So long January! February Goals

Wow! January is over! Just under 3 hours to go and we're into February. I'd like to say that I've done pretty well with my resolutions thus far. However, some will definitely take a little longer to accomplish (like saving money since I can only save so much per month). But so far, they're going off without a hitch.

We have a few things to look forward to in February. My lovebug is turning 5 months! She's getting so big. It's also her first Valentine's day. I got her a cute onesie to wear :-) We also have her baptism in the middle of the month as well as her first swim lesson, well not that she will learn much at 5 months, but it will be her first time in a pool.

I've decided to create some goals to complete for this month and one will be super tough. I am hereby stating I will not spend any discretionary money for the month. No extra coffee, no lunch, no buying Abby anything cute. UGH this will be so hard! I also plan to follow this ab workout. This should be  a breeze (says the girl who hasn't worked out since January 2012!). I'll have to post about this after the first 7 days to discuss how sore I am.

Superbowl Sunday

My team hasn't been in the Superbowl since, um, a long time. (Not to mention that this was a rough season for fans.) However, I'm not opposed to cheering on the other New York team. So I enjoyed watching 2 games within the last 5 years, especially since both of them were against the New England Patriots, who I despise. I think it's more I despise Tom Brady.

Now that we're coming up to this big day between the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers, I still have quite a few things to look forward to. I'll list them in order of importance to me - the food, commercials, and winning a box; and here's why.

We don't do anything special or go anywhere for SB Sunday, but I do enjoy making food to eat during the game. This year I plan on making buffalo cauliflower, baked version of deep fried mushrooms, shredded buffalo chicken, Skinny Girl's bloomin' onion and have some celery and carrots to dip. Oh and beer. Beer is very important to have on a day like this. I need to think which particular beer I would like to drink during the game. The food itself makes the game but the beer is very important too.

The commercials last year were absolutely great. Some of my favorites included M&Ms and Doritos. They had several, but these two were my faves - the dog kills cat bribe, baby sling,  Chrysler is also very good with their commercials so I'm looking forward to what they'll be bringing this year. Some of the best from last year

I participate in SB boxes just like most other people in America. It's exciting and you can win some big cash! So naturally when my team isn't playing, I don't really care who wins and I want my numbers to come out so I win some money.

I do wish Budweiser would bring back the Bud Bowl. I enjoyed watching that when I was younger. There is also the Puppy Bowl which pops on during breaks. It's pretty cute to watch.

Just a few more days to go until the big game! Are you watching? What will you be eating?

Excellent Customer Service

Many people are quick to complain about a company that has wronged them, but it's very rare we hear of companies that provided excellent customer service. I had a very positive experience recently and sharing it as much as I can. I am hoping my story gets shared enough that people will take the time to acknowledge those stores that really care about their customers.

In December 2011, I purchased 2 hockey jerseys - one for myself and one for my husband. I only wore mine to the few games we went to and followed the washing instructions per the label. About 3 months after I purchased it and several washes later, one of the numbers on the back of the jersey had tears in it. I couldn't figure out for the life of me how this happened because the jersey is turned inside out and is hung up to dry. I was upset that my pricey article of clothing was now ruined. Thinking it was a lost cause since I didn't have the receipt to prove anything, I just hung it up in my closet. (It was the end of the season anyway).

Fast forward to this hockey season, which didn't start until a few weeks ago. We went to the game on Saturday so I pulled my jersey out of my closet. I completely forgot about the tears in it. I really didn't want to spend more money on another one because it really wasn't my fault this happened. I decided to contact Reebok (the manufacturer) to see how I can go about getting it inspected since it was clearly a defect. I sent off an email and listed all the details and included the chronicle of events since I purchased it. I was dismissed with a generic email stating that since I was passed the one year warranty, they couldn't help me. I followed up with a phone call not mentioning when I purchased it and was told I needed to provide photos, the receipt (or credit card statement) and they would evaluate it. But I knew because my CC statement shows December 2011 they were not going to help me. (Way to stand behind your product!)

I posted my disappointment on Facebook and a friend sent me a private message asking where I bought it. I told her I got it at Modells and she suggested I email the CEO because he is known for his excellent service. Later that night I googled him and saw he was recently on the show Undercover Boss. I immediately thought great, I'll email him and it will never get through. I found his email easily enough and sent off a respectful and honest note letting him know I've been a very satisfied customer for years and I have an issue with a jersey. This morning I woke up to a reply from him! He said he was sorry there was an issue with the product and asked someone within his team to help me out (I'm guessing she is the head of customer service). She called me today and located a new jersey at a location close to my office. I just picked up and have a brand new jersey. I am thrilled.

Modells really went above and beyond for me and I will continue to be a patron of their store. I can't express my gratitude enough to them. So, if you are looking for sporting goods, definitely check out Modells. They have great prices, products, and excellent customer service. You won't be sorry you shopped there.

Extreme Couponing

I know I normally don't do 2 posts in a day, but I didn't have the time yesterday to do this one, so I'll write about it now.

I normally do my food shopping following church service on Sundays. I head over to ShopRite in Uniondale with my list on the app my iphone and my coupons (both ecoupons and hard copies). Last week I saved over $20 with my coupons, but I also had a $10 off your order in baby bucks since I spent over $100 in baby items previously. However, this week I did phenomenally. I have to say in NYC/Long Island, it is very difficult to do any kind of extreme couponing simply because there are rarely any coupons (if any) on fresh produce and meats/seafood. This is where the bulk of my money is spent. My husbands thinks it's funny when I get excited I only spent pennies on certain items, but this is how well I did. Before my coupons were scanned, the total was almost $93. After coupons it was $76. Now, the ShopRite I go to doubles coupons up to and including .99. However if it says "Do Not Double" they won't double and you must get what the coupon states. I mean, I think that's only fair. A lot of the extreme couponers you see on television are able to coupon the way they do because their stores are much more lenient with coupons.

My awesome deals this week:

Barilla Pasta - on sale for .88 a box (not all varieties, but it did include whole grain). I had a coupon for $1 off 2 boxes of whole grain, veggie, or fiber plus. I bought 4 boxes of whole grain which came to a total of .38 a box for me.

General Mills cereal - $1.99 for specific varieties. I picked up the new Cheerios Honey Crunch and Fiber One Honey Almond Clusters or something like that. I had .75 off any Fiber One cereal coupon and .75 off the new Cheerios Honey Crunch coupon. Both coupons doubled. I paid .49 per box of cereal.

Wishbone Salad Dressing - $1.99 per bottle. I had a coupon for .65 off 2 bottles. My coupon doubled so I paid $2.68 for 2 bottles.

Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Sauce - $1.88 per bottle. My coupon was .65 off one bottle. This doubled and I paid .58 for one bottle

Coffeemate Coffee Creamer - The deal was 3 for $5. I used 2 coupons. I had one coupon for $1.10 off of 2 bottles and another that was .55 off of one. The .55 one double making it $2.20 off the 3 bottles. I paid $2.80 for the 3 bottles.

Bailey's Coffee Creamer - $1.49 a bottle. My coupon was $1 off. I paid .49 for the bottle.

Daisy Cottage Cheese - $1.99 for a tub. My coupons were .45 off 1 tub. The coupons doubled and paid $1.09 per tub.

I had other coupons for other things, but these were by far the best deals I got. I already have $1.50 off my produce purchase. I'm looking forward to see what next week's deals will be!

Friend Makin' Monday

Now it’s that time…If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

Getting To Know Each Other

1. What is your favorite color? Blue, it's such a happy color!
2. Share one or more of your talents. I'm a good cook and I'm great at party planning!
3. If you were spending the day getting to know someone new, where would you want to go?  I'm always partial to a restaurant on the water or a bar on the beach.
4. What is your favorite meal?  Spaghetti
5. Do you prefer to text or talk?  Texting
6. Share something about yourself that might surprise someone that you’re getting to know.  I am a stickler for spelling and being on time.
7. Do you color your hair? Yes
8. Do you wear glasses or contacts?  Not anymore. I had Lasik done in April 2011
9. What is your favorite breakfast food?  Well it's winter so that means I eat apples & cinnamon low sugar oatmeal...
10. Would your friends say that you’re sarcastic?  Not really, although sometimes I am but they seem to get that I am :-/
11. Do you prefer salty or sweet?  Salty
12. What is the first thing you notice about the opposite sex?  Posture
13. What is the last movie you watched?  Ugh....
14. Are you religious? I don't think this is quite the right type of phrase to use in this context. I think the more appropriate question is do you follow a faith? So to answer that, yes I do. I am a Christian and speak to God regularly.
15. Are you a neat freak, a slob, or somewhere in between? Neat. I absolutely hate clutter!
16. Share something from your bucket list that you hope to do someday.  See and walk on the Great Wall of China
17. Are you a risk taker, or do you prefer to play it safe?  Most of the time I play it safe, especially if it is anything financial.
18. Have you ever worn braces?  Nope, I lucked out and had enough space in my mouth for my teeth to grow in straight on their own.
19. Would you rather spend an evening at a theater or at a club?  Theater
20. If you could have three wishes, what would one of them be?  To be healthy and fit, to have no more debt, and to have healthy parents.

20 Questions

Ever have this toy? It's basically a device that can figure out what you're thinking based on asking you no more than 20 questions. I found an online version so I gave it a whirl. It asked for my age, gender and location (US) so I plugged that all in. I was thinking "pig" and it took 18 questions to guess it right. Start at number one at the bottom.

Q18. I am guessing that it is a potbellied pig (pet)?Right, Wrong, Close

---

17.		Can it make a sound? Yes.
16.		Can you order it at a restaurant? Yes.
15.		Is it a small mammal? No.
14.		Can you eat it? Yes.
13.		Is it brown? Sometimes.
12.		Is it tall? No.
11.		Is it commonly used? Sometimes.
10.		Does it roll? Yes.
9.		Is it yellow? No.
8.		Is it a specific color? Sometimes.
7.		Do you put your name on it? No.
6.		Is it made from cellulose? No.
5.		Does it like to run? Sometimes.
4.		Is it dangerous? No.
		Does it like to clean itself? Unknown.
3.		Is it white? No.
2.		Is it heavy? Yes.
1.		It is classified as Animal.

Homemade Baby Food!

As I have mentioned before I am really trying to cut back on what we spend on groceries. Now that Abby is starting to eat foods, we now have to start buying baby food, which is expensive! Have you seen the price of those little jars? Some of my friends made their own baby food and said it was super easy and so economical. I figured I would give it a whirl. I steamed an apple, pear, butternut squash, sweet potato, and carrots (all separately) and puréed each one. I also did avocado, but that did not need steaming. I portioned them into ice cube trays. When they were frozen I placed each cube into ziplock bags and have them stored in the freezer. Each cube is one serving. We are stocked for a few weeks and it only cost a few bucks!

Saving Money

I feel as though losing weight and saving money are the top two resolutions people make every year. I mean, why not? There are only few and far between that don't need to save money or lose weight. It's only been a few weeks since the New Year began and I like to think I'm not spending my money frivolously, or like I was before. I'm doing a much better job of bringing lunch to work, lunch I actually look forward to. Instead of going out during lunch to shop, I've been enjoying it with the company of some of my colleagues in our large conference room watching The Chew.

Another way I'm saving money is by following this weekly money challenge. You start on the first Sunday of the year and add $1 to the envelope (or piggy bank). Each week you add a dollar more to the amount than the previous week.

So this Sunday I have to put in $3. At the end of the year you end up saving $1,378. A nice chunk of change! No clue what I'm going to do with it. Possibly pay off some my CC debt or put it towards some new clothes or put it in Abby's account. I'll make that decision then. There's still time to start this if you want. You only should have $3 away now, not too difficult!

Meal Planning

Following the New Year, a friend of mine had posted a link on Facebook with several meal planning guides to choose from to help plan your meals and grocery list for the week. You can find them here. I originally printed out one and made a few copies, but never filled it out. As you may remember one of my resolutions was to plan meals and do make ahead meals, which I have done.

Just the other day another friend posted a picture of her meal plan for the week and I realized I really needed to get with it. One of the things I noticed I do is spend way too much in the grocery store. (Another resolution is to save money.) It's just two of us. If you looked in our pantry and freezer, you'd think we're feeding a family of four or five. There is no reason for me to spend $100 or more every week. Yes, some trips will be more costly because meats & seafood are on sale and I buy to stock up, but I really should only be buying perishables - produce and milk - weekly.

Anyways, I went back to the link and printed out a few copies of a planner and started planning it out. I originally started planning next week since I already made my meals for this week. After writing it out I saw I didn't need to buy anything except shrimp, avocado, and pesto. (I might actually skip the avocado.) So in addition to the limited produce, milk and yogurt I'll be buying Sunday, I should be spending no more than another $20 for shrimp and pesto. That sounds so much better. I then decided to write out the meals for this week as well. Now, I'm not trying to figure out what to make with stuff this week. It's nice to see it on paper.

I'm definitely going to be keeping this up. I know it will help save so much money in the long run and that is my ultimate goal with this menu planner. I'm good at preparing foods on Sunday for the week, but this will help me not overspend on food that sometimes gets thrown out. Now, I just need to stick with it. Doesn't seem too hard! The recipes I keep on my Pinterest food board are very helpful too!

Slowing down is not an option

I think being a NYer I've always had the mentality to rush rush rush. I get annoyed when people walk slow in front of me, or drive slow, or take too long in general. It's really something I should not get annoyed about; it's just silly when you think about it. I do this when I travel out of state too. It's horrible!

Before I had the baby, I would be rushing to work, followed by rushing to the gym to make class, then rushing to catch the train. Then when I got home I would make dinner, clean up, get my stuff ready for work the next day, etc. I would finally sit down around 9:30pm. And now I'm in the same situation and I hate it. I get up earlier now with the baby. At least on Mondays and Wednesdays I can pass her off to my parents right away so I can finish getting ready for work - so I can hurry to catch the train. Tuesdays and Thursdays I rush (even with giving myself extra time in the morning!) because I have to drop her off at daycare then drive to the train station. I do my best to plan ahead so that I have time to sit down, but this planning takes time too. There has to be a better way for busy mom's. One very important thing for me is getting enough sleep. If I don't get enough sleep, I have a greater chance of getting sick, and I cannot get sick. I do know that sometimes you can't control it, but it is proven that sleep helps fight off illnesses.

Perhaps writing out my weekly schedule would work to see where I can make improvments. I'll start with Monday since my weekends kind of lump together.

Monday
6:30/6:45am - get up, get coffee, make baby's bottle, come back upstairs, plug in straightener and make the bed.
By 7am my parents arrive. I start to straighten my hair.
By 7:15am the baby is up. I change her diaper and bring her downstairs.
By 7:30am dressed and my hair is done.
My train is at 7:47am. Somehow between 7:35am and 7:44am it is taking me too long to get out of the house. All I'm doing is packing my lunch in a bag and putting on my coat. I literally have to race to the train station.
I get to work before 9am and don't leave until a few minutes after 5pm. My train home is out of Brooklyn at 5:35pm. It's 3 subway stops from my office. I typically get home around 6:15pm. I'm emptying my bags, heating up something to eat and making the baby's cereal.
By 6:45pm Ken is out the door to go to bowling. I feed the baby, eat dinner and play with her for a bit. I make her last bottle and feed her at 8pm. She is in bed by 8:30pm.
After 8:30pm I shower, prepare my lunch for the next day, get my stuff together, premake the baby's bottles for daycare, make sure her bag is packed, etc. I also do any stuff at home that I can't do at work. I don't get to sit down until 9:30/10pm. Around 10:30pm I go to bed, some nights it's 11pm.

Tuesday
6:30am - get up, get coffee, make all bottles for daycare, pack bag
6:45am - make bed, get dressed, make sure the baby starts waking up
7:00am - get the baby ready for daycare
7:15am - leave the house and bring her to daycare
7:47am - on the train to work
Pick up where we left off after work and that's my night, but also add in a bath for the baby.

Repeat Monday and Tuesday for Wednesday (minus bowling for Ken) and Thursday.

Friday - I work from home so we sleep a little later. The baby takes a morning nap and I get a lot done. I throw food in the crockpot at lunch time so it's ready for dinner. We're not rushing so much this day

Saturday - errands - food shopping, cleaning the house and any other stores
Sunday - make 3 make ahead meals for the week.

If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know! Come summer my days are going to be busier. My parents won't be around to watch the baby so she will be in daycare 4 days a week. Ken will also be busier with his side work so that will leave a lot of the home care to me. I need help!

Random thoughts

Ever notice how most folks that blog (and I mean truly blog) have some sort of theme? I just can't create one for me. I'm not an avid cook (I enjoy it and do it most nights) but I don't want a blog dedicated to food. I don't want one dedicated to my weightloss. I just feel as though this blog is just a bunch of stuff happening in my life, but how is that interesting to other people? Granted I'm not looking for hundreds of followers. I guess I can considerate this to be a diary of sorts, but I'll leave out juicy details since we all know what is put on the internet never, ever leaves. (And if you think it does once you delete something, think again. It is forever there.)

Anywho, my week has been somewhat exciting for me. My daughter had her 4 month check up and she's up to 14 lbs and 10 oz! Can't believe she grew so much in a month! We started her on some cereal last night and it was so fun! She gobbled it up. The first bite was hysterical! We have video, but the copy I have isn't very good quality. I need to get if off my husband's phone so I can post the good quality one! And naturally blogger is acting up so I can't even post the picture we have of her all finished!

Friend Makin' Mondays

Simple Questions

1. Outside my window I see…the Freedom Tower among tons of other NYC high rises here in downtown Manhattan.

2. My kitchen counters are…beautiful! They are an ivory granite with swirls of brown and black specks.

3. Yesterday I drank…2 mimosas at a party, diet ginger ale and water.

4. My cell phone is…a white iphone with a purple case.

5. My computer is…on my desk.

6. My favorite reality show is…RHONJ, RHOC, and RHOBH. Not really a fan of NYC, Miami or Atlanta.

7. My workouts are…nonexsistent. This is my first full week of back to work and having my parents watch the baby 2 days a week and bringing her to daycare 2 days a week. Once I get into my groove I am hoping to get things going again.

8. The last book I read is…a freebie from B&N called Double Trouble. I love free or cheap books. I don't really read books that take a lot of focus. I do my reading during my commute so I need something to wind me down from my day at work.

9. My week will be….hectic. Last week was a short week with the holiday so I don't really have a groove. I'm hoping to get one going after I see how things go this week.

10. So far 2013 has been…a a pretty good year. My daughter turned 4 months, we paid off a big debt and my cooking regime has been pretty good since I started it before the New Year.

Now it’s your turn to answer this week’s questions. Don’t forget to come back and link up in the comments! Happy Monday, friends!

New Year's Resolutions

I know many people make resolutions at the beginning of the New Year to get off on the right foot. I feel like the majority of people put losing weight as their top resolution. Sure for me that is key, as I'm trying to shed the last of the baby weight, but I've actually come up with a list that I think is good for me. I don't see me failing too easily either, which is a good thing. You never want to set yourself up for failure. I don't have a magic number of 5 or 10, just somethings I thought of that I think will not only keep me happy, but sane for the year.

1. Continue with my weight loss that has been going well since before Christmas. I decided when I went back to work in December I really need to get back to my feel good size. I started weight watchers and lost 8.8 lbs in less than 3 weeks. Unfortunately the week between Christmas and New Year's I went back to a lot of my old habits so I gained 3 lbs back. Not exactly how I wanted to start off the New Year, but after New Year's Day, I got back on track and have been there since. Hopefully I drop those pesky 3 lbs when I weigh myself Friday morning.
2. Dress up a little more for work. I mostly dressed very down, but don’t want to look like a schmo anymore. I don't feel like a slob, but I don't feel professional. I know a lot of this has to do with my weight too. I have nicer shirts I want to wear but need to lose a few more pounds for them to fit me nicely. I'd also like to wear my boots that I bought last year.
3. Pay off debt. We did a lot to our house in 2012 and that limited what we could pay off in debt so that’s a top goal. We've knocked out one major bill so far and are continuing to work on other things. We're hoping to knock off another 2 major ones by the end of March. We are hoping to knock out most debt by the end of the year. We know it very possible to do, so I'm confident we will.
4. Save money. I need to get into the habit of saving more money. I don't save enough. I found this weekly money saving idea and think I'm going to give it a whirl. Starting the first Sunday of the year, you put away a dollar. The second Sunday you put away $2. Third Sunday, you put away $3 and so forth. The last Sunday of the year you put away $52. In total it's over $1300 that you've saved. At the end of the year I'll decide what I want to do with my money. Nice chunk of easy savings!
5. Cook, a lot! I did this well in 2012 and tried to make new recipes, but I found either not having the ingredients in the house to make it. This partially goes along with my next resolution. I definitely want to try new recipes this year because I get bored with the same old stuff. Plus making tasty recipes will help with my weight loss goals.
6. Plan meals better, so I can spend time with my family. Commuting to work limits the time I get to spend with my daughter so I need to plan things out a lot more. She is in bed by 8:30pm. Since I get home around 6:15pm, it's really limited time with her, but I try to make the most of it. It's hard when I'm trying to get dinner ready. So far some of my plans for this year include doing make ahead meals for the week. On Sunday I will make 3 items that can easily be heated up when I get home from work. Those foods will be for Tuesday-Thursday nights. On Monday night, my husband is bowling so I can make something very quickly for myself, whether it's a lean cuisine or just an English muffin pizza. Fridays I'm dedicating to the crockpot, but I'll explain that in my next resolution.
7. Use the Crockpot every Friday. My job is very flexible and I'm telecommuting on Fridays now. I'm a big fan of the Crockpot and have always said I wanted to make more stuff in it. Since I'm home Fridays I can always just throw the stuff in it during my "lunch break" and it will be ready for dinner. Last week I made shredded BBQ chicken which can be used for sandwiches or what I easily made were bbq chicken quesadillas. My husband loved them so I know this will be a meal I make again. This week I'm planning to make chicken fajitas. I'm looking forward to these easy Friday night dinners!

Happy New Year!

I cannot believe I haven't posted in over 2 years! I know, life got busy, and I got lazy, but I'd like to think that I'm back for the long haul. I don't like to think that I will be blogging about one particular subject. I don't feel like I'm an expert in one thing and while I have a passion for many things, they aren't something I necessarily want to talk about all the time. So as I continue my blog, you will be sure to read things such as home improvements, my family, my food, and just life events in general. In the meantime, I'll catch you up on some of the things that has happened over the last two years.

In 2011, we did a lot of house renovations, inside and out. I painted the front door a bright red and we installed a new stormdoor. We redid the entire backyard - removed trees, new sod, patio pavers, new sliding glass doors, the works! It came out fabulous.

 

 

 

 

After Thanksgiving we redid and expanded our upstairs bathroom. It came out great!

 



(New shower tile during construction)

 

(New vanity, mirror, and storage)

 

In January 2012 we started work on the downstairs - knocked the walls down between the dining room and living room and opened up the walls from the dining room into the kitchen. After that we ripped up all the carpet everywhere and refinished the hardwood floors (they look fabulous, by the way) and then started renovations in our kitchen. A lot of work was done there and we couldn't be happier with how it came out.

(Living room before)

(Living room/dining room after)

 

 

 

(Upstairs, no more carpet, newly stained floors!)

 

(New railing and finished floors)                 

(Kitchen before - this was modified about a year earlier, see previous post)

(New cabinets, floor, countertops, appliances, window)

 

 

 

Fast forward to September, our little girl arrived. She really is the joy of our lives. We recently celebrated her first Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's! She'll be 4 months on Saturday. Crazy how time flies!