marymargaretripley

Not Impressed with our Debt – Week 39 of 80 – April 2019 Results

April was catch up month for us so as expected the results are not spectacular. We started off the month with $25,421 and as of today we are at $24,750. That’s down $671 which is the lowest I think I have had so far. But hey, it’s still forward progress right?! I was only ableContinue reading “Not Impressed with our Debt – Week 39 of 80 – April 2019 Results”

Not Impressed With Our Debt – Week 38 of 80 -Who’s Paying the Bills?

Who pays the bills in your household? For us it’s obviously me since I am blogging about it but recently I have had a few conversations with people about their bill paying practices. One point from these conversations has been coming up more frequently. That point is are both you and your spouse or significantContinue reading “Not Impressed With Our Debt – Week 38 of 80 -Who’s Paying the Bills?”

SAL-#5 Crown of Thorns

Good Morning from sunny New York! What a beautiful day it is going to be. Before I go out and dig in my garden all day I thought I better update you all on my progress with Crown of Thorns. Here is where I ended three weeks ago: And here is where I am now:Continue reading “SAL-#5 Crown of Thorns”

Not Impressed with our Debt – Week 35 of 80

It’s been a stressful month in lots of ways but being at week 35 of our 80 week debt paying challenge, I expected it. We are to the point in our debt payoff that each week we get closer to blowing this thing wide open but it’s a delicate balance as well. Two weeks agoContinue reading “Not Impressed with our Debt – Week 35 of 80”

Not Impressed with our Debt – Week #33 of 80 – Paying off the Home Equity Status

I am determined to pay off our Home Equity this month. We only had $1900 left to pay on it and this week our Federal Tax refund came in so I pay $543 right to the principal of the loan. Right now the balance is about $1346. Keep in mind that figure is not actuallyContinue reading “Not Impressed with our Debt – Week #33 of 80 – Paying off the Home Equity Status”

SAL #4 Crown of Thorns

It’s been three weeks since our last update and I have made some progress on this project. Here is where I left off last time: And here is where I am now: I am starting the crown but I have to tell you the monochromatic pallet is starting to get to me. I am pushingContinue reading “SAL #4 Crown of Thorns”

Transplanting Seedlings

Today I started the transplant process for the tomato babies! The key for seedlings in my experience is not to put them in direct light as soon as they emerge from the soil. Instead put them under a florescent light then they don’t get leggy. I just use a plain old florescent tube light butContinue reading “Transplanting Seedlings”

Not Impressed With Our Debt – Weeks 28-30 of 80- Home Equity Loan

Home Equity Loans can be wonderful things if you are doing a major project on your home, like renovating your kitchen. A new kitchen adds value to your home but unfortunately when you take out a home equity loan just to consolidate debt you don’t have a pretty new kitchen to show for it. WeContinue reading “Not Impressed With Our Debt – Weeks 28-30 of 80- Home Equity Loan”

Eight Steps to a Beautiful White, Blueberry Filled, Cream Cheese Frosted, Drip Cake

A couple of months ago I popped an unfrosted cake into the freezer to use for later and forgot about it. I came across it while I was looking for something else in the freezer and thought I would bring it out to have it as dessert last night. Cream cheese frosting sounded better thanContinue reading “Eight Steps to a Beautiful White, Blueberry Filled, Cream Cheese Frosted, Drip Cake”

SAL #3 Crown of Thorns

Good morning from windy New York! We are expecting a high wind storm the next 2 days with winds reaching 75-80 mph. I didn’t get a lot stitched these last three weeks. I have been catching up on my reading instead of crafting but if the weather reports are right I will be getting aContinue reading “SAL #3 Crown of Thorns”