tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49216094047719846602024-03-13T03:03:33.730-07:00Homeowner by 30!From 2009-2012 I paid off 28,000 of my own debt. During that time I moved from Long Beach back to Whittier, met the man who is now my husband, and learned tons about how to manage my money. I'm back to blogging now that I'm married and my husband and I work to pay off his student loans. We're adding a baby to the mix this year, to keep things interesting. I don't own a home (and I'm just past 30) but I've come a long way on my financial journey!Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.comBlogger547125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-71090839038310881492015-07-06T13:39:00.001-07:002015-07-06T13:39:34.248-07:00Would You Rather?This month we will pay off one of DH's loan companies, leaving one to go. That's four loans we've paid off in two years of marriage (today is our anniversary!). The total with the back-interest he owed is about 28k in two years. :)<br />
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The plan is to pay off the second loan company (13,500) by our third anniversary. And then discuss relocating for DH to get a job, having another baby, etc.<br />
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If we decide to move, that will definitely be a big expense. And if DH works, we'll have to start paying daycare. Also, I am highly paid as a teacher here (though cost of living is high here too). There are a lot of "if's" for us in the next year or so.<br />
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But, I know that I want to get pregnant again by next summer. Which also involves saving money for maternity leave and other baby things.<br />
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All that to say, I want to get even more gazelle-intense, and pay off the loan even sooner, AND bump up our savings.<br />
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So, last night I decided that for any extra purchase, I am going to ask myself, "Would you rather have ____, or have another baby?"<br />
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This becomes a no-brainer. McDonald's iced coffee or another baby? New lip gloss or another baby? Turn on the air conditioner or have another baby? DUH! Another baby!<br />
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Obviously we will still occasionally spend "extra" money. Our quality of life matters too. But I think I'm going to save those extras for things that cultivate our relationship (date night, etc.) and bring us true joy (small family trip), rather than stupid things that I don't really mind going without. Asking myself this question is already making me think twice about how I spend.<br />
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What's your "would you rather"?Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-19047057248137268872015-06-30T08:05:00.002-07:002015-06-30T08:05:48.833-07:00Anyone Out There?Hello! It's been almost a year since I posted here. I'm not sure if anyone still has me on their readers, but just in case...<br />
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Last August I had a baby girl! She's awesome. :) I went back to work full time in November while my husband stayed home, went to school part-time, and continues to ref soccer games as a part-time weekend gig. <br />
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As soon as I get paid for summer school, we're knocking out student loan 4 out of 5! We will then have one big one (13k) left to go. I'm proud of the progress we've made so far. Our goal is to be 100% debt-free by our 3rd anniversary next July. It will be tough, but I think we can do it. <br />
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Anyway, those are the highlights. If anyone's still reading, maybe I'll get back to posting more. :)<br />
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<br />Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-34358684802095394242014-08-03T22:23:00.002-07:002014-08-03T22:23:50.963-07:00Passive IncomeWell, I'm in the home stretch of this pregnancy...due on Friday, in fact! While I'm waiting for baby to make his/her appearance, I've been working on getting another income stream coming in. I created a store on the site Teachers Pay Teachers.<br />
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Teachers Pay Teachers is a place where educators can post curriculum, worksheets, Power Points, etc. and sell them to other educators. It's a great idea...I create a lot of my own curriculum, so I knew I'd have enough to get a store started. I've spent the last few weeks editing, combining separate documents into packets, writing answer keys (I never make them for my own stuff...I made it up, I know the answer!) and creating cover pages. I also created a <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/jfletcherfierro/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a> for my account, and a <a href="http://jfletcherfierro.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">blog</a> to publicize <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Jessica-Fletcher-Fierro">my store</a>. <br />
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My goal is to get this up and running so that I can generate some extra income while I'm on my maternity leave. Of course I'd love it to continue when I go back to work (and I will be able to add new curriculum as I use it throughout the year). I have friends who've had good experiences, so I am hopeful it can be an easy source of income (though getting it all set up has taken more work than I initially thought).<br />
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Do you have any forms of passive income? Anyone used Teachers Pay Teachers before?<br />
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If you're interested (or know anyone who teachers middle school) I am having a 20% off sale<a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Jessica-Fletcher-Fierro" target="_blank"> in my store</a> Monday and Tuesday (August 4th and 5th). Check it out!Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-35971312846105986632014-07-20T23:07:00.002-07:002014-07-20T23:07:56.030-07:00Need Some AdviceI'm trying to figure out what type of savings account to open for my soon-to-be-born child. I know that a relative is going to give us a check when baby is born, and I keep hemming and hawing about what to do with it. I'd like an account that we can add to here and there (paying off student loans and saving for a house takes precedence over baby's account so no monthly deposits)...you know, birthday money, eventually allowance, etc.<br />
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I know 529 plans are a great college savings option, but I'm not sure I want to commit all of our funds to college. I MIGHT want to use it for that, but what if my kid gets a scholarship? What if he/she wants to use it for a first car or a house down payment? And (the teacher in me cringes at this thought) what if my kid doesn't go to college? I don't like the limits on a 529 plan.<br />
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I like the idea of setting up a savings account, so that later on my child can practice/learn good saving habits and put money in the bank for either long-term savings or for an item that he/she wants to save for in the short-term. Capital One 360 has a kids account, where they can create various accounts with names, so they can save towards various goals. This seems like a good option...but the interest is only .75%, so this account wouldn't make much money at all. And if I do end up using it for college, I'll probably regret not putting it in a 529 where the money could actually grow at a decent rate.<br />
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So those of you with kids, what do you use to save for them? Even if you don't have kids, based on what I'm thinking, what would you suggest?<br />
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<br />Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-58975495851098725962014-07-18T17:23:00.000-07:002014-07-18T17:23:00.370-07:00Raise the Roof!I just found out that the Union and the School Board reached an agreement for our contract, and it's a good one!<br />
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We are getting a 4% raise retroactive to last school year (meaning we will get a lump sum check sometime before Christmas), and a 4% raise for this coming year. So a total of an 8% salary increase! They are also upping the amount they put into our benefits in January.<br />
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This could not come at a better time for us! I'll be adding the baby to my insurance, so that's a new expense. I will also be taking a full 12 weeks of maternity leave, so the retro-active check will be helpful to cover the time that I won't be paid for. And obviously, kids bring up all sorts of expenses so making more money in general is a good thing!<br />
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We haven't had a raise since 2007, so I figured it would be a bigger raise than usual. I'm so pleased at how negotiations turned out, and can't wait to see that new total reflected on our check at the end of August. And, I'm super relived negotiations, while tense, worked out and no strike was needed.<br />
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Hurray for good news!Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-55759357992163837432014-07-17T17:17:00.001-07:002014-07-17T17:17:14.834-07:00One Down!!Two weeks ago we hit a big financial milestone that I never shared: we paid off the first of my husband's student loans!!<br />
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We hit the jackpot when I got paid for summer school and he got his first paycheck from his internship at the radio station. I was able to beef up our savings account by about $1,300, and put a little more than that towards his loans. We paid off his first loan and put over $1,000 towards the second one. YES!<br />
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My goal is to get the second loan paid off by the end of this year, leaving us with three to go. I'm doing the Dave Ramsey method of paying them off smallest to largest, so after the second one, our progress may slow a little. Also, I hear kids cost money. But, I feel really good about adding to our savings and make progress on our debt.<br />
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Tomorrow is my husband's payday, and I should have a bit more summer school money coming in any day now, so we should be able to make another loan payment and save a bit more. Holla! Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-19322481053831375962014-06-15T11:36:00.001-07:002014-06-15T11:36:54.995-07:00Waiting Around...So, I had grand plans to pay off my husband's first student loan this month. But, it's looking like it might not happen until the beginning of next month. Sigh.<br />
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My husband has refereed soccer the last four weekends (which should bring in around $350, maybe a bit more) and he started his new internship, which is paid. So in theory we should be able to do it. BUT...<br />
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The other soccer league he refs with pays him cash on the same day. This league cuts him a check. He asked about when he would get the check and people said either July or August. WHAT?! Of course it will be nice to get a big chunk later, but that's pretty much the exact amount we need to pay off that loan!<br />
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As far as the internship goes, he's put in his hours and his HR person has done what she needs to on this end. But the system to actually get him paid has to be updated by someone at Minnesota Public Radio (the umbrella his station here in CA falls under). Payday is next Friday, so unless it gets done first thing Monday, I don't think he'll get his first check until fourth of July weekend (the next pay cycle).<br />
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He'll get all the pay he's entitled to eventually, and he's not worried about it, but I was so excited to get that loan taken care of THIS month.<br />
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On the bright side, this isn't income we need to pay rent or buy groceries, so I'm thankful for that at least. I don't know what they expect people to do who are depending on their pay to live!<br />
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Anyone else ever have to wait to get paid? Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-76533245552036583332014-06-09T22:02:00.003-07:002014-06-09T22:02:59.408-07:00It's Not Always About MoneyToday my husband took a huge step towards his career goal and accomplished a dream. He started his internship at our local public radio station!<br />
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When he left his job almost a year ago, I know some people thought I was a little crazy to be okay with it. We've lived mostly on one income (minus reffing soccer and a brief stint to Lowe's). He's been in school and at times been home more often. We'd only been married for about a month when he quit.<br />
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But today, when I got to see him come home from his paid internship at KPCC, with his new name badge and a smile on his face, I know we made the right decision. He loved it, and is thrilled at this opportunity. And yes, we'd be further ahead on paying off his student loans if he still worked as a manager at Walgreens. We'd have a bigger house down payment fund. And we're still working on those things.<br />
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Less importantly, we'd have gone on a better vacation, or eaten out more. I'd probably have more new clothes and would've gotten a pedicure or two. But I wouldn't trade any of that for my husband being able to pursue his dream.<br />
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Sometimes, financial goals have to take a backseat to other things. And today confirmed that supporting him in these dreams was totally worth it.Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-7952957662713227332014-02-28T08:40:00.004-08:002014-02-28T08:40:34.118-08:00So Satisfying!This week I decided to a little thing to declutter my life, and it's been so satisfying! Years ago, I set up a junk email address to use for surveys and coupons. But, since I was checking it so often, I also started using it with friends and family. And I use it for chatting on Google Hangouts. I ended up connecting that email address to my phone as well.<br />
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I have been getting about a million alerts a day. And 95% of them were junk. Dumb.<br />
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So, this week I decided to make it a goal to unsubscribe from emails I don't want as I get them. I'm keeping my subscriptions to restaurants and stores where I actually shop (since those coupons can come in handy), but there are TONS of emails that I would never use at all. My original plan was to do three unsubscribes per day, but it really only takes a second. So, I've been unsubscribing to all of the unwanted ones ones I get.<br />
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It's the smallest thing, but it's so satisfying to declutter my email (and my life). It makes me want to do a purge this weekend in my house and physically declutter as well! I need to clean out and move a bookshelf so I can set up the crib in the baby's room/office. Perhaps I will make this my weekend project!<br />
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<br />Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-49636908844939615932014-02-27T08:43:00.000-08:002014-02-27T08:43:03.707-08:00Making ProgressI just got paid today (I love direct deposit, means I get my money a day early), so I crunched the numbers for both our March budget AND for what we had leftover in February. We were actually UNDER budget by $271 in February! Holla! I put $200 toward student loan #1 and put $71 in savings. Then, I figured out March's budget, and even after paying my husband's car registration and budgeting for my sister's baby shower, I had another $200 to the loan and $191 to savings (on top of the minimum payment amount for the loan).<br />
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In total? I put $630 toward my husband's student loans today. Whoo-hoo! The total for loan number one is under $1600. We're in the home stretch (well, for the first of his loans that is). My goal is to have that first loan paid off by the end of April.<br />
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Even better news? My husband got a part-time job (he's in school, so part time is perfect right now) and I got a tutoring gig for three hours a week. Our income is going up, which means we can save and pay off debt even faster! Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-39165000224953610582014-02-18T16:48:00.000-08:002014-02-18T16:48:00.286-08:00How We're Spending Our TaxesAfter much hemming and hawing, calculating and recalculating we've decided on how to spend our tax returns. <br />
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We got a LARGE amount back this year (more than I expected), but I don't know how my husband feels about me publishing the actual number on the internet. So, I am going to break down how we're spending the money by percentages, rather than dollar amounts.<br />
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Student Loan Payment: 41%<br />
Savings: 36%<br />
Roth IRA: 11%<br />
Baby Furniture: 9%<br />
Car Repairs: 3%<br />
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I'm happy with this breakdown. It beefs up our emergency fund before the baby comes (getting it to almost four months expenses), makes a big dent in our debt (should be able to pay off loan number one in April!), has us actually putting a little something into our retirement (which I suspended once we went to one income-I have a pension), and let's me buy baby furniture without stressing about how to budget for it.<br />
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Our California refund already came in, and our federal should be here by Wednesday! Can't wait to move forward on these goals! <br />
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How are you spending your tax returns?Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-6180224628547645482014-02-17T16:38:00.001-08:002014-02-17T16:38:26.648-08:00Thirty Years?!?!My husband's student loans are split into five different loans. We will have the smallest one paid off in the next two to three months (hurray!). I was looking at the account and playing with numbers and saw that if he were to just pay the minimum, that loan would be paid off in 2044.<br />
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Until I got a hold of his loans and finances in general, he was paying the minimums. And I will say, since he went back to school we've been able to make a HUGE dent, since 3/5 accounts aren't collecting interest. But 2044!? That's FOREVER.<br />
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It made me smile to be able to say to him today, "Did you know we're paying off your first student loan THIRTY YEARS EARLY???"<br />
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How early have you paid off student loans?Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-75866057654709548582014-02-15T22:29:00.000-08:002014-02-15T22:29:00.109-08:00Start Spreading the News...I hadn't updated again because I sort of assumed I lost all my readers in my blogging absence (which I totally get). But then Jolie commented, wondering what was new with me. So, I assume at least ONE person is still reading.<br />
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I could blog about how we're doing with my husband's student loan payoff, or what my plans are for our tax returns, or how we had a frugal Valentine's Day, or any number of things. But, I figured maybe I should start with our biggest, most exciting news...<br />
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<b>I'm having a baby in August!</b><br />
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I'm excited, and nervous, and planning up a storm (I finished registering three weeks ago), and I look chunky, and I have heartburn.<br />
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And it's all pretty great.<br />
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More updates to follow! (I hope...I'd like to find my blogging mojo if anyone is still reading).Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-44845717649223965732014-01-01T12:34:00.000-08:002013-12-31T12:35:09.435-08:00An UpdateSince I haven't posted in a while, I thought I would give a brief update...<br />
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My husband finished his first semester of his radio program with straight A's, so I'm very proud of him! He starts refereeing soccer games this weekend, so that will be a nice source of additional income to help us meet our goals this year (see yesterday's post). My vote is to put that money toward one specific thing, like his loans or our savings, but I need to see what my husband wants to do as well.<br />
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We went on a quick, cheap trip to Yosemite in November. It was SO much fun, and so beautiful. We drove up on a whim, stayed in a hotel a few hours away, saw the park the whole day (free entrance for Veteran's weekend), and then drove home that night. It was exhausting, but we LOVED it. I'm not very spontaneous, so it was a first for me.<br />
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Financially things are going pretty well. We've both been selling items on Ebay and Amazon (my mom gave me a ton of CD's to sell and I'm splitting the profits with her). So far I've made about $100, which has been a nice little bonus, especially this time of year. From here on out, I think I'm going to stash that money into a trip fund so we can go somewhere this year for vacation on a budget. We are making progress with his student loans as well. Nothing astounding, but chipping away at it each month. Now that the New Year is here, I'm hoping to get a little more gazelle-intense about paying off at least one of the loans (there are five total, so knocking off the first one would be a great step).Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-43113123903705063372013-12-31T12:26:00.001-08:002013-12-31T12:26:37.934-08:00New Year's ResolutionsWell, I'm officially one of those bloggers that posts very, very sporadically and then pops up when you least expect it. Lame. But, this seems like a good place to record my New Year's Resolutions, so I'm back!<br />
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1. Finish our name changes! We both hyphenated our last names, but only got as far as Social Security and the DMV. I want to take care of it with the bank, work, insurance, etc, etc.<br />
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2. Save $10,000 in our E-Fund by August of this year (We need about $1,500 more to hit this goal, assuming I don't have to use it for anything).<br />
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3. Pay off the smaller unsubsidized loan before my husband finishes school in December (This is about $4,900). My plan is to use $1000 from our tax returns toward this, $1,000 from summer school for it, and to put about $275/month toward this goal. Speaking of summer school...<br />
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4. Work Summer School this summer, even if I really don't feel like it. The money is too good to pass up!<br />
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5. Hit 3,000 miles on my Fitbit by the end of 2014.<br />
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6. Go on some sort of trip with my husband, either for Spring Break or for our anniversary. I don't necessarily need to go somewhere elaborate, but somewhere we haven't been before would be great.<br />
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I have a few more ideas rolling around, but I want to look at them a little more...so I will probably add three more sometime later this month.Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-13463606670781649592013-10-01T17:14:00.000-07:002013-10-01T17:14:04.270-07:00Some Good News!The other day we got a letter from Aspire, the lender that handles 4/5 of my husband's student loans. The letter was informing us that his loans had gone into deferment because he is enrolled halftime in school. I didn't think much of it, figuring we were going to continue to pay the interest on three of the loans and put all extra funds into the one with the lowest balance.<div>
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But when I logged in yesterday, I noticed that all but one of his loans is subsidized. Meaning the government will pay the interest while he's in school.</div>
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Holla!!!</div>
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So, I have a strategy question.</div>
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The unsubsidized loan, which is still accumulating interest, is the second lowest balance. So, my first thought was to throw all extra funds at that loan first, to lower the interest rate, and hopefully get rid of it first. Ideally we could be done with it by the time he finishes his schooling (two and a half more semesters).</div>
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OR, I am wondering if I stick to the original plan and pay off the lowest balance first, while it collects no interest. I'd still pay the accumulating interest on the unsubsidized loan, but perhaps it makes more sense to put all of our extra funds toward a loan that isn't growing each day so that we can get rid of it and avoid paying future interest on it. Kind of the way you might pay off a zero interest for six month loan in that window so you never owe interest on it.</div>
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What do you think? I'd love a second opinion, as I am torn on which path to choose. Either way, I am thrilled that his loans aren't costing us $5 per day in interest (which is what I calculated last month. And then got depressed.)</div>
Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-64576584886151570082013-09-26T17:24:00.001-07:002013-09-26T17:24:53.661-07:00Month One on One...Income, that is.<br />
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We officially made it through our first full month of living on one income. And it's actually going really well. I get paid tomorrow, and I just checked all the numbers. We came in under on the budget, and while we did cut back this month didn't feel like too much of a sacrifice. We definitely ate out less. I didn't stop for coffee or food as much as I normally would. But you know what? It was a good month. It felt good to be frugal again.<br />
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And the even better news? We were able to reduce the student loans by over $600!<br />
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Also, my husband is signed up for a class to get his soccer reffing license to bring in a little extra cash soon. And he also passed the CBEST and will be applying to substitute teach in a few local districts. So, hopefully we can put even more extra cash towards the student loans when that happens. But it feels good to know we can live on one income and still make at least a small dent in our total loan balance.Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-46987301038916270632013-09-22T18:31:00.001-07:002013-09-22T18:31:04.296-07:00More Frugal Things We've Been DoingHere's what I did this weekend and how I made it frugal:<br />
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*Shared a burrito at dinner: we went to our favorite Mexican place on Friday night (one of our only times eating out together this month!). They have a "monster" burrito on the menu. It's ten bucks and we split it. It was plenty of food, and we saved money by not ordering our own separate dishes.<br />
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*Decorated for Fall: I put out the decorations I already had, for the most part. Over the years I've gotten several pumpkin-shaped candles (either as gifts or on clearance after the holidays are over), but I never burn them. This way I can put them out year after year. :) I have one pumpkin scented candle that I do light, so I still get that feel. I also made this centerpiece and only spent $1.59 on candy corn (the rest of the stuff I already had).<br />
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*Made meals at home: Today I almost went to Ralphs, but then pushed myself to cook at home. We ate here and ate quiet well, in fact! I made cornmeal pancakes (thanks, <a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2012/05/cornmeal-pancakes-with-blackberry-syrup/">Pioneer Woman</a>) and turkey bacon for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, and for dinner we had garlic chicken, pasta, and brussel sprouts. :) After I made all that, I felt silly for wanting to go to the store for food. Plenty here!<br />
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*Dinner with my sister: This was on Thursday, but we went to dinner and I used a Groupon I bought a few months back. It covered both of our meals and dessert. She paid the tip, so this felt free! (Yes, I bought the Groupon, but it was so long ago it hardly seems to count.)<br />
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*Swagbucks: when I read blogs or went on Facebook I was sure to Swagbuck it, and I am building up to get another Amazon gift card. The last one I got just posted today. These will be handy to have for Christmas time!<br />
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So, what did you to do keep it frugal this weekend?Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-66679094020828221452013-09-09T20:08:00.004-07:002013-09-09T20:08:56.129-07:00FrugallingSo, in the past few weeks I've been off the blog, I've been delving further into our loan debt, crunching numbers and looking at history, etc. And most of what I've realized actually makes me realize we have further to dig out than I thought. Meaning, it's not very positive. I will update on that at some point, but for today I need to focus on the positive! So, here are some ways I've gotten my frugal on in the past few weeks. Or, as I like to call it, how I've been frugalling. (It's a verb.)<br />
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*I've been back on Recyclebank and <a href="http://swagbucks.com/refer/JessFletch">Swagbucks</a>, and am well on my way to some $5 Amazon gift cards. I plan on using those either for Christmas gifts or for necessities down the line.<br />
*I also used two Bath and Body Works coupons to get free travel-sized items that I will use as prizes in a baby shower I'm throwing next month.<br />
*Speaking of the shower, I've made all the invitations and decorations myself, spending $5 on paper.<br />
*We've gone on two dates at the Dollar Theater in our area. We brought in our own candy and drinks, of course. Each date cost us a total of about $8 with snacks.<br />
*We've done the vast majority of our eating here at home. I haven't stopped for coffee or breakfast on the way to work once!<br />
*I've made birthday cards using my Cricut, and have plans to make a friend some homemade caramel corn for her birthday gift. I'm going to make a cute tag and put them in a mason jar that I already have.<br />
*I've been going onto The Freebie Blogger and have requested various free samples. I'll either use these as stocking stuffers, for travel, or to save on my grocery/toiletries bill.<br />
*I'm also back to tracking our spending to the penny, and should be able to make our first extra payment on the student loans at the end of the month.<br />
*My husband downgraded his texting plan and minutes on his phone, which will save us $27 per month.<br />
*We also cancelled Hulu Plus and just kept streaming on Netflix. There are always coupon codes for Redbox rentals, so we're going to get by on that for newer releases.<br />
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So, even though we've got a long climb to go, I feel good about these changes. And most of them aren't too difficult. I sort of enjoy the challenge of being frugal. Just hope that feeling doesn't wear off too soon!<br />
<br />Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-27128528155233285542013-08-24T12:22:00.001-07:002013-08-24T12:22:39.150-07:00Car Bill Coming Down...Well, I think it is a tad unrealistic to think that I won't need to take any money out of my savings to cover the cost of my car repair. But, I did double check my travel rewards credit card and saw that two of my purchase erasers hadn't gone through. I went in and fixed that, which should take $96 off of my credit card bill in the next couple of days! I still have enough rewards to get a free flight to Portland, which I plan to use sometime in the next few months to go see my friend Shelley again.<br />
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I listed a few more DVD's on Ebay this week, and sold a book on Amazon. A lot of what I have to sell isn't worth too much, but I will make a little more money on Monday when the auctions finish.<br />
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I have stuck with my $100 budget until payday. I got gas the other day, paid back my coworker, but have only spent $16 on groceries. If I can go without spending any more money until Thursday (which I'm really going to push myself to accomplish!) I will only need to take out $174 from my savings to cover the cost of the repairs. Considering it was a $630 bill, I feel good about that!Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-74078205499679450902013-08-20T07:25:00.000-07:002013-08-21T10:44:22.838-07:00Ebay and Car RepairsNow that I'm back into frugality, I decided to list some items on Ebay. I had four listings up and made a profit of $115! I sold a bridesmaids dress, a Cricut cartridge that I decided I didn't like after all, a purse, and Six Feet Under on DVD. I am VERY happy with these sales!<br />
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When I started out selling these items, I figured I would set the money aside for some things I'd been wanting to buy but didn't want to take out of the budget. In fact, I went ahead and ordered some blades and mats for my Cricut (which actually saves me money on cards, baby shower supplies, etc.). I also went and bought a new pair of black flats (since my last pair was purchased in 2010...it's time). They were having a BOGO sale, so I got a second pair of shoes for half off as well. <br />
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I still had some money left and felt good about having extra money laying around.<br />
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HA.<br />
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Well, today several of the warning lights went on in my dashboard. I took my car in and found out I need new brakes (apparently they were worn down to 1mm...oops) and a variety of other smaller things done. I work out with a few people who work at the dealership, so they were able to give me a discount (and the service guy's wife is a teacher in my district so he threw in a free oil change for me). BUT, it's still going to cost me a pretty penny to get all the repairs/maintenance done.<br />
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As in, around $<strike>670</strike>. $630! (The guy at the service desk's wife works in my district. And I have friends from the gym who work there, so he gave me a discount! Score!)<br />
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To be fair, I haven't had much done on the car in the last few years. And what's crazy is that I used to pay about $500/month in car payments on this car (BANANAS!). So, I know this is just part of owning a car. But I am still not thrilled about the cost of the repairs.<br />
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My new goal is to see if I can pay for these repairs without taking money from my emergency fund.<br />
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I know I'll need gas again before payday, and a small grocery trip or two for some ingredients to make dinners and lunches at home. I am also bringing snacks next Friday for my work, and I owe a co-worker $20 for snacks we use as student incentives. So, I am budgeting $100 for those items (which is keeping it pretty damn frugal, actually). That leaves me with about $<strike>330</strike> $278 to put towards the bill.<br />
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I also have some of the Ebay money from those four items I mentioned about left in my Paypal account. I will transfer that over, which is only about $20 after the shoes and Cricut supplies.<br />
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I am going to go through my DVD's, books, and the rest of my apartment to see what else I can sell on Ebay. Hopefully, this can bring in some good money. I will probably also take in our recycling to put toward the cause.<br />
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Honestly, it will be tough to pull this one off. But I want to push myself to see if I can make it happen. I'd love to keep our E-fund as large as possible going into this next chapter of living on one income (though my husband is already signing up for subbing and looking into some other side/odd jobs to earn some money going forward).<br />
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So, think I can pull this off? Any advice for bringing in more money? :)Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-58029960543386232912013-08-19T21:09:00.000-07:002013-08-19T21:09:00.893-07:00Getting Tricky With FoodOne thing that drives me crazy about my husband is that he is not a big leftovers eater. He will usually eat pasta-based leftovers (spaghetti, lasagna, etc.), but most other things are up to me to eat. Which means that sometimes we waste food because I can't eat the same thing for a solid week.<br />
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So, one idea I'm trying is to reconstitute our leftovers into "new" meals. I found one idea online that I plan to try, and I'm hoping you will share your other ideas with me!<br />
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Meal 1: Beef stew (using stew beef I have sitting in freezer from a couple of months ago...really trying to use what's in my freezer these days!). Probably served with a side of bread.<br />
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Meal 2: Drain the stew and make a thicker gravy out of the liquid. Put stew and gravy in ramekins and cover with<strike> Pillsbury</strike> store brand croissants. Pop into the oven and make a beef pot pie. (Thanks to Pinterest for the inspiration).<br />
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I would also eat the leftover stew the next day at work.<br />
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No, this isn't a drastically different meal. But I am hoping it's different enough to get my husband to eat it more than once during the week. (Maybe I'll skip a day in between?) <br />
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I'd love to hear how you repurpose meals to make your leftovers more interesting!Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-42512663149998270592013-08-17T21:00:00.000-07:002013-08-17T21:00:00.478-07:00An Organized Pantry is a Frugal PantryContinuing in my series of ways to save money on food, I wanted to share about how organizing my pantry has saved me money.<br />
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I am a Type A personality. I actually love organizing things, and have thought about going into some sort of organizing business. But, like everyone, there are areas in my house that still get away from me at times. After our trips this summer, I set out to fix that. I went on an organizing rampage. I posted the before and after photos on Instagram, but I can't figure out how to get them here. :/<br />
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Basically, it was a disaster before. I was also digging through it, finding half-eaten bags of chips, duplicates of canned goods I had already purchased...ugh. I wasted money because of those things.<br />
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So, I went to the Dollar Tree and spent $4 on baskets (and used an bin I already had). I created the following baskets:<br />
*Snacks: granola bars, almonds, fruit snacks, Craisins, etc. all go in here. This helped me realized that I didn't need to buy any more snacks when I went to the store today. And, when I'm in a hurry before work, it's easy to grab a snack from here for my morning break.<br />
*Sides: I put pasta, rice, mac and cheese, etc. in one basket. Now when I have a main dish figured out, I can see what sides I already have. This saves me from buying duplicates and helps me throw together a quick dinner.<br />
*Chips/Crackers: My husband knows to look here when he wants some chips and we've been way better about finishing off bags now.<br />
*Jello: Yes, we had so many small boxes of jello that they got their own bin. Seeing all of it is motivating me to make that for dessert/snacks.<br />
*Garlic: I got a tiny bin for garlic, since it's always floating around in the pantry. It goes bad or I forget I have it ALL THE TIME.<br />
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I put all my baking items on the bottom shelf and all my canned goods on another. The canned goods still get hard to keep track of, but for $4 I'm happy with what I've got. It's nice too, because when I'm at the store, I can picture the bins and know whether I need to buy something. Not that I've memorized it, but for example I know that I have a pretty full snack bin. So I skipped that at Ralph's the other day.<br />
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I did the same thing with our toiletries cupboard, and now I know that we pretty much never need to buy body wash for my husband or mouth wash again for the rest of our lives. So that's a plus.<br />
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Do you like to organize your home? Do you find it helps to save you money?Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-36983149636933122822013-08-17T20:45:00.000-07:002013-08-17T20:45:00.364-07:00New Grocery StrategyOne area that I'd really like to work on my spending in is grocery shopping. I know I overspend here, and have food waste way to often. Here are a few things I did to improve in this area.<br />
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Baking: Last weekend I had some almost rotten bananas and a HUGE zucchini that a friend gave me. I made a loaf of banana bread and two loafs of zucchini bread. I shared some with my mom, we ate two of them, and I sliced the last loaf up and froze it in individual servings. When I want a quick breakfast I can pop a slice in the microwave next to a wet paper towel for 30 seconds. YUM! I also found a recipe for zucchini fritters and made them to go with my Sloppy Joes for dinner on Sunday. We LOVED how they turned out. The best part: I already had all of the other ingredients on hand, so that was all free!<br />
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Inspired by using what I had, I planned Sloppy Joes (all I needed was a bell pepper and some ketchup) for dinner that night. That cost me $2.25 (and of course I have most of the bottle of ketchup left). Last night I made Sesame Chicken with frozen chicken leftover from other recipes. That's the kind of thing I tend to let languish in the freezer, so I was glad to use it. I also have two half-used bags of hash browns in there. I found a recipe for potato soup that uses hash browns, so I picked up the other ingredients I need to make that (spent about six bucks on that. I think I should be able to get a few meals out of it). We also have TONS of jello, so I bought a can of mandarin oranges and some Cool Whip and made dessert from that.<br />
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While I was at the store, I picked up some meat on sale. Some was clearance and all pork was half off. I got Italian sausage ($1.98), spicy turkey sausage ($2.99), ground beef ($3.89), beef short ribs ($1.89) and two pork loins ($2.97 & $3.50). I spent seventeen bucks and got quite a stockpile of meat. Now I will meal plan around those items in the weeks to come. I also snagged a pack of buns on clearance that I threw in the freezer for the next time we make burgers or Sloppy Joes (a new favorite. Pioneer Woman's recipe had Freddie and my sister raving).<br />
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I usually plan my meals before going to the store, but then I can't always take advantage of items in I find on clearance. This way, I know I am building my meal around the best deals possible.<br />
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I spent a total of $40 at the store today. I got all of that meat, ingredients I needed for the two dinners I planned ahead for, fruit, yogurt, cake mix, frosting, and lunch meat. Normally, I can easily spend $60 at the store, so this is a victory!<br />
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How do you save money on groceries?Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921609404771984660.post-36836131925506914722013-08-15T20:30:00.000-07:002013-08-15T20:30:07.198-07:00Sticking With the PlanThis week I have continued to live frugally, even when faced with some temptations.<br />
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<b>Temptation:</b> Go out to lunch Tuesday-Thursday because they were teacher work days and we never go out during the year.<br />
<b>Solution:</b> I forgot that the principal buys us lunch the first day back, so Tuesday was a gimme. I compromised by bringing my lunch Tuesday (leftovers) and going out today to Panera.<br />
<b>Cost:</b> $10 (but I found that ten bucks in my back pocket yesterday, so it didn't come out of my budget!)<br />
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<b>Temptation:</b> Book club met near several food places, Starbucks, and Coldstone. Of course I wanted to get dinner and a coffee. I had a Coldstone gift card, but was also trying to be a little bit healthy.<br />
<b>Solution</b>: Ate leftover sloppy Joe for dinner before I left the house (you should make the Pioneer Woman's sloppy joes...they are AMAZING). Looked up Coldstone nutrition info and got a pineapple frozen yogurt with strawberries as a mix-in.<br />
<b>Cost: </b>FREE, since I used a gift card.<br />
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<b>Temptation: </b>Make a fun new recipe from Pinterest that would require all sorts of shopping for ingredients.<br />
<b>Solution:</b> Look through recipes I've already pinned and make meals based on what's already in my freezer. Tonight I had Sesame Chicken, rice, and edamame.<br />
<b>Cost: </b>$1.50 for the edamame, I had everything else I needed.<br />
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What spendy temptations did you overcome this week?Jessica Fletcher-Fierrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04721145697646712842noreply@blogger.com1