All Entries

Hi guys
Some random items...
I hit $500k. This is a big milestone for me by the way. So many years had gone by where for the most part most of my money went into the rentals. I still have a job and am funded thru 2023 but am unclear the impact of covid restrictions on that.. and also not sure if I want to work that long at least there. Also have my trusty Suburban which will outlast me. I am striving to hit over $550k for the year.  I would like to hit $750k in savings before...
[ Read More ]

A little more spending ... I ordered a birthday present for my Oregon grandson, $52.  And I sent in my fee for the family football pool, $34.  Variables are at 19%.
I'm going to call today to see if the contractor who did my ceiling also does tile floors.  My kitchen floor tiles are cracking -- either because they are that old, or because the subfloor is shifting.  My ex has offered to pay for it, though I'm not counting on it.  I just need to get the...
[ Read More ]

Happy to say that my work trial was only really for the morning and that by lunchtime I was offered the job!  I'm really happy that searching for a job is now over and done with, the people are lovely and I feel like I could be there for a while.
I was going to post earlier but got sick after my second Pfizer dose - nothing requiring hospital visits, simply a short cold then a bad sinus infection for around 6 days, so was certainly not up to doing a blog entry.
This is my...
[ Read More ]

I didn't put anything in the EF this payday, but last payday I had $49.93 left to go in, plus I had $3.38 in interest bringing the EF to $16,765.69.
They still haven't put this week's contribution in to the retirement account, which is very annoying.  I know there was a holiday on Monday, but it usually goes in on Friday and now it is Wednesday and nothing.  So I'm just going to list it anyway, since it rose quite a bit from my last retirement update.  It is now...
[ Read More ]

I continue to save money to the medical fund at a rapid rate.  I need to save enough for orthodontia, plus enough for next year's medical deductible and out of pocket max.
I owed DS $9.59 because he picked stuff up from the store where he works for me, so I just added that to how much he got for his allowance.  He has $57.04 left to complete his $1000 emergency fund, so that will be met with his next paycheck.  At that point his allowance will drop from $60 every...
[ Read More ]

I was scheduled to close on the condo this Friday, but it has been delayed due to the lender not having everything accounted for. I'm disappointed as I was looking forward to closing that chapter & getting some cash to invest, but I have no other choice but to be patient. It was a rather short closing date target to begin with, maybe a little too ambitious.
I came back to the city yesterday morning. My apartment complex has few residents staying here. It makes me feel a little...
[ Read More ]

Nothing financial.  Nothing about finances but just write a vent.  Please read with a grain of salt that this is just me complaining. I've lead my DK1 girl scout troop for 4 years now. I have lead it solo for the past 3 years.  Even the 1st year I lead it (2nd grade brownie) I did everything and the co-lead showed up.  Since then we've done a rotation of parents signing up to stay and help but never lead.  Okay I was with the program but it's exhausting....
[ Read More ]

We have debt... but we also have goals. One of the hardest things for us to do is to balance those two things.
We have a decent emergency fund saved up. We have enough saved for two months of bare bones expenses. I know that money could be used towards debt, but then where would we be if an emergency hit? We are still living during a pandemic and still unsure of the future, (not that you can ever be sure of the future, but I think you know what I mean).
We actually have more...
[ Read More ]

Yesterday was my day out -- gym, vet, drive-through lunch.  I spent $14 at the vet for fluids and needles, and $3 for lunch at Burger King (great coupon).  I had a lot of leftover fries, so this morning I chopped and refried them with peppers, onions and celery, and had it on the side with eggs and stewed apples.  Delicious breakfast!  I also froze half of the chicken nuggets, and I will eat them later on Hawaiian rolls as chicken sliders.  So that $3 went...
[ Read More ]

I have no idea why, but I've had Sinatra singing "September Song" in my head for days.  I guess it must be back-to-school time.
We're at Day 2 of masked instruction, and despite my qualms, it's going ok.  Cross your fingers that it continues to go ok.  All of our staff is nervous, students are unsure, but we're there and we're doing it.
In non-university news, our DD is safely ensconced in Scotland.  We had a wonderful trip despite less-than-wonderful flights. ...
[ Read More ]

A recent post in an online neighborhood app touched me and as a result we have three more felines. Making a total of five plus a dog. It’s not a frugal move!
 
The woman who needed to rehome them is terminally ill and nearing the end. She doesn’t have a husband, children, or siblings. It’s very sad for her – having to let go of her pets but knowing that it needs to be done. It’s traumatic for the cats too – I’m being very patient...
[ Read More ]

I looked at my checking account and realized I had an extra $1,000 I could pay towards my student loans, so I did so. I'm so thankful that the interest is not accumulating, it's given me the opportunity to actually make a difference. Hopefully I'll have my second one paid off by the end of this month. 
My new balance is $4,960, for this one. My new overall balance is $53,576.29, in two years I've paid off about $30k. 
[ Read More ]

I mentioned in a previous post that my neighborhood senior center sent members an email notifying us they will be having a monthly food giveaway. The only requirements are that you live in the qualifying neighborhood zip codes and are a senior (age 60 and up).  I organized what I will be donating, keeping, and sharing. Here is what I received: 


 


Donate Items 


1 large (64 oz) bottle of Apple Juice  


2...
[ Read More ]

In my last post, I reported that I was going to Walmart to buy a sim card, which would make my phone okay with Straight Talk.  Well, I went to two Walmarts, and both places told me that they could not sell a sim card separately from a plan, which I already had.  At the second Walmart, an employee, after looking at my phone specs, suggested that I switch to AT&T, to a similarly-priced plan.  We went through a long, long call with AT&T, only to learn that they...
[ Read More ]

August was a blur.  I got sick with Covid, even being fully vaccinated - slept lots, drank lots of water, lost all taste and smell and lost 15 lbs in two weeks.  Thankfully, I am on the mend, symptoms are very mild at this point and I have now tested negative.  I can honestly say, even fully vaccinated, Covid sucks - but thankfully mine stayed upper respiratory and I didnt have to deal with lower respiratory issues.  The whole family got it at about the same...
[ Read More ]

Sadly, I think my canning is over for this year. I think we have enough, but I always like to have extra on hand. DH had a good tomato crop, but he grew more heirlooms and they don't produce as many. But they sure were tasty. 
A few months ago I found this small weaving loom at a thrift store. Someone donated some rug yarn at church and no one wanted to use it -- a couple of skeins are not going to make much of anything plus it is rough stuff to work with. I decided to use...
[ Read More ]

Since my last post a couple of months ago, all our financial efforts (now that the house is paid for) are going towards amping my retirement funds and beefing up our savings. My husband is already retired and a decade older than me. I neglected to fully fund my Roth IRA but I am not, if I can help it, allow that to happen from this day forward.  
Our bare bones budget is $1950.00 ($800 of it is monthly property taxes) since we do not have any consumer debt and children...
[ Read More ]

I purchased an iPhone SE, 64 GB.  I paid $4.95 for shipping  (rather than the free 2-day option) so hopefully it arrives tomorrow and I can get it activated and play around with it over the long weekend.  I decided to stay with Tracfone for now with the prepaid plan since that gives me flexibility.  I started off with a $25 for 30 day plan, which includes 2GB of data, but I can move to a $15/month ($14.25 with autorefill) plan if i am not using much data.
I...
[ Read More ]

As of close of business yesterday, our portfolio now stands at just over $3,200,000.
I thought we might hit that by the end of the year and here we are at that mark almost 4 months before that. The market performance has been wild. I know it can't continue but it's sure a great ride while it lasts.
I've gotten our AA up to 56% stock as it had gotten really low due to the inheritance. My target is 60-65% stock so we're close. I may just leave things be for now as in another month...
[ Read More ]

Well, our goal just went way up because of a rise in income! Which means we're way behind, but for a good reason. (I also decided to round off salaries while I was at it so our goal could be a nice round number too!)New goal: $922,000 by March 2024Current retirement balance: $779,114May 2021 balance: $732,687Progress since last update: $46,427Still needed: $142,886This interim goal is based on getting my and NT's retirement to 4x my current and his last full-time salary (approximately...
[ Read More ]