The Economy is falling apart

I read another article, in today’s paper, regarding the future of the economy.  Another wave of foreclosures are coming, and that will further crash the real estate market and finish off the loan sector.  Then these losses will lower consumerism, which will hurt retailers resulting in job losses.   It is a huge dominoe effect.  

 The unemployment rate here is 5.3%    Thank God my husband is yet to be in that boat.  He does Air Conditioning, Refrigeration, and some plumbing and he works for an old and very well known company.  Hopefully that will insulate us from unemployment.  People in Florida MUST have A/C, and the restaurants MUST have working refridgeration, and everyone MUST have working plumbing.  I will tell you that business has slowed down and his checks are smaller than normal, but we can still make it… IF we cut back and cut down. 

We need to refinance our mortage down a little and cash in on some equity.  We need to pay off or lower the car payment.  We MUST put savings in the bank, and really reconsider all the additions and changes we were going to make on the house.  They are all so important and desperately needed, but if we don’t get enough money out of the appraisal…. then it all can’t get done.    It would be more important to have more money put away anyway.

Then other monthly bills need to change.  That storage unit has got to be downsized.  It will cut the bill in half.  I truely can’t bring it all home, so the unit stays.  The electric bill is still too damn high.  That is going to take some serious creativity.  The grocery bill is definetly out to lunch and I am learning the ways of couponing!  SO, hopefully that will be undercontrol soon.   I am back at curbside shopping, garage saleing and thrift store shopping.  I love that and it does save money on everything.   GOAL is to not pay full price for anything and get it used if at all possible.   Obviously that isnt always possible, but it is a fine goal to be sure.  I am mastering the CVS deals and that is definetly working to save money on RX and other non-food items. 

The economy is scarey and we all must find a way to cut back, cut down, be more frugal and just learn to live with less.   We won’t go through another Depression, but it will still be damaging to the people of the United States. 

Bloodhounds, my sweet.

That is me with my Rosie.   She is a 3 month old Bloodhound.  She weighs 30 lbs.   She will be at least 90 lbs all grown up. 

That is Red.  He is a 2 year old Bloodhound.  That is a heck of a dog.  He weighs 90 lbs.

Isn’t that love?   I adore that photo. 

The point of this post is to show off my furbabies.  Well, some of them anyway.   I have alot of dogs and I have recently lost a few to illness and old age.  

 Actually, I want to tell you about Bloodhounds.  This breed is amazing!  They are loving and loving and loving.  I have the cleanest face!  The kisses are always available.  Hugs are are always accepted.  Bloodhounds like to stand up and put their front paws on your shoulders, to say “Hello”.  They are pretty gentle about it, for being so big!  Bloodhounds are really neat to watch.  When Red smells an interesting scent, his nose goes like crazy!  His sinus’ make a hallow snorting sound.  It is sounds really cool!  Bloodhounds are really cool to listen to.  They do bark when they are puppies.  Then somewhere along the way, they lose it and pick up the baying sound.  That long howl, bay, cry creates goosebumps and sends a thrill through my heart.  Of course when he is 3 minutes into a tyrade over someone walking down the street.. it isn’t so great anymore, but the people he is barking at laugh their ass off as they go by.   The first time a walker heard it, she stopped to ask if Red was okay.  I guess he sounded like he was hurt.  The bigger benefit of this baying is that Bloodhounds make GREAT watch dogs and they are incredibly noisy.  They love everyone, so I can only depend on a headstart if someone breaks in.  ROFLMAO.  Bloodhounds are seriously attached to their family. Especially to the kids in the family.  I have a 2 year old nephew who can do anything to Red!  My youngest son is Red and Rose’s favorite boy in the house.  When he goes outside Red will hand over the chair and watch out the window dejectedly.  Sometimes he will cry.  He wants to be with his boy.   So sweet.  Bloodhounds, at least mine, are sensitive too.   When our oldest dog passed away, Red became really depressed.  He didn’t snap out of it untill I brought home Rose… 3 weeks later.  Now, my Mini Snauzer is in the hospital and Red is dejected again.  He misses his stuffy. 

Now, Bloodhounds have the downside.  They are HUGE and they are ENERGETIC.   The furniture is not an obstacle to go around.  It is so much easier to OVER the furniture, or THROUGH it.  Because they are so big, they don’t pay much attention to WHERE they put their feet.  They are heavy!  The slober… oh the slober… heehehehee…. dries nicely on the wall.  Outside of that…. I can’t think of anything else that is a downside.

I really love dogs.  I have had alot of different breeds and they all have their own special attributes which makes them wonderful!  However, I have fallen head over heels in love with Bloodhounds.  I love watching Red, sitting at his post in the backyard, watching the goings on of the neighborhood.  I love watching him with his boy.  I love watching Red with the new puppy and how he is training her.   I love the cuddles and the kisses.  I love the baying. I love the sagging eyes and the long ears that get wet when he gets a drink.  I love the exhuberance.  

So, if you are looking for a dog and can handle a large breed dog.. consider the Bloodhound.

Stress free Christmas

I have spent the last several weeks thrift store shopping.  I decided to make gift baskets for everyone and I have been collecting contents through thrifting.  It has been so much fun!  What isn’t thrifted, will be homemade or bought really cheaply!  Then, I went out on Black Friday.  The first time EVER and I was able to get what I wanted for the kids and I am so thrilled!  We have two more gifts to get them and they are DONE!   Can you believe that ???????????    I am so happy to have so much shopping done allready.  This means that we won’t be breaking the bank and we won’t be running around the week or two before Christmas trying to figure out what to buy!!  It looks like I will have a stress free Christmas!!!!  AMEN!

Photos of me and my family

click on the links below

Me and my oldest son… I can’t deny this one belongs to me

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This is my Darling Husband

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This is a decent photo of me

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Home Control

We are working so hard to get this house under control. 

 Over the weekend, we dragged everything out of the garage and sorted through it all.  Some of it is going for a garage sale.  Some of it was thrown out.  The rest of was placed back in the garage.  

Darling Husband put up the floor to ceiling bookcase and then hung my huge white board.  We took the china hutch from the dining room and put it in the garage and put Nana’s hutch in the dining room.  The original hutch is large and has 7 drawers.  Lots of storage!! 

SO, why are we doing this??? We are building a room in half the garage.  It will be my school room!!!!!!!!!!  I am so excited.   In the next couple of weeks, a wall will be built and more electrical outlets installed.  Then we will drop A/C in and I will have my own school room.  I have to share it with the laundry, freezer and hot water heater….. but that is okay by me!!!!

I will share photos!

financially uncomfortable

We have been blessed by inheritance money in the last year and half, but it is almost gone.  We have not lived frugally.   We bought a car ( in cash ) recently and that brought our money down to a very uncomfortable $6000.   That sounds like alot, but to me it isn’t.  That is 2 months salary and I don’t feel to safe with that cushion.  We are really living paycheck to paycheck.  Our monthly bills are high.  We are trying to refinance to tap into our equity.  That will pay off the high interest car loan and put money back into our savings.  Then we can start on our remodel to make this home more usable for us.   The new mortgage will be less than what we pay now with our car payment and mortgage.  SO we will cut some money off our monthly budget.  There is much more that can be done though.   The electric bill needs to tamed and that is an on going battle.  The grocer bill is out to dinner.  That is my biggest struggle.  We need to down size our storage unit and that will save a little there.  I hesitate to leave my car insurance company.  Tried it once and got screwed, so I stay.  I am considering going back to cash and envelope system.  Try and tame the debit card use.  Use cash to keep track of spending. 

The economy is uncertain.  The houseing market is crashing.  The price of gas is skyrocketing.  Really need to work hard to insulate this family.

Christmas/Winter decorations

I love Christmas/Winter decorations.  So shiny and pretty.  I love penguins, snowman, snowflakes, polar bears, and other rustic decorations.  I don’t use alot of Christmasy decorations, because I like to keep my theme up for awhile.  

The Mafia

The mafia.  What is the Mafia?  It is our electric company.  That is what we call them.  Several years ago, they replaced all the meters with new digital ones that transmit the useage to the office, so they don’t need meter readers anymore.  The Mafia said it was more accurate.   It is so damn accurate that our bills jumped DRAMATICALLY.   MASSIVELY.   $50-$70 MORE EVERY MONTH.  I can’t seem to make a dent in it.  

I am on a mission and in the winter it is easier to bring that bill down.  We have to have air conditioning in the summer, but not in the winter.   Now that November is here, and the cool fronts are coming through regularly, we can turn the air off and deal with the with.   We can also lower the temperature on the hot water heater, and STOP washing in hot water. ( Bad habit I have )  We can TRY not to keep the lights on and tv’s on all over the house.  I can hang the clothes on Donkey, instead of the dryer. 

Today is a new billing cycle, so if I do all I can for the next cycle, I will be able to really see how much a difference it all makes.   

The bill that just posted was for 60 kw a day.  I hope I can drop that to a goal of 48 a day.  Then the Mafia can make less money off my more accurate meter.

Time is sure flying by

I was talking to a friend today, about how time is going by so fast.   I can’t catch it. I can’t even keep up.  Not only that, but it is getting faster.  How do you hold on?  Can you? Should you?  I can’t even close my eyes and remember my children when they were young.  All I can see is now.  I live for the now, because the past leaves me behind.  It is a good thing I have my scrapbooks, or I would not remember my history. 

Welcome to my home

Hi, my name is Taffy and I am in my late 30’s.  I live in Southwest Florida with my hubby, 2 sons and 4 dogs.  We homeschool.   My favorite activities are thrift store, garage sale and curbside shopping.  I have to save money, one way or another!!   I love to garden and scrapbook too.