It is almost Summer

For a teacher, summer is a big deal. I have been looking forward to it since oh....August. I will finally have some free time to do things, like find new money saving ideas and keep up my blog on the topic.

I do have some new information. My 17 year old got her first job and so far she absolutely loves it. We had to trade in the car that we had gotten for her, it just became too expensive to repair. So we traded it in on a new car for my husband and then she is using his old car. (I say old, but it is really only 4 years old. Newer than my car.) The Washington DC trip has been canceled, so no free vacation for me, but we are still looking into taking a vacation over the summer. I am still trying to save for landscaping the back yard, I know that will be huge bucks.

We have been looking into new flooring, I am currently thinking about cork.....Does anyone know anything about this type of flooring? From what I have found, it is more expensive than carpet, but cheaper than hard wood. I will have to continue to do research.

I finally got all 6 chairs for my dining table. That is a bonus (paid for in cash). I just need to figure out what to do with the family room area, I change my mind daily. I have to do something with it over the summer. I promised my husband that I would get it all cleaned out and clean out the garage. I am certain that I will at least get this started......

I have to go for now, grading to do. Love to all and I will write again soon.

A long time

Wow, it has definitely been a long time since I have posted. Best laid plans and all. I seem to have gotten so busy, so quickly. I finally have some down time and can't am patiently awaiting summer. As soon as I think that I have our finances figured out, something comes up that requires cash. Some unplanned expenses and the budget is shot. I know that we will be able to recover; however, the process seems to take forever.

I am continuing to search for methods of saving money. We are still investigating television services. Hopefully we can figure out the best service with the lowest price. But we shall see. The few things that we have been able to work out, seems to continue to work. I hope that I will be able to keep saving and continue to expand our savings.

A Second Look at the Budget

Today, I began taking a second look at our budget. I believe that we should be able to pay off a few of these credit bills by June. That will really work if we don't plan to take a family vacation this summer.

Well, I am looking forward to reducing our debt. I think that I have a good plan set up and I just have to stick with it. The good news is that we should be able to have most of our debt paid off by the end of the year; however, I still need to find methods to reduce our monthly living expenses. One thing that I am interested in (and have been for a while) is solar panels. I know that the expense is great, but I think that it will most definitely pay off. I just have to find our more information.

We have made it through month one and we are well into month two. I still have to figure out some other methods of saving money. I know that I must continue to think about new ways to reduce our use. Not much else going on these days. I think for me the best method to save money is to not go shopping.

January is over

I have not been keeping up on posting as much as I want to. I started doing our taxes today and it looks as though we actually owe money. This is the first time ever. I then looked at our withholding amounts and they have dropped substantially. I suppose that explains why we now owe money.

Why is it that as soon as I think I am getting a handle on the finances, something comes up that costs money. In attempting to save money, I feel as though I am actually spending more. I suppose that I will simply have to be even more cautious. I think that finding better methods to save will prove the best method.

I got Tim a book on investing and I think that it is very well written, it explains concepts in everyday language. I think that the information will definitely come in handy as soon as we have some discretionary money.

I continue to search for tips that will help in changing our saving habits, yet not detract from our quality of life. I have found some, but one thing that I need to employ all of them is time. I suppose finding more time in the day is like finding more money in the paycheck. I don't see either happening any time soon.

For now I am getting together some stuff to donate to Big Brothers, Big Sisters of New Mexico. It is nice when they come out and pick stuff up. So much easier to simply get bags together and put them out on the curb.

I just found out, this week, that my younger daughter needs braces. We already got them for my older daughter, now we get to go through it again. This time, the orthodontist wants more than last time. I have to do some Orthodontist Price Shopping. It would be wonderful if we could get her braces done for about the same price.

Yesterday we went to get the oil changed in my older daughter's car, we had to get an Oil System Flush as well. There are a few things we need to get fixed on her car. I suppose that we will have to take care of things one at a time. The next thing to get fixed is her tail light, one of them is out. I also need to find a good after market body shop so that we can get her moon roof repaired.

It seems as though things continue to pile up; however, there are a few things that have been taken care of. I have most of the papers in the house shredded and have a plan for keeping them under control. The Dining Room is almost done and looks great (I still need to find 2 captain's chairs that I like, but that can wait). I was, also, able to fix a crack in the wall and re-caulk the dining room. There are some other small projects that need completed, but I will get those taken care of over time.

Love to all! Have a great money saving start to your week.

What a long week

This has been a really long week. It went by so fast that I haven't even had the opportunity to post. A bunch of stuff happened this week:

I painted the dining room and it looks great.
I refinished my big mirror to match my table.
The lady who bought the hutch came to pick it up.
I got a second chair for the living room.

My husband keeps getting on my for spending money when I am supposed to be saving. I keep telling him that this is a process. I have to have an organized place to start. I am trying to get everything in the house organized so that I have the organization to respect the money that we are getting.

I continue to think that once I have the house totally clean and organized I will be able to concentrate on finances. I really need to learn how to invest. Hopefully, it will not end up being as confusing as it seems. I think that my biggest problem is the fear that I do not understand money and investing. I have to change my mind set if I want to really save.

Cleaning is Therapudic

I have been cleaning and clearing clutter all last week and this week. Yesterday, I finally shredded all of those papers hanging about. I hope I can keep it up.

I have settled on a style to clear up some of the paper mountain. I am going to keep the bills in my center desk drawer and shred the old bill as soon as the new bill comes in showing the previous one paid. Hopefully, this will work.

I had a little bit of a back slide yesterday on the budget issue. I did just a little bit of shopping that I probably should not have done, although I did only buy a few items for the house, which is an improvement. I got curtain rods and curtains for the dining area. I will post a picture once I get it all set up.

Today, I got up on the ladder and cleaned one of the upper cabinets in the kitchen. When I was taking down the holiday stuff, I noticed that they were very dusty. I think that I am going to try to clean at least one more this evening and leave the other for tomorrow. I did get one side of the Plexiglas sealed together, it has to cure for 12 hours so I will have to wait to do the other side until tomorrow.

So far, so good. I have to remember to take one day at a time on the budget. It seems as though as soon as I get a plan to cut spending, some expense comes up that cuts into my plan. I guess I will have to continue to work on it.

Baked Ziti is a hit

We made Baked Ziti tonight and it was fabulous.
Here is the recipe that we used:

First Roast 3 red bell peppers
1. Preheat the broiler.
2. Cut peppers in half lengthwise; discard the seeds and pith.
3. Place peppers in one layer on large pan.
4. Broil, 4 inches from heat for 5 minutes on one side (or until quite charred)
5. Turn and cook until second side is charred
6. Place in bowl and cover with plastic wrap and cool.
7. Peel and discard skins.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 cups water
14 1/2 oz can whole peeled tomatoes, undrained
6 oz can tomato paste
1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 pound ziti
2 cups shredded mozzarella, divided
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes

1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F.
2. Cook pasta according to package directions.
3. In skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat, add onions; cook stirring, until softened (2 minutes). Add water, tomatoes (with liquid), tomato paste, parsley, oregano, and basil. Break up the tomatoes with the back of a spoon. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Slice roasted peppers.
5. Drain pasta, return to pot, but do not heat.
6. Stir the tomato sauce, roasted bell peppers, 1 & 1/2 cups of the mozzarella, the Parmesan, and sun-dried tomatoes into the pasta pot.
7. Spoon into a 9 X 12 baking dish. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella over top.
8. Bake 20 minutes or until heated through and the cheese has melted.

I found this great web site for investment information, for those of us who are invest-mentally challenged.
http://www.investopedia.com/?viewed=1

I went out today and got my refund for my chairs and then was able to get the other two for the sale price.

I also created a budget in excel, where I will record all of my spending every day. I hope that I can keep that up. I have begun going through all of my papers. I always have trouble keeping the paper under control. I am trying to come up with a system that I can maintain that will cut the paper clutter. I do have a filing cabinet, but I have a difficult time getting all of these papers filed.

If anyone has any paper control suggestions, please let me know. At this point I am open to any paper organizing ideas.