We just finished another 101 List item and it’s a doozie: We fully funded our emergency fund. A fully funded emergency fund includes enough cash to cover 3-6 months of expenses. This isn’t want-to-haves or not pleasure spending. We’re talking flat out expenses like the mortgage, insurance, food and electricity. We’d been close for a […]
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Out with the Old
This beast was loud and, even worse, lazy. Dishes half-cleaned while we shouted at one another during operating cycles. It had to go. So thanks to a very good deal at Home Depot – allowing us to stay nearly $200 under budget while getting all of the features we wanted, it was time to send […]
20 Minutes of Hard Work
I love the roses in our backyard, but they have been a pain. First, they have the sharpest, wickedest thorns you’ve ever seen. Second, the bush was planted far too close to our house. The root ball bumped against the foundation and the branches had a terrible way of rubbing against the window on windy […]
Reflections on 42
42 seems like an awful number, when you put it in print. Particularly when you think of 42 in context of age. 42 means I’m no longer entering my 40’s. By 42 I am firmly planted in my 40’s. 42 means I’m now twice as old as my mom was when she had me. 42 […]
Decisions Decisions
After shoving that horribly heavy piano through the front door, nicking the front door slightly in the process… And after then heading to Home Depot to buy a new dishwasher, passing the paint chips on the way to the appliance department… I decided it was time to start thinking about what color to paint […]
One Of The Craziest Things We’ve Ever Done (Lately)
The Boy’s brother called him last month and asked if he’d like to have his grandmother’s piano. The Boy asked me what I thought – mentioning all of the wonderful features of the piano, as well as noting that it was his grandmother’s piano (three times). Of course, I said, we want the piano. The […]
Getting It Done
It shocks me how easily I forget the value of downtime in my life. Setting aside never-ending deadlines, even temporarily, is soul restorative. It's not as though nothing gets done in downtime (this is me, after all), but what gets done nurtures me – creatively, physically and relationally. Downtime this weekend included the simple pleasures […]
Dog Days of Debt-Freedom
The financial sages will tell you that there are hard times in the pursuit of becoming debt-free. Usually that’s discussed in the context of digging out of a mountain of stupid debt, like credit cards, car notes or excessive student loans. Then there’s the debt-free slog for the ultimate prize: 100% debt-freedom with a paid-for […]
Another Weekend Gone Too Soon
I'm not dreading work tomorrow by any means, but I am mourning the end of a nice weekend. There never seems to be enough time to do everything. As I sit here, winding down in preparation for bed, laundry is unfinished, shopping is incomplete, half-finished projects are scattered throughout the house and the yard and […]
Rest It Out
We need rest. We need rest. We need rest. It’s become serious business, this need for rest around our house. We’re in that kind of mode where we fall asleep around 8:30 pm and barely drag ourselves out of bed at 5 am to start a new day. Weekend activity? Forgetaboutit. It may be the […]