I Never Thought I Would Say This....

I MISS SCHOOL. aaah. I never, ever in a million years dreamed those words would be uttered by me. But alas, I do in fact miss being in school. I miss having something to do and pushing myself to do the best that I can do. I, however, do not miss the sleepless nights and the anxiety that I got from the workload. College was a blast, and I know it will be different going back because I won't get to do everything from my undergrad days again, but I just am really missing learning. Bah, how sad am I?? ...I think I just found a new goal.

Birthday Shenanigans

So, as all my avid readers know, Thursday Jan. 21 was my birthday! The big 2-4. I was having a slight issue with turning 24, why I'm not real positive; but as the day approached, I quickly got over it. (I think I was having an issue with it because that means I'm one year away from the 2-5...eek). ANYWAYS...this is how my day was spent:

Since I had to work the night before I decided to sleep in. And when I say sleep in, I really mean it. I don't think I rolled out of bed until 4ish in the afternoon. hehe. Then after a lil snack from McDonald's (my favorite), Josh and I got ready for dinner. We then met up with my parents at the Foundry for a lovely birthday dinner and a birthday cocktail. It was sooo tasty. We started off with martinis and a chips-and-dip appetizer. Then came my pesto chicken panni. To top off the meal was a slice of their flourless chocolate cake. mmm...just thinking about it all makes my mouth water.

After dinner Josh and I headed over to The Big Chill (yes, I realize it's where I work, but I just can't seem to get away from the place...I love it!) to meet up with some friends. That's where the party really started. There was laughter, dancing, and more birthday cocktails. I really have no idea what time it was when we got home, but boy was I tired. It was a good birthday and since my one friend, Kim, was working that night I got to have a repeat on Sunday with her. I definitely celebrated in style with some of the best people and I am so thankful. Thanks to everyone who helped me celebrate! I love you all!!

**Sorry I have no pictures of either nights, I am a dumby and left my camera sitting on our kitchen counter both times!!!

Family Ties

For the last couple nights, I have spent most of my free time pouring over google searches and any genealogy stuff I can get my hands on. Ever since I can remember, I was told that one of my ancestors signed the Declaration of Independence, George Clymer. However, we have never been able to find the evidence to support such claim.

Shortly after I finished Dan Brown's new book, The Lost Symbol, my mom and I realized that a lot of the stuff mentioned pertained to our family; such as Freemasons and the Rosicrucians. George Clymer was one such Rosicrucian. Later on in history a man by the name of Reuben Swinburne Clymer started the now center for this organization, Beverly Hall. Which my mom clearly remembers being at and there is even a painting floating around somewhere out there of my mother, her brother, and their grandfather at the rose gardens located at Beverly Hall. Well, after Reuben stepped down from his high honor position, his youngest son, Emerson Myron, took over. Not only does my mother remember being at Beverly Hall, but she remembers her father, my grandfather, talking about an Uncle Emerson. In my research I have found that Emerson and Reuben are direct descendants of George.

Now, the tricky part is getting all the links put together. I'm probably missing about 2 generations of history that would link it all together, and then all that would be left to do is verify the parts that I'm speculating. If anyone has any good sources; please, please send them along. I've been doing what I can on www.ancestery.com , www.familysearch.org, and www.rootsweb.com . As well as searching different keywords on Google. Any other tips would be helpful; I can't wait to finally find my way to George, and then fan out from there to see where my family ends up. It's so exciting to find out where you come from and find out all the history on family members.
**all information about Reuben, Emerson, and Beverly Hall came from www.soul.org. It's a really neat website that talks about them and their influences on the Rosicrucians and the organizations influence on America, as well as the world; check it out!

Financially Savy

One of my desires for this year is to save money; which means that it is time to become FINANCIALLY SAVVY. There are a few steps I plan on taking in order to reach the ultimate savviness (yeah, I just made that a word.)

Step 1. NO MORE EATING OUT FOR EVERY SINGLE MEAL. Yes, it may be more convenient, but there are some major downfalls. Whenever Josh and I are deciding on what to eat for dinner, we usually end up in a slight argument because neither can decide on what we are hungry for. This is due to the fact we eat out every single night and there is seriously nothing we haven't had in a awhile. Also, since we just happen to be out of the house, we always end up meeting up with friends for a few drinks, or just going by ourselves. This ALWAYS leads to spending some big bucks. So we figure in order to save money eat at home.

Step 2. USE COUPONS AND WEEKLY SALES FLIERS. These I have a feeling are going to be a god-send. I have started printing of coupons from www.coupons.com and also buying the Sunday and Wednesday newspapers to scour through the weekly sales ads and the coupons that are supplied. So far this week I have saved about 20 bucks on groceries. Granted that was only two nights meals and some household supplies, but still 20 bucks is 20 bucks, right!? I really want to get in the habit of using my resources and keeping track of how much I save. That's the great part about shopping at like Bi-Lo, which I do because it's close to home, but they also keep track of your yearly savings. Lately, I have always walked out of the grocery store with a smile on my face just because of the size of my loot and the grand total (well, usually not so grand) on my receipt.

Step 3. PAY OF CREDIT CARD DEBT. With tax returns coming shortly, I really want to take a good chunk of mine and pay off some of my debt. Then, not only will I hide my cards for emergencies, but I plan to keep setting money aside from my wages and still making "payments" on my credit cards, just not to the creditor..to myself. I have a savings account that I have set up for special things and this is where that money will be placed and then I will also get to collect interest on it. Good idea, I think so.

So far this is all I have. If you have any ideas or resources to help me on my way to ultimate financial savviness, please share the wealth and pass it along.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Happy New Year to all! And in the spirit of New Year's, let's make a list of resolutions, shall we??

1. LOSE WEIGHT! Just like I'm sure most people I would like to lose a few of those holiday pounds as quickly as possible.
2. BE MORE STRICT WHEN IT COMES TO LOLA. Lola is not very well with the potty training and being calm, so this needs to change. In order to do such, I have to put my foot down when it comes to scolding her and actually working with her to be a better behaved puppy.
3.KEEP MY HOUSE CLEAN. I hate a messy house, and it will no longer be such.
4. STAY AT HOME MORE OFTEN. Josh and I have gotten into a very bad habit of going out to eat, which inevitably leads to going out for drinks after, just because we happen to be out. This unfortunately has lead us to be poor.
5. SAVE MONEY. There are tons of things that I want to either buy or do this year, and in order to do so, I have got to be better at saving money.

That's all for now, I'm sure I will of tons others, just like always do. But, maybe if I keep my list short I will actually get things accomplished unlike other years. I feel it already, it's going to be a good year with lots of great memories and lots of good changes. HAPPY NEW YEAR.