Jumpin' July

Many things happened during July, and it felt like we jumped from one thing to the next.  All good things of course.

4th of July

Before we headed over to a BBQ gathering at a friends house, we stopped by a Military Museum and looked at some of the outside displays of military equipment.

Hannah enjoyed seeing all the big tanks, but we couldn't stay long.  We had been there for less than 10 minutes when Hannah said she had to go potty.  Seeing that the inside of the museum was closed (it was the 4th of July after all) we had to hurry and head to our friends house.

BBQing with friends was great.  Hannah loves playing with a few of the the older kids, which gives Nathan and I a few free moments.  No complaints there.

Hannah got to eat a popsicle (she loves these things).  When I saw she picked a red one I thought "eh, that's going to end up all over her shirt."

Sure enough, it "exploded" and this is what happened:

We also got to watch the Penn State fireworks.  The whole show takes about 45 minutes, and it's almost as good as Disneyland fireworks.  Hannah liked watching them, but she did not care for the "loud" ones.

Hair cut

Yep.  I cut  --   a lot   --  of my hair!

People often ask me "Do you like it?"  My response: yes and no.  I have enjoyed putting it in little pigtails though.

I wanted to cut my hair around spring time, but I decided to let it grow a few more inches before chopping it.  I ended up donating 12 inches, which eventually turned into about a 15 inch hair cut because we had to even it all out.  I didn't anticipate my hair being cut this short, so I'm still adjusting to the length of it.


Reading

Nathan and I have been taking advantage of the library, and reading some books lately to help us become more knowledgeable in a few subjects.

Together, we read a book called Smart Money, Smart Kids.  One of the best books we have ever read!  We will definitely end up reading this one again. This book teaches you how to teach your children about money.

For myself, I read a book called Boundaries.  It was SO good!  Wish I would have read this one years ago!  I discovered a lot about myself: some good things, some bad things, and some ugly things.  It teaches you when to say yes, and when to say no.  My favorite take away principle from this book: "No." is a complete sentence.

And during his bus ride to and from work, Nathan has been reading a book called Start, and he has been really enjoying it.  I'll eventually get to this one.


Sellin' stuff

We have decided to sell A BUNCH of stuff, and then apply it all to debt.  So far, it has been very profitable for us (and I'm not just talking about financially).  We have made over $650 in the last 2 months.  That's right!  We are kicking some butt, and we still probably have over another $100 worth of stuff to sell.

Hannah has enjoyed playing with many of the items we have brought out of storage.  When she sees something she hasn't seen in a while she instantly wants to play with it.  It is like a moth to a flame. Hannah laid down on this baby play mat that someone gave us a few years back, and said "Mommy, take a picture of me."  Silly girl.

But the best part about selling so much stuff are the lessons that Hannah is learning.  She'll occasionally ask me "why are we selling_______?"  I stop what I'm doing, sit her down on my lap and say "we are making sacrifices now in selling _______, so that we can get out of debt. Debt is bad.  We are going to live like no one else now, so that later we can live like no one else."

I wasn't sure if any of the talks I have had with Hannah would sink in, but then one day I heard her say something that made me believe otherwise:  She was playing with her friend (who lives up the street) and they were playing with a toy that I had listed on Craigslist.  Hannah looked at Emily and said "we're selling this to get out of debt, because debt is bad."  Insert proud parent here.

More is definitely caught than taught.


Bedroom into a studio

Nathan had to submit a video clip for a work thing a few weeks back.  We ended up having to record it at night in our bedroom.  We brought in a few lamps from the family room to help provide back light, and I had cue cards written up for him to read while he was filming.  It felt like we were in a studio.  We probably spent about 1.5 hours for a 5 minute video segment.  It was kind of silly when you think about it, but it actually turned out to be a lot of fun.

Play time

It's a well known fact that kids change daily in so many areas.  But one thing that has never changed is Hannah's favorite playmate: Daddy.  Anywhere Daddy is, Hannah is there.

Hannah still enjoys putting on crazy outfits.

We also have been playing at a few parks (when it's been cooler).  There is one park here that has some pretty awesome swings.  Nathan decided to take a load off while Hannah played elsewhere on the playground.

And when one plays hard, you eventually need quiet time.  Mommy and Daddy love quiet time. Hannah, not so much.

Book pictures courtesy of daveramsey.com