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So my daughter went to the US for  a month holiday and wanted to send a box home instead of carrying on the plane..but they said that all mail going to or being received from Australia is not being accepted anymore due to not having enough staff or transportation due to covid...so she had to take it on the plane with her instead...I am just hoping this is a new thing and my IRS papers have already left...it is so frustrating as I'm not sure anyone in australia even knows that...
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I got my seed starting kits in the mail, so I can start planting seeds this week.  I only ordered a small amount of seeds this year, because I ordered a lot last year.  I'm trying a few new things, a Korean pepper, a little finger eggplant, and dill.  It always sucks that when the cucumbers are ready, but the dill isn't, or vice versa.  And it seems like you can only buy the fresh dill (not the little packets), the cucumbers are mostly done.  So I will...
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So I told all of you my plan.  Here is what I have done so far. 
All personal debt has been paid. $480
All bills are caught up. $974
I now have 6 months of medicine that I require to live.  $1,426
Gardening and preserving items $326
I still have a fair bit left that I will be leaving in the bank.  I do still need to see the doctor and my husband needs glasses.  We also need to get the geese and chickens yet.  After that everything stays in the...
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I wrote a little about my tax problem in comments yesterday, and again I'd like to thank those who have provided helpful information.
I thought I'd just update you all on just how terrible my day was yesterday.  After learning I may be robbed of my tax return by a cybercriminal, I had quite a head of steam and I went to the gym to work it off. I was on one of the machines, when I heard yelling. A member was yelling quite loudly and angrily at one of the workers (someone I...
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Paid another $200 towards my student loan (#3) and the new balance  is now $12,600. I'm so thankful that I'm finally seeing a dent. 
I went ahead and updated my sidebar to show the new balance. Edited to add, I did not meet my goal of $2500, I only paid $2200, feeling a little down 
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Filed my tax returns today; getting a bit of a refund.  Also the paycheck with the bonus arrived in my account today (I didn't expect it until Monday but was very glad to have it early).  I paid down some debt and am actually almost to my goal for the end of the year already (meaning that I will adjust that goal downwards).  
I also am keeping aside a couple of thousand of the bonus & refund for the home/car repair and veterinary expenses that are bound...
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I got my state tax refund this morning. That prompted me to check on my federal return, since it usually comes first. To my great surprise, I learned that my refund was changed from $1937 to $537.  I thought I must have made an error, but when I checked the details page, it said the SSN of one or more individuals claimed as a qualifying dependent was missing or incomplete, that the last name of one of those individuals did not match their records, that one or more of those...
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Recently I saw a little plaque that said, "Queen of Yarn." I feel like that sometimes when I look at the yarn I brought home from church. I continue to work on scarves and dish cloths for our Stitches of Love group. We have promised 110 hats and scarves to two non profits for next year, but we will have far more hats than that. Scarves take a little longer to make than hats. The dish cloths will go to a food pantry to put in the Christmas baskets.
Besides the crocheting, I also...
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On January 31st I interviewed for a PRN job. On February 1st I got a call from the recruiter that they were offering me the position. On February 1st, President's Day, I went in for a few hours to speak to my new supervisor & read over SOPs. I'll be going in tomorrow morning to start my training. I've heard that it's not too stressful of a job & the pay is better than my last hospital PRN job at 28% more per hour. The weekend shift differential is just slightly less.At...
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So I sold 5 puzzles a few days ago and made $100, we will also change our phone plans which should save us around $35pm ($420pa) and got new car insurance which should save us around $140 pa... so saving extra $560 pa which is good for us....over time going to see where else we can cut back and save
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Paid another $2,000 on my student loan(#3) today. The new total is $12,800, I will have to update my sidebar later. 
I'll be earning another $800 from my side hustle, and will add a little more to the student loans and my IRA. Early March I should be able go pay another $2k, fingers crossed. 
This has been a journey and I'm thankful for the opportunity, to pay these items off. 
 
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Our company gives out bonuses--if any--last year there was not--at the end of February.  Bonuses are the same throughout the company and are based on our firm meeting its target profit margin for the year.  We did, so this year, we all got a 15% bonus--one of the largest in the time I've been with the company.
This time of year is also when merit increases in pay are announced.  I got a 7.5% increase--not my highest, but still one of the top increases percentage...
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Yesterday I learned that my CPA of probably 20 years suddenly passed away. It was quite a shock to me. He seemed to have an infection and a weak heart. His heart couldn't manage and he was sick and later died within about three weeks. He was 75 years old and a one man shop, quirky but a good guy. Now in the middle of tax season, we need to find a new one. Ours is not that difficult but I want to have a relationship with someone who can carry us into retirement. I expect that we'll...
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In my first post, I shared that I just started with a new company, making 35K more (base salary only) a year. With my sign-on bonus, I am paying off our 2017 Toyota Tundra, which only has 45,000 miles on it, and we owe $10,541. Waiting for that money to be desposited any day now. That monthly payment will free up some cash, to the tune of $625. Just in time for student loan payments to start back up - interest only right now is $620 a month (that's for another post, on another...
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Oh dear lovely folks!  
I am in such a good mood this morning.  I did find we will be getting a tax return inspite of having child payments and me working a 1099.  Last year we owed $600 on taxes instead due to both my husband and I being 1099 workers.  Oh that was a rough one.  This gives me some much needed breathing room to look at what we can apply it towards so we can make it through the rest of the year.  
I have already filed, been...
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So I guess I live in a HCOLA, doesn't feel like but sure.  I certainly have always lived in expensive areas and my mindset has always been well you buy small, flip, and trade up.  I certainly never expected to be in a position to help my kids buy a house. I have always been worried about our own retirement and retiring early has always been the plan.  So the idea of forking over say $30-50k hasn't been on my radar.  Neither has been forking over $25k for a wedding...
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A long, long time ago, I had an account on SavingAdvice. I could not get the account reset, so I tried to make a new one. I was having a ton of technical issues, and gave up a few times. But, I wanted to be here again so bad... so I sent a few emails, don't think I heard back - but after trying again today, I was able to create a new blog!
This is so what I need to get back into budgeting and saving. 
Some background. I worked for a large global bank for 16 years, and just...
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Something my DH and I are going back and forth with.  Can money ruin kids?  Will giving our children money or gifting them say free college, potentially a car, house down payment, or even a trust fund? I get that if you have tons of money that it's okay.  You can afford it.  You can afford to do something without impacting your own future.  That perhaps you are doing it to avoid future taxes.  But should you? I asked that question because I hate...
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new user for blogs
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The PJ pants I got the other day were so perfect, I decided to stock up a little. They are not just PJ pants, but lounging pants and workout pants for me. Since the pandemic began, I've worn PJ pants pretty much all the time. Of course all that wear that has taken a toll on the condition of my supply. I bought three more pairs yesterday for a total of $48.  Now I'm set. I will probably weed out a few of my shabbiest old ones.  Variables are now at 88%. But I think I can...
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