Long Days

Another busy week.

Wednesday night my cousin Adrian flew back into town to look at apartments. He has been accepted into the UNC (Greeley) Masters program - Congratulations! I picked him up at midnight on Wednesday night in Loveland, let me tell you, I was tired the next day and draggin butt at work by 2pm. Thursday night we had a nice supper and just hung out and Friday Adrian dropped me off at work and borrowed my car for the day. I had to be at work early Wednesday, Thursday and Friday due to auditors being at our office all week, whew, I am glad that is over! Friday night we had a few beers in the garage and stayed up later than I would have liked, but it was fun. Saturday Katelynn had her tumbling class and then it was off to our friends house to have an Easter Egg Hunt for the playgroup / Baby Shower - Going away party for a girlfriend of ours that is moving to Ohio this next weekend. We are all very sad to see our friend leaving town, but her husband is a football coach and his new job is taking her away, hopefully we will be able to keep in touch. The kids loved the Easter egg hunt and there was enough for everyone to get a entire bucket full. We as always had great food and great fun! I am keeping up with the grocery game and my goal is to get over 50%, it is hard, this week and last week I had over $20.00 worth of coupons, but still couldn't do it, maybe if we can get Katelynn fully potty trained then I could stop buying pull-ups and get there. She is on again off again on the potty training, if anyone has any suggestions I am open to try anything. This week I will have my first HOA (Home Owners Association) meeting now that I am on the board, it should be interesting, I am hoping I didn't take on something too big or too time consuming since I don't get paid for it. Another update is that the fun Florida trip with the girls for our 30th birthdays has been changed to a family vacation / 5 year anniversary trip for Dan, Katelynn, and I in May. The girls had to back out each for different reasons, but I am hoping in a couple of years to try and pull another trip together for all us and see if we can make it happen next time. So, my family is going to Sanibel Island, FL and we couldn't be more excited. Katleynn can't wait to go to the beach, we rented a one bedroom cottage that is 250 feet from the beach on the Gulf of Mexico. Sanibel is supposed to have the best sea shelling around and I am hoping this will keep Katelynn very busy, I cannot wait to go and catch a tan and Dan is hoping to get a half a day of some fishing in. This vacation also gives me an excuse to go and buy a tanning package and start tanning! I also made Dan pull the treadmill back out of the closet and am trying to do some running on it at least 3 nights out of the week, I am out of shape - this is my conclusion to this and it's not as easy as it was in high school (yes, I thought that maybe it would be the same, damn that 30th year coming up). Everything else is the same old / same old. I will be posting some pictures later this week.

A couple pictures to share

Lindsay and Landon

Hmm... Oatmeal for breakfast, my favorite.

I Love my Uncle Jeff!
Lindsay and Katelynn.

Busy Week Ahead

We are looking at a busy week ahead of us in the Davids' household. Monday is President's Day and I obviously have the day off, but I am using my time wisely and driving to Boulder to meet with a company and re-write my resume. There are a couple of situations at work right now that I am not very happy with and in looking at the road ahead I'm not sure that it will get better. It seems that I am in a bad position based on circumstances and it may be time to either light a fire under my boss and let her realize that I won't do certain tasks at work that do not benefit my advancement or my knowledge/brain or it may be time to start looking at a new job. So, with all that said I am going to go and have this company help me out for the bargain price of $90.00 and will walk out with what I am hoping is a fabulous resume ready to submit. (I also know how to play the game at my current job so to light the fire with my boss there are definitely a couple of key people that know exactly where I am going on Monday and will not be able to help themselves, but tell my boss that I may be looking for work elsewhere)
Next on the list is to finish the last 2 items that I need to get done to my accountant so we can finalize our taxes for 2007 and see what the damages are going to be and hopefully get them paid in March and then start paying quarterly taxes yet again for 2008 on April 15th - the joy of the IRS, so this will be on Tuesday's list.
Wedensday will be a clean-up the house day because we have company coming starting on Thursday. Dan did help me clean the house pretty good this Saturday so it shouldn't need much, but a quick vacuum and sweeping and pcking up. (Dan commented that we should really clean like that every couple of weekends and it's not bad when we all pitch-in, I'm just looking at him, going "ya-think" I do it every weekend on my own. I'll let you know if he helps out again in a couple of weekends).
Thursday I will be picking up my cousin, Adrian, who is flying out to interview at UNC, the college in Greeley, payroll that night and LOST.
Friday I will be heading to work early (if I can get out of bed early) so Adrian can use my car for the day and pick me up later. Friday night we have a babysitter for Katelynn and we are going out to eat and possibly going bowling and checking out Greeley.
Saturday, this will be the busiest day. After a night out, I will still need to get up and take Katelynn to Tumbling class at 8:45am and then come home for a half an hour and then we are off to a birthday party in Loveland (Brooke's youngest is turning 1!). Then it's back home for Katelynn's nap and we will be having family from Louisville coming to visit with us and Adrian and Dan's parents will be pulling into our driveway at some point that day. I have yet to decide if I want to attempt to cook for everyone or attempt to go out to eat with that many people. Those of you will a 2 year old can imagine my dilema on the going out to eat, we don't go out often so the patience is not quite there yet for Katelynn, we'll see what happens, wish me luck.
Sunday I will be driving Adrian to the airport to catch his plane ride home and back to my house (I'm trying to figure where I am going to fit in my grocery shopping on this day, hopefully Dan's mom won't mind if I either slip out for an hour or maybe she will want to come with me and see what this game I play is all about.)

This past week of course was Valentine's Day and I have to say that Dan actually gave me exactly what I was wishing for. I was thinking at work that day and realized that what I wanted was for him to pick up a bottle of wine and sit on the couch and watch LOST with me and just relax. I got home and he had a dozen roses for and 2 roses for Katelynn and we ate supper and then he said he put a bottle of Champagne in the fridge for us later - wow, I was in shock. It was really a great day! Thanks, Babe.
For anyone who is following along with my grocery game totals, here are last weeks and this weeks.

Last week - spent: $90.98
Saved: $84.34
For a savings of 50% ( I did have $20.00 worth of coupons last week)

Today I spent: $ 86.06
Saved: $ 76.83
For a savings of 48% (I bought 44 items today)
I know have over 10 boxes of cereal in my stock pile that costs .50 to 1.00 each, not too bad when regular price they about $3.59 each.
I also have enough cake mix to make it through 10 birthdays and these were .88 cents each, with the regular price being around $2.59.
Hope everyone has a great week !

Vikings vs. Broncos December 30th, 2007

Randy Dickhaus Bowls a 300

Here is a video of my dad from Thursday night. What a great feat! He bowled a perfect game, 300 score. My brother was sick with the flu and my dad subbed for him on league bowling and he threw a 300 in his 2nd game. This video is of his last strike. I am so excited for him, what an amazing achievement!
The video is from a friends cell phone so give it a minute to get on my dad actually bowling!


Congratulations Dad!

Busy, Busy Week

This last week was pretty busy for us. One night our accountant came over and did our final payroll taxes for 2007 and W-2's for our employees over the year and then we got into the 2007 taxes - I had just about everything to turn into her, just waiting on some information from other people now. We are hoping to not have to pay in too much this year (otherwise Dan has threatened to fire me yet again as his bookkeeper, this would be the 5th or 6th time, I've last count). I had a dentist appt. one morning to get a cavity fixed, that was loads of fun and then went to work with half my face numb, I refused to answer my phone for half of the day. I also had yet another cold last week, the sickness seems to be never ending this winter. At work I had two extra projects that were handed down to me from my boss and then due this last week as well, I did get them both done and was able to get a little catch up work done on Friday for all the work I put aside during the week (thank goodness we will be back to full staff on Monday, one worker was hired to fill a position and the co-worker on maternity leave is back full-time as well!!) My favorite show LOST was finally back on last week and there are I believe 8 new episodes (down from 16 because of the writer's strike). Then of course running payroll Thursday night and bookwork and paying bills that are due the 1st of the month. Saturday morning Katelynn is now taking a tumbling class from 8:45am to 9:45am and she just loves it. The kids all listen fairly well to the instructor and she is great with the kids. Katelynn looks so cute in her little leotard they are required to wear (for safety reasons). They work on forward and backword rolls, the balance beam, the low beam and a trampoline and do other fun little activities. One of Katelynn's friends is also in the class so this Saturday they came over afterwards for a playdate until around 11:30am. Of course today was grocery shopping day and it was as great as it was the last couple of weeks. Today, as everyone knows is Superbowl Sunday, we don't have any plans except to chill at home and watch the game on the big screen, not sure yet who I will be cheering for. Hope everyone has a great next week!

Grocery Game Update:
Total Items Purchased: 68
Total Spent: $15293
Total Saved: $146.00
A percentage of 50% - yes !! This week included New York Strip Steaks that I paid $20.87 and the regular price was $44.06. I also got Pork Country Rib ValuePak for $6.02 and regular price was $17.33 - what a savings, I had one happy husband when I got home!

The Grocery Game - Week 2

Week 2 of the Grocery Game has come and I was at the store at 9am today. I could not be more excited about grocery shopping, it's insane. This week was even better than the last and I was able to get more items that I could cook supper with too. One thing that I have noticed is I think I am getting jipped by the Sunday newspaper and may not be getting all the coupon inserts, there have been coupons on my list making the sale a great deal and I have no coupon. I have promptly emailed my newspaper and am questioning them on this, it's what I am buying the paper for!

The Verdict, week 2:
67 Items bought
Paid: $136.73
Saved: $127.49
A savings of 49% of my grocery bill.
I also want to add a special note of 3 of the things that make this price even more incredible, I bought a Pot Roast, Pork Chops Value Pack, and Chicken Breast halves Value Pack.

I have already started "stockpiling" cereal that was on sale this week and other items!

The Grocery Game - 1st Update

Sunday morning came around and I ran out excitedly to get our Sunday paper and started clipping coupons like a mad person and then hopped on the Internet to look at the list for this week and picked out what we wanted and what was a "rock bottom" price buy and what should be stock piled. I stuck primarily to the list for my shopping list so I could really see what kind of savings I could get from this and it was amazing.
(I would have saved more if I had additional coupons from the past Sunday ads too.)

The verdict:
Spent: $ 80.32
Saved: $63.70

For a Savings of: 45% in store specials and coupons

Sweet Deal!

Playhouse Disney Live!

Here are the pictures we took from the show "Playhouse Disney Live". We had a blast, we ended up going to the 3pm show instead of the 6:30pm show due to a mix up in our tickets we ordered from the county (yes, where I work, slowly I am getting over the frustration of that piece, but didn't let it ruin our fun).

This is the first big even that we have taken Katelynn too, so we wanted to do it big! We spent $105.00 on 3 floor seat tickets and it was worth every penny! We were in the second row off to the side a little, but when the characters and people came out it was like they were almost right next to us. Katelynn had so much fun and at the end was even out dancing with all the other kids for the big celebration piece.

She talked about it for quite a few days and still will ask every once in awhile if we can do it again.

It was a fabulous experience for all of us!

A New Year and New Ideas to Try

Happy New Year! I guess that is the way to start it off, right?

We are now 18 days in the 2008 year and I am now getting ready to make a few changes for the year and see what I can achieve with it. My goals for 2008 are to get the most out of my money and at the same time try not to overindulge in my spending on stuff that I don't need. I am hoping by doing this some of my need for instant gratification may fade away as well.

Trial # 1 - The Grocery Game http://www.thegrocerygame.com/
A co-worker of mine has turned me onto The Grocery Game, she has been "playing" for about a year. The basics of this game is buying groceries and using your coupons when they are on sale and this website will tell you when the best buy is and stockpile them. A list comes out each Sunday through Tuesday and tells you which coupons to use and some items even come up for Free (who doesn't like that!). My friend has said this has definitely saved her family money and gives her, her shopping fix and stockpiling fix that she needs. She also said that doing this keeps her out of Target (the devil store) and this I am hoping will work for me as well.
This service (if it works for me) is relatively cheap too, it's $10.00 for 8 weeks of service, check out their website if you are looking to save a buck on your groceries.
I am staring to play the game this Sunday and will periodically post how I am doing or saving!
Wish Me Luck!

Trial # 2 - Getting the Most out of the money I do spend.
I feel this year that I need to get more out of my money than just the items that I am purchasing. For some time I have had 2 credit cards that I accumulate air miles on and have definitely benefited on a couple of free tickets home. This year I am going to attempt to put all purchases on my credit card that is attached to my United Airline miles and try to bank on getting some more free tickets.
In the past I have only charged either purchases on-line or if I was out shopping for myself for clothes or extras. I have a hard time taking out my credit cards for purchases the way it is and I am hoping this will also keep me from buying items that I just don't need.
I have to give a piece of credit here to my dad, who has always drilled into my head, "you pay your card off every month or you don't have one", and I have. Every month the bill comes and I pay it off, no matter what the balance is and after hearing of all the people out there with cards maxed out or balances in the thousands that they just can't pay off, I am sincerely grateful that he taught me this (and I actually listened).
So wish me luck and maybe some of my friends and family will see me more (in 2009 of course, it does take awhile and a lot of purchase to get those free tickets!)

In the coming year for the Davids' family in Colorado:
1 - I will be turning 30 years old (yikes, damn, however you want to look at it)
2 - Dan will be turning 36 years old
3 - Katelynn will be turning 3 years old
4 - I will be taking a vacation with my girlfriends that are also turning 30 this year so we can try to forget that we are turning 30.
5 - We will be welcoming a new niece or nephew to the Dickhaus family (congrats Jeff & Tonah)
6 - Katelynn will be potty trained (this is another goal!! anyone with advise send my way)
7 - Dan and I will celebrate 5 years of Marriage on May 3rd (I know some of you cannot believe we have made it this far, some days, neither can we)
8 - Dan is going on a fishing trip to Canada, eh!

For anyone else who has made "goals" or New Year's Resolutions, I wish you the best of luck and a wonderful time in 2008.

Good Times with Good Friends

Here are a few pictures from when my brother and his family were visiting. Our friends from Colorado Springs also came up and hung out with us one night. We had a great time visiting and then bought the UFC fights on Pay Per View and had some bets going on to make it more interesting. Some of us stayed up a little too late (doesn't that always happen?!)

Dan, Jeff, Tim and Sienna

(yes, unfortunately I have to let the Packer Fans into our house)

Me, Jeff, Tim and Sienna
Jeffrey
Jeff, Me and Dan

More Christmas Morning Pics

Christmas Morning

My new hat Santa brought me!

Thank god for coffee!

Dan and Katelynn enjoying the morning.
My child's infamous smile! Say Cheese!

Katelynn is making us breakfast in her kitchen.

Christmas Morning

Christmas Morning!

Katelynn & daddy in the big bed.

Katelynn & mommy in our bed!
Wow! Santa really came!
I love this!

More Christmas 2007

One of Katelynn's gifts was this fishing game. She loves it and we fish almost everyday.

Christmas 2007

Here are some pictures from our Christmas Eve. We each opened one gift before dinner. Katelynn could hardly contain herself, but I do have to say that she new something special was going on and that she had a nice dress on because she ate very lady like and didn't spill any lasagna on her dress and was as patient as a 2 year old can be waiting for Dan and I to finish eating. It was a quick clean-up of dishes and a refill of wine for me and Dan and down to the basement we went to rip into every gift under the tree. Keep in mind that poor Katelynn has had to look at some of these gifts under the tree since Thanksgiving when my parents were visiting.

Katelynn opening her first gift.

Dan trying to keep control over the wrapping paper! Katelynn and Dan checking out Dan's new grilling kit.
Me, showing of my new UGG's! Good job Dan!