Out Of it

So wow! Where did December go? It's hard to believe that I haven't posted here since the fifth. Yikes! I guess I've been so busy getting ready for the holidays that it's just flown by.

I am pretty much ready for Christmas. All of the gifts are bought and wrapped and all within budget. Yea! My house is being cleaned as I type (more on that later) and I've got the prime rib ordered. I still have to get the rest of the groceries for Christmas Eve dinner but I can do that tomorrow.

Robby is my new housekeeper. He still hasn't found a job so I said that if he cleaned the entire house that I would fill up his gas tank so that he can get to his hockey games this weekend. He got a pretty good start yesterday and will have to finish up the rest today. I'm trying to keep things as uncomfortable as possible at home for him in an attempt to motivate him to get out there!

I'm at work so I don't have my numbers with me. I'll try to post with them later today.

Decent Weigh In

I weighed in this morning and I am down .8. At least I'm back in the 230's now. 22.6 more pounds until new bras and underwear!

Record Income for December!

We grossed $37,277.24 last month! Definitely a new record! So how did we spend all of this glorious loot?

Well, of course, we didn't actually get to see all of it. These things were taken out before it reached our hot little hands. $12,156.05 was deducted:

Federal Income Tax $8,881.39 (cough, cough), Medicare Tax $480.50, Ins. Premium $154.02, 401K $2,637.08 (woot!) and Group Term Life $3.06.

$8,976.76 stayed in checking:

Amex $930.77, House payment $2,023.33, Cable $69.06, Internet $56.21, Daycare $342.00, Therapy $14.40, Sewer $48.76, Phone $31.59, HELoC $524.09, Rainier Pacific Visa $175.00, Gymnastics $30.00, Doctor bills $74.79, Groceries $1,011.96, Weight Watchers $39.95, Party Lite $17.90, Water filter $38.06, Car maintenance $462.37, Robby $100.00, Bathroom remodel $2,435.77 and Gym membership $257.00.

$639.47 went to short term savings:

Glasses $289.47 and Koins for Kenya $350.00.

That brings the total in short term savings to $3,679.83:

Ron Clothing $10.05, Me clothing $127.83, Pictures $300.00, Haircuts $176.00, Christmas $1,784.95, Larisa birthday $30.42, Carpet cleaning $400.00, Glasses $500.00, Koins for Kenya $350.00 and Mustang tabs $0.58.

A whopping $14,266.96 went to long term savings:

EF $25.00, Trip to Arizona $1,514.00, Big Boy Bed $5,000.00, San Francisco $2,000.00, Couch $4,000.00, Ron's 40th birthday $1,702.96 and Someday Fund $25.00.

This brings our long term savings total to $14,852.96:

EF $125.00, Trip to Arizona $2000.00, Big Boy Bed $5,000.00, San Francisco $2,000.00, Couch $4,000.00, Ron's 40th birthday $1,702.96 and Someday Fund $25.00.

Woot! Woot! Woot!

Good Weigh In

I weighed in today and I am down 2 pounds. It looks like I may finally be headed in the right direction. 23.4 pounds until new bras and underwear!

Not a Good Weigh-in Day

I went and weighed in today. I have gained another 2.4 pounds so now I have only lost 4.6. Ugh.

The good news is that I am feeling pretty motivated and back on track. I rejoined the gym and went on Monday and Tuesday and I've been eating on program. My mini goal is still 30 pounds with a reward of new bras and underwear.

Visa

Got the Visa statement a couple of days ago. The balance is now $8,630.77. So, if I took a year to pay it off right now, it would cost us 719.23 a month. That is down $6.68 from last time. Progress!

Nothing much is going on right now financially. I'm anxiously awaiting the end of the month so Ron and I can sit down and plot out the huge amount of money that he made last month. It's going to be so much fun!

In other news, my dad called me on Sunday. He is angry because he's been out of the country for about a month and I haven't kept in touch with him. Hmm. I am truly stymied as to what he is feels he is not getting from me. I feel like we have a good relationship. I'm looking forward to him coming for Christmas. Hopefully, he will be over his grump by then.

Robby is at orientation today for a job where you call in each night and see if you go to work the next day. It is in a warehouse in Fife. He has not had much luck with Monster so hopefully he will be able to get some money for hockey together this way.

House Payment Goes Up

I got the mortgate statement today and our house payment has gone up to $2,023.33. The reason for this is that our property value went up and so our taxes our higher. Our home is now tax appraised at $312,000. It really doesn't do us much good since we don't have any plans to sell it.

Our balance is now $254,381.05. So, sticking with my little game, if we were to pay it off in ten years from now, our payment would be $3,269.18. That's actually $86.52 MORE a month than the last time I figured this out which makes my game less fun than I thought that it was going to be. I figured it would go down each month. Hmph.

Ron is in Alaska. He left yesterday morning and gets home tomorrow night. It's not fun to have him gone on the weekends.

Robby left today for a hockey tournament in Portland. He has applied for six jobs but no bites yet.

Tomorrow I am taking Samantha to a birthday party. It is at Odyssey so I figure Owen and I can play while she parties.

Cody did not come home this weekend. He went to Arizona with Jennifer (and maybe Lance?) to see her family. I'm glad he gets to do some traveling but I do miss him.

Owen is a tired mess, so I must run.

November

Happy Halloween! Tonight is one of my favorite nights of the year. Ron takes the kids to the grandmas and I get a very rare evening at home by myself. Aaaah! So of course I spent it with the finances. Yea!

So we grossed $17,817.10 this month. Isn't that incredible? Ron has had a stellar year and the rewards are coming in. Wait until you see next month!

The deductions out of that amount ($5,311.35) are for:

Federal Income Tax $2,957.73, Social Security Tax $839.42, Medicare Tax $210.37, Insurance Premium $154.02, 401K $1,146.75 (yea!) and Life Insurance Premium $3.06.

Out of what is left, some stays in checking ($6,171.00):

Groceries $800.00, House payment $1,933.23, Daycare $1,060.00, HELoC $527.86, Rainier Pacific Visa $175.00, Cable $69.04, Internet $56.21, Phone $50.00, Garbage $74.04, Gymnastics $30.00, Amex $930.77, Weight Watchers $39.95, Dentist $46.20, Therapy $26.35, TRA $1.50 and we have to leave $350.85 in there for an overage last month.

We put $4,679.75 into short term savings:

Robby tuition $311.86, Robby books $500.00 (more on these later), Nylah birthday $50.00, Christmas $3,200.00, Larisa birthday $50.00, Haircuts $142.00, Carpet cleaning $400.00 and glasses $50.89.

This brings our short term savings balance to $6,867.87:

Sharon birthday $50.00, Ron clothing $142.98, Me clothing $400.00, Pictures $300.00, Chimney sweep $250.00, Haircuts $214.00, Anniversary $300.00, Robby tuition $960.00, Robby books $500.00, Nylah birthday $50.00, Christmas $3,200.00, Larisa birthday $50.00, Carpet cleaning $400.00 and Glasses $50.89.

We didn't put anything into long term savings this month. With a couple more dollars of interest earned we are at $583.69:

EF $100.00, Arizona trip $483.69.

For cash we will be getting out $1,655.00:

Gas $240.00, Entertainment $400.00, Blow $ Me $100.00, Blow $ Ron $100.00, Gifts $100.00, House $50.00, Co-pays $120.00, Home Office $55.00, Car Care $200.00, Dog Care $150.00, Dry Cleaning $50.00 and Nutcracker tickets $90.00.

So in regards to the tuition and book money for Robby (who is not currently going to school), I have started a new account at Emigrant Direct. I am going to put the tuition and book money into the account and that is also where the "rent" money that he pays us is going to go. It will be our contribution to his little nest egg.

Weigh-in Disaster

I went and weighed in on Wednesday. I had gained 6.4 pounds. So now my net loss is only 7 pounds. Yuck, yuck and more yuck. Why do I do this? Anyway, so I am trying to get back on track. I did really well on Thursday but then Friday, Saturday and Sunday, not so much.

I've decided to make my goal to lose 30 pounds. I've decided on 30 because when I had lost 19.8, I hadn't gone down a size yet, but I think losing 30 should do the trick. I'm going to reward myself with new bras and underwear (that situation is getting a little desperate) and maybe a new outfit. It's the reason I'm saving my clothing money.

Anyway, so I have 23 pounds to go. I can do this!

Infected

Samantha and I both went to the doctor on Friday. I have a sinus infection and she has an ear infection. That same day, Ron got this little lump removed from his ankle. So after all of the co-pays for the visits to the doctors, we still had to pay $88.68 in copays for all of our medications.

Samantha and I went shopping on Saturday for my cousin's wife's baby shower gift. We ended up spending $96.83. I forgot to budget for this.

Also, I am about to go over my grocery budget for the month.

Hmmmm.

So I think what I am going to do is pay us back next month, for the overages this month. In other words leave the money in checking to cover these expenses as if they were bills.

I'm going to bulk up the amount we keep in cash for co-pays to $120.00. I'm also going to make a cash gift fund of $100.00 to cover irregular gifts like the shower gift. I also need to keep my eye on the amount that we spend on groceries and make sure that the $200.00 per week that I budget is enough. I have a huge order on the way from Safeway.com so that should help.

Robby has decided to take this year off from school. His original idea was to just take the quarter off so he could work more hours and pay for hockey. Ron and I then suggested that he take off a whole year, save some money and get his feet underneath him. Perhaps then he will feel more ready to tackle college. The plan right now is for him to get a "real" full time job (probably working in a warehouse). Then he will pay all of his expenses, plus he will pay us rent. We will take this rent and put it away for him, thereby forcing him to be working on a nest egg of sorts. At the end of the year he should have a nice chunk of change put away and maybe be done with hockey. Then he can go from there. I'm pretty satisfied with the plan. I just hope it gets rolling soon. We're going to make his first month's rent due December first to "encourage" him to get started on a job hunt.

Sinuses

My sinuses have been killing me for the last few days. My whole face feels bruised and my molars ache. Yuck.

Anyhoo, the Rainier Pacific Visa statement came today. $8710.97 is the balance. Once the Amex is paid off then I will pay this one off in a year. So sticking with my little game if I had to pay it off in a year from today it would cost $725.91 a month. Another number that I'm glad will shrink a bit before I actually have to send that payment off every month for a year.

In other financial news, Ron decided to get the remainder of his bonus out in cash. The windows that we ordered came in so he is going to spend the rest of it on installing those, trimming them and then hopefully, painting our bathroom. We have the coolest blue color picked out. I won't be tracking the bonus in the sidebar anymore since Ron will have it in cash and keep track of it.

There has been some Lance/Robby/Cody drama the last couple of days. For various reasons he has decided not to pay for Robby's hockey any more. Robby says he'll just pay for it himself but I have no idea how that is going to happen. The lad is not good with money. Robby and Lance had a big confrontation about it. They don't get along very well.

Lance is also telling me that Cody has decided that he doesn't want to play hockey any more. Also, that Cody has become VERY social and may not want to come over to my house anymore. To that I say TS! I am anxious to talk to Cody tomorrow and get the real story. I am picking him up from his dad's tomorrow. The drive from way out there to here does give us a good opportunity to talk.

Robby's car is leaking oil. Ron looked at it tonight but he really couldn't tell where the leak was coming from. He's afraid it's going to be expensive though. He put three quarts in tonight so he can see how bad it's really leaking. Here's hoping!

Mortgage Statement

The mortgage statement came today. We're under $255,000! Woot!

I'm playing a little game with the mortgage. After our other debts (Amex, Visa, HELoC) are paid off (in about 2 years and 8 months), I want to pay off the mortgage in 10 years. That means I'll be 50 when it is paid off. Then I figure we can buy a second property with a 15 year mortgage and it will be paid when I'm 65 and want to retire. Do I have a good plan or what? So even though it will be awhile before I start the 10 year attack on the mortgage, I still think it will be fun to figure out what I will have to pay a month to pay it off in 10 years. So each statement, I'm going to figure it out. So at this time, if we wanted to pay off our mortgage in ten years, it would cost us $3,182.66 per month. So I'll figure this every month when the statement comes, and the payment should go down each time. Fun, huh?

Ron has been gone since Monday. He had to go to Ft. Lauderdale for work. He gets home tonight. He was supposed to be home at about 9:00 pm but missed a connecting flight in Orlando and so won't be home until about 11:30 pm. Yuck.

I hate it when he is gone. I don't do well. I can't sleep but I can certainly eat. In fact, I eat anything that isn't nailed down. Sigh. Besides that, I just plain miss him. I try to not be too big of a baby about it. I know that other women's husbands are away for much longer, to places a lot less friendly than Florida. Still, there is always this little sick ache in my heart when he is gone.

So...I'm really, REALLY glad that he will be home tonight.

October

So now that October is starting, a fresh new month with no mistakes in it yet, I'm ready to retackle my challenges!

OK, after all spending on various everythings we have $11,318.50 left to spend for October.

Some stays in checking ($6,067.27). It goes for:

House payment $1,933.23; Daycare $1,325.00; Amex $930.77; Groceries $800.00; HELoC $531.80; Rainier Pacific Visa $176.00; Trip to the dump $75.00; Cable $69.08; Internet $56.21; Phone $50.00; Sewer $48.73; Weight Watchers $39.95; Gymnastics $30.00; TRA $1.50.

Some comes out in cash ($1,387.00):

Entertainment $400.00; Gas $240.00; Car care $200.00; Dog care $150.00; Blow Money Me $100.00; Blow Money Ron $100.00; Co-pays $85.00; House $50.00; Dry Cleaning $50.00; Postage $12.00.

Some goes into short term savings ($3,864.23):

Car insurance $1,607.80; Ron's Birthday $300.00; Firewood $230.00; Halloween $100.00; Ron Haircut (October) $19.00; Owen Haircut (October) $15.00; Chimney Sweeping $250.00; Grandma Rose's Birthday (November 2nd) $50.00; Anniversary (November 13th) $300.00; Mom's Birthday (November 22nd) $50.00; Ron Haircut (November) $19.00; Robby Haircut (November) $19.00; U.P.S. Annual Fund $200.00; Robby Tuition (December) $704.43.

After these contributions, the balance of our short terms savings is $5,179.00:

Sharon's Birthday $50.00; Ron's Clothing $329.77; Me Clothing $400.00; Haircuts $91.00; Pictures $300.00; Car Insurance $1,869.80; Ron's Birthday $300.00; Firewood $230.00; Halloween $100.00; Chimney sweep $250.00; U.P.S. Annual Fund $200.00; Grandma Rose's Birthday $50.00; Anniversary $300.00; Mom's Birthday $50.00; Robby Tuition $658.43.

We didn't put anything into long term savings this month but after earning a couple of dollars in interest our balance is $581.34:

EF $100.00; Arizona trip $481.34.

Some Clarity and Some Confusion.

Robby did start school today. He's only taking the two classes that he is signed up for. However, I've decided that I really need to disengage from the whole process. I'm willing to pay for tuition and books for two years of community college (not including summers) and two years of four year college (not including summers) and that's it. What Robby does with that money and time and opportunity is up to him.

We've totally blown several of our budgets for the month. So today Ron took $400.00 cash out of checking. We're going to try to get through the rest of the month on that. We're having our budget meeting on Wednesday. On that day we will just take whatever money we have left and make our budget for October. We are a month ahead so we've already made the money that will be used for October expenses.

So with that decision here is what the current budget looks like:
Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Dog Grooming $ 60.00
DH Haircut $ 19.00
DS1 Tuition $ 142.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DH Clothing $ 329.77
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00

Confusion

Late last night Robby announced that he doesn't want to go to school. It's supposed to start Monday but he was thinking that he wanted to take a quarter off and then go in January. So Ron and I had an emergency meeting at lunch today and made some decisions about how to handle it. Basically, we had decided that in January he would either have to start school or move out. Then Robby's dad got involved and told Robby that he wouldn't pay for hockey unless Robby was in school. So now we've got Robby going to school just so he can play hockey. It seems like a recipe for disaster to me. He's only signed up for two classes. He doesn't know if he can get into a Reading 95 class and he hasn't bought his books yet. Sigh.

I'm also feeling somewhat confused about money. I think we've blown quite a few of our budgets at this point. I'm looking forward to the end of the month so I can get back on track. Here's where we are:

Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Groceries $ 83.84
Gas $ 192.24
Entertainment -188.73 I'm still not sure what I'm going to do with this.
Blow $ Me -17.34
Blow $ DH $ 20.89
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 70.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 19.00
DS1 Tuition $ 142.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$35.96
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 306.86
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
DH Misc $145.36

The Rainier Pacific Visa bill came today. It's also a bill that I'm paying minimums right now. I'm going to track it on the side.

Weigh In Day

I went and weighed in today for the first time in a long time. It was scary but not too scary. I gained two pounds but I thought it might be much worse. I'll start tracking my weight in the sidebar. Yea!

We went to the fair today after work. It was fun. The kids are at just the right age. We ate, petted the farm animals, went on a few rides and we were done. I still feel beat though and my feet hurt!

Here is where we are at:

Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 139.00
Gas $ 192.24
Entertainment -188.73 I'm still not sure what I'm going to do with this.
Blow $ Me $ 51.40
Blow $ DH $ 40.89
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 70.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 19.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 142.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$35.96
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 306.86
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00

Reunion and Birthday

The reunion turned out to be really fun! Both Ron and I had a great time. We dropped the kids off at my parents at about 3:00 and headed to our hotel. When we got there, Ron realized that he had forgotten his pants. While he ran home to get them, I showered and got ready. He came back and got ready and then we met with our respective parties. Marci and Sean came to pick me up and we met Camille and Neil, Barb and John and my friend Amy at the bar at Stanley's. We ordered some appetizers and drinks and had a great time chatting and catching up. Then we headed back to hotel. I met up with Ron, also Sean and Leesa, Jamie and Kari, Tod and Heather, Brody and Dana and Kerm and Christine (who I had not seen since high school) and we headed into the reunion itself.

From the moment I walked in, it was a big blur of talking to people and catching up. I guess one of my worries was that no one would remember me but as it turned out everyone who I remembered, remembered me. All of the high school BS had kind of fallen away and everyone seemed genuinely interested in what everyone else was up to. Only 90 people from our class of 485 had shown up so maybe that had something to do with it, but I found it to be a very friendly and warm atmosphere.

I actually won the price for most kids! Haha! I was up against Tod who also has four kids, but when I pointed out that I had actually given birth to four kids, I was declared the winner hands down. I won a $50.00 spa gift certificate and a bottle of wine. Whoo! I figure if any of our class mates have more than four kids, they probably couldn't find a sitter so I lucked out. It was great!

The reunion ended at 11:30 but almost everyone wandered down to one of three bars within walking distance of the museum so it kind of continued. Ron and I got a sandwich at Marconi's ( I was starving) and then visited with some people there and at Matador. We got back to our hotel room at about 1:30 am. A late night for Mama!

Sunday morning we woke up about 9:15 and then went out to breakfast at the Harvester with Sean and Leesa. It was fun to rehash the evening before and dish about some of the craziness that had gone on.

We picked the kids up after that and spent the rest of the day doing a whole lot of nothing.

Yesterday was my thirty-eighth birthday! It was a pretty good day. After I dropped the kids off at daycare, I picked up a peppermint hot chocolate for myself on the way to work. Then at lunch time I played Nertz with my co-workers at lunch hour and then Nicole, Laura and I went and picked up good food from Indochine. Yum! After work Ron, Samantha, Owen and I went over to my parents for dinner. We had chicken, spaghetti and spinich salad for dinner and then angel food cake and ice cream for dessert. More yum!

My mom bought me the colander from that Martha Stewart line that I fell in love with and some prep bowls. My sister bought me a candle and some pretty stones and a dish to put them in from Pier 1. I also got $10.00 from my Grandma Rose and $50.00 from my dad. A card came from Sean and Leesa as well. All and all, a very good birthday. The one downside was that I was still so tired, I guess from the reunion. I guess I'm getting too old to stay out so late.

On Saturday Ron and I are going shopping and then out to dinner for my birthday, so I still have that to look forward to.

I went to the dentist today. No cavities, hurray!

So here is where the budget stands:

Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 139.00
Gas $ 192.24
Entertainment -188.73 Ouch!
Blow $ Me $ 66.37
Blow $ DH $ 55.13
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 70.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 19.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 142.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$35.96
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 306.86
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00

So obviously, I need to do some brainstorming on how to make up that big negative in the Entertainment budget.

Nervous

I'm starting to feel nervous about tonight's reunion. Nothing drastic but just a few butterflies. I think I'll be glad when it's over.

Ron and I are staying at the Marriott even though the reunion is here in our home town. Most of our friends are staying there and Ron had some rewards points so it was free for us. We are dropping the kids off at my parents house about three and then going to the hotel. Marci and Sean are going to come and meet us there. Then I am going to dinner with Marci and Sean, Camille and her husband Neil, and Barb and her boyfriend John. Ron is going to go to dinner with his group of friends from high school. Then Ron and I are going to meet back at the hotel room and then head to the reunion itself. Afterwards we plan to hang out with friends back at the hotel.

I don't think that there is enough in the entertainment budget to cover this evening so I'm not going to worry about it tonight. I'll reconfigure after it's all over.

Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 219.21
Gas $ 245.80
Entertainment $73.38
Blow $ Me $ 66.37
Blow $ DH $ 55.13
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 70.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 142.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$35.96
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 306.86
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00
DH Misc $145.36

House

Today the bill for the house payment came. Since it is part of our debt I'm going to track it on the side here. I only make the minimum payment on it for now so the balance won't go down very quickly. Once our other debt is paid off then I plan to accelerate the pay off of the house.

Nicole brought the dog crate to work today and I brought it home. It needs to be cleaned before Frasier can use it. Still, I took him for a walk today. Elsa was upset that she was left behind. Hopefully, it won't take long for her to adjust. When Frasier and I got back from our walk, I brushed him and then fed him outside. After he ate, both dogs came in. I'm hoping making him more of an inside dog will help his chronic cough clear up. If it doesn't, I'm not sure where to go from there.

I have spoken with Barb, Camille and Marci. I'm going to go out with them and their SO's for dinner before the reunion. Ron is going separately with his friends. We really didn't hang out with the same people during high school so we thought that was the best way to go. At the reunion and after, we will be together. Only two more days. It's hard to believe!

Here is how the budget is looking:

Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 255.24
Gas $ 245.80
Entertainment $ 105.48
Blow $ Me $ 66.37
Blow $ DH $ 55.13
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 70.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 142.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$35.96
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 254.15
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00
DH Misc $145.36

Funk

I've been in a bit of a funk the past few days. Frankly, I'm having trouble getting out of it. I don't know if it's caused by my upcoming reunion, my upcoming birthday, signing Robby up for college or the fact that my 12 year old beagle, Frasier isn't doing very well. I'm struggling with insomnia as well which really doesn't help at all.

The reunion and the birthday will take care of themselves and be over soon.

Same with Robby and college. It's really his responsibility. He's signed up for two classes and on the waiting list for a third. This morning I paid the tuition for the first two so that he wouldn't lose his spot. So I guess that is coming together too.

I'm borrowing a dog crate from my friend Nicole so that Frasier can start spending the nights indoors. We will see how it goes and if I can talk Ron into letting it be that way. I'm not sure what we will do with Elsa or if she will be willing to spend the nights outside without her beagle.

So here is where the budget stands right now:

Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 322.73
Gas $ 245.80
Entertainment $ 167.52 Getting scarier!
Blow $ Me $ 66.37
Blow $ DH $ 55.13
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 70.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 142.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$35.96
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 254.15
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00
DH Misc $145.36

Birthday Shopping

Today I went out to lunch and shopping with my mom. Every year we do this for my birthday. Since next weekend is my reunion we decided to do it today. We went out to lunch at Anthony's, one of my favorite spots. Usually, then we go clothes shopping, my mom buys me a new outfit and I buy anything else I might need. This year, however, I have decided to put off clothes shopping until I lose 30 pounds. I'm not quite there yet so we went shopping in the house wares department at Macy's. They have a new line from Martha Stewart that is so cool! Mom bought me a five piece set of ceramic mixing bowls and then said she would buy me another one of the pieces for me to unwrap on my actual birthday. I'm thinking that Ron and I should go shopping there and pick out some other stuff with part of my birthday budget. Yes, I am into it!

While we were out, I took back Samantha's stuff and then also got her some more tights and socks. I'm still over budget with her but taking those things back got us much closer and since we are slightly under budget with Owen, we should be OK.

Other good news, Robby paid us back for everything so I can take his list off of here. Now I have to stick to my goal of not loaning him any more money. Here is where we are:

Weight Watchers $ 39.95
Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 387.67
Gas $ 245.80
Entertainment $ 167.52 Getting scarier!
Blow $ Me $ 63.37
Blow $ DH $ 66.13
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 70.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 960.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$35.96
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 361.86
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00
DH Misc $145.36

Sick Day

Owen was up all night last night and I was up with him. I didn't go to work today but instead took Owen to the doctor. I thought he must have an ear infection but it turns out that his two year old molars are coming in instead. After the doctor we went through the car wash. Robby borrowed the van last night to take to hockey and somehow got chew spit all over the outside of it. Gross! The cost of the car wash is going on his tab, which I think I'll start tracking on here so I don't forget anything. I need to stop loaning that kid money.

After the car wash we went to see my sister Larisa at work. She has worked at a Gottchalk's for the last 15 years and now they are closing it in a couple of weeks. I thought it would be fun to go see her at work one last time. We got a hot chocolate at a coffee shop and then sat and chatted in her break room. Her attitude about the closure and her lay off is really positive and good.

After the visit, Owen and I went to Safeway. We needed some more kiddie Tylenol and a few other things. Then we came home and took naps. We slept until four o'clock! I didn't feel very well when we woke up. Just kind of that yucky too-much-nap feeling. We ended up ordering pizza for dinner. Not good! Here is the break down:

Weight Watchers $ 39.95
Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 412.67
Gas $ 300.00
Entertainment $ 174.52 This is scary with reunion, etc.!
Blow $ Me $ 63.37
Blow $ DH $ 72.45
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 70.00Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 960.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$122.53 for now...have to take things back
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 361.86
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00
DH Misc $145.36

I did not stick to my awesome food budget at all! I was just too tired to think about it. It's too bad but it doesn't take much to throw all of my good intentions out of the window. That is really part of my problem. If tomorrow is more normal I'll stick to it then.

Lunch and Groceries

Today I bought myself lunch at Taco Time and then went and bought some groceries after work (mostly "diet" food). Here is where is what is left this month:

Weight Watchers $ 39.95
Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 419.02
Gas $ 300.00
Entertainment $ 201.52 This is scary with reunion, etc.!
Blow $ Me $ 63.37
Blow $ DH $ 72.45
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 85.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 960.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$122.53 for now...have to take things back
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 361.86
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00
DH Misc $145.36

I had another not-perfect day of eating today, so I decided to make an eating budget for tomorrow since I seem to do pretty well with a budget. I'm a Weight Watcher girl so everything I do is in points. I get 28 points a day and then 35 extra points per week. So here is what I'm thinking for tomorrow:

1 cup Honey Bunches of Oats 3 pts
1 cup skim milk 2 pts
1/2 cup lite grape juice 1 pt

Curves bar 1 pt

2 slices lite bread 1 pt
lunch meat 1 pt
fat free cheese 1 pt
nectarine 1 pt
pudding 1 pt

lite yogurt 1 pt

Oven barbecued chicken 6 pts
1 cup pasta-roni 6 pts
veggies 0

Skinny Cow ice cream bar 1 pt

That is a total of only 26 points, which leaves me with 2 points to play with or I could be really good and just stick with the 26. Hmmm.

Ron's Spree

My honey went on a bit of a shopping spree today. It was good to see since he doesn't do it very often and it was all budgeted for. He used part of his bonus to buy a short shifter for his Mustang. He bought two pairs of pants and exchanged another pair that ended up costing more. My son Robby is paying for one pair of the pants because he borrowed a pair from Ron, without asking, then wore them to work and completely ruined them. Ron also bought a little Cougar jacket for Owen.

I paid for gymnastics today, so here is where we stand:

Weight Watchers $ 39.95
Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 459.59
Gas $ 300.00
Entertainment $ 201.52 This is scary with reunion, etc.!
Blow $ Me $ 60.47
Blow $ DH $ 72.45
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 85.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 960.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 356.49
DD Clothing -$122.53 for now...have to take things back
DS3 Clothing $ 96.33
DH Clothing $ 361.86
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00
DH Misc $145.36

I realize that I haven't quite gotten to the "losses" part of this blog. The weight loss part that is. After a binging weekend I actually ate pretty well today. I was going for a "perfect" day but I didn't quite make it. I'll try again tomorrow.

Labor Day

So today was Labor Day. A three day weekend, but still not enough. I do not want to go to work tomorrow! I'm hoping to put in 5 hours a day for the rest of the week so that I can get my usual 20 even though I took today off.

We spent money on groceries today. $14.83 on lunch and $23.99 on dinner. I need to get a handle on groceries this month or my measly $500.00 budget isn't going to last.

Ron also went to Home Depot today. He ordered the window for our bedroom and the window for our bathroom. Woot! He got a bonus a little while back of about $1,100 so we are going to use that for doing the windows. I'm going to do a running total of the bonus money on the side. He also bought herbicide and insecticide. That will come out of the house fund. So here we are:

Gymnastics $ 30.00
Weight Watchers $ 39.95
Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 461.18
Gas $ 300.00
Entertainment $ 201.52 This is scary with reunion, etc.!
Blow $ Me $ 60.47
Blow $ DH $ 73.44
House $ 37.04
Co-Pays $ 85.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 960.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 400.00
DD Clothing -$122.53 for now...have to take things back
DS3 Clothing $ 129.00
DH Clothing $ 400.00
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00
DH Misc $161.68

I've also added an item to this list. The last one called DH Misc. Last month, we budgeted $400.00 for Ron to do some things he needed to do. He didn't use $161.68 so I've carried it over.

Samantha Shopping

Yesterday after the Cougar game, we went over to Ron's grandfather's house. Ron's Grandpa has moved into a retirement home and Ron's sister, Sheri, has moved into his house and has been organizing everything for a garage sale this weekend. When we left we ended up taking our neice, Alaina with us. She and Samantha are great buddies and so we decided she should come over and spend the night.

We picked up Cody and his friend Jessie from our house and went to El Toro for dinner. We put quite a dent in the entertainment budget with that one.

So today Samantha and I went shopping for her fall clothes. We brought Alaina with us. Here is the damage:

Nordstom
Shoes $45.95
Socks $3.50
Tax 4.35
Lunch $21.00
Smocked babydoll shirt $20.00
Stretch pants $22.00
Dress $34.00
2 tops @ $22.50 ea
Cord skirt $32.50
Skirt $28.50
Top $17.50
Jeans $34.50
Tax $20.59
Snack $15.07
Tips $8.00

The Children's Place
Rhinestone Tee $7.13
Jeans $22.12
2 pairs of tights $2.50 ea
2 pairs of socks $1.50 ea
Tax $3.28

Pumpkin Patch
5 pk panties $17.50
Skinny rib top $9.75
Coat $42.50
Pleated skirt $25.50
Tights $9.50
Tax $113.97

Gumballs $.50

Grand Total = $522.53 EEK!

So I blew the budget on this and I'm going to have to take stuff back. The trip to Pumpkin Patch was a total spur of the moment binge. If I take those things back that takes me down to $408.56. If I take the stuff back to Children's Place then I'm down to $368.03. That gets me under budget but she'll still need panties, tights, socks and a coat. Hmmm. I'm going to have to ponder this. Maybe one of the skirt outfits can go back to Nordie's.

The only other thing we spend money on today was ice cream. So here's where we are at:

Gymnastics $ 30.00
Weight Watchers $ 39.95
Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 500.00
Gas $ 300.00
Entertainment $ 201.52 This is scary with reunion, etc.!
Blow $ Me $ 60.47
Blow $ DH $ 73.44
House $ 50.00
Co-Pays $ 85.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 960.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 400.00
DD Clothing -$122.53 for now...have to take things back
DS3 Clothing $ 129.00
DH Clothing $ 400.00
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00

It's a three day weekend, thank goodness! Tomorrow I hope to get things done that I would normally do on Sundays.

Paying Bills and Owen Shopping

So I didn't finish my entry last night because my friend Camille called from Wenatchee. She and I were friends in high school and our reunion is in two short weeks (Eek!) so she was calling to make sure I was going and to see what I was wearing, etc. I'm hoping she and me and our friend Barb (the band girls!) can get together for dinner or something while they are in town. Barb lives in Georgia but last I heard, she was coming for the reunion with her boyfriend. I need to call and coordinate with her as well. It's on my list for this weekend.

I took Owen shopping for fall clothes today. He was a good boy and it went pretty smoothly. Here is what we got:

Nordstom
Shoes $47.95
Tax $ 4.22

The Children's Place
2 pairs of jeans $10.88 ea
2 pairs of fleece pants $9.37 ea
2 pairs of cargo pants $9.38 ea
1 pair of cords $10.87
2 thermal shirts $7.88 ea
1 striped long-sleeved polo $9.37
1 striped long-sleeved polo $5.99
3 rugby shirts $10.87 ea
1 layered tee $7.49
9 pairs of socks $1.50 ea
Tax $13.63

Gap Kids
2 pairs of pajamas 19.99 ea
Tax $3.34

McDonald's
Lunch $9.01

For a grand total of: $271.00. So since our budget was $400.00 that means we have $129.00 left over. Woot!

I have decided to switch $45.46 from groceries to entertainment. I think I can do $500.00 for groceries this month since I have so much stockpiled. We could use the money in entertainment with the reunion and people coming into town for it.

I paid bills today, one of my Hot Off the Press payments went through and Ron went and bought some candy (I got Reese's. Yum!) for us to have during the second half of the Cougar game. So after all of that, here is what is left of the budget:

Gymnastics $ 30.00
Weight Watchers $ 39.95
Hot Off the Press $ 35.74
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Groceries $ 500.00
Gas $ 300.00
Entertainment $ 286.11
Blow $ Me $ 60.47
Blow $ DH $ 73.44
House $ 50.00
Co-Pays $ 85.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 120.00
DH Haircut $ 36.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
DS1 Tuition $ 960.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 400.00
DD Clothing $ 400.00
DS3 Clothing $ 129.00
DH Clothing $ 400.00
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00

September Budget

So here is the final on the September Budget:

House Payment $1,933.23
Daycare $1,060.00
HELoC $ 534.87
Rainier Pacific Visa $ 178.00
Cable $ 69.08
Internet $ 56.21
Phone $ 45.99
Garbage $ 74.04
Gymnastics $ 30.00
Sewer $ 53.90
American Express $ 980.68
Weight Watchers $ 39.95
Hot Off the Press $ 71.48
Grocery Game $ 10.00
Multicare $ 35.00
Groceries $ 545.46
Gas $ 300.00
Entertainment $ 246.04
Blow $ Me $ 60.47
Blow $ DH $ 73.44
House $ 50.00
Co-Pays $ 85.00
Postage $ 12.00
Dog Grooming $ 60.00
DH Haircut $ 19.00
DS3 Haircut $ 14.00
Dog Grooming $ 60.00
Prelude tabs $ 48.75
DS1 Tuition $ 960.00
Me Birthday $ 300.00
SMIL Birthday $ 50.00
DS1 Books $ 500.00
DS1 Clothing $ 400.00
DD Clothing $ 400.00
DS3 Clothing $ 400.00
DH Clothing $ 400.00
Me Clothing $ 400.00
DH Haircut $ 19.00
DS1 Haircut $ 19.00
DS2 Pictures $ 50.00
DS3 pictures $ 125.00
DD pictures $ 125.00
Fair $ 100.00

This is a pricey month with college tuition and books for my oldest and clothing for everyone.

First Entry

So this feels weird, I must admit. I may be too old for this. I don't think I'm a member of the blogging generation. Still, I've been reading a blog and it has inspired me. I feel like blogging will help me keep closer tabs on my own life. It's so easy to let it go by and not enjoy it and not really be present for it. I've learned that much.

I'm also hoping that this blog will also help me achieve my goals which are:

• No debt
• Big savings
  
• Living within my means
  
• Healthy weight
• Time for myself

There will be more on all of these to come.