So, The Apocalypse Didn't Happen...

A Maritime Christmas Card by Cape Shore

So, The Apocalypse didn't happen as promised(?) by the Mayans. I guess that means that we will be able to get on with Christmas after all.

I just wanted to wish all my fellow bloggers, followers, friends and family a very Merry Christmas. May we all feel the joy and magic that this season has to bring and remember to help the less fortunate with our good will throughout the year to come.

I'm a very lucky person in that I do have a full time job which pays out a bonus in the new year. This year's bonus will go to "Because I Am A Girl" and the local humane society. Last year I gave to "Smile Train". It makes me feel good to be able to donate which is why I do but also because I think that I am responsible to do so.

I'm certain this year will be more challenging for everyone to save money as the cost of everything is on the rise. I'm going to be tweaking my budget even more, with Gail's help of course. I have a challenge for myself to pay down more on the mortgage because retirement is close for both Hubby and I.

When I first started my blog it was about the challenge of saving and paying down debt so I'm going to be writing about these ideas again and about the ways I plan to stretch our budget. The first challenge will be about shopping wiser and smarter so as not to waste any food. Now that will be tough because everyone has waste whether it be produce that went bad or unused. I'm going to try to buy less and use more of what we bring home.

Wish me luck and together we can come up with some new ways and ideas to save some bucks.

Today at Work

I’m having an interesting time at work this week. I’m on a training course to re-certify for my current profession (one of many!). I’m sorry that I can't elaborate about the work I do, some things are better left to the imagination, but I think that I, and my co-workers, get paid very decently for our skills. That’s what brings me to the reason I'm posting tonight.

Like a lot of workplaces we usually deal with just a certain group of people on a day to day basis, but because of this training a lot of people from different departments have all been thrown together in one room and I have really been surprised how much they have been talking about money and their debts, which are huge! Some have had to take in boarders to help them pay the mortgage and utilities and to just to get by. These people make great money and are spending so far beyond their paychecks that they have actually become too far behind to catch up. SAD... but they are still spending like stupid fools. And it is on such frivolous things like football games away, at an expense they can't ever dream of paying off, giant wide screen T.V.'s to watch the games on, new trucks, the latest and greatest cell phones and some other techy stuff I'd never heard of. I wanted to scream at them “What are you thinking!!!” If I knew that Gail Vaz-Oxlade had a hot line I would have given them the number quickly before they racked up any more bills.

It sometimes makes me feel bad that I don't just go out there and splurge on all these luxuries. Man, I would love to see an NFL football game (I'm a Raiders fan) but then I realize I would never do it because I have responsibilities. When we pay off the mortgage we will have lots of time to enjoy football games, etc. And we won't need the newest and greatest cell phone because we will be retired. It’ll be just one less bill to pay. I do spend some money now and again at a fancy boutique shop, though. We call it Value Village.

Vacation is over, RATS!!!!!

We had a great time on vacation and I really don't know where to start to describe all the wonderful things we did in two weeks. The new pictures will show you all just how busy we were.

As I wrote in the last post, we started off the first week with making a couple of different kinds of pickles and then we turned those grapes I showed you into jelly. The results came out the best we have every done. Tart, sweet, and they set up just perfectly. We've already finished off two jars, mmm. We used all the grapes but I don't think it will last very long.

We went to visit my Grandmother and brought her a jar of Mustard Pickles. It was a real joy to see her face light up when she tasted it. Thanks Granny, for showing me how to make the best Mustard Pickles in the world.

Ribfest was a great success. We had lots and lots of food and a delicious dessert (Devil's food cupcakes), all shared with the best company and friends anyone could hope to have.

Then we spent a couple of days just hanging out around the house before going away for four days to a rented cottage by the beach. It was perfect, exactly what I was looking for. It was a beautiful property and a pretty little building with vaulted ceilings, wood paneling and a fireplace. Very cosy!

We did a lot in those four days, lots of sightseeing, canoeing (with the seals) and just plain relaxing. I was a little scared about being out on the water with the seals. I was sure that they would come too close and tip over the canoe. Hubby had a great laugh at my expense, yelling "Look out here comes FLIPPER!!!" every time one would pop up it's head. Happily they kept their distance and we made it safely back to shore after a nice paddle around the bay.

It was just a great get-away, and it was made even better when Hubby announced that he had been skimming the household budget every week for the past 4 months. He had managed to squirrrel away enough to pay for the entire trip, including food, drink and lodging! Even the wine we bought at the winery we visited was included, yah! Thankfully, we are not in the Mafia. I'm sure a person could get whacked for doing something like this. Anyway, I'm sure that my mentor for all things finacial, Gail Vaz-Oxlade, would have a laugh over this one. She might have even been proud of us. So yes everything was paid for in full and we also had lots of money left over. So very HAPPY!!!!!!!!! THANKS HUBBY. Love ya, but you already know that.

Well, it's back to work on Monday, but I know I'll be daydreaming of canoeing with the seals and other things to keep the vacation alive as long as possible.

Vacations are great but way too short.