Giveaway!

Remember here where I posted about Paperback Swap? I really can't say enough good things about Paperback Swap and get the majority of my books from there.

You basically set up an account (easy and free!) and post 10 books that you no longer want. You earn a credit just by posting your first 10 books. Then, when members request a book of yours, you mail it off to them (postage is usually around $2.50) and once they receive it in the mail they mark received and you earn one credit. I have only had one book get lost in the mail after four years of use and about a hundred books mailed, so this system works! Each credit is worth one book of your choosing from their large database. And if there is a book that you want that they do not have available, you can put it on your wishlist and they will notify you when it is available.

I often pick up books that are in nice condition at garage sales for 10 to 25 cents each and post those on Paperback Swap so that I can earn a credit if someone requests it. I have gotten so many wonderful books through this site, even some that sell for $35 new. This is essentially a bartering website that works extremely well.

The whole purpose of this post? Paperback Swap has so kindly offered three credits (three free books!) up to one lucky reader of mine. If you are already a Paperback Swap member, just leave a comment below. If you are not yet a member, go to their site and look around. Sign up and post your first 10 books (you get one credit automatically by doing that!...and will you kindly use my e-mail address babys_mama1 "at" yahoo.com as your referral?) and then come back and leave a comment here. One winner will receive three free credits, and winner will be drawn on Monday (the 8th) at noon.

Frugal Friday: Warehouse Clubs

Are warehouse clubs really a good deal? I know some people swear by them and others who pay for a membership and never use it. In our area the only warehouse club that I am aware of is Sam's Club, so will only use this one for an example.

The last time I checked, a yearly membership to Sam's Club is $40. There are often one day guest passes available and if you shop with a guest pass you have to pay a 10% markup. While that sounds high, if there are just a few items that you want to shop for and would only shop at Sam's Club a few times a year, the guest pass is actually the best deal. Because even with the 10% markup, you would have to spend over $400 a year to make the membership fee break even. So the few times I have wanted to purchase something at Sam's Club I have used the guest pass and happily paid the 10% markup.

While looking around the store, I didn't find a whole lot of outstanding deals. I can get the majority of items cheaper at the grocery stores or Walmart watching sales and stocking up or using coupons. One of the deals I did go for was the 5 lb. of honey for $8 (or around there) because that was a wonderful deal. But we didn't use it up fast enough before it crystallized and now I have half a bottle of crystallized honey that takes too long to get liquid again. If I won't be able to use it up before the expiration date or am unable to use such a large bottle then it is just wasted money. I went back to buying the bottles of honey at the store.

I have noticed that Walmart is starting to carry some of the larger size items, such as a 6 lb. container of peanut butter for $8.xx. This is something that we can use, and go through fairly quickly. And I don't have to go to a warehouse club to purchase it. They have a shelf in their grocery section with some bulk items such as pickles, drink mix, cocoa mix, the peanut butter, beans, and other large cans of items. I purchase items there at times.

Surveys have shown that you often spend more at warehouse clubs than you intended. And that it is usually is not a savings because while you may think that you are saving money by buying potato chips five bags at a time, you often go through those bags faster because they are in your house than if you just purchased one bag a week. Do you need a 3 lb. bag of gummy bears or 3 lb. tub of cheese puffs? Will your kids go through those bags in less than a week just because it is sitting there before them? I know in this house we have to buy sweets in limited quantities because if the kids (or even us parents!) know it is in the house we will eat it up. I'm sure there are some out there with more self control so maybe it works for them.

I know several businesses that give their employees a warehouse club membership for free. I think in this case it could be worth it, as long as you stick to the items that you know are saving you money.

As I stated before, I don't know a whole lot about membership clubs but from my research I decided they don't fit our family. The membership fee alone would never be recouped unless we spent over $400 yearly at Sam's Club (and thus saving the 10% markup fee). I doubt I would purchase that much there.

I am curious though. Are you a die-hard warehouse club shopper? What items do you regularly purchase there that you find to be the best savings?

Blogger Awards

I received my very first blogger award today from Robin over at lolidots. Yay for me! And thank you, Robin!
I have to pass this beautiful award on so I have chosen a blogger that I follow because I love her life. She has a beautiful farm and a beautiful log house and she really opens her doors for her readers to follow in her adventures. Check Bev's blog at Bee Haven Acres.

Cabin Fever

I feel like I am going to go stark raving mad if Spring doesn't arrive soon. Our house seems to be shrinking by the day and the kids seem to be bouncing off the walls with boundless energy. They are not only getting on my nerves, but also on each others nerves. Maybe even on their own nerves. I'm beginning to feel like a caged animal.

I do my best to keep them occupied, but there is just so much that you can do indoors. Puzzles, books, crafts, and activities only hold attention spans for so long. Yesterday was about 30 degrees and sunny so we ventured out for a walk. I thought that they could get some energy out and come home refreshed, yet tired. It didn't work. If anything, it seemed to recharge their batteries and make them even more wound up and raring to go. I just can't win!

But when I really start to feel sorry for myself I remind myself that I have it good. I may even have it easy! I try to remind myself of what my ancestors had to deal with. What the pioneers who settled this land had to go through in winter. Imagine a small, dark dugout...possibly without windows or only one or two small ones. Being stuck indoors for weeks at a time as the snow blows around the dugout or piles against the door. If one had children they had to try to keep them occupied with very limited resources. Maybe a board game of checkers or other homemade toys, but that was it. Many pioneers had just one book (the Bible) so they couldn't even rely on reading to keep their mind off of things or to entertain themselves.

No phones to keep in touch with relatives or friends and the mail only appeared a few times a year. No way to even get to town in the middle of winter to visit with friends or do a little shopping. They were completely isolated. I can't even imagine that life and wonder if depression was a big thing for mothers back then. Even the simple things that we take for granted such as a warm bubble bath didn't happen much in the middle of winter. Imagine trying to wash clothing in that weather and hanging it all over your small dugout to dry...I really doubt they did a whole lot of clothes washing in winter.

Meals were probably pretty much the same every day. There would be no variety with fresh fruits and vegetables. Beans and some venison or bread was probably a big staple of their life. Sugar would be rationed until they could get to town in the spring so I doubt there were even desserts most of the time.

So I will try not to complain too much about my case of cabin fever when I remember what others have gone through in the middle of winter. I am able to call my mom on the phone, write letters to friends (and receive a response within days of them mailing it off), have an outlet for my writing via this blog, pick a book off my overflowing shelves (or run to the library which is four blocks away) and read as much as I'd like, relax in front of a movie, take a warm bubble bath, get takeout if I am too lazy or tired to make supper, and the list goes on. Ahhh...the small joys in life really do count!

How are you staying sane this winter?

Wholesome Wednesday: Co-sleeping

I never intended to co-sleep with my babies. I had a crib and a bassinet all set up for when I arrived home from the hospital with my first baby.

I arrived home from the hospital exhausted. I'm not good at sleeping away from home and the noises of a hospital and getting interrupted in the middle of the night with checks and the nurses bringing little Becca in for nursing made it all harder. I arrived home with my newborn infant and a terrible migraine and I headed straight for bed. I nursed my newborn to sleep and went to lay her down and her bassinet...and she woke up! Oh, okay, let's try this again...I nursed her back to sleep and went to lay her down...and she woke up again. By this time I was desperate for a nap. So I nursed her again and we both fell asleep, and woke up a few hours later both refreshed.

That is how our co-sleeping journey started. Every single time I went to lay her into the bassinet she woke up. So little Becca ended up taking her naps in my arms, in her car seat, or the baby swing and slept with me at night. She never did make use of her bassinet and never once slept in her crib.

Co-sleeping is surprisingly easy, especially when breastfeeding. I never had to get up to rock her and wait for her to fall back to sleep before setting her down. She never even cried at night to be fed - I sensed her moving around and would get her nursing before her, or I, fully woke and we both fell back to sleep while nursing. Considering I had a newborn, I was fully rested every single night.

This has continued with the next two babies. For the majority of my nights with newborns I didn't loose sleep. I nursed a few times a night and both baby and I typically would fall right back to sleep after nursing, or even during nursing. I'm not quite sure how well it works when bottle feeding, as one would have to get out of bed to prepare the bottle, but I would be interested to hear from any of you who co-sleep and bottlefeed and hear how that works.

Many parents feel that co-sleeping is a nightmare and that you will never get your child out of your bed. I find it fairly simple. Once my children wean, I soon transition them to a toddler bed that is pushed next to our bed. They fall asleep next to me and I move them into their toddler bed. Little by little they end up falling asleep in their toddler bed and sleep all night. Then I move their bed into another room. It seriously has been an easy step for me with the first two children and I don't see where there will be a problem with Joe as we begin this transition period this spring. Both older kids sleep excellent at night in their own beds. We have never had sleep issues with them.

S-E-X. Can it happen when you co-sleep? Of course! It doesn't always happen in bed, but you learn to be creative. Co-sleeping doesn't affect our intimate life.

Is it safe? There is always a debate going about whether it is safe or not. If you look around the globe, where most parents co-sleep with their infants, it is proven to be completely safe. This includes Japan, where the rates of SIDS are the lowest in the world.Under most circumstances, co-sleeping is likely to be very safe and beneficial. If the parent(s) smoke or take drugs, co-sleeping is risky. Sleeping with an infant on a waterbed, couch, soft bed, or any bed that has gaps or ledges into which the infant can fall, can be risky for the infant. It is more ideal to sleep on a firm mattress, and to limit the use of pillows and blankets. You must make your bed a safe place for an infant, just as you would make a crib a safe place. Co-sleeping is how babies have been raised since the dawn of time, and putting baby to sleep in a separate bed or room is a new invention. It doesn't mean it is a safer one.

I know that co-sleeping doesn't work for everyone. But it IS a safe option and the perfect fit for our family.

I'd love to hear your sleeping styles and what works for you.

So Many Books...

I love books; I've always loved books. I always thought that you could tell a lot about a person from looking at the books in their house (or lack of them).

My home is full of books. I took a couple pictures of two of our bookcases (and I apologize for the way they turned out but I just decided to snap a few shots and the lighting isn't the best). This is the one in the living room:
And this is one in the office:
Please don't judge on how disorganized the one above is - we just went through all our bookshelves last weekend and pulled books that we no longer wanted and I haven't gotten back to putting them back together again and organizing. That is a goal for this week.

We have another bookcase in the office, which is mainly filled with hubby's books and our homeschooling materials. I have a whole cabinet in the kitchen filled with cookbooks. We also have a bookshelf filled with children's books in the play room, and several piles of books throughout the house. Books are literally in each room of our house, whether I want them to be there or not!

I mainly collect non-fiction books, which in my house are mainly how-to books. Though in the first picture you can see my collection of Louisa May Alcott and Gene Stratton Porter books. I will pretty much read any type of book that comes my way, except tend to steer clear of horror (too scary!) and most romance books (though I do enjoy one now and again).

What kinds of books are on your shelves?

Not Me! Monday

Last week when the weather had us cooped inside and I about went crazy with cabin fever I did not decide that we were going to have a "fun day". After stopping for hamburgers and fries I did not drive 25 miles away to a library which has a fun area for kids.

I was not slowly starting to unwind as the kids listened to stories, played with the toys, and jumped on pillows...until I noticed Joe's face go red and realized he was making a "stinky" over in the corner. It wouldn't have been so bad, except I also realized that I left the diaper bag at home. The "stinky" was so stinky that I did not make the decision to leave before someone wondered just what that smell was.

Once outside I did not frantically look around the van hoping that there would be a diaper hidden somewhere. I did not jump for joy when I found a package of baby wipes hidden under the front seat, only to find out that they were frozen...solid. I wasn't the one who pried a few wipes out of the package and set them before the heating vents to warm up.

Not knowing what else to do, and having a few more stores that I wanted to go to (that didn't sell diapers), I did not "dump his mess" into a plastic bag, wipe him down, and put the "almost clean" diaper back on him. I did not declare victory and head on to a few more stores! What kind of mother would do that? Not Me!!