July 28th, 2011 
Jessica 
As I’ve been busy with other things (a summer stay-cation and an interview in California!) I haven’t been applying for as many freebies. Here are a few I’ve collected recently!
See more of my weekly FREE stuff updates!
July 27th, 2011 Jessica 
Dear Oliver,
It is so magical to watch you fall asleep in my arms. You have a harder time falling asleep and staying asleep, so you and I spend many hours together in the wee hours of the night and morning. This past week you traveled to California with us, and the jet lag has thrown off your sleep schedule. En route to California, you slept heavy on my chest, your warm little body keeping me cozy. On the return trip, I walked the length of the aisle with you in my arms, your head dropping until you finally dozed on my shoulder.
Tonight I walked the basement, pacing the short distance from the bookshelves to the couch. Your cries weakened until they stopped, and you yawned. Your head began to drop against my shoulder, each time longer than the last.
I love you so much, it takes my breath away. Your scent, your breath, your smiles, your laughs, your eyes, your ears, your hair, your skin. I could drown in your delicious baby-ness. I love how you gently trace my hair and face with your fingertips when your nurse, or how you subconsciously knead my arms or back with your soft baby hands. As you fall asleep your fingers find me, as if to be certain I’m still there. I love how you turn toward me with open mouth and eager fingers, full of cuddly baby kisses and nuzzling baby hugs.
These days will be gone so quickly. I look at your sister and know that we have so little time. I want you to know that I treasure these moments, and hold them in my heart. I get choked up at the thought that one day the baby will be gone. Already you are crawling and pulling yourself up to standing. Soon the boy will replace the baby, and cuddling with mommy will be replaced by wild romps with the boys.
But tonight you are my baby. Tonight we paced the basement floor together, and you fell asleep in my arms. I wanted to hold you like that forever, and I wished I could stop time from moving forward. Thank you for this beautiful gift. Thank you for this magical time together.
Love,
Mommy
Read the rest of my letters to Oliver:
October 7, 2010: Oliver Andrew (The meaning of his name)
December 13, 2010: Dear Oliver (8 days overdue)
December 16, 2010: Oliver’s Birth Story
May 21, 2011: Dear Oliver (5 months old)
July 27, 2011: Dear Oliver (7 months old)
July 26th, 2011 Jessica 
Over the weekend I finished reading Choosing to SEE by Mary Beth Chapman (with Ellen Vaughn). I have been a long-time fan of Steven Curtis Chapman, and also knew of the tragedy that befell the Chapman family in May 2008. In fact, when we were in China (2007-2009) we lived in the same town and visited the orphanage where Maria lived prior to joining their family. I enjoyed the story of the Chapman family, and especially Mary Beth’s testimony.
Choosing to SEE is a quick-read. My only criticism is that when I came to the last 60 pages of the book, it transitioned to a collection of blog posts, text messages, letters, and journal entries. I preferred the story-telling style of the rest of the book, and felt that this second portion was inconsistent stylistically and therefore less interesting then the rest of the book. I can understand Mary Beth’s desire to share these entries, but I felt that they took away from the continuity and unity of the text.
With the exception of these 60 pages, I loved the story and hearing how the Show Hope orphan ministry originated. I would encourage you to consider adoption, and to learn about the support provided by Show Hope.
January: For Women Only: What You Need to Know About the Inner Lives of Men by Shaunti Feldhahn
March: Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan
April: When God is Silent: Choosing to Trust in Life’s Trials by Charles R. Swindoll
May: Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream
June: Dinner with a Perfect Stranger by David Gregory
July: Choosing to See: A Journey of Struggle and Hope by Mary Beth Chapman
August: What to Expect: The Second Year: From 12 to 24 Months by Heidi Murkoff
September: Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys by Stephen James
October: Blog: Understanding the Information Reformation that’s Changing Your World by Hugh Hewitt
See more of what I’m now reading:
12 Books in 12 Months: July Update (Choosing to SEE)
Gratitude: July 24, 2011 (One Thousand Gifts)
12 Books in 12 Months: June Update (Dinner with a Perfect Stranger)
12 Books in 12 Months: May Update
Your Local Public Library: An Abundance of FREE Stuff
July 21st, 2011 Jessica 
On April 18, 2011 I received a medical bill for $99.92 from our hospital in Minnesota. It was a bill for services rendered on May 5, 2010. Yes, you read that correctly. The bill arrived almost a full year after the services were rendered. The bill stated that payment needed to be made in full by May 13, 2011.
Now I consider myself to be a reasonable person. If I buy something or use a service, I pay for it promptly and in full. I also feel that it is reasonable to expect some time to pass while the insurance company and the hospital decide who is paying for what. However, I do not feel that it is reasonable to expect a patient to budget for expenses when bills can be received up to a year after the fact. In fact, as I later found out, they can bill me for expenses up to 14 months later!
So I wrote a letter of appeal.
I actually end up writing letters of appeal for most medical expenses I incur, because there are often mistakes in the medical billing process. In almost every case my bill is reduced, and in many cases it is eliminated. As it is often said, “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.”
If you are going to write a letter of appeal, you will need to keep a few things in mind:
1. PLAN AHEAD. Speak with your insurance company, your hospital, your doctor, or any other necessary parties before you incur expenses to be sure that what you need is covered by your insurance.
2. CALL AHEAD. After you incur medical expenses, call these same people again to clarify points in your insurance policy and billing.
3. BE PROFESSIONAL. The information about how to appeal your bill is usually printed on the back of your bill. Use a formal letter format with complete addresses at the beginning and end of your letter. Type and print your letter. Include your contact information beneath your hand-written signature. Double-check your spelling and grammar.
4. BE DETAILED AND ACCURATE. Review your bill, and use exact dates, charges, descriptions, account numbers, and invoice numbers. If you spoke to someone on the phone, record the date and time of that conversation and what was said. If there are any special circumstances (discontinuation of coverage, financial difficulty) explain the situation concisely.
5. BE RESPECTFUL. This is not a place for whining, bitter diatribes, and name-calling. Be polite. State your case, point by point. Then move on. Thank your reader for their time.
6. FOLLOW-UP. The appeal process will generally delay the paying of your bill. Don’t let this delay allow you to forget to pay the bill! Call occasionally to check on the processing of your appeal. When a decision is reached, if you still disagree with the outcome, appeal the bill again. If you are satisfied, pay the bill promptly.
7. DOCUMENT YOUR APPEAL. Keep a copy of your letter and any transactions for your records.
So what happened? When I called the hospital a couple weeks after I appealed my bill, I spoke with a secretary. She pulled out my file, and then put me on hold while she spoke to her supervisor. When she returned to the phone, she informed me that her supervisor had “decided to write off the balance as a consideration for the inconvenience it had caused me.” I saved $99.92 for writing a one-page letter of appeal. Success!
July 20th, 2011 Jessica 
Way back when Brad and I were newlyweds, we were scrimping and saving…and wait! This sounds all too familiar! Anyhow, I spotted a car seat on the side of the road, with a sign on it reading “FREE.” I told Brad that we should pick it up because, although we didn’t have kids, I knew these items could be expensive and someone else might want it.
So we took it home and he listed it on Ebay. It wasn’t long before someone commented on the car seat, and told us that it had been recalled so we shouldn’t sell it. Our disappointment turned to delight when they suggested that, if we contacted the company, they might give us a refund for the recall. Brad contacted the company, and they explained that if he would remove all the upholstery from the seat and mail it to them (proving that it had been destroyed), they would mail him a check for the value of the seat.
And that is how we made $100 on a car seat we found by the side of the road.
Do you have any funny money-making stories?
July 19th, 2011 Jessica 
Dear Naomi,
Yesterday we celebrated your 2nd birthday with a family party, including the birthdays of “Dad-dad” and “Aunt Kristy.” You had such a great time! Before the party, you spotted some wrapped gifts with bows sitting on the hutch. You took one down and held it in front of you, and said in a hushed tone, “Oh, pretty…” It was the first time I’d heard you use the word on your own. The rest of the evening was full of new experiences. You are finally able to appreciate the thrill of tearing wrapping paper and discovering a surprise inside, of blowing out the candles on the cake, and getting excited about “candy,” “ice cream,” and “cake!” You wanted to study each gift individually, and said, “Thank you,” to everyone who gave you something. Your favorite gift, of course, was the kitchen set from Mom-mom and Dad-dad. You have barely left its side, even for meals or naps, in the 24 hours since you received it!
I can’t believe that you are two years old already. The last two years have flown by! When I look at you now, I no longer see the infant or baby anymore. You are a little girl now, with a mind of your own. You often use a serious tone of voice, as if you were a little adult. You are very interested in adult life. You love dressing and undressing (yourself and your babies). You love accessories (barrettes, bows, nail polish, earrings, sunglasses, purses, socks, and shoes), brushing hair, and the color pink. You nurse your baby dolls, and push them around in your baby stroller. You love to help with anything—cooking, setting the table, putting away the silverware, cleaning up, feeding the dogs, doing the laundry, putting clothes away, making the bed, etc. You also love to run with Daddy, riding along in the jogging stroller and greeting everyone you see. You love to garden with Mom-mom and Dad-dad, you love the sandbox and sand toys, and you love the pool, where you swim like a fish and jump off the diving-board to Daddy.
You are so smart! You know the names of lots of farm and zoo animals, and you know a lot of the noises they make. You can also identify the names of the vehicles you see on the road (car, truck, tractor, bus, mail man), and you are great at remembering people’s and pet’s names. You can count to four and you love to run, jump, and bounce. You are very organized and like to keep me in line, reminding me to turn out lights, pack things in the diaper bag, and care for Oliver. Speaking of Oliver, you love being a big sister! You help out with everything from gathering items to change his diapers, to giving him toys and wiping up his spit-up. You know how to make him laugh (fake sneezes and peek-a-boo) and apologize when you make him cry. When we pray at mealtimes, you insist we hold Oliver’s hand too. We love watching the two of you interact!
Hardly a day (or even an hour) goes by without another Naomi story to tell. Recently when I took too long getting upstairs to get you breakfast, you said “MOMMY! STAIRS! *CLAP, CLAP!*” like I was one of my parents’ dogs! We love your one- and two-word sentences that convey so much meaning! If you hear the least little noise in the kitchen, you’ll come pealing around the corner yelling, “Cookies?!” You give high fives, say goodbye with a “Peace!”, tip your glass with a “Cheers!” and yell “Charge!” when someone sings a little melody. We love your little voice, and your adorable pronunciations. It is so sweet to hear you pray with Daddy each night, repeating after him, “Dear…Jejus (Jesus)..Getgu (Thank you)…for…Mommy…AMEN!”
You bring so much joy to your Daddy and me. It’s hard to remember what life was like without our Naomi Faith! It must have been a very dull and boring life indeed. Thank you for two wonderful years.
We love you!
Mommy and Daddy
July 15th, 2011 Jessica On Tuesday night, Brad was out running 17 miles (yes, my husband trains for marathons year-round) after work so I joined my parents and siblings at the town carnival for the evening. The nice thing about the carnival is, you don’t have to pay for admission unless you ride the rides! My kids are still a bit too young for the rides anyway, so we enjoyed the sights and sounds from the stroller.
Our town carnival is held next to a park with playground equipment, so Naomi enjoyed climbing on everything, sliding, spinning, and see-sawing to her heart’s content. She also loved it when Grand-dad pushed her on the swings, shrieking when he ran away from her feet like she’d kicked him. And both Oliver and Naomi loved that Grandma took her shoes off and sat with them by the creek, where the minnows and water bugs were swimming.
It was a really sweet evening, and a fun time with my family. Naomi came home talking all about it. Both kids were exhausted and went right to sleep when we got home. I can’t say it enough, but you don’t have to spend money to have a good time!
July 12th, 2011 Jessica Are you noticing a theme here? Yes, you are correct. The 10-year-old car that blew a tire two weeks ago, and needed all four dry-rotted tires replaced, needed to be towed this week. It apparently had something to do with a broken shifter cable. Nothing a “little” $200 couldn’t fix.
But how were we going to get it to the garage to be fixed? The garage recommended a towing service here in town that charges $55 for hook-up, and $2.50 per mile towed. We only had to tow the car across town, but I called my Dad to get his thoughts. He happened to mention that it was too bad that I didn’t have AAA because towing is included with membership.
After thinking about it, I gave AAA a call. For $65 I was able to sign up for AAA for the entire year. Again, I am not an expert on cars or car care, but it seemed like a pretty good deal to me. My AAA membership includes roadside assistance (towing, changing tires, jumping a dead battery, fuel fill-up, locksmith, pushing out of mud, etc), reimbursements for some expenses (emergency and accident fees), and discounts on items like travel maps and guides. They have lots of other perks too, like discounts on movie tickets and amusement parks. I have almost always had AAA, and have been very grateful for it in the instances where it was necessary.
So if you’re going to have to pay to get your car towed anyway, you might as well go ahead and get a AAA membership for the whole year. Especially if your car is as reliable as ours currently is!
Do you have any other suggestions for getting a car towed inexpensively?
July 11th, 2011 Jessica When I was young, my parents required us to make birthday cards, mother’s day cards, and father’s day cards prior to the appropriate holidays. My mom is an artist, and she likes encouraging us to be creative whenever possible. When we were little we really enjoyed this opportunity to show off our artistic and literary talents, while incorporating our witty humor and meaningful dialogue. We each had our areas of expertise, and over the years the complexity of our cards evolved.
Now as adults, we don’t have the time that did in the past to conjure up beautiful greeting cards. One solution that I have found recently, is creating inexpensive greeting cards on-line. While not as unique as the cards we made using art supplies, they nonetheless are more unique than those you will find at grocery store and can be filled with your favorite photos.
You can find lots of great deals for FREE or very inexpensive photo cards on-line, by following websites like Money Saving Mom. Usually the best deals appear prior to major holidays. At those times I stock up on cards for the upcoming season (like using a Father’s Day deal to get my summer birthday cards).
I have enjoyed getting my greeting cards from websites like Tiny Prints, Cardstore.com, Snapfish, MyPublisher, Vistaprint, SeeHere, Smilebooks, Winkflash, Snapily, Picaboo, Smile.ly, Kodak Gallery, York Photo, and Shutterfly…just to name a few. This is one of the reasons why you will see some of them advertised in my sidebar. You can get them from lots of other companies too. I keep trying new companies to compare products and take advantage of great deals. They usually don’t take long to make, and I enjoy having another outlet for my photography. If you plan ahead, the cards are usually delivered quickly using quality printing and paper. I have also tried deals for photo prints, 3-D cards, photo collages, photo strips, photo books, photo calendars, photos on canvas, and even a photo mug.
If you enjoy giving and receiving greeting cards, I would invite you to experiment with purchasing them on-line! It’s really worked well for me for the past year, and maybe you’ll enjoy it too!
How do you find great deals on greeting cards?
July 10th, 2011 Jessica 
Despite Naomi’s smooth hair, she does an excellent job at making a sticky mess of it on a daily basis. No matter how many baths she takes, brushing can be a “hairy” prospect. She also has very straight hair which hangs right in her eyes unless I pull it back each day. I was ready to pull my own hair out after trying to brush hers!
Then I saw a suggestion in a parenting magazine (which I unfortunately cannot find to give them credit). The author suggested playing “Beauty Salon” with your toddler when brushing her hair. Give her a baby doll and allow her to use a hair brush, barrettes, pony-tail holders, hairbands, etc to style her baby doll. While you are styling her hair, she will busily style her own baby’s hair.
I have to admit, I didn’t think it would work, but I was willing to try anything. Not only does Naomi LOVE it, but she now insists on playing “Beauty Salon” every day when I brush her hair. Every morning she holds out her hand and says, “Baby,” “Brush,” “Barrettes.” She is so distracted that she no longer minds me brushing and fixing her hair (unless I find a knot!)
What techniques have you found useful in taming your child’s tangles?
