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Archive for December, 2011

Another Lovely Christmas

December 26th, 2011 at 09:25 pm

We were blessed enough to have another lovely Christmas here in our home with family.

I hope all of you had a blessed holiday also.

Not much drama from the in-laws. Or my family either. Smile

DH and FIL tiled the shower. It looks AWESOME! Pictures to follow.

I made out with plenty of really nice/useful gifts. Everyone seemed very satisfied with their "haul". DS still has a few gifts he hasn't opened yet. He opens a gift and then wants to play with it right then. So it's taking a little more time to get thru his stack.

The food has been amazing all this weekend. I am sure I've put a few pounds on. Wink
DH handled most of the cooking.
Christmas dinner last night was sooo delish. Prime rib, ham, mashed potatoes, green beans, fruit salad, dinner rolls, deviled eggs..

Okay, now I'm hungry. Gotta go eat some leftovers!
Big Grin

Busy Weekend

December 19th, 2011 at 12:36 am

We've been busy bees here. Trying to make up the lost days we had from being sick.

We went to Costco first thing yesterday morning and I picked up our Christmas cards. $15 for 50 photo cards and envelopes. They turned out very cute. Smile

We stopped at Home Depot and bought all the tile for me and DH's bathroom.

Getting the bathroom tiled was on my Christmas wish list.

DH is planning to start working on it on the 23rd with his dad. At first I thought that might be kind of crazy, but I'll be at work all day so what do I care. Wink

The total for the tile and materials was less than what I expected. Then we had a $75 gift card and MIL chipped in $200 (Christmas gift). Making the out-of-pocket cost for us $188. Smile

I hope it turns out as well as I picture it in my head.

When we got back home a did all the Christmas cards then took them to the post office and mailed them out. I had planned to this on Thursday, but was sick that day. Oh well, I think everyone will still get their card before Christmas.

Mailed 27 and have about 10 that we will pass out personally.

Getting the photo cards made up with the personalized message makes doing cards very easy. I address the envelope and stuff in the card. Stamp the return address. Stamp with postage. Easy. Smile

I like getting Christmas cards.

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Today we've been cleaning, catching up on laundry and putting to final touches on the decorations.

I need to wrap gifts tonight. DH has wrapped several, but I haven't wrapped a single one - yet...

24 hour Stomach Bug :(

December 16th, 2011 at 08:50 pm

Not to be graphic...

We all ended up with DD's "stomach bug". Blah!

Little DS threw up right after I picked him from childcare Wednesday night.
It's heartbreaking to see a toddler wretching. Frown
Thankfully, he seemed to recover the quickest. Only a few hours of the "bug" and then he had a full night's sleep. Smile

I was sick from midnight until about 7am Thursday.

DH stayed home from work with me yesterday. He was having some milder symptoms and thought it would be best to stay home and rest. Maybe not get as sick as the rest of us. Well, early this morning the "bug" hit him hard so he is home again today. Poor guy!

It really sucked because you feel so bad that nothing gets done even though you're home all day. I feel like I've lost two days worth of time. I needed to get things done.

On the bright side - I am very thankful that we did not get this over Christmas. That would have been WAY worse.

Christmas Preparations - Continued

December 13th, 2011 at 09:59 pm

The 49ers lost their game on Sunday by two points. Blah!

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Our tree looks wonderful! DD picked it out this year and it's the tallest one I think we've ever had. I put the tape measure on it and it was 7.5 feet. Very full and dark green. Two out of three strings of tree lights were dead this year. Angry
(They were working just fine when I packed them away last year. I hate that!)
Made a run to the hardware store for some new sets. About $36 for three 50' sets.

DH hasn't had any time (daylight time) to put lights up on the house yet. We also have an inflatable Santa, bought on clearance, that we are going to put in the yard this year. He did put our green bulb in the light post light so we've got a bit (wee bit!) of festive color out there.

I really love when we get the decorations up. Things look so merry and colorful. I have always enjoyed decorating for Christmas.

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Had a 20% off coupon for Kohl's. It ended on Sunday so when I bought lights I stopped in there and did a quick look around. When I didn't find anything worth standing in line for I gave my coupon to a lady with a cart load of stuff. Merry Christmas! Big Grin

Yesterday I got another 20% off coupon in the mail. Smile

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My order from Amazon is trickling in a few boxes at a time. I ordered eight items and I think only four of them are being shipped together. I ordered last Tuesday. $112 total. Gifts for multiple people. DD's boots, DS's fire truck board book, calendar for co-worker, etc...

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Getting set to order my Christmas cards. I use Costco and plug in pictures of the kids and dogs. $14.95 for 50 cards/envelopes. Going to try to finalize the card online tonight so I can pick them up Thursday or Friday. I want to have them all mailed off by Saturday 17th.

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Poor DD is home sick today. Vomiting last night. Frown
She has her class Christmas play tonight. We are all hoping she will feel up to that.
And, we are all hoping we don't get what she has!

Christmas Preparations

December 11th, 2011 at 11:02 pm

We bought our tree this morning at Home Depot. $43.

Once the 49er game is over (currently half-time) DH is going to pull out the Christmas totes from the garage loft and we'll decorate our tree. Big Grin

DH had a side job this morning and while he was gone I hosed down the front of the garage and house. Now the house is ready for DH to hang the outdoor lights. Which might happen this afternoon...
*fingers crossed*.

Cashing Out the CC Rewards

December 8th, 2011 at 11:28 pm

I cashed out my rewards from the two new cards.
Chase - $157
B of A - $122.
Add that to the $250 from my other card last month and that is $529 in the last 30 days. Smile

Fifth Grader with an iPhone. *Rant*

December 8th, 2011 at 10:05 pm

I drove DD to and from a field trip today. While everyone was eating lunch on the field trip I noticed one of the girls had an iPhone. She had it out just looking at it and wiping off the screen, kind of flashing it around. REALLY?! A fifth grader, a 10 year-old, with an iPhone?

I guess a case of more money than brains?

I was standing and talking to another mom and she knows the girl pretty well and she said the girl's dad would buy her anything she asked for. Rolleyes

Can't imagine raising my kids that way regardless of income.

I can see getting a child a cell phone for safety reasons. But, there are plenty of plain vanilla phones that call and text. What's wrong with that?

Speaking of safety - What if someone saw that phone and wanted to steal it? I mean what could be easier than to rob a 60lb 10 year-old?

EF Status

December 7th, 2011 at 04:50 am

The 49ers won on Sunday. Yay!
Added $10 to the EF.
New balance $2126.

I am not going to make my $5k EF goal this year. *sigh* I'm slightly disappointed, but hey I've got next year, right?

I checked the amount I deposited to the EF in the past year and the total was $7302! Used cash out of the EF for car repairs and dental work and car insurance. If we could have kept the money in there I would have met my goal and then some, so I know it's do-able. Smile

My DH is Crazy Brave. Lobster. Saw Santa!

December 4th, 2011 at 10:22 pm

Sure, he has run into burning buildings, cut open mangled cars and has performed CPR. BUT, today he headed to the mall on a Sunday in December AND he took both of the kids with him!!!

For THAT I give him the brave badge.
LOL!

Such a nice break for me. I am watching the 49er game and having a nice fresh cup of coffee with eggnog mixed in. Yum.

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Last night DD and I ran all over town searching for a pair of solid red tights to go with a black and red dress she has. We searched about 12 of the outlet stores before we went to Kohl's. There we found one pair and it was lying on the floor kind of under another rack. We grabbed them for $9. Kinda pricey, but supply and demand I guess. Smile

Afterward she and I went to Safeway. They are doing the buy $75 get $10 off next purchase deal again. I didn't know that ahead of time or I would have split my basket into two transactions. The total was $210. Well at least I earned one -$10. I will need to go back in before the 14th(?) to use it.

The splurge item I bought was lobster tails. On sale for $5/tail. I have had them before and they are pretty darn good. Better than some restaurants and for $5 how could I pass it up??? DH boils them a few minutes then grills them on the BBQ. He doesn't care much for lobster, so more for me and DD. Big Grin

Steak and lobster for dinner tonight with rolls and corn. $27 total for "fancy" dinner makes me Smile.

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This morning we went to a friend's house to see Santa. She has her dad dress up so she doesn't have to take her children to a mall Santa. I think it's because of the germ factor. It's pretty cool that she invited several families over. Free pictures with Santa!

When we got back home I spent about 1.5 hours cleaning up the backyard. Poop patrol, cleaned the hen house, cleared out the garden box and swept the patio. DD raked up a bunch of leaves. It's another gorgeous day with beautiful clear blue skies. A bit cooler; about 60F right now, but so mild. This type of weather makes it easy to be outside doing things.

My Eyes Are Bugged Out From Online Shopping!

December 3rd, 2011 at 10:38 pm

I have been doing a TON of online shopping, but before you get the wrong idea I have not done much buying...yet... Wink

This year more of the gifts we're getting will be from online. And those that I have not or will not buy online I have LOOKED at online. You know reading reviews, comparing prices that sort of thing.

One example is DS's Santa gift. After searching and looking at a 100 different toys DH and I decided on a battery powered ride-on quad that I found on WalMart's site for $50. Amazon had one in stock for $62. Nobody had it for less. In fact some non-battery types (sit and scoot) are selling for more. Naturally, Wally's website was out of stock, but they showed my local store had a "limited number".
Forced me to go to the store to buy it. It was more expensive in the store. Rolleyes $60.
I went ahead and picked it up because I was there and they had only two. I'm keeping an eye out for any sale on it so I can get a price adjustment.

Here's the kicker: When I was on Amazon just now they have them priced at $125 and up!!!
Is this the hot toy for little boys this year?

DD's Santa present is a new pair of boots that she can wear when riding motorcycles. That's another Santa-ish gift she's getting - a little dirt bike! DH and in-laws bought it from a family friend for $300. It's in excellent condition and is valued at $1200+ so I guess that was a good buy.
Anyway, I think I have picked out a great pair of boots for $40. I have looked at about 400 pairs of boots over the past three days. That's the good thing and bad thing about online shopping - You get a lot of choices!

I have a running wish list on Amazon of gifts for family and when I'm done changing it I will put it in the cart and click the BUY button. I plan to that by Monday or Tuesday.

I ordered a pair of earrings for my coworker online last night. $19.44.

I'm going to put the computer down now for a little while. But I'll be back soon. Big Grin

Paid Auto Insurance

December 3rd, 2011 at 07:09 am

I paid our auto insurance policy for the year today. $618 for both vehicles for one year. This is the second year I've been able to do that and it feels great! Smile
By paying in full I am saving the $7/mo "statement fee" or the $3/mo "auto-bill fee".

December is also when our homeowner’s policy is due. That will also be paid in full; paid thru our impound account. $611 for one year.

I find it funny that the amount of these two policies was basically the same.

Happy December! And $20k/mo Income.

December 1st, 2011 at 08:13 pm

Here it is - DECEMBER! Smile
I can't believe it's really December because it is such a beautiful, sunny day here in Sonoma County. It's 70F! Can you believe that?
How's everyone else's weather?

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I have been meaning to post about a person on Suze's show on the 'Can I Afford It' segment. (This was two weeks ago I think??)
He was asking if they could buy a round-trip private plane flight from Boston to Chicago for $20k. Their son is hyperactive and doesn't travel well.
His income was $20k+/mo. Personnel management?? His wife was a SAHM.

Which made me think: how do I get a job like his?
Big Grin Wink Big Grin
No really - I COULD DO THAT!!!

Did any of you see that episode?
Did he really need to call into Suze?