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Money and Holidays: Remembering the Reason for the Season

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Money and holidays - remembering the reason for the season

Money and holidays. These two things are enough to stress most people out. However, instead of biting your nails and worrying about having all the biggest, best gifts under the tree, take some time to reflect on the real reason for the season. Your mind (and your wallet) will thank you.

Here are some ways I’m being more present and spending less this holiday season.

DIY Holiday Gifts

Every year, I make some kind of Christmas gift. One year, everyone got a homemade crocheted scarf, the next everyone got handmade socks, or their favorite Christmas cookies in a tin.

This year, I’ll be making several gifts for my little one’s grandparents. Overall, nine gifts across all the grandparents will only cost me about $100. That’s just over $10 per person – not bad! More than the financial aspect though is that I will spend time with my little one, friends, and family while creating these crafts.

Video Calls

During the pandemic, most people were interacting with their loved ones via video call. This is still a possibility and necessary for those of us who don’t live close to all of our family members. Set up a few dates throughout the holiday season to sit down and video chat with folks who live farther away. Spending time catching up can be an amazing gift for both parties and help you reconnect – that’s one of the biggest joys of the holidays for me.

Throw a Party

It is easy to get lost in the hustle and bustle of the holidays. Don’t forget that the season is meant to be spent with the ones you love. Throw a potluck get-together to keep cost low and enjoy yourself. You’ll get to see everyone near-and-dear to your heart without the pressure of swapping gifts.

Gift Swaps

Speaking of swapping gifts, we have plans to go to a gift swap this year with other families who have babies. While I have not been a fan of swaps in recent years, I love the idea of it. You get to enjoy the feeling of giving a gift without the pressure of buying a gift for everyone. There is no guilt over how much you spent, nor is there guilt over buying every single person a present.

Money and Holidays: Reflection

These are just three things I’m doing to step out of the mall and into the season this year. There are plenty of things you can do to improve your outlook around money and holidays too. For example, you might schedule a time for your family to be at the local soup kitchen, volunteer your time, or adopt a family in need.

The point is that you don’t have to go bankrupt to have a beautiful holiday. In fact, some of the most memorable moments will be those that you didn’t spend a dime on.

Try to step outside your own expectations and remember the real reason for the season. Happy holidays!

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How Inflation Will Impact Our Holiday Plans

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How inflation is impacting the holidays

Inflation is hitting everybody hard this year. Prices are through the roof. In fact, the price of turkey alone has gone up 23% in the last year. Eggs? 35%. So, getting together for large meals with all the traditional foods may be a bit more difficult this year. Here is how it will impact our holiday plans.

Inflation: A Look At The Numbers

While many government officials have been hesitant to use words like “recession” and “inflation” when speaking about the United States economy, everyone is feeling it.

@districtmediafinance Thanksgiving dinner is looking a lot more expensive this year. #greensbeanspotatoestomatoes #thanksgiving #savingmoney ♬ GREENS BEANS POTATOES – DJ Suede the Remix God

Though the upbeat song in the video above makes you feel a little less anxious about it, the rise in cost of everyday essentials is crippling some families in the U.S. When it comes to celebrating the holidays this year, things are looking very different. People are swapping out their big turkey dinners for something a little cheaper. In some cases, they may choose to skip the big gathering altogether.

Here is how inflation is impacting our holiday plans.

How Inflation Is Impacting Us

This year, we aren’t going to be doing any extensive travel around the holidays. That is the biggest change that will be happening. However, we are also making some changes to our typical menu for Christmas.

Our family typically does a turkey and a ham on Christmas. This year, I am hosting the holiday gathering at my house. We are likely going to only do one main course protein. Sides and other items will be decreased this year as well. After all, it is only one meal. How much do you spend on your weekly dinners?

Tips For Your Family To Beat Inflation

As mentioned in a previous blog post, household debt is at an all-time high in the U.S. For people like us trying to avoid racking up credit card and loan debt, this is simply not an option. How do you still enjoy the season without breaking the bank?

  1. Change the menu. While turkey and ham are the traditional main course items during the holidays, consider changing it up to save money. Swap your turkey for roasted chicken or your ham for a pork loin.
  2. Downsize your celebration. A lot of people get hung up on doing these huge, elaborate celebrations. Downsize things a bit to help you stick to your budget this year.
  3. Find joy in the simple things. The best thing you can do to beat inflation is to find joy in the simple things. A Christmas movie night in your home or driving around to see the lights will provide memorable moments too.
  4. Check out local events. Churches and other organizations in the community may be providing free dinners or items for your holiday meals.
  5. Get help where you can. Whether it is checking the local food bank or asking everyone to bring a dish, it’s okay not to do it all yourself!

How is your family dealing with inflation around the holidays this year? Let me know your tips and tricks in the comments.

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6 Awesome Money Habits to Teach Your Kids

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Saving money might seem difficult for children, but it can actually be easy given you follow a couple of tips. Below are some of the best ways to help your children form awesome money habits. Using these tips can help set your children up for success in the future.

1. Instill the Habit of Saving at a Young Age

The earlier you start teaching your children about money, the better. It’s never too early to start a conversation about finances with your kids. You can begin by simply explaining what money is and how it’s used. As they get older, you can start to instill the habit of saving.

One way to do this is to set up a piggy bank or savings account that they can contribute to. Every time they receive money, whether it’s from an allowance or gifts, encourage them to put some of it into their savings. Help them to set goals for what they want to save up for and praise them when they reach their targets.

2. Encourage Them to Spend Wisely

Teach your children the difference between needs and wants. Needs are things that we must have in order to survive, like food and shelter. Wants are things that we would like to have but don’t necessarily need.

Help them to understand that we can’t always have everything we want and that it’s important to spend money wisely. One way to do this is to give them a set amount of “fun money” to spend each week. Once it’s gone, they can’t spend any more until the following week. This will help them to budget and understand the difference between spending money and saving money.

3. Teach Them About Giving

Giving is an important money habit to teach your children. Not only is it good for others but it can also benefit your children in the long run.

When your children receive money, encourage them to set aside a portion to give to charity. Many websites can help your child give donations online. Giving donations will help them to develop a habit of giving and also show them the importance of helping others.

4. Help Them Understand Debt

Debt is something that many adults struggle with, so it’s important to teach your children about it from a young age. One way to do this is to explain the difference between good debt and bad debt. Good debt is something that we take on in order to improve our lives, like taking out a loan for a house or an education. Bad debt is something that we spend money on that doesn’t increase our net worth, like credit card debt.

5. Create Ways to Earn Money

You can create a chore chart with different earnings attached. You can design your own with your kids or you can find a downloadable chore chart online. With 1.8 billion websites operating at the same time every day, you can find downloadables on sites like Etsy, Pinterest, and more.

Another way to earn money is through an allowance. You can give your kids a set amount of money each week for completing their chores. This is a great way to teach them about budgeting and saving.

6. Teach Your Child How to Budget

One way to help your child budget is by giving them a set amount of money each week for spending. This could be their allowance or money they’ve earned from completing chores. Once the money is gone, they can’t spend any more until the following week. This will help them understand the importance of budgeting and not spending all of their money at once.

Teaching your children about money is one of the most important things you can do. By instilling good money habits, you’ll set them up for success in their future, save them from financial stress, and help them to make smart decisions with their money.

An Honest Blue Apron Family Plan Review: Is It Worth It?

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Blue Apron Family Plan Review

If you are active on social media, are a foodie, or just love convenience, you may have heard of Blue Apron. It is classified as a meal delivery service that allows you to make gourmet meals from home. It’s even supposed to be great for families! Well, my family tried the meal service, and I’ve pulled together my thoughts for a Blue Apron family plan review.

Is Blue Apron Worth It?

It’s important to remember that this is a Blue Apron family plan review. If you plan on ordering the two-person or four-person menu, your views on the meal service may differ. There are different (and in some cases better) options, you may have more leftovers, etc. With that being said, let’s get into it!

Blue Apron family plan review

Pro: It Is Convenient

As an introvert, I love convenience whenever I can get it. Blue Apron was delivered right to my doorstep, and everything was already measured and ready for me to use it when I was ready. Plus, I didn’t have to worry about my food overheating because it was packed with two ice packs to keep it nice and cool. I loved that I didn’t have to go out to be able to prepare healthy, delicious meals for me and the hubby. 

Pro: Relatively Easy To Cook

If you aren’t much of a cook, my Blue Apron family plan review may not be a big help for you. I love cooking, so the meals from Blue Apron were fairly easy to make for me. However, if you can easily burn water, you may need to order Blue Apron a few times before you get the hang of things.

They do offer recipe cards, but mistakes can still happen. Overall, I think Blue Apron does a great job and showing you the process of making the meals they send you.

Pro: Options For Meat Eaters

Are you or your family meat eaters? Then you will love Blue Apron’s family plan.

Our box included recipes for Chipotle-Glazed Meatloaf with Crispy Potatoes, Moroccan Chicken with Prunes & Brown Rice, and Spicy Shrimp Coconut Curry with Green Cabbage & Rice. All three dishes had different meats, so it was hard to get bored, like you get when you eat chicken three or four days in a row.

Pro: Gourmet Food Without Going Out

Grabbing a fancy dinner sounds less appealing when you can get a virtually the same thing delivered to your door. This is something my family, especially my husband, enjoyed. Not only did it get us all into the kitchen, but we were able to create what we felt were beautiful masterpieces. So if you are looking to have a special dinner with your family, the Blue Apron family plan could be a good choice. 

Pro: Customer Service

My personal Blue Apron family plan review wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t add this pro. The customer service at Blue Apron is amazing! Our order was late when FedEx couldn’t find our home. Instead of saying “Not our problem.” Blue Apron apologized and guaranteed our food and satisfaction or they would make it up to us!

I didn’t even really mind if the order was a little late, but it was nice to know that Blue Apron cared enough to reach out to me and take responsibility for something that wasn’t their fault.

Downfalls of Blue Apron

Now that I’ve given you the pros for my Blue Apron family plan review, let’s take a look at the cons.

Con: Too Much Packaging

This may not be a con for some, but I didn’t like how much packaging came with all of the food. Although I understand that Blue Apron has to keep items like eggs safe, it was a disappointment to see so much plastic. I tend to buy almost all of my grocery items using reusable bags and jars, so of course my opinion may differ from yours.

Con: Food Can Be Bland

My family loves spice. We love our food well seasoned, so we choose our meals based on what sounded spicy or super flavorful. To our surprise, two of our three dishes were bland. Even I had to add quite a bit of salt to up the flavor of my dishes, which I normally don’t salt my food at all. For food that looked so tasty, I definitely expected more flavor.

Con: Portions Are Too Small

As with the other pros and cons for my Blue Apron family plan review, your opinion may differ from mine. For my family, I thought the portions were incredibly small for what Blue Apron was charging per meal ($9.50/person). When I first started unboxing our items, I thought the portions wouldn’t be enough, and I was right. My husband was usually hungry after each meal. Even I found myself grazing on food from the fridge after eating our dinner.

Con: Expensive

This brings me to my next con for my Blue Apron family plan review. While I love the convenience of delivery, I don’t like that for around $9.50/person I only get a small serving of food that I have to make myself. If your family normally spends an exorbitant amount on groceries every week, Blue Apron may save you money, but for us, it would cost more in the long run.  For a family of four, one of these meals would cost about $40 total. That’s just one meal! Because I love saving money, and don’t want to spend a small fortune on food, this is one of the biggest cons that I had about Blue Apron. 

So there you have it, my Blue Apron family plan review. Overall, I don’t think I would use Blue Apron again, but I do think they have quite a few perks that may appeal to others. If you want to invite me over for dinner though, I won’t object!

Try out the Blue Apron family plan for yourself. You can use our link to save money on your first order!

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Photos courtesy of Kim Studdard.

Financial Lessons That I Hope to Teach My Daughter

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financial lessons

This year is my first year celebrating Mother’s Day as a mom. My eight-month-old baby girl amazes me every single day. As she gets older, I keep thinking about the things I’d really like to teach her, especially where money is concerned.

Financial Lessons My Mom Taught Me

When I think about the things I’d like to teach my daughter I always think about all the things my mom taught me that I carry through my life. One of the biggest lessons I learned from her regarding finances is that there is always more money to be made. Mom hustled a lot while I was growing up. She’s always worked a full-time job and played in multiple orchestras as a violinist. It meant she was gone a bit from October through May, but she made things happen.

I also learned that managing your finances is difficult. As a kid, I was aware of our money struggles. I watched my mom sell a number of her prized possessions so that we could pay our mortgage. We had cars repossessed (my parents would park it in the road and go get another before it hit their credit). Eventually, we lost our home too. At the end of it all though, we were alright. We made things work, we survived.

In our home now, until recently, we were still living paycheck to paycheck. Still, a very small upheaval could cause a big problem in our lives financially. While my mom taught me that money isn’t the end-all-be-all, I entered adulthood still lacking some basic personal finance skills.

What I’d Like to Teach My Daughter

Similar to how my mom taught me that there’s always more money, I’d like to instill in my daughter that money truly isn’t everything. While it is a necessity in the world, it shouldn’t be what you center your life around. Make money, manage it wisely, and life your live to the fullest.

At the same time, I’d like to teach her some of the things I’d wish I’d known. For example, I would like to help her understand budgeting. I’d also like to help her understand loans, interest rates, education and debt. I took on a lot of debt as a young adult that I would’ve probably avoided if I had some additional guidance. As I’ve mentioned here on the blog before, I’d like to be able to set up a savings account for her education and set her up for success.

That said, my mom did such a good job. I was aware of our finances and knew that money was an aspect of life, something most kids aren’t able to wrap their brains around.

Closing Thoughts

Moms are special people. If you are a mom celebrating Mother’s Day this weekend, remember that you are making a huge impact on the world. Everything you’re doing is making a lasting impact on your kids. Most of all, you’re doing a good job.

Happy Mother’s Day!

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5 Budget-Friendly Spring Activities for Your Kids

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Spring is finally here, and if you are a parent, then chances are you are looking for ways to keep your kids entertained through the rainy months. It can be easy to want to turn on the TV for the entirety of a rainstorm simply to keep your kids occupied, but there are many better ways to keep your children mentally engaged, even when the weather is so unpredictable. In this blog post, we will talk about some excellent budget-friendly ideas to keep your kids active and creative this spring.

1. Growing Your Own Plants

When it comes to planting a tiny herb garden or a flower bed, spring is the perfect season to start. Schedule a trip to the garden store for your kids to pick out their own flower or vegetable seeds to plant. Be sure to make a point to have them check on their plants every day, watering and caring for them as needed. You can even have them take a photo of their plant every day to make a photo montage when it is fully grown. Growing a personal plant is sure to become a wholesome yearly tradition, and only costs the tiny amount you spent on the seeds.

2. Geocaching

The free “Geocache” app for smartphones is an excellent way to make good use of the sunnier days that spring brings. “Geocaches” are small capsules that people leave in certain hiking spots for people to find and sign, like a game of outdoor hide-and-seek. Though some of these may be higher up and made for adults to find, the app makes it easy to filter and locate all of the geocaches close to you that are geared towards children.

3. Rock Hide-and-Seek

If your kids love geocaching, then they will love rock hide-and-seek. Collect some rocks from a local riverbed or pond, and let your kids paint them however they want. If you want to get extra creative, pick up some glow-in-the-dark paint as well. Once they are dried, you can play rock hide-and-seek inside or outdoors, depending on the weather.

4. Creative Video Games

Video games are becoming a popular pastime for children of all ages. While it can be easy to assume that video games are just like television, several engaging video games focus on building and creativity. Minecraft offers kids an entire world of their own to explore and build, offering endless playability for years to come. Certain “seeds” can help determine the Minecraft world that you generate, but they are mostly random. This game is also a cheaper alternative to other age-particular games that your child may grow out of, and can keep their creativity growing for years to come.

5. Using Your Crafting Leftovers

Once your child’s little chunk of video game time is up, you can keep the building motive going with a crafting closet party. Instead of throwing out all your old art supplies, allow your child to make whatever they want out of them. Sculpture-making is a great boredom-buster for rainy days, especially for kids who are bigs fans of Lego or Minecraft.

Clearly, there are tons of ways to keep your kids mentally active this spring. Whether they prefer creativity of the digital variety, or physically exploring the outside world. The world is theirs for the taking, so get out all your crafting supplies and get started!

Our Third Wedding Anniversary: Reflections

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March 18, 2019 was the day my husband and I got married. As you know, it has been a wild ride. We got married and, two days later, moved to Atlanta (a place we’d only visited once). We were adventurers. Both of us would jump at the opportunity to experience something new. Three years later, everything and nothing has changed.

We still jump at the opportunity to experience new things, but we do some research and make sure it is in the budget. There is also nothing in the world that would make us want to live in a big city again. Love to everyone in Atlanta, but we didn’t have a good time there. Maybe it was bad timing (COVID-19 and all), but our experience there turned us off of living in the city altogether.

Our relationship over the last year has only gotten stronger. At this time last year, I was pregnant and we were eagerly waiting to find out the gender. Neither of us were surprised with the ultrasound tech told us we were expecting a baby girl.

I got to see my husband, who was already my best friend, become a dad. It looks good on him! He also kickstarted a new career where I know he will do amazing things. We nourished each other’s hobbies and helped each other grow. “And like the Grinch” my heart has grown at least three sizes this year to shower our little family in love each day.

anniversary reflections

Financially, we are so much better off than we were three years ago and even more so than when we first moved in together six years ago. During our relationship, we have been homeless living in a motel, a great apartment we loved, a run-down temporary house, crowded in a 450 sq. ft. condo with bed bugs, and now in our little three-bedroom rental. We’ve been through it all.

The biggest thing we both need to get adjusted to is being able to live rather than just survive. There have been a lot of really intense situations we’ve dealt with over the last few years. Motel living, bed bugs at Christmas, moving back to North Carolina to discover I was pregnant one month later. Right now, I’d love for us to be able to sit back and really enjoy this moment in our lives instead of constantly wondering how we will pay for rent or what if XYZ happens? I want to live rather than just survive.

All in all, we have had a great anniversary. We got a few kid-free hours, ate great food, visited the bookstore, and got to do a puzzle. Of course, we got plenty of time with our little one too. Cheers to three years and a lifetime ahead of us. I can’t wait to see where it takes us.

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Birthday Reflections: How Last Year Changed the Way I Look at Life

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birthday reflections

January 29 is my birthday. Every year, I take a moment to reflect on the previous year, how I grew, changes that happened, and so on. This year’s birthday reflections left me feeling thankful and glad for the life I have.

Why I Reflect Every Year

Many people take the time to reflect at the end of the year and the beginning of the next. While I do love to reflect around January 1 like everyone else, reflecting around my birthday has always been important to me. Every year, the number associated with how long I’ve been on this planet goes up. People often associate your age with certain milestones. Next year, the year I turn 30, is a big one for many people. You’re “supposed” to have met so many milestones by the age of 30. It’s easy to feel like you’re falling behind peers your age.

That is one of the biggest reasons I sit down and reflect every year: not to compare myself to others but to compare myself to who I was last year. It gives me a version of myself to say, “Wow, I’ve come a long way.” My 28th year of life was kind of crazy, but in the most special way. I grew closer to my husband, we grew in our careers, and we welcomed our daughter into the world. It was truly an amazing year, but how have I personally changed?

My Birthday Reflections: Year 28

This year was definitely one to remember. Now granted, I spent most of the year pregnant and preparing for the birth of my child. However, that experience and other things I went through last year have completely changed who I am fundamentally as a person. I grew in more ways than one. Last year, I started practicing yoga, which has become an important part of my life. I did a lot of things that made me uncomfortable to improve myself as a person (including taking new classes, meeting new people, and going to the doctor more).

Financially, I’m nowhere near where I’d like to be, but our finances grew in 2021. We were able to save, set up everything for the arrival of our baby, and spend a solid eight weeks with her after she was born without having to work. That was fantastic. Honestly, money has become less important to us as a whole. Spending time together is where we’ve been focusing our efforts.

The biggest change for me this year was the idea of family was altered in a huge way. I’ve always had a large family (my dad is one of nine children). There have always been aunts, uncles, cousins, out there somewhere. The family I’m talking about is a bit different though. Leading up to my 29th birthday, I learned a new sense of family. My husband, daughter, and I have such an amazing, close-knit support system. Seeing how these individuals rallied around me, around us, last year was amazing. Twenty-nine is starting out to be an interesting year already. Change is in the air and I’m excited to see what the next year brings.

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Should We Trade In Our Car?

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trade in

Around the new year people tend to set financial resolutions and plans for the next 12 months. The beginning of the year is also a good time to get a decent price on a used car. As you know, our little family grew by one last year with the addition of our daughter, Dahlia. Before now, we’ve driven a 2015 Volkswagen Golf GTI. However, fitting the car seat in the backseat isn’t the easiest thing to get done. So, we have been going through the pros and cons to try to decide whether or not we want to trade in our vehicle.

A Little Nostalgia

My husband absolutely loves cars. It is something he’s always been passionate about. One of his lifelong goals was to become an automotive journalism, which he accomplished last year. That being said, there is a little nostalgia attached to the cars we’ve had together.

Before we transitioned into being a one-car family, my husband drove around in a tiny 1999 Mazda Miata. We took a lot of adventures in that car. Eventually, Drew wanted to take it to race at the track. Unfortunately, that never ended up happening. We sold the Miata during the pandemic and still miss it dearly. It was such a fun car with so many memories attached to it.

The Golf is no different. For one, it is the first thing Drew and I truly purchased together. We named the car Gerry and we’ve used it as our primary driver now for three years. There have been road trips, it was the car we brought our daughter home in, the car we packed up and moved states away in. So, even though it is a pain to get the car seat into, part of me wants to hold on to Gerry just a little longer.

Will We Make a Trade In?

While we were initially mulling around the idea of trading in our car for something that would lower our monthly payment, we probably won’t be making a trade in unless we find a crazy good deal. The car seat dilemma is a temporary one. When we go on road trips, we can purchase a roof rack instead of buying another car. Ideally, we will pay the Golf off over the next two years or so and then pay for the next car in cash, keeping the Golf as a beater until it dies.

The only way a trade in would make sense for our family right now is if we found something that would give us lower payments with more space. With cars and real estate, that perfect mix of cheap but spacious is hard to find. Will family road trips in our little Golf be difficult? Yes. Will I also probably bump my head every time I put the car seat in the back? Also yes. At the end of the day, we have to keep our eyes set on what will be best for our family financially.

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A Look At The Labor and Delivery Bill From When I Gave Birth

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Labor and delivery bill

Bills are still trickling in from when I gave birth last August. Our little one entered the world on August 31 and, surprisingly, I wasn’t hit with a mound of medical bills immediately. In fact, nothing started coming in the mail until late November regarding my labor and delivery bill. Here’s a look at what the out-of-pocket cost will be for our family.

The Cost of Having a Baby

While I was pregnant, I researched the cost of having a baby and posted about it here on the blog. For a lot of people, it is shocking when the labor and delivery bill arrives and it is five figures. The average amount most women pay to give birth in a hospital is around $40,000. That’s if everything goes perfectly. Additional drugs or other medical intervention will cost more. For instance, I was induced and required medication for induction. This meant my pharmacy cost while in the hospital was higher than average, but we will look at a break down of the bill below.

There are plenty of other costs to giving birth in a hospital. Many people don’t consider what they’ll eat while they are there (and trust me, hospital food isn’t it). In fact, during COVID, some of the hospital’s services, such as food delivery, aren’t completely available. On top of that, you may be in the hospital longer than you think. My stay started Monday afternoon and we didn’t leave until Thursday morning. Some hospitals may charge parking during that period of time. Be sure you are prepared for that.

Some of these unexpected costs may throw people for a loop, but what really shocks most couples is when the labor and delivery bill arrives.

The Labor and Delivery Bill

The dates I was in the hospital were August 30 through September 2. When the bill came from the medical center where I gave birth the total came to $26,250.40. Thankfully, my insurance is covering $23,548.85 of that. However, that still leaves me footing $2,701.60 of the bill. Here’s a break down…

Labor and delivery bill

  • Labor Room/Delivery: $17,630
  • Room and Board Private (one bed): $4,416
  • Pharmacy: $1,772.45
  • Anesthesia: $908
  • Special Charges: $243
  • Laboratory: $1,281

As mentioned above, I had to stay in the hospital a little longer than most mothers when they give labor. So, my room and board and paying for the labor room is a little higher than average. My pharmacy and laboratory costs are a little more expensive too. I went into the hospital because I was having trouble regulating my blood pressure. So, some additional medication was needed. Many people may pipe up and say we could’ve saved money by sharing a room too. During COVID that simply isn’t an option though, and you still have to pay the private room fees.

I honestly chuckled when I saw the bill. The most important part of labor/delivery was the anesthesiologist (that epidural saved me), but it is one of the cheapest item lines on the bill. The room, which is the most expensive part of the entire ordeal, was uncomfortable and the food was poor. At the end of it all though, we got our sweet little Chicken Nugget (her official nickname). She makes the labor and delivery bill irrelevant.

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