2013 - Week 7

Well, we're off on another week. This week marks the Day o' Love. OooLaLa!

Monday started off pretty standard...except my mother in law came to our house to watch the girls so I wouldn't have to take them out in the snow. So, that saved me a little time. Even with the new coating of snow, traffic actually wasn't as horrible as I was expecting, which was quite refreshing! The girls had just woken up from their naps when I arrived home, so we started dinner, watched some shows and hung out for a bit. After dinner it was the usual play, relax, bedtime. I got my workout in and called it a day.

Tuesday started off SUPER exciting! Our Wisconsin Dells 2013 trip is officially booked! We're meeting our friends from Indiana there again and we're staying in a big suite together at the beginning of April. We had such an amazing time last year. I'm so excited to go again, and to see our friends. The rest of the day was pretty low key. Today was my "break day" from my workout, so I was able to have a pretty relaxing night - much needed!

You never get too old to play in a box!

Wednesday ended up being much more chaotic than anticipated.The morning started off fine. Both of the girls have been pretty good about dressing themselves lately. Olivia has obviously been able to for a while, but we just always did it for them. Lately though, I lay their clothes out, and they've been changing themselves. Seriously, it's AMAZING! It saves me so much rushing around in the morning...they get dressed while I'm finishing getting ready and packing my food for work...by the time I'm ready, they're dressed and I just have to do their hair and get them out the door. FANTASTIC! Work went fine...then, they chaos hit. When I got to school to pick the girls up, Olivia's teacher asked me if I'd like a class list for Valentines. Ummm...that's TOMORROW!!!!! I assumed they didn't exchange cards since I hadn't heard anything, or received a class list. Jokes on me I guess! So, we rushed home, I quick made dinner and got that going, then ran out the door as soon as Christian got home. Stopped at Walmart...NO cards left. Seriously. Ran to Target and I was able to get some Hello Kitty cards for the girls, and Spiderman cards for the boys. Rushed home, ate MY dinner quick, wrote out cards (which, of course, included inserting little tiny note pads into each one), taped some candy to the outside and packed them up. By the time I finished that, and washed the dishes/cleaned the kitchen up, it was bedtime for the girls. Then, still not done, down to the basement I went to workout. FINALLY, at 9:15, I was able to sit down. I watched a show and passed out. Never enough hours in the day, that's for sure! But, we're done and ready for Valentine's Day!

Thursday was all about the love! Christian got the day off to an AMAZING start. He had a bouquet of mini-roses waiting for me on the counter, along with a card. In the card was a picture of my salon (which, I haven't been to in 2.5 years)...turns out, he got a hold of my stylist and made me a hair appointment for this Saturday. I can't believe it - I was so shocked! This is by far the most thoughtful thing he's ever done for me...I am over the moon with my groom right now! The work day went quickly - we got another round of snow overnight, so the drive and the parking lot were crappy. But, we celebrated the February birthdays in my office today, so we had some cake! YUM (even though my piece was as small as humanly possible). I left work a tad early to pick up some steaks to grill tonight and a small case of beer for Christian (his romantic gift from me, LOL), get my workout in and pack the girls' gifts up. I picked them up from school with all of their goodies from their classmates. They each had a photo Valentines gift for me too - super cute!   The girls opened their gifts as soon a we got home, we baked some cupcakes, played for a while and they ate dinner. Christian grilled our steaks as soon as he got home, we ate and we all hung out for a while. Such a busy day, but a great one!

Friday FINALLY marked the end of the week. The week was pretty busy, but, for some reason, it just seemed to draaaag on. Today started with my weekly weigh in, and I was FINALLY down. I lost 1.8lbs this week, back to a total of 32lbs lost. Hopefully I can keep this momentum up! Olivia was still napping when I got to my mom's house to pick the girls up, so she and I chatted and played with Amelia until she woke up. Christian picked up some Thai food for dinner on his way home - YUM! Once the girls were in bed, we cuddled up for a movie night (what's new?!?). Tonight was "Ted" and "Pitch Perfect" - both very good...lots of laughs tonight! Nothing like a relaxing movie night to end a long week.

Somebody got into a ring pop! There's no hiding that...

Saturday was a pretty exciting day. It started off pretty normal. I did some of my usual cleaning...dishes, sweeping and picking up. We ate some breakfast, and Olivia and I were off to her swim class. It crazy how much better she gets from week to week. She's getting better at going under water, and really learning how to user her arms and legs. She seems to really love it too, so it's a pretty big success so far. After class, we ate some lunch, I showered and got ready for the day, and the girls went down for their naps. Then, I was off for my big salon appointment!! It's been WAY too long, and Irma is always pretty excited to see me because I usually have something drastic in mind. This time was no different...my plan was to chop all of my hair and donate it (again), and add some color to it. And, that's exactly what I did! I kept my natural color, and just added in some red and light highlights. Everything turned out great, and she threw in a free hand wax-dip, which I've never done, and was super cool. My appointment was later in the day, so it was really just me and her in the salon...peaceful music, quiet atmosphere - SO RELAXING. Exactly what I needed. And, I love the way my hair turned out, so it was a perfect way to spend the afternoon. We had some dinner when I got home, and Christian was off to hang out with a friend from work for a bit, while I caught up on some shows. More relaxing - no complaints here!

Sunday was another pretty exciting day...haircut day for the girls! Olivia has been begging me for months to cut her hair - especially after her friend Annabelle cut hers. I've been putting it off - she has such long, beautiful hair. But, we finally decided to give in, and go for it. Heck, it's just hair - it grows back, and it's fun to try new things! And, now that I've cut my hair, I would never hear the end of it if we didn't let her. So, after some breakfast and starting laundry, we were off to Kids Hair. Both of the girls got their hair cut - they both did great, and they LOVE their new 'do's. Olivia played with her hair ALL DAY, she couldn't get enough of it. Amelia's hair lays pretty great, so we got her some bangs. They're shorter than I would like, but I'll probably let them grow out a bit, and attempt to trim them myself when they get too long. But, they both look super cute. FUN! After out appointment, the girls took their naps. Christian and I were both pretty exhausted, so we took some cat naps ourselves. We were off to my mom's for dinner and chatting when the girls got up, and Olivia actually stayed there to spend the night. Amelia's terrible two's were in full force tonight, but she finally calmed down a bit when we got home. THANK GOD, because she was really grading on my last nerve. She is most definitely our wild child - I sometimes think she was meant to be a boy! LOL. It was finally time for bed, and we were all beyond exhausted. I'm off of work tomorrow for Presidents Day, and it will be a welcomed day off, that's for sure!

So, that ends another week. Lots of LOVE, and some new, fresh looks for the Duran girls. AWESOME!

Our Love Story

I've seen a couple other bloggers on my feed posting something along these lines today, so I figured, what the heck! In honor of Valentine's Day, here's our love story...

1. How long have you and your significant other been together?

Christian and I went on our very first date on 7/11/2001, and have been together ever since. So, a little over 11.5 years.

2. How did you meet?

Oddly enough, through our parents. My mom knew Christian's parents through a guy she dated on and off for years. He and his family came to my high school graduation party. He left the party, but came back after a short time with a card...inside the card he left me his phone number and asked me to "call him sometime". When I made out Thank You cards for my party, I decided to send him one, and in it I told home that "I don't call boys, but feel free to call me if you'd like". Wow, I'm so mysterious! Well, a short time later he actually had his best friend at the time call me and get the ball rolling. We set up a date, and the rest is history!

3. If married, how long have you been married? If not, is this the guy you hope to marry?

We are indeed married. After 4 years of dating, Christian proposed. We were married 1.5 years later on 9/22/2007. So, we've been married for just about 5.5 years.

4. If you are married, where did you get married at? Big or small wedding? If not, where would you like to get married? And, will it be big or small?

Again, we are indeed married. We were married at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in Shoreview, Minnesota, with a reception at the White Bear County Inn. We invited roughly 225 guests, so it was a fairly big wedding. It was truly my dream wedding...beautiful, simple church, black and white theme with accents of red, string quartet as I walked down the aisle, surrounded by all of our friends and family, the reception was warm and inviting. Everything was absolutely perfect, and exactly what I imagined. For late September, the weather was absolutely amazing. We truly could not have asked for a better day.

5. Do you have any nick-names that you call each other? Do share!

Really, we don't. When he writes me a card or a note, he'll call me "honey", but we've never really done the pet name thing. I usually just whip out the "dear" when he's in trouble!

6. Name 3 things you love most about your honey.

Christian truly balances me out...where I lack, he excels; where I am "cold", or insensitive, he is understanding; when I am impatient, he is calm; when I am stressed out, he makes me laugh. We have truly grown up together - from clueless teenagers, without a care in the world, to parents with the weight of the world on our shoulders - nothing can compete with the bond that creates. And, while he may not always show it, I know that he would do absolutely anything in the world for me and our children...he would give anything, do anything, go anywhere and sacrifice all for our love, safety and happiness. He's a great man!

7. Tell us how he proposed? Or, your ideal proposal.

Well, I pretty much knew it was coming. He came up with a very elaborate story that he had won a prize in their quarterly safety contest at work - which was a romantic dinner at the Carousel Cafe, overlooking downtown St. Paul. I thought that was a pretty strange prize for a bunch of warehouse guys, but went with it. Shortly after that, we were driving along when he got a phone call one day...he was acting very mysterious and secretive during this phone call (as we sat feet away from each other), but claimed it was a call about his passport (he was in the process of renewing for a trip home to Mexico). The final straw that ruined the surprise was...one evening, he arrived home from dinner with his mom. We were heading out with some friends for the night, and dropping her off at home on our way. He had a couple drinks before we left, so I decided to drive for the night. As I got in the car, I saw a bag on the passenger seat floor from Wedding Day Diamonds. He claimed it was his mom's...that she had purchased some jewelry cleaner. Probably true, but it was strange to go to a jewelry store JUST to get some cleaner. Everything was adding up to be very suspicious.

So, time went on, and eventually our big date night at The Carousel arrived. We got all dressed up and were on our way. We ate some dinner, chatted for a while and had a great night. A man across the restaurant from us proposed to his girlfriend (apparently it's a good place for that...). The night was coming to a close, and I started thinking I was quite an idiot. Finally, he stood up, got down on one knee right next to me, and popped the question. He was so nervous, it was sweet. Of course, it was a YES, no question about it, and it felt amazing.

As we left the restaurant, we took the glass elevator down the side of the building. He announced that he had one more surprise for me, and told me to look out the window, down to the street. I immediately spotted a black limo parked outside of the entrance, and pretty much yelled "Is that for US?!?!". I had never even seen a limo up close, let alone rode in one! We hopped in, picked up some friends that were in on the whole secret, and we spent the night bar hopping in downtown Minneapolis, celebrating the night away. I was on cloud nine all night, and it was truly one of the best, most fun, emotional nights of my life.

8. Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne and rose petals?

Definitely a flowers guy. That's his usual fall back, which is perfectly fine with me!

9. Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of gal, or pop a movie in a relax on the couch?

Anybody who knows me, and/or reads this blog, knows that I love me a nice relaxing movie night at home. No question about it!

10. Tell us one thing you'd like to do with your significant other one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere?

No question, go on a REAL vacation, just the two of us. We've never done it. We've driven to Utah to visit friends, we've traveled up North and to Wisconsin Dells, but we've never been on a REAL, adult vacation together. Hawaii is on our wish list, and we WILL make it there sooner or later! Maybe for our 10 year anniversary...

11. Tell us what you plan on doing this Valentine's Day.

It's technically over, but it was by far the best I've ever had. Christian surprised me with a bouquet of mini roses and a card right away this morning (which means, for once, he actually bought something AHEAD of time, whoa!). I opened the card, and there was a picture of the salon I go to inside. I asked him what that was all about, and he informed me that he had gotten a hold of my stylist and made an appointment for me to get my hair cut and colored this Saturday. I almost passed out! I couldn't believe he thought to do all of that, all on his own. AMAZING! After work, the girls opened their gifts from us, and we made some cupcakes. I surprised Christian with some steaks, and some fancy beer he's never allowed to buy, and he did some winter grilling. It was a fantastic day all around!

12. Are you asking for anything this Valentine's Day?

No, I never would. I think the purpose of the day is to take it upon yourself to do something special for the ones you love. Whether monetary, sentimental, vocal...in whatever way you feel necessary. Most years, this day is very low key for us. It's just about being together. This year, we splurged a little (and, I'm not gonna lie, it feels really good!).

13. Give us one piece of advice on keeping a relationship strong and full of love.

I don't think there is one, perfect answer for this question. Every person, every relationship is different. Christian and I fight a lot (though, definitely not as much lately with less financial strain, the girls getting older, and less needy, and as we grow and evolve ourselves), and we always have. But, we always work through everything. In nearly 12 years together, we've never broken up, never taken a break, never turned our backs on each other. We've hit some pretty rock bottom places in our relationship over the years, but it really truly makes us stronger as a couple. Just having that will and desire to work through things - never lose that.

14. Show us a picture of what love means to you.

Our family, there is nothing greater.

2013 - Week 6

Here's to another week!!

Monday started out with a surprise ME day! I woke up tired, sluggish and just not ready to face the day. So, I dropped the girls off at my in-laws, like usual, and made my way right back home. I didn't have any meetings scheduled, my in-box was fairly cleaned out and nothing too pressing needed my attention. It's RARE, so I decided to take advantage. I spent the morning relaxing, watching some TV and being lazy. Eventually, I finally stopped being a couch potato...I finished up our weekly laundry, picked up the living room, kitchen and bedrooms and vacuumed the upstairs. A nice clean house, so refreshing! I started up a crockpot dinner, showered, and was relaxed and ready when the rest of the family got home. We had some dinner, went about our bedtime routine and called it a night. What a perfect, MUCH needed mental health day!

Tuesday was back to reality. Back to school, back to work - which consisted of several meetings. Ick - I hate meetings! The day went quickly though, so that's a plus. After work, Christian's friend stopped over to help him finish hooking the downstairs TV up to the antenna while the girls and I hung out and made dinner.

Amelia got herself all dressed up! I swear, they go downstairs to play, looking completely normal. They come up, looking something like this.

Wednesday marked the 6th straight day of snow. Never a ton, about an inch or so each day - but just enough to ruin EVERY commute. Man I hate winter driving. Today's snow didn't come until lunch time though - so at least it only slightly delayed the drive home. The morning drives after a snow are just brutal. I'm officially ready for spring! Amelia was a complete crabby wreck when I picker her up from school, and that joyful spirit stuck around most of the evening. Needless to day, it was an early bedtime for her. I [finally] started up the 60 Day Slimdown program today, and I'm SO ready to get back on track (seriously, how many times can one person say that?!?) But, really, I'm back on my mission!

Olivia wanted to take a picture with me tonight. GLADLY, my dear!

Thursday was pretty much the best day ever. As I wrote about in my surprise post, I started the day, as usual, balancing our checkbooks, only to notice that our Federal Tax Return had been deposited. So, I started the day by paying off our last, final piece of debt - our credit card. So, I was on cloud nine the rest of the day. We're in the process of closing Christian's bank account - which means moving all of our auto payments to my account, changing his work direct deposit to my account, getting him listed as a full joint member on my account and getting him a check card. I send off the last of the paperwork for this process this morning, so I'm pretty excited to only have one account to track pretty soon! I stopped into the store quick after work to grab some stuff for dinner, picked up the girls and we made our way home. They had a great week at school...I can see Olivia's "social butterfly" personality coming through more and more every day - she's been playing a lot with the other kids, and they all give her hugs and say good-bye to her when she leaves lately. She's been asking more and more about the Pre-K room this week, so I think she's getting pretty bored in preschool. Hopefully they're still on track to move her up this summer, because she's getting pretty anxious! Amelia had a great week as well, using the potty like a champ to boot! Apparently she's breaking her teachers' hearts by asking to go to the preschool room a lot. I'd say she'll definitely be moving up next month as planned - she certainly thinks she's ready! Miss Eva and Miss Judy are pretty upset about it though, which, oddly, makes me happy :) The girls have been heading down to their playroom every night when we get home. We've revoked their iPad privileges because we want to encourage them to play together, and actually PLAY, and they've been having a blast. They play dress up, pack up their backpacks (over and over again) with new treasures and it's great to see them actually being kids, rather than glued to "their" electronics. My mother in-law's birthday was today, so Christian stopped by their house after work to bring her some flowers and chat for a bit. So, it was a pretty chaotic night. I finally got my workout in after the girl went to bed and caught up on a few shows to end the night.

There's no escaping the pets...they are never too far away...

Friday started with my weekly weigh in. I knew it wouldn't be good - it's a bad week for me to weigh myself in general, plus I've been a cookie addict all week, and I JUST started my program on Wednesday. So, I was up over 2lbs this week!! SCARY! I'm back where I was after the holiday's. But, I'm not going to be too hard on myself. I'm starting, I'm motivated, and it's never too late to get back on track! Today was my Friday off, so the girls and I spent the day together. I spent the morning paying bills and doing the usual "paperwork" stuff. The girls played, watched some TV and actually got along most of the morning. YAY! They were surprisingly well-behaved all day really - they listened, they played well together, they ate all of their food at all of their meals, they took nice long naps. It was heaven. While they napped, I got my workout in, and started doing some research for our annual trip to Wisconsin Dells with the Stevesons. Man, I can't wait - for the trip, or to see our friends!!! Christian worked late, per usual on Friday's, so we ate dinner and hung out with the girls for a bit as soon as he got home. As soon as the girls were in bed, it was Coldstone Ice Cream and movies for us. We watched "Premium Rush" and "The Vow" tonight - both of them were actually really good. Even Christian liked the chick flick, LOL.  All in all, it was a fantastic start to the weekend!

Forced cuddles for Rico!!

Saturday brought us another pretty busy day. We started with a little TV, some breakfast and some play time. Then, it was time for showers and getting ready. The girls were off to my godmother's house for a playdate with her and her grandchildren. They did some crafts, watched some movies and have a pizza party. Apparently they had the time of their lives and were busy as can be. And, apparently they have deemed my godmother as "Grandma Sandy". They sure know how to suck up! While they partied it up, Christian and I were off on an early Valentines Day date! We went to a movie (I don't remember the last time I actually paid for a movie, LOL). We say "Identity Thief" and OMG, it was HILARIOUS! Seriously the funniest movie I've seen in a long time. I would highly recommend it. After the movie, we were off to dinner at Chili's (to use a Christmas gift card) and just chatted, laughed and got WAY to full. Finally, we stopped into the mall so Christian could use the gift card I gave him for Christmas on some new clothes. How romantic! After we picked up the girls, and listened to all of their exciting stories from their day, we stopped at my dad's house for a quick visit. They live right down the road from my godmother, so we couldn't leave the area without checking in with them. Of course, my stepmom had some more crafts for the girls to do and sent them home with some goody bags. They are way too spoiled!!! FINALLY, we were on our way home. The girls passed out before we hit the highway and were out for the night. Christian and I were settled into watch some Saturday Night Live, but we both passed out as well. Too much excitement for all of us!!

Here we are, ready for our big date! *whistle, whistle*

Sunday brought in a new round of storms. Rain, sleet, snow, wind, repeat. All day. Of course, I didn't get our weekly shopping done before the weather hit, so I was stuck heading out in it. JOY! Weekly chores were much easier than usual though...I managed to keep the main level pretty clean this week, so I pretty much just had to do laundry (lets pretend like the basement doesn't exist right now). I got my workout in, we watched some movies with the girls and we just hung out around the house. Nothing like some forced family relaxation!

 Olivia, looking so old.

 Amelia, what a devil!

THIS is how you color!

So, that ends another week. While Amelia stays pretty dry during her naps and bedtime - she isn't quite there yet, so we're still working on the final potty training kinks. I feel like I can officially say I'm back on track with my workout plan, and that makes me feel really good about myself. We accomplished a HUGE success in paying off the last of our debt this week, AND, started planning our 2012 trip to the Dell. Definitely a successful week!

Surprise Post...BIG NEWS!

So, I'm going out of my weekly format for a very special brag post.

We are officially DEBT FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG, I cannot get enough of that. Other than our mortgage (AKA, good debt), we are free and clear. No credit cards, no car loans, no second mortgage, no ANYTHING. It feels so amazing. It definitely has not set in yet. We received our Federal Tax return this morning, and I immediately paid off our Visa. The last remaining penny of (unsecured) debt that we have.

Several years ago, we stated getting into trouble. Through a series of unfortunate events, bad planning, and hasty decisions, we got ourselves into quite a bit of debt. An expensive wedding that came with some additional expenses we were not anticipating; buying our "forever" house too soon after said expensive wedding, with no down-payment, leaving us with a ridiculous mortgage payment; and an unplanned pregnancy and start to our family. So, I started on the path of getting us up on our feet again. Becoming obsessed (OBSESSED!!!) with our budget, and figuring out what I ended to do to get us out of our mess. This involved each of us opening a line of credit, and using it pretty frequently, and racking up some credit card debt along the way (not on anything fun or exciting, but on necessities, and bills - I NEVER thought I'd see the day when I would be charging BILLS). Over time, we paid off each small debt, little by little. We continued to claim 0 on our tax withholdings, so that we could get that big refund and actually put it to good use, resulting in paying off Christian's truck last year (I've never had a car payment). Last summer, I was able to modify our mortgage, bring it down significantly (to what I refer to as a "normal" mortgage payment). Finally, we DID finally breakdown and change our tax withholdings last summer as well, to get a bigger bi-weekly income to make sure we stayed ahead of the game.

So, for years I've used an excel spreadsheet to track our income and budget. Basically, I list every paycheck (we both get paid every other Friday), and everything that comes out of that check (from gas for the cars, to every actual bill, to spending money - which is everything from toilet paper, to birthday party gifts, to family outings). So, I can see where we stand at any given time - estimated, but after several years, it's pretty accurate. Right now, our budget goes all the way through the end of 2014, so that gives me a good glimpse into the more distant future. I have daycare cost adjustments built in as the girls get older and when they'll start full time, and I've built in extra daycare costs later next year, when we hope to have our 3rd child. So, it's pretty in-depth.

Every payday, I go in and update our budget, and pay any bills for that pay period that aren't automatically withdrawn. Every morning when I get to work, I pull up our checkbook (which I track on another spreadsheet) and our budget, balance our bank accounts and update our budget as needed. The next time we get paid, I balance out that pay period, start on the next, and double check "the future" to make sure everything is still on track. I have this down to a science!

Now, in the past, this process was a lot more trying and stressful. It involved a lot of transferring money around, borrowing from our lines of credit, charging things here and there to make sure we could cover everything (hence the credit card payoff need). With time, things have gotten a lot cleaner, and a lot better - especially over the last year since paying off the truck. Now, there's no more worrying. It's done, we're on the road to much greener pastures!

I'm now in the process of closing Christian's bank account, so we'll just have our one account. I've moved all of our bills to withdraw from my account, Christian handed in his direct deposit paperwork to go into my account, and he's being added on as a joint. YAY, no more tracking two accounts!!!

It feels so amazing to have something we've worked so hard towards come to fruition. All of the "sacrifices" and all of the countless hours I've spent looking at and adjusting our budget have paid off. All of the clipping coupons, signing up for every freebie and sample imaginable, and entering every contest that comes my way. We don't go out much (and, usually do only if it's free/we won free tickets/etc.).We don't get to go everywhere we want to go, we don't have everything we want, we don't do everything we want to do. We don't have the latest, fanciest gadgets (unless gifted to us), the best clothes or go on vacations more extravagant than "Up North" or "Groupon" purchased. But, it's all been worth it. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off of my shoulders.

So, that's my story. That's our financial background. That's our journey. While it's a difficult journey, I'm actually happy we've gone through it. It's made us stronger, individually and as a family, it's made us realize and accept what's really important in life and it's taught us a lot. And, most importantly, we can forge ahead with our next adventures in life!

The next goals are 1) to get my car to hold out until next year, when we should essentially be able to pay cash for a new vehicle.2) lose this weight, hopefully by the end of this summer! No rest for the weary, time to keep pushing through!