I Rock!

I am definitely not a crafty person, but I am pretty proud of this concoction. I took an old shirt of Ben's and turned it into a dress for Audra! How cool is that?!?

This is Ben wearing the shirt back in 2007 (doesn't he look so young?):

 This is the shirt re-purposed as a dress for Audra after Ben wore out the elbows and couldn't wear it anymore:

 Claire wanted to get in on the photo action:

 

This is the original idea, which you can find HERE.Sometimes Pinterest does work out.

Admittedly, hers turned out better. But, I took a shortcut and went with the belt because I didn't have elastic thread to do the shirring, and I got impatient (as often happens when I sew), so I went with the belt. I think it still looks cute. I also took a shortcut on the sleeves. I like her ruffle sleeves better, but again I went with a shortcut. I am really not good at sewing at all, so when I had Audra try on the dress and realized the way I cut the shirt made a nice little cuff sleeve, I decided to just leave it.

I wouldn't say that this is a nice church dress or anything, but it is a perfect everyday play in dress- which she happens to need a lot of. Next time I want to try the shirring. I just need Ben to wear out some more shirts!

Ben's Birthday

This year may have been Ben's favorite Birthday since we got married. Why? Because I did practically nothing for it.

Normally, I like to do something big- a cruise to the Carribean, a trip to the Broadmoor, a surprise party with a gift of a Wii, but Ben never seems to really like it. We are different in that regard. I like big. He likes to stay home and relax.

So this year we kept things really simple. In fact, I don't even know what I got him for his Birthday. He found something on-line he wanted (some kind of USB something or other) and he ordered it for himself and that was that.

I did wake up early and make him his favorite breakfast (the baked pancake I raved about HERE). If you know me, you know that was a great sacrifice. I am SOOOOO not a morning person!

 Audra made him a really cute sign that we hung up:

 (I know it is hard to see, but I still want to remember it in years to come):

 Here is Ben with the gift my mom got him: Will To Win: How Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos Made 2011 A Season To Remember. Based on what has happened the last couple of weeks, I am really glad he got this book.

 As a special Birthday treat, I made him a "Chocolate Chip Molten Lava Cookie." For those of you who do not know Ben, chocolate chip cookies solve ALL of Ben's problems. If you get in a fight, need to tell him  you're pregnant- whatever it is, chocolate chip cookies make it all better. So on pinterest I found this recipe and thought I would give it a try. It didn't work out too well- though it looked really pretty, it was pretty raw in the middle. I don't know if I will try it again.

Then, like most good wives on their husbands' Birthday, I left Ben for the night so I could go to book club and he could enjoy his Birthday night alone.

Do not be too sad. He got to play his new computer game that his parents bought him for his Birthday all night long while I was gone, so really, truly- I think this was his best Birthday ever.

Happy Birthday, Hon- I love you!

So Sad

Ben and I are both really, really sad to see Tim Tebow go. You have to have lived here last year to truly understand "Tebowmania" and how much FUN it was to watch this guy play. We could be down by 20 points with 3 minutes left in the game, and you still thought we would win- and often we did.

And beating the Steelers in the play-offs? People were letting off fireworks and everyone was partying and so excited- it was awesome. Truly, I have never seen anything like it in my life.

Of course, he is being replaced by "Peyton Freakin' Manning" which is exciting in it's own way, but it won't be nearly as exciting as the 2011 season- unless we actually do win the super bowl.

We will miss you, Tebow. Thanks for the great season last year- we will always be your fans!

Some Questions...

Alright, now that Mr. Money Mustache has completely convinced me that I am an over consuming spending monster, it is perhaps time Ben and I buckle down and come up with some concrete plans. But I have some questions for those of you who are smarter than I (and when it comes to investing, I am pretty sure that most of you are smarter than me!).

I'm trying to figure out 529s. I talked to a financial planner today and tried to get some explanations, but I am still confused. If you have a 529, can you help me out???? Here are my questions:

1. He said that amounts contributed were tax-deferred, but that when used on education you didn't have to pay taxes on it either. He made it sound like you never had to pay taxes on the money you put into this fund. Is that true? If so, how does it work- is it a deduction on your taxes, or does it somehow come out of your paycheck pre-tax like a 401K?

2. This company the planner works for uses a fund called AmeriFund, which is apparently a pretty big fund place thingy (how do you like that jargon?). The fees are 5.7% of the money you put in, up to a certain amount when the fees get lowered. That seems very high to me, but I really have nothing to compare it against. They seem especially high because he said a 6-8% return rate is good. That is a pretty low overall return rate- unless, you really do never pay taxes on any of that money, thus saving you 15% right off the top. Right? Not right?

My next question is about a ROTH IRA. We have one that we have been putting a little into, then somebody told me today you can deduct the money you put into that on your taxes. Is that right? I thought a ROTH was after-tax money and you paid taxes on it upon distribution.

So many questions....this investing stuff is tough! No wonder it is so hard to get started. But, I am proud to say that I have about 6 investing books on hold at the library to hopefully try and figure out some of the basics. We'll see.

If the end of the world happens soon, I suppose none of this will matter anyway.

Leprechaun Hunt

Ben and I had a great idea: We would take the kids on a hike to enjoy the beautiful springtime weather. We had such illusions that it would be wonderful- we would be the perfect little family out for a stroll.

Then reality hit- and it hit us hard.

This morning started out well enough. I made green pancakes which the girls thought were the best thing ever, and green juice which Ben refused to drink because it was "disgusting" (has he never had green Kool-Aid?).

Audra was so excited to go for a hike. She kept saying, "We're going to St. Patrick's Day!" Obviously, she does not grasp the concept of St. Patrick's Day, but it was still cute.

We headed up to Waterton Canyon, got the stroller out, and then the torture began.

Audra whined and cried the ENTIRE TIME. Claire dilly-dallied so much it literally took us about 2 hours to go 200 yards. Audra refused to walk, insisting on being in the stroller and refusing to give Claire a turn in the stroller. Everything became a major battle, and Ben and I regretted not only going on a walk but in the decision to have had children in the first place. On the ride home Claire yelled at Audra to stop talking to her and Audra responded by saying, "I'm not talking to you- I am talking to my mouth." So went our day.


I tried to get at least a few pictures to document our day. All in all, though, this is a walk we want to forget.

 On a side note, the girls spent about 20 minutes with dad this morning trying to find green clothes for St. Patrick's Day. We own mostly pinks and purples so it was tough, but in the end they did a great job.

I tried to make the walk more exciting by telling Audra we were going on a "Leprechaun Hunt" and that we had to look hard because leprechaun's were great at hiding and thought it was funny to hide from us. It worked for about 5 minutes. She told me she saw lots of leprechauns. I am not sure if she really did or not, but we did find some other things:

 There are seven deer behind these guys. It was really cool- perhaps the best part of the day. Claire said, "I want to pet the reindeer" (they are not deer to her, only reindeer exist). I said, "You can pet kitties and doggies, but you cannot pet reindeer," to which she responded "I want to pet doggies, and kitties, and reindeer."

 Then, they found a spider that they decided to rescue by helping cross the road so nobody would step on it and kill it. Claire probably scared the spider to death.

 I tried to get a family picture. Take a close look at Ben's face- it pretty much sums up just how we were feeling- "get us out of here NOW!"

Perhaps next St. Patrick's Day will be better...

A New Man In My Life

My friend, Jenny, introduced me to a new man, and I have become quite smitten. His name is "Mr. Money Mustache." I have no idea what he actually looks like or what he is like in real life, just that he has a blog with some interesting theories and a really cool name. You can read it HERE.

He was a software engineer and by the time he turned 30 he and his wife retired.

How did he do this? That is what the blog is all about. I read pretty much the whole thing in two days (thank you, Jenny, for turning me into a useless wife and mother for those 48 hours:)).

Basically, for almost a decade, he lived off of 25% of what he and his wife made (including the mortgage payment!) and put everything else in savings. Now, he lives off the interest of that savings, does whatever odd jobs he feels like doing (it is all his choice if and when and how he wants to work), and stays home with his wife to raise his son.

Sounds pretty good, doesn't it? The idea is fascinating to me.

He is a complete anti-consumerist. Even now- with all of his money (and he now has A LOT of money), he only spends about $27,000/year. Why? Because he has decided that the idea of always buying more and more stuff simply does not make one happy. Which is true. We live in the richest society in the world, but are on more anti-depressants than any other country as well.

He and his wife ride their bikes everywhere- they almost never travel by car. They spend only $30/month on electricity. They don't take exotic vacations- they go camping. He owns one pair of pants that do not have holes in them. But by living this incredibly frugal lifestyle, they give themselves the gift of being able to do whatever they want. They don't have to work- unless they want to- and they are not tied down to STUFF.

I have thought about this a lot the last couple of weeks. It would be SO COOL if Ben could quit and hang out with us all day!

But, I have one small problem: I really like the lifestyle we live.

I like our house. I like being able to go out to dinner with friends if I want to. I like date nights. Ben and I are very happy right now at this place in our lives. If we cut out all spending like he advocates-  no cable, no TV, no second car, no home renovations, no eating out EVER, etc. we could have Ben quit his job in a few years- but is that really what we want? I don't know.

So we came up with a compromise. What if we could have Ben semi-retire (go part time) in 10 years? That would require some sacrifices, and we would have to do two main things:

1. Pay off the house
2. Have a couple hundred thousand in savings for emergencies, etc.

How do you do that in 10 years?!? I really don't know if we could ever do that-  unless we did cut all excess spending, which I am not sure we want to do. I am a very frugal person, but frugal enough to put THOUSANDS in savings every month, not just a couple hundred? Hmm...

Which brings me to another point: He insists that we should have our money in a fund that earns 12% interest a year. WHAT?!?

Are any of you earning 12% a year on any kind of investment right now???? If you are, please let me know and tell me your secrets. The absolute best funds I am seeing are at about 3.5%! Speaking of which, where do you put your savings investments- not your retirement fund, but your emergency fund- or as I like to call it "Early semi-retirement Fund"? I'm curious because when it comes to investing I am pretty much an idiot. I am great at saving money, not good at all at investing money.

Anyway, his blog is very interesting. Some definite food for thought.

A Nice Arrangement

We live next door to a wonderful couple- who happen to be grandparents with no kids at home. They are the friendliest people- in fact, when we moved into the neighborhood they were the only ones to welcome us and come introduce themselves. We really like them.

In their backyard, they happen to have a play structure. This is so great on so many levels. They have told us again and again to never knock, but to let the girls come and play. As Ginger always tells me, "it's there! They are more than welcome to use it whenever they want it!"

This means we don't have to buy one! How perfect!

It is so nice to be able to let them just walk over and go play in their backyard. Often Audra will go over while Claire is napping. I can easily watch them from my kitchen/deck (since our houses are only about 3 feet apart from each other), and on a day like today when I promised them they could go to the park but then Claire (and I) took longer naps then expected, they can go to the neighbors and I can still get dinner done.

Such a simple blessing, but I am grateful to have Ginger and Jim as neighbors- and their playground!

Sunday Stroll

FINALLY the weather was not only warm enough to go for a walk, but also the snow had mostly melted so the trails were all clear. We have 1 o'clock church time, which totally stinks, so we decided to take a nice morning stroll to try and kill some time. It was nice, and I got some GREAT pictures! Admittedly, though, I mostly wanted to get a good picture of Claire because she actually let me do her hair and it looked SO GOOD! So most of the pictures are of her.

Projects

I have been having some fun working on some projects this past week. I have been wanting to try some new things, so this week I found some ideas and gave them a go. I think they turned out quite well.

This first one I am super excited about: flannel board stories! A set of Book of Mormon stories cost hundreds of dollars if you purchase them pre-made, but I am making them for about 30-40 bucks. Not super cheap, but definitely cheaper than on-line. Just a flannel board on-line can cost 70 dollars, but I made mine for 4 dollars- not bad, eh? You can make flannel board stories for virtually anything, which is what is most exciting: Old Testament, New Testament, or even fairy tale stories or educational games. The opportunities are endless! 

 Then, I made Audra some more file folder games. I tried to make more educational ones. There are hundreds of file folder games on-line ranging from toddler themed to 6th grade advanced science. What a great resource! The girls love these games, and they are perfect for church or whatever.

 And then, I really got out of my element and made some baby flannel blankets. Whew! That took some courage, but I love how they turned out! So, if you are having a baby anytime soon, now you know what your gift will be. I have LOVED every one of the homemade baby gifts I have gotten, and now I LOVE them even more! Who doesn't love a handmade gift? Well, as long as you are not a type A personality when it comes to perfect seams/stitches. If you are, let me know, because you may not like the quilts I make.

But here are some questions for my more seasoned crafters:

1. Is it worth buying a laminator? Right now I am using contact paper, which works great, but doesn't look as nice. How expensive are laminators with the lamination equipment? Worth the investment or not?

2. The blankets I made are 36 x 45 inches. Do you think I need to tie them at all, or are they small enough to not need it?

3. When I sewed the quilts, the top fabric would bunch slightly and cause there to be little puckers. How do you avoid that?

4. I  bought like 15 yards of flannel from Jo-Anns, and then this week it is on sale for a $1.50 less a yard then last week. Will they reimburse me the difference if I bring in my receipts? I know some stores will do that and some don't- anybody have experience with Jo-Anns in that regard?

Going's On

We are still alive over here.

I am just EXHAUSTED. Absolutely, extremely, walking in a comatose state constantly exhausted.

I don't remember being THIS tired during my other pregnancies. I remember having trouble sleeping. But, I don't remember being lucky to get 4 hours of very interrupted sleep- which is about my average lately.

My doctor told me to start taking Unisom, and I have. But then I seem to wake up more groggy than usual which I don't like. However, it does lead to much better sleep- so it's a trade off. I took Benadryl last night, and I didn't wake up too groggy, but I didn't get as good of sleep either. It's a lose-lose situation.

And the kids- especially Audra- are starting to notice.

The other day she asked me if we could get a baby-sitter for when I was resting. I take a nap pretty much every day now, because I can barely stand up if I don't at least have a nap to look forward to. That made me feel like a pretty bad mom. It's not like she is neglected or anything- we still play games, color, do lots of activities together- it's just she gets a little "free time" each afternoon while I try to regroup to get through the rest of the day.

I shouldn't complain. I know things could be so much worse! Sheer exhaustion is not the worst thing in the world, it just compounds everything and makes everything else go a lot less smoothly.

Like cleaning. Why are there ALWAYS dishes in the sink, even mere seconds after I just finished doing dishes? And I swear our laundry has quadrupled in the past couple of months. Thankfully, Ben is great about helping around the house. Poor guy. He gets to go to work all day, then come home and help clean, and take care of the kiddos.

I am definitely lacking motivation at the moment. Exhaustion will do that to you.

Maybe it's the weather, too. It has been really cold and more snowy around these parts than usual so we haven't been able to get out and play. That's always rough for girls who are used to running around and getting their energy out.

It will all be good. Being pregnant just stinks, and I have easy pregnancies! Why, oh why, do we women continually do this to ourselves?!?

Here's hoping for a better nights sleep tonight!

To end this rather negative post, I'll leave you some pictures of the cuties. Which, I suppose, is the reason we do this to ourselves:

 Above: Audra coming out of her blanket fort. Blanket forts are made at least 3 times a day in our house.

Below: Claire shouting hooray at the end of singing "Happy Birthday" to grandma.