New Year's Update

We are 3 weeks into the New Year. . . yay?  Just kidding.  2015 is going just great so far.  First a quick update on Christmas with 18 people, 4 dogs, 2 cats, and a bird.  It was SO great to see my family, especially my brother’s kiddos.  I haven’t seen them in forever, and had never even met my nephew.  I loved spending time with them.  They have each developed such a unique personality since the last time I got to see them.  The oldest is quiet and content just playing games on a tablet or phone.  I may have downloaded some Frozen themed games for her amusement.  And I might still play some of those games even now. . . just sayin.  The middle child is a little spit fire.  She LOVES to play.  On more than one occasion (about 4038298347 times over the course of 4 days) the words “Aunt Tara PLAY with me!” were spoken.  I got to spin around in circles really fast, give piggy back rides, crawl around on all 4’s like a horse, and all sorts of other activities that amuse young kids.  I definitely got a good workout in!  I absolutely adored every second of it, even if I was plenty exhausted by the end of the week.  She also put John in “jail”.  It was hilarious.  Apparently John was breaking the rules because he was watching David, my younger brother, play on his tablet.  John is only allowed to eat, sleep, and relax.  I guess I make John work too hard and he needed some relaxing time.  And there’s no better place to relax than jail.  It makes sense to me.  Anyways I loved seeing the little ones and can’t wait to see them again!  Another fun side note about the trip to my mom’s.  John and I won the Trivial Pursuit game!  My family plays Trivial Pursuit whenever we gather.  I don’t know why, but hey, it’s a tradition so why stop.  As the family gets bigger we have to play in teams, so naturally the couples all team up.  John and I have come close to winning previous games, but were denied the win because we didn’t know the EXACT word (we still count it as a win).  But this last game we proved victorious!  John’s knowledge of the Yankees and my knowledge of Jay-Z and Beyonce led us to a win.  We were pretty stoked about that.  It’s the little things in life people!

While the 4 days in Colorado were fun, John and I definitely are accustomed to the peace and quiet of our home. It’s always nice to get back to the day-to-day.  I got to take the week following Christmas off of work.  I tried to take advantage of this time off by cleaning, but really I didn’t accomplish a ton. I just cannot seem to keep my house organized!  I was able to get some stuff tidied up, but you better believe the house is pretty much a disaster again.  I really try but when I get home from a long day at work the last thing I want to do is clean up.  It’s bad people. . . REALLY bad. 

My New Year’s Resolutions are going. . . ok.  I haven’t been the best at going to the gym, but just when we got settled back into the daily routine my dad and step mom came for a visit.  So there’s that.  I’m hoping to really get into the swing of things now that things have settled down again.  I have been really good about cooking. For anyone that had the same struggles I did with not wanting to cook or knowing what to cook MAKE A MENU!!!!  It really has kept me in line and avoided trips to fast food restaurants.  Every Saturday I sit down and figure out what we are going to eat for the week.  On Sundays we go to the grocery store and pick everything up.  It has helped SO much!  I write out the full meal in a notebook and write a summary such as “Balsamic Chicken” or “Beef Tenderloin” on a white board.  This helps me know what I need to pull out to thaw.  Then I get home for work and dinner is all ready for me to cook.  It really has helped a TON. 

I have also successfully stopped drinking the Dr. Pepper.  I don’t even crave it any more.  I am really proud of this accomplishment.  I was drinking 2-3 sodas a day before the start of the New Year.  Now I drink a very little amount of coffee in the morning and pretty much stick to water the rest of the day.  I sometimes drink a glass of lemonade at lunch or a glass of wine with dinner. But for the most part my beverage of choice is water.  I thought it would be a lot harder for me to quit drinking soda, but really it hasn’t been that bad.  I’m hoping I don’t slip back into the habit, but I feel confident I can keep away except for special occasions. 

Couponing and money saving are going decently. I’ve been trying to be pretty selective about what deals I purchase and what deals I pass on as far as couponing goes. So far I think I’ve done well.  I’ll have to take pictures of deals I scored and what not in future posts.  For those that still don’t think it’s worth it to coupon, trust me it is!  You won’t see immediate savings right away, but they do add up!  Especially in a world with a plethora of rebate apps available that pay you just to buy a product you already had on your shopping list.  Why not take advantage of that?  It’s a great time to coupon!!! 

That about sums up the first few weeks of the New Year.  I desperately need to upload pics of our adventures soon.  Beware, a photo dump is coming! 

Until next time,

Tara