The first week of work is exhausting!

I've been exhausted all week, and working quite a bit. My new schedule, combined with all of the other kid activity has put me way behind all of my "house" stuff that needs to be done. We scrambled with our menu this week, so first order of business will be getting that planned!

Sunday - Barbecued chicken with homemade (oven baked) fries.
Monday - Chicken & pasta. The kids eat it separately, M & I mix it together with a small amount of goat cheese & pesto. Chicken is grilled & frozen, ready to go.
Tuesday - Leftovers.
Wednesday - Barbecued burgers (from the freezer) + a salad.
Thursday - Quick dinner, as we'll be heading out to trick or treat. Tacos. (beef is prepared & in the freezer)
Friday - Oven baked risotto
Saturday - Chicken marsala casserole
Sunday - Homemade pizza

I think that will do it!

My little team won their third game yesterday. So proud! They've improved tremendously since the season first started.

What else is on the agenda for today? Here's what I'm hoping to accomplish:

1. Tour the local YMCA, enroll, & sign the kids up for some activities.
2. Pilates
3. Go for a run. Possibly run to my work to pick up the car that we left their on Friday. I'm not a huge fan of running on streets with lots of stoplights, but it would nicely combine an errand with my workout.
4. Get Audi repaired. I had a major flat yesterday.
5. IF (big if) the kids listening skills improve, take them to a fall festival.
6. Laundry.
7. Review & sign paperwork for selling our vacation house. I've put this off, but it's time.

I think that will be more than enough. What do you hope to get done today? Wishing you a relaxing & productive Sunday!!

Working in the kitchen with persimmons

I just wrapped up a fabulous long weekend with my sister & friend. My budget was $400. The irony of my previous post (coming in WAY under a vacation budget) is not lost on me, as I was most definitely not under this budget. We didn't spend as much as expected on food, but instead of heading to the wineries on Sunday, we made a pit stop at an outlet mall (or, rather five outlet malls connected together) & stayed until they closed. I did do some Christmas shopping, but most of what I got was for myself. *blush* A full accounting will be coming soon. ;-)

Here's a picture from the weekend. I'm in the middle:

As for the persimmons in my yard, the squirrels cannot get enough of them, and keep making a mess. I've had "make something with persimmons" on my to do list for over a week, so today I finally got started.

I made persimmon bread, & although I haven't tried it yet, it smells fantastic.  I also want to try this persimmon bread recipe (to compare & find a favorite), persimmon oatcakes, persimmon chocolate chip cookies, and persimmon freezer jam.  I'm planning to freeze all of the remaining persimmon pulp for baking at another time. We easily have 200 persimmons on the tree, so I should have plenty to work with.

I'm also extremely excited for the rest of the oranges to ripen, but most of all . . . for the avocados! Please share your favorite avocado recipes. :-)

I've put off the DMV task (registering one of our cars - the only one that's only in my name, since I've had it since before we were married), but I'm committed to getting it done tomorrow. Wish me luck. :-)

What are you up to? The weather is 80 and gorgeous today - perfect for sitting out in the sunshine.

I love a vacation where you spend less than expected!

Mostly because it's such a rare experience. :-)

I went to Las Vegas with a girlfriend for a few days, & budgeted $1500 for my share of the room, a massage at the spa, gambling, & food. I made $100 or so on the gambling (such a big winner :-)), the room was comped, & they ended up comping all of the food, save for the gratuities. That just leaves the spa treatment (an amazing massage followed by an afternoon spent lounging at the spa). All told, I think I spent about $300. I'm so happy that I get to deposit money back in the bank today.

My sister & best friend arrive tomorrow, & I've set a budget of $400 for their visit. We'll be hopefully visiting a winery, & having a couple of dinners out. I'm so excited to have them visit & see our new place.

I have a ridiculous amount of things to do today before I pick up the kids at 1:00 (early dismissal days), but so far, I have the energy of a slug. I have managed to tackle the enormous pile of laundry & started to unpack, but I need to get a move on if I'm going to get everything done. I also have soccer to coach this afternoon.

And, that's it. I need to get organized & plan out my last week of non-work time, because there's still quite a bit on my to do list.

Hope you're having a more productive day than me! And, have you ever come in under budget on a vacation?

75% of the way there, 2013 Goal Check and a call out to help

 I can't believe the year is 75% of the way done. Time to kick things into high gear!


2013 brought *many* unexpected changes our way. I found out I had lupus, we moved to California for M's work, I quit my job, and then found a new one. As a result of this, plus normal inertia, I'm not very far along on my 2013 goals, but here goals. Status check!

1. Lose 12 pounds, bringing my weight to 135. I'm trying to shoot for a healthy, but realistic number. - I'm at 145. I'm pretty proud that I didn't gain more with the move, cutting back on my exercise, etc. I definitely want to continue to drive this down into the 130s.
2. Track my food/exercise every day in My Fitness Pal. - Yes!
3. Improve my fitness by doing the following:
1. Complete 13,000 minutes of cardio. This will be a huge stretch goal for me, but I'm ready for the challenge! - I'm way off track after two really low months in August & September. I'm at 7,800. I'll push for 10,000 for the year, but that will be a stretch.
2. Complete 100 strength workouts. - Yes, I'm on track at exactly 75! :-)
3. Complete 100 stretching workouts. - Sadly, I'm at 22. I did sign up for a yoga/pilates class, so I've been attending regularly.
4. Run consistently, as measured by the following:
1. Run 10 races. I have a few in mind, but basically want to challenge myself to really maintain my running endurance throughout the year. - No longer a goal, but I've completed 4 races this year. I'm hoping to finish with six races.
2. Run 20 miles (or more per week). - Not a goal anymore, due to my lupus.
3. Run 1000 miles in 2013.  - Not a goal anymore, due to my lupus
4. Achieve a personal best in a half marathon. - Done!!!
5. Run a 5K, 10K, 15K, & potentially a 30K. - Well, I've done a 5K & 10K. I'd love to do  a 15K. The 30K is out of reach. :-)
5. Reach 50% of our boys college fund savings. This will take around $10,000, depending on the tuition price fluctuation. - No, we stopped putting money in when we were considering the move. We're at 44%.
6. Pay $50,000 of principal on our mortgages. - Ditto above. The move moved this onto the backburner, but I hope to close at $20,000.
7. Have one date night per month with M, & get together with two friends per month. - Yes!
8. Track our spending, stick to our budget, & continue the monthly reports. - Yes!
9. Review our charitable contributions, & increase our yearly giving by 10%. - Yes!
10. Organize one room in our house per month. - Oh my, yes. We moved. So, I probably eliminated 1/3 of our overall belongings.
11. Learn to bake bread (bagels, english muffin bread, sandwich bread). This is partially because I'd like to trim our grocery budget, but also because it's something I've tried & failed at before & just want to improve. - Yes!
12. Create/finalize will & guardianship papers. I hesitated even adding this to my goals, as I've failed at this for the last two years. But, it's important enough that I'm adding it again.  - No. *blush*
13. Generate $1,000 in "side hustle", loosely defined as anything outside my normal paycheck, for the year. I've never tracked this before, so keeping the bar low. The money will be used to convert my grandmother's old movies into DVDs, and the rest will go towards my sister's 40th birthday trip. - Oh yes! I made over $3,000!

So, there's all of that. I still have some goals to focus on, although some of the running & financial ones are just permanently adjusted due to my health & our new life. 2014 will see some different goals as well.

And, I just want to share that Sluggy (Don't Read This, It's Boring) is helping out Judy. Judy is an amazing lady, who lost her husband this year. She's struggling, and could use a boost up to catch up on her bills and get her life back together after some very challenging times. Big hugs going out to Judy, and to Sluggy for putting together the fundraising. I know we all have our own ways we like to donate, and our own financial priorities, but if you can help out with $5, or whatever you have available, I know it would go a long way to helping a virtual friend.

How are you doing with your 2013 goals?

October goals & a quick net worth check in

I'm waiting for a batch of orange muffins to come out of the oven. Why am I waiting? Well, because somehow two of my three muffin tins got lost in the move. What a random thing to lose. So, I have six dozen muffins mixed, & one muffin tin. ;-) Looks like I'll be at this for a while.

Net worth for October 1st:

We had a big jump in our net worth this month, as we paid off our 401K loan, my bonus came through, etc.

• Debt (mortgages only) - $949,926
• House values - $1,445,000
• Retirement savings - $672,787
• Liquid cash - $28,760

Total net worth - $1,196,621 - up 11% from our August net worth (I didn't calculate it in September due to the move & forgetting ;-)).

*Note that stock awards are not included, as they require employment terms, and if either of lost our job, the value would immediately go to zero. To be conservative, we are not including these, although they are worth a substantial amount - $450,000 gross, between the two of us. That money will be recognized each year as the options vest.

And, now on to October goals!

I promise to recap September, but spoiler alert - I didn't do very well. The move took basically all of my time & attention.

Here's what I want to get done in October.

1. Bump my cardio back up to 1,000 minutes/month. I hit a new low in August, & barely surpassed that in September.
2. Complete 5 strength & 5 stretching workouts/week.
3. Stay within my budget for both girl trips (one is visiting here - have yet to set a budget for this one, & I need to, & the other is in Las Vegas).
4. Stock the freezer with meals to make my transition back to work easier.
5. Get the house officially unpacked & done. I'm 95% there, but the last 5% is proving to be very difficult.
6. Find all doctors/dentists for everyone in the family.
7. Make an appointment for myself to get to the dentist.
8. Reduce our food budget to $750 (between groceries & eating out)
9. Rent our main residence.
10. Finalize plan for vacation house, & either get it listed for sale or put it up for long-term rental.
11. Plan holiday trips & book flights.

I think that should do it! What are your October goals?

September financial wrap up

First, let me just say that September is always a different financial month for us, as I get my yearly bonus & stock awards. That happened, and we moved, M started a new job & only received one pay check, and we're renting a house in California but haven't yet rented the house in Seattle yet. Hopefully it will be ready to list next week. Because the construction is not yet finished, those expenses (shivers) will be included in the October financial wrap up.

September Income:
My income - $26,039. (Includes bonus)
M's income - $3,700 (he dumped most of his income into a 401K, as he finally has access again, & is hoping to make up for lost time from earlier in the year when he couldn't contribute).
My stock awards - $22,365

Total income = $52,105.

Biggest September Expenses:

• 401K loan payoff - $39,607
• Rent - $5,000 (will be getting reimbursed $4,200/month for three months, but haven't received it yet)
• Main residence mortgage - $4,124
• Vacation mortgage - $2,250
• Food - $1,315 (we spent double our normal budget due to *lots* of meals out, & restocking our house with groceries.
• House - we spent $650 on house stuff. Moving is expensive!

Total spent for the month (including smaller categories not listed above, because I'm too lazy to list them all out, & I think your eyes would roll into the back of your head from boredom). :-)

$56,355

Total spent after we get reimbursed for our rent - $52,155. Almost exactly our income for the month! Off by $50.

Again, September was a crazy month on many fronts. I'm very pleased that we paid the 401K loan off as planned.

We need to get renters into our primary residence this month, as well as make progress with our vacation house. We are kicking around a couple of ideas: long term renters, or selling. We should hopefully start to see the first reimbursements from the move come in. So far, we've been paying all of that with our savings, which has been painful.

On to a much more frugal October! I need to get the food budget back down to $700 between dining out & groceries, and I also want to drop our house budget way down.

How about you? How did you do with your spending in September? What are you planning on working on in October?

Sunday Night Chit Chat

Thanks to Carla for hosting!

I did a 5K this morning (it was just outside my front door, & the money went to the kids school - a no brainer). :-) Sam won first place in the kids one mile run. The boy is speedy!

Here's what I'm up to tonight:

• Reading: Not sure. I need to find a few new books for my Kindle. I've been reading a lot over the last few weeks, & loving it!
• Listening to: The kids are watching "Super Why", so I'm listening to that. :-)
• Watching: Again with the "Super Why". :-)
• Cooking/Baking: Not much. M made burgers tonight, & I threw together a salad. I do have a bunch of baking to do in the next week.
• Happy you accomplished this week: I finished my last week of work!!! I'm now off until I start my new job on 10/21.
• Looking forward to next week: Getting a massage tomorrow. It's my personal spending from my work bonus, & I've been looking forward to it for a month.
• Thankful for today: Thankful for the sunshine this morning. I know it was pouring in Seattle, so it felt pretty blissful to go for a run in the sun, and have the kids playing outside all day. I also planted vegetables in the sun.
• *Bonus Question* What's the largest sum of money you've ever found? - $20 on a field trip (to a college football game). It paid for my entire trip, which was awesome!

Hope you are all having a fabulous Sunday!

How much would you save

if you didn't have to pay for lunches during the work week? Both M & I will soon have all lunches (Monday-Friday) covered through our employer. This also includes snacks & drinks. In my head, I was very optimistic about how much this could save on our food budget. But, then I did the math. ;-)

There are four people in our family, so we are making 360 meals/month. Our employer will cover 40 meals/month (20 per person, given an average month), which is just over 10%. I'm thrilled that we get a free lunch every day, but it will likely make only a small dent in the food budget.

Because I've never done the math before, I also calculated how much we're spending on each meal. Given our approximate grocery budget of $600/month, we're spending around $1.66 per person/per meal. Does that fall within the normal range? I really have no idea. I haven't taken the time to calculate how many meals out we ate, & deducting that from the  number of meals we actually prepared. September is probably not the best month to run that calculation anyway, as we were staying in a hotel& living out of boxes for over a week. Maybe that's something I'll tackle next month.

And, on to today. M is back in Seattle to meet with a couple of property management companies about renting the house, as well as reviewing the final work on the remodel (and paying our contractor). It was substantially more than we originally budgeted. *shivers*

Here's what I need to get done today:

1. Soccer game this morning. Go team! :-)
2. Go for a walk in the sunshine with the kids.
3. Do my arm exercises.
4. Yoga
5. Change my email address on a few bills
6. Hit up Home Depot or a nursery for some fall vegetable plants
7. Work in the yard.
8. Make 3 freezer dinners.
9. Bake bread.

If I get to it, I'd love to make a monthly menu plan, so I can figure out best meals for making ahead & stocking the freezer before I go back to work.

What are you up to today? How is the weather in your area? It's cold but clear this morning, & should be 75 or so this afternoon.

One day left

Until I wrap up a sixteen year career with my employer, that is. Can't believe tomorrow is the last day. So very grateful for all of the things I've learned, and the excellent health care benefits & pay I've received during this time. But mostly, for the people I've met. I did, in fact, meet M there, as well as most of my local friends. It's definitely the end of an era.

In other news, I'm going to try out a quick bike ride today, to get in a cross-training workout. I've been running again, but that's not something I can do every day if I want to remain injury-free. Speaking of running, I signed up for a half marathon. When I was first diagnosed with lupus, I was confident that I'd never run a distance race again. Now I'm starting to think that it might be possible, but I'm not going to train as hard, or push myself in the same way. I'm really going to listen to my body, cross train, do yoga to stay limber, and also to accept and be comfortable with whatever comes my way during this training. I signed up for a local race the first weekend of November. SO excited to start training again, and mostly, to feel like it's possible for me to enjoy something I love very much . . . even after finding out I'm sick. It's like a return to myself, if that makes sense.

In other news, my yoga/pilates class is still kicking my butt. Who knew that extended downward dogs would tone your arms?! Love it!

I've been cooking at home, avoiding eating out, and trying to make a list of all of the things I want to accomplish when I'm off starting next week. Here's what I'm thinking of so far:

1. Find pediatricians for the boys.
2. Find a rheumatologist for me -> get on waiting list.
3. Find a dentist for myself.
4. Find a dentist for the boys.
5. Work out 5x/week.
6. Do yoga or pilates 4x/week.
7. Make 10 freezer meals.
8. Make 6 dozen muffins for the freezer.
9. Get a massage!
10. Set up some sort of personal laptop/device for accessing the kids schoolwork that's online, and my files, etc.
11. Figure out how to rollover my 401K.
12. Journal/write for myself.
13. Read 10 books. :-)
14. Find a babysitter! M & I want to get back to regular date nights. :-)
15. Plan a monthly menu for my first month of work.
16. List our vacation house. If needed, fly out & deal with any packing, etc.
17. Get our primary house (in Seattle) rented.
18. Set up our immediate, mid-term, and long-term financial goals.
19. Plant a fall garden.
20. Get together with my cousin (M's cousin).
21. Plan 5 social events.

I can't wait! I'm so excited to have 3 entire weeks off!!!! I haven't ever had this much time - in 20 years!!

What would you do if you found yourself with three weeks off? :-) If you currently stay at home, how do you stay motivated/on task? (I'm a little bit worried about this for myself.)

Menu Plan Tuesday

I got caught up with my hair drama yesterday, but here's what we're cooking up over the next few weeks. I'm not quite prepared enough to do a full monthly menu, but I'm trying to move up to two week plans, to reduce waste.

M hasn't been traveling at all (save for a couple of trips to Seattle to check on our house), and he gets free lunches & snacks at work. When I start at my new job in a month or so, I'll also be getting free lunch & snacks. Wow! I'm excited. :-) Wonder how much that will shave off of the grocery bill? I'll need to be better about planning leftovers back into meals, as I currently take them for lunch.

• Tuesday - M at work for a late event. The boys & I will have leftover burgers & tortellini.
• Wednesday - Tacos
• Thursday - soccer, home late, so we'll throw together something quick. Noodles + chicken
• Friday - My favorite risotto recipe. No stirring necessary. :-) Oven baked chicken risotto.
• Saturday - M in Seattle. The boys & I will have leftovers.
• Sunday - Homemade pizza
• Monday - Marsala chicken and mushroom casserole
• Tuesday - Leftovers.
• Wednesday - Tomato soup with chicken and gorgonzola + homemade bread.
• Thursday - soccer, home late. Leftover marsala chicken casserole.
• Friday - Italian baked chicken and pastina casserole.
• Saturday - Barbecued burgers
• Sunday - I'll be flying to Las Vegas for a girls trip (yes!!!), so M & the boys will probably eat leftovers, or heat up a pizza.

I'd like to make the casseroles in advance & stock the freezer for when I go back to work. Our freezer is empty, empty, empty with the move. I'd love any ideas for quick & easy recipes to stock the freezer!

The very bad haircut

I mentioned yesterday that I got a pretty tragic haircut. As context, here is what my hair looked like pre-cut (this is obviously not yesterday, but my hair looked like this).

A very basic style, and the length needs to be past my shoulders because I have a very round face.

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd, here's what I came home with. Note that this is the best it looked. When I tried to wear it with my natural curls, it was a complete & utter disaster. Note the very choppy layers - in more than 4 lengths. And, the super strange pieces that were as long as my previous length. Picture all of those curly, sticking out at all angles from my head in wavy curls. . Don't I look enthusiastic? ;-)

So, today, I found a high end salon, & sent an email asking for an appointment. Even though they weren't open on Mondays, the owner offered to meet me at the salon for a consultation. He spent about 15 minutes with my hair, and told me there was nothing he could really do, & explained that the layers in the front were so short, no style was going to look great on. I told him just to give me the best he could. Of course, this style will require a blowout each morning, which is a lot more maintenance than I normally put up with. At this point, I'm okay with just looking normal again. I think the guy was a hero for what he accomplished. Also, it was crazy expensive, but worth it. I had to buy a round brush, pay for an owner cut (which I wouldn't typically do), & I gave a generous tip for him opening the shop on his day off. All told, $200, and I'd pay it again if I had to. ;-) As context, I normally spend under $50 on a hair cut.

I am *really* not a fan of myself in short hair, but at least this looks like a regular style.

And, there you have it. . . my hair saga! :-) Tell me about the worst hair cut you've ever gotten! :-) 

Citrus Sunday

First of all, I just have to say, that my day did not start off on a good note. In fact, I'm still in denial about it. I used Yelp to find a place to get my hair cut, & it's an utter disaster. I was pretty clear in my request (just under 2 inches off, long layers in the front). . .

I'm not going to subject you to pictures, but . . . I can't get my hair back in a pony tail, & it looks a lot like a mullet. It was so bad that the owner came over, dismissed the person doing my hair, & tried to fix it. Eventually she gave up & just sent me out "for free". Oh boy, I'd pay a lot right now to have my old hair back. *sobs*

I'm not a terribly vain woman, but I have a super round face, and there are certain things you cannot do with a round face. You cannot have short layers in the front. You just can't. Also, my hair is naturally super curly (which I advised her of), so if you cut it short, it does scary things in the front. Ah, it's a hot mess, & again, I can't pull it back to hide it. I've tried it with a rubber band & six clips, & it still falls out. I'm starting a new job in three weeks, & this will be their first impression of me - the lady with the super bad hair. ;-)

I did manage to do my arm workout & go for a walk/run this morning. That made me feel good. I also took the boys to the park, & decided that I wanted to do a little baking this afternoon. We have the following trees in our yard: lemon, orange, avocado, & persimmon.

I started with a knock off recipe for the Starbucks lemon pound cake, although I have to say, this was about 1000x better. It almost has a crumb like a cupcake, & I'm a cupcake connoisseur. I will absolutely be making this one again. I did skip the glaze, as I want to use this for snacks for the kids lunches.

M has also been requesting muffins, so I decided to tackle some of the ripe oranges. I love this recipe because you actually puree full oranges, which means you're using all of the fruit (save for the seeds! ;-)). Love that. No waste. M tried a small bite & said these were amazing. http://www.food.com/recipe/fresh-orange-muffins-14325

I'm going to keep experimenting, & honestly, I need a bunch of recipes for the lemons. I hate to see them go to waste, & we probably have 100 ripe ones ready to be picked. This is definitely the land of plenty. ;-)

I also went through & started updating our budget, based on all of the new salary numbers, costs, etc. M is flying back to Seattle next weekend to oversee the last few stages of the remodel, and also meeting with a property management agent about getting the house rented. Fingers crossed.

We still need to get our vacation house listed, but I dread it. Not the selling process, although I'm sure that will be long & painful. Just the idea of getting rid of something we've loved so much. :-( But, We can't carry a $5,000/month rent, our house in Seattle, & the vacation house. It's nuts. So, time to cut the cord & officially get it listed.

Looking forward to my *last* week, after 16 years, with my employer!! Almost done wrapping up my one last project.

Hope you're having a fabulous Sunday!

I have a new job!

So much for taking three months off to relax. ;-) I finish with my current job (my long-term employer) on Friday of this week, and then I'll start my new job on October 21st. In the end, I'll get about three weeks off, so at least it's something.

I was able to negotiate a slightly higher sign on bonus ($5,000 more than the original offer), so I went for it. The salary is about 10% higher, and I'll get a comparable stock package, and have a similar bonus opportunity. When you factor in the cost of living in California, the overall package is about even with what I was making in Washington. That said, the company was willing to match my stock awards from my current employer. I was going to have to walk away from that money at the end of last week, & it's pretty much unheard of to get another employer to offer you those awards back (well, similar dollar amount, but in *their* company stock, of course). All told, I was able to retain $160,000 of company stock by landing a job this quickly, so it was a pretty huge deal for us. The odds of it happening were very small, so I hadn't even envisioned a financial scenario where this happened. I'll have to go back to the books & recalculate a few things.

I'll be paying for childcare again, which is about $1100/month, so no small amount.

In other news, the boys had a soccer game today (we got crushed), it rained cats & dogs, so we had to cancel a picnic, and I made homemade pizza. Cheese for the kids, gouda/meatball/green pepper for the adults. Yum!

I'm getting my hair cut for the first time in 5ish months (I think), & I'm excited! Here's what else I hope to do tomorrow:

• Get a hair cut
• Go for a run
• Plan the menu for the week
• Do yoga
• Stock the freezer with a few meals

What about you? What are you hoping to accomplish for the rest of the weekend?