Paid To Shop At Walmart

You have to admit it: Walmart DOES have good deals and families with little money to spend are more apt to shop at one of its many locations that seem to be within a short distance from their home. While filling my cart in central Maine a year ago, I proceeded to the checkout and started making conversation with the cashier. She noticed I was buying a national brand cat food and she asked me 

“Did you know they have this brand cheaper at another store?”

That’s right. The employee had told me that I basically should have been shopping at the store down the street to get a lower price and save myself money. Sort of.

She went on to tell me that she had been saving money with the Walmart Savings Catcher App for about six months and had already saved $30. She said I should consider downloading the app to my phone and start saving that day. The app compares the prices on the items I purchased to the same ones in the different stores in my local area to see if they are being offered for a lower price. When they find a lower price, they notify you and give you the amount on a reloadable gift card on the app that you can access on your phone.

No traveling necessary. And, it’s FREE!

It sounded too good to be true but I told her I would look into it. After putting away the groceries and, with the kids help, this mom was able to download the app onto my phone. They also showed me how to scan the receipt, too.

Here’s what you do:

Go to Playstore on your device.

Search Walmart and you’ll see its pretty blue and yellow symbol.

Install it on your smartphone.

Scan your Walmart receipt.

It’s THAT easy!

Three days after doing this I received a notification on my phone saying a lower price had been caught.

The first shopping trip I saved $3.17.

Now, each time I shop at Walmart I scan the receipt into my phone and in a few days it lets me know if they have found a lower price. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t.

To date I have saved over $120!

When you are checking out, you can bring up the app on your phone and use your savings to pay for your groceries. There were a few weeks where money had become extremely tight. When I needed bread and milk and just couldn’t count enough change from the car console, I was lucky enough to have that money sitting in the account to pay.

You can also use the money on the gift card to buy things from their website. I used some of mine this year to buy a few Christmas presents on Black Friday. The deals were so good but I didn’t want to have to wait in line at 10:30pm Thanksgiving night in order to save money. Because I had the app, I didn’t have to get up early or set foot in the store on that crazy day.

If you don't have a smartphone, you can go to their website and make an account there as well!

It’s simple and easy to use. My son likes to scan the receipts into my phone as we are leaving the parking lot. It makes him feel like he is helping. When you get the notification on your phone that you saved money, it’s a good feeling.

For a busy mom like myself, it is a time and money saver and it can be for you, too! Take the first step now and download it to your phone today.

An Open Letter to Thompson Square

Dear Keifer and Shawna,

Oh, how my husband and I love your music. We love the way you look at each other when you sing, the way the words you’ve written seem to mirror our lives and the way your love is growing through your family. Cooper is a sweet little boy. Just look at the video you made with him for “You Make It Look So Good”. We all fell in love with that little boy right away. It’s obvious you put him first.

And that’s what my husband, Chad, and I are doing tonight…putting our kids first.

You see, tonight you play a free concert in Lewiston. When we heard about it we were so excited! We were going to go and sing our hearts out to ever song loudly. Ok, maybe I would be singing loudly. Chad would be quietly appreciating the concert and my efforts. Our song is ‘Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not?” and I walked down the aisle to it. We sing the song together at our gigs. When the song comes on the radio, the listeners here in Maine instantly think of us and it warms our hearts when they tell us so.

We first met you 2 years ago the day after we were married thanks to my good friend Bob (who was actually my boss at the time). He had won meet and greet passes for you at the Taste of Country Music Festival and he gave them to us as a wedding present. Our honeymoon was in Nashville so we took the scenic route and was able to make your concert and the meet and greet.

You remembered us that day. We had tweeted you a video of us singing two months earlier and when you saw us Shawna said “Oh, you’re the two from the video! You just got married!”

We were stunned.

How could two such popular and busy entertainers remember a couple like that?

After we had our picture taken with you and you signed our wedding invitation we thought life couldn’t get any better than that.

But it has.

You see, when we married, we came home and blended two families. Chad has his son, Bradley, and his daughter, Jayden. I have my son, Anderson. And they all get along. ALMOST everyday. Every family has a few hiccups, right?

Because we’re a family it means putting yourself second and the kids first. And tonight is one of those times.

Tonight, Chad has to go in early for work so he needs to be asleep around 7pm. He drives truck and works an hour away from home. We’re lucky, though, because he’s home every night. Not many truck drivers can say that.

Tonight, Anderson has his very first soccer practice from 5-6. After that, I get home and make a quick dinner for the family before Chad heads to bed.

Tonight, we miss your concert.

And that’s ok. We know you’ll be back to Maine again. You have many fans here and two of your biggest will be at home making sure homework is done, library books are up to date, spelling words are memorized, showers are taken, ice cream is consumed, teeth are brushed and 3 children are tucked into bed.

Children come first with us, too.

So thank you for entertaining the thousands (and there will be thousands there) tonight with your wonderful music.  And the next time you sing your first #1 single, we hope you’ll think of a couple in Clinton, Maine, that follow you, your family and your music and wish you all the best.

Here’s To Being Here…in Maine.

Sincerely,

Sharon R. Hood

Time...and the Little We Have Left

Growing up, you think nothing of time. Where it’s gone, when it’s coming or that exact moment: it doesn’t even cross your mind.

When you get older, it starts to take shape in the form of yesterday, today and tomorrow. Deadlines, alarm clocks and scheduling are ways we manage the time we have.

When you get to a certain age it takes the form of baby, present age and old age.

Today I am dealing with old age.

Not MY old age. Heck, I’m 41 and I still feel 20 and, in some cases, am still mistaken for it. Must be in the genes. My mother who will be 73 this year is Italian and has virtually no wrinkles. That’s a part of her I take after: good skin that ages and tans well. I guess you can say the height, too, as I am only 4’11”. My grandmothers would say I get that from them, too. She’s also pretty crafty and is good with a needle and thread. Me too. Just thinking about these things makes me realize all the sorts of things we do alike.

What I take after my dad in is my love of numbers, music and the ability to make things. I remember having math contests with him trying to solve math problems in our heads and see who got the right answer first. We still do that. Dad could build anything. I’m pretty good with a hammer and nail. I aced woodshop in school. Working with my hands has always been fun for me. Music, well, he excelled at that, too.  He once took my face in his hands and said I had something he didn’t have and that was ‘IT”. You know, the “IT” that it takes to make it one day. I’ll never forget that day. One of the three days in my life I’ve seen my father cry.

What I don’t take after from my parents is a habit they have. They smoke. At least my mom still does. My dad quit about a month ago. He’ll be 80 this year and he stopped a month ago.

My dad quit just before a hospital scare. He was having a hard time breathing. He couldn’t catch his breath and had to visit the VA hospital where he spent a week. He actually stopped smoking a few days before that because he was having a hard time breathing then. Now he is home and using oxygen every night. He has an oxygen monitor for his finger he uses everyday just to check his level. It comforts him to see anything above 90.

I am watching my parents slowly deteriorate. They’re not that old: almost 73 and 80. For residents of Maine, a person living into their 70s and 80s is not an uncommon thing. They grew up here, worked the land and I still see some in their 90s working out in their gardens, tilling up their lands for the summer crops and hay season.

My parents, however, were born in Connecticut in the city and moved here 33 years ago. It’s a funny story, actually. My parents decided to move to Maine because we had relatives here. The way they said they would remember how to get to their new home everyday was to live off the same number exit they lived off of on I-95 in Connecticut and that was Exit 35. So there we lived. They were always hard workers. My dad worked for McLean Trucking and my mom was a housekeeper. I can still fold a fitted sheet like she taught me.  When they finished working for the week, the weekends were always filled with projects. Mom always said “You’re father doesn’t know how to slow down.”

We enjoyed life. I grew up and graduated from Lawrence High School with honors. I have had very few different jobs but they have all lasted a long time. I am now a medical biller for the Maine Veterans' Homes in Augusta. I love what I do. See where that love of numbers comes in?

My father’s recent hospital stay scared us. I know parents won’t be around forever but now time has become sacred. Each and every phone call, house visit, request they make is met with an “I’ll be right over” or an “I’ll get that done and stop by tomorrow with it,” and an “I love you.”

Time.

The hourglass is running out.

I did a little research and asked some doctors I knew about end stage emphysema and COPD. It’s funny. I never really knew how to spell emphysema until recently. They said that since my dad stopped smoking just recently, he could have up to 4 years of life remaining. Had he not stopped, it was more likely 2.

2 years.

2 years of having a parent still with you.

Now, it could be more or less than 2 years. You never know what the body will do or when the good Lord will call to take a person home. Heck, he could live until he’s 100. He's pretty feisty that way and I wouldn't put it past him.

You just never know.

But 2 years?

What do you do?

Well, if you’re like me, you jump each time the telephone rings and you see it’s from your parents. You wonder if they’re calling to say hello or need anything or you wonder if they are in trouble and need help. You also jump each time you see the phone ring from your siblings during the day. My siblings don’t call me so to see the phone light up with their numbers jumps me. You never know if they are contacting you for a chat or a problem with your parent’s health.

If you’re like me, you pray a little more. And the things you pray about are different. I usually pray for my family, help with troubles and ask for forgiveness if I think I haven’t done all that I could that day. Now, even though I pray for family, I have been praying and asking God specifically to, if He has to take either of them, to make it gentle. To have them not suffer too much. Or at all.

If you’re like me, you prepare. Preparing is a weird thing to do. How do you prepare for something like death? They’ve prepared everything.  My parents have all of their affairs in order from the caskets, headstones, funeral home and will. They have put my brother as the executor. He’s a good man and always does for our parents. He’s the only son and the best son and brother all of us could ask for. There’s nothing really for me to do.

But prepare.

I know you can never prepare yourself for the death of a loved one but I have been able to be at peace with it. I know and believe that the last breath they breathe here on Earth will be the first breath they take in Heaven. Some don’t believe in that and that’s their choice. It gives me comfort though.

I guess the preparing I have to do is go on living. Each and everyday. Do I dread the day it happens? Oh, yes. Am I prepared for it? Kind of. Am I ready? Not really. Will I ever be?


No.

And that’s okay.

Talking with my husband yesterday, I told him my concerns. I cried. There was really nothing for him to say. But his being there and letting me tell him I was worried and scared was the best thing he could do. You need that person to talk to, to listen to you. And in the moments he’s not around, God is always there. I know He hears me, too.

So now we wait.

And prepare.

And continue our lives.

And use our time a little more wisely.

 

Sharon's Mother's Day

 

 

It was a long time ago when my parents moved to Maine (1983). When we journeyed north from our home in Connecticut, we left behind some of my mom's favorite things: her best friend, Paula Sposili, our next door neighbor Mrs. Barris' garden and dogwood trees.

 

My mom LOVES flowers and I do, too. My favorite is the tulip. With my busy schedule it's hard to find time to grow anything....except kid appetites!

 

This Mother's Day, I wanted to do something....not for me but for my family. Fedco, up the road, has their annual Tree Sale right before Mother's Day. I had always wanted to go.

 

So I did!

 

And I did what my parents did a long time ago.

 

You see, when my brother and sisters started having children, my parents found a way to incorporate them in their everyday life.

 

They planted trees and named them after George, Katherine and Jennifer. The trees grew very tall and, unfortunately, aren't there at 33 Western Avenue in Fairfield anymore. When my parents moved, the new owners eventually cut them down. That was truly a sad day when my parents drove by and saw they weren't there anymore.

 

At their new house, they decided to do it again. A new George, Katherine and Jennifer grow tall in their backyard once again.

 

There are many trees surrounding our property that were planted before we moved here so finding a spot for new trees was kind of difficult. I decided to take a slightly different route.

 

For Jayden, I bought a butterfly bush and planted it, as it said, next to the house so it would have full sunlight. For when it blooms, it will still never be as beautiful as she has grown to be.

 

For Bradley and Anderson, I picked Silver Maples. On windy days, their leaves will shimmer in the sunlight. For them, I hope they will remember there is always a silver lining to every situation.

 

And for myself and Chad...Dawn Redwoods. These trees grow tall and straight and are pillars of strength which I hope we are to our children. They have large roots that stick out of the ground to remind them that their family "roots" for them and they can count on them to always show up when they need them.

 

I don't have the greenest thumbs and I hope all of these plants survive. At least I tried....and that's all you can do with children: Love them, give them plenty of fresh air and nutrition and nurture them until they can stand on their own.

Anderson Helps the Community

The last thing Anderson needed to complete to become a full fledged Wolf in Cub Scouts was to clean up a part of his neighborhood. Thankfully, the sun came out today and it was our chance to shine! It just so happens to be Earth Day and everything fell into place.

 

Our road is a dead end. There are 14 houses on it and not much traffic. We thought it would take us an hour to do the entire .7 miles. It didn't look that dirty when we rode in the car.

 

We were so wrong!

 

We filled 6 kitchen size trash can bags FULL of trash! We called Chad to pick up the bags as we went along and bring us more. It took us 2 whole hours to finished and, boy, were we tired!

There were 60 Budweiser glass bottles, Dunkin Donuts cups, Cumberland Farms cups, McDonald's bags and cups, Panera Bread boxes and plastic bags from every big chain grocery store.

 

It was sad. Anderson asked "Mama, why is there so much trash? I thought we loved the Earth."

 

All I could do is tell him the truth.

 

"Some people don't care about the Earth. That's why I'm glad there are people like you who do."

 

On our way down the road a few neighbors came out of their houses to thank Anderson for his good deed. He said he wants to clean our road every year.

 

The Boy/Cub Scouts of America is a wonderful organization that teaches children the importance of our world and taking care of our natural resources.

 

I am so thankful for the opportunity to help Anderson learn about the Earth and what it means to us and how to help it stay clean. Hopefully, this is a lesson he will keep with him for the rest of his life.

Who Needs Video Games? Not This Family!

In this day and age it's hard to get past all the technology out there. It's everywhere you go and kids know how to work it better than adults do. Phones with downloadable games like Candy Crush, SnapChat, Facebook...you name it, they have it. You see them glued to their phones or their iPods or, I've even seen it in church, their iPads.

 

Can you say Holy Cow? Yeah, I was a little shocked, too.

 

Xbox 360s & Playstations with shooting things, colorful screens, puppies and kitties, cars and trucks, robots and zombies, candies and clans....all designed to attract children of all ages.

 

Yes, we have a Wii system. We don't play it very much at all. Although, we have been known to play a mean basketball 3 point contest. We have even rid ourselves of television.

 

What? We can't watch live television anymore?

 

It's true! We canceled our Time Warner Cable and now only have Netflix, Google Chromecast and Youtube. We miss our favorite shows on the Discovery Channel but are able to watch them online. Gold Rush, The Curse of Oak Island, Down East Dickering, North Woods Law and shows like that we enjoy as a family.
 

As for video games....well, thankfully, we don't have the need for them. Our kids are interested in other things. They all play basketball, Anderson is in Cub Scouts and they ALL like to build things!

 

We play games as a family. We play outside on the four-wheelers as a family. In the Summer, we all target practice with bows and arrows and guns. Chad and I remember what it was like when WE were kids. That's why GAME TIME means SPORTS and BOARD GAMES!

 

You've never really experienced Yahtzee until you've played with Chad.

 

This past Christmas, my brother, Ray and his wife Nadine, gave Anderson and Brad Erector sets. My sister, Wendy, gave them activity kits that included making their own robots, machines and art. You know...old fashioned toys that make kids think. Their Aunt Audrey gave them a game called Ghost Castle which was hilarious to play (but a nightmare to put together!! LOL).We gave them kick balls and skateboards....toys for outside.

 

Not one toy received from us was a video game.

 

And they play and create everyday. Now they ASK for family game night and bring games downstairs to play!

 

The snow storm today they're calling Juno is the perfect time to play WITH your kids!

 

Get out the coloring books and crayons!

 

Get out the Lincoln Logs or Legos!

 

When was the last time you played Life or Sorry or Clue? And you have a house full of kids to play them with.

 

Don't let these games MEANT for families die! Remember how much fun they were when YOU were a kid? Spend time with YOUR KIDS and feel it all over again.

Anderson Misses Our Cat Beanie. What Can I Tell Him?

 

What do you tell him?

Last night I was wondering why it was taking Anderson so long to get his pajamas on. When I called to him he finally came downstairs and gave me a huge hug. That’s not unusual at our house, thank goodness. I told him he looked taller and that we should measure him. When I brought him into the lighted doorway where we measure all the kids I noticed his face was splotchy. I asked him if he felt ok and he said he had been crying. I said let’s measure you first and then we’ll talk about it.

He grew a quarter of an inch! That made him feel a little better!

When I walked him back to the kitchen I asked what was making him cry. He said it was Beanie.

Our cat Beanie had to be put down a few weeks ago. Anderson had the opportunity to give her hugs and kisses a few days before when I brought him to his dads for the weekend. I told him that Sunday that Beanie had gone to Heaven.  He was sad but he said he still had his stuffed ‘Beanie’ that he made at the Benton Family Fun Park a few years ago at Teddy Mountain. There were no tears just a nod of understanding then.

Now, two weeks later, the tears started to flow. I asked him what upset him so much and he said that he missed her.  He looked up at me with his big brown eyes and looked to me for an answer.  

What do you say? I missed her, too.

I told him the only thing I could. And this is what I said:

 "I miss her, too, honey. But she is no longer in pain. Remember when I told you that when we die we go to Heaven? Well, when we get to Heaven, we are no longer in pain. We are happy and perfectly healthy. You know how Beanie was so skinny and she had a hard time lying down? Now she has more weight and no pain in her whole body. She is perfect. She is chasing butterflies and rolling in the grass and taking naps in the sunshine outside. And she is up there with Brad’s hamster (He passed away Saturday of natural causes)! This way the hamster won’t be alone.

 We all miss her but the most wonderful thing is we always have her in our hearts. And we can think about her anytime we want! And you have your stuffed ‘Beanie’ that you can hug anytime you feel you want to hug her. When we die, which will be a long time from now, we will see her again. Right now she is looking down at us from Heaven saying “Aw, they miss me. I miss them, too. But now I can look after them and help them if they need it.”

 We will always love Beanie. It’s okay to cry. Just remember, she is happy and with God and lots of other cats and dogs playing in Heaven. We can still say goodnight to her in our prayers…and she will hear them."

That made him feel much better. I took him upstairs to my closet where I keep my old photo albums. I found a picture of her and we put it on his wall. He said “This way I can see her every day!”

Death is a tough subject to talk about with kids. Whether it is a pet, a relative, a friend or even someone in the news, you just have to be honest with them. Kids aren’t stupid. They figure things out pretty well.  Tell them it’s okay to cry. It’s a natural thing to do. Always remember they are gone but not forgotten.

So, give your dog extra scratches on its belly, your cat an extra pet (before it turns on you at the drop of a hat to say ok...that’s enough!) and even your hamster a few extra minutes in the little car it can roll around on the floor in before you put it back in its cage. You never know when they might have to leave us. They love us just as much as we love them. And we will see them again.