January Frugalistas 2021

[Soror]

Ibotta downloaded and money coming my way. 

I didn't spend any money yesterday either. 

Working on reconciling accounts this am.

[JustEm]

3 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

What in the world is with disappearing utensils, anyway??? Maybe the utensil imps think they’re being considerate by rotating which ones they’re swiping, but I don’t like having mismatched utensils. But I have to suck it up, otherwise silverware would need to be come a budget line item. 😒

while I'd love my utensils to all match that isn't going to happen while my kids are in the house, ha.  And then likely when I have grandchildren because I hope they have the same relationship my kids have with theirs', which is very close and even before my parents lived with us they were over there at least twice a week. And at mil's once a week. 

Plus, we host ALL of my families holidays which is over 50 people in normal years so I'm not having 50 matching forks but I'm also trying to get away from plastic ware.  So, building the collection up from Goodwill it is

[JustEm]

here is a credit card rewards question for anyone who might know.  What is a good one for hotel stays?  For our Universal trip we don't need airfare coverage because we'd just a soon spend a day driving down.   So, if I can get our hotel stay covered for the whole trip that would be great.

[mommyoffive]

Just now, hjffkj said:

here is a credit card rewards question for anyone who might know.  What is a good one for hotel stays?  For our Universal trip we don't need airfare coverage because we'd just a soon spend a day driving down.   So, if I can get our hotel stay covered for the whole trip that would be great.

Really you just need to look at the area you are going and what hotels they have.  Orlando area is probably going to have every kind of hotel.  I know you have a bigger family so that sometimes limits you on the hotels you are able to stay at, unless you are ok with 2 rooms.  

You can get a NF Hilton card that will give you 80k (100K if you get a private offer, we get them every week) after you spend 1k on the card.  

I would just look into hotel cards if you want to go that direct route and look for a big bonus and not a big AF.

But even if you get a Chase card (or others) that just give you points, you can use those on hotels too. 

 

[mommyoffive]

4 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

What in the world is with disappearing utensils, anyway??? Maybe the utensil imps think they’re being considerate by rotating which ones they’re swiping, but I don’t like having mismatched utensils. But I have to suck it up, otherwise silverware would need to be come a budget line item. 😒

Ours do too.  But we have a huge set of utensils.  I have to actually store half in the basement because i switched drawers in the kitchen to a smaller one.   But back before covid and we packed meals they would bring real utensils, so I would find them everywhere.  Car, backpacks, their rooms and just wherever. 

[JustEm]

thanks @mommyoffive I haven't done the credit card churning since the last time we went to universal.  But that time we just stayed on site so I just churned cards that gave cash.  This time I want to look into other options before making a decision.

[mommyoffive]

4 hours ago, Soror said:

You're welcome!

I know they always disappear here too. 

I like AirBnBs because it is more like home with more privacy than a hotel. It is more work but when the budget is limited we got to do what we can to save money so we can stay more places.

Yep we have done that too to make our money go farther.  But I just prefer hotels, pre Covid that is.  Now I don't know if they have all the same benefits of staying at them.  They both have pros and cons. 

[mommyoffive]

Just now, hjffkj said:

thanks @mommyoffive I haven't done the credit card churning since the last time we went to universal.  But that time we just stayed on site so I just churned cards that gave cash.  This time I want to look into other options before making a decision.

There have been some huge bonuses during this pandemic.  

Here are some sites to look at 

The Points Guy – Maximize your travel.

Points with a Crew - Helping families (especially large families) travel for free / cheap using miles and points

Home | Million Mile Secrets

One Mile at a Time: Airline Travel News, Reviews and Credit Card Offers

Spend Less. Travel More. - Thrifty Traveler

Doctor Of Credit - Bank Account & Credit Card Bonuses

[mommyoffive]

From Moneysavingmom.com

Right now, Instacart is offering free delivery on your first order of $35 or more! No promo code needed.

This is a great time to try this grocery delivery service. Please note that there is also always a service fee and suggested tip when you use Instacart.

Valid for a limited time only.

[mommyoffive]

Another stimulus 

President-elect Joe Biden said Friday he is assembling a multitrillion-dollar relief package that would boost stimulus payments for Americans to $2,000, extend unemployment insurance and send billions of dollars in aid to city and state governments, moving swiftly to address the nation’s deteriorating economic condition and the rampaging pandemic.

 

Biden assembling multitrillion-dollar stimulus plan with checks, unemployment aid (msn.com)

[JustEm]

1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

Another stimulus 

President-elect Joe Biden said Friday he is assembling a multitrillion-dollar relief package that would boost stimulus payments for Americans to $2,000, extend unemployment insurance and send billions of dollars in aid to city and state governments, moving swiftly to address the nation’s deteriorating economic condition and the rampaging pandemic.

 

Biden assembling multitrillion-dollar stimulus plan with checks, unemployment aid (msn.com)

I'm not opposed to more stimulus money.  Wonder if they are intending to do $2000 for all or just adults. Because if it is for dependents too that would be a ridiculous amount of money for us

[mommyoffive]

1 hour ago, hjffkj said:

I'm not opposed to more stimulus money.  Wonder if they are intending to do $2000 for all or just adults. Because if it is for dependents too that would be a ridiculous amount of money for us

This is all I could find right now.  But I thought I read something like that yesterday.  It ends up being a lot of money if you have a lot of kids.  

 

It was just a few days ago that Senate Republicans blocked a vote for a House-passed bill (the CASH Act) that would have increased second-round stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000. The CASH Act would have also (1) bumped the extra per-child second stimulus check amount from $600 to $2,000, and (2) allowed the extra payment for any dependent, regardless of age, rather than just for children age 16 or younger.

A Third Stimulus Check? Biden Says $2,000 Checks Will "Go Out the Door" if Democrats Win in Georgia | Kiplinger

[saraha]

Woah, that would be a lot of money for us

[Carrie12345]

2 hours ago, hjffkj said:

I'm not opposed to more stimulus money.  Wonder if they are intending to do $2000 for all or just adults. Because if it is for dependents too that would be a ridiculous amount of money for us

I’m 100% for getting this $2,000 (or $1400) check to all people, but then I’m ready for “us” to work on more targeted and dependable stimulus.  The longer people who really need it get dragged along, the worse everything gets. I feel like the easiest route is the best one NOW, so people can at least have some sort of relief while further qualifications get ironed out for the future.

[JustEm]

42 minutes ago, Carrie12345 said:

I’m 100% for getting this $2,000 (or $1400) check to all people, but then I’m ready for “us” to work on more targeted and dependable stimulus.  The longer people who really need it get dragged along, the worse everything gets. I feel like the easiest route is the best one NOW, so people can at least have some sort of relief while further qualifications get ironed out for the future.

This is actually how I feel as well. It took them so long between the first two and $600 was just too small for the people in need and it would take too long to iron out the type of targeted help people need now. So, a larger check for all now and then targeted aid shortly later is the way to go

[JustEm]

Itemizing the damaged stuff from the tree falling is such a long process.  Started with the trampoline, easy enough since it was purchased off of Amazon.  Next comes a john deere power wheel. I can not for the life of me find the one we have online.  I'm giving up for the night.  I'm just thankful I don't have dh's job of listing all 20+ kung-fu weapons he had stored in there. I'm pretty sure other than the two things I listed about the only other thing damaged besides the weapons is a lawnmower.  That is still under the collapsed roof though so I can't get to it until we're ready to start tearing it down.  

Next week I need to get a contractor out here to give me a quote on rebuilding.

[mommyoffive]

1 minute ago, hjffkj said:

Itemizing the damaged stuff from the tree falling is such a long process.  Started with the trampoline, easy enough since it was purchased off of Amazon.  Next comes a john deere power wheel. I can not for the life of me find the one we have online.  I'm giving up for the night.  I'm just thankful I don't have dh's job of listing all 20+ kung-fu weapons he had stored in there. I'm pretty sure other than the two things I listed about the only other thing damaged besides the weapons is a lawnmower.  That is still under the collapsed roof though so I can't get to it until we're ready to start tearing it down.  

Next week I need to get a contractor out here to give me a quote on rebuilding.

I was just going to ask if you had heard from your insurance.   I am sorry it is a bunch of work to get this all handled. 

[JustEm]

25 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

I was just going to ask if you had heard from your insurance.   I am sorry it is a bunch of work to get this all handled. 

Our adjuster had surgery last week. With that and the holidays before he is a bit behind.  We don't need to have the damaged items to him prior to him writing a check for the shed itself. But since he's backed up we figured it'd be easier to get them all organized and have them write one check. Until we start replacing things that is. Then we submit receipts and they reimburse the rest of the replacement cost.

Next week we're hoping to get a contractor out to give us an estimate on hauling away and building new. then we'll submit that too, though we dob;t need too. But it will speed it up on his end

[prairiewindmomma]

I bought drive through icecream for the kids last night to celebrate surviving the first week of 2021, placed my amazon order as planned, and ordered groceries.

I paid all of the bills today and survived to tell the tale. Flood insurance is up 18% compared to last year, but we have no choice in the matter since we are dealing with the government to buy the policy. 

[Carrie12345]

I put $22.39 of gas into my car yesterday. This pandemic has definitely reduced my gas expenses! My last top-off was 12/28. I get bummed that I no longer get much out of my gas rewards card even though I understand that I’d have to spend more to get more, lol.

[Soror]

8 hours ago, hjffkj said:

Itemizing the damaged stuff from the tree falling is such a long process.  Started with the trampoline, easy enough since it was purchased off of Amazon.  Next comes a john deere power wheel. I can not for the life of me find the one we have online.  I'm giving up for the night.  I'm just thankful I don't have dh's job of listing all 20+ kung-fu weapons he had stored in there. I'm pretty sure other than the two things I listed about the only other thing damaged besides the weapons is a lawnmower.  That is still under the collapsed roof though so I can't get to it until we're ready to start tearing it down.  

Next week I need to get a contractor out here to give me a quote on rebuilding.

Girl, btdt, we had to itemize the whole house after the house fire. fun times!

___________________________

re: stimulus- We could always use the money (who can't?) but eventually money has to come from somewhere./ It all makes me nervous.

__________________________

So, we've been planning to build a shop for 2 yrs now but you know something always comes up. We had to move the shed last year and that was a much longer and expensive process than planned. Still yet I've been on dh to at least get the concrete done for many, many months. Finally he has a fire under him and is ready to do it. So, we got a quote from a guy- way high. We got another quote yesterday, more than we were hoping but 3k less than the last guy. Still waiting on one more quote.

And building prices have went up because there is a rush on housing due to low interest rates, really sucks when you are pashing cash for a project. We are looking at starting the build in May when dh finishes college. I told dh he needs to talk to his Mom, she keeps saying she is going to move, when she moves we have to have a place for the car stuff. However, I don't think it is likely that she will actually follow through with it as she has made no moves to actually doing it. Dh wants to watch building prices if they go up more by the time we are ready to build he wants to look at putting it off another year but if they stay the same or (maybe if lucky drop) go ahead and build this summer.

We need about 8k more as it is. I expected we would need about 4k more. So, any extra from his checks is now diverted to that and hopefully a large chunk from tax returns. I had planned on some things around the house (bathroom cabinet and rug) but I'll have to save my personal spending money and hopefully get some surveys. Our planned summer road trip vaca will be even tighter than planned. I do not want to pull from the efund or vaca fund. I had hoped to put more in sinking funds but we'll have to just fund them each month and go slow and steady.

We could really use the bonus they've been talking about at dh's work!

Edited January 10, 2021 by Soror

[mommyoffive]

7 hours ago, Soror said:

Girl, btdt, we had to itemize the whole house after the house fire. fun times!

___________________________

re: stimulus- We could always use the money (who can't?) but eventually money has to come from somewhere./ It all makes me nervous.

__________________________

So, we've been planning to build a shop for 2 yrs now but you know something always comes up. We had to move the shed last year and that was a much longer and expensive process than planned. Still yet I've been on dh to at least get the concrete done for many, many months. Finally he has a fire under him and is ready to do it. So, we got a quote from a guy- way high. We got another quote yesterday, more than we were hoping but 3k less than the last guy. Still waiting on one more quote.

And building prices have went up because there is a rush on housing due to low interest rates, really sucks when you are pashing cash for a project. We are looking at starting the build in May when dh finishes college. I told dh he needs to talk to his Mom, she keeps saying she is going to move, when she moves we have to have a place for the car stuff. However, I don't think it is likely that she will actually follow through with it as she has made no moves to actually doing it. Dh wants to watch building prices if they go up more by the time we are ready to build he wants to look at putting it off another year but if they stay the same or (maybe if lucky drop) go ahead and build this summer.

We need about 8k more as it is. I expected we would need about 4k more. So, any extra from his checks is now diverted to that and hopefully a large chunk from tax returns. I had planned on some things around the house (bathroom cabinet and rug) but I'll have to save my personal spending money and hopefully get some surveys. Our planned summer road trip vaca will be even tighter than planned. I do not want to pull from the efund or vaca fund. I had hoped to put more in sinking funds but we'll have to just fund them each month and go slow and steady.

We could really use the bonus they've been talking about at dh's work!

Yes, that money is going to have to come from somewhere.  These payments are going to be added to our  national debt and will effect us for decades.  

Yeah that rising building costs are annoying.  I get why they went up.  If  you don't "need" to do it I would wait, but who knows if and when they will lower.  If everyone has stimulus money too then they will be spending it too.  We have a few things that we would build around the house that will now cost more.  We are thinking of expanding our dance studio for the kids.  It is already huge, but they could use more space.  And extending our chicken coop.  

 

 

Edited January 10, 2021 by mommyoffive

[historically accurate]

I'm still in isolation following Alabama. I'm not having any symptoms, but both hotels I stayed in had no mask usage and one of them was crowded with people eating when I popped in for my "grab and go" breakfast. So, I wait for my test to come back now.

We're surviving without a water softener for now. We'll see how it goes, although I did put some of the stimulus money aside for it. Our water is pretty hard so it can be pretty hard on our other appliances, etc that use water. Also, need to work on saving for an oven/range. 

My mom gave me $ to order 3 shirts from the last Christopher and Banks sale. She said she didn't find anything for herself, but she felt the urge to buy something, so she let me look and they should be here shortly. 

DDs spent most of their Christmas $ this week. Middle brought me to tears donating about half of hers to a local outreach program for trafficked women. 

I have put together a binder with information on our debt, savings, investments, insurance, etc. So it is easily accessible for someone to pick up if I can't do it. So, so, so many passwords! That's been my major achievement during isolation. 

The other thing that I've been doing to distract myself from the news cycle is watching Struggle Meals on hulu. Young chef cooks healthy cheap meals. Everything is under $2 a serving.

Oldest DD left several things here. So, once I'm cleared, I'll have to mail down some stuff. She has ADD, so I have learned that I need to help her pack. I don't know what I was thinking this time, but I left her to her own devices there. She just doesn't see the stuff right in front of her face. I did notice several things the morning we left, so those got packed, but she left a set of sheets here (brought them home to wash), most of the bathroom stuff, and a couple of small piles of clothes. 

[JustEm]

ds7's bday is tomorrow but he decided to celebrate it today because dh works tomorrow.  So, I had to make an impromptu trip to the grocery store for his bday dinner of steak, fries, and key lime pie. Cheaper than eating out!

[Soror]

19 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Yes, that money is going to have to come from somewhere.  These payments are going to be added to our  national debt and will effect us for decades.  

Yeah that rising building costs are annoying.  I get why they went up.  If  you don't "need" to do it I would wait, but who knows if and when they will lower.  If everyone has stimulus money too then they will be spending it too.  We have a few things that we would build around the house that will now cost more.  We are thinking of expanding our dance studio for the kids.  It is already huge, but they could use more space.  And extending our chicken coop.  

I know, it has to be done at some point but who knows with MIL. I wouldn't be surprised if she stays at her house until she dies but maybe she'll surprise me. If she was to decide to sell now we'd have to rent storage. And as you said who knows when things will come down, that is the hard part, we don't know.

____________________________

I need to pay estimated taxes today. 

I need to consider doing some evening classes again. Winter break is starting for students and cancellations will increase and night time classes are more likely to book. I don't want to know. It is just hard to know how many cancellations I will get, it fluctuates so much. I have a minimum goal I'd like to reach.

[Carrie12345]

Today I’m looking at combining the money I’ve managed to save with our stimulus and getting some home gym equipment. Specifically an elliptical, adjustable weights, and and adjustable fold up weight bench.

My house is really not set up to accommodate this, but there’s also zero chance of getting back to the gym, and dh and are both feeling like absolute garbage. And neither one of us has any intention of spending time outside where it’s icy and cold and gross.

So I’m trying to hunt down decent deals, which isn’t easy to do for a 20” elliptical stride. And I’m trying to come to terms with having more visual clutter in my bedroom.  But I’m sick of feeling like I’m going to completely transform into mush and then drop dead.

My plan has always been to have a great home gym when we move, so it isn’t a completely out of left field expense, but I wasn’t planning on doing it right *now, so it’s still a little nerve wracking.

[Soror]

1 hour ago, Carrie12345 said:

Today I’m looking at combining the money I’ve managed to save with our stimulus and getting some home gym equipment. Specifically an elliptical, adjustable weights, and and adjustable fold up weight bench.

My house is really not set up to accommodate this, but there’s also zero chance of getting back to the gym, and dh and are both feeling like absolute garbage. And neither one of us has any intention of spending time outside where it’s icy and cold and gross.

So I’m trying to hunt down decent deals, which isn’t easy to do for a 20” elliptical stride. And I’m trying to come to terms with having more visual clutter in my bedroom.  But I’m sick of feeling like I’m going to completely transform into mush and then drop dead.

My plan has always been to have a great home gym when we move, so it isn’t a completely out of left field expense, but I wasn’t planning on doing it right *now, so it’s still a little nerve wracking.

Best wishes finding some good equipment for a good deal.

________________

Paid my taxes this morning.

Pre-qualified for a fitness survey, $150 if I'm chosen. The last one I pre-qualified for but they had already filled up so I made sure to do this one as soon as I saw it, fingers crossed.

Need to call Krogers. Last time I went to try and use my $50 coupon it wasn't showing up, looks like it is on my account but nothing comes up when paying and customer service is no help. So annoying.

eta: Just messaged Kroger customer service on their website, after my maddening experience last time I didn't want to call. Here's hoping they FINALLY get this taken care of.

Edited January 11, 2021 by Soror

[mommyoffive]

53 minutes ago, Soror said:

Best wishes finding some good equipment for a good deal.

________________

Paid my taxes this morning.

Pre-qualified for a fitness survey, $150 if I'm chosen. The last one I pre-qualified for but they had already filled up so I made sure to do this one as soon as I saw it, fingers crossed.

Need to call Krogers. Last time I went to try and use my $50 coupon it wasn't showing up, looks like it is on my account but nothing comes up when paying and customer service is no help. So annoying.

eta: Just messaged Kroger customer service on their website, after my maddening experience last time I didn't want to call. Here's hoping they FINALLY get this taken care of.

Fingers crossed for the survey.  I am glad that you are getting so many.  It is a nice little thing to find out about and do.  

Ugh, I hope you end up getting the $50.

Edited January 11, 2021 by mommyoffive

[mommyoffive]

1 hour ago, Carrie12345 said:

Today I’m looking at combining the money I’ve managed to save with our stimulus and getting some home gym equipment. Specifically an elliptical, adjustable weights, and and adjustable fold up weight bench.

My house is really not set up to accommodate this, but there’s also zero chance of getting back to the gym, and dh and are both feeling like absolute garbage. And neither one of us has any intention of spending time outside where it’s icy and cold and gross.

So I’m trying to hunt down decent deals, which isn’t easy to do for a 20” elliptical stride. And I’m trying to come to terms with having more visual clutter in my bedroom.  But I’m sick of feeling like I’m going to completely transform into mush and then drop dead.

My plan has always been to have a great home gym when we move, so it isn’t a completely out of left field expense, but I wasn’t planning on doing it right *now, so it’s still a little nerve wracking.

Would you guys want to do other things that don't take up so much room?  There are tons of workouts on Youtube.  Yoga.   Dance classes

Free weights

A door pull up bar

Mini trampoline

I couldn't stand having work out machines on our top 2 levels, but our basement is now a work out area.   On our main floor I do have a mini trampoline, because I can move it easily and it gets more use there.   Our basement though is turned into a huge dance studio, and has all the yoga and stretching items they use too.    Could you do it in your basement or garage? 

Or you get a puppy.  We got one in September and since then we are all getting a ton more miles a day in.  Our other dog is old wasn't pushing us to move as much as this puppy.

[mommyoffive]

3 hours ago, Soror said:

I know, it has to be done at some point but who knows with MIL. I wouldn't be surprised if she stays at her house until she dies but maybe she'll surprise me. If she was to decide to sell now we'd have to rent storage. And as you said who knows when things will come down, that is the hard part, we don't know.

____________________________

I need to pay estimated taxes today. 

I need to consider doing some evening classes again. Winter break is starting for students and cancellations will increase and night time classes are more likely to book. I don't want to know. It is just hard to know how many cancellations I will get, it fluctuates so much. I have a minimum goal I'd like to reach.

That has to be frustrating to not really know how much you are working. 

 

 

Not much going on here.

Ordered free meals for the kids.

Bought a new humidifier because the other one after less than 2 months isn't working.  Wrote the company 2 times and never heard back.  P.S.   don't buy a Vicks Humidifier .

Put gas in the Van.  I think this is like the 2nd time we have had to put gas in my van since March.  The amount of $ I was using on gas before Covid was nuts, plus dh had a super long commute.

Kiddos had ballet intensive auditions over the weekend.  We need to register for some more.  Fingers crossed they get in somewhere. 

Donated a ton of things yesterday.  I need to work on that this week. 

[Carrie12345]

24 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Would you guys want to do other things that don't take up so much room?  There are tons of workouts on Youtube.  Yoga.   Dance classes

Free weights

A door pull up bar

Mini trampoline

I couldn't stand having work out machines on our top 2 levels, but our basement is now a work out area.   On our main floor I do have a mini trampoline, because I can move it easily and it gets more use there.   Our basement though is turned into a huge dance studio, and has all the yoga and stretching items they use too.    Could you do it in your basement or garage? 

Or you get a puppy.  We got one in September and since then we are all getting a ton more miles a day in.  Our other dog is old wasn't pushing us to move as much as this puppy.

Nope.  Well, I am getting free weights, so that’s one part. But there’s no real free space in our 1100sf. Just a few feet between my side of the bed and our sliding glass door, and a few feet between our closets, leading to the bathroom.  (Hence the fold up bench to be put away when not in use.)  No garage. No basement. (Hence my lack of home gym, lol.)

My normal gym workout is my absolute favorite thing, and this is about the closest I’m going to be able to come to it within our limitations, so I’m pretty excited.

I didn’t get THE most fabulous deal in the world, but I did snag a discount on top of a reduced price, and I used a cash back card, so it wasn’t *too* bad. Well... it wasn’t as bad as it could have been!

[Soror]

27 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

That has to be frustrating to not really know how much you are working. 

 

 

Not much going on here.

Ordered free meals for the kids.

Bought a new humidifier because the other one after less than 2 months isn't working.  Wrote the company 2 times and never heard back.  P.S.   don't buy a Vicks Humidifier .

Put gas in the Van.  I think this is like the 2nd time we have had to put gas in my van since March.  The amount of $ I was using on gas before Covid was nuts, plus dh had a super long commute.

Kiddos had ballet intensive auditions over the weekend.  We need to register for some more.  Fingers crossed they get in somewhere. 

Donated a ton of things yesterday.  I need to work on that this week. 

I bet that is a huge savings on gas. At the beginning we saved some money here and there but mostly it has been more expenses for us.

I'm working on a Goodwill donation too.

______________________________

Menu made:

Sunday: Moroccan Chicken; cauliflower, sweet potato

Monday: Cajun Chicken Pasta- Probably leftover salmon for me

Tuesday: Venison Stew

WEdnesday: Tacos w/ black beans and cilantro rice

Thursday: Eggplant Parmesan

Friday: Meatloaf Green Beans and mashed Potatoes

Saturday: BBQ Venison, Baked Beans, and Slaw

Sunday: Beef Curry

I think I'm good on groceries. I picked up a few things at the end of the week.

[JustEm]

We are slowly building our home gym.  We've got the resistance bands,  weights, bench, mats, designated area sort of.  My mom is planning on getting a treadmill once she gets back in the Spring. I don't think I want any other equipment other than they treadmill though, we'll see. I wish we had a better spot but the only other logical spot is the basement and that can't happen until that is properly waterproofed, which I don't want to deal with any time soon.

[JustEm]

Man we are only 11 days into January and we are already over $400 for groceries. Now that will get us through this week and maybe part of next.  But using instacart has really messed with our budget because of tipping.  I do tip well though because that person is making it so I don't have to go to the store.  But I don't think I am willing to keep doing instacart for weekly shopping.  Maybe I need to try to do a 2 week trip and see if I can do it.

[mommyoffive]

1 hour ago, hjffkj said:

Man we are only 11 days into January and we are already over $400 for groceries. Now that will get us through this week and maybe part of next.  But using instacart has really messed with our budget because of tipping.  I do tip well though because that person is making it so I don't have to go to the store.  But I don't think I am willing to keep doing instacart for weekly shopping.  Maybe I need to try to do a 2 week trip and see if I can do it.

That was my first thought.   I love doing 2 week shopping.  Dh is handling the grocery pickup and doesn't do it, even though it would save time and money.    At least you could tip 2 times a month vs 4.  

I wish the Walmart pick ups would have worked for you. 

[cjzimmer1]

I've been reading along here for months but haven't really posted much.  This month just feels like there is a lot of balls in the air so it's pretty hard to budget like a normally would so I'm just trying not to spend much on the little things till I see where the numbers land for the big things.

Dh's paychecks will be smaller because we opted to purchase extra insurance (but he doesn't get paid till this Friday so I don't have numbers to play with yet).  We also switched from a low deductible insurance to high deductible.  We put the difference in an HSA plus the amount we normally put in our Flex as it came out to nearly the same amount and the HSA is fully funded.  Hoping we don't have a lot of medical expenses this year and can build the balance.  However we will probably lose our secondary insurance so it's really hard to estimate what our true expenses will look like.

Two of our kids became independent last year (but still live at home), so that's going to drastically affect our tax refund. It will be good for them because it means both of them will be eligible for both stimulus checks since they were in the group that was left out, however we've always used the refund to fund our property taxes for the year but that's not going to happen this year.  Rough estimate shows if we get any back it will be very little.  The adult kids will be paying a small amount of rent so that will offset things some but I still have to figure out how to work the rest into the budget.

Due to massive repair issues in 2019, every room in house except a small entryway and 2 bedrooms was repainted and refloored.  Since we only have this little bit left, we are starting to work on finishing that off.  We would have done in 2020 but my dominant arm has a frozen shoulder which made painting impossible.  Still dealing with that but I have enough mobility that I think I can at least get the painting done.  May have to go back to physical therapy to get the full range of motion back but since we now have the high deductible plan, I want to see what I can do on my own first because otherwise all of that will be out of the HSA funds that I'm trying to build.

We started the plans to have our deck redone last fall, however our guy couldn't even get the building supplies.  We don't have a quote on it but I'm trying to hold the money aside for that but that's hard when you have no idea the amount.

We also started the process to refinance.  They had a no fee express refinance however it turned out that paying for a 15 year normal refinance would save us more money long term than the express option so opted to do that.  We are only refinancing for the better interest rate so will continue to make the same payment as we did before so no monthly savings there. They took the origination fee out of our account but it will get rolled back into the loan when it's finalized but until it happens I've got that hit to the savings account.  

And we get a half a beef in January/February each year.  I never really known when just when my guy calls to tell me he taking it in (based on what he has ready and when he can get a slot) so I've got to set that money aside too.  I didn't get my freezers cleaned this summer because we stockpiled so much, so I'm trying to eat things down and get them emptied so I can clean them before this beef comes. So our meals have been looking crazy.  I pick a shelf in a freezer and pull out random things till I have enough to make a meal and that's what they get.  Next meal pick something else from that shelf until it's empty than start on the next shelf (I do add in fresh things to make something resemble a normal meal).  Last's nights concoction was such a hit with eldest that he claimed all the leftovers for his lunches for the week.  Worked well because the younger kids all thought it was too spicy.  We are also getting the school lunches.  Some of the things they are getting really tired of or they don't like so I'm adding those into my repurposing.  Other than the status of the milk (it's really starting to scare me what they are sending out, we've had three different weeks where one of the flavors of milk has soured within 3 days, it's never both.  I have some cartons for Dec 27th that are still fine but the Jan 9th dates had to be dumped before the 9th ever got here), it does help even though the meals aren't that big.

So just a lot of variables and since I love to play with numbers, it's irritating to have so many unknown variables that I can't even begin to predict so I just have to do my best not to spend and hope I'll have enough to cover everything when they show up.

[Soror]

2 hours ago, hjffkj said:

Man we are only 11 days into January and we are already over $400 for groceries. Now that will get us through this week and maybe part of next.  But using instacart has really messed with our budget because of tipping.  I do tip well though because that person is making it so I don't have to go to the store.  But I don't think I am willing to keep doing instacart for weekly shopping.  Maybe I need to try to do a 2 week trip and see if I can do it.

Shopping twice a week is a good plan. You can also look at the amount you tip and increase your budget but that amount. 

_----_--_______________________

I did a mix of at home and gym workouts for years but switched to just at home since last March. I don't have a dedicated space. I have a few sets of hand weights, a kettlebell, pullup bar. This year I bought a climbing rope and exercise slides. I do walking or biking for cardio outside or workout videos inside. I did try some online streaming services this year. I did Les Mills awhile and some Beachbody again, both hav free trials which are very handy for trying things out. I've just been doing a hodge podge of free stuff on YouTube lately. I need to make a new plan since I have more energy again after my med increase last week. 

Edited January 11, 2021 by Soror

[Soror]

14 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said:

I've been reading along here for months but haven't really posted much.  This month just feels like there is a lot of balls in the air so it's pretty hard to budget like a normally would so I'm just trying not to spend much on the little things till I see where the numbers land for the big things.

Dh's paychecks will be smaller because we opted to purchase extra insurance (but he doesn't get paid till this Friday so I don't have numbers to play with yet).  We also switched from a low deductible insurance to high deductible.  We put the difference in an HSA plus the amount we normally put in our Flex as it came out to nearly the same amount and the HSA is fully funded.  Hoping we don't have a lot of medical expenses this year and can build the balance.  However we will probably lose our secondary insurance so it's really hard to estimate what our true expenses will look like.

Two of our kids became independent last year (but still live at home), so that's going to drastically affect our tax refund. It will be good for them because it means both of them will be eligible for both stimulus checks since they were in the group that was left out, however we've always used the refund to fund our property taxes for the year but that's not going to happen this year.  Rough estimate shows if we get any back it will be very little.  The adult kids will be paying a small amount of rent so that will offset things some but I still have to figure out how to work the rest into the budget.

Due to massive repair issues in 2019, every room in house except a small entryway and 2 bedrooms was repainted and refloored.  Since we only have this little bit left, we are starting to work on finishing that off.  We would have done in 2020 but my dominant arm has a frozen shoulder which made painting impossible.  Still dealing with that but I have enough mobility that I think I can at least get the painting done.  May have to go back to physical therapy to get the full range of motion back but since we now have the high deductible plan, I want to see what I can do on my own first because otherwise all of that will be out of the HSA funds that I'm trying to build.

We started the plans to have our deck redone last fall, however our guy couldn't even get the building supplies.  We don't have a quote on it but I'm trying to hold the money aside for that but that's hard when you have no idea the amount.

We also started the process to refinance.  They had a no fee express refinance however it turned out that paying for a 15 year normal refinance would save us more money long term than the express option so opted to do that.  We are only refinancing for the better interest rate so will continue to make the same payment as we did before so no monthly savings there. They took the origination fee out of our account but it will get rolled back into the loan when it's finalized but until it happens I've got that hit to the savings account.  

And we get a half a beef in January/February each year.  I never really known when just when my guy calls to tell me he taking it in (based on what he has ready and when he can get a slot) so I've got to set that money aside too.  I didn't get my freezers cleaned this summer because we stockpiled so much, so I'm trying to eat things down and get them emptied so I can clean them before this beef comes. So our meals have been looking crazy.  I pick a shelf in a freezer and pull out random things till I have enough to make a meal and that's what they get.  Next meal pick something else from that shelf until it's empty than start on the next shelf (I do add in fresh things to make something resemble a normal meal).  Last's nights concoction was such a hit with eldest that he claimed all the leftovers for his lunches for the week.  Worked well because the younger kids all thought it was too spicy.  We are also getting the school lunches.  Some of the things they are getting really tired of or they don't like so I'm adding those into my repurposing.  Other than the status of the milk (it's really starting to scare me what they are sending out, we've had three different weeks where one of the flavors of milk has soured within 3 days, it's never both.  I have some cartons for Dec 27th that are still fine but the Jan 9th dates had to be dumped before the 9th ever got here), it does help even though the meals aren't that big.

So just a lot of variables and since I love to play with numbers, it's irritating to have so many unknown variables that I can't even begin to predict so I just have to do my best not to spend and hope I'll have enough to cover everything when they show up.

I hate uncertainty it is so stressful. Iit is smart to be waiting to see how it works out. Here's hoping for low medical costs for all of us, I really don't want to meet our deductible again. 

I'm working my way through our freezer too. We've got a half a beef coming early next month. I've been putting $100 a month of my grocery budget aside for it to get last couple of months. After that we've got half a hog coming in late March/ April. I'm nervous about how my freezer will be but that is when the times worked out. 

[mommyoffive]

20 minutes ago, Soror said:

Shopping twice a week is a good plan. You can also look at the amount you tip and increase your budget but that amount. 

_----_--_______________________

I did a mix of at home and gym workouts for years but switched to just at home since last March. I don't have a dedicated space. I have a few sets of hand weights, a kettlebell, pullup bar. This year I bought a climbing rope and exercise slides. I do walking or biking for cardio outside or workout videos inside. I did try some online streaming services this year. I did Les Mills awhile and some Beachbody again, both hav free trials which are very handy for trying things out. I've just been doing a hodge podge of free stuff on YouTube lately. I need to make a new plan since I have more energy again after my med increase last week. 

Where do you have your climbing rope?  That sounds like fun. 

[Soror]

Just now, mommyoffive said:

Where do you have your climbing rope?  That sounds like fun. 

I have a heavy duty hook on my pergola in the deck outside. I'd like it coming off the top of the playset as it is not that high on the deck but never got around to it, maybe in the spring. 

[cjzimmer1]

14 minutes ago, Soror said:

I hate uncertainty it is so stressful. Iit is smart to be waiting to see how it works out. Here's hoping for low medical costs for all of us, I really don't want to meet our deductible again. 

I'm working my way through our freezer too. We've got a half a beef coming early next month. I've been putting $100 a month of my grocery budget aside for it to get last couple of months. After that we've got half a hog coming in late March/ April. I'm nervous about how my freezer will be but that is when the times worked out. 

Normally I just buy the half of beef but last year when it was so hard to get meat at the grocery store, I called my farmer and bought a whole pig in April which was why my freezers were too full to empty/clean in the summer.  We went through far more of the pork than I was expecting so I will probably be picking some of that up this spring too.  When they guy lets me know about the beef, I will ask about the pork.  He's a pig farmer who raises about a dozen beef for preorders so I know he will have pig, I'm just not quite ready for it space or moneywise.  Do you just have one freezer?  I would expect it will take careful packing and planning to get both in at once so at least you have a little spacing between the 2. 

[mommyoffive]

40 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said:

I've been reading along here for months but haven't really posted much.  This month just feels like there is a lot of balls in the air so it's pretty hard to budget like a normally would so I'm just trying not to spend much on the little things till I see where the numbers land for the big things.

Dh's paychecks will be smaller because we opted to purchase extra insurance (but he doesn't get paid till this Friday so I don't have numbers to play with yet).  We also switched from a low deductible insurance to high deductible.  We put the difference in an HSA plus the amount we normally put in our Flex as it came out to nearly the same amount and the HSA is fully funded.  Hoping we don't have a lot of medical expenses this year and can build the balance.  However we will probably lose our secondary insurance so it's really hard to estimate what our true expenses will look like.

Two of our kids became independent last year (but still live at home), so that's going to drastically affect our tax refund. It will be good for them because it means both of them will be eligible for both stimulus checks since they were in the group that was left out, however we've always used the refund to fund our property taxes for the year but that's not going to happen this year.  Rough estimate shows if we get any back it will be very little.  The adult kids will be paying a small amount of rent so that will offset things some but I still have to figure out how to work the rest into the budget.

Due to massive repair issues in 2019, every room in house except a small entryway and 2 bedrooms was repainted and refloored.  Since we only have this little bit left, we are starting to work on finishing that off.  We would have done in 2020 but my dominant arm has a frozen shoulder which made painting impossible.  Still dealing with that but I have enough mobility that I think I can at least get the painting done.  May have to go back to physical therapy to get the full range of motion back but since we now have the high deductible plan, I want to see what I can do on my own first because otherwise all of that will be out of the HSA funds that I'm trying to build.

We started the plans to have our deck redone last fall, however our guy couldn't even get the building supplies.  We don't have a quote on it but I'm trying to hold the money aside for that but that's hard when you have no idea the amount.

We also started the process to refinance.  They had a no fee express refinance however it turned out that paying for a 15 year normal refinance would save us more money long term than the express option so opted to do that.  We are only refinancing for the better interest rate so will continue to make the same payment as we did before so no monthly savings there. They took the origination fee out of our account but it will get rolled back into the loan when it's finalized but until it happens I've got that hit to the savings account.  

And we get a half a beef in January/February each year.  I never really known when just when my guy calls to tell me he taking it in (based on what he has ready and when he can get a slot) so I've got to set that money aside too.  I didn't get my freezers cleaned this summer because we stockpiled so much, so I'm trying to eat things down and get them emptied so I can clean them before this beef comes. So our meals have been looking crazy.  I pick a shelf in a freezer and pull out random things till I have enough to make a meal and that's what they get.  Next meal pick something else from that shelf until it's empty than start on the next shelf (I do add in fresh things to make something resemble a normal meal).  Last's nights concoction was such a hit with eldest that he claimed all the leftovers for his lunches for the week.  Worked well because the younger kids all thought it was too spicy.  We are also getting the school lunches.  Some of the things they are getting really tired of or they don't like so I'm adding those into my repurposing.  Other than the status of the milk (it's really starting to scare me what they are sending out, we've had three different weeks where one of the flavors of milk has soured within 3 days, it's never both.  I have some cartons for Dec 27th that are still fine but the Jan 9th dates had to be dumped before the 9th ever got here), it does help even though the meals aren't that big.

So just a lot of variables and since I love to play with numbers, it's irritating to have so many unknown variables that I can't even begin to predict so I just have to do my best not to spend and hope I'll have enough to cover everything when they show up.

We bought more insurance this year so the paychecks will reflect that.  😞

I am not looking forward to the kids being off our taxes.  

Oh so sorry about the frozen shoulder.  I have had a few friends who have had that. I hope that you fully recover from that. 

I hope you get your deck this year. 

Awesome on your refi!

I hope that as the month goes by you can figure everything out when all the info is there.   I don't do well when I don't have all the information either. 

[mommyoffive]

7 minutes ago, Soror said:

I have a heavy duty hook on my pergola in the deck outside. I'd like it coming off the top of the playset as it is not that high on the deck but never got around to it, maybe in the spring. 

Forgot to say, I am glad you are feeling better. 

[Soror]

1 hour ago, cjzimmer1 said:

Normally I just buy the half of beef but last year when it was so hard to get meat at the grocery store, I called my farmer and bought a whole pig in April which was why my freezers were too full to empty/clean in the summer.  We went through far more of the pork than I was expecting so I will probably be picking some of that up this spring too.  When they guy lets me know about the beef, I will ask about the pork.  He's a pig farmer who raises about a dozen beef for preorders so I know he will have pig, I'm just not quite ready for it space or moneywise.  Do you just have one freezer?  I would expect it will take careful packing and planning to get both in at once so at least you have a little spacing between the 2. 

Yes, just one. I used to regularly buy both but it has been awhile and I used to space it better. I'll have close to 2 months between them. 

[JustEm]

Our governor has proposed a relieve package for our state that would give $750 checks to low and some medium income households.  They are voting on it on Weds I believe. From what I can tell, we will qualify.

[mommyoffive]

Holy Cow, I am stunned.  The houses in my small neighborhood are booming, and it is really crazy.  We bought in 2006 and then the market collapsed.  We were underwater for years.  The neighborhood was half built.   A bunch of the houses foreclosed and were sold for 100k under what they were priced in 2006.  

The prices have been rising for a few years, and we so happy when our value returned.  Then houses started selling for more than what we paid.  Just a few months (October) ago we saw the highest prices in our streets since 2006.  Another house went on the market down the street and had an offer in less than 3 days.  This house is listed for for 25k more than the top price of the houses on our street 2 months ago.  On the one hand, I think we should sell, NOW.  The other hand I am not happy because it means our tax bill goes up.   

The price is nuts, and it isn't even that nice of a house.  I have to watch this to see how much it sells for. 

[JustEm]

19 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Holy Cow, I am stunned.  The houses in my small neighborhood are booming, and it is really crazy.  We bought in 2006 and then the market collapsed.  We were underwater for years.  The neighborhood was half built.   A bunch of the houses foreclosed and were sold for 100k under what they were priced in 2006.  

The prices have been rising for a few years, and we so happy when our value returned.  Then houses started selling for more than what we paid.  Just a few months (October) ago we saw the highest prices in our streets since 2006.  Another house went on the market down the street and had an offer in less than 3 days.  This house is listed for for 25k more than the top price of the houses on our street 2 months ago.  On the one hand, I think we should sell, NOW.  The other hand I am not happy because it means our tax bill goes up.   

The price is nuts, and it isn't even that nice of a house.  I have to watch this to see how much it sells for. 

In Feb of 2019 we bought this house for $300,000 at the time it was the highest selling house in the neighborhood ever but it has an extensive addition so we knew it was worth buying the most expensive house in the neighborhood.  The most recent house in our neighborhood to sell, which was in oct or nov sold for $395,000.  The financial savvy side of me want to sell this house an pocket the profits.  But it fits our needs perfectly so I keep telling myself not going down that path.

[mommyoffive]

1 minute ago, hjffkj said:

In Feb of 2019 we bought this house for $300,000 at the time it was the highest selling house in the neighborhood ever but it has an extensive addition so we knew it was worth buying the most expensive house in the neighborhood.  The most recent house in our neighborhood to sell, which was in oct or nov sold for $395,000.  The financial savvy side of me want to sell this house an pocket the profits.  But it fits our needs perfectly so I keep telling myself not going down that path.

That is hard to do.  This house doesn't fit us and we are not happy here.  If it was our forever home, I might be easier to watch, although still tempting.  

Yours is a crazy difference, in one year.  

Ours is not a booming town or anything like that.   2 problems, is that everything that gets put on the market now has offers so fast.  Secondly we can't decide where we really want to be located.   

[JustEm]

17 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

That is hard to do.  This house doesn't fit us and we are not happy here.  If it was our forever home, I might be easier to watch, although still tempting.  

Yours is a crazy difference, in one year.  

Ours is not a booming town or anything like that.   2 problems, is that everything that gets put on the market now has offers so fast.  Secondly we can't decide where we really want to be located.   

I know people who are taking advantage of the crazy market by selling their houses and renting until things cool down or they find what they want. 

 

This house is our forever home so we won't sell but it is so tempting. We aren't a  booming town but there is almost no inventory and there are people from Philly and Balt who have been moving out of the city. We're central to both so it is a good location for them.  I can't wait to sell my parent's house in the spring.

[JustEm]

😞 our dishwasher seems to be broken.  If we start the cycle it just it will make noise like it is running but it won't actually run. So, it ran for maybe 2 hours tonight before I realized that it should have been done already.  Opened it up and nothing was clean or even wet