Week of Money: Where I am looking forward to Spring..

DAY ONE

??:?? — I wake up semi-refreshed. Could have done with another hour but it is okay. He asks me to “please get up”, and I grab his milk and start getting ready.

6:00 a.m. — Great. Two pimples on my face. I KNOW that these two are from eating all that salad because it is covered in oil and the salad pieces are so big and long that sometimes the oil gets onto my lip / chin, and no matter how much I wipe it off, it stays on my skin unless I re-wash my face… Grr… I use two cotton swabs and gently pop them both and let them dry up a bit before washing my face.

6:13 a.m. — I get up, put on makeup and then Little Bun runs in, asking to stay at home with Daddy. Oh. NOW YOU WANT TO STAY AT HOME. I tell him firmly no, and that there are stickers at preschool which make him perk up.

6:25 a.m. — He gets dressed ahead of time, I finish getting ready, and it’s too early to go, so I pull on my gloves and get started on the dishes. My partner (yesterday) tossed ALL of the Cosabella pink gloves because ever since they switched manufacturing from Greece to Taiwan, we have noticed that the rubber melts off the glove now and gets ON THE PLATES.. Gross. We’re eating that! So he tossed all of the gloves in the garbage and bought me a new pair from a brand called Frank. They don’t fit as well, but.. at least the rubber is not sticky and coming off on our plates as I am washing with super hot water.

6:31 a.m. — I pull on my outfit, get ready, and drop him off at preschool. They all notice he got a “haircut” when really I tell them I just hacked his hair off at the sides above his ears and behind on his neck because it was getting too long and we couldn’t shave his head yet as it is still too cold outside.

7:15 a.m. — I hand him his stuffed toy – Munchie – and then head into the office.

8:01 a.m. — I have an early call, and another one booked for later in an hour.

8:25 a.m. — I make my sandwich, my tea and then start working.

7:59 a.m. — I head off to two meetings because I’m obviously double-booked the whole day.

11:36 a.m. — After my meetings, I warm up my lunch and with a stroke of inspiration, I take some of the Happy Planet mushroom & mascarpone soup (does that not sound AMAZING) and pour it into my dry pasta and yellow beans, making it a creamy sort of lighter sauce. It works out PERFECTLY after I put a few drops of Bragg’s amino liquids in there, and it tastes amazing. What a stroke of genius. Usually my pasta is too dry (my partner is not into sauces), but I need a saucy sort of cover for my pasta to eat it.

1:40 p.m. — I quickly head out to meet a buyer and sell my boots that do not fit (they kept chafing at the top of my foot) for $25. I would have kept them but they were just not properly fitted to my foot and frankly, my feet are used to proper footwear now, not cheap stuff.. Sweet! +$25

2:17 p.m. — I get back in, and organize all of my current projects into coloured folders. I hate being disorganized… I label it with post-its as my projects change constantly and I don’t want to waste file folder space or paper, and then I head off to the last meeting of the day (double-booked..again)

4:00 p.m. — I go and grab Little Bun after chowing down on some nut clusters a team member brought in for a snack. Addictive – sweet + salty = my snack kryptonite.

4:11 p.m. — Little Bun eats his digestive cookie snack and then we head home.

4:56 p.m. — At home, we get undressed, unpack everything, and I take a shower with him, scrubbing him down good (against his protest) until I bring up how he has to get clean like an animal just like in one of his favourite books – Animal Baths…with children you have to get creative sometimes and get them to listen to you.

6:08 p.m. — Bath done and bathroom cleaned, I chat with my partner about our day…

6:12 p.m. — Belly grumble. I make some noodles.

6:34 p.m. — I get an email saying this red dress is sold out in the size I wanted so they’re removing it from the order (WHICH BY THE WAY I still have NOT received…) Womp womp. It is really pretty though. When am I getting my other stuff though? I’m WAITING.

6:38 p.m. — Before eating, I feed Little Bun his dinner. Halfway through he wants to stop (HE KNOWS I’ll make noodles later), but I offer him the rest and he eats it… he is really not that full, because if he was, he would really truly stop. He just wants to see what else we have that could be yummier but not necessarily as full of vegetables and vitamins. With kids, they’re pretty smart about guarding their belly space for better things.. if you fill them up on snacks, they won’t eat dinner. This is a Parenting Golden Rule…

6:50 p.m. — Little Bun fed, I make noodles and LOVE eating them because I’ve hit on the perfect sauce.

8:02 p.m. — Books, and bedtime..

8:40 p.m. — NO REALLY. BEDTIME NOW. ENOUGH.

Earned: $25

Spent: $0

DAY TWO

??:?? — I wake up super tired.. zomg…

6:01 a.m. — I grab his milk, I give it to him, and then I get ready for work. The skin around my eyes is still flaring up so I slather on cream and oil and go easy with chemical exfoliants there. For the rest of my face I’ve stopped using any moisturizer now that winter is easing up.

6:25 a.m. — I’m ready, I do the dishes, and then I get him dressed and we do selfies and LookBook outfit entries.

7:14 a.m. — At preschool he kisses me goodbye and a little girl there wants to come with me, and starts crying when I leave. I hear the educator say to the little girl that she can’t go with Little Bun’s Mommy!…. and I stage whisper — “ Yeah.. I don’t need another one clinging to my leg...”.. and they crack up 😛

7:38 a.m. — At the office, NON STOP EFFING WORK. Meeting after meeting after meeting, rush rush rush.

11:34 a.m. — I don’t even have time to go pick up my tailored tank. I have to do it tomorrow.

11:41 a.m. — No wait, promised the guys I’d go out for lunch. Okay.. day after then.

12:08 p.m. — I take a break to heat up my lunch and rush back to work. Oh. No one is around. Okay. I go and chat with a colleague.

1:15 p.m. — Chat over, I finish my task, and then head off to my next meeting.

2:00 p.m. — Meeting done, I have another meeting. More calls. More documents.

3:58 p.m. — My brain is.. DONE. I’m out.

4:13 p.m. — I wait until Little Bun is done his banana (he somehow started on it after another snack..???)

4:33 p.m. — He snags ANOTHER snack on the way out, and he eats that as I chat with a colleague who comes by to ooh and aaah over how cute he is.

5:34 p.m. — I leave to go home.

5:46 p.m. — OOO! MAIL!

5:53 p.m. — Little Bun wants me to sit on the couches in the lounge while he runs around. OF COURSE as he runs around, he bangs his head into a wall or something, and starts sobbing VERY LOUDLY. The office guy closes the door because he’s wailing so loud. I told him SO MANY TIMES to NOT run around, that I sit firmly on the couch and say: Et voilà!!!!!… that’s what he gets for not listening. HE had to learn somehow. He comes sobbing into my arms, and I sit on the couch and cuddle him, holding him tight, letting him cry.

5:57 p.m. — OMG. AGAIN. He runs like a bat out of hell, trips on the carpet and starts sobbing again (no skinned knee, just a rug burn)…. I sit on the hallway floor and hold him. Then I carry him with one arm and bags in the other all the way upstairs, sit in the chair in the hallway and hold him as he half sobs. I tell him to be careful, to not run, and I just hold him.

6:00 p.m. — We wash our hands, get changed, I grab his afternoon milk. My partner comes home as he is drinking it, and we chat.

6:04 p.m. — I want to make noodles but Little Bun hasn’t eaten yet. Do I chance it? Hmm… he ate a lot yesterday maybe he isn’t super hungry, plus he had a banana, milk and a snack within the past hour or so.

6:51 p.m. — Noodles done (I re-watched Top Chef Masters and I love watching Susur Lee kill it, although I was quite sad he didn’t win even though he came off as a bit of an ass on the show..), I leave a little portion aside for Little Bun. The VERY LAST TIME I made noodles and ate his share too, he just burst into tears and became a wobbly pile of little boy goo on the floor, crying and crying and crying for noodles and it broke my heart… Now I just set aside my “tax” on my food for Little Bun and let him eat it when he wants.

7:34 p.m. — I coax him into getting ready for bed early.

8:04 p.m. — We actually get ready for bed now.. but now he runs around shirtless and won’t put on anything.

8:11 p.m. — Okay. Now he has his shirts around his neck, and is rotating around, pretending he is the planet Saturn (the shirts are the rings around his neck.. and he is Saturn.. get it?).. my little boy is nothing if creative.

8:25 p.m. — I firmly tell him Saturn has to get dressed.

8:45 p.m. — 2 books (we ALWAYS do 2 books) later… he finally smashes his pillow against my face and flops down on it, as I wrap my arm around him (no more bum petting MOMMY..)

Spent: $0

DAY THREE

??:?? — Little Bun wakes up just crying, sobbing from a nightmare. It did not help that last night he was so resistant to sleeping. He wanted his socks. Then he wanted socks as gloves. Then he wanted two blankets. Then he wanted to play all night. Then he wanted one more book.. OMFG.. I almost lost it near the end and I raised my voice at him but then kept it together and tried to stay calm.

??:?? — He wiggles around, crying, sobbing, tears.. I try and cuddle him close and rub his back and calm him down but he keeps whimpering. Then he climbs on top, off, around… he is really just restless and upset for some reason. I try to ask him if he had a nightmare. Finally, I give up trying to get him to go back to sleep and I tell him I’ll get his milk for him. He wants to come with me, so we hold hands and walk to the kitchen, grab the milk, then walk back.

5:03 a.m. — As he gets tucked in with milk, I lie beside him and ALMOST doze right back off to sleep — that is how tired I am…

5:27 a.m. — Finally, he finishes, he tries to go back to sleep but I give up (I can tell when he won’t), and we both get up.

5:29 a.m. — I make a big bowl of matcha green tea to jump start my body but even that doesn’t do it.

5:31 a.m. — I log online to check emails, and he finds some easter egg puzzle to do on Jacquie Lawson cards, so I let him do that as I check my emails, go through my list of things to do. Oh! YAY! Someone bought my book — Start a blog like a boss: How to make $1000 USD/month… sweet.

5:45 a.m. — I wash my face and start getting ready for work but the skin around my eyes is just painful, inflamed and red. I manage to cover it up with foundation, but this weather is killing my skin. I moisturize deeply just around the eyes, and then carefully layer on makeup to look like a human today and not some fatigued, exhausted zombie mother…

6:13 a.m. — My partner gets up to make Little Bun’s lunch but is working from home today — he asked not to go to school, then wanted school (and by the way, when we got to actual school, he started asking to go back home to stay with Daddy. OMFG.)

6:30 a.m. — I get him dressed, we do LookBook and selfies, and he is very put out that he did not get to choose my top. He wanted to choose my entire outfit but I really wanted to wear this shirt today… so no dice, Little Bun. He definitively vetos a necklace on me today, and chooses a gold drusy ring and the Kate Spade ‘words’ watch.

6:46 a.m. — I grab the Gap bag of returns — I had ordered (stupidly) a Large in the Green Tencel wrap midi skirt because I forgot that in mainstream brands I am at least a ridiculous 2 or a 0, but in designer brands I am a 4. Large? Totally too big for me. Anyway, too long as well, I’d have to get it hemmed. I also ordered this cute jean paperbag waist skirt which I kind of like, but couldn’t see myself wearing it often because jean jackets and jean skirts have never been hot on my style radar for some reason. Also, it was ridiculously long, and in a size 4, about a size too large on me. I’d have needed a 2 or a 0.. and then to get it hemmed (another $10 expense..) If I thrifted it, I would have bought it but considering it was about $20? No way.

6:51 a.m. — I’ll do the returns tomorrow because today I have a lunch with the guys at a restaurant. They say it’s their favourite, so I googled last night all the things to order and have a huge lunch ahead of me if that’s the case.

7:14 a.m. — We get to preschool, I do dropoff with Cheerios, sign a timesheet for my Little Bun and then leave.

7:24 a.m. — I get to the office and realize I forgot to leave his lunch. I am effing OUT OF IT today.. obviously…

7:38 a.m. — I walk back to the preschool, leave his lunch on his desk, and then head back to work. I won’t make a sandwich today as I will eat a lot at lunch… but as I get to my desk with my tea, my tummy grumbles.

8:23 a.m. — I start working but … dang. I should make and eat that sandwich. Maybe then I can spend LESS on the lunch and save because I won’t eat as much…. hmm.. that means I have to do groceries for sure today because I’d be out of all the breakfast fixings. My stomach starts arguing with me. It CLEARLY thinks I’m being stupid for not wanting to eat before lunch.

8:30 a.m. — I end up going upstairs and making that darn sandwich and I eat it happily with a handful of cherry tomatoes and make a cup of chai latte. SO GOOD. Who does not love melted cheese…. omg nom nom nom..

8:32 a.m. — I head back downstairs and work like a maniac until the grocery store opens.

9:14 a.m. — I head off and pick up eggs, deli chicken, almond milk and some more whole wheat English muffins. $16.96

9:45 a.m. — I rush back for my meeting and end up coming back 15 minutes early, but she is 15 minutes late.. so I actually had 30 minutes to spare. D’oh!

10:45 a.m. — I get through my meeting and it takes me right up until lunch. We all head out and walk to this new place to try.

12:04 p.m. — I order an appetizer, meal and dessert. $35.70

1:13 p.m. — It was satisfying, but not something that made me go: WOW I am coming back FOR SURE. It wasn’t enough food, and they hammered the cheese which made the texture turn all rubbery and weird.

1:34 p.m. — I come back to the office and there’s a piece of cake waiting for me. HOMEMADE. By a team member. And my team lead takes two bites (it was meant to share), and then I scarf down the rest. My team loves me. <3

3:00 p.m. — I eat, and then get caught into a meeting that makes me think that they’re going to extend me. They better say something early, I tell the project manager, if not, I am already contacting brokers about other contracts to sign something. If they keep me great, but if not, *shrug*…. I am also not a fan of this new development, asking me to do something I did not sign up for.

4:00 p.m. — I get back to work and it is almost time to go. I grab Little Bun

5:08 p.m. — At home, laundry done, dishes done, I don’t make noodles and Little Bun is not hungry.

7:35 p.m. — Get ready for bed.. or at least try.

8:23 p.m. — Actually in bed now, reading two books.

9:?? p.m. — My partner and I talk until later into the night until we both drop off to sleep once the other one dozes off and stops responding.

Spent: $52.66

DAY FOUR

??:?? — He.. did.. not.. sleep…well…

5:02 a.m. — What.. fresh hell is this. I wake up bleary-eyed. Grab his milk. Flop back to try and sleep again.

5:20 a.m. —  Nope. Not happening.

5:23 a.m. — I make some tea… and then Little Bun is just DANG GRUMPY (of course he is, HE DIDN’T SLEEP WELL)…

6:07 a.m. — I get ready for work. My skin is still red and raw around the eyes. Great. Thank goodness for Dermablend Liquid Camo foundation. Covers anything.

6:20 a.m. — Little Bun INSISTS on uncapping and re-capping and helping me do my makeup in the morning. We do “tap tap” with my face powder and blush, and then he helps me recap everything and wants to put it away. Every time I tell him he’s too little, he screams: NOT TOO LITTLE! YOU’RE BIG! BIG BIG BIG!! NOT LITTLE.

6:44 a.m. — I FINALLY get him to stop running around, so I can usher him into the room to pick an outfit out. He just won’t go for this cute long-sleeved shirt, and I pull on some random green tee.

6:58 a.m. — Selfies done, we head off. He INSISTS on picking the song. This morning, we started off the day with Shakira singing Waka Waka.

7:12 a.m. — At preschool, I kiss him goodbye and leave… not not before I ask what happened to this super freakin’ adorable toddler (who reminds me of Little Bun at his age). I see this MASSIVE red mark on his eye!!.. They tell me that the kids are all biting each other in the room, but it was such a strange place to be able to bite someone — just under the eye doesn’t have that much bite space, but apparently another kid did it… I leave with a mental image of these feral, adorable, chubby toddlers waddling around biting each other. It is both horrifying and cute at the same time…

7:34 a.m. — At work, I start working.

7:50 p.m. — I make my DELICIOUS breakfast sandwich. Gosh it is good. I could eat this all day long but it is not good for me.

8:25 p.m. — A colleague I got to know (a lead), calls to vent. He is pissed at the whole way this company is micro-managed.. he is annoyed AF. I let him rant and vent, and then he adds me on LinkedIn. LOL We have never met in real life, we all work over the phone here as we’re a global company, but it is nice to put a face to his name.

9:29 a.m. — Okay I have had it with this Director. I take a break and call my broker to tell them I am not interested in staying if they continue to insist that I do something that is not part of my mandate here — I NEVER agreed to do this and frankly, I don’t want to do it, because it is not interesting work. “Work it out, deal with it“, is what I tell them. I’m not going to take it. I can’t go into any more details but my team lead is sad about the whole turn of events (he has no control). I’m not a paid slave who will do whatever you want.

11:08 a.m. — I warm up my lunch with that mushroom soup (the rest of it), and some pasta with yellow peas. I eat the whole thing. Quite good! I’d buy this soup again but next time I’ll try the grilled tomato…

12:28 p.m. — I keep working through lunch.

2:08 p.m. — Lots of venting happening. People are all asking me to not make any hasty decisions, stay calm, don’t do anything rash. I promise I won’t.. I’m going out to lunch with a colleague tomorrow and she’s trying to talk me into not giving notice and leaving early.

3:36 p.m. — I’m out. I didn’t even get a break today. Tomorrow I am taking a longggggg lunch.

4:02 p.m. — We’re home! The snack box had apples and Little Bun walked right past them, turning up his nose at the so-called snack. I could just imagine him thinking: WHO DO THEY THINK THEY ARE, putting SLICED apples in a snack box and calling it a snack!?!?…. Plebs.

5:16 p.m. — I feed Little Bun his vegan soup. TONS of it. With pasta.

5:43 p.m. — He devours the entire, full bowl of food. Now I’m safe to make noodles for myself. Of course, setting aside a Little Bun noodle tax of course.

6:12 p.m. — My partner comes home with food. MMM Smoked salmon!

7:27 p.m. — Dinner done, we’re stuffed. Smoked salmon, avocado, salad…

7:45 p.m. — I get ready for bed. I’m beat. I look so tired… and it is NOT COOL to tell mothers and women that they look tired or sick. S.T.F.U. DO NOT SAY ANYTHING you rude #%(@)$… even if we look tired and haggard, you say: You look lovely today! …. I was told by an insensitive colleague today that I looked sick. Then that I look tired. Why don’t they STFU?

8:01 p.m. — I get sucked into a rabbit hole of trying out a new service for Instagram called Tailwind that could be very useful and save me a lot of time. It lets you organize, and schedule BULK Instagram posts ahead of time and not only that, it schedules it when it is best for your account. This would save me a #%&#% load of time because I have a busy life, etc etc.. Try it out for a month free with my referral here. I purchased the whole year already. $120

Spent: $120

DAY FIVE

??:?? — I wake up early and kiss Little Bun all over his face. I ask him if he wants his milk and he says yes, so I get up and get it for him. I pull on an apron since I still have an hour before I leave, and I start on the sink full of dishes. Two massive salad bowls from the night before, at least 8 Glasslock containers, multiple plates, bowls, cutlery, and 5 cups because my partner can’t drink water out of the same damn cup each time, apparently.

6:01 a.m. — As I am washing, I hear growling and squealing in the bedroom: MAA MAA.. MAAAAAA MAAAAAAAAA!! WHERE IS YOUR MOMMY!!!!!!!…. and I finish what I am doing, put down my gloves and go to Little Bun, who is waving his empty bottle at me like it is last call at the bar. Give this to your Mommy!

6:02 a.m. — I grab his bottle, run my fingers through his thick lovely hair, and then rub his back as he closes his eyes and tries to see if I can go back to sleep. He can’t obviously, but I try anyway. He closes his eyes. 30 seconds later, they’re open and I tell him that I’ll go put the bottle back in the fridge, and then finish the dishes.

6:03 a.m. — He squeals: MOMMY. MOMMY. WANT YOUR MOMMY.. and I repeat what I said, and then get up to do the dishes.

6:06 a.m. — He keeps squealing in the bedroom for me, but eventually gets up and comes to the kitchen where he rubs his eyes and squeals again. I show him I’m doing dishes, and he then screams: POTTY! And runs to the bathroom. I follow him, undress him and then change him into underwear.

6:10 a.m. — He tells me he doesn’t want to stay at home. He doesn’t like staying at home. He wants to go out. I tell him that at home, he can do lots of fun things like tent with the iPad, I’ll bring his pillow and blanket to his little house to cuddle in if he wants, and that he will talk to his aunt on Skype… he says nay to all of the above until I mention that he might find it fun to make bread with Daddy, and he perks up, completely excited now because it’s his favourite activity these days.

6:25 a.m. — I get ready for work, makeup and all, and he is angry I’m wearing a necklace because he doesn’t want me to wear one, he wants me to wear rings and a watch only. I firmly tell him I get to choose certain things and he can always choose the watch and ONE ring.

7:00 a.m. — He picks out two black stone rings again (obsessed with them), and I get dressed. He is very happy about making bread now, so he says: Hug and kiss goodbye? Hug and kiss bye bye?… and I grab my lunch, hug and kiss him good bye and head into work. He runs back to his father. NO TEARS.

7:25 a.m. — At work, there is no parking at the one lot, so I go to the other which makes me late for work.

8:01 a.m. — I make a tea, a sandwich, and get ambushed with a meeting with a Director where I voice my concerns about what they think is realistic for my mandate and duties here. We hash it out, come to a semi-agreement, I need to talk to another manager, and then I head out to cool down. I eat my sandwich and tea, I call my broker, we discuss the issue, which has to wait until next week, and then I get back to work.

9:15 a.m. — I make another tea and there’s a presentation in the cafeteria so I won’t be going back there for sure until they’re all gone.

10:00 a.m. — I work and then I tell my colleague we are going to lunch early. I’m tired. I need a break. I didn’t even take a break yesterday for lunch which means there are some hours owing to me.

11:01 a.m. — She negotiates 15 minutes later than what I propose, and then I sort of clean up my desktop until it is time for lunch.

11:10 a.m. — I’m out.

11:25 a.m. — I head off to lunch early with my colleague and we spend a lovely time checking out stores along the way, then a REALLY nice meal where I come away stuffed. And happy. It was very well made, delicious and it absolutely hit the spot. She gives me GREAT advice on how to proceed with this situation and I have decided that I like money more than pride in work, so I will suck it up and follow their direction, no matter how inane. I pay with a gift card and leave a tip separately. $4.50

1:25 p.m. — We wander back into the office, and I get to work. It’s a slow day (Friday) but I have a call in an hour so I am reading and catching up on things to not leave anything to the last minute for the weekend.

3:11 p.m. — I plan on doing yoga at the end of the day, so I’m going to leave right after my meeting and spend some time doing a LOT of savasana (lying down..)..

3:24 p.m. — Meeting over, I go and take a break on the benches.

4:00 p.m. — I leave for the weekend.

4:11 p.m. — The parking guy won’t let me leave out of the second place because my card doesn’t work at the second garage but his boss already authorized it, etc… I have to leave my ID card, drive back, and then he tries to call his boss (MY FRIEND!) repeatedly before giving me back my card to leave.

4:30 p.m. — People. You just can’t manage sheep. I mean, I am already someone who is paying monthly at the other card. Take down my name, my number, my license plate, and if there is an issue with it, they can take it up with me on Monday or whenever if I have to pay. THERE IS NO POINT in keeping me. He SAW the email from his boss (my friend). He READ IT. I mean.. annnnnd? Let me the *#$)*% out of this garage. He just gave me this blank look like: I’m too dumb to let you out anyway, even to think outside the box of how things should work logically… I am a little more annoyed and brusque than I should be with this moron because of everything that happened today. He was literally going to make me WAIT until he got the OK from his boss. People have no sense of rationality.

5:03 p.m. — Home, I’m annoyed, and Little Bun runs up to squeal and greet me, then runs back to cuddle with his father. This is good. I am really encouraging him and his father to bond more. I really want them to have a good relationship in the future…

5:13 p.m. — I crack open my mail, my tights I ordered fit, and look great! DKNY microfishnet nude tights (which are TRUE micro fishnet) and sheer Calvin Klein ones. I would not normally bother with tights at all with bare legs at the office but during autumn and winter it looks WEIRD if you have bare legs and boots / shoes on with a skirt. You need tights of some sort…

6:14 p.m. — My partner proudly hands me the sandwich they made this morning (apparently Little Bun LOVED IT), and we chat about my day, he gives me advice, and we all agree that I need the weekend to cool down. I want the money more than my pride, but I am just ….. a little annoyed with the whole situation. We’ll see how this pans out. My partner leaves. I love having just alone, adult conversation with him even if it’s about work and so on. He gets me, he supports me, and there is nothing better.

7:24 p.m. — My partner comes home with dinner. I’m not hungry, the meal was pretty good at lunch. I need to go thrifting this weekend to buy some massive big cotton sacks for $1 each or something. I need them for the office, the car, etc. Little Bun has a lot of junk I have to tote around all the time… plus I want to find a really long necklace chain for cheap rather than spending $70+ (!!!) on a silver chain at retail.

8:07 p.m. — I get Little Bun and myself ready for bed.

Spent: $4.50

DAY SIX

6:00 a.m. — Little Bun wakes up “late” and I am rather refreshed but now I am coughing and sneezing. I think I have started Cold #7…. #%&#%(@*$)@…

6:50 a.m. — My partner and I basically spend the morning talking and hashing out, analyzing, and formulating a plan of what I did, what I said, what they said, etc. Work is stressful, but in the end there are two things that I am reminded of: (A) I don’t need them, they need me. (B) I have to stay calm (which I did), and I am in charge of this, so I can do what I want and still make them happy.

6:58 a.m. — He heads off to do errands and Little Bun squeals for nursery rhymes, and loves watching videos with Play-Doh now for some reason.. whatever. I do all the dishes.

7:54 a.m. — Dishes done, I wonder if I should start my taxes… I sort of don’t want to. I might do them tomorrow afternoon. I’m not wasting my Saturday doing this, I am going to go to thrift shops and find cheap cotton bags / sacks / totes for my car, and maybe pick up a dessert or eat at a restaurant I would not be able to get to otherwise. I need a break.

7:59 a.m. — I confirm a meet with a buyer for an appliance but this dang autocorrect in French is KILLING ME.. #%&#%(#..

8:16 a.m. — Down the rabbit hole of Rag & Bone Booties. I am looking at: Harrow, Margot styles, but I don’t know my size. I bought the moto boots used, and took a US 8 but I can feel that they are slightly too loose without super thick socks…. *sigh*

8:20 a.m. — Hmm. Maybe I want to go out and eat. But I also don’t want to spend the money. I’m craving noodles.. I decide to make some and have a matcha tea instead of spending money on food today — because if I find something in a thrift shop, I want cash for it.

9:38 a.m. — Down another rabbit hole. This time, looking at this GORGEOUS Rag and Bone wrap striped blouse.. Just that it’s almost $500 *choke*.. I would need this secondhand.

10:02 a.m. — Little Bun asks for (demands, really) to be fed and says: WANT SOUP! WANT YOUR SOUP!… I ask him to ask me NICELY PLEASE, and then I make it for him.

10:38 a.m. — Soup done, my partner comes home and we chat a bit more. I need to figure out the phrasing of what I am going to say without being rude (politically speaking) and plan on asking for some help in how not to be a blunt a$% b#$(% because that is usually how I am at work and I always get fired for my honesty.

10:56 a.m. — My partner leaves to go sell that appliance, and I am hoping he comes back with the cash. We plan on buying a new one so this will go towards that.

11:15 a.m. — SOLD!! It was a great deal for him at half price. We eat a light lunch of Brie and bread (French thing) and then I get ready and head out.

11:58 a.m. — I throw on my Rag and Bone moto boots that I love and bought in a full size larger than my real size (38 instead of 37) but had to pad it with a soft Birkenstock insole to make it fit AND wear thick winter socks. Otherwise it feels too loose. I had bought a full size bigger so I would put these half cork Birkenstock insoles in there but they ended up making the boot far too tight. 🙁 … I’m saying all of this because I’m currently eying the R&B booties that look great but I’m afraid to eff up the sizing buying secondhand as I will definitely be doing so and unable to return them.

11:59 a.m. — I make it a note to wander around today to find a shop that sells them so I can test the sizing.

12:20 p.m. — As I get dressed, Little Bun starts whining: Want Mommy, Want your Mommy… and I tell him Daddy has a little gift for him for the calendar (I have a bird sticker he can put on the calendar to mark a birthday). He perks up and lets me leave without another peep. I’m starting to learn that pointing out fun or cool things to do with Daddy distracts the little animal and he then is eager to shove my bum out the door.

12:21 p.m. — I head downtown, call my friend and end up chatting the whole time which is nice.

12:22 p.m. — I drop by The Gap and return the two skirts -$90.32

1:19 p.m. — I then wander around downtown half shopping mostly chatting until my phone literally just turns black and dies. It needs to be charged apparently. WTF. I charged it to full and there is no way I killed it in an hour.

1:27 p.m. — Dejected I head into Apple and end up recharging my iPod a little but mostly eying their iPhone 6 Plus. It looks nice but the screen seems a bit too big for being a phone… I dunno. I like my cheapie iPod but if this telephone IS dead we will need another one. The price tag is bananas though… $900-ish taxes in?!? I check on Kijiji and there is a guy selling one for $800 because he bought it for his now EX girlfriend and wants to recoup some of his money.

2:05 p.m. — I walk around the shops checking all the boutiques I know before hitting on a gem and finding the Margot booties. They bought the hideous white leather and cream suede combination (white leather? REALLY?!?) and while I hate the bi-colour 80s style I realize in these boots I’m a US 7.5 or a 37.5.. 38 would be a tad too big and the US 7 fits but the fit is awkward — it is like the sole is too short and your foot doesn’t get to relax into the grooves of the sole and feel supported. It feels like your foot is a bit squished. I’m glad I tried them on!! I really need the 7.5 then as I know even in the Moto Boots, the 8 fits but with thick socks. I make a mental note.

(Ugly AF right?)

2:47 p.m. — I wander into another boutique and find the perfect dark charcoal grey tee. I snap it up because it is SO HARD to find a good charcoal grey tee that isn’t a stupid cut and reasonably priced (James Perse I’m looking at you) $36.23

3:01 p.m. — I buy a Starbucks and dump half the container of cinnamon in there because I’m weird. $4.88

3:12 p.m. — I consider going out thrifting but it is too late and I’m tired. I somehow walked so much lately while working out my mental stress from work that I got a blister on my left heel so I’m taking it easy.

3:44 p.m. — I drop by another boutique and spy a couple of pretty things like this salmon pink tied wrap midi dress (at least I think it is salmon pink because who the hell knows with stores putting fake yellow warm light and barely any of it for ambience for you to not be tricked into buying the WRONG shade. I am super picky about shades — a little too orange and it can be perfect but it goes back on the rack). I also see this (presumably) sage green jacket but I take one look at the changing room line and I’m out of there. I have no patience. I’ll try them on some other day. And for sizing only so that I can buy it secondhand or on sale…

3:46 p.m. — The 90s came back to mock us right? This shirt was $235. I predict sale rack, and then donated to thrift stores who will find it hard to accept it because it’s so damn fugly.. Does anyone remember people wearing these kinds of shirts back in the 90s? With wolves on there, whales, dolphins…

4:15 p.m. — I try on this PERFECT stripe shirt but of course they had to crop it a little too high and put a tie on it. Even with high waisted pants on, you could still see my stomach.. and even more so if I lifted my arms, what am I, a preteen?!?! It had perfectly threaded stripes rather than printed ones. OMG. So pretty, what a shame they can’t design anything. This is what I mean — the fabric itself is striped:

4:19 p.m. — I also try on other jeans, but I’m looking for dark grey charcoal chinos like Rag and Bone ones but HIGH WAISTED. Yeah. It is a lot to ask for.

4:24 p.m. — Lastly I try on these really cool navy pants but they are CROPPED. Dang.

4:33 p.m. — Same with the army green pants — they feel terrible. I’m starting to get frustrated. I feel like I want to start my own fashion line to make things that I specifically want to wear in the rises and cuts I want. Not everything has to be trendy like cropped, ripped, frayed, bubble hemmed, acid washed, ruffled, tied, open shoulder slotted or oversized to sell. Sometimes the perfect classics that are fitted and are of a good quality are enough. Sigh.

4:34 p.m. — I start heading back but it is way too early so I hang out at the lounge at home and make notes before going upstairs to be ambushed by a little child barreling into my legs screaming: Mommmmyyyyyyyyy!!!!!

5:01 p.m. — I organize my bag, and my receipts. I check that my emergency Toblerone is still good. I absolutely refill the stock when I eat one so that I always have a fix… but I won’t eat it just because I’m bored. I do it only when I really crave it and I have pretty good willpower.

5:25 p.m. — At home, they’re already eating. I have a salad, finish the rest of the “pizza” with them.. and am satisfied.

6:33 p.m. — I start on the dishes.

6:58 p.m. — As I am finishing up, Little Bun puts the headphone wire into his mouth as he is watching videos and it infuriates my partner to where he tosses them in the garbage so he won’t electrocute himself. Little Bun sees them disappear and bursts into tears. Commence 45 minutes of snotty-nose running and screaming. I think my partner is overreacting but I keep my mouth shut because he has A POINT but just not a great one for lesson learning, and we just don’t have headphones any more.

7:56 p.m. — Time for bed. I am ex-hausted. I feel like I deserve those secondhand boots y’all…

8:07 p.m. — I make an offer on a pair of them in waxed black leather. $125 USD. Let’s see if she bites… That’s about $160 CAD. That’s a great deal for these boots, and I know I will wear them to death (my other Club Monaco booties are getting WORN..)

8:15 p.m. — OH! I BOUGHT THEM!!! Sweet. Final price is very low. I would have paid $693 for them PLUS import duties and charges, which means I got a 76% savings on them and they are almost like new, I can tell by the heel. She didn’t wear them much…. Now I have black heeled boots that will look great with things that NEED black shoes and where I can’t wear my black moto boots. 🙂 The last pair I want are grey suede of course… Another super versatile colour in my wardrobe. $161.84

8:37 p.m. — Time for bed. My partner and I talk through the night about my office drama until we both drift off to sleep…

Returned: $90.32

Spent: $201.20

DAY SEVEN

6:30 a.m. — I took a cold pill last night, so I slept WELL and Little Bun slept “in”… so I am feeling a bit better but still tired.

6:44 a.m. — Cup of matcha tea, and I leave the leftover dishes from last night — one cup, one bowl, one spoon. My partner is cooking this morning.

7:11 a.m. — I log in and try to get some (personal) (blog) work done but I’m tired and all I want is to surf Poshmark. LOL. Little Bun is INSISTENT that we play “Animal Slide” where he sets up this big box with a lid, and he slides the little small felt animals down the slide loudly.

7:45 a.m. — Bored, he abandons his play area and wants to watch videos and listen to songs. I set him up beside me while I collect my tax receipts to work.

8:08 a.m. — I download all of my investing statements, and my dividend income for this month from my investing strategy is a very sweet $611.14 … you can read about how I invest my money here and only spend 4 hours a year doing it. 😉 .. If I can plow my reserve money into investing this year if I am able to stay on this contract, I hope to really ramp up that amount over time to hit $1000 a month in steady income.

8:19 a.m. — I set up and transfer money into Little Bun’s RESP. I invest his money the same way I invest mine…. I transfer in $625 every quarter which equals to $2500 a year — the max you need to get the max contributions from the government — and I just stick to his plan the same way I stick to mine by using my Investing Tool to track it all. No muss, no fuss.

8:25 a.m. — I browse for the perfect suede grey boot — my other favourite neutral in boots, along with light camel and black. I already have black waxed covered from my purchase yesterday, so that’s good. I’m so excited! I end up spying an olive green one with an interesting brown buckle, so I have to decide what my third neutral should be…

9:05 a.m. — I tell Little Bun in 3 videos we are going to get ready to go out. I have to meet the buyer to sell a shirt for $20.

9:24 a.m. — Little Bun eagerly helps me shut down both laptops, cleans up the play area, brings himself to the potty and only needs a wipe, and then dresses himself head to toe, then goes and plops himself by the doorway, waiting eagerly for me to get ready to take him out. A bit like a puppy.. you know, but a really highly intelligent, functioning one. 😛 .. I tell him he has to give me time to get ready, and he nods, swinging his legs on the chair.

9:30 a.m. — We’re out.

9:41 a.m. — I am SUPER early to meet the buyer so we hang out and wait for her.

10:00 a.m. — Sold! +$20

10:03 a.m. — With the earnings, I decide to treat him and myself to a small snack. We head to a bakery nearby and I pick up a mini croissant and pain au chocolat so that we both don’t ruin our lunches. $2.90

10:04 a.m. — They are DRY AF.. and old. This means no one really buys the mini pastries and unless you are there in the morning and they’re fresh, you should NOT BUY THEM. Buy the big ones instead. Lesson learned.

10:20 a.m. — And then.. it..starts.. the toddler tantrum that no one sees coming. He refuses to put on his coat (it is minus 2 degrees Celsius / 28.4 Fahrenheit), and then he refuses to zip it up.. and then he doesn’t want to sit in the car… he doesn’t want to be buckled in.. the song is wrong… his foot is on the ceiling and I am repeatedly asking him to STOP..

10:45 a.m. — We are at home, and I am on the edge already. I have been calm the whole time so far.

10:46 a.m. — He goes to take off his shirt, and then bursts into tears that he wasn’t wearing TWO SHIRTS to go out (an undershirt in white).. and loses it on the floor. Then he doesn’t want to wash his hands.. OMFG.. I SNAP. I freaking all out Hulk Smash SNAP on him.

10:47 a.m. — This USED to be a daily occurrence with me screaming at him, losing my #$&#% and completely ANGRY AF, but lately I have been working very hard to stay calm, sound calm, and Be The Calm. … but today, today I f*#%*ing lost it.

10:55 a.m. — And Little Bun gets even more worked up, but suddenly starts to obey me. I stop screaming (yes, my eyes go red with rage), and when he looks at me out of the side of his eyes, he sees me staring at him hard, and he takes the soap, PROPERLY scrubs his hands like he had NEVER scrubbed them before, and PROPERLY dries his hands. Then he puts on a shirt, he runs and buries his face into my legs, and then goes to sit in his chair.

10:58 a.m. — Oh but it is not over.. now he is (for the next half hour), repeating how he DOES NOT want the chair. He doesn’t like chairs. He doesn’t want to sit in one. He doesn’t want Mommy to buy him a chair. He hates chairs. Mommy doesn’t like chairs. I am calmly, but Zen-angrily eating my food, not saying a single word except: Okay. If I am to say any more, I will scream again.

11:34 a.m. — Lunch over, he has finally calmed down, and I go to lie down. I honestly half doze / pass out on the bed while he plays around me. I am #%#%) tired.

11:37 a.m. — He perks up at hearing his father cut up a pineapple and abandons me to sleep. He runs out to snag some pieces in the kitchen. We will never go hungry if we have this little Food Searcher around because he will find food wherever it is hiding.

12:00 p.m. — He is back from his Scavenging Hunt, and I tell him it’s time for a nap. He protests, resists.. I don’t even care. I’m passed out. I’m half sleeping as he is rolling around on me, on top of me, and I think sometime during that time he ends up actually sleeping but not for a full hour.

1:33 p.m. — His face is in my face, smiling. He is a ball of sunshine now, so incredibly adorable and sweet I can’t believe what he turned into in the morning could exist inside this angelic child. I open half an eye and whisper: Kisses?… he nods eagerly, and leans in. I kiss both of his cheeks and he giggles. I ask him if he napped and he says “YES!“.. but all children are liars so I have a feeling he sort of laid around and half fake snored. I can’t even tell if he did nap or not, I suppose he did or he wouldn’t be so happy but I have no clue. Don’t care.

1:34 p.m. — I get up, get his milk, and then doze back down beside him. I’m tired still. I am less tired than before, but I am still exhausted. I will sleep quite well tonight.

2:19 p.m. — I break out the emergency Toblerone I have stored in my bag because.. Momma needs it. I eat a chunk, check on what boots I COULD buy in either olive green or grey, and then start on the dishes.

3:28 p.m. — Dishes done and all dried, Little Bun gets bored of videos and takes my bedroom slippers and pretends they’re ambulances. “WEE OO WEEEE OO WEE OOO!!” he calls out as he “drives” them back to the bedroom. I’m tired. I just want to lie down and sleep. I have already eaten 5 pieces of Toblerone. Time to stop.

3:29 p.m. — We share a banana together. I ask him if he’s a monkey. He nods and grins and says: MOMMY TOO!

3:32 p.m. — My partner comes home with new things to play with. Little Bun loves picking stickers off things.

3:48 p.m. — We chat about work and Little Bun gets mad at us because now he can’t hear Cookie Monster say the letters. :-\ I start a load of laundry.

4:07 p.m. — This blogger is my new favourite read — Allen Pike about the Canadian Cheese Cartel. One of my favourite lines: “The Canadian dairy cartel generates substantially less profit than the Mexican drug cartel does.” A must read. He’s funny. I’m subscribing.

4:15 p.m. — My partner uses the vacuum a little bit and Little Bun says loudly: NOOO!! NO MORE NOISE.

5:02 p.m. — I start another load of laundry and dry the other one.

5:29 p.m. — I start making noodles… It’s my comfort food.

5:50 p.m. — Noodles done (Little Bun ate his taxed share..)

6:24 p.m. — OH! My offer which I thought was low-ish, for BRAND NEW, NEVER WORN Rag and Bone Harrow Boots got accepted. I got them for 25% of the retail price, and they are BRAND. FREAKING. NEW. The soles show it. Sweet. I guess that makes my decision for me — dark grey suede boots it is, as my other neutral. But I am still eying the other olive ones. Curiously. But I probably won’t buy them because they’d be too close to a neutral as my light caramel coloured ones. $161.44

7:49 p.m. — I get Little Bun ready for bed, and he protests HARD.. but after we do ONE math equation he goes to bed.

8:30 p.m. — I’m exhausted. I pass out almost immediately.

Earned: $20

Spent: $161.44

———-

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