Saving4Later

Sunday Night Chit Chat - 03/18/2012

2012-03-18T21:42:00.001-03:00

I've took a mini blog break last week, didn't have a lot going on... I should be posting a bit more the rest of the month, starting with a double dose of my spending recap!

Spring has sprung early in my area, we are way above freezing during the day, I love how everyone's in a more cheerful mood!

What are you:

Reading?

This is the 12th book in my beloved Aimee Leduc series set in Paris. It is probably the only series that I pre-order before it comes out, and devour right away. This one is really good too :-)

Watching?

I am enjoying The Amazing Race right now, my favorite show on tv!

Listening to?

I am listening to my first book ever by Kathy Reichs in the car... I really enjoy it.

Cooking/Baking?

Surprisingly, no baking at all this weekend. I did make my favorite chicken recipe with homemade dipping sauce, mashed potatoes and salad for dinner. I have a portion for tomorrow and it is my favorite thing to eat for leftovers!

Happy you accomplished this week?

I had a hard Monday at work but managed to deal with it well and put out a couple "fires". The rest of the week, thankfully, got better!

Looking forward to this week?

Hopefully a trip to the city to spend some gift cards! I need a lot of stuff since I haven't really shopped in the city since December!

Thankful for today?

Sleeping in, the peace and quiet, clean bed sheets, a long bath (interrupted by a cuddly kitty though!)... any day that I'm off is extra nice!

I hope everyone has a great week! To play along, visit Carla's blog and see who else is "chit chatting" :-)

Sunday Night Chit Chat 03/11/2012

2012-03-11T20:39:00.000-03:00

This is the year's shortest weekend, because we "lost" an hour last night... it's going to be hard to get up tomorrow knowing I face a 6 day work week, compared to last week's 4 days!

Thank you to everyone for the great messages about my loss, I have felt pretty down since Wednesday but am slowly starting to feel better.... all the kind messages meant the world to me, thank you!

Reading?

Kill Alex Cross by James Patterson... I'm enjoying it so far... need to return it by Wednesday.

Watching?

I watched Bridesmaids earlier, really liked it... tonight I'll catch The Amazing Race before bed.

Listening to?

The tv is on in the background... and in the car, I'm listening to Reclaiming Nick on audio

Cooking/baking?

I tried a new rib recipe, made mashed potatoes and broccoli slaw along with another batch of molten lava cakes (did I mention the 2 boxes of chocolate I scored for a great price?!).

Happy you accomplished this week?

I posted a long list on Tuesday, I was really productive last weekend....

Looking forward to this week?

My sister gets in later tonight from her trip, haven't communicated much in a week. Thursday is payday, so looking forward to that too!

Thankful for today?

Waking up well rested, the kitties, the good meal, nice coconut scented candle while soaking in a bath with tropical scented bubbles.

Anyone who wants to see more "Chit-Chats" can play along with Carla and other participants by following this link :-)

A post I never wanted to write

2012-03-07T22:41:00.000-04:00

After dinner tonight, my old guy died :-( It was pretty tragic and I don't feel like going into details now, but I'm glad I was there and got to say goodbye.

31 years and 1 month.... it's very old for a horse, but he had a really easy retirement and lots of apples and carrots and my dad took great care of him.

I love this picture as it's him totally laid back, relaxing, living the life!

Je vais beaucoup beaucoup te manquer :-( Honestly, I don't remember when he wasn't part of the family, I was only 9 when he was born and I'm going on 40!!

Sad sad :-(

Vacation countdown: 200 days

2012-03-07T16:38:00.000-04:00

Now that I am no longer using my countdown App until my ex-coworker's retirement, I am putting it to good use! We have finally settled on a date for our vacation in the fall... I can pretty much decide and go at any time, if I have a replacement, (I have 3 weeks, resetting on April 1st, plus 12 personal days) , but my sister only has a short time frame in which to write down her vacation leave for July 2012 to June 2013... (she has 150 hours). The sheets were going around last Friday so she decided to book the last week of September and the first in October... a month earlier than usual, but I'm very flexible. Step 1 taken care of!

So now the big question is, where to????? I have mentioned Iceland and Vienna in the last couple months, but we're hesitating with both: There will probably not be enough to do for 2 weeks in Iceland and the flight to Vienna is very expensive (almost $1,600/person).

I'm saving money (vacation fund now has $865 with approx $1,200 more to go in very shortly) and will continue to hunt for deals... I think we both want a bigger city since it's so different than what we're used to... and as I've mentioned before, we'd prefer something with only 1 stopover (Montreal or Toronto) with great public transit, so we don't have to rent a car. For 2 country girls we do pretty well navigating the subway and the train system, but I just don't see myself behind the wheel of a rental car.

Icelandair does offer a "free" stopover to Iceland on the way to or from a bunch of cities. A combo trip sounds pretty cool!

London (no desire to visit)
Glasgow
Manchester
Paris (MY big favorite but also out of the equation for 2012)
Amsterdam
Oslo
Bergen
Stavanger
Trondheim
Stockholm
Gothenburg
Copenhagen
Billund
Helsinki
Brussels (been to in 2010)
Frankfurt
Berlin
Munich
Hamburg

Does anyone recommend any of these? Not sure if they are all available in September/October though, would have to check further.

I'll post more once we've narrowed it down or chosen a location :-)

Mini staycation

2012-03-06T21:07:00.000-04:00

I am going back to work tomorrow after being off for 3.5 days... I actually don't mind too much cuz I love my job.... It will also be nice to get out of the house and see people, as the last 3 days have been spent at home... but I've been really productive:

filed my parents' income tax (I will do mine and my sister's later on when all tax receipts are in)
canceled 2nd land line - they need a 30 day notice (was on my to-do list in February, I have been wanting to do this for at least 2 years!! Talk about major procrastination!)
set up the internet switch to main phone line (considered a new account so I'm getting a 1 year promo rate!)
started changing email address (old account I've had for 16 years!!!!) on the accounts where I still use that address
boxed up books and audiobooks for the library (the librarian practically hugged me the last time!)
set up an automatic transfer for retirement savings through ING
tried a new recipe for sweet and sour chicken I'd been meaning to make for 3 months (lunches for the next 2 days plus extra plain chicken cooked for tomorrow's dinner: bbq chicken nachos)
went through all my clothes in my dresser (2 completely empty drawers) - bags ready to donate
deep cleaned a couple rooms
transferred funds to my local credit union's checking account, I'm saving $3.95/month in fees
activated a PIN on my PC Mastercard (only use it at Loblaws to get the PC Points) - had been meaning to do this for 5 whole months!!
cleaned purse
placed a coffee order online (at Singlecup.ca - get free shipping + a free box of kcups for ordering 7 boxes)

This is on top of the laundry, cleaning, cat sitting and regular household stuff. I'd love to see what I could accomplish if I took a whole week off to stay at home! I still managed some pleasant stuff, so I can go back refreshed and counting down til the next few days off at Easter (30 days exactly!)

3 focuses for March

2012-03-06T15:16:00.000-04:00

I'm playing along with Carla and other blogger friends this month, to tackle 3 things in 3 different categories:

source

1. FINANCE:

Fund my RRSP by an extra $100 each month (set up an automatic transfer to ING Streetwise fund)... this is on top of my $150 bi-weekly and regular pension contributions through work)
Have 21 no spend days (yikes)
Allocate my extra paycheck wisely (not 100% to vacation fund!)

2. DECLUTTERING:

Organize my cupcake/pastry decorating corner (4 shelves' worth!)
Toss and donate items in dresser and closet (mostly dresser... I could fit everything in 1 drawer, the other 3 are full of items I don't wear anymore)
Start 2012 financial binder (it's never too late ;-)) --- this is all important papers filed into 1 binder.

3. PERSONAL:

Make 2 appointments I've been putting off
Read 4 books (3 english, 1 french)
Use some gift cards I got at Christmas for a treat for ME. I tend to save all my gift cards, hate using them. It's OK to spend money (or cards, in this instance) for something for me. (My only big splurge is traveling... other than that I honestly don't spend a lot of money on me)

I'm getting a late start, so these 9 things will be enough :-) You can see Carla's challenge here. I hope everyone has a great month!

Spending recap: February 26 - March 3rd 2012

2012-03-05T15:06:00.000-04:00

I had a much better week compared to the last 2 in February... I am hoping I don't go crazy further in the month cuz I'm getting that extra paycheck (although I do have plans for that $$).

via

Sunday, February 26:
no spend #38 in 2012

Monday, February 27:
$31.28 groceries
$52.18 gas
$500 in grocery gift cards ****

Tuesday, February 28:
no spend #39 in 2012

Wednesday, February 29:
no spend #40 in 2012

Thursday, March 1:
$12.24 groceries
$10.15 job #3 expense

Friday, March 2:
no spend day #41 in 2012

Saturday, March 3:
no spend day #42

**** this gift card expense may seem outrageous, but I got a coupon for bonus Airmiles when purchasing gift cards at Sobeys, which I've done a few times in the past and it's worked well. Remember in December when I posted about a big check I'd received at my part time job #2? I never assigned it to anything, so I took some of the money from there to cover the initial cost of the gift cards and will put half back when my sister reimburses me (when they are spent). I figure by May they will be gone, as I spend about $350/month along with a bit extra at 2 other grocery stores when they have great sales. And yes, I'm a sucker for Airmiles, but remember that's how I got my KitchenAid mixer and my 32 in flat screen tv for FREE :-)

How was your week??

Sunday Night Chit Chat - 3/4/2012

2012-03-04T21:05:00.001-04:00

Another Sunday night.. we are definitely moving fast into 2012... I feel this month is going to be a good one :-)

For those that don't know, Sunday Night Chit Chat is a weekly feature started by my friend Carla a couple months ago and it's a way to wrap up our weekend and focus on the week ahead. Anyone can join!

via

Reading?

This is book #3 in french... Guillaume Musso if a french author who sets a lot of his books in the US... this one is set in San Francisco and Paris.... so far so good!!

Watching?

I just finished a marathon of Come Dine with me Canada on W Network (five 30 minute shows in a row) and will watch The Amazing Race a little later.

Listening to?

In the car, I'm listening to The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly..

Cooking/baking?

I am flying solo this week, my sister left for vacation today and will be back next Sunday night... so not much cooking... I did make some moelleux au chocolat (molten lava cakes) for dessert, I shared with my parents though!! I pulled some french bread out of the freezer and turned it into a simple french bread pizza using toppings I wanted to use up (ham, peppers, onions, 2 different pieces of cheese that needed using up).

Happy you accomplished this week?

I cleaned quite a bit, gathered tax stuff, completed my 3rd net worth calculation of 2012 (I usually start in January and never follow up) and we finally figured out our vacation dates for 2012!! Let the countdown begin :-)

Looking forward to this week?

I am off Monday and Tuesday (had vacation time left over, it resets April 1st for us) so it's great to get away from work for a few days...

Thankful for today?

The day off, the above freezing temperature, hanging clothes out on the line, sleeping in... not having to get my stuff ready for Monday morning!!

I hope everyone has a great week :-)

Semi-failed in February

2012-03-01T21:41:00.000-04:00

I have to say that February wasn't as successful than January... I started out with these 5 goals:

20 no spend days ----- I ended up with 19.
Give a box of books and audiobooks to the library ----- not yet :-(
Cancel 2nd landline ----- not yet.... but I'm gearing up to do this on Monday!!
Tackle 2 personal spots and declutter/organize: My desk at work (includes filing EVERYTHING) and my bedroom, soon to be redecorated (taking out desk, adding a rocking chair, new tv, etc) ----- this hasn't been completed either, but I made good progress.
Track all spending on a daily basis and recap weekly on blog ----- I do end up tracking all my spending, but not necessarily each and every day. I have posted weekly though, so I can call this one a success.

For extra $$$$ brought in, this was also lower than last month, but I consider every extra dollar a success!

$55.08 surveys
won $10 !!!
earned $360 at my pt job #3 (this is part of a 1 year contract that ends in April 30, 2012).

The grand total for 2012 so far is $932.37, 12% of the way to $8,080!

I won't call the month a total fail, but I know I can do better in March :-)

How was your February??

Spending recap: February 19 - 25, 2012

2012-02-28T20:40:00.002-04:00

I have to admit I am slacking a bit with my tracking... I skip for 3-4 days, then rely on my receipts to update my spending log (aka small notebook in my purse). I have to get back to my good habits.

Sunday, February 19:
no spend #34 in 2012

Monday, February 20:
$30.11 gas
$81.93 groceries
$6.78 household
$59.41 gift for my dad's birthday
$14.66 pharmacy stuff

Tuesday, February 21:
no spend #35 in 2012

Wednesday, February 22:
no spend #36 in 2012

Thursday, February 23:
$14.26 groceries
$3.72 expense for job #3

Friday, February 24:
$7.33 lunch (my first lunch out in 2012!!)
$10.16 household

Saturday, February 25:
no spend #37 in 2012

Ok... doesn't look too bad on its own but when combined with the first 3 weeks of the month, I can see I'm over in groceries. I am blaming it on all the yogurt I am buying.... really though, I'm not going to feel guilty because I drink no milk at all, and I want my bones to stay strong. I also bought about $50 extra in meat, to stock up.

I'll be back in a few days with my February month end wrap up. I can't wait for March!

Sunday Night Chit Chat - 2/26/2012

2012-02-26T20:41:00.000-04:00

Back for another Sunday Night Chit Chat :-) I meant to post the last part of my trip report on Friday but I honestly have not had much time to sit down and do a final edit... This whole weekend went by very fast!

I'm starting with a picture of what I wish my tub looked like... I LOVE taking bubble baths, can stay there for up to an hour, sometimes with a book, sometimes with my eyes closed, relaxing.

Source: Apartment Therapy

Reading?

I loved my french book I was reading last week (La mémoire d'une autre by Melanie Rose) , finished it on Thursday. I have since started this one by James Patterson:

Watching?

In 30 minutes, The Amazing Race! Right now the tv is off...

Listening to?

I am finishing up another Michael Connelly book in the car, Trunk Music. For some reason, my library has many of his books on audio (the selection is very limited!)

Cooking/baking?

I had a big craving for shrimp so made some last night in a lemon/garlic sauce. My sister was sick so I ate her portion leftover for tonight's dinner!

I just took a batch of granola out of the oven, a new recipe (I get all my recipes on the Food Network site). This one has less sugar in it, so should be healthier.

Happy you accomplished this week?

I put in 5+ hours at my bookkeeping job today... I'd put it off for a couple weeks, so it was nice to get it all up to date. I also met my end of the month goal at work!

Looking forward to this week?

A new month, a new beginning! It's payday on Thursday...

Thankful for today?

Sleeping in, cuddly kitties, tackling something I'd put off for a bit...

I hope everyone had a great Sunday... you can check out Carla's blog for her chit chat and find some others' on there as well :-)

The very late final trip report, France 2011!

2012-02-22T18:20:00.000-04:00

So it was 4 months ago that I left on a jet plane for France, seems unbelievable so long has passed and I still haven't done my trip report! Warning, what follows is a very long recap, feel free to skip if you read my updates while I was blogging from France...

For long time readers, you'll know this trip was planned in April of last year... I had been searching for a destination for months and finally decided on Paris as a city I could travel to comfortably on my own. I did think for sure my sister would end up joining me, but in the end, she didn't as she says the 10 days we spent in Paris in 2008 were enough to last her awhile!

I had originally planned on 2 weeks in Paris, from October 22nd until November 5th but plans changed in July when I was for sure going alone. I'd been dreaming of a cooking vacation of some sort for over 10 years, had lusted on the Epiculinary website for hours at a time but never could find exactly what I wanted... That July day though, when I started researching what would fit in my dates (flights had been booked in April), I discovered that the I nternational Kitchen had a great variety of courses. I sent an inquiring email to both the International Kitchen and Epiculinary, and my first email was answered almost immediately, on a Sunday afternoon, by the owner of The International Kitchen, the great Karen :-), I decided to book through them. I went with the 5 day course at Le Calabash, which is in the Loire valley, an area of France I'd been to twice already :-)

I had what others told me was a tight enough connection from landing at Charles-de-Gaulle in Paris to the train station, which happened to be in the same building at the airport (1.5 hours from landing to train departure). So I decided to go carry-on only... It is amazing what I was able to fit in my little suitcase. The others in my course showed up with soooo much more (including one lady who had 3 suitcases!) but I think in the end they were impressed that I had many different outfits in there! And what was even more impressive, I was there for 2 weeks while all the others left after the 5 day course :-)

This is the small carry-on at the train station

I loved the traveling solo part... I had a long chat with the lady sitting next to me on the first leg of the journey (1.5 hr flight) then found stuff to do at the airport (including redeeming a free drink coupon at Starbucks!) so the wait wasn't too long. I am impressed that there is now free wifi at the Montreal airport :-) The flight over there was super full, no room to spread out, and I didn't sleep, as usual. I love the in-flight entertainment, always catch new releases I haven't seen, and some of my favorite comedies, like Mike & Molly and Modern Family.

We landed half an hour early and passing through passport and immigration control was very fast, and as I didn't have an checked luggage, it was a breeze to just walk right to the train station. It was a long trek though, at least 15 minutes inside the airport. I double checked that I had the right ticket at information (had bought my ticket from the sncf.com website and printed it out) and waited about an hour at the station. Since I wanted a quieter seat, I booked first class tickets, one was around 62 Euros, but the other was very cheap (a PREM rate) for 26 €. I also got insurance on the ticket, cost 1.80 € (really cheap, and it would have come in handy if my plane was late).

Once the train arrived at St-Pierre des Corps (near Tours) in the Loire Valley (it was around 1.5 hours via high-speed train), the chef-owner of the cooking school met me and 2 others who were traveling on the same train. They have a 7 passenger van so it was comfortable driving around. I asked if I could have the front seat as I can have motion sickness.... the first transfer was about an hour, and it went very smoothly.

Our accommodations for the next 5 days were at Le Relais de la Mothe which is in the very small village of Yzeures-sur-Creuse. I was very impressed with my room (2 single beds, luxurious bathroom, a/c) and the whole feel of the hotel. Not long after I unpacked, I was called to the living room for a glass of champagne with the chef and the other 2 ladies in the course (the other lady would just be arriving a bit later). We chatted a while then were given a pick up time for early that evening for the first dinner at the school.

The room was large, very clean and modern.

The course was quite fast paced, so I appreciated some long soaks when I had the chance

I had time for a soak and a very short nap (though I don't think I really dozed off).... then changed into one of my new tops and a pair of comfy dress pants (I packed comfortable clothes, 1 pair of jeans, 2 pairs of dress pants and tops in colors that I could mix and match). We were picked up in the van again and driven to the cooking school which is only a 3-4 minute drive from the hotel... and first impressions of the school: AMAZING! Their property is beautiful, modern (the kitchen is spotless and so well equipped). We got to meet the other chef/owner, Alison, a British pastry chef. They have 3 daughters (one no longer at home), plus Alison's mother who is living with them and a dog and a cat. They say they left England for a simpler life in France.

That night we were treated to a feast of appetizers after we had a nice welcome drink (another!): frog's legs, escargots, yummy salad, cheeses, meats and patés, foie gras, and the yummiest fig bread I've ever tasted. Dessert was a great crème brûlée with an apple- rhubarb filling on the bottom, served with delicious rhubarb homemade ice cream. We were treated to ice cream with many of our desserts through out the week. The wine was free flowing, and conversation was interesting and fun as we all got to know each other. After the meal we were dropped off at the hotel with a set meeting time of 9 am for the next morning.

The first night's simple yet delicious meal

Rhubarb and apple crème brûlée with rhubarb ice cream

Breakfasts were from 8-9 in the mornings and there was always a choice of bread or baguette, yogurt, granola, fruit (oranges, grapefruits, bananas), lovely homemade jams (the choice was impressive) and fresh orange juice and coffee.

Self serve breakfast at the hotel

We were given an apron and a recipe folder to put in the printed out recipes each morning... Here are some of the things we learned how to make:

cheese soufflé
filleting a whole salmon
gravlax (cured salmon)
mussels en papillotte
salted caramel ice cream base
banana tarte tatin
portioning a whole chicken, including deboning techniques
mushroom risotto
homemade chicken stock
gnocchi
chocolate soufflé (yum!)
sweet pastry dough
potato galette
caponata
stuffed chicken breasts wrapped in prosciutto
mango mousse
tuiles (2 different batters)
cooked sugar decorations
crème brûlée (4 different flavors)
duck (my favorite!)
and more that I'm forgetting!

plus countless tips and tricks and dozens of stories of behind the scenes at large fancy hotels throughout the world (both chefs have worked in top class hotels).

Top of the line teaching kitchen

Cheese soufflé and salad

Banana tarte tatin

It is totally safe to put plastic cling wrap in the oven, as we did here with these cylinder molds (no bottom)

Each night the table was set differently...

Yummy cheese plate

On Tuesday afternoon we went to a local winery for a tour and a tasting, with the possibility to buy bottles on site. On the way back we saw the castle of Ussé, which inspired the author of the sleeping beauty fairytale. (my photos aren't good at all, unfortunately)

Chateau d'Ussé

Wednesday morning we went to a nearby small town (Loches) to visit their market, shops and churches. We also had a nice lunch at a local restaurant. That afternoon we did more cooking.

Saucisses at the market in Loches

Most of Thursday was focused on pastries and sugar work... definitely something I'd like to come back for as they have a 6 day course just on bread and pastries. Maybe in 2013 or 2014?? That night we had the final gathering, with champagne and a presentation of a personalized apron and diploma then we headed to the area's 1 starred Michelin restaurant, La Promenade de Jacky Dallais. I really enjoyed my first experience at such a fancy restaurant :-)

Little treats before the appetizer at La Promenade

The school took care of our return transfer to the train station (for 45 Euros each way) ... my departure was on Friday at 1pm... I hated leaving the course, I have to say that while it was expensive, it was worth every single penny and I'd go back in a heart beat. Definitely lifelong memories :-)

(to be continued in another post..... part 2 coming ~~Friday~~ soon!)

Spending Recap: Feb 12 to 18, 2012

2012-02-20T21:32:00.001-04:00

Sunday, February 12:
$42.50 gas (I never gas on Sundays, but they were calling for a VERY cold Monday and I only had 1/4 of a tank).

Monday, February 13:
no spend day #30 in 2012

Tuesday, February 14:
$62.28 groceries
$24.02 liquor store (a rare, rare expense for me, I almost never drink.... I bought a bottle of red and a bottle of white wine for cooking, and a small bottle of Grand Marnier)

Wednesday, February 15:
$21.22 Lush.ca (used a $25 gift certificate)
$30 for 2 baby shower gifts
$27.02 gas (topping up the gas tank as it went up to $1.30/L the next day)
$65.42 groceries

Thursday, February 16:
no spend day #31 in 2012

Friday, February 17:
no spend day #32 in 2012

Saturday, February 18:
no spend day #33 in 2012

So far I'm at 16% of my no spend goal, not bad!! It's easier to not spend now though, compared to the summer. I also haven't had any fast food at lunchtime since January 1st! No coffees either, I brew at home (Keurig) and office (Tassimo).

Sunday Night Chit Chat - 02/19/2012

2012-02-19T21:53:00.001-04:00

I have been quiet this week, nothing much going on.... Just wish I lived in a province that's observing Family Day tomorrow... I wouldn't mind a long weekend!!

Sunday Night Chit Chat time with our friend Carla and everyone else who participates (so many of us now!)... check out Carla's blog for more info :-)

I'm starting with a picture from our trip to Bruges, Belgium in 2010... I wish I was there right now!

Reading?

One of my 2012 goals is to read 12 french books... This is the 2nd one I'm reading, so pretty much on track. It is great so far, I'm about 3/4 of the way through...

Watching?

Amazing Race!! And today I watched 5 episodes of Come Dine With Me Canada... I don't often watch, but sometimes the chemistry (or lack of) between of the contestants is better than usual!

Listening to?

Some Adele on my phone, and a Michael Connelly audio book in the car (The Concrete Blonde).

Cooking/baking?

Another one of my 2012 goals is to try 52 new recipes... I like to try one or 2 new ones per week.... I picked a great one for yesterday, a pull apart bread recipe I'd seen on a blog last week... It turned out great! I also made mussels with white wine and garlic to go with the bread, it was a great meal. Today I baked a lemon yogurt loaf, it's a Barefoot Contessa recipe I'd made last month. Very good!

don't mind the missing piece in the center, I took a bite before I snapped the pic!

Happy you accomplished this week?

I honestly can't think of anything!!!! I made it through my workweek, was pretty routine!

Looking forward to this week?

Tomorrow is my dad's birthday so we'll celebrate a bit! I might be going for a much needed hair cut and color if my sister agrees to let me switch appointments with her and I can get someone to cover my hours!

Thankful for today?

Sundays are my only days to sleep in, so I lounged in bed... I find I can fit a good mixture of being productive (laundry, lunch prep for the week, grocery lists, etc) and some R&R :-) I also appreciate the time spent with my family...

I hope everyone has a GREAT week! I'll be around tomorrow to post my spending for last week...

Spending recap: Feb 5 to 11, 2012

2012-02-13T12:09:00.000-04:00

Wow, almost ALL my spending is FOOD and GAS.

February 5:
no spend #25 in 2012

February 6:
$51.01 gas
$122.96 groceries <--- stocked up on chicken !
$26.07 shampoo, conditioner, body wash, hair stuff
$15.00 ex-coworker's retirement gift and party (I'm not sure I'm gonna go!)

February 7:
no spend #26 in 2012

February 8:
no spend #27 in 2012

February 9:
$47.23 groceries
$30.45 french book (Quebec Loisirs)

February 10:
no spend #28 in 2012

February 11:
no spend #29 in 2012

Groceries are higher as I picked up some canned goods (cream of mushroom soup) and chicken that was on at a great price. I also discovered greek yogurt, and I bought 3 containers of it this week... at $3.49/container (on sale!) it adds up fast.

Sunday Night Chit Chat 2/12/2012

2012-02-12T21:51:00.000-04:00

Mid-month already, WoW!

This girl felt a little left out of the blog :-)

What are you reading?

This is a book I had in my book case for about 2 years... Will get it started tonight.

What are you watching?

Tout le monde en parle on Radio Canada french tv.

What are you listening to?

Just the tv... In the car I'm listening to Play Dead by Harlan Coben, which is very interesting.

What are you cooking/baking?

I'm on a big greek yogurt and granola kick... I've tried 2 different recipes of homemade granola this week...

Happy you accomplished this week?

I have decluttered my desk at work, started a much dreaded project, and I also did pretty well on my no spend challenge :-)

Looking forward to next week?

Payday on Thursday? That's about the only thing on the agenda so far. I'm sure something will come up!

Thankful for today?

Sleeping in, a good meal (crab casserole), lazy time, a beautiful day after yesterday's storm.

If you want to play along, swing by Carla's new blog for all the info :-)

Stormy Saturday

2012-02-11T20:42:00.001-04:00

This is just our 2nd "big" storm of the winter, so I shouldn't complain too much... The winds might get bad overnight, at least I don't have to worry about being out on the road in the morning.

This week we finally found out who moved on to another position at work (they had to do 2 sets of interviews!) and it will open up a position at an office much closer to my house, closed on Saturdays. While it seems like only positives, it would also come with more stress and a coworker that's not too easy to work with. Long time readers might remember when I mentioned 2 of my coworkers who had to go to mediation twice a couple years ago? Well it's one of those I'd be working with.

So my name's going to go in the "candidate pot" and I'm going to prepare for it (already started, even if interviews might just be in 4-5 months!) but really, I'm thinking my current position is the right one for me....

Stormy days mean lazy days around here... I'm watching a pvr'd show (my beloved Pekin Express), reading, hanging out with the kitties who are healing well :-)

I'll be back tomorrow for Sunday Night Chit Chat and on Monday with my spending recap for the week :-) Hope everyone has a great weekend with better weather!! I hope Sam wasn't getting in tonight, she might have problems landing at the airport!!

Happy Birthday "Old Guy"

2012-02-07T22:46:00.002-04:00

This pic was taken this summer, under his favorite apple tree... they eat all the ones on the lower branches then check often for the windfalls

Today my "old guy" turns the big 31!!! for a horse, that's pretty old :-) He's in good enough shape, except for a bit of digestion issues... I dread the day the time comes, because as long as I can remember, he's always been around :-)

The kitties had their operations today, it went well... hard to keep two 5 month olds quiet though... as I work tomorrow and my sis is off for a few days, she's on night duty watching them :-)

We've always been a big animal loving family, I can't imagine life without at least 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 (as is now the case, 2 horses, 2 kitties) around!

Spending recap, January 29th to February 4th 2012

2012-02-07T12:50:00.000-04:00

Here's how I did last week... not too bad, but not as good as my average in January:

January 29 -
no spend day #20 in 2012

January 30-
$42.50 gas
$72.29 groceries
$5.65 contact solution
$10.50 postage
$5.00 fundraiser ticket
$100 birthday gift for my sis

January 31-
no spend day #21 in 2012

February 1-
no spend day #22 in 2012 (snow storm)

February 2-
no spend day #23 in 2012

February 3-
$33.99 DQ birthday cake
$5.65 postage

February 4-
no spend day #24 in 2012 (bought a book and a treat at Starbucks, both were on gift cards :-))

Sunday Night Chit Chat 2/5/2012

2012-02-05T20:34:00.000-04:00

Another Sunday night... this weekend went by way too fast though!!

This is a picture of "Bee", my 5 month old niece :-) She is about 5 lbs... and should stay pretty small cuz her paws are a lot daintier than her brother's!!! She loves to snuggle close and has a thing about sucking on my hair when I'm laying down...

What are you reading?

I am reading some travel guides right now: Got 1 for free (gift card) at Chapters, and the other one is a library rental. They don't always have the 2011 or 2012 version, but most touristy stuff doesn't change much, I find.

What are you watching?

Just finished watching Heartland on CBC, then later at 9 I want to watch a french movie called Tout pour plaire on TV5.

What are you listening to?

The TV is still on and the Don Cherry story is on.... In the car, I am listening to Marley & Me on audio... super cute!

What are you cooking/baking?

I made a roasted chicken with orange sauce (a Ricardo recipe... I saw it in the magazine and had to make it!) I also made some roasted asparagus, mashed potatoes and parsnips (roasted in the chicken pan). For dessert, we had ice cream cake to celebrate my sister's birthday (supposed to buy last week but put off til this week)

Happy you accomplished this week?

I started cleaning out my room, decluttering... I also wrapped up my January financials, planned for February.

Looking forward to next week?

Hopefully finishing up the room declutter session and redeco, trying to keep it on the cheap cuz we will also be doing the kitchen remodel something in the spring??!!

Thankful for today?

A family dinner (including my aunt), time spent relaxing, a bit of laundry, coffee... Just being off is a bonus :-)

I hope you all have a great week :-)

February goals

2012-02-02T21:03:00.000-04:00

I have to admit that while I was seriously looking forward to Carla's no spend and decluttering challenges, I won't be participating this month. I sometimes get a mental block preventing me from focusing on specific things, and I haven't been able to concentrate and write out my strategies. I get this at work and in other things I'm working on... if it seems too complex I tend to run away :-(

I will still be focusing on 5 goals of my own:

20 no spend days (shorter month, but fingers crossed I can get this many)
Give a box of books and audiobooks to the library
Finally, after 2-3 years of talking about it, cancel 2nd landline (this includes moving the internet from one line to the other)
Tackle 2 personal spots and declutter/organize: My desk at work (includes filing EVERYTHING) and my bedroom, soon to be redecorated (taking out desk, adding a rocking chair, new tv, etc)
Track all spending on a daily basis and recap weekly on blog

It's a short month, so I'm hoping to get everything accomplished! I'm actually already looking towards March and its 3 paychecks!

Hope everyone has a great month of February!

January successes (extra $$, payments, etc)

2012-01-31T13:14:00.001-04:00

Overall, January has been a wonderful month financially... Seems alllll the way back to August 2011 since I've had a month like this. September's my birthday month so it all goes downhill very fast... then October and November I'm gone part of those months, and we all know how a lot of us do in December.......... so I welcomed January with open arms, and it's been very good!

I managed:

21 no spend days (including Sunday and today)
spent only $310.61 on groceries (I'm trying to average $312/month for 2012, but I'm expecting more around $350 which is our norm). This is the full amount of groceries, I pay 50% of the total amount, so $155.31)
paid down my car loan (presently on a 0.99% balance transfer) by $908.60 (had extra money in checking, so pre-paid for February!). Current balance is $9.698.31
earned $507.29 over and above my regular paycheck ($91 surveys, $45 cupcake sale (2 dozen), $11.29 rebate, and $360 part time job #2).
absolutely NO eating out (I had about 6-7 meals out in December, as a reference)
scored $25 in amazon.ca gift cards through swagbucks (and a $25 Pay Pal that I included in surveys, although it's not really just surveys @ swagbucks)
added $240.25 in my emergency fund (which is in a Tax Free Savings Account)

I'm hoping the momentum keeps up until mid-2012, but I know it's probably going to slow down.

A commenter had asked about survey money, I forget who, sorry :-( Here is a link to the post I did in March 2011, called The promised survey post.

Do you count and add up all your extra "snowflakes" or whatever you call windfalls or extra earned?

No/Low spend January, days 22-28

2012-01-30T15:30:00.002-04:00

This will be the last no/low spend update of January... I will be counting tomorrow's errand run into February, just because I like to start my weeks off on a Monday.

[A reminder of my 3 rules for the month:

Track every single day in my notebook (small enough to fit in my purse, so no excuses!)
No eating out unless it's 100% covered by a gift card
Keep grocery spending below $350 for the month, ideally below $300]

Here's the daily breakdown:

January 22: no spend

January 23:

$70.01 groceries;

$46.50 gas (still around $1.25 per L!)

$30 lottery tickets with coworkers (paid up to April 7th)

$13.23 postage

January 24: no spend

January 25: no spend

January 26:

$24.31 groceries

$6.78 household misc.

$18.18 gifts from Freedom Account

January 27: no spend

January 28:

$50.85 change of address for 6 months (no longer paying for PO Box)

The grocery total so far is $310.61, which is below my $312 target that I'm hoping for in 2012. I know some months it'll be closer to $350, so I'd like it to be under $300 some months. I blame good sales this week for making me go over the $300!

My total no spend days is 19, which is 8.9% of my goal of the year :-)

How did your last week go??

Sunday Night Chit Chat 1/29/2012

2012-01-29T19:49:00.010-04:00

Happy Sunday night!! It seems many of us have a lot to say, prepping for end of the month wrap ups, February challenges (still have work to do before I post mine!!)... I love my blogging friends... I learn so much from everyone :-)

This is a fun post I look forward to every week :-) I'm gonna start off with a picture of "Boo", my little nephew. He is 5 months old (born in August) and weighs in at a whopping 5 lbs 14 oz ;-) He loves to jump on our laps when we're on the phone or sitting in the lazyboy. It's hard to blog when he decides to take a nap!!

What are you reading?

I am **still** on the same french book (Bonheur, es-tu la? by Francine Ruel) but I started a new book by Sidney Sheldon and Tilly Bagshawe. I have been a fan of Sidney Sheldon's books for 20 years, and was very saddened when he died in 2007... But his family and Tilly Bagshawe have some sort of arrangement and so far she has "co-written" 2 books with him.

This one is really good so far!

What are you watching?

I wanted something light this afternoon, so I found this one On Demand... It was pretty good!

What are you listening to?

In the car during my commute to work I am still listening to Alex Cross' Trial by James Patterson. It's pretty long (8 discs) but should be finished tomorrow or Tuesday.

I have the TV on in the background...

What are you cooking/baking?

Today's big meal was prime rib roast, mashed potatoes and celery root and salad. There is one portion for lunch tomorrow. The roast was still in the freezer after the holidays, today seemed like the perfect time to make it. I also made a 7 layer dip as a treat for my sister, it's her favorite treat in the world!

Happy you accomplished this week?

I held the purse strings pretty tightly, so happy with my spending for the week! (wrap-up coming tomorrow). I also met one of my goals at work...

Looking forward to next week?

I am finally setting up my sealed pot (decorating tomorrow!). I love new months, new beginnings... Now I'm looking forward to spring :-)

Thankful for today?

A quiet day at home with the kitties, a movie, a good meal, and soon, a nice hot bath, a treat and a french movie (Gamines).

I hope you all have a great week :-) Anyone who wants to join this chit-chat can go to Carla's blog for more info :-)

Prefer to laugh about it.

2012-01-28T23:40:00.004-04:00

So this morning I woke up to quite a bit of ice, the roads were snow/ice packed on the way to work (it made for a very rough ride, not terribly slippery, just bouncy like on muchly uneven terrain).

When I pulled my car into my parking spot at home, my key was stuck in the ignition!! I didn't want to pull too hard for fear of breaking it, but I saw $$$ signs thinking of how in the heck I'd get this fixed.

Did you know you can't pull the key out of the ignition when the car is still in Drive??

And after spending a good hour, hour and a half on a batch of cupcakes for my sister to take to work tomorrow, a good coconut recipe with a marshmallow frosting (very similar to boiled icing), complete with cute little flowers, and 3 different type of sprinkles, the icing ran down the sides of the cupcakes after I put them in the carrier. I have never had this happen before. For sure I'm not sending them now :-( The only thing I can figure out is the frosting might have still been a bit warm, and when I put the cover on (which I almost never do right away), it created more heat in that little "chamber". The cupcakes themselves had been cooling for about 3 hours.

Argghhh. What a day. No, what a WEEK!