Dirt Cheap Diapers!

I read several money-saving blogs and I saw this post on the $30 Weekly Grocery Challenge and couldn't pass up diapers this cheap so I thought I'd pass it along!

Typically, diapers cost around $ 0.24 each, even Costco diapers. I usually use Target coupons to buy Up & Up diapers for around $ 0.13 each which I think is a pretty good deal. But this Diapers.com deal gets you diapers for as cheap as $ 0.06 each!! That's unheard of! So of course I jumped at it!

The only catch is that you do have to submit for a rebate (which I usually never do because I think they're generally a hassle) but this is a huge rebate so I think it's definitely worth it. It was really simple, I just printed my receipt, filled out my name and address on the sheet and mailed it in already. Also, it says in the fine print that you have to be a new customer to Diapers.com to get the rebate and use the $10 off discount code. Lucky for me, I had never ordered there before so this worked perfectly for me! Just a heads up though, I don't want anybody to miss that part and get overcharged.

Here's how you get the dirt cheap diapers:

Go to www.diapers.com

Buy 7 packs Luvs Jumbo Diapers $6.99 each = $48.93
Buy a small filler item like Pampers travel wipes for $1.99 to get your total to $49 to get Free Shipping
Total = 50.92
Use code BRAN4234 to get $10 off
Pay: $40.92 and submit for $14.97 rebate
Final Cost: $25.95 for 7 packs of diapers and travel wipes!

I love getting deals so I was pretty darn excited about this one! By using the code above, not only do you get $10 off, but I also will get a $5 credit to Diapers.com. Then once you register, you can pass along your own referral code to other moms and get money too! If even one person uses my code to do this deal, I will be ecstatic. $5 in free diapers? Yes please!

So if any of you moms out there want to help me and help yourselves to get super-cheap diapers delivered right to your door, do this! Thanks!

Peek-A-Boo!

The Week

My computer screen is breaking down on me which is why I haven't been able to blog lately. I only have a limited window of time while the boys are napping, but of course the screen always decides to go blank during that time. Anyways, we have been quite busy this week but at the same time haven't really done anything. Any other moms feel that way? Brandon always asks me how my day was and what I did when he comes home and I never know what to tell him. I know that I have been busy all day and am exhausted but usually can't name any significant things we did. On an average day, we don't leave the house. We stay inside, have 3 meals, a snack, 2 naps, lots and lots of playtime, and I cook dinner and clean during their naps. That's all we do, but it's enough to keep me busy most of the day. It's a mystery to me!

This weekend, one of my sweet former co-workers came over to babysit the boys so Brandon and I could go on a date. We went to dinner, got to talk uninterrupted for a couple of hours and then we picked up a movie on the way home (The Hurt Locker - it really good, we both loved it!) We are so blessed to have great friends who are willing to babysit for us so we can get away for a date every now and then. Date night is usually the highlight of our month, especially since Brandon started law school. It isn't often I get my husband all to myself, without having to share him with his computer. So thank you Sally-Shannon, we appreciate it more than you know!

Last Thursday, I drove out to the southern Maryland coast to visit an old high school friend. Stephanie married a Navy pilot and moved out here a couple of years ago. She lives an hour and a half away so we don't see each other often but I always love it when I do get to see her. I love visiting with old friends where you can just pick up where you left off and talk for hours. We went on a walk to Solomon's Island, a really quaint little coastal town that I've heard a lot about but have never been to until now. And she has the two most gorgeous dogs I have ever seen! They are weimaraners and just beautiful! Here we all are, including the dogs!

And here's Jack all bundled up for our walk on Solomon's Island.

Let's see, what else is new? Well, Jack and Cullen are becoming pickier and pickier eaters. Lately the favorites are sandwiches so they eat a lot of PB & J and grilled ham and cheese. I am thankful that they aren't opposed to trying new things, I made a mango chicken curry the other night and they tried it and LOVED it! I am also thankful that they have tried many of the common allergy foods (fish, peanut butter, wheat, berries, milk, bananas, etc.) and so far haven't shown any signs of allergies. I suppose I can certainly deal with them throwing their broccoli and green beans on the floor as long as they are eating the majority of their fruits and veggies. And if all else fails, there's always spaghetti, their all-time favorite food!

Lately, they have also been experimenting with climbing things- uh oh! One of our cabinet doors on our entertainment won't close all the way and they are constantly opening it, taking out decks of cards and scattering them all over the floor. So I moved a basket full of blankets in front of the door to block it. This was seen as a new fun obstacle though; they turned it over on its side and Jack climbed on it, stood up and started banging on the glass between him and the DVD player. Of course, he bit it a few seconds later before I could get him down. He cried for a few minutes and I thought that would scare him out of attempting it again but no, as soon as I set him down he was trying to climb on it again!

And they've figured out how to push the buttons on electronics. They started turning the television off and on about a month ago, but the other day, Cullen opened the cabinet, pushed the eject button on the dvd player and took out the dvd that was in there. I couldn't believe my eyes! Just when you think you've completely baby-proofed your home, they find something new to get into! Jack loves to stand in front of the television and point at anything that moves. I usually watch the news in the morning (on those rare mornings when I actually get reception) and he stands there pointing at the words scrolling across the bottom of the screen. I will have to get a video of this someday because it is SO funny!

And, just this morning, Jack took off his pants! He was wearing them when I went into the kitchen to take my muffins out of the oven, and when I came back out, he had stashed them under the coffee table and was scurrying away. How did he figure that out?!?

They keep me on my toes all day but I love that they also keep me laughing all day. What a fun job I have! Here are a couple more pictures of Jack "brushing his teeth." I brush them of course, but I let them chew on the toothbrush for a few minutes after we're done. He looked like such a big boy brushing his teeth that I had to take a picture!

Best News EVER!

I found out a couple of days ago that my sister is having a GIRL!!! I had a hunch it was a girl and although I would have loved having a nephew so our kids could be the three amigos, I am over the moon about having a niece!!

I always get depressed while shopping for the boys because I see racks and racks of insanely cute girl clothes for like $1.99 next to 3 ugly shirts for boys. Old Navy was having a great clearance sale yesterday where, despite the terrible selection, I found a few navy blue and white polo shirts for the boys (BORING!). But there were sooo many cute little girl clothes for dirt cheap that I had to stand there for 20 minutes narrowing it down. I'm so glad I finally get a chance to indulge in buying pink frilly things!

Brandon was kind of a killjoy when he found me in the back jumping up and down, waving my purchases in the air. "Ok Kim, let's not go overboard though," he told me. Overboard? Who's going overboard? Is it even possible to go overboard when you've just found out you're going to have your first niece? I think not.

Oh, I'm so excited, I just can't wait for her to be born! June 4th, please come quickly!!

Before I Forget...

I really wanted to post the last bunch of pictures from our trip West. Between recovering from the time difference and then recovering from the flu, I never got around to posting these.

We had such a wonderful time with Brandon's family in Cannon Beach. Jack and Cullen just ate up all the extra attention and I'm pretty sure it made Gary and Sari's whole year to spend so much time with the boys ;-) Here are some pictures from their birthday party the day before we left the beach house:

So many presents! Thank you everybody for the gifts, the boys adore their new toys and I adore their new clothes!

Playing peek-a-boo with Grandpa during the party

"Mom, look what I got!"

Playing with a new puzzle

And the moment they'd been looking forward to since their last taste of cake two weeks prior... more cake! Cullen devoured his again, that cake didn't stand a chance!

Jack was a little more restrained, he just licked the frosting off and at the very end started digging into the cake.

Cullen again, he pulled the cake right up to his mouth so he wouldn't have to waste any precious time getting his hand full of cake to his mouth.

Messy boys

All cleaned up!

The house we stayed at had floor to ceiling windows looking out to the ocean, and the boys LOVED being able to see out the window. They spent a good portion of the day standing there gazing outside.

Helping with the dishes. This is the main reason why we have a baby gate up blocking them from the kitchen at our house. They see an open dishwasher and come running. Then I suddenly have 4 extra hands pulling silverware and glasses out of the racks. They love the dishwasher so much that they come over and cling onto the bars of the gate just to watch me do the dishes.

We drove up to Federal Way for a couple of days to visit my cousins and all of our friends there. On the first day we got there, Shauna came over with precious baby Lillian. Here I am holding my future daughter-in-law for the first time!

This picture is totally going in the wedding slideshow! I'm not sure who she'll choose, but Cullen definitely flirted with her more!

On Saturday, we went over to the Baden's house and invited some of our Christ's Church friends. It was a lot of fun and I loved meeting their baby Colby! I hope we move back someday so our boys can have playdates, Colby's a cool kid, I think they'll really hit it off!

And we were also able to have lunch with my college roommate Taja and her fiance Don. They're getting married this summer! Congratulations guys! I only wish we could have seen Lauralee and Jense too but hopefully we'll get to see them and their new baby in the summer!

What a wonderful trip we had! Busy, like all of our trips home are, but totally fun! It really was a blessing to be able to spend so much time with our families and to see so many friends too! I'm already looking forward to our next trip home! In the meantime, anyone wanna come visit me?

Our Week

Well, at last, everybody is all better! We skipped small group on Wednesday morning because they both still had diarrhea and I'm so glad we did because Cullen threw up again later that afternoon. The diarrhea still isn't completely gone, but it's not nearly as bad as before. I called the doctor again on Wednesday to ask if it was normal for them to still be sick after a week and he said yes, babies often take much longer to heal from the stomach flu than adults. They still are a little extra fussy, but it's not too bad.

A funny story from the other day: Cullen wasn't feeling well when he woke up on Thursday morning. He insisted on being held and rocked for a couple of hours (this is extremely rare, usually the kid wants nothing to do with me and is busy exploring and banging his toys around). Well, I quite enjoyed the extra cuddle time and was loving just sitting in our rocking chair with him all morning. Jack was crawling around the room but eventually he came over and wanted to get on my lap too so I scooped him up and put him on my other knee. Well, Cullen wasn't having any of that, he was not interested in sharing Mommy. So he started hitting Jack and trying to push him off the chair!!! I could not believe my eyes, they always get along! Sure, sometimes they fight over a toy and if one is already in a bad mood that can cause a terrible meltdown, but they usually share with each other. Anyways, I have to confess, I did laugh for a minute- pretty hard actually- but then had to sternly talk to Cullen about not hitting his brother and sharing. I don't think he understood much, but I know that he's at least beginning to understand when he does something wrong. They definitely don't like hearing the word "No" nowadays.

I think it's fascinating to see their little selfish and self-centered personalities coming out already. When they were first born I thought they were the most perfect, innocent creatures on the planet. But now I'm just beginning to see that they really are tiny little sinners who need to be disciplined from time to time. And this is only the tip of the iceberg, I can't even imagine what they'll be like when they're 2... or 8... or 12... or 16. We are already praying now that we can know how to lovingly discipline them in the future and convey to them that they need to be forgiven for the wrong things they do. I hope that by showing them discipline, love and forgiveness now, they will be able to better understand it in a few years. What a challenge we have ahead of ourselves!

Anyways, we had a pretty quiet week again since we were still recovering. I rarely left the house and when I did it was only to go grocery shopping. We went to church today and I was very glad to be back. Because of traveling, serving in the church nursery, and being sick, I hadn't been to a service since the week of Thanksgiving! It is refreshing to be at church again! Last night, we also had some good friends over which was also wonderful; I can't even remember the last time we had dinner with friends. But, this semester, Brandon and I have two nights together every week instead of only one so we want to hopefully catch up with friends in the next few weeks. I was excited to cook again since I don't get the chance to entertain much anymore. I whipped out my Barefoot Contessa cookbook and made some delicious pork chops, a potato gratin and some coconut cupcakes. And I'm not gonna be falsely modest here, the cupcakes were pretty bomb. I've eaten 3 in the last 24 hours. Although, Ina gets most of the credit, I adore her! Here's the recipe, enjoy people!

Here are some pictures of the boys from this week:

What's for dinner Mom?

I want THAT!

Helping Mommy put away groceries

I was reading on the couch and realized they were being waaayyy too quiet. This is what I found when I peeked around the coffee table. There were alot more tissues wedged under the coffee table too... alot more.

Taking Steps

These videos were taken 2 weeks ago while we were in Cannon Beach. But due to being sick and lack of practice, he hasn't made much progress since. The first one shows Jack taking a handful of steps all by himself!! He's taken a few more than that at one point, but we don't have it on video. Sometimes, he also just falls over right at the beginning. But he LOVES trying!



And then there's Cullen....



He marches to his own beat and isn't on anybody else's schedule, including his older brother's ;-) He is getting quite good at balancing himself though and can stand up straight better than Jack can. Jack gets too darn excited to walk and launches himself forward. Cullen is never far behind though, he always catches on quickly.

Blessed

My heart is heavy for Haiti right now. I'm not that up to date on world news so just heard about this tragedy yesterday but my mind is staggering at the thought of so many people dead or injured. I have sponsored a little girl there for the past 5 years, her name is Esther Celestin. She just turned 8 years old last October. I have no idea where in the country she lives, but I have been praying for her and her family since I first heard about the earthquake. I pray that they survived the earthquake and aren't in any danger now.

When something like this happens, I can't help but feel almost ashamed of all the blessings I have in my life. Americans complain about tough times and financial troubles because we worry that we might not be able to retire comfortably at 65 like we had originally planned. Or because we are having trouble keeping up with the car payments on our brand new car. Or, like me, because law school is putting us back into debt that we had worked so hard to pay off. These are nothing compared to the worry that your and your family might not survive the night. Nothing compared to losing every single thing you own. Nothing compared to not having enough food or clean water.

My family has food on our plates, a safe roof over our heads, an abundance of clean water, health insurance, and more clothes/toys/stuff than we could ever want. How could we ever claim that we can't afford to give to those who truly have nothing when we have so much? Many Americans really are going through some tough times right now, but we are still far better off than 95% of the rest of the world. I really need to learn to hold my tongue when complaining or wishing for new "things" because I have it SO GOOD. God has blessed me beyond measure and my complaining not only dishonors him but also is insulting to those people who really have lost everything and don't have enough to survive on. It causes me to think only about myself and my unmet desires and not enough about others actual needs. I pray that God will give me a more compassionate heart. One that thinks of myself less and of others more.

If you are able to give to those in need right now, please do. And above all, pray for them.

Recovering

That's how I'd sum up the last couple days in the O'Malley household. I felt extremely nauseous on Sunday night and laid awake in bed waiting to actually get sick, but it never came. Eventually, I fell asleep and although the about-to-be-sick feeling came back every time I rolled over, I never actually vomited. It may have had something to do with the fact that I didn't eat anything besides a small bowl of soup all day. Yesterday was a little worse, I had sore, achy muscles and zero energy. I basically laid on the couch all day and only got up when the boys absolutely needed something. I felt like I was going to faint whenever I did get up, so I tried not to move more than necessary. I went to bed at 8:30, right after I put the boys to sleep and slept for nearly 12 hours. Today, I feel much, much better. My appetite is back and I have much more energy. I even (partially) cleaned my house! The boys haven't thrown up since yesterday morning and they seem to be on the road to recovery as well. They still have diarrhea and are pretty fussy and clingy, but all in all, much better than the weekend.

Even Brandon feels better even though he had to work and go to class throughout it all. Seriously, the guy wakes up at 6 am or earlier every single day, goes to work, studies, goes to class, comes home and studies more. I definitely don't think I could have felt better without getting a full night of rest, but somehow Brandon pushed through it even though he was 10 times sicker than I was. I often throw myself pity parties during the day and think I have it so hard taking care of the boys all alone, but then I think of my husband who works incredibly hard and has 3 huge responsibilities on his plate right now. And he's always thinking of ways he can better prioritize or work/study more efficiently so that he'll have more time left over for our family and for church. He always tells me that he thinks he's lazy and needs to use his time better but I disagree- then I shamefully think about my morning spent on the couch drinking chai lattes and watching morning talkshows. I can't think of a single other person who works harder than Brandon or who is constantly asking themselves if the way they use their time is glorifying to God. I really admire this about my husband.

Anyways, thanks for the prayers while we were sick. I really do think everybody healed incredibly fast and I'm very thankful for that. It was our first big illness and we made it through it ok. Sure, there were times where I really wished we lived closer so that one of our parents or my sisters could come over and help (our house literally looked like a tornado blew through it for a few days there), but God got us through it. And I'm especially thankful that I avoided the worst of it and was able to take care of the boys while Brandon was so sick. I'm also incredibly proud of myself for not throwing up the first time I saw/smelled my kids' vomit. I have dreaded that moment since I was a teenager and always imagined it ending badly. I only gagged and screamed a few times, especially when I saw that it was on my sleeve. Brandon and I had a good laugh about it afterwards and now I know that I can indeed handle cleaning up my kids' vomit.

Why haven't I blogged since we got home?

Because I'm living in a house full of very sick people. All 3 boys have gotten the stomach flu over the last several days and I feel as if I'm just waiting around for my turn to get it. Jack must have picked it up while traveling home because he got it first on Thursday night. He didn't have a temperature or any other symptoms so at first we thought it might be just a bad reaction to something he ate. However, there was a LOT of barf in his crib so I kept a very close eye on him. The next day he had a slight fever of just under 100 but was acting fairly normal, just a little extra fussy and clingy. Then he barfed again on Friday night and had massive diarrhea... it was everywhere and oh so gross! I called the doctor on Saturday morning, they said it wasn't anything to worry about unless he was running a high fever or if he continued vomiting all weekend. They told me to just keep him hydrated and offer him food every few hours just in case his appetite came back. It didn't, he has been refusing food all weekend. Cullen, on the other hand, was eating everything in sight which I took to be a good sign... maybe his healthy appetite meant he wasn't going to catch it. Wrong.

He was up every hour last night (sometimes even more frequently) crying, moaning and throwing up a little bit at a time. Poor thing was so tired, he would sit up, throw up, cry for a few seconds and then lay back down and try to sleep. I didn't know what to do, I felt so bad for him that I wiped the barf off his sheets, got him a new blanket, and moved him to a different corner of the crib. (I know that makes me sound like a terrible mother but I promise, I wasn't letting him sleep in a pile of vomit. Nearly all of it got onto his blanket or outside of the crib, there was hardly any on his sheets. And he was so tired and miserable, it was heartbreaking to see him like that.) While Jack threw up the entire contents of his stomach all at once, Cullen slowly got sick all night. And I kept worrying so much that he would throw up and choke on it that I jumped up every time I heard the slightest noise. I got maybe 2 or 3 hours of sleep last night... tops. Where was Brandon during all of this? In the bathroom with the same problems. Poor guy.

Jack and Brandon seem to be on the mend and Cullen hasn't thrown up since early this morning so I'm pretty sure the worst of it is over. I felt so bad for all of my boys but thankful that I didn't catch it at the same time. Then I would never have been able to take care of them. I haven't been feeling too well today, though. I may be jinxing myself here, but I feel like it's coming on. I've taken 2 naps while the boys napped and haven't eaten hardly anything today for fear of throwing it up later. I'm praying that I can escape it, but I'm not too hopeful at this point :-(

But there are two good things about this: 1.) That none of us got sick while traveling or during the week, when Brandon has classes and work. 2.) At least it wasn't swine flu, right?

Cannon Beach

We've been in Cannon Beach with the O'Malley side of the family for the past week. We're staying in a house right on the beach and I wake up to the most gorgeous views every single morning! I miss seeing water so I love being able to look out the window and see it whenever I want this week. We've mainly been doing a whole lot of relaxing, walking on the beach, eating delicious food every day, playing games and just hanging out with family. Brandon's Mom's family was here for the first 4 days and now his Dad's side is here.

Cuddling on the couch

Cullen and Daddy on the beach

Soon they won't let us kiss them anymore so we have to enjoy it while we can.

Family Photo

Me and Cullen

Daddy and Jackson

Brandon took Jack walking on the beach...

...and then ran really fast with him. Jack LOVED running!

Jack inspecting the sand

and then tasting it. He concluded that it tasted a lot like California sand (which he loves) so he continued to eat fistfuls of it.
Grandpa and Jack

One of my best friends from college drove up from Newport with her husband to visit us for the day and meet the boys. I haven't seen Katey since her wedding a year and a half ago so it was really nice to catch up with them. They had to drive 2 hours to get to us and then had a 6 hour drive home to Ashland ahead of them so we were really thankful they were able to make it. Thanks for coming Katey and Eddie!!

Cullen did not want to touch the grass and we were cracking up watching him squirm around trying to avoid it.

We went for a long walk on the beach one afternoon. This is the large rock I bet Brandon $100 that he couldn't climb up...

... of course he ran right up it in about 30 seconds. Lucky for me, my money is actually his money ;-)

Getting down was a little harder for him

My favorite picture of the Oregon coast. I love that you can see 4 cliffs in the same picture, it was a gorgeous spot!

This is Brandon thinking about how much he loves me ;-)

Cullen drinking a Mountain Dew with his cousin Cody

Opening more presents with Brandon's family

Jack with his new tractor. These kids got so many toys, they sure are spoiled!