I just finished doing 32 hours of overtime in one pay period. I am exhausted but I am looking forward to that pay check!
We FINALLY heard back from the landscaper about the easement and we are getting the estimate done on Monday. We are hoping to do the easement sooner then we expected. The city cleared the easement...well they mowed it. So it should be easier and we are hoping it will be cheaper to do it while the overgrowth has been mowed then what it would be when the overgrowth grows back. That will be one big project off our list and something that will allow us to feel like we actually accomplished something.
Brian is having his wisdom teeth taken out on October 5th so both of us are taking off that day off. Because I am taking that day off working overtime would be pointless because it wouldnt be overtime. So I will be getting home at around 4:30 instead of 5:30-6 during the week and Brian and I will be having another 3 day weekend though I am sure Brian wont be having too much fun :)
Then on the 13th my parents are coming up. Mom is going to garden and Dad, Brian and I (maybe Caroline +1) are going to get our gun license! I am very excited! This was a birthday gift a few years ago that I tried to redeem myself but got the "little lady" response so we ended that and now Daddy has made it happen! Go Daddy! SO excited!
We may or may not be going down to Charleston on the 20th. We are looking to do a haunted ghost tour and it would be nice to chill out with mom dad and the puppies.
That means no weekend overtime until the 27th :) That is about it!
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Sunday, September 23, 2012
The Extra House Money Update
Well...we aren't going to use it for the house. We already pay a little extra on our mortgage every month and while that helps...it isn't going to help pay for the house that much quicker. But we do feel good that we are paying a little more on it each month.
Where is the money going to go?
This year it will be divided. It will help pay for the clearing and sodding of the easement we are going to do this winter and it will go towards student loans. I have a fair amount of money saved up for the easement so the majority of the money will go towards student loans and hopefully by the time it comes time to do the easement, I will have enough for all of it and the whole payment can go to student loans! :)
In future years, all of my overtime will just be divided into two (right now three because of the cruise we want to do for our honeymoon in March). Half for house projects and half for student loans.
Also any extra money we come into will go towards student loans. It is expected that I am going to be getting a pretty good sized bonus because my production levels at work are so high so that is going to go to student loans. Half of Christmas/Bday money will go towards student loans.Whatever tax returns we get, is going to student loans. We are also expected to get raises....not much but every little bit helps. I know what 80 hours without overtime equaled when I first got hired so each week I minus that number from what I did get paid and the difference is considered overtime money. I got a raise last year but I am still using my 80 hr number from before the raise so my raise is being considered overtime money and going towards projects or student loans.
And by student loans...we mean the private one that we weren't able to consolidate. We would LOVE to pay off the consolidated one very early but it is just like another mortgage payment. Once we pay off the private student loans, we will revamp our strategy.
Why Student Loans and not house? Because while we hope and will do everything in our power to not have this happen, god forbid anything were to happen. Bankruptcy/foreclosing on the house will disappear from your credit in 7 years or so. Student loans never ever leave you. That was really the deciding factor.
We both want to pay off the house early. When we pay off the private and revamp our strategy I am going to be shooting for paying more on the mortgage to help that occur.
Where is the money going to go?
This year it will be divided. It will help pay for the clearing and sodding of the easement we are going to do this winter and it will go towards student loans. I have a fair amount of money saved up for the easement so the majority of the money will go towards student loans and hopefully by the time it comes time to do the easement, I will have enough for all of it and the whole payment can go to student loans! :)
In future years, all of my overtime will just be divided into two (right now three because of the cruise we want to do for our honeymoon in March). Half for house projects and half for student loans.
Also any extra money we come into will go towards student loans. It is expected that I am going to be getting a pretty good sized bonus because my production levels at work are so high so that is going to go to student loans. Half of Christmas/Bday money will go towards student loans.Whatever tax returns we get, is going to student loans. We are also expected to get raises....not much but every little bit helps. I know what 80 hours without overtime equaled when I first got hired so each week I minus that number from what I did get paid and the difference is considered overtime money. I got a raise last year but I am still using my 80 hr number from before the raise so my raise is being considered overtime money and going towards projects or student loans.
And by student loans...we mean the private one that we weren't able to consolidate. We would LOVE to pay off the consolidated one very early but it is just like another mortgage payment. Once we pay off the private student loans, we will revamp our strategy.
Why Student Loans and not house? Because while we hope and will do everything in our power to not have this happen, god forbid anything were to happen. Bankruptcy/foreclosing on the house will disappear from your credit in 7 years or so. Student loans never ever leave you. That was really the deciding factor.
We both want to pay off the house early. When we pay off the private and revamp our strategy I am going to be shooting for paying more on the mortgage to help that occur.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
The down side of....
trying.... and by trying I mean trying to conceive. Ya I know I said we weren't really trying we were just going to stop preventing and start trying in a few months...but that didn't work. I like/want babies to much to really do that.
The downside is you can't talk to anyone about it really. All the symptoms of pregnancy can easily be attributed to other things but once you mention "man I am just starving" or "I had the WEIRDEST dream last night" your friend automatically jumps to "your pregnant!" and then you get your hopes up...and then your not and your disappointed.
Here are the symptoms of pregnancy:
-Hungry more often
-Tired more often
-Weird dreams
-Chest hurts
-Your late....
Hungry more often? Sometimes your metabolism changes and your just hungrier. Also it just being your time makes you hungrier.
Tired more often? Well if your working a lot you would be more tired. Or if you are working out a lot you could/would be more tired.
Weird dreams? Can be caused by working too much, not eating/drinking enough or even not sleeping enough.
Chest hurts? Most girls I know chest hurts during their regular cycle. So knowing whether your chest hurts because your pregnant or its that time....who knows
and your late...the tall tale sign for most women that your pregnant. Unfortunately for those like me who are irregular...that does not mean anything. My poor app on my phone cant even guess when I am ovulating because I am so irregular. Some months 5 days late, some 7, some 4 days early. One big mess.
So when you have all these symptoms it is hard enough not to get your hopes up each month in preparation of the negative test without telling anyone. But as soon as you mention something to someone, they jump to pregnancy and because someone else has confirmed your hope...it makes it almost impossible to not hope that you are pregnant.
We have only been trying for about 5 months. I have had these symptoms each month...and even taken a few tests and all have been coming up negative. I have always felt bad for those women who have to go through years of trying before getting a miracle or unfortunately never getting that miracle but even after 5 months of this I am starting to truly understand their pain. I am hoping I wont have to go down the same path they do...but this stinks. Not being able to talk to anyone...someone, regarding what is going on without getting your hopes up and then ultimately being disappointed is awful. Plus you don't want to get your friends/family hopes up either.
So in this whole process you are by yourself until that miracle finally...hopefully happens.
The downside is you can't talk to anyone about it really. All the symptoms of pregnancy can easily be attributed to other things but once you mention "man I am just starving" or "I had the WEIRDEST dream last night" your friend automatically jumps to "your pregnant!" and then you get your hopes up...and then your not and your disappointed.
Here are the symptoms of pregnancy:
-Hungry more often
-Tired more often
-Weird dreams
-Chest hurts
-Your late....
Hungry more often? Sometimes your metabolism changes and your just hungrier. Also it just being your time makes you hungrier.
Tired more often? Well if your working a lot you would be more tired. Or if you are working out a lot you could/would be more tired.
Weird dreams? Can be caused by working too much, not eating/drinking enough or even not sleeping enough.
Chest hurts? Most girls I know chest hurts during their regular cycle. So knowing whether your chest hurts because your pregnant or its that time....who knows
and your late...the tall tale sign for most women that your pregnant. Unfortunately for those like me who are irregular...that does not mean anything. My poor app on my phone cant even guess when I am ovulating because I am so irregular. Some months 5 days late, some 7, some 4 days early. One big mess.
So when you have all these symptoms it is hard enough not to get your hopes up each month in preparation of the negative test without telling anyone. But as soon as you mention something to someone, they jump to pregnancy and because someone else has confirmed your hope...it makes it almost impossible to not hope that you are pregnant.
We have only been trying for about 5 months. I have had these symptoms each month...and even taken a few tests and all have been coming up negative. I have always felt bad for those women who have to go through years of trying before getting a miracle or unfortunately never getting that miracle but even after 5 months of this I am starting to truly understand their pain. I am hoping I wont have to go down the same path they do...but this stinks. Not being able to talk to anyone...someone, regarding what is going on without getting your hopes up and then ultimately being disappointed is awful. Plus you don't want to get your friends/family hopes up either.
So in this whole process you are by yourself until that miracle finally...hopefully happens.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Life with Bailey: Carriage Rides
I am going to talk about the carriage ride with help from Bailey.
One of the great things about being in downtown Charleston is the carriage rides often go by my parents house. We don't know what route it is but one route has the tour going right by the house.
Bailey loves it! She waits on the porch and barks at them as they go by. Mommy just told me that she saw mr. Bill!
Mr Bill is awesome! He had such personality! He pranced down the streets and was quite impatient at some stops but it was so cute. He had us laughing the whole trip. The tour guide said he could get a ticket with mr. Bill because of how fast he can get. Mr. Bill also apparently only behaves with girl tour guides and our guide was a boy. I am not sure if I'd want to be on a tour with mr. Bill and a girl tour guide. I had too much fun with him miss behaving!
I was able to get a picture of mr. Bill. I did this post on my phone so I'm not sure where it will be placed. I am also including a picture of Bailey and Benjamin.
One of the great things about being in downtown Charleston is the carriage rides often go by my parents house. We don't know what route it is but one route has the tour going right by the house.
Bailey loves it! She waits on the porch and barks at them as they go by. Mommy just told me that she saw mr. Bill!
Mr Bill is awesome! He had such personality! He pranced down the streets and was quite impatient at some stops but it was so cute. He had us laughing the whole trip. The tour guide said he could get a ticket with mr. Bill because of how fast he can get. Mr. Bill also apparently only behaves with girl tour guides and our guide was a boy. I am not sure if I'd want to be on a tour with mr. Bill and a girl tour guide. I had too much fun with him miss behaving!
I was able to get a picture of mr. Bill. I did this post on my phone so I'm not sure where it will be placed. I am also including a picture of Bailey and Benjamin.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
All good things must come to an end....
Brian and I had a wonderful vacation with each other. We get everything we wanted to get done and more. Well, almost everything. While we were in Charleston we were supposed to go on a boat cruise but it started raining so we decided to skip that. I was starting not to feel so great and have typically not done well on boats when the weather is bad so I didn't want to ruin the experience by possibly getting sick. So we still have to do that when the weather is nicer. We went on a carriage ride which was really fun and our horse, Mr. Bill, was the best. He had the best personality! Our carpets, wood and tile are so clean. Almost everything is put back in its place and we are settling back in to normal life.
We have purchased tickets to see the Trans Siberian Orchestra in Greenville for this upcoming November. We are really excited about that. We got the section we wanted as well! The key to Trans Siberian is that you dont want to be on the floor because it will be hard to see the stage and the people as they walk above you. This show is just about the visual lights as it is the sound. You also dont want to be to high or to far on the other side of the arena. You also dont want to be right on one side next to the stage. The musicians spend a lot of time on the stage but they also walk out into the audience a bit and if your right by the stage you will miss what they do in the audience. We think the best area is the lower level one block in from the stage. so not 101 but 102 in our case. We were in section 103 which was great especially since we didnt know what we were about to experience so we are very close to where we were before but just a bit closer to the stage so we can see them on stage better but not so close to the stage where we cant see what they do in the audience. We are SO excited about this trip. We love Trans Siberian Orchestra.
Work is going well. Exciting really but I will post about that when everything is all said and done. Monday was a bit rough as a first day back. Nothing really bad happened but it was a LONG day. We had mandatory overtime so i ended up with a 12 hour day. This week is flying by and there is mandatory overtime this Saturday and next so yay extra money!!! Brian's student loans will be paid off that much sooner.
We did come to the decision regarding extra money towards house vs student loans but that deserves a post in itself. I am pleased we came to a decision and can start working with that in mind.
I am starting to get ready for Christmas. I have all the Christmas cards ready I just need the letters and those will be ready to be sent out. I also have about half of the Christmas gifts that I just need to order. I still need to make the other portion and of course mail them out.
I started the photo book detailing the house being built but that book is going to be exhausting as the pictures have to go in a specific order and remembering the order and finding the appropriate pictures is draining. I have them organized by week but not by location within the week, hind sight is 20X20. I am going to work on that more after all Christmas gifts are ordered/sent.
Wedding album is back on hold as the two books my mom gave are not going to work. One is broken (I am hoping its a fluke and not to come of the books I have already made) and the other is partially full with more pictures of me! I am going to use the rest of that book to put random pictures I have been saving.
I think that is it....tomorrow I am hoping to post more about Mr. Bill and later this week about our house vs student loan decision.
We have purchased tickets to see the Trans Siberian Orchestra in Greenville for this upcoming November. We are really excited about that. We got the section we wanted as well! The key to Trans Siberian is that you dont want to be on the floor because it will be hard to see the stage and the people as they walk above you. This show is just about the visual lights as it is the sound. You also dont want to be to high or to far on the other side of the arena. You also dont want to be right on one side next to the stage. The musicians spend a lot of time on the stage but they also walk out into the audience a bit and if your right by the stage you will miss what they do in the audience. We think the best area is the lower level one block in from the stage. so not 101 but 102 in our case. We were in section 103 which was great especially since we didnt know what we were about to experience so we are very close to where we were before but just a bit closer to the stage so we can see them on stage better but not so close to the stage where we cant see what they do in the audience. We are SO excited about this trip. We love Trans Siberian Orchestra.
Work is going well. Exciting really but I will post about that when everything is all said and done. Monday was a bit rough as a first day back. Nothing really bad happened but it was a LONG day. We had mandatory overtime so i ended up with a 12 hour day. This week is flying by and there is mandatory overtime this Saturday and next so yay extra money!!! Brian's student loans will be paid off that much sooner.
We did come to the decision regarding extra money towards house vs student loans but that deserves a post in itself. I am pleased we came to a decision and can start working with that in mind.
I am starting to get ready for Christmas. I have all the Christmas cards ready I just need the letters and those will be ready to be sent out. I also have about half of the Christmas gifts that I just need to order. I still need to make the other portion and of course mail them out.
I started the photo book detailing the house being built but that book is going to be exhausting as the pictures have to go in a specific order and remembering the order and finding the appropriate pictures is draining. I have them organized by week but not by location within the week, hind sight is 20X20. I am going to work on that more after all Christmas gifts are ordered/sent.
Wedding album is back on hold as the two books my mom gave are not going to work. One is broken (I am hoping its a fluke and not to come of the books I have already made) and the other is partially full with more pictures of me! I am going to use the rest of that book to put random pictures I have been saving.
I think that is it....tomorrow I am hoping to post more about Mr. Bill and later this week about our house vs student loan decision.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Ahhh Vacation!
Brian and I are on vacation until 9.10.12! It is the first time either of us has been on vacation for so long! It is only Sunday so we do not feel like we are on vacation but come Tuesday it will start to sink in.
So what are our plans for the week?
Yesterday, Saturday, we hung blinds in the garage to save the epoxy and cool the garage which hopefully help lower the electric bill. We also made ribs, tea (which has been finished), went to home depot to get the blinds but also the paint we need for the bedroom, lowes to get a new filter for the fridge and the grocery store.
Today, Sunday, is a regularly planned Sunday. Brian plays his game all day while I watch tv and work on crafts. Today for lunch I am making Teriyaki pork tenderloin in the crock pot. I got this recipe and 4 others from a website. In one hour prep time you make 5 meals, freeze them and cook them frozen the day you want to eat it. So far every recipe has been good and very versatile, cheap and easy!
Tomorrow, Monday, we haven't really planned anything. Dishes, clean the bathroom and the linoleum and some organization.
Tuesday, 9.4.12, Mock Turkey Day with Mom and Dad. Mom and Dad are coming up and Brian and I are making Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and mouse. Mom and Dad are bringing salad and a vegetable. We still have the turkey from last turkey day so we are eating it now so I can have practice when Thanksgiving comes around.
Wednesday, 9.5.12, Brian and I both have dentist appointments and I have an ENT appointment. After that we are going to vacuum the carpeting and sweep the tile/wood floors. We are also going to move furniture around in preparation for Thursday.
Thursday, 9.6.12, we are getting the carpet, tile, wood floors, sofa, love seat, and the big chair cleaned professionally. We have built the money into our budget as part of being homeowners. We figure if we keep them cleaned and taken care of we wont have to replace them as soon as the house ages. We have also had so many construction workers in and out of the house and the house is newly built so we still have the construction dust in the carpet left over from the house being built. No matter how much I vacuum I wont feel the house is free from construction until we have professionals come in to get all that gook out. After the carpet/tile/wood/furniture gets cleaned Brian and I are going to Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch and eating all you can eat wings. They have all you can eat wings every weekday for lunch and Brian and I have always wanted to do it but we have always been working. After lunch it is Charleston bound! They are doing restaurant week and hopefully Thursday we will be able to get a reservation some where.
Friday, 9.7.12, hang out with Mom and Dad in Charleston. Help Mom paint, play with the puppies, just hang out
Saturday, 9.8.12, Leave Charleston after lunch sometime, go grocery shopping and head home :(
Sunday, 9.9.12, Regular planned Sunday as we get ready to go back to work on Monday
So what are our plans for the week?
Yesterday, Saturday, we hung blinds in the garage to save the epoxy and cool the garage which hopefully help lower the electric bill. We also made ribs, tea (which has been finished), went to home depot to get the blinds but also the paint we need for the bedroom, lowes to get a new filter for the fridge and the grocery store.
Today, Sunday, is a regularly planned Sunday. Brian plays his game all day while I watch tv and work on crafts. Today for lunch I am making Teriyaki pork tenderloin in the crock pot. I got this recipe and 4 others from a website. In one hour prep time you make 5 meals, freeze them and cook them frozen the day you want to eat it. So far every recipe has been good and very versatile, cheap and easy!
Tomorrow, Monday, we haven't really planned anything. Dishes, clean the bathroom and the linoleum and some organization.
Tuesday, 9.4.12, Mock Turkey Day with Mom and Dad. Mom and Dad are coming up and Brian and I are making Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and mouse. Mom and Dad are bringing salad and a vegetable. We still have the turkey from last turkey day so we are eating it now so I can have practice when Thanksgiving comes around.
Wednesday, 9.5.12, Brian and I both have dentist appointments and I have an ENT appointment. After that we are going to vacuum the carpeting and sweep the tile/wood floors. We are also going to move furniture around in preparation for Thursday.
Thursday, 9.6.12, we are getting the carpet, tile, wood floors, sofa, love seat, and the big chair cleaned professionally. We have built the money into our budget as part of being homeowners. We figure if we keep them cleaned and taken care of we wont have to replace them as soon as the house ages. We have also had so many construction workers in and out of the house and the house is newly built so we still have the construction dust in the carpet left over from the house being built. No matter how much I vacuum I wont feel the house is free from construction until we have professionals come in to get all that gook out. After the carpet/tile/wood/furniture gets cleaned Brian and I are going to Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch and eating all you can eat wings. They have all you can eat wings every weekday for lunch and Brian and I have always wanted to do it but we have always been working. After lunch it is Charleston bound! They are doing restaurant week and hopefully Thursday we will be able to get a reservation some where.
Friday, 9.7.12, hang out with Mom and Dad in Charleston. Help Mom paint, play with the puppies, just hang out
Saturday, 9.8.12, Leave Charleston after lunch sometime, go grocery shopping and head home :(
Sunday, 9.9.12, Regular planned Sunday as we get ready to go back to work on Monday
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