Not much to report here.

I just realized that dh and I have not had even a weekend away ALL YEAR. What is up with that? Actually, I hadn't even noticed. Things have been so relaxed. Kids are getting much easier, so I don't need the break so much. But I thought about it because dh has been so grumpy about all I want to get done on my week off. It's so rare I get time off AT HOME, that I want to take advantage. I am sure we can squeeze in plenty of together time. Not like I plan to "work" 24/7. But I thought about it and realized it had been a while. So I suggested yesterday we get away for one of our birthdays (both coming up). San Francisco or Monterey since we don't have to drive very far for either. (Both rather equidistant from San Jose anyway, where we would drop off the kids. I just don't want to drive any further though usually I would be the first to suggest Pismo Beach or something like that. But 3 hours drive - plus 2 hours to San Jose - doesn't sound terribly appealing).

Anyway, I think we will make a goal to get away a little more next year. We will likely get free night stays in nice hotels, so it is not a very expensive goal. But a nice one to have!

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As far as 2009 goals, I haven't thought much of them and probably won't for a while. I need more info. In particular, waiting for our health insurance premiums (which usually make or break us) and waiting for my raise Jan. 1. Until I know what I am making and what my expenses are, it is hard to set financial goals.

But not like I haven't thought about it. I have 2 large competing goals. The mid-term fund and the ROTHs. I wanted to double our ROTH contributions, and I will if I have enough raise. But we also have some serious catching up to do on our mid-term savings. If my raise is small I am thinking of forgetting the ROTHs and bulking up the mid-term fund. I know I will be likely able to max one ROTH the next year (2010) once LM is out of preschool, and I get a generous retirement contribution at work, so though I really WANT to add more to retirement, it's a bit premature to make it a priority right now. Also, if we put a lot to mid-term savings to bulk it up, I can divert more of that income/savings to the ROTHs once we catch up a bit.

So, what we do exactly, depends on more information. I could see getting a very minimal raise and a huge health insurance increase. In that case, not sure what we will do.

If I got a large raise (not completely out of the cards) we could improve our savings dramatically. Maybe I could fund both goals and consider others.

Reality will probably be somewhere in the middle.

So, we'll see!

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A new goal is taking shape for me. I would like to get a nice bike and do some longer bike rides. Maybe join a local bike club or something.

We also need to get BM a larger bike and hand down his bike to LM. The kids need helmets and such. BM needs a new one and LM has a huge head - they could probably both wear the same size - so yeah - they both need helmets.

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My other goals are just things around the house. The primary reason to bulk up our mid-term fund, is for stuff around the house. For the more long-term (hoping to put off a couple of more years?) I am thinking a new fence and an outside paint job. For the short term, we need to replace light bulbs, have sinks sealed, have some tile repaired and sealed, and we also have a crack on the house to seal up and fix. Oh, and some tree trimming we were going to talk to our gardener about. (We also want to plant a fruit tree in the winter. In California winter is fruit season. Dh talked to a nursery last spring and they said come back in February - that is tree planting time).

So all these little things. I don't think any of the things I want to do this next year is terribly expensive, but it all does add up.

Anyway, I didn't feel we were in a financial position to really consider these things like the last few years, so it feels really good to get close to crossing things off our list. The solution for our tile problems is not to use our shower. Which isn't the worst (having only one shower in the house to clean). But it will be nice to get everything back in working order.

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The weather warmed up, but is cooling off again. Not sure we can make it to December with no heat.

If nothing else, wondering about Thanksgiving.

With ALL the body heat (like 25 bodies?) and all the cooking, I would say maybe we could do without heat. BUT if it gets really chilly we may want to turn on the heat for our guests. So I have the feeling Turkey Day may be the first heat day of the year.

Then again, I will be home all week and I am a whimp. So, with the cold, I may have a harder time. Maybe I'll break before Turkey Day.