February change

In the midst of my jet lag and being back at work I managed to get my change rolled and to the bank. It was nice to add  $100 to my TFSA savings for the year.

They are getting pickier about taking rolled coins in at the bank. They would prefer I use the machine, but I really just enjoy the act of rolling change. They always check my rolls of toonies and loonies to be sure I am accurate or haven't tried to slip coins of less value in to make the roll appear correct. They have yet to find an error in mine.

our weather for February

I was so happy to be away for our trip and experience plus temps where I could walk outside and just wear my shirt.

It has been crazy here in SK this past month with cold temps. So many in a row. So many days of bus cancellations so that only some of the students are at school. So many days of indoor recess for the elementary schools.

We are more than ready for some decent winter temps, or better yet, spring.

Here is a peek at our February. For one of those days, we were the coldest spot on the planet.

Our trip to Europe

It's amazing how fast time can go for something you were looking forward to for so long.

We spent a week in France visiting my son and his girlfriend.

I was worried going into it that I was not healthy enough for the trip. In some ways I was right and in others less so.

The travelling part was not my favourite. It was a long journey. Plane 2.5 hours. Plane 7.5 hours. Plane 2 hours. Train 5 hours. And all the joyous little in betweens. We managed each leg of our journey successfully but boy there were some fast runs through unfamiliar airports. Toronto we ran at breakneck speed and barely made it to the gate in time to board. Frankfurt was the same but add in a customs check and a security check. The train station was a big jump. Figuring out how to get there from the airport, how to buy the correct tickets and find the right track. Made a little tougher by the fact that they changed trains/tracks on us at the last minute. We barely made it to the correct train and got the last 3 seats on a jammed ride.

The train station

When we arrived at our destination we had been up and travelling for about 32 hours. It was a quick walk to my son's apartment and we visited for about an hour before I fell asleep for the night.

Once there, things were pretty good. Such amazing countryside. All those mountains are quite the site for a prairie girl. They do not have a vehicle there, so everywhere we went we walked and I swear it was all uphill. That along with a weak mama and the altitude had me huffing and puffing a lot. It did get a bit easier so that was a bonus.

This is the view out their living room window. Gorgeous sunsets.

It was fun to see all the little ways their everyday lives have changed. Different kind of kitchen, washing machine ( no dryer), the currency, shopping and carrying everything home etc.

We cooked at home for four of the nights and ate out the others. DS was glad for some mom made food, but equally excited to show us dining out in France.

raclette. a big chunk of cheese that melts under the warmers and goes with a charcuterie tray of meats,veggies and bread.

We stayed mostly local when we were there as his work schedule cut the day in  half and didn't give a ton of time to go to too many communities around. This is a big ski area so the tourist areas were dedicated to that lifestyle and it was a 2 week break for students so there were a lot of people everywhere.

DS had an outdoor game up the mountain about 20 min from his home town. They originally thought it was a scrimmage but then realized once they were there that a pick up game was planned by the other town with former players from the region. We hadn't gone with him so unfortunately we missed that.

One of the team sponsors gave us free passes for the gondola to go up the mountain (20 euros each). We spent the good part of a day enjoying the scenery up there, watching all the skiers, hearing the different languages etc. The brothers took off for a little bit, climbing up a mountain (when we were already at what I thought was the top). The checked out a big memorial cross for a climber, saw quite a few ancient burial mounds and talked with a parachute skier as he was getting ready to go for a jump/ski.

We went halfway down the mountain to the restaurant that the sponsor owns. The weather was amazing …. 16 to 19C so we enjoyed some wine and food out on the patio sitting in the bright and warm sunlight.

We took a trip up to the old town one day. The hill was insane getting up to the top. I have no clue how invading armies would have managed, but they did as it was a big military fort in the 1700s and then again during WWI and WWII. I had to stop several times on the way up to try to breath and then started to hyperventilate. Ahh to be young and strong with good lungs. The area up there is now residential and a tourist area. Lots of tiny little shops tucked into the interior walls of the old fort. Jewelery, clothing, teas, gelatos, crystals etc. We had a great outdoor lunch up there and enjoyed the sunlight.

Our last night there DS played his game. The hockey is very different there, far less aggressive and DS is having a tough time adapting to it. The refs hate all the Canadians and penalize them every chance they get.  Makes it very frustrating. After four years in college hockey where the family was such a big part of the team and so welcomed, it felt very odd not having anyone say hi or welcome to France etc.

On the trip home I got sick on the long flight to Calgary. 9.5 hours of sinus migraine. It didn't get better during the four hour layover or the last flight to SK. I was very glad to be home and done with the travelling part.

The trip made me realize how much I miss DS. I am proud of him and his gf for the life they are adapting to so well there. She definitely is ready for home. She's never been more than 3 weeks away from her family so this past 7 months has been a big challenge.

I can't wait until they are home again.

I am glad that we chose to not celebrate the gift part of Christmas this year and directed that money towards the trip. At the time I really struggled with it but now I sure appreciate it.

The biggest expenses were the flights, the train tickets and the suppers out.

Unexpected expenses

It's been  a brutal 2 weeks of cold temps. My vehicle was not wanting to start even with the block heater plugged in so I have been driving DS1's parked jeep the past few days.

I was off to the city for my infusion. I had to rebook it for today as last week it was close to -48C with the wind chills and the roads were  a mess.

So today I headed off. The skyline of the city was in sight and I was just at the end of the industrial area when the jeep started making funny noises. I quickly pulled over to the limited shoulder of the highway and when there was a gap in traffic I got out to take a look. My front driver's tire had a big slash through it and I was down to just the rim. Awesome. Just what I needed.

I called CAA to get them to send  a tow truck and set about trying to find a repair shop where I could get a new tire. I called DH to let him know, concerned that I would miss this rebooked appointment. There is a max of 7 days window before I would be 'too late' for the infusion and have to go about a lengthy reboot of the drug.

He said he would leave work and start driving for the city. That way I could take his truck and run to my appointment while the tire was being repaired.

I found  a shop that would work, recommended by my nephew, who works in the city.

After 45 min of freezing temps, despite my vehicle still running, there was no sign of the tow truck. I recalled CAA and after a few moments of keyboarding I heard her say "well it looks like the operator you had talked to never contacted a tow truck'. I was not impressed. I understand there are waits for a truck to be available, but did not understand why the CAA rep had not make contact. I was more than a little annoyed. As a truck finally arrived almost 2 hours later, they were loading the jeep up to tow in and my husband pulled up behind me.

Together we headed off to the repair shop where I left him to wait while I headed off to my appointment, already  an hour late.

The repair cost just under $200. I was unhappy to hear them say that the tires on the jeep were all in really bad shape. I had just bought new tires for that vehicle last March before my son moved home from the US from college. That tells me the tires I paid way too much for, were garbage. Wish I could find those receipts.

Where the money stands

as of Feb 2nd

Debt

Mortgage - $6276.68

College LOC - $13 699.91

Total Debt - $19 976.59

Savings/Planned Spending

TFSA/EF - $9350

RRSP -$14 262

TFSA 2019 - $100 

Plates 2019 - $1200

Back to School - $100

Glad to see the debt under $20 000 again.

Hoping to see under $15 000 at the very least by the end of 2019