Playing Around With My New Toy

I got me a new toy today and I've been playing around with it.

Hubs had given me a gift card for Christmas to Best Buy.
I don't "do" random electronic toys....that includes fancy phones, computer games, iAnythings, etc.

But I did tell him I wanted to upgrade my digital camera since it's so old you can't even get one now with so few pixels or whatever.lol

Hence the gift card gift for the Holidays.

But since my camera still works fine....for the most part.....I decided to spend the gc on a portable wand scanner instead, as I NEED that more.

I've been wanting to digitize all my old family photos.  We have a flatbed scanner here but 95% of the old photos my mother had glued into scrapbooks.  And after trying to wrestle scrapbook pages for a couple of days onto the bed of the scanner I realized that A-it makes a crappy copy of a photo and B-it takes WAY too much time and effort to do this job with the wrong tools.

So I spent my Christmas money on a wand scanner and a sd card for it.  It only cost me $43 after the gift card.  Not a bad deal!
Plus, if I ever get the yen to go to the airport and impersonate a security employee I am all set. lol

So while I play with my new toy, here are some photos to keep you busy.
This is my mother's school photo from 1941. She is 7 years old.
MARK please notice that nowhere does it say "Lifetouch"......

Here is my mother on her 26th birthday.  Love the lamp in the background, the linoleum floor and the kitchen dining set.....

Here is a photo of my mother and her parents.  I am unsure of the year but I am guessing it's from
1944 or 1945.....

Now I'm off to find some color photos.......

Sluggy

Synchronicity Continues To Make Itself Known In My Life

As I continue to dig around into the roots of my family tree, I turn up some really fascinating stuff.
Ok, it's fascinating to ME at least.  The Hubs continues to roll his eyes and walk away whenever I start talking to him about it all.  He just doesn't 'get it'.
No interest in personal history. at. all.

But he could sit and watch the "World War II Channel" (aka the History Channel) for days without blinking.
Ok, I lied.....he'd switch channels between the History Channel, various Sports Channels and various Political Channels for days.  He has what I call "Male ADHD".

Anyway, back to my original train of thought.....researching family history.
Sometimes the digging leads you places you never imagined you would go.  Here's a for instances case of this.....

My Grandmother(father's mother) married a second time before I was born.  I knew this man as my paternal Grandfather when I was growing up, until he died when I was 7.  We had a special bond, he and I.  I'll explore this in a post for another time.

Even though I learned eventually that he was not blood related, when it came time for me to set up my family tree on Ancestry, I didn't think twice about including him on one of the branches of our family history.
Here's one of the few photos I have of him.  He's the one holding the baby(me)....

His name was David Noll Paul.
But he went by the name Dave.
Or as I called him "Potty Dave".  There's a story there too. ;-)

As I plugged in the information I had, I turned up quite a large family tree and relations who had already dug far back into their line.  I followed back the documentation into the early 1800's and found that in the recent past, his family came from a coastal area of NC in Beaufort County, going back a few generations.
The hairs raised on my arms as Hubs and I have taken 3 trips now down to various destinations in Beaufort County NC and it's our favorite area down there to visit.

Dave as he called himself was a man of the sea, who spent his life working on tug boats.
I found that when not farming, some of the men in his line had also made a living at sea and that this family lived in that area of NC over 3 generations.

When the documentations ran out, I then followed the family information back even further, since it had been put online by someone already who had done that research.  These clues led me to information online(documents held by Colby College as well as family history info) that stretched back to the first of his family to have come to the New World and it made me stop and catch my breath.  It's an exciting story.

The 1st settler hadn't come to North Carolina or even anywhere near there.  He had sailed............to Maine!

Dave Paul's ancestor had been a 13 year old cabin boy named Robert Paul.
Not this kind of cabin boy.....

But this kind.....

 He was part of the crew on the ship "the Martha & Eliza" that had sailed from Northern Ireland bound for Newcastle, Pennsylvania.  The year was 1741.  The ship was loaded with a group of Scot-Irish Protestants(the proper term being Ulster Scots)escaping religious tyranny and famine in Ireland.  the Ulster Scots were not Irish, but Protestants from northern England and Scotland who had been forced to emigrate by James I in the 1600's, to "civilize" aka "make less Catholic", the population of Ireland.  This was part of James I's Great Scheme to colonize Ireland.

This group of passengers bound for the New World, were part of a plan called the "Grand Design", which would have set up a community among the religiously tolerant Quakers in PA.  This ship of passengers was joining a group of relatives & members already in PA.

The ship was a 90 footed 2 masted bark, often referred to as a "snow".  It probably looked very much like this one.....

Unfortunately for these folks, the ship sailed into a hurricane early on in the voyage and was dismasted.  Without it's sails, the ship drifted way off course and eventually floundered off of Grand Manan Island(which is now in Canada, but was part of Maine back then).

Not this shipwreck.....

But more like this one.....

The captain of the ship, Capt. Rowan, left the passengers on islands there, then took some of his crew in a long boat to the mainland at Pemaquid and left the survivors on the islands to fend for themselves without provisions or shelter.  Eventually sympathetic townspeople made trips out to the islands to rescue the passengers but only a  handful of the 200 who sailed from Ireland made it to safety on the mainland.  Most of these were women and children.  Only 14 of the passengers are named in documents from the era and one of them is Dave's ancestor, Robert Paul.
And then to just add confirmation to all this, I found a news article from 2006, about a Maine woman who was creating a musical show about the shipwreck and had taken up doing the research into this event as well.
If you are interested, you can read about that HERE.


Robert Paul eventually settled in Bristol, ME and married one of the other survivors from the shipwreck, Jane Patterson, who had been a babe in arms on that fateful voyage.  They went on to have ten children.  Robert Paul didn't return to the sea after the shipwreck.  He went on to help survey the lands of midcoast Maine.

Then between 1840 and 1859, Robert's grandson, James, migrated to coastal NC, where HIS great grandson David Paul was born in 1902.
And like Dave Paul's 3 x great grandfather had started out, he turned to the sea to make his living.

The freaky part is that, as a child, I had a psychic connection to Dave Paul, my grandfather, I also have a similar connection with mid-coast Maine that goes to my core.

I went to Maine for the first time in 1980 to work summer stock theater during college.  That is when I met my friend Brenda, who was also working at the theater.  She is a native Mainer through and through.  I got acquainted with the state because of her over the next couple of summers.  And I have felt drawn back to this region of Maine over the years and visit as often as I get the chance.  I have held a not-so secret wish to have a summer cabin in Maine when I retire since 1981.

Now don't try to tell me that my connection with my 'fake' Grandfather and Maine and the Beaufort area of NC were not in my DNA and part of my destiny!
Because if you do, I'll put my fingers in my ears and loudly sing this song.....



Sluggy

I Saved $ Last Month By Spending $

Once you get out of debt, pay off your mortgage and have a pile of emergency fund cash laying around getting fat(well, as fat as it can get on the pitiful interest rates nowadays), you can 'save' even more money by paying ahead.

This is one of my frugal "secrets".
Any time some business offers a discount for paying your bill in advance or in full, rather than making payments, or if they offer a discount if you pay in cash rather than put it on a credit card, I will take them up on these offers.

When my 2 kids who needed orthodontia work began to see the orthodontist, I paid for the yearsss long treatment in full, in advance.  I saved 5% on the total cost of the treatments by writing a check for the cost when the treatment began.

There are certain bills we have come due each year.....local taxes, school taxes, sewage bill.  I pay each of these in full for the year when due and/or during the 'discount period' they offer.  This period is when you pay before it's due and you get a discount of between 5% and 3%.
I figure on the amount of money involved saving that 3% or 5% is better than hanging onto the money that would otherwise sit and earn a paltry .06% over the course of a year in a financial instrument.

By paying the sewage and the local taxes last month in full, ahead of their due dates, I saved $500 of my cash in 2012. Yes, I spent more in March than I wanted to and things were tighter but by writing those checks ahead, I saved $500 for the year.
That's $500 more that I get to keep or spend on "wants" or use to pay something else in advance for a discount this year.

Cool, right? ;-)

Sluggy

What $511 Will Buy You If I'm Paying

I know everyone has been waiting for this, so I won't keep y'all in suspense any longer.

Here is the list of the food I bought in March.

milk 1/2 gallon  1
milk gallon   3
sour cream  1
butter 1lb.   2
greek yogurt   9
cheese block/bag   9
ice cream   8

eggs dozen   1
whipped cream   4
juice   3
salad bags   16
head lettuce   2
mushrooms   7
onion, bag of   1

tomato  1

strawberries 2lb container   2

grapes lb.  1
apples   2
mandarin oranges   1
red bell peppers   2
oranges, bag of   1
celery bunch   1
cabbage lbs.  6.5
ground beef lbs. 12.22
corned beef briskets   6
roasting chicken  1
scrapple   2
veal patties pkg.   2
fish lb.  6
stuffed clams   2

deviled crab   3

frozen angus burgers 2lb box   6

lunchmeat lb.  2

deli cheese lb.   1

pepperoni bags   6

bacon lb.   3

frozen veggies bags   18

on-cor dinner   2

sausage patties   2

biscuit sandwiches   2

bagel bites   8

onion ring bags   2

sweet potato fries bags   2

ravioli bags   3

hummus   2

peanut butter   3

mayo   5

rolled pie crust   2

boxed mac/cheese   4

pasta sauce   32

pasta boxes   4

chili cans   9

pancake syrup   7

baked beans   6

cereal   3

hamburger rolls   2

hot dog rolls   2

pound cake   1

bagel, bags of   3

corn toasties   1

loaves of bread    4

onion rolls   2

muffins, boxes of   3

pies   2

ice cream cake   1

2 liter soda   2

12-pack soda   2

Assorted chips   8

cookies, packages   5

candy bars   4

candy bags  2

cadbury eggs   4

fudge boxes of   2

oreo single packs   2

choc. covered cherry   1

toilet paper 8 pack   1

body wash   3

deodorant   4

analgesic spray   1

shampoo  2

conditioner   2

dog food cans  12

That's 326 items for $511+.  Some small items(individual chocolate covered cherry), some large and/or expensive(fresh fish and ice cream cake).

Now go find someone else who can bore you like this as well as I can!

Sluggy

April Food Spending Week 1, Meal Plan April Week 2

I know I never got around to doing a menu last week.

Shame. on. me.

But here is what actually happened....

SUNDAY--Hamburgers, Corn, Beans

MONDAY--?
TUESDAY--?
WEDNESDAY--Hot Dogs, Beans, Coleslaw
THURSDAY--Hubs Birthday Dinner out
FRIDAY--Veal Parmesan, leftover Rigatoni
SATURDAY--Pizza(take-out)

Yes, I am pathetic that this is all I can remember.lol  I really didn't make a plan last week.  We ate from the stockpile, freezer(and used up some leftovers too)since I didn't go to the grocery store until Saturday afternoon.  The burgers were those Angus burger patties I got the deal on a couple of weeks ago.  I just have to say that they were really Good!  I usually don't care much for those boxed, frozen pre-made burgers but these were actually tasty.  And they were HUGE too!  Next time I'll have to buy bigger buns for them.

The weekly food spending was $76.79 this past week. 

I am scared that spending this much is getting to be a habit with me!

 

One trip on Saturday to Weis(PMITA)Markets.

I got a ham(free when you spent $50, and did I!!), asparagus and leeks specifically for Easter dinner.

I also had coupons that made a qt. of ice cream(or whatever size they are calling it this month),  a can of pineapple and a dozen eggs for free.   The eggs got used up for Sunday's meal.

Things I bought for later use that were on sale.....4 cream cheese blocks, 2 jars of apricot perserves, 2 lbs. of kielbasa(bogo sale), 2 boxes of jumbo pasta shells, 2 large containers of ricotta cheese, 1lb. of flounder, a cantaloupe, 2 boxes of 50% off muffins, a small porketta roast(discounted) and a small package of Lebanon bologna(discounted-for lunches).

My savings rate was only 47% overall.

 

I bought an on sale package of napkins as my stockpile just ran out. 8-(

The porketta is for a new recipe I want to try later this week.  The pasta shells will be cooked up and stuffed with the ricotta(and mozzarella)and frozen for later use.  I have some leeks I didn't use in my side dish on Sunday and some leftover asparagus that I served, so I'll be making leek and asparagus soup this week to use up those items.  the soup recipe calls for potatoes as well, which I don't have, so I'll use form dehydrated flakes which will work just as well.

The month is nearly 1/3 over and I have $223.21 left of my $300 monthly food budget.  As I've spent "about" 1/3 of my food monies, I am on target for the month.

************************

I'm going into this week with a 1/2 head of cabbage, and after Sunday's dinner....2 leeks, lots of rolls, some leeks in cream sauce

This week's menu.....

SUNDAY--Ham, Asparagus, Leeks in Cream Sauce, Great Aunt Lula's Rolls, Deviled Eggs
MONDAY--Leftovers

TUESDAY--Ham, Mac & Cheese, Cabbage, Leeks in cream sauce
WEDNESDAY--Sausage Sandwiches, Onions, Corn
THURSDAY--Leek Soup and Ham Sandwiches
FRIDAY--Chinese Take-out
SATURDAY--Roast Pork with Dried Fruit, Rolls, Brussell Sprouts

This menu gives us 5 new meals, 1 night of leftovers and 1 take-out meal. 

 Items needed to buy for this menu are....maybe some bread and/or rolls.  I've got everything here already in the fridge, freezer or the pantry.
We'll be buying milk as usual and I want to pick up more eggs as I deviled them all for Sunday's dinner.

The only stock-up opportunities are for orange juice and those bagged salad kits are on sale again at the local independent ShurSave market.  Nothing at Weis is tempting me this week.

So what is everyone else eating this week?

And more importantly, who has some good LEFTOVER HAM recipes?!?!

We gave the BIL a big stack of sliced ham  but there is still tons left.....eek!

Sluggy

Ease Back Into Your Week

I don't know about anybody else but my sinuses feel like a giant cement mixer that's filled with cement and somebody has switched the tumbling/mixing mechanism ON and everything is flipping around inside.
If that's not descriptive enough for you, let me just say that it is NOT a pleasant sensation. 8-(

I slept in til noon.....don't judge!.....so I am trying to ease into my day and the week now.  Nothing loud or rapid yet until I get myself acclimated, ok?

I've got some errands to run but hope to get back to my Meal Plan Monday posts later today.
Until then, enjoy the mournful calm of this clip.  It's one of my favorites.....



Sluggy

$20K Savings Challenge.....MARCH Results for 2012

Ok, here is my March Savings Challenge Update post for 2012.
This post is NOT about bragging or showing off.  It's just what we are able to save given our income and being able to hang tough against "unconscious" spending.

Just to update, My Savings Goal for the Year in 2012 is $20,000.  It's well below what I've saved in previous years I know.  But we also have a goal of paying for 4 home improvement projects at Chez Sluggy this year.  We plan on cash-flowing these projects with the additional money we save.

On to the March report.....

I have posted my MARCH End of Month $20K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the side bar to your right for the specific numbers.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $1,666.67.

I have to report that we finished up March in the black!
The extra cash amount we ended the month of March with?.......$1022.68!

Income
We had $1005.24 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.
Add in $16.99 in Rebates applied against the food expenses & .45¢ in interest and  you get a total of $1,022.68.

Outgo
Traditionally March has been a tight month as far as the money goes.  2 paychecks have to cover the usual monthly bills like utilities, food, etc.  But we also have the yearly local taxes due starting in March and I pay the Sewage bill for the year in March as well as make a quarterly payment to the garbage service.  If you figure that I use to pay around $1K to the mortgage payment(when we use to have one), if this was before having paid off that debt, we would have been breaking even when all the chips fell at the end of March.  Not having that debt and not inflating our lifestyle since paying off the mortgage means we get to stash away that wad of money instead!!

As for the expenses this March......

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  The mild winter temps continued, which kept our heating/electric bill lower than usual.  I like that...

*  The credit card bill(which is paid in full each billing cycle)was under $700 this month. 

*  #2 Son did not get his driving permit in March so we delayed the increase in our car insurance rates a bit.  I'll take anything I can get.lol

HERE are the BAD THINGS

* Quarterly and yearly bills and taxes were paid in March.  While it's definitely on the "Bad" side of things, having the money and knowing it's coming up and being prepared for it, takes some of the "Bad" out of it.  Having to shell it out still stings though.

*  Hubs car had a $400+ repair this month when it went into to the shop for inspection.  This seems to always happen now, since our cars are getting up there in age, so I mentally prepare myself for the potential of receiving a repair bill anytime we take a vehicle in for inspection.  Just a sad, sad fact of motorized toys.

*  Hubs paid for dog licenses this month.  Though he didn't warn me he was spending the money this month, it wasn't so much of an expense that we couldn't handle it.  But it would be nice to know beforehand....

*  The cash withdrawals were very Very high this month!  Part of that was due to my $500+ withdrawal for food.  Hubs also stopped giving me his receipts again, so I have no clue what all he spent it all on besides buying coffee and lunch at work and paying for #2 Son's music lessons.  sigh.

The Food Budget costs for March are in another post, which is located HERE.  I overspent my budgeted amount, including the excess from Jan. and Feb. that I hadn't used those months.  I feel bad that I topped out at $511 on food for the month, but I did get some great deals which should keep our April food spending lower.

YEAR-TO-DATE GRAND TOTAL.....
With 2 month behind us, our Savings Grand Total for 2012 is $4,016.59.

We didn't hit our monthly goal in March so now we are $983.41 behind for the year.

With 3 months done, we should be at $5,000 saved for the year.

So how much did YOU save in March?  Did you spent all your income or did you put something aside?

Do you have an emergency fund of 6-8 months worth of expenses?
Do you have debt?

Start living below your means NOW and put some money away for emergencies and/or start paying down your debt.
And once you get debt-free, continue to throw that debt repayment money into savings.  You won't believe how fast you can accumulate wealth once you have no debt!

It is NEVER too early or too late to SAVE SOMETHING.
And the amount you save is NEVER too small!
Anything you can spare will go a long way to make you more financially secure in this crazy unstable world we live in.

So come along and Challenge Yourself to Save Money each Month Toward a Realistic for YOU Savings Goal or Debt Goal!

Not everyone can shoot for $20K, I fully get that!
But everyone can shoot for some number, right!?

Find a money goal that works for you and put that number out there for everyone to see.  Put it into paying down your debt, put it into savings, invest it or put it toward the principle in your home mortgage....just get busy and do this!

It will help keep you accountable to your goal if other eyes are on you.
Put it out there online and let us all stalk your money too. ;-)

So how was your March financially?
Did you spend less than you made?
Did you stay within your budget or not?

Leave a comment and share with us what you did with your money, both the good and not-so good.   Do you have any tricks or tips that help you to end your month before the money runs out?    Let us know!
If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check you out too!

Sluggy