San Marcos Show Weekend and Awards for Rog and Luke

          

We showed Victory and Vegas in San Marcos on Saturday and Sunday.  We did not have any success on Saturday under judge Luis Sosa, but both Vic and Vegas showed beautifully, and I was very proud of them.  On Sunday, Vegas took winners bitch and best of opposite sex.  Sharon Boyd showed Victory, since Vegas was also in best of breed class.  Victory did not show well for Sharon, so did not place.  We need to work on his movement, as he continues to move like he is marching when in the ring, as he gets quite jazzed up at dog shows.  Lovely guy, but gets pretty wired at the shows.   He does beautifully at home, but dog shows are another story with him.  He has way too much fun!  Here is cute little Vegas in San Marcos.

Rog and Luke also received an award recently.  The Kaufman Chamber gave them and a group of other fine men, including our neighbor Lanny Mayo, and friend Frankie Vrzalik, the Humanitarian award for their work in restoring a beautiful angel in the Kaufman cemetery that was damaged by vandals.  The angel was on a large pedestal, probably about 5 feet tall, and then the angel itself was between 5 and 6 feet tall.  It was knocked of its pedestal, the head was broken off, the wings were damaged and broken, and there were many other pieces broken on it.  They worked together to repair it and restore it to its place of honor on its pedestal in the cemetery.  I am proud of them!  Here is their picture with the award plaque and a picture of the men receiving their awards at the chamber banquet.

Tips on Saving Money

I've got some good money saving tips to share.  These are not all my ideas.  Some came from AICPA's website, some from an insurance company, and some are mine.  If you use some of these, you might be surprised how quickly you save some money.

Raise your insurance deductibles.
Take public transportation a couple of times a week, or ride a motorcycle or bike to work.
Take your lunch from home, rather than eating at a restaurant.
Bring soda from home.
Get a water filter at home, and refill a reusable water bottle with your own filtered water, and take it to work, rather than buying bottled water.
Make your own coffee instead of buying it by the cup at coffee shops and convenience stores.
Don't pay ATM fees.  Use only ATM machines that are free.  I always feel safer, too, using the ATMs at my own bank.
Use a credit card that pays you points for every dollar you spend, and do pay your credit card bill in full every month.  Their interest rates are astronomical.
Use the library, instead of buying books, music, and movies, or renting movies.
Contribute to your employer's 401k, to get the full match that the employer provides.  Even if no match, contribute as much as you can to your 401k. 
Pay your bills online, eliminating postage, check fees, and paying by phone fees.
Do not renew magazine subscriptions until your subscriptions expire.  Lots of times the magazine company will give you a huge discount to get you back.
Try to spend 5% less on things you buy regularly, such as groceries. 
Change the frequency of how often you get manicures, pedicures, haircuts, Starbucks, and lunches out.
Have money deducted automatically from your pay check and sent to a savings or brokerage account. 

Another thing that has worked amazingly for me:  The more I tithe at church, the more God blesses me.  When I give to Him, he blesses me more.

God bless, and save lots!

Winter Visitors

Every year for the past 6 or 7 years, we get some beautiful visitors, who stay until Spring.  Attached are pictures of the ducks who love our pond, and love to visit us every year.  And, they evidently communicate with each other, because every year, more come to visit.  We counted about 75 that came this year.  The first year we had a few, and we didn't know what they were, so we went to a Wild Birds Unlimited store and showed them pictures, and they knew what they were, and said they were not common in this area.  They are called Black-Bellied Whistling Ducks, and they make a high pitched whistle.  They are really pretty and we enjoy them.  They have hatched babies here, and some will stay until the babies are ready to go, but most leave in March or April.  We have 4 geese and 2 ducks who live here, and of course we throw corn out for them every day, so these visitor ducks come because they like our food, I believe.  We have a good habitat for them with the trees and large pond, and we put in a duck house for them to nest in.  I love the birds here where we live.  We have quite an assortment and enjoy cardinals, woodpeckers, bluebirds, bluejays, wrens, chickadees, nuthatch, robins, doves, and a wide variety of sparrows.