Frugal Friday

 This is a recap from a pre-Greece week + the past week. 

Saving on things we buy

• Uploaded two Costco receipts to Fetch & iBotta, as the latter had a $.05 on any grocery receipt cash back. 

Earning money

• I'd fully maxed out my 401k by my last paycheck, so it was bigger than normal, which was a nice treat. 
• Both boys are continuing to work a lot, trying to earn some cash ahead of school going back. 
• Received $250 deposit back from Nick's dorm room, which is a testament to how much time & effort I spent helping him + his roommate clean & pack back in May. 
• Also received my annual bonus + a retroactive raise from April. 

Avoiding spending

• Oh my, we spent plenty, that's for sure. Greece was not a cheap trip (see trip recap for details!)

Eating what we have

• A few weeks ago I'd been home for just a day (LA work trip) & hadn't reconciled myself to grocery shopping yet, so we had a (mostly) freezer dinner. All of our dinners are served with salad, but the shrimp & fried rice were both from Trader Joes & stashed in the freezer.
• Used up a small ziplock of strawberries, and the very end of frozen berries to make a smoothie for Nick. I added an incredibly ripe banana, some yogurt, protein powder & a splash of oat milk. He's been working outside in the 90 degree weather, mountain biking, so he appreciated the cool treat when he got home.
• I also made Nick a quick dinner of grilled cheese sandwiches, made on leftover hamburger buns & sliced cheese I found lingering in the fridge. He was between a gym workout & a pickleball match, so he appreciated the quick & scrappy meal. 
• Made the boys various breakfast items before work. 
• Nick's friend is staying with us for a few days, and oh my goodness that guy can eat. He's 6'4" and a college athlete, and eats more than double my guys combined. I've spent a lot of time in the kitchen, making sure there are easy meals prepped for them, as they are out & about. We have no leftovers in the fridge this week, that is for sure! :-) 
• Nick & friend weren't supposed to be home for dinner, but came back early from the beach, so I whipped up a large spaghetti & meatball dinner, using fridge & freezer staples. Added in a loaf of bread, and they were good to go.
• I also prepped a large lunch for everyone (6 chicken patty sandwiches on ciabatta buns - both from the freezer), chips leftover from a previous teen party, a big bowl of fruit + veggies. All was eaten minus one chicken patty sandwich, which served as Nick's lunch the following day for his job. 
• I went to make lunch on Wednesday, and noticed it was slim pickings for protein to go on my salad (see above with all of my hungry diners), so I opted for the freezer/pantry salad. Salad base + olives & garbanzo beans (pantry) + edamame (freezer). Delicious & easy. Edamame & garbanzo beans both have a good amount of protein. 

For others

• Provided some career guidance to an acquaintance who was laid off, referred them to roles, and made some introductions that I hope will be helpful. 

What about you? Any wins to share? 

Greece, a very non-frugal trip

I'm trying to create more trip recap reports, and it's important to me to show the splurge ones as much as the frugal ones. The frugal trips enable me to spend more flexibly on the splurge trips. We went to Santorini, Naxos & Paros.

Some things to note:

• The trip was a shared 50th birthday celebration for myself + my BFF, with my sister
• I paid for my sister's travel expenses, so my cost is for two people
• We originally had a fantastic deal on flights, using British Airways miles, but they changed the flights & they no longer worked for our group, which was frustrating. We then had to buy revised flights & they cost quite a bit more than they did when we originally priced them. The original flight cost was around $1800 total, so seeing the end number really hurt. 
• This trip had A LOT of logistics. M & I have agreed that Greece, while incredible, is challenging to get to from our location & we don't love a trip where we have to move around a lot. Hence how this made it to the girls trip list. 
• My BFF had a very limited set of dates available, so we had minimal flex on timing to save on cost. She's a school principal & can't adjust vacation days. We ended up needing to adjust our flights & shave a day off the last stop (Paros), as my sister found out that her SIL was getting married the day after we returned. 
• If you've ever traveled with 3-4 people in Europe (and, many places in Asia), you know that finding a room that can comfortably fit that many people is a challenge. There is either an option for a suite, or two rooms, and this is expensive regardless. 
• We were shocked by how expensive transit was, and should have done more research. We booked a hotel on the quieter part of Santorini, and they offered a shuttle service, but it didn't run during the majority of the day. Uber was more expensive than the hotel transit (they arrange for a driver to come & get you). We would still not decide to rental a car, as none of us would have been remotely comfortable driving, but the transit was the biggest area I hadn't budgeted enough for. 

Hotels - $1094.73 (remaining costs covered through Chase rewards)

• We split this up by having me book & pay for two of the hotels (Santorini & Paros), & my BFF paid for the other hotel. 
• $637.09 - food & transit booked with Santorini hotel. I didn't bring home a receipt to break out the transactions that were a few meals eaten at the hotel vs lots of transit around the island.
• $457.64 - food & transit booked with Paros hotel. Same as above, I didn't bring home a receipt to break out the transactions that were a few meals eaten at the hotel vs lots of transit around the island.

Transit - $270.96

• We had two ferry rides, to get between the islands. For two, the ferry costs were $260.72
• We also rode the ferry from Paros to Antiparos, which was a whopping $10.24 (three round trip tickets)
• See above, as the majority of this is captured under Lodging

Food - $190.75

• While we mostly ate at lounges for our airport transit days, I bought drinks for the flight from Munich to SFO (from a vending machines) to carry on the flight ($6.27) & coffee for all of us at the Frankfurt airport, ahead of our flight to Athens ($23.78)
• Dinner in Naxos- $134.44
• Gelato in Paros, x2 - $14.3+11.96
• The majority of the rest of my food was covered by my sister when we ate out, and we had few meals at the hotels (covered under Lodging, as I didn't get the receipt to split out transit costs & food). 

Activities - $243.60

• We booked a cooking class - cost for two was $243.60 
• We also did a distillery/winery tour at a Citron family owned business, which was super interesting. My sister paid for my ticket. 

Flights - $10,613.44

• I flew my sister to/from Portland, so we could be on the same flights from SFO & reduce logistics. I normally do a really good job optimizing, but we had fixed timing & airport/airline requirements that complicated things. This flight was insanely priced at $665.23. 
• We also paid for flights to/from Athens to islands, & my cost was for two of those tickets. - $623.55
• Moving on to the big ticket items - two round trip flights from SFO to Athens. The flight class varied a bit - we were in Premium Plus from SFO to Frankfurt, regular economy (I think?) from Frankfurt to Athens, business from Athens to Munich and business from Munich to SFO.  - $9324.66

Travel insurance - $96

• At my previous employer, health insurance was international, which means I didn't need to buy a policy when I traveled. My current company policy only provides coverage for international work travel. I did not need travel coverage for delayed flights & the like, as that's covered by my travel credit card. I used Allianz insurance - $96

Other - $630.97

• Gifts from M + the boys, two pair of hand made sandals, some stunning pottery from a local vendor in Paros & a necklace for my mom 

Total spent = $12,917.65 for two people (or $6,458 & change per person). All in all, no regrets on the spending except for the flights, which as noted above, was originally supposed to be largely covered by British Airways miles. Hopefully we will get a chance to use them soon. 

Naxos to Paros and home again

I  left off with our last day in Naxos, so I'll pick up with our ferry adventure from Naxos to Paros.

Wednesday 6/24 - Naxos -> Paros

• Grabbed breakfast & coffee near the hotel
• Made our way to the ferry port in Naxos Town
• Because we knew what to expect, this ferry adventure was a bit easier. Both ferries we took were delayed, but I got the sense that's kind of the norm. We met a couple in line behind us from Oregon, and gave them a lot of tips on how to navigate the ferry process. The ferry we boarded was quite large (1,300 people), but the number of folks boarding in Naxos was much smaller than Santorini. There was still a ton of chaos with the boarding process, and baggage, so that was an adventure. We had great seats, however, that put us right near the exit ramp & made grabbing our bags during the chaos much easier. Oh, and no one checks your ferry tickets until the boat is well underway. On our ferry from Santorini to Naxos, we stopped at Ios, well known for a younger party crowd, & picked up a few hundred folks. Maybe 15 minutes after we were underway, they were going around scanning tickets, and a large group of folks from the island were on the wrong ferry. No idea what happened from there, as they gathered them all together & went to find a supervisor. This is one of the challenges when you have a chaotic boarding process, and don't scan tickets upon entry. Just no way to know. ;-) 
• We got picked up at the Paros terminal by our hotel & made our way to our final destination. And, it was so incredible. We were originally supposed to have one more night at this hotel, but needed to shave one night off so my sister could attend a wedding for her partner's sister back in Portland. I'm so bummed it was a night in Paros that got removed, because this was my favorite island by far & we had an amazing time, but didn't get to see everything. 
• Our room wasn't quite ready when we arrived, so we sat by the pool & enjoyed our welcome cocktail, and shared a lunch. The weather on Paros & Naxos was much warmer than Santorini (just down to a weird mix of weather patterns, I don't think that's typical), so we were able to get in the pool & enjoy that as well. 

• Checked in, enjoyed a snack from the hotel & got ready for dinner.
• We went to Naoussa, which is a town that is exactly how I envisioned Greece would be. Gorgeous cobblestone streets, cats everywhere, and amazing views everywhere you look. We had our best meal of the trip that night at Mare Nostrum, where we had a sesame/honey/feta dish that I will attempt to find again, a shrimp pasta dish & of course, Greek salad. We took lots of photos & did a bit of shopping, wrapping up the evening with gelato before we got the shuttle back to the hotel.

Thursday 6/25 - Paros

• Got up & had breakfast & coffee at the hotel. Breakfast was good, but couldn't beat the breakfast options at the Santorini hotel. Quite a step up from the Naxos hotel, however.
• Took the ferry to the very nearby island of Antiparos. This ferry ride was one of my favorite parts. It costs about 1.50 Euros each person, per trip & you just walk on. It's a gorgeous 10 minute ferry ride to Antiparos, which was my favorite part of the trip. (Views from the ferry, below).
• Antiparos was gorgeous, tiny, and we spent some time talking to a local pottery shop owner. He & his wife have been making pottery for 40 years and have incredible pieces. I'm not one for a lot of souvenirs, but these were so lovely and worth bringing home, so we could remember a bit of Greece. We had lunch at a lovely restaurant & finished off the trip with a gelato, running to catch a ferry that was about to take off.
• We came back & hung out by the pool, where I finished the last of my books (that includes all of my Kindle library books, 2 paper books I picked up from the hotel's "free" counter, and a book from my friend). I ended up buying a very expensive book at the Munich airport, to see me through the rest of my trip. My Kindle is extremely finicky to connect with wifi outside of my house, so getting new library books wasn't an option. I tried, and failed, repeatedly. Met a really nice woman at the pool & gave her some tips on Santorini, where she was headed next.
• Had dinner in Parikia, and celebrated our last night on the island. 
• Packed up & had an early night, as we had to be up at 5 for our flight. 

Friday 6/26 - Paros -> SFO

• Got up at 5 to finish packing & get ready for our 5:45 car service to the airport. Checked out of the hotel.
• Got to the very small & jam packed airport (one gate, one terminal) for our 7:00 am flight, which was delayed. Flight itself was uneventful & short.
• Got to Athens, picked up our bags & dropped them off at the respective luggage counters. We then had to say goodbye to my friend, as her flight left from a different terminal, and coming with us would require her to deal with security/etc twice.
• Hung out at the lounge in Athens, as we budgeted quite a bit of time for security and the like. Flight from Athens to Munich was around 3 hours, and went smoothly. We were fed a nice lunch.
• Got to Munich, bought a book, cleared a very long immigration line. We were eventually pulled out to use the automatic machines, which got things moving quickly. Went through another security check at our gate.
• Flight from Munich to SFO was 11 hours, and we were in Lufthansa business class, which was really nice. I'd heard it wasn't comparable to United or British Airways, so I had low expectations, but it was actually really great. Service, food, space, etc. My sister had never flown business, and was completely thrilled with the space. Dozed, read my book, watched two movies, ate some dinner.
• Landed on time at 7 pm in SFO, breezed through immigration with Global Entry, but then waited an hour for my bag. Sad goodbye to my sister, as she was carrying on to Portland. M picked me up, I came home & immediately fell asleep!

Friday was a super long travel day, but the trip was so much fun. Lots of adventure, lots of memory making, lots of chats you don't get if you don't see your friends often. Gorgeous scenery, incredible meals, and met some really lovely people. Travel logistics aside, you can't ask for much more than that!

Santorini to Naxos trip details

When I left off, we had just finished our last full day in Santorini. Caveat, entire trip was filled with laughs, experiences & memory making, so absolutely worth doing, but I'll share the highlights & the lowlights. 

Sunday 6/21 - Santorini to Naxos

• Got up in the morning & had breakfast at the hotel & packed up
• Headed to the port for the ferry, which was ... an adventure I won't soon forget
• The thing about the ferry is it's so much chaos without any organization, and 1200 people attempting to board a ferry while workers are shouting in Greek. That would maybe be okay if everyone was going to the same island, but the ferries from Santorini go to numerous islands, and you need to leave your luggage in the designated area for your destination, Cue an absolute insane amount of chaos, dragging your bags up an enormous ferry ramp, trying to sort luggage, sirens going off, whistles being blown & just... a lot. ;-) I would not repeat the ferry experience unless absolutely mandatory. (This is specific to Santorini. We also took the ferry from Naxos to Paros, and combined with the fact that we knew what to expect and the much fewer number of people boarding, it was easier to navigate, although still...chaotic, shall we say.) 
• We got picked up in Naxos Town by the hotel transport, and made our way to the hotel. The hotels in Santorini & on Paros were really fabulous, but this one was ... more of a let down. The room was tiny, despite being a "suite". We had the sofa made into a bed, which meant there was no room to sit, no place for three bags, etc. The other disappointment was the hotel pool area. In the photos online, they showed a pretty spacious pool area, as well as what they described as a pool terrace. There were a total of six chairs for the entire hotel, and they were all in full sun for the day, and I'm not sure what happened with the pool terrace, but no such thing. We heard later that the pool photos were taken with a drone & then selectively edited... I also wouldn't stay in the location we were in, and would stay in Naxos Town if I ever came back. We were in Prokopios, which had a lot of touristy type restaurants, and it was harder to find places to eat, etc. 
• We had an okay dinner on our first night, as the place we wanted to go to was sold out, and we wandered around looking for other options. That said, the view was gorgeous on the beach. Just a stunning location. 

Monday 6/22 - Naxos

• Tried the hotel breakfast, which was not an experience we would repeat. 
• Rented lounge chairs at the beach, read two books & ordered cocktails & fries. Lunch of champions. ;-) Absolutely gorgeous views & some fun people watching. We hit maximum relaxation by this point. 

• Went to dinner in Naxos Town & did some shopping, & had a lovely dinner at Avaton 1739, which is located on the Old Monastery and School of the Ursulines (a historic complex built directly into the stone fortification walls of the medieval Venetian Castle, according to Google). The view was again super fabulous. 

Tuesday 6/23 - Naxos

• Went out to breakfast/coffee & skipped the hotel breakfast ;-)
• Had no plans, as we were supposed to be on a kayak tour, but wind meant that wasn't an option for us. We weren't quite sure what to do, so after checking with the hotel staff, we ended up on a distillery tour. I'll admit that I had zero expectations for this, but it turned out to be so much fun. The distillery makes Citron, and that type of alcohol is only made in Naxos, by two family owned distilleries. The host made the experience - she was so much fun, we drank wine, lots of Citron, ouzo, and limoncello. 
• Went to a great dinner in Naxos Town at Scirocco, and enjoyed shrimp orzo & then went shopping a bit down town. I do really like that the shopping area is open so late. 

I'll be back with the details of our trip from Naxos -> Paros, and our time in Paros + travel home. Naxos is described as a favorite island by many, so if I go back & try it again, I would make a bunch of adjustments to where we stayed & our planned activities, as I don't think we did it justice & would like to go back & experience it again. 

Not the usual Fitness Monday post

Because, other than my workout class yesterday, fitness has been pretty limited to walking during my vacation. On Saturday, I mostly just slept & lounged around on the couch, trying to convince myself to be productive. ;-) 

I'll try & do a trip recap instead (and, I've got a trip cost post coming, with more details on that). 

My sister + BFF flew in on Monday, so we could all depart SFO together on Tuesday. 

Tuesday 6/16- travel day

• We worked during the day on Tuesday morning, went for a quick walk at lunch, and then cleaned up & headed to the airport. 
• I redeemed my two free United lounge passes for myself + my sister at the SFO United lounge. I've been to the domestic terminal lounges (nice), as well as the Polaris international lounge (amazing), but never to the international lounge/non-Polaris. It was pretty disappointing, and I wish I hadn't redeemed my pass vouchers, but c'est la vie. We had a glass of champagne & chatted while we waited for our flight.
• Our flights left SFO around 7 pm. We were all together in Premium Plus. I managed to sleep for 4ish hours, which isn't too bad for me. 

Wednesday 6/17 - travel day

• Time zones make this challenging to recap, but after an 11 hour flight to Frankfurt, we got off the flight, cleared customs (the line was crazy, and a bunch of people missed connections). 
• I grabbed coffee for everyone, while we took turns using the bathroom & stretching our legs a bit.
• We had about 20 minutes before boarding, so even planning on a 2 hour gap between flights was pretty tight. 
• We boarded our next flight, from Frankfurt to Athens, which was just under 3 hours. We ordered a glass of wine & a snack & all then took a short nap. 
• We arrived in Athens & that was... an experience. We were flying a small airline (Aegean Air) from Athens to Santorini. The airport was very quiet in the terminal we were in, the gate moved twice, we couldn't figure out how to get our bags checked (even a standard carry-on doesn't fit & needed to be checked). We hung out at the lounge and ate a bit.
• We had to take busses to the plane, and that was an experience, as the bus is absolutely jammed full of people & then there was a near collision on the runway between our bus & another bus. A few people fell over, because the bus braked so hard and turned, but we all survived that.
• Flight to Santorini was uneventful. We landed, claimed our bags (took only 5 minutes or so) & exited the airport & met our hotel driver. 
• Drive to the hotel was quick & easy & we got checked in & made our way to the room, around 1:30 am local time. The hotel had champagne & snacks in the room for us. Sat out & chatted & went to sleep around 2:30 am. Hotel was absolutely gorgeous, and on the quiet side of Santorini, which we enjoyed. 

Thursday 6/18 - Santorini

• Got up late, had breakfast, unpacked. 
• Went to a winery & had a tasting & enjoyed a relaxing afternoon

• Had a fabulous dinner (birthday celebration, planned by my sister) at The Athenian House in Imerovigli, which was absolutely stunning at sunset. We were surprised by how chilly & windy it was, which was the case for our entire Santorini trip. Ate delicious Greek food & shared a bottle of wine. (View from dinner)

Friday 6/19 - Santorini

• Took advantage of the free hotel breakfast (delicious)
• Headed to Megalochori for a cooking class, which we loved. The chef was so much fun, and it was just the three of us + a lovely couple from Australia. We made a traditional bean dish, Greek salad (of course), tomato fritters & tzatziki sauce. We enjoyed wine during the food preparation, and lots of laughs with our cooking mishaps. 
• After the class, we wandered around Megalochori & enjoyed the really cute town & got some pictures. 

• Headed back to the hotel & laid by the pool for a bit, and read
• Ordered room service & ate on our patio, which was perfect. We had chicken gyros & wine. Of course. ;-) 

Saturday, 6/20 - Santorini

• Hotel breakfast
• We hiked the caldera from Fira to Oia, and the views were stunning. We went pretty early in the day, before it got too warm. 
• While the hike was amazing, Oia was jammed with tourists from the big cruise ships in town. Locals told us that three ships were in port, which explains the crowds. 
• We then had dinner in Fira, which was again super crowded & food was okay, but definitely felt like more of a tourist location/restaurant. Sunset at the restaurant, however, was gorgeous, with caldera views.

I'll be back with additional details on our next two stops (Naxo & Paros). My verdict of Santorini? Absolutely gorgeous, but a one & done for me, due to the crowds & overall more of a touristy vibe. That said, worth visiting once if you want the more traditional white building/blue dome architecture & Instagram style views. 

Menu Plan Sunday

 I'm going to keep things really easy this week, but make sure everyone gets fed.

• Friday - ate some pasta on the flight home from Munich
• Saturday - rotisserie chicken + grain salad from Costco (prepared section, delicious)
• Sunday - grilled burgers
• Monday - one pan chicken & rice dish (chicken from rotisserie purchase above) 
• Tuesday - leftover grain salad & chciken
• Wednesday - leftover burgers
• Thursday -  leftover one pan chicken & rice dish
• Friday - something in Lake Tahoe, I think we'll be eating out

What about you? What's on your menu this week? 

Back from Greece

 Trip was amazing, but travel logistics were exhausting! We had three flights yesterday (four for my sister) & it was a 24 hour travel day for two of us, and closer to 30 hours for my sister, as her final leg was delayed. Poor thing.

I will definitely prioritize places that are closer next time, but absolutely loved, loved Paros & would take M there if it gets any easier to get there. I've heard they are expanding their airport a bit.

Minimal Menu Plan Sunday

 Phew, the crazy week is wrapping up & I leave for vacation on Tuesday! It has been absolutely wild around here, but things are very slowly settling down. It was not my best cooking week, for reasons like being out of town, but we made things work. 

• Friday - I made the Argentinan shrimp (Trader Joes), which I would definitely recommend as a staple, as they are excellent & defrost really quickly. Had this with (TJs) veggie fried rice.
• Saturday- M grilled burgers for some friends Nick had over, and we had burgers, fries, potato salad, and a watermelon that was yellow? 
• Sunday - I'm making a chicken/rice one pan dish tonight. 
• Monday - birthday dinner out, with guests!
• Tuesday - eating at the airport lounge, most likely
• Wednesday - Friday - Greece!

What about you? What's on your menu this week? Hopefully you will have more inspiration than I do this week. 

Frugal Friday

It was a pretty quiet week, because I was traveling for work Sunday-Thursday. The only "frugality" is that work is paying for my expenses while I was there. I'd definitely prefer to be home!

Saving on things we buy

• Uploaded a grocery receipt to Fetch & took advantage of a whopping $.05 iBotta offer. 

Earning money

• Received a small annual raise, which is back dated to April & found out about my annual bonus. 

Avoiding spending

• Ate lunch on Sunday at the lounge. It was nothing to write home about, but I ate the filling out of the two tiny tacos & then a small side salad with a dash of chips on top. Luckily, I had a bunch of fruit in the morning. 

Eating what we have

• Not me, but M has been packing lunches for Nick & they ate a staggering amount of leftovers while I was gone.
• Got home yesterday & baked up two frozen pizzas for dinner  + leftovers for Nick's lunch

For others

• Sent a bunch of thank you notes to awesome folks I work with, including their managers. Just in time for the annual review season. 

That's it from my side. It hasn't been the most frugal week for sure. What about you? Any wins to share? 

Fitness Monday

It was not a good step week, as you can see from the results. A combination of opting for a strength class on a day when I could actually go to class (the only one that worked for my schedule), an in office day, a doctor's appointment & a hair cut (my first one in 10 months! It was more than overdue). That said, I did manage three strength workouts this week, which is my goal & a nice improvement. 

Weight: 149.5 - very pleased to see that I'm in the 140s again, as that's a nice mental milestone for me. Down 1.1 lbs from last week. I've been trying to add in more strength training, to ensure that I'm not losing muscle, which is a concern when you are steadily losing pounds. 

Calories: 1,359 calories/day

Steps: 9,879/ day average

Workouts:

• 2 45 minute elliptical workouts
• A full strength training class
• 2 classes that are 1/2 strength training & 1/2 cardio

Goals for the week:

• Stay on track with my fitness & calories, despite being at a work event

What about you? How did you do with your health & fitness goals this week?

No menu plan Sunday

Because I leave for a work trip today. However, M grilled a huge batch of chicken & made rice last night, so he & the boys have plenty to eat. Everyone likes easy protein options. Nick starts the camp counselor portion of his job tomorrow, so he will be out on long bike rides, hikes & climbing trips. 

I managed to squeeze in a morning workout class, and now I'm about to do the final phase of packing (the last minute stuff you can't do until right before you leave) & then head to the airport. 

I have an evening event tonight, partner meetings all day tomorrow, presenting on Tuesday & Wednesday, & I'm spending all day Thursday doing team stuff with my boss. I'm also supposed to somehow find time to deliver all of my performance reviews to my team members, and work on a business case for a project. I fly home late on Thursday. Doesn't that sound like a fun time? ;-) 

I will be so incredibly grateful when this week is done. It also leaves me Friday, Monday & 1/2 of Tuesday to wrap up work before I head out on vacation. M's birthday is next week, we are hosting family for dinner on Saturday, I need to pack for Greece & get a pedicure, and my friends are flying in on Monday. It's going to be busy, busy, busy!

Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday!

It's not always about frugality, and Saturday happenings

I tend to focus more on frugal wins on the blog, for obvious reasons, but not all of the choices we make have frugality top of mind. 

I have an absolutely crazy few weeks, with a work trip to LA, a birthday dinner for M that we are hosting, out of town guests, more work, the last week of my Stanford class & my capstone project, finishing all of my performance reviews, & then a trip to Greece. As such, getting the house properly cleaned to host & entertain is lower on my priority list, so I am having our house deep cleaned next Monday when I'm back from LA. What a relief to give that task to someone else, so I can focus on all of the other many things grabbing my attention. I did promise myself that I could pay to have the house cleaned regularly when I went back to work. I did that for several months, and then when I decided I was only staying for a year, I opted to cancel the service & just clean on my own. 

Anyway, that's my very non-frugal splurge for the month, and I'm looking forward to it.

Other happenings today:

• I'm going to a combo strength/cardio class this morning, which will be nice to put me closer towards my goal of 3x/week for strength training
• Finish packing for work trip
• Get all of the Father's Day cards for my dad (myself & the boys) finished & mailed
• Get M's cards all prepped (Father's Day & birthday)
• Start organizing Greece items & determine if I need to buy any travel toiletries
• Make a Costco list (for everyone else) for the week
• I may also try to get in a walk, as I'm way behind on my step goals for the week
• Clean the fridge
• Laundry

What about you all? What's your most recent splurge, and what's on the agenda for today?

Frugal Friday

 Another busy week, which included M's mini birthday getaway, an office day & a ton of prep for a big work event next week. I'll be happy when next week is done. 

Saving on things we buy

• We had a fantastic time at M's mini birthday getaway, and saved a lot by using Hyatt points, and combining with my hotel status (earned through credit card spend), which was really lovely. 
• Used my monthly CVS reward + a $3 off a $10 purchase + a Hallmark coupon to save a bit on a purchase of: cards, travel sunblock, & a toothbrush. 

Earning money

• Sold a set of workout shirts that are too big for M, and made $15.
• Nick collected the money from the soccer tournament he worked at ($160 for all day, so not bad at all) & started training for his summer job. Sam continues to work quite a few hours at his restaurant job & was approached while at work for someone looking for daytime help at a bakery. They said his customer service skills were great, so he's looking into whether he can make that work. 
• I sold a new in package electronic item on eBay (from the woman I know who is cleaning her parents house & just wants everything gone). Made $12 and kept it out of the landfill. 

Avoiding spending

• Last year I successfully took advantage of a 100% cash back offer of a meditation app, through my credit card. I did the same this year, but was never credited the cash. I called once a few days after it was expected to clear, told to be patient. Called 8 weeks later, they were investigating. Called today & got it resolved. They ended up refunding me, but I didn't get the app, as the offer terms didn't work in my particular case. I'm sad not to have the app, but meditate rarely, so not worth $80 out of pocket. 
• Charged my car for free at work, and skipped buying breakfast & lunch by taking advantage of the snack/free options they provide. Breakfast was a yogurt with a sprinkle of granola & a banana. Lunch with string cheese, nuts & apple & a few chocolate covered almonds. 

Eating what we have

• We hosted a big pool party on Sunday for Nick's friends, so we had a lot of leftovers & have been eating through all of that. 
• A neighbor asked if we could use bananas and peaches, as they were going out of town. The peaches were fabulous! 
• Nick has been packing lunches for his summer camp job. He has really changed his eating to be healthy (awesome), and is packing lots of fruit, veggies & protein. 
• I made an easy dinner from Trader Joes ingredients (we've been watching some YouTube videos on this topic that are quite fun). It was a spicy rice bowl using: veggie fried rice, pineapple meatballs, soyaki sauce & a cabbage slaw. It was delicious & of course super easy to pull together, which this week required. I don't know that I would call it super frugal, but it was definitely cheaper than takeout, and provided 3 lunches from leftovers. 

For others:

• Did a couple of mock interviews for college students looking for internships or full time jobs. Getting practice at this is hard, and interviewing is a real skill. I've done hundreds of interviews in my time, so happy to share my knowledge. 

That's it for me. Any wins to share on your side? 

May Goals Recap

 May was a bit of a lull before the chaos of June & July, which was nice. Here's how things went with my goals.

Financial:

• Stay on top of food waste by using up 3 pantry or freezer items. This month, all from the freezer:
• Chicken noodle soup 
• Hamburger buns
• Last of a bag of chicken patties
• Cauliflower rice/rotisserie chicken leftover dish
• Last of a bag of pizza rolls
• Continue to track net new savings for 2026 - yes, and I've now maxed my 401k for the year, so my last few checks should be bigger than before
• Make $100 in side hustle - $243 in May
• Find one expense to optimize - nothing this month
• Finalize work exit plan - yes, and locked in on an exit date

Family:

• Continue to help the boys navigate college & life - helped Nick prep for, interview & successfully get a summer job. Also helped him move out. Sam is continuing with working towards a conservation program, as well as working. 
• Monthly date with M - a dinner out, several hikes & an overnight early birthday celebration
• Visit another national park - we pivoted to a local state park in Carmel
• Continue working on "next big trip" plans with M - we have just started to sketch out details for Iceland!

Fitness:

• Lose 3 lbs - lost 3.7 lbs
• 10 days of meditation, strength & No S - crushed the No S, only 6 strength workouts & no meditations
• Build out a workout template - will get to this when I'm done working
• Track nutrition - yes
• Average 12,000 steps/day - 11,831 - so close!

Personal:

• Declutter 50 items from the house - 12/50
• Get together with friends - a couple of hikes this month
• Try something new - I'm taking an AI for leaders class + went to a spin class at our overnight getaway
• Say yes to adventures - working on 2027 plans & lots of adventures
• Get to know our neighbors - we've been trying to plan something, but dates haven't lined up yet
• Try a new recipe - yes, I tried a new recipe with a variety of Trader Joes items, which turned out really well & will be a nice staple. While not super cheap, it's much less expensive than takeout. 

What about you? How did you do with your goals this month?

One night getaway to Carmel for M's birthday - budget round up

 I like to track our expenses for various trips, be they the expensive (and longer kind), or the quick & less expensive. The Greece summary will be quite the splurge, but as with everything, tracking helps you know what you spent & ensure your spending matches your priorities. 

M's birthday is coming up, but is sandwiched between a work trip (me) & my friends trip to Greece. I still wanted to celebrate him, but he wanted to keep it local. We decided on a very fancy hotel about 90 minutes away in Carmel. 

Hotel cost:

• Free, with Hyatt points earned through our Hyatt credit card. This is a pricey hotel ($1237 without taxes, activity fees, etc), but we paid $0. Even the activity fees are waived when paying with points. We were also upgraded to a larger suite with an outdoor bath tub that was fabulous.  

Transportation:

• We wanted to get to Point Lobos for hiking by 8, which the internet said would give us a good shot at parking inside the park. Unfortunately, we left about 15 minutes late, which meant parking along the road. On the plus side, that meant no parking fee inside Point Lobos, saving $10.
• We drove our electric car & charged at the hotel. Honestly, the charging fee was pretty outlandish, at $21.90. We should have paid more attention, as M can definitely charge for less at his work. Anyway, lesson learned & still cheaper than gas. - $21.90

Activities:

• We hiked at Point Lobos in Carmel ahead of checking in at the hotel, and the views were incredible. Neither of us had ever been there before, and really enjoyed it. (Photo below.) Cost =  $0
• We also took advantage of a free spin class offered through the hotel on Sunday morning. Always nice to try a new free workout. Cost = $0

Food:

• Because I'm a Hyatt Globalist, we get all food charges before 11 am for free. This included a latte for me + an Americano & GF muffin for M. We also had a fantastic breakfast buffet after our spin class.
• Our room came with two free drinks, which we enjoyed by the pool during lunch. (Free drinks also thanks to Hyatt status.) There was a big snafu of the pool service, because the hotel was clearly overrun by an impromptu pool party happening after a wedding. They comped us two more drinks, which we told them was unnecessary, because they were working extremely hard to serve everyone. They insisted. We did have a hummus plate, which was $29.75. 
• Lunch by the pool - $123.31
• Dinner in Carmel - $197.70. I thought this place was just pretty good, but I wouldn't go back for the price. 

Total cost for the mini birthday trip = $372.26

Do you have any local(ish) trips you are considering? 

June goals

 June is going to be a very busy month! I have a work trip to LA, and I have the girls Greece trip! Definitely looking forward to one, and a lot less so the other. 

Here are my goals for the month.

Financial:

• Stay on top of food waste by using up 3 pantry & freezer items
• Continue to track net new savings for 2026
• Make $100 in side hustle
• Find one expense to optimize
• Create post-work budget & plan (mostly track down increased insurance costs through M's plan)

Family:

• Continue to help the boys navigate college & life
• Sort out Nick's move back plans
• Monthly date with M
• Host family for dinner
• Make progress on Iceland planning (next year, M's 60th) 
• Have a fabulous trip to Greece!

Fitness:

• Lose 3 lbs
• 10 strength workouts
• Track nutrition
• Average 12,000 steps/day

Personal:

• Do well at external event presentations
• Declutter 50 items from the house
• Get together with friends
• Try something new
• Say yes to adventures
• Get to know our neighbors
• Try a new recipe

What about you? What are you hoping to accomplish in June?

Fitness Monday

It's been really busy at work, and I had a commute day + had to be home two days during my normal workout for a pest control appointment.  Good times!

Weight: 150.6, down .7 lbs from last week

Calories: 1,274/day

Steps: 11,857/day

Workouts:

• One cardio/strength class
• One 60 minute elliptical workouts
• Two 30 minute elliptical workouts
• One  6.5 mile hike
• One spin class 

Goals for the week:

• Another really busy week, but I would really like to get in 3-4 strength training workouts, since I only managed one last week
• Go to the doctor (this is happening, but noting it, as a positive step for my health, even though it's no fun
• Increase steps/day
• Increase protein 

That's it from my side. What about you? How are you doing with your health & fitness goals? 

Menu Plan Sunday

 It's always tricky when we are gone for some or all of the week, as we heavily rely on Saturday/Sunday cooking for leftovers. But, having a plan helps tremendously!

• Friday - leftover tacos
• Saturday - out to dinner at the hotel we stayed at
• Sunday - grilled chicken (freezer)
• Monday - spaghetti & meatballs (freezer)
• Tuesday - leftover grilled chicken
• Wednesday - leftover spaghetti & meatballs
• Thursday - salmon
• Friday - TBD, based on any leftovers

What about you? What's on your menu for the week? 

Frugal Friday

 Another busy week, and I forgot that I needed to go to the office yesterday for a new hire lunch. Oh well, it was nice to welcome him to our team. 

Saving on things we buy

• Uploaded receipts to Fetch & bought two protein bars that generated a $1 iBotta cash back offer. 
• I used a $150 credit card cash back offer for a date night (there are a handful of restaurants that qualify near us), & we spent another $20 out of pocket, as it's a pretty fancy place. 
• There is a therapeutic massage place very close to our house. As with most places, they are expensive for a 60 minute deep tissue massage. I happened to see that they had an offer on Groupon, so I clicked through to Groupon from Rakuten (6% cash back) & then purchased a Groupon good for weekdays, at 40% off standard price. It's good through September, so I might even buy another. I have chronic back problems & massages help quite a bit. 
• I booked our flights to Utah & Las Vegas for our anniversary in September (it's a combo hiking/Las Vegas trip), and used a few minor flight credits & a small amount leftover on a gift card to offset the price. Ever so slightly, because flights are still insane! I will do a full cost roundup of the trip after it happens. 
• Costco had $5 off a package of chicken breasts, so we grabbed an extra. 
• As part of my attempts to extend travel credit, I needed a small Southwest gift card. I discovered that using Door Dash gave me 10% off of a digital gift card, so I went that route & saved a whopping $2.50 off of my $25 gift card. 
• Similar to the above, invested $11 additional dollars on a United ticket for Sam in an attempt to extend a $127 travel credit he has that's expiring before he uses it. I have around a 90% success rate in getting United credits extended, but it's not guaranteed, hence why you want to keep any additional outlay of money involved to as small as possible. 

Earning money

• Nick worked at a soccer tournament for his old club, and made some money. He started training for his summer job as well. 

Avoiding spending

• M picked up our Costco groceries for the week & our annual Costco reward covered the full price & we got six entire dollars back. ;) I must admit that I was hoping for more, but I'll take the free groceries just the same. 
• Charged my car for free for four hours at work. It's taken me almost a year to get the charging access sorted, combined with not having spots on days I come in, and finally approval through the system. Not sure what was the final magic that happened yesterday, but free charging! 

Eating what we have 

• Reminded Nick to eat the last of the pizza rolls (leftover from some teen party before he went to college), so those are now out of the freezer.
• Had a freezer dinner on Friday night (a cauliflower rice/black beans/rotisserie chicken dish) & topped that with leftover cilantro from the Piccadillo I made last week. 
• Bought a delicious salad at Costco (celery grain) & paired that with a rotisserie chicken, which made 2 dinners for two diners, as well as three lunches, putting the cost at about $2.50/pp. 
• Made the boys lunches several days in a row, in an attempt to use up the tortillas we have opened. 

For others

• Helping out a friend with a leadership summit he's running.

What about you? Any wins to share? 

Wednesday Happenings

 This week is whizzing by, given the short work week. I'm enjoying it, for sure. I do need to drive to the office tomorrow, as I'm having lunch with a new hire on the team. I don't mind going in for that, because it's truly the type of thing you can only do in person. I'm giving myself the gift of not trying to be in the office for my 7 am calls, and just going in when I have a break in my schedule later in the morning. 

I've decided on a date to give notice, and it's feeling pretty real! I will offer an extended transition, as I really like my manager & am hiring someone mid-July and want to train them & provide support as they join the team.

Nick started his summer class, and was busy studying yesterday. He starts training for his summer job this weekend. He & Sam have been going to the climbing gym a lot. It inspired me to get M a summer membership at the climbing gym. He doesn't have gym access, and has been interested in a gym membership for a while. He's also expressed interest in trying climbing with the boys, so this will give him a good way to explore whether he likes it, for a reasonable deal. We can assess whether he wants to keep the membership after the summer. Nick has offered to teach him how to use the climbing wall and there are multiple introductory classes offered for free. While not always possible, I do try to give experiences vs things. His birthday gift (Father's Day & his birthday are a week apart) is a replacement for a shirt he loves but snags, so things do get purchased some times!

I worked on a packing list for Greece yesterday, which made me feel a bit more ready. It's so close! We leave in 20 days! I'm getting very excited. 

That's pretty much it on my side. I have plenty to do today - lots of meetings, working out, finishing a deck for a partner event, etc. Let's hope I make solid progress.

Hope you all have a fabulous day!

Fitness Monday

Because health & fitness are all related, I'm also going to start to track things I've done for my health on any given week (non fitness related). Last week I prepped for my upcoming rheumatologist appointment & did my lab work, and also got a massage to help with some back pain. 

Weight: 151.3, down .6 lbs from last week

Calories: 1,248/day

Steps: 10,700/day

Workouts:

• Two strength/cardio combo class
• 2 30 minute elliptical workouts
• 1 9.2 mile hike

Goals for the week:

• Increase steps on work days
• Get in 3 strength workouts
• Ensure I'm getting enough fiber & protein

What about you? How did you do with your health & fitness goals this week? 

Menu Plan Sunday

 I love a long weekend Sunday!  The extra day is so important for relaxing & time to decompress.

Here's what's on the menu for the week at our house:

• Friday - freezer leftovers (cauliflower rice enchilada skillet)
• Saturday - out, date night
• Sunday - chicken sausage white bean skillet (carryover from last week)
• Monday - grilled burgers + watermelon
• Tuesday - leftover chicken sausage white bean skillet
• Wednesday - easy teriyaki chicken + rice
• Thursday - salmon
• Friday - leftover easy teriyaki chicken + rice

What about you? What's on your menu for the week? 

Saturday Happenings

 I'm very, very excited to have a long weekend! Monday is also a holiday in the UK, so I won't wake up to a ton of emails & work on Tuesday, as both main offices will be on holiday. Bonus!

It was a busy week, and I am pretty run down. It's a great chance to rest & recharge. 

On the list for day:

• Date night with M! We have a $150 credit card statement 2x a year that we can use at a handful of local restaurants. The restaurant we like is quite fancy, so we prefer to sit at the bar & have a more casual dinner service. The bar menu is also better, IMO. ;-) 
• The hard workout class (a few days a week they have a template that's even harder than usual, and the regular class is plenty hard enough. But, I like the smaller class format). 
• Menu planning
• Shopping list
• Work on schedule for next week
• Workout schedule for next week
• Sort birthday & Father's Day gifts for M (I will be in Greece for Father's Day, but I want to ensure the boys have something fun planned)
• Catch up on my Stanford class
• Clean the floor boards
• Kitchen
• Bathrooms
• Vacuum

As you can see, this is a little "optimistic", shall we say, so I will inevitably roll some things over to the rest of the weekend! Nick is working at a soccer tournament for his old club today, so he is thrilled to make some money. He also has a CPR class to attend tomorrow for his summer job, and has a summer class starting next week. Sam is busy with work as well, as weekends are his prime shifts.

What about you? What are you up to this weekend? Hope you have a mix of fun & relaxing plans. 

Frugal Friday

 Another busy week,but a few wins to share here & there. 

Saving on things we buy

• Remembered to use the last of a grocery store gift card (all $.52 of it) to buy cilantro. This dropped the price to $1.47, which is almost reasonable for something that grows well here, except for us. We can keep a lot alive, but cilantro is not our friend & dies easily at our house. 
• Saved 23,200 United miles by rebooking our flights for family weekend. I now have a United credit card, and there is a sizable discount for credit card holders when booking award travel. Given the United valuation of about $.012/mile, that's a $278.40 savings.
• We are potentially going to Lake Tahoe for a few days, and months ago I downloaded a credit card offer for a hotel there. I find that I forget about these offers, but if I think there's even a 1% chance I can use it, I save it. No harm, no foul. Received a $32.38 credit through my card. 

Earning money

• We've gotten a few misdirected items from Amazon (addressed to us, Amazon won't accept back), so I sell them on eBay. Sold another container of vitamins, as far as I can tell. Made $16. 
• Sold a white elephants gift I won at a work event, but was never going to use (a fancy pen), also made $16.
• Received a payout from Rakuten for $12. 
• I get $150 in StubHub ticket credits 2x a year through my credit card. I offered the credit to the boys to use for concerts or events, but no one had anything in mind. Instead, I bought tickets to the Giants game & listed them. They were actually just over the credit value at $159, but I must have chosen a poor event resale value, because they sold for $70. After the $9 overage, I made $60 for no effort. I track that money towards offsetting the cost of my credit card, which has a fee. 

Avoiding spending

• I gave up Kindle Unlimited a month or so back, and am continuing to use my library card. As someone who reads a lot, I need a lot of books, so I've also started checking out Amazon's free list to try & find new authors. I downloaded four free books this week.
• I had to go to the office on Wednesday, and need to leave at 6 to make it to my 7 am call. They have breakfast for purchase in the cafe, but I opted for the free yogurt + banana. 
• I had to go to the hospital & do lab work (lots of blood draws) & afterward I was craving a sandwich. I'm strangely attached to Subway, despite definitely not thinking they are the best. Regardless, used a $6.99 foot long sub coupon, plus $2 of rewards, and paid the rest + tip on a gift card. This makes two lunches for me, so not a terrible cost. 

Eating what we have

• Picked a green onion from the garden for M's salad, and then replanted the stem.
• Looked for a recipe to use up a few items we had on hand, including a red pepper. I chose Picadillo, which also used canned tomatoes, olives & a few other staples we had on hand. I added a jalapeno instead of the adobe & made my own spice mix. 
• Nick hosted multiple friend events. When he had a pool party earlier in the week, I took the opportunity to look at freezer items that all had a similar bake time & were purchased with teens in mind. We didn't have a ton of any one item, but I put together an appetizer platter that used up: the last of a box of mini Trader Joes pizzas, the end of a bag of chicken nuggets & about 1/2 of a bag of veggie spring rolls. I paired that with chips leftover from another teen event, and then in a nod to health, cut up 1/2 a melon, some apples & grapes & made a fruit tray. I'm hoping I eventually use up the pizza rolls & mozzarella sticks, also leftover from some sort of teen hosting. 
• Similarly, the boys were home when we were not expecting them for dinner, so I baked up chicken patties (finished off a bag) & pulled buns out of the freezer to make chicken patty sandwiches. A favorite of the boys. 

For others

• One of Nick's friends recently graduated from college & is looking for a place to stay. We've offered him a few nights in our spare bedroom while he looks for an inexpensive apartment. In the bay area, that will be quite a challenge! Happy to help him out as he transitions. 

What about you? Any wins to share?

Thursday Happenings

 Oh, work has been... let's just go with cementing my decision to be done soon. I really like my manager, which is why I will offer a reasonable notice period, but the organization is so dysfunctional. It makes me quite disappointed, as I took this job with 20+ years of experience in a niche field, so I could have added a lot of value. Unfortunately, the organization is unable to move & adapt and there are just a lot of blockers to progress. 

This is not a political post, please do not comment about politics. This is about our family. 

On M's mom, it's so hard to imagine being in a situation where you are grieving & missing your spouse, and unable to see anyone. Most people are staying very close to home due to risk and challenging infrastructure. She has asked if she can visit us for an extended period of time, should the opportunity present itself. For those of you not following along at home, inflation is estimated between 50-70% in Iran, year on year and buying groceries or paying for basic expenses is incredibly challenging. My MIL gave all of her jewelry to her granddaughter to help her out. 

Switching topics, I'm going to plan out the weekend. We were originally going to go to a national park and do some hiking with Nick & friends, but they've asked to go to Lake Tahoe for the 4th of July instead. It will be much easier to visit the national park when it's not a US holiday anyway, so we made that change. I have plenty to do this weekend, so I will enjoy the time, get in a lot of workouts, go out to dinner with M, and hopefully catch up on the class I'm taking. 

We will likely also do some travel planning. We are really trying to take advantage of this time where we have more life flexibility & our health. We have roughly decided on Iceland next June, to celebrate M's milestone birthday (60). Although, we definitely still dream of our incredible trip to New Zealand, and want to go back. Can't stop thinking of NZ!

What are you up to on this holiday weekend, for those of you in the US? 

Wednesday happenings

Oooh, today has been a work day, and it's still the morning. ;-) 

But, in exciting news, M got to speak to his mom. She is physically fine. As you can imagine, the last few months have been incredibly difficult. She is also alone, as M's father passed away not too long ago, and she's been understandably adjusting to life as a widower. Not having access to her family during this time has been incredibly challenging. I'm so very grateful that they got a chance to talk!!

Anyway, no time for further updates, but wanted to share the good news. 

Fitness Monday

 The weeks are whizzing by, but it was a good week all around. I was able to get in plenty of steps & I generally ate well. 

I also wanted to share that I started a micro dose of a GLP-1 a few weeks ago, with approval from my rheumatologist. While the primary usage of a GLP-1 is weight loss of course, it can also be used to reduce inflammation, which is a challenge for people with an autoimmune disease. I'm happy to share my experience along the way. The biggest difference for me is that I find it much easier to maintain the lower calories required at my age to lose weight. As someone with a low RMR (resting metabolism rate), it's challenging to hit lower calories numbers especially with working out. The goal would be to drop the weight, and then eliminate the micro dose, after my appetite has shrunk. Again, happy to share how things go for me. And, it's also worth noting that this is not a frugal solution! 

Weight: 151.9, down 2.1 lbs

Calories: 1,292

Steps: 15,020

Workouts: 

• 2 strength/cardio combo classes
• 2 hour long elliptical workouts
• 45 minutes walking on the treadmill
• 12 mile hike (split into two)
• 7.75 mile hike

Goals for the week:

• Continue to work on strength training focus
• Work on my steps
• Focus on my nutrition

What about you? How did you do with your health & fitness goals this week? 

Menu Plan Sunday

I don't have any in office days, which is always a treat! Prepping the menu helps me remember to use up pantry & freezer items, and also keeps me sane on busy days. Here's what's on our menu this week. 

• Friday - the last of the beef kebabs
• Saturday - picadillo
• Sunday - chicken & rice
• Monday - leftover picadillo
• Tuesday - leftover chicken & rice
• Wednesday - remaining leftovers
• Thursday - chicken sausage & white bean skillet
• Friday - leftover chicken sausage & white bean skillet

What about you? What are you making this week at your house? Have you pivoted to warmer weather dishes? 

Saturday Happenings

 I'm so happy it's Saturday! It's a gorgeous day, and M & I got up and went for a hike/walk at the nature preserve near our house. It was the perfect temperature & we walked 6 miles. We didn't do anything too strenuous, as I'm meeting a friend for a walk later this afternoon. I'll have to ask her to go slowly. ;-) 

I ran to the store to pick up cilantro for the Piccadillo I'm making tonight. I've made it once before, and I'm pretty sure I make enough substitutions to reduce any "authenticity" from the recipe. 

What else is on the agenda for today:

• Lots of laundry. Nick dropped in for a shower & clean clothes. He needed a shirt out of the wash, but was in such a hurry to drive to Davis & meet up with friends that he couldn't wait for one of his shirts to dry & wore it damp. 😐
• Hike with friend
• Ask M some questions about my Stanford homework. This assignment is way more in his wheelhouse than mine, and I need some advice on how to approach it.
• Homework
• Make dinner
• Read by the pool

Overall, it should be a pretty chill day, which is very nice considering the busy weeks ahead. What are you up to today? 

Frugal Friday

While it didn't actually save me money, I did research whether there were cheaper alternatives to the medicine I take for lupus. I'd heard a lot of autoimmune diseases medicine can be found with rebates or for cheaper, but mine is not included. But, I took the time to research options, so if I get switched to something else in the future, I know where to start. 

Saving on things we buy

• Uploaded our Costco receipt to Fetch & iBotta ($.05 back on any receipt). 
• I was looking for a fun option for M's birthday, and we have a crazy June (work travel + I'm going to Greece with my sister + BFF for a belated girls 50th birthday trip. My BFF is a school principal, so her days off are very fixed.) We considered Memorial Day & going to a national park, but that didn't work with the boys schedule. Instead, I booked a free night at a local resort on another weekend, using Hyatt points. It's a gorgeous property with hiking nearby, so it should be very fun. I'm sure we will spend money on meals, but the room itself will be free, and on that night the room goes for $1200/night!! It's a big savings to use points & still get a splurge. 
• Saved $4 on gas ($2 from each kiddo filling up their cars). Gas is absolutely outrageous here. 

Earning money

• Listed some freebie items on eBay & sold a pair of kids ice skates for $58, which was a huge win.
• I also sold a dress that I'd had listed for quite a while for $30. Junk out, money in. 
• Not earning, & not me, but Nick finally got a birthday check forwarded to him from Boulder, who somehow missed delivering it way back in March. The palpable excitement when I told him I was depositing a $150 check from my parents was priceless! He was so happy. :-) 

Avoiding spending

• This doesn't really fall into any specific category, but M went to use Home Depot gift cards that I'd purchased at the local grocery store (you earn free groceries), but they were already used. The scratch off part had been removed entirely. We photographed everything & the cashier vouched for us, as the gift cards were still in the "protective" sleeves when M went to use them. It's taken time & effort to track it down, but we now have replacement gift cards, totaling $100. Scammers are the worst!
• My workout class was free on Mother's Day!
• Sam had to work a double shift on Mother's Day (9am - 2am), so M made him a breakfast & I packed him a lunch, to help him avoid eating out. He works in a restaurant that only offers a side salad for meals, which isn't going to help if you are really hungry. 
• Bought M two athleisure shirts he loves using a gift card, saving $72. This is part of his birthday/Father's Day gift. 

Eating what we have

• Used up the last of a pepper in fajitas.
• Made 1/2 a sandwich out of the last of a package of turkey that needed to go.
• Used lemons from the tree, as well as green onions, basil & mint from the garden. 
• M made a really delicious dinner for Mother's Day, which was much cheaper than eating out. We had leftovers from that + the fajitas for the week, which made meal prep a breeze. 

For others

• Did a coaching call with an old coworker, to give some help as he's exploring a new career.

What about you? Any wins to share?

Wednesday things

I can't believe it's Wednesday! I finally heard back from Nick, and he is back from his Yosemite backpacking trip. They had no cell service, so of course, I worried while he was out of contact. In case you wonder why I worry about the guy, here's the proof of life photo he sent earlier in the trip. I absolutely adore his adventurous spirit, but.... he definitely gives me anxiety! 

He is now on a road trip to LA & Santa Barbara, to see other friends. Living his best life, for sure. He needs to get home & start earning money, because gas is expensive & road trips are very pricey right now.

I had a very productive day yesterday & turned the corner on a few big projects I have coming up. That felt great. I'm still very slammed with work & scheduling. I think I ended up putting in about 14 hours yesterday - not good & not healthy. I did manage to work out by setting up my desk attachment for my treadmill, and using that while I walked & caught up on a class I'm taking. 

I need another very productive day, so I can get caught up on work, after my in person activities last week. They also included a bunch of mandatory "social events" + drive time, which killed my normal amount of productivity. 

Hope everyone is having a great day! 

Fitness Monday

It was a rough week for my fitness, with the addition of a commute, needing to be at the office by 6:30 or earlier most days, and having evening events. 0 stars, do not recommend. I was able to get in a couple of really good weekend workouts, so at least I have that to get this week started off on the right foot.  

Weight: 154, down .3 lbs from last week

Calories: 1,329/day

Steps: 9,176/day

Workouts:

• 40 minute elliptical workout
• 1 of the super hard class templates (60 minutes, combo of cardio & strength)
• 1 of the hard (but not super hard) classes, 60 minute combo of cardio & strength)

Goals for the week:

• Get back into my step tracking, which has fallen by the wayside during the crazy weeks. Go out for mid-daywalks as I can, in addition to workouts.
• Get back to my strength training. I can tell that I've lost muscle tone & have had to drop down in weights at my class. It's best to just rip the bandaid off & get back to it, vs knowing that you are out of shape & avoiding it.
• Continue to focus on eating well & getting in the right nutrition, even with lower calories.

What about you? How are you doing with your health & fitness? 

Menu Plan Sunday

 Happy to all of the mom's out there, or those in a mom role! I'm planning to go to a workout class this morning, get some chores done, and read my book by the pool. Always my favorite choice on a sunny day. 

• Friday - out with friends, I had the happy hour mini slider appetizer
• Saturday - oven baked chicken fajitas
• Sunday - M's choice, as he's making dinner for Mother's Day, but I suspect it's zereshk polo + beef kebabs, based on what I've seen from the grocery shopping
• Monday - leftover fajitas
• Tuesday - leftovers from Sunday
• Wednesday - lemon pepper chicken (using lemons from the garden)
• Thursday - any remaining leftovers
• Friday - leftover lemon pepper chicken

What about you? What's on your menu for the week ahead? If your a mom, what's your favorite Mother's Day meal? 

Saturday Happenings

 It feels like it's been awhile since I've had a Saturday to just get things done. I'm looking forward to it! Met up with friends for a quick bite to eat before the champagne sip & stroll. Great to see friends & enjoy the music, but I definitely didn't drink enough champagne to justify the price. Still nice to see everyone & I loved the vibe & energy down town. That was fun to experience.

One of my friends also talked me into a hard workout class today, so I will be doing that. My fitness has been in a massive decline since the trip to London. It's really hard to fit in workouts when my mornings are so crazy, I'm traveling, jet lagged, or have to commute. That's a lot of different excuses. ;-) 

I'm setting myself a moderately ambitious to do list for today, as I would like to combine productivity & relaxing:

• Workout class
• Prep & marinate chicken for fajitas
• List a few things on Buy Nothing & eBay
• Clean the kitchen
• Go through the fridge. A lot snuck in & out with our guests, so I need to make sure everything that is in there is good to eat.
• Work in the yard
• Plant lettuce. I didn't do a good job with the seeds the first time & put them directly in the ground & the forgot to water them. Time to try again.
• Update Kindle with new library books
• Decide if I'm keeping the dress I bought for Greece

What about you? What are you up to today?

Frugal Friday

 Very little to report this week, in terms of frugal wins. 

Saving on things we buy:

• Uploaded receipts to Fetch & iBotta. 90% of the time, I can only take advantage of iBotta's any grocery receipt offer, which this time was a whopping $.05. I'm stacking up the money over here! Definitely found more than that in loose change on the ground outside Nick's dorm during move out weekend. ;-) 

Earning money

• Sold a watch & a bra on eBay & made ~$55

Avoiding spending

• Drove my electric car to the office all four commuting days, saving on the cost of gas.
• While I did have to buy lunch at work once (the logistics would not have enabled a packed lunch, although I gave it more thought than it was worth, considering the $7 price tag), the other three lunches were "free"/included at an event. 

Eating what we have

• Eh, we made tacos on Sunday & M grilled burgers on Monday. Otherwise, we ate leftovers, so nothing terribly exciting to report. Food usage was low on my list of priorities this week. 

For others

• Volunteered to run a few work events.
• Hosted multiple college kid stayovers. A few on a road trip back home, another group before a camping trip to Yosemite. Did a lot of laundry & fed everyone! 

What about you? Any wins to report? 

April Goals Recap

The last few months have been pretty intense, and April is no different. Here's how I did with my goals last month.

Financial:

• Continue to pay for both boys colleges expenses - yes
• Stay on top of food waste by using up 3 pantry/freezer items - crushed this!
• 2x potato soup
• Unbaked panko crusted chicken that no one liked
• Two bags of cauliflower rice
• 1/2 bag of rotisserie chicken leftover from work potluck
• 2 ziplock bags of rotisserie chicken
• Chicken broth
• Leftover steak to make Philly cheese steak
• 2 rotisserie chicken bones
• Continue to track net new savings for 2026 - yes, although I'm negative after paying taxes. But, I do feel good every time I add to the savings & see progress. 
• Make $100 in side hustle - $437.94 (4 eBay sales + a $10 Fetch gift card cash out)
• Find one expense to optimize - adjust our car insurance. Saved $184 on remaining policy & will save about $600/year moving forward. 
• Build out work exit financial plan & lock on timing - largely done, but still some pieces to finish

Family:

• Continue to help the boys navigate college, life, summer jobs - yes, and Nick now has a summer job lined up. Sam is continuing to work in the restaurant, but is looking for a second job until he begins his internship. 
• Monthly date with M - we went to a national park & spent a day hiking
• Finalize summer travel/flights - done
• Finalize family weekend flights - done
• Use M's United credit to book move out weekend travel - done, but he ended up not being able to go due to work
• Continue working on "next big trip" plans with M - didn't really make progress on this

Fitness:

• Continue with massage appointments - I stopped for a bit, because things are too crazy right now
• Lose 3 lbs - 2.1 lbs
• 10 positive days in a month (strength, No S, meditate) - 7, 15 & 2
• Build out a workout template - no, and I think this needs to wait until I'm done working
• Track nutrition - yes
• Average 12,000 steps/day - 10,860. Yikes

Personal:

• Declutter 50 items from the house - 38/50
• Get together with friends - I saw my BFF when I was in Colorado
• Try something new - went to a new national park!
• Say yes to adventures - hiking, enjoying Boulder & spending time with Nick
• Get to know our neighbors - no, but we have talked about getting together soon
• Try a new recipe - I made a new chicken & rice dish this month that we liked

What about you? How did you do with your April goals?