Gamer

 So, I'm a bit of a gamer girl. I've never been too serious about playing video games but I've always enjoyed it. Long, long ago in a galaxy far away I had a gameboy. It was purple. It was see through which added at least 10 levels of cool to it. Atomic Purple! That's the color. Heck yes. We (my sister and I) only had a few games: super mario bros, dexter's lab, and frogger. Maybe something else. I also eventually bought (yeah Christmas and birthday money) the gameboy advance and the advance sp. Nintendo DS ain't got nothing on these babies (and if they do then ssshhhhh I'm choosing to be ignorant).

Best of all, my grandmother had a super nintendo. Love. Super Mario World and the Legend of Zelda. I was all about it.

One day, my dad brought home an xbox. Hello. I was on a sports kick, specifically soccer, at the time so FIFA World Cup, Crash Bandicoot, and some very old version of Need for Speed is all I'd play.

Then I discovered these . . .

When I met my now dear-sweet-awesome-NERD of a husband, I was introduced to the ever-famous, always-infamous WoW. (Among other things, like Battlefield 2 which I maintain is my favorite PC game)

That's right.


World of Warcraft.

Human Mage. Gnome Warlock. Blood Elf Paladin. 
(I can't for the life of me remember what levels I had these on)

One day we'll play again but it's been a very long time since a) we couldn't or didn't want to pay for the subscriptions and b) we've been busy with other stuff like jobs and school and
growing humans.

Now, the hubby and I just get our fix with our new xbox 360. We finished Halo 3. Anytime we get a chance to play anything lately it's Borderlands 2.

I won't lie. I love Lego POTC and Harry Potter on the wii. I get my Mario fix in every now and then too thanks to the spiffy wii shop channel.

Soon, very soon, we will get Halo 4!

The man plays a lot more than I do and was (is?) the serious-about-gaming, uber-geek you imagine in your head when you think "gamer". Alas, he turned me into more of a nerd than I ever imagined being.

And, I like it.

Have you noticed?

I've linked up a couple of tumblr blogs as pages. The links are just underneath the logo at the top of the page. On the first I have lots of info that, basically, I wish I'd had when I was pregnant with my first and a new mom. The other is fun stuff, mostly activities or products, that I've found on pinterest, blogs, or tumblr. Check them out. You might find something interesting.

Also, if you look to the bar on the right of the page there are several links. There's one set of links for my local favorites from stores to parenting resources. The other set is a general list of amazing resources for lifestyle or parenting. These are all the things I've found and enjoyed or used since I first found out I was going to be a mom.

Click around and I'm sure you'll find something awesome and/or useful!

Saturday!!

Saturdays used to be just another day in the week because the man typically worked over the weekend. Now that he has a "normal" job working 8-5 we get to enjoy our weekends for the most part. I mean, we have two kids to take care of and we're both in school full time plus at least one of those weekends a month he is out of town but STILL. I like this setup much more than before.

Anyone that works or has a spouse that works in restaurants and retail: God bless you.

Today is another Saturday. I'm browsing my normal web stuff (pinterest, facebook, tumblr, blogger . . . obviously) and wondering how far ahead I can get if I really focus on school work or how much cleaning I want to try to avoid this weekend. The man is amusing the girls with making some batter for muffins.

It's 9:29 am. 39 degrees out.

I'm about to get some coffee.

I really can't complain.




Now there's a toddler on the floor pitching a fit and a preschooler whining and back-talking . . .

But I stand by what I said. Can't complain.

It's gonna be a good weekend.


HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

The Latest in Structured Baby Carriers

Who's seen em? Who has em?! 

This I'm interested in. The new Moby Go:

I've posted before about how much I loved my moby for both my babies. I went straight to the ergo once my kiddos got to heavy for the wrap so this has me intrigued. Is it comparable to the ergo? Is the slightly more structured version of the soft, cozy moby original? I need to know.

This Britax Baby Carrier I'm feeling rather disappointed in:

So really? WTF? What is this? Awesomest ever carseats (ok, I've heard dionos are second to none but still) and they come up with this? Someone please explain. You know when you're about to change a diaper and there are no smells so it's just like "oh just a quick wet dipe change" and upon too-quickly opening said diaper you are bombarded with the putrid fragrance only found in some terrible underworld? Yeah. That's about the same feeling I'm having here. I see it can be used to wear inward-facing (towards the chest) with an extra insert. Seems lame. How is this better than the typical bjorn?

I've also heard a tidbit about the líllébaby: 

Opinions, anyone?

A couple things I've wanted to share . . .

I've been meaning to share these! I know everyone likes good deals, discounts, coupons, and all that jazz. I'm not a super-coupon-clipper or anything but I like a good deal as much as the next person. If you don't mind some extra mail in your inbox these are three pretty nice options that you should look into:


Barnes and Noble Kid's Club

This is actually pretty cool. You sign up quickly and get cafe cupcake on birthdays plus lots of discounts on actual merchandise. There are regular coupons but there's also a reward system. For every $100 spent you can get $5 toward books. It's nothing flashy or awe-inspiring but if you love B&N or happen to shop their regularly anyway no discount is too small to count. Just the free cupcake for the littles is worth it. They send you a handy dandy little card to keep in your wallet too.

Shutterfly

This company is awesome for printing your average snapshots from daily life and family events. I think last year I ordered over 400 4x6 prints for nothing more than shipping. Usually this was in the form of 100 free print deals with a code you enter at checkout. There's a billion products you could make and you typically can find a code for free shipping but that discount on those prints are a huge draw for me personally because I take soooo many pictures that are great for the baby books and scrapbooking but not necessarily what I'll be hanging on my walls. If  you don't take tons of pictures that often there's always the option to get doubles or triples when those deals come up so you have spares to give to other people. I like it!

Swagbucks

This is no joke or scam. Last year, I got a total of $60 in amazon e-gift cards and $20 in cabela's gift cards. All you do is sign up and download the tracker onto your browser. You simply use it as your search tool and occasionally you get dropped 1-20 (or more) "swagbucks". You'll put in an anti-robot code or just click accept and your points (aka swagbucks) pile up in your account. At any time you go into the rewards store and trade the bucks out for stuff. Searching isn't the only way to earn the "points" either.

Go to the Library

FYI, if you're ever looking for something free and fun for your littles check out the local libraries!! I always forget how much there is for kids to do.

Rogers Public Library and Springdale Public Library have lots of reading and craft events for all ages (babies and toddlers up to teens).  They also have storytimes for families in English AND in Spanish.

Bentonville Library has come a long way since opening not quite 2 years ago. They host several clubs like Kid's Chess in addition to storytimes and group lessons or workshops.

The Fayetteville Library makes these others feel teeny tiny. They have almost every service imaginable (for a library). They even have a game center (think xbox) which I personally think is absurd but whatever. There are LOTS of resources available here for studying, learning, researching, or socializing.

We just got back from the library in Rogers last night. I have to recommend these cute books:

All of the books about Olivia (a very prissy, sometimes mischievous little pig) are adorable. My almost older toddler absolutely adores this character. That may be because she is the real life Olivia. ha!

This is one of those sweet, simple books with a key message: people (ooor . . . animals) that are different can be the best people. Differences are good, not bad! I've rented this one so many times I don't know why I haven't just bought it yet (maybe because we all ready have over 300 kid's books, maybe)

This is a very colorful book. I had to read it slowly so my littles could soak in all the beautiful imagery. The story seems silly at first but in the end it follows these seven sisters through an adventure where each one uses their particular talent or strength to make it through a bad situation. These are exactly the kinds of books I look for to read to my girls. It shows how every single person (sisters, as the case may be) is unique and important. They get a sweet seed planted in their minds  and a tiny taste of another world all at the same time.  Definitely look for this one!