I let both Kendall and Zach take pictures at the swim meet yesterday. They both got several good shots.
Kendall loves the Back Stroke
Matt hard at work as the stroke judge
1. Last Thursday night my mother fell and broke her hip on her amputee leg. I have spent the majority of the past week either at the hospital or talking with some who is at the hospital. Fortunately, she was able to return home last night. I know that the next 3 months are going to be super busy but I am so thankful she is home and not in pain.
2. We did pick up the 120# of chicken on Tuesday. I am planning a post with all the details for this weekend.
3. Lily leaves from her first overnight camp on Monday. She will not return until next Saturday.
4. Zach has been undergoing some dental work the past couple of weeks. The process is both expensive and emotionally draining.
5. Lily was accepted into a charter school and will begin in the fall.
June 9th- 5th grade graduation was the most important thing on the schedule, however this did not occur until 1pm so there were a few more things to accomplish today. Today is the last full day of school and my last day off while school is in session. We have big plans for the summer including using our season passes for the water park and enjoying the pool as much as possible. I am also really trying to get a good handle on our finances and eliminate/reduce significantly our spending. Finally, we are schedule to pick up 120# of chicken breast next Tuesday, an hour prior to the beginning of our first swim meet.
Given that information, my plan for today was to prepping as much stuff for the summer and next week as possible. We made a trip to both Food Lion and Aldi this morning to gather needed ingredients for our chicken. I am planning a separate post with the specific details of what we are doing differently this time when we pick up the chicken. I did cook 36 cups of rice. I separated most of this into 3 cup portions to use with the chicken next week. I also made a double batch of taco rice, of which one meal is for the beach, which went in the freezer but the rest is fast easy meals. I made a huge batch of egg salad and started 6 mini loaves of bread for some real good sandwiches. Our garden is starting to produce so I was able to cook up 3 containers of carrot, squash and onions to use in casseroles this winter. In addition I was able to freeze another bag of dill and basil.
I am pleased with the progress today and hope next week will not be as hetic and busy as I am afraid!
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This morning we are trying to make good use of this beautiful day. I am washing all the sheets and comforters. This is a total of 6 loads that are drying on the line. That is a minimum of 8 hours in the dryer. So not only do the sheet smell amazing we are saving 8 or more hours of electricity.
Matt is working on installing a solar power fan in the building to reduce the temperature, protect the freezer and prevent us from using the window unit unless absolutely necessary.
While the sheets and comforters are drying, I am working on preparing several meals ahead of time to help make the next month a little bit less crazy. Currently on the menu is shepherd pie for lunch tomorrow, a cheeseburger pie to be frozen and potato salad to use as a side for pork chops this week.
We will spend the rest of the day hanging at the pool. No extra money spent today!
Our first official harvest from this morning. We have been collecting and freezing basil for the past few weeks and have used a couple of squash, but this is the beginning of what I hope to be a very productive season for us.
May did not bring the expected income boast that we were counting on but it did teach us a valuable lesson to not count on things but on God. We are continuing to move along and have now put in place some money saving belt tightening measure that hopefully will keep us on steady ground for the summer. The lost of our stand up freezer which contained most of our vegetables will have a financial impact during the next several months as well.
Personal-
1. Blogging– Post 20 per month. Fail. This is post number 17, life is crazy and I need to make a plan.
2.Weight Loss– 175#. Struggling with time for this still. I am starting to get some regular exercise and decided to try a supplement as well. But the scale still is not moving in the direction I want as quickly as I want.
3. Spiritual– Spend at least 5 days a week, reading and studying The Bible. Goal Met. Working on improving this. I realize that once the summer starts I have to make time to do this no matter what!
Personal goals are a failure this month. Not much more to say in regards to that.
Financial-
1. Set aside money each month in every budget category. Fail
2. Establish and maintain Emergency Fund- Fail.
3. Groceries: Goal is for $700. Fail – Total spending for the month is $879.00. Which is a decrease from last month. I did purchase 120# of chicken this month so hopefully we will be heading to much lower grocery bills for both June and July.
4. Gas: Spend $400 a month- Goal Met! Still have $19 to spare.
5. Pay off all Credit Card debit by December 2016- Fail. I am meeting bare minimal payments on everything but really was hoping to begin to get control and reduce this number.
As you can tell we are struggling. I am not sure what the summer holds but I have placed a plan to reduce spending in all categories but at the same time. We are not in a financial crises and we are still enjoying many things in life. I am going to end with the statement that God is in control and his plans are always much better than my plans so I am trusting regardless of what the numbers say.