Sorry about so many posts about cloth diapers but this is really starting to become a reality for me and is directly related to our money!
So in my last post I was talking about how the I didnt like the liner in the Gdiaper. Well I was going threw some stuff and found DIFFERENT prefolds! I do not even remember having them lol. Well they were smaller so they fit better in the liner. I tried it on Gabe and it was awesome. He napped in it and had NO leak!! the outside of the Gpant was a little...damp I guess you could say. Not enough to be like OH NO hes wet though.
However, I do thing the medium is just to small for him, his fat little legs and round belly.
After much more research and price comparison I think I found what I want.
Diapers.com sells the flip diapers in packs of 6, for both boys I would need 2pks which would be about %100(like $99) which makes them about $8.33 a piece. That is the cheapest I have been able to find them new. The good things about the flip is they are one size so when Ry is finally potty trained I will have that many more for Gabe!
For Prefolds Im going with Little-Lion.com. They sell Unbleached Indian Prefolds for $23 a dozen. Im getting 2 dozen for now but may get another dozen later.
Im going the Wet Bag route, specifically a wet/dry bag that will hang in our laundry area. They run about $23 on average.
So our possible total to cloth diaper our kids should be around $169 which we will split up buying the stuff over a month or two.
------------------------------------------------------------------
On to the money!
So for anyone one who had the "overdraft protection" before the new law was passed, you may know what Jared and I were going threw.
About a year and a half ago we were in a very bad rut of over drafting. We were terrible with money and once it started it was hard to fix. We would get paid on the first, the overdraft fees were taken out and we would have just enough money to pay a few bills but nothing left. Leaving us overdrawing again just to get groceries. This happened EVERY paycheck. So we were paying around $600-$800 every month in over draft!!
When the law was passed and you had to actually go in and sign a paper to get overdraft, we were here. Away from our bank. Which was a blessing. We never went in to sing that paper. Not doing so forced us to be more careful, knowing that we couldn't just keep going and pay back later. Now here we are NOT over drafting and SAVING $200 every paycheck. Its hard, we keep a budget but allow for a little spending room. We waste less food, and cut out some convenience things. We havent use paper towels in for ever lol!
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Monday, December 6, 2010
Cloth Diaper Update
So I got 2 G diapers from a second hand store today. Remembered I had some prefolds my MIL gave me and decided to try them out. While they were washing I was doing more research. For us economically the best route would be to go with a diaper cover and a prefold. Further more we need one size diaper covers, preferably with snaps but Velcro is ok. That way between the boys the only thing that will need to be different is the prefold. While I like the G diapers, I dont like the liner, it didnt work well with the prefold.
So for covers Im going for either Flip diapers or Thirsties Snap Duo
Each are about $12-$13 when bought new but can be found for less on ebay.
For Prefolds I would like to find Chinese prefolds because they have the perfect range for both boys. They go from 15lbs to 40lbs. The are out of stock most often though.
My other choice would be for Green Mountians Cloth-eeze Pre Folds. I would have to buy 2 differnt sizes though for the boys, but rylan needs fewer than Gabe.
So for covers Im going for either Flip diapers or Thirsties Snap Duo
Each are about $12-$13 when bought new but can be found for less on ebay.
For Prefolds I would like to find Chinese prefolds because they have the perfect range for both boys. They go from 15lbs to 40lbs. The are out of stock most often though.
My other choice would be for Green Mountians Cloth-eeze Pre Folds. I would have to buy 2 differnt sizes though for the boys, but rylan needs fewer than Gabe.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Cloth Diapers and Nicki's Diapers!!
So since before Gabe was born I was was looking into cloth diapering. I was really overwhelmed, one with what it was all about and two, the expense. Threw all my research there were a few front runners in who I wanted to try but I also realized from talking to some other moms that you have to try a few to find what works for you child. Ive gotten over the "but its poop in my washer" thing.
I recently found an amazing site called Nicki's Diapers
She does a lot of give aways for different cloth diaper brands!!
I would absolutely love to win some diapers to start trying on Gabe!
Nicki also has a blog which you can find here>> Nicki's Diapers
This week Nicki is giving away 2 Tot Bot Easy fit OS Diapers!
These diapers come with some great reviews!!
Most importantly I am excited to start reducing the amount of diapers we add to the land fill!!
I recently found an amazing site called Nicki's Diapers
She does a lot of give aways for different cloth diaper brands!!
I would absolutely love to win some diapers to start trying on Gabe!
Nicki also has a blog which you can find here>> Nicki's Diapers
This week Nicki is giving away 2 Tot Bot Easy fit OS Diapers!
These diapers come with some great reviews!!
Most importantly I am excited to start reducing the amount of diapers we add to the land fill!!
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Our first trip to Winco
Yesterday we made our first trip to Winco.
Before leaving Jared asked me if it was even worth driving 25min? I told him that from everything I had heard it was in fact really worth it. So we packed up the munchkins and our $150 spending limit, and headed to the Puyallup Winco, which was Jareds pick.
I'll get this out first. I don't know if this is one of their older stores or what but it seemed a little old and forgotten I guess you could say. It almost has that dirty feel but is not at all. It was actually quite clean. We might try the Lacey store next time just to compare(and compare the drive too).
So things I loved. The produce was AWESOME! I did not see 1 fruit fly, nor did I see an beyond purchasable item. I am always finding not good fruit/veggies in the commissary and Safeway. The Honey Crisp apples were how ever quite a bit more expensive, and they are my favorite. I loved their selection of vegetarian things but it could be improved, I was just surprised they had anything!
Jared and I noticed something that is quite possibly our favorite part of Winco. Fresh Almond Butter, Peanut Butter, Clover Honey, Blackberry Honey and Orange honey. You grab a tub and fill it up to how much you wish.
We chose Almond Butter and Orange Honey. Our only complaint is lack of directions. We were not quite sure what to do. Its all price per pound but you don't know how much the 1 size container holds. There are scales just behind you for measuring the contents of the self serve candies and such, but I was worried about cross contamination with the almonds. Jared took the leap and weighed each container. The good side though is that you cant beat $4.12 for a little over a pound of fresh almond butter!
Moving on, we stumble upon this area with things in bins and dispensers on the wall. Its my heaven. Chocolate chips; dark, semi sweet, butter scotch and melting chocolates. All in a row ready to be dispensed!! I look down and there are bins with hunks of chocolate in them! We move down to see sugar, pure cane sugar, and brown sugar! Flour, cake mix, butter milk pancake mix, biscuit mix and so much more!! There were even recipe cards for making biscuits and things with the products right there!
We unfortunately skipped getting any of this because our screaming 10 month old was getting some looks(or should I say we were!).
Next was the Meat and dairy. Jared concluded that the meat was comparable if not more expensive than the commissary, everything was of good quality though. We will have to do a little more comparison though next time just to make sure.
We did however get an AMAZING deal on our turkey. The deal for their turkey was that if you purchase $50 worth of stuff the price of the turkey will drop to .26 per lb.
We knew we would easily buy $50 worth of stuff so why not! We have only had 3 Thanksgivings together so we aren't really particular with turkey brands. Its just going to be us so we only needed a smaller one, we did how ever want enough for some left overs. So our turkey was 13.66lbs at .26 came to a total of $3.55. How can you beat that!
As we wandered threw the rest of the store we saw so many great deals. This wasn't a stalk the shelves kind of trip for us so some of the isles we didn't need anything in.
We did how ever find things we didn't know we needed or had not planned on getting this shopping trip. Like Ammonia, Hair dye, special french toast bread(a treat) and a new tooth brush because of the prices!
Im not going to list everything this time mostly because some of the names on the receipt are confusing and its just long! So I will just high light a few things.
Items bought- 76
Total spent- $113.01
Orange Honey 1.07lbs @ $3.51/lbs- $3.76
Almond Butter .98lb @ $.20/lbs - $4.12
Turkey 13.66lb @.26/lbs - $$3.55
Wheat bread 2 @ .86/loaf - $1.72
Kraft Mac n Cheese 4 @ .68/box - $2.72
Average amt spent per item at Winco- $1.49
Average at Safeway(using last weeks 35 items and $81.80 total)- $2.34
What Ive learned
*Have a list!! We were overwhelmed at first, lost direction and ended up back tracking threw the store once we got in the mode!
*DONT go when everyone else is off work/out of church/up for the day. Next time we will go early in the morning(if a weekend) or I will go while Jared(and the rest of the world) is at work!
*If at all possible leave the kids at home. Both Rylan and Gabe got restless because it was taking so long. We were making sure we were getting good deals so it was quite a process.
*Learn how to bag quick! You do have to bag your own stuff which is fine with me but that also plays into the previous advice.
Before leaving Jared asked me if it was even worth driving 25min? I told him that from everything I had heard it was in fact really worth it. So we packed up the munchkins and our $150 spending limit, and headed to the Puyallup Winco, which was Jareds pick.
I'll get this out first. I don't know if this is one of their older stores or what but it seemed a little old and forgotten I guess you could say. It almost has that dirty feel but is not at all. It was actually quite clean. We might try the Lacey store next time just to compare(and compare the drive too).
So things I loved. The produce was AWESOME! I did not see 1 fruit fly, nor did I see an beyond purchasable item. I am always finding not good fruit/veggies in the commissary and Safeway. The Honey Crisp apples were how ever quite a bit more expensive, and they are my favorite. I loved their selection of vegetarian things but it could be improved, I was just surprised they had anything!
Jared and I noticed something that is quite possibly our favorite part of Winco. Fresh Almond Butter, Peanut Butter, Clover Honey, Blackberry Honey and Orange honey. You grab a tub and fill it up to how much you wish.
We chose Almond Butter and Orange Honey. Our only complaint is lack of directions. We were not quite sure what to do. Its all price per pound but you don't know how much the 1 size container holds. There are scales just behind you for measuring the contents of the self serve candies and such, but I was worried about cross contamination with the almonds. Jared took the leap and weighed each container. The good side though is that you cant beat $4.12 for a little over a pound of fresh almond butter!
Moving on, we stumble upon this area with things in bins and dispensers on the wall. Its my heaven. Chocolate chips; dark, semi sweet, butter scotch and melting chocolates. All in a row ready to be dispensed!! I look down and there are bins with hunks of chocolate in them! We move down to see sugar, pure cane sugar, and brown sugar! Flour, cake mix, butter milk pancake mix, biscuit mix and so much more!! There were even recipe cards for making biscuits and things with the products right there!
We unfortunately skipped getting any of this because our screaming 10 month old was getting some looks(or should I say we were!).
Next was the Meat and dairy. Jared concluded that the meat was comparable if not more expensive than the commissary, everything was of good quality though. We will have to do a little more comparison though next time just to make sure.
We did however get an AMAZING deal on our turkey. The deal for their turkey was that if you purchase $50 worth of stuff the price of the turkey will drop to .26 per lb.
We knew we would easily buy $50 worth of stuff so why not! We have only had 3 Thanksgivings together so we aren't really particular with turkey brands. Its just going to be us so we only needed a smaller one, we did how ever want enough for some left overs. So our turkey was 13.66lbs at .26 came to a total of $3.55. How can you beat that!
As we wandered threw the rest of the store we saw so many great deals. This wasn't a stalk the shelves kind of trip for us so some of the isles we didn't need anything in.
We did how ever find things we didn't know we needed or had not planned on getting this shopping trip. Like Ammonia, Hair dye, special french toast bread(a treat) and a new tooth brush because of the prices!
Im not going to list everything this time mostly because some of the names on the receipt are confusing and its just long! So I will just high light a few things.
Items bought- 76
Total spent- $113.01
Orange Honey 1.07lbs @ $3.51/lbs- $3.76
Almond Butter .98lb @ $.20/lbs - $4.12
Turkey 13.66lb @.26/lbs - $$3.55
Wheat bread 2 @ .86/loaf - $1.72
Kraft Mac n Cheese 4 @ .68/box - $2.72
Average amt spent per item at Winco- $1.49
Average at Safeway(using last weeks 35 items and $81.80 total)- $2.34
What Ive learned
*Have a list!! We were overwhelmed at first, lost direction and ended up back tracking threw the store once we got in the mode!
*DONT go when everyone else is off work/out of church/up for the day. Next time we will go early in the morning(if a weekend) or I will go while Jared(and the rest of the world) is at work!
*If at all possible leave the kids at home. Both Rylan and Gabe got restless because it was taking so long. We were making sure we were getting good deals so it was quite a process.
*Learn how to bag quick! You do have to bag your own stuff which is fine with me but that also plays into the previous advice.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Winco Here I Come!!!
That is if Jared ever gets out of bed(yes it is almost 2pm!)
Anyway, I recently started getting sales fliers for Winco. Ive heard of Winco before, that it was an amazing discount bulk grocery store. People in my home town would drive 2hrs away just to make their big shopping trip because Winco was just that good! Well I must say in my 22yrs of life I have never set foot in one.
As of late our main grocery stops have been the Commissary and Safeway, but Ive really been trying to get our food bill under control. Ive been to grocery outlet before, its quite good but I don't buy a whole lot of frozen meals, or pre made boxed things so I usually don't find much. Sometimes the quality isn't that great either.
I don't really do coupons because of this either.
So today we may make the only 25min trip to Winco and see what its all about. We are in need of quite a bit of the staple items. I think I will set our budget at $150 to get us to December 1st. We still have meals already for the next 4 days so $150 for 7 days seem totally do able!
When and if we go I will make sure to add an update!!
Anyway, I recently started getting sales fliers for Winco. Ive heard of Winco before, that it was an amazing discount bulk grocery store. People in my home town would drive 2hrs away just to make their big shopping trip because Winco was just that good! Well I must say in my 22yrs of life I have never set foot in one.
As of late our main grocery stops have been the Commissary and Safeway, but Ive really been trying to get our food bill under control. Ive been to grocery outlet before, its quite good but I don't buy a whole lot of frozen meals, or pre made boxed things so I usually don't find much. Sometimes the quality isn't that great either.
I don't really do coupons because of this either.
So today we may make the only 25min trip to Winco and see what its all about. We are in need of quite a bit of the staple items. I think I will set our budget at $150 to get us to December 1st. We still have meals already for the next 4 days so $150 for 7 days seem totally do able!
When and if we go I will make sure to add an update!!
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Wallgreens comes threw again
Wallgreens does some awesome photo deals.
30 3x6 prints for $3!!
Just make an account(super easy and no cost)
Upload your pictures(you can even add frames and crop).
Put in your order and code.
Have them printed out at your nearest Wallgreens.
Go pay your minuscule $3 and walk out happy!!
30 3x6 prints for $3!!
Just make an account(super easy and no cost)
Upload your pictures(you can even add frames and crop).
Put in your order and code.
Have them printed out at your nearest Wallgreens.
Go pay your minuscule $3 and walk out happy!!
Things never go as planned!
So I just roll with it, or really bounce along begrudgingly
Jared scheduled has been pretty hectic. He leaves here a little after 5am and is not home until about 5pm. Then leaves for Jui Jitsu close to 6, he has been going every night since getting his second stripe so I have had no time to go grocery shopping.
So last night I did a little shopping at Safeway...at 10pm, which made it nice and quiet! I don't normally do our major shopping there because I can get it cheaper else where. Our main stop is usually the commissary but I would like to add Grocery Outlet in again and maybe Winco, just to cut costs again.
I went in to Safeway with $100 in cash and was only planning on getting a day or 2 worth of food.
UNTIL.....I saw some deals, but Im still new at this so I probably could have found better else where.
I managed to spend %81.20. I paired what I had at home with the deals and got at LEAST 6 dinners. Some breakfast stuff and a snack. There are still some things we need but they can wait until next week.
Here is the breakdown.
Gerber Baby food stage 3 60z jars. 4 for $3.00
*purchased 8 for a total of $6
Safeway "cherrios" 14oz box. $1.99
Tree Top Apple Juice 64oz bottle. $1.99
Franks Red Hot sauce 12fl oz bottle. 3.25
Eggs Large 1 dozen. 1.99
Lucerne sliced cheese 12oz pkg. $2.49
Skim milk 1 gal. $2.99
Safeway frozen Stir fry veggies 14oz bought 3 @ 2/$4. $6.00
Safeway Frozen Broccoli cuts 32oz. $2.50
Safeway Whole Wheat English Muffins 14oz. 1.29
Safeway Whole Wheat Bread 24oz, 2@$1.50 $3.00
Oscar Meyer Deli Fresh lunch meat 8oz, BOGO $8.58
*purchased 2 got 2 free.
80/20 Ground Beef 3.51 lbs $6.98
Beef Stew Meat 2.33lbs $7.67
Safeway Chicken Wings 4.17lbs $8.30
Honey Crisp Apples 3 %3.23
Celery 1.55lbs @.99/lb $1.53
Jumbo yellow Onions 1.47lbs @.99/lb $1.46
*2 onions
Carrots 2lb bag @1.69
2 coke zeros $3.58
Crest Toothpaste $3.99
Total- $81.20
Total Savings- $22.20
So what meals will I make you ask??
Dinners-
*Broccoli Beef Stir fry (with more veggies)
*Beef Stew
*Hot wings
*Mini Burgers
*Soup and Sandwiches
*Spaghetti and meat sauce
Sides-
*veggies
*Pasta Salad
*Lentils and rice
Breakfasts-
*Cereal
*Eggs(and variations off)
*English muffins
Snacks-
*Apples
Jared scheduled has been pretty hectic. He leaves here a little after 5am and is not home until about 5pm. Then leaves for Jui Jitsu close to 6, he has been going every night since getting his second stripe so I have had no time to go grocery shopping.
So last night I did a little shopping at Safeway...at 10pm, which made it nice and quiet! I don't normally do our major shopping there because I can get it cheaper else where. Our main stop is usually the commissary but I would like to add Grocery Outlet in again and maybe Winco, just to cut costs again.
I went in to Safeway with $100 in cash and was only planning on getting a day or 2 worth of food.
UNTIL.....I saw some deals, but Im still new at this so I probably could have found better else where.
I managed to spend %81.20. I paired what I had at home with the deals and got at LEAST 6 dinners. Some breakfast stuff and a snack. There are still some things we need but they can wait until next week.
Here is the breakdown.
Gerber Baby food stage 3 60z jars. 4 for $3.00
*purchased 8 for a total of $6
Safeway "cherrios" 14oz box. $1.99
Tree Top Apple Juice 64oz bottle. $1.99
Franks Red Hot sauce 12fl oz bottle. 3.25
Eggs Large 1 dozen. 1.99
Lucerne sliced cheese 12oz pkg. $2.49
Skim milk 1 gal. $2.99
Safeway frozen Stir fry veggies 14oz bought 3 @ 2/$4. $6.00
Safeway Frozen Broccoli cuts 32oz. $2.50
Safeway Whole Wheat English Muffins 14oz. 1.29
Safeway Whole Wheat Bread 24oz, 2@$1.50 $3.00
Oscar Meyer Deli Fresh lunch meat 8oz, BOGO $8.58
*purchased 2 got 2 free.
80/20 Ground Beef 3.51 lbs $6.98
Beef Stew Meat 2.33lbs $7.67
Safeway Chicken Wings 4.17lbs $8.30
Honey Crisp Apples 3 %3.23
Celery 1.55lbs @.99/lb $1.53
Jumbo yellow Onions 1.47lbs @.99/lb $1.46
*2 onions
Carrots 2lb bag @1.69
2 coke zeros $3.58
Crest Toothpaste $3.99
Total- $81.20
Total Savings- $22.20
So what meals will I make you ask??
Dinners-
*Broccoli Beef Stir fry (with more veggies)
*Beef Stew
*Hot wings
*Mini Burgers
*Soup and Sandwiches
*Spaghetti and meat sauce
Sides-
*veggies
*Pasta Salad
*Lentils and rice
Breakfasts-
*Cereal
*Eggs(and variations off)
*English muffins
Snacks-
*Apples
Monday, November 15, 2010
Blogs I follow
Just thought I would share some blogs I have been following in my attempt to cut our food bill, live greener, live simpler and eat healthier
Eat at Home- Saving money on food and menu planning
Small Notebook- Everything from saving, food, D.I.Y, living simple, and even a section including what her husband thinks.
Money Saving Mom-Another awesome all encompassing blog, complete with store deals and coupons.
According to Kelly- A Funny, crafty, honest read!
NannyGoat- Some amazingly crafty women here!
Eat at Home- Saving money on food and menu planning
Small Notebook- Everything from saving, food, D.I.Y, living simple, and even a section including what her husband thinks.
Money Saving Mom-Another awesome all encompassing blog, complete with store deals and coupons.
According to Kelly- A Funny, crafty, honest read!
NannyGoat- Some amazingly crafty women here!
Starting Over
So The first week of November gave us a good reason to start back on track with our Envelope method.
The boys and I went to vising my mom for the first week since Dj was back in town. Lucking my is amazing and provides all our food when we are there, even snacks for Gabe!
We had a halloween party the week before so Jared was left here with quite a bit of food, not that he eats much anyway. That along with some friends who came over wanting him to cook steaks for them lol, they were nice enough to leave half a bag of potatoes here that we used last week.
When I returned home Jared had the idea to just eat out of the pantry and wait until the 15th to get more food. I agreed and got to work going threw all the left overs in the pantry. Luckily though we do get WIC and had 1 check left on it with milk, juice, bread and peanut butter/lentils.
So I was able to make a whole weeks worth of food out of the odds and ends in our pantry and fridge.
Now this week and paycheck we are starting out pretty empty in the pantry lol.
Here is what we have on hand
*half package of Rotelle Noodles
*2 cans of cheddar cheese soup
*2 large cans of tomato/spaghetti sauce
*1 small can olives
*1 can re fried beans
* White rice
*4 medium potatoes
* stewed tomatoes
* green beans
* Frozen mixed veggies
What we are buying
* 10lb bag of chicken breasts
* 2 cans cream of chicken soup
* 1lb ground beef
* 2lbs stew meat
* 1 bag frozen broccoli
* 1 bag flour
* brown sugar
* 2 dozen eggs
* Milk
* Cheese
* 4 cheap steaks
* bread
* Pillsbury pizza dough
* Red and yellow peppers
* Frozen mixed veggies
* Tomato soup
* 2 onions
* ground turkey
* Mustard
* Ketchup
* Lunch meat
* 1 head lettuce
* Toilet paper
* shaving cream
* Garbage bags
* Face wash
* dishwasher tabs.
Meals for the week
Cheesy Slow cooker Chicken
Broccoli Beef and Veggies
Chicken strips
Steaks
Turkey Loaf
Pizza
Soup and Sandwiches.
Obviously quite a bit of what is on our list are things we need to stock back up on or are not food items. I only did 1 week of a menu to keep us on track. Set options makes it so I dont come up with some thing random out of what I have, leaving other random ingredients that make nothing. Next we should only have to buy the perishables like milk and fresh veggies. We will have enough chicken for dishes next week and some of what Im making will have enough to be frozen for next week!
The boys and I went to vising my mom for the first week since Dj was back in town. Lucking my is amazing and provides all our food when we are there, even snacks for Gabe!
We had a halloween party the week before so Jared was left here with quite a bit of food, not that he eats much anyway. That along with some friends who came over wanting him to cook steaks for them lol, they were nice enough to leave half a bag of potatoes here that we used last week.
When I returned home Jared had the idea to just eat out of the pantry and wait until the 15th to get more food. I agreed and got to work going threw all the left overs in the pantry. Luckily though we do get WIC and had 1 check left on it with milk, juice, bread and peanut butter/lentils.
So I was able to make a whole weeks worth of food out of the odds and ends in our pantry and fridge.
Now this week and paycheck we are starting out pretty empty in the pantry lol.
Here is what we have on hand
*half package of Rotelle Noodles
*2 cans of cheddar cheese soup
*2 large cans of tomato/spaghetti sauce
*1 small can olives
*1 can re fried beans
* White rice
*4 medium potatoes
* stewed tomatoes
* green beans
* Frozen mixed veggies
What we are buying
* 10lb bag of chicken breasts
* 2 cans cream of chicken soup
* 1lb ground beef
* 2lbs stew meat
* 1 bag frozen broccoli
* 1 bag flour
* brown sugar
* 2 dozen eggs
* Milk
* Cheese
* 4 cheap steaks
* bread
* Pillsbury pizza dough
* Red and yellow peppers
* Frozen mixed veggies
* Tomato soup
* 2 onions
* ground turkey
* Mustard
* Ketchup
* Lunch meat
* 1 head lettuce
* Toilet paper
* shaving cream
* Garbage bags
* Face wash
* dishwasher tabs.
Meals for the week
Cheesy Slow cooker Chicken
Broccoli Beef and Veggies
Chicken strips
Steaks
Turkey Loaf
Pizza
Soup and Sandwiches.
Obviously quite a bit of what is on our list are things we need to stock back up on or are not food items. I only did 1 week of a menu to keep us on track. Set options makes it so I dont come up with some thing random out of what I have, leaving other random ingredients that make nothing. Next we should only have to buy the perishables like milk and fresh veggies. We will have enough chicken for dishes next week and some of what Im making will have enough to be frozen for next week!
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Day 5 of the envelope method(and some rambelings)
Well its been 5 days of *trying* to keep track of our money. I say trying because it hasn't gone as smoothly as I though it was going to. We actually did really well grocery wise. Even with Jared having CQ twice(today is the 2nd time). Im even making home made lunch and dinner to take to him. With that we are right at our $350 budget.
I haven't totaled it yet but we have spent money for other things. $36 for gas(we budgeted $100 and about $20 for some inexpensive Halloween decor. We did have a forgotten about expense for a Brazilian jujitsu seminar for Jared which is $100.
This month is also mine and Rylans birthdays, so those expenses aren't exactly budgeted but kept in check. Yesterday we got him a much needed new pair of shoes, and for his birthday he is getting a trike with a helmet, some new clothes(hes getting so tall) and a toy or 2.
So to sum it up, next paycheck should go a little smoother than this one. Im learning what to tweak and not feeling so nervous about it.
With about 10 days left we have more money left in our account than usual and with only one bill left to pay(its automatic on a certain day) we are doing pretty good.
We are hoping to save enough money to have our first ever Halloween party at our apartment, and to invite some of Jareds work friends over.
This is a FAR cry from a little over a year ago, when being overdraft $300-$400 5 days out from being paid, was the norm.
We were lucky enough to pay off every debt except one with our taxes and still have a little over 2k left in savings from it. We were lucky enough to be able to save some money while Jared was deployed to soften then blow of him coming back home and transitioning back to normal pay(non-hazard pay).
Our one and only debt is our car, which we owe about $5800 on. Our plan for that is to put our savings into it and refinance with USAA for a lower interest rate.
All in all we are very lucky to be in the financial state we are and to be in so little debt(compared to many our age.
Im so much more laid back about money than I was before. It was my biggest stress. Although I do still get those flashes of anxiety when we spend money, just remembering the feeling of dread that we had over drafted again.
I haven't totaled it yet but we have spent money for other things. $36 for gas(we budgeted $100 and about $20 for some inexpensive Halloween decor. We did have a forgotten about expense for a Brazilian jujitsu seminar for Jared which is $100.
This month is also mine and Rylans birthdays, so those expenses aren't exactly budgeted but kept in check. Yesterday we got him a much needed new pair of shoes, and for his birthday he is getting a trike with a helmet, some new clothes(hes getting so tall) and a toy or 2.
So to sum it up, next paycheck should go a little smoother than this one. Im learning what to tweak and not feeling so nervous about it.
With about 10 days left we have more money left in our account than usual and with only one bill left to pay(its automatic on a certain day) we are doing pretty good.
We are hoping to save enough money to have our first ever Halloween party at our apartment, and to invite some of Jareds work friends over.
This is a FAR cry from a little over a year ago, when being overdraft $300-$400 5 days out from being paid, was the norm.
We were lucky enough to pay off every debt except one with our taxes and still have a little over 2k left in savings from it. We were lucky enough to be able to save some money while Jared was deployed to soften then blow of him coming back home and transitioning back to normal pay(non-hazard pay).
Our one and only debt is our car, which we owe about $5800 on. Our plan for that is to put our savings into it and refinance with USAA for a lower interest rate.
All in all we are very lucky to be in the financial state we are and to be in so little debt(compared to many our age.
Im so much more laid back about money than I was before. It was my biggest stress. Although I do still get those flashes of anxiety when we spend money, just remembering the feeling of dread that we had over drafted again.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Day 1 of the Envelope System
So I was kind of thrown off track today because Jared has CQ until tomorrow morning, which means I had to do only some of the grocery shopping today by myself. Tomorrow morning I(or all of us) will be going to the farmers market for some more veggies and fruits, and after Jared sleeps we will go to costco.
Im only posting about grocery's for now because its or first big expense.
Instead of getting $350 I only pulled out $300. 1 because you cant get $350 out of an atm lol and 2 because I think we can do it on $300.
My list wasnt long but I did have to add some thing for Jared for CQ.
ORIGINAL LIST
*Chicken Breasts
*Beef
*MIlk
*Bread
*Cheese
*Eggs
*Onions
*Green peppers
*Buns
*Mac'n Cheese
*Turkey Dogs
*Yogurt
*lunch meat
*Veggies
*Bananas
*Flour
*sugar
*tortillas
*tomato sauce/paste
*celery
*whole chicken
-the bold items I did not get. we are waiting to get those at Costco tomorrow.
My most expensive purchase was Jareds 2 deli sandwiches for tonight and that was $7.98
My least expensive was a yellow onion for 32 cents
Including Jareds snack foods(chex mix, sandwiches, trailmix). At the commissary I spent $75.86
I gave $80 so my change was $4.14. $4 went to the baggers who helped me out and 14cents goes in the change jar.
So I count $80 as my grand total for the commissary.
Next I went to the px for Jared.
*monster energy drink-2.99
*mma magazine-5.39
*mens health mag. -4.49
TOtal-$12.87
Change-$7.13
$7 given to Jared and 13cents in the change jar.
TODAYS TOTAL-$99.86
Now here is what I actually got
-3pkg of baby snacks
-applesauce
-3cans pasta sauce
-3cans tomato paste
-1bag chili beans
-1leamon water
-1 honey tea
-5pkg mac 'n cheese
-2pkg tortillas
-1pkg fajita mix
-1pkg food containers
-1box eggs
-1gal milk
-3can biscut dough
-1whole chicken
-2pkg lunch meat(3lbs)
-1pkg bacon
-1pkg turkey dogs
-1pkg buns
-1pkg stew meat
-1pkg steaks
-2med heads of broccoli(about 2lbs)
-1head coliflower
-1pkg celery
-1 red bell pepper
-1 yellow bell pepper
-1 yellow onion
TOTAL-$75.86
The haul
Im only posting about grocery's for now because its or first big expense.
Instead of getting $350 I only pulled out $300. 1 because you cant get $350 out of an atm lol and 2 because I think we can do it on $300.
My list wasnt long but I did have to add some thing for Jared for CQ.
ORIGINAL LIST
*Chicken Breasts
*Beef
*MIlk
*Bread
*Cheese
*Eggs
*Onions
*Green peppers
*Buns
*Mac'n Cheese
*Turkey Dogs
*Yogurt
*lunch meat
*Veggies
*Bananas
*Flour
*sugar
*tortillas
*tomato sauce/paste
*celery
*whole chicken
-the bold items I did not get. we are waiting to get those at Costco tomorrow.
My most expensive purchase was Jareds 2 deli sandwiches for tonight and that was $7.98
My least expensive was a yellow onion for 32 cents
Including Jareds snack foods(chex mix, sandwiches, trailmix). At the commissary I spent $75.86
I gave $80 so my change was $4.14. $4 went to the baggers who helped me out and 14cents goes in the change jar.
So I count $80 as my grand total for the commissary.
Next I went to the px for Jared.
*monster energy drink-2.99
*mma magazine-5.39
*mens health mag. -4.49
TOtal-$12.87
Change-$7.13
$7 given to Jared and 13cents in the change jar.
TODAYS TOTAL-$99.86
Now here is what I actually got
-3pkg of baby snacks
-applesauce
-3cans pasta sauce
-3cans tomato paste
-1bag chili beans
-1leamon water
-1 honey tea
-5pkg mac 'n cheese
-2pkg tortillas
-1pkg fajita mix
-1pkg food containers
-1box eggs
-1gal milk
-3can biscut dough
-1whole chicken
-2pkg lunch meat(3lbs)
-1pkg bacon
-1pkg turkey dogs
-1pkg buns
-1pkg stew meat
-1pkg steaks
-2med heads of broccoli(about 2lbs)
-1head coliflower
-1pkg celery
-1 red bell pepper
-1 yellow bell pepper
-1 yellow onion
TOTAL-$75.86
The haul
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
big boy now/tomorrow
Big Boy Now
Rylan is doing really well with potty training. He asks to go pee and poop and hasn't had any accidents in the last 2 days. I even took a walk over to walgreens(just half a block away)with him with out realizing he was wearing regular underwear and not a pull up! He did awesome. He is even telling me when he has to poop more often. I think in the beginning he had "stage fright" so to say. Instead of going 2-3 times a day, he would go once and at the very last possible moment lol. He is doing really well and I think we may be fully trained in a week or 2.
Tomorrow
Tomorrow will be the start of our Envelope method. I will be withdrawing money for the allotted envelopes and that is that! Im also going shopping without Jared tomorrow seeing how he has CQ and wont be home till Thursday morning. Aside from having both boys with me, this will be easier since Jared tends to buy random things lol.
I will update tomorrow how it all goes!
Rylan is doing really well with potty training. He asks to go pee and poop and hasn't had any accidents in the last 2 days. I even took a walk over to walgreens(just half a block away)with him with out realizing he was wearing regular underwear and not a pull up! He did awesome. He is even telling me when he has to poop more often. I think in the beginning he had "stage fright" so to say. Instead of going 2-3 times a day, he would go once and at the very last possible moment lol. He is doing really well and I think we may be fully trained in a week or 2.
Tomorrow
Tomorrow will be the start of our Envelope method. I will be withdrawing money for the allotted envelopes and that is that! Im also going shopping without Jared tomorrow seeing how he has CQ and wont be home till Thursday morning. Aside from having both boys with me, this will be easier since Jared tends to buy random things lol.
I will update tomorrow how it all goes!
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Ive been gone for a while
Ive been gone. What can I say my darling husband finally came home from his LAST deployment!!! We still have 2 more years with the army and in these next 2 years we are going to work our buts off to set ourselves up financially. Neither of us want to instantly worry about living the civilian life instantly broke. We are hoping every thing works out right and to where Jared with have enough terminal leave to be able to find/start a job while still being payed by the Army(if you are not military its a bit confusing).
We do have a plan though. The first step is putting a large chunk of our savings in to paying down our car loan, then refinancing it with USAA at a lower interest rate because lets face it, with our current interest rate of %14.7 we are never going to pay off this car. Then hopefully find a car for me, nothing special. I hope to start going to school in January with the help of a pell grant and MyCAA scholarship. Which is where the car comes in, I need a way to get the boys to daycare and me to school!
I would like to get a job but the cost of daycare and the hours I would be able to work outweigh what little money I could bring in.
This brings me to what my main post is about.
THE ENVELOPE METHOD!
Jared and I agreed that starting next paycheck(the 15th) we are going to start the envelope method.
I'll explain it a little then post a link or 2 to some other explanations.
So here our our bi monthly expenses other than bills since all our bills are paid over the internet. We go by 1st and 15th of the month since that is when we get paid.
Food/Goods- $350
This is what we are budgeting, since this is our first time working cash only I want to make sure we have enough. If its to much it can be adjusted next paycheck.
This also includes diapers wipes, household needs like toilet paper, garbage bags. Hygiene products also like shampoo and conditioner, tooth paste, razors. Most of these things are not EVERY paycheck needs though.
Gas- $100
For Jared going to and from work and to and from BJJ.
Spend- $?
This is going to be about half of what is left of our paycheck. So say we had $100 left, $50 would go in our spend envelope and the rest in savings.
This is for say random meal out or maybe something fun to do. BUT what is in the envelope is all we have to spend.
So all of those bold categories are taken out in cash and put in to a labeled envelope. The cash in the envelope is ALL you have to spend on that categories. No taking from one to add to another.
At the end of the 2wks(or month if you choose). What ever is left(if any) is put in to savings.
Small change can be put into a piggy bank or what ever you choose.
The premise is that keeping your dealings in cash will force you to choose more wisely what you spend your money on. You have $10 left, to you buy the 1 meal at McDonald or buy inexpensive staples that could feed you for 2-3 days? Do you make that extra trip just to browse the book store or do you save your gas for more important things?
Here are some links I like
Dave Ramsey is incredibly helpful. He also has the Snowball method for paying down debt.
http://www.daveramsey.com/article/dave-ramseys-envelope-system/lifeandmoney_budgeting/
A good video tutorial on The envelope method.
http://www.ncnblog.com/2007/08/17/envelope-system-video-tutorial-step-by-step-guide-to-using-the-envelope-system-to-manage-your-cash/
And a blog I recently discovered about everything frugal!
http://smallnotebook.org/
I will be updating our progress once we start. I hope it helps us build our savings!!
We do have a plan though. The first step is putting a large chunk of our savings in to paying down our car loan, then refinancing it with USAA at a lower interest rate because lets face it, with our current interest rate of %14.7 we are never going to pay off this car. Then hopefully find a car for me, nothing special. I hope to start going to school in January with the help of a pell grant and MyCAA scholarship. Which is where the car comes in, I need a way to get the boys to daycare and me to school!
I would like to get a job but the cost of daycare and the hours I would be able to work outweigh what little money I could bring in.
This brings me to what my main post is about.
THE ENVELOPE METHOD!
Jared and I agreed that starting next paycheck(the 15th) we are going to start the envelope method.
I'll explain it a little then post a link or 2 to some other explanations.
So here our our bi monthly expenses other than bills since all our bills are paid over the internet. We go by 1st and 15th of the month since that is when we get paid.
Food/Goods- $350
This is what we are budgeting, since this is our first time working cash only I want to make sure we have enough. If its to much it can be adjusted next paycheck.
This also includes diapers wipes, household needs like toilet paper, garbage bags. Hygiene products also like shampoo and conditioner, tooth paste, razors. Most of these things are not EVERY paycheck needs though.
Gas- $100
For Jared going to and from work and to and from BJJ.
Spend- $?
This is going to be about half of what is left of our paycheck. So say we had $100 left, $50 would go in our spend envelope and the rest in savings.
This is for say random meal out or maybe something fun to do. BUT what is in the envelope is all we have to spend.
So all of those bold categories are taken out in cash and put in to a labeled envelope. The cash in the envelope is ALL you have to spend on that categories. No taking from one to add to another.
At the end of the 2wks(or month if you choose). What ever is left(if any) is put in to savings.
Small change can be put into a piggy bank or what ever you choose.
The premise is that keeping your dealings in cash will force you to choose more wisely what you spend your money on. You have $10 left, to you buy the 1 meal at McDonald or buy inexpensive staples that could feed you for 2-3 days? Do you make that extra trip just to browse the book store or do you save your gas for more important things?
Here are some links I like
Dave Ramsey is incredibly helpful. He also has the Snowball method for paying down debt.
http://www.daveramsey.com/article/dave-ramseys-envelope-system/lifeandmoney_budgeting/
A good video tutorial on The envelope method.
http://www.ncnblog.com/2007/08/17/envelope-system-video-tutorial-step-by-step-guide-to-using-the-envelope-system-to-manage-your-cash/
And a blog I recently discovered about everything frugal!
http://smallnotebook.org/
I will be updating our progress once we start. I hope it helps us build our savings!!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Acia Berry 14 day cleanse and the AcaiBerry Diet
So today I am starting the Acai Berry 14 day cleanse and the Acai Berry Diet.
What does this consist of? Taking 2 of the Cleanse pills in the AM, taking 2 of the diet pills mid day with lunch and 2 of the Cleanse pills in the PM. I can adjust the Cleanse pills to fit my needs, either down to 3 or 2 but never more than 4.
Here are the links to the products
Acia Berry 14 Day Cleanse
http://www.appliednutrition.com/products/cleansing/14-day-acai-berry-cleanse/
Acia Berry Diet
http://www.natrolacaiberry.com/
The cleanse will clean me out(obviously), helping with bloating and giving me more energy. Which Im in need of lol.
The Acai Berry Diet should help support Fat metabolism, Calorie burning and energy!
I weighed and measured my self today and this is where Im starting(my height is 5'2)
Weight- 148.6lbs
Waist-39inches
I'll post some pictures later too so you can see my progress!!
What does this consist of? Taking 2 of the Cleanse pills in the AM, taking 2 of the diet pills mid day with lunch and 2 of the Cleanse pills in the PM. I can adjust the Cleanse pills to fit my needs, either down to 3 or 2 but never more than 4.
Here are the links to the products
Acia Berry 14 Day Cleanse
http://www.appliednutrition.com/products/cleansing/14-day-acai-berry-cleanse/
Acia Berry Diet
http://www.natrolacaiberry.com/
The cleanse will clean me out(obviously), helping with bloating and giving me more energy. Which Im in need of lol.
The Acai Berry Diet should help support Fat metabolism, Calorie burning and energy!
I weighed and measured my self today and this is where Im starting(my height is 5'2)
Weight- 148.6lbs
Waist-39inches
I'll post some pictures later too so you can see my progress!!
Friday, June 18, 2010
Just some thoughts
Ugh. I had to get this out before I go to bed. I really miss Jared. Every morning I wake up and Im alone in this big bed. I get up and the boys and I start our day. I go into our living room and Im alone. No good morning greeting, no what can I make you for breakfast(I cant wait to ask him that). My day goes on. No, oh can you help me with this. Then my day comes to a close, I start turning off the lights and t.v., I stand there at the last light and look around. No are you ready for bed, no hand on my back. No getting situated next to each other in bed. No, "will you scratch my back". NO random night time conversation. I go to bed praying to fall asleep quickly so I can get the next day over with.
Its at night when it hurts the most. Its lonely. Its hard to describe, numb maybe is the right term. Stuck. Even knowing he is coming home soon it still hurts remembering that I am alone. I really just want this part of our life to be done with. I don't like the way it makes either of us feel, I don't like hurting like this.
Its at night when it hurts the most. Its lonely. Its hard to describe, numb maybe is the right term. Stuck. Even knowing he is coming home soon it still hurts remembering that I am alone. I really just want this part of our life to be done with. I don't like the way it makes either of us feel, I don't like hurting like this.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Rylan gets a hair cut and does finger paint.
Today we went to the craft store to pick out some stuff to make cards for Fathers Day for Jared. Of course he will have to see them over video, which I will have to post to Youtube for him to see it lol. I decided it was time for Ry to try finger painting!! He had fun with it, wasn't to sure about getting his hand dirty purposely lol but he did good and maid 2 paintings lol. I of course could not help my self and bought some scrapbook stuff to help build back my supply. Most of it was on sale though so I did good.
Monday, June 14, 2010
I promise I will get better at this!
So things got pretty hectic and I put updating this off for quite some time.
Since my last post a lot has changed. We made another trip home and this time Meghan stayed behind. It was obviously for the best and all the stars aligned because she got a job at Walmart. Im proud of you Meghan!!
So that left me for a, normally 6-7hr drive back here to Lakewood. Which after a few stops, a near melt down save by the good timing of getting to talk to Jared, a screaming baby and a carrot throwing toddler, we finally made it home!! It was a hard adjustment living by myself with both kids. I spent quite a few days in the same clothes not eating much, trying to get a scheduled into place. We didn't leave the house to much except to buy grocery's. Slowly but surely though I have managed to get them on a scheduled, make dinner every night, bathe them(most nights lol), clean, do laundry, shower myself, do a workout every other night and make trips outside! That was a long list lol. The house still gets messy and some times I go a day or to without a shower but, I almost have it all worked out.
Our recent trips included our first trip to the Tacoma Farmers market down town. I worried about being able to drive down there in the jetta and having to UP streets lol. Thankfully the way Google took me made it so I went down the whole way.
There were a lot of things to look at and our next trip I will actually purchase some veggies. For lunch Rylan and I shared some Curry Chicken and Nann, it was AMAZING! and here are some pics!
So some good news
Jared will be coming home soon!!! In about a months time! I can not wait for him to meet Gabe and bond more with Rylan. We have both been working on our relationship and it is stronger than ever. It will be a hard adjustment once again but I have faith that we can work it out better than last time.
So some up coming events other than Jared coming home.
-Trip to the farmers market Thursday with my friend Stacy.
-Going to Great Grandma PJs for 4th of July weekend and Uncle Steve will be there too. They have not met Gabe either so it will be a fun weekend!!
Since my last post a lot has changed. We made another trip home and this time Meghan stayed behind. It was obviously for the best and all the stars aligned because she got a job at Walmart. Im proud of you Meghan!!
So that left me for a, normally 6-7hr drive back here to Lakewood. Which after a few stops, a near melt down save by the good timing of getting to talk to Jared, a screaming baby and a carrot throwing toddler, we finally made it home!! It was a hard adjustment living by myself with both kids. I spent quite a few days in the same clothes not eating much, trying to get a scheduled into place. We didn't leave the house to much except to buy grocery's. Slowly but surely though I have managed to get them on a scheduled, make dinner every night, bathe them(most nights lol), clean, do laundry, shower myself, do a workout every other night and make trips outside! That was a long list lol. The house still gets messy and some times I go a day or to without a shower but, I almost have it all worked out.
Our recent trips included our first trip to the Tacoma Farmers market down town. I worried about being able to drive down there in the jetta and having to UP streets lol. Thankfully the way Google took me made it so I went down the whole way.
There were a lot of things to look at and our next trip I will actually purchase some veggies. For lunch Rylan and I shared some Curry Chicken and Nann, it was AMAZING! and here are some pics!
So some good news
Jared will be coming home soon!!! In about a months time! I can not wait for him to meet Gabe and bond more with Rylan. We have both been working on our relationship and it is stronger than ever. It will be a hard adjustment once again but I have faith that we can work it out better than last time.
So some up coming events other than Jared coming home.
-Trip to the farmers market Thursday with my friend Stacy.
-Going to Great Grandma PJs for 4th of July weekend and Uncle Steve will be there too. They have not met Gabe either so it will be a fun weekend!!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
So Lets Start with my Most Recent Trip Home
So since having Gabe I've been going home every 2 weeks for about 2 weeks at a time. Its been nice, and makes the weeks go by faster. Most recently we went home for Easter. On our way from Ft. Lewis to Clarkston we encountered some not so nice weather going over the pass. Luckily Meghan was driving and we had enough stuff in the trunk to keep us going well enough. Once over the pass though it was smooth sailing and we made it pretty good time. Since Gabe is getting older he is, unfortunately, not sleeping as much as our first trip over. This leads to me sitting smushed in between two car seats while multitasking feeding Gabe and playing with Rylan. Both are pretty good travelers though, we only stopped once in Othello for gas, stretching and diaper changing. So after getting home and making our rounds the decision was made that Rylan would stay the night with Grandma Stacy while Gabe and I would stay at my moms. This made it so that Myles could get a good night sleep and we could get a bed for Rylan to put in Myles's room. The play pen was getting to small for him and he was waking Myles up.
2 days before Easter Grandma Stacys church had an Easter egg hunt a the park. I sprung Myles from daycare and packed all 3 to the park for the fun. Unfortunately the weather was not cooperating, I eventually took Gabe and Myles back to my moms and Rylan stayed with Grandma Stacy. As the time got closer for the hunt Meghan and I ended up taking Myles back out to join Rylan. They were in their own age group so that they would have a chance. Hidden in the eggs were numbers coinciding with prizes. Recurrent with last year Rylan found a number and won a prize! Myles was not so luck, but did have a lot of fun.
As Easter Day came Rylan woke us up at the crack of 6am, so sleepily, my mom and I, Gabe, Myles and Rylan began the day. Both boys got royally spoiled. In the living room were waiting Easter baskets from both my mom and I.
Then we were of to Grandpa Mike and Grandma Karen's for Easter breakfast. After a yummy breakfast made by Grandma Karen there was an Easter egg hunt. Rylan, Jeff, and AJ combed the front yard for the candy and coin filled eggs. Then it was of to Grandma Rae and Grandpa Bills where another basket full of goodies, an Easter egg hunt and a delicious dinner awaited us. All in all it was a long, and fun day. For Rylan being 2 1/2 and it being Gabes first Easter it turned out awesome.
The rest of our time there was spent just relaxing and visiting family. I got to take in a few movies with Meghan and Beth and my mom even took me to the bar. My first time drinking at a bar since turning 21, and not being pregnant!! Jared took me for my birthday but alas I could not consume!
Now I grace you with some pictures!
2 days before Easter Grandma Stacys church had an Easter egg hunt a the park. I sprung Myles from daycare and packed all 3 to the park for the fun. Unfortunately the weather was not cooperating, I eventually took Gabe and Myles back to my moms and Rylan stayed with Grandma Stacy. As the time got closer for the hunt Meghan and I ended up taking Myles back out to join Rylan. They were in their own age group so that they would have a chance. Hidden in the eggs were numbers coinciding with prizes. Recurrent with last year Rylan found a number and won a prize! Myles was not so luck, but did have a lot of fun.
As Easter Day came Rylan woke us up at the crack of 6am, so sleepily, my mom and I, Gabe, Myles and Rylan began the day. Both boys got royally spoiled. In the living room were waiting Easter baskets from both my mom and I.
Then we were of to Grandpa Mike and Grandma Karen's for Easter breakfast. After a yummy breakfast made by Grandma Karen there was an Easter egg hunt. Rylan, Jeff, and AJ combed the front yard for the candy and coin filled eggs. Then it was of to Grandma Rae and Grandpa Bills where another basket full of goodies, an Easter egg hunt and a delicious dinner awaited us. All in all it was a long, and fun day. For Rylan being 2 1/2 and it being Gabes first Easter it turned out awesome.
The rest of our time there was spent just relaxing and visiting family. I got to take in a few movies with Meghan and Beth and my mom even took me to the bar. My first time drinking at a bar since turning 21, and not being pregnant!! Jared took me for my birthday but alas I could not consume!
Now I grace you with some pictures!
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