I Heart Gymbucks!

What do I love about little girls? Let me count the ways! The pink, the frills, the decorating, the bows, the endless clothing choices, I could go on. What do I not love about little girls? How much it costs to clothe two of them! 

Having a little girl and expecting another one has really forced me to shop efficiently for their clothing. Gone are the days that I can just walk into a store and pay full price for an outfit. Unless, that is, I'm not planning on buying something for the other little girl. And I know it's silly, but I already feel guilty when I buy something for Sadie and not the new baby, or vice versa. 

Luckily (or if you ask Ben, not so luckily) my favorite children's store is Gymboree. At full price, the clothing in this store is very expensive. However, they tend to put lines on sale pretty soon after they release them, or at least put out a few coupons before then. They also have a WONDERFUL thing called Gymbucks. 

During Gymbuck earning periods, for every 50 dollars you spend, you receive 25 dollars in gymbucks, good toward a future purchase during the gymbuck redemption period. The 25 gymbucks will get you 25 dollars off a 50 dollar purchase, so essentially these are 50% off coupons. The best part is, there is no limit to how many gymbucks you can use in a single transaction! As long as you purchase an amount equivalent to double the amount of gymbucks you have, your transaction will work. This is done four times I year, I believe, so it really  helps when building little wardrobes. 

This time around, I finally caught on to what I believe is the "secret" to using these gymbucks effectively. Buy the items already on sale! I didn't do this before, and it really limited the savings I got. This time I had 75 dollars in gymbucks, and I bought only one full priced outfit, and I only bought that outfit because I felt that Sadie had enough items from the sale collections. Here is what we came away with. 

Ribbon top and brown velour leggings from the "Sweet Treats" collection. This was the full priced outfit. I can't wait to see her wearing this with some brown boots and a red bow in her hair! 

  

Adorable Rise and Shine jammies. Sadie has already had these on, and she loves them! I really like the colors and the stripes. 

  

Pink mouse jumper from the "miss mouse" collection. Normally I'm not a huge fan of "characters" on clothes, but I thought these little mice were adorable. I think she'll wear this with a white turtleneck, gray tights, and some black boots. 

  

These are the baby's dresses! A black and white corduroy jumper with a blue bow at the waist. I bought the matching headband as well. Pink sweater jumper from the Sweet Pea line, and a corduroy jumper in pink with a giraffe print. Couldn't pass up those cute little baby socks either! 

This is 150 dollars worth of merchandise that I paid 89 for after shipping and taxes. Not too bad, huh?  Granted, I probably won't be able to spend this much each time gymbucks are offered, but I'm very satisfied with my purchases. So mom friends, keep an eye out for gymboree coupons and sales! I promise you won't be disappointed with the clothes.

Week 28- 8 months today!

I am 8 months pregnant today. I have approximately 82 days until my due date.  Depending on when this little girl decides to make her appearance, we may have ourselves a Halloween baby! I wouldn't mind that one single bit. Can you imagine (those of you who are aware of my Halloween obsession) how much fun planning birthday parties would be?! But as usual, I digress.

I'm still feeling relatively good. Long shopping trips give me hip and back aches, and it's getting harder to pick things up from the floor, but other than that I have no major complaints. With the "growth spurt" I had in the past couple of weeks (I call it this to make myself feel better), I'm on track to gaining 38 pounds total. More than I wanted to, but still 20 pounds less than I did with Sadie! The thing I hate most is the weight is showing in my face. Yuck. Luckily that's the easiest place to lose it!

Some days I feel like there are things I should be doing to get ready for the baby, but I'm not doing them. I feel like I'm missing something. The thing is, we already have all her furniture and all the newborn clothing she needs, compliments of her big sister. We have a pack n play, a baby swing, and a bouncy seat. All we really need is a new carseat and the double stroller. We have both picked out, and thanks to my husband's awesome parents, the stroller is taken care of.

Right now I'm on the hunt for a baby sling. I don't want a wrap-style carrier, because I don't have the patience for all the tying. I want a pouch style. Seems like I've looked at every carrier under the sun. I think it's going to come down to the Maya and the Peanut Shell.

This is the Maya. It comes in a variety of patterns and different sizes for a good fit. I like the fact that the ring is adjustable and there is less wrapping involved.

This is the Peanut Shell. This is also available in different patterns and sizes. I like the ease of the pouch style, and I think the patterns are so cute. 

  

I'm really not sure which one I will end up with. I guess for now I'll just be doing more research. 

My 28 week doctor's appointment is tomorrow. I'm sure we will be discussing the results of my gestational diabetes test, which I'm assuming I passed since I didn't get a call back from the hospital. I think now is about the time the bi-weekly appointments start too. So instead of seeing the doctor monthly, I will be going in every two weeks. While I'm not thrilled with that prospect, I am happy that it means we are getting closer to meeting our second little angel! 

Thanks for stopping by! I know my posts have been a little infrequent lately, but there are good things coming, I promise! I'm working on a couple of crafty projects that I can't wait to share with y'all. Have a great Tuesday! 

Captain's Log: Week 23

Today marks the beginning of my 23rd week of pregnancy. This is crazy to me! Time is flying by this time around, thanks in no small part to the the toddler person we share our home with.

This pregnancy has been much easier on me than my first. I've only had one kidney stone episode so far, and my blood pressure seems to be under control this time. I'm also on track to only gaining 35 pounds! (That is, if I can keep this appetite under control!)

The doctors tell me that I have an anterior placenta, which means it is attached in the front, instead of the back. It's no big deal, it just means I only feel baby girl's kicks when they are low. They can be very uncomfortable already, especially since her favorite time to play is when mommy wants to sleep.  She is just like her big sister in that respect!

Sadie has taken to carrying her baby doll around the house and calling her "sister." Melts my heart every time! I can't wait to see her reaction to the new baby. I'm so excited that I get to call them "my girls." I told Ben once that I felt we were destined to have girls, and I guess I was right!

I find it funny that when I was pregnant with Sadie, I told Ben that next time around I wanted to be pregnant in the summer because the clothes are cuter. That may be true, but boy am I getting what I asked for! I've discovered that being pregnant this time of year feels like I have a portable furnace attached to me. Y'all..I sweat in my house! Not the most pleasant feeling in the world. Thank goodness for cold showers, because our a/c can't keep up with the heat outside.

I apologize if today's post seems a little random and scatterbrained. Since I'm running out of pet projects, and the summer is still dragging on, I guess my creative juices are a little sluggish. Maybe I can wake them up with a little road trip to Oklahoma City this weekend. (Ben! hint hint)

Lesson Learned!

I love Zulily.com. For those who don't know, Zulily is an online discount "club" that offers everything from baby clothes to home decor. It's free to sign up. And I'm addicted.

During one of my recent hunts, I came across a darling little pair of red shoes. I thought to myself  "Independence Day is coming. Sadie has a navy blue dress. Sadie needs these red shoes!" So into the cart they went. Along with a red and white striped scarf for yours truly.  I was satisfied that my little girl had the perfect outfit for America's birthday.

....And then the shoes arrived. I excitedly signed for the box and sat down on the couch like a little kid on Christmas morning. I found the scarf first and set it aside. I was most excited about those little shoes. I opened their separate box, pulled off the plastic wrapping, and froze.

The shoes squeaked. Not a little creak when walking, I mean they SQUEAK. There is something in the heel that makes these shoes squeak like a dog toy when stepped on.  I couldn't believe it.

Ben saw my face and started laughing like it was the funniest thing he'd ever seen in his life. Sadie, of course, was thrilled. She lit up and started hopping up and down while shouting "Squeaky! Squeaky!"  I just shook my head and put the shoes on her feet.

You can probably guess what happened next. Sadie commenced her own little parade around our house, squeaking up the stairs and into the playroom...down the stairs and into her bedroom. The shoes could be heard from anywhere in the house. So I turned to Ben and said "Well...at least we'll never lose her!"

So, boys and girls, today's lesson is this: always read the description carefully before buying! Otherwise you may end up with squeaky shoes on an enthusiastic toddler.

  

PS- these are the shoes.