desperate

Hi everyone!

I've joined up to an online book club for the book Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe and because so much of it is very personal I'll just be linking up here over to my personal blog for now. If you're interested in reading my thoughts on each chapter then head on over there! :)

desperate: Introduction
desperate: Ideals and Going Under

Jess

A Tragic End

I'm posting my ending breastfeeding story..... but it felt appropriate to be on my own personal blog so head over here if you want to read it today! :)

Some awesome giveaways!

Hello all!!!

I am so excited about this new book out - I have been secretly stalking Miss Sarah Mae for awhile now and she puts together this really awesome conference that so far just hasn't worked out for me to attend.  But Lord willing some day I might get to go.

But her new book.... oh I am giddy waiting for it to arrive in the mail. I can not wait to read it. And right now with three little ones who take an extreme amount of my time every single day.... I need this. I want this.  I am so excited to have this!  :)

This book is now #70 on Amazon - how cool is that!!  And the price keeps getting lower and lower - it's under $10 now. 


I am also REALLY excited about all the awesome giveaways she has going on right now -

FREE Coffee for a Year
Personal Spiritual Retreat for two
FREE Massages fora Year (I would love this one!)
Spa/Mentoring weekend with Sarah Mae and Sally Clarkson (writers of the book)
FREE Housecleaning for a Year

Um how amazing are those giveaways.... if you enter and win be sure to come back and let us know.

Need some help?

It's a new year - which normally means new years resolutions for everyone right?

I have just the book to help you tackle those large projects you're now convinced you need to get done.

And I'm serious - this book will help you.

21 Days To A More Disciplined Life - Kindle Version
21 Days To A More Disciplined Life - PDF Version

It is such a simple and straight forward design to help you tackle getting more disciplined in your life. In 21 easy days she'll help you reach your goals. She helps you to break them down into small pieces and spread them out all while giving you amazing pieces of advice and encouragement.

This is the quote that got me -

"Instead of addressing the root issue - my own, personal lack of self-discipline - I convince myself that a fancy new system or a change in circumstances will fix the problem."

Bingo... I have so many printables, filing systems, binders, books that I was convinced were going to help me but when I never follow through on them because the task is just too big and overwhelming well they don't do me any good except to help me go over budget :(   Well this book will not make you go over budget - starting today (Thursday) until Saturday the book is on sale for only 99cents!!!!

A complete worthwhile investment in my opinion.  :)  I've already started my 21 day journey and I'm loving it so far.

Anyone need some moolah?

Well Christmas is over and I'm already starting to think about next year.  I spent way too much 'last minute' money on gifts.

Next year I'm going to plan ahead better and have more 'free' money to spend.  How you ask?

Mystery Shopping!

Bestmark is a company that I am very active in and participate at least once or twice a month (But I'm going to increase my number of activities per month to tuck away some more money).  If you have any questions please comment below and I will try my hardest to answer them for you.

Right now they have lots of active recruiting areas - DuBois, Somerset, St. Marys, Altoona, Mechanicsburg - PA; Youngstown, Warren, Akron - OH; Depew, Buffalo, Orchard Park - NY; and Warrenton - VA to name just a few.

Plus - if you have or have access to (you don't have to personally own it) a Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, or GMC you can become eligible for FREE auto services PLUS bonus cash payments upwards to a $100!  My mom has personally done this shop and was very pleased with how easy it was and how much money she was paid to do it.

All you do to sign up is go here - and put my shopper ID - PA7978 in the application as the person who referred you.  If after you sign up and you select a shop please comment below and I'll email you to help you through your first one.  Once you submit everything they will send you a check for your payment (no worrying about amazon gift cards or paypal credits).

I really highly recommend this program :) You'll be pleasantly surprised how quickly the money adds up.

I did it again....

yep. I did it again.

she chomped down on me and I yelled.  ugh... it just hurts so bad and it's so sudden... it's just instinct and reaction. boo. boo. boo.

why can't she just give me a slight warning... a little pressure before she chomps down so I can be prepared and react better. 

so we are now on our 2nd nursing strike.... and she's sick.....and she's tired.... and I'm tired.... and I'm stressed (Christmas is like 5 days away and I am no where close to being ready!)... this is not a good combination at all. 

sigh.  maybe we'll get through it.  maybe we won't.  maybe this will be the end of our nursing relationship.  maybe it won't.  i really don't know.... all i know is right now i could use a good cry, a soak in a big tub, a nice long nap, and three children who were behaving.  but knowing that's not going to happen... i'm off to make use of the 30 minutes of rest time for my oldest, pop open a can of pepsi, find some hidden Christmas cookies and retreat into a good book for about 10 minutes.....  and then figure out what the heck i'm going to do next. 

Some of my favs

So as a blogger you never know who you're helping or annoying by posting links... but just in the past few days I've had a couple friends let me know that they have appreciated some of the links I have been posting lately.  And well that made me warm inside! So here I am sharing with you my favorite articles from the past month or so.  They may not pertain to me directly (no newborn here) but they sure are full of valuable information to tuck away for future use!

Hugs to all of you and I hope you are all enjoying a peaceful holiday season (I on the other hand haven't wrapped one gift yet - eek!)

The Root of Yelling - Sadly having #3 has brought out the worst in me at times :(

Where's the Baby, Ma'am - hilarious post about trying to share unwanted formula!

Breastfeeding a new baby - this letter from a newborn to it's mommy may just make you cry (I did!)

Finding Joy: dear mom who likes everything perfect - This is just a plain awesome post. period.

Avoiding early holiday weaning - I am just thankful some friends found this helpful.

*to anyone who would like to read all the dear mom letters - here's a link to her site. 

Nursing Status

I've been hitting the blog pretty heavy lately with all my Christmas deals and ways to save or make money - thought I would go a different route this morning.  (But if you're interested in those - click on my label Jess B below and all my past posts will show up!).

Thought I'd give you a nursing update... my little girl is now 1 yr, 1 month, and 1 week. :) It's gone by so fast and she seems to be accomplishing things much faster then my other two.  Except talking - she feels no need and that grunts or screams get her exactly what she needs - which they do because my older two completely dote on her. Eh... it will come eventually.  So yes I am *that* person who is now nursing a toddler! GASP

I worked full-time up until I was 5 months pregnant with our third so day weaning really wasn't an issue with my first two children.  But at 11 months we were still nursing every 3 hours (except night time) with miss N. I had no idea how I was going to start spreading those out (and honestly I wasn't sure I wanted to).  I love to nurse my babies.  While I enjoy being pregnant the thing I really look forward to is nursing - the way God created our bodies to nourish our own offspring just blows my mind. 

But slowly and surely we started to spread them out - this is how my day looks now:

Either middle of the night or early morning session (between 3am-6am)
After she gets up for the morning she's more interested in eating table food so her next nursing session is about mid-morning (when I'm trying to start school of course!)
Then she eats lunch and will nurse right before she goes down for her nap.
After her nap she may want a quick snack and then eats dinner with us.
Then it's the bedtime feeding. 

The thing is these nursing sessions are only about 10 minutes long each time.... short and too the point.  I'm torn about that.... I love to nurse and I think she's going to be a self-weaner early.  I nursed Miss L until 14 months, and Mr J until almost 16 months - but only first thing in the morning and bedtime.

Who knows... she might become interested again or we'll just slow and steady drift off I'm not sure.  There are times where she knows what she wants and will get it one way or another.... by climbing up under my shirt. ha! I love my little munchkin!  This hasn't been an easy journey with her - we've had some bumps along the way (remember the nursing strike?).  But I'm sad to say I think we're on the tail end of this journey and I'm not sure I'm ready to end it :(

Is that crazy?

Swag, Amazon, and Gluten Free Stuff

I recently was able to bless another family by getting some awesome gluten free stuff from Amazon and it's much easier then you think - may take a bit of time but it's so worth it!

So to get some free stuff off of Jess's Amazon Page

• sign up for swagbucks here.
• download the tool bar and search for everything possible - multiple times a day (gmail is searched at least 10 times a day) There are many ways to earn swagbucks - taking surveys, printing coupons, watching tv, playing games, etc. I sadly do not have time for those and basically just search whenever I'm on the computer.
• Once you earn some swagbucks and reach 450 - redeem for a $5 e-amazon gift card.  (they will start to accumulate quickly don't worry).  You can redeem multiple e-amazon gift cards and just stockpile them for a large order. 

Then go here to shop Jess's Amazon Page (This is my affiliate link and it's like leaving me a virtual tip that doesn't come out of your pocket - I am saving for my daughters next specialist appointment)

Please bookmark this as your amazon shopping page (Jess's Amazon Page)and I'll be forever grateful to you! And share with others too - everyone shops Amazon and it's great that they have this program to help us small bloggers!

Below are some of the great deals that have been out there lately:

Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pizza Crust Mix, 16-Ounce Bags (Pack of 4)
Bob's Red Mill Organic 7 Grain Pancake & Waffle, Whole Grain Mix, 26-Ounce Bags (Pack of 4)
Bob's Red Mill Organic High Fiber Pancake & Waffle, Whole Grain Mix, 26-Ounce Bags (Pack of 4)

*Please ignore the annoying little white boxes behind my links.  I can't figure out why they are there or how to remove them :) 

Cyber Monday Deals

Here are some of the deals I've found for Cyber Monday - as I find more I will try to update this page! Happy Shopping! :)

eMeals - 30% with the code CYBER  You can read my review on this awesome program here.  This would make a great gift for a busy mom or someone who is trying to eat healthy for the new year!

Amazon - insane deals and steals.  If at all possible if you are buying via Amazon - please go through my link! :) Jess's Amazon page Right now they have the Kindle Fire for $129 - just enter FIREDEAL at checkout (Limit 1 per person)..... I have this on my wish list!!!

And don't forget no matter where you are shopping online go through ebates or shopathome to get 1-10% cash back at participating retailers (which is almost all of them!).  This is like free money and the check you'll get after the new year will be much appreciated!  These programs are above and beyond any cash back you'll receive from credit cards - if you shop on line it's really silly to not belong to these program.

- When you join ebates after making your first $25 purchase you'll receive a free $10 gift card of your choice.
- When you join shopathome you'll receive a $5 credit to you account.

*The above are my affiliate links - they money earned goes towards my daughters specialist doctor appointments.

The get to vs have to attitude

From about mid-November till the 1st week in January our calendar is packed.... it seems every weekend has something in it - if not multiple things on the same day.  This past year we have tried to focus on a different perspective in almost everything and I am anxious to apply this to our upcoming busy time.  The 'have to vs get to' attitude..... 

Do you - 

• have to go to church or do you get to go to church
• have to help someone or go somewhere or do you get to minister to someone with the love of Jesus
• have to wait around and talk with other church goers or do you get to fellowship, encourage, life up and enjoy being with believers
• have to spend time with people once a year or do you get to spend time with people you only see once a year
• have to cook and prepare food or do you get to show your love to people by nourishing their bodies with yummy food you made
• have to change your schedule because your babies are exhausted or do you get to change your schedule and have a very good reason for doing it - you're doing what's best for you babies (and you've got a great reason to!)
• have to spend money on gifts or do you get to take a different route and gift something that means something to you or something to share about God
• have to eat that 2nd helping of pumpkin pie or do you get to enjoy an extra piece of pie because God has blessed you with good fortune

It's all about perspective and what you make of it. If you have a bad attitude it's going to rub off on others and pretty soon the enjoyment time you were hoping to have is suddenly filled with grouchy and cranky people.... all because of you and your attitude.  Turn everything into a thankful situation and you'll be amazed how quickly everything changes.... it could be worse, a lot worse - we have lots of freedoms here and we need to be thankful for those everyday.

1 Thessalonians 5:18(NASB)  ^'in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.'

And as a side note - there is nothing we HAVE to do except what God tells us to do - it's ok to say no to another get together, or another gift exchange, or another office party.  Saying no is sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself and your family. 

What is something that you feel you 'have' to do but you really 'get' to do today or this week?

*I am also in no way saying that just because we have good thoughts we can change our lives or what happens to us - we can just change how we react to those things that do happen.  Only Jesus can truly give us the joy that never ends!  If you want to know more about that - please go here - Are you a good person?

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

Last Day

Today's the last day to get this ebook for 99cents~  Tomorrow the price rises to $4.99.  This is so much more than just an easy and enjoyable read - it's practical and life changing.  And it wouldn't take long at all to read - waiting for a dr appointment, picking your kids up off the bus - 15 minutes to change your insane month of December.... totally worth it right?

I thought so:)

Here's the link for the book -Celebrating and Savoring a Simple Christmas

*The above is my affiliate link that helps me to pay for my daughter's learning specialist. 

Another book giveaway!

And we have a winner - TRACEY!  We are working on numbers in our schooling and I asked my daughter what her favorite number was between 1 and 10 and she chose #5! So comment #5 won! Tracey - I will send your information on shortly.

And don't forget - if you still want this book (which I highly recommend) you can get it for only .99cents and then on Friday the price goes up to $4.99!  So get it now and be prepared for Celebrating and Savoring a Simple Christmas :) Blessings to all.


Here's a flash giveaway!

MoneySavingMom has come out with another awesome book - Celebrating and Savoring a Simple Christmas

After her last one - 21 Days To A More Disciplined Life  you can't go wrong with buying this book.  She gives such wonderful and practical suggestions and advice for simplifying and enjoying your holidays.

TODAY only - one reader can win this book (or purchase it for .99cents here - Celebrating and Savoring a Simple Christmas on Friday the price will go up to $4.99)

To enter leave a comment sharing one of your tips on how you simplify your holidays and I'll announce the winner tomorrow morning (Wednesday).

Share the contest and earn an extra entry (just leave another comment saying you did).

We have a winner!

And the winner of a 3 month subscription to eMeals is -

Congratulations - I'll be in touch soon. :) Jess B

a Rafflecopter giveaway

eMeals review and a giveaway!

eMeals Easy Meals for Busy and Frugal Families

Recently eMeals contacted TMG to conduct a review of their products and host a give away (3 month subscription!!!).  Laura was so kind to direct her to me and I was pretty giddy to take on the challenge.

and let's be honest....

I fell in love with this product - I have always wanted to have my meals planned out, with a grocery list attached and have everything all in one place and well not have to do all the work.  That's where this is a great product for busy moms and wives (cause they do all the work for you!).  Everything is so clean and simple to follow, they provide you with the recipes for both the main dish and a side dish, your shopping list, the list of staple items you will need for the recipes.  They provide you with two weeks worth of recipes at a time so you're able to save time and money by shopping just twice a month (in a manner of speaking).  I am a check list kind of girl so to have someone organize all this information was amazing and relieved so much of that extra time it takes to find recipes, make the lists, find the best deals, etc.  I just had to click print and the work was done.  Plus depending on which store you choose they provide you with an estimate of how much your supplies will cost - so for those who have trouble budgeting or sticking to a budget they have also done the work for you which is really nice. Even Dave Ramsey recommends it ;)



So how does it really work - 

• First thing is to select your family size - For Two (1-2 servings) or Family (3-6 servings)
• Next you choose from numerous meal options:  Classic, Clean Eating, Simple Gourmet, Paleo, Low Carb, Low Fat, Portion Control, Natural & Organic, Vegetarian, Gluten Free, and they also offer a lunch plan.
• Then you pick the grocery store you want your lists to be produced from: ALDI, Kroger, Publix, Ralphs, Safeway, Target, Walmart, Whole Foods.
• Lastly you choose the desired subscription length: 3 Months ($21 total), 6 months ($35 total), 12 months ($58 total - only $5 per month).  Plus you can add on weekday lunches for only $4 a month.

Do I think this is worth $5 a month - absolutely.  The amount of time and effort this has saved me this past week has been awesome.  Plus I would guess you could start to recognize if there is a rotation of meals and watch for sales to save even more money (which would be right up by alley).

It's really simple and they do offer you a preview of some of the recipes (but take my word for it - they are yummy!). How cute is this icon? hee hee



Now on to the giveaway - it will run till next Wednesday (November 7th), and I will announce the winner in my post on Thursday.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*The above links are my affiliate links - they help to pay for my daughter's specialist. :)  

A Giveaway!

I was so excited to receive this book to preview and I've also been given 5 copies to give away!!!


I'll be reviewing this book on Thursday but will choose the winners on Wednesday afternoon.

To enter leave a comment below and I'll randomly select somehow :)

A Happy Birthday!

This is post dedicated to my sweet oldest daughter who turns 5 today.... where does time go???

Happy Birthday Miss L!

My story

My sweet friend (and creator of this blog) shared her heart and story yesterday about her young daughter - read it here.

My heart broke for her as we too deal with 'not perfect' which really what is perfect? But that's a whole other post! :)

My oldest has an October birthday so for our school district she would have been almost 5 before she could have even attended K4.  But as you know we decided to homeschool and not just for religious reasons.  Our little girl has some processing issues.... it takes her much longer to connect the dots then normal.  And she has a very hard time focusing and gaining control.   When she was little she used to have TERRIBLE frustration tantrums. They weren't behavioral issues it was that she could not voice what she wanted to say quickly enough and would just lose it.  It was heartbreaking.... now some of you may question that and if we were just making excuses for her .... but.... as her mom I knew something just wasn't right. As a mom you just know.

As much as I think she would have loved school I do not think she would have excelled there.... she would have been pushed to the side, possibly even recommended to medicate, frustrated, etc.  It would not have ended well for everyone.

You have to do what's best for your child.  no questions. :)

Easy Decorating

I love to decorate my kids rooms but my husband hates to paint..... the nursery is the only room in our house that has paint on it and it's ADORABLE but there has never been a paint brush picked up since then. 

So what's a mom to do who wants to customize and personalize her kids rooms.... wall decals. I *heart* them so much... they are so easy, affordable, and perfect! :)

I had another blog post all ready in my mind this morning but when checking my email I came upon this little tidbit of information - $25 for $75 worth of Wall Decals from WallSpirit.... swoon!!! 

Since I already have my kiddos rooms done and I'm looking at decorating our bedroom or the homeschool room I was thrilled to find a set of Planet decals for only $39.95... which is worth more than even the $25 to purchase the deal and I still have $35 left to spend on something else.  There are a ton of items to choose from.  There are laptop tattoos (very cool), chalkboard and whiteboard decals, clocks, etc... they seem to have a little bit of everything.  Even a Jesus decal... which I find odd that they have positioned over a bed.... not really sure I could um... you know sleep there with Jesus staring me down. ha!

This a Groupon deal for Pittsburgh so if you aren't from the area just change your location to Pittsburgh and because it's an online deal anyone can buy it and use it.

*The above is my referral link so if you buy through it I will get a referral fee and then maybe I can buy one of these deals too and spruce up my bedroom.... since we all know mommies put themselves last most days!

A Little Shopping

It's September... seriously how is it September already?

Time is just flying by. But it is also putting me in the mood to shop... and I love a good deal.  I was out checking my daily deal sites yesterday and stumbled upon Totsy's Summer Blow Out Sale!!!  yippee!!!

Just some of the deals -

Adorable rain boots - $8 (reg $22)
Slippers starting at $5 (reg $30)
Disney backpacks and purses for $7 (reg $14)
Children's Jewelry starting at $2.50 (reg $18)

This is just to name a few... but there are lots of amazing deals!

Sign up here and get started on stock piling gifts at great prices!

*The above are my affiliate links - sign up via me to help a SAHM and then share your links with friends and family to reward yourself!*