DH and I had checkups recently. We've not really had them in years, but we were encouraged to get some extra tests done due to the genetic results from Aubree. She received a defective gene from both of us that could have contributed to her heterotaxy. Thankfully, it appears this gene is recessive in both of us and neither of us have heterotaxy. So our chances of us having another baby with issues as severe as hers were are back to around 1:10,000. Which seems comforting, unless you've been that 1, and then statistics seem irrelevant.
We have really let our healthy habits slide over the past few months. Instead of cooking dinner we've been going out to eat or ordering a pizza. As a result, our checkups showed some unhealthy cholesterol levels. Boo! The doctor recommended a healthier diet and exercise. With DH's broken foot, he really can't do a lot physically right now, but we can work on eating better. We will basically be going back to the gluten-free diet that we did awhile back. Only because it immediately cuts out a lot of the bad foods we were eating (fast food, fried foods, desserts, etc), and helps us focus on eating lean proteins and veggies instead.
Tonight I have a pork roast in the crockpot with a bag of carrots and an apple. I have the day off today, so Aly and I are cleaning the house and getting things organized for our week. And I am hoping when she's napping that I can run out to clean the gutters a bit, which will save us some $$ in not paying to have it done.
Our journey...
Monday, November 11, 2013
Sunday, November 3, 2013
October Update
Ten months down and two more to go. I could never have imagined all that this year held for us, but in spite of everything I think we have done an amazing job!
Overall Debt:
Overall Debt:
Starting 1/1/2013: $62,300.13
Current 10/31/2013: $42,404.91
Total paid: $19,895.22
I can not believe that we have paid off nearly 1/3rd of our debt in just one year! And we will hit $20,000 as soon as I get my next paycheck (but that will go towards November's update!).
And on the "racing" front, the debt we are paying extra on and trying to eliminate as soon as possible, here's where we stand:
Starting 1/1/2013: $24,500.00
Current 10/31/2013: $9,900.00
Total paid: $14,600.00
Obviously this is where most of our payoff has taken place. We had wanted to have this at $0 by the end of the year, but life happened. We still got it down under 5-digits. This is all at 0% until June 2014, so we are taking our time here and will have it paid off by then.
We are also making some changes to reduce our monthly expenses. We changed up our daycare arrangement a bit which will save around $200, and we are in the middle of refinancing the house which will save another $100. We are also considering trading in our Explorer for a nice sedan that DH can drive to save on gas mileage. We like the big car, but with me driving downtown every day and DH driving all over the place for appointments, it does not make sense for us to have a car that only gets 17mpg on a good day. We don't need the car to tow anything and it only snows 2-4 times a year here. A front-wheel or all-wheel drive car is really all we need to get around if we do have to get out. While trading in the car would be a setback in our overall amount owed for awhile, it wouldn't take too long to catch up. We may save a bit on the monthly payments and we will definitely save on gas each month.
Back to square one
DH and I have officially started trying again for another baby. Aubree's due date came & passed, and it feels like that part of time was reserved just for her. Any baby from this point forward could have been here even if Aubree was still here (although I would have been insane to get pregnant again that fast!! lol).
In some ways I am more relaxed this time around, and in some ways I am a bit more neurotic. I am super strict about taking my daily handful of vitamins, and I tracked ovulation religiously. But now that I am in the dreaded TWW (two-week-wait), I am feeling more calm about the process. We've done all that we could possibly do and now we just have to see if it worked or not. One more week to go to see if we will have another July baby or if we will be trying for August. I am trying to not read into every pinch or twinge I feel, but just focus on whatever else I can to keep myself occupied. We have a couple of baby showers coming up at work and I need to get some yarn to start in on some baby blankets. That will keep my hands busy enough to keep me off the computer and prevent me from googling things to death ;)
Sometimes I feel ok, and other times grief will come out of no where and knock me to my knees. Thankfully those moments are getting fewer & farther between, but it still happens. Yesterday I was surprised to discover that going to the baseball stadium made me sad. We got a partial season ticket package this last year and DH wanted to do it again for next year. They held open stadium day to come try out the seats and see what was available. We took Aly along and thought it would be a fun family outing. But walking through the stadium made me think of the night we took Aly to her first game when I was pregnant with Aubree. Both girls got first game certificates, and Aubree danced around to the sounds of the stadium. I am glad we had that night all together as a family, but it still makes me sad knowing that Aubree won't be with us for the games this next year.
In some ways I am more relaxed this time around, and in some ways I am a bit more neurotic. I am super strict about taking my daily handful of vitamins, and I tracked ovulation religiously. But now that I am in the dreaded TWW (two-week-wait), I am feeling more calm about the process. We've done all that we could possibly do and now we just have to see if it worked or not. One more week to go to see if we will have another July baby or if we will be trying for August. I am trying to not read into every pinch or twinge I feel, but just focus on whatever else I can to keep myself occupied. We have a couple of baby showers coming up at work and I need to get some yarn to start in on some baby blankets. That will keep my hands busy enough to keep me off the computer and prevent me from googling things to death ;)
Sometimes I feel ok, and other times grief will come out of no where and knock me to my knees. Thankfully those moments are getting fewer & farther between, but it still happens. Yesterday I was surprised to discover that going to the baseball stadium made me sad. We got a partial season ticket package this last year and DH wanted to do it again for next year. They held open stadium day to come try out the seats and see what was available. We took Aly along and thought it would be a fun family outing. But walking through the stadium made me think of the night we took Aly to her first game when I was pregnant with Aubree. Both girls got first game certificates, and Aubree danced around to the sounds of the stadium. I am glad we had that night all together as a family, but it still makes me sad knowing that Aubree won't be with us for the games this next year.
Aly was really enjoying her hotdog. Hahah!! Aubree enjoyed her's too ;)
Monday, September 30, 2013
September Update
We've made it through the third quarter! And what a crazy year it has been so far. Here is the overall financial update:
Amazing. Simply amazing. We won't quite hit our goal set at the beginning of the year, but we are doing really well. Despite all the setbacks with the medical bills and general hiccups. The medical bills were covered 100% by our generous friends & family. It is completely humbling and heart warming. There's just no way to express how much that means to DH and I. Not only was it a financial burden, but it was a emotional & mental one as well. To have that lifted off of us has been such an incredible relief.
As for our active "racing" debt, we just crossed the 50% mark on that this month. Most of the setback in this area had been the medical bills, meals out, last-minute trips to the store to buy things for Aubree, and general just not keeping track of the budget well so the CC was pulled out. I am so glad our financial life was pretty well set to auto-pilot before this all happened so that the damage was containable. And over the past month we have really been cleaning up our general spending and getting our good habits back as our life goes back to "normal." Here are the racing numbers:
We are at 50% of our goal to have this completely paid off in 2013. I knew that was a far-reaching goal, but I am very pleased with the progress that we were able to make so far. I want to get under $10,000 by the end of the year and I think that we should be able to pay this off before June 2014 when the 0% rates expire. We are down to only 2 bills left out of 6 when we started.
We got our clearance to try again for another baby. I've run the numbers on my leave time from work and we will just barely have enough if we happen to get it this month. So weird to be right back in this place again. A new baby won't fix things, it won't replace Aubree, but we know our family is not complete yet. It's a really scary leap of faith to try again, knowing now just how badly it can end up.
Start 1/1/2013: $62,300.13
Current 9/30/2013: $44,636.42
Total paid: $17,663.71
Amazing. Simply amazing. We won't quite hit our goal set at the beginning of the year, but we are doing really well. Despite all the setbacks with the medical bills and general hiccups. The medical bills were covered 100% by our generous friends & family. It is completely humbling and heart warming. There's just no way to express how much that means to DH and I. Not only was it a financial burden, but it was a emotional & mental one as well. To have that lifted off of us has been such an incredible relief.
As for our active "racing" debt, we just crossed the 50% mark on that this month. Most of the setback in this area had been the medical bills, meals out, last-minute trips to the store to buy things for Aubree, and general just not keeping track of the budget well so the CC was pulled out. I am so glad our financial life was pretty well set to auto-pilot before this all happened so that the damage was containable. And over the past month we have really been cleaning up our general spending and getting our good habits back as our life goes back to "normal." Here are the racing numbers:
Start 1/1/2013: $24,500.00
Current 9/30/2013: $11,523.26
Total paid: $12,016.35
We are at 50% of our goal to have this completely paid off in 2013. I knew that was a far-reaching goal, but I am very pleased with the progress that we were able to make so far. I want to get under $10,000 by the end of the year and I think that we should be able to pay this off before June 2014 when the 0% rates expire. We are down to only 2 bills left out of 6 when we started.
We got our clearance to try again for another baby. I've run the numbers on my leave time from work and we will just barely have enough if we happen to get it this month. So weird to be right back in this place again. A new baby won't fix things, it won't replace Aubree, but we know our family is not complete yet. It's a really scary leap of faith to try again, knowing now just how badly it can end up.
Monday, September 16, 2013
Last week at home
I can not believe this is my last week of medical leave. Physically I am feeling nearly 100%, except for the allergies/cold that settled in over the last few days. I have really enjoyed this time at home with Aly, and having the time to rest, organize, and start new. I can not believe it's been five weeks since I had Aubree. Crazy!
Today I took Aly to MIL's house so I could clean and do some things on my own. Because grocery shopping and trying to clean the house with a 2-yr old takes 10 times longer than just doing it myself! I went through our freezers to get an idea of what we have. It turns out that we have enough meat to last probably 3 months, veggies for a month, and who knows how many bags of cheese. We also have freezer meals from friends & family still. They really stocked us up! I've also been stretching their pre-made meals with some items that I make the day-of (like a pre-made entree with veggies that I make up, or pre-made sides with fresh grilled fish). Freezer food does not taste like "freezer food" as much this way. I should be able to get us through the end of October with only a few quick trips for milk and fresh produce. DD could eat her weight in bananas!!
My goal this week is to plan for the next several weeks once I go back to work. I want to get all the laundry done and DD's fall clothes set out. Go through my wardrobe and make sure I have enough nice pieces for work that fit well. Plan out meals for weekdays. Declutter and put away things we are not using frequently, so that the house stays cleaner and the things we do use are accessible.
I think the home we had lined up for our dog fell through, so she's still with us for now. Aly has started to take an interest in her (instead of screaming in terror every time she sees the dog), so we are working on getting them both used to each other. The dog has also started to calm down a bit around Aly. Maybe this will be a good thing and we can keep Lucy. Otherwise we will keep trying to find her a good home with older kids or no kids. You never really know until you have little ones how the animals are going to react to them, and vice versa. So far, though, we've managed to keep them separated without any issue. Now that winter is approaching and it will be getting colder, and Aly now has free reign of the house, we will have to figure out something.
Today I took Aly to MIL's house so I could clean and do some things on my own. Because grocery shopping and trying to clean the house with a 2-yr old takes 10 times longer than just doing it myself! I went through our freezers to get an idea of what we have. It turns out that we have enough meat to last probably 3 months, veggies for a month, and who knows how many bags of cheese. We also have freezer meals from friends & family still. They really stocked us up! I've also been stretching their pre-made meals with some items that I make the day-of (like a pre-made entree with veggies that I make up, or pre-made sides with fresh grilled fish). Freezer food does not taste like "freezer food" as much this way. I should be able to get us through the end of October with only a few quick trips for milk and fresh produce. DD could eat her weight in bananas!!
My goal this week is to plan for the next several weeks once I go back to work. I want to get all the laundry done and DD's fall clothes set out. Go through my wardrobe and make sure I have enough nice pieces for work that fit well. Plan out meals for weekdays. Declutter and put away things we are not using frequently, so that the house stays cleaner and the things we do use are accessible.
I think the home we had lined up for our dog fell through, so she's still with us for now. Aly has started to take an interest in her (instead of screaming in terror every time she sees the dog), so we are working on getting them both used to each other. The dog has also started to calm down a bit around Aly. Maybe this will be a good thing and we can keep Lucy. Otherwise we will keep trying to find her a good home with older kids or no kids. You never really know until you have little ones how the animals are going to react to them, and vice versa. So far, though, we've managed to keep them separated without any issue. Now that winter is approaching and it will be getting colder, and Aly now has free reign of the house, we will have to figure out something.
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
September Goal Progress
Well, the first payday of the month has rolled around. And we are doing really well! We officially got under $50,000 on our total debt, and we possibly could be under $49,000 depending on how the rest of the month goes. The credit cards are at $16,250 and could be under $16,000 by the end of this month. In fact, this one of those months where we see a couple of nice left-digit shifts. And our car loan could be under $10,000 by the end of the year, which would leave us with no individual debts (other than the house) higher than $9,999. For some reason that seems like a HUGE milestone!
I was doing awesome with the weight loss after delivery, but I've gained back quite a bit in the last two weeks and am back up to 132 - 10lbs away from my goal weight. DH and I have been drinking a lot after DD goes to bed (not getting wasted every night, but a big glass of wine every night adds up!). We've also been using gift cards we were given for different restaurants around town. I only have a week & a half left before I go back to work, so I need to cut it out so I can fit back into my normal work clothes!! DH read about green smoothies and decided to do those as breakfast and lunch for the next two weeks. I figured I would join in. It's not a bad idea to get in a ton of veggies and water every day. I am adding in yogurt & flax meal for added protein. So far, two days in, it's been pretty easy. The protein and fiber is keeping me really full. The scale hasn't budged, but I think it will take a few days for that to happen as I get the crap out of my system.
It's been four weeks since Aubree's birth. I feel almost back to normal...or maybe I've found my new normal. Tonight was the first time I got sad seeing a new baby. We were out at a restaurant and the table next to us had a tiny little baby - less than 6lbs for sure. As tiny as Aly was when she was born. I wanted so badly to ask if I could just hold the baby, but thankfully managed to keep that in-check and left them all alone ;) I am sure they would have thought I was nuts!
Aly has been doing so well since I've been staying at home with her. Our family life is running so much more smoothly. I have time to cook & clean and play with Aly. By the time DH gets home I am ready to talk to someone else instead of being so worn out from talking that I just want to be by myself. We looked at the numbers, and we could technically make it work for me to stay home right now. But we would be giving up on several goals that we have. It is nice to be on the same page with our priorities, and to know that while we could technically make it work now, the end result will be that much better if we can just wait a bit longer.
I was doing awesome with the weight loss after delivery, but I've gained back quite a bit in the last two weeks and am back up to 132 - 10lbs away from my goal weight. DH and I have been drinking a lot after DD goes to bed (not getting wasted every night, but a big glass of wine every night adds up!). We've also been using gift cards we were given for different restaurants around town. I only have a week & a half left before I go back to work, so I need to cut it out so I can fit back into my normal work clothes!! DH read about green smoothies and decided to do those as breakfast and lunch for the next two weeks. I figured I would join in. It's not a bad idea to get in a ton of veggies and water every day. I am adding in yogurt & flax meal for added protein. So far, two days in, it's been pretty easy. The protein and fiber is keeping me really full. The scale hasn't budged, but I think it will take a few days for that to happen as I get the crap out of my system.
It's been four weeks since Aubree's birth. I feel almost back to normal...or maybe I've found my new normal. Tonight was the first time I got sad seeing a new baby. We were out at a restaurant and the table next to us had a tiny little baby - less than 6lbs for sure. As tiny as Aly was when she was born. I wanted so badly to ask if I could just hold the baby, but thankfully managed to keep that in-check and left them all alone ;) I am sure they would have thought I was nuts!
Aly has been doing so well since I've been staying at home with her. Our family life is running so much more smoothly. I have time to cook & clean and play with Aly. By the time DH gets home I am ready to talk to someone else instead of being so worn out from talking that I just want to be by myself. We looked at the numbers, and we could technically make it work for me to stay home right now. But we would be giving up on several goals that we have. It is nice to be on the same page with our priorities, and to know that while we could technically make it work now, the end result will be that much better if we can just wait a bit longer.
Monday, August 26, 2013
2013 Goals Update
When I wrote these goals for the year back in December, I had no ideal what we were in for. Our two big goals were:
As for the second goal, we are actually doing pretty well. Not quite on-track, but considering the circumstances I am happy with our progress. Here are the numbers:
We are 2/3rds of the way through the year, and so far we have paid off more than we did last year. I think that is pretty successful! We've also averaged $1,500/month payoffs on our total debt. Not quite the $2050 that we had aimed for in the beginning, but that's ok. Still 50% more than our monthly payoffs last year, and that's with a $450/month pay cut for me. So I guess if you look at what we've paid each month + the paycut, that comes out close to our original goal. So I like to think that we are still on-track :)
We technically met #1. Maybe I should have clarified that a bit more, since I really wanted to keep her and not just have her. I've listened, Universe, and will be MUCH more specific next time I put something out there.1. Have another kid2. Pay off remaining credit card debt. $24,500
As for the second goal, we are actually doing pretty well. Not quite on-track, but considering the circumstances I am happy with our progress. Here are the numbers:
Credit Cards:
1/1/2013 Start: $24,500
8/31/2013 Current: $16,522.93
Total paid = $7,977.07
Total Debt:
1/1/2013 Start: $62,300.13
8/31/2013 Current: $50,262.05
Total paid = $12,038.08
We are 2/3rds of the way through the year, and so far we have paid off more than we did last year. I think that is pretty successful! We've also averaged $1,500/month payoffs on our total debt. Not quite the $2050 that we had aimed for in the beginning, but that's ok. Still 50% more than our monthly payoffs last year, and that's with a $450/month pay cut for me. So I guess if you look at what we've paid each month + the paycut, that comes out close to our original goal. So I like to think that we are still on-track :)
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