random funky thoughts.
I'm in a blogging funk. i have nothing fantastic to blog about. but i am making myself post. everyday.
i had the realization that i am in a funk every month about the same time that i make my house payment, and am broke for the rest of the two weeks until we get paid again. it sucks. and puts a damper on everything else in my world. LAMENESS!
i took a nap at 8pm, and woke up at 10. no wonder i can't go to sleep until the wee hours of the morning!
I was looking at today's Gymboree email, and I'm wondering how i ever afforded to shop there? Oh yeah it was no house payment. sure we lived in my mom's basement, but i had super cute clothes for my kids. that's all that matters right? i wish. dang it. oh and i had 2 less kids at the height of that addiction. i broke the habit when i couldn't walk all the way into the mall. one great thing about no energy from the thyroid cancer saga.
i took Pierce to the Dr. today for a rash, that has been hanging around in his diaper area for awhile now. she called it Folliculitis and she put him on oral antibiotics. It started as a heat rash from a swim diaper, and wouldn't go away, i thought i was a yeast rash and treated it but it kept coming back, hopefully this takes care of it.
i like our pediatrician. love her. i also made well visits for the birthday kids, and they have a load of shots coming up. poor them.
oh and i spaced Peyton's follow up on his broken arm, so i rescheduled for 2 weeks, since they want me to pay the balance due when i go. stinking another $chunk o change. i hate money.
oh and we aren't buying soda at home anymore since the kids have been drinking it all, and i'm tired of cans sitting around open, and full but flat. so until school starts , no soda stockpiled. Lance makes me run to get drinks everyday. he needs it more than i do. which is shocking me. i always thought i was the bigger beverage drinker.
hmm. so there we are. nothing spectacular to post about. sorry.
i do want to know something from you...
1. do you have any miraculous budgeting plans/skills/tips you want to share with me?
2. do you get in blogging funks. but still post?
3. have you ever been addicted to something so completely out of your budget?
4. is it cheaper to make lunches for 4 kids? or just shell out for the school lunches?
tell me your opinions please.
28 comments:
No fabulous budget tips. If I want it, I generally buy it and worry about it later. Bad but thankfully it doesn't happen very often.
Blogging funk? Who doesn't? Thankfully, it's only happened once or twice cuz it does suck when you feel like you have absolutely nothing noteable worth sharing. Especially since I KNOW I'm so damn interesting!
Addicted? HELLO!!! Expensive bags (PRADA) and COACH shoes. I love them. I have some. I want more. Mr. Hallisicle refuses to get a 2nd job so I can buy more. RUDE.
I only have 2 kiddos so can't comment on lunch for 4. I ALWAYS gave my kids lunch money but that's more about my general lack of culinary skills then cost!
Hallie
Blogging funk. Yes. That's why I started doing things like Wordless Wed, Thankful thursdays and Forever Family Fridays. It really helps!!
Kids lunch.. cheaper to make them. my kids get the same thing though. water, sami, fruit, veggie. wouldn't free or reduced lunch be FABULOUS?!?
miraculous budgeting plans? Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover. Live like no one so you can later live like no one else. Be gazelle in paying off debt - including the mortgage. It's hard to give up buying things, going out to eat (this saves us TONS of $$$ by not eating out!!), but it is worth it. Track every cent you spend for one pay period. Evaluate where your money is going. Then set up a budget with DH and then STICK TO IT. I brought my food budget down from $1200 to $700 just by not eating out and shopping sales.
Soda... yeah. Kids are killing me here. Sticky mess EVERYWHERE. My twins are addicted. It is one of the few words they know! LOL I got the Dr. Pepper for $1.33 a 12 pk of cans, so it was hard to pass that deal up!!! But I am going to have to hide them. I found I cannot live without the soda. I need the caffeine!
Addicted... yes. I wanted a couple things.. a Dyson, Kitchen Aid, and a high quality copier and printer and scanner. BUT I got a GREAT deal on all 3 and saved over $500 with my deals on all 3. Gymboree. YEAH! But I only shop the sales. And then my girls would totally ruin all the things I got them (ie.. EMMA!) so I stopped buying it until they can take better care of their clothes. And the twins.. DESTRUCTION on shirts. So they get .25 Goodwill shirts or Walmart Garanamals!
Sorry for the book! LOL
I, too, have six kids, with the added burden of being single (soon). Well, it's not a burden emotionally...more like being free from prison!! Anyhoo, as far as budgeting goes, I do almost all store-brand shopping at the grocery (I'm trying to clip coupons and do grocerygame, but it just takes up so much time). I also shop for clothes at one of our local thrift stores. I've been doing this since my oldest (almost 17) was about 18 months. We are fortunate because we have a LOT of affluent areas who donate their castoffs, and the thrift store sells them (good name brand) for next to nothing.
We are also going on a soft drink boycott, although my kids don't know that yet! I bought 2-24 packs last Thursday, and by Monday, they were gone. And like you, I can't tell you how many half-empty, flat drinks I poured down the sink. I try to stick to the "one a day" rule, but my two oldest seem to think that that doesn't apply to them and I won't be watching (which, frankly, I'm not, until I realize they're gone and I want one...)
I am self-employed, and my income drops drastically in the summer months, but one thing I haven't cut back on is the a/c. I keep it set at 76 all the time (course, my elec bill for June was over $550, but I'm not going to sit in my house and sweat...not with all these kids!)
Blogging funk....hmmmm...my whole blog is in a funk, daily....
With the school lunches, I think it is probably cheaper to make them at home, but I qualify for the Reduced Lunch program, so it's really cheaper for me to let them eat at school. It's only like 40 cents per lunch, or something like that.
Not only do I do a lot of thrift store shopping, but I hit garage sales, Craigslist, ebay (not as much), and things like that. That's probably what I'm addicted to...shopping at these places so I can see what unnecessary bargains I can bring home! I will say, though, that I bought MYSELF a Coach bag for my birthday, and I LOVE it! I also *finally* bought myself some Brighton jewelry that I love.
Sorry for the novel! E-mail me anytime!
I write down every tiny idea I have for a post, so when I don't know what to write about, I look at my list. Memes and carnivals are great and a lot of people seem to enjoy reading them. There's a site called something like "meme a day" that has loads to pick from.
I also don't think the world will stop spinning if you don't post every day. Especially over the summer. Lots of bloggers seem to be taking breaks or having guest authors. Don't kill yourself - it's supposed to be fun!
I've got my daughter trained to pack the school lunches. I think we save money, and I know they eat it, as opposed to the school lunches which are sometimes sketchy.
I have a shoe addiction I don't indulge in b/c it's so beyond the budget I can't even dream about it. I budget by having a list of everything due, how much, when, a check box for whether it's been paid that month. Then I list the paycheck dates in columns under the big list and put what's being paid in that box. It just helps me to know what's going out with each paycheck. My medical bills are eating us up. It sucks hiney, but that's just the way it's going to be unless something fantastic happens. (Envisioning something fantastic....)
I would think packing lunch for 4 would be cheaper, and prolly healthier, too.
I don't post every day. If I can get in 2 a week, I'm happy with that. My biggest fear is of boring someone. I would rather have nothing than bore the masses. LOL (and no, yours are not boring).
I agree w/ Debra: Dave Ramsey! Do the Total Money Makeover!!! It'll squeeze ya where it hurts and takes mega discipline...but I bet you in a year you'll be SHOCKED at what you have paid off and how you've freed up your money.
Make those lunches! Cheaper!
School lunches....NO CLUE! I do know, however, that my kiddo won't eat the school lunch so he is taking lunch....that way I know he at least gets something to eat. My hubby is a miracle worker with money....he knows how to move it around to make it's own money, or to NEVER get any interest added....serioulsy amazing! I have no idea how he does it....but we live by a pretty strict budget every month....and I have NOWHERE to shop around here....helps to make up for any money I would like to spend! Blogging funk....yeah, sometimes....but then I fear if I don't blog then people won't keep coming back so I post something. I'm in one right now actually....have tons of photos to upload but this week is crazy busy....Kaitlynn stuff, dr. appointments, ultrasounds, primary activity day, bunco....yeah, blogging is furtherst from my list....I just get on here when I eat breakfast to read yours and comment! :) Hope things get unfunkier (spelling or even a word?) for you and I LOVE to stop by every morning to see what you are up too! :)
I only let my kids have soda on the weekends or vacation, and then it's only one a day. It's so bad on their teeth, let alone their health, so I made that rule.
I always make a budget, but then break it for something I want. So it's not really a budget is it? I need to do better. I hate bills. I have a friend that is debt free except for her house, and they are working on paying that off in five years. She sucks. Just kidding. How would that be? But she isn't taking family vacations either. Not sure that's worth it in my book. Although I really would like to be debt free. But I do try to get $20-30 back everytime I use my debit card, and I stash it away. For fun times, for something we need, for vacation money, etc. And Luvpilot automatically has $200 a month deposited out of his check into a bank account we don't use. Then it's there for vacation or unexpected things. Unless one of us decides to sneak and use some of it. But it does help, because then it's kind of out of mind, and not in my checking account. I always buy the boys the name brands they want, but at Ross or TJ Maxx. Just spent $100 on 11 shirts for them for school. And I try to shop deals. Price match at Walmart, stock up on things when they're on sale, etc. I cut back on the things I can. I find myself getting really cheap lately. We're leaving town today, and part of me doesn't want to spend the money on it. Especially when the economy is so uncertain these days. So I'm taking food we can eat in the hotel, instead of eating out the whole time. We don't eat out a lot when we're at home, and I know that helps our budget, too. And the boys take their lunch most of the time. They buy when it's pizza day, or something else they love, but that's it.
Every day I think I have nothing left to post about, and then something comes along. But I do get in funks too. Sucks.
Hope you have a less funkful day today.
My only salvation is being married to a type A anal person who is in finance for a living. He handles all the money. Lucky. I am the WORST!! When I met him I was in credit card hell!
When I have a funk, it's obvious. I skip blogging.
I am addicted to deptartment store make up.....
I only buy 2 liters, and rarely anything but Ginger Ale. They still ask for it everyday, but at least I don't have the can/waste problem - we don't have a "serve yourself' policy on soda.
If anything, I probably have a craft addiction. But, at least, when we can't afford it, I'm just buying little things instead of food.
I still try to post everyday. When I don't feel like it, it ends up being pictures or "what we did today" crap.
1. No Money to budget!
2. Blogging funks! I am in one right now! Too stressed out and not able to really say what I want and no one wants to hear it!
3. I come close to being addicted to beading! I dont make a lot of necklaces or bracelets but I love to have the beads and all the fun findings!
4. It is cheaper to make lunches for me. With kids in Jr. high it is easier for them to get lunch if they take lunch! A win win for me!
♡ Budgeting sucks I hate it but it's a necessary evil, however I have no tips. I need some myself!
Totally get into blogging funks and then I search for stuff to blog about and if I can't find anything I give up!
I think it's cheaper to make lunches. Although I hate doing them!
No budgeting plan...other than pay the bills, and here's what we have left over. Which frankly stinks. Especially now with all that money going to gas at over $4 a gallon, and everything else like food going through the roof. My hubby saw the Costco bill yesterday and freaked asking me what the heck I bought....ummm....FOOD?! And not even any meat or cheese. I guess I need to really start doing a serious menu plan and stick to it. I keep hearing people say it works for spending less. I hate money. And lack of it. We should just skip a family vay-cay this summer, but we already paid for the house and can't get it back.
Blogging funk/life funk....look at my blog....yes, I've been in one. :) And I didn't post through it. Maybe after the kids are back in school it'll be better. They are destroying the house like freaks as I comment right now.
I am addicted to shopping. Not name brands per se, but just getting clothes and shoes and toys and crap for the kids. But I must stop. I will be doing the school clothes thing soon though. But it's boring...uniforms.
School lunch...we've only had one until this year. We used to do school lunch 2-3 times a week, then take the other days. I have no idea what we'll do this year. Probably try to do the same....I'd get so sick of sack lunch 5 times a week for 9 months of the year. But it all depends on what happens with money and the economy. Again, I hate money.
Have a great day, and I hope you feel better soon!
I only wish I had great budget ideas for ya! Sorry I'm of no use!
But I'm loving the Older song, hee hee!
1. Budgeting tips? Haha! I am so with you on this one.
We are constantly stressing about money, and yet, we suck at budgeting. Probably something to that...Look at me, admitting to all my not rad faults lately. Can't organize. Can't clean. Can't budget. What in the adult world CAN I do?
2. Blogging funks...yep. I get in them. And commenting funks. I convinced myself to post on certain days of the week. It helps. I'm not sure why.
3. Addiction? Yup. Right now. Photography and cameras. So totally out of our budget it's unreal. And I can't stop thinking about it.
4. Lunches? Actually I've wondered the same thing. I know this is crappy to ask, but does AZ have a reduced lunch program? Here the income cut off is fairly decent. It's worth a look.
I probably won't be much help in the commenting deaprtment today, since I don't have any miraculous budgeting advice/skills/tips (something I need to work on). I get in blogging funks alot--and commenting funks even more (many time I will read/scan a blog, but don't comment--I know, I am bad). I don't know if I have been addicted to anything out of my budget...I have a WHOLE wish list of things out of my budget (mostly for the house), but I am wierd and spending money stresses me out (I seiously go crazy each week at Walmart when I go grocery shopping watching the total go up and up). I don't have any kids in school yet--so I can't help you out with the school lunch thing either!!
HUGS TWIN!
We have the open pop cans everywhere too. But we only buy the no name brand.
1. do you have any miraculous budgeting plans/skills/tips you want to share with me? no we struggle with it to
2. do you get in blogging funks. but still post? yes that is me this week. Bob did not get laid off thank god. but that's all I can manage to do is think about it.
3. have you ever been addicted to something so completely out of your budget? shopping at gymboree too. I got that email and was tempted too.
4. is it cheaper to make lunches for 4 kids? or just shell out for the school lunches? we get reduced
lunch, SHHHHHHH. it's cheaper.
Paying bills used to always put me in a funk.... but then not paying them would put me in a worse funk...
so I decided I was FUNKED either way...
The past few years, I got over it - with Kim's illness and disability, and insurance not paying for much of it the past 3 years (out of pocket has been $3,000 - 4,000 per month for most of that time)... I don't sweat the bills anymore... after writing those huge (at least to me, they are) checks, the "regular" bills don't do much anymore - I am just glad there's enough in the account to cover them!!!! I guess it's just given us a different perspective.
Thanks so much for posting - I lurk often and post occasionally... after finding your comments on another blog where I regularly lurk...
J/
Several, actually, Vidal's nest, Melissa & Amy, for a few... your comments just kept poppin up, so I got curious and came on over here... some of my absolute favorites is "Oh the Joys", "Queen of the Mayhem", "Dog Bones", and a few others - those first two keep me in stitches... Laughter does good like a medicine, so I go get my fix... =), ah, I feel much betta now...
Ranting on...
J/
Mariah had a weird rash this past shcool year that wouldn't go away either....but hers was mostly under her underarms. Her pediatrician called it folliculitis too! I'd never heard of it, but whatever we did for treatment (can't remember) worked. Strange things. Hmmmmm.
I hate when kids open the soda and waste it! Pet peeve.
I'm always in a blogging funk lately.
And we're in the same boat about always being broke right after payday! We get paid, pay bills, then there's no money leftover. Vicious cycle...I hate it!!!! We can be broke together!
Wish I had great budgeting tips but I do not!
I buy school lunches but it is because I am lazy. I have no idea what is cheaper.
I think we all get into funks. I just wait to blog until I feel like it again.
1. This is a sore spot with me right now...I have been told I need to learn how to budget but HELLO we went from making lots of money to having hardly anything and it takes some adjusting. it doesnt happen overnight...but no I have no advice...I suck at it..I admit it!! But I also don't like to be told that I need to learn how. I know how but I don't...
2. I think i am in a funk right now...I am posting but only leaving comments on a few blogs..Just don't have the time...with moving and cleaning and cleaning...
3. Who hasnt had an expensive habbit? Right now I don't really but...blogging is free!! he he he
4. Right now we qualify for free lunches but Layna doesnt like to buy lunches so I have to make her one and I would just prefer for her to buy it...but thats okay...my boys like to buy the lunch unless its something really gross!!
1. I try to budget and save where ever I can. Saving a buck means I am ahead of the game somewhere else. I love to plan a budget for the month and try to stick to it.
2. I have blogging funks all the time, but I am committed to posting everyday, or at least every other day. I know there is always something to say.
3. Yes, we've been addicted to things out of the budget, but have come to realize that there are other things we would rather have: i.e. vacations, small things, gifts, etc. We try to find a happy medium.
4. It is much cheaper to pack a lunch. Yes, it takes some planning, but saves in the long run. Eating out is TOO expensive and we would rather splurge in other areas.
even your nothing spectacular is spectacular to me--I love hearing about the nothings going on because you are so real I love it! I also love that you are so honest and do the best you can all the time. You are RAD Julie!
as for me, well miraculous budgeting? um, we need some income first-I'll get back to you on that,
Blogging funks? absolutely, that's when I usually start stalking my favorite bloggers until I get creative again.
addictions? my middle name. the latest one and longest running (besides the former smoking-ew) is toys. I can't stop. Not kidding.
i only have my one kiddo and she's not in school, so can't comment on the lunches, but I guess the question is, how do you price your time it takes to make the lunch, vs, handing the kiddos $?
OK that's all I got. Have a fantastic Friday!
folliculitis, eh? i thought it would just be like razor burn!! I used to get that all the time in my armpits & legs, especially when I sweat!!! I switched to electric razor! Hope his rash goes away quickly! that's a sensitive area & coud make him grouchy if he feels it!
budget?hmmm we kinda try to have one. well, i try to buy expensive groceries (like meat & milk) during sales & stock up. I don't really do coupons, it's usually for brands I don't buy. I buy a lot of store/generic brands for groceries.
i don't buy very many clothes for the kids and only minimal gifts for their birthdays. that helps to save.
my addicting habit right now? craft/scrapbooking supplies!! betcha couldn't have guessed that!! haha
i am all for making the kids' school lunches! i hate doing it, it annoys me, but then I know what they're eating and it's healthy. plus i don't like paying for school lunch. i think it's expensive, especially for 3 kids. they get milk or juice from the "free" table (where the kids put their unopened drinks if they aren't going to drink them instead of throwing them away).
soda? i hardly ever buy it, so if we do have it, the kids don't waste but drink it so fast til it's gone.
blog funk? i have things i want to post about but don't get around to it cuz i don't have time or just don't feel like typing it up. or i have pics to share & don't get around to uploading from the camera, then time passes and it seems like old news, so i don't post about it! LOL
geez, sorry i typed practically a novel. well, looks like i'm not the only one. ha ha
ok folks...there's my post for the day! tee hee :)
Mamarazzi's baby sis here...Blurking but BUDGETING is my favorite topic of ALL TIME, and I have tips to share...
1.muffins 1x a week instead of cereal for breakfast. You can do the 50 cents a box(makes 6) Jiffy thing, or go healthy and try the Aunt Jamima whole wheat mix. This will save mucho dinero in the cereal and HOLY COW expensive milk department.
2. Breakfast for dinner 1x a week. The cost of eggs goes up and down...but when it's down, EAT THEM! We have bkfast every monday night...hashbrowns, french toast, burritos, eggs and toast, bisquits and gravy...cheap cheap cheap dinner food, and YUMMY too! It's a fun tradition.
3. generic tampons. I know I know, we can't live without our pearls with the pink applicator, but i'm telling you...walmart (equate brand) has changed their tampons and they now have plastic applicators and are totally comparable to tampax. Kotex is kind of the middle ground here because you can find coupons from time to time (plus they now have a purple applicator if that is important) If you are totally partial to one particular brand here is some food for thought. I did the math and figured out that the difference in price between 2 boxes of Playtex glide and 2 boxes of Equate tampons is the cost of 1 movie ticket. Make the switch and you have yourself a date every 28 days.
4. Have a fireplace? Use it!
I dunno where you live, but if it is an option for you, heating your home with real firewood can save thousands a year on utility bills.
We have a woodburning stove insert in our fireplace (1-2k avg cost for installation) and we spend $35/year to rent a wood splitter. I keep a fire going 24/7 all winter long (we are in nw arkansas, near missouri)
and our 1700 sq ft house stays at a piping 78 degrees on average from the fire alone. I've only had 2 electric bills over $100 ever.
5.Bill system-Keep track of bills by using a bill log. Mine has columns for check #, date, who the bill is for, bill due date, and the $ amount paid. I start a new page each month, and fill out a line for each bill I pay. It's great because I can look back and tell exactly what my water bill has been for the past 6 years, which months my elec. bill was higher, etc. It is a great way to start the budgeting process because then you can really see what your non-variable regular expenses are each month. After I pay a bill, I write the date, check # and amount paid on the bill stub and file it in a filing cabinet. It might seem tedious, but it really will help you make realistic estimates for expenses when you put together your budget, and it is the only way we would be able to live debt free (aside from our house) on 1 income.
6.Create a menu and stick to it.
Decide what you will eat for dinner for the next 7 days. write down the ingredients to everything in those meals. check off what you have on hand and create a grocery list. Go shopping, and DO NOT go back for 7 days. If you cheat and eat out (when it isn't planned) then you have the penalty of waiting an extra 24 hrs before you can go to the store again...which stinks because you might have food for another dinner, but nothing good for breakfast or lunch.
hope some of those ideas help. Sorry about the Looooooooong post.
love your blog, i'll be back (with less lengthy posts...this topic just happens to be an obsession of mine)
-meg
One more tip...if you grocery shop at walmart (5-15% lower margins than any other market) they ad match. AND produce is cheapest on tuesdays, because most new deliveries come in on tues night or wednesday. you are more likely to find grapes for $1/lb on tuesday night than any other day of the week.
Also, Walmart marks their meat down every morning.
Sams Club takes additional mark downs on fresh meat and fish on Monday mornings.
Sams Club will not honor coupons, but their profit margins run at 20% so a lot of times, you are getting a better deal anyway.
My mom always made my lunches growing up when money was tight ... at least in elementary school. I never appreciated them cause I wanted to buy pizza or whatever the school lunches were, but they were good and healthy lunches. You could go a main course (sometimes leftovers from the night before), veggie, fruit, juice box and some kind of treat or junk food like chips. My mom also told us NO TRADING lunch items with other kids. I guess that way she knew what we were eating and her $$ wasn't going down the drain or into someone else's tummy.
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