When things are free

During college and especially now during our season of unemployment, we are especially grateful for free ways to entertain ourselves. Here is what we have been enjoying for free lately:

Last week the instructor pulled a no-show for my breastfeeding class at a local hospital. As a way to apologize, the hospital sent me two free movie tickets in the mail just a few days later. No complaints there. We used them to watch The Dark Knight Rises, which we LOVED!!

At Riverwood's Christmas celebration, I won a gift certificate to Soel Boutique. Nate used it to buy me these awesome mocs for Christmas.

At the same event, I also won $100 to use at Provo Beach Resort. That's a lot of money for a glorified arcade. We still haven't used it up yet. So far, we have used it for countless games of Skee Ball and several trips on their ropes course.

Other things we love that are free:
Walks around the neighborhood
A visit to BYU's Museum of Art
The public library
All of the many awesome city parks in Provo and Orem

On graduating

After 2 colleges, 3 majors and 4 years, I graduated from college.

 And my sweet Mama made a surprise trip to see me walk across that stage! I have felt so much love this week.

I wasn't sure for a while if I actually wanted to walk, but I am so glad I did. I felt accomplished and after it was over, I felt closure. I am glad I completed that part of my life! And I am glad Nate is done as well! (He just didn't want to walk at graduation).

Haley contacted me at the last minute and we were able to walk together at Commencement. I am so happy she did because otherwise I would have been alone that whole time!

Well if you want to get technical, I wouldn't have been alone if you can count our little man!

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I am so grateful for my parents always encouraging and supporting my educational goals, even when it took me 2,000 miles away! I have felt their constant support and love these past four years. I have loved my experience at BYU. I wouldn't trade it for anything!

Gratitude

Today I am grateful for...

...the sun peeking through the gloomy clouds.

...pretty tulips on campus.

...Nate doing the dishes and taking out the trash today. What a stud.

...BYU Creamery Old-Fashioned Cake donuts. You know what I'm talking about.

...signing in to Facebook after my week-long Facebook fast,  and realizing I wasn't really missing out. Ya know?

...homemade strawberry-banana smoothies!

...and this cool little tassel I picked up today :)

Happy Wednesday :)

P.S. Photo edits created on Pic Monkey.

Life lately

Source: p.twimg.com via Lacey on Pinterest

Life lately...

...finding out I probably have 2 cavities (the first in my life!) But no thanks, I think I'll get a second opinion before I pay for your new boat Mr. Dentist.

...realizing I am going to be one of the women who wear tennis shoes all the time during pregnancy (and beyond!) because my feet just hurt constantly!

...also realizing that I maybe should have majored in elementary special education. I have subbed for a few elementary special education classes recently and have really enjoyed them! I wonder why I never thought of this before.

...graduation in two days! I can't believe it!

...having my husband back since he is done with calculus has been so nice!

...searching for a cheap apartment for the summer! Going to look at one on Wednesday!

...getting a new windshield to replace our cracked one for free thanks to insurance! Woo!

...re-reading this for the fifteenth time. Never gets old.

...just finished this one, maybe I'll do a review on it this week.

xo
lacey.

The latest bits & pieces

It's weird to me that now that I have all the time in the world, I blog much less. Last semester it seemed like I had at least a half-decent post 3-4 times a week. Now you're lucky to read a half-decent post once a week from me! I don't have any excuse except...it's winter. Gray skies were never very inspiring to me. However, lately it has been really sunny and slightly warm. (Come on spring!!) So here is a quick-ish summary of my life lately.

As has become the pattern, I subbed twice this week. Both times at Provo High. Can I just say that I definitely do not miss high school? And I just laugh at the seniors who think they are the coolest things on the planet because in just a few months as they start their freshman year, they will be the least cool thing on the planet, or at least on their campus.

In other news, a fire has been lit underneath me and I am finally getting around to finishing my online class. I won't say if that has anything to do with it being due in two weeks.

I have also been researching strollers a good deal lately. I thought I was settled on the Bumbleride Indie, but why I kidded myself into thinking I needed a jogging stroller, I'm not sure. So I think we are going to go with a Quinny Buzz. That is if we can find a decent used one. No way am I paying $600+ for a stroller.

Last night I attended the BYU Blogger Meet-Up with Erika. It was at The Chocolate, so of course I enjoyed it! It was good for me to go out and be social. And it was fun to meet with other bloggers, even if I hadn't heard of most of them. I couldn't help but laugh (to myself and out loud at times) at the trendiness of all who attended. So many trends in one room! All the barrel-rolled curls and colored jeans and lace tops and heeled oxfords! It's more than one can stand! (For more than two hours at least). But maybe I was just jealous that I can't fit into my skinny jeans anymore and that I can never afford Anthro. (More photos and info about the Meet-up).

photo via

In happier news, Erika and I made friends with a fellow blogger, Kirsten. We spent our time chatting about married life, hoping to win the 3B Yoga gift bags and cursing the ones who did win them. But I can't be too upset, I did win $50 to Quincess Boutique in AF. And we all snagged a couple free passes to 3B Yoga. I'm gonna try the prenatal class soon!

Other random things that have been intriguing me lately:
Selling modest wedding dresses on eBay. Check 'em out!
Snow art.
Read this if you are interested in the purpose of KONY 2012.
These wooden toys for our little man.

As the weekend approaches, we are looking forward to more warm temperatures, movie night with friends and perhaps even a little fondue :)

Have a happy weekend.

What we've been up to

Building things.

 Nate built us a little shelf/table for the microwave in the pantry. 

So nice to have more counter space now!

Studying.

Nate has taken to studying for calculus using our living room window. 

Hiking.

Went on an ugly, yet invigorating hike in Springville this past weekend.

Not pictured:

I've continued to sub a few times a week.

Completely paying off our credit card debt thanks to our tax returns. (Such a relief!)

Counting down the days until our new niece or nephew arrives!

Tailoring all our clothes with our new sewing machine!

Making yummy pumpkin bread.

Loving life.

Have a lovely Monday!

Student Life: College Essentials

A while back I posted some tips for saving money on textbooks, today I am sharing one my college essentials: a good backpack!

 Here is my backpack. I LOVE it. Nate and my roommates pitched in to buy it for my 20th birthday last year. It's the Northface Recon, in my favorite color, yellow (of course).

Its cushioned straps, chest and hips belts make it super comfortable when walking to campus with a load of books. The side mesh pockets are perfect for my water bottle and umbrella.

When I started college back home, I had little Jansport that I got simply because it was zebra-printed. Once I got to BYU, I quickly realized that was not gonna cut it. I then got another Jansport that was larger, but of similar (low) quality. I finally realized it was worth it to get something nicer that would last. Thankfully, I had a good boyfriend and friends who helped me out. :)

This backpack has already been through a lot with me! It went with me to Peru and has been on my back ever since. I love using it on hikes and maybe one day I'll use it as a diaper bag!

P.S. Eight cool backpacks.

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Do you have any products that helped you during college? I'd love to hear!

Student Life: Saving on Textbooks

Disclaimer: If you aren't a student, you may find this post incredibly boring! Now, those of you who are interested in how we saved money on textbooks...keep reading!


First, our list of the bookstore new and used prices:


Grant Writing: New-$40 Used-$30
Aging: New-$42.70 Used-$32.05
Adult Development & Aging: New-$195 Used-$147
Life with Big Al: Caregiver's Diary: New-$12.95 Used-$9.75
Social & Personality Development: New-$202 Used-$152
Cognitive Development: New-$115 Used-$86
Children's Thinking: New-$147 Used-$110
Single Variable Calculus: New-$66.70 Used-$50


Just the used priced books adds up to a whopping $616!!


First off, we stressed out a little bit and pulled out a little bit of hair...then we calmed down and started making plans:


1. Sell your old textbooks: We each have a growing collection of textbooks that we did not sell back after the classes were over because we wanted to keep them for reference during our careers etc. We decided to let go of them after deciding we would purchase an older edition (always much cheaper than the current) of each book if the need arose later on. With a combination of several of mine and several of his, we made $200! :) Not too shabby.


2. Ditch the campus bookstore: I don't hate the BYU Bookstore...they employ lots of students and they have great sales...but they do seem to have high textbook prices. We checked on Amazon for our books first and then went to Boomerang Books, just a block south of campus. I usually use Book Exchange for a lot of my books, but this year I didn't have much luck. Book Exchange is program for BYU students where you can buy and sell books straight to other students. I bet other campuses have something similar. Also I discovered Blyph this week via The Daily Universe.


3. Rent: Unfortunately, a couple of my books are brand new editions and could not be purchased used. We didn't want to pay the full price, so we decided to rent them for a portion of the new price. Score!


4. Go to class first: I'm a little OCD (I know, big surprise! ;) in the way that I HAVE to have my books before my classes start. But sometimes instructors will change their tune a little on their books. Nate waited to get his English class book this semester and then his instructor told them not to buy it. Sweet!


5. Go to the library: My good friend Holly suggests to simply borrow the necessary books from the library when needed and nix the spending of money all together!


Our end result:
Grant Writing: New-$40 (I had to buy this one new...it was not on Amazon or anywhere else! And there were no more used at the Bookstore!)
Aging: New-$42.70 (A brand new edition...nothing used available!)
Adult Development & Aging: $75 (Renting from Boomerang)
Life with Big Al: Caregiver's Diary: $6 from Boomerang
Social & Personality Development: $117 from Boomerang
Cognitive Development: $20 from Boomerang
Children's Thinking: $117 from Amazon
Single Variable Calculus: $35 (Renting for Boomerang)


Total price: $452.70...which actually translates to $252.70 since we sold $200 worth of books to Boomerang. Boo-yah. :)


Maybe these tips are old news for you...did I miss any that help you save money on textbooks?