2019 - Day 4

Good day, blog readers! I hope everyone had a safe and Happy New Year! It's 2019! Andrew and I have big goals for this year, as you saw from my last blog post, and I'm very excited to continue on this journey. Updates as far as the beginning of the month:

Debt Paid off as of 1.4.19:   $257.65

Total Debt with the House: $128,722.71
Total Debt without House:  $77,077.35

BOOM. One card paid off just like that. So, our snowball amount was bigger than that, so the remainder of the snowball will go to the next smallest debt. Then, that $257.65 will be added in to next month's snowball amount. This is why the debt snowball is SO powerful. To see debt get paid off quickly at the beginning (the smaller amounts) makes the momentum and motivation of the journey seem not as daunting. Now, when we get to my student loan it will be hard. Until that point though, it's going to be EPIC paying off the smaller debts that I was dumb enough to get. Not Andrew. None of this was Andrew's doing. It was all me. I'm thankful to have a husband that is understanding and forgiving. He knows that I am better than I used to be, but still have some bad habits that creep in. He's my motivation and driving force most days. I don't know what I would do without him.
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Other Life Things:

We've been busy the last few days. We started off 2019 with a funeral. She was basically family, but not blood relation to me. She was my cousin's grandmother and I loved her like my own grandmother. We spent MANY days at her house growing up and she treated us like her own. Grandma Nonie was a beautiful, loving, sweet woman that will be truly missed. I adore my family. I hate that I only get to see them at weddings and funerals, but travel isn't exactly in the budget right now. My 5 wonderful cousins happened to all be in Iowa for the funeral and seeing them filled my heart so full.

L to R: Mat, Nate, Me, Danielle, Sarah

L to R: Aaron, Isaac, Dean, Me, Mat, Nate
Front: Sarah, Danielle

L to R: Photobomb by Dean-o, Me, Danielle, Sarah, Carson's head

My mom does a great job getting candid photos. She knows just what to say to make us all laugh or look around. Those are the best photos. I spent a lot of time with my cousins when I was younger. My uncle David and Aunt Mary (my mom's sister), would drive all 5 kids up from Missouri either in the summer or at Christmas and it was mass chaos. I.Loved.Every.Minute.Of.It. Not only that... with Mary's kids and us there were 8 kids. Throw in Kim, Scott, Pam, Richard, and Josh.... there were 13 of us running around. Again.... it was bliss. I love having a big family. Please keep in mind, that this is only on my mom's side. I won't even get into the cousins on my dad's side since he's 1 of 7 kids in a catholic family. I have cousins I haven't even met on his side.

Even though traveling is exhausting, I got to see my family and even got to spend a little time with my friend Valerie! Man do I miss her. Valerie has been a friend of mine since Jr. High School. Every time I'm in the Quad Cities I make it a mission to see her. If my best friend, Sydney, hadn't moved away to Des Moines, I'd make it a mission to see her too. 

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The Boys:

My kids are doing wonderfully. Dean is saying more and more words every day. The tubes are helping!! So is his behavioral and speech therapy, too. I met with Carson's lead clinician yesterday and he's DOUBLED his score from when he first started! The first thing I ever say to people when they ask me what Carson is like is "Smart." He is SO SMART. Stubborn.... but smart. They are going to move him into the next level of ABA which is a school preparedness program and I couldn't be happier. He's completing all of his goals and everything they're teaching is carrying over at home. I am so thankful for Hope, The Autism Clinic, and couldn't imagine where he'd be without them.

Dean is still a turd/human tornado, though. Some nights Andrew and I just sit on the couch and stare at each other like "where did this kid come from?!".

Carson & Dean in the church nursery. They didn't want to be quiet during the service. 

BLIPPI! 

We downsized to our previous TV (much smaller than the one we traded with my brother), and got rid of our surround sound system. Traded that out for a Bose Sound Bar with Christmas money. Best decision EVER. It feels like we have so much more room at the front of the house now. The Bose is AMAZING.

We were watching Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Andrew got the Blu-Ray box set of the Harry Potter movies and we've been watching them at night. I need to try and sell Andrew's surround sound now. There's nothing wrong with it, it just took up WAY too much space and Dean wouldn't stop stuffing toys in the sub-woofer. Hopefully I'll get a decent amount of money out of that. I'm also doing a Focus on Finance Challenge from Fun, Cheap, or Free and she is having us try to sell a certain amount of things in our house. Challenge Accepted. 

When a Lazy Weekend Comes to an End

It is sad when a nice, relaxing weekend is over. I had such a great time this weekend spending time with the hubby and my family that it was hard seeing it end so quickly. Friday night I enjoyed a bonfire at my parent's house, homemade soup made by dad and a nice morning of sleeping in and snuggling with tons of dogs. One of them being this lazy fella:

Isn't he precious. That is Malcom. One of my mom's five dogs. The bed he is laying in was Hyatt's. I gave it to mom and dad because Caesar doesn't sleep in beds and I didn't want to throw it away. Mom's dogs LOVE that bed. With good reason too. It is really soft and fluffy.












Andrew and I went home around 3:00 on Saturday afternoon to make sure the cats hadn't destroyed the apartment. Everything was in pretty good shape minus the litter box and the chunks of Rhea fur all over the floor. So, I cleaned up, did laundry and vacuumed. I invited my parent's over for lunch on Sunday because I had a giant salmon filet I wanted to grill and Andrew needed some male football bonding time with my dad.

Lunch was delicious and entirely on plan with Simply Filling! I marinated the salmon in fresh lemon juice, salt, pepper and a little dill weed and then roasted the potatoes with EVOO, salt, pepper, garlic powder and ground thyme. My dad really liked the potatoes and asked what I did to them. He's a great cook so I was flattered that he asked for my secret!

We also had delicious sugar snap peas and broccoli. Yum yum!









During half time of one of the football games I decided that this needed to happen too:

Froyo! Yum, yum, YUM!!!! I love self serve frozen yogurt. Mom and dad always bring their puppy Mia with them when they come visit; so we took Mia and Caesar with us to sit outside and have our treats because the weather was gorgeous!

I filled my cup with pumpkin froyo and a little nonfat vanilla and then added: graham crackers, sprinkles, PB cup chunks, brownie bites, caramel turtles, cheesecake bits, marshmallow and chocolate.

That seems like a lot but I guarantee I do not put more than 1 Tbsp of each topping IF that. I only did a half pump of choclate and a half squeeze of marshmallow. I even counted how many brownie bites I took and it was only 3 of them. 3 Cheesecake bits. 5 caramel turtles (they're small). So, I was very well aware of what I was eating and I counted accordingly. I used quite a few weekly points for that treat but it was 100% worth it. Plus, Caesar got to share some of the froyo after I got the chocolate topping cleaned up. He liked it!

We finished the day off by watching football (Go Pack!), the new episode of Too Cute! and some Family Guy on Netflix. I also played the Sims 3 for awhile and had the Sim I made graduate from college. She's a Science and Medicine Major that breeds dogs. Oooooo. (I live vicariously through my Sims.)

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Sunday Weigh In:
Weigh In: -0.4
Total Lost: 3.2
Pounds to Lose: 100

I switched to Simply Filling half way into the week and I lost almost half a pound. Nice! I was very happy to see that making the switch was working for me. I am excited to see what happens after I'm on the plan for an entire week. The only problem I foresee is that Saturday night I am going to a Halloween Party and I might weigh in on Saturday morning just so that one night doesn't throw my week of hard work. I don't know. It isn't the food that is a huge issue at the party, it is the drinks I usually consume. However, since having my gallbladder out I cannot drink like I used to and won't really have any problems with that. I dunno. I will figure that out when the time comes.
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On Becoming Debt Free:
Still good on this front. I had a couple of "interest charges" on the cards I paid off so I had to make piddly little $1 - $5 payments again just to get the balance to $0. Stupid credit cards. I am so glad to be done with them. Never again.

Andrew took my car into Firestone today (I don't know why, I HATE them) and they recommended that I needed $1200 worth of work done on my tires/breaks. Now, I know I need an alignment and new tires. I also know I need new break pads.... but $1200!?! I have a friend who can do my break pads and offered to do so for $35 + parts. He can also check out if anything else is seriously wrong. I don't trust the big name mechanics at all. They just continually try to rip you off and I hate it. The last time I got new tires on an SUV it cost me around $600. I cannot imagine they'd be more for a tiny little compact car. Sheesh.

Other than that, everything is going well. Andrew will meet with the college about his certificate and get that paid for and then we are just waiting for my hospital bill to come in. After that, we won't be able to pay anything else off in full, but we will start to snowball the 3 debts that are left!

Feels good. It really does.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

Sheesh. Where has the time gone? In a nutshell?

• Incision Inefection
• Resting at Home
• Mom's Birthday
• Davenport
• Wedding

Yeah. With all of that includes packing, travel time, lots of eating out (eek), laundry, unpacking and getting back into a routine. However, it has all be worth it (minus the slight infection in my gallbladder incision.) Some antibiotics have really helped clear all of that up though. Yay modern medicine. 

Wedding:

Valerie and Kris got married on Saturday! It was such a beautiful day and a beautiful ceremony! I am so happy that I was able to be a part of their special day. I was the Personal Attendant and I did everything and anything Valerie or her wedding party asked of me. Mostly Val though. (Duh) Everything went so well and she looked beautiful in her dress. Kris looked pretty handsome too. 

We left for Iowa on Friday and also got to see Grandma while we were up there as well. It was a nice little vacation (after feeling so poopy) but I am very glad to be home and back in a routine again. Today was my first day back at work since last Tuesday. I've missed my structured days. 

WeightWatchers & Food:

I did not weigh in this week. My meeting is Sunday morning at 9:00 and I was out of town. Could I have gone to a different meeting? Yes. Did I? No. Could I have weighed in at home before I left or when I got back? Yes. Did I? No. Get off me. 

Sunday restarted my weekly points and such but I have been slacking BIG TIME on tracking anything. I just started up again today. I started to track yesterday but then stopped after I ate a freaking Pumpkin Pie Blizzard from DQ. 

Today I tracked everything, ate what I planned and still have 1 point left for the day. Not that I will eat that... but at least it is there! I'm more thirsty than anything right now.....

On Becoming Debt Free:

Haven't updated on this front in awhile. 

Baby Step 1? DONE

Baby Step 2? 10% DONE

We have our emergency fund and we have paid off FOUR DEBTS! FOUR!!!! Do you know how liberating that is?! We are waiting for a bill from Springfield Clinic to come in for my surgery and if that is easily paid off then the car is next! The Clinic bill should only be about $2,000 (hopefully) and we could pay that off immediately. Then, we have $1600 put away for Andrew to go back to school and then we will debt snowball the car and my school loans. WOO! I'm super excited because this is actually happening. I cannot wait to be 100% debt free with 3 to 6 months of expenses saved. Then I will build wealth and take many vacations!! 

Ok, so maybe I won't take "many" vacations, but I plan on going on a few. 

Life is good. When you plan, work hard and have discipline in your goals..... everything is good. 

I'm Alive!

Holy crap. Being sick has SUCKED. I was sick from Saturday, July 21 - well, today-ish. Haha. I am still on antibiotics and a little groggy feeling but I feel 99.9% human! My diet/exercise obviously lacked. That entire week I lived on Ramen, homemade chicken noodle soup and crackers with peanut butter. Those things were medicinal to me but not really helpful to my weight loss. However, I don't care. I didn't feel good and Ramen was like a Godsend. I craved it.

Friday (7/26/13) Weigh In:
WI: +1.6
Total Pounds Lost: -2.6
Pounds to Lose: 100.6

I'm still at a net loss and this week is going a lot better. Again, I'm not worried about the gain. Being sick kind of puts a hold on life.

WeightWatchers & Food:
As mentioned above, I lived on soup, crackers and peanut butter last week, but this weekend I started to slowly build nutritious foods back into my diet. I've also been drinking a lot of tea to hopefully help flush my system. My menu for today:

B: 2/3 c. granola, 1/2 c. FF milk, banana, black tea
S: String Cheese
L: Chicken thigh, spinach and Chobani Coffee Yogurt
S: Rice Cakes and an apple (more tea)
D: Chicken thigh, broccoli.... tbd
Activity: TurboJam

I made chicken thighs on the grill last night with Teryiaki marinade and they were amazing. That is why I'm eating so much of it today. Plus, I don't have any other meat thawing. I forgot to put something in the fridge. My appetite isn't 100% back yet either (I know, poor me) and I may not even eat everything I have listed above. I'm just listening to my body and eating as I am hungry.

I got in Activity on Saturday and Sunday. Both days Andrew and I walked the dogs 1.5 miles and then yesterday I added on a TurboJam workout. I have earned 7APs so far this week and that's good because I'm in the negative from the weekend (oops!).

On Becoming Debt Free:
This is not going so well right now. I only got 3 hours last week (I'm paid weekly), we have "vacation" planned in the middle of the month (Andrew gets paid 25 hours, I get 0) and he isn't tuning the week we are off. So, money will be uber tight this month. We wrote out a budget yesterday and had to tweak it about 5 times because we were over budget every time we did it. We finally got it to work out. I talked about canceling the time off work; but we have been so excited about this little mini vacation that we want to have the time off. We will be at my parent's house dog sitting while they are in Florida which means we get their house/pool all to ourselves for a week! I may decide to work half days or something if needed... I just don't know.

Our emergency fund was drained to 20%. Last month was apparently "everything go wrong" month. We have plans to get it back up to 60% this month and finish the additional 40% next month. Then October will start the debt snowball.

Guh. I'm trying so hard not to get discouraged!!!

Weigh In Day

Friday Weigh In:
WI: -0.6
Total Lost: -4.2
Pounds to Lose: 99

I lost! Holy crap. Remember my post from Wednesday? I thought for sure I would gain this week. Apparently I got myself back on track quickly enough to counter act any gain. Plus, I worked out like a crazy person on Wednesday and Thursday. Yay TurboJam!

WeightWatchers & Food:
My week has started over. Yay! I like a fresh week. It makes me feel empowered and in control when I know the week has started over and I have the opportunity to be a rock star! I am loving TurboJam too. It is my favorite new workout. I can do it in the comfort of my own home with no equipment at all. Just me and the TV. Easy enough! I sweat like crazy when I am doing it too. It really works me out even though sometimes I think I am having way too much fun to be burning any calories. Obviously it is working!

I am really sad that I ran out of Shakeology. I think after day 5 of drinking it I FINALLY started to see some changes. My body was getting rid of waste faster and I was also not craving anything weird. Like, yesterday I had my smoothie and then I didn't eat until after 12! I didn't have my morning snack. I incorporated it into my lunch. Then, I didn't want my afternoon snack either! I didn't eat dinner until 7:00pm!! I couldn't believe that I wasn't hungrier or craving any kind of food. It was so weird. Right now, with becoming Debt Free we cannot really afford the cost of the Shakeology. Maybe someday.

Today's Menu:
B: Smoothie with WW Chocolate Smoothie Pack, 1 c FF milk, 2 T PB2, coffee
S: Chobani Bite: Pineapple with caramel
L: SmartOnes Chicken Slider, 1 oz Light Chips, Fiber One Lemon Bar, Strawberries
S: String Cheese, Cherries
D: TBD
Activity: TURBOJAM!

Haha. Even though I am kind of sore today I will be doing TurboJam because I love it so much. And for those of you wondering, that is a BeachBody program!

On Becoming Debt Free:
*grumble*
I knew this wouldn't be easy... but man, it is really making me a little angry that we now have to start all over agian.

Without Prescription Coverage an Inhaler is over $500

That is disgusting. Andrew and I went on my group coverage through the temp agency I am working for. I knew it wasn't great insurance and thought that we'd pay more for scripts than we usually do... but it doesn't cover scripts AT ALL. I called today to cancel and went back to paying for individual policies through Health Alliance. Andrew went to get his scripts last night and the lady told him for everything he needed it would be over $700. GOO. No thank you. We'll go back to our nice $2.00 - $10.00 scripts; and hell, my birth control is free. The individual policies are definitely worth it. 

WeightWatchers & Stuff:

Good week. Bad week. OK week. Good week. Bad week. Bad week. 

This is my cycle. Last week I was AMAZING. This week I am struggling. 

Here is my definition of "lack of motivation and struggling"

Yup. -67 for the week. I weigh in on Friday. Who thinks I will gain!?!? MEEEE! 

I know what I have done wrong. I know that the scale and my body will show the results of my behavior. I just cannot believe that I can go from one amazing week to completely slacking the next. It is my time of the month and I know that doesn't help anything but it is NO EXCUSE for my behavior. Like... you know... Chinese food. I ate 6 crab rangoons. All by myself. Plus some of my noodles, rice and an egg roll. Oh and almond cookies anyone?! Obviously I have tracked it all but it just makes me feel ridiculous. Like I always need an adult and supervision. Ha!

On Becoming Debt Free:

What emergency fund? *sigh* We are back to baby step one because of the random emergencies we have had. Sick dog, car repairs & towing, insurance reinstatement.... so, we aren't starting baby step two just yet. We have to restock our emergency fund again. 

It won't be a big deal, it is just kind of sad that we were there and then all this random crap happened. God is testing me. 

Am I passing?! 

We are being tested....

So, my last post I mentioned that we had our fully funded emergency fund and ready to move on to Baby Step 2.
Well, a higher power apparently decided to put us to the test immediately after we were fully funded because this series of events happened all within a few days.

1. Andrew's debit card was scammed
2. Andrew's phone fell out of his pocket while it was pouring rain - fell into a puddle
3. Andrew's car died. DIED. Like, wouldn't even start with a jump.
4. Hyatt was puking blood Saturday morning

Now, the bank caught the scam immediately and the funds weren't actually taken from our account but they sat out there as "pending" until the bank cleared it. Still made me nervous though. Andrew's phone was immediately put into a bowl of rice but the thing still isn't working correctly and we were able to get one of my parent's old phones to give to him to use until we have an upgrade available. After the tow truck and mechanic inspecting Andrew's car, we found out that his audio equipment absolutely fried his battery and had caused some weird leak and smoke. We replaced the battery and paid for the tow which was right around $140.00. Not too bad! I was expecting worse. 

Hyatt was rushed to the vet and after being examined the vet still isn't sure what is wrong with him, but he did have a fever and is now on antibiotics (again) along with nausea medication and his thyroid medicine. He cost us a whopping $100. 

After all of this happened I looked at Andrew and said "You know, all of that stuff happening right on top of each other could have been really stressful and disastrous but since we had an emergency fund in place and we tackled one problem at a time, I was never really worried about any of it." 

That was the first time in my life that I didn't stop and go "How are we going to afford all of this?!" Now, Andrew and I have never really lived paycheck to paycheck; but the peace of mind we have right now is absolutely wonderful. I cannot even tell you how good it feels to know where all of your money is going and what it is like to have a fund strictly dedicated for crazy stuff that happens in life. I love it. 

Anywhoo....

WeightWatchers & Stuff:

Gah. Weeekend. Enough said. 

I did not track AT ALL and I did not take pictures of everything I ate like I have been doing. It amazes me how much Instagram actually keeps me accountable. I really need to make sure I do that constantly. And tracking, I don't know why it happens... but I just don't track like I should. I don't know if I think it is an annoyance or a bother or if I just don't want to fully admit what I am eating. I am going to go back today and try my best to track what I did eat. I basically remember everything because I didn't so much eat in between meals or anything. I just ate weird stuff at weird times. 

Today's food:

B: Shakeology with 1 c FF milk, coffee

S: String Cheese, Cherries

L: Frozen Dinner and a Chobani flip yogurt

S: Wheat thins, carrots and hummus

D: Chicken with basil and tomatoes (WW recipe) and 1/2 c brown rice 

Activity: TurboJam

I did have some good news this weekend though, I earned 5 APs without even really trying. I just moved a LOT and swam. I was happy that I got my movement in even if it wasn't planned exercise.  

I WON!

Have you ever won anything off the radio? I haven't but did today and I am super happy about it. They called me to let me know that Malcom's picture won Cool Pet of the Day and I got tickets to the Corn Dog Kick Off at the State Fair Grounds for Saturday night. Tickets for this event are $50 a piece so I am kind of excited! The only problem is that it is all the fair food, wine and beer you want. BOO! Saturday is my weigh in day and I will have Weekly Points+ to use, but fair food is outrageous and to me, not always worth the points. So, maybe I can talk Andrew into going to dinner somewhere before hand and then I can pick one thing I want more than anything else and have it.

Here is the picture that I submitted:

Isn't that funny? I love that dog. He is so incredibly lazy it is ridiculous. 

WeightWatchers & Food:

Yesterday went well. I had 20 P+ at the end of the day when I got home. How that happened I had NO idea. So, I had my dinner and then a snack later on of popcorn and a few WW candies. I did not exercise because I exercised Monday and TWICE on Tuesday so my body was pretty sore. Today I feel good though so I plan on doing something tonight. 

My food for today:

B: Smoothie with WW Chocolate mix, 1 c. FF milk, PB2 and wheat toast

S: WW Cheese Sticks and fruit

L: Sandwich with wheat bread, lunch meat, cheese and 1 T lite mayo, 1 oz lite chips, pickles and WW candies

S: Fit&Active cookies

D: Chicken Breast, brown rice and green beans

Activity: One of my TurboJam workouts 

On Becoming Debt Free:

BABY STEP ONE IS DONE! We have our first emergency fund 100% funded! Very excited. So, starting August 1 we move on to Baby Step #2. Get rid of all debt (but the house) that we don't even have. Baby Step #2 is going to take the longest, but I am ready. Having a plan, a budget and working together with Andrew on this plan is really improving everything in our lives. I have never felt so good about finances. Even being on this budget for a month and a half I already feel like we have way more money that we used to. Exciting stuff! 

Guess What?

I'm tired! What?! Haha, why am I so tired all of the time? It is really starting to get frustrating. Seriously.

Last night I got to talk to my friend, Valerie, on the phone. We talked for over two hours! She is one of my closest friends that I grew up with in Davenport, IA. When I moved away we remained friends and she was even in my wedding.

Anywhoo, Valerie is getting married in October and I am super excited for her! I cannot wait to see her get married and have her special day. Last night during our 2 hour conversation she asked me to be her Personal Attendant for the day! I'm very excited about being a part of her day in such an important role. I will do everything I can to make sure her day goes as smoothly as possible and be there for anything she may need. I have never been a PA nor have I heard much about it and I was reading on line and a lot of the information was about girls who were offended that they were asked to do such a job and not be a Bridesmaid. I couldn't quite understand why they would be offended. It is the bride's day and if she wants a PA, then give her what she needs! You're not much of a friend if you scoff at the idea of helping your friend on her special day. The wedding is about her! After weeding through a lot of petty comments I finally found some information that was useful to me and now understand what my role will be a lot better. Thank goodness for the internet! 

WeightWatchers & Stuff:

I have an ActiveLink complaint. I LOVE my AL. I really do. It makes tracking my movement so much easier without a lot of thought on my part. The one thing that I really do not like is that when I do workouts such as a Jillian Michaels DVD, it only gives me like 1AP. If that. When I know for a fact I work my butt off and am almost unable to move when I'm done. I did Ripped in 30 last night and it gave me 1AP. ONE. In my head I know I did more than that, but it is still frustrating to plug AL in and have it say so little. Oh well. That is really my only complaint. 

Menu for today:

B: 2/3 c. granola, 1/2 c. FF milk, coffee, banana

S: WW Cheese Sticks, watermelon

L: Jimmy Johns!

S: Carrots w/2 T hummus

D: Leftovers

I have quite a few things I can throw together for a quick dinner tonight. I haven't decided what my activity will be. My C25K app keeps yelling at me on my phone (haha) and I need to finish out week 1. I just dread the evil dreadmill treadmill and need to just suck it up and go. I don't think I could handle another Jillian workout right after last night. I am definitely sore today!

Oh, and I peeked at the scale and am down considerably from Saturday's weigh in. Phew! 

I have become very diligent about posting my food on Instagram. I feel that REALLY helps keep me accountable. So, if you're tired of seeing my meals, too bad. Ha! Just scroll past them. :)

On Becoming Debt Free:

We are 75% funded in our emergency fund and after Friday it will be at 100%! After that, we are going to stockpile money for the remainder of the month so that we can start off August and the snowball correctly! I am very excited about moving forward with our journey! 

Happy 4th and Wednesday Recap

Good morning! It is Friday after a Holiday and I didn't take the day off work (what's wrong with me right?!) and it is going to be a QUIET day. I can already tell because I've been here awhile and haven't even taken one phone call. AND, all of the trucks are out in the lot meaning.... we don't have a lot going on today. Easy money my friends. I'd rather make the money than sit at home and not make it.

Weight Watchers & Stuff:
I won't go into detail of my menus for the past two days, but this snapshot shows that I am still doing well this week!

I still have 6 WPs left and I have earned 18 APs! I spent most of my WPs yesterday to enjoy a few drinks by the pool. And a few flavored tootsie rolls. They were delish!

On Wednesday night I went for another run with Hyatt and made myself the most filling and delicious SIMPLE dinner.

My dinner was brown rice, great northern beans seasoned with cayenne pepper and shredded cheese. Yum!

The run went well. I didn't take Caesar this time so I was able to go a pace I wanted without having to cater to a dog. Hyatt goes along with whatever pace I set and is perfectly content to do as I do.

 

It was definitely warm and when I got back I was sweating like crazy. I felt so gross. I flopped down on the floor until I cooled off a bit and then changed my clothes. Totally worth it!

Today I woke up late (oops) so I didn't have time to do much for breakfast or pack a lunch. I made a quick sandwich this morning for breakfast and I have planned Jimmy John's for lunch. I have a few snacks I did pack though and as you can see from above, I'll have 15 points left for the day.

I do NOT plan on working out tonight. After running Tues and Wed and then swimming almost all day yesterday I am POOPED. I feel like I could sleep for another 5 or 6 hours with no problem. I went to bed at 10:30 last night and slept until 7:05.... but I am still tired!

On Becoming Debt Free:
60% in our emergency fund! Woohoo! I am going to see what else I can throw in there today. If nothing, I am going to plan on putting in a big chunk next week. We are definitely starting Baby Step 2 in August.

I'm behind on my podcasts but that is because I haven't been listening to them at home like I usually do. I've been reading and enjoying the quiet. I am going to try and listen to a couple of them today here at work... not  like anything else is going on....

We are doing week 4 of FPU tomorrow and then having our weekly budget meeting to go over everything and make sure we are still on track. After that, we have nothing planned for the weekend.

Just how I like it.

Doing Better

Good morning, all. I slept terribly last night so today I am dragging a little bit. I couldn't get comfortable and I couldn't relax. It was after midnight when I finally dozed off. The last time I looked at the clock it was 12:18am. Goo.

Current Obsession:

I got this 4 pack off of Amazon and I LOVE IT. EOS has to be bar far the BEST lip balm I have ever gotten and put on my lips. I love the smell, the texture, the feel on my lips.... everything. The sweet mint is my absolute favorite. If you are a chapstick junkie like me.... you MUST try these. MUST MUST MUST.


WeightWatchers & Food:

Yesterday's Menu:
B: 2/3 c. Granola Cereal, 1/2 c. FF milk, black coffee
S: String Cheese, Banana
L: Leftover brown rice and broccoli, WW Mini Fudge Bar  Jimmy John's #6 Veggie Unwich with no Mayo, pickle, thinny chips & a cookie
S: Rice Cakes and an apple if I'm still hungry    No snack. Stuffed from lunch!
D: Boneless pork loin chop, trimmed & grilled, potatoes brown rice, broccoli

Om nom nom 

Activity: Week 1 Day 1 of C25K  I cleaned like a mad woman last night. My Active Link says I got 108%. No APs... but I got over 100%! 

Today's Menu:
B: 2/3 c. Granola, 1/2 c. FF milk, coffee
S: String Cheese, Strawberries
L: Grilled Pork Chop Sandwich with 1 T. Lite Mayo, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes and hummus, WW Mini Fudge Bar
S: Cheddar Rice Cakes, Apple
D: Grilled Teryiaki Chicken, potatoes and broccoli
Activity: Week 1 Day 1 C25K at gym

I've decided that I need to peek at the scale during the week. People worry that a person will become scale obsessed if they do this, but I remember being most successful when I did look at it a few times a week to see how I was doing. So, I am going to start peeking at least once a week to see where I stand. It is helpful to me and not harmful.

On Becoming Debt Free:
Not too much progress considering it is only two days into the month. Ha! I went to Ace Hardware last night and picked up some spray bottles for the new cleaners I have (organic from ProTek) I have the green cleaner and the enzyme cleaner for urine, feces, vomit, wine, grass stains, etc. Totally worth the investment. I have never been happier with a cleaner and the fact that they are organic makes me REALLY happy.

I also stopped by CVS because Andrew needed razor refills and I needed foundation and concealer. I have $12.50 worth of coupons so my damage there wasn't that bad.

Best part about these purchases? THEY WERE PLANNED. I do not feel guilty about spending the money and I am also not going "I shouldn't have gotten that stuff." You know how big of a deal that is? To go to the store, spend the money and go "This is OK. I told this money where it was going and now that it is used up, I'm good." It is liberating. No joke.

I am just very excited to get started on Baby Step Two. Soon!

My random crisis of the day?
My dog eats cat poop out of the litter box. If the litter box is in a closet, my cat pees on the floor. So, I am now facing the dilemma of "Do I put up with Caesar eating poop? Or do I put up with cat pee on the floor?" And no, I cannot use a covered litter box. Hobbs is HUGE and him not fitting in there is another reason he peed on the floor so much. Also, Caesar is on a very good food that provides him with all of the nutrients he needs and meat is the first ingredient in the food. Hobbs hasn't peed on the floor since we moved his box and uncovered it.

Animals.....

I just don't know what to do....

Monday Weigh In

Let me just tell you.... I was SHOCKED at today's weigh in.

Monday Weigh In:
WI: +/-0
Total Lost: 2
Pounds to Lose: 101.2

I maintained. I was not expecting that. This last weekend was full of beer and cheesy, carbalicious goodness. I am definitely happy about my results for this week.

WeightWatchers & Food:
So, we already know what my weekend was about. Not so healthy foods and a lack of movement. Go me. I am just really having a difficult time convincing my mind and body to work together to achieve what I want. I'm fed up with how I feel/look, however, I'm not fully committed to changing it apparently. I buy healthy foods, I have good intentions to work out, I just never follow through. I have to build the habits. That is the hardest part.

Today's menu
B: 2/3 c. Granola Cereal, 1/2 c. FF milk, black coffee
S: String Cheese, Banana
L: Leftover brown rice and broccoli, WW Mini Fudge Bar
S: Rice Cakes and an apple if I'm still hungry
D: Boneless pork loin chops, trimmed, potatoes, broccoli
Activity: Week 1 Day 1 of C25K

Yes, I'm starting over. I did ONE DAY the last time and never went again. So, back on the horse. The weather is perfect for an outdoor run and I know Hyatt needs to run out some of his energy now that he is feeling better.

On Becoming Debt Free:
We went through FPU week 3 and I really enjoyed it. It was all about the monthly budget. Andrew and I finished the lesson and then we sat down and figured out where our money was going to go. It is nice knowing that all of your money has a name. You know where it is going and once you are out in that category... that's it! Also, this month we will completely Baby Step 1 completely. That is exciting. We plan on moving on to Baby Step 2 in August. That will being our debt snowball. I cannot wait for that. Right now we plan on having everything paid off in 4 years or less. So excited. Hopefully my excitement will keep up and I can keep the momentum going!

That is all I really have as far as updates. No pictures today... sorry. Just a boring blog. :)

Sleep?

I.Am.So.Tired.Today.

Andrew and I really do try to get to bed at a decent hour at night. Last night, both of us were in bed by 10:30. What time did we fall asleep? Probably after 11:00. We need to start winding down earlier but it is hard sometimes because he doesn't get home from work until 8:30 and it really is our only time together during the week. Last night he went for a run when he got home so I didn't really get to talk to him or ask him about his day until almost 10:00. I love the money this night job brings in for us... but it is starting to get really irritating.

Remember how Popeye's chicken had happened? Well, there were leftovers and Andrew had eaten some for lunch. Well, in the middle of the night the cats and dogs teamed up to knock over the trash can (which is tall AND has a lid) and this morning there was garbage all over the floor and not a chicken bone in sight. Needless to say I think Hyatt ate them. Another clue to that was the fact that Hyatt had HORRENDOUS gas all morning and it almost killed Andrew and I. Yuck!

Oh and another random note about yesterday? A BIRD POOPED ON ME! First time in my life that has ever happened to me and I was NOT happy.

Anywhoo...

Weight Watchers & Food:
I woke up with Heartburn this morning. Probably because of the garbage I have been throwing into it. *sigh* I saw something really awesome on Twitter today. It say "Eat for the body you want, not for the body you have." Touché.

*grumble*

Here is my menu for today:
B: Shredded Wheat Cereal, 1 c FF milk, Coke Zero (must.have.caffeine.)
S: String Cheese
L: Subway 6-inch turkey flat bread, carrots, cherry tomatoes and 2 T garlic hummus
S: Cheddar Rice Cake Snacks, Apple
D: Chicken, brown rice, broccoli

Activity: Nap. Wait... that's not an activity. The gym maybe? I just have no motivation right now and I cannot even describe how unbelievably tired I am. Did I mention I was tired? I haven't even gotten 100% on my Active Link the past two days.... you'd think I wouldn't be tired. Guh.

On Becoming Debt Free:
We are up to 50% in our emergency fund!!! Plus, we are starting off the month of July with more money in the bank that we usually do so I am VERY proud of us. I spent $79 at the salon last night for a Shellac Manicure and a Hair Cut but let me tell you.... I don't do that often (probably every 7 or 8 months) and it was magical to be pampered. Plus, I made sure to put a hair cut in the budget. My hair is usually around $111.00 for highlights, wash, cut and style... but I didn't get the highlights and got the manicure instead and saved myself a little money. Go me!

Andrew and I are doing FPU week 3 on Saturday, going the bank, taking out some cash and then going grocery shopping. Then my ONLY other plans for the weekend are laundry and church. Nothing else. I want a completely awesome "I'm a waste of space" kind of weekend. If I get invited to do anything, I'll say no. Darn it.

Now.... sleep???

Zzzzzzzz..................

Tuesday is not Friday

Just saying. I was so busy this last weekend I feel like I didn't get any time to relax. I keep asking Andrew if we can have a weekend where we don't do ANYTHING and he says yes... but it never happens. *sigh*

Hi, my name is Becky and I am addicted to Sims 3.
"Hi Becky"

I need an intervention.

Weight Watchers & Stuff

Yesterday's Menu:
B: 2 Whole Wheat Waffles, 1 c. FF milk, coffee
S: String Cheese, Banana
L: Brown rice and great northern beans, strawberries, cookies   Taco Bell happened. 2 hard tacos and a mexican pizza, large diet coke
S: Apple, rice cake snacks
D: Bacon wrapped filet, broccoli... maybe a salad...    I did have the filet and broccoli then after I had a cup of milk, some graham crackers with peanut butter and then popcorn around 9:00pm. Needless to say, I am already down to 15 WPs
Activity: Week 1 Day 2 of C25K   Nope. I cleaned and then plopped my ass down and played the Sims 3 until 10:30 at night. 

Today's Menu:
B: Shredded wheat cereal, 1 c. FF milk, coffee
S: Banana, string cheese
L: Brown rice and great northern beans, strawberries & cookies (look familiar?)
S: Apple, rice cake snacks
D: TBD
Activity: Possibly the gym with the hubby and I will do W1 D2 of C25K on the treadmill 

On Becoming Debt Free:
It is that time. We are going into July next week and I am stockpiling money like a crazy person. Ha! I balanced my checkbook today and it was really easy and completely caught up except for 1 purchase because Andrew made it yesterday. It is really easy to balance your checkbook when the only thing that comes out is bills. We use cash for everything else and so my register looks nice and clean! I love it. 

This Saturday is FPU lesson 3 and our budget meeting. We will build our budget for July. I am such a Nerd. I really do enjoy sitting down and having the class and the meetings with Andrew. It makes me feel accomplished and like I actually have a plan! 

Our emergency fund is still only at 40%, but like I said. We are stockpiling money for July 1. After that, I am hoping July will be the month that our emergency fund is fully funded! 

Monday Weigh In

When we go to Taylorville to my parent's house to swim... this is how excited Hyatt gets when we are pulling onto their street and up into the driveway:

Weight Watchers & Weigh In Results:

WI: -2.8
Total Lost: 2
Pounds to Lose: 101.2

I lost! I wasn't expecting that at all. Considering I decided that I didn't need to track Friday, Saturday or Sunday. *shame* However, I was very busy this weekend and only ate at meal time. There were no snacks, no dessert and TONS of walking and swimming!

My food choices weren't the best, but they weren't horrible either. Like, we went to Quaker Steak'n'Lube on Saturday for lunch and I had a veggie flatbread and at that restaurant their flatbreads are small but filling! So, I made better choices that usual and obviously I did OK since I lost 2.8. Yay! Today's menu is:

B: 2 Whole Wheat Waffles, 1 c. FF milk, coffee
S: String Cheese, Banana
L: Brown rice and great northern beans, strawberries, cookies
S: Apple, rice cake snacks
D: Bacon wrapped filet, broccoli... maybe a salad...
Activity: Week 1 Day 2 of C25K

Andrew works until 11:00pm tonight so I can exercise right after work before dinner. Then, I plan on plopping my ass down and playing the Sims 3. I seriously go through these spurts with that game. I'm obsessed with it for weeks and then I don't play it again for like 2 or 3 months. Right now, I'm at an obsessed stage.  I play these games with myself that I can only play Sims or do something "non-productive" if I work out first. If I don't work out, then I can't play games.

On Becoming Debt Free:
We watched Week 2 of Financial Peace University and I really enjoyed this lesson. Andrew and I are going to learn even more about each other as we go through this program. I now understand him better and he understands me better. Dave says that one person in the relationship is usually the nerd, that's me, and the other is the free spirit, that's Andrew. The Nerd isn't always the saver though.... I'm the nerd and the spender. Andrew is the free spirit and the saver. So, knowing that about each other has really opened our eyes to how the other person sees money, saving and spending.

I feel that going through FPU is going to bring Andrew and I even closer together and strengthen our relationship. I love that we are doing this so early in our marriage too. You hear on Dave's show that some people don't even start this journey until they are in their 40's. Not us! We are starting NOW and that way when we're 40 we will be in an even BETTER situation!

We are getting closer to finishing Baby Step 1. It will probably take us into July before that is finished... but then we can get going on Baby Step 2!

Ahhhhh.... FRIDAY!

Today is a really special Friday. Why? Well, it is the first day of summer...... however, I am more excited about the fact that my husband has the night off. He is tuning two pianos at a church today and then will be home. I am SO excited about that. For those of you that don't know, my husband works evenings as his second job. He works 3:00pm - 8:00pm Mon-Fri. So, during the week we barely see each other. Tonight, he doesn't have to work and I am thrilled about being able to have dinner with him and spend the evening with him! Yay!! 

WeightWatchers & Food:

Yesterday my TBD dinner ended up being a dinner with my family at my apartment. Mom, dad, Seth and little Mia Pia Puddin Pie (love dog nicknames) came over and they brought steak, corn, rice and pineapple. We grilled out and had a nice lovely dinner in my tiny apartment. 

Today's food is as follows:

B: 2 Whole Wheat Waffles, Coffee

S: String Cheese, apple
L: Subway w/the hubby. I'm going to get a 6" Flatbread with turkey and lots of veggies, baked chips and split a big diet soda with Andrew

S: Rice Cake Snacks, banana

D: Andrew and I are going to find something quick and cheap since we have lots of errands to run tonight! 

Activity: Running errands! HA! We might go to the gym though. I didn't get to go last night as planned because my family came over. 

On Becoming Debt Free:

I am not the type of person that handles being paid weekly very well. I've been conditioned to be a bi-weekly pay period type girl and being paid every week is really throwing me off. I cannot wait to be on the payroll here full time instead of the temp agency because it is just strange... Me no likey. I feel that I plan better and feel that I have more money when it comes in a big lump sum every two weeks. 

We are up to 40% in our emergency fund now! WOOHOO. We are going to have to stop there for the month of June though because we are coming up to the beginning of July and we all know what that means. Between the first and the eighth of the month we have quite a bit of stuff coming out and the rent is what hurts the most. To most people, our rent is pretty cheap though. We pay $675 for our apartment and it includes the fitness center, pool, pet rent, water and trash. So, I really can't complain about what we pay per month for our living arrangement. 

Well, not much else to say on the debt free front besides tomorrow we will be doing FPU week 2 class and I am very excited about it! 

I leave you with a tired Monkey Face:

Poor Caesar. His life is hard. 

OH! And for those of you wondering, Hyatt is MUCH better. The meds have made a tremendous difference and he is back to normal. :)

Whirlwind

Yesterday was a crazy day and now it is already Wednesday. 

I left work at 11:00 yesterday so that I could take Hyatt to the vet, again, so he could have blood work done. His situation was getting worse and not improving at all. I took him to Taylorville and Dr. Daum took blood and ran a test on his thyroid, white cell count and his kidneys and liver. We had to wait there about a half an hour while the tests went through and Hyatt was not a happy camper. 

He is getting tired of going to the vet and my bank account is really tired of taking him there. (needless to say we have exceeded our "pet budget" for the month.) However, the well being of this dog is important and we will do what it takes to make him better!

Dr. Daum came back in to tell me that he was, in fact, having thyroid issues. The normal range for a dog his size is 1.1 - 4.0. He was at 0.8. I was SO happy to finally know what was wrong. Those three vet visits, test and medications cost Andrew and I roughly $300 and all I can think is that if I would have taken him to a vet in Springfield it would have been twice that amount. Anyway, she sent me home with 90 pills because she knows I don't live close and he has to take one a day for the rest of his life. Today he was already showing improvements! He ate this morning and he was his normal "hyper" self. (Not going to lie... I liked the lethargic state sometimes) Ha!

I'm glad he is going to be OK. The pills cost $18 for a 3 month supply. I think we can afford that just fine. 

WeightWatchers & Food:

Not going to lie, I wasn't good yesterday. Crazy days always throw me off and even though I could control them better, I don't. I let the stress of the day get to me and then I go overboard. I can't even list everything I had because 1) I am ashamed and 2) I'm not sure I remember exact quantities....... *shame*

However, I tracked to the best of my knowledge and I am left with ONE weekly point until Monday. Means I have to be a very good girl the next 5 days. 

Today's menu:

B: Shredded Wheat Cereal with 1 c. FF milk, English Breakfast Tea (Tazo brand)
S: String Cheese

L: Frozen dinner, green beans, 100 calorie pack cookies, Coke Zero

S: Rice Cakes, Strawberries

D: Turkey Burger, brown rice and broccoli

Activity: I packed a bag of workout clothes this morning because I drive by a nice bike path EVERY DAY. So, I plan on walking/jogging for a bit. It might be hot so it might be more walking that jogging. 

On Becoming Debt Free:

Our emergency fund is 15% there! I have to look at it as percentages rather than dollar amounts because it doesn't make me feel so overwhelmed. All of the bills are paid for the month and we have groceries to last us until June 30 so I am going to spend the rest of this month stocking up the emergency fund and preparing for July 1. 

Next month my account with Benedictine University will be paid off. Thank GOD. I will be so happy to have that payment gone. Luckily it was a payment plan with the university and they don't charge any interest or anything. That will be more money in our pockets for other things in July. 

I don't have much more to update... I am once again the most thankful that Hyatt is going to be OK!!!!

The Scale Doesn't Lie

"I do not like the cone of shame" 

We were in Taylorville this weekend because we had to rush Hyatt to the vet. He has got a really bad skin infection/skin irritation and he will NOT leave it alone. He licks it so much that the hair he is ingesting is upsetting his stomach and he is puking everywhere. The doctor took some hair samples from around the sores and will have those tested and we won't know what is wrong until Saturday. He is on a buttload of medication and the poor thing is miserable. Especially with the added cone. He does nothing but sleep and drink water.... we can barely get him to take his medicine in treats... I am thankful that he will eat soft food though. At least he gets something down!

Weight Watchers & Weigh In
The only way to keep me from being a complete idiot over the weekend is to have my weigh-in day be Monday.

WI: +3.9
Total Lost: +0.8
Pounds to Lose: 104

*grumblegrumblepoutgrumble*

All my fault. I know. The scale once again proves I cannot do whatever the hell I want to when it comes to food. I was in Taylorville this weekend and there was alcohol, noodles with butter and garlic, big breakfasts and candy. I need to have a better game plan when it comes to going to my parents house.

Here is today's menu:
B: Old Fashioned Oats with 1 T PB2 & 1/2 T Chocolate Chips, 1 c. FF milk, black coffee (8P+)

S: String Cheese, strawberries (3P+)

L: Sandwich with lunch meat, american cheese and lite mayo, salad with tangy bacon catalina dressing, 100 calorie pack of cookies (14P+)

S: Cheddar Rice Cake Snacks (2P+)

D: TBD, I will have 5 P+ for dinner... I have a TON of lettuce I need to eat... so I am thinking a big grilled chicken salad with 0P+ Walden Farms Italian

Activity: I would like to go to the gym and either do the bike or treadmill

I am a HUGE dummy and took off my ActiveLink yesterday and didn't put it back on. Therefore it says I only got 50% of my activity completed when I probably got WAY more than that because I grocery shopped, cleaned, did laundry and was on my feet most of the day. Oh well.... 

On Becoming Debt Free:

We "attended" Lesson 1 of Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University. I think I am going to really like this at home class with the DVDs. Andrew and I are able to watch it and do it together and then we share the book for our reading assignments. Mom and dad even sat in on the DVD... which was nice. I didn't ask them to, they just sat down with us. I hope they like it and get something out of it! 

The entire picture of becoming debt free is overwhelming... but the baby steps seem obtainable and I love that he did the program this way. Right now we are completely focused on Baby Step 1. That is all that matters. I am so excited to start this journey with Andrew!