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Our Monthly Budget

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AllOur Monthly Budget
August 2020 Budget With Me

August 15, 2020 Budget With Me

August 21, 2020
Our August paycheck came on Friday, the 14th, and is...
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July 2020 Budget With Me

July 15, 2020 Budget With Me

July 24, 2020
Our July paycheck cames on Wednesday, the 15th, and is...
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March 2019 Debt Update

March 2019 Debt Update

March 29, 2019
March brought our third monthly check, and in some ways...
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February 2019 Debt Update

February 2019 Debt Update

March 1, 2019
February brought our second monthly paycheck, and with it a...
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January 2019 Debt Update

January 2019 Debt Update

February 1, 2019
This month we transitioned to a monthly income versus the...
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December 2018 Debt Update

December 2018 Debt Update

January 11, 2019
December... the time of year when it feels like everything...
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November 2018 Debt Update

November 2018 Debt Update

December 7, 2018
After feeling off kilter the last few months, November was...
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Our Bare Bones Budget

Our Bare Bones Budget

November 23, 2018
I talk a lot on here about paying off our...
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October 2018 Debt Update

October 2018 Debt Update

November 9, 2018
This month was an eye-opening month.  After trying to find...
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Summer 2018 Debt Paid

Summer 2018 Debt Update

October 5, 2018
Each month I chronicle our progress on our debt free...
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April 2018 Debt Update

April 2018 Debt Update

May 2, 2018
Each month I chronicle our progress on our debt free...
Read More
March 2018 Debt Update

March 2018 Debt Update

April 6, 2018
Each month I chronicle our progress on our debt free...
Read More
February 2018 Debt Update

February 2018 Debt Update

March 2, 2018
Each month I chronicle our progress on our debt free...
Read More
January 2018 Debt Update

January 2018 Debt Update

February 2, 2018
Each month I chronicle our progress on our debt free...
Read More
December 2017 Debt Update 1

December 2017 Debt Update

January 12, 2018
Here it is... my last debt summary for 2017.  If...
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October November 2017 Debt Update 2

October & November 2017 Debt Update

December 6, 2017
October and November brought the end of soccer season, the...
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June 2017 Debt Update

June 2017 Debt Update

July 12, 2017
Welcome back friends!  After updating you all on how the...
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March 2017 Budget Debt Update

March 2017 Budget Debt Update

April 5, 2017
Our March budget, while it didn't go as I hoped,...
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February 2017 Budget Debt Update

February 2017 Budget & Debt Update

March 6, 2017
For February's budget, our expenses started before the month did....
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January 2017 Budget Debt Update

January 2017 Budget & Debt Update

February 20, 2017
It's been a while since I've gotten on here and...
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December 2016 budget debt update

December 2016 Budget & Debt Update

January 18, 2017
December was a crazy busy month for us, and honestly,...
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November 2016 Budget Debt Update

November 2016 Budget & Debt Update

December 5, 2016
November brought some normalcy to our lives again.  While we...
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October 2016 Budget Debt Update

October 2016 Budget & Debt Update

November 4, 2016
This month is our last month for full on soccer practices...
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Why We Still Use Credit Cards

Why We Still Use Credit Cards

October 14, 2016
Yes, you read the title of this post correctly.  We...
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september 2016 budget debt update

September 2016 Budget & Debt Update

October 7, 2016
This month was the first full month with the boys...
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summer 2016 budget

Summer 2016 Budget

September 2, 2016
Since we've had a busy summer, and I wanted to...
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april 2016 budget

April 2016 Budget

April 30, 2016
I was looking forward to our April 2016 budget after...
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March 2016 Budget

March 2016 Budget

April 8, 2016
The last few months I have been posting our budget...
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February Budget Update

February 2016 Budget Update

February 29, 2016
Income Hubs: $3,660.71 January Debt Savings {& Interest}: $117.29 Remainder from Instrument...
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February Budget

February 2016 Budget

February 1, 2016
Income Hubs: $3,658.40 January Debt Savings {& Interest}: $117.24 Remainder from Instrument...
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Learning From A Failed Budget

December 17, 2015
If you've ever had a month {or even a few...
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December 2015 Budget

December 1, 2015
>>>Check out the updated version of our December 2015 budget...
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makingcentsmatter

makingcentsmatter
Only you can determine what your financial goals a Only you can determine what your financial goals are. If that means you're adding money to your savings account, or contributing to your retirement, while you are paying off debt, then so be it!⁠
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Do what looks right for you and your personal finances.⁠
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#budget #budgeting #savingmoney #savings #cashbudget #cash #cashisking #frugalblogger #frugalmom #frugalliving #financialgoals #personalfinancetips #personalfinance #debtfreejourney #debtfreecommunity #debtfreeprogress #makingcentsmatter #financialfreedom #debtfree
The trick to meal planning is to make it predictab The trick to meal planning is to make it predictable. But predictable doesn't mean the same thing week to week. You could have a chicken meal, a soup meal, a pasta meal, a leftovers meal, a family favorite meal, and so on.⁠
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We always try to go with themed days, but some weeks are so hectic the theme is literally "fast". Thankfully that hasn't been the case lately.⁠
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#mealplanning #mealplan #budget #budgeting #monthlyincome #savingmoney #savings #cashbudget #cash #cashisking #frugalblogger #frugalmom #frugalliving #financialgoals #personalfinancetips #personalfinance #debtfreejourney #debtfreecommunity #debtfreeprogress #makingcentsmatter #financialfreedom #debtfree
I can only hear about my extended warranty I never I can only hear about my extended warranty I never purchased so many times. 😣⁠
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#makingcentsmatter #budgets #monthlyincome #debtfreecommunity #realbudget #savingmoney #payingoffdebt #savings #frugalliving #frugalblogging #budgeting #monthlyincome #zerobasedbudget #financialgoals #personalfinance #personalfinancetips #financialfreedom
March Debt Paid numbers are in!⁠ .⁠ House: $51 March Debt Paid numbers are in!⁠
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House: $511.13⁠
Citi: $0 – this has a residual $3 in interest charges since payoff, due in April⁠
D NelNet: $100⁠
K NelNet: $100⁠
K Chase: $600⁠
Explorer: $336.27⁠
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Total Paid in 2021: $8,258.84⁠
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Extra Payment: There isn’t one this month since we were $25 away from zeroing out the budget for our February 15th monthly paycheck. That $25, and monies left from our January 15th paycheck, covered our OOP costs for Hubs’ filling. We also have some savings goals coming up that need to be met, making our debt payments a little lower for the time begin.⁠
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#makingcentsmatter #debt #debtfreejourney #debtfreeprogress #debtfreecommunity #realbudget #savingmoney #payingoffdebt #savings #frugalliving #frugalblogging #budgeting #monthlyincome #zerobasedbudget #financialgoals #personalfinance #personalfinancetips #financialfreedom⁠
The battle for who can charge what tonight is abou The battle for who can charge what tonight is about to begin. 😬⁠
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My kids run off with my charger, plug it into one outlet 5 feet from where they found it like that particular outlet is the only one in this house, and then proceed to fight over who can charge their device first at night.⁠
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Then they get grumpy when it's their turn and it's not the proper input cable. #itwasmychargerfirst #dontlikeitgofindyourown⁠
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#parentingteens #parentingtweens #momlife #realife #budget #budgeting #savingmoney #cash #frugalblogger #frugalmom #financialgoals #personalfinancetips #personalfinance #debtfreejourney #debtfreecommunity #debtfreeprogress #makingcentsmatter
A needs his wisdom teeth taken out. I've talked a A needs his wisdom teeth taken out. I've talked a bit in our February Budget Check-In about how much of this I think we'll owe, and you can check that out on my YouTube channel if you're interested, but I wanted to say here...⁠
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To the mother with little kids struggling to get your finances in order, it will get better. I wish I could have heard those words years ago.⁠
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Nearly 10 years ago we were facing a $1,400 out-of-pocket portion for A's Phase 1 orthodontic work (I looked it up after I uploaded the video... we had a $1,400 portion).⁠
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It was a lot of money for us at the time. Our kids were 6, 2, and 3 months old. I don't think we even had $500 in savings, and I just left a part-time teaching job because it wasn't paying the part-time daycare bill, so paying our portion in full was just a dream I didn't think was achievable.⁠
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I was even stressing about the monthly $100 payments. We were so strapped. It was our breaking moment to start cutting costs and budgeting more effectively. We've learned a lot in that time period.⁠
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What we've learned is that it does no good to stress about it all the time. Life happens. All you can do is try to plan ahead, and if it's something that's unplanned, readjust. It won't always be easy, especially at first, but it will be worth it.⁠
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Nearly 10 years later, we are still paying off our debts. Student loans suck. But I see this bill as a reminder of how far we have come. Seeing a bill like this doesn't stress me out like it used to, and I know we can easily create a plan that can get it done and out of the way.⁠
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Will it delay our debt-free date more? Yes. But it's not worth stressing over. Life happens, readjust, and continue on down the path. It's called a journey for a reason.⁠
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#wisdomteeth #personalfiannce #personalfinancetips #financialgoals #budgeting #budgets #savingsgoals #savings #cashbudget #zerobasedbudget #debtfreejourney #debtfreeprogress #adulting #lifehappens #realife #realbudget #makingcentsmatter
It's almost payday! Here's how our variable budget It's almost payday! Here's how our variable budgeting categories are working out for the pay month.⁠
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Food is looking good this far into our paycheck, probably because miscellaneous - which includes eating out - took a hit with unexpected purchases. Pet is low for this time of the month, and Household is spot on.⁠
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Fuel looks like it'll be lower than last month (yay for weeks of snow days & delayed school starts), and Therapy had one more appointment than initially planned.⁠
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Garden, Dental, Medical & Propane are not included in these estimates so far because those expenses are coming from sinking funds. Once we're done with the month and review the budget, I'll move over the total amount spent from those sinking funds.⁠
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How's your paycheck budget coming along?⁠
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#realbudget #monthlyincome #monthlybudget #budget #budgetupdate #budgeting #savingmoney #variablecategories #savingmoney #savings #debtfreecommunity #debtfreejourney #cash #financialgoals #personalfinancetips #personalfinance #frugalliving #frugalblogger #budgetblogger #makingcentsmatter
Automating your finances makes saving money and bu Automating your finances makes saving money and budgeting more convenient, and therefore easier on you. Out of sight, out of mind, right?⁠
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What's one thing you can automate this week to make your finances easier?⁠
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Me? I'm going to set up our sinking fund transfers to automate every payday (the 15th of every month). Our bank set up a feature on their app where we can schedule savings transfers now, and I'm going to take advantage of it!⁠
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#personalfinance #personalfinancetips #budgeting #budgettips #personalfinancemadeeasy #savingmoney #savings #sinkingfunds #cash #frugalblogger #frugalmom #frugalliving #debtfreejourney #debtfreecommunity #debtfreeprogess #financialfreedom #makingcentsmatter
Oh my word... our miscellaneous category has gone Oh my word... our miscellaneous category has gone a smidgen overboard this month!⁠
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I foresee a goal for March's paycheck to at out less than twice. That's where this category went awry. $99.16 of it went to eating out. 😑 Some of it was avoidable, but not all of it. Having to drive to multiple appointments in one day during snow squalls and rearranging our whole day was one of those unavoidable instances.⁠
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Tracking our expenses - much like a budget review - is vital to sticking to your budget!⁠
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#makingcentsmatter #debt #debtfreejourney #debtfreeprogress #debtfreecommunity #realbudget #budgetcategories #monthlyincome #savingmoney #savings #frugalliving #frugalblogging #budgeting #zerobasedbudget #financialgoals #personalfinance #personalfinancetips #financialfreedom #expensetracking #budgetfail
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