I got to thinking the other day, when one of my kids asked if I would like her Christmas List.

Which brought on this thought. My daughter mentioned we needed a DVR, so that she could record certain shows while she is at college; and my youngest (starting 9th grade) would like a laptop or computer for gaming for his room.

There are also some services that need to be changed around here or items I might need to purchase in the near future.

So my thinking is: I could get a free DVR or Dell Netbook if I changed around my tv/internet/phone provider to a different one.

At one point, Art Van, was offering a Free HDTV with a purchase. I do need new mattresses for myself

If I open a certain checking with a different bank and stick to the terms, they are offering a Garmin nuvi 1200 GPS. This would be a great gift for my oldest child.

So, my thinking is to see how many great gifts I can get for free, just for using services or buying items I actually need.

I will keep you posted on how I am doing.

I was able to find another credit card that would transfer the balance from my highest interest rate card and give me 0% interest rate for 6 months, 10.99% after that and no transfer fees. So here is saying good-bye to my Chase Visa with a 23.25% interest rate, who didn't want to deal with me, even though this is my longest standing card I have had for years. I won't close it, but I won't use it. Here's to me being DEBT FREE a little sooner.

When my mom was growing up, my grandma and grandpa knew they only had somewhere between $1500 to $2000 to live on for the year. They lived in Kentucky, did tobacco farming and a had a blacksmith shop, along with 10 people living in a small house. They gardened, cooked from scratch, wore hand-me-downs, didn't incur debt, etc. to make ends meet. This is how I am looking at my budget come January 2010. I am calling it "The Hannah Project".

There are four months left before I loose half of my income. I am looking at going from $37,800/year to around $19,500/year.

But, there are a few things I have been doing to prepare for the difference.

1. Paying down all of my debt. As of September of 2008, I owed $23,596.54. I now owe a little over $10,000, which consists of 2 credit cards left to pay off. I cannot wait to be DEBT FREE.

2. I have made a list of wants/needs and have been saving for them or working on them tirelessly.

*New Mattress/Box Spring set
*2010 Graduation Party for my daughter
*Finish siding/painting the exterior of my home, along with finishing the landscaping.
*Finish small projects inside home.
*Re-do family bathroom.
*Blacktop or poured cement driveway
*Savings for a new vehicle. Mine is a 2001 Jeep that I am going to drive for as long as possible.
*New larger shed
*Hot Water on Demand tank (this is definately just a want, want want).

3. I have been canning, freezing, working my garden, cooking from scratch and trying to stockpile certain items to help with the grocery budget.

4. I have been keeping track of certain personal and household items so I can fit them into my budget in a certain category. (i.e., water softener salt, toilet paper, laundry soap, shampoo and conditioners, school supplies, clothing allowance, etc.) and learning to make my own, hitting garage sales and sewing.

Also, when a lightbulb burns out or battery dies, I have been replacing them with CFL's and rechargeable batteries. The chargers and the batteries have been the best investment. I had a coupon for them.

5. I have done a "preliminary" budget on the $19,500. This way, I can cut back in certain areas and start living on that "preliminary" budget for the next four months, so that I know I can live within my means when the time comes.

6. I have cut services and items from the budget this year and we haven't missed them.
*Garbage pickup. Since we have been composting and recycling, I don't have very much garbage, so I just take the bag I have to work with me.
*Bottled water. We changed over to a Brita and bought water bottles. We have not missed buying bottled water.
*Buying Pop. It took a couple weeks to get over the urge, but now we don't miss it and I have lost some weight.

I do have two other areas of income, but I am hoping to not tap into those, so that I can use them for other savings categories.

I transferred money from my ING account to pay off a credit card, but don't ya know that my Jeep broke down instead. It is such a long story, that I just don't want to go over it again. But, I did end up with a rental car. I was going to keep it for 4 days, but it was so totally filled with marijuana smoke that I returned it the next day and made them give me my money back.

Went with my 17 year old daughter to take her Road Skills test for her driver's license. I have never been able to ride with her because the lack of control makes me ill, but had to be the one with her for her driver's test. Yes, she passed, but I failed. I was sick and at one point almost passed out. I think the instructors should give parents a sticker that says "I survived my teens road skills test". Oh, yes, I would have worn it all day.

During the vehicle breakdown, one of our cats needed to be groomed due to her long hair being so matted. I bummed a ride from a neighbor to get her there, then walked home. I have had to walk quite a few times in the past week, which I don't mind, cause it is good exercise. And, thankfully, our weather was good.

I also had my husband's birthday to celebrate on Sunday, so we went out to dinner and made it a dinner to celebrate my daughter passing her test my husband's birthday and the fact that I am not in the hospital with a nervous breakdown.

After the dust settled, I sat down yesterday to pay all of my bills and tally up the damage from the past week. To my surprise, I was still able to pay all of the bills and pay off a credit card.

Whew, thank goodness. I really thought the past week would put my goals a couple months behind, but I am still on track.