You guessed it!

Well, you guessed it! I am, in fact, the most inconsistent blogger on the planet. In fact, it's been almost a year since I last blogged. Life has been busy. So busy that sometimes I have not even been able to sit down once at the computer in an entire day, or if I do get the time to sit down, it is only for the dreaded school work. Thankfully there is light at the end of the tunnel there. I currently have five, yes, I said only FIVE, classes left to complete my Bachelor's, and I am SO relived. At the rate I am going, I should graduate in August!! I am going to take a bit of time off and move onto my graduate program the next spring. For one because I need some time to catch up to the real world, and for two, Aaron is going to transfer his GI Bill to me so that I can complete the program without having to pay $25,000 out of pocket or get loans, and he can't do that until, you guessed it, next spring because of retainability blah blah blah Air Force stuff (<---- about="" am="" feeling="" how="" i="" military="" now="" p="" right="" see="" the="">
Since I last blogged, life has changed A LOT!!! Some changes:

-Elliot turned one! (Who am I kidding? She's well on her way to TWO now!)
-Emma turns three TOMORROW!! (What?!?!)
-Aaron found out he scored high enough for his promotion!!! (He's in school for it now, and will actually get the promotion March 1st!)
-Elliot has gone through 8 months of a grueling three days a week physical therapy, and SHE WALKS!!!! (She still has muscle issues, and her toe will still need corrective surgery. She also has one leg that is shorter than the other that will most likely require surgery too.)
-Elliot was diagnosed with Asthma and food allergies to Peanuts, Eggs, Shellfish, and Pecans. (WAHHHH!!!)

One of the biggest things that has happened since I last blogged is that I think I have finally found Ashley again! After being pregnant with both girls, I kind of lost the vision of who I was, in a sense of I only saw the mom Ashley, not the young, spunky, Ashley. I mean obviously I am not quite as spunky as I once was. Two kiddos will do that to you, but what I mean is that I am finally seeing beyond myself as a mom and only a mom. I have realized that I am a person too and need time for ME regardless of how much I love those girls of mine! Because of this, I got back in the gym and lost FORTY pounds! Yahoo!!! I am now at less than I was when I had Emma and feeling great about me! One of the best things about finding me again is that even though I am taking time for myself more than I ever was (5 minutes in the shower counts!!), I am the best mom I have ever been! My mood is better, and I am just overall a lot less on edge with girls.

Moral of the story: Your children are not all that matter. YOU are really important too! Obviously, there are a lot of things that get pushed aside for parents. There are, I get it, but some things just can't be pushed aside. Even if you take 5 minutes to polish your nails, or whatever it may be, TAKE CARE OF YOU!! It really does make for a better mom, wife, friend, person, etc.

Easter

This past weekend was obviously Easter! We had a BLAST! Aaron originally had to work on Saturday and was going to miss Emma's first egg hunt, but a kind single Airman took his place for the funeral, and he was able to join us!! Of course Emma loved hunting eggs and all of the candy that was inside them.

Now, call me crazy, but I wished there wasn't any candy inside. Maybe I'm a snob, but I don't want my children to have candy at every holiday. Candy in their Easter baskets, candy for Valentine's Day, candy in their Christmas stocking, etc. etc. Why? Why does everyone feel the need to do this? Is it because that's what we got as kids, so that's just what we are used to? Don't get me wrong, I LOVE candy, but it's terrible for us. I mean really, no nutritional value whatsoever. I am totally down for sweet treats and snacks here and there, but for the most part, I don't want my girls having those sorts of things! Call me a snob, I DON'T CARE! In my eyes, it is up to us as parents to help our kiddos make the right choices. This includes food choices. I cannot say that we are perfect eaters over here, but we are pretty good at eating wholesome meals and trying to eat real foods all the time. We make a lot of our things from scratch and don't buy many things that are packaged. I don't want my girls to be raised on the same foods that I was raised on (no offense to anyone that raised me, ;)

Seriously though, why would we give our children candy for every holiday? After a few times, they come to expect it, then they want it more than just for holidays, then it becomes weekly, then everyday. No thank you! I do not want that to happen in my house! So, I am proud to say that my girls did not have a single ounce of candy in their baskets. Instead, they each had a small toy, a pair of shoes, some new spoons and forks, and some clothes. Practical and useful. That's the way I like it to be! Maybe this post makes me snob, but as I said before, I really don't care! I feel like helping my girls to make the right choices is one of my duties as their mother and feeding them loads of candy for every holiday is a good way to head them in the wrong direction.

Light at the End

Let's face it: I am a TERRIBLE blogger. I don't know why I am a terrible blogger, or why I even pretend that I am going to be a better blogger. I really do enjoy blogging, but I just never find myself sitting at the computer with nothing other blogging to do. (Who am I kidding?! Every night after I am done with homework, I spend at least an hour looking at Etsy when I could be blogging.) I just have this tendency to get lost in what I am doing and totally forget I even have a blog. I mean it is March, and my last post was in November. Ummmm, helloo there again!

Anyhow, as I sit at my computer now, I think about all of the things that have happened since I last blogged and what I could write about. So many stories and memories stick out to me in my head just in that short span of time. I have to ask myself, how blessed am I to not have a hard time picking out great memories in just a few short months.

Now, trust me, there have been some really crappy (And I use the word crappy because it is most definitely the nicest way to put it.) memories between then and now too. We could start with it being almost April and still not having our tax refund even though we filed in January, or we could talk about the truck we just bought needing $1000 in repairs, or we could talk about how Aaron's squadron is giving him the total run around about a decision that they needed to make weeks ago, or we could talk about someone in Korea hacking all of my online accounts, and the list really goes on and on. OR we could talk about the good.

I've come to realize just tonight that dwelling on all of these crappy situations above is going to get me nowhere, but being creative, an adult, and looking at the positive in everything WILL. We haven't gotten our tax return? So what. We'll get creative until then. $1000 in repairs? At least no one was in a wreck and injured badly because of the problems with the truck. Aaron's squadron giving him the run around? Well, I'm still looking for the positive there.

The fact of the matter and something that I am trying to do myself is to STOP DWELLING. It's so hard as a young family to not dwell on $1000 in repair costs to a vehicle you haven't even owned but for a week, but such is life. We will recoup and recover and move on with our lives. We can't keep thinking what if? or Why? We just have to put on our big girl panties and deal. (I know, I know. That saying is as old as the hills. It probably goes back before my time, but it is so incredibly true.). This is not to say that we will be perfect or even near perfect. I mean I still can't find the positive in the situation with Aaron's squadron, but the fact of the matter is that we are working towards finding the positives and bettering ourselves.

So to try and better ourselves and our family, Aaron and I have sat down and reorganized our budget, and we are really going to make this year a year of goals and accomplishments. If we get knocked down, we have to learn to get right back up and go again.

Heart Strings

Okay, I don't often blog three times in one week and especially not two days in a row, but there is something that is really tugging at my heart strings tonight. I know several people, acquaintances, if you will, who have recently gone through divorces. These people all have young children. This really has been tugging at my heart tonight. I know that divorce happens, and sometimes, it really is the best choice, but I keep thinking about if my own babies had divorced parents. For those of you married with kids, doesn't that make you sad? I think about having to let them go to "Dad's house" and sharing them for holidays and their birthdays. That makes me really really sad to even have to think about doing something like that. I watch, Teen Mom (I know, I know, but it is fun to watch really awful reality TV sometimes), and every time I see the girls have to say goodbye to their kids for a day or a weekend or whichever, I think what if that were me?

Well, I am so thankful it is not me. I am so thankful for a loving husband. I am thankful that we don't have to share our children and send them to each others' houses. I have realized lately just how lucky I am, and I really have to work on showing how thankful I am more often. It is easy to take for granted all of the good in our lives, and I think that is something that everyone needs to work on!

Too Fast!

I swear it seems like yesterday that Elliot was born, doesn't it? Well, it wasn't! On Friday, she will be six months old! Holy cow! Where in the world did time go? And Emma is going to be two in approximately a month! WHAT! TWO?! I have to admit it makes me rather sad thinking about my babies growing up. They are becoming so much fun though, really. Especially Emma since she speaks lots and lots of full sentences now! That girl is a firecracker, and on top of that, she is HILARIOUS! Seriously, I am not just saying that because she's my kid. Anyway, no news to report this time, but I wanted to share a few recent pictures. :)

Turkey Day!

Hey Y'all! (Ahh! It's so refreshing to say that, seriously! It brings me back to my home for a split second.) Anyway, tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and boy have I been busy today! Everything is ready for tomorrow, even the girls outfits, though, so that is what counts! Tomorrow is the third Thanksgiving that we will be in California for, which means the third Thanksgiving that I haven't gotten to spend at "home" with my wonderful family. It makes me sad, but I am also happy to know that we have good friends here to celebrate the holidays with.

Even more exciting than tomorrow being Thanksgiving is that Friday we are going to pick up our tree and decorate it! I am so excited to get everything done this year since Emma is actually old enough to enjoy it finally! I hope she will actually rip all of her presents open and be super excited! My dad is getting her a trampoline, and I just know she will love that! I hope that the weather cooperates on Christmas day so that we will be able to put it together and she can jump on it even if it is freezing outside! Christmas is indeed my favorite time of year, and in the light of Thanksgiving tomorrow, I am so incredibly thankful for the Air Force. While it may be making me spend years thousands of miles away from my real home, it is paying our bills and providing us great benefits, and we are able to afford to give our girls a Christmas! I definitely know that that is not what Christmas is all about, but it really makes my heart happy to be able to give to my girls! :)

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all!

C'mon people!

Just a little rant! I am not a genius, and I can admit that. I am an intelligent person, though, and the misuse/misspelling/etc. of words and other grammar mistakes DRIVES ME CRAZY! If I am typing something, and I know I cannot spell the word or even question it, I look it up! Here's a little FYI on the words that drive me the most crazy!

THEN means soon after. I.e. I went shopping, and then I went home.
THAN is a word used after comparative adjectives and adverbs. I.e. She is shorter than I am.

YOUR is possessive. I.e. That is your ball.
YOU'RE means you are. I.e. You're the star of the show!

TO is a preposition. I.e. I am going to the store.
TOO means also. I.e. I am going too!

THERE means in or at a place. I.e. I am going to be there too.
THEIR is possesive. I.e. That is their house.
THEY'RE is a contraction for They are. I.e. They are having a party.

Oh and DEFINITELY is spelled that way <<< There is no A! :)

I feel better now!

Just say NO!

Here lately, I have been looking at my to do list and feeling ultra overwhelmed. Some days, I stay up until 1 or 2 in the morning just to get my homework done because I have had a constant list of things to do all day. Obviously this is not ideal since Elliot is waking up around 3 or 4 to eat, and then we're up for the day around 7 or 730. I know that I need to get more sleep in order to be a healthier person, and in order for that to happen, I really need to learn to say no every now and then.

I constantly put more and more projects on my plate knowing that it will make me up that much later at night, but I have the hardest time saying no! I am trying to lose about 15 pounds, and I know that sleep is a huge part of losing weight, and I definitely do not get enough of it with all of my projects floating around! I have to really start focusing on the end goal I have in mind and that is to get back to where I was in high school as far as weight goes. It kinds of sickens me to think that I am 15 pounds heavier than I was then, but let's face it. I had two babies within 17 months of each other, and Elliot is only 4 months old. I have to stop being so hard on myself about the way I look, but at the same time, I need to start really focusing on myself. At my current weight, I am a size 10, which really isn't bad at all, but I want to be back between a 6 and 8, which is where I was at my thinnest. I don't want to be any smaller than that because I would look sickly at 5'10 and as big boned as I am!

So, here's to a healthier me, learning to say no so that I can get more sleep, and a deep focus on losing weight. I have said several times now that I am going to get serious about losing weight, but I really need to be serious! 15 pounds is not that much, and I CAN do it! If you have any secrets, fill me in! :) And no diet pills! I am breastfeeding!

Now, Now!

Hey y'all! It's nearing midnight as I type this post, but I haven't updated in so long, I felt it was time! I have told myself for the last two weeks every day that I would go to bed at 1030, but that is just impossible if I want some time for myself. We put the girls to bed by 830, but after that, I have to pick up toys, the girls clothes, start some laundry, and most importantly my homework. Ick. Homework. Okay I am really stoked about being back in school because school really is important to me! However, In the second semester of my Junior year now, the classes are getting a lot more thorough! I enjoy that, but I really don't have time to write an 8 page paper every week, like my marriage and family class is requiring. I WILL survive. It's just getting to that point. ;)

In other news, it's election season, and all the crazies are coming out of the wood works! Seriously people, we are all entitled to our own opinions. That's what my husband and his co-workers, my friend's husbands, and even some of my friends fight for, now isn't it? Trust me, the military life isn't all glamour, so we better get something out of putting up with the crap! That something is freedom of speech! I get so sick of people saying "Stop posting your opinion on Facebook." Ummmm, the last I checked, this is still America, and that is THEIR Facebook page they are posting to! If you do not like it, do not read it, or remove them from your friends list! Also, if you are going to try and sound intelligent, PLEASE make sure you can spell the big word you think you are using correctly! I am not big into politics, but I know which of the two candidates that I feel is the lesser of two evils. I say this because I see huge flaws in both candidates. I do not see eye to eye on everything with either. I am just choosing the one who I feel will do the least damage in our current situation! :)

PS: CHECK OUT MY RAINBOW NAILS! Get yours HERE.

What a LONG Weekend!

This weekend was incredibly long and difficult in the Bellinger household! Elliot was ultra fussy all weekend and did not want to sleep at all making for one tired momma! Emma has been her usual spunky self, so no problems from her besides the occasional "mine" fit, which by the way, I STRONGLY dislike that "mine" word. It has become the most frequent word that she uses lately besides Sammy, of course. She really loves our little dog Sammy, and he usually always loves her! Thankfully!

Some good that came out of this super stressful weekend: I finally got the paint to refinish my kitchen table and chairs! Okay, don't be alarmed, but I am painting the table lime green and the chairs turquoise! I know, I know, FUNKY! But that is exactly what I am going for! :) Also, Aaron did some modifications to his motorcycle that were FREE! Yes, I said FREE! I don't usually get the joy out of his "projects" for his vehicles because they usually end up costing as four times as much as the $40 he claimed it would cost, so I am super stoked that he got some things done that he wanted and was able to use things lying around the house!

Another new thing: I started selling Jamberry Nails! Yeah! They are super cool nail shields that you heat and attach to your nails. They can last up to 6 weeks on your toes and 3 weeks on your fingers! Anyway, you can check them out here.

Here lately I have been really struggling with living in California. I know God has plans. I just have to keep reminding myself of that. Our good friends Ashleigh and Chris and their daughter Taylor are back now after Chris's deployment, so I am incredibly thankful to have them back! Ashleigh is one of the only people I'd trust to keep my kiddos, and it's nice to have that. She and Chris are the only couple that Aaron and I both get along with, so that's great as well! But, I still really dislike this place. I keep thinking about this being our third Christmas here, and I can't believe the time is flying that quickly. Hopefully the remainder of our time here (about three years) will go by quickly as well. I keep pressuring Aaron into volunteering to go to Korea for a year, but he really doesn't want to miss his girls for a year, and I really can't blame him. The plus for me would be that I could go home and stay with my grandparents for that time. I would LOVE to do that, but I also wouldn't want Aaron to be in Korea by himself. BUT we could save over $10k while he was gone. Oh, the pros and cons with everything in the military life. I wish there was just some manual that came with this lifestyle that says what to do if.... Ultimately the decision is up to him, of course, but if it were me, I would just volunteer and see what happens. It wouldn't be guaranteed that he would get it, but there is a good possibility. Another pro: we would be stationed somewhere else once he got back!

Isaac, and tigers, and mountain lions?!?! Oh MY!

Yep, I totally screwed that saying up on purpose! Why, you ask? Because there have been at least five mountain lion sitings in BASE HOUSING in the last month. Peoples' pets are missing, and this guy's hanging around town. I am not ok with that! There have been many people just brushing it off saying that it's no big deal, and mountain lions don't hurt people, etc. This is no situation to take lightly, in my opinion. I have to state "in my opinion" because obviously that is not the thought of everyone, even though it seems common sense to me. Oh, but common sense is something that really isn't common enough! Common sense tells us that even though mountain lions general avoid people, if they are hungry enough, they will venture into housing developments, etc. So this guy is obviously hungry! He can't find what he wants elsewhere, so he has to come out of his comfort zone and come our way! I don't know about you, but I do NOT want to be eaten for dinner by a wild animal, so I am keeping myself and my babies inside as much as possible!

Also, Hurricane Isaac is headed straight for Mississippi, my home! We have family all over Mississippi including the gulf coast, so I am saying a few prayers that the destruction is little and that it doesn't gain too much strength in the gulf before hitting land. What's eerie to me is that he is coming on Katrina's 7th anniversary. If you know what Katrina is, you know what it did to Mississippi. Yes, I say Mississippi. The EYE of the hurricane hit in Bay St. Louis/Waveland, MISSISSIPPI, not New Orleans or anywhere else. Despite what the media covered, Mississippi was devastated by that storm, and it cannot handle another major hurricane! Our families are not evacuating, so please keep them in your thoughts and prayers as Isaac hits early Wednesday morning!

I did it!

I did it people, I did it! I kept to my word. :) Only a month or so late, but the blog has a new look, and I am thrilled with it. Maybe it will inspire me to update more often!

Fail!

Okay, keeping with my track record, I have failed to update the look of my blog! Let's face it folks, I am BUSY! The weekend I was supposed to work on it, we had issue with the dog that lives behind us, and Security Forces was at our house for about three hours filling out paperwork. So, I have been working out the new design throughout the last two weeks, but it is not quite done yet! Aaron has been in exercise this week, and it has been really hard for the girls and I to adjust to not having him here. We have made it with only one day left, yahoo! We will survive. ;)

Anywho: Something that's been on my mind A LOT lately is car seat safety! First off, extended rearfacing! I wish more moms would consider keeping their children rearfacing after the age of one. It is 500 times safer! Please, watch this video! It's a little long, but totally worth it!

Another huge thing that bothers me is position of the car seat's chest clip. It is called a CHEST clip for a reason people. It's not a belly clip or a crotch clip. It needs to be level with your baby/toddler's ARMPITS!

Also, if the car seat didn't come with it, chances are it ISN'T safe! Those strap covers, toss 'em. That head support, toss it! Seriously! Nothing should between your child and the car seat. Not even a coat in cold weather!


Here is a great blog post about common mistakes made when using car seats!

Blog Design

I am excited to say that a total redesign of my blog is coming your way! I am hoping to have it completely finished by the end of the weekend! I have had the same design for way too long, and plus, I need to update to include both girls in my design. Yay for crafty things! :))

Oh, California

Lately, I've been pretty bummed about living in California. We've had a mountain of obstacles thrown at us, and it's been hard to not have the support of a family down the street. As you know, baby 2 was born. He turned out to be a SHE, and I couldn't have been happier! We kept the name Elliot and will call her Ellie. Upon her arrival, we noticed that she had a toe that was a little crazy, so naturally, we asked the pediatrician about it. After a few extra doctors appointments and a visit with a pediatric surgeon, we learned she will have to have a series of surgeries from the age of 1 until the age of 12 to fix it. Our dilemma here is that we are nearly 3000 miles from home, and we live in the middle of NOWHERE. The nearest pediatric surgeon is an hour and a half a way, and surgery on a tiny little one means at least one night in the hospital. This would be fine if we only had Ellie, but we have Emma as well! If you know me, you know I trust no one with my children. (Ok, I really need to do better about the anxiety.) This is a problem because now Emma and Aaron will have to be home while Ellie and I are at a hospital over an hour away. The Air Force won't move us because they say that we have adequate care here even though it's not convenient. This is our major struggle at this point. We have no chance of getting orders out of this place until Aaron is eligible for Base of Preference (BOP), which is January 2015! Emma will be FOUR! Yowza. That seems like such a long time to be here, but we will make it! I will know more about Elliot's surgeries once we meet with the new surgeon at Shriner's hospital. That appointment should be within the next month, and I will update then!

Finding Balance

Here lately, our life has been about finding balance. We have been taking more steps to become a more intentional and natural-living family and learning new things as we go. At the beginning of April, we took the plunge into clean eating! We cleared our cabinets almost completely and started basically from scratch! I am happy to say that while we are not 100% clean eaters, we are at about 90%, and we have never felt better! Aaron has lost about 10 pounds so far! Since I am pregnant, there is no real way to gauge my weight since I am gaining weekly from the pregnancy. (I can say though, at 36 weeks, I have only gained 18lbs!) My favorite thing about eating clean thus far has been the experimentation with new recipes, especially desserts! We have definitely found some favorites and some not so favorites so far, which I plan to start sharing! :) I am a little anxious about our eating with Elliot's arrival approaching quickly since we will be in the hospital for two days and then things will be incredibly hectic around here for a while, I'm sure! But, I am confident that we can FIND BALANCE!

Another balance issue we've been working with is discipline for Emma. I am anti spanking and want to practice gentle discipline for her. She is such a spit fire that it really is difficult at times to keep my cool with her. I have been doing really well with giving her words for her feelings when she is mad or upset and trying to redirect her when she is doing something that is not allowed. She has started to get "swats" for dangerous actions, like her new favorite of running into the street. But, that is the only thing I will swat for. Swatting/Spanking/etc. for hitting, biting, scratching is one of my biggest pet peeves. If a child hits, and you do not want him/her to hit, then what good is it for you to hit him/her back? No good. Basically you're saying, I can do this, but you can't. That may work when you're child is 16, but definitely not when they are toddlers. One thing we are struggling with is her hitting and scratching. She only does this to Aaron, and I haven't figured out why she always directs her frustrations towards him. Okay, well, he is REALLY aggravating at times, so I can see that. ;) But, what we have been doing is if we are holding her and she hits/scratches is putting her down and walking away. This really seems to work at home, but what do we do in public? At a restaurant or the park, etc? This is the struggle we are having lately. I have been reading a lot of gentle discipline articles on blogs and trying to get some guidance, so I will let you know what I come with!

Why, Hello Again!

Oh my! I just realized I haven't blogged since SEPTEMBER! Yikes! Needless to say, it has been a crazy, hectic 7 months since then! I am pretty sure September was the month we found out we were expecting again! Or maybe it was the beginning of October? Either way, geez that's been a long time! I am now 32 weeks 5 days along, and yes, that means I have 7ish weeks left! Thankfully because I have been over this pregnancy for a long time now! We have an exciting few months coming up, and that is why I decided to start blogging again. :) So, while I may not post daily like I used to, I hope to at least post once or twice a week!

Stay At Home Moms don't do anything?!?!?!?

Okay, folks, you know me. I think having a stay at home parent is important for children. I don't look down on parents who don't get to stay at home, but for those of us who do, we know it's an important job, and oh, did I mention, HARD WORK!

This post comes because I was reading another mom's blog today (who also stays at home), and she said her husband thought Stay at Home Moms don't do much! WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am pretty sure we do it all! We don't get days off. We are responsible for appointments, chores, errands, bill paying, house cleaning, sicknessses, laundry, and the list never ends. If I am thinking correctly, that means we do a WHOLE lot. Not to mention, your child or children get to grow up with a parent with them not with a daycare provider who probably doesn't give two, well, I can't think of a nice word to put here, :) about your child. The daycare is just a way for them to make money.

This is obviously not all daycare providers since once my children are in school, I plan to teach, but I have worked in daycare and preschool, and while I really care about children and made them a priority, I have worked with plenty of people who just needed a job. This is sad, yes, but it's a reality, and because of that, staying at home is vital for me especially while my children are very young and fragile.

So, for those of you who stay at home, thumbs up to you. I know sometimes I have felt like I missed my calling when having a bad day. I think: "I really should've finished college before having a baby." "Maybe I would be better off working," etc. etc. Sometimes I feel like I have failed myself and my peers. For those of you who don't know, I graduated number 4 in my class of 200+, and I was a super scholar, ACT scholar, the president of many organizations, etc. I get comments all the time like, "I never would've guessed you'd be married and with child." Most people would take offense because the "right" thing to do is have an education and career before having children in the eyes of many. But in the end, this is my calling, and everything will all work out. School will be finished (Because that is super important to me, and I want my children to be able to do the same), and life will happen. For right now, being at home, taking care of the house and Emma IS my calling. I want to have more children, and they will be my calling when they come along too! Children are such blessings, and I wouldn't trade one second for being at home with my baby. Here is one of my favorite quotes:

“Life affords no greater responsibility, no greater privilege, than the raising of the next generation.” 
- C. Everett Koop

And here is my calling :)

The Cash Only, Envelope Budget!

Okay folks, it's definitely supposed to be cloth diaper Tuesday, but I decided I like randomness better, so I want to talk about MONEY and FINANCES! Yahoo. Everyone loves money, right?

Since moving on base, I've been lucky enough to meet some awesome people that I would've never met had we continued to live off base! Just last week, I was able to meet a sweet sweet mom to an 18 month old that live just a few houses down! I won't mention her name because I am just weird about mentioning other people when I don't have their permission. Okay, back to the story: In the short time since I met her, I have learned so much! She was talking of a cash only budget, and I just had to know more! Her and her husband attended the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University class at their church last year, and she was gracious enough to share her knowledge and materials so that I didn't have to pay for the class!

If you know nothing about Dave Ramsey, GO NOW and research his baby steps and all of his financial advice! I am no expert, so I am not going to sit here and give you financial advice, but I will explain to you how the cash only approach with envelope system works! There is a little book, part of Dave Ramsey's materials that you can order on his website or on amazon.com. Here it is:

This is the inside! It has a place for your checkbook on the left, a notepad and pen in the center, and the right side has the envelopes, a coin pouch, and a place for your debit card, ID, etc.

Here are the envelopes!

Okay, I am definitely no expert on this, but I will tell you what I do know. Basically, you come up with categories of items that are purchased each month, most importantly, clothing, food, shelter, and transportation. Some of my categories include food, clothing, house misc., car repairs, blow money, etc. You can create as many as you need and use a separate envelope for each category. Sit down, figure out your necessary expenses, and dedicate a set amount of cash for each category. Once you run out of cash, that's it. No more blow money or whatever the category may be.

I am super excited about this because once I actually sat down and figured out the amount of money that we bring in vs. our bills, we had a lot of money left over that was just being blown on random, pointless things. Now that every dime is spent before it even reaches us, it's nice the money has a purpose, and now I am paying twice what I actually have to pay a month on our car to pay it off in about a 1/3 of the time as we have it finance for! YAHOOOOOOOOOO! All of that, and I'm still able to put a good chunk into savings each month!

Just a couple things I read in Dave Ramsey's book that really stood out to me:

"If you will live like no one else, one day you will be able LIVE like no one else!"

"A good man leaves an inheritance for his children's children." Proverbs 13:22

Ohhhhh, and if you read his book and listen to his advice, you'll never take out a loan again! :)

Oh Wednesdays!!! :)

So there is something about Wednesday that I really love. Maybe it's that the week is getting closer to be over and we're going to have Aaron home for a few days, or maybe it's that I've started going to coffee mornings every Wednesday, and it's just nice to have the adult company even though there are only a few of us that actually show up every week. I love coffee and good conversation, and it's nice to see other mom's having to keep up with kids too.

On another note, we're really trying out this budget thing this month. August was pretty hectic because we had to pay rent for our other house still and we had some final bills to pay, but now that we are done with our other house, we can actually set funds for each thing. This is going to be hard for me especially because I like to randomly buy things for Emma. Not for myself, but I get a special joy buying things for Emma. So, here's to having only a set amount for everything and sticking to it! Once I get it all worked out and working correctly, maybe I'll lay it all out for anyone who wants an example. Just so you know in advance, we don't make that much money. :) I told my Granny yesterday how much we make, and she just goes. "How do you pay all your bills?" hehe. The military is "so overpaid," right? NOT!


       Daily picture: Isn't this the sweetest face you've ever seen?!?!?