Ill Gotten Gains

I am going to take the advice of TeacHer and Smallstepsforbigchange and put most of the money in savings ($1000) and use a small portion for debt repayment ($500).

I am also working on becoming more responsible with the little bit of extra money I get, so with the $400 I had left over after I paid bills I kept $100 for shopping and am going to make a $300 payment to my MasterCard.

This is how I spent the $100

$35 - Petsmart
2 boxes of cat litter (Need)
Cat Food (Need)

I saved $4 by using my PetPerks card

$14 - Jo-Ann
Fabric (Want)
Velcro (Want)
Insul-Bright (Want)

I saved $2.80 by using my 40% off coupon.
I am making coffee cozies as Christmas presents for my coworkers, each one will cost me $2.80 to make. Once completed I will post them on my other blog.

$39 - Walmart
Frozen Pizza (Want)
Frozen pre-cooked, pre-cut, chicken breast (Need)
Mozzarella Cheese (Need)
Chicken Slices (need)
2 Cadbury Chocolate Bars (Want)
Oreos (Want)
Ritz (Want)
2 packages of wraps (Need)
A Pomegranate (Need)
Cesar Salad Dressing (Need)
Parmesan Cheese (Want)
Sinkers (Want)

I am usually a Target shopper, since I am trying to get my financial life in order I have decided to get off my high horse and become a Walmart shopper.

I realized that I would stop wasting so much money on junk food if I would make and bring lunch to work. If you couldn't tell from my shopping list, this week is chicken cesar wraps and a little baggie of either Oreo's or Ritz. If I had only bought needs I would have saved $15. Maybe next time I wont buy desert.

As you can see I have decided to break everything I buy into the categories of wants and needs. This way I think of every purchase before and after I make it.

November Spending Plan - Part 1

I was finally able to get in contact with Sallie Mae and for the low, low cost of $150 my 3 Sallie Mae loans are in forbearance for the next 3 months. I know it will cost me in the end but my money is so tight right now that I have to think short term over long term.

My cash break down is

Paycheck - $850

Sallie Mae - $150
Electric Bill - $170
Master Card - $70
Gas - $24
Sally Beauty Supply - $31 (I needed a new blow dryer)

Total - $445

Surplus - $405

Over the next 3 months I will have $1500 cash from not paying my student loan. The question now is what do I do with the money?

A. Put it in my savings account
B. Pay off my Master Card (again)
C. Put half in my savings and use half toward credit card debt

I could use some advice.

Please Forgive My Absence

After a short hiatus and a small financial breakdown I have decided to resume posting on this blog. I started to get depressed and made some bad financial decisions that now I have to pay the piper for. When I posted on this blog regularly I was making a lot of progress, so I see that I need to come back in order to recover and make more progress.

Future posts will be copies of financial post from my other blog.

1 Down, 3 To Go

As you can see on my side bar today I paid off my Master Card. It feels good to have one financial goal under my belt. This card will be going into the vault and will only be used to pay for my online course (automatic payments were cheaper) and it is in my budget for the next 9 months to pay those charges in full when they occur.

Next up is my American Express, if things go according to plan it should be paid off by this time next year.

Amex - $3440

August through December - $500
January - $800 (monthly payment + free check*)
February - $100
March - $1000 (monthly payment + tax return)
April through June - $300
July - $800 (free check)

Total - $3500

(I have taken interest charges into account)

* If you get paid every other week (apposed to twice a month) twice a year there will be months where you get three checks instead of two. That third check is your free check.

Can You Afford to do Your Civic Duty?

I got an unwelcome piece of mail the other day. No, not a bill a jury duty notice.

I wasn't thrilled about it but it is my duty as an American. That is what I told myself until I found out that my job does not pay for jury duty.

No big deal, you say? Just take a personal day.

Well I work in retail and August is blacked out for back to school. I can't use vacation time.

Basically I am going to lose a day of pay so I can be a good American.

What happens if I end up on a case that last a week, what will I do then?

I have a new blog

I have decided to start a new blog.

There are a lot of things in my life that I need to work on besides my finances and I feel that I need a new blog that is not focused on only finances.

In my new blog I still chronicle my journey for a debt free existence but I also write about my journey to loose weight, get a new job, and improve my self as a 30 year old woman.

I plan to keep this blog up to post about any major financial situations, but if you would like to join me on my new journey come see me at

http://alliegetsalife.blogspot.com

Thanks

New Goals

In the 6 months since I started this blog I have made decent progress. My goals were to

• Pay off 2 credit cards (Paid off 1)
  
• Open Savings Account (Done)
  
• Save $600 (Saved $350)
  
• Pay Back Ex Boyfriend (Owe $200)
  
• Pay Back Sister (Done)

Now that we are in the second half of the year I have to update my goals.

New Goals

1. Pay off 1 credit card (Put the new lap top on my Master Card. Will be paid off by July 31st)
2. Save $50 a month (Will have savings account up to $650 by the end of the year)

Now that I am not making as much money as I used to and had some major expenses that I had to pay for (dental work, car repair, lap top, etc.) I am practically starting at square 1.