March Goals Update

March Goals

1) No breakfast/lunch/snacks/coffee during the work week - FAIL I started off fairly strong (I think the first 2 weeks there was none) but I lost control during the second two. Went out for breakfast 2X, lunch 2X, one drink, and 2 teas.

Financial:

1) Shopping ban - FAIL - I purchased a bathing suit, a spring/rain coat, and 3 tops, 1 cardigan.
2) Savings goals - Check - My RSP is over $25K and I put another $700 into other savings accounts this month.
3) Debt goals - Check - I paid $1300 off my debt, closed one credit card, and now my total debt is under $4K!
4) Increase my Net Worth - Complete - up +$14,511.01 (goal = $10,000) Hmm, how much should I increase this to?
5) Track spending and post budgets - Check - I need to verify the numbers but I'm pretty sure I kept track of everything.

Lifestyle:

1) Lose weight -FAIL - ??? I don't even want to know, so I'm not weighing myself yet.
2) Do something physical at least 4x a week - FAIL - Gym, what's a gym? With all my time and energy going into OT this month, the gym definitely took a back burner.
3) Eat better - FAIL - Stress eating, that's all I'm going to say about that ...
4) Read more books - Pass - Finally finished "The Kingmaker's Daughter" by Philippa Gregory.
5) Make more things - FAIL - OT, need I say more?
6) Sell/donate more - Check - I sold 3 wedding items this month and I've posted some more items online.

Blogging:

1) Post my weekly spending and bi-weekly budgets. - Check
2) Post at least one other post a week other than #1 - Check
3) Comment on other blogs and become more of the community - Check
4) Use twitter more (@morgainemoney) - Check
5) Post updates on my progress with the Shopping Ban and these goals. - Check - unfortunately :(
6) I will update my blog and sidebars with these goals (other than the Closing Costs since this is mostly T). And if I'm on pace or not. - Check

April Goals

All of the above PLUS ... Actually, stick to these goals! The diet and exercise especially. I feel so tired, lazy, and lathargic lately. Hopefully Spring is here and we can do more things outside :)
How about you? How did you do on your March goals? Was March a crazy busy month or more relaxing?

Morgaine

Payday! OT Edition

The last two weeks (Mar 8-21) I worked 89.75 hours and it paid off ... literally :)

I made an extra $666 net. And its practically spent already :(

Hmm, $666 is this a sign this money is cursed or something?

Here's the breakdown:

$275 rent
$40 share of groceries
$50 share of parking
$500 to T to partially pay back $1000 borrowed to go into my RSP
$400 to my aunt to partially pay back loan
$100 share of renters insurance
$100 to EF
$500 to Planned Spending (want to purchase a bike this month and need to pay for taxes for flight to Alberta)
= $1965 out of $2308 = $343 which is around what I typically leave for myself.

You may notice that I didn't put any money towards debt repayment. I feel like I'm spinning my wheels a bit. At the same time that I really want this debt gone, it is at 0% (balance transfer) and the amount (just under $4K) isn't causing me stress or causing me to lose sleep.

But, anytime I have to make a large purchase, if I don't have savings, I have to put it on credit. So, the goal right now is to not accumulate any more debt than the $4K I have and then pay it off. That's why I decided to put the $500 in savings (planned spending) rather than on debt. That money's going to get spent eventually.

Hopefully that makes sense.

What about you? What would you do with the extra money? Would you pay down debt even though its at 0% or would you put it in savings for future purchases that would avoid adding to debt?

Morgaine

Why I don't play the lottery

If you read my post about What I Learned about Finances from My Family you'll have read that my father was a perpetual optimist and part of that optimism became his obsession with lottery tickets.

I actually have very fond memories of sitting on my father's lap helping him pick out lottery numbers and filling in the bubbles on the lottery sheet. He would tell me about all the things we would buy when we won the lottery. We'd dream together of a nice, big house with a swimming pool, being able to go on vacations, and living the high life. Of course, this never happened.

I think my Dad won a few little prizes here and there and maybe we went out for dinner or he used it to buy something he/we needed but we never won anything big. That never stopped him.

He bought every lottery going, including the big charity lotteries (which do have better odds but he still only ever won his money back), and scratch tickets. His job included a lot of waiting around (he was a courier) and he would also wait in the car anytime my Mom went shopping. You can bet he was in the car with a coffee scratching his scratch tickets. For him, it was entertainment.

For me, I think its a waste of money. I'm in debt so I feel that I shouldn't be spending my money on things that won't do anything for me immediately. Its in my best interest to use my money for things like paying off my debt, savings, or for things that bring some value to my life. I'd much rather spend my entertainment money on spending time with friends and going to see a movie with T.

Sure, I still like to dream about how my life could be different, but instead of relying on winning the lottery to make my dreams come true, I've decided to work hard and save. For me, having my hard earned money in the bank is like winning the lottery and the odds are much better.

What about you? Do you play the lottery?

Morgaine

RSP Savings Goal Complete!

Just a short post to show that the trade in my RSP went through and my first financial goal of 2013 is officially complete :)

Weekly Spending: Mar 18 - 24

3/18 - No Spend!
3/19 - No Spend!
3/20 - No Spend!
3/21 - No Spend!
3/22 - $3.65 (cash - breakfast) + $59.93 (credit - dinner for me and T) + $2.90 (cash - chocolate for me and T) = $66.48
3/23 - $56.50 (credit - Old Navy online)
3/24 - $11.84 (debt - lunch) + $29.61 (debit - Michael's) + $12.99 (debit - movie) + $14.31 (debit - drink and snack at theatre) = $68.75

Total: $191.73

After doing extremely well not spending during the week, I may have gone a little crazy over the weekend. Friday we met up with some friends for dinner and it was my turn to pay.

Saturday - I have no excuse other than I had already broken the shopping ban this month and Old Navy finally has some t-shirts in colours I will actually wear.

Sunday - typical lunch and movie Sunday for me and T. The trip to Michael's was actually to pick up supplies to make something that a friend as "custom ordered" and I will be reimbursed for these purchases and the final product :)

Overall, I'm not disappointed in the amount I spent this week, but I need to shut the shopping down. The Shopping Ban will be back on 100% in April but I'm still going to try and not shop between then and now either.

So, that was my week, how was yours?

Morgaine

Competing Priorities

Now that my RSP is $25K and that goal is complete, I'm going to shift my focus. The problem is to where? My personality type is one that would prefer to focus on one thing and get it done, as it gets done faster and gives me more motivation (which is why I picked the snowball method of paying off debt). But, I may not be able to do that all the time, and I'll admit that I find it frustrating.

Here are my competing priorities (in no particular order):

• Pay my Aunt back the $4K I borrowed for my RSP
• Pay off remaining credit card debt ($3900)
• Save for house down payment outside of RSP (approx $5K)
• Re-establish Emergency Fund (at least $1K)
• Save for trip to Alberta in summer ($200, flight paid for w/Airmiles) - July
• Save for gifts/Christmas/misc (at least $500)
• Buy a bike ($150-250)

Ok, lets add that up (using highest totals and ignoring interest, just for example purposes) = $15,150. I will at the very least pay $400 to my Aunt and probably $400 to the credit card to bring it to $3500. The rest is going to depend on how much my next paycheque is. But let's say I pay off and save a total of $1000 in March, that leaves me with $14,150

After March we have 9 more months in the year (yes, already!) 14,150/9=1572.22 per month that I would need to pay/save (not including interest) each month for the rest of the year. That's pretty much a whole paycheque! Also, since some of those goals need to be completed before the end of the year, that number isn't completely correct, its more for example purposes.

I will have to give my budget a look over to determine how much I will be able to give to each of these goals and how to make the best use of my money.

I will post my budget at the end of the month once I have an average of money spent for the last 3 months. I also get my OT "bonus" at the end of the month so I will have a better idea of the total I have left to repay/save. I will then try to determine how to best fit these payments into my budget going forward. I will post that to this blog.

How about you? How do you deal with competing priorities?

Morgaine

Financial Goals Complete!

Yesterday, I sent my "Investment Advisor" (I picked my own fund, though) a cheque for $5,000 which will put my RSP at $25,155. In my yearly financial goals, goal #2 is to have $25K for down payment of house. That goal is almost complete! I won't consider it actually complete until the trade goes through.

This will also put my Net Worth at $21,202. My net worth at the beginning of this year was $7,261. This is an increase of $13,941 which puts me well over my goal #5 of increase my NW by at least $10K. I will have to increase this one. But, once I take the money out of my RSP to use for down payment, my NW will decrease but I will be adding a house to the NW calculation (and a mortgage).

So, that's 2 Financial Goals completed in the first 3 months of the year! Unfortunately, I also broke my Shopping Ban this month, but I will just keep moving forward with the goal. I also have to bring my EF back up after draining it to pay off my CapitalOne card this month.

But, in more good news, I officially have a higher positive NW than I had negative NW when I started this blog in 2010!

In January 2010 I had $3,000 in savings and $22,400 in debt now I have $25,100 in savings and $3,900 in debt! From -$19,400 to +$21,200 NW. What a reversal in 3 years! :)

Granted, I still have a ways to go, I have to get that last credit card to $0 and pay my aunt back the $4K loan for the RSP, but right now, I'm feeling pretty proud of myself.

How about you? Have you accomplished any of your financial goals for this year?

Morgaine

Weekly Spending Report Mar 11 - 17

3/11 - No Spend!
3/12 - $12.44 (cash - 2 chai shakes @ Body Blitz) + $27.06 (credit - my share of dinner at Mandarin) = $39.50
3/13 - No Spend!
3/14 - $18.55 (cash - TTC tokens)
3/15 - $1.50 muffin (cash) + $8.65 (cash - lunch) = $10.15
3/16 - $30 (cash - T for my share of St Patrick's Day food and booze) + ($0.88) (cash - to change jar) = $30.00
3/17 - $17.80 (cash - lunch for me and cousin) + $26.83 (debit - Shoppers) + $53.17 (debit - Joe Fresh) = $97.80

Total: $196.00

Friday, I broke my no breakfast/lunch/coffee/snacks during the work week challenge, by purchasing both breakfast and lunch! I have no excuse, we were too lazy on Thursday night to prepare anything for Friday. I did bring my lunch on Saturday when I worked OT.

Sunday, well I (if I didn't before) officially broke the Shopping Ban. March hasn't been a good month for me, spending wise. At Shoppers I went in for lip balm, it was on sale so I bought 2. But, I also saw hair dye was on sale, so I bought two of those as well even though I do have one at home. However, considering they are regularly $13.99 (well, the brand I buy) and it was on sale for $6.99 I don't feel too bad. I also bought body lotion (on sale, but not really needed, have some at home) and pocket tissues. My cousin and I went to the St Patrick's Day parade and she was in desperate need of Kleenex from standing outside in the windy coldness.

I also bought a spring/rain coat from Joe Fresh. I don't know why I even went in. I knew if I went in I would break the Shopping Ban. Its a really nice coat and for $49 it wasn't a bad deal, either. But it is against the rules.

I've decided to give myself a break for March (not that I'm planning on going crazy and use this as an excuse to do more shopping). I'm going to start fresh in April and see how long I can go next time.

Well, that was my week. How was yours?
Morgaine

Update on Job Situation

If you've been reading for a while, you would know I'm on contract with my current employer. I've been hoping to get moved to full-time but so far it hasn't happened, they haven't opened any full-time positions that I've been qualified for, just contract positions.

Another thing you might know, T and I are thinking of starting a family near the end of the year (we want a house first).

Being on contract means there is absolutely no guarantee that my position will be held for me while I go on maternity leave. It also means no top-up (I work for a company that would top up the 35 week government benefits to 52 weeks).

I didn't think this was that big of deal since it says in my collective agreement (union document) that anyone on contract for 3 years will be made permanent after 3 years. What I didn't know (because I didn't actually read it, stupid me!) is that you have to be in the same position for 3 years in order to qualify.

I started a new (current) position last November. So, I've basically shot myself in the foot, big time! It basically reset my contract clock and now I would need to stay in this position until November 2015 in order to qualify. There's no guarantee of that since my current contract ends this November, it is a possibility that I would go back to what I was doing prior to my current role (and the clock would start again).

I found this out as I spoke today to a colleague of mine who's basically in the same position (same current role, on contract, used to be in the same role as me) but she's already pregnant. She's already spoken to HR and the union and they won't do anything. She's been here longer than me (5 years compared to my just under 3) and she's just as a good of a worker as I am so I don't see my situation as any better of getting full-time than her.

So, this leaves me with 2 options. 1) Look for a new job now, one that would be full-time, that would give me benefits, and maybe paid vacation. It would guarantee me a position when I'm done my mat leave. (2) Stay at my current job even though I have no benefits, no paid vacation (other than 8% vacation/stat holiday pay) and no guarantee of a job when I'm done mat leave.

Maybe I'm crazy, but I'm leaning more towards #2. This job pays way more than I think I would get elsewhere, which would allow me to sock away as much money as I can until I go on maternity leave. I've worked hard at this job, and there's still a possibility that things could change. It's still more than a year away. I don't need benefits as T has them through his work.

With #1 there's no guarantee that I won't be pregnant and looking for a new job before then anyways, I wouldn't want to go through that. In today's current economy, there is no job security. I think I will look and see what's out there, maybe I can find something permanent full-time that pays close or maybe even more than what I'm making here.

But, I think my safest bet is to wait until November and if I get renewed here, then that's when we'll start trying. If not, its gonna have to wait a bit longer. I just can't wait until November 2015.

What do you think? What would you do if you were in my situation?

Morgaine

Stupid Gym!

So, I've been with this one gym near my home for a year now (contract) and while I went pretty regularly up to the wedding, I stopped right after and have only been a handful of times since. But, I had to wait until my contract was up to cancel. This was February.

So, in February, I went in and told them I wanted to cancel my membership. I signed a form. The dude told me that since I paid for February I could still use the gym until the end of the month. I didn't, but anyways. Today, I look at my bank account and they charged me for March! I am fuming. Unfortunately, I am working OT tonight and tomorrow so I'm not sure when I'm going to be able to get this sorted out.

I was going to put a stop payment on them but it costs like $12.50 at my bank and they don't necessarily work all the time because this gym tends to change the date it takes money out of my account.

I want this money back as I hadn't budgeted for it to be leaving my account (don't worry, I'm not going into overdraft or anything, its $37) but I am paying for a new gym now closer to work and I wanted to sign up for aquafit this week.

Anyone else have this kind of experience with a gym or anywhere else that kept charging you even after your contract ended? How did you handle it?

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

TTFN,
Morgaine

Payday - Thursday, March 14, 2013

Today is payday. My raise came through :) It was a full paycheque (no days off) and its now $32 more than my previous full paycheques. Not a whole lot, but nothing to sneeze at either.

I've been approved for more overtime this week (2 hrs tonight, tomorrow night, and 8 hrs on Saturday). There may be more next week as well. This is good because I lose 2 days at the end of the month for Easter (no paid stat holidays) and it usually takes quite a bite out of my paycheque. I also wanted to come up with a buffer again, maybe not a full EF as I will probably just keep it in my regular savings account so it might be used for other expenses while I try to smooth out my savings after draining them to use as debt repayment.

I'm also waiting on getting my tax refund. According to CRA's website, I will be receiving my $3400 payment on Monday. Its going right back into the RSP for my home downpayment. That should put me at about $23,500 meaning I only have to put in $1500 more to reach my $25K downpayment goal in the RSP. I will still have to save more outside of the RSP as well as pay my aunt back the $4K loan. However, having the $25K amount in the RSP soon is great because the money has to be in there at least 90 days before withdrawal.

In more exciting news, I made a $200 payment to my Visa (will pay more at the end of the month) so now the balance starts with a 3! Well, $3,953.13 is the current balance. To think, I started this blog in 2010 with $21K in debt, most of it consumer debt, that number is a little overwhelming to me. I think I see the finish line, and its gonna be so sweet!

Hope everyone is having a great Thursday!

TTFN,
Morgaine

Am I Insane?

So, I've drained my Emergency Fund, and it wasn't for an emergency.

I paid off my Capital One credit card.

Once I'm sure I'm in the clear and no interest is going to be charged, I'm closing off the card.

I've done this for a few reasons:

1. I feel like I'm so close to the finish line of paying off debt that I can taste it. I am getting super impatient to pay off this debt.
2. I hate making 2 debt payments every month and only paying off a portion of each one. Now, I only have 1 payment, with a nice snowball from the now gone payment.
3. I have other resources I can tap if I run into an "emergency" in the short term. Of course, my now #1 priority is to get that EF back up to $1,000 ASAP. Then I will work on increasing it to 3-6 months of expenses.
4. I'm paying more interest (14.99%) on the credit card than I'm making on my EF (1.4%).
5. It brings my total debt down from $6,018.86 to $4,153.13. By the end of March, that number will start with a 3.
6. That means instead of taking until the end of the year with payments at about $600 a month, it can be paid off in November or earlier with payments of about $500/mth. Obviously, I will try and pay it down faster. But this makes the payment more in line with my budget.
7. I will be closing this card in order to have less debt and less available credit that should help when we're going to be getting a mortgage. These are factors in the GDS and TDS calculations that the banks do when figuring out qualification (and interest rates) for a mortgage.

I wouldn't recommend this strategy for everyone, well, actually, anyone else. I thought long and hard about doing this. If I felt that I would run into some serious issues in the short term (unemployment, illness, etc) then I wouldn't have done it. Granted, life can decide to throw you for a loop at anytime, which is the point of an emergency fund but I don't see it coming right now.

Also, if an emergency does come, I only had $1K in the EF which would hold me for maybe a couple of months. With minimum debt payments of $250 it wouldn't last very long. Now my minimum would be $125 and will be getting less as I continue to pay. Also, its more than likely would have put some expenses on my credit card anyways.

So, now my Debt Repayment Sidebar has been updated and is mostly dark blue. However, my Savings are now mostly light. Once this debt is paid off, saving will be my #1 priority, its just not it right now.

How about you? Do you think I'm insane? Would you drain your savings to pay off debt?

TTFN,
Morgaine

Weekly Spending: Mar 4-10

3/4 - $1.00 (cash - milk) + $76.27 (credit - AdditionElle) = $77.27
3/5 $99.44 (credit $49.72 gift/ $49.72 entertainment or personal care? - spa day for me and my BFF for her birthday at Body Blitz Spa in Toronto)
3/6 - $39 (debit - chiro)
3/7 - $11.20 (credit - Go Daddy)
3/8 - $1.00 (cash - milk) + $5.00 (cash - drink and snack) = $6.00
3/9 - $8.35 (cash - Timmies breakfast for me and T)
3/10 +$30.00 (cash - sold some wedding items) - $15.99 (debit movie) - $28.00 (cash - dinner for me and T) = $43.99

Total: $285.25 (+$30)

So, on Monday I guess I officially cheated on the shopping ban. I bought a bathing suit from AdditionElle, (online hence why I used my credit card). Here's why ... my friends and I go to Aquafit for exercise (yes, I have a gym membership but doing physical activities with friends is more fun and you can motivate each other. The last time I wore my current bathing suit my friend pointed out how see-through the back had become (I had gained some weight since I bought the suit so there probably was some stretching plus I went to a waterpark with waterslides, I imagine those aren't great for the bottom of a bathing suit). This was in February. If I had thought I'd need a replacement bathing suit this year I would have bought it last year so I could keep my shopping ban intact.

I'm letting myself off the hook here because its the first clothing purchase so far this year (and this is very unusual for me), because I didn't anticipate I would need a replacement when I decided to do this shopping ban, and because its for exercise. I'm just going to dust myself off and keep going. I'm not writing off this challenge as a failure yet, I'm going to keep trying.

Tuesday - since its my goal not to go shopping (and this includes for gifts if it can be helped), I thought a spa day for my BFF (she was the MOH at my wedding) would be a great gift. And since I've been jonesing for a spa day myself (I've been working hard and I've been noticing my back, neck, and shoulders have been super tense lately). I bought online gift certs for the water therapies at Body Blitz Spa for next Tuesday since its $10 cheaper on Tuesdays :) I've spent upwards of $100 on spa days in the past (or even just for a message) so $44 plus tax was a good deal, IMHO. And if you're in Toronto, I seriously recommend them, its a super relaxing place.

Thursday - some things are a foot, but not ready to talk about them ... yet :)

Friday - when do you consider the weekend started? Friday evening or Saturday morning (or Saturday at midnight?) I very desperately needed a snack Friday, this was after my regular working hours and just before my OT was to start. If I was going to get to 6:30 I knew I needed something to eat at 5. What do you think? Did I cheat on my no snacks during the work week challenge or does after work count, even though I was going back to work?

Sunday - I finally sold some of my wedding stuff! The cake serving set and cake stand are now gone! I got $30 which then went towards dinner. Went to a movie and bought dinner. It was T and I 6 year dating anniversary :)

So, this was a super spendy week. Highest so far this year, I believe. Its also left me with not much to make it to payday on but with my no spending on breakfast/lunch/coffee/snacks during the week and the fact that we have a meal plan for every night this week (except Tuesday, after spa I'll be going out with my BFF and another friend for dinner). I should make it to Tuesday without too much trouble.

So, that was my week of spending. How did yours go?
Morgaine

OT and Updated Blogroll

I don't usually post on a Saturday, but I'm at work, its lunch time so I decided to update my blogroll to get rid of blogs that aren't posting anymore :(

And, add some awesome new ones :)

I will have some interesting updates coming soon, stay posted. And, I may have broken my shopping ban :(

Stay tuned!

Have a great weekend! :D
Morgaine

Budget Friendly Tea

If you regularly read my weekly spending reports, you would see I buy milk every week. Its not for drinking straight or putting in cereal. Its for tea.

Instead of buying a hot caffeinated beverage everyday, I simply buy tea bags in bulk, use the hot water machine at work and add some (raw) sugar and milk.

Here's why its good for my budget:

• 72 teabags on sale for $2.99 = $0.04 per serving
• Raw sugar 500 grams for $4.99 (apparently 4 grams is one serving, 500/4=125 servings!) = $0.04 per serving
• Milk 10 servings for $1.00 = $0.10 per serving

Total per serving: $0.18 and I usually have 2 servings per day = $0.36

Thirty-six cents per day for 2 large cups of tea = winning :) Also that makes $1.80 per week, that's about the price of ONE XL tea/coffee at Timmies or Starbucks

Granted, I do on occasion drink fancier stuff, I love Tetley's Earl Grey Vanilla and Chocolate Chai for example. I have been gifted some David's and Teavana tea but I just can't thoil buying for myself when Tetley will do. Drinking regular tea is better for my budget :)

All my family members are huge tea drinkers, I think its been ingrained in me to love tea. They've also showed that drinking tea has some awesome health benefits. There's so many flavours and varieties which is a bonus. I also like the fact that I don't feel the need to add cream like I do with coffee so it makes tea a healthier drink for me (gotta watch the cholesterol). Sure there's lattes but they are expensive. In the end, I'm just a tea person.

And I leave you with this fun article about Tea People vs Coffee People

How about you? Do you drink tea or coffee? Do you make it yourself to help with your budget or do you regularly indulge with Timmies/Starbucks, etc?

TTFN,
Morgaine

Foodie Gift Pack

I'm finding Pinterest to be a great resource for gift ideas.

Here's 2 awesome recipes I found:

Flavoured butter: http://www.yourhomebasedmom.com/flavored-butters/

Basil Infused Olive Oil: http://www.shutterbean.com/2012/basil-infused-oil/

I did up a garlic and herb flavoured butter and the basil infused olive oil. I threw them in a basket with some toast points and brie. Add a bottle of nice white wine, and it was a very nice gift to my friend that cost me less than $25 :)

Are you on pinterest? Have you made anything that you've found (craft or recipe)?

TTFN,
Morgaine

Weekly Spending: Feb 25 - Mar 3

2/25 - $9.03 (debit - shampoo)
2/26 - $2.77 (cash - breakfast)
2/27 - $8.46 (cash - lunch)
2/28 - $32.00 (email transfer to T to pay him back for $5.00 borrowed and pizza ordered last week)
3/1 - $10.15 (debit - snack at movie theatre)
3/2 - No Spend!
3/3 - $9.75 (cash - breakfast for me and hubby) + $62.25 (debit Wal-Mart) + (-0.03) (cash to change jar) = $72.00

Total: $134.41

Wal-Mart breakdown: $23.94 (+tax) home + $4.00 (no tax) groceries + $9.91 (+tax) pet +$20 cash back. The home stuff was 2 plastic bins 1 for the bunny's food (if I leave it out in the plastic bag she chews on it and dragging it in and out of her room was getting to me) and 1 for other things that I can't leave lying around in that room because she would chew on them (mostly related to jewellery items). I also bought a refill for our febreeze scent thingy by the garbage can (stinky!), some large compost bags, and some olive oil (gonna try my hand at homemade pesto!) The pet stuff was food, so she should be good for at least 2 months, I hope.

Well, I have to admit that these weren't all planned purchases but its sometimes easier to just get things at Wal-Mart while you're there than go to the pet store separately. The olive oil was on sale.

I have to admit, its been harder not shopping for random stuff than for clothes. I really thought that would be my biggest challenge. And although my spending was low for the beginning of the week, I bought something everyday except Friday. I need to work on that. Wait, that's my challenge for March ;)

How did your week go?

TTFN,
Morgaine

February Goals Recap and March Goals

February Goals

Financial:

1) Shopping ban - Pass - bought some stuff at the dollar store but still no clothes :)
2) Savings goals - Check - put $5,550 into my RSP this month - Its now over $20K :)
3) Debt goals - Check - I paid $1,149.99 onto debt this month
4) Increase my Net Worth - Check - up $6,601.38 this month and $9,504.46 from beginning of year (goal = $10,000/12 = $833 per month)
5) Track spending and post budgets - Check

Lifestyle:

1) Lose weight - Pass - didn't lose or gain weight, but I lost 1 inch off my chest and 2 inches from my waist, so I'm considering those to be wins :)
2) Do something physical at least 4x a week - Pass- First week 3x, then second week 2x because I fell, but I've been 4xs the last 2 weeks :)
3) Eat better - Pass - there were a few cheat days but better than last month :)
4) Read more books - Pass- reading "The Kingmaker's Daughter" by Philippa Gregory but I haven't finished it yet. Its funny, I started reading this early last month and then they find the remains of King Richard III who is a main character in this book (the protagonist's husband). Kinda ironic ;)
5) Make more things - Fail - with going to the gym and that taking up a lot of my free time and making me really tired afterwards, I just didn't get around to it.
6) Sell/donate more - Pass - Still no actual buyers. Argh! I'm going to try GirlMeetsDebt's idea of setting up a website for my items.

Blogging:

1) Post my weekly spending and monthly budgets. - Check
2) Post at least one other post a week other than #1 - Check
3) Comment on other blogs and become more of the community - Check - I even wrote a guest post! Read it here ... Getting Out of Debt ... With a Plan
4) Use twitter more (@morgainemoney) - Check - and it landed me my guest post opportunity :)
5) Post updates on my progress with the Shopping Ban and these goals. - Check
6) I will update my blog and sidebars with these goals (other than the Closing Costs since this is mostly T). And if I'm on pace or not. - Check

March Goals

All of the above plus spend less money eating out! Specifically, no breakfast, lunch, coffee, or snacks during the work week :)

Monthly Budget Update - February 2013

This month was strange with a lot of money coming in and out of my account for putting extra money into my RSP and another thing that I'm not going to tell you guys about yet.

I thought it would be best for the purposes of my blog (and for general budgeting purposes) just to look at my fixed and variable expenses. Again, I'm not budgeting until I have at least 3 months of spending data just so I know what I spend on average before trying to come up with a budget. That said, I am still making sure that I'm not spending more money than I make :)

It seems that February was an improvement on January's numbers in restaurant/fast food ($62.83), home ($18.98), entertainment ($35.49), gifts ($9.68), and medical/dental ($109.59) - hooray for not having to go to the dentist!. I spent more on groceries ($25.59) - which makes sense when you spend less on going out :) - personal care ($39.49) - stupid me losing shampoo at the gym :( plus a few other items - and pet ($90.93) - we bought Caramel a new cage. But I still spent less overall $632.37 ($64.86). With the bunny taken care of and no medical/dental expenses this month, I should spend a lot less. There's just a couple of birthdays this month.

I'm also challenging myself to not buy breakfast, lunch, coffee, or snacks during the workweek in March. I want to see if I can get the restaurant total even lower :)

So, that was my money in February, how did yours go?
TTFN,
Morgaine