November 2011 Budget Challenge

[Valiant]

Hi folks,
Well, it's November 1, and time for our new monthly budget challenge.
Please post your November Budget on this thread; and all the best to everyone as we work on our budget challenges!

[Valiant]

November Budget 2011:

Expenses:
Rent (+ utilities): PAID (as per rate)
Phone & Internet: $78.26(taxes in this bill are almost $10.00)
Water: $5.94 (reverse osmosis: cooking/drinking)
Food: $34.77 (lettuce, taxes on 2 Skinny Cow products w/2 x $5 fpc's, milk, apples, bananas, Cafe Insp., bread, eggs)
Stockpile: $19.48 (2 x brown sugar, 3 x Welch's w/fpc's, 10 x Heinz beans, 2 x Kraft singles cheese)
Miscellaneous: 0
Other: 0

Balance of November Savings will be allotted as follows:
For Christmas Fund: $25.00/$20.00 (parcel-postage/stamps)
For Winter Boots: 0/$20.00 (to be deleted bc I found boots)
For Emergency Fund Addition: 0/$20.00
For December Shortfall: $104.42

Total November Expenses to date: $138.45 (plus Rent)

Coupons Used: $33.33
Change Found: $0.43 (added to income)

SPEND Days to date: 6/30

NO SPEND Days to date: 24/30


Goals:
- work
- essential expenses: rent/utilities, phone, internet?, R.O. water
- spending cuts on everything else
- exceptions: stockpile additions, emergency expenses
- add to Christmas Fund: (Nov. Balance: $50.02)
- add to Winter Boots Fund: (Nov. Balance: 0) to be deleted
- add to Emergency Fund: (Nov. Balance: 0)
- save for projected December Income shortfall: (Nov. Balance: $104.42)
- To-Do List: Christmas gifts & preps, yard & garden work
- lifeskills applications: home-cooking, baking, sewing, crafts
- soul & body restoration: books, music, nature, internet, physiotherapy


Living within my Budget: (updates)
* I plan to save more, spend less, live off my stockpile, and use my time to work on money-saving projects & personal restoration.

* Christmas Gifts: wove 3 rag-rugs on my rug-frame; must now be balanced, rested, re-balanced and border-edged. Prepped red cloth strips to crochet Christmas gift baskets.

* Spending more time at home working on crafts, chores, cooking and organizing: feels pretty good! Found a pair of boots in my closet that may work for this winter; must make some winter insoles from some quilted coat material.

* Nov.10: Got some great sale deals with cpns this week; also found some loose change. Cashed in 3 fpc's. Got BrandSampler and some freebs & cpns. Using each paper coffee filter 7 times, washed & dried.
Nov.11: Working on my fabric strip rolls again, got all the reds and greens ready to go. Need to prep strips to edge the 3 doormats (now laid-out), using a few pair of black pants for that. Have piles of unusable clothing stacked now and ready for cutting into rug strips; it's going well, and faster than expected. Shocking how many boxes and bags and rods full of clothes I've accumulated, but I'm not dumping any of it. It's all going to be REPURPOSED.
Nov.12: Couldn't sleep due to chronic pain, so got up at 5AM & cut up 5 more prs. of black, navy pants for doormat borders. Everything is now ready for the finishing stage. Also got 3 1/2 hrs. of blessed sleep! HINT: Wear a glove on the scissors-hand, to avoid blisters.
Nov.19: Working away on the doormats this weekend.
Nov.21: Finished one doormat today...two more left to finish.
Nov.23: Baked bread today before work.
Nov.24: Checked out my slipper patterns, yarns & hooks; worked test swatches; got the downtown errands done, so I can work steadily on my Christmas crafts for the next few days.
Nov.28: Christmas handcrafts additions: crochetted 1 dishcloth, made 4 beaded tree ornaments.
*Ongoing work for Christmas gift preps for the next few weeks.

November 30, 2011 Budget Balance & Update: + $129.42

This surplus allocated as follows:
Addition towards December Income: $104.42
Addition towards Christmas gifts: $25.00
Balance of surplus: 0


Financially, it was a good month, with a surplus at the final tally.
Hoping to keep a balanced budget for December, with the addition of $104.42 from November surplus; otherwise, I may have to dip into the emergency fund. Only 3 weeks paid work in December, then a week without work in January/12.
Once I get my Christmas gifts and cards sent, I can minimize expenses and settle down to homecooking from my stockpile.
Also planning to start other craft projects & organize spare room.
__________________

[matrix82]

I am going to try to do this challenge this month. It helps keep me accountable. Thank you.

[lovelikewinter3]

BUDGET:
Rent: PAID
Daycare: 163.68/180
Loan repayment: 512.62/600
Savings (ING): 200/200 (automatic)
Utilities: 100/240 (didn't have to pay internet or hydro this month due to being ahead! woo!)
Car Insurance: 135.98/150
Life insurance: 62.09/65

Total budgeted: 1435 + Rent
Total spent(to date): 1174.37
Total difference: +260.63

Pets: 14.21/15
Gas: 111.82/150
Groceries: 541.32/400 (oops!)
Household: 117.66/50 (20x trip bumped that bad boy up... :D)
Clothing/entertainment: 22.54/100
Smokes: 42.48/60
Eating out: 86.75/100
Dentists visit: 674 (OUCH! Good thing I get 90% back!)
Other: 18.00(DD school fees), 46.25(gifts), 10.00(charity), 28.00(haircut),
Bank fees/interest: 0

Total budgeted: 875 (+dentist)
Total spent(to date): 1039.03
Total difference: -164.03

TOTAL NOVEMBER EXPENSES to date: 3909.20(including rent & non-variable expenses, and not-mentioned expenses)

TOTAL NOVEMBER INCOME to date: 4174.99
DIFFERENCE to date: +265.79


Goals:
- Spend nothing on unnecessaries (pretty close!)
- Get account balance over 5000$ including rent (24$ short)
- Stay within budget (preferably under) (done!)
- Put extra on car loan #1 (total 300$)
- Make 50$ online (so far: 21.66$ +20$ Amazon.ca GCs)

[cheekysaver]

Thanks for posting i am jumping in for Dec. your posts gave me great ideas on where to start... first thing is first... i have to get a budget binder to keep track of my spending and i am going to do the cash jar per week method. My budget is set, but every month i want to come in under it. This is a great place to be accountable for my budget.

[Valiant]

That title is supposed to be: a few thoughts on the 'budgie', but my post submitted all of a sudden.

I've looked at those pricey budget binders, but couldn't bring myself to spend money on them.

I use a duo-tang with loose-leafs, and mark it so the left page is Monthly Income, and the right page is Monthly Expenses. I summarize on the top half of each page; and on the bottom half of the expenses I draw more lines to make blocks with expenses headings, listing date and amount on each receipt under the applicable heading. I keep track of coupons under the Expenses page, and list the total at the back of the duo-tang under monthly coupon total.

Looks like it's going to be a tight squeeze till the end of the year. But after I get my Christmas gifts prepared and sent, and the greeting cards, then I can live bare-bones and off my stockpile. Well, that's the plan. I've told my kids that I'm not sending money-gifts this year; instead I'm making some handmade gifts for them, and sending each a big box of goodies & other things. (so no more $100 gift cheques, it's just not in the budget now) It helps to have a plan, and I hope I can work it all out.
I'm still hanging onto my internet a little longer; when I calculated the value minus the expense, the value is still greater. Will have to keep that under observation though, or cancel if it becomes unaffordable.

[escher7]

$17 dollars for food? I don't see much more you can do.

[Valiant]

It's my stockpile and home-cooking & baking that keep down my food expenses. And I was even a little concerned about spending that much, considering that I'm saving for December's shortfall.

(Saving money always puts me in a better mood!)

[Valiant]

Well, November certainly has been passing quickly; only a few days left.
How's it going, budget-minded SC'ers?
Please post at end of November to update your budgets.

For my part, so far so good. I haven't been spending much money, but instead saving for December, and spending my time at home on work, cooking, baking and craft projects. My Christmas crafting and plans are coming along steadily. Bye for now!

[cheekysaver]

I have some notebooks that were on sale for .15 cents i got at wm and i used overages to cover that a couple months ago... so mine is free... just have to set it up now

On the phone and internet costs, If you get a gmail account you can make free north american calling... no calls in & you require internet with speakers and a microphone to make that work. Shaw has a deal for $15 a month on internet, Telus has deals going on and so does Bell, All of these companies will give you a reduced rate if you give them a call.

[Valiant]

Thanks for the info.
I've called MTS several times to check if I could get any lower rates on my phone and internet, but they've told me that I'm already on the lowest rates. Since I don't live in the city, I don't have access to other providers. My computer is also too old to bother with any special services on it, and my internet is the slowest next to dial-up.

[lovelikewinter3]

Updated for end of the month! I stayed under budget, which is great. I overspent a bit on groceries, but it was a "restock on meat" kind of month, so I'm not concerned. I'll have to be extra tight for the next few months, as my spouse just started a new job, and that job has a mandatory closing of 3 weeks over christmas. Nothing some careful planning can't avoid :D

[lekate]

I blew mine out of the water, but I had not unexpected expenses (bf's birthday, I was a bridesmaid in my friends wedding + wedding gift, head start on christmas gifts and an awful girl stole one of my hoodies, so I needed to replace it/I only had two).

I made less because some awful girl stopped showing up to work and I ended up working 6 days a week at 44 hours at one job and 0 hours at my second job (normally I would do 8-16 hours at my other job giving me a good increase in income).

Also, tickets to see Prince, that was...spur of the moment.

Overall I'm still not owing and managed to put 350$ on my debt. So regardless it was a good month.

[freefreefree]

I am at balance this month, but maybe not next month as gifts will come up.

[Valiant]

My November Balance: Surplus of $129.42, now allocated towards Christmas gifts/postage and December Income shortfall.

Spend Days: 6/30
No Spend Days: 24/30

It was a good month!

December starts tomorrow. Are you still up for a budget challenge?
If so, meet me on the next thread.