It's been a couple of weeks since my last post. I assure you I haven't been busy spending money or shopping away -- no, we've actually been busy hosting!
Since my last post, we've had guests from nearer (up North, 200-ish miles) and far (Germany!). It's been fun to share our home and spend time with people we care about and love. It's been a neat way to 'escape' and be entertained without going anywhere, or spending.
I expect honesty.
That was sudden and blunt, I know. So I must confess -- I broke the no spending rule a couple of times in the last 2 weeks. I ate out twice and went bowling. Gah! And I loved every bite and frame!
For shame. I know. The first out-to-eat coincided with the bowling and then the second out to eat was just a matter of we were an hour from home, had been gone allll afternoon/evening (visiting a friend in the hospital), and needed food in our bellies.
The incidents were paid for out of our joint checking, so, with money that's not fully mine per say. That doesn't make it okay. But, who's perfect? I knew there'd be slips. The only thing I can do is look forward and try to plan better next time.
On the plus side, I've saved/regained money in variety of ways since posting last. I think these make up for the spending mishaps.
The couponing/price matching continues! The first week of the month, I saved us close to $14 on groceries. Last week the grocery planning and shopping was a little rushed, so I only saved $4.
Almost a month ago now, Novio and I bought new light fixtures for our main bathroom. Well, a week after we bought them, Novio saw our exact fixtures in the store weekly flyer on sale for significantly less than what we had paid! (We bought 2 fixtures). We talked about taking down the fixtures, boxing them back up, returning them, and then buying them 'on sale'. Or even buying the 'on sale' fixtures, and then returning them with our old receipt... well, turns out at this particular store (Menards) all we had to do was bring in our receipt, show it to the customer service clerk and we were given our $34.05 back -- in store credit!
I'd like to tell you we left the store, got in our car, and went home to carefully plan how we were going to use the money. Instead, we put it toward a keyless (key code) handle for our front door. We had been talking about getting even before we bought the house (someone has trouble remembering to grab a key when she goes out for a walk with the Poodle, a run, bike ride...), so, in some ways, it was a needed and planned out purchase. After nearly 2 weeks, I am loving the convenience of it.
The day after our successful Menards trip, as Novio was putting the door handle on, I gathered up a few articles of clothing I purchased back in October that still hadn't been worn. 2 shirts I bought for Novio and 1 pair of pants I bought for me. I fished out the receipt. I had procrastinated in taking the pants back because I couldn't decide whether or not I liked them, and I think Novio felt bad that he didn't care for the shirts I had bought him. I finally decided I wasn't going to wear the pants (since I hadn't already!) and I told Novio I wouldn't be hurt (for too long) if he didn't like the shirts. I returned the items -- yes, they (Eddie Bauer) took them, even though it was 4 months later -- and I got $65.73 back.
Later that afternoon, my friend and former-co-worker who has gone back to school for message came by. She had told me earlier in the week she had learned a bunch of message techniques and needed to practice. Being the great friend that I am, I told her she could come and do her homework. And it was great -- and the best part, free! She spent an hour practicing all she had learned so far. Really, it felt like a pro, not a beginner, was working on my back, neck, arms, legs, and feet. Her homework saved me roughly $60-65. She is welcome in my home any time.
It's funny how you can save and regain simply by looking for opportunities, being honest about our purchases, and being a good friend ;).
Lastly, I made my final car payment. The car loan is gone! Sole focus is now on Student Loan Debt repayment. As of this publishing, I have $36,599.82 left to tackle.
Let's do this.
Since my last post, we've had guests from nearer (up North, 200-ish miles) and far (Germany!). It's been fun to share our home and spend time with people we care about and love. It's been a neat way to 'escape' and be entertained without going anywhere, or spending.
I expect honesty.
That was sudden and blunt, I know. So I must confess -- I broke the no spending rule a couple of times in the last 2 weeks. I ate out twice and went bowling. Gah! And I loved every bite and frame!
For shame. I know. The first out-to-eat coincided with the bowling and then the second out to eat was just a matter of we were an hour from home, had been gone allll afternoon/evening (visiting a friend in the hospital), and needed food in our bellies.
The incidents were paid for out of our joint checking, so, with money that's not fully mine per say. That doesn't make it okay. But, who's perfect? I knew there'd be slips. The only thing I can do is look forward and try to plan better next time.
On the plus side, I've saved/regained money in variety of ways since posting last. I think these make up for the spending mishaps.
The couponing/price matching continues! The first week of the month, I saved us close to $14 on groceries. Last week the grocery planning and shopping was a little rushed, so I only saved $4.
Almost a month ago now, Novio and I bought new light fixtures for our main bathroom. Well, a week after we bought them, Novio saw our exact fixtures in the store weekly flyer on sale for significantly less than what we had paid! (We bought 2 fixtures). We talked about taking down the fixtures, boxing them back up, returning them, and then buying them 'on sale'. Or even buying the 'on sale' fixtures, and then returning them with our old receipt... well, turns out at this particular store (Menards) all we had to do was bring in our receipt, show it to the customer service clerk and we were given our $34.05 back -- in store credit!
I'd like to tell you we left the store, got in our car, and went home to carefully plan how we were going to use the money. Instead, we put it toward a keyless (key code) handle for our front door. We had been talking about getting even before we bought the house (someone has trouble remembering to grab a key when she goes out for a walk with the Poodle, a run, bike ride...), so, in some ways, it was a needed and planned out purchase. After nearly 2 weeks, I am loving the convenience of it.
The day after our successful Menards trip, as Novio was putting the door handle on, I gathered up a few articles of clothing I purchased back in October that still hadn't been worn. 2 shirts I bought for Novio and 1 pair of pants I bought for me. I fished out the receipt. I had procrastinated in taking the pants back because I couldn't decide whether or not I liked them, and I think Novio felt bad that he didn't care for the shirts I had bought him. I finally decided I wasn't going to wear the pants (since I hadn't already!) and I told Novio I wouldn't be hurt (for too long) if he didn't like the shirts. I returned the items -- yes, they (Eddie Bauer) took them, even though it was 4 months later -- and I got $65.73 back.
Later that afternoon, my friend and former-co-worker who has gone back to school for message came by. She had told me earlier in the week she had learned a bunch of message techniques and needed to practice. Being the great friend that I am, I told her she could come and do her homework. And it was great -- and the best part, free! She spent an hour practicing all she had learned so far. Really, it felt like a pro, not a beginner, was working on my back, neck, arms, legs, and feet. Her homework saved me roughly $60-65. She is welcome in my home any time.
It's funny how you can save and regain simply by looking for opportunities, being honest about our purchases, and being a good friend ;).
Lastly, I made my final car payment. The car loan is gone! Sole focus is now on Student Loan Debt repayment. As of this publishing, I have $36,599.82 left to tackle.
Let's do this.