Sunday, March 15, 2009

Coldstone

And today I ventured out with the kids to Coldstone for lunch. Yes, lunch. Sometimes you just have to have ice cream for a meal!
Aidan His choice: vanilla ice cream with butterfinger and m&m's
Luke His choice: cotton candy ice cream with sprinkles & m&m's
Madison Her choice: strawberry ice cream, oreos and gummy bears

Sunday, March 8, 2009

And my newest obsession...other than the music

Some of the women at work had been talking about this book. The author was on Oprah. I found these books at Costco and found them to be pretty darn insightful!
For instance - Did you know that choosing Rice Krispies Treats over Nutri-Grain Cereal bars will cut your sugar and calorie intake nearly in half? With that switch it, it says you could lose a pound every 7 weeks. Pretty awesome! Check it out!!

Our newest obsessions

My dear Bruce has been researching laptops for the past nine months and finally purchased one last night at Best Buy!
This little Acer was less than $400. It has 2GB of memory and a 250 GB hard drive. After seeing the reviews ~ about 50 reviews. People scored this computer a 4.6 out of 5 stars. Can't beat that! It is perfect for him. And then...well...Best Buy had a good financing deal going on and we don't have a stereo in the house....so, um...
We thought we needed the Bose Sound dock. I can't believe the sound quality on this thing and for as much as we listen to music, probably the best purchase we have made in a long time. This literally rocks! I love it. And it is handy with the little remote too. Okay, so maybe our tax returns are almost gone now. But, so worth it!

Karina's baby shower

On Saturday I had the pleasure of being invited to my good friend (and co-worker), Karina's baby shower. It was a great time with good friends and good food. It was nice to be around everyone outside of work. Things were a bit more relaxed - and a lot more fun.
Now I am not a huge chocolate cake fan, but this cake was delicious. Can't go wrong with a cake from Butter Creme!
Everyone.
Me and my girlies. Karina and Lourdes. Love these girls! They make work a fun place to be at!
And of course, me and mommy Karina. Her baby boy, Mateo is due on Mother's Day! Can't wait to meet the little guy. He sure is going to have great parents. He is a very lucky little boy!

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Mmmmmm

Look what I got to come home to on a Friday night. Bruce in the kitchen making a new recipe that he found on his new favorite show Rachael Ray. Ha Ha.
It is Thinly sliced Beef Cutlets with Bistro Gravy. And after the day Bruce had yesterday, he still came home and made this. It was awesome. Very very good. But then again, anything he has ever cooked for me has been awesome.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Thoughts

I was reading the blog “The Simple Dollar” this morning before I came to work. One of the questions addressed today was Do you wish you were rich?. While normally I would’ve probably answered with a hearty yes, I read through the rest of his column explaining the cons to being rich. Take Bill Gates for instance, he can’t do the simple task of just going to the grocery store by himself. He has “people” that do that. And imagine all the people who are constantly “wanting” something from him or beg him for money. That isn’t the kind of wealth I would want. The author also goes on to say even being “locally rich” isn’t something he would want either. He tagged a local businessman whose house was being foreclosed on. The house was estimated to be worth 4.2 million dollars in Nebraska – so just imagine that the house was probably sprawling. The upkeep would be costly, you would have to hire help. And, to maintain your hired help and the house you would have to be working at a very high level. I wouldn’t want that either. In turn, he goes onto say what he would really love in life is “financial independence.” The dream of not having to worry about future income. In really thinking about that answer that is the answer I would have to give. I would love to be able to go shopping and not have to worry about if I have enough in my checking account to buy a new pair of shoes. I would love to send my kids to college and be able to travel a bit more, but other than that, I don’t need a huge house, our condo is perfect. I don’t need a Range Rover; I actually love my Honda Pilot. My kids don’t need to be dressed in designer clothing; they would only get holes in them. I don’t need designer clothing either, The Gap suits me just fine. When you really think about it, I am wealthy. Wealthier than most people I know. I have the most amazing family, three awesome, healthy, smart kids, a man who I know truly loves me and who I love with all my heart. My parents, my sisters, my brothers, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins…everyone is close to my heart. I have a great job, a roof over my head and I am able to pay my bills and put food on the table. Those are things that I am truly thankful for. In scrolling through these older posts, it reminds me everyday how happy we are. These things didn’t cost us money, or at least not a lot. And in the end, it isn’t going to be the money spent that our kids will remember. It is the trips to the beach, the playing catch at the park, the dancing in the living room...