All About the Envelopes

On January 1, 2009 I sat down in the study at my parent's house and started reading this book...

By the time the day was over I had finished it. I couldn't put it down. Everything in the book was exactly what I needed to be reading. Josh and I had only been married a few months but we had just bought a car, we had a little debt accumulated from before we were married, and I had current dental bills and future bills as well. I knew at that time we needed to take control of our money before things got worse for us than they already were. We were fortunate because what we had so far was manageable but if we didn't do something about it soon that would change. So we signed up for Financial Peace University at a local church and that was probably the best thing have done as a married couple to date. Josh and I faithfully attended the class and learned so much. We set up a budget (a lot easier than I thought) and we really started working on our debt. One of the things we wanted to incorporate into our spending was the use of envelopes. Luckily when you join Financial Peace University you get an envelope wallet as part of your package. So for almost two years I carried around these...

One was a wallet for my envelopes and the other was for my personal cash, debit cards, receipts, other random things, etc. These two things together weighed my purse down and were a pain to deal with at times. It just wasn't always easy to get all of my transactions done efficiently. I didn't want to spend just to spend (after all this whole thing is all about saving) so I waiting until my envelopes were a mess and it was time for new ones. I actually even used it past that point for a while. Since we're expecting a baby and I wanted to simply I figure now is as good of time as any. So I went to www.daveramsey.com the other day and found this...half off!

Here's my new wallet. It holds money, change, debit cards, AND ENVELOPES!!! I wasn't sure I was going to be able to combine everything in it but so far so good. It's just nice having everything all in once place.

The envelopes are crisp and clean and I can't wait to write in them. They just make budget and money saving so much easier and I highly recommend them.

In honor of all this Dave Ramsey talk I also wanted to share something exciting (and to have it written down for future reference). Today Josh and I are making our LAST car payment. Because of the good Lord and all we learned through Dave Ramsey we were able to pay it off in two years. Not only that but we have zero credit cards, no bank loans, no student loans, and no dental/medical bills. If it wasn't for the sacrifices we have made throughout these last two years things could be a lot different. We still have a small amount of debt that we want to work on (it's interest free and there's not time limit on it) so we're trying to get refocused and get serious again.

I encourage you all, if you haven't gotten yourself on a budget (married or single) you should do it. It will change your life. It's so nice to have control of your money instead of your money having control of you.

Having said all this I want to assure you that Josh and I are still into saving money and living as inexpensively as we can (no cable, limited eating out budget, apartment living, etc). We are about to have a baby, Josh is still in seminary, etc so this is not the time to spend the money we're saving. We're just thankful to be able to have more of the burden of debt lifted. And I pray we'll be such good stewards of what God gives us so that next time we need a car we won't have to get a loan. I've had several people ask about things Josh and I did to save money and get on a budget so if you have any questions feel free to e-mail me. We aren't perfect AT ALL and we don't have this whole thing down but we're working hard on it.

Delivery

Last week I got two really fun packages in the mail. The first one was an ornament. Not just any ornament but one for Sadie. Several years ago when I lived in Fayetteville I bought ornament letters to hang with mine and my roommate's stockings. I loved them. Then when Josh and I were getting serious and I knew we were going to get married I bought some for us too. You can go here to see how I have used them in our apartment. When I got my Christmas decor out this year and started hanging up the letters I realized I needed one for Sadie. I got online and looked but you could only buy them online if you bought ALL of the alphabet. So what does any normal person do? I sent out a tweet asking if anyone lived near a Restoration Hardware because I was looking for an ornament you could only buy online. With a few seconds sweet Robyn had responded and told me there was one very close to her house. And being the sweet friend she is she went there on a Sunday afternoon and found just the one I needed. And it was on sale. Woohoo! So now Sadie will have an "S" for next year. And by the way this is the ONLY thing I have bought my child. I can hardly believe it. :)


Another fun package came in the mail that also had to do with Sadie. My WONDERFUL Twitter/Blog/Facebook (and yes we've met in real life) friend Ashley (her blog is private so I won't link it) sent Sadie the cutest onesie. Ashley is one of my first-time-preggo-friends. We are always e-mailing each about the craziness that is pregnancy and I just love her. And I love this onesie and can't wait for Sadie to wear it. Ashley and her husband have decided (well she's dying to know) to wait and find out what their having until he/she is born. I can't wait until we know! The baby should be here in February so only about 10 more weeks to go! Yea!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Eggnog Cake

Last Friday while at my mom's I was able to experience another one of Paula Deen's recipes. My mom had just bought the Paula Deen's Christmas magazine (2010 Special Issue) and wanted to try the recipe for Eggnog Cake. It has a longer name in the magazine so I shortened it up. Mom and I both love eggnog. I used to not like it but now that I've gotten older I love it. This cake tasted so good to me. It was a lot like a spice cake with a touch of eggnog. I thought I'd share the recipe in case there are any other eggnog lovers out there (It's on page 98 of the magazine).

Eggnog Cake

1 (18.25 oz) box French vanilla cake mix

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 1/3 cups prepared eggnog

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs

Eggnog Frosting

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 (7 oz) jar marshmallow cream****My mom used cream cheese instead. YUM!

1/4 cup prepared eggnog

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3 cups confectioners' sugar

Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13x9 in baking pan with non stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add eggnog, oil, and eggs; beat at medium speed with a mixer until smooth. Spoon batter into prepared pan, and bake for 22 to 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. let cool completely on a wire rack.

Frosting: In a medium bowl, beat butter and marshmallow creme (or cream cheese) at medium speed with a mixer until creamy. Add eggnog and nutmeg beating until well combined. Gradually add confectioners' sugar, beating until smooth.

Spread frosting over cake. Sprinkle with cinnamon to garnish (which we forgot to do).

I think I'd love to try this cake recipe as cupcakes or a layered cake. It's so festive and yummy!

Weekend in Bullets

Well wouldn't ya know I didn't take a single picture with my camera this weekend. Sad, I know. But because I love bullets I thought I'd at least share about my weekend using those.

• Friday night while Josh went to the State Championship game between Fayetteville and Bentonville I hung out with my parents. My mom and I watched a movie, I think on CBS, called something like A Walk in My Shoes. That might not exactly be right but it was a sweet movie and it really makes you think about what other people are dealing with that we might have no idea about.
• Saturday morning I SET OUR ALARM because we had several things we needed to get done early. I don't think Josh likes Saturday mornings because I always get up early.
• First on the agenda was an oil change for our car and then like always we went to breakfast. This is a good time to tell you that my aversion to Chick-fil-A might be getting better. I'm now been able to eat there for breakfast. I'm not ready to try lunch or dinner yet. Baby steps.
• After breakfast we went to a local furniture store to look at rocker/recliners for the nursery. We really do not need to be buying one of these ($$$$) and if we had another option I wouldn't. The thing is we live in an apartment and that's probably where we'll be when Sadie gets here (a bigger apartment though). Because of that our living room furniture is lacking and we only have a couch, which happens to be really uncomfortable. I just don't think I'm going to want to feed Sadie on it because its so awkward. And for that reason we're looking at a chair. I told my parents maybe Josh, Sadie, and I can get one for our 2011 birthdays. :)
• Next stop was a fabric store. I wanted to check on some fabric that I think I'm going to make Sadie's bedding out of. Lucky for me I found the same fabric online and it's $4 a yard cheaper. The person online is sending me swatches so I should have a better idea if this is really the fabric this week. Once I decide I will share it. I shared it on Twitter but I don't want to jump the gun on the blog. I'm a little indecisive these days. :)
• Right next to the fabric store is a place that carries the travel system I picked out. I wanted to Josh to see it and I wanted to talk with someone about it. After looking at it and talking with them I feel really good about my choice. I will share this with you all soon too.
• The big event for Saturday came next. Josh and I hurried back to my parents house where we met Todd and Ben so Todd could take mine and Josh's Christmas card photo. I was really worried about it. Luckily Todd got several good ones with little effort. Thank you, Lord!
• After photos we all went to lunch at Larry's Pizza. Yummy!!
• Josh was thrilled when after lunch I told him I wanted to look at one other furniture store and go to Babies r us. :) He really was a trooper about it all. I just needed to get an idea of what we were going to register for before we actually register. It was a successful trip.
• Our errands ended soon enough and we headed home just in time for the SEC Championship. I wanted Auburn to win in a big way. This is not because I like them necessarily but because if they won the hogs would most likely go to the Sugar Bowl. And I'm so happy to say that we ARE BCS BOUND!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is huge for a hog fan. I mean huge! I'm so happy!
• The rest of Saturday was laid back which was wonderful.
• Sunday was church, then decorating the Christmas tree, a trip to walmart, then church again.
• Overall we had a wonderful weekend!! They are going to get really busy from here on out for a while so it was nice to get some much needed things accomplished.

Try It, You Might Like It

Milk flavored ice cream (very creamy) with chocolate chip cookies, swirls of cookie dough, and chocolate chips. Mercy.

Christmas Ornament

First of all, I am soooo thankful for all the advise in regards to my previous post. You do not know what a big help it has been. I feel so much less stressed and like I have some idea of what I need to register for and what I don't really need. Thanks again. Be prepared for me to ask more things like that in the near future. :)

This year I really wanted to get a Christmas ornament to remind me of the year I was pregnant with Sadie. Since it's not really her "first Christmas" I didn't want one of those ornaments. I began looking online and on etsy (there are some really disturbing looking ones on there) and just couldn't find what I wanted. I mentioned it on Twitter and my friend Niki responded with some ideas of what I could do. Little did I know that she MADE ornaments. So after some conversations about what I was looking for she whipped out this one.

I love it. It's sweet and simple and it just reminds me about being pregnant. Plus is the first thing I've bought with her name on it which makes me love it even more. I decided that as a "thank you" to my friends Jenny and Todd I would get her an ornament too.

When Luke and Sadie get married we MIGHT let them put these ornaments on their tree. Then again, maybe not!

If anyone is interested you can visit Niki's Etsy site here. I don't think the ornaments are on there but you can convo her about them. And because Niki is so sweet when I met her to get my ornaments she threw in a little something extra.

How cute is this onesie and headband??!?! I love it! I love getting things with her name on it (other than my ornament this is my first). And I especially love it when I'm not the one having to do the embroidering. :) And the headband! HOW SWEET!!! Thank you, Niki!!! I can't wait to put her in this.