Monday, October 27, 2008
C'mon - Win This!
I am doing another pendant give away! And I would LOVE to give it to one of my blogger friends! Won't you guys leave a comment on this post for a chance to win? It would make a cute holiday gift for someone on your list. C'mon! :)
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
After Holiday Sales - How To Make Them Work
This post was featured in the Festival of Frugality #149 as an Editor's Pick this week!
I am a big fan of shopping for clearance items after a holiday.
Every year I host a huge Halloween party to celebrate the birthdays of two of my daughters that have birthdays near Halloween. We do an elaborate Haunted House, so I am always on the lookout for cool new Halloween novelties. After Halloween, I can usually find a bunch for 90% off!
This is terrific. But there is another step that I seem to forget every year - and that is to check out what you bought last year before you purchase anything new this year!
This bit me twice so far this year.
First, I let my five year old get a costume that she fell in love with at CVS last week. It was on sale for 25% off, and I had $7 in extra bucks, so I went ahead and purchased the costume (for $11 before using the xtra bucks). What I had not remembered was that I had purchased her a costume (actually 2 costumes!) on clearance after Halloween last year! Of course I could return the unused costume to CVS but my daughter is already really in love with it. (She does like the other costumes, but prefers this one.) So - I'm going to let her keep it. I'm sure all of these costumes will fit her again next year (and hopefully I'll remember before purchasing another one next year!).
Second, I purchased a Halloween pinata on sale at Target and later found one that I had also purchased on clearance after Halloween last year. I returned the new pinata to Target, but lesson learned.
I hope to remember this lesson at Christmas time - and check to see what I have (probably bought on clearance last year) before purchasing anything new!
I am a big fan of shopping for clearance items after a holiday.
Every year I host a huge Halloween party to celebrate the birthdays of two of my daughters that have birthdays near Halloween. We do an elaborate Haunted House, so I am always on the lookout for cool new Halloween novelties. After Halloween, I can usually find a bunch for 90% off!
This is terrific. But there is another step that I seem to forget every year - and that is to check out what you bought last year before you purchase anything new this year!
This bit me twice so far this year.
First, I let my five year old get a costume that she fell in love with at CVS last week. It was on sale for 25% off, and I had $7 in extra bucks, so I went ahead and purchased the costume (for $11 before using the xtra bucks). What I had not remembered was that I had purchased her a costume (actually 2 costumes!) on clearance after Halloween last year! Of course I could return the unused costume to CVS but my daughter is already really in love with it. (She does like the other costumes, but prefers this one.) So - I'm going to let her keep it. I'm sure all of these costumes will fit her again next year (and hopefully I'll remember before purchasing another one next year!).
Second, I purchased a Halloween pinata on sale at Target and later found one that I had also purchased on clearance after Halloween last year. I returned the new pinata to Target, but lesson learned.
I hope to remember this lesson at Christmas time - and check to see what I have (probably bought on clearance last year) before purchasing anything new!
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Where's My Gazelle?
Not sure what I have to update really.
The Financial Peace University class has been going well. I do wish that the discussions were a bit more personal though. No one discusses their actual amount of their debts, or their budgets, envelopes, etc. I understand that not everyone wants to share this kind of "personal" information, but I think everyone would get more out of the discussions if they talked about specifics.
It has been good for me to focus on finances for a solid 2 hours every week. In the past I easily spent 2 hours a day focusing on finances, but I find that I'm doing it less so now. So the FPU class is good for that.
Since we aren't doing the Debt Snowball right now (and rather putting that money into Savings in anticipation of "storm clouds") I am finding that I don't get that same sense of satisfaction of paying large chunks towards a goal. Our savings balance goes up and down due to saving money from large commission months and using the money for low commission months - so it's not like the savings account is steadily growing. The ups and downs just aren't as gratifying, and I fear that we have not been sticking to the budget as closely as we should.
I think that maybe I should separate our savings. One account for money that goes in and out of our checking account as needed, and another that is for the more long term savings and rainy day/snowball. Most people would probably keep the in and out money right in their checking account - but I have found that that doesn't work well for us. If the money is in our checking account we tend to spend it. I find it works much better for us to only keep exactly what we will need for the month in their (zero based budget).
The benefit of having another savings account that would just continue to grow would be that we would get a much better sense of accomplishment I think, by seeing a balance go up and up (in the same way that it was so gratifying to see our debt balance go down and down).
I don't know. I just know that I'd like to get some of that gazelle intensity back.
The Financial Peace University class has been going well. I do wish that the discussions were a bit more personal though. No one discusses their actual amount of their debts, or their budgets, envelopes, etc. I understand that not everyone wants to share this kind of "personal" information, but I think everyone would get more out of the discussions if they talked about specifics.
It has been good for me to focus on finances for a solid 2 hours every week. In the past I easily spent 2 hours a day focusing on finances, but I find that I'm doing it less so now. So the FPU class is good for that.
Since we aren't doing the Debt Snowball right now (and rather putting that money into Savings in anticipation of "storm clouds") I am finding that I don't get that same sense of satisfaction of paying large chunks towards a goal. Our savings balance goes up and down due to saving money from large commission months and using the money for low commission months - so it's not like the savings account is steadily growing. The ups and downs just aren't as gratifying, and I fear that we have not been sticking to the budget as closely as we should.
I think that maybe I should separate our savings. One account for money that goes in and out of our checking account as needed, and another that is for the more long term savings and rainy day/snowball. Most people would probably keep the in and out money right in their checking account - but I have found that that doesn't work well for us. If the money is in our checking account we tend to spend it. I find it works much better for us to only keep exactly what we will need for the month in their (zero based budget).
The benefit of having another savings account that would just continue to grow would be that we would get a much better sense of accomplishment I think, by seeing a balance go up and up (in the same way that it was so gratifying to see our debt balance go down and down).
I don't know. I just know that I'd like to get some of that gazelle intensity back.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Bare Necessity Expenses
I decided that I should figure out what our actual "bare necessity expenses" are for one month. These are the expenses we couldn't get rid of, even with a job loss, or something like that.
The total of our necessary monthly expenses comes to $3,965.
It is somewhat interesting to me because my husband's salary (without commission) is $4,400. I actually had thought that his base salary would NOT cover our basic expenses, but I guess it does. Well, pretty close anyway. In this list I have lowered our auto gas figure considerably if my husband wasn't commuting to work.
So, if my husband lost his job, we would need to come up with $4,000 a month to survive (at least in our current house). For one person working 40 hours a week, that would mean an hourly wage better than $25 an hour. That might be hard to come by in a bad economy.
Right now we have $8,000 in our savings account. That would get us through 2 months. By the end of the year we will have $20,000 in our account. That would get us through 5 months.
I'm not sure if I feel better or worse, but I think it is good information to know.
Do you know what your "Bare Necessity Expenses" are?
The total of our necessary monthly expenses comes to $3,965.
It is somewhat interesting to me because my husband's salary (without commission) is $4,400. I actually had thought that his base salary would NOT cover our basic expenses, but I guess it does. Well, pretty close anyway. In this list I have lowered our auto gas figure considerably if my husband wasn't commuting to work.
So, if my husband lost his job, we would have to earn a minimum of $4,000 a month Expenses | |
| AUTO-Excise Tax | |
| AUTO GAS - BR | 150 |
| AUTO-Insurance | 120 |
| AUTO-Maintenance | |
| CASH-Auto Gas JR | |
| CASH-Clothing | |
| CASH-Dining Out | |
| CASH-Gifts | |
| CASH-Grocery | 200 |
| CASH-Kids Allowance | |
| CASH-Parties | |
| CASH-School Lunch | |
| CASH-Spending | |
| DEBT-Equity Loan | 103 |
| DEBT-Visa | |
| HOME-Cable/Phone | 181 |
| HOME-Electric | 190 |
| HOME-Furnace | 0 |
| HOME-Mortgage | 2328 |
| HOME-Oil | 550 |
| HOME-Trash | 20 |
| KIDS-Bball | |
| KIDS-Misc. | |
| KIDS-Piano | |
| KIDS-Preschool | |
| MISC. | |
| MISC. | |
| PERSONAL-Cell Phone | |
| PERSONAL-Contacts | |
| PERSONAL-Life Ins. | 23 |
| PERSONAL-Newspap | |
| PERSONAL-Rx | |
| PERSONAL-Braces | 100 |
| PERSONAL-BR Sports | |
| PERSONAL-Vacation | |
| TRANSFER-To Sav 2 | |
| TOTAL | |
| 3965 |
So, if my husband lost his job, we would need to come up with $4,000 a month to survive (at least in our current house). For one person working 40 hours a week, that would mean an hourly wage better than $25 an hour. That might be hard to come by in a bad economy.
Right now we have $8,000 in our savings account. That would get us through 2 months. By the end of the year we will have $20,000 in our account. That would get us through 5 months.
I'm not sure if I feel better or worse, but I think it is good information to know.
Do you know what your "Bare Necessity Expenses" are?
Win This Breast Cancer Awareness Pendant
Hello my blog friends. Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month I wanted to give you all the chance to visit this blog post at Sarah's Surprises for a chance to win this Pink Ribbon Breast Cancer Awareness Pendant.Just leave a comment on that post. A winner will be selected on the morning of October 13th. :)
Saving On The Electric Bill
I saw an episode on Oprah this week where a woman said she lowered her electric bill from $264 a month to $60 a month. She said the main thing she did was to unplug everything when not in use because these "phantom charges" really add up.
Then I read about using most of your appliances mostly during off peak hours as there is a big price difference between peak time and off peak time. So, I looked up the prices for my electric company and here is what I found:
Peak Hours:
January 1—March 8: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
March 9—April 5: 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.*
April 6—October 25: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
October 26—November 1: 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.*
November 2—December 31: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Distribution Charge
Peak Hours
Off-Peak Hours
6.525¢/kWh
0.419¢/kWh
Transmission Charge 1.256¢/kWh
Transition Charge
Peak Hours
Off-Peak Hours
0.703¢/kWh
0.059¢/kWh
Demand Side Management Charge 0.250¢/kWh
Renewables Charge 0.050¢/kWh
So, seems like it could make a real impact if I did laundry and such either early in the morning or late at night.
Going to give it a try.
Then I read about using most of your appliances mostly during off peak hours as there is a big price difference between peak time and off peak time. So, I looked up the prices for my electric company and here is what I found:
Peak Hours:
January 1—March 8: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
March 9—April 5: 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.*
April 6—October 25: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
October 26—November 1: 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.*
November 2—December 31: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Distribution Charge
Peak Hours
Off-Peak Hours
6.525¢/kWh
0.419¢/kWh
Transmission Charge 1.256¢/kWh
Transition Charge
Peak Hours
Off-Peak Hours
0.703¢/kWh
0.059¢/kWh
Demand Side Management Charge 0.250¢/kWh
Renewables Charge 0.050¢/kWh
So, seems like it could make a real impact if I did laundry and such either early in the morning or late at night.
Going to give it a try.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Surviving An Economic Depression
Yes, I'm in a little bit of a panic.
I spent the past several hours reading about preparing for an Economic Depression. I know this may be a little premature, but let me tell you, do a google search for "preparing for economic depression" and you will get pages and pages. Many people think this is going to happen.
So, here is what I am thinking about doing to prepare:
1. Stop extra debt payments (as mentioned in my last post). Although many articles I read suggest paying off debts as quickly as possible, I am afraid of being cash strapped. (Of course, if the dollar loses all value, cash won't be worth anything anyway.)
2. Stock my pantry. When I began paying attention to my finances I started with stockpiling groceries. It is a great way to save on food and be prepared for the unexpected. As I have gotten busier I have not stockpiled as much. I plan to start now and fill my pantry with as many non perishables purchased at the lowest price possible. I am thinking: rice, flour, sugar, salt, oatmeal, pasta, tomato sauce, soap, shampoo, toilet paper, paper towels, laundry detergent.
3. Stock up on water. My husband will think I'm crazy but I'd feel better with 25 gallons of spring water in the garage. I'd also like to look into getting water purification tablets. Can't hurt.
4. Keep some cash in the house. I'm not talking about taking all my money out of the bank, but I think I would feel better if I had $1,000 to $2,000 in cash in the house.
I think those will be my first steps.
Do you think I'm crazy?
I spent the past several hours reading about preparing for an Economic Depression. I know this may be a little premature, but let me tell you, do a google search for "preparing for economic depression" and you will get pages and pages. Many people think this is going to happen.
So, here is what I am thinking about doing to prepare:
1. Stop extra debt payments (as mentioned in my last post). Although many articles I read suggest paying off debts as quickly as possible, I am afraid of being cash strapped. (Of course, if the dollar loses all value, cash won't be worth anything anyway.)
2. Stock my pantry. When I began paying attention to my finances I started with stockpiling groceries. It is a great way to save on food and be prepared for the unexpected. As I have gotten busier I have not stockpiled as much. I plan to start now and fill my pantry with as many non perishables purchased at the lowest price possible. I am thinking: rice, flour, sugar, salt, oatmeal, pasta, tomato sauce, soap, shampoo, toilet paper, paper towels, laundry detergent.
3. Stock up on water. My husband will think I'm crazy but I'd feel better with 25 gallons of spring water in the garage. I'd also like to look into getting water purification tablets. Can't hurt.
4. Keep some cash in the house. I'm not talking about taking all my money out of the bank, but I think I would feel better if I had $1,000 to $2,000 in cash in the house.
I think those will be my first steps.
Do you think I'm crazy?
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
I Am Letting My Snowball Melt
So, it's been decided. I am no longer trying to pay off my debts (well, debt - only one left). No more debt snowball.
I know. It's radical.
No - I have not given up. I just see "storm clouds" on the horizon and I want to be prepared.
With the economy the way it is (in bad shape), there is a very real chance that my husband's commission could go down - waaay down. Now, they might not - but I want to be prepared. So, to be prepared, instead of making extra payments (snowball) to our debt, I will be putting that money in our savings account. If things get bad, we will have those funds to rely on. If they don't, we can take all the money we saved up and make a big payment to our debt.
We still owe $22,000. I wish we owed nothing but it is what it is. We will eventually get to "debt free" but right now we need to be prepared for the worst.
I know. It's radical.
No - I have not given up. I just see "storm clouds" on the horizon and I want to be prepared.
With the economy the way it is (in bad shape), there is a very real chance that my husband's commission could go down - waaay down. Now, they might not - but I want to be prepared. So, to be prepared, instead of making extra payments (snowball) to our debt, I will be putting that money in our savings account. If things get bad, we will have those funds to rely on. If they don't, we can take all the money we saved up and make a big payment to our debt.
We still owe $22,000. I wish we owed nothing but it is what it is. We will eventually get to "debt free" but right now we need to be prepared for the worst.
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