Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Loving the bills!

On arriving home from holidays there was the inevitable pile of mail to go through, including 2 bills.

I am thrilled to announce that neither were scary and one was a YIPPEE

Phone bill (includes home, 2 x mobile and internet) just as budgeted for... I aim for it to be $16__'something' and it was $167.93.
This represents a savings of about $50 a month on our old plans.

The YIPPEE award goes to the GAS BILL.
We've been extra careful here with heating and this bill came in at an average of $3.42 per day. I wasn't overly thrilled with that till I dug out a bill for the same period in another year. When we were averaging $6.02 PER DAY for gas.
On this one bill that's a savings of $158.00 and there will be one more in the same season... so we're looking at saving over $300 in the year on our gas bill alone.

This little chickadee is happy to have the heating off at night and put up with cooler days if that's what it turns into!

On those two bills alone, we are $900 tax free dollars ahead each year! That's like getting a $1200 pay rise. Gotta love when simplifying life has such measurable results.

(Having said that, the warmer weather in Qld was wonderful and I am going to have to force myself to wear extra clothes and keep the heating low tomorrow!!)

Stay Tuned for Photo's

We arrived back from our holiday this afternoon - it was a wonderful time away. Stay tuned for photo's, the camera is yet to be unpacked.

The children are all bathed... I'm going to be locking myself in the bathroom before bed... and now they're in bed. A little excited as it's Melinda's 7th birthday tomorrow which seems to be more than enough to take the sting off the end of the holiday!

We spent a day at Dreamworld - a picture perfect day at that as we all behaved beautifully and just had a lovely lovely day enjoying the entertainment, the weather and each other.
Timothy was hilarious. Looking really suspicious when Pete took him on the first ride (slow flying blues clues) but hey - he loved it and burst into tears when it was time to get off!
That was followed by the merry go round (my turn), spinning tea cups (pete again) and then onto rides for older kids. Melinda and Nj did love the toddler rides though.
Pete and Nj took a 'dodgem car' for a spin - what are the called nowadays?
Then it was the sponge-bob square pants flying ride. Melinda and Nj needed persuading for this one but once convinced loved it enough to ride twice in a row.
We got to the log ride and I got soaked, then the river rapids ride twice (Nj calls this the wippet wappits ride *grin*)
A train ride, a couple of food stops and I can't remember what else... and then Pete took M & Nj back the next day while I stayed at the appartment with Timothy.

We then had a couple of days to play in the pool etc, lunch with friends and then it was into seminar which Pete and I thoroughly enjoyed. We were blessed to have Pete's parents on the Gold Coast for their annual trip and they looked after the kids for 1/2 the seminar, reducing our need for paid babysitters.

Now it's time to get back into real life and I feel relaxed, refreshed and more focused than I have in a long time.

Pete is now working hard at assembling a bike for Melinda's birthday in the morning, so he's back into it all too. He does love an excuse to get the tools out, I must say!