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July Frugalistas 2021


mommyoffive
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Today is dh's payday so I'm actually sitting down and paying July bills right now.  All but about $200 worth of bills that are automated are paid as of today.  It is really weird to basically pay all of the bills for the month and still have half of his paycheck left.  Half of that will go into an investment account and the other half will sit in our checking account as buffer until the next paycheck.

July is looking to be a good month for my side hustles. Roughly $1000 is already expected to come in for pet sitting!  Ebay sales will be minimal because we're still putting that on hold while we get my parents house ready to list.  It is looking like that'll be listed within the next 3 weeks.  I will be so happy when their house is done.  It has been a lot of fun working on it.  I've listened to two books and started a third today.  Dh and I work really well together on projects like this.  The work out on my body every day has done wonders for me. 

We'll be getting a child tax credit of $1600 every month for the rest of the year and I think we're just going to plan to throw it directly into our non tax exempt investments.  We were considering just putting it in our normal savings until we had a better idea of what to do with it but the thought of all that money earning nothing while we already have a fully funded emergency fund was stressing me a bit.  So, it'll go into investments and we'll figure out if we need it for anything at a later date. Most likely we'll decide to just keep it there long-term.

Dh's bday is early July and he'll be getting his tattoo worked on so that'll be a few hundred spent. Plus, I still have to get him a gift.  My birthday is later in the month and he always spends a bit much on me so I'll just assume it'll be a hundred or so for budget purposes.  After that we have no birthdays until dec!

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1 hour ago, hjffkj said:

Today is dh's payday so I'm actually sitting down and paying July bills right now.  All but about $200 worth of bills that are automated are paid as of today.  It is really weird to basically pay all of the bills for the month and still have half of his paycheck left.  Half of that will go into an investment account and the other half will sit in our checking account as buffer until the next paycheck.

July is looking to be a good month for my side hustles. Roughly $1000 is already expected to come in for pet sitting!  Ebay sales will be minimal because we're still putting that on hold while we get my parents house ready to list.  It is looking like that'll be listed within the next 3 weeks.  I will be so happy when their house is done.  It has been a lot of fun working on it.  I've listened to two books and started a third today.  Dh and I work really well together on projects like this.  The work out on my body every day has done wonders for me. 

We'll be getting a child tax credit of $1600 every month for the rest of the year and I think we're just going to plan to throw it directly into our non tax exempt investments.  We were considering just putting it in our normal savings until we had a better idea of what to do with it but the thought of all that money earning nothing while we already have a fully funded emergency fund was stressing me a bit.  So, it'll go into investments and we'll figure out if we need it for anything at a later date. Most likely we'll decide to just keep it there long-term.

Dh's bday is early July and he'll be getting his tattoo worked on so that'll be a few hundred spent. Plus, I still have to get him a gift.  My birthday is later in the month and he always spends a bit much on me so I'll just assume it'll be a hundred or so for budget purposes.  After that we have no birthdays until dec!

Awesome with pet sitting and CTC.  

Is your arm all better from the Covid vaccine?

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22 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Awesome with pet sitting and CTC.  

Is your arm all better from the Covid vaccine?

Thanks for asking. Not entirely. Range of motion is about 90% improved I'd say. It is still pretty painful in a few positions. Working at my parents house has seemed to improve it because it forces me to use it more than is my comfort level. Then I rest and stretch it the rest of the day.

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Half-way through the year already it is hard to believe.

This month is our anniversary. We didn't do anything last year but I think I'd like to go rock climbing in the city and have a meal out together. Dh and I'll talk about that this weekend. Ds has a bday but considering we just had to buy him a car after wrecking his last one there will be no big gift. I'll make him a nice meal and dessert of his choosing, we'll see if he has an activity he wants to do.

We have a lot of medical expenses again this month, ds' crown and regular visits for 2 dc's, and refill of one of my meds. I hope to goodness sakes we don't continue to have so many vehicle expenses buying ds a "new" car and then the maintenance and repairs on it is killing us this month. That being said dh's ac just went out in his truck a couple of weeks ago and he needs to look at that more. He's tried easy fixes but it's not working. So, we'll still probably have a chunk to spend there, just hopefully not as much as this month.

-I'll hit 90% on my vaca fund this month.

-we'll be paying our house insurance (1 yr) and car ins (6 months) those have been funded monthly

-I still want a new bathroom vanity downstairs but haven't found one in the price I want to spend yet- I'll keep looking

We will be receiving the CTC- it will be divided as follows:

-50% car fund for me (my van is 16 yrs old and we plan on replacing it in a bit under 2 yrs- we'll be paying cash and I want to get something nicer and newer than we've bought before so I have a good chunk to save up- this will kick off my fund and I'll start using my check for the fund starting in September)

-33% vaca spending- dh decided he wanted more money to do things for vaca so I'm putting this in on the side (lest he messes up my carefully planned and executed goal)

-17% shop fund- as building projects ALWAYS cost more than anticipated I want more buffer room here- we're still waiting for lumber costs to go down- so hopefully with a bit extra he can go ahead and do the electricity instead of having to use it all for the building itself.

 

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10 minutes ago, Soror said:

Half-way through the year already it is hard to believe.

This month is our anniversary. We didn't do anything last year but I think I'd like to go rock climbing in the city and have a meal out together. Dh and I'll talk about that this weekend. Ds has a bday but considering we just had to buy him a car after wrecking his last one there will be no big gift. I'll make him a nice meal and dessert of his choosing, we'll see if he has an activity he wants to do.

We have a lot of medical expenses again this month, ds' crown and regular visits for 2 dc's, and refill of one of my meds. I hope to goodness sakes we don't continue to have so many vehicle expenses buying ds a "new" car and then the maintenance and repairs on it is killing us this month. That being said dh's ac just went out in his truck a couple of weeks ago and he needs to look at that more. He's tried easy fixes but it's not working. So, we'll still probably have a chunk to spend there, just hopefully not as much as this month.

-I'll hit 90% on my vaca fund this month.

-we'll be paying our house insurance (1 yr) and car ins (6 months) those have been funded monthly

-I still want a new bathroom vanity downstairs but haven't found one in the price I want to spend yet- I'll keep looking

We will be receiving the CTC- it will be divided as follows:

-50% car fund for me (my van is 16 yrs old and we plan on replacing it in a bit under 2 yrs- we'll be paying cash and I want to get something nicer and newer than we've bought before so I have a good chunk to save up- this will kick off my fund and I'll start using my check for the fund starting in September)

-33% vaca spending- dh decided he wanted more money to do things for vaca so I'm putting this in on the side (lest he messes up my carefully planned and executed goal)

-17% shop fund- as building projects ALWAYS cost more than anticipated I want more buffer room here- we're still waiting for lumber costs to go down- so hopefully with a bit extra he can go ahead and do the electricity instead of having to use it all for the building itself.

 

Happy Anniversary!!!  I hope you have a great time celebrating.

 

Did you guys narrow down where you are going on vacation next year? 

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Bought a state park pass so the kids can go to the beach and go mountain biking.

Bought some new water and yard toys from Aldi.  Bought a raised bed planter from there too thinking it was of decent size.  The things are TINY.  UGH.  What a waste of $40.

One of the kids just sent a razor cover down the drain.  So I guess we will be dealing with that today.  

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I ended up working an extra half hour today. Freaked me out because my phone rang as I was driving home. It was my boss! I called her back, and it turns out she absolutely needed a check written today and I'm the only one capable of doing that. So, I went back to work (I live only about 5-10 minutes away), and wrote it for her. She did the extra half hour on my time card for that. 

DH bought a few bags of mulch to finish out the garden area tomorrow morning. Spent some time this cool-ish evening weeding and making it look nice.

Nothing much happening money-wise, just kind of humming along. 

@mommyoffive, I saw those raised bed planters when I stopped in Aldi the other day. I'm glad I didn't pick one up.

@saraha, I need you to come menu plan for me! You seem to have it down. I've decided that is the worst of things right now. I'm working 9am-1pm, sometimes 9:30-1:30, which means I eat at 1:30-2. Then, my family is starving at 5 pm, and I'm not hungry at all, and nothing sounds good. My family is hopeless and not helpful; I get, "Food." or "I don't know." if I ask them for dinner ideas. We've been eating way too many frozen pizzas this past week or two. 

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2 hours ago, historically accurate said:

I ended up working an extra half hour today. Freaked me out because my phone rang as I was driving home. It was my boss! I called her back, and it turns out she absolutely needed a check written today and I'm the only one capable of doing that. So, I went back to work (I live only about 5-10 minutes away), and wrote it for her. She did the extra half hour on my time card for that. 

DH bought a few bags of mulch to finish out the garden area tomorrow morning. Spent some time this cool-ish evening weeding and making it look nice.

Nothing much happening money-wise, just kind of humming along. 

@mommyoffive, I saw those raised bed planters when I stopped in Aldi the other day. I'm glad I didn't pick one up.

@saraha, I need you to come menu plan for me! You seem to have it down. I've decided that is the worst of things right now. I'm working 9am-1pm, sometimes 9:30-1:30, which means I eat at 1:30-2. Then, my family is starving at 5 pm, and I'm not hungry at all, and nothing sounds good. My family is hopeless and not helpful; I get, "Food." or "I don't know." if I ask them for dinner ideas. We've been eating way too many frozen pizzas this past week or two. 

Yeah, I am glad you didn't buy them either.  If you want a super tiny planter go forth with it.  Ugh.  I am usually a fan of everything I get from there.  I don't know if you can even return things.  I haven't ever done it there. 

 

Didn't end up fixing the sink yet.  Argh.

Sold something today. 

Dh took some of the kids to the beach and then mountain biking while some others did their ballet intensives. We had a fire with all the branches we cut from the trees.  S'mores and the kids played with their outdoor set we just got.  I feel like we did all the fun things of a holiday weekend today.  If it wasn't going to be so hot we would do it all weekend, but I think we won't do much with the heat.  Just water stuff in the evening for a little bit.  

 

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Dh's grandma passed so most likely he is going on another road trip back there for the funeral this week.

Picked up a few groceries last night.

Dh is off to the store to get another toilet and a new trap for the sink.  So I guess today is a repair day.  We did fun things the past 2 days when the weather was nicer so it isn't so annoying.  

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1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

Yes!  Welcome!  Everyone is welcome to join at anytime.

Thanks. 🙂 We have a vacation coming up soon. I am trying to put away some extra spending cash, extra for gas, and pet care funds. I'd like to add another $110 or more to the cash stash in the next few weeks, and am expecting to spend the same amount for the friends taking care of the animals. I need to keep all other extras to a minimum for atleast the next 10 days to be on track.

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18 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Dh's grandma passed so most likely he is going on another road trip back there for the funeral this week.

Picked up a few groceries last night.

Dh is off to the store to get another toilet and a new trap for the sink.  So I guess today is a repair day.  We did fun things the past 2 days when the weather was nicer so it isn't so annoying.  

I'm sorry for your loss 😞

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Just updated the budget.

Last week I bought some new things for downstairs bathroom (the one I'm wanting to update this summer) and curtain rods to replace mine in the bedroom that have broken.

We took the girls to the parade and 2 different fireworks shows- free but got the girls some light up sticks and some drinks one night- less than $10.

I did finally make a menu. I had to sit down with all my cookbooks and think of some fresh ideas we'd been on a loop of the same thing for too long and I'd find myself not wanting to eat it or make it. I needed some lighter fare for summer and some new things to try.

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2 hours ago, Soror said:

I did finally make a menu. I had to sit down with all my cookbooks and think of some fresh ideas we'd been on a loop of the same thing for too long and I'd find myself not wanting to eat it or make it. I needed some lighter fare for summer and some new things to try.

Yay! It is a time outlay, but makes the day to day so much easier! I really like menu planning, back 100 years ago I used to teach a beginner's cooking class and always stressed menu planning. Once you get into the habit, it can almost go on autopilot. I have a big "Master food list" and every time we try a new recipe that is a success, it goes on the master food list. Then when I make up my menus, I just look in the category I need and pick something. I have bunches of categories like chicken, beef, pork, casseroles, soups, salads, mexican etc. and if it is a certain recipe, next to the name I write what book it came from and page or if it is on my pinterest board. I guess menu planning is my hobby, haha

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13 minutes ago, saraha said:

Yay! It is a time outlay, but makes the day to day so much easier! I really like menu planning, back 100 years ago I used to teach a beginner's cooking class and always stressed menu planning. Once you get into the habit, it can almost go on autopilot. I have a big "Master food list" and every time we try a new recipe that is a success, it goes on the master food list. Then when I make up my menus, I just look in the category I need and pick something. I have bunches of categories like chicken, beef, pork, casseroles, soups, salads, mexican etc. and if it is a certain recipe, next to the name I write what book it came from and page or if it is on my pinterest board. I guess menu planning is my hobby, haha

Yes, I have a master list too but it needs to be updated most of the things on there I've made way too much in the last year. I have on mine- quick and easy, pasta, mexican, big meals (for days when I have longer to cook), soups, and ethnic foods. I need to figure out more salads that everyone likes- everyone seems to have ones they prefer salads a certain way.

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10 hours ago, Brittany1116 said:

Thanks. 🙂 We have a vacation coming up soon. I am trying to put away some extra spending cash, extra for gas, and pet care funds. I'd like to add another $110 or more to the cash stash in the next few weeks, and am expecting to spend the same amount for the friends taking care of the animals. I need to keep all other extras to a minimum for atleast the next 10 days to be on track.

Yay for a vacation coming up.  How fun.  Where are you going?   Taking care of pets while you are gone adds up so fast.  We have 2 dogs and chickens.  On our last vacation we only had one dog that we payed to have taken care of.  We were so lucky to have family take care of the other animals.   I hope you have a great time on vacation.

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1 hour ago, saraha said:

Yay! It is a time outlay, but makes the day to day so much easier! I really like menu planning, back 100 years ago I used to teach a beginner's cooking class and always stressed menu planning. Once you get into the habit, it can almost go on autopilot. I have a big "Master food list" and every time we try a new recipe that is a success, it goes on the master food list. Then when I make up my menus, I just look in the category I need and pick something. I have bunches of categories like chicken, beef, pork, casseroles, soups, salads, mexican etc. and if it is a certain recipe, next to the name I write what book it came from and page or if it is on my pinterest board. I guess menu planning is my hobby, haha

That is so smart.  

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1 hour ago, Soror said:

I need to figure out more salads that everyone likes- everyone seems to have ones they prefer salads a certain way.

I make a salad bar for the fridge. I mix a few lettuces in a huge covered bowl and add a paper towel for excess moisture. Then I wash and prep tons of toppings and put in various small containers on the shelf. Then when someone needs a quick lunch or an extra side for dinner, it's all ready.

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11 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Yay for a vacation coming up.  How fun.  Where are you going?   Taking care of pets while you are gone adds up so fast.  We have 2 dogs and chickens.  On our last vacation we only had one dog that we payed to have taken care of.  We were so lucky to have family take care of the other animals.   I hope you have a great time on vacation.

Mountain getaway. Yes, this will be the most pricey one yet. We got a dog in May and the boarders here run $225-300 for our length of stay. Luckily, we have a great friend who loves dogs and occasionally keeps friends' dogs when needed. I've offered her $100. Then $10 for the little neighbor boy to put out food for the outdoor cats we have rescued every other day. My FIL said he would fill the chicken feeders and feed the cats on the other days, no charge. Chickens take a solid 2 days to run down, plus free ranging. 

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2 minutes ago, Brittany1116 said:

Mountain getaway. Yes, this will be the most pricey one yet. We got a dog in May and the boarders here run $225-300 for our length of stay. Luckily, we have a great friend who loves dogs and occasionally keeps friends' dogs when needed. I've offered her $100. Then $10 for the little neighbor boy to put out food for the outdoor cats we have rescued every other day. My FIL said he would fill the chicken feeders and feed the cats on the other days, no charge. Chickens take a solid 2 days to run down, plus free ranging. 

Oh I love the mountains, how dreamy.  That is so awesome you have a great friend.

Are your chickens laying?  We went before our chickens were laying, but now they are and I was wondering what to do about that in the future.

 

 

Do you guys know if the CTC is going to keep going past this year at that rate?  Or is it reversing to what it was and not monthly payments? 

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I've been fighting a horrible head cold for a few days. Had a Covid test today so I can return to work. I figured with a 101.8 degree fever yesterday, it was probably warranted. No Covid, just a horrible head cold. I don't know anyone who's got a cold, but I definitely picked up a bug somewhere. Had to go to Urgent Card to get the Covid test - it comes with an exam, so that'll be an extra expense even though the Covid test was free. I thought it was allergies from working in the garden Friday/Saturday, but the fever told me it wasn't. All I did yesterday was sleep - I am about ready for my first nap of today now.

I'm sorry to hear about your DH's grandmother, Mommyoffive. 

Welcome, Brittany1116.

DH has made about 5 trips to Walmart this weekend for various things. I haven't even looked to see what all he bought. He's there now getting cold meds. Also, youngest is getting a hair cut at Great Clips.

As far as menu planning, I have binders with the recipes we like. If no one likes a new recipe, it doesn't make it into the binders. My categories are beef, chicken, pork, fish/seafood, pasta/meatless, sides & salads, vegetables, breakfast, and dessert. I recently added Instant Pot & Air Fryer. It still doesn't leap off the pages into a nice plan, although it really should LOL. 

The expanded CTC is only for 2021. https://www.hrblock.com/tax-center/irs/tax-reform/new-child-tax-credit/

How long will this new Child Tax Credit be in place?

The American Rescue Plan only guarantees the increased amounts for the 2021 tax year, so unless Congress makes them permanent, they will revert in 2022 to the previous rules of $2,000 per child with up to $1,600 of that amount being refundable. Likewise, the advance payments will only apply to 2021.

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1 minute ago, historically accurate said:

I've been fighting a horrible head cold for a few days. Had a Covid test today so I can return to work. I figured with a 101.8 degree fever yesterday, it was probably warranted. No Covid, just a horrible head cold. I don't know anyone who's got a cold, but I definitely picked up a bug somewhere. Had to go to Urgent Card to get the Covid test - it comes with an exam, so that'll be an extra expense even though the Covid test was free. I thought it was allergies from working in the garden Friday/Saturday, but the fever told me it wasn't. All I did yesterday was sleep - I am about ready for my first nap of today now.

I'm sorry to hear about your DH's grandmother, Mommyoffive. 

Welcome, Brittany1116.

DH has made about 5 trips to Walmart this weekend for various things. I haven't even looked to see what all he bought. He's there now getting cold meds. Also, youngest is getting a hair cut at Great Clips.

As far as menu planning, I have binders with the recipes we like. If no one likes a new recipe, it doesn't make it into the binders. My categories are beef, chicken, pork, fish/seafood, pasta/meatless, sides & salads, vegetables, breakfast, and dessert. I recently added Instant Pot & Air Fryer. It still doesn't leap off the pages into a nice plan, although it really should LOL. 

The expanded CTC is only for 2021. https://www.hrblock.com/tax-center/irs/tax-reform/new-child-tax-credit/

How long will this new Child Tax Credit be in place?

The American Rescue Plan only guarantees the increased amounts for the 2021 tax year, so unless Congress makes them permanent, they will revert in 2022 to the previous rules of $2,000 per child with up to $1,600 of that amount being refundable. Likewise, the advance payments will only apply to 2021.

Ugh, I am sorry you are feeling sick.  I hope you feel better soon.

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1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

Oh I love the mountains, how dreamy.  That is so awesome you have a great friend.

Are your chickens laying?  We went before our chickens were laying, but now they are and I was wondering what to do about that in the future.

 

 

 

They are a year old so they are laying. We also have a rooster. So FIL will gather eggs when he comes every other day. That's about the longest gap I'm comfortable with since our eggs are fertilized. As long as none are hidden or overlooked, we are good. We get 3-4 eggs daily so that's what we look for. 

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49 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Historically and Hjffkj- How do you like managed payments on Ebay?

Can  you give me a basic understanding of it? 

I like it well enough.  My money goes straight to my checking account instead of to paypal.  They don't invoice me monthly. Instead they take out fees at the time of the transaction. I just like that they have taken paypal out of the equation unless you want to use it.  I still pay for shipping using paypal but that is mainly because I'm too lazy to switch it yet.

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Got rid of our old couch and loveseat that we got 16 years ago.  It was actually in ok condition until we got dogs and I mistakenly let them be on it.  It was ok when we had one dog, but 2 dogs have trashed it.  One dog we dog sat for once peed on it.  Anyway it is going.    We will get a new one in the fall when I can open the windows. And we are not letting the dogs up on it at all.  Our sectional in our other room they are not allowed on.  Should be fun training them to not get on this one when we get it.   Until then I am going to enjoy some extra room in our great room.

Dh and the kids replaced the toilet and sink stopper (which ended up being the harder thing that took 2 days and 2 trips to the store).   

Returning a dog bed that dh got that I don't like because you can't wash it.  

We have another home project that will probably happen this weekend.  Things like that never stop.

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I finally received my Disney picture that I won. It's #1 of the run of 101 (it's 101 Dalmatians). Still don't know what I'm going to do with it - leaning toward selling, but it came in this huge box and I don't know if I want to deal with trying to ship it in that.

I ended up missing work on Tuesday, but I'm feeling better now. And with the holiday on Monday, I didn't miss any hours, which is nice.

Still on the lookout for a great used washing machine. Have enough money for a used one, but still looking. They're either really small, really old, or shiny & new but expensive 

Still plugging along. Nothing really happening.

 

I like the new ebay money system; I don't have to deal with Paypal at all. It just shows up in my account - it seems faster as well. 

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We're still spending all the money here.

 

  • 6 months of car insurance
  • crown for ds and ped visit from last month 
  • I paid house insurance- bill came in $100 more so I called and raised deductible (which I needed to do anyway) and got it lowered $250- which meant I had $150 unallocated (but wait)...and drumroll...
  • Dh got a message yesterday he had an overdue college bill--- $1039.

He got charged back $800 in financial aid for the class he started this summer (after I told him not to it was too much) and had to drop and then $200ish for fall classes (remainder after financial aid and scholarship). I had $550 in college fund but wasn't expecting a bill until August and last time he dropped a class they did not charge him back for the financial aid. So, that took the $150 I had surplus- plus another $350 from the medical fund and I've got to come up with another $500-$700 for his local class that will be due in August. I thought we were done with big college expenses as he would have got 75% reimbursement for his summer class had he stayed in and passed but he got behind and was too busy. Anyway, here's hoping this coming semester goes ok and he can start getting reimbursed for college again and my budget can stop hemorrhaging so much.

Also got groceries and some house supplies.

Today I'm buying dh some more work shoes and me some workout shoes- I need to replace mine and haven't had any luck ordering online. I keep getting blisters..

I'm taking the girls to the matinee (cheaper prices) to celebrate the start of school I bought $1 boxes of candy at WM to bring with us. I might take them for sno cones afterwards too-- we'll see.

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2 hours ago, historically accurate said:

I finally received my Disney picture that I won. It's #1 of the run of 101 (it's 101 Dalmatians). Still don't know what I'm going to do with it - leaning toward selling, but it came in this huge box and I don't know if I want to deal with trying to ship it in that.

I ended up missing work on Tuesday, but I'm feeling better now. And with the holiday on Monday, I didn't miss any hours, which is nice.

Still on the lookout for a great used washing machine. Have enough money for a used one, but still looking. They're either really small, really old, or shiny & new but expensive 

Still plugging along. Nothing really happening.

 

I like the new ebay money system; I don't have to deal with Paypal at all. It just shows up in my account - it seems faster as well. 

Glad you are feeling better!

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28 minutes ago, Soror said:

We're still spending all the money here.

 

  • 6 months of car insurance
  • crown for ds and ped visit from last month 
  • I paid house insurance- bill came in $100 more so I called and raised deductible (which I needed to do anyway) and got it lowered $250- which meant I had $150 unallocated (but wait)...and drumroll...
  • Dh got a message yesterday he had an overdue college bill--- $1039.

He got charged back $800 in financial aid for the class he started this summer (after I told him not to it was too much) and had to drop and then $200ish for fall classes (remainder after financial aid and scholarship). I had $550 in college fund but wasn't expecting a bill until August and last time he dropped a class they did not charge him back for the financial aid. So, that took the $150 I had surplus- plus another $350 from the medical fund and I've got to come up with another $500-$700 for his local class that will be due in August. I thought we were done with big college expenses as he would have got 75% reimbursement for his summer class had he stayed in and passed but he got behind and was too busy. Anyway, here's hoping this coming semester goes ok and he can start getting reimbursed for college again and my budget can stop hemorrhaging so much.

Also got groceries and some house supplies.

Today I'm buying dh some more work shoes and me some workout shoes- I need to replace mine and haven't had any luck ordering online. I keep getting blisters..

I'm taking the girls to the matinee (cheaper prices) to celebrate the start of school I bought $1 boxes of candy at WM to bring with us. I might take them for sno cones afterwards too-- we'll see.

UGH about the college bills and everything else.  

I feel like we are twins or something.  It seems like every time we get some refund/unexpected money we get some unexpected bill or something breaks that we need to fix.  I feel like you can never get ahead because it is one step forward one step back.

 

Happy Back to School day!

 

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Oh wow this is crazy.  We had over a 1k doctor bill from an ER visit for one of the kids.  That isn't even the bill for all the tests they ran there, which was all covered.   But because they at first billed the wrong insurance and we notified them and then they waited too long to make an adjustment they are just writing off the bill to a $0 balance.  

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I have a new (to me) washing machine!! Guy dropped it off and helped DH hook it up. We have a week to put it through it's paces and decide if it's the right one for us. Nice. Came in a little under budget even with the extra we paid him for delivery. 

Neighborhood garage sales yesterday - we got a wheelchair for middle (for times like the zoo or museums). Youngest found the Wilton baking tips set for a quarter - she's so excited and ready to decorate everything today with it.

 

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Spendy spendy

Bought dance intensive gear super expensive.  Holding them back when they come for Christmas presents.  

3 kids went to in-person dance classes.  

Signed up one kiddo for yet more dance intensives.

Bought ds some more shorts and got 2 pair for odd.  They just keep growing!!  I will return a few pairs because I don't think you need tons of pairs of shorts since fall is coming.

 

Ugh there is a house in our neighborhood that is so much better suited for our family.  I totally want to buy it.  But it isn't a bigger lot.  Just a bigger house, more bathrooms and bedrooms.   Also it going back on in person dance classes makes me 100% want to move closer to dance.  I know it makes no sense really but that driving is horrible.

 

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Went on an outing to the city with a friend. We hit the restaurant supply store (we've decided to make this trek seasonally,yay!) and stumbled upon the biggest thrift store I have ever been in. It was a St. Vincent De Paul, which I had never been and some of their pricing seemed really weird/high but I found some great things! I got a barely used Brita pitcher and what would be like 2 years of filters for our sons apartment for $8! The filters were still in the original boxes and each wrapped in their original plastic packaging. I also got dh some work clothes, a shirt and pair of capri's for me, 2 records and found a pair of street hockey sticks for $5! They were a hit the whole afternoon.

You guys are all doing so great!

Edited by saraha
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1 hour ago, saraha said:

Went on an outing to the city with a friend. We hit the restaurant supply store (we've decided to make this trek seasonally,yay!) and stumbled upon the biggest thrift store I have ever been in. It was a St. Vincent De Paul, which I had never been and some of their pricing seemed really weird/high but I found some great things! I got a barely used Brita pitcher and what would be like 2 years of filters for our sons apartment for $8! The filters were still in the original boxes and each wrapped in their original plastic packaging. I also got dh some work clothes, a shirt and pair of capri's for me, 2 records and a pair of street hockey sticks for $5! They were a hit the whole afternoon.

You guys are all doing so great!

Awesome on the Brita! We use Brita here, and those filters can be really expensive. 

My Grandma always shopped at St. Vincent. I've never been in one before. 

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I hadn't either, it was next to the restaurant supply store, so we thought we would check it out, and are so glad we did! We now have a plan to go to both places again before Thanksgiving and then again in the winter. You have to have a vendors license to shop at the restaurant store so her father in law listed her as a buyer for his catering business since he could have up to 4 people listed. Win for me since two people can enter on one card. You even have to sign a safety waiver to get into this place. It was so cool to see all the different kinds of people shopping and eye their trolley things to see what they are buying.

Edited by saraha
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2 hours ago, saraha said:

Went on an outing to the city with a friend. We hit the restaurant supply store (we've decided to make this trek seasonally,yay!) and stumbled upon the biggest thrift store I have ever been in. It was a St. Vincent De Paul, which I had never been and some of their pricing seemed really weird/high but I found some great things! I got a barely used Brita pitcher and what would be like 2 years of filters for our sons apartment for $8! The filters were still in the original boxes and each wrapped in their original plastic packaging. I also got dh some work clothes, a shirt and pair of capri's for me, 2 records and found a pair of street hockey sticks for $5! They were a hit the whole afternoon.

You guys are all doing so great!

We have a St. Vincent De Paul in a nearby town, but I haven't ever been.   I totally want to go thrifting.  I went a few times before covid in one near the school my kids dance in, but there wasn't anything good.  But the hunting is so fun.

I haven't ever been to a restaurant supply store.  Where there good deals?  Did you have to a membership or something to shop there?

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1 hour ago, saraha said:

I hadn't either, it was next to the restaurant supply store, so we thought we would check it out, and are so glad we did! We now have a plan to go to both places again before Thanksgiving and then again in the winter. You have to have a vendors license to shop at the restaurant store so her father in law listed her as a buyer for his catering business since he could have up to 4 people listed. Win for me since two people can enter on one card. You even have to sign a safety waiver to get into this place. It was so cool to see all the different kinds of people shopping and eye their trolley things to see what they are buying.

Are you originally from England?  

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54 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Are you originally from England?  

No haha! You don’t get a grocery store type cart there and I just didn’t know what to call the flat bed rolling thing with a handle that you get instead of a cart. 
To shop there you had to have a vendors license and her father in law has one and listed her as a buyer for his catering company. Some things were good deals, some were so so, and some were amazing deals but in quantities I absolutely couldn’t use, like a five gallon bucket of sour cream for $20! 

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Although, the way we eat sour cream, if I could get a five gallon bucket in my fridge I would have bought it! They also had 10 pound bags of chopped salad for $7 and gallon buckets of relish for $7.35. Really good prices but definitely to big quantities. It’s like what sams was probably meant to be. Nothing is in family sizes. I bought cheeses in 5 lb blocks and 5 lb bags of shredded, a 10 lb pork loin, several #10 cans of various fruits and a #5 pound bag of pepperoni. My friend and I split a 40 box of chicken breasts. I also bought a gigantic thing of couscous.

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Still little to no spending happening here because we're still working on my parents' house.  We replaced the door today!!  We should be done the house by next weekend. I think I'll schedule my sil to take pictures on Sunday, which forces us to be done by then.

After that,  I imagine our spending will go up a bit as we realized we need a bunch of stuff

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Signing up another kid for a gymnastics camp.  Might sign up the youngest for it too, depends how the older one does.  She is super excited about it.  I want the kids to do some in-person things now incase they can't do things later.  We are going to spend so much on camps and intensives this summer.  At least a large portion was payed in January.  Middle dd will probably go this camp later too, she is currently doing an in-person dance intensive after doing 2 weeks of one online.

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