The Wishing Tree by Mary Redman

In preparation for Geoff's departure (Saturday August 27th), curiosity got the better of me and I went online and did a little research on children's books (meet our family of book worms). I came across a small collection of wonderful books meant specifically for children who are members of a military family. In becoming a part of a military family (all five of us) we are having to prepare ourselves for the hardest part - our first separation. As much as we will miss our beloved man of the house, we have to stay strong and keep pace until he comes home (I am pretty good at keeping things sane - but this may stretch me to a new limit). One of the ways I was thinking about having this happen was preparing (as much as possible) for the goodbyes (major easier said than done). The more time we have to prepare, the better so "add to cart" I went from one of my favourite websites www.amazon.ca for this beautifully illustrated (Christina Rodriguez) and written (Mary Redman) book called "The Wishing Tree." The story is about Amanda, a young girl who creates a wishing tree to help her cope with her dad's year long military deployment. She begins a daily routine of writing thoughts, wishes and prayers for him (such as clean sheets, good meals, nice friends and good luck) on bright yellow ribbons and adding them to the branches of her tree. The tree begins to grow as does her number of ribbons and with that, she is able to remain positive and brave about her father being away and to make her feel she is helping him on his duty. For young children (such as our two and a half year old Hannah) this story is a simple short story with bright colours and helps children understand what is (or will be) happening. For older children (all ages) this story may sprout an idea to create their very own wishing tree, and have them feel they are not alone in having to deal with a separation of a loved one. The plan is for us to start reading the book now to start the explaining to (a very sweet and sensitive) Hannah that her daddy will be going away for awhile. Once Geoff has gone, I plan to continue to read the book until he returns and keep it handy in case we need it again in the future (any deployments - although not thinking of that just yet). When you have your first born and wish for a manual (still have those days, two and a half years later) at least be reassured there is a world of books out there to help your child (lucky them) to get them through almost anything life brings their way.

Making Money Count

I have a secret. I love coupons. In being a family with a child, a mortgage and bills money doesn't get saved easily. Picture an open window with money swirling into the vast blue sky. When saving money does happen, it is worth the work and organization dedicated to make the process a success (even if it can only be a few dollars to start). Picture me making a mad dash to the window and slamming it to prevent the remaining amount of money to trail off into the sky. I am not qualified to put myself in the same category as the "Extreme Couponers" (while it was impressive, the USA rules are not relevant in Canada so savings get reduced significantly per grocery shop in comparison but saving can still occur.) Not too sure what could possibly use up such a massive number of one product before it expires or maybe I am just licking my wounds that I don't have a massive storage room for anything in this house. At any rate, since our daughter was a baby I began clipping coupons in an effort to minimize the crying (mine) when in came to grocery shop for two adults, a new baby and two dogs..at times sacrificing the wants because of a limited budget. I know we are not the only family struggling with today's price tag of life and everyone needs a plus (besides the total amount due at cashier) whether it be a select few coupons or a handful (me cheering you on), at least it is the start! Amazingly enough I was able to access all my coupons without ever getting a newspaper when this process first began. All of my saving success came (and continues today) with three loved websites :

www.save.ca

www.websaver.ca

www.brandsaver.ca

These 3 websites make it easy for anyone to get coupons (the reason I am sharing the pearls of wisdom) - just sign up for FREE (believe it), choose the coupons you would like to use in a future grocery stock up (no more masses of papers trying to find a few coupons) and click on send me (or claim) the coupons (easy right?!) Then all you need to do is check your mail (worth the wait!) One day among the cell phone and utilities bills you will happily find your chosen coupons ready to take with you on your next saving adventure! Please keep in mind these websites are for use of coupons in Canada only. Good luck!

The End Of An Old Life

The past few months my husband Geoff, me (Kate), and our daughter Hannah have been riding the surreal wave of him being accepted into the Royal Canadian Air Force and us becoming a part of the world military family. Patience was the key ingredient for surviving the waiting period after the flash flood of applications and interviews etc. All the information  was needed in such a short time frame, then all we could do was wait (by this time, patience and I were at our wits end.) This was such a huge life change! After we had survived through all aspects of the acceptance process and no more phone calls to anticipate we were gifted with a big sigh of relief! - We are currently enjoying our time together before he is whisked off for 6 months worth of military and job training. This blog will have the purpose to keep me busy once he has gone, allow the process all this adventure has to offer, and also to help any other military family find comfort and humor. Tune into my life of two dogs, a toddler and a house - and see how much more busy I can be, with a new blog added!