This week's spending:

Weekly spending:

• Monday: $0
• Tuesday: $0
• Wednesday: two hot cocoas - $1.65, Walmart (my Xmas gift and a couple knitting needles) - $113.30, Target (Matt's gifts and a tide pen) - $48.29, Best Buy (rechargeable batteries) - $20.38

• Thursday: Iced tea - $1.30
• Friday:Rite Aid - (chapstick and 2 cards) - $9.63
• Saturday:
• Sunday: Target - (lexan water bottle) - $6.42

Total = $200.97, an all time high! But I got a $227 mystery refund check in the mail, so it all balances out, right? ;-)

My Goals

I've been kinda undecided on what I really want for about a year now, and it's tough to get to where you want if you don't know what it is. This morning my old drive came back! I was reading Environmental Design and Construction magazine while groaning about my cramps (at least it won't be on Christmas, as the calender said it would be!) and it just woke up my business mind all over again. And so...

In one year:

• We will be homeowners.
• We will have a fully licensed and bonded successful contracting company.
• We will have a fantastic employee.
• We will have a bun in the oven.
• We will begin networking aggressively.

In two years:

• We will be Green Star certified contractors.
• We will have the extra money to hire someone to clean our house once a week.
  

In three years:

• We will have enough business and reliable employees for Matt to focus on the business aspect of our company and do very little hard labor.

In five years:

• We will build a LEED certified (environmentally responsible) condo building and sell it for a fortune!

• We will buy vacation property and build the perfect little cabin with our own four hands.

In ten years:

• We will expand our business to include new construction (until this point we'll mostly focus on remodels and additions) and build a Zero Energy Home neighborhood. http://www.toolbase.org/ToolbaseResources/level4CaseStudies.aspx?ContentDetailID=2469&BucketID=2&CategoryID=58

• We will open a small nonprofit apartment for low income single moms, which will also provide free seminars on finances, career planning, parenting, etc. for the residents and an in-house co-op and/or nonprofit daycare.

Heart Update

Yesterday was my father in law's bypass surgery. They ended up doing the full nine they'd planned on, but everything went well. We were blessed enough to end up in a "family conference room" so we had this tiny waiting room all to ourselves, so the wait went really quickly.

They discovered he's diabetic, so a change in diet is absolutely necessary. The family wasn't thrilled about the idea of me changing their meals but now I don't care what they say, I'm cleaning out the fridge and being a militantly healthy cook because I'm not going to watch them hurt themselves anymore.

He'll hopefully be moved out of ICU today (usually they keep bypass patients for two days), so it looks like he's healing quickly. Wouldn't it be amazing if he could come home in time for Christmas? Even the day after Christmas is fine. It'd be so much nicer for everyone to celebrate at home. Regardless, today we're bringing in the little fiber optic tree and some lights to make it a little more festive.

This week's spending challenge results:

Weekly spending:
Monday: Target - Reindeer socks for Eli - $1.07
Tuesday: Hospital - cafeteria breakfast. - $15.57
Wednesday: McDonald's - $3.22, Walmart - Flax oil etc. - $13.61
Thursday: Walmart (shame!) - 3 pairs of Knitting needles - $6.46
Friday: Ross - stocking stuffers for 3 parents (I did not buy the shoes that made my heart go pitter patter!) - $57.94
Saturday: Post Office - $12.15 to ship 3 gifts
Sunday: Greeting cards - $11.72, Target - Notebook - $1.60

Total = $123.34 - the highest yet! But still very low compared with all the temptation I had.

Matters of the Heart

Yesterday my father in law had an angiogram to see about a heart issue they had noticed during a stress test. Turns out two arteries are so clogged that the doctor hadn't seen it this bad before - said we should see the films because it was so "impressive" that he was able to function normally with as advanced as the calcification was. Next week he'll be getting bypass surgery - they'll be putting in nine bypasses. He'll also get a defibrillator put in that same week. Apparently he's at the point where diet and exercise can't fix it but it can keep a heart attack at bay for a few more years. What's worse for me is that it's a hereditary coronary disease. Matt smokes, drinks, and eats horribly when I'm not the one feeding him. So Matt promised he'd quit smoking as soon as this pack ran out - everyone, please pray for this! I'm also putting the entire household on a diet. I think we'll eat Mediterranean mostly because it's supposed to be the heart healthiest and most of the meat is fish. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mediterranean-diet/CL00011 Even with this over their heads I doubt I can get three Midwesterners to come to the veggie side. ;-) So this means I need to relearn to cook, which I was going to do when we got home anyway. I'm getting a juicer for Christmas so that will be an awesome help. If anyone knows any rockin' healthy recipes please send them my way as all my recipes are in a storage unit in Washington.

This week's spending challenge results:

Weekly spending:
Monday: $0
Tuesday: 3 games of pool at local dive bar = $2.25
Wednesday:$0
Thursday:Snacks for Matt, Dan, and I = $4.71
Friday: $0
Saturday: $0
Sunday: Materials for a few gifts plus shipping (these gifts will be late by the way,oops) = $49.96

Total = $56.96

I still need to buy materials and make a bunch more presents. We had no money until last night soooo gifts will be late, and some people I really wanted to buy for won't be getting anything from us. I feel awful. I never ever do that. I always have every gift bought and wrapped by November. This year's just been a little weird. ;-)

Our home will be...

Dani had a great idea, and I thought I may as well copy it (check out her blog in my links). ;-) She listed everything she wants in a home and it's so simple but the act of writing your wants and needs out and being able to see them (and especially in a blog where others see them!) makes them so much more real. There's amazing power in writing out your intentions. My mom is a big believer in this idea, and I wrote a list like this when I was car shopping and I stumbled over a car that was EXACTLY everything on my list. I had forgotten about the list long before finding the car and happened upon it later and was astounded. So, that said, Matt and I will be house shopping this Spring/ Summer (please God let us be approved for a good loan!) and I have paper lists around, but here it is out in the open:

My home is:

• A short drive from the beach
• Exposed to a lot of direct sun
• Walking distance to a park
• In a safe neighborhood with at least a couple great neighbors
• A rambler with a basement
• Easy to renovate
• Perfect for entertaining
• Energy efficient

And has:

• 3 bedrooms, 1.75 baths, and space for my office
• A very open and large living room
• A view
• HUGE windows
• Good energy
• A large enough yard for a swing set, 2 fruit trees, and a vegetable and herb garden.
• A big porch

It's a tall order, I know. I have faith that God will put us somewhere wonderful though. It's time to put down roots. As Pastor Tim says, "gotta have roots before you can have fruit!" Of course he's talking about rooting yourself in faith in God but I feel like it applies to this right now. We keep getting "transplanted" from one tiny pot to another and I'm ready for a big roomy orchard, with other nice fruit trees to make friends with.

UPDATE! - We just bought our first house, and we got almost everything on the list. The only things it lacks are the basement, big porch (but the ideal place for a big deck!) and a ready space for my office - we'll have to add that on when we have enough kids to fill up both spare bedrooms, but we'll probably have moved up by then!

This week's spending challenge results:

We started on Wednesday 11/29 -
11/29 - $0
11/30 - $0
12/1 - $0
12/2 - Burger King (yay veggie burger!) - me $2.71, Matt $5.00
12/3 - McDonald's - me $0, Matt $2.51

Total for the week= $10.22!
I'm pretty ashamed about the fast food (we know better than to eat that junk), but not bad overall. This week we have to buy the last Christmas presents and ship them out, so it might be ugly results next Monday. I'll do my best and we'll see!

Tree lighting

Last night Matt and I went to downtown Benicia's tree lighting. They had a band dressed as elves playing Christmas music, and all the shops were open late and handing out cookies, hot cocoa, and snacks. I swear half the town was there! We had a great time roaming around and checking it out. We watched a glass blower make a vase, lounged in a crazy gorgeous craftsman furniture shop, checked out a kitchen and bath store, and a new mediterranean restaurant was passing out baba ganoush and hummus - yum. Oh, and I found a dangerously tempting shop called "Solar Clothing". Boutique atmosphere, Ross prices. I almost died. But I didn't buy anything! I can wait until after Christmas. Oooh I wonder if they do after Christmas sales... two days on shopping restriction and I'm already fiending. Not too bad though! Matt and I haven't spent a penny in two days!