30 Apr

Category

Total Money Makeover

Our Total Money Makeover

10

Like most Americans, Josh and I have quite a bit of debt to our names. Most of it comes in the form of student loans (both federal and private-damn you, Sallie Mae!) and a mortgage, but we also have a bit of credit card debt. We have very, very, very little in saving, and have not started saving for retirement yet. I don’t think our situation is unique, but that’s little consolation.

For the past two or three years, we have *sort of* implemented (some of) Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover plan. We’ve made a bit of headway, only to make more mistakes. This time, after sitting down with our budget, we’ve decided that we’re going to dive in; not half-assed like in the past, but, uhm, full-assed, if you will.

I borrowed The Total Money Makeover from the library earlier this week, and I’m blowing through it. Josh is going to start reading it soon as well. I’m really glad we’re on the same financial page, and I’m looking forward to having “financial peace” one day… hopefully in the not too distant future.

I’m having some internal conflict regarding staying at home. It is NOT something I want to give up, and beyond that, I don’t think I have the earning potential to offset childcare costs. Additionally, I don’t want to miss out on this time with Jude. I don’t think it’s something I’m willing to sacrifice. It sounds silly to say it this way, but professionally, I finally feel fulfilled. I dig this mothering thing. I even dig “keeping house” and cooking. I don’t contribute (much) financially to our family, but I honestly feel that what I do contribute is priceless (though I could come up with a figure if someone would like to offer to finance my work!). Working opposite Josh is a nice idea, but with the very inconsistent schedule of a church worker, it makes that prospect nearly impossible. For now I’m going to focus on cutting our food costs where I can, finding items to sell, and keeping a really close eye on our day-to-day purchases. I’m also going to add a level of accountability to our spending/saving/debt payoff by writing about our journey to financial peace here. Hopefully my web guy (read: Josh) will add a “Total Money Makeover” category to my right-hand side bar for me tonight. Keep an eye out for that, and please, feel free to leave your words of encouragement in the comments section of my TMM posts!

And I’m wondering…have any of you ever found yourselves in our position? Have you tried/been successful with Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover? Have any tips to share?

29 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

Play-Doh

0

Is it odd that I *just* gave Jude some Play-Doh to play with for the first time a few days ago? I don’t know what I was waiting for… Was I worried about the mess? Was I worried about the amount of ‘Doh he might ingest? Yes. Both.

I was silly to worry.

Jude has been having a fantastic time, standing on his Learning Tower and playing with his Play-Doh on the kitchen counter. He has been wonderful about keeping the Doh on the counter and not tracking it all around the house, and although I have to remind him occasionally, he hasn’t yet eaten any of it.

His favorite thing to do is to pull the big ball of Doh into pieces and then use a plastic scoop to transport the pieces to a cup. Jude also *really* likes it when I shape the Doh into a bunch of little balls. He likes to stack them and pull them apart. Right now, we’re only playing with one color at a time (we alternate through all four colors daily), but I imagine we’ll start combining colors soon.

The weather has been pretty crappy here in Chicago. Although it was in the 80s this past Friday, since then we’ve been hovering in the 50s. Plus, it has been rainy. Boo. All that’s to say that Jude and I have been having lots of in-door fun lately. Play-Doh, forts, listening to the Alkaline Trio and dancing… You name it, we’ve done it!

Here’s to (hopefully) nicer weather on the horizon!

28 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

Josh

In My Mom’s White Mustang

1

Seven years ago today, a Greyhound bus pulled into the bus station in Harrisburg, PA. An incredibly sexy man exited the bus, rushed towards me, and kissed me like he never had before.

Seven years ago today, I met the man who would, in two short years, become my husband; the man who would redefine ‘love’ for me; the man who would be the father of my child. I fell head over heels in love that afternoon…and I haven’t stopped spinning yet.

Seven years ago, I helped my lover load his bag into the back of my mom’s white Mustang. We drove off, holding hands, and started our life together.

Thank you for the best seven years of my life to date, Josh. I love you. *=

27 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

What's for Dinner?

Menu for April 27-May 02, 2009

3

Like the Weekly Menus?
You can subscribe to them by RSS or by e-mail!

This week I’m preparing for the vegetarian food swap I organized. There are five families participating, so I’m really hoping to not have to cook much at all next week. This week, however, I’m a slave to my kitchen. Here’s what’s cookin’:

Breakfast
Cottage Cheese/Greek Yogurt, Fruit, and Green Smoothies

Lunch/Dinner
ALTs and Salad and Homemade Hummus (Didn’t get around to making the hummus last week, but as soon as I get more tahini, it’s ON!)
Leftover Minestrone Soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Pasta with Fresh Basil Pesto and Broccoli and Cauliflower Sformatino
Asparagus Soup with Cream and Homemade Bread
Breakfast for Dinner: Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwiches with Fresh Fruit and Cottage Cheese
Quinoa, Spinach, and Feta Corn Chowder and Homemade Bread (This is the dish I’m contributing to the food swap!)
Homemade Pizza and Salad

Need more dinner ideas? Check out Jenna’s Chive Talkin’ Blog!

Want more? Check out the Weekly Menus archive.

24 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

New Pictures

0

Just wanted to let everyone know that I updated Jude’s Flickr Set. Enjoy!

24 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

Crossover Blog

Friday Firsts: First Apartment

4

Friday Firsts: First Apartment

(Read about Red’s first over at The Naked Redhead.)

You know those refrigerator boxes? They’re large and fun to play in? Well, the only difference between our first apartment and one of those boxes is that our apartment had heat. Oh. Also, those cardboard boxes are bigger.

Josh moved to PA in 2002, and we moved into the above-referenced tiny apartment within about three weeks of his arrival. The apartment was an “efficiency-style” apartment–that meant that the living room and teeny tiny kitchen ran into one another. A doorway to the left of the refrigerator opened up to a small bedroom, and from there you could enter our (also teeny tiny) bathroom. We had one closet. One small closet.

The apartment had it’s pros to go along with the con of it barely being big enough for one adult, let alone two. It only cost us $350/month in rent, and that included heat. We lived about a mile from our college, and if either one of us had been more health-conscious or earth-friendly at the time, we would have walked to class/work much more often than we did. Living where we did put us about a mile or two away from where the Naked Redhead was living, and on occasion (okay, on ONE occasion), she and I went running together. On the flip side, we drank together often.

Readers, what was your first apartment like? Was it small? Huge? Did you love it or hate it?

Want more? Check out the Crossover Blog archive!

23 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

Daily Life

Welcome Smitten Readers!

1

Word has it that The Naked Redhead’s post about the five must-say relationship phrases is being featured on Smitten, Glamour’s relationship blog! You should all go over there, show your support for naked redheads, and leave a comment!

Also, I want to say hello (Hi there!) to all the Smitten readers who have found there way here from Red’s site. You might be interested in Red’s and my crossover blog series, and you can find those posts here here. For instance, if you’re interested in boobs, check this out. Maybe you prefer penises. If so, you should read this. For non-naked, lovely-dovey posts, click here or here. Or, maybe you just want to read a good bitchy rant. If so, this is the post for you.

If you enjoy my writing, you can subscribe to get an update every. single. time. I post. You can subscribe by RSS or by e-mail.

Thanks again for stopping by! I hope you’ll come back, read, and join in the conversation.

Cheers!

23 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

Not a Rant

0

Let’s get this out of the way: I love my life. I love my family and my job as a stay at home mom. I love being the primary care giver to my son and I *like* when our days are busy.

Now then. Ahem.

JesusChristAlmightyIneedabreak. I hurt my back early Saturday afternoon and have not gotten more than two hours to myself at a clip since then. When Jude’s awake, so am I. I’m on my feet playing, cooking, cleaning. There’s really no way around this. Josh works. (Duh!) When he’s not at work, he is FANTASTIC about taking care of Jude and letting me rest. But, when he doesn’t get home until 5pm, well… dinner is already made. All that’s left to do is let Jude eat, get the kitchen cleaned up, and get Jude cleaned up and ready for bed. There are only about two hours of “awake” time for Jude once Josh gets home at night, and while I truly, truly appreciate Josh taking the reigns (and he does! without complaint!) for those two hours, it’s just not enough. When I’m feeling good and can walk without shuffling my feet and when I can sit down and stand up without sharp pains surging through my lower half, it’s fine. But now? Five days after I got hurt? When I still can’t sit comfortably or sneeze without crying out in pain? No. Right now it’s not enough.

So what do you do when you’re the stay at home parent and you’re down for the count? What do you do when you don’t have the luxury of taking even one day off to concentrate on healing, resting, and feeling better? Well, this experience has taught me–you have to suck it up. Lunches and dinners still need to be made. Balls need to be kicked and dirt needs to be dug in. Diapers need to be washed. Floors need to be swept. My hard-working husband can only do so much after a full day’s work out of the home. I have to uphold my end of the bargain as well.

And here I could go on about how it’s not fair–How mothers and fathers who stay at home need just as much of a break as parents who work outside the home–but really, what good will it do me? The better option would be for me to close the laptop, lie down next to my sleeping boy, and rest for the remainder of his nap.

*Click*

22 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

Letter to Jude: Month 23

3

Dear Jude,

Well. It has finally happened. You’ve officially entered the last month of your second year of life. Month number 23 was an exciting month for all of us. You got to meet a cousin you had never met before and spend some time with your Aunt Erin and Uncle Grant. We celebrated Easter with our good friends Helen, Matt, and Annabel. You, Papa, and I spent a romantic night in Skokie together.

Late in March, your cousin Sean came to stay with us for a few days over his Spring Break. I was really excited for you to meet him. When I was growing up I spent a few summers with Sean and his family in Ohio and always had a great time. It was weird for me to see him all grown up and you so little. Around the same time, Aunt Erin and Uncle Grant came to visit! You were overwhelmed with excitement and spent most of their visit screeching with joy! We took Aunt Erin and Uncle Grant to the Lincoln Park Zoo one afternoon (actually-they took us!) and to Be By Baby another day. You had fun looking at the lions and tigers and monkeys at the zoo, and had fun playing with the baby dolls at Be By Baby.

Aunt Erin and Uncle Grant gifted you an awesome wooden sushi set to go with your new wooden kitchen. You love cutting up the wooden bell pepper, tofu, and baby bok choy and making stir-fry for you and I to share. Speaking of foodie-type things, this month you also started drinking from a regular cup with some consistency. I started giving you your own glass of green smoothie to enjoy, and as the days went by, you decided you wanted your water in a cup as well. You still miss your mouth and spill your water at least 40% of the time, but overall you’re overcoming this new challenge.

Every day you wake up with a new word on your tongue. Early in the month you woke up asking for a “hug!” Just yesterday you yelled “Fuck!” Fuck!” at me over and over. And when I responded by handing you one of your play forks, you were excited to see you had gotten your point across. These days you often tell us you want to “play” at the “park” and that you want to “kick” your “ball.” You’ve started saying your own name and you consistently ask for “Ennn” (Aunt Erin) and as of yesterday, “Mark.”

In the mornings, after Papa goes to work, I usually give Grandma Rose a call. She likes to hear how you’re doing and chat about all the exciting things that have occurred in the previous 24 hours. Just recently you began demanding to talk to Grandma on the phone. It has gotten to the point where I just let you roam the house, cell phone in hand, while I do dishes or clean up from breakfast. Grandma loves talking to you, and you love talking to her.

Next month, you, Papa, and I are going to take a plane ride back to Pennsylvania to visit with Grandma Rose and Grandpa Mike, Great Grandpa, and all our friends. We’re staying with Aunt Demi, Uncle Scott, and the boys and already have a play date set up with your friend Nadia! I just talked to Aunt Helen last night, and from what she tells me, Ebby is quite excited to play princess dress-up with you! I’m really looking forward to this trip, Jude. I can’t wait to go to Abe’s for breakfast and Zummo’s for coffee. I can’t wait to see all of our Peacemeal friends; Dr. Jennifer; Aunt Becky and Uncles Paul and Rob; and Aunt Michelle and Uncle DJ! I can’t wait to take you back to South Abington and Nay Aug Park to play. I really looking forward to seeing how you interact with Crosby, Nolan, Eli, Luke, Ebby, and Nadia… I’m really excited, Monkey. Can you tell?

So, let’s enjoy these last days before you turn 2. Let’s enjoy the nice weather Chicago has been (sporadically) experiencing, and let’s enjoy learning about the world together. As sad as it makes me to see you getting bigger and bigger as each day goes by, I’m truthful when I say I’m looking forward to your second birthday and to watching you grow up.

Love,
Mama

21 Apr

Posted by
Jillian Frank

Category

Asides

Sore

0

After a day on my feet, I’m as sore as all get out. That being said, I’m going to hold off on finishing and posting this month’s letter to Jude until tomorrow. Our boy is getting big. Stay tuned for some pics!