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The Start of a New Adventure

Posted on May 23, 2014May 12, 2014 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

That’s right, tomorrow is the start of a new adventure for J and I. I have been hinting around here for a few weeks about a big announcement. No, it’s not that kind of announcement. We aren’t bring a mini J and me into the world. Every time we tell people that we have big news that is where their thoughts first go. Then I followup with saying NO. Let me chug a beer to prove it to you. I know, I know, I’m so ladylike.
Drum roll please…. We are moving! Yep, that’s right J and I are moving (again) to a new town. Well it’s new for J, not for me. I’m going home to the place I graduated high school from, learned to drive, had my first job, made one of the best friendships that have stood the test of time, and now the start of a new career.

An opportunity like this one doesn’t come around every day. J and I decided to take a big leap into a future that we never imagined. I am beyond excited to get home, get settled and begin. J is putting on a brave front. I think the idea of being far away from his family and close friends is pretty unappealing at the moment. I, however, strongly believe that J will feel right at home in no time. Something about him being more social and friendly then me. Or perhaps it’s the fact J is the furthest thing away from a homebody and will force himself out making new friends.

Now you may be asking yourself – when are these crazy kids moving? In a month? Two months? Nope. We are moving tomorrow. Our house is full of boxes and packing tape. The poor pups have no idea what’s going on. Our movers are coming to help us load up the truck and then we hit the open road tomorrow morning, bright and early. We have a pretty little house waiting for us to make it a home. I love new beginnings.

Simple Technique For Not Getting Overwhelmed

Posted on February 21, 2014February 20, 2014 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

Want to hear a little secret on how I thrive and not get overwhelmed? It’s a simple, no smoke and mirrors trick that always works.

A little back story first because we all love a little story. In college, in high school, in every job I’ve ever had I always get overwhelmed. I over commit myself and run a million miles an hour to get things done at the last minute. You might be thinking “why wait to the last minute?” Well I didn’t do that on purpose. It was a b product of having too much on my plate.

After the hundredth time I’ve made myself sick from exhaustion and from stress, I had enough. It was time to make a big change in my life and what I put on my plate. So, I learned the PAUSE. THINK. SAY NO. process.

It’s beautiful. Really, it is. Plus it’s simple. When asked to take on a new project, meet up for dinner, agree to do one more thing all you do is pause, think it over and then more than likely say “no.”

Want a real life example? Let’s say you are approached by a friend to speak at a local organization’s gathering next month. You have a lot going on between your work, family, side projects, etc. You do not really have the time to dedicate to preparing a presentation, plus you are not really passionate about the topic. So, you enact the PAUSE. THINK. SAY NO. technique.

You tell your friend – let me think that over, check my calendar and get back with you. Then after a few days or however long you need to mull it COMPLETELY over. You call or email your friend and say, “I took a good look at everything I have going on the next few weeks and I unfortunately do not have the time to dedicate to a presentation. I am thankful that you thought of me, but I just am unable to do this.”

See what you did? You said no, but were polite about it. No hurt feelings or friendships ruined and you do not have anything else to add to your plate. It’s magical.

If you instantly say no to someone then they will think that you are blowing them off or just being rude. So instead, take time to really think it over. If you are passionate about the project, task, or whatever it may be then by thinking it over you can decide on a game plan to get it done. Everyone can be respectful of you asking for time to think their request over. If the person is not reasonable and can’t give you time to mull it over, then you want to say no immediately!

Simple. Beautiful. Easy.

A day in the life of me

Posted on February 10, 2014January 29, 2014 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

I always read these “day in the life of” posts and think it is so cool to peek into someone else’s life for a bit. My day is not as glamourous as most other blogger’s because I have a full time job that I go to during the week, so that cuts into a lot of my time (It’s so annoying having to pay bills!). Here is an average day for me.
6:15 – J is up and ready to face the day. He is such a morning person and I am not! So I hang out in bed with the pups for a few minutes longer while he showers. Once he is out of the shower I am up and headed downstairs to make him a smoothie for breakfast.

6:30 – J is out the door and I am headed back upstairs to start getting ready. I wash my face, put on makeup and fix my hair all while jamming out to some hard rock taking dance breaks with Tiny.

7:00 – I am out of the bathroom and into the closet to get dressed. I try to lay out my outfit the night before to save time, but there are those days that I hate everything in my closet so that takes up some time.

7:15 – Headed back downstairs to make myself a breakfast smoothie, pack my lunch, let the dogs outside and just relax for a bit. I like to check my emails while watching reruns of Dog the Bounty Hunter in the morning.

7:50 – I am off to work. The commute is never the same, no matter which way I take. Sometimes it takes me 15 minutes and other times it takes me 30. I just never know.

8:20 – Arrive at work and start the day.

5:15 – Leave work and head home. Again, the commute is never the same but my average is about 15 minutes on the way home.

6:00 – Hit the gym or try to work out some at home.

7:15 – Start dinner with J. I like to plan ahead and know what we are making so that everything is prepped and ready to go.

7:45 – Finish dinner and make our lunches for tomorrow.
8:00 – Finally able to sit on the couch and relax for a bit. I usually pull out my laptop and work on merelynne.com, some of my freelance projects, or brainstorm ideas. I also like to watch TV with J for a bit.

9:00 – J heads to bed and I get the TV to myself. I have a few shows that I love to watch at night or I set it to record so that I can catch up on them later.

11:00 – Head upstairs, shower, and finally hit the bed for sleep.

That’s it. A typical day in the life of me.

Life Update

Posted on February 7, 2014January 27, 2014 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

I thought it was time to fill you in on a little about my life. You probably gathered from this post about quitting your job that I actually did quit my job that I had for over 5 years. Fortunately, I found a new job in the field I want to be in. My bosses are amazing and I am loving everything so far.

Maggie and Tiny are doing the same. They are spoiled and would not know any other way to be.

J and I joined a local gym and have set the goal of going 3x a week. Eventually we would like to bump that up, but for now 3x is good for us.

We also set the goal of cooking dinner at least 4x a week at home. That will help us save some money, eat healthier, and just spend more time together.

My family has come up to visit a few times, which has been awesome. I love my folks and getting to spend time with them is pretty much the best.

I started a new vlog series and am going to be sharing what I am thankful for each month.

I have a plan of making our breakfast each morning and so far I have been successful. A homemade chocolate peanut butter smoothie for me and a vanilla banana smoothie for J.

We are closer to finishing one of our debts and then will be diving headfirst into paying the next one off. We will achieve our goal of saving a down payment for our first house!

Now for some sad news… well actually it’s not that sad. I’ve decided that I cannot keep up my blogging schedule, which explains why my blog has been pretty quiet lately. I typically post on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. It is just too much. So for now I am going to post 2-3 times per week. I am going to aim for Monday, Wednesday and Friday but give myself Monday off if needed. I do not need to stress about not being able to post and I think that will help the quality of my posts too. If you have serious complaints about my new schedule, please let me know. 🙂

Newlywed Myths Debunked

Posted on January 28, 2014January 27, 2014 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

You know what I am sick of hearing? “Oh enjoy the honeymoon stage because it doesn’t last forever.” That statement usually precedes a bunch of chuckling or a tap on the arm. But c’mon! I am so tired of hearing that. Do people really believe the first year of marriage is perfect and that the rest are horrible? Because if they do then that might explain the divorce rate in America.

I know that J and I look like on this blog that are marriage is great. Honestly, I would not change one single thing about our relationship. However, there are some newlywed myths that need to be debunked immediately.

1) It’s not all rainbows and sunshine. Every moment of the day I am madly in love with J, but that does not mean we get along every second or do not have our disagreements. The key is that we are communicating and learning how to disagree with one another. Not so that we can get the upperhand over the other person, but so we can effectively come to a conclusion that is best for us as a whole.

2) Money does not cause us to fight with one another. We have out talks about money and budgeting, but we do not fight with each other. There is no blaming for who spent what and where it was spent. No, our discussions consist of who is paying which bill and making sure that I actually mailed the check. It’s absolutely silly to fight about money and blame one another. I’ve talked before in the past how we budget our discretionary money and it still works for us.

3) Weekends are not always for running errands and working around the house. I have seen so many unrealistic TV shows that depict newlywed couples running errands, painting a room, or building something together on the weekends. Now, we do work around the house and maybe when the day comes that we own a house this might change. But for now, we do not work around the house all weekend. We really spend the weekend to be together, hang out with our friends that all work real jobs, too and travel to see family. There are a lot of Sundays I wake up and go from pajamas to sweat pants so I can watch the football game in our big fluffy recliner.

4) You want to do everything together. That myth is so wrong! I love J and I do love spending time together, but I do not want to spend every waking moment together. Plus, I’m pretty sure he feels the same way. I think that our relationship is stronger because we do have our circle outside of our marriage. I think what works here is that we do not mind that we have our own interests and hobbies. That’s what is so great about it – J is really supportive when my friends are here visiting and realizes that I may want some girl time and I do the same for him with his guy friends.

With any relationship the key is balance. I really think that J and I have it and hope that other couples find it too. J supports my dreams and goals, and I support his. We push one another to be better versions of ourselves and to grow. I’m sure there are other myths out there that need to be debunked, but I’ll save that for another day.

Background photo by DColeman.

Our Money Story

Posted on January 7, 2014December 26, 2013 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

What’s your money story?

Usually anytime I can find a free webinar, call or download about budgeting or personal finance I jump all over it. You remember how much I love reading and developing my personal money skills. I had to opportunity a few weeks ago to listen in on a teleconference call about money. It was hosted by Jen Hemphill and Amanda Abella. There was a lot of ideas that I feel J and I are already doing well, but there was one part that struck a chord with me.

Your own money story.

Everyone has a money story and by thinking it as a story is so much easier to understand. We all have stories about why we are the way we are with money, with relationships, and our jobs. Why do some spend every cent they earn (sometimes even more than they earn), why do some pinch every penny they get and other budget somewhere in the middle? It all goes back to the stories we’ve learned from our parents, from our idols and from our own life experiences.

For me, money is something that I struggle with. I like to save, save, save. However, I get hit with a bug that forces me to go shopping every once in awhile. I have to work hard to keep my shopping spurts in line and think about the bigger picture. J is steady with money. He always knows how much he has, where it needs to go and a plan for what’s left.

For us, our money stories are becoming one, single money story.

We sit down once a month to talk about our budget, bills, and plans for our money. Sitting down for our monthly budget date is not fun for me. In fact, I pretty much hate it. So there are some things that we have developed so that we can sit down in a calm environment to discuss everything.

First, create a comfortable environment. By setting up an environment that you feel relaxed in will help. You can think clearly and have minimal distractions. In this environment it’s important to turn off the TV and any other distractions.

Second, I have to eat before we talk money. I have a tendency to get grumpy if I don’t eat. With knowing that about myself, J and I make sure that we eat dinner before we talk money.

Third, knowing that it’s okay to take a break. Some months are tougher than others when we talk money. When you get frustrated you might say things that you do not really want to. At the point any frustrations starting piling up, we know that it’s okay to take a break. I will take the dogs outside to clear my head, turn on the TV for a few minutes, or just talk about something else.

Creating an environment for talking about money will help your story have a happy ending. In the end, knowing that many marriages end because of money disputes is enough to know that J and I do not want that. We are being smart and having open communication to create a successful money story.

{Vlog} Thankful Series in 2014

Posted on January 2, 2014December 31, 2013 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

Hey y’all! I have uploaded my very first video blog post to Youtube… eek! I am not afraid to admit that I am terrified for people to watch it. But I have to face my fears and get moving. I told myself that I wanted to work on posting some vlogs in 2014 and what better time to start then now.

I wanted to create a new series that talks about being thankful. I know that on here you are only getting a glimpse into the part of my life that I want to show. But there are so many more facets to my life, my marriage and my job that you do not see. Sometimes in the real world it’s easy to get bogged down with what’s bad. I have high hopes of staying more positive in 2014. I thought that sharing what I am grateful for every month would be the perfect way to force the positivity out of me.

Here we go, my first (and hopefully not last) vlog.

I would love to know what you are working towards this year? Let me know by commenting!

Leave me some comments letting me know what you think of my first vlog post.

Happy New Year’s 2014

Posted on December 31, 2013December 31, 2013 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

Today is the last day of 2013. It’s been a crazy ride, but the best one yet.
My favorite recipe was this delicious broccoli cheddar soup.

My favorite trip was my bachelorette party in NOLA.
I even shared a little about myself.
I even created an awesome gallery wall filled with some of our favorite pieces.
My all time favorite memory of the year was the day I walked down the aisle to meet my soulmate.

Back in August J and I moved to a new city for his new job. This December I made the decision to start a new career and have left the company that I’ve been with for over five years. We have seen a lot and been through even more this year, but I do believe that we are stronger than ever.Here’s to many more! Hope your New Year’s Eve is filled with love, laughter, and time with friends & family. Cheers!

Time Management Tools: So You Can Do More

Posted on December 9, 2013November 25, 2013 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

Developing time management tools are key in your professional life, personal life, and just to keep your sanity in the crazy of it all.

Almost everyone has felt at some point that there wasn’t enough time to get it all done. If only you could have just 2 more hours in your day. You could get your to-do list done, have more time to spend with family, cook more homemade meals, and sleep the recommended eight hours a night.

However learning time management tools will help you achieve more in just 24 hours. The first thing you have to do is give your time a monetary value. They say time is priceless, invaluable if you will. But if you do not know how much your time is worth then it is easy to let the unimportant tasks consume your day. The value can be whatever you want or feel is appropriate. For me, my day job bills my time out at $100 per hour. Now that might be way too much for my personal time, but that’s what I am use to so that is what I use.

After you have valued your time then decide how much you are willing to “pay” for each activity that you want to do. Is hand wrapping Christmas gifts worth an hour of your time over putting everything in a bag with tissue or paying someone $5 to wrap the gift for you. Now do not get me wrong, I love living a frugal life. I like to save my money and spend it wisely. However, the time I could be wrapping gifts is time I could be spending writing a freelance article that will pay me money. That’s how you have to look at your time.

I tend to work on merelynne.com during the evenings, after J has gone to bed and it’s just me with the two pups sitting downstairs. For me that time of day is my discounted rate. I can’t do too many other activities at 10pm. J is in bed, most businesses are closed, and my friends are at home with their families. Therefore, it’s perfect to spend an hour or two pouring over articles to learn how to grow my little blog.

Next, I work a day job from 8-5 so that time is pretty valuable. Because if I am taking off work to do something else than I am missing out on my pay. This activity that requires to be done between 8-5 better be worth it. It takes a lot for me to miss out on actual money.

Finally, early mornings are the worst for me. I am not a morning person. At. All. I despise the mornings. I mean the idea of getting up to go to the gym early in the morning is similar to going to get a root canal. It’s just not worth it. That means that if I am having to get up before the sun rise then it better be one of the most important tasks.

Driving to see my family is one thing I will get up early for. Taking the dogs to vet. Spending time with J. You may notice a trend here. Morning tasks are usually strictly saved for family.

Time management tools are important to have. When you value your time and then value your tasks you will see what is important and what can be done at another time. Next up on the time management series we are going to talk about getting organized. If you’re just joining in on the time management tools series then you can read the first post here to learn all about it.

Thankful for in 2013

Posted on November 26, 2013November 26, 2013 by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

Here we go the post of what I am thankful for in 2013.

I’ll try to keep it short and sweet, but you will get the point.

J & I got hitched and it’s pretty amazing to think that I now am half of a whole. You can read about our perfect wedding day here. // Maggie, the best dog a girl could ask for. You see, it used to be just Maggie & me. We would travel, lived alone, and took care of one another. // Tiny – the new pup on the block. She was saved from the side of the highway back in January and I am pretty sure she made our home complete // family // my best friends // finding our townhouse days before our move back in August to a new city // having a job // good health // thirst for knowledge // merelynne.com // all the memories I made from 2013.

Last Thanksgiving was our first one together and we spent it in his apartment – just the two of us. He had to work the morning of Thanksgiving and we both had to work on Black Friday. We couldn’t travel to see family so instead we made it work with just us. I cooked the driest turkey known to man, baked soggy biscuits, and Christmas shopped online. This year we will be with family, eating great food and laughing.

Cheers!

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Here we go the post of what I am thankful for in 2013.

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