I think we are steadily moving towards our goal! The student loan pay off date is a tentative March! MARCH It was supposed to be April but we are getting enough back in taxes to go ahead and kill. I also got accepted into UofL again! I am finishing up the paperwork and will mail it tomm, hopefully get into advising pretty quickly and get on with this school finishing stuff! WOOT!
I currently have a ton of Brussels sprouts that I need to eat. Those are pretty much going to go with every meal this week. I also have zucchini to finish up, but I just figured out the correct way for miso soup so I can put them in that to finish them up. YUM.
In other news, Joe and I had our money talk at Outback of all places. Haha! I'm sure the waiter was like, these assholes have no money, since I had the checkbook out and we were budgeting out stuff. I'm glad that Joe and I are on the same page about money. It's so awesome to have a spouse that follows your beliefs and vise versa.
I have no real tips for this blog at the moment. My canning is done for the moment until the garden season tips off. So I am out!
Monday, January 25, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Frustrations!
So I found out that my boss did not report my 09 1st quarter earnings! How frustrating! That means I will have to go down to the unemployment office next week with my old paycheck stubs and prove that I actually did work. YUCK.
Joe has been hinting at me working only pt for awhile. Apparently the REALLY likes me home. He said if I can find something in the morning and be home mid-afternoon to cook and clean he would be happy. Honestly, I would be happy. I'm kinda having fun just being a housewife, it makes me think *gasp* I want a kid. HA!
As far as finances go? We're fine. Even with the screw up from my old boss. Sure we have tightened the budget a little, but eh. Remember kids, there are bills that come FIRST.in fact, lets go over these:
1.) The house
- Mortgage payments are the FIRST thing that I budget for every month. I don't care what our checking account looks like, its the first thing that comes out of the checkbook. In fact the payment isn't due till the 1st of the NEXT month, but I like to debit it while I have the money to do so.
2.) The utilities
- Lights and water are IMPORTANT. These are the next items. I need water to cook, shower, launder and to some extent use the bathroom. I need electricity to cook, not so much light. If I had a gas stove I'd still need the electric company. One day I'd like an all wood stove......
3.) Food
- Basic people! I am currently canning and stockpiling. I would like a year in the stockpile but I think realistically I can fit about 6 months worth in our house. I need food next to survive.
4.) Insurance
- This is the deal breaker and important. Joe and I have car, home, health, dental, and life insurance. If I worked a job where they offered it I would decline. I like choosing for myself what I need.
5.) Student Loan
- This is pretty much killed. We have about 7k left on a 21k loan! Tell me thats not dedication. If worse came to worse my next payment isn't due till 2014.... but I am fairly certain it has a death wish in April.
Those are how I itemize out my bills, in that order. If something happened, the bills would still be paid like that. Its important, in my own mind, to put the necessities FIRST, then worry about the rest. Shelter, food, and light are the most important to me, hence the top three.
That concludes this informative post. Hopefully in the next few days I can post even more useful frugal stuff! Oh, and change the horrid color scheme.
Joe has been hinting at me working only pt for awhile. Apparently the REALLY likes me home. He said if I can find something in the morning and be home mid-afternoon to cook and clean he would be happy. Honestly, I would be happy. I'm kinda having fun just being a housewife, it makes me think *gasp* I want a kid. HA!
As far as finances go? We're fine. Even with the screw up from my old boss. Sure we have tightened the budget a little, but eh. Remember kids, there are bills that come FIRST.in fact, lets go over these:
1.) The house
- Mortgage payments are the FIRST thing that I budget for every month. I don't care what our checking account looks like, its the first thing that comes out of the checkbook. In fact the payment isn't due till the 1st of the NEXT month, but I like to debit it while I have the money to do so.
2.) The utilities
- Lights and water are IMPORTANT. These are the next items. I need water to cook, shower, launder and to some extent use the bathroom. I need electricity to cook, not so much light. If I had a gas stove I'd still need the electric company. One day I'd like an all wood stove......
3.) Food
- Basic people! I am currently canning and stockpiling. I would like a year in the stockpile but I think realistically I can fit about 6 months worth in our house. I need food next to survive.
4.) Insurance
- This is the deal breaker and important. Joe and I have car, home, health, dental, and life insurance. If I worked a job where they offered it I would decline. I like choosing for myself what I need.
5.) Student Loan
- This is pretty much killed. We have about 7k left on a 21k loan! Tell me thats not dedication. If worse came to worse my next payment isn't due till 2014.... but I am fairly certain it has a death wish in April.
Those are how I itemize out my bills, in that order. If something happened, the bills would still be paid like that. Its important, in my own mind, to put the necessities FIRST, then worry about the rest. Shelter, food, and light are the most important to me, hence the top three.
That concludes this informative post. Hopefully in the next few days I can post even more useful frugal stuff! Oh, and change the horrid color scheme.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Fun Times
Soooo I lost my job a week ago. I was laid off. The good thing is, Joe and I looked at our budget about two weeks ago for this very reason since I was afraid this was going to happen. We set out a couple goals for the month because of this.
A.) We're not eating out this month
B.) We are going to be very careful where every cent goes.
C.) I've been learning how to live more frugally
Part C brings up an interesting point, that I think I have mentioned before; if it ain't broke don't fix it. I swear I could have lived during the Great Depression and could have survived. Every single piece of furniture in our house is used including all the tv's. Even our Wii is used! Our water heater is broken but still works. It requires us to turn it on manually each time we need it, but until it quits completely we will still use it.
Since I'm now laid off I am making an awesome effort to really make a lot of homemade prepared foods. Right now there is two stockpots on the stove full of beef bones and water. Tomorrow I'm getting a pressure canner and I'm going to can the stock. I can make almost 2 gallons of stock a lot cheaper than buying it.
I also found a recipe for homemade laundry detergent, so once the stuff we have runs out, we are just going to make it. I'm going to get the garden going as well this year since I will have the canner and I can can for the next winter.
Hopefully we are still able to meet our goals this year of having the student loan paid off by April. I think we can still do it as long as we pinch pennies like never before. Part of it is me, I'm the spender in the household and so I am going to have to pause before EVERY purchase and ask what the opportunity cost of that item it.The canner will be money, along with the cans for the job, but the long term savings of it will be more than worth it. I hope to never buy stock again. In my food blog I am going to break down the costs and see if it was worth it. The only downfall to it is the amount of energy that is going to be used I am not sure how to calculate. HMMMM.
Anywho, that is the update at the moment. I will start actively looking for a job again next week probably, I wanted a minute to clear my head and figure out what I am going to do. Which I'm still not 100% sure.
A.) We're not eating out this month
B.) We are going to be very careful where every cent goes.
C.) I've been learning how to live more frugally
Part C brings up an interesting point, that I think I have mentioned before; if it ain't broke don't fix it. I swear I could have lived during the Great Depression and could have survived. Every single piece of furniture in our house is used including all the tv's. Even our Wii is used! Our water heater is broken but still works. It requires us to turn it on manually each time we need it, but until it quits completely we will still use it.
Since I'm now laid off I am making an awesome effort to really make a lot of homemade prepared foods. Right now there is two stockpots on the stove full of beef bones and water. Tomorrow I'm getting a pressure canner and I'm going to can the stock. I can make almost 2 gallons of stock a lot cheaper than buying it.
I also found a recipe for homemade laundry detergent, so once the stuff we have runs out, we are just going to make it. I'm going to get the garden going as well this year since I will have the canner and I can can for the next winter.
Hopefully we are still able to meet our goals this year of having the student loan paid off by April. I think we can still do it as long as we pinch pennies like never before. Part of it is me, I'm the spender in the household and so I am going to have to pause before EVERY purchase and ask what the opportunity cost of that item it.The canner will be money, along with the cans for the job, but the long term savings of it will be more than worth it. I hope to never buy stock again. In my food blog I am going to break down the costs and see if it was worth it. The only downfall to it is the amount of energy that is going to be used I am not sure how to calculate. HMMMM.
Anywho, that is the update at the moment. I will start actively looking for a job again next week probably, I wanted a minute to clear my head and figure out what I am going to do. Which I'm still not 100% sure.
Friday, December 18, 2009
So Excited!
I put another 1k on the student loans this month! This has been the second 2k month in a row! We originally only planned on 1k - 1300 on the loan a month but have been kicking ass and taking names! If we play our cards right, we will be done in April!!!!! That's if we stay at the same rate of pay we are currently at. I'll be so excited when this is over! It means that the ONLY debt we'll have is the house payment. Which means going back to school will be a cinch! No worries and we'll pay cash!!!! WEEEEEEE
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Doing awesome!
Doing great so far this month! Put 1k on the student loans so far and plan on doing another 1k - 1.5k on them before the end of the month. We are now in the 9k range on the loans! Woot! We'll be free of them in just a few months!!!!
Have not ate out at all. Everything has been cooked at home. I did throw a Xmas party, which in all set me back $200 but since I work a second job whenever I feel like it, I am going to go to work this weekend to pay that back. So really, the Xmas party was free.
I need to break out the budget book and fill it out for what has been spent where this month, but at least the checkbook is now balanced. The second paychecks of the month will be rolling in this week so we'll be good to go there. Those checks go to insurance payments, thats it. Anything extra gets thrown at the loans.
Right now we're ahead one month on the mtg payment, which is a good thing. We haven't had an issue at all with scraping up money for anything because everything is alloted out at the begining of the month, not as the bills come up. So I'm very happy with how we are managing our incomes.
Still putting about 300 away in a money market. We want it to be more, but right now we need to student loans gone, so thats about all we got. Another 25 bucks is also going into a seperate savings account for the dogs. Just in case we get a vet bill we have money socked away for that.
Next post will be the end of the month!
Have not ate out at all. Everything has been cooked at home. I did throw a Xmas party, which in all set me back $200 but since I work a second job whenever I feel like it, I am going to go to work this weekend to pay that back. So really, the Xmas party was free.
I need to break out the budget book and fill it out for what has been spent where this month, but at least the checkbook is now balanced. The second paychecks of the month will be rolling in this week so we'll be good to go there. Those checks go to insurance payments, thats it. Anything extra gets thrown at the loans.
Right now we're ahead one month on the mtg payment, which is a good thing. We haven't had an issue at all with scraping up money for anything because everything is alloted out at the begining of the month, not as the bills come up. So I'm very happy with how we are managing our incomes.
Still putting about 300 away in a money market. We want it to be more, but right now we need to student loans gone, so thats about all we got. Another 25 bucks is also going into a seperate savings account for the dogs. Just in case we get a vet bill we have money socked away for that.
Next post will be the end of the month!
Friday, December 4, 2009
Special Dinner at Home
I love special dinners. I really really love special dinners. You have all this preparation, time, and love put into the food. Then you eat it and its absolutely the most glorious thing ever.
I love dinners even more whenever all the ingrediants I already have at home! Tonight we are doing steak with homemade mac n' cheese (because I have left over pasta), steamed veggies ( I get them frozen to save money), and cheddar biscuits (because I have to use the parsley I bought before it goes bad).
Two of the dishes are leftover stuff that I need to use. Sure I have other things to make but I need to get rid of some things first. The pasta was from a clams in red sauce night (canned clams and canned tomato's) and the parsley was from this horrible broccoli raab dish that I made and had it leftover.I went out and got some wine for dinner (within our budget), we had frozen veggies and steaks in the freezer.
Which brings me to another awesome money saving point...... veggies are CHEAP when they are frozen veggies. You just steam them in the microwave and BAM instead good for you. At Costco they are about 7 bucks for 5lbs of mixed. I buy a bag a month sometimes two. AWESOME. These are my random food tips for the day. I'll have more next week when I have a Christmas party to do!
I love dinners even more whenever all the ingrediants I already have at home! Tonight we are doing steak with homemade mac n' cheese (because I have left over pasta), steamed veggies ( I get them frozen to save money), and cheddar biscuits (because I have to use the parsley I bought before it goes bad).
Two of the dishes are leftover stuff that I need to use. Sure I have other things to make but I need to get rid of some things first. The pasta was from a clams in red sauce night (canned clams and canned tomato's) and the parsley was from this horrible broccoli raab dish that I made and had it leftover.I went out and got some wine for dinner (within our budget), we had frozen veggies and steaks in the freezer.
Which brings me to another awesome money saving point...... veggies are CHEAP when they are frozen veggies. You just steam them in the microwave and BAM instead good for you. At Costco they are about 7 bucks for 5lbs of mixed. I buy a bag a month sometimes two. AWESOME. These are my random food tips for the day. I'll have more next week when I have a Christmas party to do!
Thursday, December 3, 2009
First Entry!
I plan on this being a public blog and hopefully at some point get member participation into this. This blog has been inspired by the movie "Maxed Out", which my husband and I watched last night together. America is on a debt roller coaster and it doesn't just hit the citizens. The government is just as bad and just as stupid on their money management.
Here is my backstory and the reason I felt making this blog was so important.
Age 18 - The first credit card
I remember this card and how happy I was to have it. I had a low limit - $300 and thought that I was just the coolest person ever because of it. I paid it off every month and racked it all back up again. I then got a balance increase letter! They upped my limit to $500! I thought I must be super responsible with money because they wouldn't give me more to spend otherwise. When I moved to KY I paid it off and closed the account.
Age 19 - The second credit card
This was my Providian card. I had this card all the way up until this year when it was paid off. This was my college play money card and boy did I rack it up. I think at the end, my credit limit was 15k. I never took it past 5k (which is still an extreme amount) but I thought I was so cool to have that limit.
Age 19-24 - The merry go round of cards
This is around the time I got lots of cards! I had a Lane Bryant, Old Navy, Victoria Secret, Discover, Providian, and a Fifth Third card. Oh and a Best Buy card. It was horridly easy to get credit in college. I don't think I was ever denied a card that I applied for. I fell into the debt trap. Whenever I needed something and didn't have the money, I knew I could always fall onto the cards.
Age 25- I woke up
Last year is when I got angry at them for how I had been living. I wasn't married yet so my income was still mine and I only took care of myself. I was paying minimums on all the cards I had and was scraping at the end of the month. I'd hide a card so I couldn't use it, only to have to dig it back out again for something I needed.
I went out and got a second job, I had to. I paid off the Victoria Secret in a month. I then started tackling the Providian. I hated that card as that was the one that secured me the highest amount of money and therefore caused me the most problems. I opened the Discover card to transfer as much of the Providian I could for a lower payment. In all, I was almost 8k in credit card debt. It almost makes me want to cry just admitting that.
The only reason I got out this year as quickly as I did, was because of my husband. He is staunchly no debt and knew before we got married that I had some CC debt. Once married he told me to pay them off and to swear to never go into the debt again. The smartest decision I have ever made.
The other debt
The debt right now that we're tackling is the student loan debt. In total it was 21k. I desperately want to go back to school, but I have to pay off the loan first. Joe and I have been putting 2k a month or more on it. Currently we are at 10k on this loan.
The ugly truth about our income
People seem to have this impression that we make a lot of money. We aren't sure where or how this came to be. We are middle class workers only. We make together about 45k a year. There, there is how much we are both bringing in. Almost all of that money is Joe's income, he brings in the big bucks. Because we obviously do not have alot of money, how in the world are we putting 2k a month on a debt and survive?
The Budget
Oh these crazy things. We have a combined checking account. We both have a debit card that is linked into the account. We can't spend without either of us knowing. We got married in June, so this has been working for us for 6 months. I have a budget book on our liquor cabinet. Every month we fill out the budgeted numbers in the budget column. As the month goes on we fill in what we spend. It's like a register but it only has room for numbers. I'll take a picture of it and post it here so that you can see it better.
As we spend, each spent dollar goes into a grouping in the book. It gets logged in our checking register, and then also gets cleared online through the bank. At the end of the month we add up everything in the budget book and compare to the written budget to see where we overspent. Last month, for example, we overspent in food and entertainment.
We both get 2 paychecks a month. The first paycheck is the "essentials" paycheck. This covers the house payment, utilities, and food. This is the check we need to survive with that month. The second check is then the "debt" paycheck. This goes to our insurance payment, the student loan, and savings. If there is anything left over, it goes to the loan.
The fun stuff
Joe and I have taken a staunch frugal stance. If it isn't broke don't fix it is our motto. We by used on almost everything we own. We relish hand-me-downs. This month for example we have a strict no eating out pact. Neither of us can go out to eat unless somebody else pays for it. Next month we may buckle down on the extra money we have come in during the month that we use for ourselves. (nah ;) )
We also buy everything with cash. If we can't pay cash for it, we don't want it. We will also save for it if we really want it or go to work for it. (gasp) We paid cash for our cars, cash for our furniture, and cash for all of our toys.
The student loan takes presedence over all fun things in our lives. We want that beast gone. It has become the most important thing in our marriage right now. I want to go back to school next fall and we can't if I still have the loan. We can pay cash for my schooling next year (as long as all other factors stay steady) and I can be on my way.
So there is the long intro to our money life. I hope this blog will be insightfull, have meaning, and help others. I may even add in random frugal recipes I've come up with and insights on how to live. Might. Here goes this train ride!
Here is my backstory and the reason I felt making this blog was so important.
Age 18 - The first credit card
I remember this card and how happy I was to have it. I had a low limit - $300 and thought that I was just the coolest person ever because of it. I paid it off every month and racked it all back up again. I then got a balance increase letter! They upped my limit to $500! I thought I must be super responsible with money because they wouldn't give me more to spend otherwise. When I moved to KY I paid it off and closed the account.
Age 19 - The second credit card
This was my Providian card. I had this card all the way up until this year when it was paid off. This was my college play money card and boy did I rack it up. I think at the end, my credit limit was 15k. I never took it past 5k (which is still an extreme amount) but I thought I was so cool to have that limit.
Age 19-24 - The merry go round of cards
This is around the time I got lots of cards! I had a Lane Bryant, Old Navy, Victoria Secret, Discover, Providian, and a Fifth Third card. Oh and a Best Buy card. It was horridly easy to get credit in college. I don't think I was ever denied a card that I applied for. I fell into the debt trap. Whenever I needed something and didn't have the money, I knew I could always fall onto the cards.
Age 25- I woke up
Last year is when I got angry at them for how I had been living. I wasn't married yet so my income was still mine and I only took care of myself. I was paying minimums on all the cards I had and was scraping at the end of the month. I'd hide a card so I couldn't use it, only to have to dig it back out again for something I needed.
I went out and got a second job, I had to. I paid off the Victoria Secret in a month. I then started tackling the Providian. I hated that card as that was the one that secured me the highest amount of money and therefore caused me the most problems. I opened the Discover card to transfer as much of the Providian I could for a lower payment. In all, I was almost 8k in credit card debt. It almost makes me want to cry just admitting that.
The only reason I got out this year as quickly as I did, was because of my husband. He is staunchly no debt and knew before we got married that I had some CC debt. Once married he told me to pay them off and to swear to never go into the debt again. The smartest decision I have ever made.
The other debt
The debt right now that we're tackling is the student loan debt. In total it was 21k. I desperately want to go back to school, but I have to pay off the loan first. Joe and I have been putting 2k a month or more on it. Currently we are at 10k on this loan.
The ugly truth about our income
People seem to have this impression that we make a lot of money. We aren't sure where or how this came to be. We are middle class workers only. We make together about 45k a year. There, there is how much we are both bringing in. Almost all of that money is Joe's income, he brings in the big bucks. Because we obviously do not have alot of money, how in the world are we putting 2k a month on a debt and survive?
The Budget
Oh these crazy things. We have a combined checking account. We both have a debit card that is linked into the account. We can't spend without either of us knowing. We got married in June, so this has been working for us for 6 months. I have a budget book on our liquor cabinet. Every month we fill out the budgeted numbers in the budget column. As the month goes on we fill in what we spend. It's like a register but it only has room for numbers. I'll take a picture of it and post it here so that you can see it better.
As we spend, each spent dollar goes into a grouping in the book. It gets logged in our checking register, and then also gets cleared online through the bank. At the end of the month we add up everything in the budget book and compare to the written budget to see where we overspent. Last month, for example, we overspent in food and entertainment.
We both get 2 paychecks a month. The first paycheck is the "essentials" paycheck. This covers the house payment, utilities, and food. This is the check we need to survive with that month. The second check is then the "debt" paycheck. This goes to our insurance payment, the student loan, and savings. If there is anything left over, it goes to the loan.
The fun stuff
Joe and I have taken a staunch frugal stance. If it isn't broke don't fix it is our motto. We by used on almost everything we own. We relish hand-me-downs. This month for example we have a strict no eating out pact. Neither of us can go out to eat unless somebody else pays for it. Next month we may buckle down on the extra money we have come in during the month that we use for ourselves. (nah ;) )
We also buy everything with cash. If we can't pay cash for it, we don't want it. We will also save for it if we really want it or go to work for it. (gasp) We paid cash for our cars, cash for our furniture, and cash for all of our toys.
The student loan takes presedence over all fun things in our lives. We want that beast gone. It has become the most important thing in our marriage right now. I want to go back to school next fall and we can't if I still have the loan. We can pay cash for my schooling next year (as long as all other factors stay steady) and I can be on my way.
So there is the long intro to our money life. I hope this blog will be insightfull, have meaning, and help others. I may even add in random frugal recipes I've come up with and insights on how to live. Might. Here goes this train ride!
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