Mommin' It Up!

May 26, 2013

See Jenny Shop: Um, I think I like Walgreens!

I haven’t posted about my drugstore deals in far too long. Mostly because I haven’t been too over-the-top thrilled with them. But I have a confession to make: recently I’ve been shopping more and more at Walgreens. Shocking, right? I used to feel like their register rewards were too inconsistent to really make it worth my time. But within the past few months, they’ve gotten on the loyalty card train and now have a “Balance Rewards” program. So in addition to register rewards items, now you can also earn Balance Rewards points on your card for buying certain things. When you get to 5,000 points, you can redeem them for $5 off your purchase. I was skeptical at first, but twice reached the 5,000 point mark pretty quickly without really even trying. Then, after the deal I got this week on the products above, I was sold! Here’s what I got.

Transaction #1:

3 Splenda $2.99 each with in-ad coupon = $8.97

iChill sleep remedy $4.99

total = $13.66

coupons -$3 (three $1 off Splenda printables)

total = $10.66 + tax and I got back $10 in Register Rewards! $5 for the Splenda and $5 for the iChill.

So then I bought:

Two Viva 6-packs (my favorite paper towel ever!!) $5.99 each = $11.98

One clearance pocket folder 54 cents (filler item. I had more coupons than I had items so I had to throw that in. Something I still don’t enjoy about Walgreens.)

One Thermacare cold pack $7.99.

total = $20.51

coupons:

-$2 ($1 off Viva Walgreens monthly saving book coupon, took $1 off each pack)

-$3 Viva coupon I got in a Kroger mailer but coupon can be used anywhere 🙂

-$3 Thermacare coupon from RedPlum insert

-$5 Register Reward from previous purchase.

Total = $7.51 and I got 2,000 balance reward points (aka $2) loaded to my card for the Thermacare and a $3 Register Reward for the Viva.

So I walked out of Walgreens with all that product and $8 in Register Rewards and another 2,000 points on my card! I was pretty happy! If Walgreens keeps having deals like this, we will be very happy together in the future!

That’s what I got at the drugstore last week – how about you??

May 24, 2013

Time flew.

Today is Sophie’s last day of kindergarten. As cliche as it sounds, I can hardly believe it.

First day on the left, last day on the right

When I first sat with school staff in a conference room two-and-a-half-years ago to write Sophie’s first preschool IEP, I was asked what my goals were for her. I said, “I would like for her to go to a regular kindergarten.” Well, it soon became apparent, even though she was in therapy for another year, that that goal would be attainable.

And the truth is, Sophie shone in kindergarten. She sailed through kindergarten like a BOSS. And she loved every second of it. Honestly, at this point, I don’t expect her to have any trouble academically. But if she does, we will cross that bridge with determination.

I am very thankful for her sweet teacher who encouraged and guided Sophie this year. She is truly a gift to her students and their parents.

I would go on, but then you might not read the post I plan for next week with COPIOUS pictures of Sophie in her graduation gown. Graduation is at 2 p.m. today and my waterproof mascara is on deck. Cue the ugly cry! I’m going to try to keep it in check, but this is my baby girl,so…we’ll see.

Happy graduation, Sophie! I can hardly express how proud I am of you and how much I love you. Thank you Lord for all her achievements!

May 22, 2013May 22, 2013

Don’t Shark Where You Eat

(So, first of all, if you’re *gasp* not a regular reader of Mommin’ It Up, you might want to read this to decode the title of this post. Ooh, mystery!)

The time is fast approaching when my kids are going to be too old for me to write about certain things they do or don’t do. And let’s face it, for this one, that time may already be past. But, since Emily loves it when I write about poop, I am going to throw this delightful tale in for old times’ sake. After all, I still have a two-year-old at home and my life is going to be ruled by my children’s bowels for a long time to come. For instance, nothing seems to move the aforementioned bowels like Mommy needing to get out of the house in a hurry. Which is why Jonah had to drop a deuce in his diaper two seconds after I needed to leave for physical therapy this morning. But anyway. Back to the dung at hand.

One of my children, who shall remain nameless, has a tendency to need to go #2 during a meal. This same child takes a book to the bathroom every time a poop is imminent. (Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary is currently the bathroom read du jour.) And, if we’re out to eat? The 20-minute doody session is a guarantee. This holds true even if it’s Grandma & Grandpa that are taking the kids out to dinner. I cannot tell you how many times my dad has had to pass a quarter hour or more in the Frisch’s bathroom with this kid. It’s bad enough that I’m uncomfortable taking my kids out to eat by myself, because I don’t feel comfortable leaving a child in the public restroom by himself for 20 minutes, and I’m not taking ALL the kids into the bathroom for that long. Not to mention the un-named super pooper will complain violently about the embarrassment of having to go in the women’s restroom.

But seriously, what is UP with that? This phenomenon has been occurring for the better part of a year, I’d say. It does happen fairly often at home, but nothing guarantees it more than the anticipation of a grilled cheese & fries kids meal on order.

I hope he outgrows it, because it’s going to be extremely awkward going on dates to restaurants one day if not. Especially if he’s lugging around that giant Star Wars book to pass the time. Maybe I should get him a Kindle.

These are the bowels of my lives, people. The bowels of my lives.

Photo Credit: kagey_b via Compfight cc