It's shaping up to be another beautiful day here. Sunny and mild.

DH and DD have been working outside doing some much needed yardwork. Yesterday the did the front yard and it looks wonderful. Now they are giving the backyard some TLC, seeding, fertilizing, etc.

Yesterday I went shoping on Amazon. I know, dangerous. I bought nine books and a jacket for DD. Total $103. The jacket is for when she is riding on the motorcycle and the books will be gifts for Easter and for her birthday this summer. It is the complete set of the Rose books from the Little House on the Praire series.

The Giants won yesterday! Added $2 to the EF.

This morning DH and little DS ran some errands and while out they filled up my gas tank at Costco. $72. Gas there is now $3.92/gal. Blah!

I am going to work tomorrow even though I took it off. I look and feel fine so I might as well save a paid day off for another time.

Yesterday the sales tax increased in several of the towns around us. It was voter approved, but still it hurts. The State of California has its base sales tax rate, then each county can have it's own on top of that and then each city on top of that.

In our town the sales tax rate is 9%. The town to the south of us is now at 9.5% and the two towns to the north of us are at 9.5% too. On the news they listed the cities that had increases and I think the highest sales tax on the list was 10.5%!

What's the sales tax in your area? If any.

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Gas prices?
The Chevron and Shell I drove by yesterday were both at $4.03/gal. for regular. Diesel holding at $4.49/gal. **blah**
Last week I bought gas at Costco for $3.82/gal.

What about your gas prices?

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Our weather here has been record breaking warm the past few days. 85F on Thursday broke local records. Last week record rain; this week record heat. Last week heat ON; this week A/C ON.

Today is shaping up for a mild, mid 60's low 70's, partly cloudy day. It looks a bit breezy out too. It will be a low key day here at home. Chores around the house, baseball game this afternoon and Suze tonight.

I took the truck in for its smog test yesterday afternoon. I ended up taking it to the lesser expensive place 20 miles away. It cost $53 there vs. $70 at a place here in our town. The inspection took all of 5-8 minutes. And it is pretty much just a visual inspection. Thanks State of California!

I bought a few gallons of diesel, just a few at $4.49/gal!! Yeah that's right, no typo. Our truck won't be getting much use for awhile.

I paid $3.82/gal for gas at Costco on Thursday. $71 to fill up the Pathfinder for the week. We're now over our fuel budget for the month. Lovely.

Last night I booked our 'tent' in Yosemite for May. $120. Was looking at the website and planning a few trails we'll go hiking on. I wonder how much snow might still be there when we go.

I went to the grocery store this morning. DH made me a list. On top of that there were several items I saw that I couldn't pass up. One was 12pk Pepsi products buy 2 get 3 free, that will last us months as we rarely drink soda, also my fav rice was on sale ending today among other food stuff. Anyhow I spent $202 at the store.
Budget for this week is shot.
I am justifying this weeks' spending to myself because next week we'll need very little, maybe nothing.

I cleaned the chicken coop out when I got home. Taking advantage of a dry day. No rain (yet) today, but grey clouds and a chilly breeze.

Working on laundry and next up while I'm on the computer is April's budget.

Later DD, DH and I plan on making the little chocolate cakes with hot chocolate sauce in the middle tonight for dessert. It's a recipe DD made at school. I hope it turns out well because I love them whenever we have them at restaurants. I'll post the recipe if they turn out well.

Still raining here in NorCal. I think this is like the 22nd day of rain for this month.

I need to get the truck in for its smog check. I have been putting it off all week. I just don't want to take the time to do it I guess. I'd rather be here catching up on everyone's posts. The registration renewal is due the 31st, so I've got to get on it. The cheapest place is 20 miles away, or I could do it in town and spend a little more to save the time of driving. The whole thing is ridiculous because the truck is a diesel and they can only do a visual inspection. It doesn't get hooked up to a computer for emission tests, or so I've been told.

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Last week we went over the weekly 'stuff' budget by $120. I know I had said before that I thought $175/wk might be a bit ambitious and a bit tight. However, even though we keep going over we have the money to pay for the overages. And having that as a target amount really does help me and DH prioritize spending. (I have walked out of Costco or the grocery store with only the things I went in for!)

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Anybody see the Mega Millions jackpot was at $312 million last night? I haven't bought any tickets. If it's still big on Tuesday I'll buy a $5 quick pick ticket. How would it feel to win a piece of that?

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I've been looking at kitchen remodel ideas and I was just watching a kitchen renovation in Sacramento on HGTV. Realistically I see us getting a new kitchen in two years or more. I like to look, plan and dream now.. All of that is free.

We're having some crazy weather here in NorCal!

Lots of rain, and 'other' stuff. Yesterday I looked out the windows at work and the rain was hitting the ground so hard it was splashing back up. Then the wind was whipping around. Then it hailed around 3:30pm. Then more rain. And the biggest event was a TORNADO! Yeah, a TORNADO in Santa Rosa. Middle of town. It was right on the street I drive to/from baby brother's (DS) daycare! A landscaping business was hit and one of their buildings was torn apart. The news showed chunks of building flew into neighboring yards and the street. Thankfully no one was injured!

Crraazzzzy...
And me without my ruby slippers..
"Auntie Em! Auntie Em!"

Today, so far, it's just raining with a bit of wind. The weather people are projecting our rain totals at 2"+ by the end of the weekend. On top of the pouring rain we had Tuesday. Close to 1" then? Thankfully no worry of flooding near us at all. Whew.

March weather is always a bit crazy. Rain. Sun. Rain.

Wish I could record the sound of the rain pounding my roof right now for you all.

And I've got to go to the store when DS wakes up...

We got our federal return on Monday.
2k to mom, 1k to EF, $500 to MIL, $200 to checking account.

I am updating the sidebar and I am making a 5k goal for our EF by the end of the year.

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I have been meeting my workout goals for the month so far.

I went last night to a Zumba class. It is free at our gym so I thought "Why not, I should try it out." But by the time I got home from work (6:10pm) I was ready to just stay home. DH kinda pushed me out the door to go try it. I'm glad he did. It was fun and an hour went by in a flash. And boy it kinda kicked my butt, hehe. I used to dance in high school, but last night I was feeling old and slow. Not picking up the steps as fast as I'd like. The instructor is an older lady, which I thought set a great example, and she kept the class very upbeat and relaxed. It was a good mix of ages and body types too. I told DH I am going to try to make it a regular thing.

Gym four times a week???? If I don't lose weight from that...

DH and I are going tonight in about 40 minutes. I'll do about 30 minutes of something and then I've got to take DD to a class skating fundraiser thingy.

Never a dull moment here.

I was online checking email, paying bills and transfering money when I saw this artical from Wallet Pop. I thought you all might find it interesting.

Saving money - Brewing coffee vs. Buying coffee

Last night I met one of my girlfriends for dinner and a beer at a local brewery. It was fun and the food and beer were very tasty. And my friend treated! I thought that was so nice and told her how much I appreciated that. Yay, no money spent there.

I didn't make it to the gym this morning. But, I did get exercise in; I went for a two mile walk with another friend. She just had her second baby, a boy, a month ago. This is the first time I've seen her since December, so it was very good to visit and reconnect. We walked with the strollers to Starbucks and got coffee. I had a free coffee coupon, so no money spent there either. Yay again!

So far we're under budget for the week.
Two and a half more days to go....

With rainy days comes lots of movie watching at our house. Last night we watched "The Bucket List" again for like the fourth time. Always a good one. This morning we rented "A-Team" thru our cable for DH. It was fast paced and fun. Now "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" is on TV.

I did manage a few chores. I cleaned out the fridge. Totally wiped it out and washed all the drawers and shelves. WooHoo for me!
I also cleaned out my purse and balanced the checkbook while sitting and watching TV.

I was also going thru some mail and one was from Sears. Offering extended warranties on our washer and dryer. $151/one year. $272/two years. $385/three years. Those are all the special discounted prices too. The regular three year price was $720. I am going to pass. Thanks.

We ran over to the bank to deposit our paychecks and it's next to the Cold Stone ice cream place. We had just seen their ad on TV - buy a medium and get a child's size free. We go to Cold Stone like twice a year maybe, because they're so pricey. Their special flavor for March is 'Pistachio Pudding' so I had that and DD got hers for free. Mine was good, thick, almost like a marshmallow cream.

Still need to go to the gym....

DH is planning a father/daughter trip with DD in May. It is a four day/three night road trip. They will be riding on the motorcycle. Which, with gas prices climbing, that will be a big money saver. DS and I will be meeting them in Yosemite for the last day and night. I've been looking at the little cabins inside the park and it looks like it'll be about $115! I don't want to get a camping spot in case it rains or is cold because we'll be there with the baby. I am looking forward to seeing Yosemite again; it's been about 10 years since my last visit.

Travel is on my mind right now. I love seeing new places. While my mom was visiting yesterday we were talking about the cruise she and my aunt (her sister) have planned for this summer. A Mediterranean cruise. 12 days, with two nights in Barcelona beforehand and two nights in Venice afterwards. It sounds wonderful and I hope my mom has a fabulous time.

My boss is planning to go to Palm Springs for a long weekend the end of this month.

In the Costco coupon book we got a few days ago there was a travel offer for Los Cabos (10 minutes to Cabo San Lucas). Four nights at the Sheraton for $295/pp. (Breakfast included, $150 food/beverage credit and $50 spa credit.) Not including airfare. If you had some frequent flyer miles to use that could be sweet....We don't though.. *sigh* Tropical vacations always look so good while it's cool and raining here at home - like today.

The other thing I saw on Costco travel is their Disney packages. When you book thru Costco you get a Character dining included! For those of you who don't or haven't done Disney, Character dining is a meal where they have a bunch of the characters come around to your table. It's neat because you can get a bunch of pictures of you and the characters without having to chase them around the parks. Usually these meals cost up to $39/adult and $20/child. So getting one for free is a very nice perk. I'm ready to go to Disneyland again

I just want a vacation.

Our goal of spending $175/week didn't work out this past week. We were over by $130. It's okay, we're just going to keep trying to hit that mark each week. It may be a bit ambitious, but I feel that the amount is doable. I went a little crazy at the grocery store; it's hard to walk away from a good deal.

Bought gas on Friday. (Gas has it's own budget, so it's not deducted from the $175 thankfully, or we'd have no money to eat with!)
It was $3.68/gallon at Costco. Total to fill up - $64.
The price of diesel has really shot up. In 24 hours the stations in our town had raised the price by 0.20/gallon! We don't drive our big truck regularly, but the company DH works for has all diesel trucks and these prices really hurt business like them.

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My mom came for a visit yesterday. We meet with my co-worker and had mochas, these amazing éclairs and a nice visit. Yummy, Yummy. I spent $7. Then we dropped DD at a birthday party for one of her friends. Gift was $7. Mom treated me to a pedicure. (Thank you mama!) We picked up DD from the party and had take-and-bake pizzas and chocolate chip cookies for dinner, cost $20.

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My DH is almost back to normal. Thank goodness! I was worried that he might need further treatment. This type of thing is why having savings/EF is so critical. It is also a reminder why I need to get life insurance squared away on us. I know - bad we don't have it yet.

We received our California state refund today.
Yippee, I'm rich!!!

Just kidding.

Tomorrow is payday for me and DH, so our checking account will be quite fat for the next few days. Until all the payments and transfers post.

J4F
Would you take one million dollars right now OR wait and get ten million in ten years?
This is tax free money and would also go to your estate should you pass.

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DD had her dentist appointment. Routine cleaning/polish and x-rays. No cavities! Yay! She will need a little cosmetic work to her front teeth. I made her an appointment for later this month. Don't know how much that will be yet. Her routine visit was $25.

Very slow week at work..Monday my coworker left early, yesterday I stayed home and today she left early again. So far we've got one appointment on the books for this afternoon. Thus the time I have to blog..hehe..

DH says he's feeling a bit better today. Very tired. His meds say they might cause drowsiness. Plus infections are energy draining anyway.

A note about my enchilada sauce: I looked at a bunch of recipes online and pretty much figured out that you can add whatever sounds good to you. I saw one that had taco sauce, one with salsa, one used tomato paste and crushed, fire roasted tomatoes and I also saw seasoning the sauce with just a packet of taco seasoning. Just in case any of those variations jump out at you and you want to experiment further.

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J4F
I would wait and take the ten million. It would be hard to wait, but well worth it. At first I felt like I would rather take the money now, but *sigh* it's better to wait. Knowing myself I'd have to be sure I didn't rack up a bunch of debt knowing I'd be getting that money down the road.

I have a few goals I have started working on this past month and am starting to think about March now.

1. Get to the gym three times weekly.
I started doing this and so far I'm on track. Yay! I go by myself Tuesday morning and with the family on Thursday evening and Sunday mornings. DH and I discussed trying this for a month or two and if I didn't use the gym enough to make it worth while we would cancel the family membership and downgrade to just an individual membership for DH. He plays racquetball two to three times per week. We've cut back to the individual membership before when I knew I wouldn't be using it or we really need to cut back. My DH needs to workout for his mental health even more so than physical health...that said our gym membership costs less than visiting the marriage counselor. hehe I will always make his membership more of a need. Mine is more a nice perk. I like being able to work out at the gym, although I know I could still get exercise other ways. The gym makes me more "accountable" I guess and I get nice results when I go regularly.

2. Apply any "extra" money from regular paychecks to debt. (Then it'll be savings - Can't wait!)
This is when the paycheck is more than the amount I've budgeted for. Example: DH's budgeted paycheck is $800/wk. When his paycheck is more, say $870, I used to just put that in the checking account for more spending. Now I will apply the $70 to the debt. This is DH's idea. He has wanted me to do this for awhile, but I was reluctant to "cut ourselves too short." Now I see I was only enabling our spending by looking at that as EXTRA $ and thus spending it like EXTRA $.

3. Weekly budget amount for food and household and etc. spending cut to $175/week.
I am thinking it will be easier for us to monitor our spending if we break it down weekly vs. monthly. And inspired by ThriftORama, I just lumped all of that together, instead of trying to track grocery, dining out, household, gifts, etc in different categories. So I've combined and then cut back. Yesterday was the first day of the first week of this new approach. Wish us luck!

Friday night while I was driving home I was thinking about something I thought might be fun. A Just 4 Fun (J4F) question I will post, it will probably be silly or strange, but it's just for fun!

***Would you choose Oatmeal or Malt O' Meal/Cream of Wheat?***

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I received email confirmation that both my state and federal returns have been accepted. Now I am waiting for my money.

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Malt O' Meal for me.
I love oatmeal, but Malt O' Meal is so YUMMY!

CeeJay recently asked about parenting successes. And you know it seems strange, but right now I can't think of just one time. It feels like each day there are some success and sometimes failures (like losing your temper or being "too" busy).

Some things I have learned that help me are:

*Give two choices to your child. Both results are okay with you. It gives them a feeling of power over their own life. Builds self-confidence and self-worth.

*Let them do things on their own. How else will they learn?

*I've always told my DD, and I will tell my son, the truth about things. Kids know when you lie and they lose respect for you.

*Have a good sense of humor. It feels a lot better to laugh than be angry about that 'spilt milk'.

*Choose your battles. (Who cares if their clothes don't match??)

*Give lots of hugs and loves. Play and do things together.

*When your kids make mistakes be sure they know you still love and support them.

*You set the example. For everything!

*Help them pick good friends.


My children make me proud everyday.

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She also asked "What would you change in your life?"

Well the shortest answer would be - nothing. If you use the reasoning that if you change something then you alter how something else turned out.
But if I could keep everything I love and change just a few things it would be:

****Financial****
More money in retirement and savings. Wished we started much earlier.

****Personal****
Nicer legs. (Thinner and w/out any spider veins)

On Tuesday, we received DH's 1099 (from his side work/business) we had been waiting for. I had everything entered by Wednesday night, but waited until this morning to review all my entries before pressing the SEND button. Double checking that I typed the correct amounts and didn't screw up on something silly like a SS#. I have used freetaxusa.com for several years now. (This is the sixth year??) It is user friendly, IRS approved, e-files, free to file federal and costs me $9.95 to file our California return. My FIL has used TurboTax the past few years. He thinks it's great and saves him so much money. DH and I have told him about this site each year. I'm sure in some way he feels like we don't know what we're talking about. Even though I believe our taxes are a bit more complicated than theirs. I, at least, have childcare and a schedule C to file that they don't have. In our situation TurboTax would cost me $75 for federal and an "additional fee" for state. Umm, I'll stick with $10, thank you.

I e-file, but have the checks mailed to me. I guess I am paranoid because I don't want to give the government our bank information. Although I am sure they could get it if they wanted.

This year we are getting back more than from past years. I'm thinking our newest tax deduction/credit (DS) plays a part of that.
Getting back $3724/federal and $2470/state.
Our gross income was down only slightly. $3273 less than 2009. DH made more, but because I was on maternity leave I made much less, so it pretty much evened out.

Plans for our refund?

**Both our moms have given us cash in the years we've been married. We try to give a little back each year. Looking at $2k to my mom and $500 to MIL.
**EF. $1k ish.
**cc debt. Remaining $$.

I am on lunch break right now. So far I've brought lunch to work every day this month. Today was a chicken tamale with rice, a cup of yogurt, water and a few Valentines chocolates.

MonkeyMama's post has reminded me how much I need to call and get a haircut appointment. My last haircut was in April. I have much longer hair (to the small of my back), but I am a "wash and go" girl too. And obviously don't pay much in a year for haircuts!

Need to make dentist appointment for the family and myself soon. I'm like three months overdue..

Many of you have posted about V-Day spending. I bought a 36ct bag of Nerds Valentine boxes for DD's class for $3.60. I didn't buy DH anything (which is normal) and he and DD made a special dinner at home - sausage and basil lasagna. Yummy!! DH did have a huge flower arrangement delivered to me at work. Very sweet; he is a romantic type. He said they were a good deal from the florist in his weekly business group. Of course I am not going to out and out ask how much. He paid with $$ from his side work, NOT household cash flow.

On the news they were reporting the average amount of money spent by women on V-Day was about $80, and by men was about $160. Our family was WELL under those numbers!

It seems I always think of lots of blog ideas and then when I sit down in front of the computer I can barely remember one. However, I have remembered two just now...

Has anyone else tried the Little Cesar's Hot and Ready pizzas? We have gotten them a few times the past several weeks. On Monday they are $3.99 and breadsticks are $1. So a quick dinner DH picks up for under $10. DH has also picked up pizza for lunch for $5 (all other days of the week) and it's enough for two lunch meals for him. Not the very best pizza I've ever had, but the cheese and the pepperoni are good, and tastes even better when I know we've only paid $4 for it.

Back in December I got a letter from Comcast (our cable company) regarding my account and the new "bundle" I had changed to in September/October. It was just a letter reviewing the "agreement" and it also stated that if our account was in good standing for three months I would receive a $150 cash card. Well I got the card the beginning of this week, Cool! I am thinking I will use it for grocery shopping. $150 should be easy enough to spend on food.

I have my laptop back. It needed another hard drive. Go figure. The repair tech said that the disk drive wasn't "talking" to the rest of the computer because the hard drive wasn't connecting things right. I'm glad I didn't have a bunch of things saved to the computer because I would have lost them all again. Still a pain in the butt!! I do have all my Microsoft Word, Works and Excel loaded in now. The silver lining was the repairs didn't cost anything.

The past couple weeks have been uneventful, just trying to keep spending down. Budget was tight in January and will be tighter in February - Short month and all. I have been taking lunch to work everyday since the middle of January. I almost always take a frozen meal like Eating Right (Safeway brand) or Lean Cuisine, a piece of fruit and a yogurt for an afternoon snack. $2/meal + $0.50/fruit + $0.60/yogurt = healthy for under $4. I really need and want to buckle down on my weight loss. I've gained almost 40lbs. (Ouch, I don't like typing that!) It is frustrating because I am trying to be good and so far I'm only down 2 lbs. Ugh! I need more weight loss to keep me motivated. It took me a long time to lose the baby weight after DD. I think my body just really holds on to the "mama fat".

Last weekend we visited family. Stayed at my in-law's house Friday and Saturday night. DH told me he was talking to his dad and that they want to refi their mortgage. They're at 7%!!! I was shocked, I mean I would have refinanced LONG ago. I don't understand why they aren't in a hurry..??..
On Saturday I took DD to Mount Shasta for her first downhill skiing experience. She took two 90 minute lessons with equipment rental was $70. This was paid by my mom as a Christmas gift. We just didn't have time to do it around Christmas, but did manage to squeeze it in before the snow melts. DD loved it and was a natural. Her afternoon instructor said she is ready for the chairlift her next time out. Now I will need to brush up so we can ski together, the last time I was skiing was 10 years ago. Would like to get my BFF and my dad to go with us too.

Yesterday was a big spending day. Baby had his 9mo checkup for $125. DD and DH went grocery shopping for lunch supplies for the two of them for $52. I ordered diapers and wipes at Diapers.com for $27. I bought baby formula and other needed supplies at Target for $104. At Target I needed to buy paper plates and napkins for DD's class party this Friday. I was going to buy some cute heart print plates with matching napkins, but then I found the clearance aisle in the back corner of the store.. I bought a 125ct pack of paper plates for $4.50 and a 400ct pack of napkins for $5. Sure they were just plain white, but now her class will have enough for all their parties for the rest of this year. I also scored a six pack of binkies for DS for $7.50. They are regularly $6/pair. Now I can have a spare everywhere.

Still no laptop. Rrrr! I am very annoyed because Staples didn't send it out for almost a week! They said they were having trouble processing the "re-work" request because their system kept wanting to charge us. Now I ask you, don't you think they have to do re-works for other clients? I mean, we aren't the only ones, right? I am more inclined to think they forgot about sending it out. I am not in much position to complain because it is a free repair. Maybe I'll get it back Tuesday..

In other news, baby DS has a little cold and is teething. The past few nights have been dotted with crying and not as much sleep as I'd like. Poor baby. We'll get through it.

I also discovered my sweet daycare lady isn't getting our bottles as clean as I would like. We had to talk. Which went fine. I will take the bottles home every couple days to do a through scrub. No one takes care of babies like mom does hu?!

I actually made $50 last weekend. Deposited to the EF. And I split the $200. Half to cc and half to the EF.

Will need to update the sidebar when I've got more than two minutes here! Busy at work. I'll have a lot of blog reading to do when I finally get my computer back.

Have a nice weekend everyone!

Our laptop is back out for repair to the disk drive again. Thankfully we noticed the problem, a likely short, before the 90 day period was up. DH took it in to Staples and they have "sent it out". No charges to us, but no laptop at home.
Trying to catch up on my emails, bills, checking accounts and your posts all while I am at work. Whew!! Not much time here to do that except for lunch time really.

Been meaning to post about my diaper buying/saving.
The past few months I was getting 30% back on my diaper purchases online and I ended up with $58 worth of credit! Enough for a huge box of diapers, actually almost two, and wipes and a toy. And I used a 15% off code for the toy. So I still have a bit of credit left over for next time.

Back to work!

Lazy Saturday here. Baby is down for his afternoon nap, DD is outside playing and DH is running errands on his 'new' motorcycle that came today. Inlaws brought down early this AM. They have just left to head home. The weather is beautiful, blue skies, sun and 65F.

I should go out, but I am comfy in the recliner switching between football playoffs and the movie Pirates of the Caribbean all while online. Enjoying being alone right now.

Paid some bills. PG&E $210. Cell phone $200 (two bills - I didn't pay last month) Cable/Internet/Home Phone bundle $165, I didn't technically pay because it's on auto bill, but I did transfer the money from checking to the Visa to "pay" for it. Water $74, again on auto bill. Our water rates went up on January 1st. Small increases ($0.20 - $0.60) to the base rate for water and sewer and small increases ($0.15) to the per hcf for both water and sewer(hcf= hundred cubic feet; 1 hcf= 748 gallons). We used 6 hcf in December for $69 and in January 6 hcf for $74. So their small increases will add up. The city is paying for a new sewer treatment plant.

Today I had enough points on my visa to redeem for $100 account credit. So I did that right off. Yay!

Watched the movie Julie and Julia last night. It was very cute! DH liked it. He's a romantic so he liked how both the hubbys loved their wives.

Now I am wanting to try a few of those recipes.

Burritos for dinner tonight. And I'm thinking about French food. haha. Back to relaxing, only two hours until dinner and Suze Orman.

My DH has been talking to his dad a few times today..and..well..DH is going to buy one of FIL motorcycles. ARG!! I can't beleive him!! It's totally against my wishes and he knows it. He'll be using side work money to pay for it. I want that $$$$ to go to debt, retirement and savings!!!! It's a bike I've been on before and I really like it, so he says I'll be glad he did this. I told him I am NOT happy and yes I liked riding on it when his dad owned it!! And I won't ride on it until all cc debt is paid off. So There! Rrrrrrr!!

I paid the Sears card off. Don't get too excited for me though because I tacked it on to another card.
I had to pay Sears before the 20th to avoid the intrest from the past year being applied. It was 0% for the year if paid in full by January 20th. I had fully intended to do this and was on track to until I was was out on maternity leave. Doh!

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Did major grocery and Costco shopping this past week. Used some nice coupons at Costco. $4 off boneless porkchops, $2.50 off laundry soap, $3.50 off dishwasher tabs. They have Quicken there for $65 and I have a coupon for $20 off. (I am very tempted to pick it up. Sounds like a good deal, but I haven't checked around at all.) We also buy our razors there (DH and I use the same kind) it's a 52 ct. for $23. I also bought 12 fresh, boneless, skinless chicken breasts for $20, 6lbs of hamburger, papertowels, a six-pack of Lean Cuisine $7.59 (great for lunch) and several other items. Total $210.

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I have my W-2 already, now waiting for DH's. I also need to get the year statement from DD's school's childcare and the mortgage companies. I guess there isn't any hurry with all the news I hear of the IRS delay. But I am going to start plugging in numbers today to my online tax program. I have used FreeTaxUSA the past several (5) years. $20 for state and federal. With our new tax deduction (DS ) and my decreased income I am curious to see how things will calculate.
Here's to getting some money back!

We stayed in last night, had a nice dinner, watched a movie, I had a few glasses of bubbly and set off a few firecrakers at midnight. 2010 was a good year here.

Right now I am having a cup of coffee and watching the Rose Bowl Parade. Those floats are always so amazing! Beautiful! Planning to have a quiet weekend at home. Play with the baby, clean up Christmas decor, watch football, make chili and ???

Have a few 2011 goals rolling around in my head, but nothing specific yet. Losing baby weight, saving more, paying off more debt. That's about it so far.

Happy 2011 to everyone!
May each of you reach your goals this year.

And Happy almost New Year!

I had this post all typed up on Sunday morning (12/26) and Blam-O my computer kicked me off the internet. I haven't had any time to re-type until now.....


Belated Merry Christmas to all! I am hoping all of you had a lovely holiday. This year more than ever I felt so lucky to have what I have. We are so very lucky. May we all have good luck and success in 2011!

We hosted this year for the first time ever. Inlaws came Thursday afternoon in their motorhome and my parents and my sister came Christmas Eve morning and everyone stayed until Sunday morning. FIL and DH were in charge of the prime rib (from Costco) for Christmas dinner and it was AWESOME! I tried two new recipes - roasted carrots with ginger and brown sugar glaze and a potato gratin made with heavy cream. The carrots were fab, the potatos I'll make again with more cheese Also had ham, green beans, fruit salad, dinner rolls and a ton of desserts. I made the hashbrown quiche and lemon scones for Christmas morning. Had to laugh a bit because FIL was kinda "eh..quiche..hu?" until he tasted it and then there wasn't enough of it. It went fast! Could've made a triple batch! DH made breakfast Sunday morning for everyone. Total for the Christmas groceries about $230. Also had the housecleaners come for $90.

I feel good about our spending on gifts this year too. Less than in past years, but scored some very nice gifts too. Best find for me was a Giants jersey for DH's big/Santa present. $60 on Ebay. Very nice.

As DH pointed it out it was nice not having to travel and really nice not having to pack up all the gifts and drive them home. We just unwrapped and pretty much put them away.

Of course the kids (just DD and DS) were spoiled rotten with all the grandparent and auntie time, plus their gifts. Baby was so cute, he opened his presents pretty much by himself (a little help from big sis to get started) and he got so excited when he saw all the goodies inside the paper. Of course the wrapping paper itself was exciting also.

SO Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Did a bit of shopping this morning with little DS. Mostly Santa related. Stocking stuffers (shampoo, deodorant and mouth wash) and odds and ends to compete the gift list. Bought some frames for family pictures for gifts at WalMart $3 (5X7) and $5 (8X10)!
I had ordered a Santa gift from Ebay for DH and when I was done there was a link to Vistaprint for buiness cards 250ct for $4. DH needed some new cards for his side work stuff. I had them shipped at the slowest/cheapest rate and was pleasently suprised when they arrived two weeks ahead of time. Santa will put them in his stocking.

Still need to buy something for the boss - $20 Starbucks card I think. Sister - small cookie sheet pan to go with cookbook I bought already. Looking for a DVD for co worker. A few more stocking stuffers for baby. Santa gift for the cats (dogs and chickens already done ) Some sweets for my Grandpa. DH and DD will go shopping tomorrow for gifts to donate for a child off a "Giving Tree".

AND next week all the food...((Gulp!))

DH had $470 extra in his paycheck this week from sales commissions. Yay! That helps offset some Christmas spending.

Gotta get some gifts wrapped!!

I have been so busy working and running around trying to get Christmas things done. Tree, outdoor lights, Christmas cards, shopping, wrapping, etc.. I had been meaning to make a posting titled "Runaway $$ Train" because of all the cash that's flying out the station here. But I couldn't get enough time on the computer until today. I wasn't feeling very well - sore throat, headache and DS has a runny nose and cough. So he and I have been snuggled up most of the day just resting.

I never had a chance to put a December budget together and am reduced to marking off which bills have been paid on a "To Do" list. Part of the problem is I haven't gotten any document or spreadsheet software for the laptop yet. My FIL has the Microsoft disks and we meant to bring them home after Thanksgiving and totally forgot them. He is going to bring them to our house for Christmas. If that doesn't work out I am going to try Open Office suggested to me by Monkey Mama. I'll just muddle thru the rest of the year, all two weeks of it , and start fresh January.

That's the other thing: We're hosting Christmas at our house this year. DH's idea. Hey, I would rather go to our parent's houses where they get to take on the cooking and cleaning!

My BFF came for a visit this past weekend. It was so great! She hadn't seen our house yet. It had been so long since her last visit (maybe three years?) She and I went to San Francisco Saturday evening for a show. We stopped for a nightcap and once we got back home we stayed up until 3am talking. The tickets to the show were a Christmas present to me from DH.

Baby is up, gotta go..
I'll leave you with a picture of him and Santa.

Thanks for all the great dinner ideas on my last post everyone! I will be trying the ones we don't make already. I will also post any good ones I find.

The salmon was very easy and tasty and I will make it again. I did overcook it a bit, but the flavor was excellent. Thanks Monkey Mama!

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We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am echoing the rest of you in saying how thankful I am to have family and a home and work and health. Very thankful indeed. Saw my mom, dad, MIL, FIL, Grandma and Grandpa and our horses. Would have loved a chance to see some cousins and my BFF, but conflicting schedules this visit.

Friday DD was able to play in the snow at my grandparent's house.


Our horses.
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My DH is driving me nuts! He wants a new (used) motorcycle. His dad is selling the one my DH really likes for $5k. This is the only thing he has on his Christmas list and tells everyone about how this is the only thing he wants this year. Ugh! A few years back he wanted an off-road ATV (four-wheeler) for Christmas. So I bought him one - A toy one! It even had a little rider figure with it and I covered the name on the package with DH's name. So it said "B...., The ATV Champion" I hope I can do the same for the motorcycle this year.

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Watching football and relaxing today before the week starts up again. Ran to the grocery store for a few things this morning. Great deal on baby formula. Reduced price and $3 off coupons. Yay! I will have to venture out again to take care of a kitty. But right now DH is working a short side job, DS is napping and DD is outside playing. A few minutes of Me Time.

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Crockpot dinner tonight is BBQ Beef Sandwiches. It smells SO GOOD in my house right now! You could use chicken or pork with this. And it is good in summer or winter.
2-3lb Chuck Roast
1cup BBQ Sauce
1/2cup Apricot jam
1/2 Bell Pepper chopped
1/2-1 med. onion thinly sliced
3/4cup salsa
2tsp. Brown Sugar
1Tblsp. Dijon mustard
I like to put the roast in the crockpot and "stab" it with a fork a little and season with a little salt and pepper. Then I put all the sauce fixings in a small sauce pot on the stove. Heat and mix for about 2 minutes and pour over roast. Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 8-9 hours. I like to serve on sourdough sandwich rolls with cheddar cheese. In summer I pair with potato salad and tonight it will be baked potatoes or fresh, hot fries.