Tidbits

Sharing what I'm loving right now, family/life happenings, favorite finds, and whatever else pops into my head.

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I had planned on cleaning the house today to get ready for our sweet girl's birthday party. But we made the heartwrenching decision to cancel it. We were all looking forward to celebrating with family and friends... yet we knew that canceling the party was the right thing to do. As much as we wanted to see everyone... we felt it more important to do our part to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Making the decision was hard, but telling our girl about our decision was even harder. She was understandably sad but took the news with surprising maturity. I mean, I'm still amazed by how well she handled the situation... especially after being so excited about the party and about seeing her best friend again. We expected a lot of tears and even some yelling and whining. But we saw none of that.

To make up for it, Stephen and I have a special day planned for her tomorrow. And, hopefully, we'll be able to squeeze in a video chat with her friend at some point so they can still see each other. This is not how we saw the weekend playing out, but then nothing is how it should be these days.

I need to pull together some final details for our smaller birthday celebration. While I do that, here's the latest batch of Tidbits for you to read at your leisure this weekend.

Enjoy!

1. After discovering a messy spill in the freezer, I bought these containers to use instead of plastic bags when freezing homemade broth.


2. Eventually, I'll get around to organizing our pantry... and apparently, this is the best way to store our spices. Thoughts?


3. I'm super tempted to believe the hype and to shell out money for this pan.


4. We've been doing most of these things ever since I adopted the belief that less is more. Check out the list if you're looking for simple ways to make your home more eco-friendly.


5. This list of books to read in honor of Women's History Month is great for our budding young reader and her little brother... because boys should hear stories about trailblazing women, too.


6. The public schools in our district are now closed until further notice and we're waiting to hear whether the kids' daycare will also have to close. In case it does, I'm bookmarking activities like these so we have ways to keep them busy while they're home.

And here's something slightly longer than a tidbit...

My 40 Before 40 list inspired me to hire a financial planner. She's been absolutely amazing so far in helping me take an honest look at my current financial situation while also looking at the financial goals I've identified as important. 

She's really listened to me and has gone above and beyond in terms of understanding my priorities... which is why I took a leap and knocked off one of my financial goals for 2020 -- pay off my credit card. 

I had intended on paying down that balance over the course of the year, so it felt more manageable. But I was paying a ridiculous amount of money toward the interest rather than the principal. My financial advisor showed me it was better to wipe that debt as soon as possible... so I did. As of yesterday, I no longer have credit debt!

(I'm not including the credit cards that I use but pay off each week because those cards effectively have zero balances.)

It feels great to take control of my finances and to be in a place where I can achieve financial goals ahead of schedule. For me, someone who's always worried about money, to say that means everything.

Thanks for reading and have a great weekend, everyone!

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One year ago: When You Have Cold Feet {or Must-Have Women's Slippers}
Two years ago: Our Monthly Dinner Plan (March)
Three years ago: Menu Plan: March 12 - March 18
Four years ago: How To: Make and Freeze Homemade Baby Food {Sweet Potato Purée}
Five years ago: 33 Ways to Cook Pork {Recipe Round-Up}
Six years ago: Stuffed Mushrooms with Sausage and Crab Meat
Seven years ago: Menu Plan: March 10 - March 16
Eight years ago: Cream-Style Corn Chowder
Nine years ago: Gordon Ramsay Knows His Risotto
Ten years ago: How To: Scramble Eggs
Eleven years ago: Cinnamon Pecan Swirl Cookies

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