Tommy and the Amazing Technicolor Fuzzies

A couple of months ago I bought a package of brightly colored craft pom poms thinking that I would use them at some point to do something crafty. Well, Tommy found them a couple of weeks ago and thought they were pretty fun. I took them away, afraid that he would try to eat one and choke on it, but somehow he saved one green fuzzy out. He carried it around with him for days and wouldn't let go of it when we went places. He grew so attached to it that I found myself growing attached to it, too. One time he dropped it in the parking lot of the grocery store and the next thing I knew I was running after it, trying to save it from being lost in a gutter or something. I had to laugh at myself after that. It's a green pom pom! I would have done anything to retrieve it.

He got into the bag of fuzzies again last week and this time I just let him. Now they are all over my house and all over the car. They are Tommy's toy of choice (next to Wrinkles, of course). He loves to hold them, throw them, and put them into other toys where they don't belong. I find them in cups, in bowls, in the shape sorter, in his ball popper, and in puzzles. I find them in my shoes, in the bag with the blocks, and always in his hand. Ah, Tommy and his Technicolor Fuzzies. I'll have to buy some more if I actually want to do some crafts one day:)

Tommy Birthday Videos!

Hey all,

We got some videos of Tommy.

Here's one of Tommy and his cousin Rachel.

And here's the highlight of his birthday party, go ahead and explore the rest of the videos on Vimeo if you're interested.

Couponing: Where to Start

The most frequent question I receive when people find out I coupon is, "Where do I start?" True, it can be kind of overwhelming. Hopefully I can shed some light on this issue and give you the tools you need to start couponing and saving money.

I am going to say something that most couponers probably don't want to hear: coupons themselves don't actually save you a ton of money. They save you a few bucks here and there and allow you to sometimes get things for free or almost free. Once in awhile you can even make a few cents by using coupons. However, the things that will save you the most money are the good shopping principles that smart shoppers and couponers use. Now don't misunderstand. I LOVE coupons and I am a huge advocate of using them. I just think that they are more of the icing on the savings cake rather than the foundation of it. For those of you who have tried couponing before and feel like it was too overwhelming, this should be welcome news.

If you want to start saving a bunch of money today I would suggest you implement the following habits into your shopping routine:

1. Buy the things that are on sale and stock up on those things so that you never have to pay full price for them. (See my posts on shopping the ads and stocking up.) The biggest portion of my savings every month comes from buying the items that are on sale and stocking up on them.

2. Plan your meals around the things that are on sale and the things you already have in your pantry. Planning your meals will also make it less likely that you waste your money going out to eat so often.

3. Stop buying toiletries at grocery stores and get started on learning how to play the drug store game (Walgreens, CVS, and Rite Aid each have their own version of the game. If you play it right you should be able to pay pennies on the dollar for most if not all of your toiletries and over-the-counter medication.) Here are a few good links to learn how to make the most out your shopping at Walgreens, CVS, and Rite Aid. At the end of the month I usually end up buying around $100 worth of toiletries and only paying about $10 for all of it.

4. Match the coupons you have to the sales to increase your savings. Most coupons are available in the Sunday paper and online. There are tons of free blogs out there that have grocery store coupons match-ups every week for stores all over the country. Here are a few of my favorites: Surviving the Stores, The Thrifty Mama, Couponing 101, and Saving Cents With Sense. For those of you in Arizona, Arizona Savings is an awesome blog dedicated solely to coupon match-ups with our local grocery stores and drug stores. Coupons are great and save me an additional 25% or so on my grocery bill every month.

5. Don't stress. Couponing is a skill and it has to be learned. There will be times when the learning curve seems pretty steep, but hang on and it will get easier. I remember when I first started couponing I didn't sleep well for a few nights because it was such a paradigm shift for me. It was a completely different way of shopping than what I was accustomed to. But as you practice and learn you will get better at it and it will seem easy in no time.

I hope that helps! Feel free to call or email me if you have any questions.

Adventure #2 - A Visit from the Other Chattertons

During the second week of May Ben's brother, Mike, and his family came to visit. It was so much fun to have them here, it was really like a vacation for us, too. Ben took the whole week off from work (I know, that NEVER happens:) and we got out and had lots of summer adventures. After spending a few days playing in Phoenix we drove up to Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon and spent a few days there. I figured that pictures would tell you about our week more than words will, so here are a bunch of 'em!

Rachel (age 2 1/2) feeding Tommy some Froot Loops. He followed her around like a little puppy and begged until he got fed.

We spent a morning at the splash pad in Goodyear. It was a little bit windy, but the kids had a great time playing in the water and running around.

After the splash pad we spent some time at the park. Tommy got his rock climbing on.

We visited the world-famous salsa factory (you know, the one with the donkey) in our very own Goodyear, Arizona. We fed the donkeys and horses some carrots. Tommy was a little bit scared of the horse.

Mike helped us fix our car. Ben helped Mike fix the car. Thanks, Mike, we wish you lived closer!

We spent a day at the Phoenix Zoo and had a great time! Tommy was more interested in the grass and the fences than he was in the animals, but he still had a good time. Here is Tommy, Ben, Rachel, Mike, and Hillary looking at the zebras.

Tommy's first ride on the carousel. He was a little bit apprehensive, but he had fun. Rachel had a great time, too.

Here we are swimming at the hotel in Flagstaff. Tommy was scared of his starfish floatie so we ended up just holding him in the water most of the time.

Hillary, Mike, and Rachel in the pool. Rachel learned to jump in the water by herself and had a lot of fun with that.

Tommy and Ben at the Grand Canyon. Ben was a trooper and carried Tommy on his back for several miles as we walked along the Rim Trail. I carried the pack for about half a mile and that was plenty for me!

Tommy chewed on this apple for about 45 minutes. He gnawed it down to a little ball. You can't get better than a toy and a healthy snack all in one!

Mike, Rachel, Hillary, Ben, Crystal, and Tommy at the Grand Canyon. It was so beautiful and so fun to hike around it!

Random Pictures

Here are a few pictures that I couldn't resist posting. Isn't Tommy just the cutest thing in the world?

Tommy with his new best friend, Wrinkles (yes, he named it himself). Wrinkles is a little stuffed dog that Tommy carries everywhere, sleeps with, hugs tight, and loves to pieces (literally).

Tommy watching as Ben mows the lawn. He wanted to go outside with Daddy so bad. He sat in front of that window and hit the glass until I took him upstairs for a bath.

We made a homemade version of Pop-Tarts. They disappeared in less than one day.

Tommy and Daddy in their matching church outfits. Thanks to Grandma Chatterton for making cords for Tommy.

Adventure #1 - Prescott

After training for several months I finally ran my marathon! I proudly finished in 5 hrs 48 mins. Prescott is a cute little city in the mountains that we really enjoyed exploring. We carbo-loaded at a cute little European restaurant in historic downtown and then stayed in a hotel in the woods. I can't think of a more beautiful route to run since the whole marathon was in the mountains, mostly on dirt roads. We really enjoyed our time there.

We also really appreciate my mom flying down that week to stay at home with Tommy. The day she flew in (the Wednesday before the marathon), Ben, Tommy, and myself were all terribly sick with some kind of stomach flu. Mom braved the House of Death and made us chicken soup and helped us take care of Tommy. Mom and Tommy had a great weekend alone together, played lots of games, and getting to know each other better.

Ben and me at the starting line. It was freezing at 6:00am!

I had no idea what I was in for!

At the finish line. I smiled, raised my arms, clapped, and cried.

The perfect post-marathon treatment: frozen corn on the knees and yummy brownie in my mouth

Grammy and Tommy playing at the splash pad in Goodyear.

Grammy, myself, and Tommy right before Grammy flew home.

May Adventures

May was a marathon month in more ways than one! We went out of town three different times during the month. Our first trip was to Prescott (about two hours north of Phoenix) where I ran my marathon. Thanks go out to my mom for coming to Phoenix to stay with Tommy so that he didn't have to come to Prescott with Ben and me. Our next trip was to the Grand Canyon. Mike and Hillary came down from Denver to stay with us at our home for a few days before we all drove up to Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon together. We had a blast with them and only wish that we could hang out with them more often. We arrived home from our final trip last night and are still doing laundry and getting settled in at home. Ben had a business trip in Eugene, Oregon, so Tommy and I took the opportunity to go see my family in Sandy. We had a great time visiting friends and family. I think we are all happy to be back home and for life to be a little bit more calm for awhile now. I am going to post pictures from each of these events in separate posts that will follow!