Strange combo I know....but after only a 2 hour "nap" since my lack of sleeping last night I've thought of a million more things I'd like to write about...so for this post I'll narrow it down to 2.
Couponing....this has to be the most bizarre thing in my mind. Maybe we are too stuck in specific brands and too new school to go every Sunday to buy a paper for the monetary relief of coupons. I had Jay pick up a Sunday paper last night if they still had any left being Monday. He spent the $3 on a paper and after going through the flyers we only managed to find $1.75 in savings for my grocery trip today. I go to the store every other Tuesday and by that time we need to pretty much restock and I know how much I'll spend - especially if it's a diaper, laundry soap, dog food, beer and/or wine extra money kind of trip. Let's ballpark and say for the 2 weeks on average I spend $215 for our 2.5 people that eat. So how the heck do people save toooooons of money and all I could find was $1.75?! Sure I clipped some for another trip that more than likely will be expired before I could use them...but what am I missing?! I don't understand the concept of saving a dollar when you have to buy 3 of something - that's just spending more money and silly talk! I will be the first to admit we are partial to our normal brand names so I'm not up for venturing to an off brand - but there are so many name brand coupons....and I don't understand splitting my shopping to multiple stores to save a few bucks when I could save that money just going to good ole Wal-Mart and buying what we are needing. If you have an insight as to what I'm missing please tell me because this one newspaper loss has me even more repulsed over trying to save with coupons than before....
Off my soap box (coupon free I might add) and on to something that makes me not as confused....country music. I guess I could broaden that to just iTunes in general. Music is the international language that has such a passion check mark in my book. As I was being a vampire last night and wide awake I browsed through iTunes on my phone and it's like they have this kryptonite effect on me....they know I'm supposed to be on a strict and tight budget not splurging on non-essentials and then that little iTunes angel/devil scenario comes out. I think there should be a series of security questions they should ask you after a certain time of day...it's as bad as drunk texting. You should have some kind of buffer saying "are you SURE you want to 'just browse' as you have a habit of purchasing items in the wee hours of the morning - especially around payday.". I was so nonchalant with my purchases "back in the day" when songs were .99 - it was like buying 2 tacos at Jack-in-the-Box. Then the $1.29 took over and it was that more than a dollar shock that made the purchase button a little harder to click...but let's be real - still purchased. Then the infomercial zombie effect comes out in me of the "easy payment of .69" for new songs added or the "featured albums for 7.99" - why does that seem like such a great deal I can't pass up?! Especially when I own the cd of most of the albums I would consider buying....but they've been with a friend of mine for over a year now and the quality in my mind would be better bought digitally versus my million year old cd's loaded onto my library. (Justification you will learn is my weakness...I am forever the devils advocate...) But I am one of those that truly can hear a song and trigger a slew of memories...music speaks to my inner soul in places that even my beloved Jay and tiny human can't reach - probably not great to admit but it's a different place like an old friend or something materialistic that will be in your heart no matter the season, reason, or lifetime purpose. So upon perusing the main iTunes page last night and seeing the albums for a whopping $7.99 it triggered so many bittersweet memories. Dixie Chicks first big album Wide Open Spaces (which mentally I then think to go check the other 2 albums prices because they hold an eternal memory aura over me as well), Kenny Chesney's Greatest Hits...followed by the $.69 wonders that out of nowhere hits you with the long lost song you haven't heard in forever but mentally justify even if you end up only playing it a few times and then skip after that - it pays for itself in that many play times right?! How do you say no to Love Shack, Bette Davis Eyes, Tiffany's version of I Think We're Alone Now, Drop It Like It's Hot, or old songs by Staind. I know - random bipolar choice of music. I claim my iPod has schizophrenia. I have recently started taking time out for "mommy time" once I put Presley down for the night to go sit outside now that the weather is nice and usually take a glass of wine and unwind. It's the best healthy selfishness present. My iTunes on my iPad or iPhone usually accompanies my wine, pool view, baby monitor, and puppies. There is some kind of healing power 30 minutes of shuffle can do to my soul. Even if I'm on my phone I still have my iPad playing on the patio table next to me. Maybe I should join an iTunes addiction club....if it required thousands and thousands of dollars (yes - its sickening how much money I've handed over in the 9 years I've been an iPod/iPhone/iPad owner) then they may let me in. But it's like a cheap version of therapy for me...it's heart mending, soul soothing, booty shaking, sharing my eternal love of music with my baby girl to learn rhythm and variety and Jay as the ever silent over my music choice but willing to listen kind of therapy....and because of that - I'll purchase for $.69, $1.29, or $7.99 any day....or accept iTunes gift cards - ha!
I guess I should try to get some sleep now that it's drawing near to my little boss' waking time....
May a song fill your heart today (and your iTunes library) and a coupon save you more than $1.75...
tbs
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
hello insomnia....
i have wrestled with starting a blog for years...so get ready this should be a loooooong first post!
i guess technically i had one before they were an everyday pop culture thing to do when i wrote on my cancer website at www.taylorsowers.info
so i began my nighttime ritual of going to bed at 10 and trying with every ounce i have of sleepiness i have to go to sleep ...and now here we are at 2:36 and i can't take listening to another episode of mindless television and decided to try to be productive and cross off one of my "things i should do" items by starting this blog. my mind races at 90 mph in 27 different directions 24/7...this should be a nice outlet to get some of them out and maybe attempt that sleeping thing...i hear it's pretty awesome.
as i laid in bed thinking about my day it got me going in those 27 directions...
1. before i go any further there is something you should know about me. it's a well known fact if you know me so no shock value when i say i have a very non-traditional spiritual gift (so my mother and i have decided). googling. even typing it says i am wrong - but it has helped me be right on so many occasions. it is a blessing and a curse. much like web md...where you can be .4 seconds away from death or the first to be healed in one short medical synopsis paragraph. the google super power can be that one little thing i need to calm the hamsters in my ever running brain and also begin a whole new crazy google marathon....it will be mentioned in many a post i can almost guarantee - let me continue though in my other 26 directions first...
2. i finished reading the hunger games trilogy today and i wish i could blame my lack of sleep on my distaste for the ending. don't get me wrong - they were amazing books with a great story to be told. i am very glad i jumped on the bandwagon and read the books, saw the movie at midnight when it was released, and have a very wonderful mother who helped fuel their income by purchasing me not one but two tshirts that i wear proudly. i heard that the next book/books i should venture into are the girl with the dragon tattoo series. well of course the super google power took over and like an idiot i tried to read the plot outline on wikipedia. someone should really write **spoiler alert** before they give you the whole dang story without all the little minor details. now i feel like i've spoiled it and maybe should search for a new book to read...
3. after the gwtdt epic failure i finally decided laying in bed wasn't going to get me to sleep so i decided maybe a hot bath would relax me and i added the super lavender bedtime bath bubbles for a little extra help. all that did was get me into a million games back and forth with my mother on words with friends. (don't worry - i know i shouldn't use my phone in the tub...i lean it over the edge because with my luck i would drop it) let me just say that playing my mom is like playing the scrabble dictionary. i find such joy in my rare instances of beating her i go ahead and take a screen shot on my phone so there is some kind of evidence that she was defeated...even if it's by default from her losing points with the letters she still had in her hand...a win is a win. but that is one of those things i put down on the "reasons i love my mother" list...she has always encouraged us to use our brain power in the most different ways. it goes back to our 30 minute drives back and forth from grand prairie to dallas to go to church. everything from how many words can you make out of a certain word, rhyming games, six degrees of separation, etc. never a dull moment in our car - then and even today we still do it. it helps that our level of sarcasm has increased over the years...makes the games much more fun....and something i dearly hope to pass on to my own child...
4. my child. i wish i could say she pops in and out of my head but let's be real...she stays there all the time. i can't believe what an amazing little person she is growing up to be. she has the biggest love for life, a big sense of humor for a little person, and captures the heart of everyone she encounters is how i described her in a text with a friend tonight...i think that about sums it up. God definitely decided to reward me with presley blake's personality and disposition after the 9 months of throwing up with her!
5. i mentioned the connection between googling and web md earlier because it was one of my little adventures in insomnia tonight. on my 29th birthday, my lovely ob/gyn was so kind to give me the present of an anti-depressant. not exactly what i wanted but after almost being on it for a year i would say it was a fabulous present. and yet it makes my little bit of control issues take over thinking maybe i should get off of them now as compared to when i think of the situation i was in when he prescribed them to me...we had just moved from houston to dallas, presley was 5 months old, we had just moved into our house and getting adjusted to our new incomes and lifestyle, oh and working was a wee bit stressful to say the least. looking back i probably should've been put on something more than the lexapro he had me on but it did it's trick - all the way until i was no longer working aka no longer had insurance. he was very kind to switch me to celexa as it was a cheaper drug and would do the same thing. that's where google comes in....the side effects of this stuff could make one go bananas. combine that with the side effects of my depo-provera shot i get every 3 months and it is like cinderella's fairy godmothers singing bippity boppity boo here's your reasons for insomnia! thank the lord above that my child is a fabulous sleeper and will sleep in for when my body and mind finally decide to like each other and let me sleep for a few hours. don't get me wrong - i can take naps like a pro...seriously i should get paid for nap taking. but come 10 when jay is ready to go lay down and watch the news before our changing to our nightly line up thanks to channel 21 is like a big fat tease for me tossing and turning and finally giving up and getting out of bed to pass the time away. you know it's bad when you can leave the room and come back in and know what time it is by what show is on and not ever look at a clock. long story short - the side effects of withdrawls after stopping celexa scared me and yet relieved me that i will not take myself off and yet very grateful other people have the same side effects and questions i do! the power of google reigns again.
i know i said 27 directions and i'm now 22 short...but for a first time blogger i guess i should save some of my thoughts for another time....
i have always thought this would be a great hobby for me...i have led quite a life to be told up to now...and i know there is so much more to come. i hope you can enjoy it with me...at least enjoy the sleep you are getting that i am not - ha!
tbs
i guess technically i had one before they were an everyday pop culture thing to do when i wrote on my cancer website at www.taylorsowers.info
so i began my nighttime ritual of going to bed at 10 and trying with every ounce i have of sleepiness i have to go to sleep ...and now here we are at 2:36 and i can't take listening to another episode of mindless television and decided to try to be productive and cross off one of my "things i should do" items by starting this blog. my mind races at 90 mph in 27 different directions 24/7...this should be a nice outlet to get some of them out and maybe attempt that sleeping thing...i hear it's pretty awesome.
as i laid in bed thinking about my day it got me going in those 27 directions...
1. before i go any further there is something you should know about me. it's a well known fact if you know me so no shock value when i say i have a very non-traditional spiritual gift (so my mother and i have decided). googling. even typing it says i am wrong - but it has helped me be right on so many occasions. it is a blessing and a curse. much like web md...where you can be .4 seconds away from death or the first to be healed in one short medical synopsis paragraph. the google super power can be that one little thing i need to calm the hamsters in my ever running brain and also begin a whole new crazy google marathon....it will be mentioned in many a post i can almost guarantee - let me continue though in my other 26 directions first...
2. i finished reading the hunger games trilogy today and i wish i could blame my lack of sleep on my distaste for the ending. don't get me wrong - they were amazing books with a great story to be told. i am very glad i jumped on the bandwagon and read the books, saw the movie at midnight when it was released, and have a very wonderful mother who helped fuel their income by purchasing me not one but two tshirts that i wear proudly. i heard that the next book/books i should venture into are the girl with the dragon tattoo series. well of course the super google power took over and like an idiot i tried to read the plot outline on wikipedia. someone should really write **spoiler alert** before they give you the whole dang story without all the little minor details. now i feel like i've spoiled it and maybe should search for a new book to read...
3. after the gwtdt epic failure i finally decided laying in bed wasn't going to get me to sleep so i decided maybe a hot bath would relax me and i added the super lavender bedtime bath bubbles for a little extra help. all that did was get me into a million games back and forth with my mother on words with friends. (don't worry - i know i shouldn't use my phone in the tub...i lean it over the edge because with my luck i would drop it) let me just say that playing my mom is like playing the scrabble dictionary. i find such joy in my rare instances of beating her i go ahead and take a screen shot on my phone so there is some kind of evidence that she was defeated...even if it's by default from her losing points with the letters she still had in her hand...a win is a win. but that is one of those things i put down on the "reasons i love my mother" list...she has always encouraged us to use our brain power in the most different ways. it goes back to our 30 minute drives back and forth from grand prairie to dallas to go to church. everything from how many words can you make out of a certain word, rhyming games, six degrees of separation, etc. never a dull moment in our car - then and even today we still do it. it helps that our level of sarcasm has increased over the years...makes the games much more fun....and something i dearly hope to pass on to my own child...
4. my child. i wish i could say she pops in and out of my head but let's be real...she stays there all the time. i can't believe what an amazing little person she is growing up to be. she has the biggest love for life, a big sense of humor for a little person, and captures the heart of everyone she encounters is how i described her in a text with a friend tonight...i think that about sums it up. God definitely decided to reward me with presley blake's personality and disposition after the 9 months of throwing up with her!
5. i mentioned the connection between googling and web md earlier because it was one of my little adventures in insomnia tonight. on my 29th birthday, my lovely ob/gyn was so kind to give me the present of an anti-depressant. not exactly what i wanted but after almost being on it for a year i would say it was a fabulous present. and yet it makes my little bit of control issues take over thinking maybe i should get off of them now as compared to when i think of the situation i was in when he prescribed them to me...we had just moved from houston to dallas, presley was 5 months old, we had just moved into our house and getting adjusted to our new incomes and lifestyle, oh and working was a wee bit stressful to say the least. looking back i probably should've been put on something more than the lexapro he had me on but it did it's trick - all the way until i was no longer working aka no longer had insurance. he was very kind to switch me to celexa as it was a cheaper drug and would do the same thing. that's where google comes in....the side effects of this stuff could make one go bananas. combine that with the side effects of my depo-provera shot i get every 3 months and it is like cinderella's fairy godmothers singing bippity boppity boo here's your reasons for insomnia! thank the lord above that my child is a fabulous sleeper and will sleep in for when my body and mind finally decide to like each other and let me sleep for a few hours. don't get me wrong - i can take naps like a pro...seriously i should get paid for nap taking. but come 10 when jay is ready to go lay down and watch the news before our changing to our nightly line up thanks to channel 21 is like a big fat tease for me tossing and turning and finally giving up and getting out of bed to pass the time away. you know it's bad when you can leave the room and come back in and know what time it is by what show is on and not ever look at a clock. long story short - the side effects of withdrawls after stopping celexa scared me and yet relieved me that i will not take myself off and yet very grateful other people have the same side effects and questions i do! the power of google reigns again.
i know i said 27 directions and i'm now 22 short...but for a first time blogger i guess i should save some of my thoughts for another time....
i have always thought this would be a great hobby for me...i have led quite a life to be told up to now...and i know there is so much more to come. i hope you can enjoy it with me...at least enjoy the sleep you are getting that i am not - ha!
tbs
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