So I finally finished the patio. I’m pretty excited about the way it turned out. There are probably a couple more things I could do to sharpen it up a bit, but for now I’m done with it. Let me know what you think. However, if your comment is rude, I’ll just delete it anyway. LOL!
Vacation to DC September 17, 2009
It was a complete blessing to visit Virginia and Washington DC last week! Our kids were amazing travelers, tolerating the 13 hour trip with great attitudes. (I always say, and it’s true, that my kids are more patient travelers than I am!) We were only able to see about half of the things on our list, but we thuroughly enjoyed what we did see. (If you ever take a trip to the area, I highly recommend 2 weeks to soak up all the history and beauty!) Ashton turned 5 years old on Sunday so we also squeezed in a birthday celebration!
Patio Project Update! August 27, 2009
The patio is slowly making its way along. Along the way we are making the necessary changes in order to even finish the patio. But for now, please enjoy the latest pics.
First Day of First Grade! August 21, 2009
Grant had a great first day of first grade! He does not like change and was a little worried about the “newness” of the year, but he was thrilled when I went to pick him up! Highlight of the day: finding out he has his own mailbox in his classroom. It’s the little things that count!
Patio Wall Begun! August 20, 2009
If you’re anything like me, when you begin a new project you can dream about it until it’s done. I can hardly rest knowing that the patio isn’t finished yet. So today on my day off, I got to work on the patio. I’m so stoked about how it’s going. I think it’s going to come together really well. Anyway, check out the pics from today’s work. Peace.
More Patio Work! August 15, 2009
So I decided it was a good day to continue the patio work. I borrowed a tiller, spent some much needed quality time with my friend Lowe’s. I made a few necessary purchases and got to work this afternoon. As I began the tilling and moving soil, I quickly realized something; I have no idea what I’m doing. Honestly, I kind of feel a little like the video below.
I don’t know how to make a patio, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night. Trouble is, I didn’t stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night. So I’m even worse off than the commercials. Anyway, the work commensed. Most of the preparatory work for the gravel and the sand has been done. I’m still trying to determine the exact shape the patio will take. You can kind of get an idea of it from the pictures below. I started spray painting the outline so that I knew how much of the grass to kill. By the way, if you want to kill anything, grass, weeds, bugs, pretty much any small living creature, Round Up Weed & Grass Killer is your new best friend.
I’m sure I’ll get some good comments on next steps in the patio process. Mostly, I’ll be looking forward to the comments from Brian and Brent Kirkman. I’ve seen their recent patio work. Well, enjoy the latest pics. Until next time.
$600,000? August 6, 2009
Stan is totally dominating in the blog department. I knew he would. He is awesome.
I have had a headache three days running. Blech. I’ve wanted to blog but didn’t think any of you would be excited about what I had to say. And the rule in our house is “if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all.” Figured I would abide by the family rule.
Today I read an article in Time Magazine reporting the average cost of raising a child in a middle income family is$221,000. (Check out the article for yourself at http://tinyurl.com/pvvzjh). They consider middle income, a family who earns between $57,000 and $99,000 a year. And by “raising a child” they mean getting them to age 17. This does not include the expense of college. We make less than $57,000 each year so our expense goes down a bit. (Their prediction is that those who make less will spend less and those who make more will spend more…) But even if each of our children costs $200,000 to raise…we will spend over half a million dollars just getting them to 17. That makes my head spin.
Stan and I have chosen to live on one income. I try not to whine about what we don’t have, knowing that what we’re giving up is not as valuable as what I’m gaining by being at home with my kids. I’m not saying that the choice we’ve made is what other families should do. I know each family situation is different. But this is the choice we’ve made and it doesn’t come without sacrifice. We don’t live in the fanciest house or have the best furniture. We don’t get to go on the same vacations other families take each summer. We drive one vehicle and shop with coupons at discount stores. I get groceries at Aldi when I can, shop resale when I can and use coupons whenever I get my hands on them. Our eating out budget is small and our entertainment budget is almost non-existent. When my kids go back to school they won’t be dressed in designer clothes or have the most expensive school supplies. These are the types of things we’ve given up so that I can be home with the kids. Honestly, in this recent economy, I have questioned our decision on almost a daily basis. Yesterday I even perused some job listings, wondering if I should consider going back to work full time. I ended up in a puddle of tears.
Although there are days when I would prefer to lock myself in my closet just to get some peace and quiet, I can’t imagine going back to work full time. I know that, at some point, I may not have a choice. For now, I’m trying to find ways to save and cut corners so we can make due on the income we have available to us now. So my question to all of you is, how are you making adjustments to fight the tough times most of us are facing? I’d love to hear your money saving tips, your resources for coupons and your budgeting secrets. Here is some of my best advice…
1) Use and stick to a budget! So much of the money we have is spent willy-nilly. We don’t even know where our money is going and so its difficult to know where we can cut back. Stan and I have recently started using an envelope system. When the cash in a particular envelope is gone, there is no more money in the budget for that category. (I have to be careful not to cheat. I am always tempted to take a little out of the auto maintenance envelope so we can eat out one extra time! :/ I do not recommend that!)
2) Make a grocery list and shop cheap! If I go to the store without a list, I am doomed. I will end up spending a month’s budget for groceries on snack foods and breakfast items. I have to make meal lists and then plan grocery shopping according to our needs. I love going to Aldi to buy what I can. I find I spend about 40% less there than at the supermarket. If you have a big family, or find yourself going through a particular item fast, buy in bulk. Sam’s is a great option!
3)Eat at home! This is my worst downfall. I do not enjoy cooking and especially despise the clean up afterward. I feel like I spend my whole day in the kitchen at times. As soon as breakfast is over, its time for snack…then lunch prep and clean up afterward…snack again with a small clean up time and then prep for dinner. After dinner, dishes, major kitchen and dining room clean up. And the next day it starts over. I don’t like sweeping my floor 5 times a day, washing the counter after every meal and snack, doing dishes several times a day… I know, I’m whining. But kitchen duty is definitely on the top of my “household chores I hate” list. It’s right up there with laundry. Has something to do with both of them NEVER being done! Anywho, I am learning that going out to eat is a budget killer. We can eat at home for usually more than half the cost of going to a restaurant. And normally we eat healthier when we eat at home.
Okay, its your turn. What do you have to share?
Becoming A Man! August 6, 2009
Grant is only 7 years old. That’s it. Just 7. Something happened with he and I today though and I can literally see him growing up right in front of my face. He and I had a fun afternoon together. We mowed the lawn.
I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking that there’s no way we had fun mowing the lawn. Well, we did. Today I let him help me mow and he thought it was just great. I showed him how to start it, what it takes to keep it running, how to mow the strips in a straight line. Then, when he was feeling really big, I let go. He pushed an entire strip almost 100% by himself.
I can hear (read) the comments already. ”He’s only 7 Stan. Isn’t there a child labor law or something?” Well, in my house there’s no such thing. Each child is a part of the family and has responsibilities to pitch in. And today was Grant’s first step at helping me with mowing the lawn. It was a lot of fun and an even bigger joy to see the smile on his face when he was done. I gave him a big high five and kind of hit him in the chest. Then I bragged on him to his mom. It made him feel good to accomplish something and it made me feel good to be there with him when he did.
I can’t wait to see what he’s going to do next. I think I’ll have him help me put in the patio.
The Patio is Underway! August 1, 2009
A couple weeks back I posted a few pics of an area in our backyard. Up to this point we have not done much with it. It was time to do something with it. We decided to put in a small patio area so we could have a place to grill and watch our kids play. I’m so stoked about this project. I’ll post a pic of the proposed plan sometime soon. In the meantime, here are a few pics that show the updated paint color. Let us know what you think. Until next time.
My Birthday Day! August 1, 2009
It is common knowledge by now that I just had a birthday. I turned 29 on July 30th and we decided that we would spend my birthday at Six Flags over St. Louis. So we got up bright and early, dropped Avary off at the Atwater’s (who so graciously offered to watch her for the entire day. Thank you guys so much!!!) and headed out to St. Louis.
I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew that I would have a good time and that Misty would probably let me ride one or two rides alone since it was my birthday. Other than that, many questions hung in the air. How well would Grant and Ashton do on the rides? Which ones would they be allowed to ride? How far away are we going to have to park? What will the weather be like? How much is a soda again? $13 for a plastic cup! You’ve got to be kidding me.
Anyway, on with the story. The weather turned out great and the lines were pretty short. I think our longest wait for anything was 45 minutes. Everything else was less than 15 minutes. It was awesome. The boys very first roller coaster experience was the Tony Hawk Big Spin. This was a short, but fast-paced ride. It’s not just a straight coaster either, the part you sit in, spins as you go around the track. It is very intense. I had to ride it a second time, that’s how good it was. Just for a taste, here it is.
After some fun we had a giant pizza from Papa John’s, with some breadsticks. Then we got back out to the rides. We hit Thunder River which Ashton took the biggest hit on. I think he was soaked for the rest of the day. All four of us rode the Screaming Eagle. That was quite the experience. Some kids won’t ride that until they’re teenagers. My boys slayed it at 7 and 4. Needless to say, I was so proud. The last water ride we took on was the Log Flume. The boys that it was great, going down that “waterfall.” We had a lot of fun with that and knocked that one out twice. As we neared the end of the day, Misty let me ride the Batman by myself. Some teeny-bopper concert was going on so the lines were down to nothing. I went through very quickly, two times. The Batman is such an awesome ride.
The boys melted down a little when we told them it was time to go. Ashton soon fell asleep on the ride home. It was a really great birthday for me. A chance to hang out with my wife and boys and ride some big coasters. We had a great time.
