There is talk in our state of another tuition increase. I wonder about the little one’s college fund and how we are going to keep up with saving and rate increases. There are options like a state college savings program or hopefully she’ll get some scholarships. We can also go the route of grants and school loans.

Grants would be better since you don’t have to pay them back. Student loans you have to pay back. The good news about student loans is that you can always do a school loan consolidation to have just one loan to repay instead of three or four.

I really want to be able to pay for her college, though. My parents put me through college which was a big help. I can’t imagine having student loans for both my husband and me. School loan consolidation would make repaying easier but still would be a lot of money had we both had student loans.

I like all parents just want the best for my child. Although we have a few years before she is college age it will get here, so we might as well prepare now. She is going to grow up even if we don’t want her to.

Spyro the Dragon has been a video game icon for many years. He has a lot going for him that make him a great video game character. He’s cute, has a sidekick, and has longevity. The Spyro games are usually platform games that puts the gamer in the middle of a mission. To carry it out, she must complete various levels, collect objects, and fight the bad guys. It’s a standard formula but is a lot of fun.

My niece when she was young loved to play Spyro. The games are colorful and while do require some skill are easy to control. Oh, and Spyro is a dragon (duh! I know), which makes him really cool in our household of dragon lovers.

Lately I have had trouble falling to sleep at night. I wind up finally drifting off around 2am. The little one usually drifts off about 10pm (wish it was earlier!) and so then I try to get done what I need to do. When I worked evenings I would always come home about 11pm and be wide awake.

I’m going to try a few things to fall asleep faster. One thing is to either listen to music or look into sound machines that may interest me. Ambient noise sometimes helps me to relax and drift off into sleep. Another option is to read to wind down from the day. I also may cut back on the number of days I try to work after the baby goes to bed.

So far the lack of sleep hasn’t impacted the daytime but I’m sure eventually it will. Finding a solution will help me get a good nights sleep.

One place I have always wanted to go is Italy especially Tuscany. To stay in one of the beautiful Tuscany villas would be a dream come true.

I think the travel aspect is one of the reason I love watching the Amazing Race. That is one reality show I would definitely love to be a part of. My husband and I have joked that we would get sidetracked with the beauty of some of the places and forget all about the race.

My husband is part Portuguese, so it would be something to travel to Portugal. He has a sister-in-law who lives in Switzerland. That would also be a nice trip. All my relatives are from the good ole USA. I did have a great grandfather from England. It would be fun to explore the UK sometime.

There are so many places that I would love to see with my own eyes. Tuscany, though, is on top of my list.

My left thumb has been bothering me. It pops when I bend it, which can’t be natural. I had looked up the symtoms and found that it may be trigger thumb. I guess my hours of playing Guitar Hero are catching up with me. I thought it would get better on its own but no such luck.

The only thing left to do is go to the doctor and have it checked out. If it is trigger thumb then they can treat it. That is good news. I need to be in top condition for Guitar Hero 80’s edition.

So, my husband has a college education but no degree. Believe it or not, he is three hours shy from graduating. His current job doesn’t care that he doesn’t have a degree, so it looks like motivation to actually get it is gone. It really makes paying that student loan payment each month disheartening.

I’ve been thinking about doing a student loan consolidation since it will combine our payments into one. Consolidation can save you money and lower your payments. It’s best to shop around for right plan. This is just another item on my ever-growing to-do list that I haven’t taken care of.

I’m hoping my husband does decide to finish his degree. He is so close. Too bad I can’t finish it for him.

We have been battling a flea problem for about three weeks. After three rounds of foggers, vacuuming, spraying, and whatever else we can think of, the problem is better but still a problem.

My Mom has said that sometimes you have to call in professional help to get rid of them. I think we will give it another week and then call. It’s driving us crazy. I’ve read some good tips on getting rid of fleas. I plan to try them next. One is using soapy water in a dish and a spotlight. They can’t get out of the water and they are attracted to the heat of the light. We had learned about the soapy water. I’m trying to light source tonight. Hopefully we will see promising results in the morning.