This morning I had a moment of panic when I saw that I had no internet service. I was planning to pay my property tax today online and it was close to the due date. But I went through the troubleshooting steps to reconnect and it worked. I paid the tax ($572) with no fee, yay! (Those who pay by credit card have to pay a fee.) I was having visions of having to take a check downtown -- it wasn't pretty!

I looks like I may have to transfer $60 from savings to pay this month's bills, but that is much better than I was expecting.

Yesterday was a bit spendy. I bought the socks I wanted - $66 for four pairs of FIT socks. Really pricey, but to me, they are worth it. And my socks have been wearing out on me fast lately. I am excited about getting to put on a pair today!

Then I went to Sam's and spent $40 on toilet paper and detergent.

By then it was near time to pick up my grandson and I hadn't eaten anything, so I stopped at McDonalds for a breakfast sandwich - $5.

So, with that little splurge, I am already up to 20% on variables. I didn't have much in extra funds to add this month, so I am working with a smaller amount. However, I did deposit almost $971 from refunds into savings, so overall I am doing fine.

I have a mystery shop to do today. It's an evening restaurant shop, and I may take the grandsons along, as it's a place they really like. That would mean I wouldn't earn anything, but it would be a really cheap way to treat them.

Tomorrow I have a house calls appointment -- wellness visit from UnitedHealthcare. After that's done, I'll head to Indiana to visit BFF. I hope the weather cooperates -- it sounds like I may have to deal with snow.

Boy, I was really sick yesterday! After saying I thought it was just food sensitivity, I started running a fever and ... well, I won't share the gory details, but it was awful.

And today I'm okay, so it was apparently just a 24-hour bug.

Today is pay day. I've paid the mortgage and scheduled my credit card payments.

Here is how last month shook out:

Housing: 1145
Car Repair/Maintenance: 234
Utilities: 186
Groceries: 145
Phone: 103
Gifts/Charity: 91
Eating Out: 68
Gas: 59
Entertainment: 47
Vet/Pet Supplies: 45
Medical/Health: 41
Laundry: 21
Personal: 16
Fees/Services: 1

Grand Total: 2202

Since this was a long pay cycle, I had to pay the assessment fee and phone bill twice. That will all even out. Everything else is pretty much in line. The groceries were a little high, but they were super low last month and I had some stocking up to do.

I'm planning on getting to the gym today (but I will take it easy). I also want to go downtown and buy some quality socks at an outdoor outfitter. I have a coupon that has to be used by tomorrow.

As soon as my social security deposit changes from pending to deposited I will pay my property tax.

I took my car to the body shop yesterday. As it often happens, there was more damage than was apparent to the eye. So I will be going through insurance and will be paying the $500 deductible. Since I am planning to visit BFF this weekend, I won't actually take it in until next Tuesday, which is also better timing for the body shop, which is a very busy place.

After my consultation with them, I went to get my emissions test done because the site was very close by. I passed. This means I can renew my license plate with no problem come June.

Then I went and got my tank filled for $23. That puts my variables at 83%. I very much doubt that I will spend anything today, and pay day is tomorrow.

I had a very bad, sleepless night and this morning I had very bad diarrhea. I don't feel sick otherwise; I believe I am reacting to something I ate. I will throw away anything I ate yesterday, which unfortunately includes about a cup of homemade chicken salad which was very good!

My second day of movie-watching was much cheaper than the first. I stayed home. I watched "Roma" on Netflix for free, and I watched "BlacKkKlansman" on Amazon Prime for $5.99. I didn't have to go out and brave the strong winds that were embattling the whole area.

It is more fun to go out and see movies on the big screen. The viewing experience is much richer, I think. And it gets me out among people. I wouldn't want to stay in all the time. But it worked for me yesterday, except that I had to re-start "BlacKkKlansman" four times due to power blips. (That wind!)

Today I am going to go visit a body shop to get an estimate on replacing my bumper. I am sure they will have to order the piece and the actual repair will fall into next month's pay cycle.

In addition to the movie rental cost, I paid another $1.50 to wash a quilt that Iggy threw up on. Variables are at 79%, with only two days to go.

I treated myself to two movies yesterday -- Bohemian Rhapsody and Vice. $17. Very different from each other and both good. I also spent $18 on lunch and snacks. Yikes! But it was a fun day.

I also made it to the gym and to the library.

Today I'm seeing "Roma" and "BlacKkKlansman." I will try to avoid buying food today. I should be able to do that because there is a bigger break between the two movie showings.

Variables are at 78% with 3 days to go.

I'll probably have to get gas today as well.

We are experiencing very high winds today. I can hear it rattling the windows. I'll bundle up! Thank goodness, most of the snow has melted and parking is much easier.

DS & DIL woke me up last night around 1 am. I was done! My last day was a little rough. My hip was hurting bad and I was very tired. I had to lie down a lot, but I got through it. The boys are allowed to play videogames on weekends, starting on Friday, so they were very happily entertaining themselves. When suppertime came, I told them I didn't feel good enough to cross the street and make supper at my house, so we worked together and made a kid-pleasing dinner of fish sticks and mac & cheese.

Part of what made me so tired was doing four loads of laundry, which involves taking a lot of stairs. The cost was $6. That was my only spending.

Because of the babysitting, I missed out on the Oscar week deal at the local theater. But I can still pick up the only four movies I haven't seen yet -- "Black Klansman," "Bohemian Rhapsody," "Roma," and "Vice." For "Roma" I will have to go to adjacent suburb, but I heard it's worth it. I plan to do it. I love the Oscars -- it's my Superbowl!

I will call a body shop about my car on Monday. A suggestion was made (a good one) that I order the part online and do it myself, with the help of my son and YouTube. However, the part is a BIG one -- it is the back bumper which goes across the back of the car and around the corners. And none of us are handy in that way, so I will bite the bullet. Probably use the EF rather than insurance -- I'd rather save insurance for claims for bigger problems than this....

DS & DIL will be home tonight. I am wrapping up my week with the boys. On tap for today: we will have a spaghetti dinner at my house with games afterward. I have DS' house clean and picked up right now, and I don't want to mess it up again.

I am planning to do three loads of laundry today, combining my own with the boys'.

No spending yesterday!

GS1's performance last night was great! When he and his duet partner were warming up, they ran through their piece in full, and got spontaneous applause from everyone there! I have to brag, he is so talented.

I have received $24 in fees and $33 in reimbursements from mystery shopping in the last few days.

Variables are at 71% with only five days to go. I'm just going to lay low the next few days. With property taxes, car repair, and a trip to Indiana coming up, next month will be a killer. Oh, and my subscription to ancestry.com will also hit my credit card. I'm not ready to give that up yet.

Last night we had music lessons. I was planning on making chicken sliders for a quick dinner, but decided instead on hot dogs, which were even faster. We also had fruit.

While I was off duty I stopped at Aldi's and spent $3 on buns and bottled water.

Tonight GS1 is performing at his school -- it is a public performance prior to the solo & ensemble competition which will take place this Saturday. So it will be another night for a quick dinner. I think I'll make tuna melts.

And tomorrow, mom and dad come home! They won't arrive until almost midnight, so it will be a full day, but even though things have been going very well, I think we will all be happy to see them, and get back to normal.

Now, bad money news. I discovered a big crack in my fender yesterday, and I think it will have to replaced. I did scrape a pillar in a parking garage last week, but I thought there was no damage. Maybe I didn't notice the back, since I was focused on the side. Or maybe this happened in a parking lot, or on the street, where parallel parking is a collision course. I don't know. But it's got to be fixed. My guess is it wouldn't be worth going through insurance, though I'm not really up to date on how much a fender costs. I don't want to drive up the cost of my insurance -- it's high enough already.

I got the boys to school a little late today. I could not get them to move it! Not a good morning. A fresh blanket of snow didn't help matters any. GS1 slipped and fell -- he was okay but concerned for his violin. Then the car had to be cleaned off after being totally clean yesterday.

My nachos dinner last night was pretty funny. I had brought some frozen taco meat from home, and bought a can of nacho sauce ($2). Well, the taco meat turned out to be something else -- I don't know what! Something that's been in the freezer so long I can't remember making it. Perhaps one of those refrigerator-soup experiments.

So I served the nachos without meat. The next challenge was the cheese sauce. I couldn't open the can! They have a can opener, but it's a different type than mine and I couldn't figure it out at all. The boys couldn't either. So I ended up using a bottle opener all the way around and peeling the lid off. Got it done, but what a mess. The nachos were just chips, cheese sauce, salsa and sour cream. The boys didn't seem to mind.

Today we have to go to music lessons after school. We'll get home around six. I'm planning to make a quick meal of chicken sliders with cooked chicken slices and Hawaiian rolls. I'll find something in their fridge to serve with them -- maybe applesauce or yogurt.

My hip hurt terribly last night and I took an extra Celebrex. I slept for about six hours, then woke up at three and suffered some more until it was time to get up at 7:30. I'm really looking forward to getting this fixed.

Well, I got the boys off to school and now I'm home. It felt good to take a shower in my own place. I'm cooking some chicken now, which I will use tomorrow. The menu for the week keeps changing. Last night GS1 wanted to make pancakes for dinner, so he did, and he did a great job! Tonight I'm going to make nachos, because they have a whole bag of tortilla chips to be used up. I will supply the taco meat and salsa -- they have cheese and sour cream. I think I will pick up a can of nacho sauce when I go to the gym today.

Tomorrow I will use the chicken for chicken sliders. We'll be coming home from music lessons and so will need a quick-to-prepare meal.

DIL called last night and shared the news that GS1 made the baseball travel team, and so they will be traveling to Cooperstown this summer for a tournament. I have said that I will go, but now I need to be realistic and bow out. I'm not going to be able to afford that. Any traveling I do must be to Florida to visit my son's family there, whom I have not seen in more than a year now. And I will probably do that in September, when I my income will rise.

I spent $3 this morning on donuts. It is apparently an expectation to get donuts on the way to school if time permits. They had already eaten oatmeal -- oh well. Maybe tomorrow I won't rush them so much!

I have two more hours at home and then I'll go to the gym (and store) and from there pick up the boys. And I'll be back on duty again till tomorrow morning. I slept better last night, and I hope that continues.

DS and DIL will return on Friday, after we have all gone to bed. I'm enjoying my time with boys, but I will also be glad to rest and relax!

I slept at DS' house last night (not so well) and today is the first day of boy-watching. All going well so far. We had breakfast burritos, and there is a ton of leftover pizza for lunch. I may just do most of the meal prep here, as their fridge is loaded. I threw out 3 zucchini this morning, and there are bananas going bad. I'll make banana bread, but I'll probably do that at home while they're in school. No school today.

It's snowing like crazy! The only thing on tap for today is Tae Kwan Do, but I'm going to check to make sure it's not cancelled.

Here is all the food I have on hand. I have to feed myself and two boys for five nights, dinners only. I don't want to buy anything, but I can augment from the food store at my son's house.

Freezer

Bread crumbs
Bread
Hawaiian rolls
1 bun
Rice
Chicken breasts
Cooked ground beef
Sausage biscuits
Beef taco filling
Peas
Asparagus
Green Beans
Blueberries
Tomatoes
Peppers
Mixed Berry Smoothie
Ice Cream


Fridge

Butter
BBQ Sauce
Horseradish Sauce
Soy Sauce
Worcestershire Sauce
Taco Sauce
Salsa
Dijon Mustard
Yellow Mustard
Mayonnaise
Sweet Relish
Kosher Spears
Dill Hamburger Chips
Sweet Gherkins
Olives
Poppyseed Dressing
Ranch Dressing
Blueberry Jam
Minced Garlic
Chocolate Syrup
Biscuits
Crescent Rolls
Creamer
Beef & Chicken Soup Base
2 tortillas
Eggs
Almond Milk
Coffee
Cheese Spread
Stewed Apples
Carrots

Pantry

Baking Supplies (Powder, Soda, Salt, Cornstarch)
Flour
Sugar
Brown Sugar
Powdered Sugar
Old-fashioned Oatmeal
Granola
Raisins
Cranberries
Powdered Milk
Penne
Spaghetti
Egg Noodles
Chow Mein Noodles
Red Lobster Roll Mix
Crackers
Canola Oil
Olive Oil
White Wine Vinegar
White Vinegar
Apple Cider Vinegar
Maple Syrup
Honey
Peanut Butter
Tuna
Butter Spray
Walnuts
Popcorn
Cocoa
Lemonade Mix
Girl Scout Cookies

I am planning on making a chicken pot pie, making the sauce from a white sauce and using peas, carrots and green beans (as well as chicken of course!) in the filling -- biscuits on top.

I will use the ground beef to make Sloppy Joe sliders, using up the BBQ sauce. I will grind up some carrots for crunch and use the Hawaiian rolls as buns.

I will make tuna melts from the tuna, crescent rolls and mayo, using some cheese from DS' house.

I feel like I could do something with the taco filling, though I only have about a cup and half. I'm wondering if I mixed it with salsa and taco sauce, to make it wetter, and combine it with the penne or the egg noodles to make kind of a Mexican pasta dish -- would that taste good or weird?

Does anything else jump out at you?

Yesterday was a no-spend day, other than running a load of laundry. Iggy threw up on his quilt, so I washed it along with towels, bathmat, etc.

Oh yes, I did spend .98 at a restaurant, which was the amount over the reimbursement I will get for the meal.

I went over to DS' to get the rundown on what to do this coming week. I now have a detailed daily schedule. I'm going to go over this evening to spend the night. Tomorrow is President's Day, so I'll just stay there with the boys all day. The rest of the week, I will go home while they are in school, so I can do my laundry, cook meals, feed the pets, etc. It will be tiring, but I think it will also be fun.

My girl scout cookies came yesterday! Yum!

DS gave me $40 yesterday to get the boys' hair cut. The actual cost with tip was $32.50. I applied the balance to lunch afterwards at one of their favorite places, a mom-and-pop frozen yogurt shop that also serves lunch. The lunch was $18 out of pocket, because, of course, we all got dessert.

Today I need to get to the gym, and I have a mystery shop to do -- free lunch.

I struck a deal with DS that he will stock the house with breakfast food and pay for hot lunches at school. I will provide dinners, which I will make at home, but may use some stuff from their fridge/freezer. I do not plan to ask for reimbursements for anything I happen to buy, because I think I am mostly well-stocked.

I'll get an activities calendar from him today. He leaves some time on Sunday.

I'm feeling a little unsettled about the murder spree in Aurora. Aurora is not particularly close to me, but I know some people who work there at the university, and it hits home. It's just so depressing that this keeps happening over and over and it seems like we can do nothing about it.

I'll be taking the boys to get their haircuts later today, but DS will pay. I was planning to watch them all day, but DS' work appointment was cancelled.

It turns out Monday is a school holiday, so I'll have them all day. And for the rest of the week, I'll be with them all night and after school. I'll come home while they're in school to get things done, including making our supper.

I'm going to go through the fridge & freezer today and make some plans for dinners next week. I know I have a bag of chicken breasts and a pound of cooked ground beef; I'm thinking I can do a lot with that if I have the right ingredients. I have a can of tuna, too, but I'm not sure if the boys will eat tuna salad.

I found a Starbuck's gift card yesterday, but when I looked it up, it wasn't worth anything. So someone probably just dropped it on the street, rather than bothering to throw it away. Darn!

BFF is asking me to come visit the first weekend in March. It will be a nice respite after a week of childcare!

This morning I paid $5 for medical professional services not covered by insurance. Probably lab work. Last night I bought the boys dinner at McDonalds for $7. Variables are at 67%.

I talked a little with DS about the cost of feeding the boys next week, while he and DIL are vacationing in Mexico. He proposed working up a grocery list and buying supplies himself. I've been thinking about it, and I think it will work best if I just give him receipts at the end and get reimbursed. I will feed them dinner at my house and I'll use some of my food. But I'll feed them breakfast at their house (I'll sleep over). I'm pretty sure I'll just take them out for dinner on music lesson day, as I'll be tied up all afternoon.

And we have to talk about lunch. I think GS1 buys lunch and GS2 takes a lunch, but I'll have to find out for sure. Anyway, I think it's all going to be quite fluid, and getting reimbursed will be the easiest way to be accurate.

DS is leaving Sunday night and the two of them will be back on Friday, so it's really only five days.

Today it's just a pickup day, but tomorrow the boys are out of school, and DS has to work, so I'll have them from around 9 to 4. So I'll push back my gym day to Saturday. I have a mystery shop on Saturday, too.

My socks are wearing out like crazy! I wanted to wait till gap year is over to get some new ones, but I got a coupon for Buy 3/Get 4th Free at a local outdoor outfitter. So after pay day I will probably take advantage of that.

New underwear is also needed, but I can wait on that.

Oh, update on the belt -- I found one at home that will work. Even though it's a little short, it does buckle. Free is even better than Goodwill.

It was a bit of a spendy day yesterday. I got my $16 haircut and I spent $21 on valentine cards and candy. I also slipped two ten dollar bills into the valentines that went to Florida, and I'll do the same for the boys here.

I need a belt, and I went to Goodwill to see if they had one. There were belts, but none long enough. I guess I'll look on Amazon.

Variables are at 64% with two weeks to go.

On the frugal side, I got a free breakfast at Planet Fitness, and I used my leftovers from the free dinner the other night to make a stirfry that was pretty great! I used my Instant Pot to make rice. I had three cups of rice, which made six cups, so I've got a lot of rice in the freezer. Now I'm figuring out that I should have frozen it in smaller packages for ease of use, but, oh well.

Today I'm picking the boys up after school and taking them to music lessons. I have the morning free, and I'm going to read like crazy so I can return a library book on time!

Weather-wise, we had another big drop in temperature. Yesterday was slushy, so I hope my car isn't frozen in place. I'm pretty tired of winter.

I made it to the dealer right on time, and the appointment took about an hour and a half. I knew it wouldn't be a bargain, but I did not expect that it would be $228.

It was not just an oil change, of course, but a maintenance visit. They inspected and cleaned the brakes, tightened the tie rods, checked the steering box and boots, brake lines, hoses and ABS system, topped off fluid levels, checked exhaust system and fuel lines, and rotated tires.

In addition, they found I needed to replace the cabin air filter, which I approved.

They gave me a couple of discounts which amounted to $24.

I also got an inspection which showed that, with the exception of the cabin filter, my interior/exterior, battery, engine, undercarriage and tires were all good.

This was the first full inspection I've gotten since I bought the car, so I feel pretty good about getting it done, and coming in with good marks.

I can't cash-flow that amount this month, so it will come out of the EF.

In other news, we got hit with another ice storm, but once again it looks like my particular area fared pretty well. I have power, and we got a little bit of snow rather than ice.

I'm due for a haircut, and I will try to get that done today. I also need to pick up some valentines for the grandkids.

About halfway into gap year (which is actually a little more than a year) -- and everything is going well so far. The surgery in April, of course, will be a blip on the budget, but it has to be done. One never looks forward to surgery, but I am looking forward to getting rid of the pain! My biggest expenses will be the hospital stay ($300 a day) and the physical therapy ($45 a pop). I am hoping I will have only one day in the hospital. As for the physical therapy, my experience has been that I won't be billed until the end, and by then I should be very close to being done with gap year.

I made my oil change appointment for 8 am. What was I thinking? I'm not used to getting up early any more. Add to that, I was so worried about whether I would get up on time, that I did not sleep well at all.

Snow was falling yesterday, so I'm going to have to clean off my car before I go. Hope it's just snow, and not snow with a layer of ice underneath.

Yesterday was a no-spend day. I mostly read and watched Netflix. It was really relaxing. I did do one load of laundry.

Last night I met DS and grandsons at a restaurant for dinner, and as I was driving I noticed that the oil life percentage displayed on my dashboard slipped from 10 to 5. I panicked a bit and decided I would go to Jiffy Lube when it opened this morning. But after looking up Honda maintenance codes online this morning, I realized that the 5 only means it is time to get it done, but not past time. I also have a B1 code showing, which means tire rotation and oil filter replacement. I decided I will wait till Monday and take it to the Honda dealer and get established with them as a customer. I made an appointment online for 8 am.

My dinner last night did not cost me anything; I was treated. AND, I brought home enough leftovers for a full meal today.

I filled up the tank yesterday for $16. It was only down about 60-70%, but I do not like to let the gas get low in winter, especially a cold and unpredictable winter like this one.

So today I'm just going to take it easy at home.

DIL left for Mexico yesterday, so I am on call to help with the boys if DS needs it. Not very likely, since he is a great dad -- I will probably just do the usual pickup after school. The following week, when he goes to Mexico to join DIL for a little vacation, will be the challenging one for me. I'm going to essentially move in with the boys. I expect I will be very tired after that week is done!

Except for walking across the street to babysit, I stayed inside all day yesterday. Today it is a bit warmer, but still cold. I plan to get out anyway and hit the gym and get some gas. I also need to get an oil change, but I'm not going to try it on a Saturday, so that will be deferred till Monday.

You tax experts out there -- I realized yesterday that I forgot to claim some income. I closed my old Sharebuilder account last summer, and just yesterday I got notification that my 1099 was ready. I really, truly forgot about this. The income is about $171. My federal and state income are already filed and I already got my federal refund. What do I do? I looked at the TaxAct site (which I used for filing), and it recommended waiting till all refunds are made before filing an amendment. But is an amendment necessary for this amount? My income is very low and I don't think this small amount will actually affect my tax bracket. Anyway, I want to do the right thing.

The temperature plunged again, so I decided to stay inside today rather than do my planned errands -- gym, gas station, oil change. But it turns out GS2 is still stick, so I will go over there. DIL promises it will only be a few hours today.

I got my refund yesterday! I think that was the fastest return ever! I moved $500 of it to savings, and the rest is going to stay in checking to cover the property tax, when it comes due in early March.

My granddaughter is a Daisy scout and she is selling Girl Scout cookies for the first time ever. I decided I could afford to spend $30, so I ordered them on her web site. Nice that a grandma in Illinois can buy cookies from a granddaughter in Florida and get them delivered!

Variables are at 48% with two and half weeks to go. But getting the refund has made me worry less.

GS2 is not well enough to go to school today, so I am staying with him.

Yesterday was a long day for all of us. There was a half day of school, so I babysat from noon to 3:30, when I took the boys to music lessons. In the process, I picked up another boy who's working on a duet with GS1. Lessons lasted until 5:30, so it was about six when I got home.

I didn't spend any money. I made tacos at home for lunch and had snacks in the car for later. I was planning on going to the gym today, but I guess I'll get that done tomorrow. If everyone is well!

Yesterday was a pretty calm day, and I felt much better than I did the day before. I rested in the morning, and in the afternoon I picked up GS2. He wanted to play at the schoolyard for a while, but it was a little cold for me to sit outside, so I waited in the car while he played. After about twenty minutes he came to the car with a friend of his. The friend's mother had not yet picked him up, so I let him use my phone. Turned out he was supposed to be at orchestra, and he had forgotten. Since it was really too late to get much done in orchestra, I offered to drive him home. His mom was grateful.

We had a much-hyped ice storm last night, but I think it affected areas more to the north and west than it did here. I have power and the view from the window tells me there is no ice buildup on cars or wires. I am relieved, as I did not want to chip ice off the car, nor drive to music lessons (in another suburb) on icy roads.

No spending yesterday. Variables are at 43% with three weeks to go. I still have to get an oil change and a haircut in this pay period, and I will need to fill the gas tank soon. I am going through my money pretty fast this month, so I need to watch it a bit.

I started out so tired yesterday, coming off a short night's sleep. I had things to do, however -- a trip to the gym, and then to Sam's, where I bought kitty litter ($14) and groceries ($16). Then I came home to get ready for a mystery shop, which involved a preliminary phone call. On the phone call, I got some odd responses, so I contacted my scheduler to see if I should actually proceed with the shop. He said no, so I was free of that obligation. So I did a load of laundry, and I was just settling down to take a nap, when DIL texted me. She needed help with boys and their schedules -- DS was traveling for work and she was having to work extra hours. I ended up babysitting and chauffeuring until 8:30 pm and I was exhausted when I got home.

I thought I would fall asleep quickly, but my hip was hurting bad and I couldn't get ahead of the pain. I know I was awake until well after midnight. I did sleep until 9 this morning, and I feel better, but I'm going to take it real easy today. However, I still have normal child care duty to do today, and tomorrow will be another long day, with music lessons taking place after school. DS will be incapacitated with oral surgery, and DIL will be tending to him.

My hip pain is getting worse and the surgery won't happen until April 2. I'm going to have to be more aggressive with pain management, but I hate to do anything that might compromise my kidneys. Uh. Old age.

In better news, I got $5 from SaverLife yesterday for promising to save a portion of my expected tax refund. I was, of course, going to do that anyway, but it was nice to get a little boost. Thanks to Patient Saver for recommending the SaverLife site!

Had a quiet no-spending day yesterday. Today I am heading out to the gym, after which I will go to Sam's to get kitty litter. I need to do a load of laundry, and I am committed to doing a mystery shop in the afternoon.

I made an awesome meatloaf yesterday -- I think it is the best I've ever made! Here is the recipe link: https://www.thewholesomedish.com/the-best-classic-meatloaf/

I checked out my football pool and I see that I owe .67. Hmmmm.

Yesterday's spending was $29 for aquarium filters, which I ordered from Amazon. I am going through them more quickly now. My pleco is getting so big, and he poops a lot!

Variables are 37%.

Tomorrow I need to get some kitty litter, probably at Sam's.

No plans for today unless the kids invite me over for the game. They may just be getting together with friends, which is fine -- I am not a football fan.

It's going to get up in the 40's today, and that is so welcome! I don't even care that it is going to rain.

Last night BFF texted me that dense, freezing fog and slippery roads were predicted for her area. I double-checked this morning and decided that I would rather forgo the trip than take the chance of an accident, or a stressful trip. I woke up not feeling very well, anyway. So I'll have to make that trip another time.

I put in some laundry this morning. The ceiling light was out, so I was making do with the dim light from the windows, pretty much feeling my way around. I'm still not sure whether I set the dryer for permanent press because I couldn't see the dial!

Yesterday's mystery shopping earned me $11 plus a free meal and $6 worth of groceries. CCF asked me in a comment if I had reported on my year-end income from mystery shopping. I answered her, but I'll answer here, too. I earned $495 in fees and $742 in reimbursements. Some of it was awarded in 2019, though, even though it was earned in 2018.

The reimbursements were a mixed bag -- meals, groceries, some clothing, oil changes -- as well as useless things like valet service, down payment on storage space not used, items bought and returned, etc.

All in all, it's no way to make a living, but it's good for providing a few extra dollars to make things a little easier. I probably won't continue with it after my Social Security benefit goes up, because it is a lot of work for the money.

As for yesterday's spending -- I spent $21 on groceries above the reimbursement, and $1 for my lunch above the reimbursement. I spent $1.50 on laundry, $1 on a library fine, and a whopping .25 on parking.

Variables are now at 33%.

Well, today is the day I have to come back to life, and shake off my snow day laziness. I should go to the gym, and I have two mystery shops to do, one out of town. I should catch up on laundry. But I am waking up hard and I don't know when I'm going to get going.

It snowed last night, so I'll have to clean off the car in order to go anywhere.

I made bread yesterday. Put one loaf in the freezer and the other I'll take to the kids.

Plans are on to go to Indiana tomorrow to visit BFF. It looks like roads will be good, if a little wet!