Judicious June Controlled/No Spend Thread

[mizbear]

mk- Glad you found your purse!!!

I haven't been on a horse since I was 14- It saw the snake before the girl I was riding with and I did and she and I landed in a 4 foot drainage ditch full of cold water! She still rides- I haven't been on one since. LOL

I love that cut on little girls! My father insisted I had long hair- so his mother took me for a haircut- figured he wouldn't argue with her!

[moneysquirrel]

Update: 2 NS and 2 CS day = 4 NS/CS days

Managed to just run errands today and was able to browse through several stores without being tempted at all.

[3catslady]

4 NSD, 1 CSD, 1 EOD: still holding steady.

[shanendoah]

Yesterday was a spend.
We have a ton of stock left over from when DH made jambalaya, so he decided he was going to make chicken corn chowder. Naturally, we forgot to buy potatos this weekend, so we went out to get them last night. We decided to do a quick dinner at Qdoba ($15 for the two of us) while we were out.
We used a groupon for local co-op food delivery. The first basket will be delivered early tomorrow morning. Very excited about that. Fresh fruits and veggies delivered to my door that I will feel guilty if we don't eat.
DC worked her first day yesterday. She's doing canvassing for charity, so spends her time on city street corners asking people to pledge money. She has three days in order to get $120 in donations in one day (that's the quota) in order to actually get the job (though she is being paid for those three days). She got $90 yesterday, so she's fairly confident she can do this.
We do need to pick her up a pair of dr scholls inserts, though having looked at her shoes, I'm not even certain that will help enough. I may need to take her and get her an actual good pair of walking shoes (vs the payless things she wears now).

mk: glad you found your wallet.
twinmamma: I think I forgot to say Welcome! so, Welcome!
miz: I vote for letting the uncle throw DB out

[sheilaincali]

Update: 3/20 NSD.

Yesterday was a full on no spend day. Worked, picked the kid up from school, had dinner at home and then went to the gym. Easy Peasy

Tonight is "hair night" so we will have dinner and get our haircuts down at my sister's house. Dinner is all leftovers from when my brother was in town this weekend so no cost there either- Score !

I was a little bored at work today and caught up with my new favorite blogger. If you are a fan of the "Real Housewives" you have to read Jay Mohr's blog about the NJ show. I find it to be laugh out loud funny- IMO.

mizb: I will come help you throw your brother out if you come to my town and help smack some sense in to my brother. He technically has his own house (that my parents have to help pay the mortgage on) but spends the bulk of his time sitting on their couch complaining about how hard his life is. Apparently my mom does not appreciate all of my "Suck it up Buttercup" comments to him.

[startsmart]

mornin' ladies! Apparently I went to sleep worried last night because all I could dream about was what would go wrong in upcoming situations. Ug. Hopefully that's out of my mind now.

I'm working and trying something new to keep the most urgent things at the front of my work load. I still need to offload a half dozen tasks but tracking everything is a good first step

[ses]

Welcome, twinmama. As the others have mentioned tracking your spending to the penny is a great way to track your spending and getting your eyes opened. I still track my spending in detail, including a detailed and color codes excel sheet (love it). Have you tried giving yourself and DH a specific amount for an allowance--cash money in your (his) pocket that does not have to be tracked and accounted for-- and leave all CCs, debit cards and checkbooks locked up at home. It is a little scary to do this at first, being totally dependent in the cash in hand, but it makes you really be aware and plan ahead. Oh, I don't think anyone has asked how old are the twins?

Summer arrived Sunday with 90*. So I turned on the A/C to deal with the 99* we got yesterday, and shivered all afternoon. Today is to be 81* then back down to 64* by Thursday! WTF

I just went to walmart for catfood, man do they eat a lot, and of course came out with more than I planned on. I figure I can't go in that store for less than $39/hour! and I forgot to check for the one thing I wanted to look for!! During the last recession, in the 80s, there was a film you could put on your windows to block the solar heat. Sort of like those seasonal "clings" you can decorate with, but it covers the entire window. I don't want a permanent tinting, but something i can remove over winter and reuse next summer. I can't seem to find the things. Any ideas???

[muttleynfelix]

Ses - You can come visit me. It has been 91ish for the past 5 days with no end in sight. I always watch the news for the weather and now I am wondering why I am wasting my time. I know the film you are talking about. We want to get some for DS's room because even with the AC on, the temp in his room skyrockets in the afternoon and it is just so gloomy to leave the shade down after his nap.

[singlemomky]

SES - if you google 'reusable window film' you get a bunch of hits. There was one site the-window-treatment-expert where you could buy rolls of the film that cling to the window and then you roll it back onto the paper backing for storage.

[shanendoah]

Okay, MK sent me May's numbers on Friday, and I forgot I had them. I will work on getting them up today.

[redwagon]

Reunion was super fun. We were housed in the dorm I lived in for two years. It's a bit of a but it felt like home haha. It's where blue and I fell in love (cue cheesy music). Felt great to walk around campus again, although they are doing major construction work in what used to be a big green space, so that was kind of depressing to see. But lots of fun, caught up with friends, got a little drunk... and it wasn't as spendy as I expected! Yay!

I went to my folks' house Sunday night so I didn't have to drive the four hours in one shot (which was a good choice, because I was exhausted after a day in the sun at Fenway). Before heading home Monday, I drove around some of the more local damaged zones. Holy crikey. Scary to see how close it got to my parents' house. I brought some food and household goods up there so my mom can drop it by the church in the town she works in (the hardest hit area). Those people have nothing left. Now they can have a toothbrush and crackers :-) How do those of you in tornado alley deal with this stress all the time? Now I'm convinced they'll have more tornadoes and wipe out my street.

muttley - looks beautiful! your description of banana rollups has me salivating...

startsmart - you have a Mac and are buying windows? confused...

mitten - happy birthday to DH! don't you just love where you stash things when you aren't thinking? And HOW is DD 3yo already? I remember anxiously awaiting news of her birth on here!

sheila, miz - do we need to get our gang of gals back together to talk some sense into these brothers of yours? What was the name we gave them? I just know firebird was involved...

Blue is away on business this week. Rather lonely at home. Cats are very affectionate though, after being left alone all weekend. Looking forward to a simple and healthy dinner (today is day one of losing my winter weight... again), doing some homework, and hopefully making it to the gym.

[shanendoah]

May Final Numbers

Name	Goal	Total
3catslady	25	23 ;D
dakota4600	15	6
dianartemis	15	8
jumpin in	15
mcreal	31	3
mizbear	25	0
moneysquirrel		30
mrslynch	20	3
pt_in_ny/pointy	23	24 ;D
shanendoah	27	26
Sheila in Cali	20	24 ;D
SingleMom-KY		16
spruby	31	29
Startsmart	25	3

5 CS/NS Days
10 CS/NS Days
15 CS/NS Days
;D 20 CS/NS Days
25 CS/NS Days
Reached their goal


Let me know if we missed anything, and I'll get it fixed.

[ses]

Red--Pink Fedora Posse?? Haven't been needed in a long time.

[azmom]

Just crashing the party to let you all know my DSS is 19 today!
Incredibly unbelievable that we are parents to a 19 year old!! We are taking him out to dinner on Thursday...He just finished his first year at our state university and is officially a college sophomore. YIKES!

[ses]

Smokey--Thank You, Thank You. Thank You!!!![/[/color]
These are exactly the type of window film I wanted. I can cover the south facing french doors for less than $50. I would think as expensive as electricity is getting I can easily save that over just a few summer seasons. Again, thank you so much.

[mizbear]

Ladies, ladies, ladies- hehehe- DM decided to defend DB one too many times today and I blew up (I was also annoyed by the fact she kept telling me to shut up, but that is another war). I told her that I could very easily pack the rest of my stuff that was there, move it out and not come back. They could find someone else to do their errands and stuff. I was tired of being told to shut up, having my schedule dictated to me, being told what she wanted and didn't want to hear about- essentially based on whether or not it was useful to her- and was tired of watching my DB do nothing, not pay rent or CS and hang out with his dope smoking GF.
My DGM looked at me for a minute and asked if I really meant it and I told her I wasn't having a stroke because they were going to coddle him. He could pull his weight or they could find another way.
I think they have made their decision.

[Deleted]

Jun 7, 2011 19:05:44 GMT -5 mizbear said:

Ladies, ladies, ladies- hehehe- DM decided to defend DB one too many times today and I blew up (I was also annoyed by the fact she kept telling me to shut up, but that is another war). I told her that I could very easily pack the rest of my stuff that was there, move it out and not come back. They could find someone else to do their errands and stuff. I was tired of being told to shut up, having my schedule dictated to me, being told what she wanted and didn't want to hear about- essentially based on whether or not it was useful to her- and was tired of watching my DB do nothing, not pay rent or CS and hang out with his dope smoking GF.
My DGM looked at me for a minute and asked if I really meant it and I told her I wasn't having a stroke because they were going to coddle him. He could pull his weight or they could find another way.
I think they have made their decision.

and that decision is? Come on now, you can't leave us hanging.

[mizbear]

I think they have decided that DB needs to clean up his act or go. He has already said that he doesn't know "how he can sleep there during the construction". I feel no sympathy for him- I worked night shift, swing and rotating shifts. Maybe if they cut off the cookie supply he will leave.

[spruby]

mizbear - stand your ground on this one. it will be tough - but it is for the best (family - you would love them except that you want to kill them)

ses - Target is my downfall (Walmart isn't convenient to me) - I avoid it as much as possible - no matter what I go in for I come out at $50 per bag - and usually forget something! Have you priced cat food or other items on Amazon? We've started using their subscribe and save option for a number of items. You get a 15% discount and free shipping (no tax for us) and it is delivered. I price it all ahead of time (toothpaste, cat food, tampons, and some specialty foods) and do items it is cheaper on. You can cancel or reschedule any shipment, comes right to my door and keeps me out of target!

[muttleynfelix]

Jun 7, 2011 19:23:11 GMT -5 mizbear said:

I think they have decided that DB needs to clean up his act or go. He has already said that he doesn't know "how he can sleep there during the construction". I feel no sympathy for him- I worked night shift, swing and rotating shifts. Maybe if they cut off the cookie supply he will leave.

Red - Thanks. Banana Roll ups - only take 5 minutes. I'm actually eating the last piece right now. hmmm. As for living in tornado ally, I do have a lot of anxiety when storms are bad. Especially after what happened to Joplin and how close that could have been us (it is an hour west of here). But DH and I have a plan and those types of storms aren't common and that is the important thing to keep in mind. The week the storm hit Joplin was really bad not just because of the news coming out of there but because the weather remained primed for more storms. Now the conditions are stable and it is easier to let go of the anxiety. It is still tough. There are still more people passing away in the hospital and some of the stories are heartbreaking - particularly when it was of a baby DS's age. I know DH and I will try to make a trip down there sometime this summer to help out with cleanup and that will be hard to. But at the end of the day, it isn't something you can do anything about. Just have a plan if it does happen and pray that it doesn't.

[startsmart]

I'm back to my old favorite house hunting. Mom and I might go look at a few places at the end of the month - I found a BEAUTIFUL place with one of those nested pools (with a waterfall) on ten acres for $240k. Ridiculous. Mom still likes the property with the huge horse barn for $179k. Choices, choices.

[dakota4600]

URrrggg! I just had a long post and lost it. So short version.

Thanks for the support on mini-d it is good to know I'm not alone. Tonight was a lot better than the last couple.

Red- It is like living in a hurricane zone or a earthquake zone. You make plans for what if. This year everyone is more on edge because of the unusual severity of the storms.

Working with a woman in transitional housing, who is trying to make ends meet with $850 a month. She has 2 boys with her and 2 other kids living with their dad. No child support, but does qualify for food stamps. She is waiting for her credit report which I'm scared to see based on what she was telling me.

[moneysquirrel]

Update: 3 NS and 2 CS day = 5 NS/CS days
Didn't leave the house today so it was an easy NS day.
MK - Glad you found your purse. I often put things in a "safe place" only to forget where that is.
Red -- As one who lives in the deep south, hurricane season is something one prepares for as much as possible. Usually it is a matter of packing up and leaving for a few days (Katrina was the exception). I do have my summertime rituals -- I am currently trying to reduce the number of items in my freezer. I hope to be able to soon have everything out of the large freezer and be able to work out of the top of the fridge. Then the big freezer will be unplugged, cleaned and ignored until the middle or end of October (or later) which is when the major danger of a hurricane is past. I had to replace both after Katrina and this way I may eliminate some of the expense of spoiled food and appliances. Also if I have to leave, I will pack the ice chests with as much as I can to eat when I arrive at the destination. We usually get a few days notice so while I fear them I can at least feel that I can take preparations. Tornados and earthquakes scare me because they are so sudden.

[3catslady]

4 NSD, 1 CSD, 2 EOD. I bought a large pizza at Pizza Hut and now have 3 more meals in the freezer. I only eat 2 slices at a time, plus I had a salad.

[973beachbum]

So the end of my first week. I think this is really more of a money diary than worrying about ns vs cs but here is my first week.
5 cs 1 ns and 1 just plain spend.

The numbers, for the week, were $62.68 for food
20.00 gas
15.62 HBA and bottled water
10.00 junk
total $108.30

Thats is actually not bad for me. It also shows that the $100 a week is doable. Now to just cut out the junk.

[shanendoah]

Yesterday was an NS.

I was tired and cranky last night, but DH made chicken corn chowder with the stock we had left over. I love this soup so much. Its incredibly filling, and only 215 calories a serving! Guess what I have for lunch today?
Our first CSA box arrived last night, so now there is fresh fruit in the house and DH has some new veggies to try and make meals around.

beachbum: First week, really, the whole first month (or in mycase, first 2-3 months) is more about gaining an understanding of when we were spending and why. I don't think I hit my goal until month 4, and that was after revising it down.
I've been here a little over a year, and my goals are much more ambitious now, but I also have a much greater understanding of how, when, and why we spend money. And I'm still working on cutting out the junk.

[ses]

beachbum--actually that is very good for your first week. You came VERY close to your goal. Have you considered getting personal, refillable water bottles and filling them at home? This has saved me a bundle. I detest the local water taste and invested in a reverse osmosis home water system many years ago, before personal filtration systems (Britta) existed. I notice Britta now has a personal bottle now. I have been considering getting one for the car when I am away from home.

I can't believe I was trying to deal with high temps (99*) two days ago and today I am back to wearing a sweater (56*)! Summer on the northern great plains!

I had to chuckle at moneyaquirrel's preference of dealing with hurricanes because of the advance warning. I prefer dealing with tornadoes because of the immediacy. Once they are over, they are over. Living here you always have a plan of where to huddle for safety. We also develop a sense of the weather and what conditions are like that might produce a possibility of tornadoes. It is unusual not to have some warning of possible conditions, even if only a few minutes. The ones you hear about that are sudden and severe are very unusual. Blizzards bother me more because they last longer.

[redwagon]

Got another NS yesterday, so that's 3 so far! Of course I completely negated it by online shopping at Old Navy, but my shirts from last year are so ratty. They are a few years old, so time to restock a bit. I'll probably return half of the stuff I bought (can never tell with sizes) so I feel okay about it.

disaster prep - I guess I'm just not used to having those kind of sudden things happen (although they seem to be happening more and more). The worse we really get is a blizzard, and that's just a stay home in your pjs and watch movies kind of thing. I know where i'll go in my house in a tornado though (bathroom. no basement. kind of worries me.). Hoping none of you ladies ever get hit with anything!

shanen - can you share that recipe? sounds yum!

startsmart - moving already? I feel like you just settled in!

[Deleted]

I am glad for you, Mizbear.
Shan, can I have that recipe, I would love to make potato/corn chowder but I do not know how.

[startsmart]

redwagon- we're looking for my parent's retirement property and hoping to get a good deal now that the market sucks. AND if I can rent out my place in town and pay something towards my parent's property as an owner then I can continue to live pretty cheap until they retire. Then I'd have this place as a rental, the option to move anywhere or just travel.

Ideally they want a place on 5-15 acres, with shops for my dad, 4 bedrooms, and a pool for my mom If I live there they can remodel and build it out in the 5-7 years before they retire. Since I can work anywhere it would be nice for me to get out of town. You know, before I kill a redneck.

I do feel settled in my house now but that's usually my sign to pick up and move. I need to downsize about 50% before I go anywhere too. I have so much stuff that I never use.