2014 Goals - February Recap

Its March 1st, so that means it is time to check in on our goals for 2014. I am quite proud of my progress so far.

I am making a real, conscious effort to set goals in 2014 and stick to them. The best way I can think of is to hold myself accountable on a monthly basis. Be sure to check back in the first of every month to see my progress as well as link up your progress.

1. Relationship with God - Do one activity a month to strength my relationship with God (going to mass on Sunday does not count).

Not happy with my progress here - I always attend Sunday mass, but I want to do something extra.  I need to make a conscience effort in March!

2. Relationship with my Husband - Go on one date night a month with my husband. Plan an overnight trip of at least 2 nights away to take in 2014

We did dinner out and our Saturday night bowling league and we went our for dinner and drinks with another couple!

3. Family Time - Do one activity as a family once a month. Take one family vacation and one long weekend getaway in 2014.

We took the boys to Monster Jam!

Vacation #1 is booked for April!!!

4. Relationships with my Kids - Do a one-on-one activity with each child each month (3 a month).

I took the boys to see The Lego Movie

5. Declutter - sell at least 5 items per month.

I sold 9 items this month for a total a $55

6. Debt - Pay off Debt #1 and reduce Debt #2 by 50%

Made last payment on Debt #1 (yeah - no more car payments!) and reduced Debt #2 by 10%

7. Me Time - Say "no" to one extra commitment a month. Do an only me or "girls night" activity once a month.

I said "no" to a birthday party invite.  I had a night out with 2 dear friends from college as well as had my hair cut and highlighted

8. Budget Buster - Keep library fines to under $5 for the entire year (this is so hard for me).

No library fines this month, I am committed to checking my account online first thing Monday morning

9. Work/Life Balance - Friday at 5 pm - until Monday at 8 am - do not check work e-mails (I am off the clock).

Struggling here a bit, I still look at my iPhone too much to see e-mails, however I have not opened my laptop on the weekends

10. Have an online business (this idea has been in my head for over a year) fully functioning by the end of 2014. I need to take one giant step every month to achieve this goal!

I did not make any additional progress in February.  I am getting sidetracked with working on my blog and now I want to write an eBook.  My mind is so scattered and I need to figure out what I truly want to focus on in March!
 

How are you doing on your goals thus far? Feel free to leave a comment or link up!

 

TILT – 7 Solutions To Be A Guilt-Free Working Mom – A Review & Giveaway

 

As a full-time working Mom of three kids, my life often feels unbalanced, unorganized, and somewhat chaotic, I’ve come to almost accept this in our day to day life.  I have long come to the realization that when the phrase is used, “you can have it all”, it is really not true at all.  Every day I need to pick and choose what I need to do and to say no to the things I know I am just not capable of doing.  I deal with a case of “Mommy Guilt” almost daily in my life.  I am on a constant mission to overcome this guilt and I was so glad I was able to read TILT by Marci Fair!

Marci Fair’s mantra in her new book is stated loud and clear “I have learned how to shape and build happy, successful children as I reach for my own dreams in my TILTed life.  Balance is impossible; memories are better.”  Previously, I have always used the term “balance” in my life; Marci’s perspective is little different with indicating that it is not about balance.  We need to accept challenges thrown at us working Moms on a daily basis and learn how to adjust our lives accordingly.  It is about making the right choices for you and your family and letting go of the wild idea that we can do it all!

I clearly remember my dreams when started my first day of college back in 1996.  I was going to graduate with a degree in Chemical Engineering, become a career-minded woman, obtain a nice, livable salary, eventually get married, have children and be a working Mom.  The good news is I have achieved all of that and more.  I ended up receiving my MBA and now have a wonder job as a Sales Manager in a Fortune 200 company.  I’ve been married for over 12 years and we have 3 wonderful children living in a somewhat state of “surviving” at this point.   At this point in my life, we are so busy with our family; I admit my dreams and goals have changed quite a bit.  I think my biggest goal in life right now is to get home by a decent hour every night and get a home cooked meal on the table.  The truth?  I am perfectly fine with this goal.  I’m at a stage of my life where I am content in my career.  It works for me and gives me the flexibility to spend time with my family.    

Even as busy working Moms we still need to have dreams and goals and encourage our kids to do the same.  They may be far off in the distance, but we should not be discouraged from dreaming big.  Perhaps it’s a short-term dream of going to Disney World or a long term dream of celebrating your 20^th wedding anniversary in Tahiti (okay you know my dreams now).  Even if you are busy, don’t be afraid to dream for what the future will hold for you and your family!

The next point Marci brings out is to not be afraid to let some stuff go!  I know this is so hard for me in some ways, and others so easy.  First, I have a cleaning lady twice a month.  I know there is no way I can keep the house clean, so I allow someone else to do it.  On the other hand I still love to bake all of my kids’ birthday cakes because it is special for me and them.  We as Moms have to pick and choose what are the things most important in life to us and let the other ones go!  We all need to learn from our mistakes in life and make critical choices moving forward.

I loved the part of the book when Marci suggests, “We need to reset, or reboot, pretty often.”  Every day should be a fresh start for us working Moms.  We also need to surround ourselves by positive people in our lives.  We just do not have time to deal with negativity that comes from others and unfortunately I see a lot of this in social media.  I’m to the point where I have to ignore other people on Facebook if they are always negative.  It is just not healthy for them and certainly not healthy for me to read over and over again how terrible their life is (when really I do not think it is that bad).  Marci provides several resources to find inspiration every working mom needs:  The Internet, Positive self-talk, E-mail subscriptions for quotes, Reading, Friends and family, etc.  I personally believe in surrounding ourselves with positive people and it will definitely help us become more positive!

In order to manage the TILT in our lives, we need to make sure love is a focus in our lives.  I personally work on my relationships with my husband and children on a daily basis and have goals every month to achieve.  I need to make it a priority to tell my kids and husband that I love them several times a day.  I do not think you can ever tire of hearing that phrase.   Most importantly you need to love yourself and who you are in life.  If you are not happy with whom you are, only you can change it!  Marci gives some great tips and ideas on how to love your family, spouse and yourself in Chapter 5. 

In Chapter 6, Marci explains how to give our children Roots and Wings.  Roots are the foundations we build with them which include core values to guide their decisions.  We as parents then must give them their wings to go off by themselves and make decisions for themselves.  I believe being excellent examples as parents is the best way to instill core values into your children.  This is not to say your children will always make the right decision, it is our responsibility as parents to let them fail so that they can eventually become self-sufficient and confident in their decisions.   I’m a big proponent of choosing the right battles with my kids.  I try to let little things go and only try to jump in and correct when I feel their decision is grossly out of line with our family’s core values.  Be sure to praise your kids when they do right the make decision though!

Overall, I really enjoyed reading TILT – 7 Solutions To Be A Guilt-Free Working Mom.  It was an enjoyable read and gave me some new perspectives and new ideas to try out on my family.  I think the book is geared to all Moms, just not working Moms.  Everyone’s life is busy and hectic when you have kids; the ideas in this book can just as easily apply to working Moms and stay-at-home Moms.  If you have kids and often feel off-balance, I highly recommend picking up this book.

Visit Marci Fair's website.
Visit TILT's Facebook Page
Buy TILT on Amazon

One reader of Spend Less 2 Save More will win a Kindle edition of TILT, enter below:

 

 

  a Rafflecopter giveaway Disclosure: I was provided a copy of TILT – 7 Solutions To Be A Guilt-Free Working Mom for my honest review.  All opinions are my own.

 

Baked Cheesy Heart Crackers

 

This recipe was so easy, I almost could not believe it! 

 

I did these crackers in the shape of a heart for my preschooler's Valentine's Day Party!

 

 

Ingredients:

8 oz. finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup of flour

1/2 tsp. salt

4 tbsp. cold butter cut into small pieces

4 tbsp. cold water

 

Directions:

1.  Combine cheese, flour, salt, and butter.  I worked the ingredients through my fingers to really get it combined. 

2.  Using an electric mixture add cold water 1 tbsp. at a time until the dough is formed. 

3.  Form dough into ball and then split into two flat disks.  Wrap in plastic wrap and cool for 30 minutes.

4.  Heat oven to 350F.

5.  Roll out dough on a floured surface and use cookie cutters to stamp out crackers.

6.  Place cut outs on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

7.  Bake for 15 minutes.

8.  Cool on wire rack.

 

This recipe yielded approximately 100 heart shaped crackers (1")

 

Here is how the snacks looked at the party!

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

It's Never Too Soon To Start Saving For Christmas!

I'm a planner, always have been, always will be! I do not like to have a month with monstrous size bills, especially January right after Christmas. A few years back, when my husband quit his job (you can read our whole journey here) to finish school and stay home with our kids, we tried to keep our monthly expenses as even as possible every month. This is when we started saving for Christmas in February! Our goal is to have all of our money saved up by November, that way we can pay cash and not have any "typical" holiday bills after the holiday!

Here are a few keys to success, to start your Christmas savings account now!

• Pick a place to "house" your money so that you will not touch it over the course of the year. It may be a jar in your kitchen cabinet, your local bank or credit union, or an online banking institution. We have exclusively used Smarty Pig over the past several years. It allows you to set goals and see your progress to your end goal! Smarty Pig is free and pays a 1% interest rate. You can also earn more when you cash out your savings into gift cards.

• Make the monthly contributions automatic and part of your monthly budget. It you are committing to saving $100 a month, have that money automatically withdrawn and put in your designated "savings" account. That money is off limits and for a single purpose, Christmas!

•  Make a Christmas budget now and stick to it. Here is an example of a $1000 budget we have used in the past:
• Our 3 kids at $200 each = $600
• Nieces and Nephews = $100
• Parents = $150
• Sisters and Husbands = $100
• Wiggle Room = $50

This comes out to $1000 for Christmas. It you start to save in February and save until November, you have 10 months to accumulate $1000.  You need to put $100 every month in your savings account.

• The sooner you start, the easier it will be to reach your goal. We prefer to start in February, just because we have some other bills that come due in January. If you get a tax refund, make part of this refund your first deposit. If you have an extra cash at the end of another month, add it to your Christmas savings. You can accumulate your budget mount quicker, than originally thought!

The holidays can be stressful enough, make next Christmas as stress-free as possible by establishing a budget, saving the money in advance and then stick to the budget! 

Disclosure:  You can earn a $10 referral with Smarty Pig, if you would like to be referred, please send me an e-mail at spendless2savemore@gmail.com!

Wordless Wednesday

Where does the time go?  I was reminiscing about our Disney trip in 2011 and found this picture of my boys!  They look so young!  Cannot wait for April when we are going back to Disney again!

Disney Live! Cleveland- March 9th, 2014

Disney Live! presents Mickey's Music Festival at Quicken Loans Arena, March 9th!

Mickey Mouse and friends rock the world with the stars from The Little Mermaid, Aladdin and Disney/Pixar's Toy Story in Disney Live! Mickey's Music Festival. Disney hits are remixed to the hottest sounds of today featuring hip hop, pop, swing, reggae, rock, country and much more! The irresistible lineup of performers, including Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy; Ariel, Sebastian and Ursula; Jasmine, Aladdin and Genie; and Woody, Buzz and Jessie; are among the more than 25 Disney stars featured in this jam session fit for the entire family! You can't resist dancing, singing, playing your air-guitar and laughing with this band of characters! Come join them at Disney Live! Mickey's Music Festival for a lively concert experience guaranteed to deliver enough rockin' memories to last a lifetime.

Save $4 using code: MOM4. Get Tickets Now!  Not valid on Front Row or VIP seats. No double discounts. Service charges, handling and facility fees may apply

Monster Jam at Q February 14th

My family had the opportunity to attend the Monster Jam show last night at Quicken Loans Arena in my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio.  Myself and my husband went along with our two sons, ages 5 and 8.

The show started promptly at 7:30 pm and began with a lot of LOUD action.  Yes, LOUD action.  This was our first time at this type of show and my first regret was not bringing any ear protection for the kids.  When multiple trucks had their engines running it became very loud.

 

My boys were very attentive during the show.  The monster trucks begin with a Wheelie competition which resulted with one truck completely flipping itself over.  The Monster Trucks weigh over 10,000 pounds and stand 12 feet tall. The engine is powered using methanol fuel and has 1,500 horsepower.

Next we got to see the trucks race through the course to see who had the fastest time.  The winner last night was The Man of Steel.  After intermission for the finale, the drivers had 90-seconds to entertain the crowd with their most impressive tricks.

 

Overall the show was definitely entertaining for the kids, there was a lot of action and cheering!  My cautions if you decide to take the family to the event is first to bring ear protection and second the refreshments and souvenirs were quite pricey in my opinion compared to other events we have attended at The Q.  Overall my family had a very good time at the event cheering for our favorite Monster Trucks!

 

There is still time to catch the Advanced Auto Parts Monster Jam @ The Q Arena on 2/14-2/16. Save 25% off tickets using code: MOM25.

 

 

 

My family received 4 complimentary tickets to Monster Jam in exchange for my honest review.