I am going to try to get back on track, but I have to be honest - the dog has wiped me out more than I expected...I am having difficulty getting motivated about much of anything.
I am so sorry mama. My lovely dog died 9 years ago and I still think of him. Give yourself lots of time and come back when you are ready.
Congrats for new babies (I am ready to get pregnant again, but need to wait until summer for FMLA purposes)! And condolences for pets. :(
It's been an insane week. I did pretty well on my trip - I did spend $8 each way for inflight wi-fi, which I didn't expense because, well, I didn't do any work! However, DH picked me up and we got fast food from the airport, which earns me a big fat frown for Wednesday, and I got coffee on the way to work yesterday (but ate ramen for lunch instead of going out because I forgot to pack - I have been a zombie since coming back - I sleep horribly in hotels by myself!), so I get two frowns for Wed/Thur.
Today is different, though! I took DH's truck to get the oil changed ($0 under warranty), made coffee at the office and ate (another) package of ramen (I am getting tired of ramen), and although we're ordering a pizza tonight, it's FREE because we did that Papa John's coin flip thing for the Super Bowl. So we get a thumbs up today!
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The month of LOVE! I already know I'm going to have a huge hiccup as our bank is updating their online system over our long weekend (Feb8-12). It's right after the husband gets paid so I'm going to have to be super prepared and this scares me lol we do everything online and I only transfer a small amount at a time! <----- Transferred money this morning... hoping to make it through ;) I know we will as both DH and I transferred more than either of us can spend in a month but it's really shocking to see how much I rely on the the online banking system!
Also both the kids need dentist appointments,
and the dog needs to go to the Vet.
Plus I'm going on a 2 day vacation "home" to my dad's retirement party,
oh and it's my birthday this month and Vday.
= No Spend 
= Groceries/Gas/Ok spending 
= Unnecessary spending 
= Exercised 
= Ate all meals at home 
= Made something new for dinner 
= Spending on Kids 
= Did something Frugal
February
1: $12.07, $83.87, $16.39, $18.72, $32.96 $17.29, $16.64 <- Made pulled pork poutine, MMMM but Dh didn't like it... Groomed the dog myself. She still needs more but it's a start!
2: Staying home and not spending, took Vday pictures of the girls instead of paying someone to do it. They were fun and some turned our really great! Now I'm downloading GIMP which is a free photoshop program instead of paying $$$ for a commercial one. I got a really nice new camera for Christmas and I'm still learning how to use it, so I currently don't NEED to spend big bucks!
3: 3: Bought a few groceries $75, mostly snack types for yesterday's "SuperBowl Snack Dinner" but other stuff too Both the exercise and frugal were the same thing. We went to the free skate sunday and the girls and I skated for over an hour. It was my youngest child's first time so lots of extra on me. Felt really good. DH just watched. He can't really skate and doesn't want to hurt himself which he is prone to.
4: $19 & $23 and $23.68
5: $ 29.98 and <- DD1 had an eye appointment, and the cost out of pocket was the same amount I won on a gift certificate from their FB page before Christmas!
6: $15.68 $12.87 and $21.74
7: $13.13 & $15.96 & $40 $7 and $9.72
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Week One Feb 1-7 2013 <----- I may have only had one no spend day this week but I spent significantly less this week and felt ok about it!
$116.05/$200 week Grocery
$72.96/$?? week Gas/Car
$182.75/$?? week Stuff
$88.50/$?? week EatingOut
$19.87/$?? week Kids
$23/$50 month Dog
2/1: no spend 
2/2: budgeted spending $123 Costco, $50 grocery store, $23 Target
2/3: no spend
2/4: no spend
2/5: no spend
2/6: budgeted spending $3 pitched in to share french fries with friends.
2/7: no spend
2/8: no spend
Tomorrow will be my shopping day this week. I need to get groceries and I think I'm gonna get a new printer cartridge finally so that I can get more of my lesson planning logistics done at home.
No Spend
Budgeted Spend
Unbudgeted Spend 
Meals At Home All Day
Something Frugal For The Day
Sewed For 30 Minutes Or More 
Made/Found Money 
February 1: - Paid $130 phone bill and DH $15 bank credit card bill
- Got $40 refund check - Made reusable Swiffer WetJet pad and no heater use(warm day}
February 2: 
- Stayed home all day! 
- reused salsa jar, no heater use(warm day) and made bread sticks from scratch
February 3: 
- $45.62 for gas - Play date with grandparents and aunties, no heater, made spinach cheese bread this morning! I also got to pick up my serger and the rest of my fabric and patterns to start sewing again!
February 4: 
- Husband used his credit card and spent $20 on his stupid video game. 
- Made toddler skirts for my shop - Reused spray bottle and made natural orange cleaner!
February 5: - McDonald's for DH lunch $9.59 
- Made $11.50 for being a mystery shopper for BestMark and made $20 for selling junk
February 6: - Cut out boy and girl undies patterns
February 7: - Bought household supplies $29.69 but went over budget 
, Bought pet supplies $6.40 and Bought tax software $35.70 and got a $10 gift card - Made $11.50 for being a mystery shopper for BestMark
February 8: - Paid car payment - Didn't really sew but cut out more patterns - Used redbox code to get a free rental
My February Goals:
No Spend/Budgeted Days = 6/20
Sewing Days = 3/20
Frugal Days = 5/15
Meals At Home Days = 7/25
Gas = $45.62/$120
2/8
Groceries $47.59
I have already spent $243 on groceries this month, which I am not thrilled with. The good news is that part of that is a box of food that I won't pick up until closer to the end of the month. I think I need to try and meal plan for the next 2 weeks at least.
Good things about today: my mom watched the baby so I could work, plus she made us all dinner (yes she is awesome)!
I haven't, but will have to check them out! I tend to just avoid gluten free baking because I LOVE regular gluten filled goodies so much ;) These snicker doodles are probably the first recipe that I've tried that I am REALLY into. I've done a little bit of GF baking in the past and have not been very stoked about it (I am a really great baker of regular goodies!) The long list of ingredients for a lot of GF recipes tends to intimidate me ;)
What is up with my sudden love of the Golden Arches? I went an entire month without fast food...now it is like I'm trying to catch up.
My goal = 15 no-spend days
My progress = 4 no spend days so far
01
02 $71 Valentine's stuff for the kids
03
04
05 $25 dinner out with friends
06
07 $8 McDonalds
08 $18 McDonalds
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10
11
12
13
14
15
16
Looking ahead to this upcoming week -- we are running on financial fumes till payday on Friday. I paid cash for the window that was replaced last month and paid the higher than normal heating bill as well. TIme to stretch my remaining pennies.
I have a decent amount of food, not a huge amount and nothing for Valentines Day for the kids. I think I will need milk, eggs, a bag of fruit and some candy. I have $30 left in the grocery budget and $8 in cash which should cover all of that.
Dh and I have a night out this Friday and we have money budgeted. No other spending is planned. I am keeping busy (which is always good for my wallet) and cleaning out the garage this week and hauling a bunch of too-small bikes and trikes to our local resale shop.
No spend
Budgeted spend
Unbudgeted Spend
Exercised
February 1 --
February 2 -- groceries and birthday present
February 3 -- more groceries, shower curtain and bathroom scale
February 4 --
February 5 --
February 6 -- field trip to science center
February 7 --
February 8 -- gas and groceries
February 9 --
February 10 -- piece of pipe to finish sink repair
February 11 --
February 12
February 13
February 14
February 15 -- $30 night out
My goals:
Save 20% of Feb 1st paycheck -- 15%, heating bill was over-budget
Save 20% of Feb 15th paycheck
Save entire tax return -- done!
Make every dollar matter
February 8
Very nearly hit my grocery target for the week. I could have made it had I not needed to buy something for a dinner between work, errands, and Girl Scout Leader meeting. Hot chocolate at restaurant with other leaders. Valentines gifts.
February 9 & 10
No spend & No spend. Staying home. Don't need anything, online or otherwise.
= Doin' just fine
= Spoiled no-spend, but necessary
= Unnecessary spending due to poor planning
= No spend
Grocery target= $740
Remaining=$489
I can't have this be a perfect no-spend month. I need these things:
Underwear
Girl Scout dues
4-H publications
Valentine's Day stuff
Gymnastics tuition
Materials for chicken tractors
Camping reservation
Seeds and starts for the garden? I think I won't need more until March.
Printer ink? Maybe I can make it until March.
No Spend
Budgeted Spend
Unbudgeted Spend
Meals At Home All Day
Something Frugal For The Day
Sewed For 30 Minutes Or More
Made/Found Money
February 1: - Paid $130 phone bill and DH $15 bank credit card bill - Got $40 refund check - Made reusable Swiffer WetJet pad and no heater use(warm day}
February 2: - Stayed home all day! - reused salsa jar, no heater use(warm day) and made bread sticks from scratch
February 3: - $45.62 for gas - Play date with grandparents and aunties, no heater, made spinach cheese bread this morning! I also got to pick up my serger and the rest of my fabric and patterns to start sewing again!
February 4: - Husband used his credit card and spent $20 on his stupid video game. - Made toddler skirts for my shop - Reused spray bottle and made natural orange cleaner!
February 5: - McDonald's for DH lunch $9.59 - Made $11.50 for being a mystery shopper for BestMark and made $20 for selling junk
February 6: - Cut out boy and girl undies patterns
February 7: - Bought household supplies $29.69 but went over budget , Bought pet supplies $6.40 and Bought tax software $35.70 and got a $10 gift card - Made $11.50 for being a mystery shopper for BestMark
February 8: - Paid car payment - Didn't really sew but cut out more patterns - Used redbox code to get a free rental
February 9: - Paid $25 Walmart credit card bill
My February Goals:
No Spend/Budgeted Days = 7/20
Sewing Days = 3/20
Frugal Days = 5/15
Meals At Home Days = 8/25
Gas = $45.62/$120
2/1: no spend
2/2: budgeted spending $123 Costco, $50 grocery store, $23 Target
2/3: no spend
2/4: no spend
2/5: no spend
2/6: budgeted spending $3 pitched in to share french fries with friends.
2/7: no spend
2/8: no spend
2/9: budgeted spending $50 ink cartridges for printer (ouch!), $56 grocery store
I had almost decided to buy some more market baskets for toy storage (using money made from selling things on CL), but the store didn't have any. Looks like I will think about that purchase for another week before I actually do it. I was also going to buy some more mason jars, but didn't get a chance to do that, so that will wait another week, too. Doing great staying on track with my meal plan--love when that happens! :)
2/9
$10 for a dance costume for DD. At least it was second-hand.
Today I patched a hole in one pair of DS's pants and hemmed another pair.
No spending 
Budgeted spending 
Did something to save $ or make extra $ 
Hung clothes on the line
February
01 Paid all bills in bill box, should cover the next 2 weeks! (I got paid today! I'm every other week, DH is every week) Need some groceries, going to try to hold off until tomorrow.
02 Bought groceries $141. Spent a little more than I wanted to but it should last us a while. Washed throw rugs & hung out to dry
03 I made a batch of hummus from the chick peas I froze last week. We ate the whole batch with veggies. Then I made a huge pot of chicken stock which I'm freezing for future use. Then I made a huge pot of venison stock, which I turned into minestrone soup for tomorrow night. I also made a batch of chocolate syrup since we were out & dd2 like chocolate milk 1 C water, 1 C cocoa powder, 2 C sugar. Mix water & cocoa powder, until combined, add sugar. Boil for 3 minutes. Cool, store in fridge. Make sure your pot is big enough so it doesn't boil over like mine did!!! I don't want to step foot into the store again for at least another week, so I'm so glad that I remembered that I used to exclusively make my own chocolate syrup years ago so I dug out the recipe.
04
05 The only spending planned for today is paying admission to get into DD's game tonight. I didn't make it to the game because of work. Dh paid to get in & he also picked up a loaf of sourdough from Panera to go with the soup $3.18! Went in to work early, because I have so much to get done.
06 As tempted as I am to go buy apples today I'm holding off (we have 2 left in the house), but we have other fruit! Did taxes, our refund is on the way
07 Paid to do my taxes online using H&R Block
08
09 The storm kept me from going to work, but we didn't spend any money! Shaoveled 2 feet of SNOW!!! We need to budget a snow blower, ours crapped out!
10 Went to Aldi spent $37, mostly produce! Feb grocery spending so far... $178! Cooked tonight's dinner & prepped dinner for tomorrow! Made a batch of hummus from frozen chick peas, had some for lunch, will have more for lunches all week. Meal planned for the rest of this week
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27
My B-day
28
2/1: no spend
2/2: budgeted spending $123 Costco, $50 grocery store, $23 Target
2/3: no spend
2/4: no spend
2/5: no spend
2/6: budgeted spending $3 pitched in to share french fries with friends
2/7: no spend
2/8: no spend
2/9: budgeted spending $50 ink cartridges for printer (ouch!), $56 grocery store
2/10: no spend
Ugh, we've been so busy, I'm having a hard time keeping track! I'm hoping to slow us down a bit this week though.
Today wasn't great. I bought bagels to take to a a sledding party/brunch at a friend's house, then we got Moe's for dinner because the ham I was defrosting turned out to be half frozen still and I was too exhausted to figure anything else out. Blah. Should be a quiet, no-spending day tomorrow here though!
Key:
No unplanned/unbudgeted spending:
Unbudgeted spending:
Ate at home all day:
Did something mindfully frugal: 
No-unbudgeted-spending days: 5/15
2/1: Bought lunch for kids at co-op because I didn't leave enough time to pack stuff *sigh*
2/2: Bought snacks and drinks for kids at art class because I didn't leave enough time to pack stuff *sigh*
2/3: Only bought a few groceries and necessary garden supplies (grow light bulbs, seed starting supplies, spring is coming, woohoo!). Funds for both came out of the appropriate budget categories.
2/4:
2/5: Overspent at Whole Foods, though most of it was from stocking up to catch a really good sale and case discount.
2/6:
2/7: Spent the day at home after the sleet and freezing rain canceled our day and evening plans. I did go to the grocery store to buy ingredients for a knock-off of Panera's broccoli cheddar soup (OMW, so good!) and apple crisp, but that's in our grocery budget.
2/8: Spent the day at home, keeping warm and reading while the kids played out in the snow with friends most of the day.
2/9: $15 for our share of a group take-out dinner at a friend's house (but I already had the veggies and brownie mix on hand to make up a veggie tray and dessert, which is a big deal for me!).
2/10: Bought bagels for a sledding party, then Moe's for dinner.
No Spend
Budgeted Spend
Unbudgeted Spend
Meals At Home All Day
Something Frugal For The Day
Sewed For 30 Minutes Or More
Made/Found Money
February 1: - Paid $130 phone bill and DH $15 bank credit card bill - Got $40 refund check - Made reusable Swiffer WetJet pad and no heater use(warm day}
February 2: - Stayed home all day! - reused salsa jar, no heater use(warm day) and made bread sticks from scratch
February 3: - $45.62 for gas - Play date with grandparents and aunties, no heater, made spinach cheese bread this morning! I also got to pick up my serger and the rest of my fabric and patterns to start sewing again!
February 4: - Husband used his credit card and spent $20 on his stupid video game. - Made toddler skirts for my shop - Reused spray bottle and made natural orange cleaner!
February 5: - McDonald's for DH lunch $9.59 - Made $11.50 for being a mystery shopper for BestMark and made $20 for selling junk
February 6: - Cut out boy and girl undies patterns
February 7: - Bought household supplies $29.69 but went over budget , Bought pet supplies $6.40 and Bought tax software $35.70 and got a $10 gift card - Made $11.50 for being a mystery shopper for BestMark
February 8: - Paid car payment - Didn't really sew but cut out more patterns - Used redbox code to get a free rental
February 9: - Paid $25 Walmart credit card bill
February 10: - Had to pay for my hyenacart store it's only $5 but forgot to put it in this months budget and spent $4.59 on 1 box of Duraflame logs(we need them for fireplace) - Made $11.50 for being a mystery shopper for Bestmark
My February Goals:
No Spend/Budgeted Days = 7/20
Sewing Days = 3/20
Frugal Days = 5/15
Meals At Home Days = 9/25
Gas = $45.62/$120
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