Welcome to the Weekly Quick Hits Roundup!
If you’re new here, every week I write a weekly wrap-up of things that were going on here at Young Adult Money, a few personal updates/thoughts, and finally a few posts I read this week that I thought were worth sharing.
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The year is coming to a close – It’s hard to believe that Christmas is just over a week away and the New Year is right around the corner. I’m extreme blessed by my wife, as she has essentially done ALL the Christmas shopping, despite working six days a week.
While I have had some PTO, it’s been a busy time at work. I don’t know how year-end is at your work, but having it be a busy time makes for a hectic Holiday season – and I don’t even work in retail! I know it can be a hectic time for many, so I hope you are able to find some time to relax this Holiday season.
While it’s been nice to have PTO the second half of this week, I’ve spent it essentially working on getting ahead on the blog and planning posts for the next few weeks. I also need to start/finish some tax-related stuff for the blog and from renting out our basement. Taxes and paperwork are a pain, but it’s part of life.
Weekend – I still haven’t seen Hunger Games Catching Fire, but hopefully tonight my wife and I can go see it. Besides that we have a busy weekend planned with our friend’s kid’s birthday party and hanging out with some friend’s for Christmas.
Exercise – I’ve worked out a couple times this week, but I still haven’t been working out nearly as much as I have been.
Blogging – As I said, I’ve had some time to get ahead on the blog. I feel much better now that I’m planning topics out more than a week in advance. I know that “getting ahead” in blogging will be a constant struggle, but I do feel like I’m in a better spot than I was a couple months ago.
Below are the posts we published this week:
- On Monday I shared Online Shopping Alternatives to Amazon.
- On Tuesday Sally talked college and careers in I Was A Triple-Major in College and Where it Got Me.
- On Wednesday Cat talked entrepreneurship in The 4 Qualities of Successful Entrepreneurs.
- On Wednesday I talked small biz in Three Ways to Take Your Business to the Next Level in the New Year.
- On Wednesday I also talked about the cost of home ownership in Big Home Projects you Should Budget For.
- On Thursday Victoria shared 5 Ways to “Get” Money this Holiday Season.
Posts of the Week:
If you want to see your post included in this roundup, comment on posts on Young Adult Money throughout the week – that’s where I find blogs/posts to include.
- Tonya from Budget and the Beach shared How I Made 10k in Side Income
- Liz from Budgeting for More shared Use Goals to Go After Your Dreams.
- E.M. from Journey to Saving shared Holiday Traditions.
- Michelle from Making Sense of Cents shared Tips For A Better Work-Life Balance.
- Kali from Common Sense Millennial talked about stereotypes – and breaking them – in Millennials Who Break Negative GenY Stereotypes.
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How are your Christmas preparations coming along? Do you have a busy holiday season ahead? If you blog, how far in advance do you plan/write your posts?
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Photo by David Blackwell
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Thanks so much for the shout-out, David! Much appreciated :) Our Christmas preparations are done, thank goodness – had to get them done early as possible because December gets crazy in our house. Birthdays on the 12th, 13th, and 18th, Christmas of course, my parents have their wedding anniversary on the 24th (yup, they were crazy), and all the holiday parties and gatherings and get togethers with friends. Busy, but it’s all good stuff :) Hope you get to see the Hunger Games tonight or sometime this weekend!
CSMillennial No problem, Kali! That sounds like one busy December! We actually have a wedding we are going to the Saturday before Christmas. Hope you have a great weekend!
Sounds like you had a good and productive week DC! I just finished my wife’s Christmas shopping on Monday, which is a bit later than I actually like. I think I still need to get her some sort of stocking stuffer though. In terms of how far in advance I write my posts, I’m usually written two or so weeks out. However, I’m now written through January. :) I’m not usually that far out, but I’m going to be out of town/family visiting for about half of January so I wanted to not to have to worry with it. :) Have a great weekend DC!
FrugalRules Holy cow, all the way through January? I suddenly feel a need to spend the entire weekend blogging! I understand, though, that when you have stuff going on it’s important to have things ready to go.
Hope you find your wife some good stocking stuffers and have a great weekend!
DC @ Young Adult MoneyFrugalRules Lol, not at all. I attribute it to my neurotic sense of planning. I was told that I was going to be nothing on the blog while on vacation, so my planning sickness came out in full force. ;)
FrugalRules DC @ Young Adult Money Haha I understand in that case. I definitely planned well ahead last time I was on vacation. I had almost no access to internet the whole time so that helped : )
I’m finally getting ahead on our podcast, but sadly that’s just so that I can slow down over the holidays! I’ll be back to “just in time” as soon as 2014 hits. BUT I like this feeling, so my first 2014 goal is to get a couple of weeks ahead of the curve.
You’ll like Catching Fire. Very faithful to the book but still a good film on its own.
AverageJoeMoney I think I’ll be back to “just in time” when 2014 rolls around as well. I also hope to be ahead at least a couple weeks throughout 2014, though I’m not sure how realistic that is.
Good to hear about Catching Fire. I really liked the book so I’ve definitely been worried that the movie will pale in comparison.
You should 100% check out Catching Fire.
I am pretty good at having blog topics planned out, but then feel so last minute in writing a lot of them. I’m hoping I can use Christmas vacation to get a little ahead of the curve for the new year!
Have a great weekend, DC.
BrokeMillennial I was actually just about to check out showtimes! I also feel like I get ahead and then rush to get something published. It’s been a pattern this year and I’d really just like to have stuff ready to go in advance (but also be willing to be flexible as needed.
Hope you have a great weekend as well!
Glad you will have that PTO to get ahead on some blog stuff. That’s always a good feeling. Enjoy Catching Fire (still haven’t seen it) and thank you so much for the mention!
Beachbudget No problem on the mention! I unfortunately feel like I haven’t gotten ahead much, but I’ve been cleaning and doing some other “catchup” stuff that isn’t blog-related. Hopefully tomorrow I can sit down for a few hours and really get ahead.
Thanks for the mention DC! I have been working on trying to figure out a good schedule and routine for blog posting. I am trying to get ahead and write the posts in advance however I am true procrastinator. I write so much better when I am under pressure. I do keep a running list of ideas though.
BudgetforMore Hey no problem on the mention! Gosh you just made me realize one of my problems. I like the feeling of having posts written in advance and planned ahead of time, but I almost do better when I’m stressed out and crunched for time haha.
Thank you so much for mentioning my post! :) I haven’t seen Catching Fire yet either, but I keep making plans to do so.
SenseofCents No problem, Michelle! Always happy to share your content. I am checking movie times right now. I’m committed to seeing this movie tonight!
It has been a crazy busy for month too. Sometimes December is a bit quieter, but not this year! I’m looking forward to the holiday and a little time off. I want to get more organized on The Heavy Purse too. I have lots do ideas but if I don’t make a plan, I know I won’t implement them! Have a great weekend!
December has been crazy busy for me too! Sometimes it’s a quieter month for me but not this year. I’m looking forward to a few days off too. Getting more organized on The Heavy Purse is on my to-do list too. I have lots of ideas I want to implement but know if I don’t make a plan, it won’t get done.
ShannonRyan I think ever since college I haven’t really had a quiet holiday. In fact, I almost envy people who don’t have many plans. I also have a ton of ideas that I would like to act on, but I really only execute my ideas when I have a plan for how (and when) I’m going to get it done.
Hunger Games Catching Fire was good, I think you guys will like it! Since December is slow for me in my blog design biz, I’ve had some time to catch up and get ahead on some projects of my own as well. It’s so much less stressful knowing your blog is ok for the next week if you, for some reason, don’t have time to write.
Miss Tightwad I agree with you about being a week ahead. Since I have writers on Tuesday and Wednesday I always feel so much better when I at least have Monday through Wednesday scheduled before the end of the weekend. Even better if I can have Thursday written up as well.
I think you noticed I haven’t done the redesign yet. I may have some work for you but I’m so indecisive that you may not want to deal with me haha.
Thanks for the mention! Writing posts ahead of time makes a huge difference to me. I’ve been slacking lately and it can be stressful to find the time to write. I need to make myself a new schedule as I work on Saturday now, which is when I used to do most of my writing. When I did get ahead, I would write all my posts for the upcoming week.
JourneytoSaving Saturday is when I usually write too. I like to have at least Mon-Wed finished and scheduled by the end of the weekend, preferably Mon-Thursday. Feels so much better when they are already done and ready to go.
Wow – your wife is awesome for buying all of your Christmas gifts! Hope y’all enjoy Catching Fire – the BF and I did!