Wednesday, January 25, 2012

CVS and Walgreens, 01/24/2012

This was an unexpected trip.  Very last minute.  I am upset with some "secret" rules that Walgreens had regarding the register rewards that I received during the first of two transactions which then prevented me from getting the register rewards in the second transaction.  Oh well, I have always liked CVS better.

So, Wildman, Sweet Pea and I stopped at Walgreens on our way to Wildman's tumbling class.  We needed to pick up some Prevacid.  The 28 ct was marked at $20.  I had my $5 RR from last week and a $4 mf cpn.  I spent $11.95 oop and got $10 RR.  After tumbling and a trip to CVS we went back to Walgreens and got another 28ct of Prevacid.  This time I used a $4 mf cpn and the $10 RR.  I spent $6.95 oop but was not allowed to get another $10 RR because I spent my previous $10 RR on Prevacid.  I sure do prefer the no strings attached rewards at CVS.  Anyway, I purchased $46.48 worth of product for $18.90, a 60% savings.

Wildman took the picture, so it is from his viewpoint
We also did one of our quickest trips ever through CVS.  I had two cpns for $1 off 1 gallon of milk and 1 half gallon chocolate milk.  CVS also had $1 ECB you got for each gallon purchased.  The deodorant was on clearance for $1.14 and I had (2) $1/2 cpns.  These also went towards the sale for $3 RR for $10 in product (I may have to print more cpns and go back).  The coke was 4/$10, which is the price I stock up at.  I would like it lower, but that is harder to find.  I couldn't find anything else I really needed to try and get another $10 gift card, so it seemed pointless to spend $20 dollars on things I don't need just to get $10.  Anyway, I got $51.48 worth of product for $16.53 oop, a 68% savings.

And now for some tumbling moves by Wildman:

The crab walk
Somersault
Crab walk buddy system?

Bug on a Rug: Fortress Diaper Review

Well, I should have written this review several months ago, but, as everything else seemed to slip through the cracks, so did this review.  Anyway, a few months back there was a post requesting testers for a new diaper.  The diaper was designed to prevent little escape artists from escaping their diaper, thus the name Fortress diaper.  Here is the description on Bug on a Rug's page:
 
Does your baby or toddler take off his or her diaper? I have the solution!

Make any fabric design you would like into a fortress diaper, contact me for fabric availability (OOAK excluded).

This diaper is a pocket cloth diaper, it does require an insert (not included), it does not require a cover.

Introducing Bug On A Rug's Fortress Diaper (Patent Pending). This unique diaper features a long wing that wraps around the diaper instead of two wings that meet in the middle of the front of the diaper. This long wing velcros across the front so you get that exact fit that you can't get with only snaps and it snaps in the back with two snaps so baby can't reach to un-do the diaper. The diaper is made with a hidden PUL layer and a cotton outer layer.

One size diaper fits approximately 15-40 lbs.
 

I am always up for testing diapers and, even though Sweet Pea wasn't trying to escape her diapers at the time, I thought it would be fun to try the diaper anyway.  I contacted Bug on a Rug and signed up.  The first diaper that I got ended up having a manufacturer defect (not from anything under Bug on a Rug's control, totally the manufacturer of the material).  They got that sorted out and I got this second, adorable diaper.

The diaper has a long piece of fabric that attaches on one side of the diaper and then attaches to the front, side and then the back of the diaper.  There is both aplix and snaps on the diaper.  I should also state that mine is an AIO and not a pocket, so I don't know if that changes how the diaper would fit and look.

The Fortress diaper does take some getting use to when it comes to putting the diaper on and taking it off.  I actually find putting it on easier because, by the time I am getting to the point of snapping the back, Sweet Pea is normally already up and trying to run off ;-).  I do have to put some thought into when I am going to change her since you do have to reach around the back to get the diaper off.  Since I first received the diaper, Sweet Pea has started to want to remove her diaper.  Especially the aplix diapers.  Snaps she will work on for a little while but normally grows bored with it because something "shiny" will catch her attention.

The Fortress diaper has done a great job of keeping messes contained and preventing Sweet Pea from removing her diaper.  There is some bulk, but again, I don't know how much of that is due to mine being an AIO versus a pocket diaper.  I would love to try the pocket diaper just to compare the two.  Maybe that will be my next fluffy purchase.

Overall, this is the perfect buy for those who have little ones who like to escape their diaper.  Sweet Pea isn't anywhere near as bad as some kiddos are.  She is in more of a curious stage then a "I want to make a mess" stage.  I have yet to hear of any kiddos escaping from the Fortress diaper and I haven't seen any bad reviews.  I really feel this is a sure bet for any parents who are to the point of considering duct taping their child's diaper closed (plus it is the perfect way to convert some disposable diaper parents to cloth!).

So, head on over to Bug on a Rug and pick your fabric for your very own Fortress diaper.

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Why put off till tomorrow...yada, yada, yada


So, I was in the hall closet about to shut the door when I realized that there was a booster seat that I had just put in there instead of "putting it away".  I almost shut the door with the idea of, "I can do that tomorrow", when I stopped.  Seriously, how long would it take to do now?  So, I picked it up and put it on the shelf where it went.  It really wasn't all that hard.  So why did I feel the need to try and put it off?

Thomas Jefferson once said, "Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today."  Of course, the rebuttal came from Aaron Burr, who stated, “Never do today what you can put off till tomorrow.”

Why is it so hard sometimes to stop and do something?  I mean, I have this long list in my head of all the things I need to stop and accomplish.  One was as simple as taking a picture of something to e-mail to a friend.  Not to difficult, right?  It has taken me a month and a half and I just sent it tonight.  I don't enjoy procrastinating.  Honestly, it stresses me out.  I mean, how hard is it to put a couple pictures in Sweet Pea and Wildman's scrapbooks?  Not very but I get so overwhelmed at how far behind I am that I just can't bring myself to do it.

Take my blog as another example.  I got to the point where I was stressed out about writing because I had so many things to write about and I had not done it yet.  So all these ideas kept piling up and then I looked at the list and looked at everything else I had to do and just kept putting it off.  I know I am not the only one who does this.  The thing is, we (and by we I mean mothers as a collective) seem to hold ourselves to some higher standard.  If we don't post the pictures we took of our children playing in the first snow of the year, birthday party, laughing, etc within a certain period of time, all is lost.  OK, maybe not that dramatic, but you get the idea.
It took me too long to post the photos!
Why?  It's not like we are sitting around doing nothing all day.  But I also know that I don't necessarily manage my time the best either.  I know there is probably some place where I could squeeze out an hour to work on the kiddos scrapbooks or hang pictures, sand a door, etc.  Then again, I procrastinate.  Next week I will work on getting up earlier, making Wildman have quiet time, having a set schedule, blah, blah, blah.  So, here is what I am going to do:  Each day I am going to do one thing that I have said, on that day, that I was going to wait to do.  So, if I am going to wait until later to take the bills up to my desk, I am going to do it right then.  If I am going to wait to put something away, I am going to do it right now.  Just one thing a day.  I think I can do it.  Can you do it?  Let's see if I can work on following Thomas Jefferson's quote more closely than Aaron Burr's.

Just continuing with the cat theme

Savings for January 2012

I have started plugging in my savings into a Coupon Savings Tracker.  I had taken a month or so off from really couponing.  We had a lot in stock and I would shop some, but with the holidays, I wasn't doing as well matching up deals.  This first month I have had some great savings, but I can see where I need to improve some.  As of now, I have spent, on all household and grocery items, about $142.92 and saved $205.87, a 59% savings.  I didn't take pictures of all the deals, but here are a few.

 CVS 01/02/2012
These items I purchased in order to get the $10 CVS gift card.  I also had a $5/$20 coupon and $3.50 coupon for using my CVS card during the fall.  I paid $17.72 oop for $60.74 worth of product, a 71% savings (saved $43.02).
 CVS 01/18/2012
I have actually been to CVS two other times between the previous photo and this one, I just didn't take photos.  I did earn a $10 gift card each of those times.  The items today were for the $10 gift card also.  But I scored some other great deals.  The three hair colors were on clearance for $2.37, $2.62, $2.49 and I had three coupons for $1, $2, and $3.  The softsoap was on sale for $0.99 and I had a $0.75 cpn and $0.40 cpn.  I also took advantage of the B2G1 Hershey's bar deal and paired that with the B1G1 Hershey's coupon.  I would have gotten another one but they were out of the Hershey's bars in the coupon.  I paid $14.03 oop for $79.49 worth of product, an 83.4% savings (saved $65.46).  I still have $5.42 left on my gift card.
Walgreens 01/18/2012
My husband prefers Aleve to any other pain medication, so when I saw this deal, I had to take advantage.  The Aleve was marked down to $3.79 ea and if you spent $15, you got $5 in RR.  So, I purchased 4 and paired them up with a $5/2 cpn and 2 $2/1 cpns.  I paid around $6.20 oop for $27.16 worth of product, a 77% savings and I have a $5 RR for next time.

12 DIY Projects in 2012

 A few DIY projects that I hope to accomplish this year

January
Make fleece pants for the family

February

 

March

April

May
Sand and Stain Video Shelf

June

July

August

September

October


November

December
Learn to knit a hat