Well, this weekend has been pretty fun thus far. Last night I went to work, but it was so slow that I sat for an hour with nothing to do, and they sent me home. I work again tonight, hopefully with much better luck.

This morning I sent another resume out for an executive/office assistant position. It's 30 hours/week and it only pays $8.50/hr, but it's still far better than what I'm making currently.

I went grocery shopping with a friend of mine. I introduced her to the glory of ALDI. Then we stopped at Giant Eagle because there were a few things that I needed that ALDI didn't have.

The damage:
ALDI
12 pack of Toilet Paper $5.29
1 Grapefruit $0.59
3-pack cucumber $1.19
1 Red onion $0.49
1 Bag of spring mix salad $1.99
1 quart soymilk $1.39
5 tomatoes $3.95
1 bag radishes $0.89
1 can chunk pineapple $0.89
1 box granola cereal $1.59
1 tub yogurt $1.59
1 tub cottage cheese $2.29
1 thing peanutbutter $1.39
1 can black olives $0.99
1 bag baby carrots $1.19
Total with tax: $26.05

Giant Eagle:
Feta Cheese $2.00
Soy Sauce $3.09
Can Chickpeas $0.60
Sesame oil $2.99
Firm tofu $2.99
Green onion $0.79
Total: $12.46

Complete total: $38.51

It seems really high, but BF will be reimbursing me part of it. Also, shopping today convinced me to cook lunch with my friend as opposed to going out to chipotle where we each would have spent $10. He bought the avocados, I bought the tomatoes we needed to make our shish kabobs and our tomato-avocado salad.

Also, I have to confess... I've been cheating a little. I bring my sandwich to work every day, but that's never enough food for me. And I know this, of course. So every day I've been splitting a meal with my coworker. I only usually spend a max of $2.25 every day, but if you take an average of $2x5 days of work, that's $10/week. $40/month. I bought extra groceries so I cook more, and I'll be taking my leftovers to work.

Speaking of work, as I was getting back from grocery shopping, I got a call from the place I sent my resume to this morning. We talked a bit, and set up an interview date-- monday at 3pm. Yippee! I need to figure out what I'm going to wear now...

Monday morning BF and I are looking at an apartment. We really need to figure out where it is we're moving to. The lease is up the first week in august.

So my friend and I went to my mom's and we cooked lunch. It was nothing short of amazing, and we both had leftovers to take home. And mom got a nice meal for free. All she had to do was the dishes It was a really nice time.

Tonight I have work, tomorrow I have some cleaning to do around this apartment, and I'm getting together for lunch with my coworker. Then it's off to the drive in to see Wall*e again after BF gets home.

Got a pinecone check in the mail today

This coming week is going to be a very busy one. Still chugging away at that to-do list, it's been a slow process, but I see things looking up. Anyhoo, time to finish getting ready for work!

Everyone have a nice evening

Today's Grocery Shopping Trip:

Flat Leaf Spinach $1.49
Avocado $0.79
Whole Wheat Bread $1.49
Bananas $0.88
Light Poppyseed Dressing $0.99
Baby Carrots $0.80
Peanut Butter $1.39
Frozen Berries $2.79
Tub Plain, Nonfat Yogurt $1.59
Soymilk $1.39
Can Butter Beans $0.59
Can Chunk Pineapple $0.79
Tub lowfat Cottage Cheese $2.29

TOTAL: $17.27

There were a couple extras thrown in here. I love avocados, and haven't found them less than $2 each for months, so I decided to treat myself I still have plenty of poppyseed dressing, but like other favorites I've found at ALDI, they dont always continue carrying them, and these were marked "while supplies last," so I figured I'd pay the $0.99 and have an extra. I made a kidneybean hummus the other day, and it was pretty good, so I decided to get another can of beans- white ones- so perhaps I can make a cheaper version of the chickpea favorite BF and I enjoy (he's not a fan of kidney beans). Bread I only buy every other week, same with the berries. And the peanut butter should last me a little while.

In other financial news, I worked a looong day yesterday. My restaurant did a 3-hour event, so I got paid $50 for working that. Also, when we returned from the event, the restaurant was slammed, and I took a table, so I made another $11 or so in tips, and worked a couple extra hours.

I stopped at the bank on my short-lived break yesterday and my request for the other CC was denied. Not suprised, and not really all that bummed about that. I'd rather find a cheaper alternative. Someone put a comment on my last post about lending club, and I signed up, so we'll see if anyone funds me. That would be great. The interest rate would be much, much lower.

I transferred more $ to my savings account, so now I'm up to $1510

BF and I had a really nice talk last night on the phone. He'll be home friday, so I'm pretty excited. We talked about a bunch of things, but applicable here is the topic of debt. See, I still dont know how much debt BF has. I know he has a considerable amount, mostly CC debt. He made some unwise spendy choices in the last few years, and has been a little embarrased about telling me how much. But he says he wants to sit down and go over it with me. Which I'm incredibly happy about.

Talk about getting married was brought up again, but he's still not decided. We both want to get married, the timing issue is what is up in the air. It's beneficial to us on many levels if we get hitched before he leaves for Iraq (in December)-- financially, emotionally, better for him if I can take care of his stuff when he's away, etc. But at the same time, we dont want to rush into things.

Personally, I'm all for it I guess the girl in me gets excited at the thought of it. But at the same time, I know myself pretty well, and I know it wouldn't be a mistake. There are, of course, things that could happen. But at the same time, things could happen regardless of whether or not he goes overseas.

However, I'm not rushing him into a decision. He can take as much time as he needs to think it over (well, as long as it's before he leaves! haha). But we'll see. There may be a wedding in November, there may not. Either way I'm happy being with him

Well, time to get my day started. I'm going to work out at some point, and I have work at 7:00pm. Gotta make some money!!

Everyone have a great day!

I tried posting yesterday, but the site went all whacky. At any rate... Yesterday was a busy day. I spent the morning running around. BF is at some 3 week training thing for the military. I had to drop him off at about 6:30am. Quite a bit early. I ended up going to my mom's to give her the anklet I made for her. It matches the necklace I made for myself, both were made using shells I got from the beach vacation we took at the beginning of May. Picture:



I stopped at the consignment shop that I have clothes at, and I've made $32.50 so far. Not bad. She wrote me a check, so I'll deposit that and put it toward my challenge money. I made earrings to match the bracelet I made the other day. I'm feeling pretty good about them:


Went to PA last night for a friend's party. It was nice to see all my friends from there. It's strange to me that I've already been away for a month. I missed them terribly. I did buy one bottle of cheap champagne ($8) and subway yesterday (another $8 roughly), paid tolls and put $15 in the tank on the way home, which I'm hoping will get me to Cleveland and back next weekend. Overall, it wasn't a terribly expensive trip.

I got home at about 1:00pm, just in time to help my mom pack and move some of her stuff. In exchange for my help, however, she bought my groceries I was at a $12.50 budget, but I probably spent just over that (when you know you're not paying, you tend to get a couple extras), but I'm going to mark it down as $12.50 saved on the grocery budget. What did I buy?

Shredded Taco Cheese (I want to make quesedillas)
Canned tomato
Granola Cereal
Yogurt
Bananas
Popcorn
Soymilk
Olives (staple of my diet)
Bread
Canned Pineapple
Poppyseed Salad Dressing

The salad dressing, soymilk, and pineapple were not planned purchases, but didn't up the bill too high.

In addition to paying for my groceries, mom treated me to Panera for dinner. So double yay for mom. All I had to do was help pack and load her stuff in 100-degree weather. Bleh.

At any rate, now is time for shower, homework, and sleep. Perhaps just shower and sleep. I'm exhausted! Hope everyone has a great night!

Well, yesterday I went grocery shopping and was *just* over budget. My budget for the week was $12.50 (which is pretty tight to begin with). I ended up spending $13.55. Not bad. So what did I buy?

Tub of yogurt $1.59
Frozen Berries $2.79
Fresh Mushrooms $1.19
Bag of Flatleaf Spinach $1.49
Cucumber $0.69
Pack of Hotdogs $0.59
Can of Olives $0.99
Flour Tortillas $0.99
Hot dog Buns $0.75
Granola Cereal $1.59
Cheesy Alfredo Mac & Cheese $0.79
Plastic Bag (I forgot mine at home) $0.10

I feel like I got a lot for a little bit of money, and none of it was anything I didn't need. This, my friends, is why I love ALDI so much. So what will I be eating this week?

Pasta Salad
Kraut Dogs
Veggie Wraps
Turkey Meatball sandwiches
Salad
Veggie Mac (I like to put veggies in my mac & cheese)
Spaghetti

I'll have leftovers for a couple of these days, so I may save the veggie mac for next week. I had a couple of kraut dogs yesterday, I'll probably have the leftovers today for lunch or dinner. I have to make the pasta salad, but we have so much pasta it's ridiculous. lol.

Added $50 to my savings account, which brings my total up to $1035. Which means I'm doing fabulous. I responded to another ad on craigslist for a woman looking for a babysitter saturday morning. Let's hope this one works out. I'd love to make a few extra bucks.

Still need to make it to the craft store. Today I'm supposed to go and meet these guys that want me to sing in their band. I think it'll be cool. I listened to examples of their music, they seem my style. Of course, I'm really versatile, so that's not difficult. haha. The one guy plays decent acoustic music, the other one does heavier stuff, so I'm interested to see how the mix sounds.

Either way, I should get going. Have to get ready for work!

So I got a text from my mom this morning saying that my $300 check came in the mail. Woot! Of course, that money is going straight to the tuition payment. I need to do more researching into loans I can get to cover that so I can put all that money toward my CC. That would be wonderful if I could do it. Right now, I have $685.00 in my emigrant account, with that $300, it kicks it up to $985. Not bad for just a month.

I made $36.21 at work today, still above average for the week. However, I did buy a sandwich-- only because I had nothing to pack and bring. Which brings me to my next point... I really need to go grocery shopping. I made a list, added up my estimate, and I'll still be under $13, which is my budget for the week.

On the list:
Hot dogs
Buns
Yogurt
Muesli (kind of like granola, but better)
Salad mix
Wraps/tortillas
Black olives
Cucumber

We have a couple cans of saeurkraut, and I like it on hotdogs. I figured I could make a pasta salad at some point this week because we have plenty of pasta and I have some yummy vinegars to put in it. I just needed some veggies to put in it. I have some frozen, but in my opinion, pasta salad is not complete without olives and cucumber. I can also use them in the veggie salad wraps I'm going to make using the tortillas. We also have pasta sauce, so I can also make spaghetti and salad. The yogurt and muesli are for breakfast. Oatmeal just doesn't last long enough, and I dont get enough calcium in my diet.

As long as I keep to the list, I should be under budget.

I wanted to go to the craft store, but BF has the car, so it can wait til tomorrow. I got a reply online for a potential group of kids to play music with. So I may or may not be meeting them tonight. Looks promising, and with any luck we can play out and make some extra $. I miss being in a band, I think it'll be fun.

Well, I need to do some homework. Hope everyone has a great day!

So March is coming to a close, and that hellish month April is upon me. It's going to be a BUSY month. Now, busy usually means less spending for me, but we'll see how things play out. I'll be in the apt less often on the weekends because I need to be downtown a lot, and BF isn't going to be around as much on the weekends (both a blessing and a curse). He's got silly military stuff to attend to a couple weekends, and I have mucho tests and homework to get done. I'll be happy if I make it out of the month alive.

I finally filed my taxes, and I'll be getting about $600 back from the fed. Assuming I filed my PA taxes properly (questionable), I should be getting about $300 back. And then there's my stimulus check coming at some point-- most of which will be put into my credit card payments. I'm going to keep at least some of the fed return just in case I dont find a job in Ohio right after moving.

March totals went well. There were categories in which I was over (entertainment spending this weekend got a little bad, though it could have been much, much worse). Overall, however, I was $12.35 UNDER budget-- which I am happy to report, I put toward my CC payment. Woo! Every little bit helps!

I may have a couple big expenses coming up this month though. I'm setting aside $300 for vacation, though it should be less than that (we'll see). And I might have to take this test to get out of a class at my university, though it seems I may be able to get credit from my highschool spanish classes (cross your fingers!).

This weekend was alright spending-wise. BF paid for a LOT (including the few items that made up my groceries for the week!). I of course really appreciate all the help he gives, especially considering he's got some hefty debt himself. We never did get around to going over his finances, but he'll be back to PA on tuesday for work, so perhaps we'll have time this week. I did take a trip to the mall to use my $50 American Eagle gift card. I got the bathing suit I've been looking at, and also a cute shirt. I spent a little over the $50 (about $20 when everything's said and done), but I'm not fretting. I need some more summer/spring clothes.

I wrote out (a much more detailed) budget for April. I think some of my expectations for last month were a bit silly. Maybe not, considering I was under budget, but I was a little more specific this time around. My goals for the month are the same as last month, though I'm not seeing as many no-spend days.

I need to contact verizon, my gas co. and electric co. to let them know I'm moving at the end of the month. Hopefully that'll go smoothly. I should stop at my mom's house and make all those calls though. I dont want to use up all my minutes on my cell plan. We'll see.

Other than that, I'm just babbling and tired, and I really wanted to clean my apt tonight, but I got so wrapped up in taxes and budgeting that I seem to have run out of time. It's already getting late and I have class in the morning. ugh. I feel like I didn't get a break all weekend. I did homework constantly, even while visiting in Ohio. Sigh.

And I'm going to have to start packing soon! I move in less than a month! Gaa! Someone help me, I'm going to drown in all of these things to do!

I'm really gonna need that vacation at the end of the month

Well, tomorrow BF comes home from his training hooplah! I haven't seen him in 2 weeks. Though the last few days have gone by at what seems to be light speed, I cant say the rest of the wait was that pleasant. So I'm so very excited

As for today, grocery shopping and laundry. Groceries are going to be more than usual, as I have to get a few things that I only buy every few weeks (almonds, string cheese, etc) and BF is going to be in PA tuesday, wednesday, thursday, and friday nights, so I'm going to be cooking for us at least a few times. We talked about being broke, thus we're going to attempt to not dine out as much as possible. Besides, I tend to eat waaaay more in calories when I go to restaurants.

I'm only going to do one load of laundry today (I broke down and did 2 last week), so it should only be $2.50.

Last night I went out with my professor and a few other students working on research for a presentation we're doing at the APA division 32 conference in August. I'm so very excited. It's a big deal, and will look great on my resume. Not to mention, I've never been to Boston! We're trying to get the university to pay our travel and hotel costs. Cross your fingers for us!

Other than that, I'm slowly but surely going to have to go through my things and start packing. Only a month and a week til moving time! And my beach vacation!!!

It seems like I have just so much to look forward to

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend!

I just finished up my grocery shopping. I stuck to the list I brought with me (with the exception of a .49 can of beets I thought would spice up my salads). I actually spent less than I had anticipated. I had expected to spend something to the tune of $16, and spent $14.40. Incredibly cheap, eh? Well, I'm surely cutting corners and trying to use up the food I have stocked up at home. So really I'm only buying things to pack in my lunch, and a few odd produce items. I was a bit disappointed they didn't have my hummus this time around, but I can put light mayo on my sandwiches, it'll be fine. And the best part? I'm $5.60 under my budget for groceries this month. It's just me, so I shouldn't be spending very much on groceries anyway.

In other spending, it's laundry day, so that'll be $2.50 for one load. I like to prioritize and save my towels for when I get to go back to my mom's. I have plenty to hold me over. lol. And I'll be there this weekend, so I'll get free laundry services

Other than that, the plans for the day are to finish up some homework, and work out... though I'm taking it light today. My calves are still a bit sore from yesterday. I spent a whole hour on the treadmill! I did put my bathing suit on for the first time since this summer. It was a bit motivating, though not too bad! lol.

Better get working! Have a great saturday, guys!

It's been a fairly productive day... I planned out my meals for next week, as I'm going grocery shopping either tomorrow or sunday morning. Also was on the treadmill for an hour and I'm down to 133 lbs, which is exciting news!

Yesterday was my test, and it was better than I had expected it to be. I stopped by the bookstore yesterday and bought something that I could use for one of my papers, and something that I just wanted anyway. That was $13.86. I also took a trip to taco bell last night with friends... yes, unhealthy AND an extra expense. But as that's really the only entertainment (hanging out with my friends last night) expense I've had all week, I didn't feel bad. And I definitely worked it off today. lol.

Today is a no-spend day. Which makes 4 for the week. Tomorrow I'll likely be doing my grocery shopping and laundry, so I'll spend a little. Hopefully only around $20. I made up my grocery list today. So my weekly goals have thus far been achieved

I kept track of my spending, kept to the budget (actually, thus far I'm under), for the most part kept to my meal plan (with the exception of that taco bell last night), and I had 4, not 3 no-spend days this week. Overall I'm pretty proud of myself!

I'm going to celebrate by spending the next day doing homework. lol. Perhaps I'll watch a movie tonight or something as well...

Have a great day, guys!

So I finally sat down today and worked out my budget for the next few months. It's going to be incredibly tight, but I think I can pull off stretching my loan money until I get a new job. Why? Because I quit today. Something about soliciting people for money over the phone just doesn't jive with me. And dreading work on your 5th day just doesn't seem right. Call me crazy...

So that's good news. The bad news is that I'm still waiting on that check, though it should be here soon. Hopefully REALLY soon. I have my internet bill to pay...

I sold a game yesterday and rolled some change. I also get my paycheck (one of two) tomorrow. I need to get that into my account, because I need to buy a bus pass and groceries! I've been shopping at Giant Eagle for the last couple weeks because I haven't been able to touch my checking account and Aldi doesn't accept credit cards. I'll have enough cash to shop at Aldi this week, which will help quite a bit.

I've got my grocery list all planned out and my dinners planned for the week. Should be a light grocery bill.

Me and a couple friends are having a girl's night tomorrow, which I'm pretty excited about It's been a while, and I'm stoked. I just need to watch the spending a bit. BF is coming down on Saturday to stay for a couple nights too. It gets a bit pricey when he's in town... we tend to dine out a lot. I'm gonna have to let him know that we'll be cooking at home for the most part, well, unless he wants to cover dinner

I'm looking forward to not wanting to rip the hair out of my head. I've been so exhausted for the last couple weeks. I really dont have 12 hours a week to put into something not my studies. And my studies have suffered. Because I haven't had as much time, because I get stressed and can do less work, because when I'm tired I get cranky and my relationship suffers, which stresses me out more. lol. It's just not worth it. I'll find a job sometime later in the semester. As long as I have one by may I'll be fine. And by May 1 I'll be living in an area with much more to offer in the way of job options. I'll find something at least for the summer.

For now I'm just happy things are back to normal and I can continue focusing on school

I had a really fun weekend. I gained and lost financially. Recap:

Yesterday, BF and I went shopping. I managed to spend about $160 on clothes. However, I bought a pair of jeans I love (I've really been needing new pants), and a couple bras (which I was in desperate need of). I got 2 new shirts- one of which I wore with a pair of dress pants to dinner last night, the other which is a nice plain teeshirt (versatile). I managed to only spend $7 at the bar... very nice.

Today, BF's Gram took us to Sam's Club unexpectedly. This was fantastic. The amount of money we'll save in food will more than compensate for the money I spent on clothes. Just trust me on that one For brunch, Gram cooked popovers and other breakfasty goodies (delicious, by the way). For dinner, BF and I went to my parents' for a cookout (also delicious). So the only money spent today was on flowers for mom (just because, and just because they were on sale for about $2- very pretty), tolls and gas money, and the tomatoes and lettuce mom asked me to pick up for the BBQ.

I feel quite spoiled between the dinner and Sam's Club run BF's grandparents provided for us. They're incredibly wealthy people, but I'm still trying to figure out why I deserve such treatment. BF and I talked with them about money over brunch, which was an interesting experience, if not a bit entertaining. They are a true testament, however, that if you scrimp, save, and then work the stock market, you can be very financially comfortable later in life Still practically kids in thier 80's, I love them to death.

So overall it was a great weekend. BF and I have been having a bit of fun before this semester really kicks into gear. I have a few more snags to work out as far as registration and my loans go. I have some calls to make in the morning before class. At any rate, I should get going. I need to pack my lunch for tomorrow. It's back to the 'ole routine! And we're looking at cars tomorrow, I believe. woo!

Have a great night, everyone!

So I did my grocery shopping today and decided on a menu for wednesday night, so that's out of the way now. I also printed and filled out the registration form for the spanish test I'll be taking. I worked for a while, but tonight was slow and I didn't make too much. eh. You win some, you lose some, that's the nature of the waitressing game

I made a couple different purchases earlier aside from the groceries. I bought a book on kanji- a necessary evil if I do end up living in Japan for 2 years (which hopefully I will!). That was a little under $20 with my B&N members card. I also bought a set of ramekins at Target, because I'm making these baked fruit cobbler cups on wednesday. They are quite yummy, but last time I made them I didn't have ramekins, so it was lacking in presentation to be sure. I did keep myself from buying a CD I've been eyeing. I figured study materials and kitchen things could be passed off as somewhat necessary, but alas, music is not at the moment. heh.

My to-do list for tomorrow is rather lengthy:

1. Go to the bank.
2. Pay parking ticket (ugh. I'm saving $3 by paying it in person rather than online, though).
3. Drop off registration form.
4. Get some info at my university about cross-registration.
5. Psychology club meeting.
6. Work at 4:00.

Whew! I'll be taking an early bus, for sure! Everyone have a great night!

...I'm cracking down on this spending. For real. With vacation quickly approaching, I've realized that I should have MUCH more saved up than I do right now. I calculated out how much I'll need, approximately, and how much I'll make between now and then. It's a bit startling, but I also made my estimates based on lower income than usual. The restaurant's been doing very poorly for the last month. Lucky for me, the US open is coming up, and before vacation. I'm hoping this brings in quite a bit of traffic. The only downside is our big booming business is going to be majority foreign, so I cant expect booming tips (though if I do get them, I'll be VERY pleasantly surprised!).

My coworker has been teaching me some japanese here and there, I want to learn how to at least carry on a small conversation with my customers. Here's what I learned yesterday:

onomimono wa doonasai masuka?
(what would you like to drink?)

More will follow! It's been quite a while since my last japanese class, so the refreshment is nice. Work tonight, but it's all you can eat. erg. Not the best of nights, most of us servers dread it. Bad tips, noone really buys appetizers or desserts, and it's a total mess. More work, more I have to tip out to chefs... poo. But money is money, so I'll just have to look at things optimistically.

As for the time spent before work, I haven't decided. I bought the 6th Harry Potter book the other day (got 30% off because I'm friends with the guy at the bookstore). I believe I'll be reading that for the better part of the day. Now, where is the real question. BF has class at 2:45, and I usually ride with him downtown at that point. HOWEVER, I usually end up spending $10-15 when I do that because I'm sitting around downtown for 3 hours and the evil forces of Starbucks, etc draw me in. The other option is to take the bus. This would cost me $1.75, but that's a bit less than $10. Not to mention, I'd be able to eat dinner at home. I suppose I could pack my dinner to take with me, but I was going to eat leftovers.

I got the Silver Palate cookbook for my birthday (thanks Gram and Gramps!) and I tried a recipe yesterday: Pasta Primavera Gregory. I cut it in half and still ended up with tons of leftovers. Not that I'm complaining I love leftovers. I did, though, have to buy bags of things (produce), so I'm going to be scouring my cookbooks for recipes to use the excess before it goes bad. I hate wasting, afterall...

Speaking of wasting, it's been bothering me quite badly lately. I'm trying to be much more eco-friendly and conservationistic. I bought 2 canvas bags at trader joe's for my groceries and started trying to recycle my paper products and such. But I keep noticing all the foodwaste that goes on here in the US. I work at a restaurant, and we put veggies and potatoes and such on the plate with our eentres. 70% of the time, those veggies go untouched and get thrown away. Same with rice. Same with fruit on the plate with icecream. I went to Chipotle when I was in Ohio. I told the boy I wanted a veggie burrito, so he heated up my tortilla and slid it to the next boy down, who put beef on it. When the first boy told the second that I wanted only veggies, he threw it in the trash! A bit heap of rice, beans, and chicken! I would have told him I would still eat it, but he threw it away before I had the chance. It kills me all the wasting that is done in restaurants when there are so many starving all over the world. There are days that I want to load up syrofoam containers with the untouched food that my restaurant is throwing out, and hand it out to the homeless! Or take it home... haha. Our veggies are pretty good, you know

Either way, sorry for the superlong post. Everyone have a great day!

So it's been a little while since my last entry. I have quite a bit of updating. My birthday was last week. I'm now 21 and a bit poorer because of it. I went out with friends on tuesday night, then had a party saturday night. Both were ridiculously fun. I got to celebrate both in Pittsburgh and Akron, so the tour de 21st was complete. I got to see a friend of mine that has been away for the last 3 years, about 30 people came to my party in Ohio, and me and my best friend from highschool talked about the wedding thing and all is well. I'll be making a speech at the reception

Other than that, the only exciting news is that I went to trader joes for the first time today. I dont think I'll ever shop anywhere else. I bought an array of things, all very decently priced, and far healthier than the crap I've been eating lately. We did buy quite a bit, though, so BF and I have decided that we will not go out to eat for at least the next two weeks. We need to keep saving for vacation anyways. It's so soon!

As for my birthday, I made out quite well for gifts. I was entirely unsuspecting, but I was a delightful surprise for sure! Included were: subway cookies, a homemade apple pie, sparklers, fun noodles, a videogame, earrings from italy, wine, vodka, the Silver Palate cookbook (fantastic), a dress, a shirt, a necklace, and BF got me a new camera (eep!) so I took PLENTY of pictures... here are a few! Enjoy!


BF and moi. We're quite the silly pair...


And again...


With a friend of mine at the bar...


My best friend is in the middle (Wesley) and my other good friend on the left (Melissa)


These are all my gals.


Drunken sparklers were a great idea...hehe.

So I've for the most part gotten to the point that I'm okay with my friend and her aforementioned actions... I dont think I'm going to say anything. I've never been one to have the balls to fess up to being angry with good friends.

I do want to mention, however, that this is not the first time in recent history that she has brushed me off. And that is more why I was upset than anything. I've been blown off and for the most part ingnored for quite some time. It was a frustrating situation even before the wedding ordeal, it just really hit home, if you know what I mean.

Aside from that, it was a no-spend day. I played my game for a while, then went outside and read. Worked and made barely any money. It was a relaxing night, however, and my coworkers all seeemed to be in great moods, so I have no reason to complain. I'm hoping to get to the grocery store tomorrow. I made out a list today. I also need to stop by the post office and pick up 2-cent stamps (I forgot who confirmed my suspicions that postage rates increased, but thanks!) to mail off my bills. Other than that, I think more reading is in my future. And more work. hehe. Hopefully I'll make more than $22 tomorrow!

At any rate, everyone have a great day/night!