In Search of a Bargain [Alternative title: Ridiculously Spoiling Other People's Kiddos]

While I'm not anti-shopping I'm not much of a shopper either... unless the circumstances are just right.

Take a great coupon/sale combo and pair it with a chance to spoil the kiddos in my life and you've found my shopping weakness.

It all started with a mailing from Carter's kids clothing store earlier in the week. A coupon just for loyal shoppers like me (eye roll) for 30% off, only good today and tomorrow. Add to that news of a new outlet mall opening 15 minutes away and special deals and sales for their grand opening weekend and you've handed me a can't miss shopping & saving opportunity!

While watching the news last night I got a bit nervous - 50,000 - 60,000 shoppers expected this weekend, 6,000 parking spots and people were parking along the highway yesterday because they couldn't get closer. Hmmm.. I thought, maybe it's not worth it.

But, I decided if I could get up and out the door early, I'd give it a shot. The mall opened at 9, so I figured if I left home around 8 I should be able to get parking, and if I got there that early and it was already packed it was not some place I wanted to be.

Luck was on my side.

At 8:08 I pulled into the lot, that was maybe 15% full at that point. As I texted my friends to check in on current sizes and clothing needs for their kiddos the parking lot continued to fill up. By 8:50 I decided to head out and went off to find the customer service office, where I knew even more coupon savings could be found.

90 minutes later I was back in my car, with four giant, heavy bags and $300 less in the bank account. (No, I did not spend all of that in Carter's. Just... a lot of it.)

In the end I bought clothes for four kiddos and 3 pairs of shoes for myself.

Had I paid retail prices for all of my purchases the grand total would have been $750, so I'm feeling like it was worth the effort. And like I've made my mother oh so very proud!

Oh how time flies

Ten years ago this fall I spent a weekend in the mountains with 3 good friends.

We stayed in a cabin that was stocked with every board game you could imagine, had no tv and where the owners left a plate of warm brownies on the table and a fire roaring in the fireplace to greet us upon arrival. We explored the area, visiting a few small towns, going to a vineyard for a wine tasting, checking out the gorgeous views and enjoying each other's company.

Fast forward to last weekend. The same friends gathered, at my friend's (relatively) new house on the Eastern Shore for another fall weekend together. Only this time the group included four kids, ages 5, 3, 2 & 2 months.

The four of us have hung out since that weekend long ago, though much less frequently since two of us moved away 5 or so years ago. I see all of them individually fairly frequently, and in pairs on occasion, but this was the first time in a decade all four of us spent a weekend together. And though the dynamic was certainly different with the kiddos around (case in point, none of my friends would have ever woken me up at 5:48 in the morning with a "cockadoodle doo!" but a certain two year-old thinks that is hysterical!), at the same time, it wasn't really all that different.

We easily fell back into pace in conversation, and activities. We all stepped in and did what needed to be done with the kids, and as soon as they were asleep the cards came out and the laughing picked up. The four of us are pretty different, but as a group we really work well together, and it was nice to be reminded of that and have the opportunity just to hang out.

I've known for a long time that I'm pretty lucky to have such great friends, but this weekend made me appreciate them even more.

Behold Cuteness

This weekend I went to Richmond to visit Stompers and meet his new baby brother, Patches! 

Stompers alternates between being completely disinterested with his baby brother and loving him lots.  

While it sorta looks like a choke hold I promise, it was a sweet hug. 

While my weekend was largely focused on bottles, diapers, burp clothes and cartoons it was a lot of fun and I'm so glad I got to go spend time with them (and their mom!)

Playing in the Sandbox and Shoveling the Ocean

I mentioned in my last post that I spent much of the past month with weekly out of town trips. What I didn't mention is the focus of those trips were the kiddos in my life.

Two beach trips, a kids gym, a little kid amusement park and a children's museum were the destinations of choice with Wiggles, Bug & Little Man.

While there's more to say about the rest, I'm starting this retrospective with the beach!

First up with Wiggles first trip to the beach and despite A LOT of rain, she still had a great time at "the sandbox."

I think one of the best and worst things about a two year old is that they have no real sense of time. It's a bad thing when any one activity only holds their attention for a few minutes before they are zooming full speed ahead into something new.

It's a great thing when 30 minutes after you arrive at the beach the skies open up into a complete and total downpour and you can pack up quickly and talk about how much fun you had at the beach without them whining "but we jusuuut got here"

Nope, instead we had a happy toddler running through the, in her words, "almost rain."

Luckily we got some beach time in the day before, and things eventually cleared up enough for an evening on the boardwalk that didn't require wet suits.

The beach involves running. And falling. And snacking. 

Rides & candy. Nothing better in the life of a two year old!

 Less than two weeks after leaving the beach with Wiggles, I returned with Bug & Little Man (and their parents, but we know they aren't the focus of this post).

Luckily our weather was perfect. Which is a good thing, because this is our fourth year of beach trips and there is a routine and expectations in place, all of which require good weather!

Rides + sand is the recipe for success with this crew!

On any given day Little Man strikes a perfect balance between being
the most serious 2 year old you've ever met and being totally silly.  

So, on this second trip rain wasn't an issue. But that pesky ocean was. We got to the beach Sunday morning with several hours to go before high tide and thought we'd be ok sitting about 20 feet back from the life guard stand. We set Bug to work digging a 'just in case' trench in front of our stuff, but I really thought that we'd be long gone before the tide came in.

I was wrong. 

We never did end up getting washed out. Our, by then, multiple layers of trenches did their job and kept our stuff nice and dry. But it was a very, very close call. The area in front of us filled in like a kiddie pool, great for Little Man who was not a fan of the ocean and would continually tell the waves to "Stop It!" when he was standing in the surf with his mom. 

But while he just told the ocean to stop, his sister had a different idea of how to keep the water away... 

Summer fun at its best!

Going Back in Time

Last weekend I made my annual Memorial Day trek over the traffic-filled Bay Bridge en route to a long weekend at the beach. Even hitting the road at noon on Friday was not early enough to beat any sort of traffic, so the drive was long and slow. 

Though unlike prior years, the beach wasn't my first destination. This year I was stopping off to spend Friday night with Bug, Little Man and their parents. We had a relaxing Friday evening around their house and early bedtimes where yet again my sleep quality was 100%. My original plan had been to hit the road to the beach first thing in the morning but that got derailed when my friends invited me to go with them to the nearby Chestertown Tea Party Festival.  

No, it was not a festival celebrating the modern tea party, I would have skipped that for sure, but a weekend long festival & reenactment of when citizens in Chestertown had their very own tea dumping party back in 1774, about six months after the more well known one occurred in Boston. 

We arrived in Chestertown around 9:30, just in time to find parking and get to the parade route. We were surprised to see so much activity going on already - including the funnel cake and wine tasting booths with steady streams of early morning customers. Neither items really my breakfast of choice but hey, to each his own. 

We settled into spots along the side of the road to wait for the parade, and oh what a parade it was!

Chestertown rocks the Colonial parade. 

After the parade we wandered the festival, which was filled with people walking around in period costume like the "Kissing Wench" who left bright red smooch marks on the cheeks of random passersby and "Toss the Tory", when a "British loyalist" was captured and tossed into the Chester River. There were also more modern festival activities, like face painting, shopping and yummy food. 

As we sat in the town square enjoying a yummy seafood lunch my friends commented that they were really glad they live on the Eastern Shore now. And with fun-filled days like last Saturday I can certainly understand why. 

Wiggles and the cat

It's pretty mindblowing how a toddler can go from being a baby to a kid pretty much overnight.

I Skype with Wiggles at least once every two weeks. And within the last two weeks it's amazing how she started talking in complete sentences, and really having a conversation with me. Two weeks ago my cousin mentioned to her that I have a cat, and I moved the camera so she could see Emmy.

Last night as soon as our connection opened up Wiggles said "Hi Stacy. Where's your cat?"

Her mom laughed, and asked how she even remembered the cat. Wiggles just responded by asking for the cat again.

Finally, after our stilted conversation, punctuated by repeated requests to see the cat I went and scooped Emmy up from her nap on my bed so she could join in the Skyping fun. Once Wiggles got to see her we were able to move on with our conversation, about her dinner (which she thanked her daddy for making) and the doggies she sees on Skype and other family and friends she likes to talk to.

I love that kiddo so much, and I love how Skype makes it so easy for me, and my cat, to be in her life, even from so far away!

Little Man

While he's been mentioned or pictured on the blog several times (exhibits A, B, C & D), one of my favorite kiddos has never been formally introduced, mostly because I didn't have a good nickname for him. 

But yesterday, as I headed out to spend the night with his family in advance of our date this morning, I decided Little Man would be it. It turns out it was quite a good pick as I heard his dad call him that on several occasions last night and this morning.

Anyway, here he is:

Hi Aunt Stacy!

He turned two last month, and I did get to go to his birthday party before the crazy month of travel, but I decided that he and I needed our own outing once the craziness ended, so I asked to borrow him for the morning. While big sister Bug wasn't thrilled with a date that didn't include her, their parents were agreeable to the idea so Little Man and I set out bright and early for their local kids gym.

At first I wasn't so sure it was the best idea. We walked in and saw all of this:

Looks fun, huh?

But he only wanted to play with this: 

What 2 year old boy can resist a train table?

I was eventually able to woo him away, and then we had lots of fun swinging like a monkey, jumping, jumping, jumping, playing with balls, rolling down mats and, oh, did I mention jumping?




It was awesome! 

We capped off the morning with lunch at Chick-Fil-A, where Bug and their mommy joined us as well. 

I am feeling pretty lucky today - to have these two kiddos in my life, and that I got to return to my quiet apartment as one was having an overtired meltdown while the other insisted she was not tired and most certainly did not need a nap. 

Being Aunt Stacy is the best. 

 

Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That

The first thing on the agenda yesterday was to go to the library in my friend's new town so she and Bug could get library cards. As an obsessive reader I have to say I have never been a more proud Aunt Stacy than seeing those two kiddos so excited to go to the library. Especially once they found a giant Curious George stuffed animal to cuddle with while their mom read to them.

                                                                 *****

Speaking of obsessive reading, I've been reading the book The Price of Politics for over two weeks now. It's Bob Woodward's look at the negotiations on the fiscal issues between Congress and the Obama Administration spanning the past 3 1/2 years. It's interesting for sure, but a slow read and I can't say I'm retaining much from it. Well, other than more cynicism over our very broken political system.


I've got about 180 pages to go and I want to finish it, but I'm just not sure I can. Maybe if I were more of an economics nerd, then it would be an easier read.

*****

I'm still obsessed with Fun., most specifically the song Some Nights. I have a new playlist on my iPod named Bandwagon and I listened to it on repeat all weekend.

*****

Yesterday, I went to a wine tasting, then at dinner I had an Orange Crush. Today I went to brunch with my former work bestie, former boss and current boss and we had a Mimosa Bucket. I honestly can't recall the last time I drank on back to back days. If I had to guess I would say it was a year and a half ago when I went to the work bestie's wedding and drank at the welcome reception the night before and at the wedding the following day.

I don't not drink, but I don't really drink either.

Obviously.

My boss was especially shocked to hear how I spent yesterday and that I was the one to suggest the Mimosa bucket today. Seriously shocked.

But, I think I may have earned some brownie points.

*****

They are calling for ice/sleet/freezing rain early in the morning. Not the best way to kick off the work week. In an effort to be prepared I just went outside to salt my stairs and walkway in hopes of avoiding a slip and slide effect. Of course, me being me, I was wearing flip flops and no coat while prepping for the wintry mix. 

Interruption in the Regularly Scheduled Blogging

I owe you two more book recap posts, but those will wait another day or so.

I had a long 24 hours, but a big chunk of it was spent with this cutie pie, so I can't really complain.

I took a vacation day today to hang out with Wiggles and her parents before they head back out west tomorrow. Last night after work I drove up to stay with my mom in order to maximize my time with the munchkin today.

We went out to breakfast at Friendly's and then back to her grandparents house to just hang out. 18 months is a fun age. She's got personality and she's like a sponge, just soaking up everything going on around her. She's got a pretty good vocabulary and is fairly easy to understand for the most part, but, when she isn't, it's damn funny.

Several times Wiggles started in on a monologue. She was fiesty, fired up and trying to tell us something. Unfortunately her mom, dad and I had no clue what it was. I wish I could have caught it on video, but I knew as soon as the camera appeared it would have changed her focus and ruined the moment.

I didn't even take a pictures of her today, the one above is snagged from her Aunt's Facebook page. I just enjoyed the time and was in the moment and hope it was enough to tide me over until she returns next summer.

(It wasn't. I miss her already. Thanks goodness for Skype.)

My favorite little cow

I can't help but share this adorable post about Bug and her performance in her church Christmas story. She didn't want to be an angel like the other girls, she wanted to be the Cow. I'm familiar with the basics of the nativity story, but this was the first I heard about the cow. Who was, in Bug's world at least, a very, very important witness to the big event!


You can read all about it on her mom's blog:

She's such a fun kiddo!

Cuteness

Last weekend I was with that little munchkin. This weekend, I wasn't. That's just one of several reasons that last weekend > this weekend.

I miss that face. And those pigtails. And the nonstop babbling that little mouth does. And the adorable little run/walk those little legs do.

Sigh.

I made the most of a work trip that took me out west last week and spent a long weekend in Arizona visiting Wiggles and her parents. It was my fourth trip to their small military town in the past five and a half years so we didn't really need to do any touristy stuff, we just spent the weekend hanging out.

 We played on the playground...

 

Watched Rosh Hashanah services online while playing with her new Rosh Hashanah toy set,

Showed off her multi-tasking skills by identifying her tummy while focusing on her favorite music video, 

saved money in the piggy bank (I think she's saving for a trip to Baltimore)

and just had fun. I kept her home from daycare on Monday morning to get a bit more hanging out time in before I had to head off to the airport. She kept me entertained with her non-stop talking and playing. Oh, and her love of her dog. 

Here's a sample: 

Only 88 days til I get to see her again. Not that I'm counting or anything. 

Non. Stop. Motion. 

S'Mores Please

I'm still playing catch up from my lull. This story is a month old so please forgive my tardiness.

I've well established the fact that I'm a night owl - during the week bedtime is usually between 12:30 and 1 and on the weekends it often ends up being even later, usually because I'm wrapped up in a book. Which is why it is perfectly ok that I was still in bed when I got a phone call from Bug at 10:15 a few Sundays ago.

She was calling to invite me to lunch. In 45 minutes.

Luckily lunch was in my neighborhood as she was on her way to hang out with her grandparents who live close by. I got my act together and managed to pull up at the house at the same time they arrived.

I told Bug how silly it was, that lunch for her would be breakfast for me. She gave me her well practiced "are you crazy look" as her mom told me she got up at 5:30 that morning.

I was hoping we could swing brunch, but the nearest options were a bit to fru fru for the munchkins, and also quite crowded so we rolled into Cosi for our 11 am lunch. Apparently lunch at 11 is normal because Cosi's breakfast menu ends then. I had (admittedly quite yummy) pizza for breakfast, followed by... S'mores!

Do you know that Cosi has make your own s'mores with a mini fire pit they bring to your table? It is so cool!

It wasn't quite the Sunday I had in mind - but a spontaneous and fun treat I'll take any time!

Talky Talky Toddler

I just realized that at least in part I've spent every weekend of August with kiddos.

I do need to catch up on old posts, mostly because I have fun pictures of making s'mores and fairy birthday parties, but for now I'm going to focus on this weekend.

He's not new to my world, but he is to my blog so I'd like to introduce you to Stompers.

His mommy and I have been friends for about a decade (wowzers!) and he'll be two next month. His nicknames are abundant, but I think my favorite is Silly Billy Stomper Wompers, so I'm going with Stompers.

I don't get to see them all that often since I moved to DC so a weekend at the beach was a nice treat. The three of us hit the road on Friday afternoon and that's when Stompers started talking. With the exception of a few poorly timed naps, he never really stopped.

Occasionally he'd take a break from talking to sing to us. The ABC song, Itsy Bitsy Spider and one he wrote himself, sung to a familiar tune:

(To the tune of Twinkle Twinkle)

No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No

Oh yes, no is most certainly Stompers' favorite word. We heard it often, mostly just in usual conversation, but occasionally in the midst of a tantrum, usually ocean induced. It's a rough life when you are both absolutely drawn to and absolutely afraid of the ocean. A rough life indeed.

While "No" may be his favorite word, my favorite was a conversation we had after he spent much of yesterday afternoon doing this:

Side note: I couldn't resist the adorable close up shot either. Somehow my crappy Blackberry camera actually made it look artsy.

Sorry, I got distracted by cuteness... and eyelashes. My goodness those eyelashes...  

Yesterday it rained. A lot. So after a brief jaunt on the beach we hit the road north for some indoor kiddie rides for Stompers and outlet shopping for his mom and I. Unfortunately for my little friend, he fell asleep within about 15 minutes of getting in the car and slept for HOURS. That meant the rides got skipped altogether and his mom and I took turns - one person shopping while the other read in the car. It made for quite an inefficient use of time, but neither of us really minded since we are both quite content to spend an afternoon with a book. 

By the time we finally pulled into the parking lot of Grottos to order some yummy take out for dinner, Stompers had spent the better part of 5 hours in his car seat. Granted, he was sleeping for about 3 1/2 of that, but still, the kid was over it. 

So we're waiting for his mom to come out with our dinner and I'm doing my best to keep him entertained with silly words and songs when he says "Wanna go Stacy's house. Go please. Drive Car." So completely adorable. I told him we couldn't leave til Mommy came out with dinner, to which he responded "Drive Stacy. Get Mommy. Drive!" 

Poor little buddy. And so polite! 

Finally today, our last stop before hitting the road home was Staples. Because nothing rounds out a good weekend at the beach like office supplies (don't ask). While his mommy tracked down what she needed I did my best to get Stompers ready for a long ride in the car. 

It involved running up and down the aisles and climbing on the sports themed desk chairs. Every time a staff member considered reprimanding us they just looked at that face and turned their frown upside down. My efforts paid off - sorta. Stompers slept for the last hour of our car trip, but I don't think it was the activity in Staples that tired him out. I think it was all of the nonstop talking he did for the first 90 minutes of the drive!

I do love that kid, and I had a great weekend, but I'm pretty happy that my cat doesn't ask any questions!

The lull ends...

when I get home tonight and discover my internet has been fixed. Which, I think is true.

I meant to post over the past three days when I've been enjoying lovely, non-spotty connectivity, but, I've been too busy having fun with this lil guy:

He's got a bazillion nicknames and I need to settle on one for the blog. We'll see how the drive home goes in helping me decide. Leading contenders at this point are Pokey and Stompers. 

Be back soon!

Arts, Crafts and Birthday Fun

I had a belated birthday celebration with two of my favorite kiddos and their parents last weekend. It was great.

We had cupcakes. They were obviously very yummy!

Bug likes to get in on the present giving action, usually with some sort of craft project. Last year I got a paper plate/cardboard/construction paper dog sculpture that looked remarkably like a pig, but was most definitely a dog, so I was told. It still lives on my filing cabinet at work.

This year it was decided we'd work on the craft project together.

We made Pinterest-inspired melted crayon 'paintings' (minus the paint).

Before & after the magical hairdryer did it's job. 

All three finished products. The kiddos both had their initials, laid out by their mommy. Mine had an "obstacle S" designed by Bug. I do believe she meant abstract, which is absolutely what it is!

Why are you swimming when it's cold out?

Last Saturday morning I got a call from Bug's mom, saying that the little munchkin wanted me to come to her swimming lesson. Her logic: "Aunt Stacy likes to watch me swim when we go to the beach, so she'd like to watch my swimming lesson."

Valid point.

Unfortunately, I was at the beach last weekend, so I told her I couldn't make it. As expected, that led to more questions, the big one being "Why are you at the beach when it's cold?" I explained that I was visiting my parents but she just couldn't grasp it. When you go to the beach you play in the sand, jump in the waves, swim in the pool. You can't do these things when it's cold, so why would you go?

Apparently she kept asking her mommy that question over and over again all day that day (Sorry Sarah!).

So to make it up to Bug I went to her swim lesson this weekend. And to make it up to her mommy for all those questions about my bizarre, winter beach going behavior, I babysat for the kiddos for a few hours after the lesson.

First up, the swimming lesson. Last weekend apparently she got freaked out and kinda threw a fit and missed half her lesson because she was terrified of getting in the pool. Yesterday she got right in and within about 60 seconds had already gone under water. She was such a champ. Last summer when we tried to have her float on her back - being held up by her mom or I - she'd freeze. Yesterday she was as relaxed as she could be, lying on her back with the instructor's hand lightly holding her up, kicking her feet and then continuing to dunk under water. It was great to see, and even better to see her so proud of herself for her accomplishments. She completed her Level 1 classes yesterday and moves on to Level 2 next week.

After swimming we all went to lunch and that's when I noticed a voicemail from my dad. My parents love to hear funny stories about Bug and were both quite amused when she called while I was with them last weekend. They knew my plans for the day and my dad had left a message with a question for Bug. He wanted me to ask her why, if I couldn't be at the beach when it was cold, why was she going swimming? Didn't she know that you don't go swimming when it's cold?

I laughed as I listened to the message and then asked her the question. She looked at me with an expression that would have definitely contained an eye roll if she were about 10 years older and said "because I'm swimming inside, Aunt Stacy!"

Obviously.

Best "Aunt" Ever

I'm a single, only child so the title of Aunt isn't one that I should have.

But, I've been lucky enough to be Aunt Stacy for 3 1/2 years now to an adorable little Bug and, for the past 10 months, to her equally adorable baby brother (who still needs a blogable nickname).

I don't recall if my friends decided I would be appointed "Aunt" before she was born or if I earned the title in part because I cut a vacation short to be waiting at the hospital when she arrived, but I do know that since day one I have been completely wrapped around her precious little finger.

This is even more evident to me now as I recently purchased tickets to take the little munchkin to see Imagination Movers, one of her favorites from the Disney Channel.

I've only watched the show with her once or twice, but have been part of many "Idea Emergencies" that require a brain storm to solve. When I heard they would be coming to the area in the spring I offered to take her. I asked her mom if she wanted to go too, or if it should just be a Bug & Aunt Stacy date. Her mommy passed on the opportunity, so I went ahead and ordered the tickets for the two of us.

OMG.

I don't know what I was expecting, but I didn't expect this.

The tickets were $25.75 each. Those were for the 'cheap seats.' Not exactly a cheap price, but not awful. But the fees... dear lord are there fees. $2.25 facility charge, each. $10.30 convenience charge, each. $6.20 processing fee. Bringing my grand total (including the $1.00 I donated to St. Judes, because well, because I'm me and it's a children's hospital) to $83.80.

$83.80

Can you believe that? I still can't.

My favorite part of the receipt - the "no charge" next to the mailing line. Like I should be grateful they didn't throw in another $.44 or whatever stamps cost these days.

So this is the part when you get to the grand total of $83.80 and you think about the fact that this is for a 3 year old who doesn't even know you are planning this, one who very well could have moved on to a new favorite show for the 30 minutes a day she watches tv by the time the show comes around in May. That's when a mom or dad (who have sense) would decide nope, we're gonna skip this one.

But, when you're Aunt Stacy, well, you have no sense. And you think about how much she'll like it. And how fun it will be to have a Bug & Aunt Stacy date and so then you click the order button. Like a crazy person.

Or, like the best aunt ever.

I miss Wiggles

My cousin lives on the other side of the country. I miss her a lot, but these days I miss her little munchkin more. I spent a week watching her last summer when her mommy went back to work and I gave her the incredibly appropriate nickname Wiggles.

Today she celebrated Purple Friday (and her first time in a playground swing!) from way way too far away.