How to on Supper Swap
We had a meeting about how to work it all out. We decided portion size ( we do 8x8), discussed any allergies or dislikes, what day was best for each to cook, delivery time, what to include (we do main and 1 side). I cook monday, molly is tuesday, we will eat at church next week and all other wednesdays, thursday is amie. we all live really close to each other which I think is key for delivery. We deliever food already cooked between 5:15 and 5:30 on our day. It is such a time save-- not only cooking the food but it is so much easier for clean up too when you aren't making the food everyday. We also discussed birthdays so if you had a special day you could send along a special dessert or something.
We printed off a blank september calender then decided the basic idea of what people would bring. The rotation is chicken, pork, beef, pasta, and mexican for us. So I did chicken last night and I won't make anything chicken until October. This week is Chicken, Pork and Mexican. Next wek is beef chicken and pork, week 3 is mexican, pasta and chicken. Week 4 is pork, beef, and pasta with chicken. That way there is freedom in what you make but limits on how much you get of a certain thing and a fair way of dividing out the costly meat. I sat down after the first meeting and planned my whole month. It didn't take long since it was only 4 meals. By doing that I know what meats and things I need so if chicken goes on sale buy one get one free I know to buy it ahead for my meal day.
This week I made chicken and wild rice and broccoli salad. I doubled eveything then split it 3 ways. so many things make a 9x13 and we do 8x8's so doubling worked for me.
Tonight I hear pork chops and red skin potatoes are on the way.
I feel we are all going to eat better and I will have more time with my kids after school as I won't be in the kitchen cooking or cleaning as often.
If you have plans the might a meal is brought you to it could just be refridgerated until a day there wasn't a meal coming you know?
As far as requesting foods that would be up to the people that you do it with.
We don't have a budget-- we just tried to divide evenly.
As far as pans we will see how that goes. We might just use the one that we get and give it back to the person who's it was with a meal in it. We aren't too worried about it. I did buy oversized ziploc containers that are a great size for salads and easy to transport.
Here is a website I got some ideas from:
http://www.trishberg.com/Adobe/InTheNews/GreatAmericanSupperSwapDS.pdf
25 Things You May Or May Not Know About Me
(Written on Facebook Thursday, January 15, 2009)
1. I have never been on an overseas missions trip.
2. I can't stand it when I can hear people eat popcorn in a movie theater or when people chew gum with their mouths open.
3. Someday I hope to be in some sort of 5K or more even though I hate running.
4. I worked in a salon in Massachusetts where I could see the ocean from the window.
5. I never thought I would have daughters.
6. Valentine heart candies, jelly beans and candy corn are my holiday weaknesses.
7. I am always thinking about where I could travel.
8. I learned to drink coffee only 4 years ago to bond with my husband.
9. I won the Calvinette of the Year award twice.
10. I am a lifetime Weight Watchers member and lost 90 pounds after our third child (including the baby ;)) But still struggle to keep the weight off with all those candy hearts and jelly beans.
11. Dave and I almost met a few times before we actually did but both agree it was for the better that we met when we did.
12. I have lived in Holland MI, South Hamilton MA, Indianapolis IN, Carmel IN, Normal IL, Fairfield IL, Spring Lake MI, Marion IN, and Gas City IN
13. I am a huge Colts fan and love watching the NFL. I have had several Fantasy Teams and almost (should have) won but came in 2nd in the league.
14. I Love anything and everything about Walt Disney World and know an insane amount about it.
15. I have never had surgery of any kind. I only broke my pinkie and sprained an ankle.
16. I have been a hairstylist for 18 years but "retired" in 2000 when I had Max, our first child.
17. I start to get grumpy when there are too many days of sun. I like the dark, rainy days when they come.
18. I bought all 4 and sold 3 houses we've owned without a Realtor.
19. Some of my favorite days of the year are my kids birthdays.
20. Marriage is better than I thought it would be and Dave and I get along amazingly well despite how different we are.
21. My husband Dave and I started 2 churches together.
22. We had kids in diapers for 8 straight years with out a break but we are finally done!
23. I never TP'd anyone.
24. I took baton, cheerleading, gymnastics, tennis, and swimming lessons when I was a little girl.
25. Love stretching a dollar any way I can.
Walt Disney World Tips
(Written Saturday, January 17, 2009)
I love Walt Disney World. I have been there 8 times at least. I have a few Disney books and have spent countless hours studying them. Whenever I go, I go to new places to" research" them for future visits and information to pass on to others. Disney is not a cheap place to go by any means but I have figured out ways to get by and do it for less. So here are my thoughts on that great place.. Disney!
I have yet to find a single coupon or discount to Disney. If you go to one of those time share deals and sit in their talk for a half day they may offer you tickets for free but I don't count that. Dave and I bought 6 day Park Hopper passes in 1999 at AAA for a special price but that price wasn't any or much different than what Disney offered. I recommended just dealing directly with Disney directly on everything when it comes to lodging and tickets.
In 2009 if you go to a park on your actual birthday you get in FREE!! This is a $80 savings if you are an adult or $60 if you are a kids. Call Disney for more info-- I think you need to tell them ahead of time.
Kids under the age of 3 enter the theme parks for free and eat at the character dinners for free.
I have stayed on site and off site--
*Benefits to staying off site-- you have a vehicle to go where you want, when you want.
*Condos are very reasonable only 5 minutes away and can be cheaper than the the cheapest Disney hotels.
* You can save money on food having an off site condo with kitchen.
Benefits to being on Disney grounds:
* Magical Express bus from airport is free -- no need to rent a car for the entire visit.
*Everything is connected by bus, boat or monorail in Disney and you can use it for free ( some lines and bus rides can get long at busy times of year)
*you can take advantage of the Disney Dining plan if you buy park tickets with your room package. The Dining plan is nice and is cheaper than just purchasing Disney meals as you go.
*You kinda feel like you get more of the full Disney experience.
Going to the parks is very costly but if you buy park tickets for each day you are staying there it goes down in price significantly BUT who wants to spend ALL their time at the parks? What you could do it chose the 1 or 2 parks that would be most fun for the age your kids are. If your kids are 10 and under I think Magic Kingdom is a must but if you are going with Middle schoolers and up Epcot and Hollywood Studios are great. For a family of 2 adults and 2 kids 9 or under it costs $280 apx per park per day (gate price). If you plan to do ONE big Disney trip with your kids I would try to get in all the parks. Keep in mind you can park hop for a little more money and see Animal Kingdom for 1/2 a day then Hollywood Studios at night one day then take a day off and swim at the hotel then the next day go to Magic Kingdom 1/2 a day and Epcot a half day. You will not see near everything if you do it this way but it is a way to save $$ and still be a part of it all. I just can't see paying $ to be in parks but spend them at your hotel pool. Make sense? Call a Disney rep and they can lay out all the options for you on this.
Character dinners are super fun but I personally recommend doing this on a different day than a park. Most of the Deluxe hotels have them. Chef Mickeys in the Contemporary is great to see all the regular characters like Mickey, Minnie and Donald etc... We also went to the Grand Floridian for the Princess dinner and it was AMAZING! Figure it will cost you apx $120 to feed 2 adults and 2 kids. They are all buffets or family style. The 2 I mentioned are highly recommended by the official Disney guide as well and we agree with them! I hear not so great stories of eating in the Castle itself even from the books. If there are certain characters you want to see just look up or ask Disney where they are located. MAKE RESERVATIONS THROUGH DISNEY AS SOON AS YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO GO!! You can always cancel if you have to.
My picks for Best Hotel bets:
1. Best Deluxe hotel for the best price: Wilderness lodge. Super close to Magic Kingdom. National Park themed.
2. Best Moderate hotel: Port Orleans Riverside (Louisiana Bayou themed). Connects by boat to Downtown Disney.
3. Best value resort: Pop Century. ( for location and newness)
Best books to buy about Disney:
If you buy 1 buy : Birnbaum's Official Guide to Disney(current year)
If you want more details: The Complete Walt Disney Disney World ( Coconut Press)
Best facebook group for Disney recommendations " I'd rather be at Walt Disney World".
Check the calendars in the parks section at Disney.com to pre plan each parks hours and activities from home before you arrive. It will also tell you what rides are being refurbished so you can give forewarning to kids if a certain ride won't be available.
Buy 80 cent emergency rain ponchos at Walmart (found in the camping section) before leaving home and have them in a backpack for theme park days. Throw them away there when you are done. :)
There are lots of things to do on Disney property but not the 4 theme parks that are great fun but cost little to nothing. Here are my fave's:
1. The Disney Boardwalk Hotel ( near Epcot).. too much $ to stay at but fun to visit! It is like a turn of the century Atlantic City Boardwalk all around a lake. There are several restaurants including the ESPN Club, some shops, an ice cream shop but the best of all is every evening several people come out and do magic show for the kids, a man who does amazing stunts, musicians, jugglers, etc... and you may just be walking and come upon them. Great free fun for the kids. If you stay late enough Epcot is just over a wall and you should be able to see some of their fireworks around 9 or 10 pm. You can also rent a surrey bike with your family and bike around the lake. Across the lake is another amazing resort called the Yacht and Beach Club where there is a great ice cream shop over there if you decide to walk around the lake and take a break over there.
2. To see lots of animals but not pay to go into Animal Kingdom to see them head on over to the Animal Kingdom Lodge hotel. (If you are visiting by car tell the attendant you would like to visit the hotel ) Enter the hotel then walk through to the back where there are signs directing you to the savannahs. Then go down the hallways where the rooms are and you will see more spots to see the animals. We saw a family of giraffes, zebra, vultures, flamingos, and other African animals. Free! We stayed and ate lunch there too.
3. Disney Marketplace at Downtown Disney is alot of fun. There is a Lego store for kids with lots of Lego tables for kids to build at. Great restaurants, LOTS of shops of anything you can think of Disney and others. Make sure you pop your head in the Ghiradelli chocolate shop and they will give you each a free piece of chocolate! This place has the most going at night but is the busiest time of day. It is beautifully lit up too. West side and Pleasure Island are of more interest to adults. If you are in a rush I would skip these. However if it is a rainy day you might want to catch a movie at the AMC theaters in Downtown Disney West side.
4. If you are feeling adventurous hop on a bus or a boat or monorail and hotel hop. There are cool things to see as they each have a theme at all the highest end hotels in particluar. Find the playground or shop in their store before moving on.
5. The water parks are good too for the older kids crowd and less expensive than the 4 main parks.
6. Pop over to Fort Wilderness and have the kids pay on the playground, walk through the petting farm or ride a pony ( couple $ for pony ride) or if you are there in the morning look for the ranch area and see them get the horses ready to bring to Magic Kingdom for the day. Or sit on the beach and let the kids play in the sand. Then follow the nature trail through the woods and head over to the Wilderness Lodge and watch the geyser go off and walk around the hotel. (If you are at either of these hotels at night be on the look out for the Electrical Water Pageant on the lake.
7. Bring some of your own snacks into the parks and eat counter/quick service meals instead of along sit down meal. Saves $$ and lots and lots of valuable park time.
Well I will certainly add to this list and will answer any questions anyone has as well. As you can see I didn't even talk about anything IN the parks!! Hope this helps start your Disney journey!!
Here is a link to our most recent Disney trip:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=56811&l=7ea2e&id=744746310
And here are some from the Animal Kingdom Lodge:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1368946&l=ab57c&id=744746310
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1368947&l=8cbbe&id=744746310
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1368948&l=8c55d&id=744746310
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1368952&l=be7a6&id=744746310
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1368953&l=27a62&id=744746310
Hope this helps!! As you can see I haven't talked about anything IN the parks. I will continue to add to this I am sure.
Time to bring it back together....
There is something about September that happens in my brain every year. I love getting back to a schedule and being more productive. Dave and I after some discussing think I am one who always needs to have goals in front of me. When I have no goals I start to get depressed, a feeling that I am not accomplishing much etc...So I am starting that process again. Trying to think short term and long term goals. Trying to think outside the box. I am coming up on 10 full years of having babies and preschoolers and this is the end of that road. What will be next? It is exciting and nerve wracking to think of what could be. Stay tuned I guess...
The Olympics
I love the Olympics. I always have. I think I got hooked in 1984 with the LA games. I watched more hours that year than I can count. I was 12 years old. That was the year of Mary Lou, Carl Lewis. It felt magical. Every single Olympic year after that I was hooked. Now I am trying to hook my kids at an early age so they have the same love of it that I do. The competition is great. I love travel and culture so having a world wide sports event is fun for me. The personal stories are so insirational. I want to celebrate with the winners and cry with the losers. The music is some of my favorite of all time. I have had a secret dream for a couple decades of being an Olympian. So every 2 years I quietly in my mind think of what my life is like now and how thankful I am to have it the way that it is but wonder how different it would have been it I would have been an Olympian.
a couple budget tips...
I love stretching a dollar! I will likely add to this post too as I get time. I just posted this a reply on a pastors wives group page so I thought I would blog about it too.
1. Use cash. When we get a paycheck we write a check to ourselves and then we get cash to put in our envelope wallet (crown.org or financial peace sells them) and that is what we use to spend on groceries, date, babysitting, gifts, clothes, family fun, etc. That way you can save up for things like your kids brithdays, it limits your grocery spending, and allows you date money before the money runs out (no excuses!). Another cash envelope we each have is for personal money. We each get $30 every 2 weeks for whatever we want. Coffees, lunch out, book, whatever. That way the other of us can't complain about what the other is buying.
2. Have a direct deposit account to a seperate checking account that allows us to save for larger one time or yearly purchases like Christmas gifts, estimated taxes, landscaping, furniture, new car fund, vacation fund, and savings,etc. That way you are always working towards saving for things that you know you will need or for things you'd like.
Selling your house: "For Sale By Owner"
Disclaimer: I have no education in this field, just experience. I am just sharing my tips here:
First take digital pictures of the inside and outside of your house. Make sure the rooms have NO clutter. Even if you take down family pics or items just for
the photo. Start looking for a for sale sign-- heavy duty we found is best-- Menards/Home Depot/Lowe's types I think is where we got ours. Buy something to hold your flyers to attach to your sign. We have a see through box that has a lid attacted. I think we got it at an Office Max type store. Some people use a tube and that works too.
When you take pictures (and show your house)make sure all the knick knac type stuff and any extra things are gone--even photos if you can. You might want to start packing stuff up like that. Magnets off the fridge, any little extra stuff that isn't needed to make the space look less like yours so others can visualize it as their own. I even took every single thing off my kitchen counter and that made it look like a new house actually. Keep some of this in mind to a point when it comes to showing your house as well.
You also have to set what price you want to sell your house. My best thought is to know what you paid and what you did put into it, then take into consideration what needs to be done to it if anything then look alot at what is comparable to yours. See what houses have sold for on your block and what is for sale that is most like yours in your area. I think in a bad market it is best to set the price a little under everyone elses like yours. You can and not lose money because you don't have to take out realtor fees. I like going to www.remax.com and then enter the zip code you are in then it will show you all the houses in your area. Use the tools to look at maximum and minimum prices and see where you think yours would fall. Remember when people are looking for houses they also put those price ranges in so make sure when you set the price you fall in the bracket that you want to be in. For example-- setting your house at $204900 would take out anyone that set their maximum price at $200000. The ranges usually go about every $25000. You would likely get $200000 or less with negotiations anyways.
Best way to make your flyer is at FSBO.com if you chose that route that website. Other websites have them available as well. It makes it for you!!!! And it is very professional. Once you have your flyer (also make sure to include your price, amenities, as many details about the house as possible (even room dimentions are nice) and put the sign out you are in business. Either right before or right after the sign goes out call a local title company as tell them what's up. Tell them you are wanting to sell your house on your own and it is your first time and you want to know what they need from you once closing comes around. (If you feel better you can hire a lawyer for a couple hundred just to cover yourself--IL requires it so we had one there for $200). The Title Co. can not give you legal advice but if you ask them questions about what usually happens they will likely tell you and as our title officer said "Lawyers create our documents".
Now if someone wants to buy your house we usually negotiate over the phone but you can do it other ways I guess like email or around a kitchen table. One tip here-- if they make an offer and it is too low-- it is better to negotiate back and forth until you find out their highest price and your lowest I think. Instead of saying no out right say something like: "I can't go that low but I am willing to negotiate" (good idea to have in mind what your ideal lowest price would be before you get to that point. Lowest ideal then rock bottom lowest that will you WILL NOT go below.
A purchase agreement must be filled out. I believe the seller usually does this but I think last time our buyer wanted to do it. I think it just depends on the personalities involved of who does it. It has to be signed by the sellers and buyers so don't sign it until it is written the way you want it and they agree and vice versa. This link is just an idea of what a purchase agreement looks like.
http://www.lectlaw.com/forms/f100.htm
Any other things should be added to the purchase agreement like: if you have a basketball rim on your garage and the people buying the house want it write in the agreement that the basketball hoop stays. Your title company would be able to get you these forms easily if you don't have them already.
The main thing is the TITLE CO. They are the ones who close the deal. Get from them what they need and you should be in business. They do this multiple times a day and it is no big deal for them. They won't let you do anything illegal basically because they can't. They are usually very nice..if they aren't then call another title company that is.
Advertising: No matter if you sell by owner or use a realtor YOU are the best salesman for your house. You know your house better than any realtor and don't let
them tell you otherwise. You have to be honest about any problems with the house BUT you can talk highly too about how great it is! Be confident with realtors. They will do what they can to make you think you need them.
I used www.FSBO.com and loved it. It is the best price for what you get and it is nationwide and highly used. I think I had over 500 hits or more on my page in less than 4 months. I did use Craigs List as well but I don't think anyone came out of that. I did the bronze package at fsbo.com for $69 then had a promo code. I just checked and the promo code is still valid. If you use fsbo.com, when you check out to pay put in promo code: FSBO2008 for another $25 off your total! You get that for 9 months!!!
Newpapers...Yes I do that too. They can be costly especially the bigger the area that the paper goes out. Small towns are reasonable usually. What I did was put the smallest add I could in over the weekend-- Thurs- Sunday or so. Most people look for houses on the weekend and realtors put their adds in then too and people look for those then. For the ad I would write something like this: Marion, 4 bedroom, close to schools, Completely remodeled in 06. www.fsbo.com/000000 That way they are directed to the website where they will see all the photos, more desciption, ways to contact you etc.
Openouses...I don't do them. I have in the past and have felt they were not worth the time they took to prepare. You can if you want. My thought is that if you present all the info that you do online that if someone sees all that and still wants more info they will set up a private showing with you.
Now you will start to get calls from Realtors or others offering some new way to sell your house. You have to decide how you want to deal with realtors. In this market I advise you don't turn them away. They might have your buyer. I have never sold to anyone that used a realtor but have shown it alot to realtors bringing people through. Their cut is negotiable. I told them that they could get 3% but the price of the house would not be negotiable. You can do what you want. Average rates for realtor are 2.5-3.5% (times 2 if each side used a realtor). Also you have to decide if you want to be there when a realtor comes to show the house. They don't want you there I will just tell you. It is your house so if you want to be there you can but they will tell you they will want to speak openly to the buyers about your house without you there. Something to decide.
Incentives: We offered cash back if they closed before July 31 and you know what? They closed on July 31. To do this we just set the final price of the house higher in our final negotiations and it allowed them to have cash in hand to own 2 houses until theirs sold. To do this the title co wrote up a "Bill of Sale" stating that for the cash we were giving them we as sellers were taking the washer and dryer with us, some landscaping pots etc... Now if you don't have extra cash sitting around you
could ask the title co about giving money back at closing out of the profits you make off your house at closing. Not sure about this, never tried and never asked but you could ask. Another incentive is warranteeing your house. Here is an example of one I looked into:
http://www.nationalhomeprotection.com
Especially good for older homes I feel so buyers have confidence they aren't buying a lemon. If you do this make sure you advertise that you are. It is a great selling point!
Once you have a buyer they will likley get an inspection. They pay for someone to come in and look it over. They may or maynot come back with anything. Our first house had some rot in some exterior wood we didn't know about so it was a $750 fix so we had to fix it or pay them the amount and they would worry about fixing it. We then continued with the sale of the house. Good to be open with your buyers I feel.
If you need to go away for a couple weeks while your house is up for sale try asking a neighbor or close friend nearby to show it if you had to. We did this in MI and
IL and my IL neighbor actually sold our house! I gave them a large gift certificate for their time and efforts and they were happy and I didn't pay commissions to a realtor!
The best thing to do when selling by owner is PRAY. I told people on our last sale that God was my realtor! ;)
Please comment back any questions, comments or other ideas you might have.
Times have changed
Ok-- I am making myself sound old just by saying "times have changed". I see it over an over in a certain way. Sales. I remember as a kid going downtown Holland to stores like Dumez or to Rogers Dept. Store in Grand Rapids MI and getting true help at a store. They would bring you clothes in a different size. Honestly tell you if it fit or not or matched or not and they knew what they were talking about. In the past 24 hours I have a few stories about how this has changed. I went to Dunhams sports today just to run in and get Max some new shoes for basketball. I asked the guy if he could measure his foot. He tells me he is at least a size 3. That surprised me as the last I knew not long ago he was a 2. I looked at the foot measurer and noticed it said ladies size. I measured him at home with this certain shoe guide I have and what I thought was right. The guy was completely No help-- hurt the situation almost by me buying the wrong size shoe (even at the store I didn't buy what he said I needed). Then yesterday I was at an appliance store in Muncie to shop for an entire kitchen full of appliances. I came with model numbers, and internet print off's of what I wanted and I just wanted to see in person what I picked out. The guy was SO clueless with every question I asked it seemed as though he was making it up as he went. With the hours of research I have done online on what appliances I want I am quite certain I knew way more about what I was buying than he did. He tried to tell me that the fridge I wanted may be discountinued. I said there is no way as it is the Top rated side by side rated by Consumers Reports. Once he found the fridge on the floor there it was a big magnet on the front saying it was the top rated fridge. Oh brother! Lowes was a bad one for me too. I was looking at lights and would ask a simple question and the person would have no idea the answer. I said I would just go online and look. That way I knew the right answer if I could research it myself. I have seen this over and over to the point that I won't ask for help anymore at stores. With the help I feel I often need in buying a house and decorating it I am regularly finding that people in sales now are there for a job and not to provide any service or help. Well, I think I have complained enough.
