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Archive for August, 2016

Kari, DH's hair Updates

August 28th, 2016 at 12:54 am

So it's been a busy week.

Interesting tidbits...

DH and I worked together Thursday night to make stuffed bell peppers. So yummy! I meant to take a picture but forgot. The filling we made actually was enough for me to use on a sandwich the next day, and still have enough to stuff maybe 3 peppers.

Friday night I had a big scare. Frown I was sitting at my computer relaxing, when all of a sudden I heard Kari and Sunny fighting right next to me. I put a book in between them to break it up, and Kari went off into a corner. The way she was huddled made me realize she was hurt. Frown

So I went over to her and picked her up, and had some blood drip on my leg!!! Her eye was all scrunched up.

I panicked. I called DH and he told me to call the vet and see if they thought I should bring her in or wait and see.

I called the Vet and they told me that I should bring her in if she was got in the eye.

So I commenced trying to get her in the kennel ... Ten minutes later, and multiple scratches later, I had her in the kennel and in the car.

Then DH called to say he was five minutes away. I waited for him to come so he could look at her eye too. By the time he got there, Kari was opening her eye again.

We could see then that it was only the corner of her eye (the 3rd eye??) that looked a little bloody. So ultimately we decided to wait and see.

This morning she seemed fine, and the scratch looked healed.

We are discussing what we are going to do about Sunny. She is the only one of our cats that uses her claws to hurt the other cats (namely Kari) or destroy furniture (my office chair ...DHs speakers)

We see maybe 4 options. 1 and 2 - let go of one of the two cats - Kari or Sunny. Frown Frown 3 - Get Sunny declawed Frown or 4 - try something like Soft claws?? to see if they would stay on Sunny and actually work.

I also ordered some Feliway spray today. I've had mixed opinions about whether it really works or not, but I'm going to try.

I don't like options #1 -3 at all, but if #4 doesn't work, then I'm not sure what else to do. We can't keep having Sunny take pieces out of Kari (she took a piece out of one of her ears a few months ago.)

Sigh.

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In more positive news ... today DH let me cut his hair! I'd bought a clipper set from Aldi's about a month ago and he kept putting me off, or when he had time I didn't.

Today though we both had time at the same time. Smile It took me about an hour, and I think I did a decent job for my first time. Definitely need to watch some more videos about how to cut the top part. Smile

Today's haircut basically paid for thee clippers. Any future cuts will be money saved! Smile

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A new Dollar Tree WITH a freezer section opened up less than 1/2 a mile from our house on Thursday!!!

Color me ecstatic! They have the frozen fruit! They have the chicken nuggets DH likes. They don't have any of the frozen vege options of the other store ... yet. Smile I will be letting them know they need to get those in there ASAP. Smile

I also found that they have those organizing fabric bins that you would normally pay upwards of $5 each, for $1! (For those cube organizers.) I bought two to try out the quality and usefulness.

Final Day of Countdown ... Thank Goodness

August 23rd, 2016 at 02:12 am

Tonight is the last night I can't take anything for my allergies other than nasal spray or icy hot. Thank goodness for that, because after four days of not too bad, today it got miserable. Just have to get through the morning tomorrow, and then can take my allergy meds again!

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I worked Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m. at the local university's welcome celebration event. A dispatcher and I passed out tons of route maps and hand sanitizer, and answered a few questions.

It was fun about the first 2 1/2 hours ... then I was just tired and hungry and wanted to go home and see DH. Thankfully Jimmmy Johns came by with free 1/4 sandwiches - turkey, ham, and veggie! So that gave me a little boost of energy.

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I completely overslept on Sunday, (took a nap before going to event) and did not get any veggies cut up. Tonight was exhausted and stressed from work, and so did not feel like cutting veggies.

So ... went to Russ's and bought a couple packages of pre-cut veggies. Made a sauce of olive oil, paprika, tumeric, salt and garlic, and roasted them for 30 minutes.

(mushrooms, asparagus, rainbow bell peppers, onions, red potatoes, zucchini, etc)

Here's what it looked like in the pan:

Tomorrow I WILL cut up some of the stuff I bought on Saturday night.

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Hubby is doing really well with his eating I think. Not perfectly, but baby steps, right? I'm really quite proud of him. I think he has taken it to heart where I've said before that he needs to figure out changes he can actually live with long term - not just things that work short term. (I've REALLY been trying to keep my mouth shut and let him work it out on his own ... other than just making sure the fridge/counters are stocked with fruits and veggies .. Smile )

Now I just need to do as well with staying away from soda and chocolate ...

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The groceries I bought today (pre-cut veggies and a couple packages of firm tofu) cost about as much as our two entrees from the local Chinese place last night. (Which gave us enough for two meals each ... DH commented that the rice (white) just didn't stick with him as well as the meal of roasted veggies/tofu/cauli rice ... don't think I;ll ever get him to eat brown rice, but this is an amazing admittance!)

Oy Vey!

August 21st, 2016 at 03:09 am

Well, I guess it's a good thing we bought the extra warranty for DH's Garmin.

He called me tonight to see if I had registered the Chromebook and Garmin yet ... I hadn't. Oops.

He apparently had a bottle of Windex on his car seat??? that wasn't tightly closed. It spilled onto the Garmin, and has rendered it useless.

The Garmin that is not even a month old.

So, they are both now registered and a file has been claimed. It is now up to DH to get it mailed in.

I personally will be shocked if they will replace it. Guess it's a good thing DH hasn't spent is fun money yet this month.

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In other news ...

I realized as I was doing my budgeting tonight, that I hadn't scheduled the next mortgage payment. I went to the website to schedule it, but I couldn't do it! I could however schedule an autodraft for 9/1/16.

I decided to do that (so I don't have to worry about spacing the payment.) Then I realized that I had money budgeted in August for the mortgage and the extra payment which actually won't be needed now til september (I paid the first payment in June that was due July 1.)

So that gave me some money to play with a little bit. Smile I put most of it in the car maintenance category, because that one took a hit this month and there's more to come. I also added to our fun money and a few other categories.

Attack Cat ... Sigh, etc

August 20th, 2016 at 05:39 pm

My little girl (cat) seems to be on the mend from her bladder issues.. Unfortunately, it hasn't helped her behavior with the other cats. At all. On more than one occasion I have seen her go from one side of a room to across the room and into the hallway to pounce and growl at another cat.

I've also witnessed her swatting at the other cats while they are using a litterbox.

I'm not really sure what to do.

I'm worried that the other cats patience with her is going to run out and they'll gang up on her. Or .. that they'll stop feeling safe using the litterboxes because they are worried she's going to walk by and attack them.

I think a lot of it is her being territorial about me. But I've heard her go on the attack when she's on the other side of the house from me.

I wonder how much it would cost to get a cat behaviorist to come and help us get this figured out? The vet tech said something about giving her her own litterbox and water bowl ... but how would that work?

I have one litterbox per cat plus one, plus water dishes throughout the house. I have no idea how I could make an area accessible to her, but off limits to the others.

Sigh.

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This morning I did something I haven't done in YEARS. I walked / jogged 3.2 miles! It took me about 52 minutes ... Considering that for the past six months or so, about the furthest I've *walked* at one time is 1.75 miles, I'd say not bad. Smile

Maybe I'll try training for the Turkey Trot. Smile Haven't done an actual race in quite a few years.

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Tomorrow I'm working the BR Welcome (local university welcoming their students back.) It'll be at least 3 hours of overtime. I'm hoping it won't be too hot or humid.

I'm also going to be picking up a piano bench for $20 from someone on a local FB group. I'm hoping that having a bench will make me more likely to actually use my electronic keyboard. Smile

I'm also planning on picking up some more veggies from a local FT store (place that sells lots of veggies/fruits/natural foods.) Possibly get them chopped up and roasted before heading out for the BRW event.

I wonder if frozen pre-chopped veggies would roast very well???

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I dropped off DHs scrip for a glucose meter last night at 5:15 and told them I'd wait for it. My name finally got called at 6:10. Ugh. Double ugh.

*DH helpfully told me this morning that I should have just dropped it off to pick up today. Um, sure. But then I would have had to go BACK a second time - though I guess I could go through the drive through and not be tempted to buy stuff inside....

I was also picking up refills of my scrips. My overall total was $79, but then after coupons, ECBs (CVS), etc. it was down to $45. (Of which, ~$38 was scrips.) Besides other things, I picked up knee highs, Gold Bond foot powder, Glade plug in scent warmer/refills, and a thing of hand soap.

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While at CVS, I picked up a pamphlet talking about a Weight Loss Program offered by the Minute Clinic. You have someone talk with you about your goals/lifestyle etc. and help you develop a plan. You also get enrolled in a DASH website (based on that diet.) You check in with someone there on a regular basis to collect vitals, etc.

It would make it so you are accountable to someone else, but on your schedule.

I'm wondering if this might not be something worthwhile - especially if insurance would cover most of it. I'm wondering if insurance would cover any of it ... Maybe DH would be willing to do the program with me?

Anyone hear of this program?

Cauliflower, Clippers and Sadness

August 18th, 2016 at 04:18 am

This past Sunday I made a roasted veggie dish with an avacado based dressing and a side of cauliflower rice. Suprisingly, it was a hit with DH!

So much so, he actually requested that I repeat it with the veggies I hadn't previously cut up and the leftover avocado. I did - didn't turn out quite as good, but still got a thumbs up from DH.

The only thing is ... cauliflower is EXPENSIVE! I paid $3 for one head, and that made barely enough "rice" for two servings. It was *really* good though!

I hope I can find it for much less than that. Could become a staple dinner item! (Maybe experiment with making pizza with it.)

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I bought a pair of hair clippers from Aldi's a few weeks ago with the intention of cutting DH's hair. I've watched a few Youtube videos .... Why is cutting my hair so much simpler, yet in the salon, because of my length, I'd pay more??

If anyone has links to good videos of the most simple way to do a clipper hair cut, I'd love to see them. Or if you could tell me how you do it? I probably only have one chance to convince DH to let me do this ... so want to make sure I do it well! Big Grin

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Yesterday morning I woke up after just a few hours sleep, but was quite awake. Browsing FB I noticed some strange posts being put on the wall of a woman I'd met while getting my librarian degree in Texas.

I clicked on her page, and to my horror and dismay, I saw that she had been murdered (in front of their 5 year old daughter) by her husband, who then killed himself!

According to the article they were deeply in debt - student loans, mortgages, credit cards, etc., and were about to file bankruptcy.

She worked as a librarian at a university - not sure what her husband did.

You hear about this kind of thing on the news, and it's horrendous enough. But to actually KNOW someone this happened to? Wow.

The woman's name was Kate. I didn't know her all that well, just a few friendly chats when we were both on campus at the same time and some interactions in a few classes we took at the same time. till, from that little bit of knowing, she seemed like a truly quality person who deeply loved her little girl.

Lillian. Frown Her world has pretty much exploded at 5 years old.

It shows you really don't know what is going on in peoples lives. I just wish they would have reached out to someone for help ...

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Almost forgot. Tomorrow begins my 5 day countdown to my allergist appointment. Wish me luck (and low allergen counts for the next few days!)

Updates ..

August 17th, 2016 at 03:46 am

So DH did go to the doctor, and we got the bloodwork results on Tuesday (last week.) High blood pressure, diabetes and another issue.

Sigh. He had been worried for awhile that he might have developed diabetes. His mom died of diabetes complications in the late 80s. One of his sisters died of complications from it (juvenile onset) a few years before their mom.

Right now he is refusing to meet with the diabetes lifestyle counselor. He says that he knows enough about it, and any questions he has can be Googled. He has agreed that if after 30 days of doing it his way, if he doesn't see improvements, that he will see the counselor.

He does seem to be a little more willing to eat veggies ... and is cutting back on soda a good bit.

I'm really, really trying to not butt in and tell him what to do. To let him set the pace. It's really hard though - especially when he started out by doing 90% protein calories ...

I spoke to a CVS pharmacist about a blood pressure cuff and an glucose meter. They told me that I should contact our insurance to see what was covered.

I did that today - found out that both the meter and strips - of any brand - are 100% covered, but the bp cuff would count towards OOP and deductible. I need to contact one of the local medical supply places here to find a cuff with a large enough extension piece.

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Work ... Sigh. The last week and a half has been extremely busy, hectic, stressful. Last Friday there was an incident where I had two people in a row come to the window asking for route info, logged off the phone, and still had 5 different people call and be placed on hold (then hang up) while helping the people at the window. Then had someone call moaning and groaning about being on hold for 25 minutes.

I kind of vented unwisely to my supervisor ... Usually there is at least one other person there who can help handle an over load of phone calls, but my supervisor was in a meeting and those present in the office weren't ones who generally answer the phone ..

We both left quite frustrated Friday afternoon.

I nearly got sideswiped on the way home which definitely did not help my perspective. Thankfully DH was home and was able to give me some much needed respite so I eventually felt calmer about everything.

Then yesterday my supervisor asked me to come back with her to the conference room.... One of the things she talked about to me about was Friday. We agreed that I should try forwarding more calls to the information line when I get swamped like that.

The other thing she talked to me about though really threw me for a loop. Apparently people have complaining about my area smelling bad. Sometimes about ME smelling bad.

I practice good hygeine - teeth brushed, hair washed, clothes washed, etc. The only things I could think of would be my shoes (which I leave at my desk overnight so I don't have to walk too much in them outside.) Or ... my clothes.

Yes, I always wear clean clothes (or at least clothes that still pass the sniff/smudge test after a wearing or two) But ... I think the issue could possibly be the cats. The smell from the cats.

When you have many multiple litter boxes throughout a home, it seems impossible to NOT have it smell. The chickens in the basement sure don't help either.

I asked my supervisor to alert me when she smells something off, so that way I can possibly pin point the cause better. (Such as - that top was hanging in the laundry room for the past week which is next to the workshop with the chickens and also in a room with a litter box. Or, that was the third time I wore those pants - maybe I was wrong about them passing the sniff test.)

I wasn't upset that she told me about this - in fact I appreciated it. However, at the same time, I'm now feeling mighty awkward around my coworkers wondering who had been talking about me behind my back.

Ugh.

I'm thinking it might be worth it to try to find a few hundered dollars in the budget to have someone come in here and help me figure out what to do to eliminate / alleviate the smell factor. (Supervisor's suggestion was get rid of most of the cats and all the chickens ... Yeah, that's not going to happen. Though maybe I can spur DH to get the chickens outside with the idea that their smell may be affecting me at work!)

(Shoes - I am planning on putting baking soda in them, and also maybe dryer sheets, and a few other ideas I found. Maybe also get some footies to wear with them. Probably also try to take them home with me each night.)

(Litter boxes - I use the scoopable kind with baking soda for multi-cat households. I completely scoop them ALL out daily. I have air fresheners in every room of the house, plus a couple of those things that are supposedly supposed to "refresh" the air ... I also use carpet freshener when I vacuum. The only other thing I can think of to do would be to completely clean out the litter boxes .. but I have done that a few times, and it is nearly an all afternoon ordeal and completely zaps any energy I have for the coming week. And that's only with doing half of them. *and no way would DH help with THAT - he's just barely agreed to take over scooping the basement boxes this last week.)

Speaking of energy ... I thought I was on an upswing and maybe the iron supplements were helping. Maybe I just way overdid it Sunday, but I am beyond wiped Monday and Tuesday. probably the busyness / stress at work isn't helping either though.

*I did see the counselor Monday. She basicaly told me that I'm doing a pretty good job of setting boundaries, but need to work on making DH take care of more of his responsibilities (like how he is eat) hour was barely enough time to scratch the surface. But it definitely was helpful.

Picked Up Kari from Vet :(

August 10th, 2016 at 02:30 am

The last few days I'd been noticing that my cat Kari had been in a litter box every time I turned around - and not just in and out quickly, but squatting and squatting and ...

I mentioned it to DH, and he also observed the same thing.

I'd noticed also that for about a week or so she had seemed to regress quite a bit in her acceptance of the other cats. Screaming at them and attacking them if they dared look at her ..

So I called the vet before work on Monday and got an appointment for her after work.

I walked her in her kennel (the vet is about a block from us) and took her in. The vet tech reassured me that it wasn't an urinary blockage, but said that they needed a urine sample to test for a bladder infection. They could keep her overnight (at no charge!) and take the sample in the morning, or I could try to collect it myself ...

With multiple cats and multiple litter boxes ... I chose to let her have an overnight away.

I got a call this afternoon letting me know that she indeed did have a bladder infection. Frown Frown My poor little girl.

The vet suggested strongly that I put her back on her old more expensive food (Purina One Beyond) and see if that helped, as well as the pills they gave me.

One 3 lb bag of this food costs almost what 3/4 of the 16 lb bag of Purina Complete which we've been feeding the cats since moving in here. DH probably isn't going to like this too much. Oh well. I have to give her her pills twice a day - only way to do that is crush them up and put them in some canned food. They cost 2x what the Friskie's costs for 1/2 the amount. Oh well. I'll be able to make one can last for 3 meals, so it wont be SO horribly extra expensive.

The vet visit and meds cost $102. A 3 lb bag of food and 4 cans after coupons, $16.xx My Kari hopefully feeling better in a few days? Priceless.

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I spoke too soon about my allergies being better/no more sinus headaches ... had a doozy of one yesterday. Of course starting the day with an argument with DH probably didn't help matters ... We probably won't see each other again til tomorrow night thanks to our schedules. Probably not a bad thing...

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My aunt texted me today telling me that grandma had gotten some form in the mail telling her that my dad had $100 coming to him from something. She's going to mail it on to me. I'm guessing it will be something like a defunct bank account or deposit refund on something or the other.

If it really is something, I plan on offering my brother half of it - although I doubt he'll take me up on it, because he's now making 5x? what I'm making per month ... and doesn't know what to do with all the money.

Those of you who've met him won't be surprised to know that he had been given the goal of making $250k in sales by the end of this year ... and he surpassed $300k in sales a month ago ... He truly could sell ice to an Eskimo.

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The next two nights I'll be working overtime at open houses - selling passes, answering questions about the school booster buses, and probably also fielding questions about the new routes coming in to effect in October. I've already got a little snack stash ready to go so I am not tempted to stop at the local grocery store near the school ... I just hope my energy can hold out and that I don't have a sinus headache either of the nights ... Will just have to power through come what may.

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I've reached out to the counseling services provided by my employer and made an appointment for Monday. DH and I have had some issues I haven't mentioned here, as well as some of the ones I have ... I'm at a point where I feel I need a 3rd party (disinterested) to bounce the issues/thoughts off of.

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Is it reprehensible that I haven't written the thank you notes for the wedding gifts yet?? I keep putting it on my to do list, and it keeps not getting done ... almost to the point where I'm embarrassed to send them ...

Name Change Frustrations ... etc.

August 6th, 2016 at 03:46 pm

So I have a Credit Card that gives me 5% back on gas purchases. It was nice to have before when was only purchasing one or two fill ups a month. But now with DH filling up every few days, it is worth almost 3/4 of a tank of gas!

A few weeks ago I tried to start the process of changing my name on the card and getting DH added on to the account (so we each could have a card - right now he has it most of the time, and then gives it to me when I need to fill up.)

First, it was nearly impossible to figure out HOW to start the process. So I wrote to customer service.

A few days later I got an email with a link to a form I needed to print out and send back, along with a scan of my marriage certificate and another form of id.

So I managed to get my scanner function to work again, and scanned in the documents requested.

A few days later I get another email telling me that what I had sent wasn't enough. That I needed to send in a "certified copy of your driver's license." Say what?!

Another couple emails, and it was clarified that yes, they require this, and yes, they know that it is more than most places require - but they are a conservative organization and very careful.

Ugh.

So... yesterday after work I stop my credit union (where I get the 2.5% on checking) and asked about getting my driver's license notarized. Of the two notaries there, neither one had EVER heard of such a thing, and couldn't find any kind of form on the notary's website for NE.

So now I'm waiting for another email back from customer service to tell me if there is a particular form the notary can use, or what else they'd suggest I do!

Have any of you ever heard of such a thing??

If it wasn't for the 5% on gas, I would just forget this card! I guess I could just keep using it with my maiden name ... I still have my old driver's license to prove that was my name at one time.

Ugh.

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Dh's birthday was on Wednesday - the ol' 50. He worked that night, so we celebrated on Thursday. We went out to eat at this nice local Mexican restaurant -Tico's. It's been here in L town since shortly after I was born. Smile Really good food (lots of veg choices) although a bit pricey. Their dessert - Ponzaneita (sp?) is utterly scrumptious, and their chips are addictive. (I don't normally eat the chips at a restaurant, but these looked so different, I had to try them ... ate half a basket!)

Once DH gets to Walmart, he's getting a new electric razor for his birthday. Smile

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I think I've been spending too much money at CVS .. I got a postcard in the mail this last week telling me I was in the "top 4%" ... Then I proceeded to stop there Friday afternoon and spend $23 - after about $30 in a variety of coupon savings and a blanket 15% off. I also got back $8 in ECB. I just need to spend another $7 on P&G products to get another $10 ECB. I'm debating about it ... Smile

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I opened up a new AmEx Charge card last week. Received the card on Tuesday? and went ahead and used it to pay $1k on DHs medical debt. 5 or 6 weeks from now I'll get 25,000 rewards points. They can't be used for cash back, and can't be used for statement credits (unless I use the card charge $250 worth of other budgeted stuff ... that actually work out ..) My other option is gift cards - Amazon might be one of the issuers. My card isn't listed on my account yet, so I haven't been able to explore the options yet (other than what the CSR told me.)

I also opened a new checking account. (DH rolled his eyes when I told him.) All I have to do is have one direct deposit of $500 within 90 days, and have some kind of transaction each month, and I'll get $150.

That's $400 to throw at debt! (eventually ...)

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I've been looking for large container to put change in for DH's boat fund. I'd thought about a used/beat up 5 gallon water jug (like what is used on water dispensers) but couldn't find anything like it for cheap. So yesterday I was at Dollar Tree and I found a 3 gallon container similar in shape to an old water bottle I had. That is now here at home and labeled with "DH's Boat Fund" and I already put in a couple dollars worth of change that's been scattered through out the house.

(As a delivery driver, DH has lots of change floating everywhere. I plan on offering to clean out his cars so I can get all the change out from them .. and hopefully he'll put his change in the jar at night instead of tossing his jeans on the floor and letting the change all go wherever ... Smile

I don't really use cash, so I'll probably just add to it whatever money I find on the ground, etc.

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I don't know if it is just coincidental or if there is something there ... but a few days after I started taking the iron supplements, I also switched from Allegra D to just Allegra. I also stopped taking the cold medicine at night to sleep.

Ever since then, it seems like my allergies have gotten better! I haven't had a sinus headache in weeks! I've been getting slightly better sleep (my average has gone up to 5 1/2 hours! vs. an average of 4 1/2 - 5 hrs.)

So ... is it the iron supplements? The switching from Allegra D to Allegra? Whatever I'm most allergic to, getting less? I wish I knew the answer, but at any rate, I'll take it!

First Real Budget Meeting and a Funny

August 2nd, 2016 at 03:10 am

DH finally got up Sunday around 7:30 - I was just about ready to go and rouse the dead ... was getting so bored waiting. Smile

It took about 25 minutes total, and I think he was surprised to see just how fast the money went. He told me that he's going to cream me as far as what he brings in for September. Smile I told him I'd love to see it. Smile (A little friendly competition never hurts, right? Big Grin )

After our meeting was over, DH went to go get our pizza (date night in!)

Then as we were finishing up dinner, I told him that we still needed to spend some time working on the basement. Even if only 30 minutes. We needed to get a path through the living room to the basement kitchen/bathroom. Plus .. the dehumidifier buried in the back of the family room.

(Let's just say that the movers who moved DHs stuff in left a lot to be desired. Or maybe the difference was that I was out and sort of supervising the people moving my stuff most of the time, while DH was cocooning himself in the A/C as much as possible ...)

Anyway ... he finally agreed to at least make a path. So we went down there and got a path made. We came to the area where the dehumidifier was and found out that a subwoofer had been placed on top of it.

I said to DH, "Well, we've got the path. Maybe we can deal with this later."

Dh responded, "No, lets go ahead and do it now. Who knows how bad the humidity level is down here. So not good for all the electronics!"

I just quietly smiled to myself and helped him get the dehumidifier free.

Then we realized that the only available plug was a two prong plug, and the dehumidifier needed a three prong plug. I told DH that I thought I had one more adapter in my tool box. He says to me - "Get it PDQ (pretty darn quick) so we can get rid of this excess humidity!"

Oh DH. I've only been mentioning the humidity level in the basement, etc., for the last month... and offering to help clear a path for at least that long ... Now, it's all PDQ! Big Grin Big Grin