She's all growed up

We love you so much Ashley.  Good luck in California.  It may be hard to tell but I was pretty excited to hear she will be serving her mission so close to my old stomping grounds.

Christmas is Coming

So thanks to Rachel's reminder I have been hard at work this week on next year's family calendar.  It is shaping up nicely and I look forward to sharing it with you all.  I find that deadlines are coming up rather quickly and so the calendar may be a bit late getting out this year.  I am optimistic that I will be able to pull everything together but I apologize in advance if this does happen.  Silver lining is that there is still time for last minute photo entries to be made if there are new photos you would like to have included.

I have had several people ask me about Christmas gifts that I would like this year and to simplify getting the word out (these are just ideas for those who want them) here is my up-to-date wishlist.  Yes it is an Amazon.com wishlist but I am sure these items can be found in other places for those who, like me, prefer to shop locally.  I also would like to throw out there the idea, possibly for next year, about doing a gift exchange system for the siblings.  As you all keep making me new nieces and nephews (which I love) the gift list is getting longer every year.  Perhaps we can just do one bigger gift for one sibling instead a gift for each.  Just a thought so any feedback, positive or negative, is welcome.

Why I love Mint

Mint chocolate chip ice cream is the best flavor out there.  This is a non disputed fact.  However this post is not about all the reasons it is superior to other flavors, rather it is about the web tool that can be found at mint.com.

I can admit that I have hedonistic tendencies.  I am an early adopter and have no qualms with splurging on items that are instantly gratifying.  This trait is something I have struggled with to find balance with being a responsible adult and prudent planner.  Mint has helped me tremendously to curtail my spending and make progress on my financial goals.

Essentially the website is a self populating budget.  To set it up you link any financial website that pertains to you through mint: banks, credit cards, investments, property addresses and so on.  After that you don't have to do anything.  Mint will automatically import your transactions of spending, deposits, gains, losses, interest... everything.  It organizes this data so that at a glance you can see where your money is going.

I've been using this site for just shy of six months now, and merely by being able to recognize my patterns of spending and implementing the budgeting tools I have seen my debts decrease and my savings increase without noticing any disruption to enjoying the things I like.  That's why I love mint and know you will too if you give it a try.

Gonna be a Daddy!

I realize it has been a while since I posted anything here and for the lapse I apologize.  I have very exciting news.  I've submitted the final paperwork to an adoption agency and will be getting my very own son within the next few weeks!

I love my nieces and nephews so much and have wanted a child for a while now.  My single status has made the natural process for a child difficult so a while back I looked into adoption.  I recall all sorts of horror stories from people I've met who adopted with how grueling and difficult the process is, but I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was for me.  After an initial questionnaire about my lifestyle and income, I was contacted for a phone interview.  It only took about a week to be approved.  I couldn't believe it!

I sent copies of my paperwork, drivers licence, SS card, and a cashiers check to the adoption agency via priority service with UPS and should be told within the next few days the details for getting my boy home.  I'm so excited!

2012 Calendar

I finally finished the family calendar for next year and got them ordered.  For anyone that wants a digital version the images are as follows:

Cover

January

February

March

April

 May  

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

This has been so much fun to make and I appreciate all the help with pictures from everyone.  I ordered enough so that every family member may have a physical copy.  For those who feel like donating to offset my cost they were roughly $10 apiece.