Wordless Wednesday: Summer Reading List

Sayonara, Microwave!

After several years my microwave finally kicked the bucket last month and I couldn't have been happier! I've been trying to use the microwave less and less before its demise, maybe a lonely heart is what ultimately caused it to break.
Month later I noticed a small dip in my energy bill which is always a great plus. I mainly used the microwave for steamable veggies. Now that I am back on regular frozen vegetables, when I can't afford to buy it fresh, I noticed that I am wasting less than I did with steamables. Instead of having to cook up a whole bag I am able to get enough vegetables for 3 side dishes out of one bag of frozen. It allows me to stretch a buck even further, especially since compared to the steamables that are sometimes on sale for $1 each the frozen non-steam variety are usually $1 to begin with and contains more veggies!
My crockpot seems to be enjoying the extra counter space and even if I had the funds to get another microwave I doubt I would. I've been enjoying leftovers being re-heated and tasting like they did the night before :)

Crop Circle Sightings!

OK it looks more like a crop square ;)

Sometimes I have no notion of why my neighbors tilt and/or shake their heads when I'm doing yard work. Anyways when I'm doing something that is labor intensive, at least for my bones, and it just happens to be outdoors I try to make it fun so it goes by quicker and becomes less mundane over time. I haven't had a backyard since I was a child so my adult version of playing in it is making it the best I can with upkeep and weeding. This past week I decided to try to make circle-like squares to divide up the yard while running back and forth with the mower. It took about the same time it would otherwise so no damage time wise was done.
Any tips for making yardwork fun? One thing I love about pulling weeds is the feeling of accomplishment when/if they don't grow back :)

Gratitude Post

To stave off some writer's block I'm stealing participating in Let's Take the Metro's gratitude post extravanganza!

Five things that I am grateful for this week are the following:


1. The existence of sites like Indeed and SimplyHired that make my job searching so efficient

2. Dunkin's 99cent iced coffee deal. I'm almost broke but having at least a lil treat on the cheap makes me feel human still. I limit my coffee intake but during the summer months I love my iced goodness of deliciousness. I will continue to dig in my purse for change to support my addiction ;)

3. My vegetable garden. Though its not as mighty as I would have liked this year I am grateful for the plants that are blossoming into food that I will allow me to make healthy dishes for my family this summer.

4. That I was able to get Amazon credits from old games/dvds to buy my turtle's a years supply of food. Without the trade in credits I would have had to charge it on my credit card which I'm trying to use only for when my cash runs out in July/August (unless I get a job before then.) I'm sure my turtles are grateful too that they will have food every day.

5. That the resume paper I bought back in December still exists! I'm surprised I haven't run out of it yet and am grateful that for the jobs I do find that prefer a mailed copy of my resume and application that I'm able to do so.

Wordless Wednesday: Want vs. Need

Want!

Need

Positive Changes

Habitforge is an awesome site that I have recently rediscovered. I mainly used the site during the tail end of my graduate studies to help keep myself in check with multiple projects that I needed to complete in order to graduate.
Habitforge has a very simple concept, in order to form a positive habit it takes 21 days (in the least) to make it stick! The accountability method the site utilizes is sending an email everyday asking the user to answer yes or no if they did the habit the day prior. Answering no puts the clock back to square one which I personally love. It may be tempting to click yes if you accidentally forgot but then it will just make it all that harder to make the habit a reality.
I've been using it lately to ask myself the simple question "Did you journal for at least 10 minutes?" After graduating last May I let my writing habits slip and become almost nonexistent.

There are many little things that I want to instill in myself such as:

• Reading all labels on food items in the grocery store before buying them even if it's a brand I buy regularly
• Drinking more water
• Reading a novel once a month
• Making dishes using fresh produce only at least once a day

Are there any positive habits that you want to give a whirl?

Wordless Wednesday