by the designs, but not so impressed by the prices. The average was about $40 per tee. Granted, the woman in the shop hand made all of them, and the store was on Martha's Vineyard (nothing on that island is cheap), but we weren't that desperate to buy!

So after we got back home, we went to the nearest craft store (A.C. Moore) and bought a tie dye kit and 4 tees for less than $30. After Little Man was sound asleep in bed, we went tie dye crazy!


(Dear Husband with one of his tees - He made two!)


(Finished Product)


(Dear Husband's other tee with Little Man's tee)


(Little Man's tee! It's a 2T (that's the smallest they had) so he'll have to wait to wear it.)


(Dear Husband's other tee, finished. He is such a good model, isn't he?)


(Lastly, my tee's "before")


(My "after". I wasn't going to let the boys have all the fun!)

Dear Husband had fun doing this project so there is a strong possibility we'll be doing it again. I'll have to purchase some plain onesies so Little Man can wear his Hippie Tee now instead of later. :)

Summertime Fun

Dear Husband, Little Man, The Crazy One, and I took a trip up to Martha's Vineyard to spend a week with my parents. My sister and her family (1 husband, 3 kids, and 1 black lab) were also there. It was a full house!

We relaxed, read books and did crosswords while the kids were running in the yard or napping. Little Man enjoyed some "helmet free" time as well, since his helmet couldn't have been worn during some of our activities. But I was a good plagio mommy and made sure his helmet was on every other moment of the day!

We also got to enjoy some nice days on the beach. The ocean water was a little cold for Little Man, so we set him up with his own personal pool on the beach. He is so spoiled!





He also enojyed digging in the sand. I was surprised that not much sand made it into his mouth.





We also went out on my father's boat. Both Little Man and The Crazy One enjoyed themselves, though Little Man wasn't a fan of his life vest.




Overall, a great time was had by all! We were sad to leave, but happy to get back home, to our beds, and our daily routines.

Sad, Sad, Sad

I am so sad. My computer died and with it, all of my pictures of Little Man (except for the first few weeks of his life...).  I made a back-up CD in June of all pictures until May, but for some reason, only January and first week of February are on the CD.  Of course, music that I downloaded in June is on there, but not my most precious memories of Little Man.

I have to look at the brightside. I have a few photos on facebook, and I uploaded some things to shutterfly and snapfish, so I at least have those. Plus my mother and sister have their own photos of Little Man that they will share with me.

But still, I feel so miserable that I lost so many great photos.

At least I still have many years ahead of me to take some great pictures of Little Man!

Dog (Park) Days of Summer

They recently opened a dog park close to our home, which made me extremely happy.

The Crazy One loves meeting new dogs, but is always a little aggressive while he on his leash. I don't know if it's because he feels protective, but once he is off the leash, he is nice as can be to any four-legged fur-ball he meets.

That being said, I knew a dog park would suit him and give him the exercise he needs while developing his canine social skills.


We went for the first time today. Since it is a Monday and we went early in the afternoon, it was quiet, but there was one other dog to play with while we were there. And boy did they play!

(The Crazy One and his new friend)

After about 20 minutes of straight chasing each other, both collapsed on the ground.

(The "Tired" One)

Little Man was amused by the whole scenario and extremely interested in the two dogs in his vicinity, instead of normally just one.

(Little Man)

Babies vs. Doggies

When I think about it, there isn't much different between Little Man and The Crazy One.


(Little Man (in his hour of helmet-free time) and The Crazy One)

• Both wake me up early to eat
• Both play with squeaky toys
• Both drool a lot
• Both chew on anything they can get into their mouth
• Both give me "messes" to clean up
• Both fill my heart with so much love - I cannot imagine my life without them!

Shameless Promotion

My sister is a photographer and loves taking photographs of kids doing what kids do best; playing, getting messy, and just living life.

Here is a shot of Little Man she took and edited for me (I told you I loved his feet!).

(Click the picture to get more info)


If you are in the Philadelphia area and would love to get some photo journalistic style pictures of your family, you should give her a shout!

Monkey Business

Little Man's space stickers were peeling off (The front became "I'm out of this WORD") so it was time to re-design the helmet! I came across some monkey stickers at Target & A.C. Moore and thought they suited him.

He's definitely my little monkey right now!

Everything I've Learned, I've Learned From my Mother

Including how to relax at the end of the day....

Baby Feet

I have an obsession with Little Man's feet.

When they are naked and in the vicinity of my face, I have to kiss them. A lot. They are so small and cute and so darn edible. It pains to me to put socks and shoes on them (even though I have a shoe obsession too...). It also breaks my heart knowing that every day, they are getting bigger. And eventually, they won't be these tiny little scrumptious snacks but old ugly man feet. *sad face*



(Little Man's and Dear Husband's sneakers)


But until that fateful day, I will nibble on those toes and kiss those heels and love those feet.



(Yum, Yum. Little Man's toes)

I Yam What I Yam

Except when a yam is really a sweet potato.

But I digress. I have been making baby food for Little Man for awhile now. We started him on solids at 4 months (with his pediatrician's okay) and have been treating him to many yummy fruits and veggies since.

First was an avocado, then he had carrots, butternut squash, peas, yellow squash, apples, and bananas. But his favorite food right now is yams/sweet potatoes. This makes me happy since they are easy to make.

I clean them, wrap them in aluminum foil, then bake them at 400 degrees for an hour.



(after baking)


Then I pull the skins away from the meat (really easy to do once they are cooked) and put in my mini-prep food processor. A blender would also work for this task.



(yam meat in the processor)


I blend them until they are a smooth consistency, then jar 'em up and put 'em in the freezer.
Yum Yum Food for Little Man!

"Yay!" For Good Deals Part 2

I have to brag about my great score.
A woman on Craig's List was selling a lot of baby items for $20. I did the math and the retail on all the toys would have been just about $200. (I could have haggled, but I plan on re-selling these in the future and don't want bad karma in that department.... ) Best part is the toys look like they've never been used. Little Man is going to have Christmas in July tomorrow!

Helmet Stares

When I am out with Little Man, I get a lot of looks in our direction because of his helmet.  I don't mind because it's not everyday you see a baby looking like he is ready to to catch the winning pass in the end zone.

Most people don't ask what it is for. They just look confused and go on their merry way. Sometimes you get the brave ones that ask some humorous questions. "Does he fall down a lot?" "Is he wearing a hockey helmet?" I don't mind those because I know they are genuinely interested in the helmet and aren't familiar with placgiocephaly. I had no idea about until Little Man was diagnosed!

The best are the kids that want to know what it is all about. "Is his head broken?" It's hard to explain to kids why he wears the helmet, so I just tell them that he has a crooked head and it needs to be straightened out. That seems to work.

Here are shots of the newest helmet design.
We're doing a "Outer Space" theme this week.

"Yay!" For Good Deals

I've been on the hunt for good toys and books for Little Man since he is now at the age where he is learning to explore EVERYTHING.

So every Saturday this month, I have been garage sale hunting. Today I feel like I got my best score. 12 books for $1. And they included some great classics, like "Goodnight Moon", "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie", Curious George, Clifford the Big Red Dog, and many others!

Here is a pic of my awesome finds!

Yum Yum Food

I was feeling creative a few nights back and decided to make my own "Lemon Chicken Pasta"

I pounded a chicken breast to about 1/2" thick and cut it in half and then rolled it around in some flour.

Then I heated up my cast iron frying pan and poured some olive oil in... about 2-3 tbsp. Then I sprinkled in some garlic salt. After the pan was nice and hot, I placed the (now in 2 pieces) chicken breast and let it cook for about 5 minutes on one side, then I flipped it over and finished the cooking on the other side. Afterwards, I took the chicken out of the pan and covered it so it would stay nice and hot. I deglazed the frying pan with some white wine (about 1/2 cup) and let that simmer a bit, then I added about a 1/4 cup of lemon juice and a teaspoon on minced garlic. I let it simmer some more until I was sure all the flavors melded together. Lastly, I added some sour cream (about a tablespoon) to thicken the sauce a bit.

The chicken and the sauce was added to some angel hair pasta and broccoli.

Considering I did this with no recipe, it turned out nice. I would only say that next time, I may add some sugar (brown perhaps) to counteract the acidity of the lemon. Otherwise it was Yum Yum and I'll definitely be making it again!

Bye Bye, My Love

Today is a bittersweet day for me.

I sold my car. My Mitsubishi Eclipse. The first big purchase I ever made as an adult (I was 19!). I commuted to school in it. I drove to my first "real job" interview and then subsequently, my first "real job". I drove it during all 9 months of pregnancy, even though towards the end it was difficult getting in and out of it.

I haven't always been kind to it (a few bumps and bruises throughout the years) but it was always good to me!

Now, another young lady will be driving it to school and even possibly her first "real job" interview.

Relish every second

Today we buried my cousin's husband.

He was a few months shy of turning 50. He left behind 3 children; 21, 18, and 10, a beautiful wife, and countless friends and family members who loved him.

It was a sudden death, completely unexpected. In my opinion, the worst kind.

But if anything good can come out of something so sad, it's to learn to relish every second you have on this earth. Take a break from the everyday to enjoy life. Enjoy the sunsets and sunrises. And above all, make sure your loved ones know how much you mean to them.

Fun with Plagiocephaly!

Little Man has plagiocephaly (Play-Gee-O-Seph-Ah-Lee) which is a fancy word for a flat head.



Well, to fix the problem he has to wear a corrective helmet for a few months (average is 12-16 weeks).
Information on the helmet and plagiocephaly: http://www.starbandkids.com/

It's not a fancy helmet, so to give it some character, I've decorated it with stickers.

So far we've had an ocean theme, since we were on vacation at a beach

(Seen here sleeping on his aunt)

For Independence Day, I put red,. white, and blue stars all over it. Can't find a pic of that now...

And right now, in honor of The Crazy One (our dog), I decorated the helmet with some canine flare.


Silly? Yes. But it helps to make the experience less medical. So far it's been 4 weeks and we've seen progress. Can't wait to see his head at the end!

Sun Showers

I love sun showers. They amaze me.



According to Wikipedia (and we know how accurate they are...)
"The nature of cumuluform clouds is such that the sun can often be seen while they are producing rain. If a sun shower occurs when the sun is low in the sky (specifically, any time the sun is at less than a 42° angle), a rainbow can occur."

I did not see a rainbow. Maybe next time!