Week of Money: Time to start saying ‘No’

DAY ONE

??:?? — I wake up and am excited because I am dropping Little Bun off and having the day to myself.

6:30 a.m. — Little Bun dressed, zero makeup, sunglasses and an outfit, I drop Little Bun off at preschool.

6:53 a.m. — Back home, I begin working after a cup of tea.

8:08 a.m. — I go out quickly to pick up a turkey meatball for my meal. I don’t know why but I LOVE this stuff. $4.59

8:10 p.m. — Time for some KitKat re-ups. I stash them in an old doctor’s bag and take one as prescribed… LOL.  $24.09

12:08 p.m. — Constant, constant calls and meetings.

1:45 p.m. — I finally get off the phone and go to eat my lunch, ignoring SEVEN CALLS, TEN MINUTES APART from my director (one of many)…

2:04 p.m. — Back to work. Not even a 15 minute break to eat. WTF. I email my partner to tell him to pick up the little animal at daycare today.

4:19 p.m. —  I finally log off. Got nothing for myself done today of course.

4:55 p.m. — I manage to schedule out about a week or so more in social media postings, and a post. I read this and laugh…

Oh and speaking of speaking Welsh, you can read about the 13 most surprising things about parenting in Wales — just trying to read out that one village name is giving me an appreciation for the language. O_o

5:12 p.m. — Little Bun and his father will be home soon. I log off from blog work and all kinds of work, and go to lie down and finish reading the rather (surprisingly) fascinating Cork Dork (about how a woman dives into the world of sommeliers).. which is surprisingly gripping. My eyes glaze over the grapes and varieties, or the names (I don’t drink) but the money and the process involved is fascinating.

5:45 p.m. — I scarf down my hastily prepared noodles while watching Top Chef (guilty pleasure as I eat) as they saunter in with bags of fruit.

6:35 p.m. — My partner gets to work fixing the curtains in the bedroom, and I wrangle Little Bun who manages to wheedle some video watching out of me. I set a time limit and let him watch it so I can take a break. Hmm.. I love these Purse Blog Confessionals. Hooked. Can’t stop reading.

7:00 p.m. — No more videos. We shut down and I go to lie down.

7:23 p.m. — I end up buying an amazing belt I see on Instagram. Ugh.. I hate how good I am at finding these amazing pieces. It’s the Isabel Marant Leece Belt…

And it also comes in black, but tan is more versatile for my wardrobe. $171.60 

I had seen it on this and KNEW it looked amazing and WOULD be amazing… I also found a new Instagram Style account to follow @jazy_g… her style is about 50% what I would like to wear (some of her stuff is too ripped / distressed or not my style).. but I generally like it all.

8:49 p.m. — Time for bed.

Spent: $200.28

DAY TWO

??:?? — Nosebleed last night. Not mine. You know who’s.

6:20 a.m. — I wake up happy. I get to drop Little Bun off again today and work remotely. This is great. No need to put on makeup, dress up… *sweet*

7:16 a.m. — Drop off done, I head to the grocery store for some seafood to add to my noodles today. I’m working on pack #2 of Prima Taste Laksa. (SO GOOD)… and I plan on drinking the broth and adding seafood to it. YESSS!!! I also pick up a bag of grapes to share with Little Bun (my partner doesn’t like modified grapes). $13.76

8:25 a.m. — Back at home, logged in, green tea down the hatch and I am working.

9:41 a.m. — I can’t seem to solve this issue. What is going on? I redo my math at least 3 times.

10:01 a.m. — I take a break and in the background watch the first (Pizza) episode on Netflix of Ugly Delicious hosted by David Chang, and am HOOKED!

12:28 p.m. — I’m pretty happy. I passed off two things to people and am leaving problems with them, and I am making an ally somewhere else in another department. A fellow comrade is always a good thing to have.

12:56 p.m. — I head out for a little break and LOVE my outfit. A classic Grana silk tank (review & referral here).. elevates everything.

Especially these shoes!!! I will be so sad when they die.

1:35 p.m. — Back home, and back to work.

4:04 p.m. — I make noodles.

4:12 p.m. — I hop on a call.

4:45 p.m. — Little Bun sails in through the door with his father just as I am hanging up. Phew. He hates it when I speak French.. :-\

5:25 p.m. — We eat a banana together, then share some grapes as a snack.

7:02 p.m. — I take out my contacts, my eyes are red and hurting. They need a rest from all this work.

7:06 p.m. — I mosey around the web but don’t do much. In the past 2 weeks I have been HUSTLING and creating posts to tide me over until I come back from Europe. I scheduled 30 posts in about 2 weeks. O_o…

8:56 p.m. — Time for bed, after we do more probabilities and I decide (on the advice of my siblings) to also add graphs and little word problems related to the situation we mapped out.

Spent: $13.76

DAY THREE

6:00 a.m. — I wake up sort of refreshed.. ish. Little Bun is staying at home so I get ready to go.

6:49 a.m. — He hugs and kisses me good bye then clings a bit at the door until his father picks him up and takes him away. At least my dress is sunny and pretty. I took a different belt from a different dress to match with this outfit.

7:23 a.m. — At work, nonstop. I put out about 4 fires during the course of the day, and it is mentally exhausting to have people just come at you from all directions, you have to keep switching switching..

8:15 a.m. — I head out to Starbucks for double star day and get a drink (grande green tea matcha) with a turkey breakfast sandwich… $9.78

11:25 a.m. — Lunch time. I actually don’t eat anything though. I keep working, because I plan on leaving early and then running errands then catching a bite to eat.

4:12 p.m. — I leave later than I expected :-\ … more issues are happening. Anyway, I pick up my custom wood sunglasses and they are truly MAGNIFICENT. I put them on my face and they SMELL good too (this wood is incredible). I could not be happier.

4:35 p.m. — Shoot. I misjudged my stomach. I’m starting to get the shakes. I haven’t really eaten since 8 a.m. aside from that light breakfast. I quickly make a beeline to a vegan restaurant I know and love, and grab a portobello mushroom burger, which I wolf down, and have my body calm down and I feel the shaking slow down and dissipate. $11.23

5:03 p.m. — I pick up some Oxiclean – the industrial box! $18.96

5:23 p.m. — At home, Little Bun looks at me sadly and says he wanted to go play soccer today but Daddy said it was going to rain — he is not wrong! IT IS RAINING! Poor baby.

6:45 p.m. — I let him watch a few videos (he is slowly obsessed with the Endless Monsters series now (they are ridiculously cute… I must admit), and I love the names — Little Blue, Pinkerton… Very cute.

7:03 p.m. — I make noodles and then feed Little Bun his soup and pasta (he asks for it some days)..

7:56 p.m. — Oh how nice! My partner did ALL the laundry today for all of us, which is really helpful because I have to be there to put it in the wash and take it out otherwise.

8:35 p.m. — Time for bed.

Spent: $39.97

DAY FOUR

??:?? — Insomnia. Then I wake up just enough to start thinking and worrying about work and other things, so I try to shut my brain off and I can’t. Crap.

??:?? — Little Bun has to go to the potty JUST as I am falling back asleep.

??:?? — My partner gets up SUPER early and it drives me nuts because now I see light and I am awake. And Little Bun won’t go back to sleep. He is wiggling around saying it is bright and Daddy should be in bed. ARRRGH… I NEED TO SLEEP.

5:00 a.m. — Screw it. We’re up. I wash my face sleepily, my partner packs Little Bun’s lunch and finishes his tasks for the morning. I hang out with Little Bun on the bed and he insists I read the Times Table book to him, and do puzzles with him with Times Table questions. This kid is too much for me. Math in the morning? Equal parts of love and hate right now.

6:45 a.m. — We are out the door, and on the way.

7:08 a.m. — Head down, I work and clear as much as I can in-person and then take the rest of the day to work from home to get things done.

9:25 a.m. — I head out to go home. Crap. I pass a girl we go to dinner with on occasion and she sees me in my car, and her eyes pop… crap. Now this is going to get around. Not ideal. But what can I do? I left as late as I could thinking everyone was AT WORK ALREADY LOL… not my issue if she comes in late…. (sigh)…

9:33 a.m. — I go and buy a turkey meatball to eat with my lunch. $4.49

9:58 a.m. — Urgent call from a manager, and I call her back immediately.

12:08 p.m. — I eat lunch with meatballs and rice.. it is SO delicious. I can only eat half (this meatball is truly massive, like the size of baseball), and I keep half for tomorrow.

1:37 p.m. — I take a break and head out to take my conference call in some fresh air.

2:48 p.m. — I head back home after my meeting and I decide to vacuum the entire apartment as well.

4:28 p.m. — We pass a recent accident of a car that was parked, turning to leave and not checking the traffic. Their entire left side of the vehicle is CRUSHED. Bumpers and debris all over the street.

6:08 p.m. — At home, I just wash my hair in the sink — will shower tomorrow. I’m really tired but my hair needs a washing from the sweat and grime..

8:00 p.m. — Bedtime after some math and shenanigans of course.

Spent: $4.49

DAY FIVE

??:?? — I wake up tired.

6:50 a.m. — Little Bun squeals and seems happy but VERY clingy to me, so he cries at the door when I leave. 🙁 .. I am at least wearing my most comfortable outfit..

7:30 a.m. — I work nonstop, 15 minutes for lunch the entire day. I have to work remotely so I pass off as much work as possible to people.

4:30 p.m. — I manage to leave and come home at a “reasonable” time, considering how much I have left to get done.

5:08 p.m. — We do laundry, and pack as much as we can to get prepped. I forgot little swim floaties for Little Bun! I pack them. I bought the swim cushion ones from Schlori that are cotton, made in Germany and VERY cool to blow up & use — much better than the plastic ones I saw in stores.

5:28 p.m. — I eat dinner as Little Bun heads out to play soccer with his father. FINALLY.

8:15 p.m. — They’re home, and I am halfway done everything, and getting ready for bed. I review my blog notes and I am happy to say I am scheduled up until about the end of September posting daily, except for these Week of Money posts which have to be written as they happen…. I really hustled and wrote about 25 blog posts in a matter of 2 weeks. I had to!!! This is why I am tired. My job + my blog (which is fun don’t get me wrong) + family life… whoa.

Spent: $0

DAY SIX

??:?? — Crying.

??:?? — Crying and squealing. He is having a tough time because his father scolded him this week and he is feeling the effects in nightmares.

6:00 a.m. — OMG. I am really tired.

7:59 a.m. — I do all the dishes and 3 loads of laundry

8:08 a.m. — I feed Little Bun yoghurt for breakfast.

9:45 a.m. — Little Bun gets his lunch. I’m blogging in between and trying to tie up loose ends.

12:08 p.m. — I am hungry. My partner comes home and I eat lunch.

1:08 p.m. — Little Bun protests his nap but I’m already down.

1:50 p.m. — He FINALLY naps after 45 minutes of shenanigans and we sleep.

2:11 p.m. — I head out for last minute things. Mail off some letters, eat a few Kitkats, etc.

4:28 p.m. — I do dishes again, and try to clean and dry as many items as possible as not to leave anything dirty around.

6:48 p.m. — Off on the bus. We use our airport STM tickets that are $10 each as day passes $10

7:10 p.m. — We miss the first bus due to my partner — he was too ambitious and started cleaning the freezer drawers — we had nothing in the fridge or freezer before leaving so we just unplugged the entire appliance. See: my minimalist fridge here. We finally get on the bus and it takes THREE detours due to all the new road works.. $10

8:25 p.m. — At the airport, we go through security and it is not a breeze. They’re removing people from scanning each suitcase thoroughly with the screen so my liquids (mostly Coola and Paula’s Choice) got tagged to be inspected. I didn’t realize there was a second line to wait in to then have your items chosen and I wait off to the side.

8:35 p.m. — 10 minutes later, we realize our mistake and we wait in line. 20 minutes later, it is my turn. She glances at my liquids and thanks me. I guess they never had anyone so insistent on bringing four tubes of mineral sunscreen…

9:30 p.m. — We head to the terminal and arrive just as everyone is boarding — how lucky!!! We didn’t even get a chance to let Little Bun play at the structure (he was looking forward to it) and we get on the plane right away.

11:07 p.m. — In our seats, he plays with the screen and the tray for at least 2 hours before finally going to sleep across his seat with his head on my thigh. I cover him in a cashmere sweater I brought just for this. 4 hours later, my entire lower half is numb from not moving the entire flight. Can’t feel my bum.

Spent: $10

DAY SEVEN

??:?? — We arrive in the morning but my body knows it is 2 a.m. or whatever. I can feel it.

8:45 a.m. — We are off the plane, and take the metro to the train station, then a train to get to our destination. Before all that, some bread and ham, with some yoghurt and a small piece of cake each.

9:25 a.m. — I’m exhausted. Walking around, getting this stuff (we had to buy a €3 knife to cut the bread) My partner normally pays for everything on the trip and then will bill me my half later after the trip is done.. 

10:24 a.m. — I’m also very sleepy from the Transderm patch and Little Bun keeps wanting to be carried (with a backpack and a suitcase no less), and is very sleepy/grumpy.

11:13 a.m. — He conks out on the train and people are so nice, giving me two seats so Little Bun can sleep across… rather than my struggling with him on my chest in a one-seater.

11:59 a.m. — A lady comes on and there are no seats left but she refuses to take my place where I have Little Bun in a deep sleep… I feel so bad!!

12:13 p.m. — We have a quick lunch of ham and bread.

2:25 p.m. — Finally arriving at Mamie’a (we took a cab this time), we say hello to everyone. Little Bun is far shyer and less comfortable with everyone… even little cousins. I slowly wean him off me by distracting him with items like a flashing fire truck.

8:11 p.m. — We have dinner – prawns, Provençal chicken, tomatoes and bread.

8:25 p.m. — I leave Little Bun to play with his cousins (DREAM ON.. this did NOT happen, obviously) and try to lie down.. His cousin has been trying to play with him (he is shy too but not as shy as Little Bun!!) and kept calling his name to come play near the end of the night but Little Bun steadfastly refused. He wanted to play with the ball and kick it and his cousin wanted to tent. Oh well. I am hoping they will warm up to each other later on. Maybe this is age-related and next year it will be better.

10:25 p.m. — They all decide to go out so I beg off to sleep. The Transderm makes me very drowsy…

11:57 a.m. — I go down for the night.

Spent: $0 – Pending really, have not been billed my half.

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Want more? Read all of my previous Week of Money Diaries.