New beginnings are around the corner

The past week was so busy and went by so quickly that I didn't even have a chance to write in here. I did 4 boot camp classes again last week - they're still going great! I'm going to be really sad when the classes are over. I've lost a pound and a half already and a 1/2 inch off my waist - no complaints here!

On Friday I had some friends over for a girls' wine night - we had a blast!


I made this amazingly delicious pumpkin pie dip for wine night, courtesy of Skinnytaste. I love the low fat recipes on this site! The dip was served with apple slices and graham crackers, and boy do I have a ton of it left - the recipe made 6 cups worth.

Photo credit: skinnytaste.com

I'm having a really hard time focusing lately because I'm distracted by some exciting news...I found an apartment!!! I'm slightly nervous about making it on my own, but I've crunched the numbers and it should all work out okay. I don't have a move-in date yet - I'm on a waiting list for the particular layout and unit I want to be available. But good news is, no one is ahead of me on the list! They said you usually wait 2 to 4 months, which is good because it gives me some time to save money. Starting November 1st, I'll be enforcing the budget I created for when I do have my own place. The apartment is in Naperville and it's a 1 bedroom. It has lots of storage space, great size rooms, and a washer/dryer in-unit. The apartments were financially the best deal I've found, I love the area they are in, and most importantly, I know that I feel safe there. I've been living at home since I graduated college in 2008 and I'm grateful I've been able to save money by doing so for as long as I have. But now that I know I really am moving, I am beyond antsy to set up my own space!

Now the only thing on my mind is furniture and decorating. Scrolling through Craigslist furniture postings on my iPhone (the app is SO much easier to go through than the website, because there's a thumbnail of the photo next to each title) has become a full on addiction. I gotta love some of the posts you come across. Many of them sound like this:

"We are selling our 8 year old sofa. It has a tear on one cushion, my dog peed on one area of it, my kids colored another portion with a Sharpie, and it sags in the middle. I paid $700 for it, so I'm looking to get $400 out of it."

If it wasn't obvious, yes I made that up. But that's what many of the posts seem like! However, there are definitely some worthwhile things you come across too. I need to stop looking through all this though - I have nowhere to store a sofa, couch, etc. right now and I'll probably change my mind a million times before moving in. So for now, I guess I'm just trying to gather ideas. I'm not fully against buying new furniture, but I like a challenge and want to try to save as much money as possible on Craigslist finds.

Hope you all had a great weekend and let's hope the week goes by quickly - I'm so excited for Halloween weekend!