What I am reading

I am slowly getting back into reading again. I am the queen at time wasting on my phone or having the TV on and not really watching. Time to get a little more productive with a bit of that time.

Personally I am reading The Queen's Secret, by Karen Harper.  It's about The Queen Mother and most of it takes place during WW2. I admit to knowing very little about her.

I have always been a fan of English monarchy and the stories that go with it. I started The Crown on Netflix earlier this Covid, and I ran across this title while pausing the series and exploring online.

I am 3/4 through and honestly, it's not as good as the other two books I read by her. I really really enjoyed those.

Professionally, I am reading a few YA books I stumbled across this past year. If you have younger teens or reluctant readers, these are quite interesting.

The books focus on Who is? Who was? Who were? Where is? Where was? etc

They are easy to read but still feel like you are learning about the topic. I will be using them for a Biography Unit. They are $6.99 on amazon, but at a bookstore in the city, they rotate a few of them into the discount bin at $3.99.

I just finished

and now I am starting

Here is the weblink if you want to check out what kind of books they have.

Who is? Where is?

Happy 12th Blogoversary to me

wow. 12 years. 

When I started this little guy off I didn't know what would be come of it or where it would lead me. 

Let's face it...I can be a little commitment flakey. 

This blog was the catalyst for so many great things in my life

I made a budget that actually worked...and stuck to me most of the time.

I thought ahead to my money needs instead of reacting on the fly. What Christmas again? Didn't we just have one of those last year?

I was able to use the solid base of a plan to help flex through the life changes I had. 

This got me through my kids in school, through their college and beyond.

This blog gave my stability when so many other areas of my life were going to sh*t.

This blog gave me the freedom to plan and see those plans through, and flexibility when plans went awry.

This blog let me meet people of like minds who inspired me through the sharing of their worlds. 

Thank you to all of you, long time readers and newer, for caring.

Where the money stands

as of July 3

Debt

Mortgage - $0 

College LOC - $0

Total Debt - Zero. Still feels weird to write it. Don't want to say it too loudly or Murphy will find me

Planned Savings

TFSA - $9900

RRSP - $14 262

TFSA 2020 - $600

Back to School - $500

Summer 2020 - $300 - 

Christmas 2020 - $500

I usually save $1000 for Summer fun money but I honestly don't think I will go past the $300 I have right now. Fewer places to go is part of it.

Honestly I think there are so many little jobs to do around the house this year. This will be my first summer since 2017 where I didn't have caregiver duties.  And I have a lot of work on me.

I need to get that TFSA done, Christmas, and start RRSP 2020 before I find it December.

Lies I told myself

As of today I am done teaching for the summer.

Don't get me wrong...the work is not done.

 I have about 20 hours left of an online course they mandated in the last week. The focus is blending the learning between in person and online. While they say we are all back in the classroom in the fall, I don't have great faith that it will stay that way.

I also need to go in and unpack my classroom as soon as they are done waxing the floors. Last year we had to move classrooms and with dad's passing I never did unpack properly. I do not want to experience that 'Hmmm I wonder where that is' again.


so back to the lies.

When we started this 'stay at home' crisis, part of me thought 'yes!!!!" Time to do all those things I wished I had the time to do at home AND still get paid.

Silly me, I had no clue how steep the learning curve was ahead of me with this online platform.

Lie #1
If I were at home I would be able to read so many books off my 'novels my kids read at school list' . honestly there are so many good  YA books out there, I could read one a day like a vitamin and never catch up. But I thought this was a chance to make a good dent. Didn't happen

Lie #2
If I were at home I would be able to get my hiney on the treadmill every day, multiple times. Boy the shape I would be in. I could do one in the morning before I go to 'work'. One to break things up in the afternoon. One in the evening. Truth - I was so scattered and hit and miss on this. I lost 3 months of time to get a new habit.

Lie #3
If I were at home I would unpack all the stuff I have brought from the other house and move more over. Untrue. Though I did work my way through some of it, I still have boxes and tubs that need a home

Lie #4
If I were at home I would be able to menu plan and have meals ready for supper each day. I did this a bit but certainly not on a regular basis. I found my appetite off (yet still gained weight) and had no desire to cook a good chunk of the time.

I feel like I wasted a 3 month opportunity to get these things going and of course, now, I am sad I did not do more

Change this month

I haven't been able to go to the bank in person since I signed off our mortgage papers in early April.

I also didn't spend a lot via cash and didn't have a lot of change to take care of.

Today I deposited

• 1 roll toonies
• 1 roll loonies
• 1 roll quarters
• 3 rolls of dimes

The $100 will go towards my TFSA savings. Time to get back at my other goals now that the LOC is done.