A boy with a cold in search of an adventure makes a vessel that can take him anywhere he wants to go ... without infecting others. One diaper box; 1 wrapping paper roll; a handful of markers; some brown shipping paper,and a few feet of tape make ....
What I did today to save money:
June 4
I drove to Big Lots for some of my cleaners and used the UPromise card at Kroger rather than going to Target, where the items I wanted are a lot more.
June 3
(Like I said ... small steps ...)
Today I planned my errands to minimize gas usage, which meant going to the Jiffy Lube (where I do NOT use the restroom) before going to get some ice at Burger King (where the restrooms are acceptable), and at 36 weeks pregnant, that is quite a feat!
June 2
Wesley and I made a boat out of "trash."
June 1
Patrick and I ate tomato sandwiches and then went to the movies for our date instead of paying for both. With the added cost of babysitting dinner and a movie nights are rather rare. Either is manageable.
May 30
Went home for lunch rather than eating out with the training group.
May 27
Frugal: Shopped for Wesley's clothes at a consignment shop ($37) and Goodwill ($9).
Not Frugal: Took the hybrid to a car wash for a wash and wax ($38). Seriously, though, it's almost 90 degrees outside. Patrick has more important things to do and my feet are swelling.
Frugal: Started an at-home hypbirth program for 1/4 the price of a doula.
May 26
Will investigate how much cash back we can receive with the various gas cards available.
(UPDATE:)
According to this web site we have one of the best deals, the Discover gas card. I prefer this to the BP card, even though it offers a 10% rebate for the first 60 days because I can get the 5% rebate (same as the BP rebate after the first 60 days) at any gas station. If you know of a better gas rebate deal, please comment and let me know!
May 24
Registered my Kroger grocery card at shortcuts.com. They will automatically deduct the coupons I select from the grocery bill when I present the card.
Registering my new Kroger card with uPromise.
Used NPR membership card to receive 1/2 off pizza at the Loop in Chapel Hill.
May 23
Used our over-ripe bananas to make banana bread (salvaging what would be a waste of $3.50).
Took banana bread to zoo for snacks (we use an annual pass that gets us in to the zoo, bought the pass at aRiverbanks Zoo, which has a cheaper annual cost than the NC Zoo.)
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Can you blame him?
They're cute.
Wesley's imagination takes him everywhere: to the moon, swimming in the ocean, and to great and varied terrains around our world. When he looks at me with all sincerity and says, "I want to go see ______ (fill in the blank)." I tell him, "One day, Sweetie, you may get to do that. Until that day I'll do what I can to help you prepare."
So, how does a mother help her son meet his dreams of swimming with wild dolphins or seeing polar bears?
Well, she starts at home, by doing what she can to make sure that the things he loves and wants to explore now are there for him when he safely lets go of her hand -- to cross streets or oceans on his own.
Wesley is an explorer. (Most 2 year olds are, it's in their nature, so we'll see who he is as he grows and changes, for now, though, it fits.) Wesley delights in nature. This is a boy who pretends he is swimming with fish and sharks in his bed and wraps himself in a piece of cardboard in lieu of a rocket ship. This is a child who looks at the world around him with deep interest.
This is a child who will, despite his fondness for nature, do what Patrick and I do.
If we don't connect our actions and decisions to the world around us, he likely won't (not for a while at least). So we take from the earth's resources with moderation. We are helping him reach his dreams by treading lightly on our path through this physical world. So that the things he likes now will be there when he finally has the opportunity to pursue his dreams on his own.
Whether or not humans impact the environment to the extent that environmentalists claim is irrelevant to me. I want a beautiful world tomorrow. And I can contribute by consuming fewer of earth's resources, like oil used in the production of plastics and most synthetic fibers (such as polyester). Plastics not only are comprised partially of oil, they take years to break down, filling landfills and littering roadsides until then. Plastic bottles have their place, perhaps an occasional camping trip, but not in everyday use. Think about it: Not only is the plastic itself a waste of oil and a long-term eye sore wherever it ends up, it took oil to ship them to the store. Surely, one of these cool SIGG bottles fits your style.
Reducing plastics and paper products is a small step. Larger steps include reducing your overall consumerism and reliance on shopping/obtaining things to feel good about yourself. We all feel the pull ... I do, at least. I'll be walking through a department store will see a new purse and think, "wow, it's on sale and really cute." Somewhere subconsciously I am thinking others will admire my style and my inner child is ready to pull out her ATM card.
I know the justifications: it's on sale, it's cheap, it's from a thrift store ... So what? It doesn't matter where they came from, a leather pair of shoes takes 25 to 40 years to decompose. That nylon dress on sale will take 30 to 40 years to decompose, compared to cotton, which takes around 5 months.
Read more about your trash's lifespan here.
This blog entry is all over the place, I just want to dump some thoughts and rather than leak green philosophy here and there, thought I'd get it off my chest in one post. (That said, I reserve the right to leak green.)
Hopefully our children will be more responsible than we are and then their children and so on ... all choices have some give and take and sometimes convenience wins even the best of conservationists ...
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... and it's only 7 a.m.
I'll tell you why when I get back from Lowes. By the way, I printed off a coupon for $10 off a $25 purchase that I found at this blog site.
OK, so I'll be back to tell the tale of the late brother and how it led me to a rare $4.55 purchase at Starbucks.
***I'm back***
I was inspired to plant an herb garden today when I found and purchased 14 herbs for .50 each at Lowes. I even purchased 4 at regular price to round out the garden, which is around one existing blueberry bush. I plan to plant another bush and two rosemary bushes to complete the edible section of that bed. Behind the rosemary bushes I'll plant a climber of some sort, a hydrangea and some sort of fall bloomer to go with the mums over in a corner.
OK, enough about my Lowes spree, back to the story of the morning.
Last night my brother Glen called and wanted a ride to the airport. Sure, no problem, just get here at 5:15 (since you are also borrowing a suitcase and want to print out your ticket information) so we can leave around 5:45.
Patrick and I got up at 5 a.m. because Patrick also had to be at the airport this morning, though we could have slept in until at least 6/6:30.
5:45 rolls around: no Glen, no phone call.
Where is he? I wonder.
I call.
Oh, I'm 15 minutes away, he says ... OK, I say.
30 minutes later he shows up. He spends the next 10 minutes packing and then gets into the car and says, All I need is my I.D. card right?
Um, well, do you know which airline you are taking?
He goes inside to print up his ticket information ...
We arrive at the airport 45 minutes before his flight departs.
So, what did we talk about on the way there? Him.
I told him how angry I was that he didn't bother to call me and took for granted that it'd be no problem to wake up when we could have slept. And what about Wesley?
I made sure to tell him that I love him and that my criticism had nothing to do with who he is, but how he behaved, because I know he has the capacity to think for himself and to be responsible and respectful.
This is an important point anytime we give feedback to others or reprimand our children ... remember to focus on the what, not the who. I'm not sure about this, but it seems to me that guilt is felt when we do something wrong, and shame is felt when we wrap up the who with the do and feel that we -- in our core of cores -- are wrong because we did something wrong. Simply not true.
I didn't call him a jerk, lazy, or a dumby (which I have heard parents do all too often), but rather gave feedback on his actions and how they affected me and my family.
And here's another point ... "I'm just not responsible" or "I just don't follow through" (which he didn't say, by the way, he took everything I said to heart and didn't make excuses -- yeah, Glen, that's so hard sometimes) are not appropriate responses. Responsibility and follow through are not genetic traits, they are skills! If you don't have them, either deal with the consequences and accept your role in those consequences or develop the skill ... responsibility and follow through do come easier to some than others, but that doesn't make them a genetic trait, they are skills that can be learned by anybody.
***
OK, stepping off my soap box now.
So, you see, I went to SB to get a latte to have the energy to get through the day with a very active 2-year-old on only a few hours sleep. While in line Wesley opened his eyes long enough to spot the chocolate milk, point to it and say "that" and put his head back down on my shoulder and fall asleep.
And THAT's how I spent $4.55 at Starbucks.
At least I made up for it with my $10 gift card ... oh forget it .. I don't need excuses ... I wanted a latte, I bought a latte -- good night!
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