Thankful Thursday- $26 Electric Bill
After our friend from Home for Three create a post about how they are saving money, I thought I would create a post on how our electric bill for our 1,100 square foot house last month was $26. Just so you are aware, normally our bill is about $60, and we do have gas stove, but I will share the ways we stared off on the right foot to keep it down. After living in an apartment with "free electricity" we knew we had to make some lifestyle changes. I think we are both happy with the outcome.
New Shiny Appliances - Before we moved in we donated our old appliances, and got a new fridge, oven, and microwave. These are more efficient than the old ones. Luckily, my husbands Uncle took the old stove and fixed it all up for this cabin.
New Hot Water Heater- Self explanatory. The inspector told us we needed a new one anyway. The seller gave us money for the purchase.
"Newer House" with insulation - Our house was built in 1999. This only makes it about 12 years old. When we moved in the neighbor told us he saw it being built, and there is way more insulation in the house than there needed to be.
Smart Strips - We ordered two smart strips for our house. These will turn off the other electronics when the main one is turned off. For example, if you turn off your tv, the dvd player, cable box, and wii will also turn all the way off. We have one on our main tv, and one on my husbands "high power use" computer.
Automatic Lights and Dimmer- I did not know my husband could do electrical until we moved into our house. We now have lights that turn off and on automatically in the kitchen and bathrooms. We also have a dimmer on our kitchen light. These definitely save electricity, and are nice to have too.
Automatic thermostat- This means the temperature of our houses changes for when we wake up, when we leave for work, when we come home, and when we go to bed. I am glad my husband figured out all that technology :).
There are other things that I would would like to do with the house. These include adding storm doors to the front and back doors, getting a more efficient central air conditioner, and new washer and drier. I think that so far we have made small steps and we can keep making them to create an efficient house.
New Shiny Appliances - Before we moved in we donated our old appliances, and got a new fridge, oven, and microwave. These are more efficient than the old ones. Luckily, my husbands Uncle took the old stove and fixed it all up for this cabin.
New Hot Water Heater- Self explanatory. The inspector told us we needed a new one anyway. The seller gave us money for the purchase.
"Newer House" with insulation - Our house was built in 1999. This only makes it about 12 years old. When we moved in the neighbor told us he saw it being built, and there is way more insulation in the house than there needed to be.
Smart Strips - We ordered two smart strips for our house. These will turn off the other electronics when the main one is turned off. For example, if you turn off your tv, the dvd player, cable box, and wii will also turn all the way off. We have one on our main tv, and one on my husbands "high power use" computer.
Automatic Lights and Dimmer- I did not know my husband could do electrical until we moved into our house. We now have lights that turn off and on automatically in the kitchen and bathrooms. We also have a dimmer on our kitchen light. These definitely save electricity, and are nice to have too.
Automatic thermostat- This means the temperature of our houses changes for when we wake up, when we leave for work, when we come home, and when we go to bed. I am glad my husband figured out all that technology :).
There are other things that I would would like to do with the house. These include adding storm doors to the front and back doors, getting a more efficient central air conditioner, and new washer and drier. I think that so far we have made small steps and we can keep making them to create an efficient house.
Post #3- Down with the Sickness
Well this post is up-to-date, I am writing it today. Since all the excitement is over, now we get to the not-so-fun part. "Morning Sickness", which should be named "Sick". I have been tired for the past month. I am not talking a little tired. I am talking sleep 11 hours at night, take a 2 hour nap during the day, and still feeling tired every day. On top of that I had a cold, and 2 UTI's. Add in not having many sick days because I started a new job, and you get one tired and sick girl. I thought most of this would come at the end of my pregnancy, but I was wrong.
On a better note, my friends and family have been very supportive. Charlie is always by my side sleeping next to me. I feel bad that he is not getting walked as much, but he is always there to cuddle when I need him. When my husband wants to bring a smile to my face he just has to show me Charlie :).
So hopefully as I more forward with developing our little baby things will go smoother. If not, I guess I am ready for the pain :/.
On a better note, my friends and family have been very supportive. Charlie is always by my side sleeping next to me. I feel bad that he is not getting walked as much, but he is always there to cuddle when I need him. When my husband wants to bring a smile to my face he just has to show me Charlie :).
So hopefully as I more forward with developing our little baby things will go smoother. If not, I guess I am ready for the pain :/.
Post #2- The Cat is Out of the Bag (kinda)
Well after a good doctors appointment this weekend, my husband and I decided to tell some of our friends that good news! At this point my husband and I knew for about 2 weeks. We called people and told them in person. They were very excited for us. Since we knew for a while, we were not as quite as excited as them but very happy.
I definitely can tell my body is changing. Week 6. Without getting into details, the biggest changes are drinking lots of water, and being very sleepy. I am tired all day, but can’t actually fall asleep. I have been sleeping well at night though which is a good thing. Because of the tiredness I am missing caffeine just to feel normal. I am trying to stay healthy.
The doctor gave me 4 future appointments. He said “You are the one who wanted to get pregnant!”, and that is true so, bring it on. I am lucky to not work Fridays, so I have been trying to schedule as many appointments as possible then.
I am binging to think of all the future scheduled events and how pregnant I will be in each one. I am going to three wedding which two of them I am in, crab fest, wedding showers, bachloratte parties, and works! Well we will see how it goes!
I definitely can tell my body is changing. Week 6. Without getting into details, the biggest changes are drinking lots of water, and being very sleepy. I am tired all day, but can’t actually fall asleep. I have been sleeping well at night though which is a good thing. Because of the tiredness I am missing caffeine just to feel normal. I am trying to stay healthy.
The doctor gave me 4 future appointments. He said “You are the one who wanted to get pregnant!”, and that is true so, bring it on. I am lucky to not work Fridays, so I have been trying to schedule as many appointments as possible then.
I am binging to think of all the future scheduled events and how pregnant I will be in each one. I am going to three wedding which two of them I am in, crab fest, wedding showers, bachloratte parties, and works! Well we will see how it goes!
Post #1- I'm "Out"
I am secretly writing this post in a google doc and then moving it over to blogger! I am pregnant! I love saying it and hearing it. The problem is, we have only told our families and no one else. So when I get home from work, I tell my husband over and over, I’m pregnant! I even tell the dog. I just love saying it. We have not told our friends yet until we go to the doctor and we are sure. It is very hard for me to keep a secret, but I rather wait then tell them bad news later. I am sure we will tell others the bad news if it happens, but we want to be sure in our good news too.
So how did this happen? Our journey started 8 months ago when we started trying. I stopped taking birth control and we were off. The gynecologist said at 6 month if nothing happens that we could start testing to make sure everything is working correctly. So at about 7 ½ months I decided, that we would try the test. I had an ultrasound and blood test. Both looked good for baby making. One week later, I took a pregnancy test. Now the tests that I took were from Amazon.com that Jen suggested. Since we were trying for a while, these ovulation and pregnancy tests were a good deal and accurate.
I took the cheap pregnancy test and got a light pink line. I never got any line before... I woke up George and he did not think much of it. I have showed him my ovulation tests with light lines before and we were not sure how to analyze them. That day I went to work and googled, “light pink line on pregnancy test”. The results showed everything from high protein diet, to positive. That night I went to Walmart and got a “real” test that said either pregnant or not pregnant. I also happened to get a star wars shirt because it was on sale. I got home, put my new shirt on because I knew it would make my husband happy and took the test. The test said pregnant!! The first thought on my mind was.. “Is this really pregnant, or pretend, light pink line, too much protein pregnant?”. I wondered this because of what I read online and just starting for a week a high protein diet (don’t worry, I stopped right away). I walked town stairs to show my husband and I think that is when it became more real. We hugged and he told me how beautiful I was, even in my star wars shirt. I guess I got the pregnant glow already, score.
So now the anxiety and excitement has begun. What am I doing to my body? I always thought about inflicting physical pain on yourself interesting. I am a person that gets sea sick easily. So when I go on cruises and get sick I always think Why do I do this to myself? Or after a long night of drinking and a hangover. We know it is coming, but we do it anyway. So here I go again. In-flicking pain on myself, but I think it is good because I know the possibility of the outcome of the pain. The cost-benefit analysis says good to go! :)
So at week 5, no sickness yet. Just on day one of finding out. Just nervous excitement about the process. Instead of counting how many months we have been trying, we are going to star counting down from 9 months. I can’t wait to roll out the good news to everyone that we share our life with. I am sure we will have mixed reactions. But what is most important is that my husband and I are happy, and stay health though the process. I am more cognitive about everything I eat and drink. The baby's heart starts beating this week! The only change so far is the amount of water I am drinking (lots). Also, when my husband took my first pregnancy picture he said “are you sticking your stomach out?” but I actually think my stomach change shape a little (possible bloating from water intake). So the journey continues. I hope to keep everyone updated with more posts as I can. This Friday we go to the doctor for the first time to talk about past test results.
So how did this happen? Our journey started 8 months ago when we started trying. I stopped taking birth control and we were off. The gynecologist said at 6 month if nothing happens that we could start testing to make sure everything is working correctly. So at about 7 ½ months I decided, that we would try the test. I had an ultrasound and blood test. Both looked good for baby making. One week later, I took a pregnancy test. Now the tests that I took were from Amazon.com that Jen suggested. Since we were trying for a while, these ovulation and pregnancy tests were a good deal and accurate.
I took the cheap pregnancy test and got a light pink line. I never got any line before... I woke up George and he did not think much of it. I have showed him my ovulation tests with light lines before and we were not sure how to analyze them. That day I went to work and googled, “light pink line on pregnancy test”. The results showed everything from high protein diet, to positive. That night I went to Walmart and got a “real” test that said either pregnant or not pregnant. I also happened to get a star wars shirt because it was on sale. I got home, put my new shirt on because I knew it would make my husband happy and took the test. The test said pregnant!! The first thought on my mind was.. “Is this really pregnant, or pretend, light pink line, too much protein pregnant?”. I wondered this because of what I read online and just starting for a week a high protein diet (don’t worry, I stopped right away). I walked town stairs to show my husband and I think that is when it became more real. We hugged and he told me how beautiful I was, even in my star wars shirt. I guess I got the pregnant glow already, score.
So now the anxiety and excitement has begun. What am I doing to my body? I always thought about inflicting physical pain on yourself interesting. I am a person that gets sea sick easily. So when I go on cruises and get sick I always think Why do I do this to myself? Or after a long night of drinking and a hangover. We know it is coming, but we do it anyway. So here I go again. In-flicking pain on myself, but I think it is good because I know the possibility of the outcome of the pain. The cost-benefit analysis says good to go! :)
So at week 5, no sickness yet. Just on day one of finding out. Just nervous excitement about the process. Instead of counting how many months we have been trying, we are going to star counting down from 9 months. I can’t wait to roll out the good news to everyone that we share our life with. I am sure we will have mixed reactions. But what is most important is that my husband and I are happy, and stay health though the process. I am more cognitive about everything I eat and drink. The baby's heart starts beating this week! The only change so far is the amount of water I am drinking (lots). Also, when my husband took my first pregnancy picture he said “are you sticking your stomach out?” but I actually think my stomach change shape a little (possible bloating from water intake). So the journey continues. I hope to keep everyone updated with more posts as I can. This Friday we go to the doctor for the first time to talk about past test results.
Thankful Thursday- Spring Time
I am so blessed to work at such a beautiful place, Penn State. The flowers are beautiful in the spring. I took some pictures while I was waiting for the bus. What a beautiful day!
Take Me Out Tuesday- Grilling Out
l
Last weekend we had some beautiful weather in central Pennsylvania. We had some friends over and grilled outside. Here you can see our new porch set we got at big lots. George and I had to put it all together, but we think it turned out great. We have been using the chairs almost every day now, even in the rainy weather. What is your favorite thing to eat on the grill?
Marvoulous Charlie Mondays- Smelling the Roses
Recently I had my 28th Birthday. My amazing husband bought me some beautiful roses. I always let Charlie smell the flowers that I have in the house. He is always curious.
Stylish Blogger Award
We won the stylish blogger award from Little Sparkles: Chispita a beautiful cavalier friend! Thank you! We appreciate the award!
I am now, as asked, going to write 3 things about Charlie and me and share the award with 4 others.
1. Charlies new spot is under the bed. There is a little spot where there is no boxes that he has made his little home.
2. Charlie loves barking at the bunnies he sees out the window. He rarely sees birds that are only a couple week away from him.
3. Charlie loves going for car rides. What dog doesn't!
Thanks again!
We would like to pass this award on to:
I am now, as asked, going to write 3 things about Charlie and me and share the award with 4 others.
1. Charlies new spot is under the bed. There is a little spot where there is no boxes that he has made his little home.
2. Charlie loves barking at the bunnies he sees out the window. He rarely sees birds that are only a couple week away from him.
3. Charlie loves going for car rides. What dog doesn't!
Thanks again!
We would like to pass this award on to:
SNAP SHOTS
MOMO & PINTO
BARK N ABOUT
EMBEE CAVALIERS
MOMO & PINTO
BARK N ABOUT
EMBEE CAVALIERS
We love sharing our favorite blogs with our blog friends!
Pregnant in Heels
Has anyone seen this show? I have enjoyed watching and laughing at these woman. Not that I will be any different! Here is a link of one of the moms who has TWO BEAUTIFUL CAVALIERS, also a beautiful new born baby.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
LinkWithin
