takethemoney

For the record

2009-03-09T19:44:00.001-07:00

My soup kicks ass in tastiness.

And I explained to Ava today that the reason we don't buy her snacks and toys is because we're putting that money in a "Family Fun Bank Account" so we can go to the Toronto Zoo. She was very excited about this and thought it was great idea. I feel better explaining this way then the standard "we can't afford it" line we give her. We are not poor or broke, but smart and saving. There's a difference and she needs to know that. Even if she is 4 ;)

A little of this, little of that

2009-03-08T17:56:00.000-07:00

A whole week has gone by since posting here. I'm lazy, I know it.

Yesterday was grocery day. I have developed a bit of a routine. Thursday the fliers are delivered so I pour through those, comparing my coupons and keeping in mind what is on hand I menu plan and make the list. I spent less this week than usual because I need to use up my supply of meat in the freezer. I think it'll be a couple more weeks of meat free shopping so we'll be that much closer to paying for our vacations this summer.

The last few months we've eaten basically the same foods so I'm trying to mix it up with at least 2 new recipes a week. This week's new eats were lasagna (amazing), a pasta/cheese/gr beef casserole (not amazing, but good enough to be put on regular rotation now) and a beef and bok choy stirfry (not good).

I stocked up on turkeys ($10 each) the last couple of weeks and we had one for lunch today. I am currently simmering the bones, veggies and a bay leaf to make soup tomorrow. My mom made soup every time we had a bird when I was growing up and she makes the best soup. I'm attempting to do the same. It smells great right now.

My little brother just had his hours cut in half at work this week. He wasn't even making ends meet before so this is a blow. I feel so bad for him. He's very young and just starting out. My parents are just waiting for their company to go under. It could happen any day. I'll join the crowds and say: this economy sucks!

Updated sidebar

2009-03-01T18:09:00.000-08:00

Also updated the sidebar to reflect the last payment on the credit card. I'm happy to have gone under the $5000 point!

February Review

2009-03-01T17:39:00.000-08:00

Ho-kay, here we go.

I didn't meet all my goals. In fact, only 1/4 of them. It all comes back to me being a bit lazy.

Goal #1 Get Private Disability Insurance

I'm happy with my work policy, so I'm sticking with that. I'm waiting for my husband to get back to me with info if he has one at work and if so how much is he paying for it before I make him get a quote. This is really my goal for him.

Goal #2 Get Life Insurance

The paperwork has been filled out and sent. Just waiting for a call that should come in the next couple of days to finalize it. We went through a group policy with my alumni association. I was rather annoyed at my husband (although I was nice with him) that he has had a couple of smokes in the last year. Grrr. If you're a non-smoker why do you need to have a smoke with a co-worker? Thanks for doubling your premium buddy.

Goal #3 Open up a TFSA

Still a goal. Really should have done this, but I'm still hoping to find my missing cheques so I can go with ING rather than my own bank.

Goal #4 Get credit reports

Not done.

We had a bit of a setback this month with the overpayment at my work. This cuts into the debt repayment and thus lengthens the time we need to save for baby number three. I'm a bit sad that I won't be able to take my last mat leave with Peyton. I had 2 mat leaves with Ava and it was wonderful for her and I. Peyton will most likely be in JK by the time we have a third.

I am still living off of the budget set from last summer when the gas prices were twice as high. Every week I manage to save about $55 from it to put into our fun account (for things like our 10th wedding anniversary in May, trips to Michigan and Ottawa this summer).

I'm getting used to using the credit/debit cards, but I hate figuring it all out each week. I do enjoy the points we are racking up to use for movies. Harry Potter here we come!

Overall -still happy with how we are doing. We're always within budget, usually way under. I've embraced coupon clipping and am mastering the art of combining them with sales (I got two freebies this week - shaving cream and Mr Clean all purpose spray!). Bills are paid in full, on time.

Goals for next month:

#1 - Open a TFSA

#2 - Get my papers to mom for her to file our taxes

#3 - Get credit reports

#4 - Fix Peyton's birth certificate (they spelled her name incorrectly) and apply for passports (I'll consider this a financial goal because it costs $$$)

#5 - Tweak budget to put $25/month in RRSP. I have a great pension but who's to say it won't bomb before or during my retirement? Plus I won't have a medical plan in retirement. I can afford $25 right now while focusing on debt repayment and will increase it as we can.

Experiences, not stuff

2009-02-23T18:01:00.000-08:00

I've been doing thinking lately and while it hasn't been earth shattering, DH and I have decided that from here on out our life will emphasize experiences rather than stuff. We've been living together for 13 years and managed to waste quite a bit of money on stuff. Not that we have a lot of stuff, but the amount of money we spent on partying and eating out when we were young would have paid for several trips.

I've always wanted to travel but felt like we never had the money. Turns out it was the choices I made. If only I'd known about Gail Vaz-Oxlade 13 years ago. I'd be chock full of experiences right now.

So from now on we're focusing on this theme. There are several places on my list to see before I die. I hope to be able to get to all of them.

Mont St Michel, France
Manchu Pichu, Peru
Ireland
Scotland
England
Costa Rica
New York, New York

Brought to you by the letter A and the word...

2009-02-15T19:28:00.001-08:00

Just finished balancing my spreadsheet balance with my bank account. Total pain in the ass, took me an hour and it's always one number that throws me off. It was the gas money for this week that I hadn't spent. Finding one in a few hundred is the needle in the haystack syndrome. It's the first time since switching from a cash to plastic budget that I've put all the purchases in the spreadsheet and figured it all out. But it balances! Woot!

Last week I underspent by quite a bit so after taking off the prior week's and this weeks overspending I had $43.87 to add to the vacation account. Up to a total of $108.09. Better than a kick in the ass.

Ass seems to be the word of the day.

We had a wonderful day of entertainment with the girls yesterday. It was our town's winter carnival and everything was free for the kids! Dog sled rides, face painting, outdoor games, firetruck/ambulance tours (complete with fire helmets for the kids), a children's entertainer. It was a full day of fun for us and only 2 minutes from our house (we have to drive at least 1/2 and hour to 1 hour to do anything as we live in the bush). As an added bonus, the kids slept like logs and woke-up at 7:30! That's a whole 1.5 hours of sleeping in! When did 7:30 become sleeping in?

My dad and his wife came for a visit today. They brought Ava a cabbage patch kid (that she calls Patchy-patch - so cute!) and Peyton the laugh and learn puppy. He's always buying our love and I don't mind it one bit. At least I can get something out of him.

That sounds bad but he left my mom at the hospital when I was born and I saw him less than a dozen times before I was 20. He paid no child support either. For some reason he is into visiting with us when he comes now (unlike when I was a kid and he wouldn't ever tell us he was staying at the cabin - guess we cramped his style). I don't love him and I don't particularly like him. I guess I am tolerant of him, like a distant relative. All childhood bitterness aside, he's just a self-involved person who's a little strange. He's nice enough and I know he's doing the best he can with what he has (fatherly feelings). I feel obligated to not hurt his feelings and keep the peace in the family so we visit briefly every time he comes. And he always comes bearing gifts ;) He's the trophy husband of a highly paid corporate management wife so I don't have to worry that he's breaking the bank.

Update

2009-02-12T17:20:00.000-08:00

So the payroll guy said I can have until August or even longer if I want to pay it back (provided I don't tell anyone). Guess I'm breaking that, but no one will know I mentioned it here ;) He's going to work out a few options and let me know what my net pay would be for each. It just sucks, but nothing I can do about it.

I'm mostly sad because it means we have to put off having another baby for an extra year. Pretty bummed about that. And I want to apply for a Masters program for this fall. It's paid for but I have to pay for the application fees and any book costs above $500. That would have been fine before this, but now I'm worried it'll just go on credit card. But I don't want to put off school for another year (provided I get in, that is).

Crap day

2009-02-11T17:01:00.000-08:00

I picked up Ava from daycare and the director came to speak with me. Ava had a rough day - hitting kids, teachers, ignoring the replacement teacher, freaking out about time-out. She spoke to me about her behaviour in general (very active) and suggested that perhaps I get her assessed by a pediatrician. I had wanted to speak with her doctor but he's still not back from being sick. The nurse last month said maybe after February. The director said that if I wanted we could go through the resources on the reserve to get a referral. I don't want to go that step right now.

Maybe it's just because I'm her mother, but I don't think there's anything pathological with her. I do believe that kids are over diagnosed with ADHD. I don't really want to go the route of labeling her at this point. I work in the schools. It will do her no good to have that label. What good is an IEP if the school board doesn't provide the resources to follow through with it? She's very intense and active for sure. But I feel like she's on the higher end of normal.

Nothing like the daycare director thinking your child needs to see a pediatrician to bum you out .

THEN I get a letter from the payroll department telling me that, oops, we've overpaid you $2544.89 and you need to pay it back by June. He was supposed to be taking it off every pay starting 3 months ago but I guess he "forgot." I always check my pay, but it was hard to tell if he was taking it off because of the way I'm paid. The pays were smaller after the first one, but I guess it wasn't what I thought it was. Great. $350 a month. Bye bye debt repayment plan. I feel sick.

Pay Day

2009-02-06T16:48:00.000-08:00

Today is pay day. Last week is the first time in over 3 months that we went over budget on our variable spending. We went over by $8.62. Not bad. Still adjusting to the credit/debit cards. I stocked up on some meat last week on sale so that's what put us over. I went grocery shopping tonight after work and kept it small, just using meat from the freezer. I stocked up on canned tomatoes and spaghetti sauce that was on sale.

The total was 72.07 for the week. That's $77.93 under budget. I'll stick that in the surplus savings account.

The menu for this week is:

Sunday - Sweet and Sour meatballs with rice
Monday - Spaghetti
Wednesday - Glazed chicken with julienne vegetables and rice
Thursday - stovetop shepherd's pie
Friday - General Tsao's chicken with rice
Saturday - Chilli

And the birthday party for my girl last Saturday went very well. She got her "yata" - a pink My Little Pony. She was overjoyed with it. It's now hanging from the ceiling in her room. All the little girls showed up (5 guests). We had games, crafts, lunch and gift bags. It was a lot of work, but so much fun.

Life experiences

2009-02-04T16:41:00.000-08:00

Saw this at Frugal Dreamer.

1. Started your own blog.
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo's David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout cookies
62. Gone whale watching.
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy.
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London.
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle.
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (do fish count?)
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cellphone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

A total of 32. Pitiful.

End of the Month

2009-01-31T19:00:00.001-08:00

So this month I kept trucking along with the budget as set. I got a small retro pay so I bumped up the credit card payment by $50 for this month. I balanced the budget weekly.

A big thing is we switched from the money jars to the credit/debit cards to earn points. This is an adjustment in keeping track of the budget. I hope it goes faster every week to balance the budget as I get used to it.

Rather than having a money jar now for the leftover cash at the end of the week, I opened up another savings account and I'm transfering the balance from the variable budget there every week.

Goal #1 Get Private Disability Insurance

I didn't get individual disability insurance, but I started checking out my group disability insurance and so far it seems like it will work. We left a message this week with a insurance broker to find out about disability insurance for my husband. I didn't accomplish this goal, but I made some steps.

Goal #2 Get Life Insurance

Still haven't done this one. I got a quote but haven't acted on it. I discovered a few days ago that our life insurance on our house is for the amount pre-consolidation so it falls short of covering the full balance. This is the new high priority goal.

Goal #3 Open up a TFSA

Yeah, haven't done this either. I have no cheques so I can't open one up with ING. Not sure if I want to open one with my own bank. I will think more on this.

Goal #4 Get credit reports

Um, didn't do this one either. Just printed out the forms and sat them on the counter.

All in all, I'm happy with this month. I didn't actually complete any of my specific goals, but I did research them and make small steps towards accomplishing them. We continued living on budget and continued our set savings. I shall move these goals to February.

Rock on!

2009-01-29T17:29:00.000-08:00

So I made a mistake and I'm actually getting paid my full rate for the contract! That'll bring in approximately $200 more a month until June. DH's union votes on the collective agreement in 2 weeks so that should give us a little piece of cash in back pay. With my estimates, we could be debt free by July.

That would come in handy since the ladies on my online forum are having a get-together a few hours away this summer (some flying in from the states). We've been together for 5 years so I can't miss it.

I looked at my disability plan at work and it so far doesn't have the pitfalls that Gail Vaz-Oxlade discussed. I need to ask more questions, but it's 100% of my pay until 65 years and is not taxed. So far, so good. Just need a plan for DH if the rest of it checks out.

Crap!

2009-01-27T16:51:00.000-08:00

This no money jars thing bit me in the butt today. I had to buy some washer fluid and coolant. My only excuse is I was sick and coming home early from work so not in my right mind. I used the wrong credit card! So now instead of paying it off interest fee at the end of the month, I'm going to have to pay $5 of interest on it by the time the whole balance is paid off. Grrrr. I'm taking that freaking card out of my wallet (why is it there in the first place?) and filing it since I never want to accidentally use it again.

I spent a little time today thinking of some future financial goals. The emergency savings total for 6 months expenses is overwhelming so I decided the first goal will be for 1 month of expenses. The second goal is to save for my mat leave.

Another one is to save for a family vacation to Disney World. The target date is Christmas 2014. We've never travelled (well, Vancouver for our honeymoon). I would prefer something like Ireland, but I think it would be fun for the kids. I never thought we could do it but I'm hoping that we'll manage it with continuing the budget like this. Hopefully neither of use loses our job or becomes disabled. Or dies. That would throw an axe in the plans.

Goodbye Magic Jars

2009-01-25T16:10:00.001-08:00

We've been on the jar system for 3 months now for our variable spending. This week I've decided to go back to the debit/credit card. We get points for movies using them and I really like free movies and popcorn. I feel like we're used to how much we have to spend and can easily do it using the cards and just tracking it with the budget binder. It's a bit more work, but worth it in the end.

Plus my credit card can become active again and keep building a good credit history. I transfered our two credit card balances to one with a low introductory rate back in November. I don't use that card because new purchases have an interest rate of 9.99% and since the payments go to the highest balance (the transfered balances), I will pay this interest on them until the transfered balance is paid off (about a year). By using my old card and paying off each month I avoid the interest.

Ticker

2009-01-22T17:17:00.000-08:00

I finally added a ticker. For some reason I struggled with it for an evening and tonight it just worked instantly. Guess the stars are aligned.

It's our debt (obviously) other than our mortgage (that contains a consolidation loan but I'm not going to deal with that just yet - some other day). The amount owing to date is without this month's interest. I'm too lazy to calculate it.

How did we accumulate this? Poorly planned maternity leave, that's how. We never planned them out (hence the consolidation loan after the first one), we just figured we'd make it work. This time around we are planning in advance. We want one more baby in about 2 years. The CC will be paid off by December 2009 or sooner.

The money that is going on that will go into savings for the mat leave. We need about $5000 for mat leave to make up the difference (the exact number is on the spreadsheet in my other computer). This is all dependent on our one car lasting until the baby is born. We'll need a van at that point and I would like to push off car payments until then.

This time around I refuse to accumulate any debt.

First day on the job

2009-01-22T16:46:00.000-08:00

I work at a high school and have been with the board for 6 years next month. The only thing that is consistent is I've been a 0.5 counsellor at the high school since day one. Pretty much every year the other half of my day has vacillated between classroom assistant and counselling at either the high school or elementary school.

Last week they posted for a 0.5 counsellor at the elementary school, but a contract until the end of June. I applied for the experience and to keep competitors for a possible permanent position away from it. The pay is about the same as the classroom assistant position I've been doing at the high school since coming back from Mat leave in November. Because it's a contract it's at the bottom of the pay scale, where I'm at the top for the assistant position so they're almost equal pay. I'll get about $20 more a month. For way more stress, work and a 1/2 hour extra a day. Better than nothing.

I got it (no interview, guess because I did the job for over a year before) and I started today. No principal today so I got a stack of referrals but no rhyme or reason to them. I found my old filing cabinet with all my stuff intact so I spent the afternoon planning my timeslots for sessions and trying to figure out some groups for kids with similar issues. Hard to do that not knowing who hates each other.

I'm excited because I'll be doing one hour a week with the grade 8 girls on relational aggression - the mean crap that girls do to each other, like ignoring a friend for a week or spreading rumours. I really enjoyed doing it before with a slightly smaller group and can't wait to do it again.

I get a pay raise this week because our new contract comes into play. I'll get $20 more each pay cheque. So altogether I'll get an extra $60 a month. When I finally get that disability insurance this will help pay for it.

I'm looking at opening a TFSA for our emergency fund. With my bank it's 2.66% and at ING it's 3.00% + a $13 sign-up bonus if you sign-up before January 31st. Problem is I need to send a cheque to make the first deposit and I can't find any of the cheques I bought this summer. Organization should make it onto my list of things to do this year.

Birthday party supplies

2009-01-17T18:05:00.000-08:00

I stopped at the dollar store today to get Ava some chapstick. Poor thing keeps getting chapped lips. The dollar store is my nemesis. In order to stay on budget I have banned myself from there. I used to always get tons of craft supplies and treats for Ava. We do less crafting these days, but she is also in daycare 3 days a week now so she gets to craft there everyday so it works out.

Once in there I decided to get some birthday supplies for her party on the 31st just in case I don't get out to town again before then (it's an hour away). I spent $36.16, including 3 chapsticks and 4 boardbooks for Peyton (she's so into books these days).

We have no friends with little kids her age so I invited the girls from her Sunday school class at my mom's church. I was taking the girls regularly for a few months this Spring/Summer but eventually stopped going. Always a struggle for me to go to church. I love God/the Creator, but not religion.

I haven't told Ava because if no one comes then she'll be disappointed. This way if someone does show up she'll be thrilled. I have no idea if any will come, but I bought little goody bags for them today anyways. Just a few things - stickers, kaleidescopes, and magnet Disney Princess dolls (like paperdolls but for the fridge/washer/front door/etc).

I went to Canadian Tire to get some Mr Clean stuff that was on sale and that I had coupons for. My MIL waited in the car with the girls so I checked out the toys on clearance. There is one Diamond Princess Carriage left that is half-price so I think I'll head back there tomorrow with my Canadian Tire money and get it for her for her birthday. I have a Polly Pockets doll set that I got on sale and used CDN Tire money for about 6 weeks ago - $6 total from $50. She is very into the "impossible-to-dress-dolls" with the "many-choking-hazards."

She has been adament that she have a Pinata for her birthday since going to a party with one back in September. They are expensive for a cardboard box filled with crap. I think it'll run around $30. We have the money but I'm so cheap that I cringe at this purchase.

Grocery List

2009-01-17T17:44:00.001-08:00

I got some of my coupons in the mail this week from www.save.ca and www.brandsaver.ca and I was running around town using them at the various stores having sales on those items. The pasta wound up having .50c coupons on them so I grabbed them all and got that in addition to the sale price and my coupon. WOOT!

Produce

Broccoli 1.03
Cabbage .99
lettuce 1.49
Cooking onions - bag 1.49
Red onions - bag 1.99
Carrots 1.49
Red pepper x 1 1.19
Bananas 1.75
Strawberry x 3 5.97
Cantaloupe x 2 .99
Mushrooms 1.79
Celery 1.49
Cucumber 1.49
Green pepper x 3 1.72
Fresh Basil 1.69

Bread

Bagel x 2 2.98
English muffin x 3 2.97
Tortilla x 3 7.47
Loaf 1.79

Dairy

Milk x 2 9.94
Yogurt tubes x 2 5.74
Sour cream x 1 1.39
Petit danone 5.49
Chedder cheese 2.47
Feta 1.53
Plain yogurt 2.27

Meat

Weiners x 5 9.95 (Ava's birthday party)

Other

Instant oatmeal 2.77
Chips x 2 2.58
Dishwasher detergent 3.43
Apple sauce 1.77
Alphagetti x 4 2.36
Pineapple 1.17
Hot pepper rings 1.99
Sundried tomatoes x 2 6.98
Tomato paste .47
Deoderant 1.99 (sale and coupon!)
Pepsi x 2 7.94 (party drinks)
Pantene conditioner x 2 4.48 (coupon)
Granola bars 2.47
All-purpose cleaner 1.87 (sale and coupon)
Magic eraser .99 (sale and coupon)
Margarine x 2 7.00
Pasta x 3 2.50

Superbucks - 2.07
Coupons - 7.50

Total: 136.22

Gail's planner arrived!

2009-01-15T16:40:00.000-08:00

Woot! I got the planner in the mail yesterday. Thanks to all my lovely friends and family that I harassed to vote for me. I read through it and can't wait to start using it (today was not the day).

This insurance stuff is driving me a little batty. I need an insurance adviser since I can't get quotes directly from the companies. I've gotten a number for a place in the area so I'll try that. What a long process just to get some quotes.

I can get a group rate from Sun Life for life insurance, but in talking with my best friend I'm not sure. She hates them because when her mother died from skin cancer they called her 2 weeks later to ask if her mother was a smoker, despite her policy saying that she wasn't.

Tomorrow is variable money day - I get it out of the bank machine and place in the jars. I like taking the extra money and putting it in the extra jar. It's nice to see that we can actually have extra money at the end of the week. On the 25th I'm having a little party for my husband's birthday and on the 29th my daughter turns 4. This jar is covering both parties and presents. It's not much, but it'll work.

I need to work on being more easy going when it comes to my menu. My mom babysits for us twice a week for 2 hours for free. She usually ignores the menu and does her own thing. I came home from work to see that she had not cooked the tenderloin I'd taken out of the freezer and instead made pork chops and rice. Not a big deal, but I seem to take a few minutes to adjust to a change in my plans. I don't really understand why she can't just follow the menu? The food is prepped to go. Oh well.

I checked my work coverage and here are the numbers:

Life - $50,000
AD&D - $100,000
LTD - $38,219.80

DH has his orders to find out if there is anything from his work. He has a $30,000 life insurance policy that his parents have paid in full.

I printed off the form from Equifax today to get my credit report.

Mr. Fix It

2009-01-11T17:10:00.000-08:00

My step-father can do anything. He's a mechanic and has always owned rental homes. Today he and my mom came over to bring back our snow blower that wouldn't start. Turns out the gas was just frozen in the carborator. Free to fix!

The last few days our furnace hasn't been coming on and we'll wake up in the middle of the night freezing (considering it is -30C at night). He looked at it and it was just a lose wire. Also free!

I was worried both would cost us a fortune.

I am not ashamed that this demonstrates how utterly useless we are.

Grocery Day

2009-01-10T16:44:00.000-08:00

Excellent sales for me this week. Nearly everything I had to buy was on sale. I went early in the morning so that they wouldn't sell out of ground beef before I got there. I enlisted the help of Ava (my nearly 4 year old) in finding it. She spotted it and then high-fived me.

Produce:

Carrots 1.29
Fresh Coriander 1.69
Clementines 2.99
Apples 0.99
Blueberries 1.99
Canteloupe x 3 2.37
10lbs potatoes x 2 3.98
Green Pepper x 4 2.69
Celery 1.79
Lettuce 0.99
Bananas 1.68

Meat:

Lean ground beef x 5 44.61
Turkey slices 2.99
Ribs 5.82
Pork loin roast 11.97

Bread:

Tortilla 2.49
Loaf 1.99
Bagel x 2 3.98
English Muffin x 2 2.98

Other

Frozen OJ x 6 5.34
Milk x 2 10.98
Chips x 2 2.58
Noodle Pack x 2 1.98
Granola bars 2.69
Spaghetti sauce x 6 5.94
Consomme soup 1.49
Grean beans can 0.59
Taco Seasoning 1.29
Alphagetti x 4 2.36
Can diced tomatoes x 4 3.16
Rotini pasta 1.77
Can corn 0.59
Bottle pepsi 1.79

Superbucks used: 5.94
Total: 139.79

Good week! Normally I don't get alphaghetti or granola bars but it was a special request from my husband. We've decided to quit pop and the last couple of weeks have gone without but today I decided to treat myself with a bottle. The ground beef was separated into 16 bags and the pork loin cut into 5 packs of pork chops.

Saturday - Glazed chicken with julienne vegetables and rice
Sunday - Southwestern Chicken Stew
Monday - Beef Vegetable Soup
Tuesday - dance class so dinner at the in-laws
Wednesday - Baked Beans and Baked Potatoes
Thursday - Pork Tenderloin, peas, noodles
Friday - Pork Picante and Rice

Breakfast - pancakes, egg mcmuffins, toast, cereal, fruit, yogurt tubes
Lunch - leftovers or sandwiches

To do list

2009-01-10T16:31:00.000-08:00

So last night I was thinking about Gail's guest blog about insurance. I realized that the life insurance we have with our mortgage is not so good since it only covers the balance of the mortgage and the payment doesn't decrease as the payout does (as we pay off the mortgage). I did a little looking around at life insurance and it turns out I belong to a few associations (college, university and current union) that have group life insurance. Thus my "To do list:"

Get quotes for life, disability and health crisis insurance from:

Manulife Financial
Sunlife Financial
OTIP

Road to Financial Fitness

2009-01-09T17:58:00.001-08:00

I'm currently obsessed with becoming financially fit. The last 2 months we've been living on Gail-Vaz Oxlade's money jars, I have a budget for the next year that is tight but works and we're on track to pay off our debt in 15 months or less (we are both getting back pay thanks to ratifying new agreements, just don't know when or how much).

I trimmed our expenses in any way that I can - switching insurance companies, cancelling the tv we never watch, making a menu plan and shopping only with a list, never eating out, no coffee (that would be for the man, that stuff is vile).

We finally have a joint account and all our bills come out automatically. The girl's have RESPs. And we have started an emergency fund with its first $100. I know, not much, but it's a start. I have savings accounts for car maintenence (planning to fix the cars before they break-down! What a concept!) and for diapers.

This has taken time to figure out because I've never bothered before. It feels so good to be in control of our finances.

My next goal is to get disability insurance and possibly critical illness. I'm in the middle of researching it and it is confusing to figure out what is best. By the end of this month I want it set up.

takethemoney

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