Mothering Many

Wow. I came to the blog this morning, and there it was, all messed up. I don’t remember doing anything to it, but apparently I did, because my categories are gone. Poof! Just gone. Sigh.

Anyway, I came here to say that it’s haircut day around here! Dh is off, and so he is taking my shaggy raggy boys to get haircuts. Two of them will come back nice and tidy, but one will come back still reasonably shaggy, but with a professional cut instead of the not-quite-right bang trim I did on him a couple weeks ago. I;m not quite sure what happened, because I used to be able to cut hair. I wish I still could. because do you know hpw much it costs to get all those heads trimmed? More than the premium on my mortgage life insurance.

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Whew! I am glad to say that some progress has been made in the laundry and toilets areas. Okay, the laundry area. I even cleared the laundry off the sofa, which the kids used as a mini trampoline for half a day, until dh put a load of towels on it. Did I mention we have a full size tramp in the backyard? And a linen cabinet for the towels? No? Well, we do. And this is why it feels like one step forward and two steps back some days.

But I! Am getting ready to leave! It’s time to prepare and hostess an Easter Egg hunt! And when I come home, those towels will be in the cabinet where they belong!

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Or is that saddles? Yesterday, i hit the laundry hard, I hit school hard and I hit work hard. Also, there was scouts. It felt nice to be “back”, but there is still much to do. Today will contain much the same, and probably tomorrow, too, minus the scouts part, and then I hope to be “caught up” by the end of the week. If such a thing as caught up even exists when you live with little people.

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Do you remember that I was sick a couple weeks ago? And did I mention that right before I got sick, I had finally achieved a level of smoothly rolling organization and tidiness that allowed me to not feel constantly under the gun? Well, I had. And I did. And now, I am trying to dig out again and I totally hate this. I want to run away from it all. Branson hotels, Bermuda cruises, trips to Wal-Mart, I don’t care, but I don’t want to be here while the laundry is behind and the toilet is dirty. Someone will have to take carry of all that. Today.

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What is it about the days where I have less than normal patience that inspires my children to grand feats of adventurous torture? Not of me, but of each other? Yesterday was one such day. I think they all got up on the wrong side of the bed or something. Once I convinced them to stop pounding one another (which thankfully didn’t take long), they began the sniping. And then once the sniping was handled, it became tattling. Did you know that a child with a tale to tell can run faster than a truck accident lawyer can drive his fancy sports car? Yeah.

My personal favorite is the “he said so-and-so”. They get really ill when I look at them and say, “congrats, you just said it, too.” Yeah, I know it’s lame, but sometimes, I get tired, too.

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Have I posted about my air conditioning woes on this blog? I think I might have. We’ve had the thing “looked at” (that’s southernese for repaired again) every year for the five years we’ve lived here. That adventure culminated last year in replacing the whole outside unit.

Thankfully, the furnace has been a little better behaved. My family is very thankful for that, having learned that a cold mom is a mean and miserable mom. We actually have a heat pump, but I bypass that puppy and go straight for the heat strips. I want heat! I want forced air heat! And a heat pump, it is lame, IMNSHO.

Now what got me started on heat this fine March day? Well, I saw an ad for a company that will service boilers, and in that ad, it mentioned a five year warranty! I had to check that out a little closer, and I was a bit disappointed to see that the company is in the UK. Disappointed, but not surprised, because I figured a warranty like that on gas boiler service was too good to be true, at least here. It was a nice thought while it lasted, and I will try not to be too jealous. The fact that I only use my heat about 90 days per year may help with that just a bit.

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I know I am hitting the budgeting stuff hard lately, but I like saving money, and I figure you do, too. Right? Right.

One thing that can get tremendously expensive in a family this size is eyeglasses. Several of us wear glasses and my dh even has to have high index lenses. There’s not a whole lot you can do without insurance to cut the cost of exams, but remember you don’t have to buy your glasses from the optometrist. There are plenty of places online to get cheap eyeglasses. I just linked you to one, and you can search for others.

Spend the money you save doing something nice for yourself. Or on groceries, LOL!

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This money saver is one I learned the hard way. Well, not me, but I have watched other people do it. Mostly people who live with me. Just sayin’

Anyway, most products and services we buy come with some sort of warranty or tech support. If you run into trouble call that first, before you throw more money at the situation. And use that support to it’s full potential!

For example, we have a Linksys router, and every now and again a combination of power failures and network issues will cause that router to do some weird whatever thing it does, and then I can’t get online. But I’ve learned that the folks at Bellsouth (my ISP) can help me troubleshoot that router. It’s all in how I ask, see. I don’t tell them I am sure it’s the router. I simply call and tell them I am having connectivity issues, and they ask what kind of modem and router I have, and off we go!

I’ve also heard stories of people who got coupons and even products after contacting customer service, even with compliments, so don’t be afraid to let your voice be heard!

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Tonight, I went out to pick up some medicine, and since I was in the drug store anyway, I walked over to where they sell the oh-so-spendy shampoo that I have been wanting to try and saw it was BOGO. Since I have already tried the styling product with great results, I went ahead and purchased the shampoo and conditioner. When I got home, Stuntman informed me that he “just knew” I hadn’t been going just for meds. I took the opportunity to explain that I had actually saved money with my purchase, because shampoo is something I have to have, and the BOGO made this premium brand the same price as the stuff I have been using.

The moral of my little tale is that it is possible to save money by spending money if:

• the deal is really good

and

• it’s something you would eventually buy anyway.

Now, don’t go crazy. Don’t buy so much you have to lash it to the van racks. Only buy enough to fill the front passenger seat.

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For the past couple of years, we have been bigger than our vehicles. It’s not that we are all fat, it’s that there are more of us than there are seats in our van, and so each time the whole family wants to go somewhere we have to make two trips OR my mom helps my taking a couple with her. This works because the only time the whole family has to be somewhere is when the larger whole family is gathering. Oh, and sometimes church, but not usually.

Now, I have priced vehicles that seat more than 8, but there is no way I am affording a new vehicle and I have not yet found one in decent shape used. Not that I have given up looking, mind you! Because as rare as it is for us to all go somewhere, I’d like to be able to do it without having to “mastermind an event of extreme proportions”. Shoot, figuring out dinner is hard enough, yk?

I guess there is an upside. The type of vehicle I need is only made by a few manufacturers. If I can ever get my hands on one, I won’t have to worry about the expense of replacing BMW wheels. The vehicle I need is made right here in the US of A. I can buy American and help keep Americans at work. That’s a real nice thought. Unforrtunately, both dh and I would need a couple more jobs a piece to swing it.

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