Wonders of Water

Water really is wonderful.

It's cheap.

It's easy.

It's essential.

The only thing more important to survival is oxygen.

When the body is dehydrated, it often confuses thirst with hunger causing people to over eat. A dehydrated body is also more prone to muscle pain, fatigue, head aches, depression, constipation, wrinkles. and illness.

A well-hydrated body is like a well-oiled machine. The water circulates all the organs and muscles detoxing the body. If the body is running short on fluids, the detox cycle suffers. Just like a car that's short on oil, the body's systems will function at a lower level. The muscles and brain will ache. The body will feel sluggish and slow, leading to feeling blah which can lead to depression. Even the eyes, when lacking proper hydration, will burn and feel fatigued.

Keeping the body tissue supple causes the skin to be smoother, younger looking. And it also keeps the mucus membranes more pliable and resistant to germs. Not to mention it keeps the bowels moving, which possibly cuts down on the risk of colon cancer.

There really are no arguments against drinking water...unless you're planning to drink it from a puddle.

So come on! Drink some water!!!

*If you find the flavor boring, add some lemon. Or lime. I've often heard people like it with cucumber, but I've never tried that.

*Want to save some money? When eating at a restaurant, order water with your dinner. It will save you at least $2.00 per diner.

*Carry your own water bottle and fill it with tap water. When it's time to clean it, soak it in vinegar water over night.

Most places recommend shooting for eight, eight ounce glasses per day. To make sure I stay hydrated, I used to keep eight pennies in my kitchen window and move them from one side to another. It always amazes me how much better I feel when I drink my water.

Procrastination Tip

Here's a tip I've learned from last minute, way too far behind, desperation.

You've had all day to wash your hair, but you didn't. Now a friend wants you to meet her at the mall and maybe grab dinner. You have four options:

1. Wash and blow dry leaving your friend waiting so long she regrets ever calling you.
2. Go greasy. (Gross.)
3. Go wet. (You can bet it will dry either fuzzy or flat...enjoy.)
4. Dry shampoo.

That's right- dry shampoo. It's not just for Fido. They make it for humans too.

You can pick up a can at Walmart. Or any drug store or online store, but if you're anything like me, you're going to be in Walmart fifteen times this week trying to remember all the things you forgot to get the first time you went there.

A bottle of dry shampoo is as cheap as a bottle of real shampoo, but it takes an eighth of the time.

And no, I'm not suggesting you stop bathing, but if you're like me, my hair is dry and curly. If I wash my hair daily, it strips the natural oils and before you know it, I'm looking like Roseanne Rosannadanna.

You do remember Roseanne Rosannadanna, right? If not...



She's hilarious. The hair? Not so much.

Thick, course hair is actually more manageable on the unwashed days. If you're planning an updo or want a head of manageable curls...don't wash it. Now, nobody wants to be stinky. That's where the dry shampoo comes in handy to absorb the oils and smells.

Here's how it works:

*Brush hair, but  don't over brush. Just get the tangles out.
*Spray hair toward the root without spraying directly on the scalp. If you get the spray too close, you'll get powder puddles.
*Allow to dry completely. Maybe spray hair first, then do make-up while it dries.
*Bend over. Finger comb and fluff the freshly unwashed hair.
*Avoid brushing. Brushing moves the oils from the scalp, down the strands making it look limp and greasy.
*Style and you're ready to go! Now, hurry...you're probably running late!

**Additional note! Be certain to get a spray shampoo that matches your hair color. Not only does it look more natural, but it will help hide those overgrown roots. Now, that's a bonus!!

Enjoy your Monday. Skip the shower. Take a hot bath when you get home.

Tiny Vacation!

Happy Friday, everybody! 6 weeks ago today, we were on our way up to Nashville. Some people go to Nashville for the music. Some people go to Nashville for the shows.

The Nashville Tiny House was so adorable!

We went for the kick-ass Tiny House.

I love tiny spaces. Seriously. I'm a natural nester and have been for as long as I can remember. Even as a kid I always found the tiny forgotten spaces to hide in with a book and a flashlight, whether it was under the coats in a closet or in the hidden space behind the old entertainment center. The more it felt like a cocoon, the better.

Go ahead - call me crazy. (You wouldn't be the first!) But it's no surprise that I jumped right on board when the Tiny House movements started building steam. It's economical (which really speaks to my heart), it's practical, it's low maintenance, and it's friggin' adorable. Be honest, ladies - who here DIDN'T want to live in their dollhouse as a kid?

We found it on Airbnb.com and knew we were going to love it as soon as we saw the fun modern/industrial exterior. Inside, it's about 185 sq feet of cozy awesomeness that made a perfect weekend escape for us.

Chill time in the Sky Palace!

My favorite part was the sky palace - a place of absolute peace and nesting heaven that boring people might refer to as a "loft." Since this weekend was all about R&R, we kicked back with drinks and Netflix and ordered in. (Note the lovely puppy dog pajamas in the pic)

This was more than a vacation for us, though. Since we're planning to build our own Tiny House within the next two years, it was also a test run to see how it really felt living side by side in a space this small. We passed with flying colors! Although, I would strongly recommend to anyone considering it that a powerful bathroom fan is a must-have, marriage-saving addition to a teency living space like this. Seriously. Spare no expense! ;-)

View from the Living Room: Kitchen and Bath  are nestled under the loft bedroom, AKA Sky Palace

When Inspiration Strikes: The hubs working on the design for our own Tiny House.

Think you're up for the experience? Chances are there's a Tiny House rental near you or wherever you're headed for your next vacation. Most of these are managed by individual owners, so a search on Airbnb.com for "Tiny House" is your easiest way to find them. Have fun with your tiny vacation!

Fruitalicious Dried Snacks

Happy Wednesday, peeps! If you were hanging out with me Monday, you might have picked up on the fact that I’m kind of a fiend for saving cash. I’m a DIY-er driven by an obsession with not paying for anything I might be able to do on my own. Or possibly trade pizza and a 6-pack for.

So sticking with that theme – let’s talk about fruit! Dried fruit, that is...

C'mon, don't act like you haven't seen this in your crisper.

In my 2-person household, we have the bad habit of buying fruit and then forgetting about it in the mysterious depths of the crisper drawer until it sprouts a carpet and/or terrible smell. Out of sight, out of mind, you know. We WANT to eat healthy, but in our busy lives snacks that come pre-packaged and non-sticky tend to be the first thing we grab. Anyone who's ever tried to eat a plum on the drive to work knows exactly what I mean. And has a sticky steering wheel.

After we threw away another package of spoiled apple slices, my wonderfully brilliant husband decided that we should try our hand at drying it and making fruit snacks and trail mixes. If you buy trail mix or dried fruit for your family, you know how pricey it can be in the store for the natural products, and the cheaper ones end up being mostly sugar and preservatives.

So yes, what I’m saying is this is totally a win-win.

Being the thorough engineer that he is, he did the research on what kind of dehydrator would be the best for us and we settled on this one for us based on the size, ratings, temperature settings and price. There are so many options out there and you can spend anywhere from $20 - $200 on a dehydrator, but even some of the higher end ones had terrible reviews. 

Lesson: Unless you like throwing money away for fun, do the research!

After lots of trial and error and some rather interesting experiments, we discovered that our favorites are thinly sliced dried pineapple chips, cantaloupe/honeydew, cinnamon apple slices and watermelon chips.

That’s right... Dried WATERmelon. Counter-intuitive, isn’t it? But O....M....G.... Dried watermelon ultimately tastes like watermelon candy and has a taffy-like texture that will become your favorite sweet snack. And getting healthy snacks in the house that your family WANTS to eat (and quite possibly fights over) is its own reward!

Left to right: Dried Watermelon, zucchini chips, fig slices, sliced/seasoned tomatoes,
honeydew, trail mix, and cinnamon apple slices. One giant pile of YUM.

The snackalicious possibilities are endless with a dehydrator and there are resources a-plenty on the web to give you great ideas to try. Here’s a few to get you started:

Fruit leather guide: These are basically homemade fruit roll-ups with any fruits you choose. It’s the perfect solution for those overripe fruits you don’t want to just throw away. Not to mention delish!

Kale Chips: My favorite is garlic and cashew

36 Foolproof Recipes: This’ll get you started, and then some!

Now that your mouth is watering and your pocketbook is ready for a refill, go salvage your fruit drawer!

Mortgage Straight Talk - Choosing a 15-yr or 30-yr term

HI EVERYONE!!! I’m Ashley, and I’ve been looking so forward to sharing this first post with you guys. This is a topic that is near and dear to my heart and it's a little bit long (in true soapbox fashion). But I promise it'll be worth it!

Here’s the scenario: Think back to your experience buying your first house, maybe even your second or third house. At any point during your purchasing experience, did the mortgage consultant or sales rep really give you the full picture of a 15-yr vs a 30-yr loan? OR give you the tools to make the analysis yourself? Chances are you, like most Americans embarking on purchasing their first or second home, never heard the difference between the two aside from the monthly bottom line, let alone the myriad reasons why one might be better for you than the other.

And that, my friends, burns my biscuits.

If you’ve heard much about them at all, you’ve probably heard the common wisdom that you can keep your payments flexible and lower by choosing a 30-yr and making extra principal payments each month to pay it off in 15 years. And if you’re planning on staying in the house for more than 10 years and having payment flexibility is a concern in your budget, this is a rock solid plan. HOWEVER, there are two big caveats that keep this from working for the majority of the population:

•        The average length of time homeowners stay in one house now is only 5-8 years, and
•        It takes a lot of discipline to keep ignoring the calls of life redirecting your extra cash to the mortgage when it isn’t required on the bill. You know what calls I mean.... We are waaaay to good at justifying purchases to ourselves, especially when it’s something for the household and not directly for us. That shiny new TV was for the family, not us, right? RIGHT? 

So what considerations do you really need to keep in mind when deciding if a 30-yr or 15-yr is right for you? I’m glad you asked! The following checklist assumes 100% financing since it’s the most common loan for first time homebuyers.

A 30-yr mortgage is probably right for you if:

• You can only afford the payment on a 30-yr for the loan amount you’re seeking.
• You plan to stay in the house for at least 10 years (even better if you can make the extra principal payments)
• You plan to invest the payment difference responsibly in retirement or other funds that will yield growth at least relative to the difference in the interest payments
• POSSIBLY for the income tax reduction. See the notes on Taxes below to help you weigh the impact of the added deduction.

A 15-yr mortgage is probably right for you if:

• You can afford the difference in payment easily – then take the 15 hands down. No contest!
• You only plan to be in the house 5-7 years. Even if you think there’s a chance you’ll have to put your house back on the market in that time. See the chart below for the evidence as to why a 15-yr knocks a 30-yr out of the water in the short term.
• You are close to retirement and foresee a need to reduce living expenses. Home equity lines of credit can be powerful financial tools in the case of emergency or illness, but they require equity.
• The interest rates are higher. When the rates go up, the benefit of a 15-yr over a 30 really explodes.

Taxes (AKA, payin’ the Man):

I’ve had the conversation with many friends who were convinced that they needed the higher interest for the income tax deduction come April 15^th.  After we did the math, that only turned out to be true for about half of them. If the higher interest will reduce your taxable income enough to lower your tax bracket, then this is probably a strong consideration for you. If not, you can estimate the value of the higher deduction to your tax savings as:

(Taxable Income2 x Tax Rate) – (Taxable Income1 x Tax Rate) = Tax Savings

In other words, if you make $75,000 a year in a 25% tax bracket with anticipated itemized deductions of $13,500 with a 30-yr loan or $12,000 with a 15-yr loan, your tax savings for paying $1,500 more a year in interest is only $375. Surprising, eh? And not in the awesome finding-money-in-the-laundry kind of way, either.

The Really Real Numbers - Finally!

WHEW! Time for a breather! If you’ve hung with me this long – you are a rock star. Finances are never fun reading, but our home is the biggest asset most of us have, so knowing how to get the most out of it is crucial to our family’s financial well-being. So, if you’re the finance-savvy rock star I think you are – this next part is for you! To play with the numbers and make them match your circumstances, download the full amortization schedules here for each of the scenarios demonstrated below.

Below is a summary of what to expect from the first 5 years of 3 different $150K mortgages:

• A standard 30-yr loan with no extra payments
• A 30-yr loan with extra principal payments (the total additional payment is the average of the principal payment cost over the 5 years)
• A standard 15-yr loan with no extra payments

The loans use the current rates listed on a national bank site as of 10/23/2015 and assume 0% down payments with a start date of Jan 1, 2016. Total Escrow (insurance/property taxes) + PMI has been estimated at $245. 

Terms: *Equity Earned = Original Loan amount less the Principal Balance After 5 Years

**Net Gain = Equity Earned less Total Interest Paid. Interest Paid represents the cost of the loan. The goal is to minimize the cost of the loan while maximizing Equity Earned.

Still hanging in there with me? Then you probably just noticed that Option A left you in not much better shape than having paid rent for 5 years. Granted, your sales price may be higher than what you paid 5 years ago, but in this buyer's market there are no guarantees. Then you get to add in the cost of any repairs you'll be required to do (that can include appliance and carpet replacement, roof repairs, costly structural issues, etc), the 6% broker's fee, and the other closing costs sellers are expected to pay in markets like we're in now. Even after paying down your mortgage nearly $15,000 in 5 years, you could still end up paying out of pocket to sell your house. And I can promise you that it really does happen. In fact, it happened to me just a few years ago. 

That was when I vowed that "With God as my witness, I will never go [uninformed] again!" And hopefully I can also use these experiences to help others make the best decision for them along the way.

Thanks for sticking out my first post with me, friends! I promise the next post will be more light-hearted ;-)  In the meantime, don't forget to download the amortization schedules tool for your own use!