My son, the cat, part 2

Many times, I've found a cat playing inside a paper bag. I don't recall finding a child in one until very recently...but here is further proof that simple, inexpensive or free toys can provide little ones with much enjoyment.

The gang's all here and ready for bed

Lion, Moon, Elmo, and Bunny

Gator is at an age where he's becoming quite attached to his little friends, particularly at nighttime. I remember Violet having her bed covered in stuffed animals and dolls, so either it's a phase or my kids just love their "friends" a lot.

Bunny has been a longtime lovey, or as close to one as my kids get. We were at Target when Gator was little and these were on a clearance endcap. He was really drawn to the pink one. The non-pink one(s) were not very vibrant and pretty blah and this was more of a peachy pink, and besides, there's nothing wrong with my son having a pink bunny. So the pink bamboo velour bunny became his. He would stroke its fur and ears while he was nursing, and this was good. I was determined he'd find comfort from some object that wasn't attached to me, so I'd pull the potential lovey into some of our nursing sessions. It was an idea I got from The No-Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers and Preschoolers: Gentle Ways to Stop Bedtime Battles and Improve Your Child's Sleep in their Nighttime Nursling chapter when I was trying to get Violet to sleep without me. Bunny never grew to grand levels of comfort and security, but there are many times when my little guy is settling down and asks for Bunny.

Elmo seems to draw in young children and mine were no exception. Violet grew bored with him right around the time Gator was falling deeper under his spell, so our Elmo toys transitioned from one child's room to the other. My son seems to view "Melmo" as a true friend.

Lion is a recent addition to the bedtime gang. I picked him up at a card shop that was going out of business when I was pregnant with Gator. It matched his nursery decor. Recently his soft velvety fur has been appreciated at snuggle time.

Woody is not in the picture above, but is very much a part of the family in my children's eyes, as is Violet's Jessie doll. My children are obsessed with Toy Story. Violet has always gravitated toward the cowboy (Woody) and didn't think much of Buzz, but Gator's admiration for him seems to be growing daily. Now everything remotely robotic is called "Buzz" in a soft, sweetly admiring voice. (I know he's a space ranger, but if my kid wants to think he's a robot, so be it...)

And lastly is our Kinderglo Rechargeable Night Light. Violet has a T. Rex (chosen by her because his teeth would scare away monsters) and we love the different light modes, that it's rechargeable, and how easy it is for her to put it on the charger and light it up. Gator doesn't have access to a plugged-in charger yet, but we chose the moon model for him because the shape creates a nice carrying/holding handle. He holds it in his hand to "read" his books after lights out. His latest favorite is the Russell the Sheep book that his sister loved so much. His previous go-to was an animal sounds book...perfect for a child his age to "read" out loud.

If you're considering a Kinderglo night light, note that the moon is quite a bit larger than the dinosaur. T. Rex gets lost in the sheets much more easily.  They've added more shapes since we bought our first one, so you have a lot more to choose from. Maybe my daughter would have still chosen the one with the scary teeth to protect her, or maybe she would have gone with something cuter. They all serve the same purpose. We've been very happy with the choice of night light, even though the price initially made me balk. It's no more expensive than comparable lights by other brands and seems to be the most kid-friendly, and the cost is worth it when my children sleep better!

Falling Up

Hi there!

These crazy kiddos of mine, and life in general, have been keeping me busy and I've really fallen off the blogging wagon. I enjoy sharing my thoughts, memories, and deals and reviews I think others might be interested in.

Goals for this year include a lot more focus on creative pursuits, and I'm hoping to share some of them with you! I may reconnect with my inner geek some more and do some techie reviews, especially if there seems to be some interest. Geeky technology put in layman's terms? That's one of my specialities in my outside-the-home work. I love feedback and comments and it helps me to keep blogging if I think someone besides me is reading it. So let me know what you think about topics, what you'd like to see more of, etc. More pics of the kids? More deals? More reviews? Let me know!

So...see that little guy in the picture? He's almost 21 months old, full of energy, and increasingly conversational. He's a skinny little dude because he burns off calories almost as fast as he consumes them. Big sis is almost four years old and is obsessed with planning for her birthday. I hope it is worth all the buildup...and that she doesn't start obsessing about Christmas again as soon as her birthday passes.


P.S. Does "Falling Up" ring a bell for anyone? Especially my fellow Bobcats? You can listen to "Superhero" and a few other tracks from the Cactus Pears here. Time for me to turn on some Snack for Slacks on my iPod...

Magazine Love

There's a great magazine promo going on at Amazon.com. Spend just $20 in their magazine store this month, and you'll get a $10 credit to use on anything sold by Amazon. This might be the perfect time to treat myself to a subscription to my beloved Games magazine. The puzzles, crosswords, etc. are top notch and include varying difficulty levels.  Paint by Numbers is a favorite puzzle of mine, and I tend to buy it at the store every time I see the magazine with new ones. At $4.95 a copy, that adds up. And yes, I already own the book (see link below).

I did a lot of GAMES puzzles, including  Paint by Numbers, when I was on bedrest, then hospital bedrest, before my first baby was born. I did the crosswords in early labor with both of my children. They provided just the right amount of distraction.

My other favorite magazine at the moment is ReadyMade. There are so many creative ideas in it, and it's just my style in so many ways.

I've been enjoying Disney FamilyFun at the doctor's office and will probably subscribe to it at some point. We have Disney Movie Rewards points that can be used for it through that site, though.

I have some Amazon gift cards I earned with SwagBucks, and that makes deals like this that much sweeter!

Giving thanks and saving money

Today, I'm very thankful for all the retailers that are offering great sales on their websites, so I can rack up the savings without leaving my house! Waiting in line in freezing rain? Not for me! Here's a roundup of some of the deals I appreciate most!

I'm also grateful for my family, including my two wonderful (at the moment) kiddos. I'm especially enjoying Gator's recent surge in communication ability at 18 months and my heart still swells with love watching him and his sister interact. I've been slacking on sharing photos lately, so I'll intersperse a few from fall so it's not all deal links!

Amazon MP3 Download Credit - $3  My husband has been using Amazon's mp3 store a lot lately. He says the prices are often better than iTunes, and he can still listen to the music on his ipod, smartphone, etc. Amazon also has a lot of Black Friday deals. Today you can get five albums for $1.99 each. We're getting the Interpol album.

Many other retailers have specials on their websites, and I suggest checking your favorites to see what kind of specials you can find. Old Navy is one of those retailers. But before you go straight to their website...are you using Swagbucks?

I've been using Swagbucks.com for a few months and have earned $20 in Amazon reward certificates so far. You can use the points toward other things, but as you may have noticed, I shop on Amazon, so it's the closest thing to getting a cash reward for me. I use swagbucks when I'd be doing searches anyhow, and I randomly get points for searches. You trade those points in for rewards. I was racking up the points when I was being more intentional about doing my searches through the site. They have a toolbar as well, but I'm a creature of habit with my Google toolbar...

Old Navy has been running some great promos lately and I needed to pick up some more wardrobe basics. I'm so glad I checked Swagbucks before I did. They are offering a chunk of swagbucks (reward points) if you make a $50 Old Navy order through their link. So I made my order, got my savings, plus cashed my swagbucks in for a $5 Amazon reward card.

Do you cloth diaper? Nicki's Diapers is offering 10% off of everything except Bum Genius. Nicki's offers free shipping on most diapering items, so it's a nice opportunity to get a discount on items that rarely are. I'm thinking about getting some cloth trainers for Violet. When she gets to the point when her Pull-Up is dry most nights, I'd much rather have something reusable and washable on her.


There is much more I'd like to share, but motherhood calls! I hope to add to this post or add more as I find more links that I think will be of special interest to my readers.

Full disclosure: A lot of the links on my blog are affiliate links. That means you supplement my income in a small way when you purchase those items or others after clicking on my link, or sign up for a site I've referred you to. Thank you for your clicks...every little bit helps!

Hooking

I haven't been spending very much time knitting and crocheting due to using my rare free time for other things and being less inspired to do it in warmer weather. We're enjoying some wonderful unseasonably warm weather right now, but it will be cold and time for hats and scarves soon!

I learned to crochet when I was young, and I've relearned a few times over the years. It always comes back to me, but I need some guidance. For the longest time, i didn't know what dc and sc and whatnot meant and so couldn't take advantage of the patterns that are out there. Thanks to Stitch 'N Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker I have a fun reference that teaches and reteaches what I need and helps with all those pattern abbreviations.

I participate in my local Stitch N Bitch group when time allows, which isn't often these days. It's a wonderful group of creative, talented women who inspire me to do so much more with yarn. Debbie Stoller's Stitch 'N Bitch books are a great source of information, inspiration, and patterns. I have a knitting one as well as the crochet one.

I started a hat for Gator maybe a month ago and it's still sitting on my needles, a few inches into the project. I was so excited to find some yarn I loved and got to work on a pattern of my own design that I hope will live up to my expectations. I just need to sit down and finish it! Knitting children's hats is relatively fast and relaxing for me.

Next up will be tackling crochet again. I have some adorable hat patterns from The Inner Hooker that I'm looking forward to making. First up is the owl hat. Gator has such a big head that he and Violet should be able to wear the same size. I'm planning on making my first one gender-neutral and hopefully one of them will be able to wear it. Especially since I'm not sure what my crochet gauge is like and I'm not planning on swatching. It's wonderful when hats can stretch and there are two little heads in the house to put hats on.

Amazon Mom = Amazing Savings!

I was pricing Pull-Ups on Amazon today and saw a blurb about Amazon Mom. I had to check it out, and I'm glad I did!




Here's how it works. Amazon already offers a 15% discount when you Subscribe and Save on items you use regularly. I've used this both on a repeating basis and with no intention of continuing the subscription. You can cancel or change your delivery frequency at any time.

With Amazon Mom, you get an additional 15% off on many baby items, including diapers, for a total of 30% savings. AND it's delivered free right to your door, with free two-day shipping! I love coupons, but I was able to order some Pull-Ups and Pampers Baby Dry Diapers for less than I would have paid at the store with coupons and shopping sales. And did I mention they will just show up at my door, and I don't have to listen to whiney kids in a shopping cart or chase a toddler all over the baby department?

As an added bonus, Amazon Mom gives you three months of a free Amazon Prime membership and lets you earn additional months with your baby purchases. I've used a free trial of Prime and like it, but I could never justify the annual subscription fee. Prime gives you free two-day shipping on anything shipped by Amazon, whether it's sold by Amazon themselves or a seller using Amazon fulfillment. Next-day shipping is available for just $3.99. No more waiting until I have $25.00 worth of little items to get so I receive free super-saver shipping, and it arrives oh so much faster.

(Isn't that little bear hat on the baby in the Amazon banner cute? I hope to crochet one for Gator this winter. One of many to-do projects!)