August Frugalistas 2021

[mommyoffive]

Last month of summer!  How did that happen?

Are you stocking up for the holidays? 

Back to school shopping? 

Or living it up the last few days of summer?

[Soror]

Hello!

-We are finishing our back to school clothes shopping. DD1 just has a bit of clothes shopping left- she's shopping around online. Ds is done.

We'll get schedules on the 19th- I don't know if we'll have any supply lists before then- it goes by classes in highschool but is generally just basic stuff and not a big deal- notebooks, folders, pens, etc. The only thing mildly expensive is a calculator but I think we might have one from ds or dh. 

Goals:

-- 2022- Euro Family Vacay fund to 100%

-"New" car fund- hoping to get to 20-25%- depending on the size of dh's bonus

- fund health, car repair, and home sinking funds to goal (with dh's bigger checks due to OT we should be able to get that done this month- barring things like major vehicle repairs, etc- I think we've had our fair share so I'm hoping for a respite

Lots of medical bills (as always) this month. I upped some fun money categories and groceries since dh is making more.

Might buy some things for the house and take a little day trip to do something fun depending on bonus and checks and how much is left.

[Soror]

-DD1 finished her clothes shopping

- I have a focus group next week- $125 to the car fund (hopefully will get some extra before the leaner months after time change).

-Speaking of leaner months still waiting for more info irt the new laws in China and how it will affect VIPKID- will cross that bridge when I get there

-Dh has a meeting at work today- we think and hope it is about bonuses- fingers crossed

- need to call the bank- I did not get full interest on my account this month- one of my debits hung out a little long- that's another $24ish I should have got

-getting labs this week- will be paid OOP as I haven't met deductible- but I'm way overdo for getting them done

[saraha]

Nothing frugal here, just discouraged. You guys are doing awesome though!

[historically accurate]

Dh usually gets his bonus around this time. Company's fiscal year end is July 31, but we haven't heard a word. Hoping it comes through soon so we can use it for medical expenses that are looming. Last year he got it in the last July paycheck, but 3 years ago, he got it in the first Sept paycheck. He didn't get anything 2 years ago. Nor have we heard anything about a raise - maybe they'll retroactive it when they change his pay?

Honey gave me $ in paypal just for signing up. Only $5, but it's $5 I didn't have. Also got $8 and change from some class-action lawsuit this week.

Groceries were over budget last month. I didn't have $ to go to Sam's to stock up - I normally hold back like $70-$100 for a Sam's stock up. Nope, I was over $35, even using that Sam's $ on our weekly shop. 

Oldest's kneecap needs physical therapy, not surgery currently. We'll have to find her a place in Huntsville to go that's close to the school and pay Uber for her to get there. Trying not to freak out about it. She did get a Charger Bike (free bike they can use on campus) so she can ride to class some days. I put a bike lock in this week's grocery cart already.

Should pay off DH's credit card this month! The money will just roll into the next one, but hey, at least the next one will go down quicker, right?

I'll finish off Middle's driver's ed fund this month, so she can start in September. She's excited. Then I need to start saving for Youngest - she'll turn 15 in March. 

Taking Oldest to Huntsville next weekend. Hotel to be reserved this weekend - we'll do home sandwiches and snacks for Covid reasons (it helps with budget too).

Purchased some Christmas presents this week - Middle had commented on some things at Claire's, so I went back and picked them up for stocking stuffers. 

Didn't make it to Kohl's and my Kohl's Cash expired. 

Edited to add: Oldest got a survey from UAH about costs associated with Covid and attending college. The email said that there might be some $ in it. We wracked our brains and came up with some - hoping for some $ for her. 

Edited August 3, 2021 by historically accurate

[saraha]

That is so cool about the bike, hope the knee gets to feeling better so they can enjoy it.

my ds21 that fledged has gotten in to Uber, finds that you have to make sure to schedule them efficiently because they always show up at the very end of the window or a few minutes later when he has to be somewhere and always seem to show up at the beginning of the window when arrival time isn’t important. He uses Lyft also, especially if where he wants to go isn’t time sensitive, I think they have less Lyft drivers, but they are cheaper. So he can ask for a ride, but a couple have times has not gotten one and went with Uber. He was nervous about it at first but hadn’t had any negative experiences. Of course he’s a guy so there’s that, I can see why you would be nervous about your daughter doing it. Dh bought a couple of different pepper spray canisters a few weeks ago and he and the kids tested them out outside to get practice using one and to see which worked best. 

[Longtime Lurker]

Since DH's summer 2020 layoff, I took a job as a permanent substitute teacher (instead of just a couple days a week). I only get paid during the school year, so the summer has been tighter. We had a nice cushion going into the summer and I am trying to make it through without dipping into savings. We do have savings set aside that we can use, but I have made it my personal challenge not to touch it. So we just have to make it through one more month before I get my first fall paycheck. So far so good...

[mommyoffive]

4 hours ago, Soror said:

-DD1 finished her clothes shopping

- I have a focus group next week- $125 to the car fund (hopefully will get some extra before the leaner months after time change).

-Speaking of leaner months still waiting for more info irt the new laws in China and how it will affect VIPKID- will cross that bridge when I get there

-Dh has a meeting at work today- we think and hope it is about bonuses- fingers crossed

- need to call the bank- I did not get full interest on my account this month- one of my debits hung out a little long- that's another $24ish I should have got

-getting labs this week- will be paid OOP as I haven't met deductible- but I'm way overdo for getting them done

Yay for the focus group.  I am glad you got into a few with the 20/20.  

Hoping for good news for Vipkid.  That sure is taking a long time to get information.

Good luck on your dh's bonus! 

[mommyoffive]

2 hours ago, saraha said:

Nothing frugal here, just discouraged. You guys are doing awesome though!

Sending some hugs!  I hope everything is ok.

[mommyoffive]

2 hours ago, historically accurate said:

Dh usually gets his bonus around this time. Company's fiscal year end is July 31, but we haven't heard a word. Hoping it comes through soon so we can use it for medical expenses that are looming. Last year he got it in the last July paycheck, but 3 years ago, he got it in the first Sept paycheck. He didn't get anything 2 years ago. Nor have we heard anything about a raise - maybe they'll retroactive it when they change his pay?

Honey gave me $ in paypal just for signing up. Only $5, but it's $5 I didn't have. Also got $8 and change from some class-action lawsuit this week.

Groceries were over budget last month. I didn't have $ to go to Sam's to stock up - I normally hold back like $70-$100 for a Sam's stock up. Nope, I was over $35, even using that Sam's $ on our weekly shop. 

Oldest's kneecap needs physical therapy, not surgery currently. We'll have to find her a place in Huntsville to go that's close to the school and pay Uber for her to get there. Trying not to freak out about it. She did get a Charger Bike (free bike they can use on campus) so she can ride to class some days. I put a bike lock in this week's grocery cart already.

Should pay off DH's credit card this month! The money will just roll into the next one, but hey, at least the next one will go down quicker, right?

I'll finish off Middle's driver's ed fund this month, so she can start in September. She's excited. Then I need to start saving for Youngest - she'll turn 15 in March. 

Taking Oldest to Huntsville next weekend. Hotel to be reserved this weekend - we'll do home sandwiches and snacks for Covid reasons (it helps with budget too).

Purchased some Christmas presents this week - Middle had commented on some things at Claire's, so I went back and picked them up for stocking stuffers. 

Didn't make it to Kohl's and my Kohl's Cash expired. 

Edited to add: Oldest got a survey from UAH about costs associated with Covid and attending college. The email said that there might be some $ in it. We wracked our brains and came up with some - hoping for some $ for her. 

Boo on the KC expiring. 

I hope your oldest gets some money from the survey.  So cool that she got that bike!  She should get some of use out of it down there with the warm weather.   I the PT is better than surgery so that is good news.  But the stress of figuring it all out stinks.  I hope she doesn't need to go that long.

So many drivers.  I am putting that off until my teens have jobs to support the costs of it.  Plus I don't agree with 16 year old kids driving.  I am much more support of being 18 when you get a license. 

Yay for getting Christmas shopping done.  I want to buy all my big gifts right now and have it all done.  I don't have a place to hid things though.  

Awesome paying off a credit card. 

Hoping your dh gets the bonus and raise.  

[mommyoffive]

1 hour ago, Longtime Lurker said:

Since DH's summer 2020 layoff, I took a job as a permanent substitute teacher (instead of just a couple days a week). I only get paid during the school year, so the summer has been tighter. We had a nice cushion going into the summer and I am trying to make it through without dipping into savings. We do have savings set aside that we can use, but I have made it my personal challenge not to touch it. So we just have to make it through one more month before I get my first fall paycheck. So far so good...

Good job not touching the savings!  One month to go, almost there.

[Acorn]

I figure this might be a good place to ask.  Has anyone seen sales or promos for TI-84 graphing calculators?  I think that I should have been looking sooner, the arrival of August caught me by surprise.

 

 

[cjzimmer1]

33 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

 

So many drivers.  I am putting that off until my teens have jobs to support the costs of it.  Plus I don't agree with 16 year old kids driving.  I am much more support of being 18 when you get a license. 

 

Plus in our state they are no longer required to take driver's ed if they wait until 18 and when you have a lot of kids that turns into a huge money savings over the years.  The state puts out learning materials that I make the kids study and then they go take the test to get their permit.  Once they pass that, I teach them how to drive and then they get their license.  Of course not everyone has it them to teach their kids to drive but it's worked well for us so far.  I'll be teaching number 3 to drive this fall.

[mommyoffive]

Just now, cjzimmer1 said:

Plus in our state they are no longer required to take driver's ed if they wait until 18 and when you have a lot of kids that turns into a huge money savings over the years.  The state puts out learning materials that I make the kids study and then they go take the test to get their permit.  Once they pass that, I teach them how to drive and then they get their license.  Of course not everyone has it them to teach their kids to drive but it's worked well for us so far.  I'll be teaching number 3 to drive this fall.

That is exactly what I wanted to do.  Awesome.  Thanks for that info.  I really haven't looked into stuff at all.  Where do you get the learning materials?  When do you start teaching your kids?  They get their permits at 18 or younger? 

I didn't get my license until I was in college.  I took drivers ed in high school, but my older brother had a car and all my friends had cars.  There wasn't really a need to get one.  Plus I would have had to buy it myself and I was saving money for college instead.  In college you couldn't even bring a car for a few years.  I didn't end up buying a car until I graduated and had a real job.  

 

[saraha]

52 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Sending some hugs!  I hope everything is ok.

Thanks, you are always so supportive of everyone! ❤️

[mommyoffive]

16 minutes ago, Acorn said:

I figure this might be a good place to ask.  Has anyone seen sales or promos for TI-84 graphing calculators?  I think that I should have been looking sooner, the arrival of August caught me by surprise.

 

 

I haven't looked for that at all.  I will keep my eye open for you now.  I feel like the back to school stuff is drying up already.  

[mommyoffive]

1 minute ago, saraha said:

Thanks, you are always so supportive of everyone! ❤️

You have a lot of stuff going on right now.  Sending lots of good thoughts.  I hope your dh is doing well and your MIL (I hope I am not remembering that wrong) is getting easier with support and maybe medical treatment.  Hoping the stress is a little bit less. 

[cjzimmer1]

Things are still chuggin along here.  Seems like we are spending a ton of money (and we are) but everything is things that were planned for and budgeted but I still hate seeing the bank account number lowered.

Saturday/Sunday we are driving van for the dog rescue and it turns out our new dog happens to be on this load so it will be extra fun to be able to drive her home.

DH broke his arm in June and the bills are coming in however, we met the deductible when DS had has wisdom teeth out earlier in the year so thankfully we've paid nothing for the broken arm visits, surgery, and now therapy.  Since we hit the deductible we are now trying to get everything else done.  DH is scheduling a sleep study later this month and I need to set up some lab work.

New carpet in our bedroom is being installed as we speak.  Our bedroom has never been painted since we moved in because I didn't want to deal with the hassle of moving the bed.  When I finally moved it to paint before the carpet came, I realized all I need to do was slide the platform away from the wall and it was super easy to paint around.  I was kicking myself realizing I could have done that YEARS ago but for some reason I kept thinking I would have to move the entire bed out of the room before I could paint.  Oh well, it's done now and the whole house will look so nice with everything haven been repainted and refloored in the last 2 years.

The sunroom is slowly progressing. I figured out the style of windows and doors we want.  The builder is redoing the sketch to widen the windows on one wall.  I'm suppose to meet with him sometime in the next week or so to finalize the look and then he will start ordering supplies.  I'm hoping the price of lumber has dropped enough that we will see some savings (he quoted it in May when prices were super high but he said our actual price would be based on the prices when he placed the order)

Our garden is doing great so we've been eating lots of fresh veggies and I'm preserving extras when I have time.  I have played with the pressure canner a little bit but so far have only done meat from the freezer.  I think I'm going to love it once I get more comfortable with it.  One of the jars of meat wasn't quite full so I threw some potatoes in the jar just to experiment if I'd like the texture.  They were amazing so I'm planning to do some quarts of those once I get up to the produce auction this fall and pick up some potatoes.  Will be wonderful to have that part of a meal almost ready to go for those when I'm too tired/busy to cook from scratch.

[mommyoffive]

Oh and since I was talking about focus groups, I know there are tons out there.  

Welcome to 20|20 Panel (2020panel.com)

This one always has high value surveys.  You will go for a bit and not hear anything and then get a ton in a week.  You fill out short surveys to see if you fit for the focus group and then you might get a call if they get to you.  I haven't ever seen one for lower than $75

 

Join | ProductReportCard

You will get lots of surveys all the time and some most are low $.  But they do have some high value ones pretty often too, as in $75 or more.  

Hope that helps anyone.  Let me know if you join and get some surveys!

[cjzimmer1]

17 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

That is exactly what I wanted to do.  Awesome.  Thanks for that info.  I really haven't looked into stuff at all.  Where do you get the learning materials?  When do you start teaching your kids?  They get their permits at 18 or younger? 

I didn't get my license until I was in college.  I took drivers ed in high school, but my older brother had a car and all my friends had cars.  There wasn't really a need to get one.  Plus I would have had to buy it myself and I was saving money for college instead.  In college you couldn't even bring a car for a few years.  I didn't end up buying a car until I graduated and had a real job.  

 

Just google state name and DMV manual (or handbook).  I have an app downloaded to the tablet that has some practice tests too.  Not sure where I found that as it was years ago that I downloaded it but I'm sure it came from the state's DMV site somewhere.

The only way to get the permit before 18 is if they are registered in an approved driver's ed course so if you want to avoid that cost they can't get their permit until after 18.

[mommyoffive]

7 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said:

Things are still chuggin along here.  Seems like we are spending a ton of money (and we are) but everything is things that were planned for and budgeted but I still hate seeing the bank account number lowered.

Saturday/Sunday we are driving van for the dog rescue and it turns out our new dog happens to be on this load so it will be extra fun to be able to drive her home.

DH broke his arm in June and the bills are coming in however, we met the deductible when DS had has wisdom teeth out earlier in the year so thankfully we've paid nothing for the broken arm visits, surgery, and now therapy.  Since we hit the deductible we are now trying to get everything else done.  DH is scheduling a sleep study later this month and I need to set up some lab work.

New carpet in our bedroom is being installed as we speak.  Our bedroom has never been painted since we moved in because I didn't want to deal with the hassle of moving the bed.  When I finally moved it to paint before the carpet came, I realized all I need to do was slide the platform away from the wall and it was super easy to paint around.  I was kicking myself realizing I could have done that YEARS ago but for some reason I kept thinking I would have to move the entire bed out of the room before I could paint.  Oh well, it's done now and the whole house will look so nice with everything haven been repainted and refloored in the last 2 years.

The sunroom is slowly progressing. I figured out the style of windows and doors we want.  The builder is redoing the sketch to widen the windows on one wall.  I'm suppose to meet with him sometime in the next week or so to finalize the look and then he will start ordering supplies.  I'm hoping the price of lumber has dropped enough that we will see some savings (he quoted it in May when prices were super high but he said our actual price would be based on the prices when he placed the order)

Our garden is doing great so we've been eating lots of fresh veggies and I'm preserving extras when I have time.  I have played with the pressure canner a little bit but so far have only done meat from the freezer.  I think I'm going to love it once I get more comfortable with it.  One of the jars of meat wasn't quite full so I threw some potatoes in the jar just to experiment if I'd like the texture.  They were amazing so I'm planning to do some quarts of those once I get up to the produce auction this fall and pick up some potatoes.  Will be wonderful to have that part of a meal almost ready to go for those when I'm too tired/busy to cook from scratch.

Awwww that is so cool that you are driving your dog.  I was going to ask if you got your new puppy.  Where is your dog coming from?  You might have mentioned it already and I forgot.

Oh your poor dh.  I hope he heals quickly.  Is it normal to have therapy after you break your arm?  Nice that you don't have to pay anything at least. 

Yeah for your new bedroom.  I bet it is going to look so nice.

So cool that you are going to have savings on your sunroom.  You timed it just right!  I want a sunroom.  My dogs would love it too.

Awesome that your garden is doing so well!  

[cjzimmer1]

1 minute ago, mommyoffive said:

Awwww that is so cool that you are driving your dog.  I was going to ask if you got your new puppy.  Where is your dog coming from?  You might have mentioned it already and I forgot.

Oh your poor dh.  I hope he heals quickly.  Is it normal to have therapy after you break your arm?  Nice that you don't have to pay anything at least. 

Yeah for your new bedroom.  I bet it is going to look so nice.

So cool that you are going to have savings on your sunroom.  You timed it just right!  I want a sunroom.  My dogs would love it too.

Awesome that your garden is doing so well!  

The dog is coming from the Houston Texas area.  We meet the Texas driving group in Arkansas and switch the dogs to our van and drive them the rest of the way here.  I have a cool story (at least I think so) about the dog.  I had put in an application to foster/preapproval.  There were some puppies coming up on the load we were driving and while we would have LOVED to get a little puppy, I just didn't want to spend the extra money for spaying and classes that young puppies require but figured we could foster them if needed.  2 days later (and before they had even looked at my application), they posted a dog who was literally perfect for us. Everything I wanted right down to the color except she was coming up 2 weeks earlier than I wanted to take a dog because I was dog sitting my sister's elderly dog (with medical problems) and didn't want to introduce a new dog in the mix.  But the new dog was so perfect I didn't want to miss my chance at her and yes and figured I find a way to make it work. The morning of her transport she was sick and got pulled and rescheduled on the next trip which happened to be the one I was scheduled to drive.  I had always thought how cool it would be to drive my own dog home but knew the chances were slim for it to work out so perfectly and then it did.  

[Soror]

42 minutes ago, Acorn said:

I figure this might be a good place to ask.  Has anyone seen sales or promos for TI-84 graphing calculators?  I think that I should have been looking sooner, the arrival of August caught me by surprise.

 

 

No I have not, sorry.

[saraha]

1 hour ago, cjzimmer1 said:

One of the jars of meat wasn't quite full so I threw some potatoes in the jar just to experiment if I'd like the texture.  They were amazing so I'm planning to do some quarts of those once I get up to the produce auction this fall and pick up some potatoes.  Will be wonderful to have that part of a meal almost ready to go for those when I'm too tired/busy to cook from scratch.

I would love to hear more about this. I  bought an electric pressure canner and so far have used it for carrots and green beans.

[saraha]

45 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said:

The dog is coming from the Houston Texas area.  We meet the Texas driving group in Arkansas and switch the dogs to our van and drive them the rest of the way here.  I have a cool story (at least I think so) about the dog.  I had put in an application to foster/preapproval.  There were some puppies coming up on the load we were driving and while we would have LOVED to get a little puppy, I just didn't want to spend the extra money for spaying and classes that young puppies require but figured we could foster them if needed.  2 days later (and before they had even looked at my application), they posted a dog who was literally perfect for us. Everything I wanted right down to the color except she was coming up 2 weeks earlier than I wanted to take a dog because I was dog sitting my sister's elderly dog (with medical problems) and didn't want to introduce a new dog in the mix.  But the new dog was so perfect I didn't want to miss my chance at her and yes and figured I find a way to make it work. The morning of her transport she was sick and got pulled and rescheduled on the next trip which happened to be the one I was scheduled to drive.  I had always thought how cool it would be to drive my own dog home but knew the chances were slim for it to work out so perfectly and then it did.  

Awwww

[cjzimmer1]

18 minutes ago, saraha said:

I would love to hear more about this. I  bought an electric pressure canner and so far have used it for carrots and green beans.

I've joined several canning groups on facebook and I saw it on one of them (but don't remember which one) but the ideas/recipes are coming from this book:

The All New Ball Book Of Canning And Preserving: Over 350 of the Best Canned, Jammed, Pickled, and Preserved Recipes: Ball Home Canning Test Kitchen: 9780848746780: AmazonSmile: Books

I just borrowed it from the library but it's definitely on my list of things to purchase.  They have a section of meals in a jar that I very much want to try.  They also have a herbed potatoes that I've seen very good reviews on.  

I did hamburger and was very happy with the results.  Some people think it's too soft but I was happy with it.  I also cut up some chuck roast and tried them with different seasonings.  I haven't opened them all yet to see how they taste but I was really happy with the meat/potato combo.  I sort of based it on the pot roast recipe but since it was a last minute just trying to fill the jar, I only used some of the ingredients/seasonings but I really liked the taste.

[amyx4]

1 hour ago, cjzimmer1 said:

Plus in our state they are no longer required to take driver's ed if they wait until 18 and when you have a lot of kids that turns into a huge money savings over the years.  The state puts out learning materials that I make the kids study and then they go take the test to get their permit.  Once they pass that, I teach them how to drive and then they get their license.  Of course not everyone has it them to teach their kids to drive but it's worked well for us so far.  I'll be teaching number 3 to drive this fall.

 

This is very dependent on the state you live in.

In my state if Teen A gets a license at 16.5 and never buy a car and/or gets cars insurance until they turn 25 years old the insurance companies in my state will count all those years (16.5-25) as "good driving credit".

Teen A's insurance at 25 will be lower than Teen B if Teen B waits until 25 to get a license. Even factoring in the cost of drivers-ed classes.

Strange? Yes! But we have lots of teens and have checked into this every time someone learns to drive.

[mommyoffive]

1 minute ago, amyx4 said:

 

This is very dependent on the state you live in.

In my state if Teen A gets a license at 16.5 and never buy a car and/or gets cars insurance until they turn 25 years old the insurance companies in my state will count all those years (16.5-25) as "good driving credit".

Teen A's insurance at 25 will be lower than Teen B if Teen B waits until 25 to get a license. Even factoring in the cost of drivers-ed classes.

Strange? Yes! But we have lots of teens and have checked into this every time someone learns to drive.

What state is that?

I think my kids would get a license at 18.  But who knows?  Depends on where they want to live.  But just for ease of travel and all sorts of other things I think they would get it then.

[cjzimmer1]

39 minutes ago, amyx4 said:

 

This is very dependent on the state you live in.

In my state if Teen A gets a license at 16.5 and never buy a car and/or gets cars insurance until they turn 25 years old the insurance companies in my state will count all those years (16.5-25) as "good driving credit".

Teen A's insurance at 25 will be lower than Teen B if Teen B waits until 25 to get a license. Even factoring in the cost of drivers-ed classes.

Strange? Yes! But we have lots of teens and have checked into this every time someone learns to drive.

I wasn't talking about insurance at all.  I was talking about the cost of the driver's ed classes adding up to a substantial sum when added together for lots of kids.  But you are right it is very state dependent. Mommyoffive lives in the same state as me so we will have the same insurance requirements.  And for us once the kid has a license they have to be added to insurance (at much higher rates) even if they never drive.  Yes "years of driving" at 25 will factor in to the rate at 25 but the discount is no where near enough to offset the cost of driver's ed plus the  years of expensive insurance for a teen driver.  (driver's ed is approximately $500 per child and to insure a teen driver is anywhere from $700-$1500 per year depending on the value of your vechicles).  If your state allows them to have a license without insurance I can see where that could be a savings but that's not an option in our state (well at least not a LEGAL option, I'm sure there are plenty who do it illegally)

[historically accurate]

3 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Boo on the KC expiring. 

I hope your oldest gets some money from the survey.  So cool that she got that bike!  She should get some of use out of it down there with the warm weather.   I the PT is better than surgery so that is good news.  But the stress of figuring it all out stinks.  I hope she doesn't need to go that long.

So many drivers.  I am putting that off until my teens have jobs to support the costs of it.  Plus I don't agree with 16 year old kids driving.  I am much more support of being 18 when you get a license. 

Yay for getting Christmas shopping done.  I want to buy all my big gifts right now and have it all done.  I don't have a place to hid things though.  

Awesome paying off a credit card. 

Hoping your dh gets the bonus and raise.  

My rule is they can't get a license until they can pay for insurance, but I start them off with a permit at 15 (16 for middle due to her heart condition), so they have lots and lots of practice time. Oldest still doesn't have her license at 19 - we just keep renewing her permit. Insurance for permit drivers doesn't cost any extra. Mandatory driver's ed is $450 here though, and we do cover that cost. There is mandatory driver's ed through age 20, but I think it drops in price at age 18, but I prefer them to have a couple years practice with me. 

Edited August 3, 2021 by historically accurate

[mommyoffive]

24 minutes ago, historically accurate said:

My rule is they can't get a license until they can pay for insurance, but I start them off with a permit at 15 (16 for middle due to her heart condition), so they have lots and lots of practice time. Oldest still doesn't have her license at 19 - we just keep renewing her permit. Insurance for permit drivers doesn't cost any extra. Mandatory driver's ed is $450 here though, and we do cover that cost. There is mandatory driver's ed through age 20, but I think it drops in price at age 18, but I prefer them to have a couple years practice with me. 

Oh that is a good idea about the permit if they don't have to pay for insurance.  I always wanted them to have a few years of practice with us.  Getting experience with all the seasons is a great idea.

[mommyoffive]

53 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said:

I wasn't talking about insurance at all.  I was talking about the cost of the driver's ed classes adding up to a substantial sum when added together for lots of kids.  But you are right it is very state dependent. Mommyoffive lives in the same state as me so we will have the same insurance requirements.  And for us once the kid has a license they have to be added to insurance (at much higher rates) even if they never drive.  Yes "years of driving" at 25 will factor in to the rate at 25 but the discount is no where near enough to offset the cost of driver's ed plus the  years of expensive insurance for a teen driver.  (driver's ed is approximately $500 per child and to insure a teen driver is anywhere from $700-$1500 per year depending on the value of your vechicles).  If your state allows them to have a license without insurance I can see where that could be a savings but that's not an option in our state (well at least not a LEGAL option, I'm sure there are plenty who do it illegally)

Yeah I went over the costs with my oldest and she was like OHHHH, yeah I don't want to get my license now.  She would have to pay for it.  She hasn't had a job yet.  If they had a much lower cost activity things would be different.

[Soror]

Interesting re: driver's ed. It is not required here. I had considered doing it with ds but there are very limited slots. Dh taught him, very painstakingly. I taught him how to drive a stick this summer.If we can we'll get the others in Driver's Ed but otherwise I'm putting it on dh. Ds pays for his insurance with his pay, along with gas and spending money and saving some for a replacement vehicle as the one we bought is older.

__________

Dh had his meeting about his bonus it is going to be about half of what I'd hoped, boo. Still waiting to find out about raise- that is a different meeting (not sure when the bonus comes through or the next meeting is)😞

I called the bank and will get my full interest income (felt like a cheap skate calling but did it anyway) around $24

Called dr's office because they added CMP to my lab orders and I don't usually get it done- since I pay OOP I try to get the minimum tests- they are sending me new orders without it

Dd3 has issue with a tooth with a cap so got her in tomorrow, boo

Working on menu and grocery list- got to get it in gear!

[mommyoffive]

1 minute ago, Soror said:

Interesting re: driver's ed. It is not required here. I had considered doing it with ds but there are very limited slots. Dh taught him, very painstakingly. I taught him how to drive a stick this summer.If we can we'll get the others in Driver's Ed but otherwise I'm putting it on dh. Ds pays for his insurance with his pay, along with gas and spending money and saving some for a replacement vehicle as the one we bought is older.

__________

Dh had his meeting about his bonus it is going to be about half of what I'd hoped, boo. Still waiting to find out about raise- that is a different meeting (not sure when the bonus comes through or the next meeting is)😞

I called the bank and will get my full interest income (felt like a cheap skate calling but did it anyway) around $24

Called dr's office because they added CMP to my lab orders and I don't usually get it done- since I pay OOP I try to get the minimum tests- they are sending me new orders without it

Dd3 has issue with a tooth with a cap so got her in tomorrow, boo

Working on menu and grocery list- got to get it in gear!

Ugh about the bonus.  That stinks.  I would much rather have a higher salary than a bonus.  I hate the not knowing.  Dh gets a bonus with his job and it varies from year to year.

[Soror]

6 hours ago, Longtime Lurker said:

Since DH's summer 2020 layoff, I took a job as a permanent substitute teacher (instead of just a couple days a week). I only get paid during the school year, so the summer has been tighter. We had a nice cushion going into the summer and I am trying to make it through without dipping into savings. We do have savings set aside that we can use, but I have made it my personal challenge not to touch it. So we just have to make it through one more month before I get my first fall paycheck. So far so good...

1 more month! You can do it!

7 hours ago, historically accurate said:

Dh usually gets his bonus around this time. Company's fiscal year end is July 31, but we haven't heard a word. Hoping it comes through soon so we can use it for medical expenses that are looming. Last year he got it in the last July paycheck, but 3 years ago, he got it in the first Sept paycheck. He didn't get anything 2 years ago. Nor have we heard anything about a raise - maybe they'll retroactive it when they change his pay?

Honey gave me $ in paypal just for signing up. Only $5, but it's $5 I didn't have. Also got $8 and change from some class-action lawsuit this week.

Groceries were over budget last month. I didn't have $ to go to Sam's to stock up - I normally hold back like $70-$100 for a Sam's stock up. Nope, I was over $35, even using that Sam's $ on our weekly shop. 

Oldest's kneecap needs physical therapy, not surgery currently. We'll have to find her a place in Huntsville to go that's close to the school and pay Uber for her to get there. Trying not to freak out about it. She did get a Charger Bike (free bike they can use on campus) so she can ride to class some days. I put a bike lock in this week's grocery cart already.

Should pay off DH's credit card this month! The money will just roll into the next one, but hey, at least the next one will go down quicker, right?

I'll finish off Middle's driver's ed fund this month, so she can start in September. She's excited. Then I need to start saving for Youngest - she'll turn 15 in March. 

Taking Oldest to Huntsville next weekend. Hotel to be reserved this weekend - we'll do home sandwiches and snacks for Covid reasons (it helps with budget too).

Purchased some Christmas presents this week - Middle had commented on some things at Claire's, so I went back and picked them up for stocking stuffers. 

Didn't make it to Kohl's and my Kohl's Cash expired. 

Edited to add: Oldest got a survey from UAH about costs associated with Covid and attending college. The email said that there might be some $ in it. We wracked our brains and came up with some - hoping for some $ for her. 

Crossing fingers for your dh's bonus too. So annoying to be waiting and not knowing. Ya for the bike!!! Happy to hear she doesn't need surgery. Awesome you are getting a card paid off- rolling the snow ball.

7 hours ago, saraha said:

Nothing frugal here, just discouraged. You guys are doing awesome though!

(hugs) Some months are anything but frugal no matter how we try- get the wins where you can.

[Soror]

1 minute ago, mommyoffive said:

Ugh about the bonus.  That stinks.  I would much rather have a higher salary than a bonus.  I hate the not knowing.  Dh gets a bonus with his job and it varies from year to year.

Ya, me too. They base it on these metrics that no one understands and my dh certainly had no control over these things but it is the same for everyone. But at least he is getting something, better than nothing.

[Brittany1116]

We recently returned from vacation and school started today. We stayed on budget for the trip except about $90 in car parts because something flaked out as soon as we got to the resort. I took up a friend on an offer to watch her 2 littlest until Christmas or she can find a daycare that can take both, whichever comes first. The money is nice but I am sooo tired having doubled the number of kids here. No big money plans for the next month. I am casually perusing used vehicles. 

[mommyoffive]

On 8/3/2021 at 11:09 AM, cjzimmer1 said:

The dog is coming from the Houston Texas area.  We meet the Texas driving group in Arkansas and switch the dogs to our van and drive them the rest of the way here.  I have a cool story (at least I think so) about the dog.  I had put in an application to foster/preapproval.  There were some puppies coming up on the load we were driving and while we would have LOVED to get a little puppy, I just didn't want to spend the extra money for spaying and classes that young puppies require but figured we could foster them if needed.  2 days later (and before they had even looked at my application), they posted a dog who was literally perfect for us. Everything I wanted right down to the color except she was coming up 2 weeks earlier than I wanted to take a dog because I was dog sitting my sister's elderly dog (with medical problems) and didn't want to introduce a new dog in the mix.  But the new dog was so perfect I didn't want to miss my chance at her and yes and figured I find a way to make it work. The morning of her transport she was sick and got pulled and rescheduled on the next trip which happened to be the one I was scheduled to drive.  I had always thought how cool it would be to drive my own dog home but knew the chances were slim for it to work out so perfectly and then it did.  

That is such a great story!  That is exciting to have a new dog!

[Soror]

-they had a vote at the Electric Coop- dh went by- $20 off the next bill

-got dd2&3 a couple of small items and some take out- had money set aside since the older 2 got to do big shopping for back to school- I wanted them to have a little something

-forgot dh has to pay for new parking permit for college- I have some extra in college fund- may or may not be enough- not sure on the cost of books

re: VIPKID- they are not allowed to sell new packages to parents but we can finish teaching classes already sold. They have been working on expanding into other areas (adult classes, reading classes in US, other countries) and are planning on just pivoting away and keeping going. How that is going to play out, no one knows. I know some companies have shut down. Others expect 6-12 months more to finish out classes. I'm guessing they hope they can pivot enough in that time as they are a much bigger company. I am not sure what I'm going to do. I had tentatively planned to stay on until dh finished college and got a raise- saving up for a new to me car and our 25th anniversary trip in that time. I was hoping to have about half of the car fund by the end of the year but that still leaves a good chunk. We can probably squeeze some out of dh's checks but it would hurt to squeeze that much (unless there is a really good raise and things go better)

Edited August 7, 2021 by Soror

[mommyoffive]

Spendy spendy week.  The kids are back at in-person dance so $$$$$$.  Oldest ones an in-person intensive and some extra classes.    And then paying performance fees for all 5.   $$

Other than that we did replace the door lock finally.  

Saved $550 by downgrading a credit card.

[historically accurate]

Friends of ours just downsized and are trying out living in Ecuador, so they gifted the kids a whole lot of books. So the kids went through the bookcases and culled little kid books. Today I listed some American Girl books and a few series on ebay. I've got a slew of chess books, American Girl, and a couple more series that I'll have to get listed soon.

Oldest & I did most of her packing today - we leave Thursday to take her back to school. She applied for an on-campus job yesterday with NASA (how cool is it that NASA has an office on campus? That's why she's where she is for college). Fingers crossed! I had to make some last-minute Amazon clothing purchases.

Spendy medical week this week - there are 3 doctor appointments - trying to get oldest in before she leaves. 

Neighbor gave us some sweet corn, so that & hot dogs is what's for dinner. I found out the school did get their free breakfast/lunch grant extended, but they haven't announced if it will be for all kids or only those in person (for that matter, they haven't decided yet whether they are all in person or partially virtual).

I expected VIPKid to no longer give me incentives to open slots, but they gave me one this morning. 

[mommyoffive]

16 hours ago, historically accurate said:

Friends of ours just downsized and are trying out living in Ecuador, so they gifted the kids a whole lot of books. So the kids went through the bookcases and culled little kid books. Today I listed some American Girl books and a few series on ebay. I've got a slew of chess books, American Girl, and a couple more series that I'll have to get listed soon.

Oldest & I did most of her packing today - we leave Thursday to take her back to school. She applied for an on-campus job yesterday with NASA (how cool is it that NASA has an office on campus? That's why she's where she is for college). Fingers crossed! I had to make some last-minute Amazon clothing purchases.

Spendy medical week this week - there are 3 doctor appointments - trying to get oldest in before she leaves. 

Neighbor gave us some sweet corn, so that & hot dogs is what's for dinner. I found out the school did get their free breakfast/lunch grant extended, but they haven't announced if it will be for all kids or only those in person (for that matter, they haven't decided yet whether they are all in person or partially virtual).

I expected VIPKid to no longer give me incentives to open slots, but they gave me one this morning. 

Yay for the vipkid incentive. 

Yeah for the free food.

Sending good luck for your campus job!  I hope she gets it.  That is so cool.  Does she want to work for NASA later?  

Ugh for the spendy week with the doctors.

 

Oh and I hope you get to keep getting the free breakfast and lunch.  I miss that

Edited August 9, 2021 by mommyoffive

[historically accurate]

19 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Yay for the vipkid incentive. 

Yeah for the free food.

Sending good luck for your campus job!  I hope she gets it.  That is so cool.  Does she want to work for NASA later?  

Ugh for the spendy week with the doctors.

Yeah, working for NASA is her dream job. She did the NASA Virtual Academy a couple of years ago and loved it. https://www.lspace.asu.edu/

[mommyoffive]

6 minutes ago, historically accurate said:

Yeah, working for NASA is her dream job. She did the NASA Virtual Academy a couple of years ago and loved it. https://www.lspace.asu.edu/

Wow, so cool!!

[prairiewindmomma]

On 8/3/2021 at 8:28 AM, Acorn said:

I figure this might be a good place to ask.  Has anyone seen sales or promos for TI-84 graphing calculators?  I think that I should have been looking sooner, the arrival of August caught me by surprise.

 

 

On sale right now at Target!

[historically accurate]

Not a bad deal for laundry detergent - especially if you can pick up at a local store (Same bottle is $8.97 at my local walmart):

https://moneysavingmom.com/tide-liquid-laundry-detergent-128-oz-bottle-only-6-reg-13/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tide-liquid-laundry-detergent-128-oz-bottle-only-6-reg-13

[historically accurate]

DH is going to get his bonus this month and retroactive raise (back to the beginning of the fiscal year July 1). They sent out an email saying they expect it to go out "around the 20th". He gets paid on the 19th, so maybe with the next paycheck? However, they have yet to tell him how much on either. Weird. I guess we're getting surprise money!

DD did not get the NASA internship, but they told her she can reapply next semester. 

Walgreens has B1G1 on certain vitamins right now - I was able to pick up some vitamins to stock up with. 

I got a couple of bids on my current ebay listings. Yay for that!

We leave tomorrow for Alabama. 

[Soror]

12 minutes ago, historically accurate said:

DH is going to get his bonus this month and retroactive raise (back to the beginning of the fiscal year July 1). They sent out an email saying they expect it to go out "around the 20th". He gets paid on the 19th, so maybe with the next paycheck? However, they have yet to tell him how much on either. Weird. I guess we're getting surprise money!

DD did not get the NASA internship, but they told her she can reapply next semester. 

Walgreens has B1G1 on certain vitamins right now - I was able to pick up some vitamins to stock up with. 

I got a couple of bids on my current ebay listings. Yay for that!

We leave tomorrow for Alabama. 

Ya for the raise! Would be nice to know the amount. We're waiting to hear about a raise too. Any day now I hope.

Bummer dd did not get the internship, hopefully next semester.

Thanks for the heads up about vitamins. I bought a bunch at Christmas when they had a sell. I need to see if they have that we use on the list.

_______________________

Dh bought a part that he hopes will fix the ac if it don't it will have to go to a shop. He also bought new lights for his truck. His work but they are not as bright as he'd like being older. That was all $150 or so. He had to switch classes (issues with transferring)- $350 more-UGH. I forgot as well about the yearly parking permit so he went through the rest of my college fund and then another $180 and our refund will be around $200 less from the the other college, which stinks. Very tired of this crap. All my fingers crossed that he passes his classes/doesn't have to drop any- this semester and ends up FINALLY getting some reimbursement. He had to switch his one course from 3hr to 5hr which means more work, which has me a bit concerned. He is so stinking busy at work it doesn't leave enough time for everything.

Annoyed with the dentist. I paid according to the EOB  but then received a bill because evidently they charge you over the negotiated rate to meet their original charge. Not amused. More medical costs not going to my deductible.

Bookings are very good right now with VIPKID it utterly stinks that it looks very certain I will be losing this job. Rumors are so all over the map as to when that will happen. Dh and I decided to ride it to the end. It pays far better than anything else I can get and it is so convenient being at home. I've looked online for jobs remote and local but not found anything that seems worthwhile yet. The best prospect I've seen is Aldi's, it still yet pays only $14 an hour when I'm making $21+ an hour now and I'd have to be out of the home. Hard to find higher pay working part time. I'm really hoping I can at least get most of my van fund done before it ends but who knows. I'll be squeezing what I can out of dh's checks(certainly any raise he gets and some of his OT pay) in anticipation of that (much rather have extra funds going elsewhere but we need to plan for the worst). If it ends up lasting longer and we don't need the funds I'm certain we'll have other expenses to put it towards.

[cjzimmer1]

6 hours ago, Soror said:

 

Annoyed with the dentist. I paid according to the EOB  but then received a bill because evidently they charge you over the negotiated rate to meet their original charge. Not amused. More medical costs not going to my deductible.

 

Is the dentist in network?  If yes, I'd be calling the insurance company and dentist office till it gets resolved.  An in network doctor/dentist cannot legally bill you for the amount that is written off (even though I've had quite a few try and the always claim "oh that was an error" but are secretly hoping you will pay it anyways) if the dentists is out of network than yeah, I guess your stuck.  

[cjzimmer1]

Last weekend we drove the rescue transport and got to bring our new dog home.  She is adorable and for the most part they (her and my current dog) are getting along well.  We also ended up bringing home a 3 pound 10 week old chihuahua puppy.  One of their approved adopters canceled Saturday night as we were driving home and the coordinator asked me if I was up to fostering one of them(we had discussed that we were interested in fostering on a general level the day before when I picked up the van) so we brought her home too.  She is such a little ball of spunk.  My kids totally want to keep her but we won't because I'm not willing to divert money from the sunroom project to cover the expenses of a young puppy.  But until they find her a new home, we get all the fun of playing with a new puppy without any of the expenses so it's still a win.

I have a meeting with our builder on Aug 20 to finalize the windows doors.  I know the project is moving, it just feels so painfully slow.  Especially when I have the entire room planned out in my head already and the space for the dogs/animal stuff would be super helpful now.

Picked up school lunches today and they told me it's the last one.  The workers have no idea what happens next.  They just said they were told to tell everyone this was it.  They seemed rather confused on the erupt end since school doesn't start for 3 more weeks. Oh well, it was super helpful for the budget while it lasted.  My kitchen table is completely full of produce I picked from my garden so I've got a lot of processing to do this week.