C is for Cookie......

Drew came back (for good) late Friday morning. And as of Saturday we didn't have any Halloween costumes (for a med school party) and Drew didn't have any ideas. I didn't want to spend a lot of money on costumes that we would only wear for one night - it simply isn't worth it when you are on a budget. So on Sunday afternoon we ran to Walmart and picked up a few things and made these costumes (along with things we already had around the apartment). I think we probably made both of them for under $15! (Please forgive the poor picture quality).Cookie monster and his cookie!
Hope you all had a wonderful Halloween!

Away Rotation #1

Drew left on Sunday for his first away rotation (which started Monday).
(Drew boarding the train)
With the expectation of having high expenses for residency applications (fees, plane tickets, gas, hotel rooms, etc.) we are trying to save money wherever we can. For Drew's first two away rotations he is able to stay with his sister - this is obviously saving us quite a bit of money. I spoke with another MS4 wife whose husband just finished up an away rotation at this program to try and get an idea about this first rotation. She said that her hubby pretty much was at the hospital all the time and therefore ate three meals there most days. Being the penny pincher that I am I thought it would be a good idea to send Drew with a whole bunch of easy meals and pre-packaged snacks. We purchased canned ravioli, mac n cheese, and individually wrapped snacks like power bars, cracker, chips, pop tarts and breakfast bars. Although I am sure he will still eat at the hospital a lot I hope he won't have to use the vending machines and can minimize his meals at the hospital - but who knows I might be being totally unrealistic.
Tomorrow I'll update on how on how Day 1 went...

Relaxing, productive weekend

This weekend was totally unusual in the fact that I had nothing scheduled. Nothing. Drew was out of town for a bachelor party (which he planned), and although I missed him I must say it was a quiet and relaxing weekend. I was able to get a lot of stuff done. A lot of stuff that I have simply neglected the past several months due to the busyness of our travel schedule.
I am embarrassed to admit but my desk has become one enormous pile. It is a rather big desk but you can not see the surface of it at all. It is at least six inches high filled with mail, papers, envelopes, bills, cards, coupons, gift certificates, notes, and anything else you can think of. While I was not able to accomplish the task of cleaning of my desk I was able to put a dent in it by starting to sort through some of the papers. I still have to sort through the rest and file all the important stuff, but at least I have the task started. I also got laundry done, dishes, read magazines, clipped coupons, took two long bike rides, laid out in the sun and did lots of bargain shopping.
Speaking of bargain shopping it has recently become kind of a game or challenge to me. I like to see how cheap I can get my grocery bill to be. I like to see how much I can get for as little as possible. I clip coupons from local mailers, coupons.com and allyou magazine, follow Consumer Queen, read the local online ads and try to match up all the deals. Personally when I shop at Meijer or County Market I only buy the sale items or items that I cannot find at Wal-mart (and milk and salad because oddly enough they are cheaper there). But for all my odds and ends (or things that aren't on sale at the other two stores) I shop at Wal-Mart. I also tend to stock up on our favorite non-parishable items when they are on sale. This weekend I was particularly proud of my coupon use... I got a $35.00 item at Bed Bath and Beyond for $1.49. Then at Old Navy I got dress pants, a sweater, a yoga top, a tank top, a t-shirt, shorts for Drew, two baby onsies, and a baby sweater all for under $40.00! Even though I work, we still take out loans for Drew's school so I work very hard to pinch pennies.
Although I wouldn't want to spend all of my weekends like this (alone and without plans) it was a nice treat to be able to relax, and catch-up on things around here.

Eventful Weekend

Saturday morning Drew completed his second half-marathon; the annual Lincoln Memorial half-marathon.

And being the super-wife that I am I sacrificed sleeping in and woke up to cheer him on at the end of the race. He did very well, and met his goal of averaging seven-and-a-half minute miles. A few of Drew's med-school friends competed as well.

There were over 900 competitors, and after most of them finished the race they headed into this tent to fill up on lots of food and treats.

After celebrating Drew's successful race I headed into work for a few hours. Then late in the afternoon we took a trip to the bicycle store.... last summer Drew and I had looked for bicycles but we couldn't find anything in the budget. (I had an old bike at my parents house but we never brought it down to Springfield because I knew I wouldn't want to go without Drew). We looked to buy him a bike but we couldn't justify spending $100.

There were so many days last summer that I just so badly wanted to go on a bike ride - but we had no bikes. So when I heard the local bike shop was having a used bike sale I figured we'd give it a shot. When we got there we found that all used bikes were an additional $20 off.... so we ended up very excited to bring home this little gem....

for the budget price of $32 (after tax)! I cannot even tell you how excited I am to know that we will be able to go on bike rides this summer! I had no idea how much I enjoyed it until last year when we were not able to go.

Today was our first Sunday home in many, many weeks. It was wonderful! After church we were able to clean up around the apartment and I was able to get some cooking done (recipe for fruit pizza later this week). In addition to hi-jacking my blog, Drew also had time to work on two other sub-I applications. And now.... its time for a little relaxation. Hope you all had splendid weekends!

Thankful Thursday

Tonight, I am thankful that I was able to get a massage. A glorious massage! This is not something that would not ordinarily be in the budget but thanks to those wonderful things called beauty schools or massage schools, it is an occasional treat that can fit into the budget two or three times a year. Our local beauty school offers hour long massages for the value price of $25! And that is $25 well spent if you ask me! I was having a grumpy and stressful day (and was feeling quite sore from yesterdays yoga) when it occurred to me I should schedule a massage. So after dinner I went tonight, and now am feeling much more relaxed and refreshed. So for the rest of you also on a tight budget I would encourage you to see if there is a local beauty or massage school near you and go get yourself a well deserved massage!
As for the husband, tonight he is thankful for two things (don't tell but he was dancing in the living room). He is thankful that 1)the Bears now have a quarterback and that 2)the Cubs start next week. Oh, the little things that bring him joy!