Starting fresh

As you may have noticed over the past few weeks, I've been wanting to write about more in life than just my debt. After 2 years of talking about almost nothing but being broke, I'm tired of it. This blog has been a great outlet for me and I will continue to improve my finances and write about it, just not at Clueless with Cash.

I started a new blog, "Slowly but Surely" that discusses all of my goals, including getting better with money and getting out of debt. I will also track my progress with becoming a runner and training for the New York City Half Marathon and other life goals I will have.

I hope you join me at the new site. Become a follower or sign up for e-mail updates. Thanks for reading my story!

Be right back

After a rough weekend I spent the day like this:

I'll have more to post soon.

Fitness Friday - BIG News!

So I don't have much to say about healthy eating etc. this week. That's a good thing because I want to jump right into fitness. Something pretty cool happened this week and I'm SO excited to share it.

M and I ran around the reservoir on Wednesday night. She does 2 laps while I do one and she finishes just a few minutes after me. Yup, interval training isn't exactly speedy work but that's ok. I stretched while waiting for M to finish and a big group of runners came in right behind me and joined me in stretching. Since I find it difficult to meet new people in this big city, especially interesting ones that share my interests, I figured I would ask if this was a running group with hopes to join them sometime. As fate would have it, I was talking to Team In Training, a group that runs and raises funds to find a cure for Leukemia, the horrible reason for MG's younger brother's death a year and a half ago.

We didn't chat long but I went home and looked at their website. You select a race to participate in, and TNT helps you train and raise funds while building a strong sense of community and friendship. Umm right up my alley, especially for a cause so close my heart.

I dream big so I after a few minutes on the website, consulting with M and MG, I signed up for the NYC half marathon on March 18 and pledged to raise $1600!!

You guys! I can't run 1 mile without a few walking breaks. 13.1 miles is just 3 short months away and I'm training in the coldest months of the year! OMG I'm freaking out! I'm SO excited for this challenge and adventure but yikes!

You can read my story and donate here :) 

Motivational Monday - Not breaking the bank on Cyber Monday

Side note before I get started. I wanted to write this post with Christmas music on Pandora. But I couldn't change the station because the first song to come on was Amos Lee. Pretty sure it's a rule that you have to wait until he is finished. So I waited and now it's James Taylor. The same rules apply. Looks like Christmas music will wait even longer! Anyway...

I'm not a huge fan of Black Friday. I don't like to shop with big crowds because I feel too rushed and it's rare that all of the gifts I need to purchase can be bought at one store. Add in the fact that I don't have a car anymore, it just wasn't going to happen for me.

But I did get to work before my entire department this morning and was welcomed with a slew of e-mails about Cyber Monday. It nearly got the best of me. I am pretty sure 100% of my gifts, or at least the materials needed to make the gifts, have been purchased and I managed to find a sweet deal or two for myself. Sometimes I wish I didn't work at a computer with internet access all day!

Here's what I found:
A lot of stores have free or deeply discounted shipping :) I can't mention exactly what stores I was looking at since that will give away a gift for a loyal reader BUT most stores have at least decent shipping prices today.

There are $6 subscription packs to magazines here. I got a 1-year subscription to both SHAPE and Fitness for $6 total. Yup. There are a variety of magazine packages to choose from and they make great gifts too!

Barnes & Noble has a few goodies on sale. I found The Hunger Games first book for less than $5 on my nook. I'm hoping I can enjoy it more than Twilight! December is a great time to snuggle up and read a few books!

One gripe I do need to make is to Finishline. If you're going to participate in Cyber Monday, re-stock your merchandise if you sold a lot on Black Friday! The Asics I want are on sale from $84 to $27. Yes, please! However, there are only 3 itty-bitty sizes left so they will remain on my wishlist. No business for you, Finishline! Famous Footwear had a BOGO deal, plus 25% off your purchase, plus free shipping. If I bought 2 pair of running shoes (in my size!), each pair would be less than $40 but I wasn't in the market to spend $70 on shoes today so I exited out of the screen before I did something I would regret.

Anyway, my holiday shopping is taken care of and I couldn't be happier. I didn't break the bank and I picked up a new hobby. I can't wait to post about the gifts I've been making for my friends!

I don't think I've ever finished my Christmas shopping and have been able to put money INTO my savings account but just this morning I was able to put $120 more into savings! I had been saving for something but it fell through and instead of going on a shopping spree to spoil my loved ones and myself, I popped it right into savings.

Since moving to New York, this is by far the most I've had in my savings and it feels better every time I see that number go up!

Fitness Friday - Thanksgiving & George Clooney, YUM!

Food:

I voluntarily bought green beans and ate a whole bunch of them this week. My list of vegetables I enjoy has certainly grown this past year but green beans have never been a huge favorite. One of the boys I babysit for gets green beans for dinner on the regular and for whatever reason they started looking mighty delicious. Cook them, add a hint of EVOO and a tinch of salt and boom, I will scarf them down!

My Thanksgiving meal was delicious! For real. But there is one thing that bugs me about Americans and Thanksgiving. Why do we need to eat SO much? Isn't enough that you have special foods on that day? What is it about that day that makes it normal to eat three or four servings? The average person eats 4500 calories on Thanksgiving. Excuse me?! There is no possible way I could do it. I had normal servings of delicious turkey and a variety of veggies and potatoes. I did go back for seconds but only of veggies because they were just so deliciously prepared. I was still full 6 hours later. Anyway, I don't get it but I hope you all had scrumptious meals!

Fitness

George Clooney was my personal trainer this week. I'll explain. I don't babysit on Tuesdays so I really have no excuse not to go to they gym. I had a late lunch and was still pretty full. I had a long to-do list waiting for me at home but with a text from MG saying "You'll thank yourself later", I dragged myself to the gym. The only available treadmill looked like this:

What more of an invitation do I need to work my booty off?! I worked a little harder than normal just for him. Ya know, just in case we meet some day. I hear he's a leg guy.

My shins are still bugging me but I've incorporated cross training with yoga and I'm trying shin stretches that I learned from one of my favorite running bloggers. I have a pretty cool bag of Fancy A Peas that I use to ice them and I'm hoping that all these efforts make them go away pretty quickly.

I've graduated to week 3 of the C25K program and my endurance still feels great. In 2 more weeks I'm supposed to be able to run 25 minutes straight! That simply blows my mind considering I started from zero!

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and find some great deals on Black Friday! I'm off to get in a rare outdoor run before I start reading Harry Potter. Yup, I never finished reading the series way back when. Don't judge.

Thankful

 So I had a plan to write each day for the month of November about something I'm thankful for. Didn't work out so much. I know that being thankful for the fortune in your life should happen more than once a year, and for me it does. But I want to show my thanks today, anyway. This post won't include every single person important to me and I left out the long list of superficial things that I also love because that post could go on for days. But here's a start and it makes me pretty happy.

 This is a pretty great family. Near or far, I tell them everything and they're always good for lots of laughs and lots of lessons. My parents celebrate their 25th anniversary in 2012 and I think that's pretty great. My sister is kickin' some booty in the Air Force and I'm pretty proud of her for it. I can't wait for all of us to be together over Christmas.

My extended family is small but I won the jackpot in quality over quantity. It started with my uncle being my buddy and being the brilliant man he is, he picked a pretty cool lady to start a family with. I'm so lucky I've had the chance to get closer to them while living on the east coast. They've opened their home to me countless times and sitting at their kitchen counter chatting with everyone is basically my therapy. I wouldn't be living my dream in New York without them. They are my home away from home and I can't wait to see them all tomorrow. They're always good for a lesson, advice, a new book suggestion or a simple text commiserating about the Vikings.

 MG. My Guy. My love. My rock. No matter how close or how far we are from each other, he is ALWAYS the first person I want to talk to in the morning and the last person I want to say good night to each night. He makes me laugh, he makes me think, he makes my heart smile. He is my partner in crime for any adventure I come up with and he gets me better than anyone. He spoils me and is more than I deserve.

 These girls are pretty amazing, each for their own reasons. Lenka, the blonde on the right, is my oldest friend. We started playing basketball together in 4th grade and have been friends ever since. We get closer and closer and most of our conversations include the phrase "I haven't told anyone this yet but...!" and she is my best ab workout from all our laughter. Tanya, the blonde in the middle, is my second oldest friend, also from basketball. She is my pen pal and a huge source of entertainment and encouragement. Tanya and Lenka make a pretty awesome duo for a night on the town and even though those nights are few and far between with the distance, we always pick up where we leave off. And then there's M (Megan), the one squeezing me in the picture. We were unlikely friends that met on Facebook and now I couldn't imagine my life without her. She is the yin to my yang and also an incredible source of entertainment, advice and support. There is a lot I admire about each of these women and I'm so lucky to call them my best friends.

 Amanda is THE best friend. Since 7th grade we've been through everything together. Distance has definitely taken it's toll on us but I love her just the same. I can't wait to be in her wedding next year!

 The nannies have changed my life. When I moved to New Jersey after high school, I was miserable until I met these ladies. We shared a bond about taking the road less traveled and I'm so glad we were in it together. The year we spent as nannies in New Jersey was full of adventure, laughter, tears, and support. We have all gone our separate ways but we keep in touch as if no time has gone by. I wish we were all rich so we could plan more trips and adventures but e-mails and phone calls work for now.

My southern girls have also changed my life. I have learned SO much from them and they were there for me through some of my hardest growing pains. It all started with Faith (purple sweater) being my silver lining and through her I met Amber and Lindsay. Amber's dedication to her career as a teacher is a huge inspiration for me and Lindsay is always game for a little bit of boy talk. My life wouldn't be the same without any of them. Distance separates us but a simple text is all we need. I'm not sure if I'll ever move back to Rock Hill (probably not but maybe the south) but I will always carry them in my hearts.

"Maybe our mistakes are what make our fate. Without them, what would shape our lives? Perhaps if we never veered off course, we wouldn't fall in love, or have babies, or be who we are. After all, seasons change. So do cities. People come into your life and people go. But it's comforting to know the ones you love are always in your heart. And if you're very lucky, a plane ride away." -- Sex & The City

I'm a winner!

I just put $160 into savings. It was a combination of babysitting money and money I received from opening a bank account (more on that to come). Man, it feels good to see my savings at nearly $200 in less than one month.

In other news, I'm out of coffee creamer at work. Here's my conversation with MG:
Me: Boo :( no more coffee creamer. Hello, Starbucks!
MG: Or don't need coffee like me :) lol, kidding. You need it!

He knows me so well :)

If you're traveling for the holidays today or tomorrow, travel safe! My cousin is visiting me tonight so we can go to the parade tomorrow and then head to my aunt and uncles' for dinner! Have a fun and safe holiday weekend!