THURSDAY Prudie Day

kvruns

Good morning!

kvruns

I'm starving today because DH brought home a milkshake yesterday bc he was cashing in birthday freebies and I had that around 2pm and felt gross and didn't eat the rest of the day. Trying to hold out until lunch but I have a meeting at 11 and not sure I'll make it. 

I struggle to do meaningful work between meetings because when I have an hour or less between them it isn't enough time to do more than answer some emails, but then the projects I need to work on get pushed further and further down the line. 

charlotte989875

Good morning! I had a meeting at 8:30 today so I’m already in need of more coffee. My Mom is playing records for the baby downstairs and he’s laughing and laughing. Covid sucks but this is the best silver lining. 

I ordered a new ski jacket last week and it arrived and it’s just a little too tight. I’m bummed because nothing seems to fit right since the baby even though I’ve lost all the weight. Does this happen to other folks??

kvruns

oh yes @charlotte989875 I weigh less now than I did pre-baby but stuff fits differently especially in the stomach/underwear area. It was never flat before but definitely just different especially the "mom pooch" area.

banana468

charlotte989875 said:

Good morning! I had a meeting at 8:30 today so I’m already in need of more coffee. My Mom is playing records for the baby downstairs and he’s laughing and laughing. Covid sucks but this is the best silver lining. 

I ordered a new ski jacket last week and it arrived and it’s just a little too tight. I’m bummed because nothing seems to fit right since the baby even though I’ve lost all the weight. Does this happen to other folks??

With some items definitely.  Your measurements may have changed even in your shoulders.  It happened with some of my items of clothing even though I'm now back at pre-baby. 

It's also SUPER fun with pants that previously stayed up that now won't with the perma-pooch. 

Casadena

charlotte989875 said:

Good morning! I had a meeting at 8:30 today so I’m already in need of more coffee. My Mom is playing records for the baby downstairs and he’s laughing and laughing. Covid sucks but this is the best silver lining. 

I ordered a new ski jacket last week and it arrived and it’s just a little too tight. I’m bummed because nothing seems to fit right since the baby even though I’ve lost all the weight. Does this happen to other folks??

I was literally complaining to H about this same thing this morning.  I weighed less after baby than before I was pregnant and my shape is definitely different even though i'm the same size.  It's so frustrating bc a lot of my clothes don't fit right, but i haven't figured out exactly what things will fit right. 

Obviously i'm pregnant again now so nothing fits anyway, but I totally feel your annoyance!  

Very blah today.  I slept hard but woke up feeling like i didn't sleep at all.  And my hands are really puffy which hurts.  The thought of eating a vegetable makes me want to puke, so i'm not overly surprised but it still doesn't feel good.  I'll have to figure out a way to trick myself into eating more veggies instead of eggs and cheese and carbs. 

banana468

I am BEAT. 

One of our dear friends stopped by (masked - as were we!) because he as his wife are moving her mom down to DC.   The wife's mom lives with her (the wife's) sister 20 miles away and they decided it makes more sense for mom to live closer to them in DC.  I'm not entirely sure what's going on but I think there's a mutual desire to help out mom who has great intentions but not the greatest skill set in life management.    Anyway, he stopped by because they're expecting and we are NOT so we have baby items that we're happy to pass on like a stroller, baby carrier and other stuff.   We talked until 11 at which point I was SUPER tired.   I'm dragging today. 

MissKittyDanger

charlotte989875 said:

Good morning! I had a meeting at 8:30 today so I’m already in need of more coffee. My Mom is playing records for the baby downstairs and he’s laughing and laughing. Covid sucks but this is the best silver lining. 

I ordered a new ski jacket last week and it arrived and it’s just a little too tight. I’m bummed because nothing seems to fit right since the baby even though I’ve lost all the weight. Does this happen to other folks??

I didn't breastfeed and nearly 3yrs later I'm down to mostly my prebaby weight but my boobs are still bigger. It pisses me t.f off because they don't seem bigger but they definitely are.

banana468

MissKittyDanger said:

charlotte989875 said:

Good morning! I had a meeting at 8:30 today so I’m already in need of more coffee. My Mom is playing records for the baby downstairs and he’s laughing and laughing. Covid sucks but this is the best silver lining. 

I ordered a new ski jacket last week and it arrived and it’s just a little too tight. I’m bummed because nothing seems to fit right since the baby even though I’ve lost all the weight. Does this happen to other folks??

I didn't breastfeed and nearly 3yrs later I'm down to mostly my prebaby weight but my boobs are still bigger. It pisses me t.f off because they don't seem bigger but they definitely are.

Wah!

Sorry - as a flat chested breastfeeding mom I found that mine went back to their IBT size and would have appreciated if some of that stayed! 

MissKittyDanger

banana468 said:

MissKittyDanger said:

charlotte989875 said:

Good morning! I had a meeting at 8:30 today so I’m already in need of more coffee. My Mom is playing records for the baby downstairs and he’s laughing and laughing. Covid sucks but this is the best silver lining. 

I ordered a new ski jacket last week and it arrived and it’s just a little too tight. I’m bummed because nothing seems to fit right since the baby even though I’ve lost all the weight. Does this happen to other folks??

I didn't breastfeed and nearly 3yrs later I'm down to mostly my prebaby weight but my boobs are still bigger. It pisses me t.f off because they don't seem bigger but they definitely are.

Wah!

Sorry - as a flat chested breastfeeding mom I found that mine went back to their IBT size and would have appreciated if some of that stayed! 

I accepted that they'd be slightly bigger, but before I was a 34B/32C {depending on bra}
Now I'm a fucking D
Nope. Please take some

charlotte989875

Thanks everyone, you’re definitely making me feel a lot better! It’s mostly my boobs and my hips that seem bigger but my waist is smaller? Maybe it’s the csection but I feel like I have less of a pouch than I did before? But my hips seems a lot wider (weird too given that he never dropped). I’m glad I’m back to prebaby weight but half of my stuff is still too tight. I feel justified in my running clothes buying because at least that fits! 

MyNameIsNot

I'm rough this morning. I found out last night that my sister's husband and kids have covid. My sis is already vaccinated and has had some experience with it in the ICU, so I am sure she knows what she is doing and will be safe. Still, I'm so stressed and worried for them, especially my little nephew. They also went to church with my parents Sunday, so I'm super worried about them also. So, sleepless night for me. Plus, I super hate feeling helpless, and there's really nothing I can do. 

So I'm sitting here with my anxiety and trying to buy gamestop stock to distract myself. 

charlotte989875

Oh no @MyNameIsNot that’s awful! All the good vibes that they have mild cases and everyone gets well soon. 

kvruns

hope everyone has a mild case and is OK @mynameisnot

missJeanLouise

@charlotte989875 if I ever get to a point where I am out of athlesuire, I'll let you know. 😉 But yes. None of my body is the same, I hate it so much. 


They have been asking me to come back to work temporarily to cover my trainer's wife while she is on maternity leave. I mentioned it to DH and he changed the subject so I need to decide if this is something I really want to do or not.

Nothing going on this weekend. I have sewing to do, laundry to put away, hopefully I will have the motivation to take DS out for a walk or something. I feel bad for him sometimes, his parents are so lazy.

short+sassy

Pretty good day!  But slow and boring, lol.

I was going to take a vacation day tomorrow, but decided not to.  I'm already taking the next Fri. off (Feb. 5th) for my typical labwork.  Plus, I have a side gig where I audit gas stations and they threw some bonuses on locations near my work to finish out the month.  So I picked up four of those to do by tomorrow.  They have to be done during daylight so I can only get one completed when I get off work today.  But Fridays are my half day, so I then I can knock out the other three.  That's a bonus $80 for coming to work (being near those locations) and I can save 4 hours of vacation for another time.  Win-win!

mrsconn23

I had to get into a bridesmaid's dress for my sister's wedding 7ish months after having DefConn.  I was pumping when I ordered it and then stopped before it came in, so I had a few body 'shifts' that made the alterations...interesting.  My feet also grew a whole damn size when I was pregnant, which was immensely irritating. 

It's sunny today!  YAY!  It's cold AF, but the sun helps everything.   

We had our scouts pack meeting via zoom last night.  The kids built 'genius kits', which each member of the pack donated a small item (think paper clips, pipe cleaners, cotton balls, clothespins, paper plates, etc.) and then they had to engineer something out of some or all of the things in the kit using only the items provided and glue/tape.  DefConn made a pontoon boat and won cubmaster's choice!  

Yay Thursday!  This week is moving along.  I have to work on Saturday, which sucks.  But I have a day and a half off next week and a hair appt to look forward to.  

Prudie coming up.  

MissKittyDanger

M & I had more discussion about kitchen, etc. It's probably be the only thing we'll be doing as an entirety basically. We're kind of accepting that since it'll be the only thing we're really doing as a whole, it's gonna be expensive.
Instead of depleting our savings, we're gonna split it with financing.
So if it's $7k, we'll pay $4k and finance the rest.

Still unsure if we'll do a separate line of credit or store card. If we do separate line of credit, at least we have it as back up? That way if something costs more than our credit card limit, we can just put on l.o.c
On top of that, I'd like to pay off my student loan. So we'll see what happens.

We've decided officially that our 2021 goal is the reduce debt and declutter.
Both have such a significant impact on us. Plus as we declutter, we can sell some stuff. Even though it won't be big prices, $50 is better than nothing.
Plus we have tax refunds coming. A little is better than nothing and after paying $10K in daycare costs, I friggen hope I get something lol

CharmedPam

Oh no @MyNameIsNot, hoping for mild conditions!
@charlotte989875, not a mother, but I’m in some plastics group on fb.  You’d be surprised at the amout of people who get mommy makeovers because of the body changes that occur. I think, from the discussions I read, people get things done and are hush hush about it.

Yesterday was national chocolate cake day. On my way home from work I picked up a sugar free box of mix/frosting.  M liked it too! My ex would complain about sugar free foods so it’s nice not to have to bake 2 things.  Or pick up two different items from the store.

One of my friends had an online norwex party.  I bought the mop, enviro cloth, glass cloth, dust mitt and make up remover cloths. I hear the cost will make up for itself in months from not having to buy cleaners.  I hope so! Anyone like norwex here?

ei34

Oh no, sending all the healthy vibes @MyNameIsNot
Youre not alone in having a different shape post-pregnancies @charlotte989875 it’s been a few years since I’ve even pregnant and things still fit funny.  
@Casadena from week 8 until week 14-15 alll I wanted were carbs and cheese, the more plain the better.  I couldn’t really stomach food until 2-3pm and by then a cheese quesadilla (meaning literally cheddar on a tortilla in the microwave...not my culinary peak!) was all I could tolerate.  Not my healthiest stretch by I made up for it in later weeks as far as balanced eating.  

Work has been crazy this week.  That’s all I got..

CharmedPam

@MissKittyDanger, yesterday for shits and giggles, I tallied up my kitchen costs.  I mean for everything. Even small trips to home depot and the money my parents paid for trips at home depot.
i was shocked at the total cost.  It’s over $10K for me. Appliances & plumbing (fridge/dishwasher) included.

for me, I took out some of my 401K to pay for it, plus a little on my credit cards. However... I had some unexpected plumbing costs and had to take out a line of credit for it.  They had their own 0% apr deal for 2 years. But, I’ll have good plumbing and finally be “up to code”.

i hear you on debt and money and loans and all that adult crap!
Edit because I initially typed 10m.  Ha!
also edit @MissKittyDanger my advise: go pro.  You probably are already, but after attempting this myself - very little was saved. Not enough to be worth doing it myself again.

short+sassy

@MyNameIsNot, I hope your sister's family is okay and that your parents test negative.  That's a lot to be worried about and my Ts and Ps are with you all.

@mrsconn23, my mom said her foot was a half size bigger after her pregnancy with me (I'm the oldest).

I forgot to mention some good news locally.  NOLA was above a 10% COVID positivity rate on/after T-giving and Xmas.  More restrictions were put in place.  But we've dropped back down to below 5% again.  Some of the restrictions were lifted, but they are keeping bars closed until after Mardi Gras (Feb. 16th).  I am so glad about that!

Dear World,

Assuming it is safe to do so, we would like to welcome you with open arms to celebrate Mardi Gras 2022 with us.  But for Mardi Gras 2021...GO AWAY.  Our parades are cancelled.  Our bars will be closed.  Nothing to see here.  Stay away from us.

Be Well,
The City of New Orleans

Casadena

ei34 said:

Oh no, sending all the healthy vibes @MyNameIsNot
Youre not alone in having a different shape post-pregnancies @charlotte989875 it’s been a few years since I’ve even pregnant and things still fit funny.  
@Casadena from week 8 until week 14-15 alll I wanted were carbs and cheese, the more plain the better.  I couldn’t really stomach food until 2-3pm and by then a cheese quesadilla (meaning literally cheddar on a tortilla in the microwave...not my culinary peak!) was all I could tolerate.  Not my healthiest stretch by I made up for it in later weeks as far as balanced eating.  

Work has been crazy this week.  That’s all I got..

I'm glad to hear someone else went through this!  I don't remember feeling quite so "healthy" averse last time, but hoping I can handle throwing some fruits and veggies in the mix soon

MissKittyDanger

@CharmedPam our fridge is 4yrs old and we got our stove mid-2020, so those won't be replaced.
We're going pro as M isn't that handy and I don't wanna help lol

levioosa

Sending good vibes @MyNameIsNot

MissKittyDanger

@Casadena MIL craved carbs for M! I didn't crave carbs with BK but pasta, rice, etc were one of the easiest things to stomach. And toast. I had to have toast right in the morning. Often with smoked salmon cream cheese, sometimes peanut butter

MissKittyDanger

ei34 said:

Oh no, sending all the healthy vibes @MyNameIsNot
Youre not alone in having a different shape post-pregnancies @charlotte989875 it’s been a few years since I’ve even pregnant and things still fit funny.  
@Casadena from week 8 until week 14-15 alll I wanted were carbs and cheese, the more plain the better.  I couldn’t really stomach food until 2-3pm and by then a cheese quesadilla (meaning literally cheddar on a tortilla in the microwave...not my culinary peak!) was all I could tolerate.  Not my healthiest stretch by I made up for it in later weeks as far as balanced eating.  

Work has been crazy this week.  That’s all I got..

LOL! I have made this many a time. Sometimes we'd put in celery and deli meat. This was prior to BK when I worked evenings most of the time

short+sassy

MissKittyDanger said:

M & I had more discussion about kitchen, etc. It's probably be the only thing we'll be doing as an entirety basically. We're kind of accepting that since it'll be the only thing we're really doing as a whole, it's gonna be expensive.
Instead of depleting our savings, we're gonna split it with financing.
So if it's $7k, we'll pay $4k and finance the rest.

Still unsure if we'll do a separate line of credit or store card. If we do separate line of credit, at least we have it as back up? That way if something costs more than our credit card limit, we can just put on l.o.c
On top of that, I'd like to pay off my student loan. So we'll see what happens.

We've decided officially that our 2021 goal is the reduce debt and declutter.
Both have such a significant impact on us. Plus as we declutter, we can sell some stuff. Even though it won't be big prices, $50 is better than nothing.
Plus we have tax refunds coming. A little is better than nothing and after paying $10K in daycare costs, I friggen hope I get something lol

Do you all have enough equity to potentially get a Home Equity Line of Credit?  If so, I think this will...by far...be your best option.  Here's how they work in the US and, while I'd assume it would be similar in Canada, I cannot attest to that.

--Depending on your credit score and income, you can typically get 80-90% of the equity in your home as the amount of the line.  You can also request less than that.  For example, if your house appraises at $130K and you owe $100K on it, then your equity is $30K.  You could potentially get a HELOC for at least $24K.

--A HELOC works a lot like a big credit card, except with a VASTLY lower interest rate and you can take out cash. It's not money you have borrowed.  It's money that is available for you to borrow.  And, as long as you don't have a balance, you don't pay any interest on it.  Interest rates on them are typically higher than an interest rate on a primary mortgage, but not by much.  For example the current interest rate on my HELOC is 5.3%.  But they can fluctuate.

--They are SO flexible.  If you have a balance, there is a minimum monthly payment.  But, other than that, you can borrow and pay down/off the line as much as you want.  And just as easily as you use a checking account.

--It is usually low fees to open and maintain a HELOC.  The most expensive thing you might have is that an appraisal is required.  But some banks will pay for the appraisal themselves.  My bank charged me a $250 fee because that is what Orleans parish charges to file the paperwork on their end.  However, they waived all of their own fees and also paid for my appraisal.  They also don't charge an annual fee for a HELOC, but some banks do (usually less than $250/year).

--It takes 4-6 weeks to close on a HELOC.

In a nutshell, I generally recommend that people who are eligible to open a HELOC, open one.  It's an instant rainy day fund that if you need a new kitchen or roof or the engine on a car dies, access to money to pay for those things is already there and it's cheaper money than a 'cc.   

MissKittyDanger

short+sassy said:

MissKittyDanger said:

M & I had more discussion about kitchen, etc. It's probably be the only thing we'll be doing as an entirety basically. We're kind of accepting that since it'll be the only thing we're really doing as a whole, it's gonna be expensive.
Instead of depleting our savings, we're gonna split it with financing.
So if it's $7k, we'll pay $4k and finance the rest.

Still unsure if we'll do a separate line of credit or store card. If we do separate line of credit, at least we have it as back up? That way if something costs more than our credit card limit, we can just put on l.o.c
On top of that, I'd like to pay off my student loan. So we'll see what happens.

We've decided officially that our 2021 goal is the reduce debt and declutter.
Both have such a significant impact on us. Plus as we declutter, we can sell some stuff. Even though it won't be big prices, $50 is better than nothing.
Plus we have tax refunds coming. A little is better than nothing and after paying $10K in daycare costs, I friggen hope I get something lol

Do you all have enough equity to potentially get a Home Equity Line of Credit?  If so, I think this will...by far...be your best option.  Here's how they work in the US and, while I'd assume it would be similar in Canada, I cannot attest to that.

--Depending on your credit score and income, you can typically get 80-90% of the equity in your home as the amount of the line.  You can also request less than that.  For example, if your house appraises at $130K and you owe $100K on it, then your equity is $30K.  You could potentially get a HELOC for at least $24K.

--A HELOC works a lot like a big credit card, except with a VASTLY lower interest rate and you can take out cash. It's not money you have borrowed.  It's money that is available for you to borrow.  And, as long as you don't have a balance, you don't pay any interest on it.  Interest rates on them are typically higher than an interest rate on a primary mortgage, but not by much.  For example the current interest rate on my HELOC is 5.3%.  But they can fluctuate.

--They are SO flexible.  If you have a balance, there is a minimum monthly payment.  But, other than that, you can borrow and pay down/off the line as much as you want.  And just as easily as you use a checking account.

--It is usually low fees to open and maintain a HELOC.  The most expensive thing you might have is that an appraisal is required.  But some banks will pay for the appraisal themselves.  My bank charged me a $250 fee because that is what Orleans parish charges to file the paperwork on their end.  However, they waived all of their own fees and also paid for my appraisal.  They also don't charge an annual fee for a HELOC, but some banks do (usually less than $250/year).

--It takes 4-6 weeks to close on a HELOC.

In a nutshell, I generally recommend that people who are eligible to open a HELOC, open one.  It's an instant rainy day fund that if you need a new kitchen or roof or the engine on a car dies, access to money to pay for those things is already there and it's cheaper money than a 'cc.   

SO! We are likely having to put a pin in this kitchen reno. Came back with a total of almost $12K
Arguably we have the money in savings BUT that would basically deplete it.

The store we're going with has a 12m no interest card, that we could easily pay off if it was $3,500 in a year.

Line of credit would be beneficial as it would be a back up to also pay down my student loan and our bathtub {which both I pay minimal amounts because easier}

We would have enough in our HELOC but we kind of want to avoid touching it .... I know this would be the perfect reason/time to - it's going back into the house! - but at the same time we're like "uhhh .... '

STARMOON44

My two cents is decluttering should come before going into debt to make improvements. Because when you truly really aggressively declutter and organize and clean and do everything you can to make your home look great using what you already have a) you’ll be surprised by what a difference it makes, b) you’ll better understand what you’d like to change, and c) you can use that time to save up more money. If you haven’t paid off your bathtub, you can’t afford a new kitchen yet and that is totally okay. 

kerbohl

CharmedPam said:

Oh no @MyNameIsNot, hoping for mild conditions!
@charlotte989875, not a mother, but I’m in some plastics group on fb.  You’d be surprised at the amout of people who get mommy makeovers because of the body changes that occur. I think, from the discussions I read, people get things done and are hush hush about it.

Yesterday was national chocolate cake day. On my way home from work I picked up a sugar free box of mix/frosting.  M liked it too! My ex would complain about sugar free foods so it’s nice not to have to bake 2 things.  Or pick up two different items from the store.

One of my friends had an online norwex party.  I bought the mop, enviro cloth, glass cloth, dust mitt and make up remover cloths. I hear the cost will make up for itself in months from not having to buy cleaners.  I hope so! Anyone like norwex here?

The cloths are amazing.  I use them for a lot.  My sister sold norwex briefly and I picked up a bunch of cloths.