Operation: Budget Reduction -- week 1

     Okay...I'm going to try saving money on my family's weekly budget. For the next few weeks I'm going to write what I made for my family for breakfast, lunches, and dinners followed by the total at the grocery store. I am hoping that as I do this the weekly total will begin to go down. I am writing the menu down to hold myself accountable. I really want to save my family a lot of money the next six months because we are planning a family road trip from Missouri to Oregon and the only way we can afford to go is to significantly reduce our spending.
     I began researching menu ideas and I haven't been very thrilled. I work 45 hrs a week and so does my husband. That means cooking from scratch and lots of time couponing is out. However, I am not going to let that get me down. I am determined to save!!!

Zach: breakfast will be whatever he can find at home - lunch is French bread pizza
Bridget: breakfast will be whatever she can find at home - lunch is French bread pizza (she is having that since the French bread makes more than enough for Zach) -- see I even have the kids helping with the operation budget reduction.
Brian: breakfast will be his usual yogurt - lunch is tv dinners (I can get them for $1 each)
Me: breakfast will be cereal - lunch is buttered pasta w/cooked carrots

Dinners:

• Polish sausage w/rice-a-roni
• Grilled cheese sandwiches w/chicken noodle soup
• beans-n-ham w/cornbread
• steak w/baked potatoes, corn, and roll
• Chef salad (ham for salad will be saved from pkg from beans dinner)
• Chicken nuggets, top ramen, corn, and orange slices
• sloppy joes w/tator tots

Additional items purchased along with the groceries:

• deodorant
• multipurpose cleaner
• sandwich baggies
• paper towels
• toilet paper
• kitchen sponges

Total Price for the week: $131.26


    

“You've done it before and you can do it now. See the positive possibilities. Redirect the substantial energy of your frustration and turn it into positive, effective, unstoppable determination.”

Ralph Marston quotes

Never Enough Time

Have you ever noticed when there are a million things to do on your "to-do" list time flies by and other things pop up that delay you getting things accomplished? I have so many items on my to-do list that if I was to start right now on them, stay on track and not get distracted even one little bit, it would still take me a full week - if not longer - to get everything marked off my list.

• Joey's Kids
• Finish my business plan
• Fill out the paperwork for the loan company
• Look at buildings - and of course decide on a building
• Put my notice in at work
• Spend every waking second getting this ready to open and to pass all the necessary inspections
• Zach's Go Kart Racing
• Get Zach a racing jacket
• Teach him the meaning of the different colored flags
• Get my nerves under control
• As a mom I am not ready to see my baby in his go kart racing on a big track with other people - to many bad thoughts flood my mind every time I think of him getting out there - what if someone bumps his kart and causes it to spin or even to flip - has upset he will be if he doesn't win his first race - many other ways he can get hurt but I try not to think of them; afraid I will change my mind and not allow him to race (which will crush him)
• Also as a mom I am proud of him - I know he can do it - he's responsible and safe - I want to let him go and try new things - this is something he really wants to do
• Vacation
• Vacation is only one month away
• I need to get the RV ready to go
• it is missing many necessary kitchen items
• I need to gather all our necessary summertime swimming items
• swim shoes, swim suits, towels, sunscreen, noodles, boards, water guns
• Make a grocery list for things to make on vacation
• Make a packing list for the vacation
• clothes to pack, personal items needed, activities/games for the family
• We need to take the RV out and make sure there are not any problems that need to be fixed before vacation begins (since during vacation we will be living in it for an entire week)
• I would like for us to go to an RV park locally and try all the hook-ups so that when vacation begins we have some sort of idea on what needs to be done and how it needs to be done

WOW! Now that I have sat down and wrote out everything that needs to be taken care of I am suddenly feeling very overwhelmed. There is a ton of things on my to-do list and not much time to get it done. How on earth am I going to accomplish all of this?

Deep breath - Deep breath - Deep breath - Deep breath - Deep breath

I can do this. I can do this. I CAN do this. I CAN DO this. I CAN DO THIS!!!

I will just start at the beginning and work my way down. I can spend one hour every evening working on Joey's Kids things. It will take a little time to get it all done but it is easily doable with one hour every evening. Zach racing jacket I can have my husband take care of that one evening. Teaching him the meaning of the flags we are going to take care of that today. My nerves...well there's nothing really I can do about that. Next Saturday when he races I will just have to work on my deep breathing...and maybe cover my eyes a time or two. Vacation, vacation, vacation...I will just have to dedicate the next few weekends to getting it all done. I am displined. I am determined. I can get everything on my list accomplished...and accomplished in a timely manner. This summer will be busy and will be tiring but I can promise that by the end of the summer I will have one hell of a story to write.

One Step Closer

          Friday one of my dreams came true! I have found someone willing to help me financially on opening my own center. Joey's Kids is about to be transformed from a dream to a reality!!
          Friday my husband came home from work and gave me wonderful news. One of our friends has agreed to help me with the start up cost of opening my own center. I am so excited! Really...I had to stop typing just now so I could once again jump up and down screaming with excitement like a five year old at Christmas. I was screaming so loud my cat's fur stood up, her back arched, she hissed at me, and then took off to hide under the couch. Guess she's not as excited as I am.
          I am finally one step closer to my goal! I knew it. My determination and hard work is paying off; just like I knew  it would. Our friend heard how hard I am working on this. He knows how much time and effort I am putting into this to make it work. He can see that I am going to school to get my degree in Early Childhood, college isn't cheap, so he knows how serious I am about this.
          I told him just because I have someone willing to put up the money is no excuse for me to run off half cocked and do this sloppy. As soon as this semester is over I am going to dedicate 100% of my free time this summer to getting all the paperwork together. I am hoping that by the end of the summer I will be looking for a building to begin my own daycare.
          This is amazing! I can barely contain my excitement. I feel like I am going to burst. It feels so good to have someone put that faith into me.
         He was talking to my husband today. He told my husband that he is excited. He really believes I can do this, and do it successfully. He even thinks in a couple of years I could even open another one or that I could build my own huge center.
          I think I am done typing for now on this subject. Just sitting here typing and telling everyone about this makes me feel like I am wasting time. The little time I have typing this blog could be spent creating my employee handbook, parent handbook, projected budget, and other things. I will go for now but I will update later.
          :)

Update on my new determined adventure

I am going to open my own daycare! This is my new chant. I keep hoping that if I continue to repeat this to myself, numerous times, every day it will come true. I know that I need to exercise determination and hard work to accomplish this goal. And oh boy have I been doing a lot of hard work for this. I knew it was going to be a lot of work but I didn't quiet grasp the concept of exactly how much work would be involved. Needless to say I am shocked. Even though the amount of work has thrown me for a loop I am not going to deter from my goal. Every night after the kids are in bed and homework is done I spend a few minutes working on getting my own place up and running.

I have accomplished a few things. I have created my employee handbook, business expense report, business brochure, business cards, job descriptions, and job application. I am almost finished with the initial start up cost supply/equipment list. After I finish a few more things I can create my business plan. Once the business plan is complete I can begin submitting applications for loans and looking for a building.

Once I have a loan secured and a location picked out I can then begin opening my own center and turn in my notice to my current job. I cannot wait til I am standing in the doorway of Joey's Kids and smiling and greeting the parents with their children as they walk into my facility. I will stand proud and tall as I greet everyone entering my building because I will know deep down the amount of hard work that was required to make my dream a reality and that I am lucky enough to do what I love.

Tied Dyed Pancakes

Ever since my children were little I have done fun things with food coloring. When they were little it used to amaze them with my ability to make cakes and pancakes of all different colors. I would have them tell me a color that they liked and then I would make a double layered round white cake except for the cake wouldn't be white. I would add food coloring to the batter to make each layer the color of their choice. The kids would be excited to eat the cake after dinner because they picked the color. It took them a few years to figure out how I was doing this. They used to believe Mommy was magical and could turn cakes into all kinds of colors. There were many times when we ate cake where one layer was purple another orange and the frosting was green.

On Sundays when I have time I make tied dyed pancakes. I put a few drops of food coloring in a small bowl with the pancake batter and I swirl the food coloring around causing a tied dyed look. My kids love these pancakes! In their words..."No one makes pancakes like my mom." I love making these. The first time my son's best friend spent the night I made these pancakes. His mom called me the next day to ask me how I made the pancakes they ate that morning. Her son couldn't stop talking about them. Yesterday he spent the night again. This morning as I was making the pancakes he came up to me and said that he loves my pancakes. I laughed and asked him if I make the best pancakes ever. He shrugged his shoulders and very politely said " I don't know. They are just pancakes but yours are colorful and that's what makes them so good." I couldn't help but laugh when he walked away. My pancakes may not be anything special in regards to taste but I win hands down when it comes to appearance.  

My Tied Dyed Pancakes

2012 New Year Resolutions

During the new year I am going to get all my things together for my own center and try to present it to someone who will help me with the money that I need to open my own center.

I am going to continue to work for the next six months for my current employer to fulfill my contract with them; I will try my very best to not get so upset I walk out before my contract ends.

I am going to not let everything and everyone get to me.

I am going to be less stressed.

I am not going to get upset as often.

I am going to try to spend more time with my children and husband.