It's just me. Again.

Thom says I'm a stalker. He can't remember giving me his email address and I admit, I don't think he did. A few years had passed since our dating days in '98 and I was curious where he was and what he was up to. So sometime in 1999 or 2000 I looked him up and sent him a brief email. "What's up? Remember me?" And then for the next 6 or 7 years we exchanged an annual email with simple details and quick hellos. I can't help it if he fell in love with me in early 2007. Ok, ok ... so he insists that I stalked him WELL before those emails. One random day in Schenectady, NY I stopped to fill up my tank on my way to work and exchanged a flirtatious hello with the man behind the counter. I was all smiles the rest of the day! And, well ... he worked in a public place so I stopped by ... a lot. I don't exactly call that stalking! Just ... admiring? If I had followed him home or found out the name of his cat - sure, you could say I was a stalker!

I've always tried to be diligent with my money. Paying my bills, not using credit cards, and shopping at second-hand shops for most of our clothes, shoes, and household needs ... but I'm tired of how tight our budget is! When we got married it took Thom a few months to find a job. Money was tight. When we had Julia a few months later, money was tight. And now with Thom on layoff we are tightening our belts even more! But we're doing it! I'm proud of him and us! Creditors aren't calling and banks aren't freezing our accounts ... I feel good about where we are. But I long to be in a better place. I'm very aware of the economic reality that there just aren't jobs. So I've been looking for ways to spend less and save money wherever we can. I recently started couponing and have been so thankful that others have invented the wheel in that department. But we need more! We had already begun talking about how to finance Christmas gifts this ye