The Best Thing Ever!

For those of you who know me well, you will remember that I am a 'germaphobe'. I am a bit uptight when it comes to things being clean and germ free (just ask my husband). :)

So, you will understand when I tell you that the thought of potty training Rebekah, and having to take her in a public washroom in the imminent future, was enough to make me lose sleep. I actually prolonged beginning potty training because of this fear. It totally grossed me out.

Well my friend, Audra, put my mind at ease when she told me of a portable potty seat that folds in four, fits in a large Ziploc bag, has handles for the child to hold onto, and fits over any public toilet seat (even the oval ones!). I promptly ordered one online from Leaps And Bounds. I tell you, I have been relaxed in public restrooms ever since!

I just had to share my 'find' with all of you other germaphobic mothers of little girls out there!

Can You Believe This?!

Warning: I am about to go on a rant! If you don't wish to hear my complaints, please DO NOT read any further!

I would have never guessed that moving to the USA could be as challenging as it has been...in a bureaucratic-red-tape-kind-of-way, that is.

I have posted before about the challenges....see this post about getting a SSN, if you need a refresher.

Once again, we are finding that unless you are 'on the records' in the USA, they don't want to know you!

When we first moved here, we bought a house and got approved for a mortgage because Kevin's employer has an arrangement with a mortgage company who gets all of their international relocation business. If it hadn't been for that arrangement, we would have been up a creek because we didn't have a US credit history.

Despite the fact that we own a home, have a mortgage, and have perfect credit, and numerous investments in TWO other countries, we could not qualify for credit cards in the USA. We are Canadians moving from Switzerland (banking capital of the universe...and one of the most secure banking countries in the world. Guess what? We had no trouble getting credit cards in Switzerland!)....it isn't like we moved here from Tibet!

The only way that the good old Bank of America was prepared to give us credit cards, was if they were secured credit cards. Meaning, I give them $300 of my hard earned money for them to hold, without earning any interest on it, and they will give me a credit card with a $300 limit. It's ludicrous. They didn't even bother to check what kind of assets we have, or what our credit ratings are in Canada or Switzerland, because quite frankly, they don't care.

So we lived on cash alone for the first 6 months that we were living here. Not necessarily a bad thing, but credit is a very important thing to have too. After 6 months of living in the USA, and paying the mortgage and utility bills on time every month, Kevin finally qualified for a credit card with a measly limit. In order for me to get a credit card though, we finally had to just get the secured card.

The credit card issue wasn't even the worst.

Kevin recently applied for a SAVINGS ACCOUNT with the Bank of America (you know, the kind of account where you put money IN and leave it there?!). Guess what the result was?

You guessed it............request DENIED!

Can you believe that?!

California - Part II

Day two of my trip started out by driving across the Golden Gate Bridge. So cool. As you can see from the pics, the weather was fabulous again.

This isn't my best photo ever....it looks like there is something weird going on with my neck. There must be a shadow or something because it looks like there are rolls there or something. Trust me, in real life, I don't have rolls on my neck! Anywho, it is the only pic of me and the Golden Gate, so it will have to do! :)

Kristal's photo turned out fabulous! (I think it has to do with the skills of the photographer. hehehe)

I picked up this handsome sailor at the Golden Gate Bridge.....

After our Golden Gate stop we went on to Muir Woods. It is a national park where you can go and walk amongst the Giant Redwood trees. It was stunning. I absolutely love this kind of thing. These trees are hundreds of years old. To think of the fires, storms and disease that they have survived is just amazing. I also purchased a Giant Sequoia seedling while I was there. They are guaranteed for life, and there was a photo album full of success stories and pictures that people who have purchased these trees in years past have sent from around the world.

Below: tree hugger........ (shhhhhhh, don't tell anyone I strayed off the path)

So tall......

Imagine that, a tree almost big enough to live it!

Maybe I was missing the hugs and kisses from my family, because I took the opportunity to cozy up to this bear too.......

One stray San Francisco picture from day one that I missed in my earlier post..........

After Muir Woods we were on to Napa Valley....the wine region (one of them, anyways) of California. In the valley, I bought some wine for Kevin here (and tasted some for me!). I also learned more than I ever wanted to know about olive oil too! It was at this establishment that I learned about, and purchased my olive oil!

V. Sattui Winery........

This day was also Kristal's birthday (32 years!). So we finished off the day with dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. Yuummmmmm!

What more could a girl ask for?!

Going Green(er) - Part II

Since I was away in sunny California (yes, I am gloating!), I have fallen down on my 'green tip of the day' posts. So, once again, here is a catch-up post.

- Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescents. They last 10 times longer and save up to $30 per year in electricity.

- Don't litter! The reasons are numerous... Besides the obvious environmental reasons, litter also costs a lot of money to clean up. Alabama spends $5.3 million dollars a year on the effort!!

- Install a programmable thermostat. Warm your house to 68 degrees on winter days and 55 degrees at night or when you will be out. For every degree you lower the heat, you can save 3 percent in energy costs.

- Set up a program at the office to reuse perfectly good office supplies that are routinely tossed. An internal employee exchange at Eastern Illinois University reclaimed more than 9000 pounds of computer equipment and 25 000 pounds of coated paper office supplies, saving the university about $7000.

- Lose less energy through your stove top (gas or electric) by applying the simplest of expedients - a lid over a saucepan to contain heat and warm food faster.

- Your furnace will work most efficiently if you keep it clean. Change disposable filters monthly, and wash reusable filters with the same frequency. Also, vacuum the vents and registers to promote good airflow.

- Use the back of blank cash register receipts for note paper.

- Before replacing the toner in the office printer, remove and gently rock the toner cartridge when it runs low - you may get several more prints from it. Also, select 'draft' printouts under your computer's 'print' command when possible. These prints use less toner and extend cartridge life. Millions of cartridges are thrown away needlessly each year, so buy from a supplier who reuses and recycles them when their useful life is ended.

Feel free to share any 'green' tips that you use in your households too. I would love to hear them!

I'm Back!!

I am officially back from my five day hiatus as a wife, mother, housekeeper, chauffeur, cook, nurse, coupon clipper, boo-boo kisser, hug giver, dish washer, shopper, etc, etc, etc.

It was a welcomed break. And, I must say, that while I spent five days in California with my childhood friend, Kristal, Kevin did an amazing job on the home front. He even cooked, cleaned and did laundry too! :) Since he did so well, I am already planning my next getaway......

I took so many great pics on this trip, that I am going to have to break up this post. So today, you get to see "day one".

I arrived in San Francisco around noon, to a smiling face and a big hug from my old friend, Kristal ('old' as in going back a long time, not 'old' in a chronological way! We've actually known each other since kindergarten!). We spent the rest of the day sight-seeing in the big city.

Our first stop was Fisherman's Wharf. From this vantage point, we had a great view of the infamous Alcatraz.

We then walked over to Pier 39, where we had fun watching the smelly sea lions basking in the sun. :)

Next, we went on a mission to ride on one of the city's cable cars. The line was long, and not moving at all. The ride wasn't looking too promising, as we still had lots to see before dark. We saw a couple of empty cable cars sitting, with men from the Transit Authority working in the area, and we started to take some pics. One of the fellows called out to us that we couldn't take pics unless we were in them. He then came over and offered to take our photos on the cable car. It was great fun, and we got better pics than we would have been able to get while riding in the car.

The pic below is one of the two cable car 'turnarounds' in San Francisco (click the link to see a video). The cable cars are actually designed to go one way only. As a result, they must be manually turned using the turntables/turnarounds.

Above: one of the many streets with a 'crazy steep' hill! It is much steeper in person too.......hence, the need for the cable cars!

This is a pic of us traveling down Lombard Street, coined "San Francisco's Crookedest Street".

And, our last photos of the day (you can see it is getting dark!) are of the Painted Ladies....San Francisco's famous Victorian houses.

I think it is time to wind this up....it is getting rather lengthy! No worries, I didn't forget the Golden Gate Bridge. Those photos are in tomorrow's batch! :)

Hope to 'see' you then!

Going Green(er)

One of my goals for the New Year is to live a 'greener' life. I consider myself fairly environmentally aware already, but there is always more you can do once you educate yourself, right? So, it is with that thought in mind, that I am approaching life in 2008.

One of the things that will help my cause is a new page-a-day calendar. It is one of those calendars that you keep on your bedside table or desk, and each day you tear off a new page. The calendar that I chose for this year is about going green....a bit ironic, I know. But at least the pages are meant to be flipped over and used for note paper afterwards. :)

I plan to post some of the best tips on my blog each day, so all of you can benefit from the information too.

Since I am a bit behind (as usual), you will have a few tips to read today.

1) Maintain your appliances according to manufacturers' instructions. They'll last longer and may be more efficient. Keeping the coils on the back of your fridge clean can reduce the unit's electricity consumption 6 percent or more. Also, be sure to clean the lint filter on your dryer after every load.

2) Grow your own garden. "If we grew most of our food close to home, we'd use far less energy in the process, helping ward off climate change." - Bill McKibben

3) Print documents only when you really need a hard copy; keep a stack of scrap paper handy for use when printing drafts and personal documents.

4) Your community may be one of many that chips up Christmas trees for residents. Instead of contributing to the forest of dead trees left at curbside to be hauled off to the landfill, take your tree to a designated tree-recycling station-and carry home a bag of fragrant mulch.

5) Modern automobiles need only about 30 seconds of warm-up time to run properly in cold weather. Though it may be tempting to blast the heater before you get in, keep in mind that warming up the car on a cold morning gives you a mileage per gallon of zero.

6) Turn off the tap while you shave, brush your teeth or wash your hands. You can save 10 gallons or more each morning by doing so.

7) Install foam draft blockers behind electrical cover plates on outside walls and see lower energy bills.

8) Bring your own reusable basket or mesh bags to the supermarket instead of using paper or plastic. If you shop once per week, in five years you will have kept anywhere from 250 to 1000 grocery bags out of our landfills.

Another tidbit that I have learned recently is to unplug small appliances when they are not in use. Even if they are not turned on, but they remain plugged into the wall, they use what is called 'stand-by power'. This contributes to energy consumption and an increase in your bill!

Well, I'm signing off for now....gotta save some power. :)

Deals, Deals, Deals

At the risk of sounding like I am patting myself on the back, I have to tell you, I think I have gotten some of the best deals of the year in the past couple of weeks.

My streak of luck began with a trip to the Osh Kosh store at the outlet mall near our home. I found a snowsuit for Rebekah for next winter on a clearance rack. It was marked down by 70%, and it was one of only a few left. All of the suits left on the rack happened to be size 3...it was my lucky day! It was a two piece, with separate coat and snow pants, and it was pink. Perfect. The regular price on the set was $85...way too steep for me, but with the 70% discount and the coupon I had received by email, I paid a grand total of $21 and change. You can't beat that deal!

A few days later, I was in Michael's in order to pick up some scrapbooking adhesive. While there, I got sucked into looking at all of the reduced Christmas merchandise by Rebekah who spotted the Christmas lights and started yelling.

Now, I have a bit of a diversion to share. Kevin and I have had the same Christmas tree since the college days. It is older than our marriage, and we just celebrated our 10th anniversary this past summer. The tree has seen its better days. It is barely 5 feet tall with the star, and every year it looses more and more of its needles. It is a sad little tree. Its only saving grace is that we have great ornaments that mask the fact that it is indeed such a sad little tree. Every year we say how we should buy a new tree after the holidays when they are discounted, but we never do. We just always have so many other ways to spend that money.

Fast forward to when I was standing in Michael's. I saw a beautiful Christmas tree on display. It was a 7.5 foot Madison Fir, pre-lit with over 800 lights, and 3100 tips. It retailed for $349....yikes! But, it was on clearance for $99. I hemmed and I hawed and finally I grabbed the ticket off the tree and took it up to the cashier.

She called to the back to get a stock person to bring it up to the front for me. The problem arose that there were no trees left, other than the display model, for which they didn't have a box. Hmmmm..... I asked if there was another box it would fit in, or how would they package it for me, if I still wanted to buy it?

The cashier spoke into the phone again, and came back with the info that the display trees were 90% off..........90% off the clearance price! Yes, you calculated that correctly.....the tree was $9.90! I said I would take it....I would figure out a way to get it home for that price!

Two stock boys ended up helping me fit the tree into enormous, clear garbage bags, and they hauled it to my car for me. When I got home, I backed into the garage and managed to haul it into the basement by myself.

I told Kevin that I found the deal...so now it is his problem. :)