Swagbucks!

Another way I'm trying to save money is by using a new site--swagbucks. You earn points for searching, daily polls, surveys, special offers, etc. I've only been a memeber for 4 days and I've already earned a $5 Amazon.com giftcard (there are numerous giftcards and other prizes you can redeem for). You can let your giftcards accumulate to use for a big purchase. My plan is to save them up and then use towards Christmas presents thus saving us money! I only need less than 100 points for another $5--in less than a week! Visit the link and sign up if you are also interested in earning points and saving money!

**Some of the special offers are kinda shady--don't do those! Stay away from any that ask for any kind of financial info, etc. I also have an email account dedicated to "junk" so I don't clog up my own. (I unsubscribe later though so I don't keep receiving their newsletters, etc). One offer (ArcaMax also put spy cookies on my computer, but I cleaned them up that day--I just run my antivirus software daily and have had zero problems! But I'm super careful about what I click on!). I earn 1 point daily for just using the toolbar, 1 pt daily for voting in the daily poll and have been winning 3 times a day for using the search engine (most of the time for facebook.com!). I also watch the videos when they come out on special offers (usually 1-2 minutes clips--I just watched a 1 min Victorias Secret ad yesterday!).

www.swagbucks.com/refer/lorifordyce

3 months!

My handsome baby boy had his 3 month old pictures taken last Thursday evening. He did really good for the first 10-15 minutes and then he was no longer interested! We got one preview and it's FABULOUS. Hopefully she got some other really good ones. Ali from Double E Images took the pictures and was great!

Frugality (is that a word???)

Luke & I are trying to live on a budget now...we're saving for numerous things, trying to pay off debt, etc. So...we've become even more frugal (I know...who thought that was possible for Luke? :) Anyway, I've been looking for ways to save money, etc.

Let me share a few with you:

Excellent websites for tips, coupons, etc. This woman is a stay-at-home mom who is dedicated to finding good deals. Her site is almost overwhelming--there's so many coupons and deals. You can also follow her on facebook.
http://pennypinchinmom.com

http://dealfindingchik.blogspot.com
I'm new to her site, but so far, she's got some things on there that PPM does not.

www.mommysavers.com
Again, a mom who is dedicated to saving her family money.

Target ecoupons (I LOVE these!)
http://coupons.target.com

www.coupons.com
numerous different manufacturer's coupons--changes weekly

I also LOVE extra care bucks at CVS. Fabulous. If you like saving money, this is an excellent way to do it!

Key to using coupons--

1. see which ones you can "stack" or double up on--Target coupons and manufacturers coupons you can. I just did this and got 2 boxes of Huggies wipes for $3.50!

2. Only use the coupons for products you would normally buy. If you are only buying it because it's on sale can get you to spend more money!

3. Stay organized. After you make your shopping list, see if you have any coupons for those products.

4. Check out newspapers and the weekly shoppers for deals.

Happy saving money!

Committments

So...I'm making a public committment--

1. I WILL lose this extra pregnancy weight. I only have a few more pounds to go. I WILL do it.

2. I am serious about getting out of debt. Within two years I hope to have it all (with the exception of my student loans) GONE!

Weddings!

Last weekend we had two weddings. Friday night my cousin Andy got married and Saturday one of my best friends got married. Leyton went to both (his first weddings!) and he did fabulous!

What's new?

What's new with us? Well...lots actually.

Luke turned 31 on July 4. The weekend was very busy. Friday night we began play in an all night slow pitch tourney. (Note--I have not played since Leyton was born so I was rusty to say the very least!) Our first game was at 9. We lost 14-15. :( That meant play at 4 am. We lost that one too. It was ugly. I was SOOOO tired! We didn't sleep at all. As soon as we were done Luke & I came back to St. Joe and slept from 6-noon. We then got up, got ready, ate and went to Hiawatha to get Leyton who had spent the night with grampa Butch and Gramma Ruth. We then spent the rest of the rainy day watching the rest of the tournament. Sunday (his birthday) we cleaned, shopped and prepped for Luke's birthday bbq with some of his friends. And Monday we didn't do much of anything besides recover from a very tiring weekend!

Monday night I began my sand volleyball league. Again, first time playing since Leyton was born so once again, rusty! I'll get back into the swing of things though!

It's so hard to believe it's July 7. I'm back to work in less than a month. :(

Bucket List Cont'd

So a friend of mine recently pointed out a few other things that I simply must take Leyton to when he's a bit older. I think I mentioned that this list was always a work in progress and I am constantly seeing things or thinking about things that I can't wait to do with Leyton or take Leyton to.

1. D.C. What a gorgeous city with so much to see and do. It will be a bit before I take Leyton. I want him to appreciate and understand what he's looking at.

2. Kennedy Space Center. That's just cool. I'd like to see it too!

3. Rocky Mountains--absolutley beautiful. I want Leyt to enjoy the outdoors as much as his mom & dad.

4. Chicago

5. Grant's Farm, St. Louis