The day after the hurricane, and it was absolutely beautiful here. We were fortunate that we sustained little damage. There was a leak from the ceiling, but we have put a maintenance request in to the condo association. That should be covered by the association policy, we will see. We looked at the beach house, and that little place fared the storm without any damage! We talked to the tenant and everything is fine, even the little shed out back. I'm so thankful xoxo

We didn't make any plans for the weekend because we weren't sure how the storm would impact us. We ended up having friends come over for a barbq and swimming at the pool. Some of my friends still didn't have power so they took showers before they left.

It's back to work tomorrow, and I'm actually ready. I was pretty depressed last week, but I feel good now. I'm just not going to let work get me stressed and down. Now that I think about it, it seems so silly to get all upset and anxious over work issues. I think back to when I was like 20 years old. I worked a lot, but when I wasn't at work I didn't think about work- I had so many other things I cared about, like my love life, partying, college. Now I have even more things to care about, like my family! I will give my 110% when I am at work, but when I'm done for the day, I need to put work away from my mind.

Woke up super early due to wind and rain, but I figure I can always nap later on during the day. Local weather reports show nasty weather coming in, but that we are prepared for.

I am in the process of purchasing a one-bedroom condo on the Bay. We will see how the place weathers this storm before I go any further in the purchase.

Looking on the positive side, I won't be going anywhere today, so I won't be spending any money! With birthday, back to school, and home inspection expenses, August has been a spendy month. I am looking forward to my September 1 paycheck.

Our beach house has already been evacuated (it had a tenant), there was a mandatory evacuation for the area yesterday. I figure we will see how the place looks at the end of the storm and deal with the house then.

In the meantime, I've got my family to take care of. We live several miles away from the coast now so we are just going to ride out the storm at home. Not looking forward to being without power for days on end, but don't see a real need to evacuate just yet. We live a few miles away from an emergency shelter if things get really bad. Of course I'd rather pack everyone up and drive off to a vacation somewhere else but in reality it is not as easy as all that. The storm is expected to impact such a large area, where would we go? Besides, the roads are clogged up with all of the tourists and beach residents who Really Have to leave the area.

We have enough food and water stocked up so we won't starve, we've got cooking fuel for outdoor cooking, a couple bags of ice to help the fridge stuff last a little longer. Two full tanks of gas. Candles and flashlights. Meds. We pulled cash from the ATM so in case power is out we can make purchases.

Hoping we all make it through the storm safely, hopefully things will die down and it won't be as bad as it seems.

Yesterday was so tough for me. Hormones were raging, and I could feel it from the moment I woke up. After dropping a child off to camp, attending a physical therapy appointment for myself, and trying to school shop with my oldest child, my car started smoking in the parking lot. The same car I have been feeding good money to this year for tires, tie rods, brakes, etc. So I almost cried then and there, thinking it was the transmission as there was reddish liquid dripping out the bottom. After filling it up with coolant, I managed to get it to a new service center. Fortunately, it ended up only being a loose radiator clamp. Yet I still had to hang out at home that afternoon and reschedule a child's doctor appointment because I didn't have my car.

I was also feeling depressed because the end of summer is near. I love summer, and we've been having such a good time. I was also feeling so overwhelmed thinking of all of the new students I will get this year, too.

To top it off, I've developed asthma, probably triggered by allergies related to nearby fires that have been lingering this summer. So I just feel like I'm falling apart. Yeah, and I turn 35 in a week.

The world wouldn't stand still just because I was screaming on the inside, so I continued on my day the best I could with dance lessons, kid feeding and caring, and driving. By the end of the night I just wanted to lock myself into my closet and cry. My significant other saved the night, though, insisted that I didn't need to lock myself in a closet and gave me a good back rub instead.

I woke up this morning feeling refreshed, and back to my old self, go figure. Amazing how different you can feel in the morning sometimes.

I'm still working on positive thinking to improve my outlook. I am excited to see my students again and get our room set up. I'm looking forward to fall goodies and fall activities with my kids. I have to have patience with my health, I am feeling better every day and taking good care of myself. And being 35 will be fine, I'm having a blast! (Well, most days!)

I've decided I'm ready to take a little dip back into real estate. My roommate owns the home we live in right now, so I don't have a primary residence. I found a great deal on a beach condo, right on the Chesapeake Bay. Very tiny, but I can set it up just the way I want to because it will cost so little to paint, replace flooring, etc. Yet another benefit to a tiny place!

I can afford it even with staying in my current residence, so we will probably stay there all summer and on weekends when we feel like it. (It's only 20 minutes away from my current home). Then in a year or so I can rent it out, as the current tenant pays well over what my mortgage payment will be.

I'm excited, this will be my first place that is all my "own", in my name only! Also a little nervous, because of course anything can happen before the final documents are signed, especially in today's lending climate.

I don't want to admit it, but looking at the calendar, I have just about 2 weeks till I return to school. Luckily the kids go back a week later, so they have a little more time to sleep in and swim.

The kids and I have had an excellent summer so far, and it's not done yet. I will just continue enjoying our time together.

I know returning to school won't be bad. I love my job, I just love the summers so much!!!

Today I will run a few miles, visit with my mom who just returned from out of town, and then take Mom and the kids to the pool. If Mom isn't feeling up to it I will drop off my car to have the squealing brakes looked at and take the kids to the pool while we wait for the verdict from the repair shop.

I blew a tire Tuesday, so I ended up getting 4 new tires ( I really did need new ones), a tie rod (?), and alignment, total of another $700 in car work. My breaks have also started squealing, probably need new break pads. Ugh.

As much as I hated taking that money out of my savings, I paid those expenses without a grudge. I am fortunate to have a vehicle to get my family around, and I am very fortunate to have a savings account to cover such expenses.If I value having transportation, I should happily pay for it, n'est ce pas?

On the other hand, even basic cable irritated me. Those few additional channels added no value to our lives. I invested in a couple pairs of rabbit ears, discovered I could get reception to some public access channels, and I cancelled cable completely. So I elimintated our cable bill. Although it was only $20, I was bitter paying that bill because I realized it added no value to our lives.

Now OVERPAYING on something is not smart, so I will of course try to get the best deals, but I do not want to become stingy with my money. Money is just paper, it is my attitude that causes me financial stress or harmony.

(Yes, I'm making a conscious effort to improve my attitude and outlook!)