I plan to do this again on Tuesday, with a goal of 40 minutes; so got to bump up running. I want to register for a 5K this week.
Getting the most out of life. A blog about parenting, autism, travel, health & fitness, career, money and love!
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Fitting in Fitness: Registering for a 5K
I plan to do this again on Tuesday, with a goal of 40 minutes; so got to bump up running. I want to register for a 5K this week.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
My mother made me an offer... not sure I should refuse
Right now, I have a very part-time job and it's not enough money to survive and pay for therapies. DS' father is doing his share as far as support goes, but I still need a new job.
I was working for about 2 years teaching a girl on the spectrum, but that job ended this spring. I now teach one boy, once per week.
The problem I'm having is paying childcare. Childcare costs about $13-$18 per hour on the low end. With DS being out of school in 2 weeks, he would need all day care; so that would cost me a couple of thousand dollars per month... that is crazy!
I could look for a daycare option, which could run me about $750-$1000 per month, but not sure the daycare could provide the attention he requires due to some needs.
Which brings me back to my mother; she offered to watch him for 4-6 weeks so that I can work work work work work, catch up on my bills and save. She lives 1 hour away by plane and about 8 hours drive.
I'm pondering this and as a single parent, I feel like that would be a tremendous gift and gives me a jump on my savings, pay off some bills and allow me to more money to take care of DS, without giving it to a childcare provider.
I just don't want to feel like a bad parent for leaving him for so long; we've never been apart for that long. But wouldn't I be a good parent, by working and saving more money for his basic and therapeutic needs? I don't want him to feel abandoned either. But we would talk every day, and he would understand I was coming back; he can mark off days on the calendar.
Some parents fight a war and leave their babies behind. I surely can leave my child for 4-6 weeks while I go work.
If I were to do this, it would truly have to be worthwhile. I would set a goal of saving $5,000 in those 4-6 weeks. So I would need to hustle!!! I have a few ideas.
a) Get two jobs. Temp agency by day, bartender by night, and also my student on the weekends
b) Sell stuff! I would try and sell up to $250 worth of stuff. I would take donations, whatever I can do to sell things. With $250, I can give my son 2 speech therapy lessons.
c) Summer sublet a room. I have 2 bdrms and 2 baths. IF, I decide that DS can stay with his grandparents, then why not capitalize on that space? I can get at least $750. That's 5 and half speech therapy sessions!
So I'm leaning towards doing this, but I need to feel 100% sure about it. I don't want to do this and then regret it or feel bad about my decision. But he's with his grandmother and if all else fails, I can get him earlier.
Just seems like a good offer for everyone. But still a hard decision for me to come to grips with. Logically, it sounds great. I just am not sure how I will do emotionally.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Confession: I cried at the end of Oprah
And on the farewell walk, I did get choked up and shed a few tears.
But come on... she has been on the air 25 years, it was touching and I'm sensitive! LOL
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
"I get by with a little help from my friends"
I have to say, if it weren't for my friends, who are actually going through some hardships and major decisions themselves, I'm not sure where I would be. I believe and will always take time out to help my friends, no matter what and they do the same.
I'm so lucky to have them in my life and cherish them. And yes, I tell them all the time, how much I love them.
Post title credit: lyrics from lennon and mccartney
Monday, May 23, 2011
My sword hand is never free
I fight and will continue to be an advocate for my son's needs but it still blows my mind, how things are handled. I will turn into warrior mom and I will charge on my horse with my samurai sword drawn the entire time. I plan to cut off the heads of district members in the way of my son's education. I will do it gracefully though, they won't even see the blade coming.
I act in the best interest of my child and I want him to live to his potential, whatever that ends up being. I have no idea what is driving/motivating his current IEP team to make the decisions they are making; I can only imagine.
Now we have to create a task team to prove DS can be mainstreamed into the general education reading class... complete with Legal Advocates, Clinical Psychologists, Reading Assessments, etc... And that's fine with me, I have no problem doing it.
Having received my Master's degree in Education back in 1997 and studying about the future of mainstreaming and inclusion being collaborated in general education; I would have never guessed that in 2011 in the state of California, that I would be fighting for a socially driven, highly intelligent happy little boy to be mainstreamed in one class.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Early riser
He did it again today. He came into my room at 6am, crawled in bed, but this time he didn't bother me and let me sleep.
We ended up getting up at 8:30am.
Just wondering why he is waking up so early. Not sure, but we'll see how the week goes.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
It was a good day, considering...
Today, my darling son, woke me up at the ass crack of dawn! by tipping into my room and getting under the covers; I allowed it of course. I figured, as long as he turns over and goes to sleep, not a problem. But that wasn't the case. Instead, he played with my hair, tossed and turned and then started singing... wtf??
On a school day, I can't pry him out of bed, but on Saturday you want to wake up at 6am and harass me? And was it just me or did I start to smell old urine?
After 20 minutes, I had enough. I was so tired from staying up all night catching up on my TV shows; I made him go to the bathroom and then back to his own bed.
I heard peeing but it sounded so close, almost like he was in my bathroom. (Which, is a no no; he has his own bathroom and my toilet is free from urine and smells great and I like to keep it that way. Thank goodness for cleaning wipes, that's the only way to stay on top of cleaning his toilet).
I try to listen for the faucet indicating he was washing hands; it felt like 10 minutes went by and I hear nothing. What the heck is he doing!!??
I sit up, look at the clock (6:30am) and I say calmly..."Wash, your hands and go back to sleep". btw... he is in my bathroom, but I'm too tired to care.
He washes his hands, walks past my bed to his room starring at me, like I just stole his bike!
I lay back down, find my stuffed dog under the covers and cuddle up (yes, I sleep with a stuffed animal, I am single)
I drift back into sleep only to hear... 'Mommy!! about 10 minutes later.
R U Serious!? I look at the clock... really?? I answer him and he asked to come back in my bed. I tell him, no go back to sleep.
I end up getting up at 7:45am and I go into his room and he's fast asleep, snoring and all. Thanks a lot DS! You get me up and then go back to sleep? Oh well.
He doesn't get up til 9:50am, I let him sleep in because I had emails to catch up on and love that free time in the mornings to myself.
So we begin our day. It's Saturday and it's beautiful out. I planned on going to a festival, but it was too late to find parking. I needed to do something free. I decided to take DS to Clocksmith, a clock shop that specializes in vintage/antique clocks. DS has had a clock obsession since he was 2 years old.
(this is the website photo, I forgot my camera and it was too bad, they had some awesome clocks)
Of course, he loved the clock shop and the cuckoo clocks were his favorite. We got there at 12:30 and hung around til 1pm to hear all the clocks go off. That was actually cool; the dings, the gongs, the dongs and the melody's all at one time; it was great. The owner said to come next time a few minutes before 11am or 12noon, the place is really jumping then with plenty of sound.
DS wanted me to buy a clock; but these clocks average $1k, so that was not an option today; especially on free day!
Next stop was Crystal Springs to ride scooters.
(website photo... there is a paved trail along the reservoir)
That was fun too. I packed a snack that included leftover cupcakes. How obnoxious when everyone else was running, jogging, roller blading, walking... but I just had to get rid of them.
Then back home. I made a nice snack of shrimp salad and a glass of white wine. So delicious.
(My camera is so bad, it just will not capture the true beauty of things)
Savings Alert: Safeway has red leaf lettuce on sale for .99cents per head; it usually retails for $2.69.
My shrimp salad recipe is very simple and easy and it taste pretty good. I do it all by sight, so I don't have actual measurements down.
Get fresh or frozen salad shrimp, miracle whip (I start with a tablespoon and then add as needed) and about 2 stalks of green onion, diced. I also do a squirt of French's mustard. Mix and chill and top on whatever you like.
DS hates shrimp, so I made him some GF pasta and sauce.
I really had a great day and we had a lot of fun.
Tonight, it's DVD night, we are watching The Incredibles and having turkey burgers with homemade fries.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Reading Blogs
Ever since I started blogging again, I have found myself saying, 'not now, Mommy is blogging :)' or rather, reading blogs.
I find myself going from one blogroll to the next and discovering new people, all over the world. From a Japan housewife to a world traveler in France. There is a blog for everything and everyone! I love it.
Happy Friday, enjoy the weekend!
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Reigniting Fitness
I thought today would be a great day to reignite my health and fitness. As I mentioned in a previous post, I gained a few extra pounds, since going on a fitness hiatus. I started to get lazy, but happy to report that I'm back on track.
Here's my day...
Today's Menu
Breakfast included coffee (3 sugars), a large grapefruit, gluten free toast with almond butter and water. For lunch I had shrimp salad and water (I only drink water, and of course the occasional glass of wine). Dinner will include a BLT (GF bread, beef bacon, lettuce and tomato and a very small amount of cheese-I usually can't handle cheese but we will see).
My exercise included a 50 minute 3 mile walk. I usually run, but let's just say, I didn't have the proper gear. It took me a while because my neighborhood is very hilly--going uphill is like climbing a mountain, I almost laid out on someone's lawn on the return.
It's amazing how sunshine, good ole Vitamin D, can just change your entire mood. I felt so happy and so great. I had my iPod on I really almost started to break out into dance at one point.
Great great day :) Now I'm off to shower, pick up my little one from school and then run an errand.
PS ~ We will be making cupcakes later, and I know I will not be able to resist; tomorrow I'll take matters into the gym.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Extreme Budgeting: Summer Plans
I managed to come up with a variety of things and everything comes up to $145!
~ Great America Amusement Park & Gilroy Gardens; unlimited visits and free parking ($135)
~ 10 movies at the movie theater for $5 (x2)
~ Beach (free!)
~ Music Festivals in the park (free!)
~ Swim Class (already paid)
~ Local Kid Activities; which includes a truck exhibit, circus acts, etc... (free!)
~ Fairs and Festivals (free!)
~ Playdates (free!)
~ Soccer and softball in the park (free!)
~ Bowling (free!-for kids all summer long)
I think that should keep him good and busy :o) and the best part is the majority is free!
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Stuck in a rut; a fitness rut!
Earlier this year, I was a powerhouse, doing strength training, running up hill, eating healthy and doing a low carb gluten diet. I was counting calories and I even joined a new gym that offered a better facility and more cardio classes.
Now, I'm on a steady decline; I don't work out as much, my eating habits have declined and I gained about 8lbs.
I need to get out of this rut and get reignited. I guess there is nothing I can do but do it.
I think I will start Thursday. I'll just make myself do it.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Where do babies come from?
Me: Hey Don...
Don: Yes (said while looking up from drawing)
Me: Where do babies come from?
Don: The crib! (and proceeded to draw again)
Ha ha!! The way he said it was like 'DUH!!! where else'. I just thought it was too innocent and cute.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Extreme Budgeting: 17 meals with $45
So back to the goal... I wanted to plan 17 meals (May 13-May 30) with $45.
I should preface this by saying, I did have quite a bit of things already in my fridge and freezer so that helped.
Between 2 stores, I spent $44.78! Yay!
How I did it? I went through my pantry, fridge and freezer and took stock of what I had. I then opened up MS excel and created a basic calendar to create a meal plan. I listed all the core items I had on hand and then went to allrecipes.com to find some menu ideas and then Viola! 17 meals.
I only shopped for what I needed and I stuck to the list.... well, with the exception of a bottle of two buck chuck from trader joes!
Bleu :o)
Hello out there!
I’m back on the blog. I use to have a budget blog about 3 years ago that was pretty active, but things just got too hectic for me and I stopped blogging. I’m returning with a new blog that documents my daily life as a parent, friend, family member and human.
My goal is to be able to take full advantage of what life has to offer with the resources that I have, to improve my financial situation, and provide for my son.
My son is 6 years old, who I will refer to as Don. Don has special needs, he received an Autism diagnosis about 3 years ago. My goal for him is to live at his highest potential. I’ve been divorced for almost 2 years now. I will refer to my ex-husband as Luke. Like many divorces, it wasn’t easy in the beginning, but now Luke and I are at a place where we are friends. We have dealt with our individual resentments towards each other, forgave each other for what we perceived as being wronged and moved on. It’s great!
You can call me bleu (short for a longstanding email handle, california bluebunny).
Welcome!
Bleu :o)