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Making October a *Needs* Month

October 1st, 2012 at 09:30 pm

My challenge for October is to make it a *Needs Only* month.

I am aiming for 100% needs only spending.

Anyone else have a challenge planned for themselves this month?

No Eating Out in Sept. & Gearing Up for Oct.

September 30th, 2012 at 11:00 pm

The No Eating Out Challenge for September:

I had fast food once for lunch.

DH had fast food three times (but he didn't know about the "challenge").

I bought ice cream out when MIL was visiting.

DD did the best and packed a lunch every day!

As far as a complete meal out we only had pizza delivered for dinner. That means only one family meal that we did not make ourselves.

There were several times we were tempted to order out or stop and pick something up, but my family was supportive of my wishes to not eat out. Smile

I say *Success* for September.

The goal for October will be to allow for one family meal out. I know DH will have a few fast food lunches, but he is committed to keeping that to once a week or less. I will allow myself lunch out once for the month.

I plan to continue grocery shopping only every other week. DH did pick up a gallon of milk today because we were not going to have enough to get us to next weekend. That was the only purchase. Hooray!

September's grocery spending came to $570.

There has been plenty to eat, so no one is going hungry in case you're wondering. Wink

Cell Phone Stuff

September 28th, 2012 at 12:56 am

For fun I thought I'd show my "Cell Phone Evolution".

The only phone not pictured is my first phone which was just a non-flip, grey Ericson. I might still have it somewhere, maybe the bottom of the toy box or something. I think I got that first phone early 2002. It was on AT&T and I think it was $45/mo taxes and all.

The second phone is that Nextel on the left. My DH had that phone before me and when he got a new phone that was mine. It's a brick. HaHa! It's been dropped at least 100 times.

But, seriously they do not make phones that sturdy anymore. This is the phone that I was using for the past five weeks while I was waiting to get my newest phone. The old thing had been in a drawer for two years (since the last time I used it as a stop-gap-phone) I charged the battery and it fired right up.

The middle two phones are Nextel/Sprint phones also. Both lasted me almost exactly two years each. The same length as the contract. Coincidence? I think not! All some great conspiracy I'm sure!!! Wink

I can't quite remember what the Nextel bills were in the beginning. It ranged between $45/mo/phone (taxes & all) up to $120/mo/shared plan (taxes & all). Last year I was so thrilled because I got it down to the bare-bones plan and it was $80/mo/shared plan including taxes, etc.

Then hubby got his iPhone and we *had* to have a more fancy plan. BOO!

That plan has been running $150/mo/shared including taxes & all.

But, NOW my new phone on the far right is with Ting and my monthly bill is $16/mo including taxes and fees. Big Grin Big Grin Big Grin

What it really boils down to is that now I'm paying less for the newest phone instead of paying a premium for the cheapest phone.

I reduced DH's plan with Sprint to the lowest plan he could get with his blasted iPhone. It will be close to $80/mo. Our usage is pretty much the same and both phones run on the Sprint network, but the cost difference is.. well.. amazing.

DH really likes his phone and he is in a contract until next December. I am *praying* he will be ready to switch come next year as you can see how much we would be saving.

I l-o-v-e my new phone, but I really L-O-V-E the low bill!

Grocery Store Success

September 22nd, 2012 at 11:14 pm

I went to the grocery store late this morning. Major success on two points.

First, it has been two weeks since I've stepped foot in a grocery store. By having produce delivered, the garden and laying hens we really don't *have to* go to the store more frequently for perishables.

Second, I planned to spend $200 today and I spent $198.37. Big Grin

We are fully stocked with the staples, breakfast, lunch and dinner fixings. We have fresh fruit and veggies coming out the wazoo. The garden has been bountiful and with the bi-monthly produce boxes we are scrambling to get everything eaten before it goes bad.

Total grocery spending for the month: $566.

CC Payoff Progress. Other News.

September 21st, 2012 at 06:07 am

$16,921 - Previous Balance

$16,898 - Current Balance

Yeah, as predicted I couldn't put much of anything toward pay down. I paid the amount that we charged on the cards this billing cycle. I paid the interest to the one card that accrues interest, plus a tiny bit more. No lost ground, per se, but this is not how things are going to get paid off either.

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Trimmed the nails on a friend's cat. She is paying me $15 each time I do it. I figure that will be every six weeks or so. She thinks she will want me to do it every month.

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I filled up on Tuesday night and it was down to $3.99/gal.

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My new cell phone arrived Tuesday and I am officially switched over to Ting. More on that later...

Halfway Through September

September 18th, 2012 at 12:53 am

Jeez, halfway through the month already.

"No Eating Out Challenge": We ordered pizza and a family salad last night for dinner. We had planned to do this because the 49ers played in the Sunday Night football game. It was a special meal deal from one of our favorite local places. $30 total with delivery and tip. That makes this the first 'eating out' for this month. Very likely the only time this month too.

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I fell and twisted my ankle this morning. I was carrying DD's trumpet and when I fell I broke the corner of the case. Trumpet is fine. Phew! I am really thankful we own this trumpet. I guess we'd have to buy a new case if we were renting?

The ankle is a little swollen, but it hasn't been too busy here at work so I've been mostly sitting and sitting helps. When I get home I hope to get a little sympathy from the family and I'll get to put my feet up for the evening. Smile

Sunny Saturday. Budget Juggle.

September 16th, 2012 at 01:37 am

Right now I am sitting in the backyard. It has been a beautiful day today. Really, the whole week has been wonderful, mild weather. Still not having to use the AC or heat. Smile

I worked this morning for my co-worker who is sick. I don't mind working Saturdays occasionally because I get a few more hours on the paycheck, don't have to pay for childcare and don't have weekday traffic to deal with.

I decided to treat myself to Starbucks this morning and used the drive-thru. When it was my turn at the window they told me their system was down so they couldn't take my money, so my coffee was free! Smile

Free coffee was a very nice way to start my day.

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Trying to juggle the budget because of the lower income due to DH being gone. He did get some of his time off as paid vacation. Even so, we are about a third short of what he would have made had he been home. In addition to lesser income he spent money while he was gone. A double whammy.

He has $800 coming to him from his side work with the fire department at the raceway, so that *will* help *when* it shows up. Until then I am dipping into the EF to cover the shortfall. Phooey!

Cutting back on the grocery spending is going to be essential now. There also won't be much progress on the CC repayment this month. Frown

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DD had her first 4H meeting on Thursday. It was $33 for the yearly enrollment and another $32 to buy presale tickets for the fundraising BBQ. She has signed up for four projects. Her first project meeting is 'Canning & Preserves' and it meets tomorrow afternoon.

Just This 'n That

September 9th, 2012 at 11:24 pm

DH is coming home this evening. I am planning to make the hash brown quiche that everyone loves so much. I'll add either a fruit or green salad on the side.

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I paid DD her new higher allowance today. $20/two weeks and $5 for mowing the front and back yard.

I also set DD up with her own email address. She was thrilled.

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I went to the grocery store this morning. $157. I bought five boxes of cereal because they were $2 each and I had a $2 off 5 boxes coupon. I like cereal, it's good for breakfast, snacks and sometimes dinner. Wink I don't plan to go shopping again for two weeks.

Going to get that grocery spending down this month. Smile

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My BFF had her baby girl this morning! Big Grin

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The weather has been fabulous here the past week. Mild. I haven't had to use heat or AC. I love that! Big Grin

Right now it is 80F and just beautiful.

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I checked my $1k that I invested in my ROTH a few weeks back and it is up $14. Smile

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Getting excited about all our favorite shows as the new season starts up. I so enjoy curling up on the couch on cool fall nights and watching TV.

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Had some corn from our garden two nights ago. It was not quite ready, but still very good. I've also been getting lots of green beans and I need to pick more today. Getting plenty of zucchini and summer squash. Enough for us and anyone we know. DD's pumpkins are thriving. I bought more spinach seeds so I can replant that area. I've had several lemon cucumbers and a bell pepper. The tomatoes are really taking their sweet time getting red. I've picked one red one and the puppy pulled one off and the chickens ate two almost red ones. There are *tons* of green ones.

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The Amazon seller that we ordered DH's book from offered to refund my shipping *IF* I change my feedback (3 stars). The shipping was $7. I don't know if I want to change the rating; they should do a better job. Still, $7 back in my pocket.....

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Off to watch the second half of the 49er game. When it ends it'll be time to switch to the SF Giants game.

Zero Eating Out. Nice Family Visits.

September 9th, 2012 at 05:39 am

I wasn't "officially" working on the No Eating Out Challenge, but we have not eaten out. Not a meal anyway. I did buy ice cream when MIL visited last weekend. As I said before, it was a nice visit. MIL was way more relaxed.

The last four days my mom and dad came and stayed. With DH gone to Alaska it was wonderful to have the extra help. They drove DD to and from school, watched DS while I was at work and fixed dinner each night. So very nice for me to not have to drive kids around or make dinner after work. I know that helped keep me from eating out or getting food delivered.

On Monday, DD picked 65 apples off our neighbor's tree (with permission of course) and she made three pies. Two 9" and one 6". There were still a lot of apples left so my mom made apple cobbler or an apple crisp the past four nights. It was such a tasty treat to have it fresh and warm topped with ice cream each night after dinner. Big Grin

The visit with my parents was really great. They are so funny.

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We did a little shopping this morning. DD had a $10 gift card for Old Navy and $10 in "Old Navy cash". She shopped the clearance racks and bought three really cute tops (clearance) and a hoodie (regular price) and grandma paid the difference of $13.

I spent $0 today. Smile

Dream Homes

September 5th, 2012 at 06:36 am

Non-Frugal Post.

I am sure we all have a *dream home*.

Mine is a large, open layout house with a wraparound porch. I have always loved the log house look so that would be a plus. One story or two story; as long as everything I wanted was there. Preferably a four or five bedroom. Maybe a three bedroom, but with a little guest cottage so when visitors stayed there would be plenty of space.

Our dream home would be on at least 3 acres of property. I would love to have a barn and a covered arena. Garden space and a manicured lawn area. Maybe a pool, hot tub and/or sauna.

Well, every so often I get to looking at places for sale in my area. Usually, I start by looking at recently sold places comparable to our house just to get an idea of our home's worth. Then I can't help but start looking at current For Sale homes.

My recent search yielded a few *Dream Home* candidates.

This house is 3800sf on 4.25 acres with a barn, guest house and garden.

The list price is $1.5 million.

How in the world can I buy it? Suggestions? Big Grin

I saw a few others, but this one so far was my favorite and the most expensive, of course, lol.

What is your *Dream Home*?

Happy Labor Day Holiday!

September 3rd, 2012 at 10:48 pm

Hope everyone is enjoying their holiday!

It's a very low key Labor Day here with just me and the kids. Doing laundry, washing all the bedding and doing some general pick up are the only things happening today. For dinner tonight I am going to fix spaghetti noodles to go with our leftover sauce.

DS is coming down with a little cold. He has a runny nose that bothers him at night and wakes him up. Hopefully it clears up soon because we both get cranky when our sleep gets interrupted.

My mom and dad are coming Wednesday for a visit and to help me out by watching DS and picking DD up from school. The kids and I are looking forward to them visiting and helping out. Big Grin

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Just before DH left, he and I agreed to give DD an allowance raise. We added poop scooping to her daily chores, something we had been paying for based on amount picked up. We increased her pay from $5/week to $10/week. She was totally jazzed. Smile

She wants to open a checking account soon. I think middle school might be a good time for that. I am going to check what, if any, age requirements there might be so we can plan based on those.

I had my first checking account when I was a high school freshman. When did you get yours?

Starting September *Smiling*

September 2nd, 2012 at 01:20 am

My MIL is visiting until tomorrow. So far the visit has been very pleasant and low-key. Smile

This morning we went to a neighboring town and walked through the main street shops. I bought a birthday gift and card for our neighbor's son for $7. DD and DS are in the bouncy house at his party right now.

I bought two board books on sale for DS for $8.

I bought a pair of handmade copper hoop earrings for myself for $27. Which I thought was a very good price when compared to similar pieces in the same store, made by other artists/jewelers, were priced at $48 and $56.

And, I treated all of us to ice cream (the place that makes all it's own flavors) for $13.

Looking back in Quicken at August we spent $830 in groceries. My goal for September is to be as low-spend as possible in every category, but especially to work on the food spending. Our pantry and fridge are very full, so I do have something to show for that spending at least. September, October and November are usually pretty good as we settle into the school routine and just stick close to home.

Speaking of sticking close to home; how's the gas prices in your area? Ours have shot up. Like $.50/gal in the past three weeks. When I fueled up a few days ago it was $4.09/gal. Blah!!!

Major Frustration, But a Happy Ending

September 1st, 2012 at 06:48 am

DH left with his boss for Alaska yesterday. They are on a ten day trip, mostly to fish with a little relaxing thrown in for good measure. His boss owns a place there and paid for all the airfare with cc rewards. Pretty sweet deal for DH. Thankfully, DH didn't need to buy any equipment or stuff for this trip like he did two years ago when he went. He has $600 cash with him for food and any other small thing he might need.

This leads to the frustration: Do you remember the textbook I ordered through Amazon for DH?

Well, he really needed it before he left for Alaska. He had already had three class meeting without the book and was three homework assignments behind because he didn't have the book. (He was totally stressing!) Thursday morning on the way to the airport he broke down and bought the book from the school's bookstore at the mega price of $212.

Naturally, the book showed up today. Ugh! So I had two choices. One, to return it to the online seller and further fuel the frustration. Or two, try to return that book to the school's bookstore. I went with option two. I know that is maybe not quite honest, but the book was brand new and it was the *same* book. The bookstore took it back (I had a receipt after all!) and we saved $76. Even if I subtract some $ for time and gas to go to the bookstore three times, we are still $50 better off.

I am very happy about that savings.

I am planning to leave a remark about how long it took to get the book on the seller's review comments.

CC Payoff Progress

August 29th, 2012 at 09:27 pm

Even with the new cell phone purchase I still managed to get the total balance down a wink. Small progress is still progress. Smile

$17,387 Previous Balance

$16,921 Current Balance

Talkin' Baseball

August 25th, 2012 at 08:05 pm

Last night DH and I had a big date night. We had dinner at The Melting Pot as a belated anniversary celebration. We had the four course dinner, so it was a two hour adventure.

After dinner we went to the SF Giants game. The weather was mild. Lucky for us because we had forgotten our jackets at home - Doh! They played the Braves and won 3-5. (Sorry Ima.) We spent $11 on two cups of hot coco; our usual seventh inning tradition and $30 for parking. Everything gets so pricey; one game a year is a splurge.

We got back home about midnight. It was a really fun night out! Big Grin

This afternoon we will be cheering on our town's Little League team as they play for the US championship title! Our town is so proud of them!

Hubby's Class Book

August 24th, 2012 at 05:00 am

I stopped at the junior college's bookstore to pick up the book DH needs for his EMT class....

It was $212!

No, I'm not kidding!

As soon as I had a chance at work I checked Amazon and found the same book for $129. I ordered it and added expedited shipping for $6.99.

A difference of $75!!!

I would have been more than happy to buy a used book, but there is an online code for each book and it can only be used once. That is a really crappy thing to do because most classes require you to go online and take the quizzes thru the online set up. Pretty much forces a lot of students to buy it new. Phooey!

Once DH is done with the book I am going to look at selling it back to Amazon. They had a note that stated they would buy the book back for $51. I would be very happy to recoup some of the cost at the end of the semester; right before Christmas. Smile

Back To School and Investments

August 22nd, 2012 at 05:30 am

Tomorrow is DD's first day back to school. I can hardly believe the summer went by that fast! DH started his twice weekly EMT class tonight, so he's back to school too.

DD went to the dentist this morning for her regular check up. Everything was fine and the visit was 100% covered, so there was no OOP. I also found out we have a $88 credit there from an insurance adjustment. I am sure it'll be used. She'll need sealants on her new molars maybe next visit.

Our next stop this morning was JCPenney's for their free haircut. (Thanks CCFree!) We gave the stylist a $4 tip.

DD and I did a bit of clothes shopping while we were at the mall. DD scored on a pair of clearance jeans at Penney's for $6! I bought a plain tshirt at Old Navy on clearance for $3. A few days ago I bought a clearance shirt at Target for $3.

Can't beat those clearance racks! Big Grin

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Tried to look up the bonds that the kids were given and I couldn't get them pulled up. I have an email into my cousin to see what I need to do. Very frustrating to spend over an hour messing around with a very user UN-friendly site. Blah!

I did use my $1k to buy into a new mutual fund for my ROTH. I wanted to split it between mine and DH's, but the minimum initial purchase for this fund I wanted was $1k. Meh, DH won't much care, he doesn't keep tabs on the ROTH's. I guess that is the "What he doesn't know won't hurt him??" Theory. Wink

Fair & Camping Photos

August 19th, 2012 at 12:04 am

DD and her friend dressed up as grapes for a parade at the fair.

Some displays inside the big flower show.

The midway lights

I spent $78 at the fair. That was parking, entry for myself the girls and DS, food and a few wagers on the horse races. I also bought a popsicle freezing set from a Tupperware booth.

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Burney Falls on our camping trip.

View off the arched footbridge down the creek from the falls.

Along the way to the camping I stopped at my BFF's baby shower. It was great to have a visit with my buddy and see her baby belly!

Our camping trip was a great break. We really should've stayed three nights instead of two. I mean once all the stuff is packed and we drove up there an extra day to kick back would've been great. The weather was pretty hot up in the mountains. It was about 94F at the campground. It was a perfect 75'ish down in the gorge where the falls were. So each afternoon I would walk down there and stay until dinner was ready. Smile

On the way home we drove thru Redding and it was 115F!

Total camp trip cost was nearly $600. Fuel was a biggie! That also included the camping cabin, fishing licenses, food and two new sleeping bags. Our other set needed to be replaced, so I bit the bullet and bought new ones this year.

Some Stolen Stuff

August 18th, 2012 at 06:41 am

Unfortunately we had some camping stuff stolen right from in front of the house Thursday morning. The truck and boat are parked on the street in front of our house. DH didn't clear out everything out from the boat after we went camping. He figured he would get to the last few things and park the boat on the side yard this weekend.

We lost two fishing poles. DH's worth about $60 and DD's about $25. Frown

A large storage tote with misc camp gear. One item was a brand new tarp that I was going to return for $20. Camp coffee pot, rope, tent stakes, two hammers, trash bags... A few other things I can't remember. We figured the value of all the tote stuff about $120.

Add in the poles for a total of approx $205.

DH is making a list and is going to make a police report. Not that we think we'll get anything back, but just so the PD knows we had crime in our area.

Thing is the darn tote weighed about 80lbs and was snugged inside the boat, so whoever took the stuff must have really wanted it I guess.

Really makes me pissed that there are people who just feel like it's totally fine to help themselves to other people's things!! GGRRRRR! Angry

Advice on Saving Bonds

August 17th, 2012 at 12:22 am

My grandmother, who recently passed, gave each great-grandchild a $500 savings bond. I am wondering if I should just leave it as is or would there be a better place to put that money for the kids?

I also received a check last week from my grandpa for $1k as a last gift from grandma. After thinking it over I am putting that into our ROTH IRAs. That is the best place for it to grow.

But between you and me, I was seriously tempted to go to Disneyland with it! Big Grin

Introducing Cleo

August 14th, 2012 at 07:58 pm



It has been a fun and hectic six days. I have pictures to post from the fair and our camping trip, but I wanted to start by showing off our new family member. Big Grin

We adopted "Cleo" from our local animal control. Her adoption fee was $25. I gave an additional $10 as a donation. She is a six month old German Shepherd. She was surrendered by her owner because they lived in an apartment. We weren't given any other information beyond that.

She is very sweet and attentive. She learns quickly and has excellent manners for a puppy. While camping she was an angel. Our family and friends kept asking if they could take her home. Smile

Dead Cell Phone

August 9th, 2012 at 01:37 am

It's funny how things turn out sometimes.

As some of you might have read before I have been thinking of switching my cell service to Ting.

Well, this past weekend I set my cell in the cupholder of our truck before I realized the cupholder was full of Gatoraid! The "guys" (DH, groom, and two friends) had ran some errands in the truck and spilled it. They didn't have anything to dry it up with and by the time DH came back to the hotel he had forgotten all about it. I thought after the phone dried out it would be fine. But no; it is not turning on or charging. I don't know if it fried the inside or maybe fried the battery. I don't care, because I'm taking this as the sign that it's time for me to buy a Ting phone and switch. I am really going to splurge and buy a fancy smart phone. Running the numbers last night I figured my new phone will pay for itself after nine months. I plan to have this phone for many years. I am still a bit tempted to go with a less costly phone, but I want something I will be happy with for a long time too. I plan to pay with a 0% cc so I don't have to touch any of the EF. I know, I know, adding to the cc debt, is Frown , but I feel better using that than taking from the savings. The phone will be paid for before any interest rate kicks in.

What I really hope is that DH will see how GREAT my phone is and how CHEAP it is to use and he will want to switch. That would really end up saving some serious dough. Smile

I just love that my phone died (lol! Who ever says that!) and opening me up to buying a new phone and switching providers.

Wedding Spending. Shopping. Fair Spending.

August 7th, 2012 at 07:40 pm

We went to wedding #2 this weekend. It was very nice and I'm glad it went smoothly. And I'm also glad it's over now. Smile DD looked lovely in her dress and really helped out by keeping the two young ring bearers in line. DH looked very sharp as the best man. I picked out the pink ties that he and the other groomsman wore.

Geez, I had no clue that ties were so expensive. I ended up picking the lesser priced ties and still they were $21 each. Pink looks nice on DH so hopefully he'll have an opportunity to wear the tie again.

We gave the couple a $25 Lowe's gift card and the least expensive cute card I could find. $27.xx total.

We stayed Friday night at a hotel and I drove home Saturday night. We didn't end up leaving until 9pm, but it was so good to be back home and sleep in our own bed. Also great not to spend $$ on a second night in the hotel!

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Sunday was a lazy day. I had a $10 off $30 coupon for Kohl's. I bought myself a pair of yoga pants (I was combing thru all the clearance racks for a shirt and couldn't find anything I liked. Grr!) and a replacement plate and bowl that had been broken from my set. That came to $30.62. After $10 off and an additional 10% off I paid $20.80. Smile

I also went to the grocery store and used another $10 off $50 coupon as well as a few other "Grand Opening" coupons from the booklet they mailed out. I am also finally signed up and using the Just4U online coupons.

Last week I saved $62. My total spent was $72 on a bunch of groceries.

This week I saved $45. My total spent was $66.

I have two more $10 off coupons to use in the next two weeks. Smile

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We are going to the county fair on Thursday. Our county has two fairs. This is the larger two week long fair with a huge flower show. I'll try to take pics to share.

DD wanted to see Miranda Cosgrove, the star of the TV show "iCarley". She is having a concert at the fair and the tickets were $20-$30! I told DD she would have to pay for the ticket herself. So, she saved her birthday money and a few weeks worth of allowance and she bought two tickets. She is taking a girlfriend with her. I also told her if she wanted to ride the rides she'd have to buy her own wristband too. I told her I'd drive them, pay for parking and pay for the admission, but that was all I was willing to spend.

I am very proud that DD didn't whine or complain about me not paying, she just figured out a way to make it work. Big Grin

Root canal. Garden Progress. Coupons.

July 28th, 2012 at 06:59 pm

I can't believe I didn't mention in addition to all the other stuff bugging me I also need a root canal and a crown.

What I find funny is that since I forgot to mention it, all the other things I listed must bother me more than a root canal!!!

I have no idea how much that will end up costing.

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Our garden looks like a jungle right now everything is large and green and blooming. I've been giving zucchini away. My lemon cucumber plant has about 20 flowers on it. I can't wait for those! Lots of baby, green tomatoes and flowers on the tomato plants.

Unfortunately, this morning I had our chickens out and they dug around my carrots. The Muscovy duck ate some of the carrot tops, a baby bell pepper and the beet tops! Grrr.. I'm pretty sure it was him; he is more of a veggie eater, while the hens do more digging and pecking.

The carrots might come back, but the beets are gone. Frown

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Our local Safeway store moved into a new renovated space on Friday. It's in the same location, just moved from one end of the shopping center to the other. Because of this they have mailed out a bunch of coupons. One sheet is $10 off on $50 spent to be used once a week for the next four weeks. There are also many FREE item coupons. Smile

I'll be shopping tomorrow morning so I'll be using all the coupons I can.

I'm Here, but Frustrated and Cranky

July 28th, 2012 at 05:07 am

Have been keeping busy. Most of my online time has been spent looking at dogs or reading posts about the book series "A Song of Ice and Fire" (aka Game of Thrones). It's been my decompression time to go visit the fantasy world. I've been reading too. Some short stories, magazines and a small novel. All very entertaining and a pleasant distraction.

I've been feeling very frustrated and tired. That doesn't make me feel particularly bloggy. I find frustration very energy draining. Plus, my personality is to "fix it" and find resolution, so frustration makes me cranky.

One of the biggest frustrations started last weekend when we had a home visit by a German Shepherd rescue volunteer. He thought we were great, everything great for us to adopt a dog, except our back fence is about 1.5 feet too low for his liking. His point is that a dog might see something over the fence and just take off after it. Okay, fine a valid point, except that another 1.5 feet isn't going to stop that "type" of dog. Not to mention we are NOT looking for a hyped-up, fence jumping dog. We've had multiple family and friend's dogs in the yard and none have ever jumped the fence, not even the excited ones. Let me also say that over our back fence is just the neighbor's back yard and it is 100% fenced as well. Rolleyes

We are planning to replace all of our fencing in the yard. DH and I agreed we'd do sections. We replaced the front bit by our garage about two years back. The back section is next on the To Do list, but we weren't going to do it until October or even early 2013. We want to remove a large'ish pine tree and a shed before the new stretch of fence goes in. So that's a time commitment not even to mention the MONEY commitment! *sigh* *sigh* *sigh*

This all would be fine if I had all the time in the world but, I really want to get another dog before anything happens to "Maxx". Plus, "Maxx" will be a great "role model" for a new dog to learn from. And the rescue has a very sweet girl who will likely end up being adopted before our fence is ready.

Sure we could buy a puppy, and believe me I'm looking, but then that costs money. Money that could just go to the fence and a rescue dog.

All this makes me frustrated and sad..

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More frustration is the never-ending stream of money out!

We bought the flower girl/junior bridesmaid dress (for the upcoming friend's wedding) thru Amazon. It was $54.

DH bought a dress shirt, slacks and a tie for the wedding. That was $98.

Staying in a hotel the night before the wedding. $67. It's a Motel 6, but it's newer and looks really nice. I am opting to not drink more than one glass of champagne at the wedding just so I can drive home that evening at we won't have to pay for a second night.

DH is redoing his EMT certification. $250 at our local junior college.

Reserved/paid for our camping spot and a boat dock for the time we're there. (Okay, not feeling too bad about that, but still $$)

And bills.. BLAH!

Somehow our water usage skyrocketed last month? Like 1.5X last month? I think it's got to be a mistake, like they misread the meter or maybe haven't read it in several months. The past three months have been all the same, and pretty low for summer usage. The other issue could be we've got a leaking underground pipe.

And I HATE our cell bill.. DH and the Frickin' iPhone! Stupid smart phone needs the most premium package. My phone is a $20 additional line, but I have a plain, old flip phone and only use like 100 minutes a month. I am really close to switching myself to Ting. I could get a major upgraded phone for myself; the plan savings would pay for my new phone in nine months. Problem for me is parting with all that cash up front for the new phone... Still, I am dangerously close to doing it.

I guess bottom line is:

Frustrated that it takes money to do EVERYTHING!

Thanks for letting me vent. I'm feeling a little better.

Great SA Meet Up and a Crazy Day

July 14th, 2012 at 03:03 pm

Must make a quick post. We have to leave for a wedding soon or else we'll be late.

Yesterday's SA meet-up was WONDERFUL! Big Grin

I had the chance to meet Frugal Texan, Swimgirl, Monkey Mama & Big Monkey and Ray & her DD. I ended up getting to the bakery 45 minutes late due to driving my kids all around the county to drop them off and then getting stuck driving behind an impossibly slow truck for most of the way.

Important lesson: If you're going to meet up be sure someone has your phone number and you have theirs! Wink (I didn't have anyone's number so I couldn't call and tell them I wasn't trying to be a total flake.)

Anyway, I finally made it and just as Swimgirl describes it was like a blind date. The bakery was full of people and I didn't know what any of my SA friends looked like. Of course I was thinking because I was so late they all could have already left. Frown

Thankfully they hadn't. The two women in line in front of me turned out to be FT and MM!! Big Grin Big Grin

I didn't go with the rest of the group to SanFran, I had a crazy busy day ahead of me.

After the meet up I had to rush to work. My boss was waiting for me with a dog to take radiographs on as soon as I walked thru the door. And we just kept hustling all afternoon. My boss never got any lunch because we were slammed. I didn't leave until 6:20pm. I'm not complaining. I love my job and it's great when it's busy.

I met up with DH and DH's friend to shop for the wedding clothes for wedding #2. The wedding where DD and DH are going to be in the wedding party.

We all didn't get home until 8pm. We ordered pizza on the drive home because we had no time/energy to cook. DH's buddy and soon-to-be wife had dinner with us.

After dinner I put together the spinach dip for the wedding we are headed to now and packed for me and DS for the overnight stay at MIL/FIL's house.

*Phew*

I can't wait for Sunday when I can sit and take a breather!

Weddings. Baby Showers. New K9 Family Member?

July 13th, 2012 at 12:59 am

We have two weddings coming up.

The first one is this weekend. DH's cousin. It's a bit of a drive, but looks to be a fun, low-key family get together. It's a potluck and we are bringing spinach dip and bread. I bought a cute card for $2.50 and I am thinking we'll put a $25 gift card inside. Not sure to what yet???

The next wedding is in the first part of August. One of DH's close friends. Going to be a bit more spent on this one because DH is the best man and DD is the flower girl/junior bridesmaid. SO, DH needs a certain vest, tie and a new white shirt. DD needs a dress. We are planning to get the couple a Lowe's gift card as per their wish list. $25 I think I'll buy it thru PlasticJungle.

------

And baby showers coming up too..

My BFF has her baby shower the weekend after the second wedding. It's about a four hour drive from my house. I will probably buy her diapers and maybe a cute clearance outfit.

It's likely that we will combine the drive up for the shower with a family camp trip at one of our fav California State parks. It's only an hour'ish from BFF's house.

A girlfriend in my town is having a low-key shower a few weeks later. Probably buy diapers for her.

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Looking into a local rescue for a possible new canine family member.

"Maxx", our Labrador, is doing okay. He is on once daily prednisone for whatever spinal/nerve issue he has. He moves around almost normally while his is on the meds. Other than stumbling around a little bit, he is his normal self. We still want to try some acupuncture treatments for him.

"Maxx" seems lonely without another dog around and I want our next dog to observe "Maxx's" good habits and behavior. Because we don't know exactly what is wrong with him, or how long he'll be with us, I am starting to look for a second dog now.

How Our Garden Grows

July 10th, 2012 at 06:36 pm

The garden is lush and thriving with the beautiful sunny days. We have flowers on the zucchini, summer squash, tomatoes and bell pepper plants. On Saturday we put up a length of plastic fence for the snap peas and green beans to climb. I also placed a few stepping stones between the boxes and hope to get a few more.

@ FrugalTexan: Sorry I didn't post a reply earlier. Spinach is easy to grow. It's like grass. You can plant it in pots or the ground.

DS loves to go and pick spinach leaves and eat them while he is outside playing. He's so cute with his mouth full of green leaves. Big Grin I can't wait to show him how to pick and eat the snap peas when they're ready.

Garden

Peas on the fence

Summer squash flower

200K Miles

July 6th, 2012 at 12:05 am

This just happened this afternoon! Big Grin

My car is a 1999 Nissan Pathfinder.

June's Grocery Spending

July 1st, 2012 at 10:31 pm

Okay, June is over and the official grocery spending was.... *drumroll*

$598

This includes $156 spent on the weekly delivery of organic produce. I am going to reduce our frequency to twice monthly. First, to save money and second because we are getting some fresh food right from our backyard now.

I would have spent $93 less in June if I hadn't gone yesterday (last day of June) to get the $10 off coupon and the movie tickets reward.


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