Tammy's Journal

Oh my! Has it really been that long since my last blog post here on saving advice? Since June 2005!
Lots have happened since then. I did end up with the computer job and worked with them for over 3 1/2 years. I left there last November and have been a stay at home mom again. Even though I was working from home - I worked alot and missed lots of family time.

We became debtfree (except for the house) In Feb 2007. That was a HUGE relief. Unfurtunately, the next step for us was a fully funded emergency fund and that just didn't happen. So I am more committed than ever to make that happen now. (That's why I am back here - so I can keep motivated!)

I have started tracking August 1 to see where all the money goes. This will give me a way to see what needs to be cut and ways we can save.

It's great to back here!

It's been really warm here already. A/c is still set at 79 though - good sign! The kids are really enjoying the pool. Had to use the dryer a little today to get all the laundry finished.

Tomorrow we are going to the zoo. We have a pass - so it will only cost lunch and gas down there. I am going to pick up a few things to pack for lunch tomorrow - to keep it frugal.

Gonna get the family to help pitch in a do a *major* cleaning tonight before we settle down for TV. They don't know yet, but I am sure if they really want to go tomorrow - they will help me!

I will be interviewing with a company to do work on my computer online sometime this week. Once I finish the training I start getting paid - the training is just reading and testing our knowledge. I am confident that I will be working at this company by the 15th of june.

Went to get my dd tonight from a friends house and found 3 coushins that go on a swing that we have. Our's are ripping - the ones being thrown out were just dirty. So we grabbed them and will clean them up tonight! WOOHOO!! I thought about recovering ours - which would of cost me between $30 and $40 so this was great!

Will be putting an ad in the free paper for our 10cubic freezer - it's too big for us - even with our bigger family. Plus it sucks up more electricity than we are willing to pay for. Thinking I could probably get $75 to $100 for it. Will add it to our EF. I set a goal to get $1000 in there by Sept 1. It will really be a challenge right now with school coming up and all the needs that go along with that.

Decided to start sewing up baby cloth diapers again - I will list some on ebay in the next week or so, hopefully. I decided I would even take orders for them which I did a few years ago and actually stopped doing them because I had too many orders I couldn't keep up with. I am really hoping to teach my dd how to do some of this - and pay her also.

Looking for lots of ways to save cash or make it. So far with the budget I am right now on target - haven't spent anything yet that I hadn't budgeted for. I don't want to have to redo it so I am making do with what it says.

We recently bought a new car - and have a payment for it. Well the payment date isn't really good - they offered to change it for $25 if we'd like - still debating on that. It may save me $$ later on though. First of the month is hard on having all the bills come out of it. But DON'T want to pay the fee either.

Today it's already rainy - 70% chance all day.
Have one load of laundry in the wash - will hang on the racks when it's done.
Will have at least 1 more - may have to put that in the dryer.
A/c is set at 79 degrees and so far no one has complained!

Need to clean the pool out if it stops raining and run the filter.
Need a couple items from the store - normally I would just run to walmart - but some of the items can be gotten at the $ store which is near walmart for only $1. So I will go there first and whatever isn't on my list - probably just dog food - then I will hit walmart.

Making baked ziti for dinner tonight, maybe some homemade bread also.

Got an email for a work at home job this morning - should have an interview next week. YEAH!! Found out last night my job and others at the company I work for may be given to new employees when the new owner takes over. Not sure it will actually happen, but want to be prepared. I am excited about the wah job as I know someone in real life that works for this company and really get's paid - you just never know with online stuff. KWIM? This would work so much better for our family anyways than me going full time somewhere.

Well lots of cleaning to do today, since I have been so busy all week. Have a great weekend!!

Got the zero based budget for june done. WOOHOO!!! I am so glad as it was starting to get on my nerves! LOL
Will pay the car payment and lights today or tomorrow online.

I spent 209.43 for groceries for the first 2 weeks of june. I made a grocery list and went through the pantry/freezer and that's all I needed to get.

Need to get the cars registered next week sometime to a tune of 118.30

Also will be taking a vacation - just overnight for dh and I. I am budgeting $150 for the motel room and eating out next weekend. We will be going to a baseball game also - already bought and paid for the tickets for that. The motel I got offline for $55 which is great for the area we are going to. I don't think we will need $95 for food - so the rest will go into savings as soon as we get back.

Opened an ing account. That will start our big EF. Anyone wanting a referral just email me at tammysemail@tampabay.rr.com You will get $25 for opening the account. Just put ing referral in the subject line.

Other than that, nothing much new. Have a great day!

It's been a busy couple of days here- Lots of money being spent here the last couple of days.
$116 at the grocery store on Thursday
Pizza on friday $26
Then today spent $63 at walmart for pool supplies and a few other things........


Been running the a/c and the dryer so much lately. UGH!!! REALLY need to get back with the program and soon. I also need to get June's budget started - as I haven't yet.

What a gorgous day out so far - of course it's gonna be a hot one. Today is Kindegarten graduation - I will work for a few hours tonight and get off about 45 minutes before it - so I can go.

This morning I need to go and get M some pants - he's outgrown all of his and a tie (he wants to really dress up LOL) also need to get a battery for the cameracorder. Pick up some cheese for dinner. Shouldn't be a huge spending day. Yeah!

The house is still clean, only one load of laundry to do today - it's in the wash now. Dson's uniform was in there or I wouldn't of even washed today.

Started working on the budget last night - will continue on with that today.
Also want to freshen up my resume some - and get it faxed to a few places.

Have a great day!

Got lots accomplished today!! All the laundry is done - last load in the dryer - will have to fold tomorrow morning.
Worked from 3 to 8 pm tonight - so made some $$ there.
Got a check for $32.xx for a medical bill we already made payment to - this was the insurance share.
Disputed a few more things on my credit report - want to make it nice and clean.
House is cleaned.

Need to work on grocery list - but I have no idea what I did with the grocery ad today. Also will need to rid the frig of leftovers tomorrow.
Need to work on the budget - got paid today and need to spend some $$ tomorrow but don't want to overspend. KWIM? Will be tracking all spending *very* carefully in June - I have kinda slacked off on that.

Still looking for a full time job - I like my job - just need more hours and can't get them there. Actually the place I work for is for sale so it's also very stressful right now!

Good Morning!
Today's been pretty good so far - I disputed some things on my credit report and they are now gone! Yeah!

Need to start working on a grocery list for the next 2 weeks. Seeing what I can use from the freezer/pantry to stretch the bill.

Went on a weekend trip that normally would of cost us $50 to $60 JUST in gas - only cost $20 in 2 small cars versus the suburban - Defiitely the right choice for our family.

Need to work on the budget for the next 2 weeks. With a car payment now, I am really trying to figure out how to pay it off sooner. Haven't even made the first payment and I am already seeing how it can be paid off in 2 years versus 4. We are gonna *try* and pay it off in 1 year! Let's see what happens.

Need to clip a ton of coupons - I have the past 2 sunday's to clip out.

Washing all laundry in cold water - using the dryer some today as I have to work.

Gotta scoot and take the kids to school.

Yeah! I have so much to do and I have the next three days to get it done. We are down to 8 days of school also - so that will help with the craziness right now.

Need to clean the house, do some laundry and grocery shop. Also need to clean the pool and make a couple phone calls. Hoping to get as much of this done as possible TODAY - so my whole weekend isn't taken up with this stuff.

I got a new to me car!!! YEAH!!!!!!!!! I love it! I don't like the fact that we had to go into debt, BUT I love the car. LOL Seriously the last 2 cars we have been able to pay cash for (they were used - one at 3400 and the other at 2900 ).

Still working and loving it. Continuing to look for full time though. BUT even if I quit tomorrow - we can still afford the car payment.

Living below your means is GREAT!!

I got all 4 loads hung on the line today! YEAH!! I haven't done that since I started working in March! But it will save about 70 cents a load or 2.80 today!!

Went to the grocery store and only spent 5.12!!

I will start saving more money again!!

This morning I will take the kids to school, run by the grocery store for some cheese and then back home.

Hanging 2 loads of laundry out today - hopefully they will be dry before I go to work.
Clean the pool
keeping a/c up higher
went to the health insurance website and found out our share for 2 bills - not as much as I thought!! WOOHOO!!
clip and file some coupons

Empty my purse of change into change container.
Work from 3 to 8 tonight, praying I hear from the other job today!

Have a great day!

Happy Mother's day!

Getting organized here today for the week. Only 2 weeks left of school. WOW did that go by quick! Then maybe I won't have to be quite sooooo organized! ROFL yeah right!!

Applied for a different full time job yesterday - really hope I get it!! I work p/t nights right now - but would prefer to work f/t during the day. I hope to hear something soon!

Will clip coupons today. Finish laundry. Checked online banking and kwh already. Dinner is in the crockpot!

Dh and kids are setting up the above ground pool today. SUCH a BEAUTIFUL DAY!!!!!!
The house is opened all up, a/c is off! It's supposed to get really warm again next week, but every little kwh I save is more $$ in our pocket.

Spending $3.00 today for mayo and eggs - needed for potato salad with dinner tonight. Other than that no $$ being spent. Have a great day!

I started working to help pay off the debts in March - well I have figured out that we are just spending that $$ on wants mostly - yes some bills have been paid for. Other's have been added. I am having a hard time keeping everything afloat as I am working nights. I really need to go hard core frugal for awhile. I will be tracking all spending, staying out of the stores, tracking kwh again - I have slacked alot in those areas!!
We have gotten a new above the ground pool for the backyard, gutters for the back of the house (dh will put those up) and will be getting the roof cleaned on the 20th of this month. (the roof is really a need as the roof is black and the shingles are light gray. )
So I will start all over tomorrow morning - taking one day at a time!! NO spending tomorrow!! I will hang out some laundry on the line or put some on the racks to cut back the kwh. Keep the a/c set at 78 degrees. Also need to decide if I can really afford or want to afford the freezer that is plugged in - in the garage. There is very little in it, and yes I could get it filled one of these days - but it will cost about $25 a month to run - don't know that I can save that much by stocking up.
Need to go through the kids' clothes tomorrow - they have wayyyyy too many!! Gonna cut them down some.
Since tomorrow is my only day off until next friday - I need to get as much done as possible tomorrow!

Reworking our budget a little. Things stay pretty close to the same, but gas groceries and electric bills will be a little higher.

Want to pay down the debt as soon as possible. Looking which debts can be killed off next? LOL Well off to finish it........

NO $$ spent today!! WOOHOO!!!!!!!

In april so far I have had 9 no spend days! Love it!

I spent another $40 today at the store which brings me up to 149 so far this month. WOOHOO!!!
Working real hard on using up what we have here first this month.

I got very motivated today. All the school clothes are organized for the week. My clothes for work are ready.
I am working on dinners this week. Laundry is all caught up. Yeah me!!

I am getting the kid's school uniforms and my clothes ready for school this week.

Also want to plan dinner's for every night this week.

I am TIRED of doing laundry daily - so will try something new this week and see if that helps any...........

Will be cleaning the house and getting laundry caught up today to start the week off right.

My blood pressure is still high - so I am trying to make little changes that maybe will relax it some.

Only $1 spent today for the newspaper. WOOHOO!!!!!!

I am gonna clip coupons - and organize a few things.

Have a great day!!

So far I have only spent 109.00 for groceries in April. WOOHOO!! I won't need to get much else, maybe some milk for 2 weeks!

Coupons combined with sales ads are the way to go. Well a list also.

My goal is $400 this month. Let's see if I can do it, of course I will deplete alot of my pantry and freezer but that's ok. More money towards my savings/debt snowballs this month.

Well we have added up all our debt again - new medical bills, and dental bills - including braces - we are back up to 14900!!!! This also included the 1700 past medical bill we have been paying on.

OH well - what are we to do? I found out friday I have high blood pressure. So that will now be a monthly expense that we didn't have before.

I paid off 3 small bills friday to bring the total down some - 154.15- leaving a total of only........14745.85 UGH!!

Well it's time to buckle down again and get serious about paying this down as soon as possible. I know when I was posting here more regular I did better. I lost 2 days of work last week and ended up with an ER bill and a dr. vistit with prescription meds and more.

Blacksliding in frugality.............

I undid my hot water heater timer, and started using my freezer (huge energy hog) Just turned the a/c on for the year. UGH!!! Here we come high electric bills.

I spent more $$ on groceries than I have in a very long time for convenience items!! I have been working for a month now and it's time to get in a routine and actually start saving more $$ again.

I wouldn't of needed to plug the freezer in - if I hadn't bought a bunch of convenience items. I unplugged it this morning and got everything into the smaller above the frig freezer. I reset the hot water heater timer AGAIN!! I WILL NOT unset it!!

The a/c is on. But the temps have been hitting close to 90 already.

If I can't get this convenience spending under control - then I need to consider quitting my job. In reality I have made a little $$ but have spent more. This stinks - good intentions, BUT.............

Wish me luck - going into guerilla frugal mode for one month!! Wonder how much we can save? We also need a couple items - a new shed (tornado came through and tore it all apart) and gutters on the back. (dh is getting the extra pay from work for the gutters)
Also have a couple of small bills that need to be paid that weren't - thanks to the deductible not being met this year for medical and dental.

Wish me luck!!

~Add some more $$ to the EF
~I started the freedom account - just never added anything to it - need to add a few $$ to each subaccount
~keep kwh at 60
~getting in guerilla mode for frugality, to save as many $$ as possible

March's goals:

~add at least $200 more to the EF - it's at 1000 right now. - UGH!!! Had some emergency dental work and a few household replacements we needed. The balance is at 93.00 right now. OHHHH how I hate that!!!

~Start a freedom account and get it going and start funding it - didn't get done!

~No A/C this month didn't run a/c until the 30th!! SO that is a major improvement over last year!

~continue to keep kwh under 50 a day. - did this!!

I set a goal with the last electric bill that I wanted to use no more than 50 kwh this time. I am at 49.38 Ok so I am coming in close. But I have met the goal!! There are 2 days left in the billing cycle and I will be at 1500 or a little under!

This *could* of been lower, but because of rain I had to run the dryer more than I planned. Now that I started working I figure it is costing me about $25 to dry clothes for the month - I will be making a little over $800 so I have decided to continue to use the dryer. This way I can make sure the laundry get's finished daily and it's done and put away in a couple hours.

I will continue to watch all the other ways to save kwh. We still have not turned the a/c on yet this year!! WOOHOO!! Even though last night I wanted to! It's was 80 in here when I got home from work. But I opened the windows and had the ceiling fans going. Cooled down pretty quick actually. I *know* once we start using the a/c I am looking at adding another 25 to 30 kwh- or close to $60!!!

Today will be thrifty as I won't be spending any money!
I am doing good on my no spend day's for March.

My new part time is going good - a little different than I thought at first, but it's still good. I will be working 20 hours a week until April then 24 hours a week. So that will be an extra $800 a month!! WOOHOO!! Now to redirect it *before* it actually get's here. Medical bill and savings first! Then maybe a little fun towards summer. Also want to fully fund our freedom accounts.

I start my new p/t job today!! I am soooo excited! I need to get the house straightened up, run by the grocery store and laundry before I go to work tonight. Also need to get beef stew in the crockpot for dh to serve for dinner.



Have a great day!

WOOHOO!!! It's a great feeling. DD and I left at 8:30 this morning - took younger boys to school and then went to have her pics taken. We didn't clean up at all - left it just as it was.
We came back at noon and within 20 minutes - the place looked fine. It only took that long because I didn't make my bed this morning and I cut her bangs and left the hair on the floor - we were in a hurry. Also folded a load of laundry in that time. It's a great feeling knowing the house is clean and it didn't take a couple of hours. By having less stuff - it's less to clean! Easier to dust because knick knacks are almost gone. New rule - no toys anywhere except in their bedrooms.

Well another load of laundry is done. Gotta fold it. (wished I could use the clothesline but it's raining)

Well I spent $28.00 on pictures this morning - gosh I wanted to buy them all!! The pictures were of our youngest dd - she looks like a little angel in them. It's been a long time since I had her pictures taken and all the kids have school pictures on the wall kwim? But I honestly could of gotten all the pics for 185!!! I don't think so - yes they were cute but honestly I don't have that many people to give pics to. I figured if I was gonna have that kind of $$ sitting in the drawers it would be green!

Other than that no money spent.

I start work tomorrow night - working 3 to 8 pm. My mil just volunteered to keep youngest dd during the day if I got a chance to work days - She has NEVER watched our children!! So it was a shock! Anyways I thanked her and told her nights would work out good for us right now.