Penny Pinching Mom

Looking at Houses

Hubby and I have looked at a few houses over the past few days. We went by one today that we’re really interested in, but I don’t know if we’ll be able to get a loan to get it or not.

We also looked at one yesterday evening that we really loved, but the bank doesn’t want to finance it. I just hope we can find something. Everything is so expensive around here, especially considering the far below average median income in the area. Judging by the prices, you’d think we were looking at Wilmington real estate, near the beach.

I hope something ends up working out. There’s no way we can afford to rent a house or even a mobile home again at the prices rentals are going for now.

Perfect Timing, I Hope

The bills are behind this month, as they have been almost constantly for several months now. But for some reason, almost everything is falling on the 29th this month. Luckily, our tax refund is due to be deposited on that very day.

With the run of bad luck we’ve had lately, I am still on pins and needles. If it goes in that day as promised, I’ll have to be sure and remember to pay everything. If it doesn’t go in that day, we will be without… well, pretty much everything.

I suppose I should make a list of all the things that are due so I can keep track. And once we get the non-necessities caught up, I’m going to pare down on them. We don’t have much time to save up some money to move on, but every little bit will help.

Lookin Good

Sometimes I dress like a girly girl, but I have a thing for men’s fashion. Men’s clothes are often more comfortable than women’s, and I guess deep down inside I’m a bit of a tomboy.

I bought Hubby a Levi’s shirt a few years ago for his birthday. It’s a dark blue tee with a brick red dragon emblem on it. I just knew it would look awesome on him, so I bought it even though it was a size too big for him.

He wore it some, and I was right, it looked great on him. But he just wasn’t crazy about it, for heaven only knows what reason. So I took it over.

Every time I wear that shirt, he keeps telling me that I look nice. I guess it was a good investment after all. But now he has taken to wearing it again, and I have to hide it if I want to wear it. Men are so weird sometimes. At least mine is. But I still love him.

Taking What They Can Get

Hubby’s grandpa (known affectionately as Paw) has been sick for a couple of months. He is getting up in the years, and everyone in the family is concerned. Some are concerned for his wellbeing, while others are concerned that they won’t get what they want from him when he’s gone. It’s beginning to resemble a circus sideshow.

One of Hubby’s aunts and his uncle keep coming in saying that they want this and that. But Paw had us to help him make a will, and he is leaving them squat. Virtually everything is to go to Hubby’s dad and his other aunt. He has Hubby listed as the executor, so he gets the joy of dealing with all of this.

I just hope they don’t try to challenge the will to get what they want. Paw has really gotten his ducks in a row with everything else, what with the whole prepaid funeral plan and everything, but he wouldn’t pay a lawyer to do the will. He had us to take care of it, and I hope everything holds up well.

All of this makes me want to go ahead and research life insurance rates and get my will done. I don’t want people fighting over stuff when I’m gone, and I want to make sure Hubby and Pumpkin are taken care of if anything ever happens to me.

The Economic Stimulus Plan

I had heard about the Economic Stimulus Plan a few times, but I had pretty much ignored it. The last time Bush did something like this, we were left out in the cold because we got the Earned Income Credit that year, and we were able to take it this year as well. So I figured that it would be the same way again.

Well, I was on the phone with my Mom today, and she mentioned it and asked if I knew anything about whether senior citizens could get it. I didn’t, but I told her I would check online. After some searching, I found that we are eligible for a rebate check. Not as much of one as we would have gotten if we hadn’t gotten a full refund, but it’s still something.

We can really use that money, and it would be nice if we could get it right now. But they won’t start sending it until May. We’re being forced to move (whole other story), and it would be great if we could get it before then, but at least maybe that will help us pick up the pieces.

If you have questions about the Economic Stimulus Plan, you can find more information on this page on the IRS website.

A Family Vacation

Every year for the past 3 years or so, I’ve said that it was finally the year that we were going to take a real family vacation. But so far, it hasn’t happened. Last year there was no room in the budget to even take a day trip, and the year before money was also tight and Hubby was working too hard. The summer before that we were moving. I hope this will be the year that we finally get to go somewhere.

Branson, Missouri is on my list of places I’m considering. It’s a great place for a family vacation. There are all sorts of shows to choose from, and a variety of very nice accommodations. There’s also Silver Dollar City, a theme park that I have fond memories of from when I was small. I didn’t go to the one in Branson, but there was one in Tennessee back then.

Contrary to popular belief, there’s a lot more than just country music in Branson. There are magic and variety shows, and some of the theaters have oldies shows and Elvis impersonators. There’s just a lot of good, clean fun there that I would have no reservations about taking my daughter to, and Hubby and I could have a good time too.

Branson Getaways has lots of affordable vacation packages to choose from. Couple packages start at $423 and include accommodations for 2 nights, show tickets and more. And a 4 day, 3 night package for a family of 4 is less than $1,000. They also do custom packages, which is what we would need since there are just 3 of us.

Maybe this will be the year that we finally get to go on a family vacation. We all desperately need one, and I think Branson would be a great place to take it.

Tags: Branson, vacation

Little Things Make a Big Difference

I’m trying to come up with something to do with a little bit of our tax money that will make me feel like I’ve accomplished something around the house. It will have to be very cheap, because most of it needs to go toward bills. But I need to do something to the interior. It has looked the same for too long.

Getting new cabinet knobs or handles would be a good thing to do. We definitely need them throughout the house, because the ones we have are not in good shape. I don’t like the way they’re made either, because they have pointy edges that could easily hurt someone if they fell into them. And there’s a store less than a mile away that sells them really cheap.

That will probably be my big home improvement project. Unless I can count the massive amount of spring cleaning I need to do.

Selling Cookies

Pumpkin and I got together with another girl from her troop and her mom to set up a Girl Scout cookie booth today. It was quite an experience for us all, especially since it was both girls’ first time doing something like that.

They did great. They tried really hard, and they sold almost all of the cookies we had. They would have sold more, but we ran out of the most popular ones pretty quickly. I think they deserve a nice shiny gold chain for their efforts. Although they would probably prefer a new toy.

They will get at least one prize for what they sold. If we can sell a few more, Pumpkin will get another one too. I wish they didn’t have to sell so many to get stuff. From what I’ve read, by the old standards they would qualify for several prizes with what they sold.

At any rate, they had fun and picked up some useful skills. And that’s what it’s all about.

Owing Taxes

Well, I got my taxes done yesterday. The good news is that we get a decent refund on our federal taxes, even though I was self-employed. The bad news is that, for the first time, we owe state taxes.

It’s not a big deal. As a matter of fact, it’s only in the single digits. But I worry about what it will be next year. I only wrote full-time for half of last year, so I should have more income for 2008. And hopefully Hubby will have a better year, so we should make substantially more. And that will probably leave us owing more.

Maybe I should talk to a tax advisor even though I’ve already got the taxes filed. I really don’t want any unpleasant surprises this time next year.

Getting Serious… Maybe

I’ve wanted to lose weight for some time now. I just haven’t gotten around to actually doing anything about it. But I’m making some baby steps in the right direction.

Hubby knows that I want to lose weight, and he mentioned a few days ago that drinking soft drinks wouldn’t help. I’m not the type to take offense to something like that, and besides, he was absolutely right. So when I went to the grocery store yesterday, I looked for alternatives.

I hate the taste of diet soda, and I’m not too keen on artificial sweeteners anyway, so that’s not an option. I have been drinking water when I think of it lately, but for some reason I just can’t stand drinking plain old water with meals. So I decided to give some flavored water a chance. I found some peach and mango flavored Aquafina on sale, so I decided to give it a try. I loved it, so maybe I can get in the habit of drinking it when I want something with flavor.

Now I need to work on my eating habits. The hardest thing about that is finding stuff that Hubby and Pumpkin will eat that is healthy and conducive to weight loss. I hate to cook just for myself, so that is going to take some work.

And then there is the issue of exercise. The weather is not ideal for outdoor exercise right now, so I need to consider indoor options. I can’t afford any home gym equipment right now, but maybe some workout videos could be a possibility in the near future.

I’ve got to get to work on this. I have to admit that it has a little to do with my self-image, but a whole lot more to do with health concerns. Oh, and I want to get into those awesome jeans that I got for Christmas and can’t return.