Another Valentine’s Day has come and gone. Vonnie and I agreed not to get all caught up in the usual flowers, stuffed animals and sentimental cards. Maybe when we’re out of debt we will re-instate a small Valentine’s Day gift exchange, but for now we just don’t think it is the wisest use of our money. Here’s what I did do for her: Made her breakfast: School day mornings are crazy busy. I busted ass to get all the usual stuff done in order to make her and the kids a great breakfast, including heart shaped pancakes. We already had […] Read more »
Can You Replace a Lost Receipt Using A Rewards Card?
I hate clutter. Our kitchen counter seems to be a magnet for store ads, receipts and returned assignments the kids brought home from school. Every day I sort through a pile of paper to determine which need to be kept, and which can be tossed. With a motto of “when it doubt, throw it out,” you can imagine that occasionally I would get rid of something that we actually need. My son celebrated a birthday in January, and the only thing he wanted was a set of decent headphones to replace the low quality ones that came with his recently […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 02/08
Looks like Old Man Winter is aiming to put the smack down on the North East this weekend. In some ways I’m kind of jealous because we haven’t had much snow here in Minnesota this year. On the other hand, I am starting to think I’m just DONE with winter at this point. I’m ready for warmer weather and the ability to strap on my running shoes and head out on a crisp spring morning. Not that I mind running in colder weather, it’s a safety factor as the sidewalks are packed with snow and ice right now. I’m just […] Read more »
Ostriches and Finances Don’t Mix
An Ostrich is a large, flightless bird native to Africa which many people believe will bury it’s head in the sand when it senses danger. As the story goes, the ostrich thinks that it is completely safe if it cannot see the pending threat. It hopes that when it finally raises it’s head back above the ground, the threat will be gone, and everything would be ok. Not very intelligent. Yet in the past I’d insist upon doing the exact same thing with my finances. I wouldn’t pay attention to how much I was spending, completely ignoring financial danger. I […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 2/1
Three words for you: Super. Bowl. Sunday. I love Super Bowl Sunday and all that comes with it. Funny commercials, great food, good times with friends, and if the game is good that’s just the cherry on top. I have conflicting feelings about who to root for this year. Randy Moss (Receiver) is now a 49er, and he gave Viking fans a whole lot to cheer about for a lot of years. On the other hand, Matt Birk (Center) is a Raven, and I STILL can’t believe the Vikings let him go. Great player, great person. Both teams are also […] Read more »
An Oil Change and a Conversation About Debt
Pulling out my debit card to pay for my oil change, I told the young man behind the counter who my employer was and asked if I qualified for a discount. He acknowledged that I did, punched a few buttons and said, “Looks like that saves you 8 bucks.” Up until this point, our conversation had been standard small talk, but here’s where it got interesting. “Every little bit helps, right?” he continued. “Absolutely,” I responded. “My girlfriend has me going to this financial peace thing,” he stated. “Oh, you mean Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University? What baby step are […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 1/25
The family and I are on our mid-winter getaway with 4 other families at the Kalahari Hotel in Wisconsin Dells. They have an indoor water park that includes this kneeboard ride that is a TON of fun. If you’ve never seen one of these before, streams of water are shot up an incline giving you the ability to kneeboard, and have it seem like you’re on an actual wave. It’s super fun and I was pumped to do it again. Unfortunately, during our first day at the water park I found out the hard way that my new swim trunks […] Read more »
How To Have an Inexpensive Mid-Winter Getaway
The weather forecast says that we may not break zero degrees today, and the wind chill will make it feel like -15F to -30F outside. That’s the kind of cold that makes your teeth HURT. You can also do this really neat trick where you can watch boiling water turn to ice crystals instantaneously. While it hasn’t been a very harsh winter, today is the kind of day that makes me long for the warm days of summer. It’s for days like this that several months ago we began planning a little outing. Later this week a we’ll be heading […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 1/18
I saw a video this week about how the people in L.A. are freaking out about the “arctic blast” bringing their high temps for the day into the mid 50’s. Brrrrr. People out in Kentucky had to deal with a few minutes of sleet. Just as a comparison, the most recent forecast projects a high temperature for Monday in Rochester, MN at -1. It’s all relative, I guess. If I had to deal with California earthquakes, or the summertime heat and humidity of Kentucky, I’d probably just curl up in the fetal position in a corner and sulk. Stay […] Read more »
The Financial Pothole: Temporary Tax Cuts
In the opening days of 2013 congress pushed through legislation to avoid the so called “fiscal cliff” preventing the taxes of the vast majority of Americans from going up, and automatic massive spending cuts from kicking in. The news wasn’t all good, however, as the payroll tax decrease was not extended. This means everyone’s paychecks would be reduced by 2% effective immediately. This is a double whammy for me, as it most likely is with many people, since the first of the year is also when the new rates for my medical insurance kicks in. I received my first pay […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 1/11
It’s almost 40 this week in Minnesota, and the snow is melting. The weatherman tells me that big changes are in store for next week when some really cold air is supposed to make it’s way into the area. I hope we get some snow soon, as the sledding hill in the park behind my house is no longer usable. It’s been a very busy week for writing blog posts, but I still managed to do a fair amount of reading as well. As always, check out my favorites of the week below: Favorite Posts: Debt-Free and Afraid of […] Read more »
Real Men Use a Shovel
In Minnesota, we joke that there are only two seasons: Winter, and Road Construction. We DO occasionally say “You betcha,” although not as often, and not as dramatically as in the movies. We eat tator tot hot dish, and in my city the average snow fall is just under 52 inches per year. Walking outside the morning after a fresh snowfall, you can hear snow blowers humming away all over my neighborhood. But you’ll never hear the roar of a snow blower engine coming out of my garage, because I don’t own one. I clear my driveway the old fashioned […] Read more »
I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 1/4
Happy New Year! I had to say it, since this is my first opportunity to love anyone like a blogger in 2013. There’s snow on the ground, and my family and I did some sledding over the last few weeks. Soon the novelty of Winter will wear off, and we’ll be looking forward to warmer weather. The good news is we’ve passed the Winter Solstice and the days are again getting longer. It’s practically Spring, right? They say people in the Midwest live longer because we’re always optimistic and looking forward to the next season. Always having something to look […] Read more »
It’s Never Too Late to Take Control Of Your Life!
I’ve been an inconsistent exerciser for my entire adult life. I’ll go through cycles of exercising religiously for months, but then go through a similar span of doing nothing. However, at the beginning of 2011 I looked in the mirror at an overweight, out of shape, middle aged man. My family has a history of some significant health problems, and I knew that if I didn’t make changes, I was sure to follow in their footsteps. Today marks two years of consistently working out 5-7 days a week. I ran my third marathon in October missing a personal best by […] Read more »