Thankful for Dr. Laura ?!?

I know it sounds crazy but today I am thankful for Dr. Laura.

My husband and I want a fourth child. We have put a lot of thought into this decision for over five years. (My husband even had a vasectomy reversal.) We had a miscarriage last month and since then I have had many doubts. Am I meant to have another baby? Was this a "sign"? Can we handle another child? Can we afford another child? what about all those childless couples wanting a baby? Do I want to get up again in the middle of the night? Is there too big of an age gap between the youngest and potential newborn (7 years maybe 8)? Will my other children suffer? Aren't I already messing up the first three? It's been 7 years since my last one? Am I being selfish? Am I pushing the envelope? The list can go on and on ....

Soooo.....Today I was running errands and I turned on the car and heard Dr. Laura tell a man that it didn't matter how far apart his children were the only fact that matters is if he was willing to be a parent to another child he and his wife would bring into this world. That's all I heard but if there was a light bulb above my head it would have gone off. I felt tears spring to my eyes and my stomach flip. I wanted to shout out loud. I am willing to be a parent again. I want to do it. I'd do anything for a chance. Wasn't that my answer that I have been looking for? My husband and I are more than willing to love and care for another human being. We want to add to our family. I realized that I am not selfish. I am not taking away from anyone who doesn't have a child. My other children will not suffer. Their lives will all be enriched. I AM WILLING TO BE A PARENT AGAIN.
That was it. Just those couple sentences made a difference to me. All my worries are just worries. I do not have to justify or articulate my desire to have another baby to anyone. I am going to follow my heart and for all of that I am thankful to Dr. Laura. Who would have guessed?
Jen


*linked to Finer Things Friday: Bedtime Prayers*

Adventure Playground

Susan and I traveled down to my old neck of the woods (Orange County) and went to Adventure Playground in Huntington Beach (Central Park and Goldenwest). We had a great time. It is basically a pond of muddy water with wooden "rafts." The kids are allowed to stand on the wood and push themselves with sticks. There is also a mud slide down a hill, a rope bridge and a tire swing. On the other side of the park, is an area for the children to build forts with real wood, hammers and nails. The great part for the kids is that they can get as dirty as they want and mom cannot say a thing.

We brought our lunches, beach chairs, towels and a change of clothes. Everyone is required to wear tennis shoes (however if you forget they have a pile of old shoes you can borrow which I had to do). I suggest OLD clothes. The cost is $3 for Huntington Beach residents and $4 for non-residents.

Our kids had a fantastic time. When we arrived, there were a lot of camp children but at around noon they all left to have lunch and we had the place to ourselves. We stayed for about two and a half hours and I still had a hard time getting my chidlren to leave. They explored on their own but I was was still able to keep an eye on them from a distance. It was definetly an Adventure.

Plastic Shopping Bags- WFMW

Several years ago, a friend of mine told me this method of storing plastic shopping bags.
I find it handy to have a bag or two in my diaper bag, or purse, or in the car to be used for dirty diapers, wet swimsuits, trash, whatever.
Of course, you can wad up a bag and shove it into your purse, but they take up more room and are easily destroyed that way.
Begin with a regular bag.

Fold it in half lengthwise,

then in half again.


Fold up a triangle


continue folding it flag-style

Tuck in the end and ta-da,
you have a neat little bag ready to tuck into your purse for any use.

I do always feel a little bit like the anal-retentive chef when I do this, but it works for me!


Go here for more WFMW tips!

Sue

American Heroes Air Show

Have you ever been to, or heard of, the American Heroes Air Show?
Yes? tell us about your experience in the comments.
No? Now you know about it and you can attend this coming Saturday, July 11th, 9am-4pm at the Hansen Dam Recreation & Sports Complex.
Hansen Dam is located just off of the 210, Osborne exit in Lake View Terrace.

View Larger Map

My family has attended for several years and look forward to it each year. Did I mention that parking and entrance is free?

from heroes-airshow.com:

Established in Los Angeles in 1992, the American Heroes Air Show began as a grass-roots community effort to celebrate the dynamic role of helicopters in law enforcement, fire service, search and rescue, homeland security, communications and national defense. Today, this non-profit event is offered in seven major U.S. cities, enabling spectators from coast-to-coast the rare opportunity to view advanced military and civilian helicopters and meet the pilots who fly them.

The American Heroes Air Show features non-stop aerial demonstrations and excitement, including:

• Helicopter displays, flyovers and tactical demonstrations
• Interactive exhibits and hands-on family activities
• Public safety and emergency preparedness displays
• Helicopter rides
• Live local entertainment
• Public safety career fair
• Concessions

We always try to arrive early and we pack a lunch. We begin with a tour of the various helicopters around the field. Many are open and you can climb inside. Bring your camera because there are PLENTY of opportunities for photos.


Hope to see you there!

Pickles

My mother is visiting from Minnesota, so I decided that we should make a batch of pickles while she was here. I remember my grandmother doing the same, so I wanted to create those memories for my children.
My kids love pickles, ever since they were babies, even before they had teeth.
I invited Jen and kids to join us as well.
Let's see if I saved any money making my own pickles. (plus a day activity for the kids)
Pickling cucumbers 14.5 lbs, $7.18
Dill $7.90 ( I have enough dill left over to make another batch of pickles, but I'll include the price for the entire amount)
Jar lids $1.50
more jars $7.50 (I can reuse these forever, unless they are broken during moving or remodeling... it happens)
Salt $1.00 (estimate)
Vinegar $1.00 (estimate)
garlic $0.35

Total supplies and ingredients
$26.43
Made 16 quarts of dill pickles for $1.65 a jar.
Not bad. The "good" pickles that I saw in the refrigerator section of the market was over $7.00 for a quart. Whoa. Even the small jar of store brand pickles were on sale for $2.50.
I didn't think that I would actually save any money doing this. My plan was just to pass a memory to my children.
Too bad that I need to wait 2 weeks to taste them.


Sue

Kids Eat Free

I have a tendency to forget about dinner until about 6:00 when everyone around me is crying out for food then we head out to a restaurant (not very frugal). However, I have been making an effort to have dinner at home and ready by 6:30pm. I started out making menus for the week, progresssed to menus for the month and recently Sue and I have been making freezer meals. (more on this later.) Yesterday, I needed a break. My husband suggested that we go out to dinner.
In the past when we have gone out to dinner, we have dropped over $60.00. Sometimes, our children will eat everything on their plates and other times they will eat nothing. A few weeks a go I drove pass a Coco's and saw Kids Eat for Free on Tuesday and Wednesday. We decided to head there. We all had a meal, drinks and to top it off the kids had a dessert. My husband and I shared the one that came with his meal. The bill came to $29.00. I spend at least $20.00 at McDonald's! We received a child's meal free (10 and under) with each paid adult meal. We splurged on desserts (not included in kids meal) for the kids and we still walked out paying half of what we normally do. I say that is a true frugal moment.

I researched some other restaurants that offer this deal and came up with a list and some websites. (Please call ahead to see if the restaurant in your area offers this deal)

Monday-Applebees, Island's, Joselito's (Tujunga, Ca), Fuddrukers (.99 cent meals)
Tuesday-Islands, Norms, Coco's, Denny's, IHop, Pat and Oscars (Los Feliz, Ca), Ruby's, Bulldog's(Santa Clarita, Ca)
Wednesday-Fainforest Cafe (1.99 meals) Carrows, Cocos, Islands
Thursdays- Carrows
Saturday-El Torito (until 3pm)


Here are some websites I found that offer other suggestions: kidsmealdeals.com , mykidseatfree.com , frugalliving.tv

I realize that most of these are chains but most restaurants do not advertise these specials, so if there are any in your neck of the woods please let us know.