Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Friday, September 7, 2012
TGIF
I love Fridays because it means that BF is going to be off work for two days. Woohoo. Love weekends with my hunny! Usually he gets home early on Fridays but it seems he is staying late to get stuff done because of the long weekend last week.
This weekend we have to do a bit of shopping. There are some great deals at Zellers on mattress covers and sheets. Since I need those things and have some returns to do there it's perfect. I also went through all the grocery store flyers and matched up sale items with coupons I have.
I don't want to do too much in the way of shopping because next weekend we have a day trip planned to Montreal because that is the only place we can buy the brand of food I prefer to feed my boys. I also want to do an IKEA run so this is perfect. I want to buy a matching lamp for our bedroom, some cute kiddies cups for when our nephews are over, pick up a new catalogue for 2013 (weird its almost a new year) and of course do some perusing of the store. *big evil grin* It would be nice to get something fun in there too. Not sure what though. I will have to look up fun activities during the week and pick out something for the two of us.
We might take a look at some TV's tomorrow as that is on our list as our next big purchase. Right now we are watching movies on a 13" TV from when BF was in University. Pair that with widescreen movies and the fact that its located across the living room from the couch. Not really optimal is it? Since we spend a lot of time watching movies and its one our favorite activities together I think its time to upgrade. We've never bought a new TV before so we are making sure to do our research.
Besides that I'm hoping to get in a lot of down time with BF. I foresee a lot of snuggles and lounging together :)
What are your weekend plans?
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Doesn't this bacon look like a Seahorse?
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
New Bed and Opinions Needed Please
Last week BF and I picked up our new bed. We got an amazing deal on it. We shopped around quite a bit for a new mattress. Finally we were at Leons and we found a discount area. There were mattresses stacked against the wall at really great prices. There was one regular $1200 down to $500 + taxes.
We moved it and set it up on the ground. BF and I laid on it and the heavens parted. No, not really. It was great though. Since we had done a lot of shopping many sales people had made us do a lot of testing of beds. We found we both like semi firm which is perfect.
We looked around the store more (I found some other things to lust over) and then asked to speak to a salesperson. We had a concern about the bed because it said it was 2nd hand on the tag? Huh? Since I have a weird paranoia about bedbugs and things after staying in Aussie hostels I needed to know what that meant. Turns out it had been the floor model at the store since November and now they aren't stocking that bed anymore so they were selling the model. I felt I could live with that.
This bed came with no warranty and a no return policy. We laid on it some more. Talked it out. We decided to go for it. Since we have a platform bedframe we didn't need the box spring which was an extra $150. The salesman said he's let it go for $100 but since we didn't NEED it (we could just buy some wood slates to put under the mattress to protect it long term) we declined. BF asked him if he could do $500 tax included and the man checked with management and agreed. Deal made!
I was pretty happy. We were starting to get jaded looking at so many mattresses and they seem so pricey. $500 was more realistic for us and we got a kick ass mattress. We just love it.
There is a downside to this story. Our sheets don't fit. This sucker is massive. Well the silver lining is I get to buy new sheets. I did find some but after I washed them they didn't fit so I'm going to return them. I need sheets that have an 18inch pocket apparently. Yeesh! Well I found a duvet cover for 50% off that I love. BF not so much. I want your opinions.....
OK, so BF's parents offered us a box spring they had..... ahahahah what a joke.... look at how huge it was. I had to climb onto it. It was obscuring the headboard I love so much. Sheets... ahhhahaha. I think the box spring did make it a bit more comfy though... hmm.
So here is the duvet cover. What do u think? Its not super soft and there is a lot of white for people who have 2 cats and a messy man living in the house. I LOVE it though.... opinions???
Pillowcase close up
Oooh pretty design
Unstuffed, just laying it out to see how it fits the bed
So what do u think? I purchased the set for $45 as it was half price. I actually bought two. One king and one queen as I wasn't sure which would work better as we always tug-a-war for the blanket but this one seems appropriate (queen) even unstuffed.I will return the other with the sheets. Its a steal of a deal and I really do like it. Just the whiteness and softness are an issue. Maybe once its washed a few times it will be more snuggly.
Help!!!
We moved it and set it up on the ground. BF and I laid on it and the heavens parted. No, not really. It was great though. Since we had done a lot of shopping many sales people had made us do a lot of testing of beds. We found we both like semi firm which is perfect.
We looked around the store more (I found some other things to lust over) and then asked to speak to a salesperson. We had a concern about the bed because it said it was 2nd hand on the tag? Huh? Since I have a weird paranoia about bedbugs and things after staying in Aussie hostels I needed to know what that meant. Turns out it had been the floor model at the store since November and now they aren't stocking that bed anymore so they were selling the model. I felt I could live with that.
This bed came with no warranty and a no return policy. We laid on it some more. Talked it out. We decided to go for it. Since we have a platform bedframe we didn't need the box spring which was an extra $150. The salesman said he's let it go for $100 but since we didn't NEED it (we could just buy some wood slates to put under the mattress to protect it long term) we declined. BF asked him if he could do $500 tax included and the man checked with management and agreed. Deal made!
I was pretty happy. We were starting to get jaded looking at so many mattresses and they seem so pricey. $500 was more realistic for us and we got a kick ass mattress. We just love it.
There is a downside to this story. Our sheets don't fit. This sucker is massive. Well the silver lining is I get to buy new sheets. I did find some but after I washed them they didn't fit so I'm going to return them. I need sheets that have an 18inch pocket apparently. Yeesh! Well I found a duvet cover for 50% off that I love. BF not so much. I want your opinions.....
OK, so BF's parents offered us a box spring they had..... ahahahah what a joke.... look at how huge it was. I had to climb onto it. It was obscuring the headboard I love so much. Sheets... ahhhahaha. I think the box spring did make it a bit more comfy though... hmm.
So here is the duvet cover. What do u think? Its not super soft and there is a lot of white for people who have 2 cats and a messy man living in the house. I LOVE it though.... opinions???
So what do u think? I purchased the set for $45 as it was half price. I actually bought two. One king and one queen as I wasn't sure which would work better as we always tug-a-war for the blanket but this one seems appropriate (queen) even unstuffed.I will return the other with the sheets. Its a steal of a deal and I really do like it. Just the whiteness and softness are an issue. Maybe once its washed a few times it will be more snuggly.
Help!!!
September Savings Challenge Update
So I got to do a little banking today online and make some progress towards my goals. I put 50% of my income into savings. That added $310. Then I noticed I had some money left over from the last two weeks in my ING chequing so I considered that a "bonus" and moved half of that over as well as per my goals.
So that is a total increase of $380 so far. I am now $620 away from my ultimate goal of saving $1000 this month. $310 of that will be deposited when I am paid in two weeks and $100 of that will be from my ASP at the end of the month. That means I need to find $210 still in bonus money.
I do have that cheque still from my old employer. It probably won't get deposited for another week or two when we are out running errands on weekends. If I just use 50% of that it will give me approximately another $60. So then I still need $150.
Good news is yesterday morning I call PBX and the woman there recognized me and said she had already checked and the stop payment on the old cheque went through and they would be resending the new cheque to my correct address sometime this week. If that goes through I'm golden.
Hope I didn't just jinx myself! Very excited!!!
So that is a total increase of $380 so far. I am now $620 away from my ultimate goal of saving $1000 this month. $310 of that will be deposited when I am paid in two weeks and $100 of that will be from my ASP at the end of the month. That means I need to find $210 still in bonus money.
I do have that cheque still from my old employer. It probably won't get deposited for another week or two when we are out running errands on weekends. If I just use 50% of that it will give me approximately another $60. So then I still need $150.
Good news is yesterday morning I call PBX and the woman there recognized me and said she had already checked and the stop payment on the old cheque went through and they would be resending the new cheque to my correct address sometime this week. If that goes through I'm golden.
Hope I didn't just jinx myself! Very excited!!!
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Couch Issue Resolved
So we have finally resolved our couch issue but it wasn't a totally happy ending. After over a month of dealing with this crap company we finally (by hounding them) found out we had been approved for an exchange on the part of the sectional that was damaged. We went there last Friday to pick it up but things didnt go as planned.
We brought the damaged couch to the store in BF's Fathers trailer where it was being stored and waited for them to bring us a new one. When they brought it to us we asked to inspect the couch before loading it. They tried to tell us it was against policy but we were very firm that we were not going to go through the same experience twice.
We opened it up and low and behold this one was damaged too! Earlier in the week they had 3 available and now there was only this one. I was immediately pissed off. Everything around me was very tense and in French. I told BF that this was completely unacceptable and that I refused to take this couch and demanded a new one because thats what we paid for over a freaking month ago.
There was very much discussion and debating. Finally somebody came up with the suggestion we check the store model couch. Since I had already seen the model the first time we were there and it too had been damaged I was unimpressed but when we went to look at it there was no damage at all. What are these guys playing at? They offer us the model couch or else we will have to wait a minimum of 6 weeks for the 2nd half of our sectional. BF and his father suggest they give us a discount since its the floor model and we've been extremely patient. The man says he can't do that. More heated debate in French. BF turns to me and says "well you decide".
You have to understand that when there is all of this going on and I can't understand and am then expected to make a decision that I am very confused. There are 3 sales people, BF's parents and the two of us. I ask to speak privately with BF and we go into another room where I started crying. I told him I can't help but feel like we are being put into a corner. No discount for a used sofa? We don't want to wait 6 weeks for a couch and then have the next shipment be damaged as well. It was all very stressful. Not to mention we saved up for this couch and spent a long time looking for it. It was our first new piece of furniture we bought in Quebec. It was a little more than heartbreaking.
Finally I tell BF I just want this to be over. I don't want to deal with these scumbags. Since there is no way we could do a full return we might as well take this one because its not damaged. BF suggests to the manager that we exchange the cushion from the new one we returned and the store model. BF's mother pulls me aside and makes me feel better. BF's father seems a bit annoyed but ends up laughing it off in the end. BF shows me a super cheap table that they are selling to which I just simply state "oh FUCK no".
So its over... we have our couch. Can you believe this? Never do business with Liquidaxion. I'm going to be doing reviews on every search that comes up on the internet. Holy cheeseballs!
This is a stock photo of the couch:
Yes he really sleeps like that!
End rant! :)
We opened it up and low and behold this one was damaged too! Earlier in the week they had 3 available and now there was only this one. I was immediately pissed off. Everything around me was very tense and in French. I told BF that this was completely unacceptable and that I refused to take this couch and demanded a new one because thats what we paid for over a freaking month ago.
There was very much discussion and debating. Finally somebody came up with the suggestion we check the store model couch. Since I had already seen the model the first time we were there and it too had been damaged I was unimpressed but when we went to look at it there was no damage at all. What are these guys playing at? They offer us the model couch or else we will have to wait a minimum of 6 weeks for the 2nd half of our sectional. BF and his father suggest they give us a discount since its the floor model and we've been extremely patient. The man says he can't do that. More heated debate in French. BF turns to me and says "well you decide".
You have to understand that when there is all of this going on and I can't understand and am then expected to make a decision that I am very confused. There are 3 sales people, BF's parents and the two of us. I ask to speak privately with BF and we go into another room where I started crying. I told him I can't help but feel like we are being put into a corner. No discount for a used sofa? We don't want to wait 6 weeks for a couch and then have the next shipment be damaged as well. It was all very stressful. Not to mention we saved up for this couch and spent a long time looking for it. It was our first new piece of furniture we bought in Quebec. It was a little more than heartbreaking.
Finally I tell BF I just want this to be over. I don't want to deal with these scumbags. Since there is no way we could do a full return we might as well take this one because its not damaged. BF suggests to the manager that we exchange the cushion from the new one we returned and the store model. BF's mother pulls me aside and makes me feel better. BF's father seems a bit annoyed but ends up laughing it off in the end. BF shows me a super cheap table that they are selling to which I just simply state "oh FUCK no".
So its over... we have our couch. Can you believe this? Never do business with Liquidaxion. I'm going to be doing reviews on every search that comes up on the internet. Holy cheeseballs!
This is a stock photo of the couch:
Kitten Approved
Best buds 4 Ever!
Unfortunately Chipotle loves the couch a little too much and has already discovered how to find his way into the bottom. Luckly its not noticeable so we're not distraught over it. Darn kitty is lucky he's so loveable. Here he is in caught in the act....
Tuned In Tuesday
Here it is as promised on Sunday. This is "our song". BF and I met many moons ago working on a cherry orchard in the Okanagan. Jack Johnson was big at that time with all of the hippies living on the farm. This song holds a very special place in our hearts.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Sunday Night Chit Chat
Its time for Sunday Night Chit Chat. Make sure to check the bottom of this post for even more fun!
Reading?
Watching?
This morning we finished watching Ratatoullie from last night :) We used to have a pet rat named Cherri. If you followed my previous blog you would understand that she was our precious little baby who broke our heart when she passed away after being quite sickly for a long time. Its one of our favorite kids movies. Not sure what we will watch later on tonight. We are big movie watchers in this house as we don't have cable.
Listening to?
I recently found two of my favorite CDs. One is Job2Do which is an artist from Thailand. The other is a Jack Johnson CD that I love. It has "our song" on it. I will post the song next Tuesday.
Cooking/Baking?
Yesterday I helped out with some beet canning. I was given 4 jars for helping out. I just love pickled beets. I can't wait until we have our own garden again so that I can stock our cupboard year round with veggies grown by ourselves.
Happy you accomplished this week?
We finally resolved the couch issue. It took some compromising on our end and some tears from me but its finally over with. More on this later. We also bought a bed on Sunday which we picked up Monday. It is sooooo comfortable. We had been sleeping on a mattress borrowed from my sister-in-law. BF finished creating our cat post which is a beauty. All these things will be featured in upcoming posts this week with photos :) I also hung up our new curtains in our bedroom and am very happy with them.
Looking forward to next week?
I'm looking forward to getting started on my savings goals. I'm also going to be working on my crafts which is always fun. I hope to resolve my issue with PBX so they can send me out that cheque I've been waiting on. I am most definitely looking forward to BF having Monday off. It's the first long weekend we've had since I moved here. I just love having him home.
Thankful for today?
I am thankful for the reduction in our bills since moving. We went from 2 rents and accompanying bills to 1 which is very stress relieving. The rent here is much more affordable. Our bills in general have been reduced and it makes it a lot easier for us to save towards our ultimate goal of purchasing our own home.
Do you collect anything? Purple elephants? Unicorns? Etc... ;)
Hmm. I guess I collect John Grisham books. I quite the collection now. He is my favorite author by far. BF and I also have a DVD collection.
For more Sunday Night Chit Chat check out Carla's blog for additional links :)
Savings Challenge September
Woohoo! I'm ready to start saving again. Last month I made sure all my accounts were organized and labelled appropriately. I also set up an ASP (automated savings plan) with ING for the next 6 months to earn me a nice $25 bonus. Now I'm ready to watch those numbers grow.
Ok So here is what my savings accounts look like right now : (try not to cringe)
Travel Fund : $50.76
BF and I love to travel. I would like to do some small trips in the next year and want to have some money put aside. I also will use this fund to fly home to BC a few times a year :)
Wedding Fund : $50.14
One day its going to happen so I'm starting my savings now. Since I would like to be married by spring 2014 I'd better get started.
Furniture Fund : $130.37
Getting rid of all your furniture and moving across Canada means you can buy new stuff. I'm a very frugal girl though so we are buying slowly to make sure we get the best deals. Also we are only buying things we need because we are hoping to buy a house in the next 2 years and thats when we will buy more because it will be to fit our home.
House Fund : $150.17
In the next 2 years BF and I would like to buy our own place. We are deciding between two things right now. One is buying the building we are living in right now. Its a 4plex owned by BF's parents. More on this later. The second is buying a house in our dream location Rawdon, Quebec. We are just in the savings process right now. I'll write about this more in detail another time.
TFSA : $2.68 (EFUND)
I totally emptied out this baby with my move and the removal of my wisdom teeth. It was a big safety net for me when BF and I lived apart for 6 months. While I still feel its important I am not as stressed about it as I was before. I don't have a specific goal in mind for what I would like to have in this account to feel secure so for now I'll just add to to it as I see fit.
RRSP
I also have some RRSP savings from my last job. Once I confirm those numbers I'll add them to the next savings update :) It will be one of my goals this month to get this money moved to another bank as I can't keep it where it is currently due to not being an employee anymore.
Septembers Savings Goal
Well I'm not sure how much money is going to be coming in because I am waiting on a few reimbursements and such so I'm going to set this up a little differently then I usually do. Here are my rules for myself:
SAVE $1000 DURING THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER !!!
I know.. it's a lot. There aren't a lot of times that I would be able to do this but I have all my ducks in a row right now and not a lot of expenses. We are being very careful with our money right now and have a lot of things to save up for. I'm really hoping things go my way and I can reach this HUGE goal.
I have not decided how I'm going to allot this money to the different accounts I have. I'm just going to arrange it as I think is best at the time I deposit the money :)
Wish me luck and diligence!!
This post is inspired by Carla's September Savings Challenge. Check out the other bloggers committed to big savings this month :)
Ok So here is what my savings accounts look like right now : (try not to cringe)
Travel Fund : $50.76
BF and I love to travel. I would like to do some small trips in the next year and want to have some money put aside. I also will use this fund to fly home to BC a few times a year :)
Wedding Fund : $50.14
One day its going to happen so I'm starting my savings now. Since I would like to be married by spring 2014 I'd better get started.
Furniture Fund : $130.37
Getting rid of all your furniture and moving across Canada means you can buy new stuff. I'm a very frugal girl though so we are buying slowly to make sure we get the best deals. Also we are only buying things we need because we are hoping to buy a house in the next 2 years and thats when we will buy more because it will be to fit our home.
House Fund : $150.17
In the next 2 years BF and I would like to buy our own place. We are deciding between two things right now. One is buying the building we are living in right now. Its a 4plex owned by BF's parents. More on this later. The second is buying a house in our dream location Rawdon, Quebec. We are just in the savings process right now. I'll write about this more in detail another time.
TFSA : $2.68 (EFUND)
I totally emptied out this baby with my move and the removal of my wisdom teeth. It was a big safety net for me when BF and I lived apart for 6 months. While I still feel its important I am not as stressed about it as I was before. I don't have a specific goal in mind for what I would like to have in this account to feel secure so for now I'll just add to to it as I see fit.
RRSP
I also have some RRSP savings from my last job. Once I confirm those numbers I'll add them to the next savings update :) It will be one of my goals this month to get this money moved to another bank as I can't keep it where it is currently due to not being an employee anymore.
Septembers Savings Goal
Well I'm not sure how much money is going to be coming in because I am waiting on a few reimbursements and such so I'm going to set this up a little differently then I usually do. Here are my rules for myself:
- Save 50% of regular income. Right now this is $1240 monthly. So from this I would like to save $620 which I will do in 2 shots.
- Remember to also set aside $100 for ASP at the end of the month. My ASP is set to deposit into the "house fund".
- Save 50% of all bonus money that comes in. Just this morning I found a cheque from my previous employer that I forgot to deposit. Half of that will go into savings. I am also hoping to get my PBX cheque (if they ever send it to the correct address). Anything extra or bonus is subject to a savings cut.
SAVE $1000 DURING THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER !!!
I know.. it's a lot. There aren't a lot of times that I would be able to do this but I have all my ducks in a row right now and not a lot of expenses. We are being very careful with our money right now and have a lot of things to save up for. I'm really hoping things go my way and I can reach this HUGE goal.
I have not decided how I'm going to allot this money to the different accounts I have. I'm just going to arrange it as I think is best at the time I deposit the money :)
Wish me luck and diligence!!
This post is inspired by Carla's September Savings Challenge. Check out the other bloggers committed to big savings this month :)
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Family Time
I'll be back to posting tomorrow. Spent the morning canning beets with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law. Just helping out but was rewarded with 4 jars for my effort. Yay.
BF and his father worked on our bedframe a little. They returned a bed his parents had bought from Costco as it wasn't comfortable at all.
We had a family style lunch with everybody. Now BF and our youngest cat are napping together on the couch.
So nice :)
What are you up to today?
BF and his father worked on our bedframe a little. They returned a bed his parents had bought from Costco as it wasn't comfortable at all.
We had a family style lunch with everybody. Now BF and our youngest cat are napping together on the couch.
So nice :)
What are you up to today?
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