That's my Husband!

When you work for a nurse staffing company, sometimes you have the luxury of wearing scrubs to work.

And, sometimes those scrubs have cats all over them!

El Gatitos!

Eleven Months Old

Bobby turned Eleven months old on March 30, 2010.

"Hey Bobby! Look at momma, it's time for your monthly picture!"

"It's too bright mommy, I need some shade!"

Darn his cute baby blues... they are beautiful!

...Had to include his pitiful pout!

Weight: 22 lbs.

Sleeping Patterns: Bobby is sleeping on average, 12 hours most nights; sometimes a bit more, sometimes a bit less. He is getting very close to dropping his afternoon nap, and transitioning to one nap. I am waiting until we get back from our beach trip in May to start the transition. Until then, his nap schedule will continue to be pretty inconsistent. He does though, at least get one good nap per day, lasting at least 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Eating Habits: As of last week, Bobby is finally doing some self-feeding. I was a bit concerned at first, but decided I wouldn't worry too much, until his first birthday. Fortunately, he's finally interested in eating with his hands. I can't believe it took him almost 11 months! :) I am feeding him now just 1-2 meals of baby food, and experimenting with a lot of table food. By his first birthday, we'll be completely done with the baby food, and formula! Our checkbook will thank us! :) He still has 4 bottles a day too, with 7-8.5 oz. each.

New discoveries & Accomplishments: Bobby is for sure speeding towards toddler hood. He is very talkative, especially at home. He is definitely saying a lot more sounds these days too. I taught him "gimme five" last week, and he's pretty good at it! I am trying to teach him body parts now. I can really tell that he is starting to understand a lot of what I am saying. He will respond to a lot of my commands (wow... I am making him sound like a dog! Ha!), and will look at whatever I am talking about or referring to. Bobby is cruising everywhere! The child crawls extremely fast, and will walk alongside anything and everything. He uses everything as a walker: chairs, tables, exersaucers, toys, his jumparoo.. everything! He is very perceptive of household sounds too. For instance, the second he hears me open the dishwasher, he crawls over to it. He is the same way with the washing machine. He is always trying to get into everything! He also really enjoys standing up against windows, doors, and mirrors. Bob and I both were walking at or around our first birthdays, so we are assuming he may too. Bobby is now wearing 12 months in most of his clothes. He still has 3 teeth - 2 bottom, and 1 top. He has another 1 or 2 about to break through the gum.

Places you love: Playing with the letter magnets on the fridge, cruising around the house, the park, playground, swing, Kindermusik, wagon rides, and jogs in the stroller. He loves to crawl to Winston and pet him too.

Special Friends: Kindermusik, park, and playgroup friends - also, the little baby across the street Cooper!

Current Events: March Madness, Obama's Health care Reform Act has passed, warm weather has arrived.

What We did This Day: Hung out in the backyard, and house. Ran a couple of quick errands, and then went for a run in the stroller.

Flashback Friday

Summer's just around the corner...

What are your plans?

Bobby and I will be spending mornings at our neighborhood pool, starting May 10th.

I cannot wait.

Winston and I lounging in our old pool, summer 2005.

Back and Better than Ever?!?

Brad Pitt called... He wants his baby back!

I've returned to the blogosphere!

My laptop is now home in it's rightful place. Fortunately, my hard drive did not crash, as originally thought. It was just loose, and needed to be screwed tightly back into place. This may or may not have been the result of me dropping it a few months ago. Um, yeah. I was able to finally have my optical drive replaced though, which is why it took almost a week to fix. I guess the repair store had to wait on the part, and they were backlogged. Go figure.

Anyhow, it did get me thinking that I need to start uploading all of our pictures onto an online site, such as Shutterfly or Snapfish. We have already backed up several pictures onto CD, but the web back-up is much easier. Plus, I can share them more easily, and order prints.

I have so much to catch up on with my own blog, as well as reading all of my other cherished daily blogs. Typically, there seems to not be enough time to do much these days, but I will try.

So, what is up with us? I'll tell you quickly!

- Bobby's naps have been very inconsistent. I think he's going through a growth spurt (seriously, he slept in until almost 8 am this morning, and is now going over 2 hours on his nap), teething, and might be close to transitioning to one nap. Each day is different, but I guess with me being home, it is ok.

- We've kept busy with play group, Kindermusik, and lots of trips to the park. We were there until 7 pm on Tuesday!

- I'm still doing physical therapy for my IT Band. It has gotten much better, and will be done soon.

- My neighborhood Mommy Group has started back with our weekly runs (after the time changed). Bobby enjoys these in the stroller.

- I've been working Saturdays at Fleet Feet.

- We're trying to live on a budget, and follow Dave Ramsey's plan in his book The Total Money Makeover. We're already on Step 3!

- Bob's upped his training for his Half Ironman coming up in May.

- Bobby is into everything! More posts on that later.

Well, that's about it! I'm probably on borrowed time. And, there's bathrooms to be cleaned, and furniture to be dusted!

Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday! Yippee!

Reprieve

Hello readers!

I'm just letting you know that we're still alive and kickin' over here. My hard drive crashed on my laptop, and I've been without it since last Tuesday. I'm hopeful that the repairman will be able to recover all my data. Anyhow, I'm using Bob's work computer, so I've got to sign off. I'm hoping to be back online by mid-week!

I hope everyone is doing fabulous!

Sunday Savings

I am quite impressed with the fact that I am actually posting this edition's Sunday Savings on an actual Sunday! And, this week, I'll give you all TWO tips, instead of one, to make up for last week. I know, I know... it's your lucky day! Ha!

Ok, so onto this week's tip -

Tip #1 of the Week:

Get organized!

I would like to share with you, what I have done to stay organized. My method has worked great for me, but it may not be for you. If you need more ideas or suggestions, Frugal Coupon Living has done an excellent job of describing several methods of organizing your coupons. Click here for the post.

But, before we dive in... here's the second tip this week -

Tip #2 of the Week:

Save your receipts.

Remember when I mentioned I had saved almost $900 in groceries since October? Well, I wouldn't have been able to know that if I hadn't saved my receipts. It is astonishing to see the amount of money you save, and if you don't know that - then, what's the point? In my house, it's also nice to receive some praise for a job well done! Who wouldn't want that? You can determine your own way to track your savings - the old fashioned way (pictured below), a spreadsheet, your blog, or whatever works. As you can see from the picture below, I usually just save the bottom half - which shows the total amount spent and saved.

My receipts since October 2009. They are all held in my coupon binder, in a pocket.

The method I have chosen to organize my coupons is with a binder. The one I purchased below is found at Wal-mart. It has a zip pocket on the front, one inside, and several accordion type dividers. It also has the typical 3-ring binder. I would suggest finding something similar, if you choose this route.

Your next step will be to place dividers and baseball card sheets into the 3-ring binder. You'll want as many dividers as categories for your coupons. Some may want to use a divider for each aisle or section in the grocery store. Some may choose dividers for him, her, or the kids. I have one for my dog! Here are my dividers' categories:

1) Deli/Bakery

2) Produce

3) Meats

4) Dairy/Refrigerated

5) Frozen

6) Canned/Bottled

7) Packaged Goods

8) Baby

9) Paper Goods

10) Toiletries

11) Cleaning Supplies

12) Medicines/Vitamins

13) Pet

One other thing that I have done, is organize each name brand in one card slot. For example, in my Packaged Goods divider, I have all of my Kellogg cereal coupons (which, usually average less than 5) in one card slot. Now, as you start couponing, you will notice that some brands offer quite a bit more coupons, than others. For example, Pillsbury, Tide, Pantene, and really, most toiletries far exceed other brands. You may have to use more than one card slot for these coupons. Be creative. It is all about trial and error in the beginning. Doing this, will also help you keep current with your coupons; and you'll easily ditch the expired ones.

The last thing that I would like to share is my Weekly Deals Ziploc bag. This is the place where I store coupons that expire within a week or so. I try to remember to shop the sales at these stores during the week. The clear bag helps me to see the coupons, and remind me. I usually have this placed around my planner. Some coupons that I have placed in here are Michael's, Babies R Us, and Cost Plus World Market. Most of these coupons are found in each store's weekly ads.

You will most likely spend at least 2 hours getting organized the first time. And, you may spend that much time during the first few weeks of clipping or sorting. But, it does get easier. And, before you know it - you'll be an old pro! I typically spend an hour each week organizing and clipping my coupons. I also plan my meals (which is essential when couponing), so that tends to take a little more time. Whatever you do, do not get discouraged and give up. You typically do not see a lot of savings until you have been couponing for 3 months!

Ok, to recap -

Step 1: Seek out support or help to get started.

Step 2: Subscribe to your local paper.

Step 3: Get organized.

Step 4: Save your receipts.

Next week, we'll sort through coupon language and lingo, and what it all means!

Happy Birthday Grandpa Ross

Last weekend we headed over to Peachtree City to celebrate Grandpa Ross' birthday! He had no idea we were coming, and the look of surprise on his face was priceless! I wish I had thought to snap a quick picture. We arrived just in time for dinner on Friday night, and headed to Grandpa and Grandma's favorite steak restaurant Longhorn Steakhouse.

On Saturday, we headed up to REI in Atlanta, and shopped the sales. I picked up a jacket, similar to this one, except it was on sale, and a pretty olive green. I haven't had anything to wear for the snow days we've had this past winter. I know we won't have anymore this year, but that's why I got it on sale! It'll be great next winter. After a few other errands, and a quick lunch, we headed home.

That evening, we had a great family dinner with Bob's parents, Melissa, and JoJo. Afterwards, several neighbors and friends came over to celebrate, with pies and cake. Overall, the weekend was great!

Here are a few pictures of Bobby, taken by Grandpa!

Enjoy!

Bobby's Sunday Best

Thanks for the cute outfit Grandma Sylvia!

Flashback Friday

Homecoming 1997

My Senior year

Two Jen's in a pod.

Ten Months Old

Bobby turned Ten months old on February 28, 2010.

(really, I'm not sure what to write, as he was born on the 30th...)

"Look momma! My top tooth is finally here!"

My cop-out way of getting him to "pose" this month for his picture.

Because... well, this is all he does these days. He's quite the explorer.

"Mom, quit taking my picture... I've discovered where we keep all our baking dishes!"

Weight: 21.6 lbs.

Sleeping Patterns: We haven't had too much change in Bobby's sleeping patterns. We had a couple weeks of a bad nap spell (my pediatrician's term for bad naps), and I thought we were on our way to transitioning to one nap. But, alas, he's still doing great with 2 naps. His wake-up times have been all over the place though. For example, in just this week alone, he woke up one day as early as 5:15 am. And, now this morning, he's still asleep, and it's 7:30 am!

Eating Habits: We are still having four bottles/day of formula, usually between 6-8 oz. Bobby is also eating Stage 3 jars of baby food, 3 times a day. During these meals, I am trying to incorporate other table foods. He really is not interested yet in eating table foods! He's getting better with the sippy cup though.

New discoveries & Accomplishments: Bobby is so curious about everything. I suppose it is just the boy in him. He is into everything, and follows me everywhere. He is such a chatterbox as well. His main word or sound is still "momma." He is saying lots of other sounds as well - b and n sounds mostly. He is such a great baby, socially. In Kindermusik and play group, people always mention how laid-back, and easy-going he is. He plays great with others, and alone. Bobby walks all the time alongside the furniture and cabinets. He won't walk though, if someone is holding onto his hands. It's kind of funny! He has just started dancing too with music. He stands and moves his legs up and down, and just smiles and giggles away. As much as my days are spent chasing him around, and saying "no," I really do love this stage! He is really starting to transition into toddlerhood! Bobby is still wearing 9-12 months clothes, but will soon be out of 9 months all together. He is in size 4 diapers. He has 3 teeth: 1 top, and 2 bottom.

Places you love: Opening and closing doors, drawers, and cabinets anywhere - Kindermusik, play group, the park (swinging), wagon rides, and riding in the shopping carts like a big boy, up front! Bobby is also finally sitting still as I read to him in the glider. He doesn't mind me snuggling with him too much these days either.

Special Friends: Aside from our normal friends, Bobby has also gotten to spend a lot of time with Luke Harris, Olivia Elrod, and Christian Segar. They are in our play group, along with Cameron and Harper. We also see lots of other friends at the park!

Current Events: Oscars - The Hurt Locker wins best movie, while Sandra Bullock wins for Best Actress. President Obama is still trying to pass his form of health care. The US has been slammed with winter weather. 2010 Winter Olympics were held in Vancouver. Toyota recalls cars due to faulty brakes.

Can't Catch a Break...

I can't catch a break, let alone my breath, to update my blog!

After the stomach bug fiasco last week, we headed over to Peachtree City for the weekend. And, now, Bob's got the flu.

I have lots to catch up on:

- Bobby's 10 month post

- Sunday Savings

- Winston vs. our grass

- Our trip to Peachtree City, and

- Bobby's Sunday Best.

Ahhh!!! I guess I'll see ya, when I see ya!

A Visit from the Stomach Bug Fairy

Image courtesy of Google

The Stomach Bug Fairy came for a quick visit this week. She decided to pay me a visit. It was not a pretty visit either. It.Was.Bad.

I am thankful that Bob and Bobby have been spared (so far, at least...). Anyhow, I spent most of yesterday regaining my strength, and disinfecting. I am finally feeling back to my old self again.

I have lots to catch up on, including Bobby's 10 month post. We have a busy day today (play group, and physical therapy for me), but I am hoping to get the post up later! I hope everyone is having a good day. It's almost the weekend!

Sunday Savings

Happy Monday y'all!

Well, I was in the process of working on this post last night - when Bob hijacked my laptop to do our taxes. I can't complain though. They are done, and we are getting a nice refund! Whew!

So, onto this week's tip -

Tip of the Week:

Subscribe to your local paper.

The best resource by far for obtaining your coupons is the Sunday newspaper. If you're like most people these days, you probably receive a majority of your news online or TV. The newspaper is becoming obsolete. However, the Sunday paper is essential in your journey to saving money. Because of this, you will most likely be able to receive a special rate or discount when ordering your paper. Check to see if you can only subscribe to receive the Sunday edition. In some cases, you may be able to. We receive The Birmingham News twice a week, on Wednesdays and Sundays. And, our rate is $26 for 26 weeks. We are saving 50% off the news stand price for just the Sunday paper alone!

Now, you may try to just buy the paper each Sunday. I tried that too. It.Did.Not.Work. Don't bother. You'll forget, and before you know it - your coupon stockpile will diminish over time. Plus, you'll be spending more money. Aren't we trying to save?

Also, there are plenty of other printable resources to receive coupons. There are always coupons in the magazines I subscribe to - Southern Living and Parents Magazine, for example. Be on the lookout!

Lastly, the Sunday newspaper will have fliers for most stores in your area. There are certain items that we NEED to buy, like Bobby's formula. And, coupons for his formula are hard to come by sometimes. But, chances are, there is always a sale to be found somewhere. For example, this week, CVS has his formula on sale for $21.99. If you are looking for a particular item - make sure to check the fliers of stores you may not usually shop.

Ok, to recap -

Step 1: Seek out support or help to get started.

Step 2: Subscribe to your local paper.

Next week, we'll talk about getting your coupons organized!

Auntie JoJo and Melissa Visit

Last weekend, Bobby's aunt JoJo and Melissa came for a quick visit. They stopped in Birmingham for the night, on their way home from Montgomery. It was great to see them - even if for a short time. They are welcome anytime for some spoiling of the baby!!!

Bobby is showing Melissa is M.O. move of sucking on his two fingers.

Bobby hangin' on the porch with Jo.

This picture cracks me up of Bobby!