Starting the week of bad

Don't you hate it when you wake up way before your alarm goes off? This morning I woke up about an hour before my alarm and could not get back to sleep. I guess that has to do with me and my guy not getting along; but I was surprised to find his spot on the bed empty. Also day I have some medical tests to hopefully figure out what's going on with me. I have been sick for the past month and no one can figure it out. Granted the one good thing about being sick is I have lost enough weight to fit back into some of my favorite jeans! That was a nice feeling; it felt really good to fit into a pair of super cute jeans I bought 3 years ago! But it's still scary to not know what's wrong. And to top it off, I have someone coming out tomorrow to appraise my house for a re-fi; I am hoping for a good value so the bank will approve it!

I think I have too much stress in my life! I have too much going on in my life that I can't control; which in the past means that I make a change to something I can control like cutting my hair but it's already short enough. Mmmm, I will need to think of something else. Have any suggestions?

Wednesday Already *Updated with pics*

I have not really been on top of things lately; I haven't posted anything in a week and even today I don't feel very creative. But I have to snap out of it; I have been feeling blah for way to long so starting right .... NOW I'm going to have a better attitude and start doing the things I like to do again.

Over the weekend I learned how to use my sewing machine! Who would have thought it was actually that simple. I was lucky and I was the only person to show up to the free class so I had one-on-one with the sewing expert. I think I will be able to at least do the basics. Look out everyone, home made lounge pants are on the way! LOL

I also need to start back up with my t-shirt designing stuff; bedazzeling and iron-on, stenciling and scrapbooking. Wow, I have a lot of hobbies! I need to stop watching so much TV or move my stuff so I can watch and work at the same time. Mmmm... maybe I will move my desk around or something. Oh yeah, and I'm now addicted to FaceBook! If you're on there, come be my friend. :)

I will have to be honest and say that I'm not keeping up on my 2009 goals; some I'm doing Ok on and well, some I'm just not there yet. I have yet to start on decluttering any of my rooms or work on decorating anything yet. I'm hoping to paint this weekend! If it looks OK, maybe I will try to post a picture. But the one thing I'm GREAT at is shopping smart; last night at Nordys Rack I was able to buy a sweater vest-type of thing for only $4.34 including tax! Ok, so I bought 2 of them plus another jacket that will be perfect for the spring time (if it ever gets here). The jacket was originally $138 at the regular Nordys store, rack price $54 but it was marked down 50% plus 20% employee discount ... final cost $21. Seriously over $100 savings than what someone bought it at the main store!

The start of Lent *Updated with pics*

Today is Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent. I'm not big on religion; granted you couldn't tell by my tattoos.

(upper left thigh) (back of right calf, wraps around entire leg)

Anyways, I do always enjoy participating in giving up something I like/enjoy for Lent. This year I have decided to give up convenience foods; no more fast food, junk food (unless I make it from scratch), soda, instant anything. I'm sure right now this doesn't seem like much but give me a week and I will be crying for my instant mashed potatoes and hot chocolate. But I'm going to be realistic about this too; if I have (recently) made something from scratch, I will continue to do so; I will be able to enjoy cookies, granola bars, breads, salsas and I'm sure there are a few other things too. But I think right now I'm taking advantage of the conveniences I do have so this will be a good reminder for me. I'm hoping to also try not to buy any new clothing or accessories (shoes included) until Easter. Trust me, I have more than enough to get me by the next 40 days and probably beyond.

You will have to check back with me in a few weeks to see how I'm really doing! Better yet, how my guy is doing. He was definitely not looking forward to this time of year as my mom or I are the cooks for the house. My mom has decided to give up meat. (Sorry Erin, I don't think she will stay converted) I'm also hoping this will help with me losing a few pounds in a healthy way!

Somthing has to give

Last night I went to two different grocery stores; I needed some toiletry stuff plus food so I stopped at Wal-Mart and Winco. $153 later, I was home and exhusted! I'm trying to keep track of what the regular price is at each store I shop to see where I should pick up the staples. So far I'm realizing I need to shop at 3 different places (maybe even 4) for everything; personally I think this is a pain but when you need save a few bucks, you do what you have to do! Tonight I was planning on stopping at Freddies to pick up the items they have on sale from the paper Sunday; not much, TP, bread, 5 for 10 cereal deal. Maybe once I know where the staple items are the best price I can try to avoid so many stores. I'm not a huge fan of buying my groceries the same place I buy electronics. Mmm, now that doesn't seem right because I have no problem stopping at Freddies to pick up fresh meat. Maybe it's just me, I don't want to shop at Wal-Mart for food; I don't buy ANY store brands no matter where I shop so that's not the issue. Does that make me a snob? Not that I really care about designer food marts because I have no problem going to Winco; just as long as it's not the first of the month when all our welfare dollars are being spent. Wow, it looks like I'm in a GREAT mood today! I think my mood reflects how I feel about my personal finances and health. I just learned my electric bill for Dec-Feb was over $325 putting my bi-monthly bill over $550! When money is already tight, that was just something I didn't need today; or any other day for that mater. But just like everything else, I will find a way. As for my health; I missed 2 days of work last week (thank goodness for PTO time) and finally went to the doctor. Unfortunately I have to go back today for more tests. I have some sort of kidney infection and something is going on with my appendix. Good times!

On a brighter note.... I'm excited for Saturday! I'm going to a class on how to use MY sewing machine. It's been sitting for probably over 2 years since I have NO clue how to work it. I have so many ideas in my head for my machine; I just hope I don't get too fustrated and give up.

Just thought of something else to be happy about; a co-worker of mine asked if I would mind if his family prayed for my health. I'm not a big prayer person but I thought it was really great to have someone I work with care enough about me to pray.

Weekend Parent

It's actually pretty amazing what talking actually does for kids; who would have thought!?! Since talking with L after Christmas about being more responsible and talking to her mom about making sure she packs her suitcase with appropriate clothing we have not had any problems! It was nice to see that after a friendly conversation she respected my wishes to make sure L had clothes or something to play with at our house on during her visits with us. In fact, L had done such a good job of this that I allowed her to take home her new clothes (from Christmas) and even a few of her toys. I keep reminding L that if she takes care of her nice things and brings them back and forth, she will continue to get nice things to take back and forth.

In the past few months we have been trying to go have dinner with her on our "off" weeks; this seems to be good for L and my guy! Tonight we will be going to visit her again; we will be using a restaurant coupon I bought from here. This is also becoming a nice treat for my guy to get to help her with homework. Plus we are learning more about activities she wants to be involved with!

NOW the next problem I think we need to try to work on is getting her out of her bedroom. I'm happy she is comfortable in her room and knows that is "her" place but unless we are playing Wii or eating, she sits in her room. I've asked her a few times to come sit out with me in the living room and after huffing and puffing, she does. Maybe it's just the age of wanting to be alone or not with your parents but when we only see her 4 days; call me crazy I think she should hang out on the couch or where ever we are. Or is this selfish? Honestly I don't think there is a happy medium but it's worth asking around. I know most people that read my blog have kids so it's nice to hear your opinions.

Feeling blah

Ever have one of those days where you just feel blah? I think I'm having a blah month. I have no energy or excitement to do anything fun or creative. I would love to just crawl in bed with puppy and a few good books for a week! Maybe it's the lack of vitamin D I'm getting up here in the Great NW or maybe it's just the blah look of the country side. I can't wait for the spring time with the budding of new flowers and colors! I'm hoping my trees all bloom this year! I think my goal for this week is to figure out how to get out of this funk. At Joann's this weekend I picked up some cute rub-ons that I need to put on picture frames; maybe looking at all my old pictures will cheer me up. Plus I need to get working on something great for momma's birthday at the end of the month! What do you get someone who has everything and wants nothing. Time to be creative!

More Flowers

Yep, my guy is a keeper! Once again he did something wonderful ....





My office smells SO good right now! These are my all time favorite flower, Gardenia!

I heart Prada

I never have buyers remorse after spending too much money, and this is another example of that. In the last 2 days, I have spend $342 at Nordstrom Rack stores (this is after my employee discount, a savings of $70). I know this is a TON of money that could have been use to ... fix my broken car, pay down on credit cards, a mini-vacation trip well the possibilities are endless. But what I did buy was well worth it; well at least in my mind.

Classic 2 inch black leather Prada

Classic leather Prada flats with a buckle

Now, I'm not completly selfish; I did buy my baby a few TOTALLY necessary Juicy things!

Now, don't you think this pretty little girl will look lovely sleeping in her new comfy bed! Ok, let's not kid ourselves, you know the baby sleeps in bed, under the covers with us! Plus, she is going to be so stylish going out-and-about in her new carrier! I can't wait to try it out. Just hope I can wait ONE more day to give it to her for Valentine's!

Ok, here is a breakdown of what I spent, and why I think it's perfectly OK to buy all that I did!

Prada heels, regular price: $395, Rack price $80 minus employee discount $64

Prada flats, regular price: $340, Rack price $80 minus employee discount $64

Juicy doggie bed: regular price $95, Rack price $39 minus employee discount $32

Juicy carrier: regular price $325, Rack price $117 minus employee discount $93

I also bought a few Northface pull-overs for me and my guy for a total of $65ish. Granted those we probably didn't need, but something that will last a long time and still a good deal!

Now you know why I need rehab for shopping!

Cooking from scratch

Since I have decided to be healthy and try to slim down some, I have decided to try to cook alot more from scratch. Up until now, that's exactly what it was "deciding" to cook. But last night for some crazy reason I got motivated and made granola bars from scratch from this recipe. Since I don't like raisins, I changed it up a bit; I added chopped walnuts and Reese Peanut Butter Chips ... yummm ... For my first try it wasn't so bad; I had NO clue how long they would take to cook, which pushed dinner back (sorry), but to my pleasant surprise, they came out GREAT. Ok, I think they were great FOR a first try. I think next time I will add in a few chocolate chips and more nuts. Do you realize how hard it is to find Wheat Germ when you have NO clue what your looking for? Thankgoodness my guy is not afraid to ask for help granted this might have something to do with walking up and down EVERY aisle in 2 different stores. LOL I think tonight I'm going to try to figure out exactly what the calorie and fat count is to make sure it's worth my time. I also need to figure out how to come up with the cost of making them. Does anyone know how I would calculate this? I spent a total of $17.72; but I did buy 2 containers of the oatmeal. I only bought 2 in hopes these would turn out OK and I would like to make them again(plus I had a dollar off coupon)! I didn't have to buy the basics; brown sugar, salt, cinnamon or applesauce.

Sorry, I would have posted a picture, but I ate mine already. I will try again next time!

Weekly Menu * UPDATE *

I know it's already Tuesday, but I'm going to try this menu planning things again this week. Last week didn't work out like I planned as I was gone a few days and didn't get to cook like I wanted to before hand. I have checked my freezer and looked at a few recipes so here we go:

Monday: Was chicken cooked on the Foreman, veggie, steak fries

Tuesday: NY Steak, baked patatoes, veggie *UPDATED

Wednesday: Chicken 'N Dumplings (crockpot creation) *Date changed*

Thursday: Salmon (if available) or Soup *UDPATED*

Friday: Leftovers, Mac 'N Cheese, Hot dogs

Valentines Day: Lunch: Soup and salad
Dinner: Debating on going out or letting my guy cook! It will be a surprise.

Sunday: Lunch: Chili Dogs
Dinner: Spaghetti with sauce

I only posted this yesterday and I ALREADY made to make a change! I went to the store to pick up my salmon steaks but they were out! I was SO disappointment. Since I hadn't taken a thing out of the freezer, I decided to buy fresh steaks; which was close to my budge for salmon ($16). Since I had to change up the salmon with steak I had to change up when we were going to have things. Here is a updated verison of what will be for dinner! Hope it works out this time!

2009 Goals update

Now that one month has past, I thought I should look to see how I am doing with my goals for the year; or more importantly did anything change. I admit, I'm pretty proud of my self; I have kept my goals in the back of my mind and let them guide me through my days.

Appreciation: I have put away my clothes (still a work in progress but getting better) I'm working on arranging my shoes in a more user friendly manner; this will hopefully get me to wear all 100 pairs!

Avoiding drama: I have decided along with my guy to just stay clear of the drama; we have been left out of a few parties but in the end, we are happier together!

Excuses: This is still hard, but I'm taking responsibility for my actions and not letting it affect others.

Shopping: This is where I have made a HUGE improvement; I have only bought 2 things for my self in the past month! A $3 white sweatshirt that is becoming a staple in my home life and a pair of shorts for the summer.. normal price is $88, but they came into my retail store for $15 minus my 20% employee discount! I just couldn't pass them up. I have also picked up a few things for Valentines but for once, I put them away to give as gifts. I'm so bad about buying something before hand and not waiting.

Recycling: Still trying to figure out how to be more involved; still need to sell some un-wanted, un-used items.

Cooking: I have been cooking and tried a few new recipes; I can't wait to learn how to make bread.

Decluttering: Another one I need to work on. Mmmm, this is harder than I thought. I swear I need everything in my house! My dining room looks better; I still need to put up my wine bottle holders. But the glassware shelving was redone and is now more user friendly. Still need to do something with the blinds....

Vacations: We did go to Great Wolf with L and a friend last month; we had a great time and was able to spend some time here and there alone so it was a nice get away for us too. For February we have Leavenworth scheduled with another couple!

I think so far I'm doing pretty good and still on target to have these goals continue through-out the entire year!

Weekly Menu

Since last week was my first week of actually planning a menu, I think it went fairly well. We didn't have spaghetti on Friday as no one was really that hungry; so my guy and L made Mac n' cheese with hot dogs; both things we had on hand. And Saturday we had spaghetti with salad. Here is this weeks menu:

Monday: leftover Chili and corn bread from Superbowl party

Tuesday: Potato bar with leftover chili, cheese and broccoli

Wednesday: Taco Wednesday at the bar $20 bar tab including tip limit

Thursday: I'm out of town in Colorado! But I will have a frozen meal for my guy; Chicken something with stove top

Friday: Still out of town, but my guy will have steak salad and soup

Saturday: He's on his own for this night, probably will go out with friends

Sunday: I'm home so probably steak, veggie, salad


Shopping list: Spending limit $15
potatoes: veggie stand by the house $1 per bag
lettuce: looking for the best deal or Winco about $1.80 per bag
block of cheese: deals?, Winco Tillimock block $6.ish
lunch meat: $2.38 Winco

Looking to stock back up on:
Mac 'n Cheese
Stove Top
Instant Mashed Potatoes
Clam Chowder
Cheese

Weight loss/gain and being happy

Today I was reading http://smartstrongsexy.blogspot.com about her concerns with her weight and body and it really made me think. I have been saying I've embraced my "fatness" for the past 4 months but honestly I haven't. I've been hiding my "healthy" eating habits from my guy and family just to loss a few pounds without getting grief since I did say I was happy with my look. I have lost a few inches and went down a pant size almost 2; I'm pretty excited about this but I think it's time I come clean with the rest of the world. I am NOT happy being my current size!

I have always been little but after a car accident in 2003 or was it 2004, I gained about 40 pounds; this was due to the fact I couldn't walk. I was either in a "walking" boot or on crutches for the entire time; this meant NO working out. I had 2 surgeries which left me home bound for 6 to 8 weeks at a time; during this time I learned to like food. Ok, call me crazy but I never really liked the taste of food, almost all food; yes I would eat but I could seriously go days with nothing but a few crackers and be fine (or so I thought). Besides not being able to work out, I turned 30 during this time frame. Now I never believed the hype of "once you turn 30, you will not be able to lose weight like you did when you were in your 20's"; I am now a believer! Why is this? Does our body have some crazy internal clock and we only have a limited amount of years to burn a million calories by breathing?

I have been motivated by my best friend to get healthy the smart way; exercise and healthy eating. I have watched her struggle with her weight for the past few years only to gain it all back after the "special occasion" she lost it for. I want EVERY day to be my special occasion! I'm not going to track my progress or stress out losing pounds. Seeing no or slow results is like torture to me; instead I'm going to continue not stepping on a scale and once a month will see if I can fit into my favorite jeans (size 29). I'll post a picture as soon as they fit!

I applaud everyone who is completely happy in their own skin and happy with what they have; I wish I had the courage to be this way. Unfortunately, I need to be the size 4 or 6 not the 10 or 12.

Discount on restaurant gift certificates!

A friend of mine emailed me this link (Thanks Sara!); I tried it out and found about 171 establishments in my area. I could have gotten carried away but only bought 3. I spent $15 to receive $75 in GC's! I think it is money well spent! Hope you find some in your area to use. Just a word of advice, when I tried to log into the website it was REALLY slow, the "start looking" button took a few minutes to appear but once I was in, I didn't have any problems. Also there are a few restrictions for some of the places like: dinner only, total must be over $35 to use GC, no cash value, not available with other coupons. All the restrictions are posted before you put in your "cart". There are links to the restaurants menu and info; this might be a cool way to try somewhere new!

As part of a new marketing program Allstate is testing, you can purchase a $25 gift certificate to your favorite restaurant through restaurants.com for only $5, courtesy of Allstate. No strings attached. You do not have to give Allstate any personal information and you will not be contacted by an agent trying to sell you anything. It’s simply a promotion to build goodwill towards the Allstate brand during these tough economic times. Getting your gift certificate is this simple:

1. Click on the following link: http://www.ingoodhands.com/

2. Drag your mouse over the photo of the table place setting in the lower right corner that says “Special Offer!”

3. Click on the yellow oval that says “Start looking”

4. Enter the restaurants.com site to choose the restaurants you like, select the number of gift cards you want and proceed to checkout. Don’t forget to put in the Promotion code “ALL”

5. Print your gift certificate and go eat!

This offer is available to anyone, not just Allstate employees. So spread the word and enjoy your savings!

Weekly Goal

I'm proud to say I finally finished a few goals from the previous week! I was able to clean the master bedroom and we can now walk around freely! Also, I printed the pictures from Great Wolf for L and her friend!

As for this week, I think I'm going to scale it down a bit; I think with too much scheduled, I don't have time to do everything. So, here is my plan for this week:

• Organize linen closet
• Clean up dining room and living room (MUST do, have party on Sunday)
• Swifter ALL floors, use new Mr. Clean with Fabreze

I have a few ideas that I've got from reading LOTS of blogs about how to better organize my living room; my coffee table ends up with EVERYTHING on it, but nothing really belongs there. So I'm going to try out a few storage bins that I already have. They are wood lined with linen, with a top. I'm going to put them on the shelf under the table. I'm sure these will fill up fast, but then I can sort one bin at a time; instead of dumping all the clutter into drawers designed for other things. Next I need to figure out a storage plan for all my blankets.

Anything on top of this is great, but I don't want to be overwhelmed!

First try at menu planning

Ok, I'm going to bit the bullet and try this out; after last weeks $175 worth of dining out for ONE week anything would be better! I'm trying to use this planner I found on http://triciarennea.blogspot.com/search/label/printable. I printed it out and posted it to the fridge; this will avoid my guy asking what we're having and if I forget to take something out, I can ask him to. So here it goes:

Monday:

Steak

Corn on the Cob

Instant Mash Potatoes

Tuesday:

Shake'n Bake Chicken

Stove Top

Veggie

Wednesday:

Baked Pork Chop

Rice

Veggie

Thursday:

Clam Chowder

Steak Salad w/ Mandarin Oranges

Bread from bread machine

Friday: (pick up L after school)

Spaghetti with tomato sauce (just cheese and butter for me)

French Bread

Saturday:

Lunch: sandwich, chips, fruit snack (cheer camp for the day)

Dinner: Chicken something, veggie, rice

Sunday:

Super Bowl Party:

Turkey Chili in crock pot

Little Smokes in BBQ Sauce

Meat/Cheese tray (Pre-made)

Specialty cheeses w/crackers

Salsa from Harry and Davids w/chips

Bacon Wrapped Prawns (thanks Lyn, there are our favorite)

Veggies with dip

Sweet Corn bread

Ok, wish me luck! I will let you know if I was able to stick to this menu and how it worked out. The great thing is, I can now make my shopping list for what I need instead of wondering around the store wondering what will taste good!

Shopping list: either Winco or Wal-Mart

Shake'n Bake

Pork Chops

French Bread

Lunch meat

sliced cheese

Turkey meat

Chili

Specialty cheese (Metropolitan Market)

Superbowl will be a potluck:

Olivia: Chili, corn bread, meat cheese tray (already have), specialty cheeses (split cost with K&D)

K&D: Little Smokes

Lyn: Bacon Wrapped Prawns

E: Harry and David dip with chips

T&S: Veggie tray or something similar

Eating Out

So much for trying to save money this week; we have ate out EVERY night but Monday! And the worst part is, I know we shouldn't be doing; we talked and said we would rather save up for a weekend trip or something fun. Eating out is fun but we had a HUGE taste of reality on Wednesday after dinner. As I was looking at the dessert menu, which I rarely do, I noticed they had the calorie/fat/carbs count for all the menu items. Ha ha, very funny I thought; but instead I almost cried! I had the appetizer sampler for dinner; hot wings, mozzarella sticks, spinach artichoke dip and something else I didn't eat. Well, if you are a calorie counter you would know that my dinner alone was about 2200 calories! This is where the tears almost made an appearance! This also was a turning point and we figured, if he have already ate the normal calorie count in ONE meal, why not just break the bank and have something sweet too. I have never felt so sick before; my stomach ached from the sweet plus from being full. Granted, I know we went out to eat last night but after TONIGHT no more; well at least for the next week! I'm going to try to cook healthy everyday next week.

Another week gone by ...

Another week has gone by and I have yet to finish one goal I have set for myself. Now I realize how my house gets to be such a mess and I never have time to finish projects; I'm never home!

On Tuesday a good friend I use to spend a lot of time with invited us out; needless to say we were out a little later than we wanted to be (11pm). Wednesday I needed to take my car in for an oil change as it's acting a little weird; it was a 2 hour wait so we walked to the mall and had dinner; then my car died! Then out to dinner with L last night; tonight my guy is planning on ride the metro bus up to my work and we can go out in the city. Now that I think about it, our weekend is booked too; unfortunately not really for fun stuff but booked regardless. It is time for inventory at the retail store we work at; Saturday is a prep day, and Sunday/Monday are both full inventory hell days!! I'm not really sure when I'm going to be able to clean up my house! I really feel like taking a vacation day from work but then again, I'm going to Colorado in 2 weeks. It never ends!

The one thing I am proud of is one of my daily goals; I am FINALLY putting away my work clothes when I get home! Who would have thought it only takes about an extra 45 seconds verse an hour the next week.

Excuses

I'm sure this has happened to lots of people but I am personally sick of hearing the excuse of "well, I have a kid and you don't so that's why you can do ......" Really, actually I can do these things because I CHOOSE to take the time to plan/save and do things. I go on vacation all the time and I see TONS of families on vacation as well, so I know it can be done! I really want to confront the friend who is constantly making excuses and telling me why I am able to do things, but I also don't want to ruin our friendship by telling her to stop using her kid as a crutch.

We all make decisions as to how we want to live our lives; some of us save up for vacations and take full advantage of work vacation time and others choose to complain how broke they are and how they don't have enough time to do anything.

I really wish everyone would take personal responsibility for their actions and realize YOU are the only person holding you back; not kids, not work, not money.

Sorry, had to vent a little today; but this is something I wish I did when I was younger and didn't have all the financial responsibilities that I have today. I would have taken advantage of my youth and traveled to more places than just Vegas.

Great Wolf weekend

As I mentioned this past week, we were taking L to the Great Wolf Lodge over the weekend; this was a Christmas present which turned very costly. If you are not familiar, the Great Wolf Lodge is an indoor water park hotel.

I was shocked at the cost of this one night and we had decided to take our own food except for one meal we would eat out. Before arriving we told the girls we had enough food and snacks to last the entire weekend and would only be eating out once. I wanted them to know this before we got there to avoid them begging for something to eat in the snack bar line.

This place was AMAZING! I can not remember the last time when in 30 hours I had SO much fun (OK, Vegas is a blast too). We arrived to a long line to check in; but they offered to let us into the water-park and mentioned a better time to check in. This was a wonderful idea! We played in the water and went down all the slides before checking in; by that time, we all need a break and food. Sandwiches were a hit along with the fruit snacks. I did forget to bring bottled water but we managed to live without it.

L and her friend had a great time! They were able to play freely inside the water area and we didn't have to worry about their safety. We set up a meeting place, and asked them to find us periodically. L was very respectful and follow our rules the entire time! Only once did they ask for something from the snack bar but hey, she's 11 yrs old, what can you do. But her reaction was rather shocking; in the past when she doesn't get her way, she cries and tries to say she never gets anything or she acts like she is sick. When she asked for ice cream, I politely reminder her that we had a ton of snacks in the room, and if she was hungry, we could take a break and go get something. She said she was fine but it looked good. She decided to wait a few more hours for a snack.

The trip was very expensive for just an over night trip but well worth it. I don't think we will go as often as the girls would like; L thought it would make a great annual trip for us. We agree!

Once we dropped off L and her friend, I mentioned to my guy how proud of L I was; how she showed respect and responsibility. In my book she earned some good points and it will make it easier for me to trust in the future.

The total cost of the trip:
hotel $360
food $30
gas $25
arcade money $60 (didn't realize it was so much, $5 at a time adds up)
dinner out $25
souvenir lemonade cup $7
Grand Total: $507

Weekly Goal

It's already another week and as I review my goals from last week, I realize that I didn't do as well as I would like to have. I didn't fully complete any one of my goals but I did at least start and make some good head way; with this said, I will set some of the same goals for this week.

• Finish cleaning master bedroom; put away all the laundry from Monday's mass cleaning.
• Organize and put away linen closet stuff (special thanks to my guy for making me new shelves; hopefully they will hold everything now)
• Finish scrapbooking calendar
• Print pictures of Great Wolf weekend to give to L
• Work on dining room for month of January goal to get organize and decorate

I will continue to read my book and hopefully finish soon as I have a few others that I'm excited to start; when I'm done, I will add the title to the Paperback Swap site and give that a try.

Wish me luck!

Weekend Parent Update

Wow; I don't think I expected all the positive feed back and advice that was left on my first post of Weekend Parent. I want to thank everyone for the encouraging words and helpful advice. I think I should give everyone a little more information about what we have been doing about her clothes or lack of them.

First off, I did go out an buy a few pairs of jeans, a bag of socks, and undershirts at Wal-Mart; they are nice but reasonably priced; those she keeps with us. Also, a friend of mine had given her a few track suits; they are a little long but she likes to wear them around the house.

One weekend (sometime in November) she came over with nothing but leggings and bubble skirts; this was not the first time either. I'm sure when I was that age, I wanted to look like Madonna too; the only probably was we were planning to visit my friend, Erin. L dressed herself in pink, peach, brown, and black with hightop sneakers. Needless to say I was embarrassed; so was my guy as this was the first time Erin was going to meet L. Lucky for me, Erin laughed right along with us about the outfit. A few weeks later L admitted that she didn't look good and it made her kind of sad that we laughed at her, she asked if I would help her dress in the future. Please don't take this the wrong way, we didn't laugh in her face; we made comments about the 80's being over. Ever since that weekend, when we are going some where, L will ask me what she should wear or if she picks it out, she will ask if she looks OK. When I help her pick out an outfit, I will say she should wear jeans and either a shirt or sweater or sweatshirt; I do let her decide what shirt she should wear or I give her my opinion.

Recently (the past 2 months) in her suitcase for her weekend with us she has brought over NOTHING to wear; since it had been Christmas break, when we picked her up she would be in her pajamas. Of course, I can't send her home in pajamas and would end up losing a pair of jeans and shirt plus socks, underware, and undershirt we had for her. I'm totally against telling her she has to change out of her clothes back into her "mom's stuff".

After her crying on Christmas, we talked and I did explain to her why she had to leave the clothes with us. Of course she didn't think it was fair and brought up the fact she is only able to wear things 4 days a month. I told her if she can prove she can bring clothes to wear, she would be able to take stuff home. This is the exact same thing I said to her mother.

This past weekend was the first weekend since I spoke to L's mom about helping her and I will say she did help pack and she did have appropriate clothes. Granted, she went a little over board and pack almost everything I had bought in the past few months. But then again, I guess I would rather her have WAY to much then nothing.

Weekend parent

My guy only gets to have his daughter, L (11 yr old), every other weekend. Her parents have been split up for 9 years but neither of them seem to be over it; both hold on to such anger and resentment that it's hard on our relationship. I also see how hard it is on L; watching dad complain about mom, watching mom complain about dad. Now, I'm a child of divorce and really don't have any relationship with my father (long story, it's useless) so I know how important this time with her should be. I let them have father/daughter time when she's with us and I also try to do something as friends with her. We have recently learned how crafty she is and so that's what I try to do with her.

Where I'm having a problem is:

1. Deciding how to discipline her.

We can't really ground her, she's only with us 4 days a month during the school year and every other week during the summer. At the end of last summer we had a little problem with her lying; this in turn caused a HUGE fight within the extended family. Dad doesn't want to be the bad guy since he has her so little; which then leaves me to be the bad guy.

2. What should she take home to her mom's house that we buy and what should she have to keep with us.

The reason this is a problem is because all the clothes I buy, she loves so she takes them home, when she comes over, she never brings them back so I end up having to buy new stuff. When she went home after Christmas, she was crying and SO mad at me. I told her she had to leave ALL her new clothes with us; I explained that she never brings appropriate clothes and I can't afford to buy new outfits every time. Seriously, this little girl had 2 different socks, torn up pajamas and one boot for a 3 day stay over Christmas. Since she is only 11, she still didn't get it. I tried to talk to her mom; we are cordial to each other so I thought it was the best thing to do. I asked her to help her back her bags and when she starts brings clothes, I would be more than happy to allow her to take the things I buy home. She really wants to wear her designer jeans to school.


I'm sure I can't be the only person with this dilemma; but how do I handle it. I don't have kids but have enough friends with kids to know a thing or two. I think so far I've done a pretty good job. I refuse to talk poorly about her mom in front of her, no matter what I think of her, and I don't try to be her "mom"; I'm her dad's girlfriend and her friend. Where do turn to find answers for "step-kids"; I've seen enough TV to know the kid will always hate the new girlfriend; lucky for us, she still likes me.

L is a wonderful girl with so much potential, I just don't want her to lose that going between houses!

Another disaster grocery shopping

Not only is our one night at the water park costing us $360, last night we went to the grocery store to get food for the trip. My guy and I talked about it and decided we would only eat out once and the rest of the time we could make something in the room. There is a microwave and frig so off to the grocery store we went. Since I've been lazy and hadn't looked/cut coupons in a while, we just went to Winco. We had a game plan to get sandwich stuff, chips, easy mac n'cheese and popcorn. Once again, $76 later we were on the way home trying to figure out how this ONE trip is costing so much more than we planned. Did you know that when you buy sandwich stuff you need to get: cheese, mayo, meat (2 different kinds) and bread. Now when you add that all up it's only $10 which is much more reasonable than going out to eat; but since I was at the store I decided to pick up some soup for lunch and more yeast and about 50 other things I probably already had or didn't really need, like the chocolate cover banana chips that I'm currently eating!

How do you walk into a grocery store with a list and not buy anything else?

Right now our Christmas present to L is at $434, plus I will need to put gas in my car and I'm sure that stop at the gas station will result in some snacks for the road. Now, I've never been one to deny L anything and normally when we stop for gas/groceries/Wal-Mart and she asks for a snack/drink/gadget at the check out its no big deal; really whats another $1 ... but now that I'm (we're) trying to save and watch spending, a dollar adds up quick. How do you teach kids that a dollar at every stop adds up to $10 by the end of the weekend and we just can't afford it anymore.

Setting a routine

Earlier this week I had decided that I needed to set weekly goals in order to make my life a little more organized; last night I was going back over my goals and realized that I hadn’t really started on anything. As I sit here and try to figure out what I have been doing with my time I noticed how often I am goofing around and being lazy. This laziness is what has put me in my currently situation of needing organization and structure. After replaying my after-work routine in my head, WOW, I watch a lot of TV; granted I do enjoy my TV time but I DVR all the programs I watch so I can skip all the commercials; this also gives me the flexibility of watching when I want. But I have been sitting down to daily programs as soon as dinner is served (in front of the TV). I think if I can avoid turning on the TV when I walk in the door it will help me achieve my weekly goals; plus help on the electric bill! Here is the routine I am going to try to stick to everyday after work:

- Change out of work clothes and put them AWAY; this does not mean on the bed or dresser or bathroom floor!
- Sort and start laundry; should do one load every day (Sunday thru Thursday): good clothes light, good clothes dark/denim, lounge wear, and my guys work clothes. I wonder how my water/electric bill plus laundry soap usage will go up with this idea, as I currently do 2 loads a week (granted there are 3 loads on the floor waiting)
- Start on dinner and read mail; gives me time to sort/purge/shred
- Serve dinner and clean up, make lunch for my guy
- Work on craft stuff for about 30-45 minutes; including clean up and take pictures or play a game with my guy; Wii, Suduko, or internet surf together
- Time to relax and watch a few programs

I’m hoping by setting this daily routine, my weekly goals will seem easy to complete and I will end up with more time to relax and do fun things!

Procrastination

Wow, have I learned a BIG lesson today. This weekend we are going to the Great Wolf Lodge in our area; this was the “big” Christmas gift to my boyfriend’s daughter. She has been planning this day for the past 2 weeks so there was no backing out now. Today, I went to make the reservations and realized that the price had jumped $140 in two days! OUCH; this was not what we were planning on paying. I had looked earlier in the week and noticed the deal of about $190 and although this was kind of high, it was still reasonable but $360 (after tax)! I probably did the wrong thing by continuing on with the reservation, but I didn’t want to break her heart. I looked everywhere on-line to find a discount code, but found nothing. So, not only did I break the bank but I have now over spent money that planned for another trip next month. Today's lesson: when you see a good deal, it’s OK to jump on it. Sometimes no matter the price, you have to do it

Beautiful Flowers

Yesterday at work I received a GREAT surprise! A flower delivery; since I am the only female in my office, I figured they were for me but who and why …. Little did I know my boyfriend had been planning to send me flowers for the past month; but during our snow storm I was home, then it was his birthday, so he sent them yesterday. They are beautiful! It was a nice pick me up today when I was feeling a little blue; plus my office smelled SO good this morning! To show how much I appreciate him as well, I made him a nice steak dinner and even let him hold the remote control.

Just stopped for toothpaste

Wow, I never realized how hard it was just to stop at the dreaded Wal-Mart for just 2 items. Before I left my house, I flipped through the coupons I haven't looked at yet to see if there was anything that I needed and could save a few bucks on. And of course, there was ... 3 different coupons for razors; each $2 off. I knew I need one and so did my boyfriend, so at least I was going to save $4 total. But what I didn't think about was the rest of what I was going to end up with ....

Since I went to the grocery store right after work, I didn't think about taking anything out of the freezer for dinner; 1st problem, had to buy fresh meat, 2nd problem, once I figured out what I was going to cook, I had to get all the supplies. I was just going to do a quick hamburger; I needed sliced cheese, tomatoes, buns, then decided to get some baked beans. Oh yeah, then the milk for some healthy shakes. I did think twice about a few other items; pickles, lettuce, a special marinade; I am proud of myself for saying NO to un-needed items.

After all said and done, $73 at Wal-Mart. To add to the useless dinner items, I needed cat food $10 and Duraflame logs $17. Ok, maybe the logs were not a NEEDED item but we really like to sit and watch TV with a fire, plus then I can turn the heat down.

How does everyone do it? How do you make dinner at a reasonable hour (before 8pm) when you forget to take something out of the freezer? Plus, dinner is normally leftovers for my guys lunch the next day. If I don't make an extra plate, then I would have to figure out a lunch for him. How do you remember what you have in the pantry so I'm not buying extras at the last second.

Trying to shop with a mind-set of not spending useless dollars is harder than I thought!

My Blog Name

Over the weekend I told my boyfriend that I decided to start a blog; after he laughed, he asked my blog title; Shopaholic in Rehab. Once again, he laughed. But I explained to him why I came up with this title. If you know me, I'm a HUGE shopper. I work at a retail store one day a week or less just for the 20% discount. Honestly it cost me more money to work than what I get paid; but for some of my purchases, it really makes sense to save 20%; plus I get to look at what comes in first!

In the past few months, I have spent a lot of money on myself for new work clothes. Yes, I need to dress nice for work and I was sure I had enough (if anyone can ever really have enough clothes) but I just kept finding deals that were too hard to pass up. But did I really need anything?

During the holidays, I was snowed in and home alone for 5 days. I put on good under-garments and took every item out of my closet. I stood in front of the mirror and tried on every shirt and dress. Wow, all this time I thought I had tons of clothes but that was not the case. Well, technically I do have tons but after 2 longs days of trying on EVERY shirt, I realized that most didn't fit as I've gained a lot of weight in the past year, and some just were out of style. I found some things in my closet that I had forgot about still with the tag. I'm sure this sounds crazy to have bought new clothes but never wore but then I looked at the tag and saw how good of a deal the item was; but was it really. Sure, I bought a name brand shirt for $3-4 but if I never used it, so it was basically wasted money. And that's where it hit me ....

I needed a 12-step program for my shopping habit. But there isn't one, so I made my own. No more purchases just because; no more using the excuse that I HAD to buy it because it was almost free. If I wasn't going to use the item within the next week, I didn't need it. I had to put myself in "rehab" for shopping. I'm trying to learn how to survive with what I have, how to just say NO, how not be envious of the new styles and love the classics I have. I'm sure I will fall of the wagon from time to time but for the most part I think I will do OK.

To keep myself honest, I will post all my shopping adventures; I think this will make me think about what I buy or want. Trust me, I'm sure I will need support and comments whether not it was a smart purchase or a waste of money.

Weekly Goal

Last night I spent over 2 hours on the phone with a friend; she is going through a hard breakup and just needs to talk things out. But as I was listening to her, I kept noticing how she was unhappy with her daily routines and personal finances; and I decided I didn't want to be like that. I stayed up thinking about what I can do for ME to avoid this same dilemma. And here is what I have come up with; on Sundays I need to set up some goals of things I would like to accomplish during the week. These are just things that I know I need to take care of but sometimes put off. By deciding on Sunday what I want to do during the week, I will be able to plan out how much money I will need or allow myself to spend and can plan out when I can do something fun or relaxing. Also, this will help me get the stuff that needs to be done completed before the weekend so I don't spend my days off cleaning up the house or doing other chores.

Here is what I would like to accomplish this week:

• - clean up the master bed room, put away the luggage from our Denver trip (which was over a month ago!)
• - mail out clothes to my cousin; they are not doing me any good sitting in a bag on my floor.
• - finish up scrapbooking calendar for 2009; it's already the middle of January and I'm not done yet!
• - upload pictures from my birthday, Christmas and New Years for MySpace; print pictures I want for albums.
• - finish up my current book, The Appeal by John Grisham. It's pretty good, reminds my of the movie Erin Brockovich.
• - Add at least 5 books to Paperback Swap; separate what I want to add and what I should just donate.

I think this is a good start for the first week of figuring out what I want/need to do for the week. When I set my new goals for next week, I will say how I did on the things I wanted to complete for this week.

2009 Goals

I think I decided to blog when I was writing out my goals for 2009. In the past, I would always try to make a resolution to quit some type of bad habit of mine; normally I would fall off the wagon in the first few months, then I would give up. After reading so many blogs from so many different people, I decided goal making was a much better way to be successful! So here are my goals ....

- Appreciate what I have; I have lots of nice items. I am going to take care of what I have whether that’s putting things away when I use them or displaying things.

- Avoid undue drama; avoid situations that are known to cause problems: the family drama of he said/she said. Remove the negative influences in my life; I don't need any one pulling me down.

- Avoid the excuses; I make excuses as to why I’m tired or broke, but the reasons are mostly avoidable like staying out too late during the week, stopping by the bar, going out to dinner when there are groceries at home or just being lazy and not doing the research on things I want or places I want to go.

- Shop smart; again, I have lots of nice items, there is no reason to buy the same item twice. Look for sales or coupons. A good deal is only good if I need it.

- Recycle more; look for ways to re-use items, take canvas bags to grocery store or mall. Sell un-wanted/un-used things on Craigslist.

- Cook; I have tons of cookbooks and a new Kitchenaid, start cooking from scratch, look for healthy ideas. Bake more bread, cakes and cookies. Give them to office or friends; everyone loves fresh baked goods.

- Declutter; I’m sure I do not need every book I have ever read; add titles to Paperback Book Swap or donate to thrifty store. Throw away unneeded magazines and old newspapers. Use old cards for scrapbooking and recycle the rest. Work on one room a month to clean out and paint or decorate to make comfortable.

o January: Dining room
o February: Entry way
o March: pantry
o April: hall closet … cut back all trees in yard
o May: Lyndsie’s room … work on front yard; new bark, new fence
o June: Master bedroom
o July: Master bedroom … work on back yard;
o August: Garage … work on side of house, front extra drive way
o September: Kitchen … add deck roof over part
o October: Kitchen
o November: Living room
o December: Living room

- Mini-vacations; take a weekend getaway every other month. Either the beach, Portland, Eastern Washington, maybe Canada. Look for a nice bed and breakfast with things to do close by. Invite other couples or friends to join to split gas costs.

I hope by having this in print it will help me stick to my goals. I think these are things to work on all year and then next year, they will just be the norm.

First Blog Post

Wow, I never thought I would be one to blog; but over the past year, I have learned a lot of new things about myself. I think I am now ready to step out of my comfort-zone and do things for me.



So, why am I blogging? I want to meet and talk to people that have the same interests as I do. I think it's great to get positive feed back about what you think and believe. Plus the support that everyone seems to give eachother is really great!



I have lots of things I would like to try and they may work or not but unless I show the rest of the world, I will never know. Of course family and friends tell you how great everything is; even when I know differently. Plus, I think this is going to be a great way to keep myself accountable. It's easy to say what I would like to do but sometimes the follow up is not as easy!