Its so pinteresting

I love Pinterest. I know I am not the only one. Sometimes though, I get pin-crazy, and I forget what I pin. Now that summer break is just around the corner, it's time I go through my pins and start deciding how I want to spend my summer vacay.

A great take on a gallery wall:

Pinned Here

This looks like the most comfortable skirt ever:

Pinned Here

Beach cover-up:

Pinned Here

Staycation anyone?

A list of stuff to do in Portland

I have been wanting to try making one of these for awhile now:

Pinned Here

Happy Hour on the deck:

Pinned Here

 

   

 

A name dilema

I have been toying with the idea of changing my blog's name. Actually, I have never really liked "First Time Wife," and neither has the mister. One of the very first things Blogger asks you to fill out is the name of your blog. I felt a lot of pressure to pick a name, and all I really wanted to do was start writing my story. I chose "First Time Wife" because I was no longer a newlywed, but I was still figuring out this wifey thing. I was okay with the name until the Mister said something to the effect of the "second time I was a wife."

Then, I started getting the Google hits. I blogged about it here. (It was back in my early days, so you probably didn't read it.) Today I was checking my blog stats catching up on some reading when I noticed that I got a Google hit for "first time with friends wife." So... I think its about time for a change.

I am searching for any ideas you all have for me. This blog is about my everyday adventures with DIY, cooking, teaching and anything else. The Mister and I want this blog to be semi-anonymous so my students can't find me, so using our last name is out. I kind of like "Everyday Adventures" now that I just wrote that out. Kind of has a nice ring to it.

What do you think? Any ideas to throw at me? Was picking out your blog's name hard?

Did you see this?

Oh my word.

May Birchbox

I have been looking forward to recieving  my May Birchbox. It had been promoted as a Gossip Girl themed box. I was excited, and I anxiously checked my mail box as soon as I got the email saying it had been shipped. Finally, I saw the familiar shaped box, wrapped in a black band, that screamed Gossip Girl. **Confession** I have never seen Gossip Girl. In compete honesty, I don't even know what it is about. I guessed it was going to contain glamorous make-up products. I opened my box and was greeted with the contents card.

Algenist- Eye Renewal Balm: Dark circles don't stand a chance against this rich eye cream, which softens lines and deflates puffiness with a unique microalgae compound.

I've used this once, and it seemed to work well.

Color Club- Nail polish in Disco Nap: Give nails a gilded look with this luxe metallic polish.

I love nail polish. This is such a fun color. Love it.

Dr. Jart: Waterfuse BB Cream: Think of this four in one moisturizer, serum, sunscreen and skin perfecting tint as the (extremely stylish) Swiss Army Knife of your beauty line-up.

This product intrigues me, but I haven't tried it yet.

Ojon- Volume advance Volumizing Shampoo: Made with ultra nourishing Central American ojon oil, this weightless shampoo helps hair look and feel thicker.

I haven't tried it. 

And my Birchbox Extra:

Notecards: Text messages are no match for handwritten notes on fun, modern stationary.

When I read this on the card, I thought "I like fun little cards. I bet there are a couple cute ones in here." WTF Birchbox, you sent me 1 piece of 4x6 card stock with XOXO printed on it. Boo. I will trade my card stock for your laundry detergent from last week.

Overall, I wasn't too impressed with my box. Especially now that I have now seen people are getting fun liquid eyeliners. I really don't know how this box is Gossip Girl themed, besides for the black box it came in.

Do you want to subscribe to Birchbox? Follow my referral link!

Sunday Funnies: Running Edition

Today I headed up to Portland and ran in the Rock and Roll Half Marathon. I can honestly say I have not ran since December, at my last half marathon. What can I say, training is boring. The weather in Portland was overcast and slightly sprinkely, which was fine by me. I actually had a lot of fun, but the next one I do, I will train for it, because I am hurting now. So glad I took tomorrow as a personal day. In honor of my  adventure today, I have a running themed Sunday Funnies.

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Basset Hound Running- best thing ever

How was your weekend?

To The Class of 2016

I have never linked up for Friday's letters, and I thought my first go at this will all be letters written to my 8th grade students, as they get ready to leave me at the middle school and head off to the high school. This is what I would tell them.
Please forgive me if I have more school related posts than normal. The end of the school year really keeps my mind here at work.


Dear Students, We have 3 weeks left of school. I am more just as excited for mid-June to come as you are. Please don't act like a jack ass for these last couple of weeks, I want to remember you fondly.
Dear Class of 2016, You were born in 1998. Please don't try to tell me about the "good old days, when Tupac was alive." He died in 1996. You were not born.

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Dear Students Who Tell Me Tupac is Alive, Do you know who else people claim is alive? Elvis. Those people are nuts. Maybe Tupac and Elvis are kickin' it together, but probably not.
Dear Boys in 3rd Period, How are you in the "cool group?" You openly fart in class, without shame. I have NEVER had boys just fart in class the way you to do. Next time, please go out on the porch. You are making my classroom stink. (Seriously, when I was in middle school, if you farted you might as well have had a flesh eating bacteria. NO ONE would have talked to you.)
Dear Boys in 5th Period, I do not look like Brandi from Storage Wars.

 

Dear Students, Hi. I'm your health teacher. Please remember all that stuff I taught you in our sex ed unit, especially the part about abstinence. That was pretty important. Also, smoking cigarettes does not make you cool or attractive. Finally, please remember that washing your hands is the best way to prevent disease. Also, you cannot get pink eye from farting on a pillow. And stop watching 1000 Ways to Die. That show is stupid.

The F Word- How The Today Show Fixed My Debt

Yesterday, I shared with you how I got into debt and when I realized I had a problem with it. Today, I will let you in on how I managed to get out of a black hole of debt. Please remember, I am no expert, and I have never taken any sort of financial/debt course. Who knows if what I did was good or not, it just ended up working for me.

First of all, there are two big purchases that I will NEVER regret. In college, I didn't study abroad. I had the opportunity to spend a summer working at camps in Europe for soldier's kids, I didn't do it. The big reason, I had a boyfriend and I didn't want to leave him. BIGGEST MISTAKE OF MY LIFE! I would give anything to go back in time and slap 19 and 20 year old me in the face and tell me to pack my bags. Dumb. We split up during spring term my fourth year of college. I was sad, depressed, angry... you name it, that's what I felt. My BFF was in the Peace Corps in Guatemala and I decided I was going to go visit her after spring term was over. A week later I used my credit card and bought my plane tickets. It was AMAZING. The country was so beautiful, and since I was with someone who was living there, I feel like I really got to experience a lot of what was there. 

Guatemala

The second purchase was another spur of the moment decision. My friend was going to be traveling in Germany during the World Cup in 2006, and I decided to fly over and meet her. I can't even describe how cool it was to know that I was at literally the biggest party in the world.

World Cup 2006

Besides for those two purchases, I have to say I bought a lot of crap. Most of which I don't even have any more. I already shared that I had about $10K in credit card debt and my credit score was in the low 500's. Any score below 580 is a "very poor score. It's doubtful that you may qualify for the loan, and if you qualify, the interest rates will be extremely high." Source I was feeling pretty crappy about the situation, when I came up with a plan.

Yes, The Today Show not only showed me that I had a debt problem, but it also played a role in my debt relieving plan. Another morning (probably a week later) I was watching the Today show and they had someone on and gave a general budget for your finances, using percentages. I knew I needed a budget, so I wrote that shit down.

Housing/Utilities 35%

Food 20%

Transportation 15%

Debt 10%

Savings 10%

Entertainment 10%

I then figured out what I should be spending in each category, and I spent a month writing everything down, in each category to see what I was spending. The good news? I lived in a crappy apartment and was spending way below on housing. BUT some of my utilities were unnecessary. I bit the bullet and got rid of my DVR and cable, and cut back to an $8 a month plan to get the local channels. 

The other thing I looked at was how I was spending. I had heard of people using cash only and an envelope system. (Now I know they were talking about Dave Ramsey.) I decided to take my percentages and spend only cash. At the beginning of each month I would take out enough cash for my gas, groceries and a small amount for entertainment for the entire month. I separated it into envelopes for each week, and I would seal them. On Sundays, I would get to open each of the next week's envelopes. 

The other thing that I did, which most financial experts would probably cringe/choke/be angry with, is that I completely deleted the savings category, and I more than doubled what I was paying towards debt. (I also cut back the entertainment category as well.) I also looked at the credit cards that had balances (two Visas and a couple of store cards) and I decided to pay them off one at a time, and start with the lowest amount first. (I know Suze Orman says to pay off the one with the highest interest rate first, but I wanted to feel like I was accomplishing something.)

I lived this way for about 3 1/2 years. Let me tell you what, for the first 6 months or so, it sucked. I missed going out with my friends. I  missed buying new things. Yes, I had an envelope of "fun money" but I hated checking it to see if I could allow myself a treat. But after awhile, and after I paid off a couple smaller store cards, I started to really like it. It was a challenge to me, and it really made me think about what was important to me and my wallet. My friends got use to me checking my envelopes, and they would even ask me "will your envelopes let you go to the movies/go out to dinner/get coffee etc?"

When things with the Mister got super serious, it was even more important to me to have zero credit card debt before we got married. I am happy to say I made my last payment about 2 or 3 months before our wedding :) That my friends was awesome.

My story isn't over yet. Coming soon... my current thoughts on money.

Do you have a budget? Has the Today show ever changed your life?

The F Word

Finances

I have been thinking a lot about money lately. I don't know why, it's just been on my mind. My relationship with money (that sounds so weird) has changed a lot over my life, and I thought I would share my story with you all. I am NO financial expert, but I have pulled myself out of quite a bit of debt, and I paid for graduate school without a single loan. (Now the undergrad degree, that is a different story...) I realize money is a sensitive subject, but I feel like this story is one that I need to share. 

Growing up, we were poor. At the time, I didn't realize it, because I had everything I needed, but looking back, I realize we were struggling financially. I never worried about food, or where we were going to live. I did however, worry about the shoes I was wearing (didn't mom realize I needed Nikes and Adidas?), the jeans I had on (Mom! I cannot buy my jeans at Target, we need to go to GAP!) and even my back pack (Mom! Everyone is carrying Jansport backpacks.) Like I said, I had everything I needed, but not everything I wanted. (To a middle school student there is a big difference between what mom thinks I need, and what I think I need.) In high school, I started working to fill some of the gaps. 

In college, I discovered credit cards. At first I was very cautious with them, just like mom had warned me, but then I realized I could get discounts at all these stores at the mall if I just applied for their cards. That's when things got a little out of hand. Then after I graduated and got my first real job, and my first real paycheck, things didn't get better. I would actually have to say that they got worse. I thought back to growing up and how I didn't ever have the nicest things, and I went a little crazy at first. I mean, I had to have new work clothes. Thank goodness I was teaching PE, and I basically wore work out clothes to work everyday, or my total debt would have been much higher. I also was getting a new apartment, and I needed all new kitchen things, decorative pieces, and all sorts of fun new things. 

It took a couple more years of spending after college for me to decide to clean up my act. It was in the summer, and I was watching the Today show and some financial expert was on answering questions. They talked about a website you could go to to check your credit score and the importance of that number in things like buying a house, car etc. I went to the website, paid my $9.95 (or whatever it was) and saw that my credit score was in the low 500's and I had some pretty big dings on it. Ouch. At the time, my credit cards had around $10K on them (total) and it was a little overwhelming. I didn't really know what to do about it. I was paying more than the minimum each month (my mom taught me that) but I just couldn't see an end. And now that I was out of college, my school loans were going to need to be paid back.

Tomorrow, the rest of my story. Plus the two purchases (which were also the two single biggest ticket items on the charge card) that I will never regret.

Did you discover credit cards in college??

My Summer Bucket List

Inspired by Melissa at Forever and a Day and all of our amaze-balls weather we are having here in the  valley, I decided to write my Summer Bucket List. I have about 4 1/2 weeks left of work before my summer break, and I can only dream about what I want need to get done this summer.

80's holla!

1. Tent Camping

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I love camping. LOVE. L.O.V.E. Last summer, we didn't go camping once, which was my fault for not making it a priority.

2. Girl's Trip

I have one trip semi-planned (as we in talked about how fun it would be to have drinks by the pool) with a girl friend I work with who will be house sitting in Arizona. I also would really like to get away with the BFF. She has been talking about being done breastfeeding in June, and then she is leaving the kiddo with the hubby and we can at least go somewhere for the night.

3. Kauai

We bought our tickets this week. I want to leave yesterday.

4. Canning
 
I really want to do some canning this summer. I usually do freezer jam, but I think it's time I put on my big girl pants and do some real canning. We have two cherry trees in our back yard, and I would love to can some.

5. Hood River, Oregon

I love Hood River. Every time I head up there (about 45 minutes east of Portland) I want to live there. I have good friends there and this picture is pretty much the view from their living room. The town is so cute and there is so much to do there.

6. Festivals

One thing that my small town does right is festivals, and we have a ton in the summer. This picture is from the Hops and Heritage festival in late summer. There is also a HUGE 4th of July festival, fiesta de Mexicana, and a couple more. PLUS every Thursday night in the summer they play movies in the park. Every Friday night is a concert overlooking the river. We only really went to one last year, and I had tons of fun. I definitely want to make it a few times this summer. (Seriously, its like a mile and a half from my house. And they are free. No excuses!)

What's on your summer bucket list?

Linking up with Meg at Life of Meg for  Mingle Monday!

Midweek Confession Time!

It's Wednesday, so its time to confess! Head over to e, myself and I and link up! Come on, all the cool kids are doing it. You know you want to try it. (I am teaching about peer pressure right now...)

Today I am wearing (at work...) a pair of skinny jeans, TOMS, and a Volunteering is Hot T-Shirt. I am trying to decide if I am trying to look like a middle school kid.

The shirt is from my leadership class (that I teach), so that's more professional, right? (It does increase the chance that I am dressed like a kid however.)

I had been contemplating taking a personal day today, until I realized that today is the day of our annual Spaghetti Lunch that the secretaries at work put on for the staff (for Teacher Appreciation Week.) I missed it one year due to illness and I even considered going in just for lunch that day. Each secretary makes their own sauce and they are all incredible.

I want to own a pair of TOMS in every color/print they make. I got mine on Friday and have worn them pretty much everyday since. The Mister hates them. He calls them expensive slippers. My response? No, those are Uggs.

You know what I hate? Kids with cell phones. Well just when they use them in class...

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I really like that One Direction song, What Makes You Beautiful and The Wanted's Glad You Came. Totally reminds me of BSB & n*sync.

What are you confessing??

Tuesday Newsday!

Last Tuesday I posted a couple of news stories that popped out at me from the week. Then I realized Tuesday Newsday sounded fun, so here I am again. 

First Off, I'm sure you have seen this lady by now but...Tanning Mom...

There is so much to say. Courtney Cakes said it best when she described her skin color as a vat of wood stain. Much has already been said about her living in a world without mirrors.  But May is National Melanoma Awareness Month, and as much as I do love to lay in the tanning beds, I don't because cancer = not worth a golden tan. (Or what ever this lady's skin color is.)

Sad News... Adam 'MCA' Yauch from the Beastie Boys Dies

I won't pretend that I was a HUGE fan of the Beasties, but I did enjoy there music, and when one of the few songs I have downloaded pops up on my iPod, the volume gets turned up. He was a young guy, with a daughter. Cancer sucks. 

Finally... Paralyzed Woman Finishes Marathon

Freaking wow. The woman cannot feel her legs and using a special suit she was able to complete an entire marathon. And I complain when I get a blister on my foot.

Any cool news stories I missed?

Sunday Funnies: Take 2

Last week I has so much fun linking up with Kara, that I thought I would do it again. Enjoy!

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This kids got swag.

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True dat.

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What's making you laugh lately? Write a post and link up!

SUYL: New Friends Day

Hi Friends! Today Kelly (of Kelly's Korner fame) is hosting SUYL (Show Us Your Life): new friends edition. If you are stopping by from the link-up, welcome! If you are one of my "regular" readers, please head over there and check it out!

After college, I started to realize how difficult it is to make new friends as an adult. College friends start to move away, people become busy with careers, new marriages, new babies, and life just changes. On top of that, I started to notice that I became more and more introverted/shy and a good night was curling up with a book in my sweat pants eating brownies. I do have some girlfriends that I have been friends with for years, but they are all new moms and are now focused on their little ones (as they should be). I wish I could explain to you all how many times I rewrote that, trying to not sound too sad and lonely.

I started blogging as a way to share my thoughts, craft projects and record our daily lives without boring the Mister. Since then I have realized what a great community blogging is. The women who blog are so supportive, funny and amazing.

Here's some random facts about little ol' me.

1. The Mister and I have been married for about 2 years (June 26!) and although we are pretty different, we complete each other. No kids, but we have 2 wonderful furbabies.

2. I am a middle school health teacher, and my job makes me laugh every. single. day.

3. I love guacamole, roasted vegetables, buffalo sauce and caffeine (coffee, diet coke, flavored red bull... the list goes in)

4. I can't swim.

5. We live in a smallish town in Oregon, and usually I love it. Sometimes I HATE the weather (this winter was awful...)

#MidweekConfessions

It's Wednesday y'all! Head over to e,myself and I to check out what the cool kids are confessing this week!
-I kind of want a Twitter account. BUT I don't really get Twitter. I just want to hash tag all the things. #don'tknowifIamhashtaggingright

-Rachel at In No Simple Language posted this picture yesterday and I could not stop laughing. 

I was a junior or a senior in high school when No Strings Attached came out, and I remember skipping first period so that I would be the first one to own it. #iloven*sync

-Last week I started teaching an after school Zumba class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I have caught myself prepping way more for that than my real teaching job. #teacherfail

-I'm genuinely happy that Jessica Simpson had her baby. Wasn't she pregnant for like 2 years?? When I told the Mister he looked at me like I was nuts for caring.#yayjsimps

-I get super excited when I pin something on Pinterest and it gets several repins from people I don't know. It makes me feel like I am finally sitting at the popular kids table. #pinterestgivesmeselfesteem.

-I love the Olympics. Like in a stupid way. I love everything leading up to them (Olympic trials anyone?) and everything during them. #WishIcouldgotoLondon

-Our kitchen light burnt out yesterday. Not a big deal, right? Except the last time this happened, it was burnt out for months because both the Mister and I thought the other person should change it. (In fact a friend of ours ended up changing it because he thought it was ridiculous.) I think the same power struggle is on. #wedon'tchooseourbattlesright

Twitter type peeps- did I hash tag right? #lookingforapproval
What are you confessing this week?

In the news...

I try to stay up on the news. I watch the local new in the morning as I am getting ready (mostly for the weather), and I try to catch up on the world news at night. But if I am being honest, politics bores me. I really hate it when people post political type statuses on Facebook, even if it is for the candidate I am voting for. (Really, it just causes drama, no reason to do that). Any who, most of my news and I get from the yahoo ticker or TMZ. Here are some highlights from the week.

Did you see this story:

Dentist pulls out all of her ex-boyfriend’s teeth after split

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Basically, this guy cheated on his girlfriend (his dentist), they broke up he went to her because he had some tooth pain and she freaking PULLED OUT ALL HIS TEETH! My favorite quote from the article: "I tried to be professional and detach myself from my emotions," Anna Mackowiak, 34, told the Austrian Times. "But when I saw him lying there I just thought, 'What a bastard' and decided to take all his teeth out."

Obviously, I don't condone pulling out your ex-boyfriend's teeth, but seriously WHY WOULD HE STILL GO TO HER? Isn't there like thousands of dentists in the world? And, I can't say that I haven't thought about causing harm to an ex-boyfriend after thinking the words "What a bastard."

This next story just makes me real mad...

Teen Mom' Amber Portwood Ordered to Pay Up After Mooching Off Poor People

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Amber is the crazy one from Teen Mom. She's the one that was put in jail for beating on her baby daddy and drug use. Any way, when she's not in jail, she has been living in subsidized housing for low income families. That makes sense since she is a single teen mom. EXCEPT she lied about her income on the housing application. Last year she made over $200,000. Way over. $280K! WHAT!!! I have a masters degree, my husband has a college degree and we don't even make half that. Are you kidding me MTV? 

And a video story that made me smile (I needed it after that crap above!)

You can read it here. So this is in China. That dog guards the bike while his owner runs errands around town. Then he rides on the back of the bicycle to the next errand. I freaking love it. My dumb dog barks if I try to leave him outside the library to check out new books. Boo for my dog.

He is cute though :)

Have you found any crazy news stories lately?