a letter to my 25 year old self

Dear Quinn,

It might be hard for you to wrap your head around, but in 5 short years you’ll be a full time stay at home mom with a 3 year old and a 1 year old. Those two little ladies will bring you more joy and more worries than you ever thought possible. It sounds great, doesn’t it? You don’t have to go to work everyday! No more workplace drama and meaningless customer complaints. Just relaxing and playing with your kids everyday. Oh, man. I wish you knew…

Yes, watching your children learn and grow each day is incredible, but it is also a lot of work. Work that has no 15 minute coffee breaks or end of the day cocktail hours with coworkers. This will just be a different stage in your life, no better or worse than before, just different.

While I’m sure you are having a blast down in Alabama and your stubborn tendancies will not likely take any of this advice easily, I wish you knew...

Shopping is one of our favorite things to do. Finding that adorable new dress or perfect pair of trendy shoes brings us joy, but I wouldn’t waste your money on fancy things. Pretty soon, you’ll be comfortable reveling in the moment wearing one of your 4 or 5 go-to mommy uniforms. Something that isn’t necessarily trendy, but fits you and your style + is comfortable throughout the day and makes you look pulled together when you feel like a hot mess.

While we’re on the subject of wasting your money, lets talk a little bit about how much money you’re spending eating out. Birmingham surprisingly has some amazing cuisine, it’s true, but there is simply no need to eat out every single night. Trade that in for cooking at home the majority of the time. That condo kitchen may be tiny, but spend a little time in there and learn how to cook a few recipes until you are a master chef (or at least have a handful of recipes memorized). You’ll thank me in a few years when you suddenly realize that it 4 o’clock and you have yet to plan dinner. You will easily be able to pull from your catalog of tested recipes instead of reaching for that store bought pizza at the back of the freezer.

You're not going to want to hear this one, but I strongly encourage you to take a look at your bank account. You are making a lot of money (compared to the zero you’ll be making as a stay at home mom) and it doesn’t look like you’re saving much, if any. Why not skip the bars this weekend? The amount of money you’re spending on alcohol will shock you in 5 years! (Also, in 5 years you’ll get drunk off of just 2 glasses of wine and suffer a horrible hangover after 3.) You are probably thinking that you’ll have plenty of time to build up that nest egg and you’d rather have fun now, I wish you knew...

Here’s a thought. If you insist on wasting your money, waste it on something good. All of the money you’ve wasted on clothes + restaurants + bars in your early 20s could have paid for many trips off your bucket list. Waste your money on experiences now as those experiences will be much different when you have kids to consider. Then, when you look back on the days as a newlywed, you’ll think less of the wasted money and more about the experiences you shared with your new husband.

Money will not bring you happiness, but having a little cushion of it will bring you much comfort when you are not the only one you need to support. I know it’s hard to look towards the future now, during your first real moment of independence. I’ve been there, I know. I also know how stubborn you are and that you’ll probably decline this advice with a bit of know-it-all attitude, but I just wanted you to know.

In the end, it will all turn out alright. You and your husband will work through the hard bits and live a comfortable life (even if you’ll still be paying those student loans off until eternity!). In five years, everything will be different. Not better or worse, just different and you’ll love every bit of the journey (even the hard bits). Trust me, I know.

Sincerely,

Your 30 year old self

Crafting for Cause

I have lots to update and talk about, but nothing has really felt right to post since the tragedy in Connecticut.  My prayers go out to all of the families affected by this horrible event.

Lindsay from The Life Muse has come up with a lovely way for fellow Etsy sellers to help those affected by the Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting.  This week, several Etsy shops will be donating a portion of their sales to 'United Way of Western Connecticut', the official relief fund of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

Kimchi & Sweet Tea will be donating 100% of profits this week to help out.  You can find a list of other Etsy sellers willing to donate their proceeds here.

Is Walmart the new Target?

So, I got an email today from Walmart.com... Normally, I just click delete or send it to SPAM, but the dresses in the email actually looked kinda cute.  Am I crazy?  I am use to Walmart being the land of trailer park fashions and cheap halloween costumes.  Not cute clothes for a great price!

I am trying not to shop a lot this summer, but I was curious and decided to do a little window shopping and compare Walmart to (everyone's favorite big box store) Target.  I was very surprised by the cute stuff that Walmart has this summer and thrilled with the rock bottom prices.  Maybe my summer shopping ban will be lifted after all...

Walmart still has a long way to go to become the next Target, but I might be willing to sift through the fashions at Walmart to save a few bucks.  After all, why spend lots of money on something that will be out of fashion next year!?

Happy Shopping! & Enjoy this great weather before it gets too hot!

A FREE Concert & the State Fair

This is going to be a fun weekend in Durham!  You will be able to gain entry into the NC State Fair for FREE tomorrow (Thursday) and you can attend a FREE concert on Friday!

We have already been to the State Fair this year (see here), so we will probably skip out on the fair fun tomorrow.  If you want to brave the crowds tomorrow, just bring in 4 Food Lion brand canned goods per person to get in for FREE.  Also, please do not pay for parking!  You can park for FREE too.

On Friday, we are going to try to go to 3rd Friday Concert series put on by Music Explorium.  It looks like tons of fun... with drummers, a ukulele band, a New Orleans style parade, and a drum circle for all the kiddos.




Details:  3rd Friday Concert Series
When:  October 21 (Friday) 6pm- 8pm

Where:  Durham Centre Plaza (Roof of Parking Deck) 300 W. Morgan Street

What to Expect:  Music Explorium will host local, community music groups performing a variety of music styles on drums, ukuleles, accordions, horns, and voice.  The event will end with an all-ages participatory drum circle.

Satisfying an Independent Eater

Ellington is finally eating solid foods!  For a while, I thought she might be eating milk until she went to high school...  why did I think this?  Well, Ellington refused to eat pureed anything!  We tried bananas, sweet potatoes, pears, peas, squash, apple sauce, cereals & nothing was to her liking.  See the evidence below:

She would take a few bites and then lock her mouth shut & throw away the key.  The doctor said that some stubborn more independent babies would not eat purees and, instead, wait to enjoy solid foods when they were able to feed themselves.  Well, she was right!  Unfortunately, Ellington's favorite finger food seems to be teething cookies = $$.

I decided to try out a recipe from Everyday Champagne in an attempt to save a little money, give Elli a healthier version of the store bought teething cookies, & use up some of that baby cereal that I too eagerly stocked up on in the early days of solid food feeding.  It was really easy!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup baby cereal
• 1 cup puree (I used apple sauce)
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp allspice

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl
2. Shape mixture into rectangular shaped cookies & place on baking sheet
3. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes
4. Remove cookies, place on oven-safe cooling pack & return to oven
5. Bake an additional 10 minutes
6. Let the cookies cool & enjoy

They will last on the counter for 3 days & in the fridge for 2 weeks, but I don't think that this batch will last more than a few days with our little cookie monster hanging around.

Check out Abbey at Everyday Champagne.  She has tons of tips on how to make these fantastic cookies for your little one.

Take a Look, It's in a Book

... reading rainbow.  I loved that show!  Speaking of books, the Durham Library is a great place to be this weekend.  They are having their Fall Book Sale, which means you get tons of fantastic books for $1 each.

via

It's not a totally free event (you will have to spend money if you plan on buying any books), but it is well worth a short trip to the library.  If you aren't planning to attend the NC State Fair this weekend, then head down to the main library on Roxboro Street to check out their selection of used books.

While I haven't been to this particular book sale, I did attend a similar event in Alabama.  They had a huge selection of children's books, videos, CDs, and plenty of best sellers & cookbooks.  Personally, I will be going to the book sale on Sunday for the super savers.  You can fill up a bag with as many books as you want for only $7.  Even if all of the good books are gone, you just can't beat that price!

Details:  Durham Library Fall Book Sale

When:  October 14 (Friday) 4-7

            October 15 (Saturday) 10 - 4 

            October 16 (Sunday) 2 - 5  ....$7 Bag Sale!

Where:  Main Library, 300 N. Roxboro Street - Durham, NC 27701

What to Expect:  Thousands of used books, audio books, CDs, and DVDs.  Prices from 50 cents to $1 and don't forget about the $7 bag sale on Sunday. :)

Happy Shopping!

1% Changes - Week Six

This week is going to be a difficult one for my husband. NO SECONDS. It's so easy to gobble up a delicious meal and run back to the stove for more. Instead of doing that this week, we are going to try and plop the leftover into a container as soon as we serve ourselves. This way, we will have something ready to go for tomorrow's lunch and not be as tempted to load up the dinner plate agian.

Hopefully, this 1% change will lead to a heavier wallet and a slimmer waistline. In the words of Thomas the train, "I think I can! I think I can!"

UPDATES

After a wonderful weekend in Charlotte to celebrate Mrs. Yi's birthday, we are now trying to regroup and unpack. Going back home is fun and exhausting because I have to keep up with Ellington's busy visitor schedule. We saw almost everyone that we wanted to see and we even had time for a little photoshoot with Aunt Karl Malone.

A few updates:

*Kogi has no more ticks (see this post)! Yay! & we have a visit with the vet later this week & a visit to the groomer. I am excited, but I haven't told him yet because I am positive that he would protest if he knew where we were going.

*I made the Chicken Marsala AGAIN for the birthday celebration and it was a big hit!

*Couponing (see this post) at Harris Teeter this week was a semi-success. It was Triple Coupon Week (ends on Wednesday)! We only have 1 HT, so thing tend to disappear quickly.

*Ellington is off the waitlist at 2 schools... now I just need a J-O-B! Any takers?

My New Obsession... COUPONING!

I have a confession to make. I am addicted to couponing. :) I never thought that I would be one of those crazy couponing ladies, but that is slowly becoming my reality. The thrill I get when I walk away from the grocery store with FREE stuff makes me want to run and tell everyone I know how much I saved!

I like to do my shopping at night because there are no crowds and I can take my time. Coupons in hand, I love to roam the isles in search of the best deal of the day. Part of my weekly routine involves checking Souther Savers for the best deals of the week. It's a super easy to understand website that matches up coupons to the deals in each store. (sigh) I'm in love!

John hates to shop with me now because I can take up to 2 hours and I don't let him get anything unless it's on sale. A few weeks ago, I got two jars of salsa for a ridiculously low price. When I got home from shopping, John asked where the chips were to eat with the salsa.... duh! They weren't on sale silly. Fortunately for him, I got the chips for free the next week.

I blame my mom and my grandfather for creating this addiction. My mom because she first introduced me to Southern Savers and my grandfather because he did this for most of his life without the internet (it's a hereditary addiction). He was definitely the crazy coupon man. He always had several shoe boxes filled with coupons and a stockpile of laundry detergent that he had previously gotten on sale. As a poor college student, I lovingly referred to his house as the grocery store. Rumor has it that he hoarded household good deals to lure his grandchildren to the house for free stuff. He knew that we could resist a visit with him with the added bonus of FREE stuff.

Websites that Save You Money!

I had heard about this website for a while, but I never looked it up because I thought it would just be another coupon website where I would be left sorting through the junk and wasting my time. However, my sister sent out an email with the groupon.com link & a short explanation. I checked it out and found a GREAT deal for cupcakes at a local bakery. I love this site. Basically, you get an email update with the day's deal for the city of your choice and it cost nothing to sign up.

It seems like I have waited my whole life for someone to invent this website. ShopItToMe.com is like a personal shopper for bargain hunters. I have never been one to search through cluttered clearance racks and find a great deal. I always end up getting frustrated and heading towards the neatly folded table of full priced merchandise. This website not only finds the great deal, but it's FREE. You sign up and decide when you want to recieve your SaleMail, pick your favorite designers & list your sizes. They do all the hard work.

I hope you check out these great sites. What are your favorite money saving websites?