Owen was playing on his slip n slide yesterday. I had the brilliant idea to join in. Boy am I sore today. My whole abdomin area is killing me. I can't even raise my arms above my head without flinching in pain. Yup, that was bright of me.
But it was so darn fun ;)
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Ugh. How frustrating.
So, I picked Owen up from school today (his 4th day). As soon as I walk in the room the aide motions me over and says "we need to talk". Great. Turns out Owen and another kid in his room (who also has autism) were playing near each other. Owen wanted the car the other kid was playing with but that kid wouldn't give it up. So Owen grabbed it (yes, we're working on that but nothing I do seems to help it). The other kid bit Owen on the arm (nasty mark but didn't cut the skin... he's just got a circle of teeth marks). So Owen bit the other kid (Owen is NOT a biter at all so this is a new one for him). So the other kid clawed at Owen's face. Apparently they seperated the kids at this point. I also talked to his teacher about it who told me the same thing. I have no idea how bad of a bite mark Owen left on the other kid. The claw mark on Owen's face broke the skin, but isn't horrible.
And, the question of the day.... where the heck was his aide at this time?!? I didn't get a chance to ask that, I was a bit in shock at the time. I didn't expect to hear that when I picked him up. I was also in a hurry to get to work. Now that I've had a chance to process it, I'll talk with them more about it tomorrow. But seriously- how frustrating. WHY were the two kids in the class who have autism ever left alone without the aide/teacher/assistant near them in the first place? There should have been an adult watching over them.
That in itself is frustrating. Even moreso, though, is when I try talking to Owen about it. He refuses to answer my questions about it and just keeps saying that if a kid bites him again he'll bite back. I keep telling him no, we don't bite. If someone bites you, you tell the teacher. But he keeps insisting he's going to bite back, and I don't doubt he will. I just hope he's not going to become "the biter" who bites first now. I seriously am stuck. He doesn't bite. He pinches cheeks, but he doesn't bite.
He also had a hard time on the playground today. They play on the playground right at the end of school and then they go inside, read a story/sing a song/whatever while drinking some water and then they go home. So after I get there I can sit in my car and watch them on the playground. When it was time to go in the teacher announced that to the kids, who all ran over to the fence to grab the rope (they hold a rope to get to/from the playground). Except Owen, who was laying on top of the tunnel. So the teacher brought him down and started walking towards the fence. She let go of his hand for a split second so he ran back to the tunnel and climbed on top. So she went back to get him, brought him down and was walking with him to the fence. He decided to do his "go limp" game and dropped to the ground, refusing to move. She did eventually get him inside, and I'm proud of myself for not intervening ;)
So, the positive to all that.... the first 3 days of school when I picked him up all 3 of the adults raved about how good Owen is, how well behaved he is, how he never causes them any trouble and he never tries to escape. I was beginning to wonder if we were talking about the same kid ;) LOL! But NOW Owen is getting more comfortable there and, well, now they'll see the real Owen. I am actually glad of this in a way because we have a meeting with the school on Friday. The last thing I wanted was for them to insist Owen was doing well and didn't need any special accomodations only for him to take a downward spiral in a week.
And, the question of the day.... where the heck was his aide at this time?!? I didn't get a chance to ask that, I was a bit in shock at the time. I didn't expect to hear that when I picked him up. I was also in a hurry to get to work. Now that I've had a chance to process it, I'll talk with them more about it tomorrow. But seriously- how frustrating. WHY were the two kids in the class who have autism ever left alone without the aide/teacher/assistant near them in the first place? There should have been an adult watching over them.
That in itself is frustrating. Even moreso, though, is when I try talking to Owen about it. He refuses to answer my questions about it and just keeps saying that if a kid bites him again he'll bite back. I keep telling him no, we don't bite. If someone bites you, you tell the teacher. But he keeps insisting he's going to bite back, and I don't doubt he will. I just hope he's not going to become "the biter" who bites first now. I seriously am stuck. He doesn't bite. He pinches cheeks, but he doesn't bite.
He also had a hard time on the playground today. They play on the playground right at the end of school and then they go inside, read a story/sing a song/whatever while drinking some water and then they go home. So after I get there I can sit in my car and watch them on the playground. When it was time to go in the teacher announced that to the kids, who all ran over to the fence to grab the rope (they hold a rope to get to/from the playground). Except Owen, who was laying on top of the tunnel. So the teacher brought him down and started walking towards the fence. She let go of his hand for a split second so he ran back to the tunnel and climbed on top. So she went back to get him, brought him down and was walking with him to the fence. He decided to do his "go limp" game and dropped to the ground, refusing to move. She did eventually get him inside, and I'm proud of myself for not intervening ;)
So, the positive to all that.... the first 3 days of school when I picked him up all 3 of the adults raved about how good Owen is, how well behaved he is, how he never causes them any trouble and he never tries to escape. I was beginning to wonder if we were talking about the same kid ;) LOL! But NOW Owen is getting more comfortable there and, well, now they'll see the real Owen. I am actually glad of this in a way because we have a meeting with the school on Friday. The last thing I wanted was for them to insist Owen was doing well and didn't need any special accomodations only for him to take a downward spiral in a week.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Wooo... I'm shocked....
Owen is ill. Again. Shocker. He's been coughing a lot all weekend (last night was really bad). So I took him to the dr this morning, knowing that in almost 5 years Owen has NEVER just had a cold. There's always something else going on. So, right now.... cold but it's still in the head (no chest congestion), no ear infections (yay! The tubes are working!!!), his throat is slightly red and slightly swollen (but that's hard to tell because his tonsils are always huge anyway), stuffy nose but it's not runny and he can't blow his nose (not uncommon for kids like him, dr says it may be a couple more YEARS before he can finally blow it.... wth??). His dr is concerned that with all the congestion in his head combined with no runny nose and no blowing his nose, he's going to get a sinus infection, which will probably lead to ear infections. Short story.... antibiotics again. I talked to the ped about this a lot, because I am concerned about the overuse of antibiotics. But basically the dr thinks he already has some sort of "super bug" because he JUST got off antibiotics. The dr thinks he never kicked all the germs the last time. So he's on antibiotics again, only this time will be for twice as many days to try and kill every last germ in his body. LOL!
Anyway, I also talked to the ped about Owen's school a little. In that conversation it came out that the dr thinks he might be able to get the insurance company to pay for a child locator!! Jason and I have been talking about this lately because it really is getting hard to make sure Owen stays where he's supposed to be. He just wanders off randomly and he doesn't get that it's dangerous. But a good child locator costs $300+. So, the dr put me to work researching them and deciding which one I want. Once I figure that out I'll get that information to him and he'll see what he can do on the insurance end. I hope we can get it approved, but I'm not holding my breathe. This is also something I had planned on bringing up at our ARC meeting at the school Friday. I'm hoping they'll spring for one for him to use at school, because I have a feeling they aren't going to let him keep his one-on-one aide all year and there is a very real risk to him escaping from school (which is right at the intersection of 2 major roads).
Anyway, I also talked to the ped about Owen's school a little. In that conversation it came out that the dr thinks he might be able to get the insurance company to pay for a child locator!! Jason and I have been talking about this lately because it really is getting hard to make sure Owen stays where he's supposed to be. He just wanders off randomly and he doesn't get that it's dangerous. But a good child locator costs $300+. So, the dr put me to work researching them and deciding which one I want. Once I figure that out I'll get that information to him and he'll see what he can do on the insurance end. I hope we can get it approved, but I'm not holding my breathe. This is also something I had planned on bringing up at our ARC meeting at the school Friday. I'm hoping they'll spring for one for him to use at school, because I have a feeling they aren't going to let him keep his one-on-one aide all year and there is a very real risk to him escaping from school (which is right at the intersection of 2 major roads).
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Shopping deals... or should I say "steals" ;)
Meijer trip from tonight. Total spent- $18.76. Total saved- $52.37. Woo!
How did I do it? Luck. LOL! They have a deal where if you buy $10 in Nabisco products you save $10 on 3 packs of Fruit of the Loom underwear (Owen's white shirts he's so fond of). Since I also had coupons for Nabisco products (some of which were also on sale B1G1) AND coupons for Fruit of the Loom underwear, it was a heck of a deal. I did all the grocery shopping part of the trip and then went to get the shirts.... but they had none in his size! I asked a stocker and she said they didn't have anymore but to ask a certain cashier for help. So I asked the cashier if I could get a rain check. She said she didn't feel like messing with that so she would just give me $10 off my order right now. LOL! Okaaay.... not arguing. I also got some rice sides for $1 each (we love these and the pasta ones), jello on sale (we use this to slightly flavor applesauce for Owen and he likes it.... as long as he doesn't see us do it and it doesn't change the color too much!), wishbone dressing on sale plus coupon, soup on sale plus coupons, peanut butter on sale plus coupon.
BUT, the best deal- by far- is this..... When I was looking for the fruit of the loom shirts I ran into the kids underwear aisle. In that aisle I spotted some clearance stuff. WHITE SHIRTS! Not just white shirts, but white shirts with little Thomas trains and Lightening McQueen cars! Small enough that they still qualify as a "white shirt" (I hope!) but enough to change it up a little. Packs of 2 shirts in each. Normally $7.99. On clearance for $1.59!!! I bought 4 packs (2 Cars and 2 Thomas, one of each in size 4 and size 6). I can't wait to show him in the morning. I *think* he'll like them. But he's been on a white shirt only kick so... who knows.
How did I do it? Luck. LOL! They have a deal where if you buy $10 in Nabisco products you save $10 on 3 packs of Fruit of the Loom underwear (Owen's white shirts he's so fond of). Since I also had coupons for Nabisco products (some of which were also on sale B1G1) AND coupons for Fruit of the Loom underwear, it was a heck of a deal. I did all the grocery shopping part of the trip and then went to get the shirts.... but they had none in his size! I asked a stocker and she said they didn't have anymore but to ask a certain cashier for help. So I asked the cashier if I could get a rain check. She said she didn't feel like messing with that so she would just give me $10 off my order right now. LOL! Okaaay.... not arguing. I also got some rice sides for $1 each (we love these and the pasta ones), jello on sale (we use this to slightly flavor applesauce for Owen and he likes it.... as long as he doesn't see us do it and it doesn't change the color too much!), wishbone dressing on sale plus coupon, soup on sale plus coupons, peanut butter on sale plus coupon.
BUT, the best deal- by far- is this..... When I was looking for the fruit of the loom shirts I ran into the kids underwear aisle. In that aisle I spotted some clearance stuff. WHITE SHIRTS! Not just white shirts, but white shirts with little Thomas trains and Lightening McQueen cars! Small enough that they still qualify as a "white shirt" (I hope!) but enough to change it up a little. Packs of 2 shirts in each. Normally $7.99. On clearance for $1.59!!! I bought 4 packs (2 Cars and 2 Thomas, one of each in size 4 and size 6). I can't wait to show him in the morning. I *think* he'll like them. But he's been on a white shirt only kick so... who knows.
School!
Today was Owen's first day of preschool! He goes Mon-Fri for 3 hours a day. How cute is that?! He LOVED it. Absolutely loved it.
No issues with me leaving him there at all :)
The food issue went great. We were worried he wouldn't eat his lunch, since he has a LOT of issues with eating around new people and in new places. But he ate almost the entire lunch I packed for him! YAY! One hurdle down.
I've been in meetings with people from the school all week trying to make this a safe place for Owen (the runner). For now I installed a temporary alarm on the back door in the classroom (that leads to the outside). For today they pushed a table against the door to the hallway. I got a call tonight from the principal saying he was approved for an aide until the next meeting, so starting tomorrow he'll have an aide and won't need to move the table in front of the door. Next Friday we have an ARC meeting, so we'll see what happens then.
All in all, it went great! He has a body sox there (the teacher put it in his cubby so he can use it at any time) and that helped. It also helped that his teacher is a SAINT! She seriously is the most patient person I've met in a loooong time. She's an older woman and has been doing this (teaching preschool aged special needs kids) for a long time so she knows what she's doing.
"Hurry up and take the picture so I can take this shirt off already!" He wore it for about 30 seconds for a photo op, then it was back to his white shirt.
"Much better. Can we go now?"
"Enough with the pictures... Let's GO!"
"We're here!"
"Alright already.... you can go now mom!"
No issues with me leaving him there at all :)
The food issue went great. We were worried he wouldn't eat his lunch, since he has a LOT of issues with eating around new people and in new places. But he ate almost the entire lunch I packed for him! YAY! One hurdle down.
I've been in meetings with people from the school all week trying to make this a safe place for Owen (the runner). For now I installed a temporary alarm on the back door in the classroom (that leads to the outside). For today they pushed a table against the door to the hallway. I got a call tonight from the principal saying he was approved for an aide until the next meeting, so starting tomorrow he'll have an aide and won't need to move the table in front of the door. Next Friday we have an ARC meeting, so we'll see what happens then.
All in all, it went great! He has a body sox there (the teacher put it in his cubby so he can use it at any time) and that helped. It also helped that his teacher is a SAINT! She seriously is the most patient person I've met in a loooong time. She's an older woman and has been doing this (teaching preschool aged special needs kids) for a long time so she knows what she's doing.
Friday, August 8, 2008
A brag.
Normally when I brag it's about Owen, this time it's Jason :)
He's been working at Lexmark for a few years, but he's been working as a contractor (not an actual Lexmark employee). He applied for a job at Lexmark recently, one that he really wants. And he got it! He just called to say that he starts training on Monday. WOO-HOO! In addition to this, he gets a fairly big raise, which never hurts ;) The upside is he's going to drop some of his weekend job (he'll still work Friday nights and Sunday afternoon but will drop Saturdays so he'll finally have one day a week off work). The downside to this is he will probably be doing some travel. Not right away, but it'll probably happen eventually. Some of it will be in the country, some will be out of the country. That part sucks, but we'll see what happens. But.... yay! Great job, Jason!
He's been working at Lexmark for a few years, but he's been working as a contractor (not an actual Lexmark employee). He applied for a job at Lexmark recently, one that he really wants. And he got it! He just called to say that he starts training on Monday. WOO-HOO! In addition to this, he gets a fairly big raise, which never hurts ;) The upside is he's going to drop some of his weekend job (he'll still work Friday nights and Sunday afternoon but will drop Saturdays so he'll finally have one day a week off work). The downside to this is he will probably be doing some travel. Not right away, but it'll probably happen eventually. Some of it will be in the country, some will be out of the country. That part sucks, but we'll see what happens. But.... yay! Great job, Jason!
Monday, August 4, 2008
Shopping.... again....
Jason was so impressed with my trip last night that I had to do it again ;) Here's tonights trip. The first part is the 6 crest/etc get $10 gift card deal, but slightly different since they were out of almost all the trial size things.
#1
3 Crest Pro-Health night time toothpaste (on sale for 2/$5 and B2G1 plus I had coupons that totaled $1.75 off)
3 trial size Olay lotions ($1.29 each)
Total out of pocket- $7.65
$10 gift card
#2
2 trial size mouthwashes ($.96 each)
1 trial size Olay lotion ($1.29)
3 Crest Pro-Health toothpaste (2/$5 and B2G1 plus I had coupons that totaled $1.75 off)
Total out of pocket- $6.95
$10 gift card
#3
1 Hot Wheels thingy ($5.99-$5.00 coupon)
1 Mr Clean erasers ($2.89-$1 coupon)
1 Honey ($2.99, not on sale but it was a need right now)
6 Kraft Mac N Cheese (B3G3)
4 Dole Tropical Fruit Salad ($1 each)
2 Applesauce ($1 each)
2 Glad sprays ($1 each, B1G1 coupon)
2 Pert Plus Shampoos ($2.99 each, I used 2 coupons for $3 off each)
I also had a coupon for $5 off a purchase of $25 or more, which is why I bought the random things (hot wheels, shampoo). They were free, or close to it, and got me over the $25 limit. Owen will enjoy the hot wheels thing come Christmas and the shampoo will be used. The machine also printed out another $5 off $25 purchase coupon for use another day.
Total before discounts/coupons- $37.80. Total after coupons/discounts- $9.95 (I used a gift card on that)
For those keeping track.... in the past 2 days I've spent $40.78. I got $60 worth of gift cards (and more toothpaste/lotion/mouthwash than I know what to do with. LOL!). With those gift cards I bought $83.80 worth of items for $36.03 after discounts/coupons (paid for with gift cards) AND I still have $24 worth of gift cards.
#1
3 Crest Pro-Health night time toothpaste (on sale for 2/$5 and B2G1 plus I had coupons that totaled $1.75 off)
3 trial size Olay lotions ($1.29 each)
Total out of pocket- $7.65
$10 gift card
#2
2 trial size mouthwashes ($.96 each)
1 trial size Olay lotion ($1.29)
3 Crest Pro-Health toothpaste (2/$5 and B2G1 plus I had coupons that totaled $1.75 off)
Total out of pocket- $6.95
$10 gift card
#3
1 Hot Wheels thingy ($5.99-$5.00 coupon)
1 Mr Clean erasers ($2.89-$1 coupon)
1 Honey ($2.99, not on sale but it was a need right now)
6 Kraft Mac N Cheese (B3G3)
4 Dole Tropical Fruit Salad ($1 each)
2 Applesauce ($1 each)
2 Glad sprays ($1 each, B1G1 coupon)
2 Pert Plus Shampoos ($2.99 each, I used 2 coupons for $3 off each)
I also had a coupon for $5 off a purchase of $25 or more, which is why I bought the random things (hot wheels, shampoo). They were free, or close to it, and got me over the $25 limit. Owen will enjoy the hot wheels thing come Christmas and the shampoo will be used. The machine also printed out another $5 off $25 purchase coupon for use another day.
Total before discounts/coupons- $37.80. Total after coupons/discounts- $9.95 (I used a gift card on that)
For those keeping track.... in the past 2 days I've spent $40.78. I got $60 worth of gift cards (and more toothpaste/lotion/mouthwash than I know what to do with. LOL!). With those gift cards I bought $83.80 worth of items for $36.03 after discounts/coupons (paid for with gift cards) AND I still have $24 worth of gift cards.
The good and bad....
The last couple weeks we noticed Owen was mixing up his words. We would say something and he would try to repeat it, but it would come out as something else completely (like if we said "book" he might say he heard "foot" or something like that). So we figured it was either a speech issue, a processing issues, or a hearing issue. So, off to the doctor we went today.
Wait for it.... here's the shocker we've all been waiting for.... he has another ear infection. ARGH!!!! He was doing so well! He got the tubes put in in April and hasn't had any problems since. Until now, that is. He hasn't been complaining of pain at all, but the dr said it's definately infected, but the bad news is it's not draining like it should be. So the tube might be blocked, but the doctor couldn't see any blockage (but couldn't see enough to say for sure). So, since it's not draining we can't do the ear drop antibiotics, we have to do oral antibiotics (Omnicef, again). I think it's twice a day for 10 days, he goes back to get them re-checked in 2 weeks.
So, there's the bad news. The good news is we went to the school Owen should be starting at to get some paperwork. The people we met were very nice. They unlocked Owen's room and let him look around for a little bit. Even with no toys (the teacher hasn't been back yet to set it up) he was still very excited and didn't want to leave. Owen is so excited to start at the big boy school! We are trying to get him signed up for the preschool program. It'll be at the elementary school that he will continue at for Kindergarten on up. It looks like a nice school. Nice playground. There's a garden right outside Owen's room (and I'm jealous because they have squash growing. LOL!).
The big con though... his room is RIGHT by the outside doors. The outside doors are locked (from the outside) during the day so people can't get in without buzzing the doorbell. But the doors, of course, can open from the inside (it would be a fire hazard otherwise). I talked to a couple ladies about this and expressed my concern (Owen still escapes and the school is right on a busy road). She said to talk to the teacher but she doesn't see any problem with them installing an alarm on the classroom door. It'll be the same one we have at home on all our doors (when the door is opened a loud alarm sounds). I told her I would bring a couple in so they wouldn't have to worry about getting them. If they agree to this then I will be THRILLED. So far the school and the staff all seem really nice and Owen is super excited!
And a funny story that just happened while I was typing this. I heard Owen screaming downstairs so I went down to find out what was happening. He was leaning back on the big chair, feet sticking straight up in the air. He was shaking them with a terrified look on his face while screaming "TOE FUZZ". LOL! Yes, my son is afraid of toe fuzz. The funny thing is, he gets toe fuzz every time he wears a certain brand of socks.... but it's his favorite socks too. Crazy boy!
Wait for it.... here's the shocker we've all been waiting for.... he has another ear infection. ARGH!!!! He was doing so well! He got the tubes put in in April and hasn't had any problems since. Until now, that is. He hasn't been complaining of pain at all, but the dr said it's definately infected, but the bad news is it's not draining like it should be. So the tube might be blocked, but the doctor couldn't see any blockage (but couldn't see enough to say for sure). So, since it's not draining we can't do the ear drop antibiotics, we have to do oral antibiotics (Omnicef, again). I think it's twice a day for 10 days, he goes back to get them re-checked in 2 weeks.
So, there's the bad news. The good news is we went to the school Owen should be starting at to get some paperwork. The people we met were very nice. They unlocked Owen's room and let him look around for a little bit. Even with no toys (the teacher hasn't been back yet to set it up) he was still very excited and didn't want to leave. Owen is so excited to start at the big boy school! We are trying to get him signed up for the preschool program. It'll be at the elementary school that he will continue at for Kindergarten on up. It looks like a nice school. Nice playground. There's a garden right outside Owen's room (and I'm jealous because they have squash growing. LOL!).
The big con though... his room is RIGHT by the outside doors. The outside doors are locked (from the outside) during the day so people can't get in without buzzing the doorbell. But the doors, of course, can open from the inside (it would be a fire hazard otherwise). I talked to a couple ladies about this and expressed my concern (Owen still escapes and the school is right on a busy road). She said to talk to the teacher but she doesn't see any problem with them installing an alarm on the classroom door. It'll be the same one we have at home on all our doors (when the door is opened a loud alarm sounds). I told her I would bring a couple in so they wouldn't have to worry about getting them. If they agree to this then I will be THRILLED. So far the school and the staff all seem really nice and Owen is super excited!
And a funny story that just happened while I was typing this. I heard Owen screaming downstairs so I went down to find out what was happening. He was leaning back on the big chair, feet sticking straight up in the air. He was shaking them with a terrified look on his face while screaming "TOE FUZZ". LOL! Yes, my son is afraid of toe fuzz. The funny thing is, he gets toe fuzz every time he wears a certain brand of socks.... but it's his favorite socks too. Crazy boy!
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Shopping!
I think I may just start posting my great deals in here... just because I can :) So this trip absolutely ROCKED. Jason can't believe it. I swear I did nothing illegal :)
Meijer has a deal right now where if you buy 6 Crest, Olay, Pantene, or Always/Tampax products you get a free $10 gift card. There is NO mention of how big the product needs to be. So I hit the sample/trial size aisle ;) Here's what I did. I had to do these in groups of 6 and pay for each group seperate, but here's what I got total....
14 Crest toothpastes ($.96/each)
5 Olay lotions ($1.29 each)
5 Crest Mouthwashes ($.96/each)
Total out of pocket, including tax- $26.18
I got $40 worth of gift cards by doing this.
So, then I went grocery shopping, armed with my trusty coupons, of course. Here's what I got.
1 Shampoo for Owen- $2.99
1 bath gel for Owen- free (those were B1G1)
Salami- $3.49
6 Kraft Mac n Cheese- $2.34 (B3G3)
2 Green peppers (1.07 lbs)- $1.06
*5 boxes of Pasta and Rice a roni
*1 bag (1lb) baby carrots
*2 cereal cups (fruits loops and corn pops)
*3 Dole Mandarin Oranges cans
*2 Dole Tropical Fruit Salad cans
*2 jars of applesauce
*2 boxes of Totinos pizza rolls
*2 Glade Air Freshener sprays
*1 jar of frosting
*1 bag of salad
*1 container of baby bella mushrooms
Each of the items that have a (*) were on sale for 10/$10 and get the 11th item free (I bought 22 items so paid for 20 of them and got 2 free). I also had coupons. I had a B1G1 coupon for the Glade sprays (making it $.90 for 2), $.40 coupon for the frosting (which doubled, making the cost $.10), $1 off 2 cereals (making it $.80 for 2 cereal cups), $.40 off 2 boxes of pizza rolls (which doubled, bringing the cost to $1 for 2 boxes) and a $.50 off coupon for the mushrooms (which does not double, making the cost $.40 for 8oz of organic baby bella mushrooms).
This was $46 worth of items. After discounts/coupons it cost $26.08. I used the gift cards from the above deal to pay for it all and I still have about $14 worth of gift cards to use.
To break it down.... I walked out of the store with $72.18 worth of stuff (and $14 worth of gift cards) and it only cost me $26.18.
And yes, before anyone asks.... I'll be going back and doing it again tomorrow. I know a bunch of little toothpaste, mouthwashes and lotion seem silly but we go out of town a lot (every couple months) so it will be very handy to have these to take instead of the full size versions!
Meijer has a deal right now where if you buy 6 Crest, Olay, Pantene, or Always/Tampax products you get a free $10 gift card. There is NO mention of how big the product needs to be. So I hit the sample/trial size aisle ;) Here's what I did. I had to do these in groups of 6 and pay for each group seperate, but here's what I got total....
14 Crest toothpastes ($.96/each)
5 Olay lotions ($1.29 each)
5 Crest Mouthwashes ($.96/each)
Total out of pocket, including tax- $26.18
I got $40 worth of gift cards by doing this.
So, then I went grocery shopping, armed with my trusty coupons, of course. Here's what I got.
1 Shampoo for Owen- $2.99
1 bath gel for Owen- free (those were B1G1)
Salami- $3.49
6 Kraft Mac n Cheese- $2.34 (B3G3)
2 Green peppers (1.07 lbs)- $1.06
*5 boxes of Pasta and Rice a roni
*1 bag (1lb) baby carrots
*2 cereal cups (fruits loops and corn pops)
*3 Dole Mandarin Oranges cans
*2 Dole Tropical Fruit Salad cans
*2 jars of applesauce
*2 boxes of Totinos pizza rolls
*2 Glade Air Freshener sprays
*1 jar of frosting
*1 bag of salad
*1 container of baby bella mushrooms
Each of the items that have a (*) were on sale for 10/$10 and get the 11th item free (I bought 22 items so paid for 20 of them and got 2 free). I also had coupons. I had a B1G1 coupon for the Glade sprays (making it $.90 for 2), $.40 coupon for the frosting (which doubled, making the cost $.10), $1 off 2 cereals (making it $.80 for 2 cereal cups), $.40 off 2 boxes of pizza rolls (which doubled, bringing the cost to $1 for 2 boxes) and a $.50 off coupon for the mushrooms (which does not double, making the cost $.40 for 8oz of organic baby bella mushrooms).
This was $46 worth of items. After discounts/coupons it cost $26.08. I used the gift cards from the above deal to pay for it all and I still have about $14 worth of gift cards to use.
To break it down.... I walked out of the store with $72.18 worth of stuff (and $14 worth of gift cards) and it only cost me $26.18.
And yes, before anyone asks.... I'll be going back and doing it again tomorrow. I know a bunch of little toothpaste, mouthwashes and lotion seem silly but we go out of town a lot (every couple months) so it will be very handy to have these to take instead of the full size versions!
For Alexis :)
Pictures! LOL! I hear Alexis likes looking at the pictures so here's a few. I just realized I haven't used my camera much lately, so I don't have many.
This was taken in... ummm... July? Or the end of June? We went to the Louisville Zoo. Owen's favorite part was the train ride, of course (and if you look closely you'll see he, of course, has his Thomas train with him).
A giraffe.... do you still like giraffes Alexis?
He's going to be so mad when he gets older....
Yes, my 4 year old reads Fortune magazine while he's using the potty.
And he's a bit of a dork. He kept insisting on putting his shorts ALL the way up. LOL!
At a baseball game I took him to last night. He did okay at the game, wasn't too into it. He fell asleep in the 7th inning (the game started at 7 so it was pretty late). But he made me promise to wake him after the game was over so he could run the bases. I did, and he did (after the fireworks). He LOVED running the basis. He was so darn happy.
Wearing his brand new "just like Jason" real soccer shoes. For the last 2 soccer seasons (spring and fall) he just wore sneakers. But he was so exited that they had soccer shoes in his size that we had to get them. He was absolutely thrilled that they were "just like Jason's", and they are too. Same brand and shoe name, just a lot smaller. He loves playing soccer, but he gets upset that he can't play on Jason's team. He doesn't want to play with the kids... he wants to play adult soccer! His soccer starts again in the fall. We're still debating on whether to sign him up for 3 year old or 4 year old soccer. The 3 year old soccer is very non-structured. The 4 year old is a lot more structured and they practice once a week and have games once a week. He still has such a hard time with structured stuff like that, I don't think he'll "get" the game. He did 3 year old in the fall and spring. They said they would let him play in the 3 year old again if we want him to (yes, we realize he'll be 5, but he won't be 5 developmentally).
Yes, I do have "sucker" written on my forehead.
And yes, I'm being outsmarted by a 4 year old.
This morning I had to run to walmart to get a paper (my sunday morning treat.... it has the coupons ;) ). So Owen said he wanted to go with me. Fine, no problem. We get there and park the car. I start to get out and Owen breaks down in his carseat, absolutely sobbing. I finally get him to calm down (thinking to myself "what in the world is going on???") and he explains that he wants me to stay in the car and he'll go into walmart by himself. Uhhhh.... nope. I tried to explain to him that we couldn't do that- we had to go in together. Tears are streaming down his face while he's trying to explain to me that he wants to go into the store by himself and get me a surprise. Awww... how cute. Then he adds that he's a big boy now and he just wants mama and Jason to be proud of him for going into the store all by himself and getting me a surprise. Well, darn. What the heck do you say to that?!? (The proud thing is cute- we've been working on emotions lately and he has a chart on the wall with different emotions... proud is the emotion phase for now). So I got him calmed down enough to get him to listen to me and we made a compromise. We went into the store together, and walked around together, but I would close my eyes when he found the surprise so that he could still say "surprise".
Sooo..... want to know what "my surprise" was?? A VeggieTales SingAlong DVD. Amazingly enough it was the same exact one Owen's been begging me for for weeks. But he was soooo nice to give ME that as a surprise ;) Yup, just tattoo "sucker" on me. LOL!
The kid is getting way too smart for his own good.
This morning I had to run to walmart to get a paper (my sunday morning treat.... it has the coupons ;) ). So Owen said he wanted to go with me. Fine, no problem. We get there and park the car. I start to get out and Owen breaks down in his carseat, absolutely sobbing. I finally get him to calm down (thinking to myself "what in the world is going on???") and he explains that he wants me to stay in the car and he'll go into walmart by himself. Uhhhh.... nope. I tried to explain to him that we couldn't do that- we had to go in together. Tears are streaming down his face while he's trying to explain to me that he wants to go into the store by himself and get me a surprise. Awww... how cute. Then he adds that he's a big boy now and he just wants mama and Jason to be proud of him for going into the store all by himself and getting me a surprise. Well, darn. What the heck do you say to that?!? (The proud thing is cute- we've been working on emotions lately and he has a chart on the wall with different emotions... proud is the emotion phase for now). So I got him calmed down enough to get him to listen to me and we made a compromise. We went into the store together, and walked around together, but I would close my eyes when he found the surprise so that he could still say "surprise".
Sooo..... want to know what "my surprise" was?? A VeggieTales SingAlong DVD. Amazingly enough it was the same exact one Owen's been begging me for for weeks. But he was soooo nice to give ME that as a surprise ;) Yup, just tattoo "sucker" on me. LOL!
The kid is getting way too smart for his own good.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Well, that made the garden worth it!
My garden is not doing well. At all. My zucchini and yellow squash plants are gone (really? who kills squash??). My cucumbers are dying fast. My green pepper plant produced one pepper. The red pepper plant produced one pepper (still ripening). The early girl tomato produced 1 tomato (still ripening). The cherry tomato plant has a few tomatoes randomly ripening, but not as much as I would hope.
So, onto why it was all worth it.... earlier this week our green pepper was ripe. Owen and I went out there and I let him pick it. He almost immediately took a bite of it, said it was crunchy, chewed a little bit and then spit it out! YAY! He's never eaten green pepper before. Today we had a ripe cherry tomato so I let Owen pick it. He asked what it looked like inside so I told him it was juicy and had seeds in it. He totally took a bite of it! He chewed it just for a second and then spit it out. WOOOOO!!!!
So, onto why it was all worth it.... earlier this week our green pepper was ripe. Owen and I went out there and I let him pick it. He almost immediately took a bite of it, said it was crunchy, chewed a little bit and then spit it out! YAY! He's never eaten green pepper before. Today we had a ripe cherry tomato so I let Owen pick it. He asked what it looked like inside so I told him it was juicy and had seeds in it. He totally took a bite of it! He chewed it just for a second and then spit it out. WOOOOO!!!!
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