Another Money Saving Tip

Yesterday, I got four free 32 oz cans of Gerber Ready-to-Feed formula and a free 36 pack of Huggies Snug n Dry diapers. How did I do this? My mother-in-law gave me some gerber "checks" that she received in the mail and I had wrote Huggies an email saying that I loved their product. Pampers is sending me two 10 dollar off coupons in the mail for the same reason. Email your favorite companies and get these awesome coupons!!!!

Help Me Grow Programs

I love being a part of this program. The Help Me Grow program is a free program for first time mothers in Ohio. There are programs of the same name in other states that help developmentally challenged children only, but this is not that kind of program. It is specifically for helping first time mothers through pregnancy and then through the first 3 years of your baby's life.

It is so scary being a first time mother, and this program helps to guide you through the journey of being a "been there, done that" mother. A person comes to your home every week for the first 4 months, then every 2 weeks for the next 2 years, and then once a month for the 3rd year. They answer any questions you have concerning, well, anything to do with your child. They can install car seats, and even help you get baby clothes and free stuff if you are in need. For example, I got a free convertible car seat, plus she installed it, and a free bag of name brand clothing for the winter. He's gotten toys, and books, and sometime they even throw in a little something for you, like lotion or body wash. They make sure your son/daughter are meeting their milestones, getting enough hours of sleep, are eating the right things at the right times. (ie, solid foods starting between 4-6 months, formula/breast milk until one year, etc), and everything in between. It's like having an extra piece of mind, I love this program and I'm so glad somebody referred me. Well, I have to go because Jacoby's Help Me Grow lady will be here in 10 minutes!

Great Places to Find a Babysitter

Family and friends are your first option, of course. But what if you don't have any around, or they aren't available for the times you need? I'm part of a two great websites that provide caregiver profiles for a small monthly fee that you can pay for, for just one month, every 6 months, or a year. The caregivers can pay a small fee to get background checks which are posted to his/her profile, the profile shows his/her total years of experience, different certifications he/she may have, if he/she have special needs aptitudes, his/her availability, references, contact information, etc. If you have read my blog, you know that I babysit. I use these sites to find families who need caregivers. I have been hired by 4 families on Care.com and 1 family on Sittercity.com so far. Care.com seems to be the most used as compared to Sittercity.com but they are both great sites and very similar. Both also offer profiles for Petsitters, Nannies, Senior Care, and Housekeeping. Here is my profile on Care.com and my referral link on Sittercity.com:

Middletown Babysitters >

Sittercity referral link:
http://buzzwat.ch/melin5

IcyHot Spray

I absolutely LOVE IcyHot Spray. It really comes in handy because I'm lifting 20 pounds of baby all day, and it kills my back and neck. It takes forever to run out, so it is definitely worth the extra money, and I use the spray because Shaun refuses to rub the lotion on my back because he cannot stand the smell.

So for those ladies constantly picking up your babies, get IcyHot spray. I would not recommend spraying it around your baby because it is VERY strong smelling. I spray it in the bathroom with the door closed and vent on.

My Blog Template

I usually stick to talking about baby stuff, but I've had some questions about my blog template. "You blog about your journey as a mom, why the unrelated background?".

WELL, naysayers of the world, even though I don't necessarily owe anyone an explanation, I suppose it is a valid question.

It so happens that I am a dreamer. I'm one of those people that dream they are laying on the beach, enjoying a cool glass of wine in one hand,

and a good book in the other. I dream of complete financial security (don't we all?), of big houses, a brand new honda, and the american dream. I want a bay window in my kitchen, and a black, suede sectional in my living room. I want to look out my window seat, and see the beauty of the ocean. I want to laugh watching two little children that came from my womb, playing in the sand and splashing each other. I want to look down and see a ring on my finger that came from the man I love.

I feel that my template reflects the passion I have for my fantasy world, my "happy place" that I go to when I need to step away from reality for a moment.

Childproof me please!

Today, I am getting my house childproofed FOR FREE! If I were to pay to have it done, it could cost anywhere from 500-1200 dollars! I'm part of a 3 year injury-related study (formally named the CHIPS study). I get 85 dollars spread out over the 3 years and I get to keep all the child proofing stuff they install. All I have to do is participate in short phone/home interviews every few months (that I also get paid for).

I love doing studies. If you live in the Greater Cincinnati Area, the P&G Discovery Center has studies plenty frequently. They focus more on baby stuff, but they also have studies that don't require you to have a baby. Their studies pay anywhere from 25-200 dollars, I have been to two 100 dollar diaper studies. I had to come early in the morning, (if you don't get there early enough, and the panels filled up, then you are excused to go and you get a "bump" fee for

substantially less than if you were to complete the study) and I stayed until 2 or 3 o clock in a room with about 10-15 other moms and their babies.

I cannot disclose exactly what was done during the study because I had to sign a confidentiality agreement beforehand, but I can tell you that they provided a personalized, delicious lunch both times (one from La Rosa's and the second time from Subway), and they also provided pop/bottled water the whole time. The staff was very nice and great with the babies, and it was nice to sit around and chat with the other moms. The only downfall I didn't like was the babies didn't get to nap very long since we were up and down a lot. If you would like to join the panel, I've provided the link below. They will send you emails each time there is a study, and you will have to fill out a survey to see if you qualify. When you click on the link, scroll to the bottom of the page to find the registration forms.
http://www.pampers.com/en_US/pg-baby-discovery-center

The Cry It Out Method

Jacoby goes to sleep on his own now, for naps and for bedtime. If he wakes up in the middle of the night, he usually puts himself back to sleep within 5 minutes. I know there is a LOT of controversy about CIO (cry it out) methods, and I was always on the fence about it so I developed my own little modified CIO method. It is nothing fancy and I'm sure people have thought of it before but all I know is it worked wonders. Once I started doing it, he was self soothing in a month. The first week was the hardest, oftentimes I had to take him out of his crib and rock him, but every week, he got a little bit better at it. Here is generally what I did:

1. Make sure he is full/clean/burped/warm/comfortable.

2. put him in his clean crib (no toys or distractions, my son likes to hold a baby blanket), and turn out the lights

3. leave the room for 10 minutes, let him fuss and cry (obviously check on him if you think something is wrong)

4. come back after 10 mins, patt his back/belly, talk to him and comfort him until he quiets down.

5. when you feel he is calmed down a bit (doesnt have to be perfectly quiet but better off then he was before you came back), leave for another 10 mins.

6. repeat the same cycle until he falls asleep on his own (if i did this for an hour and he was still not asleep, i would take him out and rock him to sleep, or feed him)

It won't be perfect every night but he will get the hang of it. Once again, this took about a month, so this isn't something that happens overnight. I hope this helps anyone looking for a good sleep method!