Poop Shapes and Dora the Sexplorer

I had to blog about this because it's a very WTF?! thing.

Firstly, Poop shapes? Um, I read about this on my beloved Dlisted and at first thought it was a joke but when I clicked the link I realized it was very real. So, this is to make potty time fun time by using the turd twister to make fun shapes?! It's disturbing enough that they're making these but WHO THE HELL IS BUYING THEM?????!!!!





Secondly, Dora the Explorer getting a makeover?! It's not so much that they're going to make Dora grow up, it's more about how they're going to do it. As one parent quoted, "If the Dora we knew grew up, she wouldn't be a fashion icon or a shopaholic. She'd develop her map reading skills and imagine the places she could go. It's such a sell out of Dora, of all girls."
That's an opinion I can definitely get on board with. It reminds me of that Simpsons episode where Lisa finally gets to hear Malibu Stacy talk and she ends up being an airhead. Just a shame really.

Opposite George

Getting to another topic besides debt. I had previously talked about relationships. My good friend, who I refer to as Opposite George, had been through the ringer. For the most part, she seems to be over it now and I'm glad that she is. O.G. finally came to the conclusion that she deserved better and in fact, she does.

This gets me to the point. . .about all the super-cute, smart chicks I know who have trouble finding a decent guy. They often find guys. . .just not always decent ones. Even worse, all the bad ones ruin the potential for the possible ones. I was happy to hear that Opposite George is going to do exactly as George Costanza did. Everything opposite of what she normally does. Instead of staying in, which is exactly what I do all the time, she went out with co-workers and had a pretty good time. I was happy to hear that. Slowly, but surely life is improving for O.G.

I like that this philosophy is working. I thought, I should apply some of the principles of Opposite George. Maybe life would improve for me as well.

Nose Nugget Fairy (Faerie)

A Just for Fun Post. . .



The Nose Fairy collects your nose nuggets and grinds them into powder. This he mixes with his own sweat and drool to create a glue which is more commonly used on stamps and envelopes.

Remember that next time you're mailing out those Christmas cards :)

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Thing 1 and Thing 2 have the runs again!! Looks like I'll still have to stay home from pre-school. Very irritating, but there's nothing I can do about it. I'm feeling pretty slow these days too.

I'm desperately desiring change but am going about it very slowly. It might be that I'm in a funk (I did sneak some of the kiddles cookies, but luckily I have very little junk in the house) so I'm going to have to find a way to get motivated.

This debt seems to purvey every facet of my life. I have to write my driver's licence soon or face it expiring. This is pretty nerve-wracking for me, as was the first experience. I think it's very sh*teous that I have to go through it again. It also cost me a lot because I had failed so many damned times but what can I do? I need to pass or risk losing all that I had already spent.

I've told Dr. Evil that in order to make my plans work, I'll definitely need help but he seems stressed out too. He is someone who can cannot handle a lot of stress, so I may have to put my plans on hold for a bit until he gets his act together.

So I guess plans will move ahead at a snail's pace for me. I've done other things like cut the cable. Mind you, I haven't actually paid for cable in approximately 5 years now. I'll watch my Lost on CTV. I'm also glad that they've extended that analog deal until June so at least for a few more months I'll get some air channels. I've cut our entertainment out completely. 'Cept for the internet. . .I would have a heart attack if I had no internet. It's our main source of amusement in this house.

Talking of cutting, I've finally convinced Dr. Evil to skip haircuts and go for bald. This will save us a few bucks as I don't cut my hair, and the twins get their haircuts from me. Slash, cut, mince, dice. . .it feels like their may be no end in sight. I know I feel this way because I'm at the very beginning of a long, slow haul. Talk to me again at this time in 2011 and I might be singing a different tune.

Ham Steak

The twins are better now. They were pretty sick there for awhile. I hope I can take them to pre-school tomorrow.

Today I had them helping me with some meals. I made a spinach and ham steak salad. It was surprisingly very good. My in-law recommended it and it's a nice, cheap healthy meal. I taught thing 1 and thing 2 how to peel the the oranges and pull them apart to put in the salad. They picked it up pretty quickly.

This brings me to one of the first things I cut. Groceries. Like any budget I have fixed expenses and non-fixed expenses. I can only control the non-fixed expenses. Groceries is one of them. Dr. Evil (that's his name now since he shaved his head, view his pic on facebook) would frequently shop at Sobeys. Now I'm not gonna knock Sobeys, it was a terribly convenient place to buy groceries. It was open 24 hours and had everything from a deli counter to a pharmacy in it. But you did end up paying for that great convenience.

Instead, I've made Dr. Evil go to either Food Basics or No Frills. Both are cheap, cheap, cheap for groceries although you don't have as much convenience. That's fine by me. Dr. Evil said that he didn't want to go to the No Frills because there were too many skid rows in there. I told him fine, then Food Basics it is. For the same amount of groceries I've slashed my bill from $320 to $200 with the same amount of things I normally buy. That's a pretty good start.

I went a step further and joined Costco. Now, Costco is not cheap for everything but for some things it is. Buying things like toilet paper, paper towels or soy sauce in bulk saves me even more and it allows me to have a variety of items to use for cooking. Since I've also cut out going to restaurants completely.

Other things I've done are giving up alcohol, which is just too expensive and taken up teas. I realized that Dr. Evil had to be into something so tea is a happy and healthy medium. He gets to be into something and we get to save. Although he has that too much enthusiasm for it as he did the wines.

I've given up all types of juice and pops. For me at least, I'll still buy thing 1 and thing 2 things here and there. Frozen juices for instance and this has also helped me to save.

Given up the grocery bags too. They were too expensive at 5 cents a piece and so flimsy. Instead, I've gotten those collapsible crates from Canadian Tire. Now I can feel good about helping the environment too!

I'm happy to have taken all these steps on the food front, hopefully this will still allow the family to eat and save me a buck or two in the process.

Here's an excellent blog for tips, it's American but most of it can be applied to Canadians! I also stole my pic from it so you know. . .had to mention. . .

The Festivus Tradition; Airing of Grievances

Alright, so I said I needed a plan of action and that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to have a pretty tough three years. It will be a huge pain to not see my friends and family as much but I have to batten down the hatches so to speak.

Let me first air my grievances. I am approximately $30,000 CAD in debt! There I said it. It's very painful to look at that number but that's what I'm in for. If no other expenses come up for me I could pay that in 3 years but realistically with two children and a house it would most likely take me about 5 years.

I'm gonna try my best to bring that number down as much as I can in 2009 but inbetween insurance, mortgage and tax payments it might be a bit tricky. Let alone all the other miscellaneous bills and such that have to be paid.

I've had some help which I'm very grateful for. I've definitely been blessed and and I pray that the blessings will continue. Without the help, things would have been much tougher than they already are.

I need a plan of action. Coupon-clipping, sales and going without will probably be on that list. Most importantly I need to configure a budget of some sort that will account for expenses and future emergencies.

I've often used this site for tips on what to do. I will also ask friends and family what I can further do to get myself debt-free.

Right now I'm at the beginning of a what's going to unfortunately be a long journey but with the right lifestyle changes I hope to get to my goal of $0 as soon as possible.

For the kiddies, the sacrifice. . .nah, I don't like that word. . .future financial gain (that's better) will be worth it.

Too Much DEBT!!

Alright, after talking to you I'm gonna blog about being in debt. I had thought about it for awhile now and held back because of many reasons. Mostly, having people know my business but it's a little cathartic to air it out. I feel like I'm taking responsibility. . .especially with that one who put me there!

It's gonna be a long tough haul for the next few years but somehow I shall manage with a spouse and two toddlers. As I get further down the debt ladder I will definitely see it as closer to the savings ladder which is where I want to be.

Here be my trials and tribulations. . .and here I go!!