So the Economy sucks...SO WHAT?!

I know that everyone has problems and issues in their life especially with the highest unemployment and foreclosure rate that seems to still be climbing. I feel that we have no one to blame (ie. presidents past or present) but ourselves. We got ourselves into this mess both personal and business. Our parents and grandparents didn't have as much access to a little devil we call "credit". Growing up in "The O.C." also known as beautiful sunny Orange County California I know all about having bigger and better than your neighbor even though neither of you could really afford what you had even before you wanted to upgrade.

Everyone is so maxed out and "house broke" or "car broke" because there is never enough actual money so they borrow and borrow and then borrow to pay off the borrowed money. I am not exempt from this so I am no Suze Orman telling you what you should and shouldn't do, I am in the same broke boat as everyone else wondering how in the hell I will ever be free from those creditors that helped me get lots of "stuff".

I think this whole recession is going to be great for America in the long run...after all what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger right?! I DO NOT believe we are dead yet. I also don't beleive we have hit the bottom yet, but once we do get there we can only move upwards.

So we have two choices...wallow in our sorrows about how broke we are and blame everyone under the sun for it being their "fault" or we can look at what is really important to us. I just had a baby boy and he has taught me more in his 5 months of life than I ever knew before. Not only did he fight for his life within his first week battling open heart surgery to repair a Congenital Heart Defect, but it also made me see what really matters.

You can take away the money, the gadgets, the "extras", but you can't take away that baby's love...everytime he looks at me. He doesn't know what kind of car we have or how much his toys cost, or even how many inches that big screen TV is in our living room. All he knows is that he is loved and happy to have that love.

I look at it this way, stressing about the situation is NOT going to solve anything, it is only going to make things harder and make you more miserable. Secondly, you cannot change the past so don't have regrets about it, you can only live your life from today on. Also don't focus on what you don't have look at what you DO have, because I can guarantee there is someone out there who is in a worse boat than yours, and maybe they need YOUR support.

This is a time to focus on family and relationships more than money and "stuff" because guess what...you will be remembered for the impact you have made on people...not by what kind of car you drove or how much money was in your wallet when you passed. Use this time to give what you have to others whether that be a hug, a listening ear, or maybe a shoulder to cry on, but know that by helping someone else you are helping yourself.

Stay positive...there are brighter days coming America!

My Evil April Fool Prank

So I was thinking all morning of how to prank my husband when he came home from work and then it came to me! Although I thought about digging out one of the 3 positive pregnancy tests from when I found out I was prego last year (is that weird that I still have the pee sticks?!) I had a much better idea! I do special FX make up and have a whole kit and everything so I added a ever so (not) subtle bruise to Carter's head while he was asleep in his swing. My husband will be home in about a half hour so I will have to update you on his reaction and if I was actually able to keep a straight face while he asked what happened...but until then check out the photo!

Why doesn't God want me to shampoo??

So when I was still pregnant I tried to come up with something I could do from home to make money and stay home with Carter...so after much struggle and thought I realized there was one obvious answer...put a shampoo bowl and stylist chair in my house (which we hadn't even bought yet) and do hair! I got my cosmetology license when I was 19 and had done hair on and off for mostly friends and family since I left my last salon at 20 to pursue the 9 to 5 life.

Fast forward to now...our house has a small living area in the back yad (like a "mother in law" quarters) where I decided to make into my salon. Well now that I am not pregnant and not yet making money we dove in to tackle the remodel. This place was in BAD shape before we started...I mean it was going to need much more than a fresh coat of paint and curtains. We still are working on the plumbing and we have to install a hot water heater for my shampoo bowl and everything.

The first shampoo bowl I got from craigslist and it had no drain...no nozzle...no fixtures...nothing! I sent my parents about 40 miles to pick it up while I was still at the hospital with Carter so I had no idea of this until after they paid $75 for it. Plan B was to buy a whole new one because I could get one with all the fixtures for as much as I paid for just the bowl the first time. As I looked all over craigslist I finally found one on Ebay that had everything and cost about $100 with shipping. YEAH I have a shampoo bowl!!!!

When we were putting the shampoo bowl in last week the washer that is also the bracket that holds it on from the bottom broke in half! Now this is a BRASS bracket in a very unique W shape and it is necessary to hold the fixture on!!! I called the company on Monday who was going to send me a new one. The mail comes on Wednesday with a standard size enevelope from the company and I open it to find....a piece of folded foam paper with NOTHING inside!!!! WTF?!?! How first of all does a BRASS washer crack in two and then I get an empty enevelope with nothing in it!!! Off to Home Depot I went last night to try to get something that could work...and they tell me there is nothing they have that will work and to try a muffler shop who could probably weld the two halves back together. Meanwhile I am trying to get paneling to go 24" up the bottom part of the walls to cover where part is concrete and not very pretty and they have what I need but 4' so I figure they can cut it long ways for me and their saw was broken! So we went to a second Home Depot and they didn't have the same paneling! Then it turns out you need special stuff to weld brass so it can't be done by people near me so the company has now attempted to send me the part again...hopefully it actually gets here!

Etsy Shopping Spree

I went on a small etsy shopping spree today, sending a tea sampler to my mom, a super cute skull bag to my sister and an awesome handmade journal to a friend. I have added quite a few items to my favorites from these and more wonderful artists who put so much love and hardwork into their creations and I know that something handmade means so much more and I think that even applies when someone else made it. I really hope they enjoy their gifts and I hope this has inpired you to check out Etsy for awesome handmade creations for all your gift giving needs...and maybe you will find something fantastic for yourself! :)

CHD Awareness Week

I was blog jumping and I found a great CHD adult survivor blog Inspiring Hearts, there you can find lots of stories of CHD survivors and I find it a great resource for CHD parents. Everytime I read stories of these adult survivors and how they lived their childhood I feel that it affects how I raise Carter. He was born with TGA and I feel like he deserves to have a regular childhood and not be sheltered because of his heart defect. His cardiologist says he should be able to play sports and run around like every other kid and if he can then he will. I try to do everything I can to raise awareness of CHD and I hope he will do the same when he is old enough to share his story on his own. I hope that he will show off his scar to help people understand the number of babies born with heart defects and that they should support such a worthy cause. He will be a strong kid who will grow into a strong man and he will have an outward symbol of how he fought to survive and blew away the expectations of his healing time after his heart surgery. I know my kid is one tough cookie and will go on to inspire people and motivate those who hear his story.

Makes me more excited to watch Carter grow

This video was shown on a blog I follow The CHD Blog it is a great inspiration and shows how awesome it is when these kids effected by CHD grow up to lead pretty normal lives...

Spend wisely...

So we have had to try to cut back...way back...since I quit my job to stay home with Carter. I have it down to a science to spend about $120 for 2 weeks worth of food, and I have just started cutting coupons so that should go down even more. So we are faced with our tax return money coming and the list of things we "should" and "want to" do with it are endless. We are getting a good chunk of money back, but I worry it will go away quickly without many productive purchases being made.

Here are the ideas so far

1. put money away to go to europe next year
2. pay off debts
3. fix up the house
4. buy a treadmill
5. stock up on groceries and paper goods
6. pay off medical bills
7. go on a cruise to the Carribbean
8. buy a stylist chair for my home salon
9. put some in savings

Technically we could do a little of all of the above, but I am trying to figure out the best balance, Ray wants to split it 50/50 and do what we want on each side, but I find that highly unfair because I am the "mom" and I will just end up blowing all my money on bills, groceries, and necessities while he is the one who wants to probably play a little and then spend some on the house. I think we should stick together and make a budget for the refund before we spend a dime or I fear we will blink and it will be gone and we will have no idea where the hell it went.