New Year Resolutions

I normally don't make new year resolutions.  I find it to be meaningless, since 99% of the time, I don't keep them.  I don't really like the phrase "new year resolution".  Right off the bat, I think to myself, not gonna keep it.  I just defeated the purpose of the resolution before I started.  Not a really good start.  


I decided this year that calling it a "what I want to accomplish this year" sounds so much better.  It just relieves a lot of stress of having to keep it.  "What I want to accomplish" is more of a check list of things that I want to achieve for the new year. If I can cross a majority of those items off my list, I feel I have succeeded. 


So, for the past couple of days, I have been thinking about the things that I want to accomplish this year.  Some of the things seem to be a continuous battle that I have.  It is one of those, I do really well in the beginning of the year, but towards the middle of the year, priorities change and it just becomes least important.  Until the beginning of the next year, of course.  


So my "What I want to accomplish this year" list is as follows (with some explanations, just because) :


1.  Pay off the car~~We bought a new to us car last year and only had it financed for 2 years.  We have paid for a year now and our goal was always to make payments for a year and then pay it off. This will actually give us a few hundred dollars a month, which will be very helpful.


2.  Pay off our debt~~Not that I need to explain this to anyone, because it is personal, but we owe some money and would really like to get that resolved this year.  This would be a huge weight off my shoulders.  


3.  Put money into savings~~OK, this is one of those continuous battles that I seem to have lately.  A few years back this was a very easy thing for us to do. I guess when you are bringing home more money it is so much easier to save. Now we have found ourselves in a living paycheck to paycheck world and it makes it difficult to save.  I do have some good ways to do this and will share in a later blog.  


4.  Cook a new meal every week~~This is what I would love to do, but honestly, it will probably be more like every 2 weeks, but 2 new recipes a month is still pretty good right?  I think so.  There are a lot of people in this house and everyone eats at different times, so it is hard to find something that I can cook and will stay good for the next 6 hours.  I do have some tricks up my sleeve to make this work, so I feel confident.  


5.  Try Once a Month Cooking~~I know I have blogged about this before, but I would really like to try it.  Doing OAMC would really help with cooking a new meal every week (or two). No real reason why I don't, just laziness, I guess, but would like to accomplish this.


6.  Spend more "quality time" with my family~~Now, I put quality time in quotations because, I do spend a lot of time with my family.  I want it to be more memorable.  My son is getting older and I'm sure pretty soon will begin to want to spend more time with friends than with his parents.  I want to do more things together, instead of just being together.  Movie nights, game nights, bowling, even reading with my son.  Those things I would love to do more.


7.  Blog more~~I like blogging.  I find it enjoyable to be able to express myself in word.  I also like being able to communicate and share my ideas, tips and whatever else I have going on in this head of mine.  My goal is to blog at least three times a week.  We'll see how well I do.  


8.  Try to use more "homemade" cleaning products~~This is one thing that I have started doing already and I have noticed that it has saved money and I feel like I am doing my part in helping the environment.  The latter sounds a little corny, but it makes me feel good, so I don't care.


9.  Recycle more~~I have noticed that since we have moved to California, we haven't been recycling as much as we did.  This actually saddens me.  I know, corny, but we recycled everything in Oregon and now nothing.  It is just sad, so I am changing that this year.


10.  Don't sweat the small stuff~~I tend to forget this motto.  I think it is important to make sure that it is remembered. I tend to get upset very easily and fly off the handle.  Then go back and realize that I could have handled the situation better, and it wasn't that big of a deal anyway.  I need to remember that, I have the love and support of my family and friends and there is nothing more important than that.


11.  Really cherish the people in my life~~This shouldn't be on a list.  This should be something that I do everyday, but I think that sometimes I need to be reminded.  I need to step back and be thankful for all the people in my life and every once in awhile show them how important they are to me.  I have remarkable family and friends and I think they should be aware of that.  

How to Prepare for Parent/Teacher Confrences

Fall, Parent/Teacher conferences are approaching. Mine is this coming Monday.  These are important for us parents. They supply us with much needed information on what is going on in the class and more importantly, how our children are doing.  The conferences also give us the opportunity to have some one on one face time with the teacher and hopefully, form a greatly needed rapport with that teacher. Also, we can share what we expect our child to get out of the school year and let the teacher know what we are doing or what we are willing to do to help out.  


First of all, make a list of questions that you have for the teacher.  Making a list will ensure that you don't forget any important questions or information that you have.  A lot of times, these conferences are scheduled to only allow about 15-30 minutes between conferences, and it is easy to feel rushed.  


Make sure that you stick to what is important, your child and what is going on in the classroom.  This is not the time to ask about what time lunch is, and basic school policy questions.  You can talk to the office staff about that at any time.  These types of questions just waste valuable time.


Make sure you listen carefully to what is being said and try not to be defensive.  Believe me, this one is hard.  It is instinctual for us, as parents to want to defend our children, but make sure you keep an open mind.  If there is some kind of problem, the best thing to do is try to figure out a solution together.  This would be in the best benefit for your child.  Working together with the teacher is going to get better results.


Take a pen and paper with you so that you can take notes. This is important so that you don't forget anything when you leave.  Sometimes, these conferences can become overwhelming.  There is so much information given in a short amount of time and you don't want to forget anything that was said.


Go over the conference with your child when you get home.  Make sure that they understand what is going on, as well as what is expected of them from the teacher and yourself.  This makes sure that everyone is on the same page.  


Keep in touch with the teacher.  Keeping in constant contact with the teacher, even if it is a "How are things going?" when you pick up or drop your child off at school gives the teacher an opportunity to let you know if there is something, even something small.  


Most importantly, if you are not getting the help or information that you expect from your child's teacher, make sure you make an appointment with the principal.  I have never had a problem with any of my son's teachers in the past, but as much as the schools want the parents to help out, that is a two way street.  Here in California, a lot of the teachers are overwhelmed, have 30 or more kids in their class and I can see, that it is very easy for them to get frustrated and let things go.  Kids fall through the cracks. I have seen this happen and if you are offering your help and are involved in your child's schooling, and still don't feel that you are getting help from the teacher, make sure you bring this up to the principal.  Remember, this is your child, their education and their future.  You are giving your all, your child should have a teacher that is giving their all.


I hope that these tips help you out with your conferences and until next time my friends.

Yes, TV Is FREE!

This subject is something that my husband and I have been talking about for a few weeks now.  And I never thought to blog about it until today.  Did you know that you can get network TV for free?  Well you can.  Crazy, huh?  This is something that I think a lot of us forget about.  We have had cable and satellite dishes for so long, that it boggles the mind to think that you really don't have to pay for it.  

As some of you may know, about six months ago my family moved in with my sister.  Now, we do get payed channels in the living room, my husband and I do not get any channels in our bedroom.  At night when we snuggle into bed together, we would watch movies or TV on DVD.  This was always fine with me.  Over the past five or so years, I have stopped watching daytime TV and the shows that I did watch in the evening were only one or two a night.  I don't watch much TV.  

But, having TV was so important.  It was just something that I figured we needed.  How can I live without it?  Well, the past six months proved that we could live without it.  Now, other than Nick Jr, we usually don't watch TV in the living room.  There were a few shows that would get recorded and we would watch, but we spent the entire summer, not really watching anything at all.  

A few months ago, I found a couple of websites along with the network sites, that you can go and watch full episodes on the internet.  I was so excited.  I was able to catch up on some of the shows that I missed and this new fall season, was able to watch some new shows.  My husband enjoyed this also.  He always enjoyed being able to come home after work and sit and watch some TV and unwind.  

Well, even better.  My husband was going through some boxes that we had in the garage and found a pair or rabbit ears.  He brought them inside and hooked them up to our TV.  Holy crap! We have network TV, about 56 channels, and we don't have to pay for them. They are FREE, because network TV is FREE!!  And because it is a digital signal, the channels are clear as day.  It is insane.  As much as I didn't really miss having TV, I really do enjoy watching the shows that I like on the day that they are aired.  

On a funny note.  My husband was so proud of what he had done, that he went to work and was talking to a few coworkers about it.  Some of the younger guys he works with were amazed and surprised that you don't have to pay for TV.  We thought this was funny.  It is so normal to a lot of people to pay for cable that not a lot of people know that you really don't have to.

So, until next time my friends.

Moving On!

So sorry for being away so long.  I was trying really hard to make sure I blogged regularly.  Last week was a really crap week for me.  Actually, I found out that it was a pretty crap week for a lot of people.  I had made some posts on Facebook and Twitter about not letting situations dictate my life and not dwelling on the past.  Those were not just me blowing smoke up people's ass. I really meant them.  


For so long, I dwelled on the past and when something goes wrong, I tend to hold on to it.  This weekend I realized that I am in charge of my life and my future.  Something goes wrong, Oh well, learn from it, forget about it and move on.  Sitting and being angry and dwelling on it is not going to change what happened and it definitely is not going to make things better.  I am the master of my fate.


This is hard for some of us.  I know it is for me.  It is so easy to just give up when things don't go your way.  I am tired of that.  I used to not be this way.  This past year has been a really trying year for me and I have thrown my arms up in the air more times than I can count.  No more.  I'm stepping into the ring swinging.  I'm taking control of things and feel sorry for anyone who gets in my way. 


New day, new attitude.  I have goals and aspirations that I am going to achieve no matter what.  I can't count on anyone to do these things for me.  I have to do them myself.  And I will.  I appreciate everyone who has supported (not monetarily) me and my family.  You guys are great. You keep my spirits lifted and make me smile and laugh.  That is the best feeling ever!  I also want to especially thank my sister, brother and sister in law.  You guys are amazing and you have helped us in more ways than you will ever realize.  I am so glad to have such amazing people in my family. I am truly a lucky girl.  


So, thanks for listening to my rambling and until next time my friends.

Changing Perspective

After months of being lazy and flat out not caring, I decided to make a budget plan.  This is not my first time doing this.  I have had a budget for years and this past year it has just gone out the window.  Not a good year for me.  Mainly, because I got to a point where I just didn't care.  If I had the money, I had it, and if I didn't, well, I just didn't.  

Those days are over, Thank God.  I finally got to the point where I was tired of living paycheck to paycheck, not knowing where my money was going and not having any savings.   This happens to me, often.  I let things go until I get so fed up and tired that I give in and do it.  

Now, up until this budget, I was convinced that there was no way I was going to be able to save any money.  That is why I am so happy I am back on a budget.  It changes my perspective on what I have and what I can do.  Why did I wait so long?  I keep asking myself this question.  It seems silly that it has taken me this long.  

Now there are a lot more things that I need to do, to make this budget work better for me.  Now I need a meal plan and get a shopping list together, as well as get those coupons together.  

Not only has this budget changed my perspective on what I have, but it has changed my perspective on my future.  That is a huge change and has made me smile a little today.

If you don't have a budget plan, I suggest that you make one.  It will be an eye opener, I assure you.  And it just might change your perspective on how you view your spending and saving.  

Until next time. 

First Blog~~Car Show at Garcia Elementary

I had this blog for over a year and have never written anything on it.  I recently decided to do a vlog and figured it would be a good idea to use it in conjunction with this blog. So here it is. The world according to me.  lol


Last weekend the PTA put on it's first fundraiser at my son's school and it happened to be a car show.  I know, I laughed too, but after I thought about it, I realized it was actually a very smart idea.  In this area, that is what the people are into and it would probably bring in a lot of money.  So with that said, I had to go and check this out.  And besides, I HAD to support the school, right?


We got to the car show a few hours after it had started.  It was a blast.  Not a lot of people there, but there were lots of cars and bikes.  It was so much fun.  There were vendors, a DJ, a hip hop artist and a car hop.  I was impressed.  I hope that they do it again next year.  I even joined the PTA.  I figure, it is important to be involved in the school. I have always been involved in the past.  Why should this year be any different.  Until next time my friends.

Cars parked in the quad and grass area.

Twilight Bike

More cars

Another custom bike

Vendors

Another custom car