Happy Birthday

Happy 62nd Birthday Dad! We love you!

Mommmacita is Home

My mom came home this past weekend after being gone to South Padre Island since Nov 16, 2008. They had a good time while in Texas and even got to see her sister while she was down there. This is a picture of their Christmas card after a fishing trip. They drove home, hauling a trailer full of their stuff as well as some fish & shrimp they caught. Wish they would have brought the sunshine & warmth with them too. It's only 50-degrees today! Anyhow, welcome home Mom & Earl!

Debt-Free Reading

In today's society, living with debt is just expected. (This is my opinion.) I went into debt with my car loan. I went into debt with my college tuition loans. And we went into debt with our house. Many Americans also have debt from credit cards as well. My Dad bought us 2 books by Dave Ramsey. We finished them and have been working on our "debt snowball" for a year now and making good progress. He clearly and simply explains how to get out of debt and thereby save for the future. He also talks a lot about relationships and the difference between "spenders" and "savers" and how to compromise within the relationship. Thanks to Dave Ramsey, we're hoping to call his radio show in the future and yell, "We're debt free!". I highly, highly recommend these reads.

https://www.daveramsey.com

Personal Opinions

I always appreciate little tidbits of advice from others. Here's a few of my own tidbits:

If you are replacing your washer/dryer, I highly recommend the Samsung Brand. My Parents-In-Law bought theirs months before us and we've had ours a year. Love it! We did our homework (& footwork) before buying. Highly recommended by other buyers because of how quiet they are, efficient, non-vibrating, and long-lasting.

De-Solv-It! (Got mine @ Wal-Mart). I use a lot for grease splatters in the kitchen and tape-removal--like when taking down the plastic from the windows for the winter. Biodegradable & removes: Adhesive Residue Candle Wax Chewing Gum Crayon Marks Decals & Tape Fresh Blood Fish & Onion Odor Garbage Disposal build-up and odor Tree Sap Grass Stains Grease Oily Lipstick Oily Mascara Oil Stickers Scuff Marks Oily Shoe Polish Soap Scum Tar Wet Oil-Based paint & lacquers

Start your own little herb garden indoors. Happy little indoor plants can really brighten your day and lift your chi! Feng shui for everyone!

Easter Vigil

Last night at the Easter Vigil-Apr 11th, my (future) brother-in-law was baptized and confirmed into the Catholic church. It just so happened to be his 25th birthday as well! Not a whole lot of people can say that they were baptized, confirmed, and received their first communion on their birthday! David was his sponsor. Congratulations Junior! We're very proud of you. Happy Easter and Happy Birthday!

Happy Easter!

Here comes Peter Cottontail, hopping down the bunny trail. Hippidy, Hoppidy Easter's on its way!

Coupon Clipper

I truly respect Dave Ramsey and am finishing up one of his books now. David read his "Total Money Makeover" and I'm reading "More Than Enough". He talks about a debt-free life and how to do a debt snowball to get rid of your debt, one loan at a time. David and I have been doing this and working hard at living frugally so that we can pay off our debt and save. I have become a coupon clipper. I can remember as a little girl, cutting coupons out for my mom and helping to organize them into her coupon book. I have continued this as an adult and tend to impress some store clerks with my savings. There are a number of websites that offer coupons on-line (if your store accepts them, check before you buy). Otherwise I buy the Sunday paper with the best coupons. This was a trial and error process as to which have the best coupons in your area, but when talking to friends, I finally discovered the best newspaper to buy.
I tend to save (on average) about 20% on my grocery bill. If it is less than that, I am slightly disappointed. :) I clip my coupons, organize them, and then check the local ads to see what is on sale and if I have a coupon for it. I bought a $4 tube of toothpaste for .25 with store & manufactured coupons. I check for deals (cereal=5/$10 and then a $2 manif. coupon when you buy the same brand-but check the ounces to get the most for your $). I buy meat in bulk -- extra lean ground beef @ $1.99/pound family pack and separate them into sandwich baggies by the pound to freeze them. And I actually started keeping an Xcel program with average prices
so I can look back and see if yogurt is a good price @ 10/$5. (It is, but I got them at the same store for 10/$4, so maybe I'll wait as long as I still have some for my lunch!) Don't get me wrong, I totally understand that the price of food fluctuates, but this is one of my jobs in this household and it can actually be kinda fun when you look back at your savings. Call it lame, but it's one of my hobbies!

New Job

Have you even been so blessed by the Lord that you take a sidestep to catch your breath, saying, "...wow, why me? I didn't do anything special to deserve this"? I have been at my job since November 13th, 2006. Last month I was notified at work that the head of the recreational therapy department would be leaving her position. Our administer asked if I would take over the department by merging my current department with this one. I was honored with the proposal and was given the weekend to think it over and discuss it w/ David. In the end, I accepted the position. My new title is "Director of Occupational & Rec Therapy" at our skilled nursing facility. I officially started my new job this week (Apr 6) & have been doing pretty much 1/2 days in each department. I have already been putting in extra time and weekends, working 6:30 - 4:30, just to fully grasp the job and all the thousands of important details. David has been super supportive. It is a bigger overtaking than I had initially realized, but like I keep saying; with God on my side, I can do it. I always pray for God's Will, along with his strength, peace, and wisdom for my life and in the lives of those around me (this tends to extend out to the entire world). I believe this is what He had planned all along, a totally different direction then I could have ever foreseen. He still surprises me. Just a word of advice, when your life is stressful and you don't know what direction you are going, God has a plan for you. You just have to be willing to pray and accept it and He will bless you with more than you deserve.

Movie Night: Bedtime Stories

We rented the movie "Bedtime Stories" (2008) and watched it over @ Jeremy & Stacey's house last night (friends of ours). It was really good! Sometimes kids movies tend to have inappropriate innuendos, but this one was actually pretty clean, especially for Adam Sandler. "It's a family comedy about a hotel handyman whose life changes when the lavish bedtime stories he tells his niece and nephew start to magically come true." I highly recommend it for a good, clean family movie.

Auntie Christi to...

When I said "I do" to my Hubbie Hubie, I was immediately blessed with a fantastic mate as well as his loving family. My in-laws have been super in welcoming me into the family. And my desire to be an aunt was fulfilled immediately. Below- Bryanna (15), Joshua (10), and Matthew (2). Right-is Mark (4). They absolutely melt my heart when they call me "Auntie Christi". They are such good kids and am so proud of them. It has been fun these past few years watching them grow and come into their own personalities.