Thankful for Savings - October 2014 Frugal chatter thread

[jasperandchar]

I'm physically feeling much better everyone thank you for your kind words.

[jasperandchar]

Mrs. S. don't get discouraged, something will turn up.

[Angela273]

The secretary at the school that I was at today booked me for a full day in November, the same day that the school 1hr away had previously cancelled. I'm very tired and currently in the mood for chips and some tv. Unfortunately (or fortunately), we don't have chips in the house...so I either have to do without or drive to the store for chips and a carton of milk for LO.

After work I picked up a new otter box for our iPhone 4 (dh is getting my old one). I picked up my free jewelry from my Ricki's order.
4:30 was my monthly board meeting.
6:00 was LOs gymnastics.

[saundyl]

Finally got our appointment with the specialist in Edmonton. We live in the NWT, so Edmonton is the closest major center. My toddler has been having bowel issues for about a year. We've been waiting months to get into see pediatric GI. It's end of November. Originally we were just going to go down to see the doc. I pushed and got a date for him to get scopes done. It means we'll be there for about 5 days. But oh well. We are very fortunate to have not only medical travel, but my employer also provides benefits for medical travel. So we'll have our plane, hotel and per diem covered.

I took him to a naturopath a few weeks ago. And he's doing so much better. The diarrhea is clearing up a bit. But for now I'm going to hang onto that appointment!!! He's had periods before where we thought the diarrhea was gone and it usually only lasted a few days. The docs up here are concerned he may have crohn's or ulcerative colitis. I feel like he'd be sicker if he had those. I strongly suspect multiple food allergies. But he's tested negative to everything!!

What are all you mommas (and papas) doing for Christmas for your little ones. Last year I limited everyone to 3 presents from santa plus one from a siblings. But with 4 kids that's still a lot. Thinking I might try and scale it back to 2 and 1 from siblings. Thinking of using my SDM points to get my 8yr old a DS. She has a leappad and loves it. But she is outgrowing it, and I could get it for free.

Lucky BF's work covers his. Mine doesnt cover me for the travel etc. Some day his ex will be off his and he'll add me in. He's just not looking forward to telling her shes out (although she has had 3 years to get her own insurance)

This year for christmas we've opted for a video game each, some clothing and they have their hearts both set on a quilt set each so they are getting those. Santa gift we have yet to decide on.

Actually....as of this weekend We are done the majority of gifts - now just have my mom, bfs mom and "santa" and some ss's for BF.

We drove to Peace River this weekend went grocery shopping and still saved money even with the trip and the hotel room. it was so nice to get away and not have to worry about who was going to be around and because it was spur of the moment someone couldnt just wreck our plans like she usually does either.

The youngest will not be in hockey for the next 6 weeks-ish as he fractured his wrist on the playground on Thursday. Poor kiddo was a trooper with getting his cast making jokes and didnt cry. The lack of 4 hockey tournies in the next 6 to 8 weeks with healing and physio makes things a little more homebound and less expensive in the long run.

oh Insane poor little one, hope you get some answers to his tummy troubles, diarrhea is not fun at all and for a year wowzers definitely keep your appointment regardless and amazing that you have such wonderful coverage.

Christmas dh & I have been talking about it already and I have picked up the odd stocking stuffer BUT it's complicated as my 13 year old (he will be 14 in late November) doesn't believe in Santa and my 11 year old believes but I think this will be his last year. Having said that Santa still needs to bring both kids something right???? As that is a whole other explanation that could turn into a huge debate and questionable problems!!!

My youngest is extremely difficult to buy for as he doesn't want anything (he's like me) but he doesn't want gc's and I can understand that but when you don't have a workable list you start to pull your hair out and you cant force someone to ask for things they don't want or won't use.....so I'm already concerned with his gifts.

We each by each other something, the boys spend a certain agreed upon amount on each person it's a token gift, however, they can make something should they choose or re-gift something....yes we do that, hey why not.

I find our boys tough because thier mom buys them everything they want!

My youngest sister is 15 years younger. As soon as she hit the age of 2 - i would have been 17 - Mom and dad made sureus three Older sisters had Santa Presents too so she wouldnt stop believing early. I think they ended up doing Santa for us older girls until our little bear was 9.

We ok me is a bit crazy at Christmas, but to tie into yesterday's question I am a self proclaimed points whore, SDM is good to my budget. This year I totally scaled back at SDM. there is a limit to how much stuff we need, but I won't have points to give away. Last year I had enough to do a mega redemption 4 times. Did 1 for a friend, 1 for my brother and then shared 1 with him and the last was for us. This year I can do 2. I have a tracker for points and credit card incentives. The PC MC and points has provided over 700.00 worth of groceries this year.
Did not do a lot of shopping in the US. But was very pleased that DS1 found excellent winter boots, great brand good price. Especially since for the past two years he could not ageee to anything and refused to wear boots He really needs a good pair as he going on the ski trip to Quebec. This is a whole other story and a huge victory for us even with the cost, this child rarly takes risks and puts himself in new situations so to see his immediate interest in the 1st week of high school for this trip with kids he does not really know made me very happy.
As for shopping, well we are back across the border next week.

I have a PC financial card we use for everything and gain the points for groceries out of town. I collect air miles, aero plan miles, SDM points and esso points as well as i think petro points.

Santa has been leaving xbox live cards in the stockings here for years and xbox points too

We wont do Xbox Live or Gold - its WAY too high on internet and if you go over the 100 gb its much too expensive!

[sweet sparrow]

well heard back from a recent job app. waiting to hear back when they want to see me. part of me doesn't want to screw this up as we need the money.
the other half says forget this year. dh is on holidays soon. (although i know if i worked he'd be having a hey day on his holidays and have the house ready by himself, dinner would b ready everyday).. im so tempted.
just not sure. its only seasonal. what to do?

i have a feeling the gap on my resume is preventing my getting hired anywhere. its nearly 8 years.
dh says i should send an email explaining my 'absence' from working. what do you think?

I think you should go for it. It's only seasonal, as you say, so if you don't like it, it'll just be more experience for your resume, plus extra money. Besides, there are a lot of seasonal jobs that have turned into full time jobs once there's an opening.

The secretary at the school that I was at today booked me for a full day in November, the same day that the school 1hr away had previously cancelled. I'm very tired and currently in the mood for chips and some tv. Unfortunately (or fortunately), we don't have chips in the house...so I either have to do without or drive to the store for chips and a carton of milk for LO.

Would you mind picking up some bananas while you're out? Just kidding. :D LO needs a carton of milk as well, and some bananas, but I'm dragging my feet until tomorrow. She's got a lot of grapes and a frozen bag of milk in the freezer.

[Natalka]

Good morning, all!




For those of you with a Micheal's obsession, you'll appreciate this list!
(I'm a recovered craftaholic...)

http://www.buzzfeed.com/alessiasanto...-crack#375nwtj

[walkonby]

Good morning, all!




For those of you with a Micheal's obsession, you'll appreciate this list!
(I'm a recovered craftaholic...)

http://www.buzzfeed.com/alessiasanto...-crack#375nwtj

ha ha ha Natalka, I do not go into a Michael's now. When my flyers come I toss that one out, don't even peek at it.
I am also in craft recovery. ha ha

[jasperandchar]

saundyl sorry to hear about your youngest, here's to a speedy recovery.

Your bf's ex is very lucky that your bf is so generous & kind, I would have given her the big heaveho from my insurance etc a long time ago, he must be a very patient and wonderful fellow and he is extremely lucky that you don't bark up a storm about not being on his coverage etc. especially with her lack of respect and gratitude for all you both do for her.

Awesome sauce on your Christmas shopping, I plan to be all done by Nov. 30th with a few exceptions being the Santa & stockings.

[jasperandchar]

Inquiring Minds Want to Know!!!!

Do you have a debt repayment plan or course of action? Is it paycheque based, monthly based or do you pay the minimum or whatever you can afford, or do you put whatever is left at the end of the month on your debt?

And if you are debt free (lucky duckies) whatever your interpretation is of being debt free it could include being mortgage free or not counting your mortgage, not having a car payment, student loans are paid off, have you redirected or funneled the debt repayment amount into another debt repayment, rainy day fund, retirement savings, education fund, home renovations, travel, emergency fund, etc......sky is the limit!!!!

Do you have any advice for debt repayment for your fellow frugal friends besides not incurring debt

[jasperandchar]

Morning All,

I really need to get back to my to do list and my personal challenges today so for the rest of the week I will start tackling these things as of 9am and not tv, internet or distractions until Noon, that gives me 3 hours to tackle the 3 items on my list.

I will share with you that doing these challenges not only has made me feel better about having a place for everything and everything in it's place it has also makes sense from a frugal and financial perspective - . These challenges etc.....

1. allow me to find items that I forgot about saving me $ as I don't have to replace them
2. it allows me to post items for sale that obviously are not being used for me & the boys as well, they are selling some of their items $$$
3. it allows me to have a better handle of my cleaners/food/freezer inventory (saving me $ or knowing what I need to stock up on)
4. to purge or donate items that are taking valuable space in rubber-maids and saving me $ from not having to buy more rubber-maids to store more stuff or have empty rubber-maids for future use
5. a sense of accomplishment
6. a cleaner and more organized home which saves time in the long run and saves me $ from not having to purchase doubles and triples, makes me use what I have on hand
7. knowing where to find items or look for items again saving $
8. people are noticing how tidy and organized the house has become which makes it all the more encouraging to keep up
9. better for the health (mildew gone from bathroom, dust bunnies, less dust)
10. Easier to notice what reno projects need to be tackled 1st before they go too far and cost more $ (as you sometimes turn a blind I when things are not obvious and what I mean is problems are covered behind boxes, etc).

[Andit]

Good morning, everyone.

I'll be awol starting tomorrow, should be back some time this weekend (unless my Mom bribes me to stay with more schnitzel ).

Lily dog is not impressed with the dark gloomy morning, even less happy with me that I made her go out and walk through puddles earlier this morning ("I don't wanna get my feet wet, I wanna go home!!!!").

Have lots of stupid little things to do around here that should fill up my day (it only takes a few seconds to refill a soap dispenser, but dozens of little tasks take up hours, hours that should be spent playing with the brats ).

Hope everyone has a wonderful day.

[saundyl]

Good morning, all!




For those of you with a Micheal's obsession, you'll appreciate this list!
(I'm a recovered craftaholic...)

http://www.buzzfeed.com/alessiasanto...-crack#375nwtj

Love it. Id be like that but the nearest Michael's is 9 hrs away...and i only got to Wal-Mart once since last Christmas and its "only" 5-6 hrs away!

[saundyl]

saundyl sorry to hear about your youngest, here's to a speedy recovery.

Your bf's ex is very lucky that your bf is so generous & kind, I would have given her the big heaveho from my insurance etc a long time ago, he must be a very patient and wonderful fellow and he is extremely lucky that you don't bark up a storm about not being on his coverage etc. especially with her lack of respect and gratitude for all you both do for her.

Awesome sauce on your Christmas shopping, I plan to be all done by Nov. 30th with a few exceptions being the Santa & stockings.

She is very lucky. And i do understand so dont make a fuss. I do wish sometimes he would be a little more no you arent a part of my life anymore you aren't entitled. But...he has his reasons

[lizzie bargain]

J and C-the only advice I can really give to anyone in being debt free is the following( and many people may already be doing these things!)

-spend less than you earn-live below your means if at all possible-being debt free is possible even on a relatively small income if your spending is under control

-only take on what I would call good debt-mortgage within your means, student debt to earn more in the future( but only if it is reasonable and you can pay it back), maybe for an inexpensive used car if essential for work, you live in the country etc. I personally would not put consumer goods on a credit card if I could not pay it before the end of the month

-look carefully at your budget and separate it into needs and wants-for eg at our house travel, pets, second car, cable TV etc would come under the want category( but others may call them needs depending on their situation) and would only happen if we had no debt( which we don't), but other than the splurge of travel we prefer to save the rest for a rainy day, lower income full retiremenet years( we both still do occasional, casual work), new roof or car in the future etc. Use your wants money to first pay down debit, then save as an emergency cushion for the future.

-look for ways to increase income a bit to pay down debt(starting with highest interest first is what I have heard)

-I do think in most cases it gets easier as you get older and pay down your mortgage etc-this frees up more money for any remaining debt payment, savings for retirement etc

-and as you stated, the obvious-do not incur more debt. Once a person is debt free they can hopefully save for what they need/want, other than of course the basics of food and shelter

-I also think everyone has to carefully look into and analyze how they got into debt in the first place-was it illness or a job loss or overspending on wants. Without understanding and being able to control spending once you are debt free you can end up right back where you started by accumulating more debt again.

Anyway just sharing my honest opinion-others may disagree. I think while people are getting out of debt things are very tight and there is little to no money for things like entertainment-unless you can find free things you enjoy doing together as a family. I notice on that Till Debt do us Part show she often cuts their variable expenses by 60 or 70% a month-in other words I think she forces them to give up their wants and live on their needs budget in order to create money for debt repayment. In some case people may have to downsize their house, vehicle etc to get their debt under control. I guess it is short term pain for the long term gain of getting out of debt. Mind you I honestly have to scratch my head sometimes when she has couples bringing home $100,000 or more per year and they can't seem to make ends meet. I expect many of us on SC could "struggle" by on such a "lowly" income! Part of it is our consumer age of wanting all the neat gadgets we see or our friends have-especially tempting for the young folks I think. And lets face it, that in general, most of us are being raised with a higher standard of living and then we expect to be able to provide that standard or higher for ourselves and our children.

[saundyl]

Inquiring Minds Want to Know!!!!

Do you have a debt repayment plan or course of action? Is it paycheque based, monthly based or do you pay the minimum or whatever you can afford, or do you put whatever is left at the end of the month on your debt?

And if you are debt free (lucky duckies) whatever your interpretation is of being debt free it could include being mortgage free or not counting your mortgage, not having a car payment, student loans are paid off, have you redirected or funneled the debt repayment amount into another debt repayment, rainy day fund, retirement savings, education fund, home renovations, travel, emergency fund, etc......sky is the limit!!!!

Do you have any advice for debt repayment for your fellow frugal friends besides not incurring debt

I do.

Its basically a modified snowball method.

I pay my full payment on each loan. My credit card i try to spend only what i have. If i spend over i put $50 a month on it. Once one loan is paid i put half of the payment to the highest loan and half gets allocated to either a bill or savings.

I've got $6500 owing on a business loan. $500 to my mom fir help with car repairs, $1000 loc and $300 on a cc at this time. All will be paid off by sept 2015.