My daughter is looking into taking guitar lessons during the summer. I think she'd enjoy it a lot. My ex, her dad, has a guitar very similar to this fender 65 mustang reissue, so she sees him play that, and wants to play herself. I think she's plenty old enough, and responsible enough, to start lessons. I just have to find her a guitar. We will be starting with an acoustic guitar though. Any suggestions for a great beginner acoustic guitar? Would love to find one in the next couple weeks. Thanks!

With the elections coming up, that's all you hear about in the news anymore, or at least that's the way it seems. My cousin who is extremely political was looking for a place to get campaign signs cheap, so I did a little research online and found him a place. He was super happy about it. I love providing people with information. Maybe it's the dork in me, but I love researching stuff. If only I could get paid full time for doing it. lol! I'd be a super happy camper.

I've been looking around all day online for personalized anniversary gifts. My Aunt and Uncle, that I'm very close to, are having their 25th wedding anniversary in two weeks. They are of course having a huge party and I want to get them a great gift. The 25th anniversary is the silver anniversary, so I'm thinking a nice engraved silver platter or something. I don't know though, I'm open to suggestions. lol!

Well mother nature is making up for the lack of snow, and she's doing a great job! Ugh! We have gotten so much snow in the last week or so, it's unreal. At the beginning of January you could still see the grass through the snow, and now on January 20th there is a good foot and a half of snow in the yard! Crazy! And we've gotten most of that in the last few days. I hate winter!

There is a lot on my mind tonight. Mostly things that I need to get done. Next month I absolutely have to start looking for life insurance. Both are going to be up for renewal, so it's definitely time to start looking. This coming year is going to be filled with a lot of changes. I'm hoping that at some point this year I will also be looking into mortgages
or rental houses for my family. We are absolutely way too crowded in our current living situation. We really need a 4 bedroom house and we are currently living in a 2 bedroom house. So it is very crowded in here.

I'm not sure how it will all go, or what we will find, but I'm hopeful. This year needs to be the year that things change for the better. The last couple have been pretty rough, so I need a good year. I'm hoping I find good deal on the car insurance, can get some bills paid off, raise my credit score, and that that will help us find a great house. It's funny how doing the small things like paying your bills on time, really affect the big things that you want, like getting a house. Something to definitely keep in mind!

Well today my my mom mentioned that she thought I might have a B12 deficiency. I was like...yeah right..Dr.Mom. I ended up looking it up though, and I do have several of the symptoms....so maybe she's right? I don't know. My mom is one of those hypochondriac people. Not only about herself, but others as well..lol. If you cough or have a headache, you might possibly have a brain tumor or something!!!. It's funny and annoying at the same time. Ah, mothers, you gotta love them! lol!

Today I spent a good part of the day just browsing the internet. I haven't done that in a little while, so it was nice to just see what's out there again. I found some great Macys coupons, that I'm going to use I think to buy a soda machine for my mom's birthday. She saw one on TV recently and was ooo'ing and aah'ing over it for ages. Apparently it would save us lots of money and would reduce the amount of recycling that we would have to do. So that would be nice, and we can have fun making soda together. :)

So my friend found out a few months ago that she is expecting a baby. After a short spell of freaking out, and some very excited smiles, we are now getting into the chores of purchasing some of the needed baby items. I've been scouring the internet for deal sites and found Nomorerack.com. They have some great deals on everyday items. I read some nomorerack reviews, to avoid any nomorerack scam possibilities and decided to give it a go. I went ahead and signed up.

So far I am loving it. There are great deals everyday. I'm hoping I can get some maternity clothes there, as maternity clothes are not exactly cheap. Nothing is really cheap though, when it comes to a baby. Diapers, formula, clothes, all the necessary baby gear. It all adds up, and since this is not her first baby, she won't be having a baby shower. So every little bit helps when it comes to saving money.

This has definitely been a reminder that children are expensive and that I'm definitely not ready to have anymore anytime soon..lol. I'll save that headache for my dear friend!

Guest post written by my buddy Bernardo Graham

My daughter recently decided to buy her own place after years of renting in town. I was excited for her, but understandably nervous since the part of town she lives in doesn’t have the best crime statistics available. As any father would be, I was worried she was going to find herself alone and scared some night, so I did what I could to try and make her place feel safer. I researched security system options at a website about Orlando security systems and got her the Rotweiler puppy she’s been asking me for for years. That will keep her safe and keep her company! I also made sure once she was moved into the new place that her windows locked tightly and that back gate got fixed. No reason to take any chances we don’t need to! Sarah will always be my little girl and though she’s in her mid twenties, I consider it my job to make sure she’s as safe as she can be. I know her mother would never let me hear the end of it if she wasn’t!

Well it is the new year and with the new year, comes new goals for me. I'm not going to call them resolutions, because I always fail at resolutions. This year my GOAL is to lose 45 pounds and keep it off. If I did that, I would be incredibly happy and proud of myself. I'd look great, I'd feel good, and most of all I would be a lot healthier. The older I get losing weight, becomes more about getting healthier rather than looking "hot". So this year I WILL lose 45 pounds! No if's, and's, or but's about it!