Jen's Blog

I haven't spent any money today. I spent the bulk of the morning and early afternoon working on the boutique. I had a photo shoot this weekend and now have all kinds of new photos to work with. Picked up DD and friend at school, and then DD and I spent about an hour+ cleaning up her room. Now that's a lot of fun.

Dinner will probably be Saturday's leftovers. DH's parents gave us five sets of tickets to a local community theater, and we saw our first play Saturday night. The leftovers are from dinner out that night. One of my former students was in the play, which was fun. I didn't know he'd be in it, and it took me a while to place him, but once I confirmed that he had indeed been in one of my classes, memories came rushing back. He was a cool kid, and I suspect he's a pretty cool young adult now too.

Still waiting on $40 in gas vouchers for my challenge. I need to cancel that trial membership in the next couple of days. Still waiting for ebookdrop payment as well, but that's not much.

DH and I have been having a lot of talks about time and money and how to find the balance we need and fund the things we want to do/have. it's an on-going discussion, and I'm glad we can talk openly about it.

As a result of calling about our home and auto insurance policies and getting our rates reduced, we got a partial refund in the mail today for the 6 months we'd already paid for our cars. The refund is $49.76,and I'll add it to my challenge total at the end of the month. A very nice surprise!

I finished one of the leg warmers for DD today. I now know how to knit with double pointed needles, which was the whole point of the project. I'll work on the other leg warmer whle I'm waiting for DD at ballet. That time alone will give me about two hours a week to work on it.

Having dinners planned while on vacation made evenings nice and smooth. I don't do this nearly enough at home, but I've got some planned now. Reading about flash having taco salad made me want some too, so that's on the schedule for tonight. I've got a soy ground beef substitute that works well in these types of meals.

I had breakfast and lunch at home but spent 50 cents at Starbucks (used up what was left on a gift card and owed an additional 50 cents). I've been using my new travel mug (birthday gift) and saving 10 cents on every drink. That's good for the environment too - no more cups to throw away.

I really need to get past this Thin Mint craving. I think I might have been better off not buying any in the first place.

My plans for spending/saving today:

*trip to Trader Joe's done
*deposit two checks done
*go through bills that need to be scheduled for payment online done
*go by yarn store - need to see if she carries three colors I'm interested in
*write check for this session's ballet tuition done
*carpooling today done

I've got a bunch I want to get done today, so that I can work as much as possible tomorrow should they have work for me. I would do the work regardless, but this way I won't have oodles of other things weighing on my mind.

Let's see if this shows up - me and my daughter, skiing:



Well, there you go. In all our skiing glory!

Still no word back regarding the rewards card.

Still no payment for my auction.

Grrr....

We're taking a walk tonight and going out to a cheap but tasty hole-in-the-wall Mexican food place near home. It sounds really good to me - both the walk and the food.

My auction ended today - $17.51. Not bad for $20 face value. I haven't gotten paid yet, so I can't come up with my net proceeds, but here's what I have so far:

+17.51 final total
-1.27 eBay fees
-.81 PayPal fees
= $15.43 to add to challenge

I will fill in the rest once I get paid.
Edited to add I got paid, so totals have been updated.

Money spent today - $4.25 at coffeehouse
Money saved - carpooled

Dinner will be on the run this evening - we go from ballet to picking up DH at work to school for a parents meeting.

So. I used up a vast number of points accumulated on our reward card to offset some future car and hotel charges (DH's brother is getting married and we'll be traveling). I read the fine print carefully, try to make sure everything is clear, and go ahead and submit my request. Ha. I try to reserve two hotel rooms, using two room certificates, and am told I can only use one certificate per night per hotel. Now, does it state this in the terms and conditions? Of course it doesn't. If it did, I wouldn't have gotten two certificates. (I'm trying to book a room for my in-laws, too.) I've sent a note to the customer service department for the rewards site and will see what they have to say. I quoted the terms and conditions as they relate to hotel rewards. I do not want to feel ripped off here. I'm already planning on cancelling this account and opening one up that does strictly cash back rewards. If they can't help me, I'll be sure to bring that up and see if that doesn't change their tune, given how much we use this card month in and month out.

Stay tuned.

My gift card auction is going well. The cards are valued at 50% of face value with about a day left and eight watchers. Net proceeds will go to my challenge account. Still waiting for my fourth offer to arrive in the mail.

Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by all there is to do. Committments I've made, things to do around the house, things I want to do for myself... I think I need to make myself a list of current to-do's and then start prioritizing those items. I think it will help me feel less overwhelmed and get back into the swing of things.

Spent some time working on the boutique this morning. That is one of those things that feels like there is still so much to do.

1. You drive the 6-7 hours it takes to get there.

2. You plan on making all of your meals and shop ahead of time.

3. You plan on eating sandwiches on the road instead of stopping somewhere for lunch.

4. You go when your company subsidizes part of the trip, rather than when it's most convenient for you.

5. You check out books from the library for entertainment during the drive for your 6-year-old.

Yep, that's pretty much our frugal vacation. And it's going to be fun!

I got gas today at the cheapest place by far that I know of. It was at least 8 cents cheaper per gallon than the place I used to go, and good 12 cents cheaper than some other places I passed on my way home today. The only problem is that this other place isn't convenient on the weekends (it's about 15 miles from our house), so I have to make sure that I get gas on my way to or from DD's school. If I buy about 30-40 gallons of gas per month, I'll be saving about $2.40 - $3.20 per month. Not bad.

I took the car in to get its oil changed this morning and then found a coupon for $7 off this afternoon! Frustrating, but the other car needs to go in too, so I'll be sure to take it in before the coupon expires.

Other finanical happenings -
*two tutoring appointments today
*all three meals have been/will be at home
*DH tutored last night
*found Balance gold bars at the 99 cent store last night. They were 2 for 99 cents, whereas normally they're a dollar each when I can find them on sale.

I cancelled three of my four trial memberships today. It was fairly easy and quick, but I wanted to mention something for others trying this out. When you call, the customer service person will try at least once, sometimes up to three or four times, to leave your account open. And they will say things like, "I'll send you some more information about the benfits that you may not have realized you have with us and leave your account open while you have a chance to look through it." Just keep saying, "No thank you, I'd like to cancel," and eventually they do give you a cancellation number.

The Lowe's cards we will definitely be able to use. The Bed Bath & Beyond cards can be used too. The Circuit City cards? I decided to list them on eBay. Even if I only get 50% of their face value and PayPal fees, I still come out ahead over $8 for the deal, and shipping for this auction is a piece of cake.

If the cards sell, the net proceeds will go into my challenge account.

Other financial plans for the day:
*Buy cat litter and dog food (if needed) done
*Cancel three trial memberships done
*Set up savings at Affinity Bank for DD done

The applesauce cake turned out great! My muffins stuck to their paper wrappers, so I'm going to need to spray the muffin cups and skip the paper cups next time. I can't believe how easy it is to make tasty baked tofu. Slice, blot out excess water, marinate it in some soy sauce, sprinkle on some ground ginger and garlic, bake for about 20-30 minutes on each side. Easy!

I got my $20 in Lowe's cards and $20 in Circuit City cards today. The Circuit City cards don't have any sticker or anything on them stating their value, but there is a toll-free number on the back that you can all to find out the balance. I called, just to make sure that both cards did indeed have ten dollars on them, and they do.

That makes three arrivals of the four offers I applied for.

I spent about $29 today on various OTC items, as well as dental floss. It's nice to be able to submit that for reimbursement. Even though the money that comes back to us is technically ours anyway, it feels like extra income because it's taken out of the paycheck and lowers the take-home pay. I'll add these receipts to the envelope I have going. I was going to give the receipts to DH at the end of last month, but it seemed like a lot of paper pushing for not a lot of reimbursement. I'll hold off until the end of this month, especially if I can get myself into the dentist this month.

Edited to add that I made a dental appointment for the end of the month. What fun.

We spent about $48 today on groceries to take with us when we go skiing. We still have a few things left to buy, but that is most of what we'll need, given we already had some things at home we can bring. I'm going to make a few things before we go - applesauce cake (recipe was given to me in the forums - thank you!), baked tofu (it's been marinating in soy sauce), and possibly some chocolate chip cookies.

Blew $4 today on a box of Thin Mint cookies. I wish those things weren't so good!!

I set up some online bill payments earlier today, just to make sure that nothing gets overlooked while we're gone. We are only going to be gone for a few days, but I'd hate for something to be late.

I'll take the car in for an oil change this week, and I need to make vet appointments for all of our pets sometime in the next few weeks. I'm also long overdue for a dental check-up, and DD is due next month. Lots of spending coming up. Oh, I need to go get more cat litter tomorrow, too. And we owe the deposit on next year's tuition. I think that's due by the third week of this month. I need to loook over those forms and fill things out.

Bills, bills, bills. I'm glad we are able to swing two days of skiing - we can all use some R&R around here.

One more thing - I did 5 more reviews at InsiderPages, so hoepfully that will be another $5 for Target.

My $20 in gift cards for Bed Bath & Beyond arrived today, so I can go cancel that trial membership this week. The cards came quickly - I signed up on 2/22. I've got three more offers still pending.

I just submitted five qualifying reviews at insiderpages.com and sent in my email for the $5 Target gift card. You can submit up to ten reviews from one household, so I'll do five more for another $5.

We walked out of Borders today with a book and three drinks, and we were 13 cents richer! I had a $35 gift card, and DD found a quarter on the floor. When all was said and done, we spent the gift card and 12 of those 25 cents. What a deal.

After adding in AsSense and cc round-ups, plus earning a little bit of interest, my balance is now at $134.43. AdSense was almost $16, which is decent considering how little traffic those two sites really get.

I have 14 books listed at half.com for a total of $37.50 and 2 DVDs for a total of $18.70. I may go in and adjust some prices.

I've got four gift cards in process right now - $20 for Bed Bath & Beyond, $20 for Circuit City, $20 for Lowe's and $40 in gas certificates. I've written down the dates I signed up for each, to make sure that I cancel within 30 days. I'm toying with the idea of selling the Circuit City and BB&B cards on eBay. Haven't decided yet. (Just looked on ebay, and the cards seem to generally go for about 80% of their face value. Seems worth it to me if I'm not likely to use them myself. When I signed up for them, I figured I'd got he eBay route with them.)

I'll total up my February AdSense revenue for my homeschool and tutoring sites, as well as my credit card roundups and add those amounts to my challenge account. I don't think I have any half.com sales for February, but I'll double-check. (I checked - already added the one sale into my account. Looks like I have about $18 in credit card round-ups to add, and about $14 in AdSense.)

April is right around the corner, and that's when I'm planning on reopening my boutique at DivaTribe. I've got my bath and body products already, and I ordered some jewelry from a favorite designer a couple of days ago. I need to finish up photos of my own items and make sure some of the technical ins and outs of the site are working - sales tax, credit cards, etc.

I'm thinking about taking a percentage of my sales and putting them in my challenge account. Nothing big, maybe 5%. Between advertising, buying materials and products and trying to actually make some money at this so DH doesn't have to work so many freelance hours, I need this to make some money.

Wrestling with expenses versus income... wants versus needs... the feeling of having enough and all that we need versus feeling deprived...

Pity party here today. Disregard.

Our cars and home are all insured through Allstate. I made a call this afternoon to discuss the coverage on one of our cars, and long story short, we're now saving about $210 a year! I increased our deductibles and took off the comprehensive and collision on the 12-year-old car. Our coverage is better now, and we're saving some money. It pays to call!

For 2/1 - 2/20:
Groceries: $362.87 (goal: $300)
Dining: $151.18 (goal: $160)

Disclaimers/Rationalizations
All of the food and supplies for DD's birthday party are in the groceries category, and if I really wanted to, I'd separate that out and classify it as entertaining. Also, we went out to a nice dinner to celebrate her birthday and mine before going to the ballet. I'm feeling unmotivated to do get real picky about it all and will just accept that February's food spending is going to be higher due to her birthday and mine.

I don't know if it's a coincidence or not, but my AdSense revenue for today for my tutoring site is great. I'd love it if it could continue on like this as a result of those site submissions I made last night! We'll see....

I did a Google search for "homeschool math tutor" and found a few sites to submit my tutoring site to this evening. Hopefully it will get added and send some more traffic and business my way. With the right kind of student, asynchronous tutoring is great.

Anyone need any Calculus tutoring?

I made a few changes to the text on my tutoring web site, hoping to get it picked up ina few more ways by Google and such. I also went into my listing at dmoz.org and submitted an updated site description there. More traffic to my site means hopefully more business and more AdSense revenue too, which gets added to my challenge money each month.

I picked up two finance books today at the library: Start Late, Finish Rich, by David Bach, and The Millionaire Next Door, by Thomas J. Stanley, Ph. D. and William D. Danko, Ph. D. I'm looking forward to reading them - I started skimming TMND earlier this afternoon and found it interesting from the first pages.

A couple of years ago, DH and I met with a financial planner. We didn't click with him at all, for a variety of reasons, and never pursued a working relationship with him. One of his tactics was all about scaring. Terrorists were mentioned. Whatever. One thing he did say that backfired was telling us how so few people are able to retire today and live the life they want to live. Dh and I had the same thought and discussed it later: my parents both retired early, and his father retired at a relatively young/normal age, while his mother was always an at-home mother to four kids. My mom was a SAHM until I was about 9 or 10. Both of our families are living the kinds of retirements they want to. They have enough money to do what they want, and they can pay for emergencies when they arise. They have plenty in savings, own their homes and cars, etc. etc. etc. They don't look wealthy, but they're definitely comfortable. Dh and I want that for ourselves someday.

The point in all of this? DH and I try to model our financial lives after what we see in our parents, so to have a financial advisor try to scare us about no one being able to retire comfortably was just plain the wrong way to try and snag our business.

DH emailed me today that bonuses don't look likely at work this year. Bummer. Apparently when the owners of the company get more involved, budgets get cut, as do bonuses, and not always with good cause. I adjusted the income portion of our budget accordingly.

I have a new student to tutor online. I installed a phpBB board at my tutoring site and am using that to work with this new student. (The board is not public; one has to contact me and pay for time in order to get the link to it.) She paid for 30 minutes of my time. Yahoo!

Also adding in 32.79 to my challenge total, which includes half.com money, tutoring money and cc round ups for 2/1 - 2/8.

That brings my challenge total up to
$67.30 + $32.79= $100.09

DD and I are heading to the mall later today to pick out a birthday gift for her friend. I mentioned the earring idea to her, and she liked it, so that's what we'll look for.

I'm kind of nervous to find out about our taxes. I hope what we owe is close to what we've estimated we'll owe.

I still haven't gotten my first check yet, but I've got one of my supervisors following up on it.

Money saved today -
Carpooled
Breakfast, lunch and coffee at home
Free coffee at work

Money earned today -
3.25 hours worked

DD has a birthday party to attend this weekend. I think I'll take her to the mall to pick out a pair of earrings for her friend. The theme is a tea party, so that seems like a nice girly-girl gift.

I've been debating going to the yarn store for some double-pointed needles and sock yarn, to try and learn to work in the round with those kinds of needles. My mom made DD some leg warmers, and I'd like to try and learn to do it, too. But so far I've been talking myself out of it, at least for the time being. We'll see.

I feel like I'm in a holding pattern as far at the boutique goes. I don't need a lot of stock on hand, as it's all done online. I thought maybe I'd be ready to try and sell at a table on Earth Day (big celebration for the city DD's school is in), but to have enough stock on hand means a pretty big outlay of cash up front, and I don't know how much I'd recoup, given the event is also a fundraiser. I can't do much on the actual store look and layout until I have my new logo, and that isn't due to me until the end of the month.

Just feeling kind of blah today overall.

Today has been a great day - it's my daughter's birthday. Six years and a day ago, I was hoping she wouldn't be born for another two months, but my body had other ideas. Now she's absolutely perfect, and no one would ever guess she was a preemie.

I did some shopping for her party, and I may still need a few more things. DH volunteered to go out to Trader Joe's tonight if need be, while DD and I stay home and bake cupcakes.

I worked 2+ hours today, which is more than I was expecting. DH and I went out to lunch for a total cost of $12 for the two of us. Some friends met up with us at the restaurant - a little Mexican place - and we had a good time.

Money saved - coffee and breakfast at home
Money spent - lunch out, and shopping at Smart and Final