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Archive for November, 2006

Chugging along

November 28th, 2006 at 07:13 pm

I have another $38 for my sahm acct. I'm not sure what I'm up to at this point. I'll have to ask for the balance when I make the deposit.

Thanksgiving was nice and busy busy busy. We had a nice visit with my inlaws and DS enjoyed them, too. We put up a xmas tree (artificial $200!!! GULP). I'm trying to look at it as an investment because it will save us $$ in the long run since real trees are around $70.

I have been trying to eat better but I kind of slacked off over the holidays. It could have been worse but it could have been better, too. I ate lunch out today which killed my diet and budget (McDonald's). I hope I can do better the rest of the week. The problem I have is not having enough time in the mornings no matter what time I try to get up. So I didn't grab anything for lunch. My 2yo often turns a nice relaxed morning with plenty of time into a scramble by dragging his feet about everything.

Scary thought....I have no idea how much is in the checking acct right now. This rarely happens but we have been SOOO busy I just haven't found time to sit down and enter everything into Microsoft Money. I really hope to catch up this weekend. It seems I am behind on EVERYTHING. Luckily, classes end next week but my online class preparation has already started. Ahhh, the joys of working 2 jobs. You'd think we'd be doing better but all this 'extra' money is already earmarked for various things. I put a preliminary budget together for 2007. The key to sticking to it will be ORGANIZATION. Something I really have to work on.

The Monday Blahs

November 20th, 2006 at 07:54 pm

Not much to talk about on the financial front. I did deposit some more money into my sahm acct. I can't remember exactly how much right now, I think around $25. I've got to get my checks to Schwab so I can open my Roth IRA. I just keep forgetting to swing by there. I guess I can deposit the checks and just write a check to them and mail it. Sigh.

I know I am a scrooge....I just can't wait for the holidays to be over. I am trying to be upbeat for DS who will love all the decorations, etc.

Why pull all the xmas crap out just to have to take it down and put it away. Seems like a lot of work to me and I'm already so busy. WHy go out and spend hundreds of dollars on gifts that I'm not sure will be used/liked. I brought up having all the adult children just buy for the 'grandchildren' but no one wanted to do that. All we end up doing is swapping gift certificates and useless gifts. What's the point? My sister and BIL have a ton of money and just buy whatever they want. So I end up buying them more crap for their overcluttered house. My sister has an Amazon wish list and there are a bunch of books (she's a big reader) and $24 lip balm. OMG. Not to mention all the stuff that I get (that I don't want). I know I'm sounding so bah humbug. I can't help it. I'd rather skip the whole gift giving thing and just enjoy the holidays. Well, I have many more years of fake cheer ahead of me so I guess I'd better grin and bear it! Bah Humbug!! : )

My list

November 16th, 2006 at 08:11 pm

Yes, I’m jumping on the bandwagon.

1. I’m really annoyed because I typed this all out once but have no idea where it went.

2. I don’t mind doing laundry.

3. The first car I bought by myself was a stick shift and I had never driven one. I couldn’t afford an automatic.

4. I majored in Accounting because I couldn’t think of anything else to do and I wanted to make sure I could get a job.

5. I feel guilty when my boss praises my work because my job is EASY and I spend most of my time on the Internet. But I don’t want any more responsibility.

6. I spent 15 years slaving away putting myself through college, working long hours, getting raises and promotions, getting an MBA and moving 1000 away from family and friends for a job opportunity…and all I want now is to be a sahm.

7. DH is my second husband. I met my first husband when I was 19, we married when I was 23 and separated 2 years later. There was nothing wrong with him, he was a nice guy I just didn’t like being married. My DH now is A LOT like my first husband.

8. I need to lose 17 lbs which kills me because I was always thin. I am now on the South Beach Diet.

9. When I was third or fourth grade I would write out the lyrics to Kenny Roger songs and ‘sell’ them to my father for a quarter. He was such a good sport sometimes!

10. I moved out of my house when I was still in high school to escape an abusive stepfather. I never forgave myself for leaving my 2-year-old sister there. Thankfully my mother finally got rid of him when my sister was still too young to know what was going on.

11. I RARELY cry. My mother once called me ‘cold’ because I showed no emotion at my grandmother’s funeral. I have known DH for about 9 years now and he has only seen me cry 2 or 3 times.

12. I don’t really have any hobbies. I like to read when I get a chance but that’s not very often anymore. I like to read mindless drivel – but not romance or science fiction.

13. My favorite food is popcorn with lots of butter and salt. (No wonder why I need to lose weight)

14. I have never voted, I’m not even registered. (Oh, I’m steeling myself for the barrage of hate that is going to generate!) I never tell people that because I know it’s shameful. I don’t even know who ran in the last election. When people start talking about politics my eyes glaze over and I tune out. I just can’t seem to get interested. I figure if I voted I’d just be going in and randomly picking names. What good is that?

15. When we had a United Way campaign at work I chose to give my time rather than money (I was here at 5:30am one morning to make breakfast sandwiches to sell for the breakfast sale). I’m pretty sure the lady who processes payroll thinks I’m cheap because I didn’t make a bigger donation.

16. I’ve lived in 5 states: New Hampshire, Maine, Virginia, Maryland and Tennessee.

17. We moved every 2 years until I was in high school.

18. My first boyfriend was black and I had to hide it because my stepfather is a racist. Which I always thought was odd because he is Iranian and has a bit of a darker complexion. I never told my boyfriend why I didn’t invite him over because I was ashamed.

19. We still co-sleep with my 2-year-old son and NO, I DO NOT THINK THAT IS WEIRD. I use attachment-parenting methods to raise my son and he is turning out just great thankyouverymuch.

20. I HATE going to the dentist. Thankfully I have good teeth (knock on wood).

21. On our honeymoon, DH and I went to Amsterdam, Barcelona and drove down the coast of Italy.

22. I’m a disaster in the kitchen. I can barely boil water. I read recipes and sometimes don’t understand the terminology so I don’t know what it is I’m supposed to do. I feel like an idiot. (What the hell is braising anyway?)

23. About 10 years ago I passed the CPA exam but never bothered to get my license.

24. I hardly ever listen to music or watch movies. The last movie I saw was Walk the Line on HBO and I was disappointed.

25. I’m usually quite a loner but always say ‘yes’ when asked if I’m a ‘people person.’

Whew, that was difficult!!! But sort of cathartic in a way. I’ve really enjoyed reading everyone else’s lists.

Blah blah blah

November 6th, 2006 at 08:45 pm

So it's a rainy, dreary Monday. I am at work and SHOULD be working, but I am so unmotivated. I feel like I have so much (personally) hanging over me right now.

It was a bad $$ weekend. I went shopping at both Walmart and Target. DS needed new shoes and a few more shirts to get him through fall/winter. I've been buying his clothes at yard sales (and MIL bought him a few new things) and got some through freecycle. But, he still needed a few shirts. Why is it that the yard sales have only had girl's clothing lately? I guess I went a little overboard with the shopping and spent way too much. That is sooo unlike me. It was just a little of this, a little of that. New baking sheets (needed those) some storage tubs to pack away DS's summer clothes. Most everything were things we did need. I think I spent about $5 on heavily discounted halloween decorations for next year. Oh well, I guess I need to move on and accept that sometimes I have to spend money.

I did well grocery shopping, I saved alot pairing coupons (most doubled) with sales. However, I've now decided to do the South Beach Diet so quite a few of things are a no no for me (at least during Phase 1). Now I have to go to the store and get more SBD friendly items. I hope it will be worth it. Eventually, I won't have many restrictions so the food won't go to waste.

I got on the scale this morning and DID NOT LIKE WHAT I SAW!!!! I weigh about 12 lbs more than I did in March. I have really let myself go and need to just suck it up and lose weight. So I have a good 17lbs to lose. OMG how did that happen! Well, I know exactly how it happened. I ate and was a sloth. So it's time to get off my fat a$$ and do something about it. Great, just in time for the holidays.

So, I got up at 5am this morning and got on my treadmill. I didn't set any time or distance records but I MOVED for 30 minutes and that's a start. So my goal is to exercise at least 4 times a week...5 is better but I have to be realistic.

That's it for now. Financially I am off track due to my high spending weekend. I've got to balance the checkbook to see just how much damage I've done. I guess I need to do a better job of budgeting for 'misc' stuff so when it hits, it doesn't have as much of an impact. I should get a few more rebates rolling in to add to my sahm account.