Please enjoy my birthday countdown from 2006. I realize it’s two years old, but 32 doesn’t deserve it’s own countdown. You’ll find the pictures here and here, as well as here, here and finally, right here!

My time is valuable. With heading into my office more often, taking a full course load in college, AND the cost of gas, I’ve started planning what I do, and where I go in my free time very carefully. My Saturday afternoons in the past would be filled with dropping off the dog at the groomer, followed by a trip to Target or a few other stores to spend time and money. Now, I’ve got better things I’d rather be doing, like studying for starters! Plus, a trip to Target costs me $8 in just GAS!

So all of this prompted me thinking about how I can not only use my time better, but also save money and gas. I came across ServeMeHere.com, a site where you can make an online appointment with mobile professional services like pet groomers or massage therapists! How cool would it be to have the pet groomer come right to us, instead of driving to the pet store, dropping off to the dog, and then driving back to get her 4 hours later? The whole thing would save me time and gas, and it would be a lot less traumatic for my dog, too. The neat thing about ServeMeHere.com is that you can rate the person you end up doing business with to save other people headaches and hassles, or take advantage of ratings previously left by other members. For instance, what if the dog groomer was late and rude? Well, I’d be able to leave feedback on the ServeMeHere.com website to warn other members.

No time at home to have a professional come to you? How about having someone come to your office? I can pop online and have a massage therapist come right to my workplace to give me a quick neck massage on my lunch break…resulting in a more relaxed me and jealous coworkers to boot! You can find personal trainers, pet groomers, professional organizers, cooking instructors, foreign language teachers, babysitters, travel agents, financial planners, and a host of other professionals offering their services. The whole thing is 100% free to people who clients AND advertisers, and you don’t make payment until services are rendered!

Holy moly! Has it been 2 weeks since I last blogged? Who woulda thunk it?

I’m happy to report that I just wrapped up my summer semester and I’m now officially a senior in college. At the age of 31. I’m a late bloomer, I guess. And speaking of being 31, that’s only in effect until midnight tonight, since my 32nd birthday is TOMORROW! Jim has had the birthday extravaganza in full effect this weekend, with dinner out with the kids on Friday, followed by a little shopping spree at JCPenney. Yesterday we had steak at home, and today I had my last class and he’s at work. Now, he’s off tomorrow, on my birthday, but guess who has to work? Yep, that would be me. It’s hard to be an adult!

Some of you have noticed my absence. I blame it on a combination of work, school, and the family. I’ve had zero free time in between those things, but I’m hoping to have a short break when my summer semester ends in 2 weeks. I say a “short break” because the fall semester starts up right after that! I still have a project to do for my Industrial / Organization Psych class (I think I’ll be banging that out on Saturday), as well as 5 online quizzes. I think I’ve got one more test in Admin / Personnel Law and I know I’ve got one more in my last Statistics class. This is a heck of a semester and by comparison, my courses in the fall will seem like a breeze.

Holy cow! It’s been almost a week since I last blogged. I’m getting to be like one of those people with one of those whachamacalits….a life?

School and work and the kids are keeping me busy. I’m still juggling three classes this summer, and when I tell people I work full time, attend school full time, AND have three kids, most people are amazed that I’m standing upright and able to carry on a conversation.

Anyway, here we are at July 4th already, which means one thing in this house - 24 more shopping days until my birthday. 32 this year…eh. The kids have their fireworks picked out for tonight, and we’ll be slapping burgers on the grill and staying home, so that we’ll be here when our dog freaks out from the noise. I’ve got the day off too, paid of course. Whenever I have a paid day off from work I always remind myself throughout the day by saying, “Hey, you just got paid $x for that hour of doing laundry.” Or, “You just watched TV for an hour and got paid $x!” Try it and you’ll see how much you enjoy it.

Happy Independence Day to you and yours!