Baby Product Reviews and Bargain Recommendations
First, I recommend buying the book Baby Bargains. Buy the most recent edition available. I also use Consumer Reports to back up those reviews in major categories like cribs and strollers. Consumer Reports is $30 a year, and well worth it. Baby Bargains gives honest reviews about a wide range of products and explains what you do and don’t really need. The downside is that Baby Bargains is a print book. Even though it’s updated every year or two, product categories may experience major recalls or safety standards updates in the meantime. For example, the crib we bought gets an F from Baby Bargains, but a buy recommendation from Consumer Reports. Safety standards for cribs were updated in Cribs in mid-2011, after the last edition came out. The standards were important enough that all cribs were redesigned to meet them, so reviews prior to fall 2011 are not valid.  In addition, Baby Bargains can’t do safety tests, so trust Consumer Reports for products where safety really matters, like cribs and car seats.

Used/Consignment Sales
Get Gymboree clothes without paying Gymboree prices. Look for consignment sales/stores for items that are safe to buy used. (Don’t buy cribs, car seats, or breast pumps used.) Craigslist is an obvious choice. eBay, too. If you happen to live in the Los Angeles area, check out this massive bi-yearly set of sales: LA Kids Consignment. Many other areas have year-round consignment sales hosted by Just Between Friends. Garage sales are another source of gently used baby gear.

Hand-Me-Downs
These are the best for babies! Since they only wear their clothes or use their toys for a few months, most hand-me-downs can be used for 3-4 babies, and moms are always happy to share the wealth with new moms. So far, at least four people have offered me hand-me-downs. My sister’s baby will be 15 months older than my baby, so I’m borrowing some of the short-term items like a baby food maker and baby swing from her. Since this only gets used for three to four months, why spend $100 on a convenience item that I can borrow and give back?

Register at Amazon
Many of the most expensive baby items like car seats and strollers are cheaper on Amazon. In addition, you get a 10% completion discount 30 days before your due date. I set my due date two weeks early, to allow six weeks shipping time. I will inform shower guests about the Amazon registry, and have some affordable options on it, but I don’t expect anyone to buy me a $150 car seat. The key to this discount is to make sure the item is sold by Amazon. You can usually tell it’s sold by Amazon if it qualifies for free shipping, but some fulfillment items also get free shipping, so read the item description to be sure. The 10% discount may not apply on items sold by someone else and fulfilled by Amazon, and definitely doesn’t apply on items sold in the Amazon marketplace.
Take Advantage of Registry Completion Discounts and Gift Bags
Most registry stores offer a completion discount as well, so calculate the discount, sales tax, and price, as compared to Amazon, and buy each item at the best price. Registries also offer free gifts and coupons when you register. You’ll find that many people  who give gifts won’t buy off the registry, but it’s a handy way to remember all the specific brands you’ve chosen so you can use the completion discount on them.

Shop Discount Stores and Use Coupons
Costco and Sam’s Club are great for disposable diapers and formula, if you use the brands they carry. Otherwise, hit up Target for deals. Amazon also has deals, but sometimes Target will have a better sale. Target sells an assortment of baby goods, and often offers items on clearance. Other stores like Babies R Us and Buy Buy Baby offer discount coupons to help you save on single items. For example, in addition to producing its own coupons, Buy Buy Baby will accept unexpired coupons from Bed Bath and Beyond. According to one mom, Babies R Us will also price match other brick and mortar stores.

But that baby food will be another post, once my baby gets to solid food. First, come the diapers. If you plan to use cloth diapers, start building a stash before the baby comes.  There are several types of diapers you can try. If you want to test a variety, Jillian’s Drawers offers a $10 three-week cloth diaper trial program. The link goes to the regular program, but they also offer a newborn program if you want to cloth diaper (known as CD in the diapering world) from day one.

Types of Cloth Diapers
First, a quick rundown of the different types. Unlike disposables, there are an array of cloth diapers. Gone are the days of a cotton pre-fold with a huge safety pin and a pair of plastic pants (although you could still do that if you want.) Now there are options. Cute options in all sorts of colors and fabrics.

All-in-one: Like the name says, it’s a waterproof outer layer and several inner layers. You change it just like a disposable. The downside to AIOs is that they take longer to dry after washing, and have to be completely changed each time, so you need more diapers.

All-in-two: Also known is “pocket diapers”, AI2s go on like a disposable or AIO, but have a pocket in the interior where you can stuff a doubler or prefold. These are handy for nights and heavy-wetters. Like AIOs, they usually need to be changed entirely at each changing.

Diaper covers: The third option is more economical, but more work. You’ll need either prefolds, fitteds, or diaper inserts and diaper covers. You can either wrap a prefold around the baby and close it with a Snappi or pin, or trifold it so it’s shaped like an insert. You can also buy inserts or doublers in a variety of materials. Lay them inside the diaper cover, then wrap the cover around the baby. The advantage is that you can just swap in an insert or change the prefold at each changing, unless the cover is soiled, so it saves money and you have less laundry. The disadvantage is that you have to handle a bit more mess. Some brands also offer disposable or flushable inserts, which I’ll use when traveling to see my parents. Flip and gDiapers both offer this option.

Prefolds: There are prefolds and flats. Both are cotton squares that you fold around the baby to use as a first layer diaper, or fold inside a cover or AI2 as an insert. Prefolds are thicker in the middle.

Fitteds: Basically diaper-shaped cloth with snaps or velcro similar to disposables. You use a cover over them.

Snappi: a three-pronged clip you use to hold a prefold in place rather than the old-fashioned safety pins.

Doublers: multiple layers of fabric sewn together that can then be stuffed into a pocket, laid inside a cover, or laid inside a prefold to absorb extra wetness.

One-size: AIOs or AI2s that can be used from infancy to 35 pounds. Most don’t really fit well for babies under ten pounds, but may save money in the long-run.

My Diaper Plan
I’ll post an update once I settle into a routine in several months, but this is my current plan:

Covers with inserts/doublers/prefolds for day. A friend gave me six small gDiapers with 24 inserts. I bought seven other pocket diaper inserts for $15 at a consignment sale, which I can use with Flips. I’ve also purchased four Flip covers on sale for $9 each (slightly imperfect seconds) and two Bummis covers (seconds, buy one get one free) for $12.95. I registered for four Thirsties covers, too. I’ll try them all and see which I like best. Any that I don’t like I can sell on DiaperSwappers.com. I also registered for Thirsties and Flip inserts and doublers, and OsoCozy prefolds. I’ll see whether I like actually folding the prefold around the baby or just laying a prefold and doubler inside. The gDiapers have special liners and inserts, so no folding is necessary. They’re a hybrid of AI2s and covers.

All-in-Twos for night. I registered for Fuzzibunz and Thirsties Duo Diapers to try both. To get a better fit, I registered for the sized versions. They can fit smaller babies and have a better fit.

Most parents wash diapers every 2-3 days. If you use AIOs or AI2s, you’ll need at least 26 diapers and inserts to get you through two days. If you use covers, you’ll need about four covers and 28 inserts, prefolds, or doublers to get through two days.  I expect my initial stash to include 4 AI2s, 14 covers, 43 inserts and doublers, and 18 prefolds. As my baby gets older and I size up, that will whittle down since I’ll likely find a system I like best and older babies need fewer changes.

The Newborn Question
Some people use cloth diapers on newborns from day one, but you do have to be cautious about the cord stump for the first couple of weeks. Cloth newborn diapers are available, but they’re expensive and only needed for a couple of weeks. If your baby is larger, you may not be able to use them at all. I didn’t opt for any of those. I will either fold my cloth diapers down below the stump, or use disposables until the stump falls off.

Wipes
Many cloth diapering moms also choose cloth wipes, for a couple of reasons. The first is that you don’t have anywhere to dispose of disposable wipes if you cloth diaper. Most parents using disposables have a diaper genie for wipes and diapers. The genie isn’t cloth diaper friendly, so cloth diapering parents either use a pail or a zippable wet bag for cloth diapers and inserts. They would need another pail for the disposable wipes. The second reason many opt for cloth is that the disposable wipes are not environmentally-friendly. The third is that cloth wipes are gentler on baby’s delicate parts.

Cloth wipes are fairly easy to make and use. You’ll need baby washcloths or no-pill flannel cut into squares. You can make your own cloth wipes liquid. There are several recipes on the internet. Either place in a spray bottle, or put wipes in a warmer and pour the liquid over them. Most parents report needing only one wet wipe for each diaper. Some use a dry wipe to dry baby before putting on the next diaper.

Diaper Sprayers
Obviously, you don’t want to put poop in your washing machine, so the poop goes in the toilet. Unlike the old days, you don’t need to dunk and swish the diaper in the toilet. You can buy a diaper sprayer that attaches to the toilet. Spray the diaper to dislodge the poop, then drop the diaper in the wet bag. Technically, you’re supposed to also remove poop from disposables, too. It’s illegal to put human waste in the garbage. Everyone does it, but it’s still illegal.

This weekend’s resort fee was nothing other than a way to increase prices without actually increasing prices, and that makes me stabby.

You WILL Receive Business Services
I stayed at the New York New York hotel, but most of the hotels have similar ridiculous resort fees. Especially for weekend travelers. I could sort of see a reason to charge these fees Monday-Thursday when lots of business travelers are in town and might have use for these services. Weekend gamblers are NOT using these services:

Free in-room internet access (I didn’t bring a computer or tablet, because I was on vacation)
Free incoming faxes (seriously, who gets faxes these days?)
Free newspaper (that I had to go pick up. They didn’t even bring it to my room)
Free fitness center access (again, I’m on vacation. I’m not going to work out)
Coupon book (I made sure to use at least a couple of of the coupons, but most were useless)

For all that, I paid an extra $18 a day. Then, to further add to the insult, they charge tax on the resort fee!

Where’s the Resort in this Resort Fee?
I found a list of resort fees, and only a few of them included amenities that were remotely resort-like, such as pool towels. One included in-room bathrobes. Just put robes in the rooms if you want to offer robes! Don’t charge me $25 a day to use it. Several of the hotels with popular pool parties don’t charge resort fees, or don’t list pool access in the resort fee description. That probably means they make enough money off their parties to avoid charging hotel guests ridiculous fees.

Just Raise the Price
I didn’t fight the fee because it was disclosed when I made my reservation. It was not, however, included in the quoted room rate. If you’re comparing rates, check out the resort fees to make sure you’re comparing prices properly. A $65 room becomes an $83 room with the resort fee. Or, hotels could just be honest and raise their prices. There is really no difference between hotels tacking on resort fees in order to raise the room rate without raising the price and airlines adding fuel surcharges to raise ticket prices without raising prices. Frankly, this sort of chicanery makes me feel that the hotel thinks I’m too stupid to recognize a price increases when I see one. How is a mandatory fee anything except a price increase? Especially when that fee is charged the same tax as the room rate?

And if you are going to make me pay $18 a day for a newspaper, bring it to my room! Don’t vaguely wave to an area where I can pick up my “free” paper as if that’s some sort of benefit. All it means is the hotel can buy fewer papers because most people won’t go pick them up, so they get to keep more of that $18 robbery fee.

Stop Lying in Headlines and Ads
And that brings me to the thing that makes me stabby: lying in news headlines. I understand they’re trying to get ratings, but don’t repeat a blatantly misleading claim in a segment that is supposedly about saving money. Homes are not 50% off what they once were. They are now selling for a price the market can support.  You could only say a home was half off if the exact same house on the exact same block was selling for double the price of this home. That would probably indicate, however, that the severely discounted home had major issues.

I’ve seen other financial headlines pull shenanigans like that. For example, an article about a family cutting their expenses by 50% usually reveals that the family ate out every night, owned three cars even though only two people drove, and regularly purchased overpriced, big-ticket items. Sure, they can cut their expenses by 50% simply by switching to common-sense spending, but most of us don’t go to those extremes and can’t expect to see similar results.

Those H&R Block refund review ads that tout people getting an additional $8000 back on their taxes also irk me. If you’re getting an $8000 refund a few years after you filed your taxes, it’s not because H&R Block was able to “find” money. It’s because you filed your taxes incorrectly in the first place, and didn’t take the appropriate deductions that you were entitled to. And you were probably withholding too much money. I would question whether any of the people in these ads used tax prep software to file their taxes or did them by hand. I strongly suspect it’s the latter.

Frankly, it’s becoming very frustrating to watch or read news. Ads have always been annoying, and I expect some lying there, but it seems like the news shows and networks are so desperate for ratings that they’ll stretch the truth to get eyeballs. The news should always tell the truth. It is, after all, the news.

What You Really Need
If you walk into a baby store and ask them what you need, they will give you a very long and very expensive list. So here’s what you really need:

Crib
Dresser/changing table (combo to save space/money)
Changing pad and cover (to go on the dresser and keep baby from rolling off)
Crib sheets
Crib mattress
Clothes (get as many hand me downs as you can)
Car seat
Car seat stroller, or travel system
Diaper bag
Diapers/wipes
Bottles
Breasts or formula (note, breasts are free unless you’re adopting)
Receiving blankets
Baby wash, diaper cream,
Rectal thermometer
Baby nail clippers
High chair

That’s the bare minimum. As your baby gets older, you’ll likely want things like pacifiers, baby spoons, a baby tub, sippy cups, and toys. But your baby will survive bathing in the sink and not having a million toys or a bouncy chair or any of that other stuff you see in the stores. A rocker/glider is highly recommended to soothe an upset baby, but not required. That’s not to say I won’t buy those things, they’re just not totally necessary.

Other things are completely unnecessary and you should not buy them or let someone buy them for you. These are items like crib bumpers, diaper stackers, crib pillows, and crib blankets/quilts. You’ll notice the stores sell fancy baby bedding sets, but most of the components are not recommended for use with babies. All you need is a crib, mattress, mattress pad, and sheets. If you live in a cold winter climate, you can use a light blanket, but it’s better to put your baby in a warm sleeper suit or sleep sack.

How Much to Budget for Baby Gear
Baby magazines often mention a figure around $10,000, just for gear and food, for the first year. That doesn’t include child care. The Baby Bargains book estimates you can do it for $4000.  The latter is a lot more reasonable, especially if you stick to the simpler, more affordable stuff. Obviously, don’t skimp on a car seat, but you don’t need a $600 crib or $1800 stroller system. A $125 crib that meets current safety standards and a $100 stroller are just fine. A fancy (useless) baby bedding set can cost as much $400. A crib sheet costs $15.

However, there are times when you might want to spend a bit more to get something that will last longer. I looked at a cheap Ikea baby dresser for $100, but I hated it. Instead, I plan to buy a nice $400 dresser that will last for several years.

My budget for first-year gear is around $4000. My baby will eat homemade food and breastmilk. If you opt for formula, factor in another $700 for the year. I will also be cloth diapering, but if you use disposable diapers, add another $1000 to your budget.

How Much to Budget for Child Care
The biggest budget item is child care, and this varies by region. In our area, day care and nannies are very expensive. Infant day care is sometimes MORE expensive than a nanny, and very hard to find in some areas! I will be adding $12-$18,000 to our first year budget for child care because I live in Los Angeles, which child care is pricey (but cheaper than New York City.)

How Much to Budget for Healthcare
You also have to factor in costs for healthcare. Assume your baby will visit the doctor 10-12 times that first year, so that’s 10-12 co-pays. Your newborn is only covered under the mother’s coverage for 30 days following the birth. You need to have coverage in place for the baby after that. My employer has a very generous dependent benefit, but many employers don’t. Compare your plan with your spouse’s, then factor the additional cost into your monthly budget. Typically, it’s deducted from your paycheck. If you find the dependent premium is over $150/month, consider buying a child-only individual plan through a health insurance provider like Blue Cross or Kaiser.

The birth will also cost at least a couple thousand dollars, depending on your insurance coverage and out-of-pocket max. If you have an FSA, you can save a bit of money by using the FSA funds for those costs. Yes, it’s still out of your pocket, but it reduces your taxable income, so it will ultimately cost you a little less.

If you’re looking at the total for all these costs, you’re probably freaking out. Remember, you’re not spending all of it at once. The initial outlay for baby gear can be spent gradually before the birth. The hospital bills will come in a month or two after the birth. Things you need as your baby grows will also be purchased over time, and you can shop for deals. Child care is also paid monthly, not all at once.

Here’s the part that makes me stabby: after the initial ultrasound, the perinatologist came in. He put the wand back on my belly for about 30 seconds to take a quick look, then said everything was fine. I saw him for three minutes, at the most. The bill for that portion was $370!

I’m fortunate that insurance covered the cost, for the most part. The scan ate my entire deductible, so in that sense, I had to pay $250 for it, but I would have had to pay the deductible at some point with this pregnancy.

Why Do Doctors Get to Bill Twice?
This isn’t the first time I’ve heard of this. A woman I know had a D&C with hysteroscopy to remove uterine fibroids. Although her doctor only dilated her once, she was billed for it twice – once for the hysteroscopy portion and once for the fibroid removal. When she challenged her doctor, she was told, sorry, that’s just how it’s billed.

Um, NO! That should not be okay. You don’t get to bill twice for only doing one thing. That would be like a deli charging me twice for a sandwich that they only made once.

And that is what is wrong with this country. In order to cover their costs, providers have to create creative ways to bill knowing that the insurers will only pay 50% of that cost, at most. So, if the true cost is $370 for the machine, sonographer, and perinatologist, they find a way to bill twice for it in order to make sure their costs are covered. (And actually, the total after insurance was $259.92, so it was only covered at about 35% of the charge.)

I’m not blaming doctors, I’m blaming the system. There has got to be a better way to come up with realistic costs and realistic payments than to just ask doctors to pad the bill and hope. I can definitely understand why some doctors are opting out of the insurance/medicare system and simply taking cash-only patients at a reasonable price that adequately covers their costs.

Stupid Homeowner Tricks
There are actually several questionable remodeling choices that have been made to our home over the years, but most of them are either things we can live with or things that can wait to be fixed.  But the discovery we made this week just smacks of stupidity, and will likely cost us at least $75 to fix it. At some point, our garage was converted into a master suite, and a carport was added. Decorative stone was installed on the back carport wall. The main line is also on this wall. When installing the stone, they made a cut out behind the hose bib, pressure regulator, and inlet pipe so repairs can be made. However, they didn’t make the cut out around the entire main line setup. They installed the stone behind the pressure relief valve, leaving only a half inch gap between the valve and the wall. There is no way to get a wrench in that space, and because the valve has a downspout, the valve won’t rotate past the wall even if you could get a wrench in there. To make matters worse, the owners installed a concrete pole in front of the relief valve to support a gate.

What Needs to Happen to Fix This
The part is cheap, but the labor will cost a lot because the plumber or handyman either needs to have special tools to fit in that space, or cut out some of the stone to allow regular tools to fit into the space. It’s possible that we would have needed to call a plumber anyway because the valve is so old it’s potentially stripped, or the valve may not actually be the problem, but I would have liked to try to fix it myself first.

What We Learned
I can’t say we learned anything specifically. We already knew the previous owners had done stupid things over the years. All homeowners do. We probably will, too.  However, whenever you do remodeling or additions of any kind, inspect the area carefully to be sure you’re not restricting access to important plumbing or electrical pipes or connectors.

Update: We Really Did Need a Pro
When the plumber came out, he discovered that the home warranty plumber who replaced the pressure regulator two years ago had installed it incorrectly. The regulator was also blown and he found additional leaks.. While he was at our house, he rearranged the main line plumbing so all parts can be accessed without using stone saws and replaced all the leaking parts. It did end up costing $500, but a regulator alone is about $300.  And now we have a fully accessible system.

These are the deals I’ve bought:
Wine Insiders – I saved over 50% on twelve decent bottles of wine. That was my first steal, but it required some finagling.

Amazon – $20 for $10. I order from Amazon a lot, so of course I took this deal. Frankly, I don’t know why Amazon did it, but I suspect it was designed to put Living Social on the map and Amazon may not have paid a commission on the deal.

Whole Foods – $20 for $10. I shop at Whole Foods a lot, too. I spend at least $200 a year there. So, I snagged the deal. They even thanked me for coming. That was nice, but again, I’m not sure why WF felt the need to offer the deal. It seems like they’re pretty busy most of the time.

Yoga – $30 for 10 classes (normally $130). This was a really sweet deal. Then the business went the extra mile to make me a repeat customer. Shortly before the 10 classes expired, they sent me an exclusive offer for renewing Groupon customers – $99 for another 10 classes. Not as sweet a deal, but still cheap for yoga. So I renewed. They didn’t offer another deal after that, but I was a loyal customer by then and happily bought another package at full price. I think part of the reason Groupon’s work for yoga studios is that the class is held regardless of the number of students. I’ve had classes with 9 students, and classes with 2 students. Same teacher, same class. By offering the Groupon, the studio was introducing their classes to new students without incurring any additional cost.

Amoeba Music – $30 for $15. Amoeba is an amazing independent music store (used and new) in Los Angeles (and a few other cities). Again, I’m surprised they even offered a deal. I bought one for me and one for my husband. Amoeba is typically packed on the weekend, and the weekend we went was no exception. This offer was clever because it expired the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, so customers couldn’t use it during the even busier holiday season. Maybe it helped boost sales during the pre-holiday lull. When I checked out, they gave me a special Groupon coupon for $5 off my next $30 purchase. Since Amoeba customers are fairly loyal (it’s not as if there are a lot of other physical record stores to compete with anymore), that’s just a nice thank you that doesn’t much hurt their bottom line. My husband and I both spent a little over $30, so we saved just under 50%, not a bad deal.

Garden Center – A garden center chain with a store near my house offered a $50 for $25 (I think) deal. I visit this garden center occasionally, most often for advice. It’s the sort of place where you can take a leaf and ask “What is wrong with it?” and they’ll actually know the answer. Not only that, but they have the product you need to fix it. Service is excellent. The prices are rather high, though. I ended up spending way more than the Groupon, probably around $70 because I lose all control in garden centers. But, I was able to stock up on fertilizers, plants, and tools and save a little bit, so I don’t regret the deal. I continue to go there with my plant problems, too.

Old Navy – $20 for $10. I love Old Navy. They have great deals already. When I read about this deal on a coupon site, I snagged it. I like to buy a few new tops each summer and winter, and I needed new jeans, so using it would be no problem. I also happened to have a $50 gift card that I needed to use. I tossed the gift card in my purse and just kept the Groupon expiration date in the back of my mind. This was the first time I used the Groupon app to use a deal. I didn’t have the printed version with me when I found myself needing to kill time near an Old Navy. But my smartphone came to the rescue. I ended up paying about $10 cash after the gift card and the Groupon.

To be honest, I don’t spend a ton of time looking at deal sites. I found out about the Amazon, Amoeba, and Whole Foods deals when friends posted about them on Facebook. I found out about the Wine Insider and Old Navy deals on a coupon blog. The Yoga deal I spotted myself because I was actively looking for a yoga deal at the time.  I happened to spot the Armstrong deal in my email because I shopped there already.

How to Avoid Wasting Money on Daily Deals
I’ve been satisfied with all my deal purchases, and haven’t let any of them expire without using them. Here are my tips for avoiding waste:

1. Know what sort of deals you’re looking for. I was looking for a yoga class when I found that deal. I’ve been looking for a decent facial deal for months, but I haven’t purchased one yet because I haven’t liked any of the offers. I’m not going to buy a spa deal just because it’s a good deal if the services don’t appeal to me.

2. Buy from businesses you already frequent. Four of the deals I bought were for places I already shopped. I knew the deal was good, because I knew how much I typically spent. I also knew where the business was and that cashing in the deal would be convenient.

3. Buy from businesses close to you. If you have to go out of your way to cash in the deal, you probably won’t, no matter how good it is. So wait for a deal from a place near your home or office. With a new deal every day, you may not have to wait that long.

4. Check schedules before you buy. This is key with service related deals. The yoga studio offered the type of class I wanted to take at a time I could attend, and it was close to my house. That made it impossible to pass up.

5. Think about it. Yes, you only have 24 hours, at most, to buy the deal. But you don’t have to buy it in the next five minutes. Take an hour or two to think about the deal. If you still want it, buy it. If you’ve forgotten about it, then you didn’t really want it.

What is wrong with Congress? This is just ridiculous. Pizza is NOT a vegetable. It may have veggies on it, and yes, the sauce is composed of tomatoes, but two tablespoons is not a serving of any vegetable. These new rules, which also limit starch vegetables like potatoes, are meant to improve children’s health. We have a major childhood obesity problem in this country. For some kids, school breakfasts and lunches are the only meals they have. What is wrong with serving them a healthy meal, without the influence of lobbying groups? Studies have shown that kids do better in school when they eat nutritious food. If we want to be competitive in the marketplace, our kids need to learn.

If Congress wonders why they only have 9% approval, they need only look at idiotic acts like this.

Lobbying Under the Guise of Austerity
Why is Congress doing this? Lobbying. The National Potato Council and the American Frozen Food Institute are worried that these new regulations will cut into their groups’ profits. Which they might. However, they were able to get it attached to a spending bill because the USDA rules would increase the cost of school lunches by $7 billion over 5 years, or $1.4 billion a year. When you consider how many children that feeds and how important early childhood nutrition is, that’s not a huge number. One DAY of the war in Iraq cost $720 million. So, this is two days’ worth of war. Aren’t our children worth sacrificing two days of war?

After several stores announced that their Black Fridays specials would start at midnight (which is ridiculous, but still technically Friday), Wal-Mart is upping the ante. They will now open their stores at 10 PM on Thanksgiving! So, stuff your faces, then run to your car to get in line for some cheap stuff. $5 Barbie dolls are worth giving up a holiday for, apparently.

When will this madness end? Doorbusters on Thanksgiving morning? Holiday sales on Halloween? Aw, heck, let’s just roll it all the way back to July 4 now and be done with it.

Stop the Madness
When did Christmas become all about the crap and the deal? Even as a non-Christian, I recognize that family togetherness and winter cheer are far more important than a $5 Barbie or an iPod Touch or whatever other discount goodie you bought at Black Friday because it was on sale.

If your budget is tight, then buy less stuff. I get a lot of emails from people saying “I need to give my kids a good Christmas.” What your kids want is your love and time with you. The rest if just stuff that will be forgotten within a couple of weeks. They will not be traumatized for life by a Christmas or two without a lot of presents. Instead, they’ll remember that you played games with them and spent time together as a family.

Once again, I will be avoiding Black Friday sales. My husband and I have only purchased one thing at a Black Friday sale, and it was on a Sunday. We’d been looking for a new laptop, so when we saw the deal in the Sunday paper, he went to Staples to buy it. Last year we considered buying a new TV at a Black Friday sale, but actually found a better deal at Costco the week before Thanksgiving. So, we skipped the hassle and enjoyed sleeping in instead.