Six-Week Survival Mode

There I was again, in the small, one-windowed cement-bricked room, face to face with my mission president.

"Sister Burningham," he said to me, "You can survive anything for six weeks."

I was one week (or possibly less?) into a new transfer in a new area with a new companion. I'd just come from a place that felt like home and a companion that felt more like a best friend and sister than someone assigned to be with me 24/7.

Six weeks, I repeated in my mind. I can survive anything for six weeks. 

And so I did. I had no idea at the beginning of that transfer that survival mode is so much easier to bear when you are working hard, serving hard, and loving hard. My companion and I butted heads daily, but I came to love her for who she was and her unique gifts and talents. And before I knew it, transfers were upon us again and I gained a new companion. The weeks stretched into months, the months turned into spring and my Californian companion teaching me why 4/20 was now written all over our hippie-college-town area sidewalks. Within a week of that weird-smelling tracting day, I was sitting in my childhood bedroom, saying to myself once again, six weeks. 

Six weeks became fifteen, but I survived. Nine months until the end of my mission became 11, and Scott survived while I thrived.

I was home (for good) for six weeks when I gained a diamond ring and nine weeks later, a new name. As semesters, jobs, and challenges have come and gone, I've often repeated my mission president's words to myself. You can survive anything for six weeks.

Teething? Sleep-training? Husband's heavy workloads? Re-curring winter storms? Colds that won't go away? Meltdowns by the millions?  I can survive anything for six weeks.

Last Sunday, I hit 33 weeks of pregnancy, which means that I have only six weeks of this pregnancy left. Though pregnancy is definitely not easy, compared to my last two child-growing experiences, this one has been a piece of cake (maybe because this time I can actually have an occasional piece of cake). In the past two weeks, however, everything has gotten harder: sleeping, maintaining blood sugar control, managing anxiety, showing patience and charity to my children, telling myself to slow down and then forcing myself to ignore all the messes in my home and just let it be. I don't write this to complain--I write it to remember.

I write to remember the things and people that helped me survive:

• My two-year-old asking me to cuddle on the couch and then falling asleep in my arms, forcing me to snuggle, meditate, and enjoy the last of his true babyness before becoming a big brother forces him to grow up faster.
• My daughter replacing the toilet paper by herself, making me realize that although I may feel like a craptastic mother most of the time, I have at least taught her one human skill that most adults struggle with. 
• My husband, responding to my "I just can't deal anymore" email and working from home all afternoon, even though I know he gets so much more done in office. While I am slipping in and out of sleep, I hear him changing a poopy diaper in the next room while simultaneously making a work call. 
• And all the little things: packages with new baby goodies in the mail. Waking up to an email from a faraway friend. Not having trouble finding a babysitter to watch my kids during yet another doctor's appointment. Free insulin samples from my doctor. Realizing that I have more than enough prenatal vitamins to last through the end of this pregnancy. Making plans on the calendar for after the baby's due date. 

There is an end in sight. In six weeks, I will have survived the worst and hardest part of this pregnancy. 

And then, as I'm adjusting to three kids and a newborn schedule, I'll keep repeating the words to myself:

I can survive anything for six weeks.

A Bit About Me and Scotty

In honor of Valentine's Day, here's a bit of Q and A about my marriage.

Here's our Valentine's Day love story!

1. Anniversary? September 18
2. First date? July 23, 2004
3. How did you meet? At Especially For Youth (EFY, a kind of LDS Bible Camp) in 2003
4. What is your song? Lucky by Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat
5. Do you remember the first movie you saw together? Ella Enchanted. It was a terrible movie.
6. First road trip together? Aside from drives back and forth from Sandy to Richmond, I think our first road trip together was to Vernal to the DinoTri, a triathlon he was competing in with his brother. We went with said brother, brother's wife, and three little girls. A few weeks later we went to Twin Falls with the same brother's family as well as Scott's parents. They'd gotten a hotel with 3 queen beds. Scott insisted on sleeping out in the mini van, which meant he left me to the mercy of his family. I haven't quite forgiven him for that yet.
7. Do you have kids? Yes- almost 3 little ones
8. Older? Him, by 11 days (but if you are talking gestational age, me, because I was 16 days overdue)
9. Who was interested first? I'm not really sure. Probably him.
10. Who is the most sensitive? I think we're about the same. He'll say me.
11. Worst temper? Me. Unless he hasn't had enough sleep, then definitely him.
12. Funniest? I think we're about the same. He makes me laugh everyday, but I do/say things that catch him off guard.
13. More social? Him. I think a lot of people would disagree with us, but I'm fine with being a homebody, he has to get out and have interaction with people. This is why he works in an office and not from home.
14. More stubborn? Me, unless he is fighting with our son, and then he can be super stubborn.
15. Wakes up first? Scott. Every day of our marriage. Except like, maybe, two days.
16. Has the bigger family? His, definitely. Once this baby comes, the total in his family will be 35. Mine, on the other hand, will be 13.
17. Eats the most? Me, no question. He puts up a good front, but I always have a bigger appetite and snack more.
18. Who said I love you first? Me, in an email sent right before I went back to Texas after my intermission.
19. Better cook? Probably me, but he is a pretty good cook too. I just get more chances to practice. Except right now, because I'm not a fan of cooking smells, so he gets plenty of chances to feed us. If our baby comes out looking or smelling like a taco, spaghetti, or breakfast foods, I won't be surprised.
20. Hogs the bed? Me, no question.
21. More romantic? Him.
22. How long have you been together? This is a confusing question. We've been friends for 13 and a half years, became more than that seven and a half years ago, and got married six and a half years ago. So, I'm not really sure, but probably forever.

He's pretty great. I think I'll keep him. 

8 Tips for Saving Money While Online Shopping

I hate shopping. Or, at least, I used to. Now I really relish those moments walking through WinCo by myself. Grocery shopping aside, I find that retail shopping can be really frustrating when I can’t find the things or sizes I need in the stores. I’m also not one for crowds. Hence, I’m super grateful for the advent of online shopping! I love taking a few minutes here and there to do some “Chrome Window Shopping.”

One of the things I love about online shopping is how easy it is to save money! Here are some of my favorite ways to save a buck or two online.

This post is also featured on Fruitland Home.

1.       Sign up for Ebates. If you do a lot of online shopping and don’t currently use ebates, you should really check this out! My husband introduced me to ebates in December and since then we’ve already gotten three checks back in the mail! Ebates gives you automatic cash back when shopping online. All you have to do is sign into the Ebates website and then search for whatever store you want to shop. Cashback bonuses vary by day—sometimes you can get up to 8% cash back on purchases you are already making! You also earn cash just by referring people…so sign up and then send the sign up link to your husband and add a few bucks to your fun fund. Checks are sent in the mail quarterly. It’s not much, but enough to pay for a babysitter or a dinner you don’t have to cook!

2.       Let Honey Do the Coupon Hunting. Honey is Google’s personal coupon clipper. When you sign up for honey, you can add a button to your toolbar and when you go to check out, honey will automatically (try) to apply any coupon codes it can find. It only takes a few minutes but it can save you a few bucks here and there! The more you use honey, the more you can build up HoneyGold, which only translates into more spending money for you on Amazon.

3.       Use Credit Card Rewards. Chances are, if you are shopping online, you are probably using a credit card. I like to bank up my rewards and save them until Christmas rolls around. I cash in rewards for gift cards to places like Shutterfly (which is where I do a heck of a lot of Christmas shopping). I only redeem these points for rewards that give me a little extra, for example I’d turn in $20 worth of rewards for $25, or $40 for $50, etc. This gives me extra back for my rewards, rather than just using them for face value on Amazon.

4.       Check out Gift Card Zen or Gift Card Granny Say you are ordering clothes for your kids (cough*or yourself*cough) and even though you’ve gotten some great deals with coupon codes, you’d still like to save a bit more. Sites like Gift Card Zen or Gift Card Granny allow you to search for gift cards that are being sold for less than they are worth (for example, a $25 gift card for $21). It might not seem like much, but every dollar helps, right? You can search for gift cards that are sent electronically (read: automatically!) so that you can search for an amount that is close to your cart total, so you aren’t spending extra on gift cards that are more than you really need.

5.       Sign Up for Email lists. We all hate junk email, I get that. BUT, companies really like to send out specialized coupons to your inbox that can alert you to sales you may not have heard about otherwise. That being said…

6.       Don’t Look at Ads for Things You Don’t Need. This is how they get you! You look through an ad, see a really good deal, and then talk yourself into needing that thing that you didn’t know you needed ten minutes ago. My suggestion is to keep a running list of things that you do need or anticipate buying in the next six months and only look at ads that pertain to those things.

7.       Watch out for Shipping Costs! Most companies will give you free shipping if you spend a certain amount. If you are within $10-15 of that amount, sometimes it is worth it to order an extra item or two to give you the free shipping. It’s simply a matter of weighing the cost of shipping versus the cost of the extra items. I find this to be especially true with stores like Shutterfly, where the shipping costs can get astronomical.

8.       IF you are a Book Lover…it wouldn’t be a post by me without mentioning something about books, right? I used to be a strictly-printed-books-only person…and then my husband gave me a kindle for my birthday. I love not having to run to the library every time I finish a book! The Goodreads app has a feature where you can sign up to receive daily emails for books that are on sale through the Kindle Store or Google Play. These books are always $3 or less, and they look at books on your Want-to-Read list to give you recommendations. Score, right? Another similar service is BookBub, which also searches for free books (can’t get better than free, right?). Even though I still maintain that nothing beats a book you can hold in your hand, it’s nice to have some books on my phone to pull up while I’m waiting to pick my daughter up from preschool!

What are your favorite money-saving tips for online shopping?