CLICK HERE FOR FREE BLOGGER TEMPLATES, LINK BUTTONS AND MORE! »

Monday, July 25, 2011

I think I'm finally getting it...

the value of money that is...

Saturday afternoon we were all having one of those ''blah'' moments. Kids playing together, DH on the computer and me sitting on the lounge. I really couldn't be bothered doing anything, we'd spent a few hours going through and tidying up our daughters room earlier in the day, and even though my husband did the bulk of it, I was tired.

It was nearing dinner time and I was hungry. I REALLY REALLY felt like pizza! I was craving it something shocking. I told my husband I wanted pizza and he pretty much said that's nice. He's really good like that, if I don't feel like cooking, he'd rather cook then buy take away, even though it's the smartest decision it's still a little disappointing when I'm really wanting it lol.

The kids over heard pizza and started getting all excited. My husband said seeing as though he hadn't been here the last few days (he went to Melbourne for work) that he'd treat us to pizza.

We only really eat pizza from Pizza Inn, it's sooo yum and the pizza's are massive, but it can be expensive. And when he said he'd treat us, something in my head turned. I couldn't justify spending (wasting) $50 on pizza when I've got a perfectly good roast in the fridge that needs to be used up. It was an instant change of mind for me. My husband rarely agrees to getting take away and usually I JUMP at the chance to get it, but not tonight.

I thanked the husband but told him I couldn't justify spending the money on pizza when that could cover a weeks groceries or go towards the car he wants to get. He was shocked and offered to cook, but I had already decided to use the roast in a stir fry and knowing it wouldn't take long to cook (it'd take longer to explain to him what to do lol), I decided just to get on with it.

The kids whinged that they weren't getting pizza, and let us know they weren't impressed with stir fry, or as my daughter put it, ''I don't want stir!'' lol... Tough, kids! you get what you're given! Funny enough they all wanted seconds :)

Whenever we order take away, the kids and I are so excited about it, but once it's gone I sit there and think was it actually worth the money we spent on it? My taste buds always say yes, but my wallet says otherwise lol.

So I'm hoping that now we have a goal to pay off the car this financial year, that us saying no to non essentials will continue :)

Friday, July 22, 2011

Random: I feel proud :)

Last night on the phone to my husband, I was poking fun at him saying how his work will never send him away again as he costs them a fortune in food! He easily eats $60+ worth of food a night (hotel room service), and he said well that's their problem, I'll tell them straight, I'm used to coming home from work, welcomed by a beautiful, huge, home cooked meal, not some piddly little kid serve lasagne that costs $17.

Naww him saying that made me so happy :) Then he started complaining how he didn't like their chili con carne. I decided to throw in (to stir him up) that mine's better and he misses his wifes home cooked meals and he goes yeah I do, I really do.

He's probably sucking up, but I don't care, I heard what I wanted, and now I can hold it to him if he ever whinges lol :)

He'll be welcomed home to a yummy Roast beef and veg dinner, and if I'm feeling generous I might even make him his fave choccie pudding and custard :)

The old saying "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach" is definitely true :)

Thursday, July 21, 2011

I wish all days were like today (warning: whinge session)

Yesterday I had a horrible time with DS3. He was acting like such a brat!! So ignorant, overactive, not listening to ANYTHING I'd say, chucked tantrums over the slightest thing, and I mean SLIGHTEST. He's so bl**dy loud that his normal talking voice is practically yelling.

 I couldn't put him in his normal bed (shares with DS1.5) cause he jumps in his cot and keeps him awake, and sometimes hurts him (doesn't mean to just too rough). So DS1.5 cannot get sleep when DS3 is around. So since Monday night, DS3 has slept in DD's room. Monday and Tuesday night this went sooo smoothly, he went to bed when told, shhhhd when told etc.... then came last night. COMPLETE OPPOSITE!!! He was up til 11.30 with his loudness keeping everyone awake, kept jumping on DD's bed, she came out so many times saying how he was keeping her awake. Chucked more tantrums when I'd try settling him down... It took me 3.5 hrs.

I couldn't believe the change from the first 2 nights to last night, then I realised, he went to preschool on Monday and Tuesday. That had probably tired him out so he was happy to go to bed. Yesterday he was home, so he was bored out of his brain (he's got a short attention span so keeping him entertained can be very hard).

Then the boy decided he wanted to get up at the crack of dawn :(

Anyway enough whinging, today was a lot better. He still had his tantrums over pathetic things, but that's just him lol.

The day went pretty smoothly, we had breaky and did the whole morning routine. I put a movie on for the older two (yep I relied on the electronic baby sitter, but hey a mums gotta do what a mums gotta do), while the little feller and mummy tidied up.

The kids came out on time for snacks and went back in the room and played. Mummy and DS1.5 tidied up some more, put a load of washing on etc, and ended up in the boys room and managed to fill two bags of stuff to go to the op shop. Unfortunately the older two thought this was a perfect time to come into the room and start playing with toys (some of which were going in the bag grrr lol).

We had lunch and played some games, read some books and did some learning. It was time for bubs to go to bed, so off he went and the older two played with the Thomas train set, which I completely forgot I had bought for DS3 last year, and he's barely played with it cause I put it up out of the way :)

I did some more loads of washing, chucked some in the dryer and thought I'd sneak some time on the computer. Big mistake!! Of course the kids thought this was a perfect time to start mucking up! Long story short, DD hogged all the trains but 1 and DS3 thought it was the end of the world and chucked an all mighty!! He was actually vicious and abusive I couldn't believe it! I put him straight to bed in DD's room and he continued on with the tantrum (I had already done the whole reasoning, calming down and everything else you do, buuuuuutttt nothing worked). Eventually he calmed down and went to sleep.

I was exhausted by this time and was starting to get the tightening's/contractions again, so took this as I sign to rest. I told DD mummy was having a sleep and she can lay down with me and either sleep too or watch telly. We slept for almost 2 hrs which was fantastic. I really needed it.

The boys were both still asleep when I woke up. I'm not sure how long DD had been awake for, as she was up playing.

I watched her play for a while, made a couple of phone calls and got the boys up. It was then time to start dinner.

We ate dinner, bathed them, they played while I tidied up. I put the bub to bed. I watched H&A and the older two played snap :) They're now watching Sponge Bob.

DS3 is occasionally being loud and I've told him off a couple of times (after reasoning with him) as he has already woken the little feller up.

I know DS3 still had his bad moments today which did stress me out and brought me to tears a couple of times, but over all it was a great day which went pretty smoothly. Usually he's a pain like that all day most days.

I've considered getting him tested for ADD/ADHD, but I've never had a complaint from his teachers, in fact they all love him, they can't get enough of him. It seems to be mummy he plays up for. He tries it on Daddy, takes one look at Daddys face and doesn't do it again.

Ohh DH is in Melbourne for work this week, so that could be adding to DS's agroness (yep I make up words lol), all week he's been asking for him, and really missing him, where as DD understands where he is, why he's there and when he's coming home, so she hasn't been effected by it much, and the little one has absolutely no idea what's going on and simply cracks up laughing on the phone to DH when ever he rings lol... Strange boy... :D

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Where I'm at...

Well as I'm typing this, I'm looking around my lounge room and it's in a bit of a mess.

Coffee Table
Envelope
Bubs beanie
Leaflet/flyer thing

Lounge
Blanket half hanging off the lounge.
Basket of unfolded washing
Towels 1 folded 3 aren't
A layby
Pile of new bubs clothes

On The Floor
My boots
Kids school bags
Mr 3's robe
Baby wipes
Kids drawings
Un blown up balloon
Lunch box
Cup
Bread bag tag
Hairband
3 toys
Menu plan
and a stool in the wrong spot...

A clothes rack - I think the clothes are dry lol

I've been walking over this stuff pretty much since I came home at about 4.15. It was worse than this earlier and have slowly been putting things away and getting the kids to help aswell.
I could use any excuse under the sun as to why I haven't finished, but to be honest It's sheer lazyness. I am very tired, but the amount that's lying around would probably take all of 15-20 minutes to tidy up... Having said that it's still not enough to convince me to do it lol.

Pretty much my whole house is like this, clutter lying around. It's doing my head in, and as much and as fast as I clean it seems to reappear again. I'll blame the kids, every flat surface, lack of time, how I'm feeling etc, but when it comes down to it, it just proves that we have WAY TOO MUCH STUFF.

We have a council clean up this week (was actually Monday but haven't done our street yet), So we carted some junk out the front, and was amazed to see how quick the broken walker disappeared lol. Its broken so I hope to god they aren't actually going to use that for a baby.

My husband had some old parts for a VH/VK Commodore. He's been meaning to get rid of them, but as the flyer stated no car parts he didn't put them out. I told him to, cause guaranteed some scrapper will come around and snap them up before the council come around. And that's exactly what happened. Within 10 minutes lol.

There's still sooo much we need to get rid of, but most of it is building rubble (bricks etc), so will contact a brick recycler for a quote.

But as far as insides concerned, I'm still finding it hard to get rid of things, as I keep thinking of the "value" of it. I hate storing things for garage sales unless its something worth putting on, but as far as toys, I just want them gone. I've gotta be ruthless! I really don't think my daughter needs 3 tea sets.

So I had a very quick look in her room today while she was at pre school, and I saw 4 things that went out for the collection. I've got my eye on a few more things that I'll box up and take to her pre school or the op shop.

I want to go through their books and take a heap to the pre school/op shop. I don't even want to begin to think how many touch and feel/shapes/numbers etc books they have. Mum just came back from Cairns so now they have more lol.

I've held onto almost ALL their clothes, except for a box and bag I sold to mum a few months ago, a few rotten ones that were binned and a couple of bags to the op shop. All of which have only happened this year. The boys clothes I will keep as we have 3 boys, but as far as the girls clothes I'll go through and sell/scrap/donate etc. Except the baby clothes (On the phone to hubby today, he called to see how my check up went, he said next bub we're going private. I smiled from ear to ear and said yeh well I don't want to go through this again, and he said yeh well we'll wait a few yrs, save up and we'll go private) Woohooooo!!! lol!!! As much as I'd love to go again, if he didn't I'd have to accept it. But he wants another in about 4-5 yrs :D So I'll hold onto all the baby clothes esp. the pink :)

So that's where we're at with the clutter, we're weeding through it slowly and have seen progress.

Financially, we're doing ok. We scrapped that car and lost out $400 but we're not dwelling on it, we're simply rebuilding our emergency fund. We've got about $250 left on the credit card, which will be paid out next Monday. We are now putting an extra $50 a week on the car loan, and have finally gotten to the point where we can afford Sanity Money for each other. We don't take it out regularly, actually most the time not at all, we've been used to not having it for so long, but it's great to know it's there when we want it. Groceries aren't strict necessities anymore and naughty naughty we're spending a bit on chocolate and other yummy stuff. Again we aren't concerned about extra money being "wasted" on luxuries, we're enjoying the fact that we can buy them without worrying how to pay the mortgage.

The pregnancy has been up and down, but looks like things are improving. I've been admitted a few times for certain issues, the most recent being last week for a reaction to the steroids. I was only in over night, and thankfully all was well. Bubs has caught up in his weight and is now looking like he's gonna be a big boy (not sure if I mentioned, but he was 2 weeks behind in growth), he's now 87th percentile in weight lol. I've got slight placenta previa, but so far they aren't too concerned and hopefully I can still have a vaginal delivery. I had low fluid, but this boy is making me soo thirsty and I'm downing drinks like they're going out of style, and at the last scan the level was normal :). The baby is at brim, and I have a scan next week or so to recheck the above issues, and to check the cervix length. Even though the Dr's concerned about pre term labour, I'm not too concerned now, I've had the steroids to boost his lungs, his weight is great, and he's a fighter, so I know he'll be fine :) But having said that, I'm hoping he stays put til 36 weeks at least. Unfotunately I'm still getting the constant Contractions, but I'm getting through them.

And no I still haven't tidied up lol.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Guest Post: How to change your attitude to money.

I feel so honourned to have the lovely and extremely talented Kylie from Aspiring Millionaire and Kylieofiu.com to guest blog today. Kylie is not only a very talented blogger, but she is also a wife and mum, and the author of two books, 365 Ways to Make Money and 26 Ingredients.

How to Change Your Attitude To Money


Photo Credit


Our thoughts on money often stem from our childhoods, how our life was and our parents thoughts on money. This thought pattern is not easy to change. Since it is more common to grow up in a poor or middle class family than a wealthy family it is easy to have a more negative attitude to money or the “We can’t afford it” mentality.

I grew up in a poor to middle class family but instead of my parents constantly saying “We can’t afford it” (although, of course, on occasion they did say that) they generally tried to teach us about money and a more frugal way to live and would suggest “We do things xyz way instead”. My parents also taught me to aim high.

My husband on the other hand grew up in a pretty poor house where the ‘we are broke’ attitude was very obvious. He often had quite a fear of there not being enough money and would stress quite a lot even with all bills paid and plenty of money in the bank.

It might sound crazy, but one of the biggest things that helped us is visualising. We worked out what we wanted; what our goals were, set a budget and created a vision board. And nothing was too far out there or unrealistic for us to aim for.

Many books and financial professionals recommend visualising what you want. The thing is many people think they are visualising, when in actually fact they are just thinking.

Money is not a bad thing and you do not need to be broke for the rest of your life. If you look at your life, your income versus expenses and make a plan there is no reason you can’t be successful. The only thing holding you back is you.

Here are some steps to help you:

1.) Recognise your money attitude and situation
Do you feel like you are coasting along just fine despite being in huge amounts of debt? Or are you constantly worrying how you are going to pay for everything? Either scenario is not really a good one to have. You need to sit down and look at your finances. Does your income cover your expenses? Are there any ways you can cut back without feeling completely deprived? If your income covers your expenses and you have some left for savings you are doing well. But you still need to ensure you have a positive money attitude.

2.) Create a plan
Write out all your expenses and income, set a budget and if the income does not exceed expenses look at where you can cut back but also where you can create more wealth. The focus of creating more wealth helps steer your mind away from the we are so broke mindset as you have more money coming in versus focussing on scraping by. That said, even with extra money you still need control of your money.

3.) Work out what it is that you want Sit down and write out a wish list. Things such as financially free, a holiday to Hawaii, a particular car, whatever it is you want in your life, write it down. Next create a vision board. If you want to know how to make one I have written about mine here and an update on results here.

4.) Focus on the positive
This is easier said than done, but if you can focus on the money coming in, the fact you have paid xyz bills or you still have your mortgage this can help you a lot in changing the mindset from negative to positive. Look at your achievements and keep them in mind. You do need to be aware of your financial situation and there is no point ignoring things if you are in a financial mess, but congratulating yourself for even small money achievements helps create a positive vibe.

5.) Visualise
Create some affirmations for yourself such as “Money flows to me freely” or “I earn more than enough money for our family”, whatever it is that will help you. Say these affirmations to yourself a few times a day. As well as these affirmations create your fantasy in your mind. What is it you are striving for? Sit down, close your eyes and imagine it. What does it look like? What does it feel like? What does it smell like? Have it so accurate you can sense every part of it because it is real to you. It may take a while to be able to create your vision, but once you have it, visualise it regularly.


I can honestly say that since changing my attitude from scrimping and saving to how can I create more wealth? the opportunities have been amazing. I originally created my vision board with things I wanted to own, do and be. In just over 12 months I went from none to about 50% of them either bought, done or happening in my life. I expect the next 12 months to be much the same.

You don’t have to have a poor or negative money mindset. Whilst it is often more acceptable in a group setting to be similar and not discuss how well things are going, does not mean you should conform to the norm. Be your own positive self.


Kylie is the author of 365 Ways to Make Money. She blogs at www.kylieofiu.com about ways to make and save money.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

I'm Back

As you know I've taken a break from blogging recently as I've had some pregnancy issues, plus a lot's been going on.

I won't go into all the details but basically I've been having threatened prem labour, have had spotting and was admitted to hospital. I've got a scan next week to see how things are going.

I've been having many appts and ultrasounds to check the baby and the cervix.

The retaining wall is just about done, the only thing left to do is the stairs :) It's not number one on our to do list, but it will be done soon.

We didn't get around to finishing everything on our list for June, but it didn't matter anyway as the baby shower was cancelled as I was in hospital, and we ended up having it this Saturday just passed at my mums house. I had such a fantastic day and I feel so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends :)

My husband bought a second car because of the high chances of bubs coming early, he didn't want to leave me without a car. Well after looking and looking and looking, we found one. $650 with 2 months rego. He looked over it, took it for a drive... paid for it...got it home.... and it's a lemon :( It over heats after about 15 minutes of driving. Hopefully it's something minor but the mechanic said it might be the head gasket (haven't had a chance to take it to him yet as he's booked out, but hubby called him). I told DH to cancel rego and send it off to Sims Metal (wreckers) lol. So we'll see what happens there. I'm not impressed as we had to use our emergency fund to pay for that overly priced lemon. I'm trying not to dwell on it and have started re building our EF.

Last week and this week I've been playing nurse to my family as they all except Mr 1 caught this weird  flu (my extended family and so many other people have had it too). I've never seen my husband so sick. His lasted about 2-3 days. Miss 4 lasted 24 hrs and now has a bit of a cold. I so far thankfully do not have it and Mr 3 has it pretty bad. He had a fever and was throwing up constantly yesterday and was so lethargic. I was really worried about him, as last time he got sick he got Febrile Convulsions.

I've almost got all bubs things washed and ironed, and we've set up the bassinet and change table etc in our room.

I think that's all for now, I'm a bit distracted as my good friend has given birth to her first baby a couple of hrs ago :) I'm so happy for her and her Fiance :)