Budgeting

Blah Blah Blah money money money blah blah blah

Marc and I did it. We sat down and looked at numbers, not in a hypothetical type realm but in reality. We sat down and looked at what I make verses what he makes and combined the numbers to come up with a max income (obviously for me the outlying factors would of course be how many weddings or funerals I do which would increase my income some as well as how many crocheted hats I sell - but we didn't include this and said this could go toward extra money towards his student debt, car, or the house).

Budgeting sucks. We had a bit of a utopic idea of what we could spend and what we needed to save as well as how much we needed to put towards the house, student loans, and his car. We had some rough numbers. We also wanted to make sure that we were saving some and first and foremost we were tithing. We had to make some hard decisions about what was important to us as a couple and about what we could cut/or live without. We had to have discussions about how important it was to us to be without debt and how quickly we wanted to have it all paid off.

If we can stick to our budget we figured out that we would only have the house debt left in five years, and we both breathed a bit of a sigh of relief knowing that we would be free from that and then at that point we decided we would massively start trying to pay down the house. It is crazy what limiting certain spending can do to a budget. It is amazing how much we really had to work with when we started planning out the numbers and crunching things. Now we didn't go totally crazy and cut all spending money on fun things, we know it is still important to us to be able to take vacations, and go to an occasional movie and eat out, however we also realize it is important to us to pay off our debt. We don't want to live under the cloud of debt and the trouble is if we wanted we could stretch out the debt for years, but that seems a bit ridiculous after looking at how much we would have to pay in interest, the numbers were astonishing. Budgeting sucks, it would be amazing to be able to spend as we want and get what we want as we want, but that is not the reality we live in.

We are on a mission. We will repay our debt. We are going to attempt to function (mostly) on a cash budget and not spend more than we can pay off. We are going to dive head first and not live by the world's standards of claiming we neeeeeed to have more stuff but rather live with what we need and not excessively. We can do this, we will not be controlled by our finances.

• Do you have a strict budget?
• How do you budget?
• Are you working toward debt free living?

Obligatory Valentine's Day Post

My parents, Mickey Mouse, and I on our recent trip to Disneyland

Hearts, Hearts, Hearts, love, love, love, blah, blah, blah - insert other sappy valentine's day stuff here.

For some strange reason I feel the need to write the obligatory valentine's day post. Now by no means am I going to get on my high horse and begin my rampage about how I hate valentine's day and it is just an over commercialized holiday made up by Hallmark or whatever company you want to blame. I could go on and tell you stories of when I was in junior high and high school and even through college at times that there were moments in which I still sort of dreaded valentine's day - I dreaded the fact that I wouldn't have a date, I dreaded the fact that there wouldn't be a boy waiting to remind me how much he loved me and blah blah blah. Yes, yes I did have those moments. I would be a full fledged liar if I didn't admit to it.

At some point in college I realized the truth, at some point in college around valentine's day when I went to my mailbox and found a package from my parents and a card from my grandparents and an aunt, I was reminded several things that remain true today.

• I am loved. My God has known me since I was in my mother's womb and knows every hair on my head, it is the God who shows up in every sunrise and sunset and claims me as Gods' own in my baptismal waters and makes me new each and every day, and this is humbling.
• I am loved. This is something I have never ever ever ever doubted since I was born. My parents, grandparents, brother, extended family all love me more than I probably can even acknowledge, it is the text messages and phone calls and occasional cards that remind me how much they love me, it is the excitement to spend be together and to journey through life together in the every day 265 days a year I am reminded how much they love me, and this is humbling.
• I am loved. I have a group of friend who surround me and uphold me daily. My friends have always been amazing and continue to be, it is the ways in which they call and leave messages, the ways in which inside jokes carry on for years upon years, it is the encouragement to keep pushing forward and the hugs after a long day that I am reminded I am loved, and this is humbling.
• I am loved. There are people I get the opportunity to work alongside and walk beside who remind me daily that they love me, sometimes it is at my full time call or at my part time job working as a life guard the kids and families that I get to work with show me in their own ways that they love me. It is the smile on a kids face as they walk in the door, its the invitation to be a part of some of the most sacred moments in a families life, it is the honor and privileged to share in a meal or serving together that I am reminded I am loved, and this is humbling.
• I am loved. While yes, this year I am engaged and last year I was dating, and yes, I did get Marc something for Valentine's day (nothing screams romantic like getting a gift certificate to go have your bike all geared up and ready for the upcoming spring/summer), and I couldn't be happier to be getting married in less than four months, I live in the conviction I am loved when every night before he leaves he kisses me on the forehead and says I love you as he walks out the door, the notes that get left under the windshield wiper on my car, its the text message in the middle of the day all that remind me I am loved, and this is humbling.

Ash Wednesday.

Seriously LOVE this post from Nadia Boltz-Weber - I am totally just re-posting it and calling it at party.


A 40 day option during lent.


Do you have any lenten practices you care to share?
Do you have any traditions you cling to during this time?
Do you enjoy the season of Lent?

Overwhelmed with life.

It is ridiculously rough to be my dog.
I include this picture just because I think it is hilarious
how she is sleeping on the chair. I LOVE my sweet puppy.

Seriously. I don't know what it is that has put me over the edge but I am there and Lent is just beginning.

I feel like I have 12,000 things going at once and all of the things are happening simultaneously. All good things, but 12,000 of them at once. This post is a venting post.

Life at church:

• Ash Wednesday is tomorrow
• My colleague has a flight to Hawaii for 3 weeks starting this weekend
• 7th & 8th grade retreat Friday night
• Leadership retreat Sunday afternoon/evening
• it's Lent (enough said)

Life outside of church:

• Miscellaneous projects that occupy my life
• I became a co-director of a camp here in town with a friend and seriously it hasn't been updated in about 15 years and massively needs it to bring it back up to code - seriously who doesn't keep a camp up to code - will be amazing when it is finished
• Swimming lessons - I actually really enjoy teaching swimming lessons about 98% of the time despite the fact that 70% of the parents drive me batty and assume I am there to cause serious fears and damage to their child in the pool - seriously people getting your kids toes wet won't kill them - you signed them up for swimming lessons not standing next to the pool lessons - take a chill pill

Life at home:

• I am getting married in 4 months and there is so much done and yet it seems like so much to do
• I am officially over the snow, I need to be able to be outside - I want to run outside - I hate treadmills
• My house is never clean - or so it feels
• I feel like I have 15 projects going at home for a variety of things and can't manage to get any done
• My dog needs to be able to go for a long run - she is starting to go stir crazy too
• I feel like my house stinks due to a lack of fresh air - I tried opening the window yesterday just to air it out a bit and was freezing cold so had to shut them after about fifteen minutes

Life personally:

• I am annoyed at the 30 minute limits on the cardio machines at the YMCA - how am I suppose to get in a long run in 30 minutes and switching machines is lame [although I am happy that many of the "new years resolution people" are slowly but surely fading out - while I am sad for them they aren't making their goals - I am happy to have some time back on the machines - I am evil and mean apparently]
• I am jazzed about getting married this summer but it feels like there is a lot I need to do before Marc can move in - clean out half my closet, and make space for his stuff somewhere - I must keep purging things and giving them away
• I want a floo network [as in Harry Potter] so all of my friends can quickly and easily get together - I could use a good hangout with some of my favorite people. Not to mention I would love to be able to meet up with my family more frequently. I hate that my call is so far away from friends and family. 
• I am saddened that I don't know when my next vacation is or where I will go
• I wish when the schools in town got a snow day it meant that adults did too [although that wouldn't help with getting my massive to-do list done]
• I have been taking a ton of pictures - hence the instagram explosion on the right - and I have had the chance to take a ton of pictures with my "nice camera" of different mostly church related events and it has been wonderful - I feel like I have already shot about 5,000 photos this year which is close to catching up to last years measly amount. I dare to even say there has been at least 10 decent ones. Whoop Whoop.
• I got a new (technically 2nd) cousin this week! I can't wait to meet her - I need to figure out a way to get home to meet her. From the pictures my cousin has been texting me she is beautiful! [another good reason for the floo network]

Chaplain with the Police Department

Sometimes I find my call just strange and I stand back and laugh just a little when I think about what I do and how funny God is. I am amazed more often than not that God chooses to work in and through humans, I fear how often I fall short of where I could be, and yet God faithfully comes back and says "if your willing I'd love to work through you, my beloved child."

Recently I was asked to serve on an all male (other than myself) chaplain team for our local police, ambulance, fire departments. At first I'll be honest, I wanted to run, run far far away from this. I wanted nothing to do about it, but something inside of me, deep inside of me kept poking at me saying "you can do this, you'll be fine, I am with you, I have called you by name." So I agreed. I was told sometimes it is months between times we are called, sometimes it is several times in a week, I smiled and I think deep down I hoped I wouldn't be called. Shortly after returning from vacation and continuing ed, I got a call.

I am humbled by the places that I am invited into people's lives. I am humbled by the way God works when I have no words, in tragedy and what I consider the unexplained I have no words, I trust God who moves and speaks despite of me. I am humbled to have been called, I am honored to be a part of this team. I am honored to serve beyond the walls of the church and to the wider community.

Thanks be to God who works despite my shortcomings. Thanks be to God for people who can name my gifts and talents and challenge me to use them. Thanks be to God for emergency personal who work diligently in the midst of ridiculously hard circumstances. Thanks be to God who is always present and sheds the first tear when one of God's own hurts.

GIVE 500 update

I have not forgotten about this project and I am seriously LOVING this project. While at moments it is hard to think about going through another box or another closet of crap I am loving the space that it is opening up. I wonder WHY on God's green earth did I have all this stuff sitting around in boxes and in my closet aimlessly. I don't need this much stuff. I don't need a different outfit for every day. I don't need to hold on to everything I have ever been given.

This project has been liberating. This may seem strange but seriously somehow it has given me the permission I needed to be able to give stuff, that is perfectly usable, away. Now I am not counting socks with holes in them or stuff that is broken and needs to be recycled or thrown away, I am counting stuff that I seriously just don't need. This has been a wonderful project. This project has set me free.

I am not certain what my count is at and I am fairly certain I have long surpassed the 500 mark, I have hauled a couple loads of books to the library, a couple loads to the good will, and a couple loads to the church rummage sale pile. Somehow I had bought into the world, I had bought into the idea that I need to have more, I need to have a different outfit for weeks upon weeks and I couldn't repeat them in a couple weeks. (No one notices what I wear unless it is horrible - I have a bunch of clothes still don't worry but now the difference is I actually wear them all - and they get rotated between each other and have many combinations.) I don't have totes of crap just sitting upstairs in my attic "in case I need this stuff" - seriously I haven't missed it - I do still have boxes of holiday decorations but those are different, it is the crap I had been hauling around for years, for no reason.

I got rid of stacks of books and movies (I love both of these things) and I have kept some of my favorites and the ones that I like to re-read and re-watch but the ones I have no intent of watching again any time soon are gone, I just don't need them, if I want to watch or read them I can check them out of the library or get it off netflix. There is freedom in no longer being bound to stuff and needing more stuff. I have realized that I am not justified by what I own or don't own. I am not justified by what stuff I have or don't have. (deep down I have always known this but.... my actions had me held to another standard)

By no means am I promoting getting rid of everything you own and living in a tent - more I promote evaluating what you have, using up the excess stuff that you have been storing (I apparently was a hoarder of reams of paper and shampoo) I have more than I need still and have less to dust and less stuff sitting around and I couldn't be happier.

• Anyone else have this type of experience when getting rid of stuff? 
• Anyone else have tips on how to keep my stuff to a minimum so I don't just revert back to acquiring tons of stuff?
• Do you like to have stuff around?
• I must confess there is a piece of me that still says... what if I need ___________ - How do you sort out what to keep and what to get rid of without going crazy on either end of the spectrum?

Four Months

4 months until we get married - Time is such a funny thing - it totally seems like it is around the corner and super far away. I am excited and it will be good, it is funny because I remember when it was months and months away, and now it is only four months. It will be wonderful. I am ready to have two houses (seriously this complicates things) when we are hanging out at one house or the other we inevitably end up making a million trips between our places picking up that or this - not to mention it is just strange to have two houses and starting to transition to one house (he still is staying at his house) - just beginning to move stuff that he won't need until he is at my place (summer stuff, fall stuff, bikes, and all that type crap). Anyways onto the lists:

What's Done:

• I have a dress (still needs to be fitted)
• waiting till beginning of April or so to go do this
• Church and reception hall are reserved
• Pastor - picked (complicated when many of your friends are ordained)
• Caterer - automatic when you get the reception hall
• food tasted (seriously this is the best job ever - I would love to do this every night for dinner)
• I wish I could have brought everyone with me... I love food prepared for me with many varieties of options and choices to make 
• Cake - person selected now to pick out an exact design
• Photographer - Fiances uncle and a friend
• Hair appointments - reserved for bridesmaids and me
• DJ - Fiance's uncle 
• Rehearsal Dinner - space reserved
• save the dates sent
• children's bulletins made
• centerpieces done
• post wedding pre-reception transportation reserved
• I am jazzed, I like riding in fun vehicles with the wedding party post wedding pre-reception when I am in weddings - we got a great deal on ours

TO DO:

• Groom, Groomsmen, Ushers tuxes 
• picked but now we need them all to turn in their measurements
• note to self: harass brother, cousin, and cousin to get their measurments turned into me
• Bridesmaids dresses
• picked and half have ordered - the rest have been instructed to do so
• set up golf outing for the guys
• make cloth banner/flag dealy
• make the things to identify which meal people are eating
• buy more mason jars
• work on bridesmaids gifts
• Lists: I feel like I am the queen of lists right now & have twelve thousand of them in progress
• lists of what pictures we want taken
• lists of what music we want played
• lists of who is doing what and what exactly they need to do
• lists of lists of lists (or so it feels)
• Invitations 
• in progress
• final numbers to caterer (due 7 days before wedding)
• just on the list so I don't forget
• Flowers
• have a date set with the florist to look at flowers and pick them and all that happy jazz

What am I missing?

Tinkerbell Half Marathon Review

The first leg of my coast to coast challenge medal is done! I ran with the flu, it was the most awful feeling in the world however, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I didn't even come close to achieving the time that I had hoped for but I finished and there were moments I even questioned that. I am thankful I finished. I am thankful that my tinkerbell medal will proudly hang on my wall and I will remember this race.

I LOVE RunDisney events. Yes, I know they are more expensive than other races but they are worth it, every single penny. I would run them all if I lived closer to Disneyland or Disney World. Seriously, I love the characters along the path, I love the chance to run through the parks and backstage of things that I otherwise wouldn't get to see and experience. I love the magic that is involved. I love the chance to explore the parks after the race and all the people wandering around with their medals. I LOVE RunDisney events.

I have a goal of getting a complete set of RunDisney half marathon medals. I want to earn one of each of them in my lifetime. They are so wonderful.

The Tinkerbell Half marathon was an interesting one because you ran half of the race through Disneyland Park and California Adventure and half through the streets of Anaheim. The Disney portion was my favorite part, but the run through Anaheim was nice as well. There was plenty of water/gatorade stations along the way and I saw plenty of medical tents (thankful I didn't need one), there also seemed to be an overabundance of port-a-potties. You finish the race in a back parking lot, which was nice because there was so much space for everyone to spread out a bit.

We stayed at the Disneyland Hotel and I would highly recommend staying near or on property the night before the race because we saw lots of people arriving after the race had begun and heard them complaining that they had to park over a half hour away and had to walk much further than they anticipated. It was amazing to be able to roll out of bed and walk downstairs in our hotel and nearly be at the start of the race and then when the race was done to only have to walk a few hundred feet to be at our hotel and be close to a shower before heading to the parks. It  was fabulous to not have to wait for a bus or anything to come get us and take us to our hotel.

We did wait in line to get our pictures taken with Tinkerbell at the parks, we waited a couple days because Sunday and Monday Tinkerbell's line was crazy long. The challenge with getting these photos is that Tink is in pixie hollow at Disneyland park and there are always two fairies in the hallow however you aren't guaranteed to get Tinkerbell, so it was kind of a timing game. There were lots of half marathoners waiting for Tink when we went through, it sort of made us all laugh.

Winter/Spring

Not going to lie, I am over the -52 with windchill weather. It sucks. It has me unmotivated to go outside, to walk the dog, to go get groceries, to do really anything other than sit on the couch read a book or crochet while curled up with a mug of hot chocolate or coffee. Seriously.

I LOVE winter, when I can be outside in it. I love snow, skiing, hiking, snow shoeing, I even love shoveling snow. I HATE the bitter cold where it isn't even safe to go outside in.

I am hopeful that spring will come soon. I have to believe it. The miles on the treadmill are getting old fast, I am sick of running inside and doing the same exercise videos over and over again. I feel bad for Dakota who isn't getting nearly the walks and runs that she deserves but she even gets cold in this weather. I would welcome a little bit of warmth to melt the layer of ice that coats every possible surface in northern Minnesota. I would welcome a bit of a warm up so my windows to my car would unfreeze, there is ice all around them from when my car sat outside while I was in California. I welcome spring when she comes.

I am ready for the new life that will blossom out of the dirty brown snow. I am ready to spend time outside and not have to wear twelve layers. I am ready to mow the lawn (I actually enjoy mowing). Yes, I am whining about it, because seriously it is all I can do. BRING ON SPRING.

Totally unrelated side note I LOVED the Dodge Ram commercial even though it is a dodge commercial and I love my Ford Escape and it has Case IH tractors and I love John Deere, for me this commercial won in top commercials!

DISNEYLAND

My parents and I with my our favorite mouse

I have been to Disneyland in the past (I was five and got to go with my older cousins, who I idolized, I still remember this trip and getting to ride on my cousin's shoulders and getting to pick who I rode on all the rides with - loved the trip, but the details are a bit blurry) however this was the first time since then and I am fairly certain a lot has changed since then. I was there one afternoon when I was in college when my college band marched in one of the parades and we had an hour free time to do what we want, so this hardly counts as being there. The first thing I had to do was to get over the fact that Disneyland was not Disney World. While there are several things that were similar and there were things that were alike there were lots and lots of differences and they are wonderful too.

channeling our inner 4 year olds

There are two parks, Disneyland Park and California Adventure, unless you only have a few hours I wouldn't do it without a park hopper. We walked between both parks all day, it is only 149 steps between the two parks (literally, I counted). It was glorious, we became the masters of the "fast pass system" which essentially lets you cut in line and go in a shortened line instead of waiting for the ridiculously long lines some rides would have from time to time. I would go to Disneyland any January, the week we were there was glorious, other than the half marathon day the park was essentially empty, not really but sort of, we never waited in a line more than twenty minutes and we even walked up to many characters for meet and greets.

Cruella de Ville
I seriously could not stop laughing at her, she was AMAZING
she acted exactly as I imagine she would if she were real - soooooo funny
my dad is a character in and of itself 

Disneyland and California Adventure were both wonderful. I equally loved them both, they both have amazing aspects to them. The new Carsland is PHENOMENAL! I loved the radiator springs ride and we got to ride it a lot due to the small crowds, it is awesome. I can't imagine the line for it in the summer when the line in the winter got long at times. The most we saw the line was at 150 minutes (no thanks in my opinion).



I loved the World of Color show at California Adventure, I could watch that show every night, seriously, it was wonderful. I highly recommend going, and getting the "pass" to get in a good section. It was fun to watch, one night we even watched from the "splash zone" and really we only got misted on, I wouldn't necessarily say it was a "splash zone."

a photo of the Ferris wheel just before World of Color began

Food was great, I recommend splitting meals because the portions are huge, we often shared because we couldn't quite finish them all. I enjoyed the Wine Country Terracotta restaurant  it was fabulous,  one day we figured out that from some of the tables you have an outstanding view of the parade (discovered on accident), I totally recommend making a reservation during a parade time.

I could go on about vacation and Disneyland and California Adventure for posts upon posts, seriously. We had a blast, it was fun to spend time with a good friend and my parents. I have planned a few posts about the vacation and the running of the Tinkerbell Half Marathon. If you want to know anything in particular or want more pictures and posts let me know, I could do many more. I loved this trip.