Oct 1 -
$138 diapers (budgeted), $83 groceries, $11 book.
Oct 2 -
$133 groceries at 10% Tuesday (stocked the pantry to the brim) $12 BookMooch obligation
Oct 3 -
Oct 4 -
Oct 5 -
$63 Thanksgiving groceries (Canadian Thanksgiving)
Oct 6 -
$85 baby clothes ($50 budgeted), $35 baby gift for friend, $16 lunch
Oct 7 -
Oct 8 -
$5 milk and a toothbrush
Oct 9 -
$2.55 BookMooch obligation
Oct 10 -
$20 washable diaper pail liner, $20 scarf (budgeted-work clothes.)
Oct. 11 -
obscenely expensive haircut...taken out of work clothes budget
Oct. 12 -
$7 thrifting for work clothes
Oct. 13 -
$200 clothes and shoes for work (budgeted), $30 for drinks at my high school reunion and late night pizza for me and DH afterward (SO not budgeted)
Oct. 14 -
$70 groceries
Oct. 15 -
Oct. 16 -
Oct. 17 -
Oct. 18 -
$20 gas, made $60 on Craigslist
Oct. 19 -
$184 ND appointment for DH
Oct. 20 -
Oct. 21 -
Oct. 22 -
$54 groceries, $100 breast pump, $40 necessary health books, $5 self-pity Starbucks after driving all over the city
Oct. 23 -
Oct. 24 -
Oct. 25 -
$3 Tim Hortons
Oct. 26 -
$20 Birthday dinner for a friend
Oct. 27 -
Oct. 28 -
Oct. 29 -
$70 groceries – way over budget.
Oct. 30 -
$30 groceries...vitamins etc @ health food store
Oct. 31 -
$508/$440 groceries
$55.55/$25 entertainment
$530 over budget (incl. overage on entertainment and groceries.)
Not a great month for me. I ran up a balance on my credit card which I'll need to pay off in November.
Life lessons: Well, just because you have money budgeted for something doesn't mean you can go out and spend it right all at the beginning of the month. Spending on work clothes was totally discretionary spending, but that money could have covered all the health expenses that came up. Should have waited till the end of the month!
I'm not sure if my you-have-to-spend-money-to-save-money strategy on groceries worked out. I guess we'll see next month if the totals are substantially lower. I did do some hardcore buying on 10% Tuesday and with my 15% off coupon at the HFS and we didn't eat all of it yet, so we'll see if it makes a difference. Since we were still over this month, next month would have to be WAY under for it to work. I'm a bit skeptical.
I also feel pretty bad about the ~ $600 I managed to spend on back-to-work related expenses. I'm trying to keep this in perspective here...we will save $2000 a month if I work, even after daycare, as opposed to the $700 we're saving with me on EI and the $0 we'd save next month after EI ran out if I wasn't working. Still....did I NEED the diapers and the breast pump and the clothes? It's a total grey area and we were supposed to have the cash in hand, but YIKES.
On the good side, tracking my purchases did keep them fairly mindful. I LOVE my new diapers and my day home provider is happy that they're easy, the breast pump has taken the dread factor out of pumping-and-working (hey, if it only takes 10min I can play the 'pump break' card and get even with all the smokers) and DH is already feeling better since his homeopath appoinment - so cheers to that! I have empty-chequing-account remorse, but no buyer's remorse here...so that's gotta be frugal on some level.
November's a new month! See you ladies there!
