This evening, Adam, the kids and I went downtown Portland to have dinner at Greek Cuisina. We then meandered our way a few blocks over to Pioneer Square where they were about to go live with KGW's 7pm news. KGW has a new "Studio on the Square" where you can stand in front of the studio's windows, Today Show style and get your mug on TV. Well, here's the Eldridge's television debut. Watch for me in the green coat, Michaela and Evan are next to me...Adam is somewhere in the back. KGW says we were the largest and funnest crowd to date! That's cause we were there, I'm sure!
Watch it here:
http://www.kgw.com/video/thesquare-index.html?nvid=346503&shu=1
Friday, March 27, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Yes, They Do Know What's Going On
The other day, I went to the grocery store to grab some chicken and tortilla chips for dinner. I was in the chips aisle scanning all of the prices, looking for the best deal. Michaela asked me, "Mom, why do you only buy things on sale?" I was caught a little off guard. Doesn't she know? Especially with Adam as her Dad, she should know about deals. I took this opportunity to teach her budgeting and money management. I told her that Dad gets paid a certain amount of money, we look for the best deals so we can buy more things with that money. I went on to explain, "say you only had $1 and you wanted to buy some candy. This gum costs $1, but these candy bars are on sale for 2/$1. If you bought the sale candy, you would get more."
I think that during these tough times, kids are aware of their parents stress. They also notice that they aren't getting as many things that they used to. We used to eat out several times a week. But now I am super-shopping and making more meals at home. We rarely eat out anymore. Michaela has noticed this. She asks frequently if we can go out to a restaurant. I have to tell her it's not in the budget. These moments are perfect opportunities to teach about money and responsibility. I watched a story on 20/20 about those high school kids that made a video talking about how their parents financial stresses are impacting them. I didn't think I needed to worry about my kids. I thought they were too young to feel unstable, nervous or scared by this economy. But Michaela's recent comments tell a different story. She sees the changes in our spending habits. She's hearing, "we can't afford that" more than ever. My initial instinct is to shield my kids from any stress. I don't want them to worry about money. But experts say they need to be more involved in the family when it comes to finances. I found some articles that were helpful to me, maybe they will be for you too.
http://apahelpcenter.org/articles/article.php?id=185
http://aap.org/disasters/pdf/tips-parentsCaregivers.pdf
I think that during these tough times, kids are aware of their parents stress. They also notice that they aren't getting as many things that they used to. We used to eat out several times a week. But now I am super-shopping and making more meals at home. We rarely eat out anymore. Michaela has noticed this. She asks frequently if we can go out to a restaurant. I have to tell her it's not in the budget. These moments are perfect opportunities to teach about money and responsibility. I watched a story on 20/20 about those high school kids that made a video talking about how their parents financial stresses are impacting them. I didn't think I needed to worry about my kids. I thought they were too young to feel unstable, nervous or scared by this economy. But Michaela's recent comments tell a different story. She sees the changes in our spending habits. She's hearing, "we can't afford that" more than ever. My initial instinct is to shield my kids from any stress. I don't want them to worry about money. But experts say they need to be more involved in the family when it comes to finances. I found some articles that were helpful to me, maybe they will be for you too.
http://apahelpcenter.org/articles/article.php?id=185
http://aap.org/disasters/pdf/tips-parentsCaregivers.pdf
Monday, March 9, 2009
Did You Just Say, "Fractured Teeth"?
Evan had his first set of dental x-rays today and the dentist found something surprising when he took a look. Evan has 2 fractured baby teeth. The top front teeth. He asked if he's had any injuries to that area, to which I responded, "Daily." Mr. Dentist may be surprised to see the fractures, however, I am surprised that more bones aren't broken. How perfect is that? Evan has broken teeth and we didn't even know it! I've resigned myself to the fact that he will break a lot of bones. He is delightful combination of dare-devil and klutz which makes for more bruises and bumps than I can count. Mr. Dentist says there's no reason for concern. He's not feeling any pain and the teeth should be fine until they fall out like they're supposed to. Unless, they get knocked out before then. Which, for Evan, is highly likely.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Yes, I'm That Excited About Coupons
As a follow up to my previous post, the grocery game, I went grocery shopping yesterday and saved BIG! I prepared before I went, looking over ads and printing coupons, and I've now broken my own record. At Albertson's, I purchased $133.21 worth of groceries. After store coupons, online coupons and sales the final total was $67.09. I saved $66.12! That's 50% savings! I am so proud of myself! And I found out that Albertson's will take 
competitor coupons.
So I'm going to try my best to beat my own record, can you?
competitor coupons.So I'm going to try my best to beat my own record, can you?
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