Wow, so I just realized it has been since June that I have written last! Where did the last 6 months go? Seriously, I have no idea. Oliver was born in September, so that explains what happened from Sept-now, but what about June-Sept? It's all a blur!
Well one great thing that has happened since being off at work has been my new love for coupons and getting great deals! I'm seriously becoming addicted. Now that I have more time, or at least not tied to a desk at work 40 hours a week, I am able to devote some time to researching and cutting coupons. Some of my favorite sites to help me research the deals are SavingsAngel.com, BargainstoBounty.com, and Hip2Save.com. SavingsAngel is a membership based one that is $19.99/month but I have saved my family $70-100 each month by using it, so I figure it's worth it. While the site still isn't quite as user friendly as I would like, it is still the most helpful and comprehensive site I have found. I get a little frustrated with the blog format of the other two sites. Basically all it is is telling me what is on sale at the stores I go to and what coupons I need to go with the sales and where to find the coupons. It still takes considerable time and effort, but it is totally worth it. Rite Aid is the best store for finding the best deals on HBC items. I haven't paid over $1 for toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, or deodorant since I started doing this and a lot of the time I can even get those items for free. It's truly amazing! Tonight I watched a show on TLC titled "Extreme Couponing." It was really inspiring and I hope to be as good as these people someday. They really stockpile the merchandise in their homes and that is something I would like to start doing as well. Just need to get organized first. First up I need a coupon binder and then I need some sort of shelving unit to go in either my garage or basement. Garage is most convenient for stocking and retrieving, but basement would probably be the best for temperature control and keeping unwanted pests out.
In addition to coupon clipping, I have started going to the gym. Yes, seriously, the girl who hasn't excercised a week straight since Jr High School has joined a gym. Not only have I joined a gym, but I have actually GONE to the gym everyday since! (Okay, it's only been 4 days, but it's a start!) I joined a 24/7 hour gym that my friends and I can go to after our husbands are home from work and the kids are in bed. That's the theory at least... have to work on getting my daughter in bed at a more reasonable time. I really like this gym because every time I have gone (the 4 whole times) there has never been more than five people there. Since I'm not exactly skilled in the whole workout thing, I'm not comfortable exercising in front of other people - especially those who know what they're doing. I'd say the majority of the people there are trying to lose weight or get into shape. Not many people that I have seen are already in shape and trying to maintain it - those are the people that intimidate me. So I'm feeling good about that. I am motivated to keep with it and so far I'm actually having fun while doing it. It is nice that I joined with 2 friends and one or both of them has been available to go with me each time.
Well that is it for now. Sometimes hard to think of what to write in the blog when my facebook sums up each day in a line or two.
Went from workaholic working 40+ hours a week, to getting downsized and being a stay at home mom (SAHM), and now doing something somewhere in between. Loving life and its unexpected curves and turns.
