F has a long weekend (four days!), so Valentine's Day was actually a day off of school.

Valentine's Day at school was also pajama/crazy hair/lovey day as well. F had to bring a decorated box to school, and valentines for each kid in the class. She made hers and actually, most of the ones she received were also handmade! I'm impressed! And there was very little candy (almost none! I love the parents in that class). One of the moms brought cupcakes for their end-of-the-day Valentine's party.

The teacher's valentines to the kids were also handmade, and they each got a no-homework pass for valentine's day. F declared this "the best gift ever!" which is funny if you know her, because she never uses the no-homework passes. She already has two. I will let you know if she ever uses them, but I'll bet not.

So the school celebrations - frugal.

So F had actual Valentine's Day off, and D had to work. She and I went bowling in a nearby town. The bowling alley is actually in a casino (don't ask) on tribal land. You don't have to walk through the casino to get to it, and it's a really nice bowling alley, actually. The only other people there were another mom with her son. They were right next to us, and it was fun to talk to them a little bit.

Then we went out to lunch together.

Not so frugal, but super fun, and a nice mother-daughter day!

For dinner I made lemon chicken, a family favorite, with broccoli and jasmine rice. And for dessert F requested apple tarte tatin. It is so awesome, I can't even describe it... apples, caramel, pastry - yum! We each made valentines for each other (we don't buy gifts for Valentine's Day). Family celebrations - frugal.

And now that all of the house cleaning is done for the weekend, I can relax for the next few days and have a nice, quiet weekend!

When we go to the UK in the summer, we'll be traveling from my sister-in-law's to my mother-in-law's. D pointed out we'll be going right by the Uffington White Horse, a prehistoric hill figure (done in chalk) that is not only amazing, but it also features in the Thursday Next series of books by Jasper Fforde.

If you haven't read them, you should! Hysterically funny! The first in the four-part series is called the Eyre Affair (as in Jane Eyre).

Anyway, I got on the National Trust website to find out more about it, and saw the National Trust's program called "50 Things to do before you're 11 3/4." It's basically a way of getting kids excited about doing things outside.

Here's the website: https://www.50things.org.uk/

F was super excited and after we set up an account for her, she started filling things in she's already done (such as play conkers and play in the snow) and then she and D went outside and built a little fort out of sticks while I went to the grocery store.

There are lots of good ideas on the 50 Things list! Some of them may have to wait until we're near an ocean...

I've had our 2013 photo book in our Shutterfly cart waiting for a deal (I did the book during Dec. and the first week of January, finished it completely, and just parked it in the cart)... Just got a massive deal, and I'm not sure how it all worked.

I got a $20 off coupon in the mail, also had free shipping (code SHIP30) and it was 20% off photo books. In the end I got more than 50% of my order (I'm not sure how it worked - the number just seemed to get lower and lower).

Anyway, we're right on budget for the photo book (I have a budget category for it), and I can't wait to have 2013 on the shelf!

We paid off $838 last Fri to the mortgage, and our payment posted. We now owe $75,985. We decided to celebrate the $75k, $50k and $25k markers on our route to having no mortgage, so I am hoping that next month we get to go out to a big dinner! We are going to Los Angeles to visit my parents, and it would be nice to celebrate with sushi!!

According to my excel spreadsheet, this means paying down the mortgage by $160 next month. That shouldn't be difficult since I already have $150 budgeted to additional principal payments. Just need $10 in snowflakes.

D's vertigo is gone, but he says that ear still feels full and he has mild tinnitus, so he's visiting all sorts of doctors. It's wrecking the medical budget, but I want him to feel better. We're having to rearrange the budget somewhat to accommodate larger medical expenses.

Still the extra $10 shouldn't be a problem - hoping to have my gym money by the end of the month! And I need to sell a few things on craigslist.

There is so much going on right now (I have a cold, have to draw up some plans by Friday!, have to do a proposal, my uncle needs a budget and I told my mom I would help, etc). But for right now, I am just going to concentrate on our No Spend Days.

These don’t include regular bills (utilities, etc) or grocery shopping (unless I buy something that isn't on the list!!!).

Sunday - neti pot to replace broken one $11

Monday - NSD

Tuesday - NSD

Wednesday - parakeet seed $9.94

Thursday - NSD (picked up book from library - free!)

Friday - NSD

Saturday - NSD (just did the grocery shopping - did not get anything extra)

I had a feeling last night when we went to bed and the snow was falling that there would be a school delay this morning. When the alarm went off, D checked, and, yes, they'd called a 2-hour delay. F slept in for an hour.

As we were getting ready, we got another email and text - they cancelled school for the whole day.

I walked F across the driveway to our neighbor's house and took D to work (in the car with the snow tires!). Our neighbor is so sweet - another grandmother.

When I got back, F and I hung out and played Uno, put dinner in the crockpot and loaded up the car with warm clothes and the sled. I dropped her off at D's office for lunch and taught my spinning class (class was pretty full - lots of school employees off for the day!). Then picked her back up and took her sledding. Then we came home and watched the Aristocats (free on Netflix).

So, all in all, a really nice day! (and a no-spend day) But not what I planned...

Here is what I was supposed to do:
- scan plan at the office and send to engineers so they can give me a price for a new project
- taxes
- buy ink for the new printer
- pay down principal on mortgage

All of that will (hopefully) happen tomorrow; they are calling for more snow tomorrow!

When I got home today, my internet bill was in my inbox. Yikes! It had doubled since last month! I figured the promo deal I had was over.

So I immediately called to beg for another promo deal. All I said was "I noticed the promotion is now over." There weren't even any formalities or "we'd really like to keep you as a customer" - they just transferred me immediately to the retention department who without any discussion (or begging) offered me a rate that is even less than what we've been paying for the past year. I was prepared to beg; seriously.

We now pay $19.95 plus taxes for internet only. (We were paying about $25).

It's like the other, "non-promo" rate is just for people who are too busy or don't bother to call in. All you have to do is call up and you get the better (way better) rate.

Savings is about $60/year.

Got a check for $75 from my business credit card (cash rewards). I haven't decided if this is mortgage principal or will go into F's tuition account which will be depleted since we just paid next year's deposit. I might wait until the end of Feb. when I find out how much tuition assistance we get.

And now a question, which might be silly... but here goes... how do you determine a no-spend day? Some days my mortgage payment goes through or I pay the gas bill or whatever. But those are fixed expenses that I can't do anything about. Is it a no-spend day if you haven't spent on incidentals/food/stuff like that?

My visa payment went through today, but these were items I bought on other days. To me, this was a no-spend day, but the days I bought those items were spend days. Does that make sense? How do the rest of you figure it?

Freebie 1 - Was taken to breakfast today by a client. This never happens, since my clients are almost always local governments. This client is a hotel. He also mentioned there will be more work coming up later in the year, so that's good.

Freebie 2 - I got paid by the gym; it was $40 (mortgage principal!). I really would (and have had) taught just for the gym membership. I think I'd get paid more if more people came to my classes, so I might have to figure out how to drum up business!

Freebie 3 - No horse riding for F today - it was canceled due to cold. She'll be sad, but I am glad since it is really cold! My parents pay for the lessons, but this saves the gas down there.

Vertigo is gone, but D still has symptoms (in the end I think it was a sinus infection that settled in his ear). He says his ear continues to feel plugged (but at least he's functional!). The tally for the medical expenses is about $215.

Not sure if it's related (maybe sinus pressure is affecting his eyes?) but he also went to get a new pair of glasses - total $261 incl. the doctor visit. He now needs them to see up close (so it's prescription reading glasses - he didn't want bi-focals). This wasn't an expected expense since he just got glasses in June.

It's a lot to absorb, and we're about $209 down on our medical "envelope." (This is a virtual envelope - we do our budgeting and tracking in moneywell which uses what they call a bucket system, but its basically an envelope). I'll need to funnel some money in there from underspent buckets. Dining and groceries should be low this month, so we can use some of that to fill that bucket back up.

Lots of thoughts in my head right now (it's good to get this down so I can stop thinking about everything):

- I got my bonus from Capital One today - $125! Yes! I am going to apply this to mortgage principal next month.

- A friend is coming over this afternoon to share her music and choreography for the exercise class I teach. She is so nice! She used to own our gym, and she was the one who got us all certified to teach this class. She was at the hospital the day after my daughter was born (and it was a trek! We were at a hospital an hour away due to complications). Anyway, the result is that I don't need to buy choreography. And F and I get to see her!

- I was attending the same class yesterday (my friend L teaches on Mondays, and we share the Wednesday class). L and I have already shared our music, and I'll be copying everything for her, too. Anyway, the gym owner paid L, so I am hoping that means I'll get paid either tomorrow or Thursday. Fingers crossed; he is pretty erratic about paying us.

- My insurance company is making me a little crazy right now. They were great in that they decided that D's last day on the insurance was 12.31.13, but somehow decided I wasn't eligible for coverage and didn't pay my doctor for my well-visit (so I had to call and straighten it all out). Then despite the fact that D is not covered, we've paid for him for both January and February. I was told we'd get a credit for January to appear on the February statement, but they told me their billing department is separate. Another call. I'm hoping this is fixed for March and we see the credits for both January and February. The woman I spoke with understood that we shouldn't be paying for my husband, and promised that would be straightened out for March, but didn't mention the credit in the phone message she left me. We'll see.

- I finished the business taxes (both federal and state). Just need to mail - phew!! I've download Turbo Tax for our personal taxes (my parents let me use their software since you can download onto multiple computers). So I'll start that this week.

- I am doing the business checkbook reconciliation.

- I am vowing to curb our spending in February. January was "spendy" due to stocking up in the sales.

F is off of school today, but D works, so I am taking advantage of my self-employed status to hang out with her.

This morning we have been hanging out a home, and right now she's playing minecraft for a few mins.

I was relieved to get an email from F's piano teacher this morning canceling today's lesson. F hadn't practiced much (we are trying to work out a better system for practicing) and we get a credit toward next month's lessons. That means we pay for only three lessons in Feb. rather than four.

So instead we'll do a few quick errands downtown and then go to the gym. F gets her own bench, and she does the motions with just the bar (1 lb.) or dance or play on the ipad. Usually all three over the course of the class.

Then we're going out to lunch! We're going to a Japanese place for bento boxes (they have a lunch special). D eats lunch out once a week, and I eat lunch out once a month, so I don't feel too guilty about this splurge. OK, I must feel a little guilty or I wouldn't be mentioning it. Whatever is left from our dining budget for the month, I use to pay down the mortgage. But it is, after all, the dining budget. I know everyone has issues around money, and I feel less guilty if I deprive myself, but I am trying to deprive myself less when the budget is not in any danger.

I buy stuff at the grocery store for F and D (crisps, scones for D so that he doesn't go to Starbucks, pickles for F, beer and coffee for D). I end up with the rejects from F's lunch as the sides in my lunch the next day, and I don't drink alcohol or coffee (I gave them up a long time ago when I realized how expensive these things are). This is not a rant against my husband and daughter; it's really about me, and I know that. I don't need as many "treats" but when I do give myself a treat, I have to try to not feel guilty!

Do any of you struggle with the guilt thing?

D and F are out getting breakfast burritos together. Last week, D went and saw a movie mid-week after dinner one night (and F was sad that she didn't see him much that day, just at dinner). And tomorrow is a no-school day, but D has to work, so she and I will hang out (that is the beauty of self-employment). So D and F are spending some time together today. First the breakfast burritos, then they'll meet a friend of hers and his dad up at school to kick the soccer ball around.

Tonight we're having pizza at our friends' house. They have six kids (including triplets!), and there will be two other families there. I am bringing salad. I'm happy - love all of these families, and I love potlucks. F is happy because she loves all the kids.

I took our pennies to the bank on Friday and we had $5.78! That's a lot for pennies! So that will go to the mortgage principal next month.

I've gathered up a bunch of old photos to scan (we didn't have a digital camera until F was born). D and I looked so young when we first met! And I gathered up old family photos, too. I should have time on Tuesday to scan some of them.

Right now - need to vacuum F's bedroom and get a load of washing in before D and F come home!

Sold two items on Craigslist.

One was an old toy of F's; the woman was so nice - has a 2 and 4 year old. We talked for a few minutes about schools (which can be a real problem where we live). Made $12.

Also sold an old backpack that was left by and old roommate, and she didn't want it back (said keep it, sell it, keep the money). I didn't want to make a lot of money off of it since I never actually bought it, but I have been storing it a long time! Made $5.

So $19 in snowflakes for the mortgage, etc. I have an envelope where I keep all of this money, and some of it goes toward F's allowance, which is why I say "etc" - it might be allowance money! She gets $1 a week, and NEVER spends it! The only things she wants to buy are apps for the ipad or ipod, and the ones she wants are often free. I think it helps that her birthday and Christmas are almost exactly 6 months apart, so there isn't a long stretch where she has to wait for something she might want. But she does have a helping jar, so some of her allowance goes in there (in the past, she's wanted to donate it to the animal shelter).

F went to a birthday party yesterday and is at a friend's house today. I miss her, and can't wait to go pick her up! But in the meantime, I've gotten a ton of things done.

I turned her furby back into baby mode (this was a special request).

I put all of our 2006 photos and all of the photos from when we first met and when we first got married into shutterfly so I can make an album later.

Did all my housework (including items from my yearly calendar and monthly calendars). I still need to hang up a load of laundry.

Gathered up a ton of pennies to take to the bank next week (on popcorn day of course).

Rearranged a few drawers in order to get rid of old pajamas and make room for my exercise clothes (which are currently in a bag on the floor in the closet - not a good system!).

And darned several pairs of socks. Do you darn socks? My grandmother did, but my mother never did. She still has my grandmother's darning egg, though (I had to buy one). I darned three pairs of my socks, and two of F's. I darned socks while watching an episode of Sherlock Holmes (the UK show - have you seen it? It's amazing!).

Also made plans for next Friday night. F was invited to a birthday party she really, really doesn't want to go to (she doesn't like the girl very much, but we've talked about being kind anyway, so maybe that's why she was invited). It sort of put me in a spot, and I do feel bad for this girl. But F insisted that she really doesn't want to go. So I've arranged for dinner with our friends on Friday night and F will sleep over at her house, so that I can say we have other plans.

Yesterday I went to the bank (I always go on Fridays because they have free popcorn!) and paid down principal on our mortgage. I used the refund on our escrow plus the $150 I am now allotting each month to paying down our mortgage plus some money from savings. We now owe $77,684 on our house and if we just pay regular payments, it'll be paid off in October 2020. (But I am continuing to pay down principal, and the goal is to have it paid off in June 2019).

I automatically put money into our IRAs and a car savings account and into F's tuition account, but paying down principal on our mortgage is by far the most satisfying way to save for me. I think it's the way I can track how much sooner we pay off the mortgage; it's more tangible. Plus it's our only debt.

I called my mother not long after my visit to the bank. She seemed surprised that we only owe $77,684. My parents still have a mortgage and just refinanced (long story - but it was initiated by my brother who needed some of their equity to afford the house he wanted to buy). I think I'd feel really nervous if I had a mortgage that exceeded my life span, even if the amount of the mortgage was just a fraction of how much my house was worth. But everyone handles money differently...

I ran today for the first time since November! Among other excuses was that it was too cold, there was snow on the ground, it was Christmas break. I was still spinning and weightlifting, but the running is important to me, even though I only run once a week.

Anyway, it was good and bad..

Good... I didn't stop! Partly because I wanted to get on this blog and tell you I didn't stop, so thank you for that accountability!

Bad... At one point I got a face full of leafblower dust.

Good... Temp was high 30s and that's warm enough not to need gloves.

Bad... I was so, so, so slow! Much, much slower than I ran last time. So it took me longer to get back (well, about two minutes longer).

Good... My run is a loop, so I was pretty certain after I started going downhill that I would end up returning to the office and I wouldn't need to call D to pick me up or something!

Good... No heartburn!

Really Good... I can now eat everything!

Now the financial part:
OK, so given the excuses I made, I think it's time to investigate the free fitness membership that now comes for free with my health insurance. That way I can run on a treadmill when it's too cold or snowy outside. The gym where I teach doesn't have treadmills anymore (we used to) and there are two gyms a reasonable distance from my home and office on the list.

Do you have a free fitness membership on your healthcare plan now? Have you taken advantage of it? Any familiarity with Anytime Fitness? The other choice is an all-women's gym which I'd prefer but it's about 10 mins. farther away.

Last year when the bank massively increased our escrow, I knew it was too high. I asked them about it, but we'd had a shortage the year before (due to property tax increases), and they have a calculation formula. So they sent us a check for $337 for overpaid escrow and lowered this year's payment. I am going to keep our payment the same and put the rest toward principal.

I can't wait until the mortgage is paid off and we can set aside our own money for the taxes and insurance! (Some banks will let you pay your own, but ours collects the escrow).

Anyway, this $337 will also go toward principal. I just need to transfer it. I prefer to bank on Fridays when they have free bags of popcorn!

I'm able to type right now because F has a friend over; it's D, one of her very best guy friends! (She is close to two boys who are both super sweet - they're in her class, but they were all on the same soccer team; those friendships with boys are so important - F says some of the girls are just too quiet and sedentary. She plays soccer at recess a lot). Anyway, thanks to D I can get some stuff done. He has swim practice at 2, so his mom is picking him up soon. And then F and I will go to the library and up to a subdivision I do review for (luckily they have horses and I have a bag of horse treats in my glove box, so we'll pet the horses).

The easiest resolutions were the personal ones:
- Stretch more - carried over from last year - stretch EVEN more! I did pretty well last year, but I have to remind myself that I sleep better when I stretch before bed and have a better morning when I stretch after I get up, even for just a few minutes.

- Digitize stuff - I need to digitize old family photos and also the penny postcards that my grandmother received during WWII from families of POWs (she sent them messages from the POWs, and they wrote back the most beautiful thank you messages). Also need to digitize the notes for teaching my weightlifting class and my spinning class.

- Use Chrome and Apple Mail instead of Firefox (which my husband calls my Budget Browser) and Thunderbird. I switched over to Chrome last weekend, so I'm ahead of the game!


Now the financial goals:
- Wills - Finally do our wills (I have the template forms and everything! I just need to sit down and DO IT!!)

- Retirement - $800/month to our IRAs (and find an extra $200 to put in there to be at $5000 each)

- Mortgage - $115 per month to mortgage principal

- Tuition - increase amount we pay out of our budget by $10/month so we don't dip into our tuition savings account as much. Also put $50 from the 52-week challenge per month into the tuition account. Move the tuition account to somewhere making some interest.

- Car Savings - continue putting in $150 per month.

- Clothing - based on my analysis of the ideal wardrobe (yes, and excel spreadsheet), I don't need any new clothing except a swimsuit. No clothes buying for me this year (except the swimsuit - just bought massively on sale from Landsend - hope it fits)

One of the best financial gifts my father ever gave me is the ability to have USAA insurance. My dad enlisted as an officer the Navy back in the 50s. He went to college on the GI bill, and he got USAA Insurance.

When I started to drive, I got USAA, too. And F has a savings account there, so she's a member, too. They've always been so helpful, and the prices are the best I've found. When I had a claim, they were amazing.

Anyway, today I got my yearly dividend, a little over $70, which reduces our auto insurance payment this month down to just $31.84. USAA provides dividends at the end of the year if the amount of claims is lower than expected; what a great company!

I have adopted a new approach to clothing. I am sort of afraid to tell my friends who think that I'm way too obsessive-compulsive and that I rely too much on excel and spreadsheets and stuff. But I'm not afraid to tell you!

Step 1 - I've inventoried my clothes (and F's) including socks and underwear and pajamas (and shoes). Yes, of course this goes into a spreadsheet.

Step 2 - I've figured out the ideal number of each item (short sleeved shirt, long sleeved shirt, trousers)

Step 3 - Replace only as necessary. I've determined that I have PLENTY of clothes. I don't need anything new until something gets super stained or threadbare. But F is still growing, and she needs to have bigger sizes as she gets bigger.

Step 4 - Make a list of what will be needed a year in advance (so if it's winter now, what will likely still fit and be ok next winter, and what will be needed next winter).

Step 5 - Shop the sales! (Everything winter is now on sale or about to be on sale). I just bought F some long sleeved shirts and a sweatshirt half off at Old Navy and got $10 off my next purchase. She will likely be a size 8 for another year, but I bought a few things in the next size up.

And... it's good to know that I don't need anything. So nothing for me until my current clothes shred and fall off! (Actually my standard practice is that clothes that are stained become workout clothes, and clothes that have holes become pajamas - then they shred and fall off and become rags).

I've had this green fabric forever (can't even remember when I bought it). I'm pretty excited that not only is it now a dress, but there was enough left over for a tunic for F.

I also made a box out of some cardboard I had in the office for the hedgehog I made for F for Christmas.



Everything is bought and wrapped, and I was wondering how much I spent this year...

Here is the grand total (this includes gifts for F, D, the photo prints we got for each other and the teacher gifts): 365.70 (I am not sure how much D spent from our Dublin account to buy gifts for our two nephews, one niece and his mum and dad - they were all purchased on amazon.co.uk - probably about $20 each - so probably about $100). We don't buy gifts to my parents - F makes something for them.

Last night we were out at a restaurant that has a book exchange. And we saw a book we used to have, but that a borrower (who shall remain nameless) never returned - grrr! Anyway, we have the other 3 in the set, and it's one of our favorite series - the Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde. And there it was, free for the taking! (We are going to pop in and replace it with five books we are decluttering out of our house).

And then today, F had a playdate with her friend S who is moving across the country (we are all very sad). Her parents said they still had to bring the birds to a pet store since they can't bring them along (they leave in 6 days). Long story short: we now have two super cute budgies. And a very expensive birdcage, and toys and food and a travel carry case. I hope they're happy here!

F's school has one class per grade, starting with pre-school through 6th grade. So: nine classes total. Some have two teachers (up through second grade), the 3rd and 4th grade share their second teacher. The 5th and 6th share three teachers. And there are ten specials teachers (a few are part-time). I'm calculating 26 teachers.

Currently each class room parent collects money for the teacher gift (anonymously in an envelope for each grade at the front desk), puts about $40 or $50 of that into the special teachers fund, and then buys visa gift cards for the two teachers.

The problem is that the amount of money that is collected varies widely (I asked for $20 per student, but another class asked for $40). The specials teacher amounts are divided evenly, but the amounts the lead teachers get can vary widely! Our school is small, and the makeup of each grade seems to have a "personality." Some classes are super-wealthy. Ours isn't. Even in the "wealthy" classes, there are kids on tuition assistance, and I think $40 is a burden.

I'm parent association president next year, and I was talking to the secretary today about how this could be easier and more equitable. I'd like to have a suggested amount to contribute for a gift (or more if you can afford it, or less if you can't). Then we just divide it evenly between all teachers (maybe less if you're half time?).

Then just one person has to buy the gift cards (I guess next year that's me) and there isn't a huge inequity in how much teachers receive. And each class could have their class cards in an envelope at the front desk so that the class could give the teacher the hand-signed cards.

I know the world isn't always fair... but I'd like it to be more fair.

(And I've already talked to the 4th grade room parent; we are dividing our gift money 2/3 and 1/3 so that the teacher that is half time each in 3rd and 4th doesn't get double the money of the full time teacher).

I'm sure people are going to have thoughts on this - I welcome all ideas! And I won't take it personally if you disagree with me!

Got paid for teaching at the gym today. So... a $40 snowflake, going to mortgage principal.

Now that I've redone the budget for 2014, I have $115/month earmarked for mortgage principal. This is in addition to the snowflakes.

And, I just got an offer at the gym yesterday - they want me and my friend L to co-teach a noon weightlifting class on Wednesdays. I was thinking it could be fun, another chance to work out and I'd get paid more. And L and I would alternate weeks, so it's not that often.

We just bought our Christmas-Present-to-Ourselves... some photos from the awesome photographer Mike Stimpson.

http://www.mikestimpson.com/photography/

Not everyone's cup of tea maybe, but we love him! (And, yes, I bought the one of the stormtrooper knitting!).

The photos themselves were not expensive - only about $6 each for approx 8x10's.

But now we have to think about framing them. We don't live anywhere near an Ikea (closest one is about 7 hours away). My husband says that American Frame is the least expensive option (over the internet).

Do you know of any other options?

I always knit something for F for Christmas. I finished this little guy last night. He's made of leftover yarn (one thin, one thick - both are alpaca).



In other news, all of the ornaments on the school Giving Tree (arranged by the Fire Dept.) have been taken! I am so happy - so many more kids needed gifts on Friday that I sent out an email to all of the parents in F's class (I am room mother) and at the end of the day every ornament was taken! (The ornaments are put on the gifts as gift tags so they get matched up with the child).

So, all of the shopping is done, knitting is almost done, the tree is up. It's time to do the Christmas Calendar. The Christmas Calendar is a list of all of the things that are already planned plus the things we want to do this month. Our little city has a lot going on during the holidays.

Here is what is planned:

9 -
10 -
11 - F's piano recital
12 - F's school holiday show
13 - Christmas at the Palace (a city event)
14 - maybe the ice skating show (with Olympic skaters!)
15 - Las Posadas (re-enactment of Joseph and Mary trying to find a room at an inn, posada in Spanish - this is sung entirely in Spanish and is led by the priest of our cathedral)
16 -
17 -
18 -
19 - F has indoor soccer skills
20 - early dismissal - maybe out to lunch?
21 - going away party for F's friend who is moving to Cleveland
22 - The Nutcracker!
23 - make tamales and biscochitos for Christmas Eve
24 - Christmas Eve - Farolito walk (do you know what a farolito is?)
25 - Christmas Day - dinner just the four of us
26 - Boxing Day - F has a friend coming over
27 -
28 -
29 -
30 -
31 - New Year's Eve
1 - New Year's Day
2 -
3 -
4 -
5 -

Other things we want to do:
Christmas in Madrid - a tiny artist's town; they light everything!
Cross-country skiing - F and I have the gear - we just need to head out and ski
Friends over - there are lots we'd like to see this month!
Playdates for F - several friends she'd like to see outside of school
Bring F's giving jar to the animal shelter
Hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows
Write thank you letters for the teachers

My computer is going "click" intermittently. It's a very soft click, and it's not super-often. But it's upsetting. And I have applecare. So I'm taking a trip to the genius bar at the Apple Store in Albuquerque.

The Apple Store is in an upscale mall (all sorts of stores I never shop in, nowhere near my beloved Old Navy). I checked out what other shops are there, and seriously, I'm going to go to the Apple Store and then leaving for my favorite Vietnamese restaurant which is totally awesome, reasonably priced and has a giant lumberjack out front. I'm not kidding; I'll take a photo for you!

Tonight I sold an old toy of F's for $30 - yay!!! I am over budget in my xmas shopping for her so this will help bring things back under control.

I have to think carefully about what xmas dinner will be this year (I want to stay in budget). D is always confused about American Thanksgiving being so close to Christmas. He says you basically end up eating the same thing. We normally do a very British Christmas, even have friends over for Boxing Day.

Other random thoughts:
- having a super clean house makes me spend less (do you feel that way, too?)
- I just lied to F when she asked what the giant box was (it's a gift for her) - I said it was a box for the office, a new printer. I hate lying, but in this case, it's an ok lie (we can't reveal that I buy the gifts and not Santa, not yet, anyway). And I AM going to take it to the office to wrap and hide.
- Dinner tonight is homemade sushi.
- D bought some clothes and has asked me to wrap them up and give them to him for Christmas; is that weird?

This photo is from last Sunday... we strapped on our cross country skis and went skiing right down our own street (this is in our cul de sac).



My SIL was just trying to convince F that she should downhill ski. I said she can go downhill skiing when she can afford the gear and lift tickets. At our ski hill, a bunny hill lift ticket is $36 (regular hill is $49) for kids. Gear rental for kids is another $32. So $68 for a day. That's our budget for household supplies/toiletries/cleaning products for a month.

Or kids can do a 6 week program, all inclusive with rentals for $485. That's more than our entertainment budget for the YEAR.

Anyway, my x-c ski gear is about 20 years old, and all I need is a bottle of maxi-glide once in a while. F's set up is less than $100 and lasted two years. Last year, we bought her new boots end of season that should last another two years. We can sell the old boots (still in great condition) at the ski swap we have here in town (and maybe pick up new skis for next year).

And cross country skiing is super fun! And you can ski UP!! (And I don't downhill ski - so I'd basically be sitting around in the ski lodge waiting for F all day).

It's a little frustrating that my SIL, even though here intentions are good, is putting ideas in F's head that we can't follow through on (she so admires her aunt and wants to do whatever she suggests). But hopefully F will stay satisfied for a while longer with what we do as a family.