All Entries

Debts
Mortgage −$119,277.87 (-$233.81)
Savings
Roth IRAs +$21,371 (-$213)401K +$43,077 (-$969)Emergency Fund +$9,416 (-$88)Maternity Fund +$2,100 (-$200)Animal Fund +$1,214 (+$0)Car Fund +$20 (-$0)HSA +$1,801 (-$1,302)
Overall: -$2,538.19
 
November was a bad month for the markets and also because we paid all our medical bills for the baby. Hopefully this month will be better!
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So actually I shouldn't say that.  Actually our spending hasn't been all that terrible.  There have been bad months here and there.  And overall we aren't blowing the budget out of the water.  A bit higher than perhaps it should be.  And a lot more than I would expect but honestly we are right where we need to be just about.  We have spent on average $7000/month on stuff outside our mortgage and property taxes.  With all that it's around $11k/month. ...
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Sadly I'm a bit behind in keeping up with blogs. The past couple of weeks have been a bit busy, but I'm not complaining one bit. I'm trying to catch up!
We delivered hats and dish cloths after Thanksgiving that our Stitches of Love group made. I am working on researching who we may be making hats for in 2022. We delivered a bunch to our local CASA as well as a women's homeless shelter and to a school.  
Our church had its Christmas bazaar. Some things were changed due to...
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I made another payment of $100 to my student loans. I'm so happy to be making traction.
I know some do not believe that students need help but I'll be the first to say, I would not have been able to pay off  $35,000 in the last two years had it not been for the relief we received. I pray that we get another six months, but I doubt it. I'm okay if we don't, just thankful for something and the opportunity to tackle this debt. 
My goal is to pay off the third loan by...
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I spent another $6 on a stocking stuffer gift.  I have to buy another $10 gift to even things out among family members, and then I think I'm pretty much done.  The next thing to focus on will be the Christmas lunch, which should not be too expensive.  I'm making two casseroles, and I'm baking cookies for dessert.  Family members will provide sides and salads (I hope!)
Barring any surprises, I should have $300 for each of the four college funds this year. ...
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There were appointments every day this week and man was it exhausting.  I had two physical therapy sessions, one regular therapy session, one doctor's appointment for me, and one doctor's appointment for DD, who has bronchitis and a negative Covid test.  I've been put on prednisone for 10 days to try to help with some of the inflammation I've been having due to the rheumatoid arthritis acting up so much in this cold weather swing, so I am feeling semi-decent, even if...
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$18,977.92 Beginning Balance
+_____4.30 Interest Income
------------------
$18,982.22 New Balance
That brings net worth to $125,691.86.  But not really because retirement is in freefall right now due to all the bad news coming out of this administration the past couple of weeks with the economy and the new Covid variant and possible lockdowns again, but I'm not going to deal with updating that until year's end because it might still recover.  I hope next year is better...
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Hello SA Friends.
It's been a long minute since I've posted anything here.  Our financial situation is greatl improved as we are now mortgage-free,  only have one as opposed to three in college, I am employed full-time as a substitute teacher in special education through June, and the SO is still employed although still under the threat of layoffs at end of Q1-2022.
My goals for January are to be 1.5-2 months ahead on our bills and sinking funds starting January,...
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Mostly busy spending.  Yesterday I met BFF in the halfway city.  There I spent $26 on gas, $13 on lunch, and $15 on gifts.  (Lunch was a bargain, since it was big enough for two lunches, and I also brought home a large slice of ham that BFF didn't want! That will be another lunch!)
This morning I went to Sam's, and spent $6 on body wash, $30 on gifts, and $18 on trash bags.  I also paid my dental bill for the recementing of the crown - $103.
Variables are...
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I decided to wait for the escrow analysis and paid the extra $100 that I would have paid towards my student loan. So as of today, I paid  $500 towards my student loan. I’m so excited about this. I honestly think that the way things are going, I’ll have this sucker paid off by February. 
 
Who would have thought that I would have ever been able to tackle this massive debt 💸. Sadly COVID hurt so many people; however for me...
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Prior to leaving my job, I decided to give our new budget a trial run. That was for October and November. So far, we've been able to follow the budget and we even had a bit of a surplus in certain areas. It takes decipline to keep track, but as the CFO in our household, I am determined to make this work. I managed to make some money right after my last day of work. We are also cash flowing a winter vacation and accomodations are already paid and car rental is covered as well. I...
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My escrow for taxes and insurance was about $200 short. When I make my next payment should I add extra to cover that? Or pay the money on my student loan and wait for my escrow analysis? 
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I can't believe it is now the last month of the year!  
November Spending:
Category - Nov Spending/YTD Spending: Context.  This spending does not include bills, just variable spending that I can control.
Alcohol - $81.25/$361.05: this was wine for Thanksgiving.  I bought 3 bottles, we only had 2, so I will retrieve the other bottle from my mom's house this weekend and put it in my own fridge ha.  This is REALLY not bad considering that we are 11/12 of...
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Income Total: $1400.00


     * $1200 Recurring monthly retirement account distribution  


     * $200 Swagbucks and My Points earnings (cash out to PayPal) 


      


Total Spending: $1484.34


Total Savings: $0 (difference between monthly income and monthly spending)  Fixed Expenses: Verizon bundle (internet,...
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Home Repair/Maintenance - $1125
Housing - $795
Gifts/Charity - $231
Utilities - $180
Fees/Services - $167
Eating Out/Takeout - $119
Groceries - $75
Furnishings/Equipment/Decor - $75
Vacation/Travel - $58
Gas - $50
Phone - $31
Medical/Health - $26
Vet/Pet Supplies; $20
Personal - $18
Clothing - $17
Entertainment - $16
Laundry - $12
Car Repair/Maintenance - $6
Household Supplies - $2
Grand Total - $3023
Variables - 101%
The home repair cost was, of course, the...
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I had an experience today that made/makes me extremely cranky.
I stopped at a discount grocery store to pick up blueberry scones.  This seems to be the only store in our area that carries them, and I usually pop in once every week or two to buy a package as a treat to have with morning coffee.  They dont always have them, so when I saw that they did have them, I nabbed two containers.  I also wanted to pick up some cornstarch.  I headed down the baking isle...
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First of all, thank you for the nice comments on my table and dining room!
I got back from my Thanksgiving vacation yesterday.  It was a great time, good food and fellowship.  A lot of very fun game playing.  And I met my nephew's girlfriend for the first time, and we all agree we love her already.  But there was sadness, too.  SIL's parents have been moved (against their will) to a retirement/nursing home, and they are not doing well either physically...
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This was an excellent food year for Thanksgiving and we had a lot of turkey leftover.  I picked all the meat off the bones the night of Thanksgiving and we ate just regular leftovers for a couple of nights running and then last night DH cubed up the rest of the meat and I made turkey casserole for dinner tonight, plus two and a half pans for the freezer.
I make a simple to put together casserole.  With the amount of turkey I had left (14 cups) I mixed in 4 cans of cream...
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So, I think we are in the third quarter of our saga on trying to get Frigidaire to honor their warranty for our lemon of a freezer.  Frigidaire won't give the money back until they have the freezer in their possession, so after spending an hour and a half at Home Depot, with them being so great at helping us get this figured out, they will be picking up the freezer tomorrow to ship back to Frigidaire.  We should see our credit card credited the money in a week or so.
I...
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As a reminder I run a zero based budget, meaning every dollar from every paycheck is accounted for.  I do keep a $1000 cushion in the checking account in case mistakes are made along the way, but so far there haven't been any since I switched to budgeting this way.
There are no allowances for the kids until sometime in January as they wanted things that were over the Christmas budget we set for them.  But we did allow them both advances on their allowances so they'd...
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