That Blozzz

Well it has been an interesting and rainy summer here in Northern New York. I have not been keeping up with much with my blogs. Karen and I have finally decided on our vacation for this year. It was a little more than I planned to spend but we ended up booking a Disney World Vacation.

We booked directly through Disney and we booked 8 nights at the Coronado Springs Resort. Our package includes the dinning package, airfare, and 7 days worth of tickets in the theme parks. This is our second time in Disney World and the first was just a 3 day trip. The trip is planned for August 24th through September 1st and we are super excited.

We have been searching for Disney tips and planning just about everything. Here are a few tips that I will share for those who are planning a trip.

1. If you have the dining package, book reservations for table service restaurants as early as possible. (up to 90 days ahead) We had trouble getting reservations for many places we wanted. We found out on some forums that people book more than one dinner in a night and cancel the ones they don;t want when they get there. Others are selling their reservations. Neither practice is fair or right but each to their own.
2. Bring your own snacks and bottled water or other drinks. At $2.50 and up per bottle, you can spend a small fortune in water. You can get free ice water at most food stands but the water taste bad. If you are flying, you can ship stuff ahead to the resort. We are going to order a case of water and a case of organic milk in non-perishable packages from Amazon. You can also ship it yourself but if you find free shipping, it will be cheaper.
3. Plan and plan more ahead of time. Disney’s website offers a free itinerary maker to plan your trip. We planned out the theme parks to match the extra hours offered by Disney for their resort guests.
4. If you have something to celebrate even if it is not the exact date, let Disney know. Our anniversary is in June and we are celebrating late due to work schedules. We were told that their may be perks like free snacks, gift cards or other treats. It does not always happen but the cast members jobs are to make your stay magical.
5. Watch email and phone messages. Many people have received free upgrades prior to their trips. It seems to be the value resorts that this happens but you never know. This is rare but their are many claims of receiving them.
6. Be willing to compromise to get what you want. If they do not have a dinner open for one of your restaurant choices, call the reservation phone number and see if they have a late lunch or something a different time. We end up booking our big meal for lunch one day because that was all that was open.
7. Plan carefully so you are in the same location any certain day as where you are eating dinner. It would suck to figure out that you have to travel an hour to get to your reservation.
8. Be sure to take advantage of Disney shuttles. They are free to all guest not just resort guest.
9. Have loads of fun and don’t stress.

If you have any other tips that you would like to add to help us and others, please leave a comment.

All in 2008 seemed bleak. The economic crisis that faced the world was painful to watch but I muddled through. The Presidential race did not turn out very well and it was politics as usual among promises of change. There were wars and rumors of wars. Many lost their jobs as we taxpayers bailed out the rich. McCain, Obama, Clinton, and Bush all approved of the monetary rape that we took. Looking for a job had little success and the stock market crashed like nothing we have seen.

I clung to my marriage and tightened my belt. I fought harder to clear up all of my debt. I listened to Dave Ramsey to inspire me most. It was a struggle and so many lost. However, as Americans we suffered though the loss. We brushed off the dirt that our Government threw on us and we swore it would get better and for many it got worse. It was a bit of a pickle but we will survive.

With all the bleak we suffered in 2008, we know that we have much to be thankful for. I want to take this chance to wish all of my friends a wonderful healthy and prosperous New Year!

I have taken a big step in reducing my debt. I have looked over my expenses and chopped off a few I do not need. First to go was Netflix. I enjoyed the ease of having DVDs shipped to the house but we were not watching them very quickly. It was almost a crunch trying to find time to watch them. That reduction was $9.69 a month.

The next expense I worked on was that dreaded telephone bill. I reduced my Verizon Freedom package which was $49.99 a month to a regional package which cost $35 a month. We maybe make 100 minutes of long distance calls a month so I went with a long distance plan which cost 2.9 cents a minute. This is a reduction of around $14 a month.

These minor amounts may not seem like much but it adds up. You figure $23.96 a month adds up to $287.52 a year. That is an extra payment on our debt.

Now to the big things. We started the beginning of the month with a credit card balance of $4900. We took some from our saving and crimped for the rest and as of Friday the one and only credit card will be history. If I can find a reliable full time job, we should be able to crush and pay off our $49,000 student loans off in two years. This will take some sacrifice but in the long haul, we will be DEBT FREE except for the house! The home equity (we have no other mortgage) will be paid off in another year if all goes as planned.

For the first time, Karen is totally on board and as excited as I am to get all debt gone. I could not imagine how it will feel to owe no one. Of course, once that happens, we plan to buy a new house but not till we save enough to have a emergency plan in place and have a nice down payment.

Anybody else debt free or working hard on? Share your story by leaving a comment here!

What would be your ideal life? The one thing that leads to all roads is being debt free. You are limited if you spend your whole life living paycheck to paycheck while making someone else rich. My new goal is to end the cycle and become totally debt free.

As my core basis, I am taking the advice of money guru Dave Ramsey. I am in the midst of reading his book, The Total Money Makeover. I have always been good at handling my money but I have never been great. I have decided it is time to take on the mountain and win. My wife and I are fortunate in the sense that we have very little credit card debt. However, we owe a huge amount for student loans. We have no car payments and the only other debt we have is a home equity loan (no first mortgage). The credit card is going to be paid off by mid-November and we are attacking the student loans with all we have.

We own an old farm house that we can live in for a while but our goal is to either build or place a modular on a separate 75 acre piece of land we own. We would love to do this right away but we have to get debt free first. It will be tight living for quite a while but the end will be worth the effort.

Our key was to budget everything on paper and stick with it. I now carry envelopes in my wallet earmarked for the different things we do. When we go out to eat, I pull out the envelope and if there is enough we eat good, if it is low, we eat cheap. We have been on a solid budget for a month and it is hard to believe how much money we were spending and not even knowing where it went. I always paid bills and expenses first but the rest was free game. Now, we are on a tight budget and all excess goes to the debt. We paid off three thousand in a month and we are on a roll. I will share with you here when we get closer to our goal.

In these times of economic turmoils, it is important to get your own finances in order. How do you feel about getting debt free? Please share your own advice, plan of action, or opinion by leaving a comment.

A couple of weeks ago, I had to put down my fifteen year old Chow dog. He was having leg problems and he was also chewing everything including straight through steel chain link. I swore I would not get another dog but as fate had it, I found the perfect fit.

I had a German Shepard for 10 years before her hips gave out and she could no longer get up. She was the greatest friend I ever had. Well, I was on vacation a week ago and I seen an ad for a full blooded AKC registered German Shepard. I found out that she was owned by a breeding kennel and she was unable to breed. She is three years old and well trained. She is such a baby and if you let her, she will climb right in your lap.Her registered name is “Independent Thinker”.

She a pretty dog! What do you think?

I spent last weekend getting my garden ready. I got 24 tomato plants in just in time for a heavy frost. I covered them but I think I may have lost 6 of them. I planted three kinds this year because we are just getting into canning and we want to try to make some sauces.

My garden is set up with twenty foot rows and I planted two rows of potatoes, one row of carrots, three rows of corn, one row of onions, and five rows of three different kinds of cucumbers. I also planted six hot pepper plants, six broccoli plants, and few green pepper plants. I am hoping I have luck like last year where things grew like weeds.

I am also putting in a smaller garden with pumpkins and squash. We created a small are and planted some rhubarb roots for next year that we got from our cousins. My wife wants some dill planted so my flower garden will be cut down to have space for the dill.

I did a larger garden this year because whatever we have extras of, the chickens will have a feast. It will cut down on feed and give them something nutritious. I do not use any chemicals and only use compost, manure, and organic fertilizers. I prefer to keep both my family and livestock safe and free of added chemicals.

Anyone else planting a garden this year? Please share with us by leaving a comment or two.

This Sunday May 11th is Mother’s Day. It is a time to honor all those mothers who have given much for their children. It is a time to share memories and to look to the future.

My mama is 80 years old and lives with my wife and I. We have a special day planned with a nice cookout. My sister is traveling from Pennsylvania to surprise my mother for the weekend. This will make my mom’s day. My wife and I have not decided what to get mama for a gift but I am sure that the cookout will please more than any gift.

I hope you all have a special treat planned for your mama.

Please leave a comment and let everyone know what you have planned.

To all you mothers: A HUGE  Happy Mothers Day!

My little chicks are grower fast and they are getting crazier. They are so active it is a chore just to go into their area. They hop and fly all over and they are nuts. I have one who wants to be the teachers pet. She (I hope she) sits on my foot and wants me to pet her or pick her up. The rest of them squawk when I pick them up now but she loves it.

I also wanted to share something funny that happened a couple of nights ago. My mother-in-law stopped by and my two brown Araucana hens were up on their top shelf all ready to sleep. They go to bed earlier than the rest of the flock.

My mother-in-law wanted to see the chicks so she came in the chicken coop. I asked who to put her foot by the chicks door so they did not get out and she did not do it and one got out. I tried to catch it and my mother-in-law got excited as usual and bent over to try to catch it and one of the Araucana hens jumped right on her back. You would have laughed or thought that she was attacked by a fierce lion or bear. It was quite the sight.

I told her that I show the hens pictures of her every night and if she comes around, attack her. It shows you that chickens can be trained. LOL

It looks like the new chicks will be just as crazy except there are a lot more of them.

Well that is my crazy chicken stories for now. If you have stories about your own flock, please share by leaving a comment.

I am pretty excited because we are heading to a chicken swap in Madrid, NY on Sunday. This should be fun to see what other poultry farmers are raising. I was hoping to take a few of my little rooster but I have yet to determine the sex of the chicks. I have read a bunch but I can not determine for sure the cockerels from the pullets.

The swap is put on by the Northern New York Poultry Fanciers and what I hear from our cousins, it is a fun time. There is also an auction on the 18th of May and I am hoping to know the sex of the roosters by then so I can sell some.

Has anyone every been to a chicken swap? Did you buy or swap anything? Share with us by leaving a comment.

Our cousin Kenny has been hatching eggs for us and yesterday was hatch day. I gave him 11 of our eggs to hatch and out of that we had 9 chicks. They are so cute! Eight of them are black and one is yellow with brown strips. I am pleased that I had such a high rate of hatching.Kenny hatched 21 of his own eggs and he got as of last night 11 hatched and four that had peck holes in them. Below is some pictures of the new babies.

This is what is left of the babies former home. Mine were the blue shells.

This is all the little babies but one. We had one still in the incubator waiting to dry off.

This is the chicks sitting on their food.

Nine of the eggs I gave Kenny were a cross between a Plymouth Rock Rooster and Arcauna hens. Two of the eggs were from my neighbors flock and they were a cross between and Aracuna Hen and who knows what rooster since they have several breeds. I believe the yellow may have come from one of those two eggs.

I just took 14 more eggs to be hatched so we will see how many more we get.

Please leave a comment and let me know what you think of the baby chicks. Also wish me luck that they are a majority of hens.