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Well when it rains it pours...doing good on our budget and then murphy hit big time!!

First bought my bestie plane ticket over here but she was having trouble getting travel ins over there so was able to get it while she is over here which added an extra $800 to the plane ticket...I had budgeted $3000 for her whole trip and 1 ticket and ins cost me nearly $2600 so that has been blown out so need to save for her ticket home and while she is here.

Then mine and my hubbys cell...
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My husband will be traveling next week. So I have a plan, just as I did earlier this year to eat up what we have in the fridge, freezer and cupboard. I have yet to decide exactly what my meals will be as we have several days until he leaves.

To be honest we don't have a lot in fridge or pantry. We really don't stock up ever. But as you know, if you buy a bag of rice you often don't eat it in one meal. So then you have a partial bag of rice.

My first goal will be to focus...
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I'd like to start doing a monthly check in at the end of each month with numbers so I can keep track of my progress.

Here is where I stand for March:

Mortgage -$114,264.90
0% CC -$8,898


Roth IRAs +$14,380
401K +$19,478
Emergency Fund +$2,118
Animal Fund +$500
Truck Fund +$1,420

I think we broke about even this month as far as net worth. Had a lot of expenses and not as...
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I just called my flex spending provider and was told that the 2018 claims I submitted on Tuesday that totaled $1300 were all approved and will be paid out tomorrow via check. Yahoo! That’s a relief to have that finished before the March 31 deadline. I have $1200 available for 2019 and have already have EOBs that I can use for reimbursement of $1100 of that money, so I need to make a note to do that soon rather than wait until next year at this time. That will be a first for...
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My FSIL picked these up for us to sell. We originally had 20 which sold out right away! So I have 16 more to pick up from her and already 9 of those are sold too!



Ozark Trail Kids Smores Camping Chairs (Bought 36)
Regular Price $7.00 at Walmart, looks like going for $17.00 on Amazon
Our Price + Tax = $1.07 each
(Marked $7.00 each or 2/$12 for rummage sale)
*ETA - Sold 5 for $7.00 each on FB on 3/25/19
*ETA - Sold 15 for $6.00 each on FB on 3/25/19
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I spent 20% of my variables yesterday -- $30 for pre-surgical cleanser and facial moisturizer, $1.50 for laundry, $5 for lunch, $14 for a board game, and $50 for printer cartridges.

I did not earn a lot of extra money last month, so this month my pot is small.

I stopped taking my meds yesterday. I am really feeling the loss of the Celebrex and I had a very hard time sleeping last night. Finally I managed the pain by sticking an ice pack on my hip.

I am also feeling stuffy...
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We are back from Laughlin! Had a lot of fun and didn't lose much at all. Since our hotels, flights and most food are free it was a very cheap vacation and was nice to get out in some sun. Had a hard time with thinking about the babies and why this happened to us, but I did my best to have fun.

Added what was left of our tax return to savings along with a bunch of savings snowflakes and we are well on our way to $17K!!

Current Balance $12,330.00
+$145.00 FB Sales
+$54.00...
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Lots of good sales right before I left on vaca!
Total sales for the week were $257.00!!
I sold a lot of new items, but also sold some Nexcare Tape I bought in 2014! Yeah for getting rid of old stuff!

Sale #1179 (NC) $76.00
Mohawk Red Rug (20x34) - I paid $3.73
Sold for $7.00
Profit = $3.27

Mainstays Grey Rug (Joint with my Bro) - We paid $7.46
Sold for $9.00
Profit = $1.54

Black + Decker Dustbuster (Joint with my Bro) - We paid $10.65
Sold for $16.00
Profit...
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When I try to use the search function on my blog it is not working. Anyone else having this issue or know of a fix?

Thank you!
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Spring break with the girls was wonderful! We had a good balance of relaxing, which they really needed and getting out to explore some things. We did several free things and had dinner out twice, so we easily spent under $150 for those kinds of things. Our grocery bill went up slightly, but that's to be expected.

I found a quarter out back in the alley when I was talking to a neighbor. I love finding cash on the ground!

I'm working on my next $25 Amazon or Paypal redemption...
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I can't believe it. I had another crash yesterday. This time I was just waiting in line to make a turn. The truck in front of me backed up for some reason. I wasn't quick enough to go into reverse, and he smashed my headlight and scratched up the bumper.

I filed a police report and will call his insurance company today. Meanwhile, I'll be driving with one headlight. This I didn't need just one week before my surgery.

It's pay day, though! I just paid the mortgage and...
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I am getting around 5 SPAM comments everyday!! Anyone else having this issue or know how to stop it?

They are going back and commenting on my entries from years ago...so weird.
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This update is late as I was having trouble with my blog at the time and then I was gone on vacation.

Celebrations for this update:
-$1003.11 paid off in the last 2 weeks!!
-Rental #1 went under the next $1000 mark!!
-Our Mortgage went under the next $1000 mark!
-Total Debt went under the next $1000 mark for the 9th update in a row!! This is now my longest streak!

Student Loan $0
Payback Savings $0
David's Bridal $0
Scheel's Card $0
Total Rewards $0
LOC - US...
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I have been really busy the last few weeks and I feel exhausted. Most of the busyness has been work-related, but I have also managed to squeeze in some fun along the way.

On Friday, March 15, I attended the concert of a favorite traditional band with a few friends ($44 for 2nd row seat). Joyful music was just what I needed to start that weekend. Then this past Saturday I went cross-country skiing after a big Friday night snowstorm (have a season’s pass). The conditions were...
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Today has been a busy place at our homestead. Three different folks came by. One was for the annual termite inspection. Glad that is over with. One was a guy to measure for a new storm door. And the other was for a painter to do some small projects. All of these items come from our home maintenance savings account. Looking forward to having some things fixed up or touched up.

Yesterday I had a bad bout of Vertigo. Very scary, and glad today I'm better. I did go see the Express...
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I took the boys to an indoor trampoline park yesterday. DIL had given me $40 for entertainment. The actual cost was $50, but for that $10 they were well-entertained for two hours and burned off a lot of energy. Afterwards we got milkshakes at Steak N Shake's 2-for-1 happy hour -- but it was even cheaper as the person in front of us in the line paid for our order, too! One of those random acts of kindness -- very nice. I did manage to wave my thanks as she drove away.

Oh,...
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I bought my onion plants today. They should arrive the week of 4/8. I bought 3 bunches of candy sweet onions (it was cheaper to get 3 than 2), 1 batch of redwing red storage onions, and 1 batch of Patterson yellow storage onions. Each batch contains 50 to 60 plants. This should be enough onions for the year. I have had really good luck with storage onions. I have bought the candy sweets the last couple of years and they last a long time, at least six months, at which point...
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We have renter's insurance and have ever since we started renting. It is very expensive in our new location. I'm not sure now if we changed our coverages significantly. Our policy covers $50,000 replacement coverage. I think this is plenty as we are very pared down with our things compared to most people. I'm starting to question if it would be worth my time to actually inventory all of our belongings. The policy we have now also includes $100,000 personal liability coverage, with...
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So it's been almost 2 months since we ended amazon prime. It finished end of January 2019. Have I missed it? Not one bit. I've ordered 1x from there Natori Bra $70 (that's another topic OMG) and hands free blue tooth. Free shipping over $35.

But otherwise have I or my DH bought anything? Nope. Makes for saving money. Yes we buy stuff. We got to the store.

Like today I need toilet paper and paper towels and groceries. We bought stuff for science project for kids. ...
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I spent $3 on cheese yesterday, and it was worth it -- it did make the onion soup so much better. Variables are at 84%. With 2 days to go, that's very good.

However, I'll be babysitting the boys this afternoon and some days this week -- not sure of the schedule, if there is one. They are on spring break, but mom & dad are working. DIL's schedule is very loose. I'll take it day by day and hope I can hold back on spending till Wednesday.

I have a mystery shop to complete...
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