Category: Just me being me

It’s been quite a while since I did a ‘no buy’ or ‘low buy’ month with purpose. The last time I wrote about it on the blog was 2018, where I also popped off a bit about the idea that my husband is the boss of me and our money (I actually still very much enjoy this blog post, so here it is: How Much My Husband Allows Me To Spend on Clothing & No Buy July).

Anywho. This time we are doing a “Low Buy July” as a family for a few reasons. First of all, my husband’s job has been impacted by the Port of Baltimore tragedy, so there have been weeks with very low work as the supply chain is switching back from the Norfolk port to the Baltimore port. Since we are a two-income household, this means that we need to tighten up our spending. The second big impact is that our son broke his arm a couple weeks ago and the emergency room/emergency surgery bills are around the bend.

Not that you need a stampede of bills coming in order to decide to cut back a bit. And I do realize how extremely fortunate we are when many (if not all) families are struggling with the rising cost of everything right now.

If you also want to participate in a Low Buy July, please feel free to join in with me.

I was going to write out my list of rules here, but honestly everyone’s rules will be different. While we are not going on a full spending freeze, we are taking a closer look at wants and needs throughout the month.

Also, we each have our own trigger stores that we are planning to avoid. For me, it’s TJ Maxx/Marshalls/Homegoods. For my husband it’s Walmart and Home Depot. And for Jack, it’s Target. These stores just suck the money right out of our wallets, so we figure it’s just easier to avoid them all together as much as possible. Thrifting is still allowed for my mental sanity. Because I’m not really spending a bunch of money there anyways.

We are all also going to try to just use what we have before getting any new stuff. This includes beauty products/toiletries/etc when they run out, food in the fridge/freezer/pantry, and of course restyling clothing we already own (okay, this one’s just for me) rather than hitting up the Anthropologie ‘sale on sale’ they have each summer. Any ‘wants’ will be added into my Notes app to look at in August and we will see then if we still want each item, or if the desire has passed. I also already went ahead and paused a couple of our non-essential subscriptions.

So yeah, we aren’t going into full money lockdown mode, but more of a bit of a palate cleanser for the month. And hopefully, as those hospital bills trickle in we can get them paid off ASAP… and look forward to our next vacation!

Over the years, I’ve gotten better and better and making sure I schedule all those important appointments – the dentist, the OBGYN, the general doctor, the eye doctor, the dermatologist… sometimes it really does feel endless. Especially when I also have a bunch of appointments to schedule for Jack and Travis too. I just had a couple of those important screening appointments pop up, so I figured it was a good time for a blog reminder!

Reminder: Your Annual Mammogram

If you’re due for a mammogram, schedule it! It’s not that scary, I promise. Don’t put it off. If you’re supposed to go EVERY year, schedule it. If you’re supposed to start with your first one and you haven’t scheduled it yet because you’re apprehensive, schedule it!

I had my annual mammogram last week and it took an hour and that’s including the drive there, waiting room, mammogram, drive home. And stopping by Dunkin Donuts on the way home because dang it I earned myself donuts!

Reminder: Your Annual Mole Check

I’ve talked about my dermatologist lots and lots on here and the fact that I’ve had over a dozen moles taken off my body. I just had two more moles removed – this time from my back – and yes, it was super annoying. One of them is right under where my bra strap hits, so having stitches in for 2 weeks was a pain in the butt. However, when I went back to the doctor to get my stitches out and they let me know that the lab test results came back as ‘severe’ on the pre-cancerous scale, it’s worth every moment of being uncomfortable.

Most people are supposed to get their moles checked once a year. If you haven’t done it this year, make your appointment! If you’re like me and you have moles that really want to kill you… you get to do the most unsexy striptease ever every 6 months. Still worth it.

That’s it. That’s your homework for this week. Please, please book your screening appointments.

Last week is a blur.

I had been looking forward to the week where our kiddo attends overnight school for pretty much a year. It’s something required for all 6^th graders in our school system – a week of camp/overnight school that centers on environmental science and team building. I was excited for Jack to participate AND excited to have a week where Travis and I could spend time together and go on a couple date nights.

As it turns out, I dropped Jack at school on Monday morning… and came down with the worst flu of my life a few hours later.

I told my boss I was going to lie down at lunchtime, because I wasn’t feeling so well… and when my alarm rang, I couldn’t get back out of bed.

Fever, chills, body aches and fatigue hit me like a truck.

I basically spent the next 20 hours sleeping on and off. I only left bed to use the bathroom and let the dog outside, so he could also use the bathroom.

Oh, and my husband was stuck a few states away when a train broke down for 5 hours, blocking the way he needed to go for a delivery.

Where I typically feel better within a day or two, this version of the flu was extra hellish with the fever and chills revisiting again and again. I was sick all week long, to the point where I was taking a nap every single day as soon as I’d shut down my work computer.

It’s been a week, and I still have a gross cough, no appetite, body aches and allover weakness.

This flu is no joke. And apparently, from what I hear, it’s going around. So, here are a couple things that helped me in case you or someone you love also gets it:

• Prescription Cough Medicine. I finally broke down and let Travis take me to the Patient First on Thursday. They weren’t able to do much for me, but they did give me a prescription cough medicine that actually works.
• Ibuprofen, not Acetaminophen. If I need to take something, I’ll typically grab Tylenol. The doctor on call said that ibuprofen is better for this kind of flu, due to how it treats inflammation.
• Vitamin Water. I had absolutely no appetite for the first 5 days and only now am able to eat small portions. Basically, the only thing I was putting in my body was Vitamin Water and it tasted like the best thing in the world. Whether it be regular water, vitamin water, electrolytes, Gatorade or whatever, just have something on hand that you enjoy drinking since food is no longer your friend.
• A Heating Pad. The chills were intense and lasted for days. In order to relax, I cuddled up with a heating pad to keep myself from shaking. Please note: it is dangerous to sleep with a heating pad because you can burn yourself. A better option is a hot water bottle or a warm snuggly dog (thanks Ollie for your service).
• Wash Your Hands and Stay Home. I washed my hands a billion times and thankfully I was able to telework all week and didn’t leave the house. If you can, please, please, please stay home. You don’t want to run yourself down and get sicker and you don’t want to spread this mutant flu to anyone else. According to the doctor I saw, you should remain home for at least 24-48 hours after your fever breaks and while you have active symptoms.

Jack’s back home now (and survived overnight school), and I’m finally starting to see signs of improvement. I’m really bummed to have missed out on our ‘date week’, but honestly having just myself to take care of was a gift.