I went up to see the kids and grandkids on Sunday. We went to an ice cream shop and Barnes & Noble. At the ice cream shop I got a free sundae. It was a promotional deal that my DIL had on her iPhone. I was the only one who could use it, however, because I was the only one who wanted a sundae with only one topping -- strawberries! It was a child-size sundae, but just right for me. Yes, it was a cheat on my low-carb diet, but a delicious one!

At Barnes & Noble I spent $30 on birthday gifts, a book and a game. I've learned not to pass up good gifts when I see them -- getting stuck at the last minute is a definite budget-buster. I am not taking these out of my $300 challenge because birthday gifts are planned, not incidental.

So I still have $64.

I did waste a lot of gas -- my son and I did some driving around looking for open houses and a comic book store for him. Then I made TWO wrong turns coming home. You'd think I'd know the way by now! The truth is, there are so many different routes, and I'm always looking for a better one, but it usually backfires.

I looked at a really nice condo yesterday. It is priced higher than I should pay, but I will ask my realtor if he thinks it is worth it to put in a low offer. It's in a vintage building in a lovely neighborhood, has an updated bathroom (whoo-hoo!) and ample closets, great wood floors, nice layout. The kitchen is fine, the bedroom small but fine, and once again a very nice dining room. Obviously the dining room was a very important room back in the 20's when all these vintage buildings were built! I like it. I've always lamented the disappearance of the dining room in newer housing.