These Boots Weren't Made For Walking

Check out the Ski Boots.  I felt like Frankenstein's Monster wearing these things and walking in them was a royal pain in the butt.  This is one of the reasons we work so hard to save money on the little things.  To give our children a chance to experience some of what life has to offer.

My son was a natural!

My daughter took to it too!

I'm not too sure about the green factor though since they had to make the snow.  You can see the only place that had snow was where they put it.

As for me No broken bones and I need a little more practice on stopping but as I said these boots weren't made for walking.... they were made for

FLYING

Mark It On Your Calendar

Free Pancake Day at IHOP ... February 28 2012

Since beginning its National Pancake Day celebration in 2006, IHOP has raised nearly $8 million to support charities in the communities in which it operates. On February 28, 2012, guests from around the country are invited to celebrate National Pancake Day at IHOP and enjoy a free short stack of Buttermilk pancakes.* In return for the free pancakes, guests are asked to consider leaving a donation for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals© and other designated local charities. 

And Just as an Added Bonus ........

 

Stacks for Good Acts

National Pancake Day is IHOP's way of giving back to the communities in which we operate. Now, we'd like to reward those of you who give back as well. As a way to say thank you for your hard work, we're holding a "Stacks for Good Acts" contest. Simply tell us about a good deed you or someone you know did recently and be eligible for a chance to win free IHOP pancakes for an entire year!

Nows as good a time as any

According to an article from Medical News Today a 30-year-old smoker can expect to live about 35 more years, whereas a 30-year-old nonsmoker can expect to live 53 more years. If you think those 18 years with your family and friends is more valuable then that cigarette you are about to puff down on then here are some links to free help!  I've included a quick link and the actual web address for each.


Smoke Free. gov   http://smokefree.gov/

 Smoke Free Women  http://women.smokefree.gov/

Quit Smoking All Together: http://www.quitnet.com/qnhomepage.aspx

This one was created for Military members but has lots of useful tools for civilians too: Quit Tobacco: Make Everyone Proud   http://www.ucanquit2.org/

Office of the Surgeon General http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/tobacco/

American Heart Association  http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/QuitSmoking/Quit-Smoking_UCM_001085_SubHomePage.jsp

Center for Disease Control http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/quit_smoking/how_to_quit/you_can_quit/index.htm

American Cancer Society http://www.cancer.org/Healthy/StayAwayfromTobacco/GuidetoQuittingSmoking/index

American Lung Association  http://www.lung.org/stop-smoking/

Free Plan at Become An Ex http://www.becomeanex.org/

1-800 quit now ( 784 7669) :A free, phone-based service with educational materials and coaches that can help you quit smoking or chewing tobacco.

Get a free Booklet Here   http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/tobacco/helpsmokers.htm


There is even a free App in iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/app/quitguide/id411766556?mt=8

There is so much help out there even if you have to spend money in the end to get it done you'll be glad you did it.  Trust me when I say your family and friends want those extra years with you.

For My Mom

Who Passed away last week from lung cancer.

Well Nuts

The emergency I talked about saving up for has arrived before I had a chance to start saving!  My mom is in the hospital and I'll be winging my way to Tucson to see her.  Our saving grace is that we have been paying off our credit cards very quickly and it's tax season so the money from our tax return will help pay off the plane ticket out there.

For any reader who is still smoking Stop before its too late.... consider it the ultimate way to save money!  You won't be paying for the smokes and you will be healthier so you will have less medical bills later!  Not to mention the emotional savings of your family not having to live through your health deteriorating knowing that sooner rather then later you'll be out of their lives for good.

Save Money Live Better

This is slogan of one of the biggest retailers in the country and well the saying is true... The more money you save the better you will live they really don't want you to save money.

Yes they can brag about their everyday low prices but what they really want is for you to spend spend spend.

I can practically guarantee that if you go into Wal-Mart you will come out having spending money on something you hadn't intended to buy!

That being said I'm not really here to slam Wal-Mart...Really I'm not!  If people chose to shop there that is their choice and Wal-Mart is doing what is best for them.

I'm actually more interested in their slogan..... Save money Live Better!

If we all lived by this motto would the country be in the dire straits they are in?

If we had been saving away for a rainy day would there be so many foreclosures even with the banks screwing everything up?

Any financial expert will tell you to save away at least 6 months of living expenses so that if an emergency hits you will be prepared and we don't.

Now if you've been one of the folks who have been with me for a while you know that I"m currently working part time and my whole paycheck is going straight into an untouchable savings account so we can buy a house aside from that we don't have anything saved for a rainy day.  This is foolishness on my part because if that sudden misfortune happens there goes the money saved up for our home.

Starting today I'm going to create our emergency nest egg.    My first goal will be $25,000 set aside for emergencies.  I am going to start simple with $100 a pay check which will give me $200 a month and by the end of the year $2400.  Not a big chunk out of the $25,000 but its a start.  I will also try adding any money I save from coupons plus all the money from our change jar.  Those will be flexible numbers but it will add up. 

Now to help me keep going I'm going to start a running tab and post how much I've saved up each month to hopefully encourage you to join me.  I really do believe that if we had been saving up as much as we could during the good times we wouldn't be in the sad state we are in now and NOW is as good a time as any to change how we do things!