Monthly Archives: April 2010

Our Total Money Makeover: Baby Step One

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I just finished reading The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. I have been reading through various articles on his website for a while now. When his class, Financial Peace University, was offered at our church this past year, Eric and I didn’t have the money to go, so I set out on a mission to learn as much as I could about Dave’s plan as I could through the web. Then I was at my sister’s house a few weeks back and I noticed that she had two of his books and two of his DVDs in the spare room we were organizing together. I asked her if I could borrow the materials and she said “yes.”

After reading this first book, I am so excited about our future. I have been so stressed out by our lack of money for the past year since I quit my job to stay home with Micah. From reading this book, however, I have learned that it’s not just our income that is the problem, it’s our DEBT!! We have a lot of debt. You would not even believe the figure if I told you. It’s embarrassing.

$68,152.89

That’s not even including our mortgage. It’s a combination of student loans, hospital bills and credit card debt. Most of it is student loans. How did we get here?  Honestly, I don’t think we ever realized our debt would follow us this far. And when I look back to when we were buying our house, I realize we had no idea how much property taxes, utilities, repairs, furniture, appliances and other house necessities would jack up the price of home ownership.  Stamp a big DUMB across my forehead. I deserve it.

One thing that has changed since studying Dave’s method is the way we handle the money we do have. Before, I used to make a budget at the beginning of the month, but I would always blow it. Either I would forget about a purchase, run into a problem or buy something on impulse – and it would all go down the drain. I also carried a mentality that I should buy something if I “needed it” regardless of the checkbook balance. I would buy a bunch of groceries and then we’d have no money to pay the water bill. Looking back, I should have shopped a lot smarter. We probably should not have been eating tons of meat and organic veggies. (Now I know how to get a week’s worth of food for under $20.) Can you say “overdraft fees”? I don’t even want to know the total amount that the bank has made off of us in fees. It would probably make me hurl. But that is the past…

Now we are using the envelope system. We make our budget together and we budget things that might happen as well as things we expect. We take out CASH for things like gas and groceries, and when the money runs out, it’s GONE. Too bad, so sad. We NEVER use our credit card anymore. We have combed through our budget and removed everything we can live without.

Before baby step one, which is setting up a $1000 emergency fund, you have to get current on your bills. As of tomorrow, we are finally current!! I am so excited! What a relief to know that the water bill and electric bill, etc. is no longer going to be mailing us pink slips.  We have a little bit in the emergency fund so far, and that will take a lot of work to get it funded, but I am really looking forward to baby step two, which is the debt snowball. There are seven baby steps, which you can read about here.

The main thing that is going to have to change if we are ever going to finish this plan in a decent time window is our income. I already figured that it will take us about 14 years to pay off all our debt if our income never increases. Can you hear me screaming? That is too long! So we are on the hunt. I should say Eric is on the hunt. His boss knows this, but I’m not sure if he realizes how seriously Eric is searching. It’s not just the income either; I need health insurance! I am on my knees every night asking God to address these two areas in our life. But – I know that He has a plan. I believe that we have been struggling the way we have because we would never have learned how to handle our money otherwise. It’s very likely we would have wasted many opportunities. Now that we have a concrete plan to get out of debt, I feel like the doors have been opened. We are standing behind the plate with our glove open and our eyes set on the mound, waiting for the pitch, ready to strike out DEBT for good. I am asking God to provide a way for us to finish baby step two in under three years. Sounds like a miracle, yes, but isn’t God in the business of making miracles happen, particularly when we are determined to do things His way instead of the world’s way?

Is That A Turkey? (Yes It Is)

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So. Yesterday, I was in the kitchen and Micah was in his high chair having a snack, when all of a sudden, he starts waving his arms around and squawking with excitement. I look up and follow his gaze to the window, where I see a huge turkey standing on my patio.  A TURKEY. It was a really big turkey and it was standing on my patio. On my patio!! Are you sensing my shock here?

I hesitated for a second, then bolted for my camera, but by the time I stepped out to snap a photo, this turkey was already blazing across the field like the Road Runner.

Darn it. That would have been such a funny picture. Oh well, this one is kind of funny, too. Did you know turkeys could run so fast?

My Little Helper

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Today when I got home from Walmart, I realized I needed to do a little cleaning before I could put the groceries away. I’m a little bit a food hoarder. I’m always saying, “I’ll eat this leftover _____”  eventually and then I never do. Eventually, my fridge is overflowing with nasty, smelly, stinky leftovers that no one wants, and cleaning them out is a chore I put off for another couple weeks. My kitchen reeked when I finally emptied out the creepy crawly food containers this afternoon and flushed the contents down the garbage disposal. I had to open a window and spray some room refresher around the kitchen. And you thought I was so clean after my clean kitchen post earlier. Don’t be fooled!

While I was pulling expired condiments, rotton produce and icky leftovers from the fridge this afternoon, my little helper, Mr. Micah himself, was pulling stuff out as well. He had to climb up into the fridge to reach the good stuff.

He loves the refrigerator. He loves it so much, that if you open the door while he is in the living room, he will hear you and come running. He will literally RUN to the fridge and try to climb in. He pulls open the produce drawers. He grabs condiments out of the door and carries the Tabasco sauce around like it’s his new favorite toy. He shakes the apple cider vinegar and holds the apple butter jar like a treasure, before dropping it on the floor, that is. I know that in fifteen years or so, I will be having a serious case of dejavu when I see my teenage son digging through the fridge and eating everything in sight. It will look just like this photo, except he will no longer need to climb in to reach.

Review: Cheribundi Juice

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Recently I was contacted by the good folks at CherryPharm who have re-branded their tart cherry juice, now known as Cheribundi. Cheribundi is a tart cherry juice that comes in three varieties: Tru Cherry, Whey Cherry & Skinny Cherry. CherryPharm was kind enough to send me a free sample of each flavor to try and review here on this blog.

I'm so glad they gave me two bottles of "Tru Cherry." Definitely my favorite!

When I first read the e-mail asking if I would try Cheribundi, I thought, “what could be so special about cherry juice?” After all, I drink cherry juice all the time. I also drink apple juice and cranberry juice. It’s just juice, right? I was really surprised once I tasted it. It tasted nothing like the cherry juice I usually drink. It really packs a punch! There is a lot of flavor going on with this juice, which could actually deter some folks (such as my husband), but not me. It literally tastes like biting into a cherry pie. There is no other way to describe it.

I pulled Eric into the research lab – er, Kitchen – to taste all three varieties of Cheribundi. Here is what we each had to say:

Tru Cherry

Kim’s thoughts: “The original is my favorite. I am a cherry fan – and this tastes like drinking bottled cherries.”

Eric’s thoughts: “Too tart for me, then again, I wouldn’t eat plain tart cherries either.”

Micah’s thoughts: (We gave the little guy about 3 ounces diluted with 3 ounces of water. He sucked it down pretty quickly and then proceeded to show me his cup over and over, which of course means he liked it.)

Skinny Cherry

Kim’s thoughts: “I like the taste. I might dilute it with water, but then again, I usually dilute juice with water.”

Eric’s thoughts: “It’s not too tart, not too overwhelming. It’s good – tastes like cherry pie. I might drink it again. It would take me a whole day to drink this. It does stay true to the cherry flavor, but not everyone likes the tart taste of cherries.”

Whey Cherry

Kim’s thoughts: “This one is thicker than the other two. My first impression is that it tasted like thinned out pie filling. Is that a good thing? For sipping, yes. Thirst quenching? Not so much.”

Eric’s thoughts:*shakes head* “I don’t know if I like this.”

Overall Review: Skinny tastes very much like Tru. It’s slightly sweeter, but not by much. I’m not a fan of artificial sweeteners, even if they are “natural.” (If I am going to sweeten something, I prefer straight-up sugar.) Eric seemed to like Skinny Cherry the best, and it’s probably because it was a little less tart. In general, however, he is not really a fan of tart flavors.  (He once said “grapefruit tastes the way a skunk smells.” Harsh!) The Whey was a little too thick tasting for us. I liked the flavor of Tru the best, but we both agreed that because it’s so strong, it’s not the kind of beverage you slam back when you’re thirsty. I would sip this while reading a book or browsing the internet. It would taste really good with breakfast, too. Overall, I really like the flavor of the Tru Cherry Cheribundi and I’d probably get it again. The only downside: it runs about $2.50 per 8oz bottle, which means it would have to be a special treat in my household, not a daily thing.

For more information about Cheribundi, head over to their website here.

Momentary Order

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It was a race against time. Every bite of food into his mouth was a second off the clock as I hurried around the kitchen. Sweeping, mopping (with my beloved Shark), throwing a load into the dishwasher, scrubbing the table, wiping the counters, picking up toys, running everything that belonged upstairs up the stairs…. *phew*

And now, for a moment at least, my kitchen is clean.”Take a picture, it will last longer.” That’s exactly what I did.

Now if only I had time to read the magazines laid out on the cart...

Mom Hair

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My hair and I have a complicated history together. First of all, it requires a lot of moisture and conditioning to get it to behave. Unfortunately, I did not know how to maintain my mane until I was almost twenty. By then I had already racked up tons of bad hair days. Really. BAD. Hair days.

Once I learned to handle my hair, I went to the other extreme and over-processed it. I think it’s safe to say that I’ve had just about every hair style and color possible short of purple. Permed, curled, straightened, long , short, bangs, no bangs, bald (as a baby, see pic), brunette, red, blonde, highlighted… I’ve had it all. My father-in-law even joked that my husband got a new wife every month for a while!

For a long time, I had it long. I loved my long hair. My husband loved my long hair. I had long hair for several years. And then I got…

MOM HAIR.

The day after I got pregnant, I ran to a salon during my lunch hour on a whim and chopped off at least eight inches. I didn’t even know I was pregnant yet, but my hormones knew, and my hormones said, “cut your hair!” Because that’s what moms do, we cut our hair short. Because we instinctively know that babies instinctively know how to pull on any hair that’s there. We also know we won’t have 30 minutes to style 30 inches of hair every morning. At that point my hair wasn’t even that short yet. All that changed when I found out I was pregnant. Then my conscious (albeit irrational) self wanted to go shorter! I wanted a “cool mom” cut. What does that mean anyway? Well for me it meant an angled bob. I’m not going to lie, I loved the hair cut when I was pregnant.

Then a few months after I had Micah I realized how much I missed my long hair. I couldn’t put my hair in a pony tail and it was getting pulled all the time.  Finally, a year after he was born, it’s finally long enough to put back, which is what I do on those days I don’t plan on going anywhere or seeing anyone.

I wish to redefine “mom hair,” because I don’t think it needs to be short. Why does having a baby mean you need to go all Kate Gosselin? (Fake hair doesn’t count, sorry. Your hair is still short in my book.) Heather Armstrong? I’m calling you out, too.

Not that there is anything wrong with short hair… but there’s something to be said about retaining a small part of your pre-mom identity, I think.  What do you think?

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Backyard Shenanigans

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Aside from a few drizzles we’ve been having some spectacular weather this week. Micah gets so excited when we go outside. The past couple days we’ve stayed indoors just because we fertilized the lawn and I didn’t want him getting into that stuff. I wish I could explain this to the little boy who has been pressing his nose eagerly against the patio door! I can tell he’s anxious to get back out there and mess with the hose and explore the fence some more. More than anything else, I think he loves the vast amount of space available for running. He just goes and goes… and that has been his phrase lately, “go go go!”

Kelly

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Wearing her new shades...

My sister is the perfect person to take to the mall. She will make sure you don’t buy something that looks stupid. She will speak up if you’re overcharged in the food court. She will run back into Spencer’s to find the toy your toddler threw on the scummy floor. She will veer and dodge through heavy traffic so you can get your $0.51 cone at McDonalds on the way home. She is smart and funny. Her heart is huge. She was my maid of honor – and she rocked it. I love my sister…

I Am The Mother Of A Toddler

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Grandma's are the best at tickling!

One night we tucked in a baby, and then the next morning we woke up with a kid. At least that’s what it felt like. When I picked him up out of his high chair after dinner tonight and propped him on my hip, I realized I was holding a child, not a baby. His weight was enough to make me lean to the other side to compensate. And when I look at this picture I see a little boy. Look at those long legs and arms! This was taken the day of his one year check up. He weighed in at 21 lbs and 5 oz. He is 30 inches tall! On the charts he’s average height and lean, not that it matters.

I say this every month, but this is my favorite age yet.

How to Save $100 a Year

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My husband was starting to look a little too cute this weekend, so it was time for a haircut. It costs about $10 for Eric to get his hair cut at one of the discount salons around here, so it’s not extravagantly expensive, but considering he basically gets it shaved off, why spend the money?

It curls... if we let it get much longer it would "fro"

A few years ago we spent a little over $30 on a Wahl Clippers set kind of like this one. It has served us well, especially considering it paid for itself after just 3 haircuts.

Cutting your husband’s hair is not as intimidating as it sounds. I was nervous the first time, but the kit we bought came with a great instructional DVD and the actual clippers are pretty foolproof. I use the size 4 comb all over his head first.

If it's warm, I cut his hair outside to skip cleanup.

Then I take the size 2 comb and clip the sides, fading up into the top by bending my wrist at the end of each stroke. Finally, I use the right and left ear pieces to clip around his ears, and lose the comb altogether to shave the back of his neck and clean up the sideburns.

Tah-dah!

I like the way the back of his head feels after I cut his hair. I told him I was going to write on my blog that it feels like peach fuzz, but he didn’t think that sounded manly enough. So we mutually agreed that officially, it feels like the coat of a black stallion.

And of course we need a token shot of Micah, who was watching the whole time from his premier seating area (the pack -n- play).

And yes, his binkie is purple.

Do you cut your family’s hair? Do you use clippers or do you get really creative (brave) with the scissors?