One year ago today.  It’s so hard to believe… such a cliche, but oh-so-true!  My little man is a year old already.  I swear I can remember every moment of the day… the work it took to bring him into the world, seeing his gorgeous face for the first time, amazed at the little wrinkles in his fingers… thankful for the healthy cries he let out, melting as my husband held his son for the first time, the pride and joy at the first-time grandparents.  What an amazing day.  And what a remarkable change from a year ago! 

Charlie’s 1st birthday party was this weekend, and prior to the big day we decided to try on his party hat. 

Am I a bad mommy for absolutely loving this photo?!  AND, even worse, when he started flipping out we didn’t help him, we just ran for the camera!

I was suprised and disappointed to hear this week that Kiddie Kandids photography company closed its doors.  Kiddie Kandids is the children’s photo studio based inside Babies ‘R Us stores–including the Warwick location.  It was super convenient and, in my experience, great at capturing my little man’s infectious but fleating smiles.  Here’s the letter on the website:

Kiddie Kandids Announces Closure
Sandy, Utah – January 10, 2010

Prior to its closure, Kiddie Kandids was one of the nation’s premier children’s portrait studios, specializing in newborn, infant, toddler, and pre-school portrait photography. Founded in 1974, Kiddie Kandids grew from a single camera in a mall kiosk to a nationwide network of 184 hi-tech portrait studios. The majority of Kiddie Kandids’ studios are located within Babies ‘R’ Us retail stores across the country.

What a bummer!  Nothing beat the convenience of being able to get your kiddos pictures taken, doing a little diaper shopping then picking up your order 15min later.  Hopefully another company will take over the studios inside Babies ‘R Us.  Until then, Charlie’s daddy is the photographer on duty.

Every day I give out advice on how to lower your bills, negotiate down your interest rate with your credit cards, etc…but I have to be honest with you…giving out the advice is one thing, but taking my own, honestly, well I haven’t!
That is until now. 2010 is going to be a new year for me. I want all of us to manage our money differently, and share our stories (hopefullly success stories) together!
Most of us carry some sort of credit card debt. I do. Quite frankly, I’m sick of it. I’m tired of credit card companies who increase interest rates just because they can. I have watched one card’s intererst rate go up to 29%! I have always paid on time, paid more than was required, but yet, why did my credit card company feel the need to jack up the rate? Not sure. But 2010, I’m fighting back! I want you to fight back with me. We’re just months away from new credit card laws going into effect, but I’m not quite sure how it’s going to help me and my current outragous interest rate. The damage has been done. I want to stop the bleeding now.

A few ideas:

I went online and checked out what credit card companies are offering 0% interest rates, found one offering it for a year. I applied. I read ALL the fine print and so far it appears there are no hidden fees. But be careful if you do the same. After the year is over the rates do jump, so make sure you can get out of it before they do, this one you can.

Another idea:

Contact a legitmate Consumer Credit Counseling Agency. I have worked for years with a local company that I find to be credible and helpful. Consumer Credit Counseling of Southern New England located on 117 in Warwick. I have never used them personally, just as “experts” for stories, but I feel confident to refer them to you.

CABLE BILL

Here’s another source of aggrevation. I have a bundle package that includes phone, internet and television. I pay $192/month, but 2010, remember, the new me? Well, I called to see whether they were offering any new programs for the new year! They are and I lowered my bill by $45! Not a lot, but you know what, every penny counts.

How did I do it?

No heavy lifting. I called, gave them my phone number and a few hours later a customer service woman called me back and told me about a few options and I chose one that was right for me. $45 dollar savings, that’s a dinner out (minus the cocktails!)

Budgeting.

I decided to write down EVERYTHING I spend $ on, and I mean everything. Since January 1st, I’ve kept track of every coffee, CVS and Target visit, and let me tell you, when you make the conscious effort to “jot” down what you’ve spent, you find yourself not wanting to spend! Seriously! It makes you rethink whether you really need that lip gloss from CVS, or those really cute hand towels at Home Goods, or the cute hat and gloves from Target. I don’t. Although those items make you feel good, a few dollars here, a few dollars there from those stores add up (and ladies, you know what I mean!!)

Credit Cards.

UGH! I love credit cards. I have 3. I’m forcing myself to leave two at home and only carry the one credit card that has the lowest interest rate. This is for EMERGENCY use only (and that does not include those cute hand towels at Home Goods either!)

Pay off the Credit Card with the Highest Rate first.

Duh. But I haven’t been. Now I am.

Grocery Shopping.

Another source of MAJOR aggrevation. I have 3 children needless to say our food bill is out of control. $200 on average at Stop and Shop. So, my new plan, re-evaluate what is in your cupboard. We waste so much food in our house. I have more opened, half eaten bags of chips, cookies, etc. Not to mention the abundance of frozen meats stashed away in the freezer! That’s because I can’t be bothered defrosting my meat, I just run to the store on my way home and by fresh and cook that! Ok, 2010, the new me…DEFROST THE NIGHT BEFORE. No heavy lifting, take the chops out of the freezer and stick them into the fridge and by the time you come home they’re thawed, PROBLEM SOLVED. Be careful with those individually packaged snacks. Those cost way more than if you simply bought the large bag of chips and put some in sandwich bags for your kids.

I know these ideas are simple, but sometimes it’s the simple things in life that are often ignored. I am determined to save money in 2010.

SAVING $ TOGETHER

I will continue to share with you some things that are helping me save. Please share some of your stories too!

At the end of January, I will tally up my spending vs my savings and see if I’ve accomplished my goal.

Susan!

For as many years as I’ve been studying weather, severe hail has been considered to have a diameter of 3/4 inches. 

1 to 1.5 inch Hail....courtesy National Weather Service and NOAA

When we talk  about severe thunderstorms we look at wind gusts and hail size.  The criteria  has been wind gusts to 58mph and 3/4 inch hail or larger.  

Warnings are issued frequently while t’storms are in the area.  People became desensitized to the warnings and probably ignored them, which is unfortunate.  The new Severe Thunderstorm Warning criteria for hail is now one inch in diameter, or about the size of a quarter.  After being used in the central United States last year, this criteria is now used nationwide, including here in Southern New England.   The National Weather Service in Taunton issues Severe Thunderstorm Warnings for our area.

How will this impact you?  Read the rest of this entry »

Linc Chafee enters the race for governor with a 5 page speech and yet for most who covered his announcement, he buried the lead

Bottom of page 2 – a two tiered sales tax. One rate for what’s taxed now and a 1% levy on 9 billion dollars in untaxed items including food and medication. 

Don’t start hoarding bread and aspirin yet. Slipping that one past the General Assembly would be like sneaking a  pork chop past the wolves at the state house door. Read the rest of this entry »

I take great pride that after all these years, two kids and countless adventures, I only have a few gray hairs. But, that will probably change soon. My oldest daughter turns 15 this weekend. 15…I can remember when she looked forward to me reading to her, telling her stories, playing board games, and having fun outside. Now she’s turning 15, hanging out with friends and playing high school basketball. She’s a wonderful kid, great student and daughter. My wife and I are blessed to have two wonderful children.  But, the oldest is turning 15. One year away from driving. I was nervous when she started riding a bike..I can just imagine when she gets behind the wheel of a car! Plus, boys calling..they’ll have to talk to me first! Her dreams of being a school teacher and fashion designer have faded and she’s not sure about “what she wants to be when she grows up.”
One thing is certain…she’s turning 15 this weekend….and  I can already see the gray settling in.

With the help of his “Nunny”, my little man started walking around New Year’s day.  It’s quite a sight…. Charlie precariously balancing on 2 wobbly legs as he toddles across the room.  He is so proud of himself, laughing, screeching and flailing his arms as he goes.  While I am excited that he has hit this latest milestone, I also fear the bumps, bruises and endless chasing after him that lie ahead.  As my mom has said… this boy is going to run, not walk.

Meanwhile, we are beginning preparations for his 1st birthday!  I keep thinking about last year at this time.  I was huge (covering up most of the weather map!) and sooo ready to get him out of my belly. Haha!  The minutes dragged on and on as I anxiously awaited Charlie’s arrival.  Now I am trying to figure out how to slow time.  How has a year already passed?

The greatest gift I could ever receive on Christmas is the one I was given just over 11 months ago, with my healthy baby boy.  While he’s not aware of Santa, the hustle and bustle and the tempting Toys R Us catalog… I can already feel a new wave of excitement in the holiday season for our family.  I can only imagine the fun we’ll be having in the coming years.  

The holidays are also filled with some sadness, too, as it’s the first Christmas without my beloved father, who died of brain cancer earlier this year.  When he was diagnosed on Valentine’s Day ‘08, my husband and I immediately decided we wanted to have a baby.  What better gift to give my father than the grandchild he’d been asking for.  And while my dad did survive just long enough to hold his namesake, I will always be sad he never witnessed all of the joyous milestones we’ve celebrated in the last year. 

The amazing thing is that as much as I anticipated Charlie being a gift to my dad… he’s been the greatest gift to those of us left behind… especially my mom.  I am grateful that we’ll be spending this Christmas chasing after our busy little boy, laughing at his endless babbling, and smiling and waving back at his happy self instead of focusing on the sadness we’ll all be feeling. 

So, Santa, thank you for the Charlie under my tree.

As of 10am the intensity of the snow has eased up a bit, though still moderate to heavy at times…the trend will be for lighter snow by early afternoon. Totals in most areas have come in around 15 to 18 inches with some isolated amounts of 20 inches. Blowing and drifting snow will continue as winds gust over 30 mph. Intense storm south of Nantucket will continue to pull away with drier air late this afternoon and evening. Any “additional” accumulations next few hours will range around 1-2″  more on top of what has fallen already

Here are some storm links:

Weather Spotter Storm Totals:
http://forecast.weather.gov/product.php?site=NWS&format=CI&version=1&glossary=0&highlight=off&issuedby=BOX&product=PNS

Wind Damage Reports
http://forecast.weather.gov/product.php?site=NWS&format=CI&version=1&glossary=0&highlight=off&issuedby=BOX&product=LSR

Tony Petrarca