I know, I’ve been kind of a lazy blogger lately. I got swept away with the holidays, school break, illnesses and teething. It’s not going to get any easier, as I’m picking up an additional day at the office as of this month, and I have also resolved that this year is the year of *being* rather than *doing* after 11, yes 11, years where we have had one form of major upheaval or another in a row (new jobs, babies, 1000-mile moves, dot-com bust, graduate school, and more). I can list them all out for you if you don’t believe me!

Here’s what else we’ve been up to, sagely…

• The wonderful JessTrev’s comment reminded me that I too had endured a hassle of a process to transfer an Rx to Walgreens to obtain my $25 gift card, but obtain it I did and now I’m waiting for some good deals to roll in so that I can see how far I can stretch it! (And this week at Target you can get a $10 GC for a transferred or NEW Rx. Much less hassle with a brand new one, I assume…)

• Like everyone else, I’m super confused about what is going on with homemade and second-hand goods in relation to the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (the “CPSIA”). And remember, I am a government affairs professional by trade, so if I’m not getting it, I can only imagine how inscrutable it is for those of you with no experience with the federal government. When there is clarity, I hope to be able to pass it along.

• I’m suddenly obsessed with obtaining pieces of my great grandmother’s china. I have a covered serving dish and a few dessert plates and a few other family members have some other odd items. I think I would ultimately like enough that I could serve dinner to my immediate family occasionally, when my boys are old enough not to be a complete risk for breaking anything.

• I’m planning two birthday parties for March (how did this happen so quickly???), looking for a beach rental back home for August, and starting the hunt for daycare in the fall, all with an eye to making the best choices for our family while minding our budget and the earth, too. It’s a tall order sometimes, but that’s why we start early.

• Twittering! I just started yesterday, so join me for deals when I find them and other ramblings.

• Someone please send me their old sippy cups so that we can find one these boys will use without buying out a plastic factory in the meantime! I want to be done with bottles ASAP! What I might be done with, amazingly enough, is buying formula. We have a bit of a stockpile and the little boys are eating more and more solid food each day, so my days of chasing Earth’s Best coupons and having to go to the store constantly might finally be coming to an end. Anything that gives me more time with these guys and less time with a shopping cart is good in my book!