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Ways I've been re-evaluating our money and budget choices:

1. I've been looking into credit unions and comparing money market rates. And then my sweet husband remembered ING! I checked out their rates and was shocked. The highest interest rates I had been able to find for a money market at other banks and credit unions was the interest rate on the checking account at ING. Can you imagine the great rate on their savings accounts? Definitely worth looking at. Make Money

2. I bought a stupid life insurance policy a few years ago. Life insurance is not stupid. The policy I picked was. I have an appointment set up with my State Farm agent Thursday to get a new policy that will be cheaper and make more sense. Save Money

3. We became officially debt-free yesterday (YAY!!!!!) but I still feel like we aren't since we have a million payments each month. We could cut down on some of these by paying our insurance premiums every 6-months instead of every month, and save a little on service fees. This won't save much money, but it will make me feel like we're keeping our money instead of giving it out every month. Save Money

4. We were trying to cut down on our food bill by not buying grass-fed beef and free range chicken. It saved money on the grocery bill, but we were used to that yummy grass-fed and we would end up going out to eat to avoid eating the cheap meat we bought. So I'm going back to my yummy expensive meat. It's still cheaper than going out to eat all the time. Quality of Life

5. Nathan's car is really old, so we're saving up to buy him a new one. That way when this one dies, we're not stuck with a car payment, higher insurance than we want, and paying interest. Also, he's planning on driving this car until it dies, so we get all the use we can out of the new transmission we bought a little over a year ago. Save Money

6. I found a website where I can buy Abigail's organic lactose-free formula for only about $1 more than Similac if you buy 12 at a time. Even shipping is free if you buy that much! And we are comparing it to Kroger prices. If you compare it to Babies R Us prices, the organic is way cheaper. Save Money

These are the ideas I've had so far. How do you make the budget stretch?

New Life Goal ... Maybe

Before I started at HCC, I was trying to go back to school to become an auditor. I did a lot of research and even started teaching myself accounting from a textbook, but when I crunched the numbers it just didn't seem reasonable. However, our money situation has changed some, so the numbers are crunching much more nicely now. Result? My first accounting class starts Monday!

This little project of mine (understate much?) will still take a few years to complete. Assuming I make it through two semesters of basic accounting and still enjoy it, I'll need to become a licensed CPA and maybe earn a degree in accounting. I'm so excited about taking classes though. Unwrapping my textbook, checking my schedule, buying school supplies, doing homework. I might even pack myself a cute lunch! Ugh, I'm a nerd. But who knows, maybe I've found what I always wanted to be.

Stress

This week has been pretty darn stressful. Make me want to go to sleep for a month stressful. One positive I guess is that it gives me a chance to evaluate how I handle stress and if I'm turning to God in those moments. So far, I think I'm doing better than normal. I'm still not on my knees as much as I should be, but I am freaking out far less than is par. I'm learning that some things are God's problem, not mine. I can support, I can love, I can pray, but I cannot always fix. And I should not always fix. So what am I doing instead? Hugging my warm, snuggly baby instead. That's my new solution to every problem.

Pucker Up!

I've been making my own kombucha tea, which has been going well except that it is getting more and more sour with every batch. Now I take very small sips and swear I'm throwing it all out and starting over. We'll see how this weekend goes though.

Abigail is almost five months now and in that window where you look at introducing food. I know many people used to give babies rice cereal at one or two months old, but the American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends waiting until babies are six months old. We have a family history of allergies, so hopefully waiting longer to introduce solids will help Abigail avoid that mess. According to the Weston Price Foundation, the babies don't have the enzymes necessary to digest carbs until they are about one. Ya. Think about that one!

Having said all that, I had some left-over cucumber from my lunch, so I thought I'd let Abigail taste it (not swallow it though) and see what she thought. That girl can pucker! I ate it after she made it clear that she was not a fan, and realized it tasted funny. Apparently, when cucumber sits on cheese (like it did in my lunch), it absorbs the flavor. Americans will eat goofy things, but I don't think cheese-flavored cucumber will be the next big thing. And there are your pucker stories for the day. Anyone have their own pucker story they want to share?

The Drive To Do

You know how some people never seems to transition from college to real life? When you hear about these people, you think of partiers, and people that sleep too late. People that feel like the world should hand them everything they need and want. I am not that kind of person. But I do feel stuck in the college mode of planning your future and changing/educating yourself so that you can make it somewhere different than you are now. I feel stuck in the mode of "not there yet."

In some ways, it's exciting. There are so many things you can do! I love to plan. I love school. I love to learn new things. But it is also exhausting!  I feel like I never settle, am never fully happy with right now. And frankly, my life is right near close to perfect, so I should be fully happy with now. I have a wonderful husband, the perfect baby, an amazing family, a great job, and a safe home. What more can you ask for? An off-switch for my ambition and my planning. Or at least a way to press pause for a minute.

The ever elusive state of contentment. Maybe I should learn more about Paul. If anyone knew contentment, it was Paul. Any thoughts?

She Drew the Line

We are not breast-feeding anymore. For those of you who don't know, we were not able to breast-feed well. I say "we" because it makes me feel like it's not my fault, but the problem was with my body we believe. From my reading and the observations of my midwife and pediatrician, we think I don't have enough mammary glands. You see, breasts are made up of fat and mammary glands. Apparently mine are mostly fat, which is why I like to be about 10 pounds heavier than the charts say is "healthy." Believe me, that last ten pounds does not come off my hips! But it was bad news for my little one and all my dreams of months of free food for her. I took all the herbs I could find, drank lots and lots of water, nursed every two hours for a few days, pumped, and did anything else that was suggested, but never could get more than two ounces at a feeding. And I couldn't even get that much if I nursed every two hours. Apparently production takes time.

Abigail got half breast-milk, half formula for a few months, and then mostly formula with nursing and pumping when we could after I started work full time. She did really well with this, and I felt good about giving her what I could. Plus, nothing beats the cuddle time and the fact that Mommy (and her magical boobies) can make tears stop instantly! Until about two weeks ago. That is when nursing brought on the tears instead of stopping them. My little one was done. I guess she got tired of working so hard for so little when there was a fabulous bottle of formula just waiting for her. I tried to feed her the bottle first, then nurse, but that still wouldn't cut it for her. I cried and tried again later, but she still wouldn't have it. So I cried and tried again later again. Still no good. After a few days of making her cry because she didn't want to nurse and making myself cry because she didn't want to nurse, I realized that one of us should be the adult and call it quits. And I realized that was probably going to have to be me.

It breaks my heart to not be able to nurse her. I know people say "Don't feel guilty" and "You have to do what is  best for your family" but I don't think this is best for mine. It's just the only option we have. And I don't feel guilty, most of the time, but I do feel sad that I'm missing out on this precious gift. Not to mention how formula goes against all of my nutritional beliefs I have ever had! But you have to do what you have to do.

I did find a site called Human Milk for Human Babies that helps moms with extra milk connect with moms that don't have enough. I'm looking into it, as any breast milk is better than none. And I know that when I'm pregnant with Number 2 we are going to see a lactation consultant to see what we can do to increase my milk potential for him. For now though, Abigail and I need to find a new something special that's just between us. Every mommy and daughter needs that, right?

Life Choices

Thursday night the hubby and I went to see Cirque du Soliel (thanks for baby-sitting, Grandma!). It was amazing, to say the least. We saw Kooza which is a "back to our circus roots" show. It had tight-rope walking, people being catapulted into the air on stilts, women with hoops, and a lot of flips! Watching their flips and spins and balancing made me wonder how they decided to pursue this career instead of another. Especially with the Olympics going on right now. How did that conversation go: "Honey, you could go far! Maybe even go to the Olympics!" "No thanks, Mom. I'd rather join the circus." Because they were that good. I'm not sure what reactions their moms had, but I for one am glad they joined the circus. And it gives me hope that even though I've made some decisions that may not seem like the best to those around me (or even to myself sometimes) that God will see me through and turn my life into something beautiful too.