There were times while visiting the factories in China I would think, "I am so fortunate to not have to do the same monotonous job everday, day in and day out."

I quit my job as an International Buyer and now, today specifically, at my present job, I feel like I have been transported back to China and I have switched places with Yunfei...........

When TD and I started out Total Money Makeover we realized that if we were going to follow Dave Ramsey’s guidance we would need to sell the Accord.

We had a little over three years left to pay at $366 a month. We would need to replace the Accord with something that we could pay for in cash, going strictly by Ramsey’s principles, or get something that was much less and finance for 24 months for around $200 a month.

TD put the car up for sale this past July for the amount we still owed, a little over $12,000. He listed it in Auto Trader and wrote For Sale on the back window…lovely….

Every call he got they immediately did not like the price. It was listed at the Kelly Blue Book value but I think buying a car from a private seller at anything over ten thousand dollars is a hard sell.

Fast forward to January of this year. TD and I were talking about just keeping the car. It was discouraging, all the calls and then the fall throughs. Was it really the best thing? Did we really want to drive a beater like Dave Ramsey says? How much was this going to save us?

Two weeks ago TD got a call from a guy coming into town for the weekend and he was going to buy a car while here no. matter. what. He looked at the Accord twice and decided to buy it!!! Prayers answered!!

But wait! What are we going to drive now? The other car only seats four and there were five of us half of the time. We started looking and really thinking the “beater car” thing over.

This is where being married to TD has been the biggest blessing and wonderful experience I thought possible. He includes me in every decision. He wants my input, and not just because he is suppose to consult me regarding purchases over $50. He consults me because he actually cares what I think and what I see in regards to our budget and how this will fit into our goals.

We decided that we needed a vehicle that would allow us to bring things like, mulch, crown molding, plants, and other large objects purchased at Lowes and Home Depot home with us the very same day we bought them. This meant a SUV or a truck. But then you have to figure out gas mileage………..bleh! Once again, I love my husband.

Drumroll please!!!



We are now the proud owners of a 2000 Toyota 4-runner. We got a GREAT deal on it.

This is how it worked into our budget:

Accord: 3 years and a few months at $366 per month
4-Runner: 2 years at $194 per month.
PLUS!! $30 less a month in car insurance

Isn’t debt reduction great!!!

Mondays are not the easiest days in our house. If it is after a weekend that we had TD's kids then mine will be whiny when I pick her up because she will be soooo b-o-r-e-d without her playmates. Never mind that she has dance every Monday night from 6-7 p.m. and was an only child for the first 5 years of her life.

Because TD and I are very much wanting to be successful with our Total Money Makeover, we have essentially cut dining out from the budget. This means that on Monday night when it would be soooooo much easier to eat out at the Subway down the block from the dance studio; we eat at home.

Subway is not the only temptation. There is a Thai buffet Right. Next. Door. to the dance studio. Sooooo easy. In order to keep temptation at bay I use my CROCKPOT on Monday nights religiously.

(Wouldn't it have been great if all I had to do as a teenager was lug around a CROCKPOT to keep temptation at bay???)

Last night I made Creamy Chicken and Noodles. This is the 9 year old's favorite and if she likes it then even the pickiest eater will like it.

This will make enough for 4 adult servings and it is 9 Weight Watcher Points per serving (I used my recipe builder)

2 large frozen skinless boneless chicken breasts (FSBSB)
1 can Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 small can of Chicken Broth (the whole can of Swanson makes it a little soupy)
Dry Ranch Dressing Mix
4 oz Cream Cheese
Wide Egg Noodles




Dump the cans of soup into Crock pot, stir to combine and sprinkle 1 tbls of Dry Ranch over soup mixture. Place the FSBCB on top of the soup. Sprinkle about 2 more tablespoons of Dry Ranch over the FSBCB. Turn Crock pot on low for 6-8 hours.

My Crock pot is at high Heat for 4-6 hours so I used the Low setting for 8 hours even though we ate within 6.5. I like using the low setting to keep the sides from burning.

When we walked in the door at 5:20 last night it smelled so good and all the pouting about not getting to go to Subway (I gave in ONE time and I haven’t heard the end of it yet) before or even after dance went right out the door. She immediately said, “It smells so good mommy.”

The girls have been waiting for 4 weeks to go see Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus in 3D. The day finally came!

I had thought the tickets were for the 3 o’clock showing but when I looked it was the 5:15! Smack dab during the Super Bowl!

I had been planning on making The Pioneer Woman's fabulous, and oh so good, Marlboro Man Sandwiches on mini French bread loaves. In fact, I could not wait to have one of those sandwiches. The sauce/gravy it makes is to die for! The first time TD and I made these we both were amazed at how simple yet so good this sandwich was and I have been dying to find another reason to make them. I had my 35 extra Weight Watcher points and I was going to spend it on the buttery sauce! (Don't ask me to find out the points for this recipe, I don't even want to know)

Sunday morning I started scrambling trying to figure out how to be in two places at once. I even had the idea that I could go into the movie theatre with the girls, get them situated, give them a cell phone, and tell them to call me when it is over. The oldest is 9, would this be wrong? The 7 year old thinks she is 9, they could do it, they probably wouldn’t even know I was gone; we only live 4 blocks from the movies. (I could come up with another 10-20 excuses, but then it would prove I don't have my priorities where they should be and do I need any more ammo?)

That idea went right out the door when I let it slip what I was thinking said it out loud to their father. Uhhhh-nno! I had to go with them......

It was still early, around 9:30! I knew there was a showing at 11a.m. maybe we could trade our tickets!

I rushed around and got us all ready. We drove the 4 blocks to the movies at 10:35am and the parking lot is FULL! Hmmmm. I tried anyway. All shows were sold out, all week long. Had been for 2 weeks. See, I do some things well; I bought the tickets before New Years.

Now we have missed church because I tried to flake out on my own girls. But what a BEAUTIFUL day! The kids rode bikes all day, we sat on the front porch reading the paper, the dog and cat lay in the sun on our sparse grass. It was a great Sunday! Except for the not going to church thing I think we did pretty good relaxing and enjoying "the Christian Sabbath". (all we needed was the afternoon nap)

Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus (how weird-they are the same person but a marketing G-E-N-I-U-S) was fantastic!!! The girls sat in their chairs mesmerized, I think with the whole 3D effect. I was positive there would be dancing (that would have blown my Sabbath thing) but No, they stayed in their seats, weird.

We got home and the house smelled DELICIOUS! TD had gone ahead and made the sandwiches and had put the meat in the crock pot. It was soooo good.

OH! The girls asked which team I was rooting for. Right at that moment Tom Brady was on the TV. I said HIS team! But I had to switch to Eli Manning when TD reminded me and the girls that Tom Brady got his girlfriend pregnant and then moved onto Giselle. Since we had to have the whole Jamie Spears/Zoey 101 talk I was obliged to be a responsible parent and take my support of Tom Brady back. Grrrrr, these celebrities and their fabulous examples………….