Almost Done

I’m looking back over my Christmas list, and I’m happy to say I’m just about done with my shopping.  I still have a few things to pick up for the little one, and the hubby and I have to figure out what our joint present will be.  Each year we usually buy ourselves one big joint present instead of a bunch of little stuff.  I would love to have white shaker kitchen cabinets for Christmas, but I know we won't be in mutual agreement over that one. We'll probably go with another electronic purchase like a tablet.  We’ll just have to see!

The Bargain Hunter App Every iPhone User Needs

If you have an iPhone there is no denying you probably love having the ability to pick and choose the apps you want at any given time, but sometimes buying lots of apps can get expensive.  Don’t you wish you had a way to see when an app is on sale so you can buy it at the right time to save some cash?  Now you can because there’s an app for that!
AppZapp is a great new app that puts all the App store bargains at your fingertips.  This bargain guide finds all the current bargain app deals and shows them to you in a list that is easy to use.  There is the iPhone Free version of AppZapp that allows you to download the app and setup a free account to take advantage of the free features.  There is also the iPhone Pro version that comes with features the free version doesn’t have.
But that’s not all.  What sets AppZapp apart from other bargain hunter apps are the community features.  You have the ability to rate apps, discuss apps with other users, see your friend’s app activities (like purchases and likes), and even share your favorite apps with your friends.  There are live stream and web syncing features as well. If you’re an iPad user you can grab the iPad Pro version for free right now while it’s on sale!  See, you can start saving before you even use the app by taking advantage of this offer!

New Truck…Broke Truck

If you were to ask me what’s been going on lately I’d ask you how much time you’ve got to listen.  We’ve been busy dealing with all of our vehicles breaking down at once, Ben’s work having downtime between finishing one house and starting a new one, birthday parties, and new babies coming into this world in droves (too bad none of them are mine to keep).  Yeah, it’s been quite busy around here.  Then yesterday we spent all day at the dealership purchasing our *new to us* truck.  All this running around has me worn out, and I wish I had a huge bean bag to melt into. I may have to get a couple for the play room now that Ellie is big enough.

Today was spent yet again dealing with the new truck because there’s 1 last thing the dealership has to fix on it.  Ben got to drive it home yesterday, but the truck started messing up again on the way home.  Just what you want from a truck you just purchased, right?  It’s a used truck, but the problem had been fixed and the truck was working fine again.  Everything checked out, and the test drive went great.  I thought I was going to cry when it started giving us problems less than 2 hours after we drove it off the lot, but even though we bought the truck “as is” (we couldn’t get a warranty with the oversized tires) the dealership is going above and beyond to fix the problem, a faulty solenoid, for us.  I have to give them major props for what they’ve done.  They could’ve said “sorry, it started happening after you bought it, so you’re SOL”, but they said “we’ll get that taken care of”.  Ben drove Daddy’s Jeep to work today, and the dealership sent a tow truck all the way out here… 37 miles away from the dealership… to pick it up and have the solenoid replaced for us!  Hopefully we’ll be getting the truck back for good tomorrow, and we’ll finally be able to celebrate our new much needed purchase.

Picking Out Glasses

I’ve been sitting here trying to order prescription sunglasses for Ben, and I've come to the conclusion I just can't pick them out for him. Not only am I totally indecisive, but I don’t want to buy a pair that I know he’s going to hate.  The last time I ordered glasses for him I did the photo upload thing and tried the glasses on his virtual face.  I picked out the pair I thought looked the best and ordered those.  When they arrived I loved them.  They fit his face just like they had in the photo, but him? Not so much.  He says they’re too thin, and he prefers oval frames to the square ones I ordered.  I think I’m the only who has to look at them all the time, so I should get the final say so :-p. No, I want him to be happy, so that’s why I think I’m going to hold off on ordering anything until he gets home.  I picked out 3 pair that I like, and I’m hoping he’ll choose one of those pair as a compromise.

I really hope I don’t have to go through this with Ellie in a few years, but I’m almost certain she’ll have glasses at some point.  Everyone on both sides of our family wears some type of glasses or contacts with the exception of me.  My dad, sis, and I all have the same vision, but my eyes were able to better adjust preventing me from needing glasses.  I do admit there were plenty of times when I was in high school and college and I borrowed an old pair of my sister’s glasses for a long late night study session when my astigmatism was bothering me, but other than that I’ve been lucky enough to not need them.  Maybe we’ll get lucky and Ellie will have eyesight like mine, but I’m not counting my chickens just yet.

Pay In Gold?

I was just catching up on the local news, and I don't know what to think about one article I just read. There is a debate today over a proposed bill in South Carolina that would allow shoppers to pay with gold and silver currency if a business accepted it. The lawmakers proposing the bill are trying to implement an alternative currency to keep the state afloat in such a crappy economy.

I say what a crock of bull! Gold may be at an all time high right now, but the price can fluctuate faster than the dollar.  Besides who walks around with a bunch of gold or silver in their pocket?  How would you know what business accepts what type of currencies?  I can just see someone walking into a store with a brick of gold, and the following conversation ensues.

Cashier- What the heck is that?  You can’t pay with that!  That’s not money!

Customer- Yeah, I can!  It’s like my custom coin, dude. Now give me my change!

Am I the only one who sees this proposed bill as a total waste of taxpayer’s dollars?  Is it a scare tactic to try to get people to invest in gold and silver?  I’m not trying to develop my own conspiracy theory, but I could totally see that being the case.

Shopping For The Dads

Ellie and I are setting out on a task today.  Ben's off helping my dad at the pasture, so while both our Dad's are occupied we're going shopping. As usual finding gifts for dad isn't an easy task. What do you buy for the man who already has everything? We’re going to hit up one of the local all day flea markets to look for handmade and one of a kind gifts.  Nope, I’m not planning on buying something used and falling apart, but there are a lot of venders that sell custom creations, so it’s a great place to look when you need something unique.  I’m hoping to find something for my Dad there.  As for Ben, we already know a quick trip to the video game store will suffice.  Wish us luck!  I already know Ellie will want to buy everything in the store!

Editing Videos With Great Software

I often have friends and family ask me to edit photo or video for them because they either don’t know how or do not want to deal with the hassle.  I enjoy doing both, so I will take on the project more often than not.  Most of the time when a person sends me a photo to edit I can quickly open up Corel PaintShop Photo Pro X3 and have the photo edited in a matter of minutes.

When it comes to videos I’ve had a few problems finding an editing software that I truly love to use, so I often find myself trying different ones before I complete a project.  Now I may have found the solution to my problem.  I didn’t realize that Corel offers such great video editing software!  After reading about VideoStudio Pro X4 I’m ready to download the free trial and give it a try.  I have a feeling I’ll be satisfied as this seems like the software I’ve been looking for!  With my birthday right around the corner maybe I can convince Ben this would make a great birthday present!

These Are So Cool!

Oh my goodness how cool are these camera goggles for scuba diving? Seriously if I had the cash to blow without a care in the world right now I'd order a pair! I'd be looking for excuses to use them! You would probably find me on the bottom of Lake Jocassee whenever I could get a chance searching out parts of history to snap photos (it's a man made lake with old homes still beneath the water). Who knows, I may be able to actually pick up a pair of the 3.1MP goggles soon depending on how I finances go!

Starting A New Online Business Venture

Who knew I would have such a hard time starting my new business?  It's not that I'm having a hard time starting it.  It's that I'm having to find time to create product while my child has decided to blossom into a spitting, biting, temper tantrum throwing almost 2 year old (2 1/2 weeks and counting down!), and that has made it very difficult to find time to create.  By the time she goes to bed I'm so exhausted that I just don't have the mental capacity to come up with new ideas.  I have slowly created a small stockpile of product over the last few weeks (what wasn't snatched up by my photographer friend as photo props!), so I'm now ready to start my new business website.

The hard part now is coming up with a business name that A. I like, B. doesn't sound corny, and C. isn't already taken.  I'm still nameless, so I've been concentrating more on finding an ecommerce software solution to use. I like that most of them come with a trial period so I can figure out which one I want to use before I actually make a monthly commitment.  I plan to start doing craft shows, but having my own business site will potentially increase my sales because I'll have a wide audience.  Yes, there are those free to use commission on sales only websites out there designed specifically for crafters, but they are so flooded with others selling similar products that I feel it's very hard to get any decent "face time" with potential buyers.  I'd much rather have my own one stop online shop where you can find everything I make without having to wade through hoards of other products you may not be interested in seeing.

So now is the time for me to crack down and come up with a name.  Hopefully I will be debuting my new online store in a matter of days, but that will all depend on how my creative thinking goes while listening to the little one defy me.  I'll be so glad when the terrible two's are over!

Holiday Shopping With Coupons

It’s that time of the year again.  It’s time to make your holiday shopping lists!  This year I’m keeping my list simple because I’m working with a small budget, and I’m going to seek out the best deals I can find.  My list consists of the little one, the husband, and a few family members.  Beside each name I’ve written down the types of items I normally buy for those people, and I’m going to shop by matching up those categories with the best coupons I can find.  For instance my brother-in-law is a total geek like me, so I normally get him something from one of the electronics stores.  I already know I can always find best buy coupons, so I'll shop according to the coupons. I can't wait to see how much I do actually end up spending shopping this way because I won't have to skimp on gifts, but I bet I'll still spend a lot less!

Scan Your Way To Healthy Eating

After walking through the grocery store playing with the weight loss app I downloaded for my phone I discovered I wasted twice as much time shopping as I normally do.  Who knew a barcode scanner could be so much fun?

My friend signed up for Weight Watchers recently, and since she knows Ben is trying to lose weight she has been trying to convince me to convince him to sign up for Weight Watchers.  Honestly I think it would do him some good, but I’ve had a hard time convincing him it’s not just something women do, and it really can help him lose weight by teaching him how to choose healthy foods.  I finally got him past the ‘it’s for women” thing, and after my friend showed him how the program works he’s actually interested now.  His only excuse now is that he thinks it would be too hard and too time consuming to figure up the points.

When I spotted the WW ScanCalc Android app I decided to give it a try.  I thought it might help him when he’s shopping alone to make better choices, and it might help me buy healthier choices not just for him but for the whole family.  The truth is it does help to figure up the point values faster.  We can’t actually figure up his daily points until he signs up, but it’s proven to him that it won’t always be a pain to figure everything up.  The only downsides I see are it doesn’t calculate most store brands, and that it doesn’t keep a list of items you’ve scanned, so unless you write it down you’ll have to scan items again as you eat them.  Also, I wish it gave a list of meats, etc, that aren’t labeled with UPC codes.

For a free app it’s a great start, though.  When Ben signs up for Weight Watchers we’ll probably move on to one of the paid apps or use this one in conjunction with one of the others. For now it’s a great time waster.  I had way too much fun running around my kitchen scanning everything and walking up and down the isles at the grocery store randomly scanning items! 

No More Cheap Sunglasses

Am I the only person out there who buys something expensive and immediately loses it?  Why is it if I spend more than $10 on a pair of sunglasses they’ll disappear within hours of buying them, yet if I buy the cheapo sunglasses I can’t get rid of them.  I swear if I break the cheap ones and throw them in the trash they’ll reappear on my desk!

I found a pair of persol sunglasses I would really like to buy, but I’m afraid if I do I’ll lose them no sooner than they arrive in the mail.  Just my luck they’d get lost in the mail.  I really do love the persol style 2976 glasses, though, and if I had the cash I would probably order them right now anyway.  I’ve been wanting a good pair of sunglasses.  I spend way too much money on cheap ones that break easily.  Now I just need to figure out how to keep them from getting lost.  Maybe I’ll just glue them to my head and be done with it! LOL!

Buying Life Insurance

I’ve been looking at the budget again today, and I realized it’s been a few months since I last requested an insurance quote.  I started out my searching for quotes on our car insurance, but I didn’t find anything cheaper than we’re already paying.  I’ll search again in October when it’s time for our policy to renew. 

Then I decided to get a few quotes for life insurance.  I have a life insurance policy, but Hubby does not.  I’ve been putting aside a bit of money in an insurance fund, and we finally have enough built up to pay a few month’s worth of premiums if we can get a good price.  I think tonight I’m going to check out www.wholesaleinsurance.net to see what kind of quotes we'll receive on different types of policies. Life insurance is definitely something Hubby needs. I feel like if something happens to me I know everything will be taken care of and there will be money to go to supporting Ellie, but if something were to happen to Hubby right now we'd find ourselves in a very hard situation.

The Art Of Wearing Jewelry

Most women are ecstatic to receive a new piece of jewelry, but I admit I’ve never really been a big jewelry wearer.  Most of that comes from the fact that my mom didn’t wear much jewelry, and the church we grew up in taught that wearing jewelry and makeup to enhance the appearance was wrong.  Sometimes I wonder if I would feel differently about wearing jewelry if I hadn’t been raised this way.  Sometimes I feel uncomfortable if I wear jewelry because it’s not normal for me. It's not an everyday part of my wardrobe, and it's something that I was taught should only be worn on special occasions. I don't agree with that, but since I was never taught how to properly accessorize I feel weird when I do try.

There are times I do wear jewelry, though.  I have an opal necklace that I love to wear on special occasions, and I’ve been eyeing a ring with black diamonds that I would love to have. If I could afford that ring I would wear it all the time because I love it that much, and that's saying a lot for someone like me. I don't even wear my wedding ring most of the time!

Feeling Sexy

I've been saving the money I got for Mother's Day from my Grandma to buy myself something special, even though my Grandma probably wouldn't exactly approve of my item of choice. I've been wanted to buy some lingerie, not because I want my husband to see it, but because nice lingerie has a habit of making me feel better about myself. The only problem is I'm having a hard time finding something I like that will fit me. I don't need plus size lingerie, so I don't know why it has become so hard to find something to fit me properly!

My problem is that I have a rather large chest, and no one seems to have anything in stock that fits my top. Forget getting the one piece I found. My choices are XL, which causes it to fit my boobs but hang off me everywhere else, or M, way too small on top, but fits the rest of my body. Ugh. Since when did buying lingerie become so hard to do? I guess I'll have to keep looking or break down and order something online hoping it fits. There's one more lingerie store about 45 minutes away I want to check out, but if things keep going the way they have been I doubt they'll have anything either!

Sorting, Cleaning, & Donating

Today is yet another boring rainy day around here, so I'm taking advantage of the fact that the little one is spending the day with my Grandparents to do some more household organizing. I think it's time to go through all of our clothes and pack up most of the seasonal stuff.

It's still a bit chilly right now, but we're in that in between Spring and Winter phase. We don't need all of our Winter clothes, and I'd like to get a jump start on getting those out of our drawers/closets. This is also a great time for me to go through my clothes to see what I can donate again.

I've lost more weight, and now the stuff I was wearing most of the first year post-baby is just way too big for me. I'm fitting back into a lot of my pre-baby clothes, so I can get rid of the stuff that doesn't fit. I also have a ton of jeans that I need to donate. A friend gave me a huge container of jeans she can't fit into anymore now that she's had a baby, too, but I'm so short most of them are too long for my short legs. I had set them aside to have my Grandma hem them, but considering they've been sitting in a box in the bedroom for 3 months now I should donate them instead. I always forget to take them to be hemmed, and if I'm not using them someone else should.

What is it with jeans these days anyway?  Even though I’m only 5’2” I used to have no problem finding jeans that fit me properly lengthwise.  These days I’m starting to think my parents should have given me hgh supplements to make me grow more lol because even the jeans in the petite sections are way too long for me!  I end up rolling them up and looking like a bum because I can never find ones that fit, but I’m always too busy to remember to get them hemmed.  Plus if I can’t get my Grandma to hem them it’s just another added expense I don’t want to have to face. 

Maybe I should give up and start wearing dresses year round!  Ok, so we know that won’t happen.  I hate wearing dresses even more than I hate jeans that are way too long!

When I Hate Shopping

Most of the time I would say I love shopping as one season ends and another one begins because you can find a lot of deals then, but not this week.  A family member gave Ellie money to go towards a new TV for her playroom.  The one she has in there is a very old one (older than me), and I have to randomly knock the thing around to get the picture to come back in sometimes while she’s watching her PBS shows.  We were going to put the money she was given together with $200 we set aside from our tax money to buy her a TV.

I never thought it could be so hard to buy a TV.  I spent a few days reading reviews and making a list of my favorite TVs in her price range then we went shopping.  We’ve gone to a couple different stores almost every night this week trying to find something for her, but since this is the time of the year the new TV models start to arrive in stores all of last year’s models are on sale.  This would be great except we hit the stores about a week too late, so there’s hardly anything left except the display models. 

Now, I’m usually all for an open box deal, but I’m not so happy about purchasing a Display model of a TV.  Most stores reduced the prices of those TVs by $50.  One store was also offering an additional 10% off for purchasing a display, but to me that’s still not enough.  I know for a fact that store keeps their display TVs running 24/7, and unless there is a problem with the TV they use one of each model for the display all year.

We had picked out an LG TV that we wanted for her because we want it to be a TV that’s going to last for a few years.  It was not only in the correct price range, but it was discounted $60 plus the 10% off.  That knocked the price down to $298, but I still didn’t feel comfortable buying a display model.  After it running that much in the store how am I supposed to know how quickly it is going to die?  My home TV doesn’t run half that much, and it’s still hard to find a good TV in that price range that isn’t going to die in a couple years.  Sure it came with a 1 year warranty, but that didn’t ease my mind.  I might have purchased it if the discount was 25% off or if they had thrown in the extended warranty for free. 

My second choice was to order a TV offline, but I wanted to at least get the chance to look at them in stores to see the picture quality.  I’m not buying any large purchase like that based solely on reviews without seeing it for myself.  Unfortunately when I went in search of the TVs we liked online last night everywhere I checked was sold out of the ones we could afford because of the new models arriving soon. 

Luckily after searching all week we finally found a Phillips TV that was the 3rd choice on our list. Hubby had walked over to look at a psp game, and he just happened to spot a few new in box TVs that weren't in the normal TV section. They had been set to the side on a clearance shelf at the back of the electronics section, and we would have overlooked them if Hubby hadn't gone in search of that game.  I’m just glad our search is over. 

Hydroxycut Reviews

If you’ve been thinking about trying out Hydroxycut check out these hydroxycut reviews. I fully believe one of the best ways to find out how a product really works is to read reviews online written by others who have tried the product. I'd much rather spend a few minutes (which normally turns into an hour or so) reading reviews to make sure a product fits my needs before wasting money on it and finding out it doesn't work!

Should I Switch To A Laser Printer?

Lately I’ve been wanting to upgrade my printer.  I have a Canon PIXMA MP530 that I do love, but it’s a couple years old and an inkjet.  I would really love to purchase a laser printer for my business, but I haven’t made that investment yet because of price concerns.  I’ve been told by many that it’s not a necessity for me right now as I don’t print large amounts of paperwork each week, and the toner cartridges are expensive. 

Today I was looking into it, and I realized that more and more stores are carrying recycled toner cartridges. Not only are they cheaper, but I love the fact that they've been kept out of the landfills and put back to use.  Plus laser printers are cheaper in the long run, so it would probably save me a bit of cash each year.  I may just have to upgrade to a laser printer for my business when my tax money arrives.

Gift Card With Stipulations

My dear best friend gave me a Visa gift card for Christmas, but it came with a stipulation.  I was not allowed to use it to buy anything for the little one or for Hubby.  I guess she knows me very well because that’s probably exactly what I would have done!  She told me to spend it on myself, buy something I’ve been wanting that I’ve put off getting because of finances, and I am to show it to her whenever I get it.

Tonight I finally decided on what to buy.  See, my wedding band set is gold.  I don’t wear it much because I just don’t wear that much jewelry, my fingers got too fat for it during pregnancy and it just now fits again, and I just don’t wear much gold when I do wear jewelry.  I prefer silver, but we were young and broke when we got married, and I needed to find a pretty ring on the cheap.  I would have been perfectly fine with a Cubic Zirconia ring with a silver band because I just don't buy into the whole must have a real diamond that costs a lot of money thing, but Hubby insisted I pick out a diamond.

So, tonight I looked at a few CZ wedding sets, and I picked out one I really like. I’m going to use my gift card to buy it for myself, and I’ll now have a ring to wear with the rest of my silver jewelry.  I have a feeling having this ring will make me feel like wearing my jewelry more often.  When I choose not to wear other jewelry or choose to wear gold I’ll still wear my real wedding set, but I can’t wait to have this one, too!