It’ll Never Be Me, But..

I fully expect that by the time my husband and I are of retirement age, we’ll be getting next to nothing. But I read today that there is good news for people currently getting social security disability benefits. Apparently, as part of the economic recovery bill, people who already get these benefits will receive an extra one-time $250 payment. I guess some people might thing “So what?” but in my mind, it’s better than nothing! That’s an extra month’s worth of groceries, or perhaps even some money for prescriptions. A little bit can go a long way if you’re careful about it.

That’s the Way It Goes

It seems like so many people are moving these days. Quite a few of my blog friends have either moved in the last couple of months, or are considering a move before the end of the year. Today in Jake’s class they’re having a party for one of his classmates who is moving to Texas. He wasn’t best friends with her or anything, but I know he’ll miss her. I’m not exactly sure when the moving trucks will be heading south, but today is her last day of school, so I assume it will be soon.

I am happy, though, that we’re staying put. I’d hate having to sell a house right now. Things are getting better, that’s true, but… still. It’s just not something I’d want to be dealing with.

One of Those Days

I’m having one of those days. Yes, those days. If you are a mom (or dad), you probably know what I mean. It seems like everyone in the house has been sick for at least a month. The boys are irritated that I won’t let them run around (because when they do, they start coughing). I’m running out of good ideas for interesting ways for them to spend time. And really, I’m just tired. I’m 29 weeks pregnant — I think I’m allowed a break!

Even though it’s officially spring, it’s still pretty chilly out and I would love to just get away for a couple days. I’d love to have the  funds and the time to just jet off to California and see something new and different. I’d love to stay in a downtown San Diego hotel, sightsee, dine at some great restaurants, and just relax. Sounds heavenly, doesn’t it? Alas… I think my “escape” this afternoon will be with a decaf mocha and some crafting or reading. (We rented the movie “Bolt” for the boys, so hopefully that will hold their interest for a while). Still, I’ll be California dreamin’.

What To Do…

One of the problems with electronics, at least in my mind, is what to do with them after they’ve broken. Case in point: my old Canon camera. It was a great little camera and it served me well for a few years, but I think I just beat the heck out of it and it no longer works at all. I have to find a place where I can drop it off for disposal or recycling because I know you really shouldn’t just toss that kind of stuff in with the regular garbage. I wish it still worked a little bit, because it would be great for Jake to use. Anyway, one of my projects for the week is to look up info on someplace I can bring it. Wish me luck!

New Laptop!

I am so excited about the new laptop I got this weekend! Drew suprised me with it, even though it’s something we’d been talking about. He happened to find a great deal and decided to act on it. This little guy has plenty of storage space for my needs (for now), but I know that I can get a memory upgrade if I need to. I only use the computer for basic Web surfing, blogging, e-mailing, and writing my newspaper articles. I’m certainly not a power-user by any means! I guess the biggest memory hog is photo storage, but if I’m pro-active about backing up my photos on DVD, then that shouldn’t be a huge issue.

Summer “Staycation”

So, in addition to trying to just get all the basics organized for the birth of baby number three in early June, I’m also trying to think of fun things for the boys to do. For the first month I won’t be much fun unless I have some kind of plan. Since we won’t really be going on any kind of vacation, I was thinking of doing “virtual” vacations with the boys. They can learn about different countries and cultures, customs, foods, all that sort of thing. Maybe make Friday night “around the world” night or something like that. We could, of course, do some great American destinations like the Grand Canyon, but we could also venture to more exotic locations — perhaps explore some Machu Picchu travel ideas. Of course, we’ll see how much energy I have for all this with a newborn, but hopefully we can do this at least a couple times.

All The Pretty Horsies

When we moved up here, I knew there were a lot of horse farms, but I guess I began to take it for granted. I drive by them every day and for the most part, I barely notice. But last Saturday when we were driving to an open house for the nursery school Noah will be attending in the fall, it really struck me! Within just a couple miles of road, there have to be at least four or five large horse farms (complete with enormous homes for the owners!). I imagine that they must have some pretty nice equestrian apparel in their closets. It’s apparent that whoever owns these farms certainly have money. They’re not small-time ranchers or anything! I do love seeing the horses out when I’m driving by, though. Such peaceful looking animals!

Pain in the Tooth

Poor Drew. Over the past two months he’s had some extensive dental work done and it finally finished up last week. He had a few fillings that needed to be replaced, and his wisdom teeth needed to be drilled. (His former dentist should have yanked them years ago when he had an infection, but for whatever reason that guy never did it.) At any rate, he’s been making it a priority this year to get all that stuff taken care of. The only thing is that now his teeth are really sensitive (he also has some sinus issues going on right now and that is making it worse). I feel so bad because really there’s nothing I can do for him.

Next on his list is getting a physical, which he hasn’t done in ages. (Nor have I, to be fair.) Yesterday he mentioned that once that’s all in check it might be a good idea to look into some term life insurance comparisons and see what makes sense for us. I know he hates doing all this stuff, but I’m glad that he’s making his health a priority this year. We are one of the few people we know in our thirties who aren’t on any kind of prescriptions whatsoever, and we’d like it to stay that way!

Sew what?

I’m torn. I’ve been thinking about buying a sewing machine for quite some time now. With our federal tax refund Drew bought a lot of new equipment for his home studio, and today our state refund came through and he told me that I should research sewing machines and buy myself one. On the one hand, I am of course thrilled! On the other hand… is it really something I need? I’m such a cheapskate sometimes (OK, most of the time), and I’m always second-guessing my purchases. I shop around for everything, from groceries to auto insurance quotes. Still, it’s so tempting… Maybe if I can find a good deal on a quality machine I’ll go for it. (It would be nice to make more gifts, and that’s certainly frugal don’t you think?)

Back from vacation

Well, we’ve actually been home since Friday, but I’ve been trying to catch up on laundry and grocery shopping and all that good stuff. We had such a great time. Now that Noah is a little older we were able to participate in a lot more activities like the family olympics, the snow tube contests, and even seeing some of the shows. And for less than $1,000 for the four of us for the week (meals included), I think we really scored!

Now the boys are talking about Disneyland, LOL! I don’t see us heading out west anytime soon, but if we ever do, I hope we can find as good of a deal on an Anaheim California hotel. Disneyworld in Florida is a bit more likely since Drew’s dad lives in Miami, but still… With baby number three on the way, I don’t think I’ll be in a hurry to travel again anytime soon!