Money Saving

I kind of forgot what it was like to budget money.  Not that I'm out buying clothes every day, and eating at posh restaurants every evening.  I've always been relatively good at not over-spending, and I really truly love saving money in a savings account.

But for the past six years, I've had a very stable job, and very few bills.  This means that I had a rather decent amount of expendable income.  I could buy any groceries I wanted, and eat out at restaurants pretty much any time, and buy a new pair of shoes if the desire arose.  In that six years, there were still important budgeting issues, like paying off a car and paying for tuition those couple of semesters that I went to school.  But for the most part, my income was rather comfortable.

Lately, with the husband in school and paying for tuition, a lot of bills are crawling out of the wood work (handling rent without three other roommates to share, paying the FULL gas and power bills instead of splitting with people, what?)  We're pretty fine, still, money-wise.  But we're also hoping to go to Europe next year.  And with trying to save and plan for that, I have to re-learn about budgeting.

(Picture break for no reason)

It's been a bit of a battle.  Last night, I bought a $7 block of gruyere cheese.  It was delicious on our croque madame sandwiches, but eating from home shouldn't be costing us that much per meal, right?  On the mornings where I work at Tulie Bakery  (which is so awesome, by the way!), I don't have time to go home and grab a breakfast.  At least, that's what I tell myself, and then I stop in at a fast food drive-thru on my way into work.  Not only is that unhealthy, but it can add up.  And I don't even really like the food that much!

All this to say, I've really got to write up some budget goals.  And stick to them.  Here are some that I'm going to implement:

1. Only eat out at a fast food place once a week TOPS (hopefully not at all)
     a. Make healthy grab-and-go breakfast and lunch snacks so I don't get the temptation to stop somewhere

2. Keep grocery lists simple--sometimes you don't have to be fancy and get gruyere cheese when plain old $2 cheddar will do the trick!

3. Put at least 13% of each paycheck into savings (both as a good rule, and because Europe is caaaaaaalling our names)

4. Stop taking shortcuts when another (longer) way will save money--like buying canned beans.  Beans are cheap as pennies, but canned ones cost soooo much more.  And seriously, with the amount of random, and rather unnecessary, baking I do, I'm sure I could substitute in some bean-soaking time instead.  Also, I spent $6 on a car wash yesterday. Probably that could have been done with a hose and some elbow grease.

5. The $1, $2 justification is no longer allowed!  Buying a $2 or $3 treat instead of going out to lunch still adds up!

(Also doing more free activities like campfire nights.  Fun!)

Guys, I need your help!  What are your favorite money-saving tips and tricks?  Any help in changing these habits would be much appreciated!

Life Lately

It's weird how moods can bounce from sad to happy.  Within moments, too!  They can bounce within moments, or they can stick around much longer than welcome.  The sad moments, that is.  The happy ones seem to politely never over-stay their welcome (as if that were even possible).

My point is, yesterday was a sad day.  But I had some cherries, the first cherries of the season.  And that helped.

And today is a happy day!  Happy in a way that completely overcomes yesterday's sad.

I have a new excitement to share!  And I might be prematurely sharing, because nothing is set in stone yet.  But it is a strong possibility that you're looking at (um, I mean reading the words of...) the new temporary-and probably unpaid-part time morning prep baker for Tulie Bakery!

I've come to find lately that I'm usually my happiest when I'm doing creative and fun baking.  My full-time accounting job certainly doesn't cover that criteria.  And if I was always baking at home, Ray and I will sure soon have diabetes.  That's why I crave opportunities like Mother's Day to make a beautiful citrus cake.

I wrote emails out to a few bakeries in the Salt Lake area to see if any of them could use a sort of intern or morning prep baker, and the owner of Tulie responded.  It's kind of perfect because Tulie is located just a minute's walk away from my apartment, and they make such beautiful cakes and pastries.

I'm really excited for the opportunity.  Hopefully I'm not speaking too soon, because I don't want to have to come back and report that it didn't work out!

So, I'm happy today.  And other things that make me happy are the TV show New Girl (check it out if you haven't seen it yet.  It will make you laugh and cry and fall in love.  And laugh some more.) and this song I've just discovered I love.

I can't vouch for the video, though.  I only watched a couple seconds of it and it looks pretty weird...

25 Things.

The below '25 Random Things About Me...' list was written on January 29, 2009.  I'm totally stealing this idea from Lacy, but please read along with me as I discover just what I was like over four years ago. (Spoiler: not that much has changed.)

Oh, the poof hairstyle.  This was nearly exactly 4 years ago, when we made a trip to Niagara Falls

1. I will defend my love of the band Hanson until the day I die. Seriously, they're that good. 
This is still true, though I give my future self permission to not defend them.  I mean, until I die?  That's really locking my musical taste in, and I'm not into that.

 2. I hate being predictable. If someone predicts something about me, I deliberately do all I can to not make it happen.
I still have a rebellious side about this,  but more often, if someone says something about me that is mostly true, I'm happy to own to it.  Usually.

 3. I'm not really a chick flick girl. I'd watch The Dark Knight, Speed Racer, Tommy Boy, etc. over a chick flick almost any day. But I do have a soft spot for John Cusack's chick flicks. 
Even more true than it used to be, since now that Ray's around, I rarely subject him to a chick flick.  I do sometimes miss them, though, and would welcome a girls' night to enjoy a particularly well made chick flick.

 4. I love to learn and discover new things. But did not enjoy college at all. I don't recommend an accounting major... 
This makes me more sad than it used to.  And I have a feeling that not enjoying college had a lot to do with my anxiety about wanting to get great grades and do it quickly.  I wish I'd given myself permission to slow down or breathe.  I've been back to college twice since then, and have enjoyed both experiences.

 5. I'd love to do my dream job... but I have no clue what that would be!! Too many fun choices. 
I think, more and more, that my dream job would have something to do with feeding people.  Maybe not so much a restaurant.  But a breakfast and lunch service bakery?  I could be really into that.

6. Cooking is one of my favorite things to do. But I eat and cook at home maybe 1/4 of the time.
Oh and hey, look at that.  The cooking thing is still very true, but now I cook at home probably 4/5ths of the time?  A lot, anyway.  Having my own kitchen has a lot to do with that.

7. I have extreme wanderlust. The second I get home from a long vacation, I almost immediately start planning the next one. And cannot wait to start it again! I'm totally fine with living out of a suitcase. 
The wanderlust still exists, but has diminished due to other needs for my money.  I still dream of places to travel, but it doesn't hurt my heart quite like it used to.  Probably Ray has a lot to do with that.  There's more things at home to love.

8. I graduated from Utah State with a Bachelors in Accounting in May 07 and started a real-life career two days later. Now I really recommend taking a week or two off to just play! 
I would still recommend this.  But I am immensely grateful that I had a job so soon after college.  I know that I would have felt rather pointless had I not gone home to an actual career-life.

9. I ran the St. George Marathon in Oct. 06, and strongly assert that if I can do it, literally anyone can! (excepting extreme situations, of course) 
I still assert this, but acknowledge that the mindset must be there.  If you don't want to do it...?  You won't.  Also, maybe I should get back into running...

10. I was extraordinarily shy as a child and still have trouble overcoming it. 
I'm happy to say that I feel rather comfortable in my own skin nowadays.  Much of my shyness-difficulties had to do with dating situations, and that's not a problem anymore! (yay)  I'm still not the life of the party, but I feel pretty great about my leaps and bounds since then.

11. I feel silly talking about myself so much and I'm not even half way through this... 
Ha, well, I'm doing this again.  And I feel less silly about it because I like reflecting on my past and present self.  It's good for the soul, I think.  Also, it's your own choice if you're reading this, so I don't hold myself as accountable for possibly boring you.

12. I'm a critic. About everything. But I realize that I should probably not be and, thus, try to censor myself in a conversation as much as possible.
 I'm happy to report that I'm at least a little better at this.  I'm usually happy to allow other people their opinions, and I feel much more at peace with the things I do or do not like in life.

13. Even though you'll constantly hear me talking about independence, and a girl can get along just fine without a guy, I'm secretly (well, not secret anymore) a ridiculous romantic at heart. I swoon with the best of the girly-girls. 
This. is still a thing and actually caused problems in my courtship with Ray.  I gave him the impression that I don't like/need romantic things, and so he trained himself to stop.  And now, all I ever want is for him to be sweet and romantic again.  We're working on it, and I'm happy to say he's getting himself back to his normal romantic self and I'm acting more appreciative (I think/hope?) when he does those things.

 Picture break!  New Years, 2009.  Look at me trying to rock Vans, like that was a things I should do...

14. I think it's silly to pay for Netflix when you can get almost identical service for free at your public library. 
I still stand by my point, mostly.  But a) I don't have as much time to watch movies and rarely use it, and b) I now pay for Hulu Plus, so... sorry past Ashley. 

15. I'm a movie fiend. And I love searching out new oldies I haven't seen yet. 
Yeeeeeah, I don't really do this anymore.  It's mostly a time thing.  And the fact that there are more fun things to do besides movies.  But I kind of want to start again!  Because I do love watching really great oldies.  Any recommendations?

16. I love my car for being the only thing that will listen to me sing for hours and hours. Oh, and my car's name is CinderStar, because I thought she needed a name that sounds like a Transformer. 
I don't get much time to drive by myself, aside from going from work to home each day.  And when I'm with Ray, we rarely bust out a song together.  This makes me sad.  I need to go on a long drive devoted to singing soon.

17. My best friend once told me that I make terrible first impressions because I tend to be incredibly sarcastic to people I just meet. Actually, I'm sarcastic to everyone I know, but people I just meet don't know that they should never take me seriously... 
I'm a lot less sarcastic than I used to be.  Apparently, people don't always like that?  Ha.  I think I started to realize that being nice, just in general, is important.

18. I have 50 first cousins... And I'm sad to admit that I'll occasionally forget a name. 
Seriously.  It's a problem.  And now that they all have 500 kids, it's just a lost cause.  But it does make me terribly sad that I rarely get to see them anymore.  We need more family reunions!

19. I sleep with a stuffed animal named Floopy every night. Don't make fun! 
This stopped happening maybe two years ago?  Though he still had a special spot on my bed up until I got married.  Now, he resides in a box.  And it makes me sad.  But I have a real life body next to me, and I don't want Ray jealous of Floopy.

20. It takes me a good couple of hours to decide if I want to buy a pair of jeans, and it took me all of 10 minutes to decide to buy my car. By the way, a car is not something you want to have buyer's remorse on. Trust me.
 A lot of these statements are not so much definitions of me, but common sense.  Like, duh.  Don't buy a car on a whim.  But, now that my car is paid off, I feel pretty great about it!

21. I recently discovered Buddy Holly's songs. He's great. Listen to Not Fade Away. It's awesome!
 I still agree that Not Fade Away is fantastic, but, of course, it's not longer a recent discovery.  In fact, it's been quite some time since I pulled out my oldies.  And now, I want a Buddy Holly vinyl.  Why didn't I think of this before?!

22. I tend to relate more to my niece and nephew than I do to others. It might be my love for Disney music, or for dancing around like crazy, or that I feel I never quite fully experienced my childhood.
 I still love my nieces and nephews, but I can say that I haven't watched the Disney channel for quite some time.  But.  I will ALWAYS be up for a Disney music dance/sing a long.  I think I've grown up a bit.  This is probably good.  And I've learned how to have childlike joy whilst doing age-appropriate things.

23. I'm annoyed when people don't know when a song is a cover or remake of something else. And even more annoyed when I myself don't realize it. 
Ha, Ray shares this quality with me!  Which I appreciate.  It's one of my favorite things to introduce my Little, Ariel, to the original songs when all she knows is the cover.

24. At least half of the words I speak tend to be movie quotes. And at least 80% of the time, only my sisters or Kristin would have the slightest clue what I'm referring to. 
I'm sure I was vastly overstating this.  Half?  Come on.  But there are still many movie quotes that I like to share with Kristin or my sisters.  It's a nice nostalgic bond.

25. My biggest pet peeve is when someone underestimates me or is condescending to me. But sometimes I'm afraid I do it to other people. Which would be awful of me.
Condescension still drives me crazy, and yeah, probably because it's very much a reflection of some of my worst qualities.  I'm getting better at recognizing and pulling back any time the thought occurs to me.  I think maybe it's also a reflection of my fears of not living up to my potential?  Who knows.  But, this definitely still bugs me.

 Back when I used to go to, and dress up for, midnight movie premieres.

My Favorite Room

We have officially moved the last cardboard box out of the new apartment as of last night!   We have been waiting on getting pantry shelving.  After waiting on an order from Walmart, and then changing our minds after the shipment was delayed, I finally made the drive to Ikea and got a simple wood shelving unit.  And with that, we kicked the last cardboard box outta there! (after emptying it of it's food contents, of course.)

 It probably comes as a surprise to no one that my absolute favorite room in my place is the kitchen.  That holds true for both the old apartment and the new apartment.  But I'm particularly excited about the new apartment and how everything is turning out there.  Not only did we buy our pantry shelving from Ikea, but we bought a beautiful set of hanging wall shelves, too, and I'm excited to grow some herbs in pots on its shelves.

And of course, my sister's EAT sign is rather great and particularly descriptive of our household.  Soon enough, something will be in those awesome potion bottles as well.  Maybe some edible rose buds?  Perhaps some lavender buds?

Our spice rack hung in our old apartment as well, and it's one of my favorite things.  I love having spices readily accessible for cooking, but having them on display makes me even happier.

We've still got more work to do, but I'm so happy with how it's turning out!  And that's all I'm showing you of our new place!  Partly because there's still work to do in the other rooms.  But partly because I want to be sure that you all come pay us a visit.  We love hosting!

Petless

aka. What to Do About This Growing Need to Nurture When I've Just Signed a Lease for an Apartment That Doesn't Allow Pets and I'm Not Prepared for Children Quite Yet

You're welcome that I used the title 'Petless' instead.  But there you have it.  That thirty word title offers you all the insight you need to know about my current dilemma.

Ray and I want a dog pretty badly.  There was a chance we could have a dog at our current apartment, and I was over the moon excited.  I poured over adoption sites to find a dog that would be perfect for us--medium sized, low-shedding, not a barker, okay to live in an apartment without a fenced yard.  I found one or two that were perfect.  We dreamt up names (Ray still stands by the name Uncas...)

And then we found out that it was a firm no; we definitely weren't going to be able to have a dog in our apartment.  Later, we made the decision that we needed to move (completely unrelated to our petless situation, though.)  And a glimmer was at the end of the tunnel.  We could get a pet after all!  We'd just find an apartment that allows dogs!

Apartment hunting was limited--we wanted to remain within our ward boundaries.  We found three good places, two of which had No Pet policies.  But the third had some cons, most especially that the rent was significantly higher.  While we debated over which place to get, I got the text that the third place, that beautiful pro-pet triplex, was rented out.

And so, we've just signed the one-year lease for a great apartment.  The kitchen is large, the wall colors are vibrant, the floor has just been re-done in beautiful faux-wood, the bedroom is large enough to fit our over-the-top-huge king size bed.  But... no dogs.  No dogs for another year.

This wouldn't be that big of a problem.  I've gone without a dog for the past 4 years of my life.  But ever since getting married, I've had this itch.  This itch to nurture.  To hold something in my arms, to offer my love to something less capable.  Obviously, this itch is child-bearing.  What's with that desire suddenly showing up so soon after marriage?  I have a theory that having sex ups your nurturing hormones.  Who knows?  But I do know that we're not prepared for children quite yet.  And thus, the desire for a pet is SO strong.  Something to hold and love, but not quite the financial, emotional, and time-dedication is required.

If you have any suggestions of something I can nurture in the mean-time, let me know.  Plants?  A beta fish?  A blog?  A sewing machine habit?  I don't know what, but I need something quick.  Maybe if it's a small pet, I can hide it from the landlord.

To Spend or Not

Things currently running through my mind on which I want to spend money, but can't decide whether it is responsible or justifiable to do so:

A 60-minute pedicure

Do's

a foot and leg massage

long-lasting polish

cute toes for Vegas swimming this weekend

Dont's

can be easily done at home

costs many dollas

takes up time I could spend making dinner for husband

or watching movies

Birchbox Subscription

 Do's

the recent email promises many Spring face and nail colors

I like new makeup

mail makes me happy

Dont's

previous beauty subscriptions delivered mostly lame face creams

it's a monthly subscription and cancelling is annoying

$10 for 5 samples is maybe not that cost effective

Mini's Cupcake/Great Harvest Cookie

Do's

yum

I want a snack

I want a desserty snack

I'm on a diet

Dont's

I'm on a diet (wah wah)

probably I'll make a banana pb smoothie for dinner

 Crazy Expensive and Beautiful Dolce and Gabbana Blouse

Do's

it's so pretty!

it has stripes!

it's red!

and flowy!

and I want it to be summer!

and if I don't buy all the things above, I'll have saved money!

Dont's

nothing! the $745 price tag means nothing to me!

The Leonardo

Megan and I went to the Leonardo on Friday.  I haven't been since seeing the Bodies exhibit there, but guys, it's actually a pretty cool place.

 Probably the (very strange and surreal) highlight of the trip was spending a few minutes to watch the artsie film Green Porno. Ha.  It's the weirdest thing I've seen in a long time.  Isabella Rossellini plays the part of different animals and insects to display how they mate.  It was educational, fascinating, horrifying at times, and all-together intriguing.  I actually recommend it.  But be prepared for it to be weird.  And slightly inappropriate.

But there's other things to see at The Leonardo, too!  We got to "digital paint" for a while, and I made Sylvester the Snake below.  It was fun in a way I haven't had in a while.  Like, kid fun.

And they also had a station where you could look into a mirrored glass that also reflected a paper below so that you could trace your own face.  Here's Megan taking a turn:

Sometimes I forget about the fun things in my own backyard here in Salt Lake.  It takes a friend to say, hey, I want to do something fun downtown! for me to realize that I have a lot of culture and opportunity surrounding me.  So, friends, never hesitate to suggest hanging out downtown.  I love the adventure of it!  And if you want to go to The Leonardo, let me know.  They're getting a huge Mummies exhibit in on February 16th, and I'm really excited to go!