Just an update

Today was very exciting for me. I made the last payment my car loan (YIPPEEE!!!), I got a free lunch courtesy of work, and I found some major bargains at Target.

One of my goals this year was to pay off my car by June/July and I DID IT! This is the first time I have actually paid a car off that was in my name. I usually trade them in before I get half way through the payment booklet. Therefore, I essentially just paid off 4 cars (I was always just a little upside down on my last 3 trades). My car is a 2005 and I have about 112,000 miles on it. Tina would say it is barely broken in, but I get a little nervous driving as much as I do in a car with high mileage. I am aiming to get a new car fall of 2010.

We have been testing a new system at work and the department I am in is putting a lot of extra time into this testing. My boss took us to Chevy's for lunch today for putting in the extra time and effort.

After lunch, two co-workers and I went to check out the toy clearance situation at Target. They had a good portion of their toys on clearance for 75% off. I bought just under $100 worth of toys, but got enough for my DS for Christmas, birthday and Easter and I also got some possible gifts for other kids' birthdays. WooHoo! Christmas shopping in July :( (Sarcasm intended). I plan on going to a different Target tomorrow morning to see if I can find even more stuff.

Menu Planning Menu

Last week was not a good week for the menu plan. I forgot to put the chicken in the crock pot Tuesday morning, so we had eggs, sausage and toast instead and I made the chicken on Wednesday. Then Thursday I made a pot roast with potatoes and carrots thinking I would have some leftover beef for beef and noodles, but my DH ended up eating all the beef. Then Sunday I made white chili and corn bread instead of beef stir-fry. So, needless to say, I have a few meals from last week that I need to carry over.

Monday - Omelets (with peppers, onions, and cheese) and sausage.
Tuesday - beef stir-fry and rice
Wednesday - chicken pot pie
Thursday - beef and noodles
Friday - spaghetti and garlic bread
Saturday - Grilled burgers, onion rings, and salad
Sunday - Roast with potatoes and carrots

Making Homemade Cheese

I was reading the newspaper the other day and I came across a recipe for homemade mozzerella. I read throught the ingredients and the procedure and it is actually very easy to make. All you need is a 1/4 rennet tablet, water, milk, citric acid, and cheese/kosher salt. I didn't know what a rennet tablet was so I looked on Amazon and found that I can get 8 tablets for $2.14. The citric acid is also available on Amazon for $1 a bag. So for right around $2.50, I can make my own mozzarella. I haven't ordered the ingredients off Amazon yet, but I plan to this weekend. I will probably make my first attempt at cheese making in a couple weeks. I would try it sooner, but I am so busy canning on the weekends lately, that I don't think I will get to it.

I also googled cheese making and found this website called cheesemaking.com. There are photos of the different steps, which might come in handy when I try this myself. I will put up a post to let you all know how things went.

Grandma Klein's Peanut Butter Balls

I was trying to figure out a subject for a five minute speech for one of my classes. I came up with making Peanut Butter Balls and I thought that I would share it with you. It is easy, no cooking necessary, and fun for kids.

Ingredients:

1 stick butter

1 box powder sugar

2 cups peanut butter

Optional: Sprinkles, mini chocolate chips, sugar

Mix ingredients together and roll in a ball and place on wax paper or in a container.

To be more festive, you can roll the peanut butter balls in the sprinkles, mini chocolate chips, colored sugar, or melt chocolate chips and dip them.

Peanut Butter Balls are something that you can make for parties, picnics, BBQs, birthday parties, or just as a nice treat for yourself.

Menu Planning Monday

Last night we butchered 2 chickens, dug 3 lbs of potatoes, picked 2 gallons of tomatoes, a gallon of green beans, 6 peppers, and a pint of blackberries. Our little farm is in full swing. I have been canning, freezing, and prepping for four days and needless to say, I am exhausted and actually glad to be back at work after vacation. Therefore my meals this week are going to be a little on the simple side.

Monday - Marinated steak, garlic butter potatoes, carrots, and green beans
Tuesday - Crockpot chicken, stuffing, lima beans
Wednesday - beef and noodles
Thursday - chicken pot pie
Friday - Spaghetti and garlic bread
Saturday - grilled brats, mac & cheese, asparagus
Sunday - beef stir-fry and rice

The Clunker Bill

I am reading this email from Benjamin Bankes a little late since I bought a new car last week. I ended up with a new Escape. I really do like it and it does get better gas millage than my old one. My husband is taking the old one back and forth to work since it was not worth trading it in. Back to the Clunker Bill. This bill allows you to trade your old car for a more fuel efficient car and receive a discount for $4,500.

There are rules of course.

• Your vehicle must be less than 25 years old on the trade-in date
• Only purchase or lease of new vehicles qualify
• Generally, trade-in vehicles must get 18 or less MPG (some very large pick-up trucks and cargo vans have different requirements)
• Trade-in vehicles must be registered and insured continuously for the full year preceding the trade-in
• You don't need a voucher, dealers will apply a credit at purchase
• Program runs through Nov 1, 2009 or when the funds are exhausted, whichever comes first.
• The vehicle that you are trading in is required to be destroyed. Therefore, the value you negotiate with the dealer for your trade in is not likely to exceed its scrap value. The law requires the dealer to disclose to you and estimate of the scrap value of your trade-in vehicle.

While the CARS Act makes transactions on and after July 1 potentially eligible for credits under the CARS program, interested dealers and consumers may want to wait until all of the detailed issues that must be addressed in the implementing regulations are resolved and the final rule is issued. Issuance will occur around July 24. CARS.gov

So if you are looking to buy a new car and need to get rid of the old clunker, check out CARS.gov before November when the deal ends or when the money runs out.

Staying Put

I finally took some time to see what is going on in the news today. One news article that stood out for me was "One casualty of the recession: U.S. mobility". The article is about people who would usually sell their home and move, are now staying put.

I know that I have so far successfully talked my husband out of moving at the moment. My Mother-In-Law has been looking for a new home, but is also delaying a move due to the economy. We both have the same issue. Concerned that our current home will not sell and neither of us can afford to pay for two houses at one time. There are other issues as well, but this is at the top of our list. I just don't feel comfortable buying a new home right now even though the prices are right to buy, but not to sell.

I did buy a new car last week, but was even concerned about doing that. My new job seems secure, but who knows what the future holds. Right now I think we are at our limit in loans even though we don't have that many. Just the house, truck, and now my car loan. No credit card bills and a good chunk of money in saving for emergencies.

There are many reasons why people are staying in their homes instead of moving:

• "Many homeowners can't afford to sell their homes because property values have tumbled, causing millions to owe more on their homes than they’re worth. “It seems like only the really motivated sellers are coming out,” said Lydia Lin, owner of One Realty in Denver.
  
• Other people can’t get financing to buy a new home and so are stuck in their current residence.
  
• Still others can't move to take new jobs until they sell their homes, or they’re staying put because the economic outlook and the job outlook are so uncertain.
  
• And, finally, some people have deferred their retirement and decided against moving to a new home in a retirement spot such as Florida. That’s because they watched their retirement savings plunge with the collapse in the stock market last fall and early 2009."

Many Economist are saying this can cause even more problems for the economy. No new loans, and no money exchanging hands. Which means people are spending less and more jobs being cut. The economic downward spiral that doesn't look like it is putting on the breaks anytime soon.

Even though I have a new job, I am going to try to delay buying a new house for a while. We are lucky and owe a lot less that the house is worth and I would like it to stay that way. The house does need a lot of work, but it would cost a lot less to fix or replace items than buying a new home. Now if I could just convince my husband to hire someone to do the work, I would be happy. Otherwise nothing will get done because he is to busy helping his mother.

K-Mart double coupons this week (again)

K-Mart is having a double coupon promotion this week. They are doubling coupons up to and including $2, but are limiting it to 10 coupons per customer per day. See this weeks ad or website for more details.