The other day, DH's plant manager asked to meet with him. He told my DH he is interested in making him a supervisor in the 'near' future. How near, I'm not sure. But DH has been hoping and working towards this for a while now. If DH gets promoted to a supervisor, his pay will increase by anywhere from twenty to twenty five thousand a year. This would be HUGE for us. I don't want to get my hopes up before we know for sure, but I am keeping my fingers crossed!
I've worked on a little Christmas shopping this past week. One of our nieces is now completely done, and I got a few things for DH. DH will have his bonus on the next check, then we can really put the pedal to the medal and get this Christmas shopping done! I even did a little bit of gift wrapping the other day, since I felt in a *Christmasy* mood (not sure why, since Halloween was a few days away, but hey, I figured I better capitalize on it!).
Next week is going to bring some LONG hours on one of my contracting jobs, but the payment will be worth it (LOL, or that's what I tell myself). I am feeling pretty good for being almost 31 weeks pregnant, so I guess I should take advantage of that and work on a few more projects.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
To Do List Before Baby
1. Vacuum and steam clean living room couches and game room couches
2. Clean out/organize game room
3. Install car seat and have it checked for proper installation-by Dec.13th, just in case baby decides to come early
4. Meet with pediatrician
5. Go on hospital tour-11/16
6. Get maternity pictures taken-11/6
7. Repair/paint bathroom ceiling
8. Clean all blinds in house
9. Clean baseboards
10. Organize coat closet
11. Stock up on frozen/easy to prepare meals and such
2. Clean out/organize game room
3. Install car seat and have it checked for proper installation-by Dec.13th, just in case baby decides to come early
4. Meet with pediatrician
5. Go on hospital tour-11/16
6. Get maternity pictures taken-11/6
7. Repair/paint bathroom ceiling
8. Clean all blinds in house
9. Clean baseboards
10. Organize coat closet
11. Stock up on frozen/easy to prepare meals and such
Good News!
DH got word today that he will be getting the $1000 bonus. Yay! Now comes the fun part of trying to time when to change his deductions so he doesn't lose 50% to taxes. I know it has to be paid within 30 days, so we should either get it Nov.5th or Nov.19th. I was going to put it all in our EF, but DH said we should use it for Christmas shopping (we were going to use his extra paycheck in Dec. for Christmas, so we would now use that for the EF funding). He thinks we should get our Christmas shopping done early this year, mainly because I am getting kind of huge. I guess you are supposed to be kind of huge at 29 weeks pregnant, but it sure does make outings complicated. If I do a lot of walking (like a few hours, kind of like you would do with a bunch of shopping), I get the worst ache in my lower stomach and upper legs. It's only walking that does it though. I can still do my prenatal dance DVD pain free. Wow, I have kind of gone onto a tangent here. Back on topic.....
The plan will be to
-leave the bonus in checking so we can use it for Christmas shopping.
-DH should be getting some back pay as well, which we will put towards the Bank of America card.
-Use extra paycheck in December to bump the EF up to $1500 (it's only at $150 right now).
Baby boy is supposed to arrive in early to mid January. He is paid for in full, for now :p DH will be taking off a week, which he can do unpaid or paid. I would love to have him take it unpaid if we can swing it, so he can save his vacation pay and days. I think we can swing it, but I'll review that once we get closer to it.
I'll need to review our withholding with baby boy as our dependent and adjust that accordingly. I also want to bump up DH's 401 K contributions to 12 percent from 10 percent as soon as we get our withholding adjusted. This will get us contributing 12 percent of our total household income, which is only 3 percent away from our ultimate goal of 15 percent.
The plan will be to
-leave the bonus in checking so we can use it for Christmas shopping.
-DH should be getting some back pay as well, which we will put towards the Bank of America card.
-Use extra paycheck in December to bump the EF up to $1500 (it's only at $150 right now).
Baby boy is supposed to arrive in early to mid January. He is paid for in full, for now :p DH will be taking off a week, which he can do unpaid or paid. I would love to have him take it unpaid if we can swing it, so he can save his vacation pay and days. I think we can swing it, but I'll review that once we get closer to it.
I'll need to review our withholding with baby boy as our dependent and adjust that accordingly. I also want to bump up DH's 401 K contributions to 12 percent from 10 percent as soon as we get our withholding adjusted. This will get us contributing 12 percent of our total household income, which is only 3 percent away from our ultimate goal of 15 percent.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Blah, Blah, Blah
Well, I have not done a good job tracking our spending this month. I got to October 10th on my little spreadsheet and just kind of quit. I just entered in everything, and WOAH. This month has been bad, spending wise. I forgot to account for the fair being this month, my mom's birthday, and the extra Halloween spending we do for candy, decorations, and party stuff. We are currently $40 over our budget for the month, and we still have 13 days to go. We are doing good in the gas category, okay in the entertainment category, and okay in the grocery category. We still have room to spare in all these categories, and I think we will stay within budget for all of these this month.
We are doing terrible in the eating out category. We have spent $150, which is $40 over the budget I had set for this month. The misc. category (includes gifts, grooming, car maintenance, etc). is over budget by $173! Why is that? Let's see, I totally forgot that my mom and brother have birthdays coming up! Also, DH surprised me with a video game the SAME day I surprised him with one. I swear, we didn't plan it that way!
Realistically, I think we can end the month about $350 over budget. While not ideal, it's better than throwing the baby out with the bathwater. There's always next month!
We are doing terrible in the eating out category. We have spent $150, which is $40 over the budget I had set for this month. The misc. category (includes gifts, grooming, car maintenance, etc). is over budget by $173! Why is that? Let's see, I totally forgot that my mom and brother have birthdays coming up! Also, DH surprised me with a video game the SAME day I surprised him with one. I swear, we didn't plan it that way!
Realistically, I think we can end the month about $350 over budget. While not ideal, it's better than throwing the baby out with the bathwater. There's always next month!
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Spending for Week 1 of Month
I am jumping the gun a little bit since tomorrow is technically the 7th, but I need to track my spending better and putting it on the blog helps keep me accountable. Therefore, I have estimated what I will spend tomorrow, and I will stick to it!
My totals are:
Groceries/personal stuff is a bit high, but I know that's because we had to spend extra getting DH some cold/flu medicine, we bought some Halloween candy (we try to get 1-2 bags a week so we don't have to spend $40 on candy in one week for all the trick or treaters), and I bought some new makeup for the fall. Eating out is decent. It could definitely be lower, but I know from past experience it could be much worse. Entertainment and gas are both great. Misc. is high because of the bras, but I needed them since my other ones were getting tight. However, I might take one back. It just doesn't have the fit that I like, and no one likes an ill fitting bra. This weekend will be high entertainment wise because we are going to the fair, which costs $20 just for tickets to get in and for parking! We always have a blast though, and it only comes once a year. I can't wait to scarf down some of that yummy food!
| 1-Oct | McDonalds | 2.67 | |
| 2-Oct | Lunch at Steak n Shake | 12 | |
| 2-Oct | Movie Tickets | 13 | |
| 2-Oct | Walmart-Groceries | 110 | |
| 2-Oct | Walmart-Makeup | 15 | |
| 3-Oct | 6 GumDrop Pacifiers | 10.19 | |
| 3-Oct | Bras | 30 | |
| 3-Oct | Groceries | 11.12 | |
| 4-Oct | cough syrup | 5 | |
| 5-Oct | East Coast Wings | 17 | |
| 6-Oct | Gas | 27.45 | |
| 7-Oct | Subway | 6 | |
My totals are:
| Eating out | 37.67 | ||
| Groceries/Personal Stuff | 141 | ||
| Entertainment | 13 | ||
| Gas | 27.45 | ||
| Misc. | 40 | ||
| 259.12 | |||
Groceries/personal stuff is a bit high, but I know that's because we had to spend extra getting DH some cold/flu medicine, we bought some Halloween candy (we try to get 1-2 bags a week so we don't have to spend $40 on candy in one week for all the trick or treaters), and I bought some new makeup for the fall. Eating out is decent. It could definitely be lower, but I know from past experience it could be much worse. Entertainment and gas are both great. Misc. is high because of the bras, but I needed them since my other ones were getting tight. However, I might take one back. It just doesn't have the fit that I like, and no one likes an ill fitting bra. This weekend will be high entertainment wise because we are going to the fair, which costs $20 just for tickets to get in and for parking! We always have a blast though, and it only comes once a year. I can't wait to scarf down some of that yummy food!
Friday, October 1, 2010
Fall is Here!
Finally, the 90 degree days are gone in my state! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE summer, but this summer extremely hot, and I have been ready for some cooler weather. Normally, it starts cooling down the beginning of September, but it took until the end this year. Next week, some of the lows are going to be in the 40's. Brrrr!
That reminds me, we need to get the propane tank for our fireplace filled. During the winter, we save so much on our heating bill by using the fireplace instead of the electric heat. Our living room has high, cathedral ceilings, and heating them with the heat pump is a losing battle. The fireplace gets the whole house warm and cozy in no time. Filling the tank will probably cost close to $300; I think it is pretty much completely empty.
DH said he should find out next week whether or not he will get his bonus, and if so, how much exactly it will be. If he does get it, I think we will put the majority in savings, using some to help cover the cost of getting the propane tank filled. I am always torn between sending money to savings or towards our debt. I know DH and I need more in savings, but it's just so much more satisfying to see the debt go down. If we are going to end the year with $1500 in savings, I definitely will need to send a good chunk to savings. I'm getting a little ahead of myself though, since we don't even know if he'll get it or not.
That reminds me, we need to get the propane tank for our fireplace filled. During the winter, we save so much on our heating bill by using the fireplace instead of the electric heat. Our living room has high, cathedral ceilings, and heating them with the heat pump is a losing battle. The fireplace gets the whole house warm and cozy in no time. Filling the tank will probably cost close to $300; I think it is pretty much completely empty.
DH said he should find out next week whether or not he will get his bonus, and if so, how much exactly it will be. If he does get it, I think we will put the majority in savings, using some to help cover the cost of getting the propane tank filled. I am always torn between sending money to savings or towards our debt. I know DH and I need more in savings, but it's just so much more satisfying to see the debt go down. If we are going to end the year with $1500 in savings, I definitely will need to send a good chunk to savings. I'm getting a little ahead of myself though, since we don't even know if he'll get it or not.
Balance Tranfers are Done!
All of the balance transfers are completed, thankfully! I just totaled up the numbers, and we are about the same debt wise as our last update, due to the balance transfer fees. Thankfully, we will recoup these fees in two months, which is much quicker than I had anticipated.
BOA actually lowered our interest rate, so I sent the money that would have went there to my car, since it had a much higher interest rate. Aside from the student loans, we have the car loan, DH's BOA credit card, and the new Citi card. My car will definitely be paid off this month, which just leaves the two credit cards. It will be nice only having to make the two credit card payments a month as opposed to the six we were making.
I get paid this week, but this will all be going to groceries, gas, dates, etc. However, DH will be getting paid next week, and we should have a decent debt pay down from it. My goal is to make $2300 in debt payments for the month of October.
I did a little Christmas/birthday shopping for DH. His birthday is four days after Christmas, so I have to plan accordingly. I was able to get him 2 pairs of jeans, 2 pairs of khakis, and 2 hoodies for $140, which is awesome. I love Kohls and their coupon codes. My plan is to have all my shopping for him done by the end of November for both his birthday and Christmas.
BOA actually lowered our interest rate, so I sent the money that would have went there to my car, since it had a much higher interest rate. Aside from the student loans, we have the car loan, DH's BOA credit card, and the new Citi card. My car will definitely be paid off this month, which just leaves the two credit cards. It will be nice only having to make the two credit card payments a month as opposed to the six we were making.
I get paid this week, but this will all be going to groceries, gas, dates, etc. However, DH will be getting paid next week, and we should have a decent debt pay down from it. My goal is to make $2300 in debt payments for the month of October.
I did a little Christmas/birthday shopping for DH. His birthday is four days after Christmas, so I have to plan accordingly. I was able to get him 2 pairs of jeans, 2 pairs of khakis, and 2 hoodies for $140, which is awesome. I love Kohls and their coupon codes. My plan is to have all my shopping for him done by the end of November for both his birthday and Christmas.
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