It's a sling thing!

Most of you know that I love carrying my babies in slings from the time they are born. I carried the first three in my Kangaroo Korner sling and swore that there was nothing better. However, once Whitaker was born I started having back and shoulder pain when I wore it and I was at a loss what to do!

I came across the Moby Wrap and now cannot imagine any other baby carrier. It supports both of my shoulders and back, whereas the sling went over one shoulder. Yes, the wrap was fidgety at first since it is one long piece of fabric, but once I got the hang of it (with another mom's help), there was no turning back. (Man, I wish I was being paid for promoting them!)

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I have been planning to write about my new love for the Moby Wrap for some time now, but have not gotten around to it for one reason or another. Oddly enough, I opened the paper today to read about the warning that will soon be issued regarding such carriers.

Infants can and have suffocated in slings and wraps, so while I know this warning is important it's my hope that moms don't abandon these altogether. Education is KEY so hopefully the warning will not poo-poo the use of slings/wraps entirely, rather teach the do's and don'ts.

So, here are my thoughts on safe baby-wearing:

1. Make sure the sling you purchase is the right size for you. Slings are sized to be snug and secure. Too loose, not good. Too tight, not good. (Wraps are a little different in that they tend to be one size fits most.)


2. Your baby should be worn high enough that you can kiss the top of his/her head and/or can see their face at all times. 

3. Wear your baby close to you. I have seem moms wearing slings that are so low that the baby is around their waists- more like a purse than a sling. Think of it this way, your baby is not an accessory, they become an extension of you when you are wearing them correctly. They should not flop around in your sling/wrap.


4. If your baby is a newborn and lacks neck muscle control, make sure their chins are not tucked into their chest which can restrict breathing.
 
5. Don't let this warning scare you away from wearing your baby! It is done around the world and has been done for thousands of years. Read your sling manufacturer's baby wearing suggestions and enjoy this precious time of being close to your baby! :) 

About, above, across, ...

are the first three prepositions of many that the kids learned this year at CC. As we only have four weeks left, I've been busy videoing what they have learned and am glad I have this keepsake. Here's Jackson reciting his:

While he does have substance, I have to admit that style is somewhat lacking. Check out these other CC'ers recite their version. I got such a kick out of this!

The Goal

With all of this couponing, saving, and sales shopping what is the goal? Is it to get more stuff? Is it a competition? Is it all for fun? Well for me, I wanted to challenge myself to be a better steward of what we have been entrusted with.

Have I succeeded so far?

Well, with this week's groceries I saved 42% and spent $84. Now that's great, but of course that's not the only money I spent on food. Inevitably, I tend to find myself at a drive-thru once a week with the kids. Not a bad thing entirely, but at the end of the month I'm always surprised at how much money we spend on fast food.

While we are trying to be more consciencious with what we spend Simon and I have stepped out and have committed a certain amount of money over our tithe to help support missionaries we had the pleasure of meeting at our church's recent Missions Conference.

We call it our Faith Promise and it can be described as this: An amount not yet seen or accounted for. It is excess money that (1) you must trust God to give you, if it pleases Him, and (2) that you promise God to give back to Him as he provides.

Now this isn't a way to pat ourselves on the back or to "do good so we will be blessed back". It is much more of an awareness of how incredibly blessed we are and the privilege it is to be able to serve others.

So, in our case we are keeping track of every dollar that comes in that does not come from Simon's salary and will be giving this money to help support our missionaries. While we have only made this committment in the past two weeks, it is so exciting to see how unexpected money has come our way. 

So far, I have consigned some things at a children's consignment sale, received money from my Amazon associates account (for the very first time even though I've had the account for more than a year!) and am teaching a sign language class to child care providers tomorrow.

I am keeping a running tally of it all and I'll be sure to report back!

Me, if I was at the gym

It's March already!

Time for this month's book picks!

I am so excited about these read-alouds for myself the kids. :) The History Lives series begins with Peril and Peace: Chronicles of the Ancient Church (History Lives series) .  This volume is the first in a set of five that chronicles the history of the Christian church. The remainder of the series follows church history up to present day. We're only on the first book and - wow!- have loved reading about the early martyrs of the Christian faith. Recommended reading age is 9-11, but at 6 1/2 years old, Jackson has had no problem following along.

The next four in the series are:


                       

You can buy them separately on Amazon, but the complete set is currently on sale at Grace and Truth books for $29.50 for all five.

Another Timothy Keller book I'm about to read is Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters. If it's anything like his last book, I know I'll enjoy it!

Last, but not least is Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge (Public Television Storytime Books). It's about a little boy who has a special friendship with an elderly lady who has lost her memory and how he helps her find it. So sweet, and I enjoyed reading it to the kids as a way to talk about my grandmother and her recent diagnosis of Alzheimers.

Happy reading!!! 

She made a mistake

On Friday, I was helping Jackson and Haviland choose their topics for their weekly presentation at Classical Conversations. Jackson chose the Aztecs and Haviland chose Joan of Arc. I told Haviland the story of Joan of Arc and then asked her to pick out three facts she would like to talk about.

Here's what she said:

"Hi. My name is Haviland and I would like to tell you about Joan of Arc."

"Joan of Arc was from France."

"She wanted to fight the English so she dressed up like a boy."

"Then she made a mistake and she died."

I looked at Haviland and said, "What mistake did Joan of Arc make?"

She replied, "Mom, I don't know. You said she made a mistake."

Remembering the story I told her, I just about burst out laughing as I corrected her, "No, honey. She didn't make a mistake, she was burned at the stake!" 

Swagbucks Anniversary

Swagbucks is having its two year anniversary and they've made some changes - changes to their bucks system and award system. Basically, they've multiplied everything by ten so while I did have 37 Swagbucks, I now have 370. Now does this mean anything to me? I can't say that it makes any real difference since the price of awards had increased as well.

Still, I have found it an easy way to earn gift cards to do something that I already do (web searches). If you haven't signed up yet and have been meaning to you can go HERE and enter the code SWAGADVENTURE to start you off with 60 Swagbucks.

Has anyone else had success with this?

You can read more about these changes here.