The one thing this family understands is starting over. Fresh starts. Big changes and sometimes small ones. We started the new year with the hope of getting our finances in order and becoming more organized around the house and in our work lives. Most of our goals for the new year were to plan for the new baby that we had hoped to create. We talked it over, as mature couples do, then decided that we would love a new baby. If we were to conceive in January we could expect a bundle of joy for October, however, conceiving in February or the months to follow we felt would be too close to the holidays. Nobody wants a birthday November through February! So, our plan was try for January then hold off until June if we were unsuccessful. We brought back a little souvenir from our Tennessee vacation and couldn't be more excited to announce that Baby Emily will be arriving this October just in time for Halloween! Chloe is thrilled and talks about being a big sister to anyone who asks. Billy and I are ecstatic about having another girl! So excited in fact that for the first half of this year we have swept our goals under the rug while we basked in our delight.
When Billy and I left our previous marriages we were left with some debt. I cut my debt down drastically while I was on my own but there is one that is still lingering that I need to pay off. Billy, however, didn't have the good ex graces that I had and his irresponsible ex-wife left him with just about everything the two of them had incurred. We have managed to pay off a large majority of it but our plan was to finish off the rest at the beginning of this year. Together we had a lot of fun at Christmas and on our vacation and we also left ourselves with some maxed out credit cards. It was completely worth it! So, now that the baby bliss has calmed and summer is approaching. We sat down and regrouped. We went over our goals and our dream boards, we reset the budget, we opened a new savings account and we are ready to do this! Billy's new job has been wonderful and I have several part-time gigs that are coming my way. Our plan is to rebuild our next egg while simultaneously paying off one debt a month.
For May, I've been sick, we had our annual Ducks Unlimited charity event that we as a family host, the full-time job has been hectic, and Emily has had three different appointments. Somehow, with all of that we still managed to pay off one credit card, I stocked the house with healthy food, and I am very close to a promotion with Rodan + Fields. If we can get that accomplished during a bad month I can only imagine what June will be like!
Here are a few of the things that we have found to work for us even during our months of spending.
Groceries: My menu consists of foods that are relatively inexpensive but will also double or triple our meals. For example: I bought a $10 boneless sliced ham that will feed us three times. Once for dinner as Ham and Vegetables, once for lunch as sandwiches and again for dinner as White Bean and Ham Soup. I just try to make sure we aren't eating them all back to back so we don't get bored with our menu. With couponing and planning our meals we have saved hundreds so far this year, then as with everything else we slacked a bit, not to mention fulfilling all of the pregnancy cravings. Now I have created a menu that is full of pregnancy power foods and cut our grocery budget in half for the month (that means more money for late night Twisty Treat cravings).
We tried the envelope system and it just didn't work for us, or we didn't work for it. I'd pull out $50 for Essentials and place it in an envelope and then Billy would stop for toilet paper on his way home and use the card. We just couldn't make it work for most things. However, it does work for things like clothing, vacations, baby gear, and birthdays. We have several envelopes for those.
As for vacations, we usually like to take three small trips and one large trip each year. This year we took the trip to Tennessee but other than that and one small trip we have planned we are mostly going to stay home bound to save money for the baby. I would like to take Chloe to Disney as a babymoon to focus on only her and spoil her rotten before she has to share everything the rest of her life. I'm starting that envelope in June so she can go to breakfast with Minnie Mouse and experience Mickey's Spooktacular Celebration. We did purchase year passes to Busch Gardens and Adventure Island so we can always take day trips for adventures. Camping this year will definitely be out of the question with the Zika virus spreading so quickly among the mosquito population. I already have several vacations planned for after Baby Emily is here though starting with a quiet retreat to the Blue Ridge for some relaxation!
I set up a registry for Baby Emily at two stores, Target and Babies R Us, not for other people to buy us stuff (because I think that's incredibly tacky after the first child), but for the discount both stores offer when you buy things off your registry. Target will send a discount code for 20% off registry items and Babies R Us will send discount emails for the items you've placed. Placing the items on the registry and knowing how much we plan to spend allows me to create the Baby budget and add money in each month. Then go on one shopping spree towards the end and save money that way. Target offers the gift cards with diaper purchases twice a month and we are taking advantage of that. We can stock up on diapers and in the meantime save the gift cards to use during the shopping spree. When you couple a manufacturer's coupon, a target coupon, a cartwheel promotion, use the Red Card and the free gift card you can usually get almost $12.00 off $50.00 worth of diapers then receive a $10 gift card on top of that.
So this is the actual plan for June to continue paying off debt and saving our emergency fund.
1. Meal Planning - a must for not only saving money but making weekday nights run smoothly leaving more family time and more work time once Chloe is asleep.
2. Couponing Overdrive - actively research the coupons for items we use regularly as well as coupons for diapers to stock up
3. Boss Lady - Triple my efforts with Rodan + Fields, get that promotion and keep the ball rolling!
4. Extra Income - Finalize the part-time job to bring in extra money to go strictly towards savings and debt payments.
5. OT - Make sure any overtime accrued is going straight into savings because I didn't include it into the budget.
6. Baby Planning - I really need to meet with the hospital to go over the financial costs I will incur versus what is covered by insurance so we can begin that budget.
It's tough for me to find the time to blog but I really do enjoy it and I am hoping that I can keep up with it again. I like writing everything down and it makes me feel like I'm being held accountable to my goals. Billy made me an awesome desk and covered the wall with blackboards, a calendar, and cork boards so I think I'm going to utilize the space to document one major goal at a time. I feel it's important to reward yourself for accomplishing even the smallest of goals. I have several gift cards for restaurants so one idea I have is to write down payment of the next credit card by June 30th and pin a restaurant gift card up there. If we accomplish our goal we get treated to a date night. Just an idea but something to reward us for our dedication.
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