spruby
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Post by spruby on Dec 4, 2011 18:01:55 GMT -5
renee - totally not weird at all and if you slide the gift out of the box you won't see what it looks like and it will even be a surprise! Or just wrap the whole box w/o opening first (which may be what you meant!). I was planning on having them wrap it for you - surprised there were no gift options!
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moneysquirrel
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Post by moneysquirrel on Dec 4, 2011 23:11:02 GMT -5
Update: 3NSD and 1 CSD
Feeling much better. Hope to fully cleared in a few days. Of course our weather can't decide what it wants to do. Today I didn't need a jacket while earlier this week I was pulling out the sweatshirts.
Only 10 more days before the Christmas break and several of those are half days for exams. I hope that the time without kids will allow me to rest some.
SES -- sorry that your fun money funds will be cut in half but it will allow you to spend time with your furry friends. Will try to call when things calm down some and my voice returns to a more normal state.
Wishing all a good week.
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ses
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Post by ses on Dec 4, 2011 23:47:36 GMT -5
Terrible news about your hours. Does this mean people will have fewer opportunities to take the GED or wait longer for results?
I'm not sure how many people in government realize how tough the economy still is and how worried so many of us are. I fear this is the new normal. The hours are not an issue for me, but I do worry about the people trying to complete their education. There will be only half as many slots for people to sign up for testing. It is not possible to do "walk-in" testing. I do find it ironic that the program for helping people to acquire an employability asset in this economy is being cut back so much, although I am not too surprised. I was listening to the Sunday news programs today and they were talking about the unemployment numbers dropping but the wages dropped too. What do they expect to happen when people have to accept lower wages to even be working? That is what I fear will be the "new normal" for several years to come. And this is not going to be limited just to this country but the whole developed world. The developing nations are not so leveraged that reductions are life shattering. The only advantage this country has is that we can devalue the dollar for a while. Sometimes when you look around it is hard to stay positive. And I agree that many in government are so removed from the situation the average citizen is in that they have no concept of the average reality. ETA can you believe that in this economy spell check does not recognize the word "employability" ?
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mizbear
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Stand back. I have a budget, and I know how to use it.
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Post by mizbear on Dec 4, 2011 23:59:40 GMT -5
hootieman- No time outs. We just you. reenee- Feel better please. I didn't want to mess up the spread sheet by trying to make a new one or I would have made the new one. If you can get me the instructions by the first of the year, I will be sure to make the one for January on time . ses- I am not a bit surprised- a lot of things seem to be missing from the lexicon these days. Headed to bed- lots of work to do before the furniture gets here tomorrow. Still not sure where to put MommaBear's new recliner.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Dec 5, 2011 9:14:18 GMT -5
Update: 3/20 NSD
Quiet weekend here. Ran some errands on Friday in anticipation of the snow coming on Saturday. Stayed home the rest of the weekend. Pretty uneventful. Only got like 4 inches of snow. Already sick of winter and ready for spring. It's going to be a long winter.
Today may be a spend day- I am out of my make-up and they just opened an Ulta at our mall (so yeah! No hour long drive to the twin cities for make-up!) May have to swing by there tonight and pick some up. Otherwise it is shaping up to be a pretty quiet week here in snowy Minnesnowta.
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3catslady
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Post by 3catslady on Dec 5, 2011 10:24:26 GMT -5
goals for December; 25 NSD, 6 CSD, 31 NEO.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Dec 5, 2011 10:46:23 GMT -5
Update: 2 CS My rule that it has to be in budget to be a CS is already messing with me. On Friday I gave a friend money to get me Windows 7 Home for my laptop (instead of replacing my laptop) and Sunday was my planned spend at Starbucks for writing critique group. But, I am way over budget for my allowance for the year. Christmas/birthday money this month should help me catch up, but I'm not actually certain I'll go in to 2012 with a clean slate. So, those two days were spends.
Happy actual b-day, red Happy belated b-day, muttley
Hope everyone has a good week.
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 5, 2011 10:59:10 GMT -5
muttley - sorry about the computer issues at work. they always find a way to mess it all up. And I say this knowing blue used to be the computer guy at his old job and hearing his side of things lol.
Had a great weekend with the family and BFF. Blue cooked us all dinner Saturday night and it was a big hit. Friday night out with friends was good too, although I drank too much. It's like I'm trying to make up for whenever I get pregnant haha. It's weird writing "28" on surveys now (I take surveys when I'm bored for extra moola). I have a headache today because I ran out of allergy meds yesterday. I meant to go this morning, but as I forgot to set my alarm and overslept I didn't have time. Adding it to my long list of errands for lunchtime. Along with mailing out my holiday cards to you guys!
One errand is to buy a new cover for my NEW Nook SimpleTouch eReader! It was kind of amusing. Yesterday my mom wanted to see my Nook (an original) because she was thinking of getting an eReader. I mentioned that I might want the SimpleTouch and maybe I can sell the old one to her when I do get one. So I'm showing her the functions and all that, and blue disappears for a minute and comes back with an unwrapped box. He was going to give it to me today, but since my mom was there and all, he gave it to me yesterday. Apparently I mentioned it a few weeks ago too and he was actually listening. What a good guy! So I spent some time setting up my old Nook for Mom and now she has that one. I asked for $25 (a small sum so she didn't feel like I was giving it to her) and she snuck $40 into my wallet. Silly lady. Anyways. So, need to get it a new cover. It's so much lighter - much better to carry in my purse all the time. Not that the other one was weighty, but it adds up.
Tonight we're decorating our tree (got it yesterday because rain was a possibility today) and watching Christmas movies. My birthday is the one time I can subject blue to my full-on Christmas mania so I am taking full advantage. And he's cooking me dinner. Very excited.
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mrslynch
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Post by mrslynch on Dec 5, 2011 10:59:17 GMT -5
two quick things besides happy belated to muttley and red:
please make sure to congratulate shanen and one of her posts was picked up by a HUGE site. shanen, i'm so happy for and proud of you!
dakota--you won the $10. please let me know if you want cash, itunes, amazon or a donation to charity.
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 5, 2011 11:05:11 GMT -5
mrslynch - can you post the link to your site again? I can't save them at work. and you're right on time for me - birthday is today! and thanks!
shanen - congrats!! want to post a link?
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azmom
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Post by azmom on Dec 5, 2011 11:51:22 GMT -5
SPRUBY I just wanted to THANK YOU AGAIN AND AGAIN for all of the scrapbook material you sent me. You and Pinterest have it made it possible for me to make Christmas gifts to give to so many people in my life I could not otherwise afford to get presents for.
~Happy No Spending~
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 5, 2011 11:55:21 GMT -5
I'm red_sleigh this month instead of redwagon. Feeling festive hehe.
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mrslynch
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Post by mrslynch on Dec 5, 2011 12:03:15 GMT -5
red--your birthday is exactly 6 months after mine (or before mine, depending on how you look at it). i think i'm a bit older than you, though. my site is dailymoneyshot.net (for anyone just seeing this for the first time, i swear it is not porn). azmom--pinterest confuses me. i've tried it and i truly don't understand it. can you give a tutorial? and i just found out i can't access it at work because it's "social networking." ugh.
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 5, 2011 12:26:09 GMT -5
mrslynch - pinterest is great! it's an online idea board! So if I see a cool DIY project, I pin it, rather than add it to my favorites. Or a recipe I like goes in my food board. By pinning household decor ideas, I can better see what my "style" is, and it makes it easier to shop for stuff for the house. I've saved a ton of ideas for a baby nursery, and realized I really like grey and yellow together for that. It's just a more visual "favorites" location.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Dec 5, 2011 12:29:15 GMT -5
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azmom
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Post by azmom on Dec 5, 2011 12:30:45 GMT -5
Mrs. Lynch: I must be really naive because I don't get the connection between your blog and porn. Please don't explain I kinda like the not knowing I really don't "get" Pinterest either. I'm sure startsmart would be better suited to give a tutorial. I do think you need to be invited to start creating boards. debtfreeby30 sent me mine. I'll try and send you one right now. The only thing I have done on is browse and browse and browse. I have re-pinned a few things into different boards of mine (you just hoover over an item and an option to re-pin come up and I click it-very technical I know) but I have yet to actually pin anything of my own. **I do know it is very addicting and has tons of great ideas for every aspect of life**
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 5, 2011 12:38:12 GMT -5
shanen - congrats! and I couldn't agree more! Blue and I always hate those commercials.
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resolution
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Post by resolution on Dec 5, 2011 13:28:11 GMT -5
Question: anyone use Sharebuilder? If I do the auto-invest plan, it's $4 per transaction. I had two funds, so that was $8 a month. Or I can save up and invest less often (maybe every three or four months) and manually do it at $10 per transaction. This all seems crazy, or is it normal? It's all in my Roth IRA, but I still get charged all these fees. I'm used to my 401k where there aren't fees, or my company pays them if there are. advice welcome! Other places cheaper? Share your wisdom! Feeling oddly ignorant here. If you are just investing in mutual funds for a Roth and not trying to time the market with individual stocks, you may be better off with a discount brokerage like Fidelity or Vanguard. You would need $3000 to open a Roth at Vanguard, but if you have that much in your Sharebuilder it could be transfered over. Vanguard fund purchases are free unless you are purchasing a fund that has a fee (the majority are free). There is a $20 annual fee that can be avoided by signing up for electronic communication. I wouldn't recommend a switch if you like to do instant trades, use the investment tools or other brokerage services, but if it is just buying mutual funds and holding them than Vanguard or Fidelity would probably be cheaper. Their funds also typically have lower expense ratios than other funds.
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 5, 2011 14:43:43 GMT -5
Thanks Kari! I'll look into that, although I don't have $3000 yet. Relatively new to it.
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startsmart
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Post by startsmart on Dec 5, 2011 15:02:01 GMT -5
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sapphire12
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Post by sapphire12 on Dec 5, 2011 16:34:53 GMT -5
Happy Monday All!!!
muttely -- Happy Belated Birthday and may you have many more!!!! Pop in when you can. red-wagon -- Happy Birthday and may you have many more!!!!! shanen -- Congrats on the blog! The best laid plans ... . dakota -- Congrats on winning the prize from Mrs. Lynch! Sheila -- I think you and I feel the same about the snow. I did see something that says we (DC metro) could be in for a mild winter. This would be awesome. Every so often we get a winter that doesn't include snow or very little. SES -- It's unfortunate that hours are being reduced for adult education, but not surprising. moneysquirrel -- Take care of yourself! start -- I just ordered a "real" camera. It was delivered today. I'm excited to learn how to use it. I won't rival you or my mother, but still.
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dakota4600
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Post by dakota4600 on Dec 6, 2011 9:35:56 GMT -5
Mrs Lynch- I never win anything! How cool, since I just got my new iphone I'll take the iTunes card! There are couple apps people have told me are worth paying for.
SES- Glad you didn't need the hours for living expenses.
MizBear- Hope the move went well
MoneySquirrel- Glad you feeling better. Hope you make it through the next couple weeks and then get lots of rest during the holidays (if that is ever possible).
Red- Glad you had a wonderful birthday. Isn't it sweet when our husbands actually listen to us and are able to surprise us with something. I know I usually have to give him a list with item, store, size, color, because he doesn't like shopping at all.
Muttley- How did the Christmas party go?
Honey- How are you doing?
I took yesterday off work and did a lot of my Christmas shopping. Still have a few more things buy, but the marjority is now purchased and ready to go. I may have 1 NS so far and today should be 1 too.
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 6, 2011 9:38:30 GMT -5
Good morning, all. Definitely wish I was still in bed lol. So last night I got home from work and blue had made pot roast and mashed potatoes! It's one of my favorite meals, and was usually what I requested on my birthday growing up. So that was very sweet of him. We decorated our tree, although I intervened when he was putting up the lights. I really wanted to just let him do it but he was doing it so sparsely so I added some more. He agreed it looks better. I need to buy one more string because the top is still pretty sparse. But it was a fun night, a chill birthday.
Now it's back to reality. I need to do an editing project for a friend's mom tonight. It's only 40 pages long so it shouldn't take more than tonight and tomorrow night to finish up. I really need to start touching base with my freelance clients just so they know I'm still here. I know traditionally book production slows through the holidays, so I'm not surprised it's slow, but if there's work, I want it! Gotta pay for this Alaska cruise somehow!
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 6, 2011 9:50:19 GMT -5
dakota - that must feel great having your shopping done. I still have no idea what to get blue's parents (probably Broadway tix if I can find a show they haven't seen), or SIL and BIL... again, we usually do tickets to something or gift card for a nice restaurant but it just feels so DONE already. But they don't NEED anything in the house, and honestly getting out of the house is probably a good thing for them so I will keep thinking...
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Dec 6, 2011 17:04:08 GMT -5
Today is a spend day. A happy to spend one at that. Chaperoned the Boy's knowledge bowl meet today. They placed 6th overall which is their best finish to date. Their school is just 7th and 8th grade but they compete against school's that have 9th grade as part of their junior high. So a 6th place finish out of 35 teams is pretty darn good. The bus stopped at Subway for lunch. Bought DS and myself a sandwhich and then I went back and spent $5 to buy all the kids a cookie. They were super grateful and excited. Felt nice to be the nice mom. They seem to like me helping chaperon and judge the meets. They always cheer when I have one of their teams (3 teams from his school) in my room. Also picked up our Christmas card photos from Walgreens on my way to work after the meet. May run out tonight and get a couple of frames I need then I will be nearly done with Christmas. One nephew to buy for and the sibilings (But that's only $10 x 2).
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Dec 6, 2011 23:11:18 GMT -5
dakota - I did survive my company x-mas party. It wasn't too bad, but I still didn't really want to be there.
Sorry for the men who read this thread, this may be TMI. My IUD has been giving me issues, so I made an appointment today to have it removed. Of course that won't happen until January, unless it is falling out like I suspect it might be. UGH. I guess I will be calling the doctor again tomorrow.
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startsmart
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Post by startsmart on Dec 7, 2011 0:23:15 GMT -5
oh the busy day of an entrepreneur ;D
today literally had the full range of good (new clients! new leads!) to the bad (tipped my chair back. while I was in it. and dog pooped in the house.).
Still very good week so far, I'm up to two full implementation clients and two coaching clients but it's a little weird to track because one of my big clients has 6 sub-clients that I also manage. So technically I'm at 10 clients. And I've sent proposals out to 3 more leads.
Tonight was a spend, I was invited to a networking group and I bought a glass of wine. It was good but way too expensive for my usual tastes. I also bought a raffle ticket and won a nice prize, a private pilates session worth $70. So overall a good night! Plus I have two more people who are really motivated to work with me and would be local clients.
On the home side I cooked a chicken in the crock pot today so tomorrow I'm making chicken tortilla soup. If I can finally get to the store for half and half I'll also make a batch of broccoli cheese soup which is so freakin' good... omg. Then to use up the rest of the chicken, chicken & dumplings.
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dakota4600
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Post by dakota4600 on Dec 7, 2011 9:28:00 GMT -5
Yesterday was an NS for me. While I didn't make a goal for the month that is a total of 3 so far. Today will probably be a spend since I fell asleep the other night before ordering the last of the Christmas presents.
Muttley- So does that mean your DS is going to have a brother or sister in the next year or so?
Startsmart- Sounds like your business is going really well.
Hootie- You didn't blow it if you saved/planned for it. I keep $20 a month in my wallet for those little things that I decide I want/need that aren't in our regular budget, some months I spend it all, some months I carry most of it over. If you are too hard on yourself then you are setting yourself up for failure.
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startsmart
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Post by startsmart on Dec 7, 2011 10:32:46 GMT -5
Dakota- it's really been a wild few months, for sure. Such as last night when I met a woman who hasn't taken time off from her business in a year BUT found out she's pregnant with twins! So she needs structures and systems now so she can get to her appointments, take leave and not have the business fail in her absence. Really critical for her health and stress level so I couldn't be more happy to work with her team!
Totally informal, non finance related, QOTD : What's your favorite holiday time drink? Where do you buy it or where did you get the recipe (if it's homemade)?
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redwagon
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Post by redwagon on Dec 7, 2011 11:04:55 GMT -5
muttley - good luck with the IUD! Sorry it's acting up. But wasn't it going to be coming out soon anyways?
hootieman - I need to repeat your mantra, too. Bought some chocolate that was on sale yesterday. Whoops.
start - sounds like those balance out to a pretty decent day. As long as the poop was on the floor and not, say, your bed. Nothing could save that day, I fear. I'm glad you're remembering to cook, and hopefully to eat.
I'm really irritated. My doctor prescribed me "emergency" steroids a few weeks ago when I was basically a cripple from going off my other meds. Well, I've needed more than she alotted per day, so I'm down to nothing and I don't see her until tomorrow. I refilled it online, but as it's been less than a month they won't do it. Which they didn't tell me until I went to pick it up. Shouldn't their online system have told me that so I didn't get my hopes up? I would have spread my last pills out more had I known. So, fully expecting to be miserable by the end of today. Hopefully she'll prescribe me more, at a higher dosage, tomorrow. And hopefully we'll come up with a plan going forward. Only a few more weeks and I'll be totally off the two last meds, with just these steroids keeping me functional, and ideally I can wean off those too before we get to baby-making. Which is still both an exciting and terrifying prospect, but I think we feel really ready. As ready as you can be, I guess.
startsmart's QOTD: well, as you all know, butterscotch martinis are a fave of mine. I'm not sure of the recipe because my stepdad makes them, but I know it involved buttershots. And this Thanksgiving he made some kind of pumpkintini, also with a bit of buttershots. So good! And blue's cousin just texted me this morning asking for the recipe for our signature drink from our wedding (it was a HUGE hit) that my stepdad invented accidentally. It's called a Cherry Kiss and it's equal parts kahlua, amaretto, and vanilla vodka, witha a splash of cream and cherry garnish. DELISH. Might need to make one tonight after zumba...
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