Tax Season is Over!!!!!!!!!!

This is my quote of the day to celebrate the end of my crazy work hours in making sure everyone is filing their tax returns with the government. I hope you have gotten your tax return done! 

“The best things in life are free, but sooner or later the government will find a way to tax them.” - Unknown

I think I found a loop hole to this in my post Free Feels Good.

Happy Earth Day Challenge

Happy Earth Day everyone! 

(Picture take from - http://fun-gall.blogspot.ca)

Your challenge today, fight to get earth recognized as a national statutory holiday! Okay, I am kidding, but wouldn't that be nice. My challenge to you is to do just one thing to change your routine that will be more environmentally friendly. Even if it is just this one day, every little bit helps.

Here are some ideas for you to try:

• If you always go to your nearest Tim Horton's on your way to work, bring yourself a travel mug instead of getting a paper cup. Better yet, make yourself a coffee at home or have one when you get to work.
• If you take the elevator every day to get to the office, take the stairs. You get the added bonus of a little extra exercise as well.
• Don't have a recycling bin in your office or workplace area? Take your lunch time recyclables home to recycle instead of the convenience of just tossing them away into the garbage.
• Reduce your reliance on unnecessary packaging. Bringing a sandwich to work? Put it into a reusable container instead of a Ziploc bag. 
• Buy in bulk instead of single serve packages that use way to much packaging just for added convenience. 
• Pick up the garbage you just step over on your walk into work every other day to help clean up your neighborhood. 
• Consider exercising outside instead of relying on hydro to power your workout inside the gym. 
• Always driving to work? Try public transit or bike to work. 

The list is endless. Find what fits best for you and spark the conversation with someone else. Earth Day is all about awareness and getting people to think about their surroundings. 

What would it be like in 10 years, 20 years, or 30 years, if we all just said, I am not going to be around for much longer, why do I need to recycle or think about the environment? Think about the second, third, fourth generation of your family... how do you want them to live?

Freedom 85

How many times have you said a sentence very similar to this, "Oh sorry I can't go, I am trying to stay on a budget to save some money". I am willing to bet.. not often enough!

Don't worry I have been there. Here is my story.. I moved out of my mom's house when I was 18 with my twin sister into a two bedroom apartment. We were living in this nice apartment without any furniture, so we go out and buy furniture and get some pieces from family and friends. All of that was planned and budgeted for. What we didn't think of was that first grocery store visit. The fridge and cupboards are completely bare, the ketchup, mustard and salt & pepper really add up. Next thing you know, first month, and you are over budget. And of course you need to enjoy your apartment and invite friends over and host parties. All I can say to that is, potlucks are a wallet saver! We found ourselves going to school and paving our own way. With only part time income and all the responsibility, life really adds up.

At the same time, I even found myself shopping to relieve stresses at school which also helped to rack up the bills. I always used the excuse that I needed clothes for work. I was going to be starting a career as a professional right?!

In the end, I found myself with a maxed out student line of credit and a closet full of clothes worth nothing. Luckily, I got hired on at my internship full time right out of school and I could get started right away to just put all my money to pay off that line of credit I managed to rack up.

Wrong!

Then it becomes going out for lots of lunches with people at work, grabbing a couple drinks after work which always turned into dinner, going on regular date nights out paying $200++ for dinner because I was working so much during the week. Not that Mike would ever guilt me, but you as a woman, and ladies I know you know what I mean you feel the pressure/guilt to hang out with your man. The easiest answers, 'Let's go out to dinner and have a date night, we haven't seen each other all week. At the time, I thought I was living in style, eating at Canyon Creek on a regular enough basis that the waiters knew me by name! Don't get me wrong, it is absolutely delicious, but a $200 meal every weekend is just not sustainable. Plus a nice bottle of wine to enjoy.

It wasn't until we started saving for our down payment that we finally snapped into reality and got our priorities straight. If working late a few nights extra a week meant getting into our home sooner and not going to that fancy restaurant, I was all for it. It no longer become a source of guilt, but a motivating factor to be able to own our home sooner.

Throughout all of that, I just paid off my student line of credit last year. That's 3 years after graduation with a full time job the entire time. That being said, i am happy it is over, but not so upset it took my that long to repay it. Over that period of time, I got used to living on a lower amount of cash in order to repay my loan. Now I am using that 'extra' money for savings.

I am  not telling you this story so you feel bad about me, but I want you to realize you have someone to relate to if you are in the same/similar transactions.

How does this relate to your personal situation? Do you want to share some of your experiences.

                                     Remember: We are a slave to debt, money gives us freedom. 

When you are old and grey, you don't want to have to be worrying about the bills piling up. According to national surveys, Canadians think they will be debt free within 10 to 15 years of the age group they are in. But reality shows, that people are carrying over $70,000 of debt into their 60's and the average age for people claiming bankruptcy is in their 50's. Do you want to be part of those statistics? 

See my earlier post on Creating your Household Budget for some help on your next steps to taking control of your finances. Dealing with the true numbers aren't always fun, but you need to face the reality of the past in order to own up to it and make the changes for the future.  

Today's Green Tip

Use a travel mug for beverages on the go.

Even if you want your daily Tim Horton's fix (it's a Canadian thing), bring a travel mug with you and help reduce the waste going into our landfills. Plus, it will keep your coffee warmer for longer. Not to mention, they usually charge you for the size below (ie. If your mug looks like it might fit a medium coffee but fits a large, they always charge for the medium).

Certain coffee shops offer discounts for those who bring their own mug:

• JJ Bean Coffee Roasters
• Starbucks 
• And most other local coffee shops

Comfort Food

When you are feeling stressed and a little run down, what is better than some comfort food?! So I set out to make the best Shepherd's pie ever.

Ingredients:

1lb ground beef
1 large onion, diced
4 large carrots, diced
1 cup frozen or fresh corn
1 teaspoon of dried thyme and fresh ground pepper
2 tablespoons of flour
1 tablespoon of butter
1 glass of red wine (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons of tomato paste
2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
1 cup of beef stock
Mashed potatoes for topping (about 8 cups) Peeled or not, whatever you prefer.
Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat over to 400 degrees F
2. Saute carrots for about a minute in oil, add in the onions for a minute and then add the ground beef, thyme, and cook until browned.
3. Drain excess fat from the pan.
4. Add butter and sprinkle with flour
5. Add tomato paste, wine and Worcestershire sauce. Cook until reduced slightly.
6. Add beef stock and corn. Allow to reduce down until you have a thick meaty gravy.
7. Remove from heat.
8. Grease an oven proof dish. I used two meatloaf pans. 
9. Add the meat sauce and top with mashed potatoes. I usually end up with about 2 inches of potatoes on top of the meat layer. 
10. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
11. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes are nicely browned.
12. Let sit for a couple minutes to cool down and enjoy. 

I consider myself a Shepherd's pie connoisseur and this is the best shepherds pie I have ever eaten. We also froze in an oven safe dish the meat layer for another night and it freezes very well. The next time you want to enjoy it you just make some nice freshly mashed potatoes and pop it in the over for 20 minutes. Plus when it is cooking you get the aroma of beef gravy and red wine, so delicious. 

Try the recipe and let me know what you think. Remember - you only needed a glass of wine for the recipe, and red wine is really only good the day you open it. So make it a night to sit down and relax with a glass of wine with dinner too. 

Today's Green Tip

Switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs. 

They are 75% more efficient than conventional light bulbs and one of the easiest ways to reduce your carbon footprint. Some people say, "I can't use those light bulbs, they are ugly." Well fact is, they have CFL lightbulbs now that look like a conventional light bulb. You will have to start using the CFL bulbs soon, conventional light bulbs are set to be phased out in 2014.

Today's Green Tip

Wash out bottles, cans and jars before recycling them. 

Leaving food remnants in your recyclables runs the risk of contaminating the rest of the recycling, which may force the whole lot to be thrown out.

Tip - For those pesky peanut butter jars that don't seem to ever come clean. Fill it up with hot water, add a couple drops of dish soap (I use Dawn dish soap... of course) screw the lid back on and shake. Let that sit for a couple hours in the sink. When you go back, give it another shake and pour out the water, the jar will be recycling ready.