Things I Love Thursdays: The Local Library

Did you know it's National Library Week? I totally didn't, until I stumbled into my local library on Tuesday. Baby loves books, loves to thumb through them on his own and to be read to. We've been reading with him since he born, primarily because of how much I love reading, and he just adores it. We try to go to the library every few weeks, but it's been a while since we've been. We had a cycle of books that Baby just loved, and I couldn't bear to bring them back after the first three weeks of them being checked out, so we renewed them, and just finally returned them this week.We've been to three different libraries in town - Tampa's kind of big, and there are over 10 libraries in town. All there had a really nice children's section, and the two we frequent most often have a separate children's library, so the kids can run around and have fun without the parents worrying that they are disturbing the other patrons of the library. I tend to gravitate toward one library in particular, because they seem to have the most board books, and right now, Baby is not very nice to books, so the sturdy construction of a board book is really important.

A mom I met a while back was totally freaked out about me checking out board books from the library. "Oh my God, what if they chewed on the books?" she asked me, positively horrified (she was an absolute germaphobe). I shrugged. "So I wipe it off with a Wet One or something, big woo."

I love our time at the library, both for Baby and for me. I'm trying to cut back a lot this year, with me staying home and not raking in the big bucks anymore, and I was (still am a little) a compulsive book buyer. Granted, the library doesn't get the new releases as quickly as I would like for them to, you can request a hold on the book you want, and you get notified when it's ready. Most of the time, as a compulsive book buyer, I buy books and don't read them for like a year, so this method isn't much different. And it's way cheaper. Now, in the digital age, the library emails me when a book is due, so I don't forget I have it and then find myself using Baby's college tuition fund to cover the late fees. It's pretty cool like that.

So, go out and visit your library today! It's one of my favorite ways to spend time. If I weren't sick today, after all this talking, I would totally go and visit myself.

Crap, wait a second...it's not Thursday, is it? Oh my goodness, I'm losing my mind....well, screw it. It's belated Things I Love Thursday, darn it.

Things I Love Thursday: Munchkin duckie tub

It's Things I Love Thursday again - where did the week go? I feel like I haven't gotten anything done this week!

So what do I love this week? Good question - I had to dig a bit for this one. I love, though Baby has just outgrown, the Munchkin inflatable duck infant bathtub.

Baby has always been kind of into ducks - we have a bunch of ducks that live in the ponds in our neighborhood, and he always enjoys visiting them - so when I spotted this inflatable tub at Target one day as he was outgrowing getting bathed in the sink in his infant bathtub, it was a perfect fit. Husband blew it up, and we inserted Baby in it that very night. He loved it. He started to enjoy bathtime in "Duckie" as we called it in our house. We would go into the bathroom for something else altogether, whether it be a hairbrush or a tissue, and he would see Duckie, and point at it or grunt at it and smile. I'm so sad to have to retire it, but as of late, Baby has gotten awfully grumpy about bathtime, and we realized it's because he's just grown too long to be comfortable in Duckie.

I have lots of fond memories of Duckie, but the practicality of it was also very appealing. It has grippers on the bottom, so it doesn't slide around. It has a water temperature gauge (i.e. "hot") though I tend to never trust those things and use my own, but this one seemed pretty reliable. The duck head seemed pretty comfy for Baby to rest his own head on. The duck bill would quack, when pressed, which always gave Baby the giggles. I definitely give this product an A+ (and I'm totally not being paid to say that). This is one of those baby products that I recommend to people all the time. It's truly a good one. Plus, mine came with this adorable bumper sticker that says "I love my munchkin" that I put on my computer (because I'm not a bumper sticker kind of person). The little sticker is dear to my heart because we've called Baby "Munchkin" as a term of endearment from when he was first born.

So what do you love? Share it with the blogosphere at The Diaper Diaries!

Things I Love Thursday

Kind of belated post, I know - but it is still Thursday, though not by much.

What do I love this week? Internet TV. Hulu.com, Vh1.com, the whole nine yards. Husband and I cut the cord with the cable recently, and are surviving with a high-tech antenna attached to the house (don't get me started on the whole antenna business) and over-the-air digital TV signals. The few shows that we can't tune in with the TV we can mostly catch online, with the exception of one of my favorite guilty-pleasure reality shows - "The Bad Girls Club."

Not only are we saving money because of this, but we get to skip most of the commercials altogether with Internet TV. So far the only drag is that sometimes you see the same commercial 15 times. Yesterday, I watched "The Real World" online, and saw a preview for "I Love You, Man" at every commercial break. There were five of them, so I saw the trailer five times. I may never see this movie as a result. There's also a Honda Civic commercial that drives me crazy that seems to be making the rounds on both Vh1.com and Hulu.com. I have to say, though, seeing the same commercial repeatedly really isn't a huge deal in comparison to the money we're saving, so I'll bite the bullet for now.

This was really an experiment for me and Husband, but I'd have to say it's going well thus far. We've cut down on our TV watching now that we have Baby, which is a good thing. We don't watch TV until after he goes to bed, or after he's down for a nap. It's not that I think TV is the devil or anything, but I'd rather Baby be playing than watching TV, if I can avoid it. Anyway, I think this might be an experiment that turns out to be pretty darn worthwhile. And heck, I'm kind of enjoying the freedom of Internet TV watching - it's kind of like getting one over on the cable company, which is kind of fun. Give it a try - see what the over-the-air signals in your neighborhood are like. Tampa is notoriously bad for over-the-air signals, hence all the antenna drama I alluded to earlier, but from what I've read online, in most cities, it's a totally do-able thing. Good luck!

Things I Love Thursdays: Kids consignment shops

We had a great day at a kids' consignment store today that we hadn't been to before. Baby Bottoms Consignment. They not only had a huge selection of clothes (which we weren't in the market for), but they had an impressive selection of children's toys, even toddler toys, which are hard to come by, it seems. We made out like bandits today, and got three toys that Baby really seems to dig, thus far:

Playskool Dusty the Talking Vacuum - retails on Amazon for $19.97, I paid $7.99
Infantino Jumbo Shape Sorter - retails on Amazon for $16.99, I paid $5.99
Leap Frog Fridge Farm - retails on Amazon for $15.99, I paid $7.99

So, all in all, I saved at least $31! Wow!

Now, you have to be patient with kids consignment shops. Sometimes I find nothing. Then, there are days like today that make up for the nothing days. They are definitely worth the time and effort, because you can get some serious steals, and not just on toys and clothes. Lots of consignment stores also carry baby gear, like bassinets, carseats, strollers, and the like.

Happy shopping!

**Update: In case you happen to live in Tampa, Baby Bottoms is on Ehrlich Rd, just west of Veterans Expressway.

Things I Hate Thursday

I always like to be balanced, so here's a little something to balance out what I love today...a little something I hate...or dislike intensely...

I do not like when Baby is sick. It is not fun. Not for him, not for me. He's so irritable when he doesn't feel good. He's like Dictator Baby. I take him away from something he's doing to wipe his incredibly runny nose and he gets very upset with me. Screams his head off...it's just not pretty. I can't wait until he starts feeling better. Significantly better. I think he's doing somewhat better than he was earlier this week, but he's still a bit of a mess. Still lots of snot dripping from his nose. Still coughing in the middle of the night. But no fever, so that's good. Here's hoping that we're on the downward swing of this cold!

Things I Love Thursday

It's Things I Love Thursday again! Baby has been sick all week, so today's thing I love is totally relating to that lovely experience. What do I love today? Baby cloth diapers!!

Baby cloth diapers are probably one of the most handy things I have purchased in terms of baby care. My sister-in-law recommended them, and I thought she was crazy...until Baby came. They were totally handy when it came to spit-up, drool, runny noses, pretty much anything dripping out of Baby in any way, shape, or form was totally mopped up by these cloth diapers. Super handy! And way cheaper than the cute printed burp cloths I saw at Babies R Us and even Target. Okay, so they aren't cute, but they are totally white so you can bleach them when they get dirty, unlike the cute ones. Sometimes handy trumps cute. Not always, but in this case, definitely! Here's a big thumbs up to cloth diapers for uses other than diapering. :)

Oh, how I heart Publix

It's Things I Love Thursday (how did that happen???), and the thing I'm sharing this week is more of a place - Publix, my personal favorite grocery store. I know lots of people think Publix is more expensive, but it's not, if you shop the sales. Plus, everyone there is SO nice, and they know me and Baby, so it makes shopping much more enjoyable.

I did my usual grocery shopping at Publix this morning with Baby, after a trip to the park, and though I got some awesome deals, I got a pretty cool surprise on my receipt - an invitation to a survey! I've never seen a Publix survey! Only the first 125 customers from each store are eligible, but they're giving away $1000 gift cards, but I can't remember how many (if it said). Make sure to go visit your Publix soon, to make sure you can enter the giveaway. It would be so awesome if I won a Publix gift card! That would be so amazing. Good luck to anyone who enters!

PS - Sorry I've been MIA this week, I've been recovering from all the birthday festivities. More on that to come.

Things I Love Thursday, Part Deux

Yep, I know, I already blogged about something I love. Shouldn't I wait save this other thing I love for next week? Well, inevitably, I'll totally forget about it by then, so I better jot it down before I do indeed forget.

I adore Baby Cheapskate, one of the best baby-related money saving blogs out there. Not only does Angie share the best deals with you, but she also has some great resources, like spreadsheets on how many diapers come in each different sized pack, the Cheep Peeps network which can help you find a deal when you're in need of something in particular. Cheep Peeps also can help you figure out what other people think of certain baby gear, diapers, really anything baby related. It's a pretty awesome site. I highly recommend it!

Things I Love Thursdays

The Diaper Diaries, another great mom blog, has a great Thursday meme - Things I Love Thursdays. I thought I'd join in, because there are a lot of things that I love that I'd love to share.

For this Thursday, let's start with something that I could not live without. My iPod.

Don't get me wrong, I kind of think that the whole Apple/Mac thing is practically cult-like. But...the iPod is my lifeline. When I have chores to do, I listen to music to push me through it, and with my iPod, I can listen to a totally random mix of the tens of thousands of songs that I have on it. When I take a relaxing shower, I plug my iPod into some speakers, and jam out. When I exercise (you know, those rare occassions), I put in my earbuds and crank up my iPod. My iPod makes my day better. I love music. Love, love, love it. I know more lyrics to songs than I remember about history class in high school. There is nothing like music to change your mood, or to take your mind off of your difficult baby whom you don't understand (or maybe that's just me). My iPod makes it easy for me to listen to music and enjoy it, no matter where I am. I don't want to ever have to buy one again, because they are so ridiculously expensive, but I love the darn thing!