whatever wednesday {9.9}

Here are some cool things that have made me happy lately...

• Kindle on iPhone: One of my favorite money-saving sites (Common Sense with Money) shared that Amazon had free Kindle books. I've always thought Kindle was kind of a cool concept, but I didn't like the idea of the expensive gadget and felt I could never give up real books entirely (making it hard to justify the expense of said gadget). So...this post also happens to mention that you can download a Kindle app for iPhone. I'm so tickled. So, I now have the FREE app and can read Kindle books on my iPhone! And I downloaded six free books. Granted they aren't necessarily ones I'd run out and buy, but like I said...they are FREE. I like the idea because it's an easy way to always have a book with you (particularly handy while travelling).

• Retail Me Not: The above-mentioned website also shared this site: Retail Me Not. Basically, you should NEVER place an online order without checking here first. They have coupon codes and things of that sort for all sorts of online retailers. I have already used it several times - sometimes I've found things that work, other times not. But it's worth the extra 60 seconds to check. I just saved an additional $5 at Target a few minutes ago.

• Target: Speaking of Target - a friend let me know that they were having a big baby sale online. If you buy 3 of select items (there are lots of options, not just a few things), you get 20% off. Plus, free shipping on orders over $50. Then I found the additional $5 coupon code. So, I just ordered 3 packs of diapers (72 ct each) and a t-shirt and pair of shorts (Red Sox) for Spencer...all for a whopping $43. Can't beat that with a stick. I think the sale goes through the 13th.

• Ella Publishing: This is a cute new scrapbooking website. They are a "publishing" company of digital books. They all seem to run about $5-6 each, which is pretty cool. I haven't bought one yet, but I'm sure I will at some point. If nothing else, I'd recommend browsing the site (there are a few freebies) and signing up for their free newsletter. I just got the first one and it was quite enjoyable.

• Lose It: Several years ago, I lose about 15 pounds just by counting calories. It was slow (a pound a week) and I did not exercise (yes, I know this is bad), but it worked. To aid me in my quest, I used a handy website called FitDay. I honestly couldn't have done it without this easy way of tracking calories. Well....obviously, I've got some baby weight to lose and I've been procrastinating doing anything about it. I was recently flipping through one of the many free baby/parenting magazines that shows up at my house and an article mentioned an iPhone app called Lose It. I downloaded it (it was free!) and it's AWESOME!!! It is just like FitDay but even easier to use AND it's on my phone which means I can enter foods anywhere and everywhere without having to be in front of my computer. So, as of yesterday, I'm officially counting calories. I went over my calorie budget by 102 yesterday, but I still think that's pretty good for the first day :) My main issue was the sausage biscuit from Mickey D's.