Strike a Pose

In the words of Madonna, "strike a pose."  Unless you are a 2 year old who wants to move, move, move and go, go, go.  I had to take an action shot of little man today because I'm loving this affordable outfit.

Get it Carter!  And get it daddy who dressed him today.  Apparently my husband knows a thing or two about fashion.  

In the excitement of having a first child we didn't tend to look at price when shopping.  If my husband or I saw something cute, we HAD to have it for Carter.  And now a days boys clothes are adorable so we want everything.  However, with two kids, and all the costs involved (food, daycare, diapers), we now try to be a little bit more cognizant of the cost of our purchases, especially when it comes to clothing.  Now don't get me wrong, we still splurge every now and then.  The boys are 22 months apart and were born around the same season so we have been lucky to be able to recycle tons of Carter's old clothes.  It's been really fun to see Luke wear the clothes Carter once wore.  Yesterday I hung up all of Carter's former 3-6 month clothes and it gave me all the feels.  It was like taking a walk down memory lane.  I know one day Luke won't want hand me downs, but luckily that day is not today and camo is NEVER going out of style (at least not in my world).  Our go to stores for toddler clothes and great deals are Target, Old Navy, Costco, and Walmart.  Yes I said it, Walmart.  Don't believe me?  The pants he's rocking today...

Wrangler Relaxed Cargo Jogger (Toddler Boys)

Walmart.  And those kicks... 

Athletic Works Boys' Mesh Jogger

Walmart!

Both the Wrangler Camo Pants and Athletic Sneakers were purchased in store at Walmart for a combined total under $15.  They are fashionable and can be worn various ways.  Camo is on trend and the pants seem like they will be great quality.  Plus grey and white sneakers go with everything!  Blue clothes, black clothes?  It don't matter.  It works!  Grey sneakers are the best.  We will see how long the shoes last, but they feel comparable to Champion, which was my go to shoe brand when Payless was still a thing (RIP Payless, RIP!).  Carter is extremely active and growing like a weed so sneakers only last  him a few months.  Every time I blink I feel like his feet have grown again.  He's currently a toddler size 7 and he just turned 2.  I'm  hoping future NBA all star.  With the price of these shoes I don't feel bad tossing them if and when Carter grows out of them or more likely destroys them playing "ball".  They are far cheaper than the majority of the other sneakers he grew out of after a few wears.  And more money in my wallet and not down the drain makes me a happy mama.

How do you save money on kids clothes?  I would love to hear your secrets in the comments below.

How I Saved Money On My Elvie Breast Pump

If you have read my blog you know I'm all about getting a deal and saving money.  It's an adrenaline rush for me.  And yes I know I'm a grandma trapped in a MILF body.   We all have our issues now.

I had seen the Elvie Breast Pump awhile ago when it was only available in the UK.  At the time I was no longer breastfeeding and forgot about it.  I debated over which breast pump to get with this pregnancy.  I ultimately decided on the Spectra S9 since my Spectra S2 is still in great working condition and a hands free breast pump made sense with a toddler.  While I love my S9 for the house, I wanted more in a hands free breast pump.  Like the ability to hold my son while I pump.  And more discretion.  If you have pumped while driving then you know that traditional breast shields are not subtle.

And before I go on I'm still shocked that people don't know that if you have insurance then you can get a free breast pump every pregnancy.  I have gotten free breast pumps with each pregnancy with both Edgepark Breast Pumps (Spectra S2) and Aeroflow Breastpumps (Spectra S9).  The application is all online.  It's an easy and fast process.

At some point during my last pregnancy I heard about the Willow.  The Willow is a wireless, thus handsfree, breast pump that sits in your bra and is fairly discreet.  I was so intrigued especially considering you can wear the Willow while working or out at dinner.  Willow's $500 price tag, however, held me back from purchasing it.  Especially since I didn't know if I would be able to breastfeed or how my breastfeeding journey would go.  My plan was to consider purchasing the Willow closer to my return to work if I was still breastfeeding.  And for the record, I'm 5 weeks out and breastfeeding is going awesome!

A few weeks ago I saw someone selling a brand new Willow for $100 and I impulsively reached out to her to purchase it.  And how could I not?  $100 for a Willow is a steal!  (Did you miss the part where I wrote that the Willow retails for $500 not including the cost of milk storage bags?). Unfortunately I was a few seconds too late and she sold it to the person who reached out immediately before me.  I was bummed, but it got me on a mission to find the Willow on sale or deeply discounted.

While searching for a new Willow at a discounted price (with no luck by the way) I kept stumbling upon ads for the Elvie and I remembered learning about this breast pump of the future.  I began researching both breast pumps and soon realized that the Elvie was a better fit form me.  The Elvie is the same price as the Willow, but doesn't require the expensive Willow breast milk bags.  Also the Elvie is smaller, lighter, and more quiet than the Willow.  And probably the biggest factor for me is that the suction of the Elvie suction is similar to the Spectra.  Many reviewers reported that the Willow was painful on the lowest setting and caused their nipples to bleed!  I dealt with my fair share of nipple pain with my first so this was the ultimate deal breaker.

I needed the Elvie.  The only problem, it was sold out in the US and since I needed it (I'm so dramatic) I didn't want to wait any longer on the wait list for the next shipment.  To my surprise I found it for sale online at Buy Buy Baby.   I tried to use one of my beloved 20% off coupon with purchase, but Elvie is not a brand that you can use with these coupons.   However, I received a 15% off coupon for the items I did not get from my baby registry so I did what any logical person would do who loves a deal.  I followed the directions to activate my 15% off coupon, deleted the Elvie from my shopping cart, added it to my baby registry, and then proceeded to purchase the Elvie directly from my baby registry link.  And it worked!

And while I was so excited to save, I realized that I probably could have used this coupon for for everything, including UPPABaby that was still on my registry, but what can you do?

Plus I used Ebates (I'm not used to the new name of Rakuten) and saved even more money.  $8.50 to be exact!

I now have a lifetime earning of over $1000 and am currently waiting for a $64 check just by using Ebates.  I'm not going to explain what Ebates is since I've written about it countless times with the last post linked here.  Otherwise you can search the blog with keyword "Ebates" to read all my posts about this awesome website that gives you cash back for shopping.  Sign up with my referral link here and get $10 after your first purchase online or in store via the app.

And for the record, the Elvie is amazing and totally worth it.

Ebates

I've talked about this time and time again.  I have no idea how people are still not using Ebates.  It is a no-brainer and is so easy to use that even an *gasp* adult can use the website.  If you can use a cell phone you can use Ebates!  No excuse people!

Ebates is a website that provides a cash back percentage of your purchase when you shop at various different stores online.  For reference, there are over 2,000 stores that participate with Ebates.  When you go to Ebates you select the store that you want to shop at and click the link that takes you from Ebates to said store.  Then you just wait for your email confirming your cash back and every few months get a check or gift card with the earrings.

Ebates also provides coupon codes similar to RetailMeNot.  So not only are they giving you cash back, but they are helping you to save more money!  Who doesn't like to save money? #Exactly

So what are you waiting for?  Sign up for Ebates today here.  When you sign up I am eligible for a referral bonus and you get free $10 cash once you make your first purchase through Ebates.  Happy shopping!

And if you are looking for another good deal Macys has an awesome Lancome Gift With Purchase and is offering 10% cash back through Ebates.  I would snag it before it's gone.