The American Dollar

Confession Time.

2010-01-05T14:28:00.002-05:00

Confession time. I'll be the first to admit that I have fallen off the financial wagon. If you've read any of my earlier posts, you know just a few years ago, I managed to get out of debt, invest a lot and learn some valuable lessons in my early twenties. I never considered myself as a blogger just an ordinary guy with a wife and daughter getting out of debt. As my late 20s are closing in and I approach 30, I have ridden back to the top of the debt roller coaster. Let me paint a brief picture of my financial reality. Our sub-prime 10 year interest only mortgage was our biggest mistake. We bought more house than we could afford and hindsight not to carry such a large debt burden. On the naive side I also thought the housing market in my area was still in an upswing and eventually we would sell in 10-20 years for a profit, which still could happen but who knows. We signed the debt note to the tune of $365,000 in 2007. At 26 and 27, we were living large and making bad financial choices. 2 years later we have amassed all kinds of debt. 3 credit cards that were just for emergencies are at a total of $45,000. I have taken a 2nd mortgage out on our rental home for $75,000 and now have little or no equity in either home we own. Also we dumped all our retirement accounts except one at her job which has about $2k.

Now let me get something straight too. Last year I quit my stressful job and went into a business partnership. The 75K equity was used towards the business and I also gained an additional partnership debt of 100k that I have about 3 1/2 years left to pay on.

Ok so that's my family finances in a nutshell. Right now we have personally about -50k net worth. We have the game plan in place because our take home is roughly 9-10k. Restarting the journey in 2010 will be a challenge but it isn't something we haven't conquered before. I'm going to dive in depth of each of our debts and elaborate in the next blog posts. Buckle up because its going to be a bumpy lifestyle change ahead.

Everything comes out today!

2008-05-15T20:02:00.002-04:00

Im ashamed at the way we've been handling our money. This past year was great in terms of us living it up. Mrs. Dollar stayed at home with our 15 month old. We purchased a house and I got a promotion at work. However we have been very very lazy with the finances and even worse we got too comfortable with our lifestyle. First off the budget, we stopped using the envelope system which worked wonders with our debt before we had our daughter. We are now on a manual allocation each month finding ourselves overusing the debit card and even worse starting to RELY on our credit card. We'll fix that problem in a minute...

But lets go to an issue i want to unload.We bought too much house. There... i said it! We are two 27 year olds with a 15 month old and we live in a $365,000 house. Sadly it took us about 8 months to realize this and at the time we were wrapped up in the emotions of having the best because we DESERVED it.Today our mortgage payment is $2400 which includes escrow. We make ends meet every month and have just enough to enjoy some luxuries or extra toys for our daughter. More importantly we have lost the core values and basics of personal finance and we are paying the price.

Mrs. Dollar not working has taken a hit to our income and savings obviously, however she plans on returning to work in August. Ok first things first, get off exempt at work. Ive been claiming exempt to get through a financial rough patch. That has been adjusted to 3. Second, we are going back to what we know best, envelope system and sticking to the budget. No frivilous spending and we are lowering eating out at a restaurant to once a week. Secondly, lifestyle. We either need to sell the stuff we have or take care of it. I am a huge proponent of being appreciative of what we have accumulated, not getting more. We also have to make time to organize and inventory. Im sad to say that we have high consumption tastes with a low income to support this habit. We are officially living paycheck to paycheck. Its time to start cleaning up the mess and get our mindset back in the right financial gear.

More to come after we get our act together.

Turning 1 is FUN!

2008-02-18T21:27:00.000-05:00

Apparently when you turn 1 year old, you get alot of stuff! I mean alot of stuff! My daughter turned one this past weekend and we threw a party and included both my wifes family and my family as well as our friends. Needless to say we went all out with 10 pizzas, 8 soda bottles, streamers, lots of balloons, more decorations, 2 cakes, birthday hat, birthday dress, and of course gifts. She is one spoiled little munchkin.

Today is presidents day so I thought rather than mope around in the gloomy wet yucky weather outside I would come in and grab some double overtime and a half. Being its not too busy today (actually have alot of work to do shhhhh), I have time to write this blog. I really need the extra cash too this month... We have been so lacking in the savings arena its about time to play catch up. Its back to work i go...

Her 1st birthday coming up soon!

2008-02-09T22:29:00.000-05:00

My wife went out today to get some items for our daughters first birthday. Since we believe in the philosophy that your first birthday is a once in a lifetime special occasion, we are going all out with our friends and family on this one. Pretty much everything we purchased had the 1st birthday logo plastered it; everything from plates, napkins, cups, her birthday sippy cup, streamers, tablecloths, balloons, etc. you get the idea. We are going tomorrow to select and order the cake we want and of course any other munchies for our guests. Since we are having our friends and family over, we decided pizza would be a nice neutral selection for an evening meal, not to mention too expensive. The good part about buying all these things for her party is that my grandmother called me this evening to let me know that she wanted to pay for everything. Since this is her first and only great grandchild and also the fact that she wouldnt be able to travel, we were more than happy to accept this gift. Thanks Grandma! The 15th is right around the corner, so much to do, so little time :)

Living Paycheck to Paycheck Sucks!

2008-02-06T11:34:00.000-05:00

I hate it probably more than anything in the world. Its a huge hump in my life that I need to get over and probably the worst part about it is that we are living within our means and even below. For at least the past 5 months (since we bought our second home), everytime I calculate the budget the income equals exactly the out go. Sometimes it gives me a few sheckles extra a month which I blow off because you never know what the increase in gas prices.

The reason why I say this is because we are kinda in an income financial rut right now. I mentioned before we can't really dig any deeper into our expenses and kick back our income into high gear until early March for me and late August for my wife. Although, it is nice to have a break from work and to do really the bare minimum at the office. But psychologically it pains me to see the networth like this. Maybe I'm just being big whiner. (Hey gotta vent somewhere!)

Today has been another grueling day at the office staring blankly at a screen while beautiful sunshine weather is behind me. After work I plan to take a walk with my family to soak up the last remaning sunrays. It will keep my mind off finances at least for today.

A Glance under the Magnifying Glass

2008-02-05T22:46:00.001-05:00

Being out of touch with our finances for so long, we're getting back to the barebone basics. First finding out where we stand overall. Honestly, we are about the point of living paycheck to paycheck before my actual raise kicks into high gear. My wonderful wife is doing a beautiful job at home with our little one who will be turning 1 soon! Our baby has come a long way since she was first born. Obviously the finances are strained a little bit with another mouth to feed but seeing as shes going to be done with formula (the biggest cost) and going to milk, that will definately help. But not everything is her, her stuff is cheap compared to what we've got.

Here is the breakdown of where our money is going every month-

68% - Primary Mortgage/ Rental Mortgage/ Insurance/ Taxes/ HOA

13% - Groceries/ Household

10% - Electric/ Gas/ Water

8% - Cellphone/ Internet/ TV

1% - Home Security

Needless to say, because I've been strapped having a lower paying job these past few months and her being at home, the percentages may look high in some catagories; primarily the "Home" catagory. This will eventually be lowered once my pay increases and she returns to work later this year. Notice that also we have not allocated anything in the budget for our savings. In months in '05 and '06, almost 60% or more went towards reducing debt and savings. Seeing this as a VITAL part of our financial plan and future, I'm determined to add Savings back into our budgeting routine.

In the upcoming days, I would like to go over in detail each of the aforementioned catagories to see how we are using that money and "trim the fat" from each. Overall, there is a sense of frustration that we haven't really moved anywhere networth wise, however we are still surviving and absolutely determined to get back on the board.**

Why I'm 27 and still stressed...

2008-02-05T14:07:00.000-05:00

Yeah I'll be the first to admit that I'm stressed about my age. A certain coworker always seems to remind me of how the corporate grind stresses him out and how he can't wait to do this or that if and when he has the money. He's 49 and in my opinion he's still very young. This is a bit of a paradox because I don't feel the same about me. I feel there are alot more things that I should have done or should be doing with my life. Moneywise, I should have definately gotten an earlier start.

Take a trip with me for a second.

At 21, I was living with my parents working nights for a local rental car company. I brought home roughly $200 a week, which barely covered my car payment and insurance. I was a lost, financially scared child and seriously considering bankruptcy on $31,000 of debt.

Fast forward to today, 27, married, child, no student or consumer debt, 2 paid for cars, rental property with positive cash and a good chunk of equity, mortgage, and a recent promotion. And yes I'm still stressed... perhaps even more than before. Maybe its because I have more responsibilities, you know what they say mo money, mo problems. Or maybe its the fact that I want more and I'm never satisfied. I'll admit I'm a humble guy with simple values and a small town upbringing but there's always been a sense of urgency with me. A fire if you will that lit under me around age 22. I guess it was to ensure I have enough security to never lead myself or my family down that destructive financial path again.

So yes I'm stressed to the core to 'do it right the first time'. Now granted some of my greatest accomplishments have come from my mistakes, but we are plowing forward. So today I'll get up and face another long work day, work week, and work month and maybe by the time I'm 28, I can relax a little.¤

My 6 Month Hiatus~!

2008-02-03T16:02:00.000-05:00

Wow what a interesting ride it has been for the past 6 months not really engaging in the blogging world and letting all our personal finances air out. At the time I left, I thought I needed to focus more on my family and my work. Our baby girl was born last February, so my priorities shifted a bit; and dare I say, even my personal finances took a back seat. She is now a happy bouncing almost 12 month old bundle of joy (and craziness!) ; and after sleepless nights, I can finally get back to a somewhat normal routine (at least with my blog and money :) Parenting has definately changed the game up a bit.

Ok so whats been going on? Well if you check my networth, you will find that staggeringly enough, we have maintained our networth having neither decreased or increased too much. However we did purchase a home in early September that we were eyeballing for quite some time. We turned our first home into a rental and had a tenant move in almost instantly. (More on that later...)

I would say our new home is the single biggest purchase of our LIFE so far and though it was such a lengthy process with the stupid idiotic mortgage company (meaning I had to dot their 'i's and cross their 't's), it was worth it. I'll get into more detail later but real quick and dirty, we got a $383k appraised home for roughly $365k including closing costs, but it was really the home of our dreams. So here we are back to financial basics again seeing what we are going to do and how we are going to get there.

Also wanted to mention I got promoted! Working my way up the corporate ladder isnt easy and at 27, I should be grateful. However with my raise and me making the big buckeroos with a crazy amount of responsibility, the flip side is I have to sacrifice my hours at home and be chained to the corporate wheel. Needless to say, I didnt like working long hours even before I got promoted :P

Finally... at least for today... I have to say, Im glad to be back. I cant wait to free my brain again of all the money/ work/ life/ family bumps along this road and actually have an OUTLET for it!~

Making the most out of a whole DOLLAR!

2007-08-15T23:53:00.000-04:00

Well you certainly can't find $1.00 gas anymore let alone anything that costs a dollar. Ok maybe you can get a package of gum or a couple candy bars, but whats the maximum you can do with a one crisp dollar bill in your hand. Well you certainly cant find $1.00 gas anymore thats for sure. Its so much harder to be a kid in this generation with a dollar in your hand than it would be when we were kids and a dollar went so much farther. Thats inflation for ya! I had a few thoughts on this and shared it with my coworkers who love stupid topics. We were surprised on the hefty list; no nominal idea was rejected. Heres what we extracted on the dealings of one whole US dollar bill thrown out in no particular order, remembering that tax is included in the pricing (*except in Delaware):

-Go to the vending machine and purchase a .75 cent 12 ounce soda can. The bottles are $1.25

-Download an itunes song for .99 cents (provided you have an itunes account)

-Invest the dollar (we always have SOMEONE mention this)

-Find a broken item or for 2/$1.00 item at the local Dollar store (items at full price are $1.00+ tax so we cant get these)

-3 packs of .30 cent 5-stick gum at 7-11 (total cost .97 cents)

-Play one video game at an arcade (most arcade games are $1.00 or more just to play) Chuck E. Cheese is great because you can play 4 tokens for a dollar but you have to have a kid or the employees will look suspicious at you.

-Buy stupid office supplies like staples, a small calculator, a pencil, pen, note pad at your office supply store.

-Small Coffee

- Newspaper

- Small Tip for a server, driver, etc

- Give to charity/ homeless

- Fast food hamburger, hard taco, piece of chicken, small take out white rice

- One piece of grocery produce

- 3/10ths a gallon of gas or LESS (provided your driving a very small lawnmower)

- A garage sale bargain knicknack

Please feel free to add to our crazy list. I know we didnt cover everything but its a start. We really should be getting back to work.

Buying a New Home and Renting the other!

2007-08-05T19:54:00.001-04:00

My wife and I have decided to jump into the real estate investment pool. Right now, our toes are touching the water and getting a feel of the temperature. We purchased our first home when we were 22 years old and it has appreciated quite a bit in the past 4 years, almost a $70,000 gain and since we got the home on such a great deal, the positive equity has been staggering. Now we want to rent it out. A coworker that I have gotten to know in the past couple years has shown a great interest in renting out our home... and they might get their wish.

In these past couple weeks, we found our dream home, wrote up an offer, had it accepted and we completed the home inspection on my 27th birthday. Seeing as the new home was only 2 years old, the home inspection went without a hitch. We basically paid the guy $300.00 for the peace of mind and also he showed me a few things that I probably wouldnt have known about the house(where this pipe goes, what does this particular valve turn off, how to work the dishwasher, etc).

Now that we have found a home, we are hoping to close by the end of the August, depending how quickly the lenders are going to be (a whole other blog post). Anyway I relayed the rental suggestion to my coworker as well as a couple family members. They all loved the idea, however my coworker is willing to pay a little bit more. Since this is strictly a business transaction, I had to tell my family members the bad news. Plus my wife pointed out the drama that would unfold if we had rented to close family. Nevertheless, my good friend and coworker, brought herself and her two children to visit the home and her and the kids loved it. She wanted to sign the rental agreement right then and there. But I didnt know even where to start...

I thought about it last night and was thinking wow, This is my first rental property and my first time being a real landlord. I have a residental lease agreement contract that I can write up and thats it. Perhaps I need to seek legal or tax advice. I have a reputable lawyer but no tax accountant. Im wondering also if I should put my rental in an LLC so I can take the tax deductions and other tax benefits. We may have to seperate business and personal assets too. I know I would need something to seperate the liability factor. I will have to call my lawyer and see what exactly he can answer and whom he can direct me to if he doesnt know. There is just a hundred different checks that I have to do and I want to make sure there is nothing that I'm missing or forgetting. Anyways, other sound advice is always welcome. Otherwise, I'm excited that things have been in motion to get into our new home. We have already gone and picked out mentally some furniture and items we want in the home. Things are just happening so fast, I have to stop and think to myself, 'Is this really happening? Are we really doing this?', and I get a nervous, scared, anxious, and excited feeling all at the same time.

Does working hard ever pay off?

2007-07-28T17:12:00.000-04:00

The question lingers does working like a crazy person really pay off? This past week I've worked a little over 50 hours while my wife enjoyed the company of our little 5 month old. Seeing as how I work my butt off from clock in to clock out, I havent seen any returns other than a pat on the back. I'm wondering does it ever come to a point of either burnout or that you are showered with praise, youre happy and then it goes downhill from there. I don't know how long I can keep the upbeat attitude and competitiveness of being a stellar employee. To my standards, I am stellar because everyone praises my performance or I get a noticable glance now and again from the superiors above me. That said, I feel comfortable with the teacher's pet rep and dont care about the envious eyes staring up at me. What has been bothering me, is that I dont know how long I can keep up with this pace. I know I'm going to burn out if I keep going like this and its not really the hours, its the content within those hours that I pack in before I head home. Maybe I need a stress makeover... Since today is saturday, im just going to relax and not worry about my job or money for a change.

Setting goals and Sticking to them

2007-07-23T21:57:00.000-04:00

Our family sets goals on a regular basis. Whether its next year, next month, or 24 hours from now, we plan it and map it out. I guess thats makes us a little bit OVER organized sometimes. Its hard to imagine that we would be where we are right now without some proper planning. Also if you take a look back at some of my earlier posts when we had opened our monthly bills only to find credit card statements, horrendous student loans and just up to our eyeballs in debt. I remember almost 4 years ago actually being on our home elliptical machine listening to some random music on a bulky ipod, not even having any baby thoughts on the brain, and thinking we need to get a plan together and get this debt cleaned up before we reach 30. I sat down that evening with an excel spreadsheet and got our finances in order. To this day, I still use the same formatted spreadsheet but the expenses column has shrunk dramatically from paying about 12 different companies every month to only 4... mortgage, power, cable, and wireless service. How did we achieve this before we were both 25 years old? We stuck to the plan and worked the budget making sure all our extra money was going towards our debt. Once that debt was gone, we never looked back. Its a great feeling. I guess we are at a crossroad stage in our life where we are building up our emergency fund and saving saving saving for that next BIG thing. Dont ask me what the next big thing is, I dont even know. So it comes back full circle again where we have to determine where this next batch of savings is going. Granted we are paying down our mortgage aggressively, our retirement accounts are going to be maxed this year and a child's college savings account is on the radar. All I know right now is that we have to set up some more goals and stick to them like the way we did the debt. The question is where to start...

Break time from the hustle and bustle!

2007-07-13T12:07:00.001-04:00

Decided to take a half day at work and just take a break from the overwhemling paperwork that accumulates. My wife's friends decided to come over too, during the same time... so I guess I'm playing babysitter for the time being. This week, moneywise our allocations have been all messed up because when I went on leave, they paid me entirely for my vacation, so now when I take half days, I dont get paid at all. This was interesting because I expected my check to be about $200 more since I took some time off last week. Did I mention that I get paid weekly? That helps the process because it allows me to take a look at our financial picture weekly rather than biweekly or monthly. Anyway, I should be back on track next week with my pay and hopefully the "system" won't screw up again. Since its a bit muggy today, I think I'll go for a walk before the rain starts coming down. I really just want to get out this weekend and maybe get a game of poker with the guys.

Small update on the 401k: Maxed 6% matching with employer, and nothing else.

Foreign or Domestic?

2007-07-09T21:59:00.000-04:00

FOREIGN OR DOMESTIC?

Seeing how it was such a dreadful Monday at work, I wanted to just free flow for a while on the blog. The question is does it REALLY make a difference which vehicle moves you or drives you from point A to point B? I wrote about our current Toyota Highlander purchase a couple weeks ago, and bought into the whole idea that foreign somehow, at least in my mind, is better than a domestic vehicles. Honestly, people have their opinions and either are really for or against this issue as I have asked a few fellow colleagues. I really think that my next car is going to be a ford, chevy, or gmc, only because it goes against everything that I've thought about cars and I wanted to take a true test. So far my little compact mazda that I use to ride around town is at 130,000 miles and hasnt skipped a beat yet in almost 8 years. I have had it since the odometer read "2" (yes, TWO). I trusted that its going to take me to 200,000. Do Fords, Chevys, or other American perform to this standard, better or worse; Or did I just buy into the whole commercialism hype of japanese ANYTHING is just BETTER... im sure they are but I'VE never experienced it. I guess I have to find out for myself before I can judge that yes, a foreign car like a Toyota, Honda, or Mazda makes a "better" car.

This thought was brought about by a huge Ford plant closing down in my area and literally hundreds of people are going to be without a job in the next couple months. Maybe American-made isnt what it use to be and maybe the term "community" doesnt apply in business anymore. It just sucks to hear stuff like this.

Purchasing New Tires!

2007-07-06T14:26:00.000-04:00

I decided that it was time...its been over 90,000 miles, balding and frankly was starting to be unsafe, so begins my search for new tires. First of all having a sporty compact car, they come up with some of the wierdest tire sizes... Mine being 195/55/15 to be exact. So I start the online process as normal froogling, comparing sites, even calling around and checking ads in the local paper for specials. To me honestly, a tire is a tire... there are a couple quality specs like you dont want to get a low heated spec or crazy slick tires either. My hunt bought me to Ebay where I found a special was going on in the state right next to mine; obviously making the shipping cost lower. The total for 4 brand new tires shipped would cost me $228.10 so about $57.02 per tire which is alot better price than what I was quoted at the local places here. On the plus side they were a fantastic brand, Kumho Solus with excellent ratings. I decided to pull the trigger, add delivery confirmation, and wait. Two days later, the tires arrived by Fed Ex and I stored them in my garage.

They stayed there for another week, while I called around to do the mounting and balance work. I fully expected to pay at least $100, but I did my insane calling around and found that actually Walmart's Auto Center was the best price wise, about $60 or so for the entire job. However I decided not to go there. We went to our Sears Auto Center, which was about 5 minutes away from my house and paid about $22 more than the Walmart quote. In my head, first it was much closer than the walmart and would save me on gas. And second, I imagined that Sears would do a much better job, and was worth it to pay them an extra 20. So yesterday, I drove down to the Sears, dropped my car off for about an hour and picked it up. The guy there was nice enough to explain what they did and exactly what I was being charged for.

So here was the final rundown-

Four New Kumho Tires: $228.10

Mounting/ Balancing/ New Valve Stems: $88.68

Total: $316.78

Another vehicle maintenance mission COMPLETE.

Enjoyed at great 4th of July!

2007-07-04T23:17:00.000-04:00

Our baby's first 4th of July was pretty uneventful for her; however all her aunties and grandma came to visit. Today we hosted the cookout here in our home for our little get together. It was nice that how many of my siblings are still in the service industry that we could all still arrange to have a few hours of holiday time with each other. The only thing we really purchased in the whole ordeal was a small rectangular table cloth and some festive napkins which we got at Party City for 50% off which came to a $1.86 after tax. We also stopped by the local target to get some charcoal for the grill. $5.60 a bag. Since I dont really know the pricing on charcoal, I bought it and was overwhelmed that people pay that much to heat something on a grill. I can plug in my george forman and go for crying out loud. I mean the grill does have a certain taste to it and the smells of it make it almost "feel like the 4th of July"; so i guess it was worth it bringing back a little nostalgia. Then it was mostly a pot luck and everyone brought something. Of course, we ended up having too much food and I invited a friend over to help finish some leftovers off; and this guy never turns down food. You know there are people out there like that. Anyway, we unfortunately did not see any fireworks because the little one *(and US) were so tired, we decided next year is going to be a GREAT year for her in an umbrella stroller at the local park! Needless to say, it was another great 4th.... which reminds me, my birthday is in a month!

First Week being the SOLE breadwinner

2007-07-01T19:05:00.000-04:00

Last week was my first full week back after being on a 4 month childcare leave. Its amazing that I didnt stay out longer, but my finances probably would not have permitted me such a luxury. Oh well, it actually felt great being back and everyone congratulating me on the birth of our first little one. I was only to perform training exercises and 'getting into the groove' techniques at work because being back after that long, it does shift your reality a bit. Honestly, I really didnt even think about work when I was out, which was in itself my own personal vacation. But it feels good too, being the sole breadwinner, and does put a little pressure on the male ego. Not only do I have to actually work, I have to work harder and smarter because I have a family to support and can't really afford to lose this job. Its a good thing now too that my wife has left her full time job to stay at home with our infant. She is able to get pretty much everything around the house done; chores and all. She likes to space out her time though and make about 1 "trip" outside per day during the week. Because we know its going to be a hectic week with the holiday approaching, that we get the grocery stuff done today, rather than on Monday or wednesday when all the hot dog buns and hamburger condiments are gone. Since I'm off for the 4th, we planned a nice day out, and seeing shes only 4 month, we decided not to go see the fireworks but cookout still and enjoy time with family. Also small reminder, on Thursday, shes going for her shots! *sigh* last time she was really upset. thinking we should give her some baby tylenol before we head out.

Networth Update: $209,849 (+.0001%) lol

2007-06-19T14:46:00.000-04:00

Barely breaking even with our recent SUV purchase , we were fortunate to have some modest gains in our retirement. The market must be moving because the numbers are always jumping in the positive direction. However we did take $3500 for the truck. The savings has been stagnant obviously since it is now my 4th month of not working. I finally will go back this Friday! Not that I'm going to miss our beautiful infant, but I'm going to leave that to the stay at home mom :) She's just excited to finally be out of a job she dislikes. First thing when I get the paychecks this month is make sure we replenish the Emergency fund and savings. Then we can work on retirement, finally.

The Trade-in at the Dealership: Our Story

2007-06-18T23:09:00.001-04:00

After much deliberation in the details, we decided to pull the trigger and purchase the SUV. I'll get to the story which takes us into the dealership craziness, but first wanted to touch base on how we even came to this major purchase. We don't take ANY purchases over $100 lightly. There is a time that we stop and think, 'ok do we really need this' and start listing pros/cons and obviously the more money the purchase is, the more we will actually go though the numbers working out what is the best deal. The thought process has been going on for a while now. Finally we have found what we were looking for while I was searching through online classifieds, I came across our next "new" used vehicle.

Finding the Right Car: While looking online researching thousands upon thousands of cars/trucks, I found our local car dealership was liquidating all their used inventory. I'm thinking to myself, 'yeah...but they are always liquidating', but decided to browse anyway seeing as it was a change from ebay.com or cars.com or our local classifieds. I came across a 2003 Toyota Highlander V6 with the same miles as our Toyota Corolla. They were asking $12,700 for it in the advertisement, which was still way below wholesale value on KBB. Since we were looking for an SUV due to our increase in family, I ran the numbers and spoke it over with my wife. Since our Corolla has no power and is just a CE (base model), I valued it on Kelly Blue Book for $9,700. I thought that the 'upgrade' in car would run us about $3,000. This sounded reasonable enough; that is until we got to the dealership...

The Test Drive: The weather that day was quite cloudy with a drizzle here and there. My wife and I dropped the baby off at my sister's house for a couple hours while we went just a few miles up the street to the dealership. We arrived at the lot to find the used vehicles off to the side in another vacant lot and we spot the truck. I pull up to the front where there is only one other car in about 10 vacant spaces, so a salesperson immediately notices. I can barely open the door to the Corolla when a middle aged fellow with an accent greets us with a grin. "Looking for something in particular" he says. "Yeah, there's a Highlander in your used lot.", I said as I pointed towards the fenced-in dirt square to the left. "Ok, I'll be right back with the keys", he acknowledged darting towards the glass doors of the showroom. I looked at my wife, surprised he didn't hit me with a new car line, like, 'we have some great new cars too'. He swiftly came back and said they are going to clean it up first and shouldnt take but 5 minutes. I looked at my watch as if trying to be impatient. Honestly, I would have driven it as it was. The truck is now prepped and pulling up in front of us all shiny with the metallic paint gleaming from the wash. I gave him my driver's license and insurance card as he handed me the keys and put on the dealer tag on the rear. As I got in, I noticed they didn't pay attention to too much detail on the inside though. My wife pointed out smudges on the dashboard and a couple peppermints and discarded wrappers in cupholders. Off we went down a side street and then jumped right on the highway to test the acceleration and if I heard anything out of the ordinary at 75mph. I made sure the radio was off trying desperately to find the slightest imperfection and call the deal off. Nothing. We drove for about 5 miles and got off at the nearest exit. I pulled into an empty parking lot of a hotel chain and parked far from the door. Time to do the walk around again with the same fault-finding mindset. I was surprised at how much my wife was looking into the particulars so meticulously as well. We must have spent 20 minutes or more in the drizzle going from top to bottom. I was more concerned with the key components: engine, transmission, tires, belts, A/C and heat, etc. Everything checked out nicely, so we headed back to the dealership. I told my wife that it was a good car, but we both knew we should be able to walk away at any moment that the deal falls through. We agreed as we pulled up and were greeted by the our salesman.

Setting the Stage: "How was it?" he smiled. "It was ok." I said stepping towards the glass doors he was holding open for my wife and I. We walked to a smaller room with a desk, a couple pictures of his family, a computer, and two chairs. At that moment, I felt claustrophobic. He got out a pen from his pocket and asked "So, what kind of loan do you have on the Corolla?" Since we had the title with us, I explained we had paid it in full a year ago. "Do you know what the value of it is?" he said. "About $9,800 in the Kelly Blue Book" I said. He turned to me with a disgusted face like anyone would EVER pay that much for our little Corolla. "Nah, it doesnt have power features or anything... let me find how much we will take for it." He stumbled out of the room, while my wife and I faced his drab wall with the picture of his wife and two children. I leaned in towards my wife acknowledging that she was doing a good job. She gets really nervous in these high pressure sales situations. After about 5 minutes, he came back with the used sales manager. I could sense the adrenaline going on in my body.

The Deal: A heavy set guy in his late 40s walked in and introduced himself, shook our hands and took a seat at the salesman's desk. He had on glasses with transition lenses, however they seemed to stay dim the entire time, which made it difficult to see his eyes. This guy had a sales demeanor about him; just the way he carried himself. My wife would tell me later that he represented the classic car salesman. "My buddy here tells me you like our Toyota out there?", pointing to his collegue standing behind him. "Its a great truck... power everything. Lets take a look at what you're trading in today." He went towards a sheet of paper our prior salesman handed to him. "Hmmm... well your Corolla is a base model with no power, we'll probably do $5,000." He took out a sheet of printer paper and a black marker from the desk. He started writing the numbers. (I already calculated it in my head) "So if we take your trade for $5,000 and the price on the Highlander is $12,700", as he checks the inventory sheet again, "will make the difference $7,700 plus there's a dealer fee of $800 for tax, title, and vehicle registration for a total of $8,500 that we can get you approved for today."

Im thinking to myself, ok they really think we are two kids from the street looking to just bend over. I went into my 'are you kidding' mode. "Absolutely not" I said firmly. "First off, we're not financing, we pay cash. Secondly, the Corolla is in immaculate shape with all the service records." I had to catch my breath for a second. "Kelly blue book says I can get it for around $10. I saw our SAME car at your sister dealership selling for $12. $4 is ridiculous." The manager glanced over at the salesman and sighed. He sat back in the chair and said "Ok. I can probably convince my manager to buy yours for $7,000 but thats the best you're looking at. With everything that'll be $6,500." He underlined the new total with the marker.

"Would you be kind enough to give us a minute?" I stated. Let me talk this over with my wife. "Certainly, take all the time you need" as they both stepped out. "This is getting interesting", I gleamed at her. My wife was a nervous wreck at this point. "$7,000? Are they kidding us? Lets just sell the Corolla privately and we can go somewhere else." I rattled in frustration. I was looking to close the gap in the price difference and that was the only thing on my mind. A few minutes past by to the point I thought they had forgot about us. I looked out the glass and opened the door. Our original salesman saw me and headed back to the room.

Round Two: "Are we ready to draw up the papers?", he proprosed. "Not yet. We're looking at these numbers and know you guys can come up with something better." He looked me straight in the eye, "You are not going to find anyone that is going to pay anymore for that Corolla. Honestly. Even though we are a dealership, we won't make any money off your car." Ok, now I was being treated like a kid with no options. "I think you can do better", I said. He sat up in his chair and stared down at the numbers. Then the manager stepped back in with a smile on his face and a sheet hot off the printer in his hand. "Ok you two, I checked the blue book online again and spoke to MY boss. He said, we can give you $9,000 for your car, plus what we're selling is already at wholesale value, making it a $4,500 total fees included." He handed me a sheet of typed up numbers with the deal all stamped out on paper showing a $4,500 difference. I know that alone the taxes/title fees of $800 was going to kill me. I sat back in the chair. Of course my target price was $3,000 or less from the get go but the fees were going to bump that up regardless. I sighed and looked at my wife; I knew she thought that $4500 total was a great deal. I covered my mouth with my hand. Long silence. "How about 3-5... for everything?" I said.

Final Decision: "Let's check with my boss." I got up out of my chair, went out the glass door and walked with him to the front of the showroom. There stood a guy, early 30s with a very nice suit on. He shook my hand and glanced over at the used car manager, "What can I do for you today?"... "Mr. ------- wants to deal at 3-5.", the manager said. I looked right at his boss nodding my head. "Ok lets do it.", he said, "Because I know this guy will be back and recognizes that we won't make much off his trade and we are actually losing money here." (I laughed a little inside there). I shook his hand and thanked him as I walked back to the room.

The whole process took us approximately 3 hours from the time we pulled up to the time we drove off. The paperwork seemed like it was the most lengthy. They drew up paperwork showing we had gotten $10,000 for our trade and after all fees it was $3500 even. I look back on it now thinking I probably could have gotten the deal at $3000 or even $2500 if I was a little more patient and a slight bit more aggressive. Well we live and learn... and what a great learning experience we went though. Now we have a car that we can get our baby in and out of with ease and with more room! Yeah!

My friend wants to hurt me for paying!

2007-06-15T20:07:00.000-04:00

Today after having a fun filled day with the baby, my beautiful wife was nice enough to watch our daughter and let me go to dinner with one of my good childhood buddies, whom I haven't seen in months. We left at about 4pm to a nice local chinese restaurant. The conversations are always light, jovial and reminders of yester year, some good and some bad.

Anyway, the check comes to the table and of course the sweet old lady puts both of our orders on the same check (obviously since neither of us said anything being engaged in high school reunion information> by the way, IM NEVER GOING, I hated high school why would I ever think about going back there it made my youth a living hell; see what I mean by being engaged in the conversation?) . Ok, so she brings the check and my good friend picks it up and says I'll get it this time. First off, whenever we eat, we ALWAYS pay our own way. Needless to say, Im shocked at first because he NEVER offers to pay and his situation is he is in grad school making $15K per year before taxes (AHHH!!). So my first instinct was Absolutely not, lets just pay our own. Then my voice took over my thoughts and said, "No, I'll get it this time". Then it became a back and forth battle of who paid for what last and "he never gets to pay" and I have a baby so I need the money... blah blah. So needless to say I went up to the counter and paid and he was pissed. Oh well... he can be such a whiner sometimes, but then I got to thinking...why shouldnt we just agree to pay for ourselves EVERY time? I know he was just offering to be courteous but it just will lead to a big deal about nothing. Since we have been friends for so long, I know he will get over it. I just didnt want to have to feel like mr. money taking HIM out.

Side note: OUR BABY IS 4 MONTHS TODAY! wow she has grown!~ :)

Taking a vacation from it ALL... is a good thing!

2007-06-14T23:21:00.000-04:00

We have taken a little vacation these past couple weeks; since I obviously haven't had the chance to really get down and blog like I do. However I am still enjoying my time being home with our newborn daughter. This will be my fourth and FINAL month of absolutely no work or having to worry about the daily grind; which I still miss in a wierd way. I truly believe it is still a blessing that we have such an opportunity for one of us to stay at home full time. Now a days, she giggles and laughs like crazy and everyday I learn just a little quirk or two more than I didn't yesterday which makes it all worth it :)

Financially speaking, like we have been doing for the past several months, we are living on just my wife's paycheck. This month is a bit different because not only do we have ZERO of my paycheck coming in, but we are relying on sticking to the budget like never before (ie. no room for error time). So far midway though the month, the funds are looking a bit high and dry. We have depleted over 80% of our cash in the budget during our last week's big Sam's Club and Target run. These were major but they will carry us definately through mid next month. That only leaves us with 2 grocery shopping days left, this Sunday and next Sunday. Since I will actually be in the driver's seat at work this upcoming Friday, the 22nd, I should be getting a paycheck on the first of July. Also after my wife spoke with her work, she will be getting her FINAL monthly salary in July. That's great because then we will live off her paycheck for one more month and all that I make in July will go towards our 2008 annual expenses, currently at $4500.

The "Job" is getting easier

2007-05-22T21:53:00.000-04:00

I consider being at home now my full time job. Its interesting that I've been doing it for about a full month without my wife, however its had ups and downs like any job. I dont want to say my wife isnt here either, because when she gets off work about 5pm, shes home helping out and getting plenty of baby time. During the daytime, I find myself more and more in a routine and just scheduling one thing after the other and repeating it if it works the next day. ie. we have adapted that she gets her 30 minutes of baby einstein where her eyes wander on the baby bach dvd. That is all the tv time she gets at 3 months, but she is calm, happy and it sometimes doubles as her poopy time. With each day that the "routine" is in place, the day goes by much faster and I end up having more "me" time to get things cleaned and prepped for her next feeding, etc. (I tried doing chores with her and putting her in the bjorn but I move so much faster when shes in her high chair or bouncy seat). However things working like clockwork RARELY happen and that little wrench in the cog machine will slow me down or just totally throw the whole routine out, so the philosophy is to just roll with it and keep going... :) So thats what is consuming my days right now.

I wanted to mention a couple things in the finances. First we decided to pull the trigger and get the SUV. I know we have been talking about it in the past few posts about how we have to deal with the space issue of getting in and out of a compact car with a baby. Well the other week, we got it used and with the same miles as our compact car. I'll write another post about haggling at the dealership and the true sales pressure there. I did stand my ground and came out much better than expected. The wife was very happy too.

Ok obviously our bottom line and savings took a hit because of the car/suv trade and the gas obviously is almost double in the SUV. However we are still trying to maintain the budget for May and keep our heads above water, which may be a photo finish on this one. I may need to dip into the emergency fund just a bit to cover groceries and gas til the end, so yeah... I guess thats what its there for and don't worry, its priority ONE when I get back to work is to replenish if I take any out.

Our 2 Year Anniversary!

2007-05-14T19:46:00.000-04:00

Yeah, we made it! Today my wife and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary! I don't care what anyone says, being married to the perfect person really is the best feeling in the world. Its also nice to know that your soul mate is close by you and you can see them every day! So what did we do? Well she spent the day at work while I was at home with our little one, who by the way will turn 3 months tomorrow! She has changed so much in just a month too, I cant wait to see what progresses on the next one. Today my sisters came and helped out by watching the baby while I got some HEAVY needed yardwork done. It looked like an amazon rainforest in the backyard, so I took the advice of my wife and got it done. Needless to say, she cooked me dinner tonight and we had a pleasant evening with baby. Briefly let me touch on the fact that after 2 years of marriage, it seems like ages ago when we first met in college. Boy, were we shy and niave back then. I ran up my credit card while dating her :) and she even co-signed a vehicle for me!! I still tell her that was so dumb of both of us, but we laugh at it now. We have gone through alot, her and I. I know with the baby these past few months we have a hard time just to find time to talk anymore, but I know we will come out much stronger.

SUV or Minivan time?

2007-05-08T10:00:00.000-04:00

We have 2 compact cars, a newer toyota corolla and a mazda. We paid off the mazda a few years ago, and the Toyota about a year ago. After getting 2 booster seats for each car and trying it out for the past 3 months, it seems that getting our child in and out would be easier if we had a bigger car. Is this justified to go out and trade in our paid for vehicles? I mean we could use some of our savings to pay for the difference outside of equity. This part of my brain thinks that yeah it would be easier on my back and my wife's back dragging her stuff in and out plus provide more space and its safer. We are still driving our early 20s right out of college type car... basic transportation. It would help us out alot with a bigger car for longer trips too. The other part of my brain is the who cares, it provides basic get around transport and is safe enough for 1 child. Maybe we can find something of equal value and do like a cross over exchange. Can most dealerships accomodate this kind of transfer? Overall it may be time for an upgrade and since I have the time to look around, why not shop?

We are at the point in our lives...

2007-05-05T10:57:00.001-04:00

I want to go over where we are at in our lives overall. Many of you have surpassed this mark financially, others are almost there, but I wanted to give a brief life summary of where I we are. Presently: Married, 26 years old, 2 full time workers (soon to be 1), 1 child with 529 account, monthly 'needs' allocation at ~1100-1200 (so we are way under our budget). We own our home and have approx $72K left to pay on it. Max amount in retirement. We have over $200k in networth. Good, not great. (Not to sound overambitious, however I am so grateful to be where we are, but I know we have to work harder to get where I would like us to be)

In a recent post of 'what to do with our home' I'm scared that if we stay here that we dont get an opportunity for a more appreciating home. Ie. 200k at 8% gains and 400k at 8% gains, which one will be ahead? Obviously the 400, but we have lived to be debt free and underbudget these past months and have enjoyed what money CANT buy. Should we go into debt if we know we can pay a higher mortgage and because we are infact "young"? Moneymonk states that it would be good for us to stay where we are. Its so hard being in a spot where you can plan ahead for bigger purchases. End diatribe.

Secondly I want to talk about bettering our situation career wise. I'm putting in place some goals at work as well, perhaps a 4-5 year plan. I have been lucky enough to be introduced to fellow employees making more than $125k annually easy, however they are not in my department or related field. I have the patience and time to go back to school or go through whichever necessary programs needed to get to that point. A few years ago, I couldnt dream of having the job that I have now and now I have it yet dreaming of higher goals. Sheesh, will I ever be satisfied? :) Money isnt everything, i guess.

I'm officially exhausted!

2007-05-03T19:41:00.000-04:00

I wish I was exhausted over working too hard at the job, but nope...Today was the first day with just Daddy and daughter day. Maybe I should have slept more last night because I'm exausted. To those family, friends or just others, that dont have kids that talk about how you should play with your child 24/7 and how much you will appreciate them and spend every waking moment making sure theyre comfortable.... just dont know. I think probably its because shes also an infant... I really want her to get to the toddler stage where the great things happen. Right now I know she takes in info, but she is like a little lump :) not really doing much, but she has come along way since birth.

Ok we also went to Target which compounded the tiredness. I think I may have just overextended myself. Tomorrow is going to be such a lazy day. I'm also going to bed alot earlier for the 4am feeding. Right now, I can't even think about money. I didn't think that was possible. Current checking account for month of May, $847.21

A little baby fun...

2007-05-02T11:16:00.000-04:00

Does anyone else watch 'Wonder Pets'? I highly recommend it. Im watching it as I write this morning. I love the catchy tunes and I find myself singing it to my daughter... She also enjoys her Baby Einstein DVD, especially the baby mozart, because its not too complicated like baby einstein neighborhood animals which seem more advanced. she just likes listening to the music and the sounds and colors. We both try to keep her busy throughout the day when shes not eating, sleeping, or pooping. Yesterday her grandmother took her to get pictures! It made me want to get parent pictures with her. We will plan on that next week. The wife is going back to work tomorrow. Today she had jury duty but it was cancelled so she is staying home! Yeah another paid day and she doesnt have to take leave to be home. Great!

Moneywise, we earned approx. $70 in interest last month. Woohoo! I just transferred the money to our bank account. Thats good for at least a weeks worth of groceries. Im optomistic that with $1000 in the bank for groceries, gas, and other basic living expenses for the month, we are over budgeted and will come out ahead. Time to make some breakfast/lunch...

Should we pay off the house?

2007-04-30T11:28:00.000-04:00

The dreaded mortgage question lingers, should we pay off the house? Of course, people like us that absolutely hate debt with a passion say, "Why shouldn't we?". Given our situation, if things were to go the same financially and paying off this house meant a monthly commitment, we will have the house paid off in 4 years... by January 2011 to be exact. Lets go over some numbers first... we have remaining a $73,000 30-yr fixed rate mortgage at a 5.62% interest rate, which calculates to a monthly payment of roughly $430. Heres my issue... I would love to pay this house off by the time we were 30 years old. This will give us plenty of wiggle room in our budget to play with and thus be able to do save, invest, and maybe have a little fun too.

Yes that would be fine and dandy to own a $200K+ house outright. 3 beds, 2 bath, garage and a spacious fenced backyard... but what then? I was going over in my mind what some of my options were at that point. Heres the list:

1. Save aggressively another $100-$200K which could take another 5-10 years (making us 35-40 respectively) and then build/purchase our $300-$400K dreamhome, by selling our current home and moving up with no debt.

2. Purchase another home around $150-$200K and rent out our first home, which would cover our new mortgage amount and be able to pay down that one quicker; again when this done we would still be 5-10 years out. But do I really want to be a landlord and have the hassles of going through tenants and future repairs?

3. Sell our home now and move into dreamhome with a $135K downpayment.

4. Rent our home now and move into dreamhome with a small downpayment and use montly rent to cover mortgages on both.

5. Stay in our current home. Great neighborhood, awesome schools. Nice-semi nice neighbors. Ride it out and Invest.

I'd like to go over option 4 because although it may sound really good. My wife isnt attached to this house and although you can probably fit about a 7-person-family in this house, if we decide to have another child, 3 bedrooms (1 of which is our office) isnt going to cut it for the 4 of us. Sounds crazy but I guess we grew accustomed to having all this space and when the baby came, it was like... ok the guest bedroom just turned to the baby's room. With all of her toys and the baby knicknacks, it seems like our spacious simple space is being taken over! (in a good way of course). Maybe these thoughts of losing our space will blow over. I mean if you ask me 4 years, at 22, if I ever would be a homeowner and asking these questions, I would have laughed. Most of my time was consumed by getting drunk, hanging out with the guys, and trying to get the right girl. Well whatever decision we make, I guess we can consider ourselves very blessed in our position, but there is nothing wrong with thinking ahead. I wasnt born to be mediocre.

Enjoying our time at home... and a FINANCIAL update!

2007-04-29T23:16:00.000-04:00

WOW a whole month and no blog! After stressing the pregnancy months (and even pre-pregnancy months), it feels good to be doing something different. The last post left little to be desired for a couple weeks however my wife and I have been busy. Spending the day with my daughter and wife has been a great vacation from the hassles and busy work of my job. We go to the park, take walks (weather has been really nice), take pictures, go shopping (not too much but she has already outgrown her 0-3 month clothes!), and get visits by the family on almost a daily basis. My date is set to go back June 15, 2007, a Friday and also our baby girl's 4-month birthday. Ahhh counting the months, just like when my wife and I started dating; we are so excited to have already passed the 1 and 2 month phases of our baby. A little sad though because with every passing day, I say to my wife that shes getting so big and doesnt look anything like she did when she was a week or a month old. She is a little older and doesnt fuss that much anymore but looks around alot and kinda does the "Im taking things in" look. Just yesterday she sat through a baby einstein dvd! She even did a tiny little laugh today (maybe gas) but it was very cute... also her morning smiles make it all worthwhile.

YEAH Finances: We did really good for the month of April and came in under budget. May promises to be another great month in living under our means... I think right now we come in right about $1200 in gross MONTHLY expenses including gas, groceries, household items, mortgage, cell phones, cable, electricity, and of course the all important baby forumla (~$35/week). I'll update the networth sheet to the right as well, as we have hit $200,000+! Apparently I havent kept track of the market these past couple weeks and it seems we did great on all our funds. Also with what little time I've had, I was able to get some needed housework done, mostly to the garage and outside. And speaking of outside appeal, 3 houses down from ours has sold for over $230K and another a few houses down from that was listed at 245K... I know our house can easily fetch 210 now... imagine what we can do if we put in a little bit more work!

Finally I apologize I havent been on here much but I promise to update a little better. But like one of my good deprived friends says it can be summed up in one word, "baby" and its pretty much understood.

Living the fast paced life..

2007-03-25T11:48:00.000-04:00

It seems that the fast paced life or what I thought the fast paced life was like, is over. I can imagine almost a year ago working on our debt, working 2 jobs, fighting time to be with my wife, trying to find time to spend a day just relaxing or hanging with friends drinking a few bottles, etc. is over. Now I dont have to worry about any of that, because Im almost sad to say, but I'm bored out of my mind. Its not like taking care of a baby isnt "work" because believe me, its exhausting. However, for the past 6 weeks, things have kinda slowed down for the both my wife and I. We have adapted to the almost slow paced lifestyle. To a person that has worked in a high stress environment with blackberries and emailing coworkers, needing up to date news on all events, plans, doing spreadsheets and running errands til your so tired you can barely stand or keep your eyes open, its a shock. It doesnt hit you the first few weeks, because your body thinks its a vacation or your too high stressed about the newborn that you think every waking moment about her. Now we have the routine down and loving every moment... til she wakes up again. But it gets boring because you want to use this time to do things like organize the garage, clean the shed, work on the yard, build that shelf, etc. however the baby IS going to need your attention some time. Even though I miss the fast paced lifestyle and change is a good thing, I still miss it. Im so embarassed to even go as far as saying I miss my job.

No updates on the finances, because things have been stagnant. I know... shocking!

Up all night...

2007-03-17T10:40:00.000-04:00

What a unpleasant night... my wife was up for the majority of it, God bless her. I think the worst part of the whole newborn phase is when you cant determine what the problem is all the time. Im sure our little girl was willing to tell us but her undeveloped voicebox couldnt handle the words. During the first week, we switched to soy milk and that helped our baby almost immediately, but last night was an all nighter... Basically if she has a dry diaper, been fed, and burped long enough that you think her back must hurt from all the patting, what then? We tried bouncing and walking around but sometimes she is still fidgety. Normally we can handle this during the daytime but at night, sometimes we get a bit fidgety. Right now, shes asleep... what a good girl!

Balancing Life

2007-03-16T18:10:00.000-04:00

Yesterday we celebrated our baby girl being 1 month old! Since its a big "to do" in our family, we invited our relatives out to a nice dinner. We went during the daytime to pick out an outfit at Kohls and take a trip to Target to get some more formula/diapers. It was her first time out of the house besides to the doctors office and back, so she was VERY good! After a month, most noticable difference is her emotions and facial expressions. My life pretty much revolves around my daughter. She wakes up, I wake up (mommy too!). She needs to be fed, we feed her. There are a few times during the day when shes napping that we are able to put the pieces of life back together. Since we are both at home and not working, we kinda split domestic chores basically whatever needs to be done, we do it. Sometimes I still have to ask what day it is, just to seem like we are progressing towards... something. When do kids start having play dates? Since none of my friends have kids or are close to being pregnant or moving to of their parents place even, where can we go? Does she even need to have the interaction at such a young age? Oh well she seems content now.

The more I think about what I'm goinig to put on this blog, it gets farther and farther from what I originally intended when I started it, which was to focus on maximizing savings with our income, minus debt and so forth... OK for those of us that love to keep track of finances and love to budget and get on the financial ball, we have started a 529 college savings account with a modest $150. Granted shes only 1 month, but we believe she has her heart set on an ivy league school. :) but who knows. Next our budgeting has paid off and we have ended up with about $300 extra in monthly allowances outside of grocery for March, which have not been allocated. Baby stuff really isnt that big of a chunk like we expected. Already we have stored 4 boxes of newborn and 1 year pampers (she wears both) and about 2 cases of ready to eat formula ( good for about 2-3 weeks). Thats pretty much it, plus she has enough outfits til shes about 6 months-1 year. Her great grandmother has already got her a jacket, which I advised we should see how big she is in the winter time, however I know her intentions meant well. What 1 month old needs a 1 year olds parka given in May? Ok thinking financial thoughts: 10k emergency fund, thinking of bumping it to 20k. I want so bad to start a car fund but can I do it and still pay the house down??? Its tricky but those couple items have been looming on the horizon needing to be researched and the numbers put on paper. And speaking about horizon, this weather needs to clear up so we can get her back outside in the nice 80 degree fresh air!

Happy Healthy Baby Girl!

2007-03-09T14:32:00.000-05:00

We are so blessed to have a happy healthy baby girl gracing our presence. 8 pounds and 7 ounces of cuteness and love from head to toe. Not to mention the sleepless nights, daily bottle washing, eating meals with one hand, what day is it again?, "what time did she eat", 4 ounces or was it 3 ounces she ate, did her belly button fall off yet, why is she spitting up, whens the last time we changed her, does she have gas or is she irritable, miss fussy pants; these are the times we cherish the most. We work really really hard at making sure shes comfortable 24/7. My mother in law came and stayed 1 week, that was a the most beautiful week, despite the whole mother in law theory. Since we are both at home, it seems that the only time we get to ourselves is at night when we sleep. I have taken the night shift and she is sleeping from 10-6am, so when she wakes up I sleep til about 12noon to 1pm. We do take turns going to the grocery store and getting formula during the daytime. Being she is about 3 weeks old, shes adapted SOME sleep schedule to where she is about 3-4 hours between feedings. I've noticed only during the wee hours of the night, she has a tendency to be WIDE AWAKE. Sometimes its during the day too when we change her or talk to her about politics or tv or whats going on in her world, which isnt much now. Also I have to mention when she smiles or giggles in her sleep, its the most breath taking/ hilarious thing Ive ever seen. I dont know what shes dreaming about but it must be good.

Ok financially, we have held up our budget to a tee if not better. Now Ive allocated to have about $500 over each month for those unknown items. Since this is the first month of true make or break time for the budget, we are doing very well so far. I also didnt expect a couple paychecks from my work for the leave time and that in itself will be a nice cushion in the savings. We hit $10,000 on our emergency fund for savings which I dont know if that will be enough of a barrier for a one income family. I may want to bump it up to $15 for now before we start taking a look at saving for another vehicle because all we have right now is 2 compacts. Ive obviously not had enough time to update the networth sheets or the blog yet, but I'm sure when I get a free hand I will. (which is God knows when!)

Baby's Coming soon...

2007-02-05T22:01:00.000-05:00

39 weeks later... I think we are prepared as we can be, at least financially. Of course we could have done better, but we have to work with what we have. I wont be posting here for at least a week or so, however I will be back blogging about our baby girl and learning to live off of what we have saved in the past couple months. It should be interesting. I've been also killing it at work (thats a good saying), and getting everything wrapped up before time's up for me to be at home with my wife and baby. I guess it comes down to working up til now for myself and my financial debt, to my wife and our finances and being debt free, to the meaning of living for my child and making sure my family is taken care of, puts it into perspective. I guess responsibility and being grown up isnt going to be half bad for someone like me. I'm updating the networth sheet for Feb too.

Working so much, my head aches...

2007-01-25T22:56:00.000-05:00

My head aches and the rest of my body functions fall right in line at the end of the day. I think with this Friday, I will have worked approximately 60 hours or more. Now many of you think, well youre a young guy, just suck it up, when I was your age I could work about 80 hours or so in the hot fields of Kansas. Well, my friends, that isnt me and 60 really burns me out. What I really need to start doing is getting back into some exercise regime so I dont have to feel so tired. Maybe that will make me more tired? Who knows... So obviously I havent been blogging the past few days because of my job demands and when I get home, I clean up the house, check my email, talk to the baby (wife thinks its funny), and get ready for tomorrow. Hopefully, when the baby comes, I'll be able to take a break from work and get to spend some time at home. I can't believe its only a month or less away. So basically this time next month, we will have had our child! Excited? Yes! Nervous? Yes! Prepared? Maybe. Ready? Sure, why not. Our last baby shower is Feb 3. We have gotten so many great gifts, my wife and I can't wait to start using some of them on our daughter. (my wife especially with the clothes)

Ok FINANCIAL stuff... I know you (or me) didnt come here for cutsie. We're battling the waves of saving currently. $6304.77 amassed in emergency funding. With the '07 utilities & insurance all socked away, we have $10507.37 in seperate money market savings accounts. Needless to say that only $2k of that is expected to be used shortly, so we have that in a savings account earning a whopping 1.21% interest! Holy cow! Since its short term, we wanted something even more liquid than the money market accounts. Our bank has been more than happy (of course) to open a savings account with no minimums. Hopefully we will have $8-9,000 in that savings account before Feb 10. (working those late hours should help out with reaching that goal easily) That's what we have planned on. Im sure with unexpected expenses arising with probably last minute baby items, that will be depleted to about $7,500.

We have overlooked our retirement and it has taken a backseat for now. I upped my 401k at work from 6% to 8%. Only 6% is currently being matched, but the 2% shouldnt hurt too bad. Last time I didnt even notice a jump. ROTHs NEED NEED NEED to be funded. However we just can't funnel money in there at this time. We have planned on catching up our total funding for 2006 ROTH contributions for both of us in mid March. Total retirement savings to date: $30,646.95. I've got to get up at 5am tomorrow, so time to wrap it up.

Being a Stay-at-home mother/father...

2007-01-16T23:45:00.000-05:00

I dont think I've ever mentioned this on the blog but about 2 years ago, my wife and I decided that if we were to ever have children that I would stay at home for the first couple years and then she would alternate. And in life, things change and plans change. With my recent job change and over 255% increase in salary, the tables have turned. I would now cast my vote for her being the better candidate for staying at home. Our ultimate goal was to have one of us be there, so really it didnt matter. At least once a day, maybe more, I'll crunch the numbers to make sure that we are on track, if not ahead of the track in dropping to one income. Every time the numbers work out the same. Infant childcare is expensive. We dont really trust anyone to watch the child on a long full-time basis,yet (even parents). We can afford to have one of us stay at home. We have budgeted appropriately. Ultimately my wife would like to return to work. Simple as that.

The reality for both of us is that our main "Priority One" financial goal of paying off the house in 2-3 years is now stretched to 4-5 years. Way before we started blogging or getting on the debt reduction train, I'm sure we envisioned a path much quicker and simpler. One step into "baby zone" and we have fallen back financially almost 2 years. Of course, our child is the most IMPORTANT priority now and we realize this, however again just financially, its difficult to swallow those 2 years of numbers. Hmmm maybe I should get a second job...

It's Baby Shower Time!

2007-01-14T20:44:00.000-05:00

This weekend we have been so busy with our baby shower! My wife was so excited to get to open gifts, it was like a second christmas for her. :) But we did get ALOT of stuff for the baby including some major items like a new Graco Clarissa stroller, a pack and play, and neat bouncy seat. She told me that Im going to be playing with most of the baby's toys anyway (shes probably right). I could only dream of when I was a kid getting half the cool stuff our daughter has got and shes not even born yet! Back in my day, they didnt even have pampers! LOL Anyway, it was a nice chance to get together with relatives that I havent seen since the wedding. Plus now we know as far as "stuff" how far along we are to completing what my wife calls "the babys list". First thing my wife did this morning was be her great organized self and sort through all the stuff, put it away, and immediately tell me to put together the stroller. :) As a first time put-it-together guy... not so difficult.

We also unfortunately have to return some items back to Babys R Us. We seem to have collected about 3 different diaper bags and an extra infant bath tub thing (i think thats what they are called). The best part... the shower this weekend was only for immediate family. We have our big shower with friends in about 3 weeks... man where do we have room for all this "stuff"!!!

Side note: moved all of Fridays paycheck into savings... its crunch time now.

An Educational Savings Plan

2007-01-07T12:24:00.000-05:00

With the baby on the way, Ive been looking into Educational savings accounts. We believe that education plays an important role in ones life and a college education should be a great investment. I mean we went through it about 3 years ago (man we are getting really old), so we know about having those THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS in borrowed student loans and having to pay them off. A suggestion was brought to my attention that the child should have some role in their financing of college (ie. we pay for half and they pay for half). This is all dependent on each individual child and their work ethic too. Its $50 to open the account and we agreed on a monthly of $50 for this year only. We expect that amount to change once she goes back to work. Of course, the program wont be available til the child is born. :)

Side note: Updating networth today, noticing that there were some positive trends in the emergency fund and savings. We have been lagging all year on the ROTH IRA and I think that will be our main focus after we hit $5000 in the emergency fund. I want to get the 2006 IRAs done before completing it to $10k.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

2007-01-04T17:25:00.000-05:00

I have to give a big shout out to my beautiful wife! She's 26 years old today! Oh how quickly they grow up :) Where does the time go?

Good News, Bad News

2007-01-03T20:01:00.000-05:00

Good news and bad news today... first ill go with the good news, our insurance cards arrived in the mail and that means my wife can remove herself from her work's insurance and be put on mine. This will save us approximately $45 per pay period. Ok heres the bad news... wife informed me that her work is NOT going to be paying for her maternity time off. Granted most employers do not pay full salary but they are giving her NADA and she has worked there for almost 5 years now. She just "found out" this morning from her HR department. So now we are not counting on her income for the next few months. This early news prepares us a little bit more for the baby in February. We were a little stressed about the news however I will just have to move a couple months of emergency fund during that time. We have got to be prepared!! Also on a lighter note, I put up the baby's closet doors yesterday. Her room is complete!

Rolling it all into ONE...

2006-12-29T12:30:00.000-05:00

Making some new changes with our budget process and taking it one step further. In 2007, we have lumped together all our "yearly expenses" and aptly naming them 2007 yearly expenses (wow how original). The yearly expenses will consist of biannual and annual payments that normally catch up with us eventually; consisting of homeowners insurance (annually), real estate tax (biannually), auto insurance (biannually), water and sewer payments (bimonthly). This will total approximately $4500 per year. We set up a seperate account to pay for these charges when they come up throughout the 2007 year. Given this is only good for the 2007 year and this also allows us the flexibility to have lower monthly outgoing expenses to have to worry about. However we need to put a system in place for 2008 yearly expenses during the 07 year. Basically this system is to make it so I dont feel the pinch monthly from take home pay or have to budget an extra catagory during these months. We have paid our yearly membership to Sams Club and have been gathering discounted gift cards like squirrels for the baby's clothes next year (as if we're not going to get tons of clothes from all our friends/ relatives). So anyway I'll be posting our financial resolutions shortly because we do have alot of catch up to do. Also my wife's birthday is on the 4th!! Its exciting that we both get to be the same age for 8 months out of the year: its the big 2 - 6!! So I gotta get her something nice this year for being such a trooper and doing so well with the pregnancy :)

Happy Holidays

2006-12-23T21:37:00.000-05:00

We are having family over and its going to be a bit hectic these next couple days. Tonight we went to a celebration mass at church and there was a real camel on display at their live nativity! Its funny because I dont recall seeing one of those in a while (maybe at a zoo when I was a child). Anyway, since we really dont have much to purchase this holiday we will just be saving to make sure we secure our emergency fund... maybe some last minute items for the Christmas dinner on Monday but nothing too extravagant. Probably wont be blogging for the next couple days, however whatever you celebrate, enjoy your holiday season too.

When College is FREE...

2006-12-18T21:48:00.000-05:00

Both my wife and I decided that after we've had student loan debt up to our eye balls and finally paid it off that we would never go back to borrowing again. The year before we got married, my 3 years of college debt had amassed to around $8000 big bucks. My wife finished her 4 year degree with a little over $15,000 (and this was after her parents helped foot half the tab!!) I cant imagine having to go back and pay that again, but we stood firm on getting rid of it!

Granted it took me a while to find an amazing job with great benefits however one of the best benefits is the Tuition benefit. My job will actually pay up to a PHD in whatever I want for FREE! How could I resist the temptation to start when my benefit kicked in! I started with a 3 credit calculus course and finished with an A. This semester I am still only pushing a 3 credit class. Some may ask, well why not just finish it up my degree as quickly as possible.... well I learned my lesson the first time I decided to take on a full time job and 12-16 credit hours of college. Something had to give, and it wasnt my job. I ended up having to retake 3 of the classes because even though it was "free", I suffered more in my GPA that year and TIME LOST, than I ever could recoup in free tuition dollars. We live and learn. Im on track again with a brighter path in mind, only this time, Im not going to be carrying that extra weight of debt on me.

We won a $50 Visa!

2006-12-14T23:59:00.000-05:00

Rarely do we ever "win" anything but we did! My wife and I gave our input on some local places on the Verizon superpages website. Basically they wanted you to put up your thoughts and rate just local businesses around you. Because I grew in my town, I got a little crazy and wrote about most of my experiences at certain places. (hey I was bored at work and I wanted to give due credit where we had good and bad service) Anyway, I was contacted by Verizon last week to say I was one of the gift card winners. Today I got a $50 Visa in the mail! How cool!

This weekend we are going to her parents home to celebrate Christmas with her relatives. Im not looking forward to the drive, however Im sure there will be plenty of football, presents, and christmas cookies to keep me busy when I get there.

Family Matters: Our Strategy for 2007

2006-12-13T21:29:00.000-05:00

Finished my last college exam today! To tell you the truth, this semester has been an annoying 16 weeks but I managed. Anyway, I'm planning on taking ONE class while our child is born and it will only be a 6 week class starting in January so it wont be too close to the arrival of the little one. Great now that we have that out of the way.... heres finances!

First we updated the net worth sheet for December finally. We have been saving like squirrels to make sure this "winter" doesnt make us "hungry" (plug for "over the hedge" :P)... basically is the emergency fund ready for our family in '07. I have been using scratch paper long enough and have put numbers in the spreadsheet. We will have 6 months saved when my wife leaves her job in June to care for our child full time. I figured our average monthly expenses cost $1600, which equate to ~$9600 or rounded to $10,000. Ok, now that we have 10k socked away by June and NOT TOUCHING, I will also have an additional $1600 in our BANKING savings account. We have a single checking and savings account at our local bank. At the beginning of every month I will move $1600 for all our expenses from the savings account to the checking account. Every month, I will "fill up" the savings FIRST with $1600, and then with the rest of our money, we can allocate to whatever catagory.

Here is what we've already accomplished for 2007:
(Estimated based on averages for 2006 but numbers are actual dollars saved)

$2405.63 saved for Home Insurance and Real Estate Tax for 2007
$600.00 saved for 2007 Bimonthly water and sewer costs
$208.00 paid for 2007 + 2008 Vehicle registration for both vehicles
$1400.00 saved so far for 10k emergency fund
$100.00 saved for baby's college fund (LOL its a small start)

This way we will be ready and that $1600 monthly looks more and more realistic because Im not worrying about having to pay these bigger above expenses. For 2007, I'll be opening new catagories for 2008 and maybe put in an extra fund for a NEW used vehicle :). Of course this is after we maximize our retirement, which we have not been maintaining like we should. *tisk tisk* The only good thing is that Ive been contributing my employee match at 6% and our previous 401k rollovers look healthy. Closing out our years of being 25 (wife turns 26 in Jan), we are at $29,796.54 on retirement to date. 4 year outlook, we need to be closer to $100k by age 30, that way compound interest can be our best friend. I like to keep things as SIMPLE as possible. Of course, life happens and we can't be 100% prepared for everything, so lets do the numbers, come as close as we can and just have some fun too!

Side note: start car fund (man that new 07 camry and cr-v look nice!)

Some friends are not talking...

2006-12-12T11:13:00.000-05:00

Off the topic of money for just a moment, I want to discuss a myth. With the whole baby situation, Im beginning to believe that it is true that when you become a parent you start associating with only people that have children. Maybe it IS true because your existing friends don't know what you are going through or you just dont have that much in common with them anymore. Anyway, this all came about because I had dinner on Sunday with one of my close friends from college, whom does not want to have kids EVER. This said, when we have conversations about the baby room or topics dealing with pregnancy and just general child rearing, it feels like we are stuck in a rut with no traction... so I switch the topic. On the plus side, my wife has several of her coworkers that have kids that have begun to START to hang out with us. Maybe its just coincidence that we are being included now. Who knows, but I'll go ahead and end this rant. Moneywise, we are currently stopping our retirement funding to keep building the emergency fund. So far we've amassed only $1200 because we spent roughly $1500 on the baby room so far. (pictures to come!!) Im hoping that this kid comes out to be a girl because we have this running joke that our future son is going to say "I cant believe you thought I was going to be a girl". Percentages are 70/30 right now in favor of a girl by our latest sonogram. I just hope we have a girl for the sake of not having to return everything. Lastly, I have my FINAL class exam this evening so that will leave me with more time to blog! :)

Theres alot of baby "stuff"!

2006-12-04T15:27:00.000-05:00

It was an interesting weekend but I got through it. I finished some coursework and test for my class, so all I have to do is go to my final exam next Tuesday and I'm good to go. I've decided that its going to be hectic enough for the next couple months and won't take advantage of my company's tuition plan next semester. Because it is FREE and paid for, I may take a couple certification classes but nothing too rigorous given our baby's arrival in late Feb/ early March. Needless to say, we finished getting our crib, purchased the combo set drawers and the bedding to fit on the mattress. I can't imagine all the "stuff" we are going to get from our friends and family, I told her that we shouldnt be buying any more stuff. She insisits on picking out at least one outfit per week and because there was a sale at JC Pennys on baby attire on Friday, we went that night and picked up some MORE outfits. Is there such a thing as too much baby stuff? At least I know the baby won't run out of clothes! Sitting here at work, knowing that I have to stay late til about 7pm, I want the day to go by as fast as possible. :)

To the Mattresses!! (an update)

2006-11-28T23:17:00.000-05:00

Working a full week of overtime is getting a bit hectic. Today I came home just exhausted and was so happy to get a great home cooked meal. Monday night we went to Babys R Us to get a mattress and we were deciding on a Sealy Premium or the brand with the sheeps on them. After finding the mattress that "felt" better, not necessarily softer or harder but firmer for a baby/toddler, we went with the Sealy for 89.99 and used our 15% discount card. We took it home and ripped off the mattress and placed it in our crib! Its amazing how things are coming together and we have only about 12 weeks til our baby girl is here with us! Needless to say, I need to do more work on tweaking the budget and finances this week. Also I have a huge test I need to study for my college class. Final exams are next week, so I need to get started... I'll be so happy when this week is over!

Finding the deal for our Baby's Crib and everything else!

2006-11-21T22:36:00.000-05:00

After searching for the past couple weeks, we have finally found the perfect crib we want. Its from the retail conglomerate BABIES R US which has priced this crib at about $600. My wife is a bit of a skeptic when I say that if there is a store out there, there has to be a deal or coupon or discount that its giving. So off I go in search of a discount on the web/newspaper and I go to the normal sites google.com, fatwallet.com, coupon section, craigslist.com and even the actual online store. After a few hit and misses Im usually back onto Ebay! Step 1: the big break (discount) and of course I read all the restrictions because I dont want to go to the outlet/store and them not honor my purchase.

Step 2: Find discount gift cards on Ebay. Apparently Ebay has become such a saturated site for people wanting discounts. Its funny to me that people are willing to pay $26 for a $25 gift card...?? That to me is stupid and thats a whole other story. Anyway, I always do an advance search for what prices people have gotten for that particular gift card/item. Then I work out a percentage like if I see a $100 gift card and best consistent deal wins at $80 WITH SHIPPING, thats 80% total. I'll put my highest bid at 80% of the value. This will differ in every auction depending on if the person is reputable, has good feedback, doesnt look like a scam, etc... I might raise it up and pay 82 or 83% of the price. Again I love crunching the numbers, because at the end of the day you want a 15% discount off of a 20% discount of an item. So you pay basically $320 for a $500 item; definately worth it. With so much competition and people doing the same thing, sometimes if an auction gets too high and you KNOW its not a bargain anymore, MOVE ON... theres always another auction and always another deal.

Fixing the wrong HMO plan

2006-11-20T21:30:00.000-05:00

I got my 2007 health care plan in the mail today from my benefits office. I went with a different health care provider this time. Mostly because the last time I messed it up and went with a plan that I thought would be accepted where my wife goes to get her regular baby tummy checkups. Out of the 5 providers we got to select from my health care plan, 1 of them was NOT on the list. Guess which one? Right, the one I selected. I dont think Im going to get it wrong this time but I called the hospitals that we go to and her PCP first before I selected this time. Even though we did go with an HMO, all our doctors that we NEED to see are in the network so it works out perfectly. This will go into effect for the upcoming year so I have to live with my bad health care choice at the moment. My wife says shes not cancelling her plan with her job until we get the "right" coverage. Understandable.

On another note, Im so glad that I have to work only 2 more days! Honestly I cant wait to get this week over. If you ask me, Monday was tiring enough. I have to post these auctions on ebay and get my act together for tomorrow.

Our Beloved Eureka: R.I.P.

2006-11-19T23:09:00.000-05:00

While going through our Sunday chores, a few unexpected situations arose. First in the middle of vacuuming the home as usual, my wife noticed that the hose from the vacuum hardly had suction at all. I said maybe its an electrical short and we should unplug the hose and just vacuum normally. A few moments later, kaput! The whole thing just turned off. Needless to say at first I thought it was something fixable in the electric or maybe a fan went out, but to my dismay, we considered it GONE :( The good thing is it lasted us about 4 years and we havent had any problems, making it a positive experience with the Eureka whirlwind. Of course there is an upset, where we had to drag our butts to Target and purchase another. After some research and our handy consumer reports, we decided to give Dirt Devil another try (our first one crapped out on us after 1 years usage). This time it was the Dirt Devil VIBE at $79.99, upright and bagless, just the way we like it. Now because its not your $200+ vacuum cleaner or Roomba craze, we expect it to last us about 1-2 years. However still it was the most expensive purchase this weekend.

On a side note, we finished painting the doors white to the rooms and put the cute baby animal border in the baby's room. How exciting! Its all coming together and next weekend we expect to get the furniture from Babys R Us. Although its still about 3 months away from her birth, we want to be as prepared as possible.

Payday

2006-11-16T20:42:00.000-05:00

YEAH ITS FRIDAY! PAYDAY! The day everyone looks forward to that says you deserve something for your "work" during this period of time. It gives me a sense of accomplishment and also a time to reflect on how I'm going to be spending said accomplishments. Since I've been working overtime for the past 2 weeks, its been quite an opener to our bank account. Needless to say its the only thing keeping me from tearing my hair out and just completely losing it. OK it sounds like I'm at my wits end but honestly, its really not as bad as I make it. I get unlimited cups of coffee and I can adjust my own lighting to fit my mood! (great perks, huh? lol)

This weekend we are going to treat ourselves to some fresh paint on the new interior doors that a friend help put in last weekend. We have saved enough money with this paycheck for baby stuff so that my wife can be happy about buying whatever is on our daughter's list. Call me a conventionalist, but all I care about is that our baby have a nice room thats warm and theres food on the table.

That said, its time to get back to work. I need to sign up for more overtime.

Running around like a headless chicken!

2006-11-14T22:53:00.000-05:00

COMPLETING ALL of the "new guy" meetings at work and out doing company tasks has got me busy busy busy. Im basically running around like a chicken with its head cut off (can you believe some people at work havent heard of that saying?!?) Anyway, I hardly have time eat a quick sandwich in a sack let alone write a coherent blog post. Alas I have been slacking enough and must get back on track.

Moneywise, we are doing semi-ok. I say "semi" because we have lost all concept of the budget and have been using the debit card (not credit card) to pay for things. We suggested that for the month of November we would try to "wing it" because other than restaurant and grocery money we dont really do much with our money after bills and the savings are completed. Occassionally I've noticed that my wife has given a couple gifts to friends here and there. Also, yesterday she went to a funeral for a friend who lost her husband; such a tragedy that he was so young too. But she pitched in to buy some flowers which I thought was nice. I argued that all she put in was $10 to the group pot? Just spend the $50 and get your friend the nice bouquet, I said. My wife keeps me level headed at these times and says no, that would be overkill. Maybe its good to have that balance. Otherwise the real estate tax and home owners insurance due both this month didnt hit us too hard, since we have been saving all year. This month, I made whats called a HOME FUND, which consists of me trying to save for the 2007 RE tax and HOI before 06 is over. This along with 2 other goals are posted before the year ends. (other goals to come, bc this is getting lengthy and I'm a bit tired, but its good to be back

Home improvement recap and some family stuff

2006-10-17T23:56:00.000-04:00

After that last post, I havent had an opportunity to write another post due to a cousin's wedding and visiting relatives on my wife's side of the family. Needless to say they are as excited as we are to be having a girl... they also want to know names! Shhhhh! We had to keep some of it a secret! Anyway that was mainly the weekend and us getting back into the groove this week.

Ok one issue I wanted to touch on: Home improvements. We have made some after being debt free except for the mortgage and having savings in the bank. First is a new cedar privacy fence around our backyard (we havent had a fence in 2 years) $3280 PAID IN CASH. Second is the wood trim on the house being replaced and repainted; Cost $835 paid for with cash. Thirdly this weekend we are getting a main bathroom sink chosen and then installed later next week. Cost: $600, which of course we havent yet but will pay for with, you guessed it, cash. With all this home stuff getting to our heads, Im beginning to think that we need to make sure we have some left over to max out our ROTH IRAs this year. My wife wants to make sure we have enough for Christmas too. I'll be posting a budget shortly to show all of our expenses, this way we will have a monthly/weekly plan for where the money is filtered.

On a side note, she decided to buy some cute little GIRL outfits and I know its a little early but she wanted to endulge herself after the recent findings :) Cost was less than $50 so it was ok!

Another Family MILESTONE!

2006-10-10T22:34:00.000-04:00

Today we went to the doctor's office to find out the sex of our baby! Im excited to say that its going to be..........A GIRL!!!!!! Our baby girl! I can't believe its been a crazy 5 months wondering and wondering what kind of "gender neutral" stuff to get for the baby room and clothing, etc. But the wait is over... it was a 50/50 shot and honestly, as long as its a healthy 10 finger 10 toed kid, we could care less! The wife and I celebrated afterward with going to a wonderful lunch at a neighborhood restaurant and calling both our parents. Today has been a mixture of joy, excitement, and just a little nerve racking. Even though its our first steps towards parenthood, its still a very very new experience for us. (Its mostly excitement, though :) YEAH!!!!

Are we minivan crazy?

2006-10-08T10:45:00.000-04:00

In the past weeks, my wife and I have been discussing the possibility of upgrading her Toyota Corolla to a Minivan or SUV. A couple things that I thought before we even considered upgrading is 1. how much? or equal trade? 2. is it practical? Since we are having our FIRST child, i dont know if a minivan is going to be the most practical. The corolla is a great car and we love it for its gas mileage and makes sense for our age group. It does have enough room for a child seat and cargo too. My question is if we need to carry anything extra that may make it a tiny bit uncomfortable if we have 3 people in the corolla? Ive been looking at other vehicles like the Rendevoux, CR-V, and RAV-4 to balance out the minivan. Who knows, maybe I'm just going through a "phase" and it will pass, however an addition to our family is coming soon! Tuesday we find out if its a girl or a boy!! :)

Cutting those CORNERS~!

2006-10-05T01:05:00.000-04:00

I love cutting corners on the budget. It makes sure that we maximize the dollars that are coming into the house. First thing I noticed is that we are paying too much for local cable. Our cable modem is NOT rented so we dont pay a rental fee, but we have the higher end high speed: upto 3MB download. We downgraded to the 768k speed which so far I havent really noticed, because all I do online is get email, read blogs, check news... so not too much high end downloading going on (songs downloaded now take about 2 minutes instead of 1... again unnoticable.) I going to try out Verizon for their DSL service which will save us another $10; I'll let you know how the trial goes.

Secondly the cable bill got me thinking that we dont really need all our 999 channels of television... my wife also agrees and points out that we hardly ever watch tv and she tapes her local channel soaps, so we are cutting it down to 100 regular cable channels for another $20 less! I will be returning our digital box and remote this weekend.

Finally one more cut this week, our netflix went sky high and I havent even noticed that we are being charged close to $40 a month for entertainment. Since the DVDs are for myself and almost never for my wife, we lowered it to the 3 DVDs at a time for $17.99 a month, saving us about $22/month. But I bit the one time bullet and bought a one year pass on ebay for $150 and just squashed the monthly rental, which saved us about $70 for the year additional.

Because I know we are probably going to spend a little bit on the baby, I'm trying to be a little prepared budget-wise. All our additional "luxuries" are currently being scrutinized and we learn to adjust to a lifestyle below our means (or at least think that way) Thats what its all about! We are also trying to get out and enjoy this great weather too.

Birth Order

2006-10-02T21:08:00.000-04:00

Even though I dislike forwards, got this today and thought it was funny :)

THE BIRTH ORDER OF CHILDREN
>
> Your Clothes:
> 1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon as your OB/GYN
>confirms your pregnancy.
> 2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.
> 3rd baby: Your maternity clothes ARE your regular clothes.
>______________________________________________________
> Preparing for the Birth:
> 1st baby: You practice your breathing religiously.
> 2nd baby: You don't bother because you remember that last time,
>breathing didn't do a thing.
> 3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in your eighth month.
> ______________________________________________________
> The Layette:
> 1st baby: You pre-wash newborn's clothes, color-coordinate them, and
>fold them neatly in the baby's little bureau.
> 2nd baby: You check to make sure that the clothes are clean and discard
>only the ones with the darkest stains.
> 3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can't they?
> ______________________________________________________
> Worries:
> 1st baby: At the first sign of distress-a whimper,
> a frown-you pick up the baby.
> 2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her wails
> threaten to wake your firstborn.
> 3rd baby: You teach your three-year-old how
> to rewind the mechanical swing.
> ____________________________________________________
> Pacifier:
> 1st baby: If the pacifier falls on the floor,
> you put it away until you can go home and wash and boil it.
> 2nd baby: When the pacifier falls on the floor,
> you squirt it off with some juice from the baby's bottle.
> 3rd baby: You wipe it off on your shirt and pop it back in.
> ______________________________________________________
> Diapering:
> 1st baby: You change your baby's diapers every hour,
> whether they need it or not.
> 2nd baby: You change their diaper every two to three hours,
> if needed.
> 3rd baby: You try to change their diaper before others start to complain
>about the smell or you see it sagging to their knees.
> ______________________________________________________
> Activities:
> 1st baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics,
> Baby Swing, and Baby Story Hour.
> 2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics.
> 3rd baby: You take your infant to the supermarket
> and the dry cleaner.
> ______________________________________________________
> Going Out:
> 1st baby: The first time you leave your baby with a sitter,
> you call home five times.
> 2nd baby: Just before you walk out the door, you remember to leave a
>number where you can be reached.
> 3rd baby: You leave instructions for the sitter to call
> only if she sees blood.
> ______________________________________________________
> At Home:
> 1st baby: You spend a good bit of every day
> just gazing at the baby.
> 2nd baby: You spend a bit of everyday watching to be sure your older
>child isn't squeezing, poking, or hitting the baby.
> 3rd baby: You spend a little bit of every day
> hiding from the children.
>
>-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Swallowing Coins (a favorite):
> 1st child: When first child swallows a coin,
> you rush the child to the hospital and demand x-rays.
> 2nd child: When second child swallows a coin,
> you carefully watch for the coin to pass.
> 3rd child: When third child swallows a coin you deduct it from his
>allowance!

Ran the distance...

2006-09-29T00:10:00.000-04:00

I have been neglecting my exercise regime for a while, so I decided to run 3 1/2 miles today, and spend about an hour on the free weights. I am PLANNING a schedule for the rest of the week and taking it one day at a time. If I can make through the week, I'll be happy. For the lose weight and muscle training approach, I'm going the "simple" way: eat less and exercise more... then begin stregnth training. Plus I LOVE to play tennis, so I got a good couple months before it really gets cold. :)

Enjoying the sunset...

2006-09-22T00:36:00.000-04:00

I will admit that I'm not the coolest finance blogger or been here the longest, or any title of the sort but man do I enjoy talking (and reading!) anything personal finance related. When it comes to the topic, you can call me mr. sponge. At the office, we were at the "water cooler" discussing home equity loans, coworkers juggling credit cards, and leasing new BMWs at the best rates. I just keep nodding, because no one really dives into anothers personal finances unless they WANT to talk about it. So I dont offer too many nuggest of advice, but on here, hey I'm as open as a church book on Sunday. Long story short, I like to clear my head by blogging and to ramble on about whats going on paycheck to paycheck. However, I dont know if I'm going to be writing as much now. My wife and I learned to set up a budget, reduce debt, and just live WAY WAY below our means. It gave us a chance to really focus and enjoy the simpler things. 2 years ago we use to go to clubs, dinners, movies, shopping at the mall, target, walmart, anywhere really... last weekend, we dug up the garden, planted flowers, enjoyed the sunset, and talked for hours playing stupid card games... who knows, maybe we ARE maturing... or maybe we're just old souls. On a side note, this weekend she is off to her cousin's wedding shower with her mom and I'm doing house chores, watching some football and playing poker with the guys.

Splurging on a little crap...

2006-09-19T23:27:00.000-04:00

A little splurging on crap never hurt anyone (from time to time). Interestingly enough we have found that we have fallen back a little into the financial trap. We have been paying for a few home improvement items as well as a little splurging our favorite money dumping ground, Target. Its been such a fun week :) Now we have to pay about $1000 BACK into our emergency fund. We both decided we needed a little break then its back to the grindstone of saving and frugality. Honestly, I kinda enjoy the highs and the lows a little. Sick thinking, I know.

Our first "check"

2006-09-16T00:04:00.000-04:00

This week we used our first "check" that we normally use to pay down our debt towards the first half of our fence payment. I pay 1/3 of the fence upfront and then 2/3 of the fence payment when its completed. The company we hired said it would be approx. a 5 week wait. Honestly, I dont mind because they did give me a great deal and worked with me. This weekend, I'm working in the backyard and the wife is planting some flowers in the bed in the front. FUN FUN! :)

Final Payment SENT for Student Loan!

2006-09-14T03:55:00.000-04:00

I've been working so hard, I havent been able to put up any postings. I love to blog so I wanted to note this fantastic moment of when we are debt free except for our mortgage! :) It took some time but here is what we've paid off since Jan. 2003:

Car #1 $13,180.68
Car #2 $13,543.49
Capital One CC $2834.00
MBNA CC 1 $1061.72
MBNA CC 2 $6110.01
Student Loan 1 $6685.58
Student Loan 2 $18,340.18!!!!!

I want to thank my beautiful wife who encourages me daily to be the best I can be! Time to save up for the baby and pay down the house! :)

Our Mortgage

2006-09-06T13:24:00.000-04:00

I'll admit I have a mortgage... a bad mortgage... an ARM mortgage. This 5/1 ARM was given at such a low interest rate that I couldn't get away from it. I know that I could have went with a 15 year or a 30 year fixed however I believe its all psychological. Lets say I decided to get a 15 year... more than likely I will pay it off in 15 years maybe throwing an extra payment here or there. With a 5 year ARM, even though it is amortized at 30 years, it gives me a psychological bearing that makes me pay it off in 5 years. Also I have a plan, which alot of these ARMers don't have. Plus my wife and I are really disciplined with our finances to pay it down in 5 years. I read so many posts, blogs, articles etc, on people that have the mentality that they will just refinance when the ARM comes due. Really this just sets you back to the 30 year process and starts the high interest payment cycle all over again. With that, the ARMs are probably only going to adjust upward with the way the housing market is going. I say if you take a 5 or 3 year ARM, either have a plan to pay it off in that time frame or refinance now to a fixed. Even though the thought of having a house paid off makes us a little giddy; it does take alot of patience, focus and a great automatic payment system on the 2nd of the month to get there.

Back in business: My long term goal has changed from retiring and playing golf to owning a business. Whether that be a franchise, buying an existing business or doing a start up I'm considering all my options. We are searching deep within our interests and passions to find what we can bring to the table. Again just a baby stage thought.

Which celebrity is making the most in 2006?

2006-09-02T01:04:00.000-04:00

I thought this was so interesting because as we go through out simple lives, these guys and gals are making millions to entertain us. Check out the 2006 top 100 money making celebrities here. Looking at the numbers, I might be in the wrong profession!!

POWER ranking #1 for 2006 is Tom Cruise.... my wife wants to see pics of their little baby Suri. Honestly, I dont care but ok I'll get wrapped up the hype... JUST THIS ONCE :P

Let's reminisce...

2006-08-31T21:13:00.000-04:00

I have devised a final plan to make sure the student loan is paid off by September 8th because the amount of the entire payoff $15,448.69, must be in their system by September 10 before it rolls to next month. On that friday the 8th, as I have my paycheck, I'm going to complete the transaction. My wife and I agree that its going to be a hellish next 14 days. We said if we can survive, it will be well worth it. We are going to be on a tough strict budget adhereing to the budget; and both of us are on board and committed! I told her that I'm very excited about paying this off but at the same time, I'm kinda sad that I won't have any extra debt to pay down. LOL :) Its been such an experience to pay this down and I know its only going to get better.

On the homefront, wife woke up a little sick this morning and wanted a drink really bad... cranberry juice. I shrugged... maybe this morning sickness thing people talk about IS real. At work, we finished some assignments and I took the rest of the day off.

Weird hours making life "different"

2006-08-30T15:15:00.000-04:00

I dont know if anyone realizes that I work on a crazy schedule during my training time; 3pm - 11pm. Even though I am currently in the back stretch and have about 2 more weeks left, its a different change of pace for me. Normally Im home by 5pm with my wife and just enjoying the company spent with her. Now I just come home and she's already asleep and by the time I go to bed its her time to wake up. Thats a little annoying and also I kinda miss her. It makes the week go by a little faster because I'm independent and only have to worry about myself. Today was the exception where she wanted me to get up a little earlier to go to Target to get a specific fabric softener she loves, I think its called Downy Simple pleasures. Anyway, I'm looking forward to getting all my benefit choices out of the way and kick back for the next couple weeks before I actually am "working".

We choose to switch to my company's Anthem HMO plan, so we are covered when she stays at home with our child. It comes with vision and dental packages too. So I have to get that put in by the end of the month. Also upcoming my sister's 13th birthday is coming up and I need to find her a last minute present. She's into her hamsters and Johnny Depp, so I'm thinking of getting her a picture of Johnny depp's head on a hamsters body. Found some great chuck e cheese coupons on the web too to download for Saturday. If you're in town, stop by :)

Raise your hand if you're unsure!

2006-08-29T20:52:00.000-04:00

I hate feeling this way! Like I cant breathe because of the financial issues surrounding me. Its basically come down to making the deposit for our fence and finishing paying off our student loan that we've been working so hard on since May. Here is the simple breakdown. The fence deposit is $1085 and I will have to put this week another $800 into killing our student loan debt, which is 2 more paychecks away! I've been manipulating the numbers to get both sides in my brain happy, however its going come down to a simple choice.

On the side note, we decided to choose my employer's HMO plan and cancel her PPO, which will ultimately save us $80/month right off the bat and $460/ month after the baby is born and we are on the family plan. I made sure that the doctors that she goes to are in-network in the HMO plan. We still have to go to the PCP to get a referral for a specialist however it shouldn't be that serious that we cant make a simple trip up to save $500 per month.

Sunday evening

2006-08-27T20:31:00.000-04:00

Just a little side note, this weekend we decided to tell our immediate families that we are having a child. Its interesting the first time you tell your parents that they are going to be grandparents. They of course were very excited to know that we are expecting. We also had some barbeque chicken and ribs to top off a great evening.

Focusing on our debt!

2006-08-26T00:52:00.000-04:00

Today i transferred some funds out of my paycheck to our debt however i had to leave some funds behind to pay off a hospital bill that we had to goto in the middle of last month. huge set back but we will make up for it next couple pay periods. We also decided to stick to the debt payoff of our student loan before getting the fence. We figure that we can always add a fence and if it comes in december that we are able to pay for one, we will wait til it gets warmer. Its a big deal to rush into spending $3000... i think we will take our time with the details and not miss anything with such a big purchase.

Changing Health Insurance

2006-08-24T17:17:00.000-04:00

Health insurance options: the most overlooked financial topic (to me at least). Since my new hire date, I am approaching the time where I will be eligible for full health benefits. They presented me with 5 different options that can be a little intimidating and confusing with what is covered, being a PPO, HMO, POS, etc. During time with my previous employers, I would have to select from either one of two plans PPO and HMO or they would have only one option. Having health insurance is as important to your financial future as socking away retirement money. I've been doing nothing but researching for the past couple days and am getting to the nitty gritty fine print of this. I love reading about.com and wikipedia.com but mostly from the acutal insurer sites am I getting the most info. I had to call a couple to make sure they cover us in certain situations. Health insurance needs differ from individual to individual and are defined in quality, cost and coverage. I want a family plan that covers with the least deductible or 100% covered GYN/physician visits, maternity care and child immunizations. We also need emergency room/ urgent care visits costing the least amount in a deductible. To bring this closer to home, when I select a plan with my new company, my wife will cancel all her vision, dental, and health at work and will save us about $80 more a month which means + income to use on other things.

Debt Free = Spend more money!

2006-08-23T17:05:00.000-04:00

Home improvements have gotten me strapped. The old adage goes that if you can't pay for it with cash, it means you can't buy it now. As we are finishing paying off our 2.85% fixed student loan, we realize that afterward we are going to have a few financial allocation issues. At the moment, I get paid every week which goes directly towards the debt. My wife's checks are our monthly budget and fun. Here is the schedule of how I have my checks every week. I broke it down to 4 weeks in a month: A, B, C, D.

A-Emergency Fund to $10,000
B-Mortgage payoff
C-Retirement account maxed
D-Baby Fund/ Home projects

This is the schedule after we are debt-free, however we need to focus on paying for a fence before it gets too cold outside. If we start now, we can have it finished by October. Otherwise we can wait a couple weeks and it will be finished ultimately in November. Not something that I want to do. I would rather get it done as soon as possible, but at what cost? $1085 initial payment on Sept 23 puts us in the November schedule to have it done. Should I put off the student loan just for a couple weeks to get this in? I mean it would be a good move and ultimately everything is going to be paid off in september anyway, its just the idea of writing the checks earlier to the fencing company. To add another issue, we need to remodel our main bathroom's sink. The counter is scracthed and falling apart so that will be about $500 for parts and install. At least we know that we won't have any problems finding things to spend on when we are debt free. :)

What does it mean to be Debt Free?

2006-08-22T13:19:00.000-04:00

On the eve of being debt free, an article on bankrate.com sums it up with 50 good things about being debt free.

Personal favorites are knowing you can withstand anything financial life throws at you and knowing the difference between wants and needs. Come on stupid student loan, get out of our lives! (Another $500 transferred today, still on track for Sept 8, 2006)

Maximizing Our Monthly Budget: Household

2006-08-21T18:14:00.000-04:00

Our household items are considered a once or twice a month trip to Sam's Club and Target. Outside of our normal grocery fund, at Sam's we stick to dry bulk items like toiletries, paper towels, napkins, tissues and bulk grocery like water, lipton green tea, milk, cranberry juice. At Target, the catagory includes carpet cleaner, detergent, candles, sponges, dishwashing liquid, body wash, toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, shampoo, and conditioner. Obviously since we don't need to replenish these items until they are depleted, we evaluate what we need and then go shop. We budget between $100-$150 because we can stretch a dollar pretty well. This week we had an unexpected trip to Target to get a $20 humidifier for the room. The household budget is the second most fluctuating catagory behind "restaurant", however some months when we have no items to purchase we have cash overflow. This doesnt deter us because whatever overflow we get, it gets added to next months household catagory. With a child on the way, I'm guessing the catagory will need to grow approx $70-$100 more, ie. baby powder, baby shampoo, DIAPERS!, etc.

Today we also went to the GYN for a normal check up and we got to HEAR THE HEARTBEAT! It sounds very fast and was such a great experience. Still I can't believe that we can produce something that has a heartbeat. Just surreal.

All the weeds need to go!

2006-08-19T15:25:00.000-04:00

Im my pursuit for a clean cut backyard, I have loaded up a container size full of tree debris and grass clippings. I also have noticed that weeds are popping up in places on the side of our home. Since they are small and come through the cracks, I was looking at getting a gallon of round up formula at home depot. Instead I googled a bit and found a great site with some nifty homemade ideas for killing weeds.

Here is what I decided to do:

1/2 parts vinegar
1/2 parts palmolive blue dish soap
Small handful of regular table salt

Looks like I'll be busy!

Backyard Clean-up

2006-08-18T11:25:00.000-04:00

Our backyard is starting to look better. I called the city to deliver a containter for our tree limbs and branches for $30. Its about the side of a medium size driveway, which is where they will park it. This weekend we will be spending time in the fresh outdoor weather hauling massive piles of lawn debris, twigs, etc by wheelbarrow. Its enough to make you want to hate outdoor work by the end of the day. Right now we are eager to get outside and get it cleaned up for the fence installers. If I have to pay the city $30 for them to bring me a container for the weekend, you better believe that I'm going to fill it to capacity and more. Hopefully I wont break my back or other bones while doing all this. Obviously my wife will be inside doing laundry and sipping lemonade :)

Maximizing our monthly budget: Groceries

2006-08-17T20:39:00.000-04:00

I've decided to start to list each of our several monthly catagories and dive into each one to see if we are getting the best in value for our money. The topic today is our groceries. We have gotten alot better over time with our grocery catagory. At one point, we were paying over $100 in groceries. We have learned not to purchase what is on our mind at the time, but only purchase what we are going to eat during the week. We are getting better with stabilizing our weekly groceries to $55-$60 per week. She likes to write down exactly what we are going to buy and ONLY purchase what is on the list. We rarely go out or eat fast food, but that is the restaurant budget which we will save for another day.

With the baby coming, I assume that the baby's food will be approximately $50 more a week. Last week while walking through Walgreens, I saw baby formula behind lock and key for $25-$35. That's expensive. Even though we will be getting coupons from manufacturers for free samples, viewing their websites and looking at other online suggestions, does anyone recommend a particular brand being that it is so expensive?? :)

Getting Motivated!

2006-08-16T12:54:00.000-04:00

We are really motivated to knock out our debt in the 2nd week in September. So motivated that we have been setting up plans for what to do the 3rd week in September. I was thinking we deserve a break for being so good at clearing our debt and being debt free except for the house. We wanted to spend on some new clothes, new shoes, maybe an expensive dinner with drinks at an upscale restaurant. Then as it gets closer to actually having that money in hand instead of paying down debt, we are planning to jump right into needed home upgrades (aside from us socking away about $1000/month in an emergency fund until $10,000 is reached). Here are the things which we calculated to be an estimated $5200 total in home upgrades.

1) Cedar Privacy Fence with 2 gates in backyard $3200
2) Interior doors for 3 bedrooms + 3 closet door sets with included parts $480
3) New assembled extreme weather shed $500
4) One bedroom recarpeted $100
5) Main Hall Bathroom Sink/Cabinet replacement + installation $430
6) Garage Door opener + installation $280
7) Landscaping front/backyard (grass seed/aerator) $150
8) Upgrades that we've wanted to do for 2 years but couldn't since we were in debt - PRICELESS

That's alot to do over the course of a couple months. We definately want everything completed in October (outside stuff)/ November (inside stuff) or hoping to get really close to finishing. I think the main reason why we are pushing so hard to get these things completed is because well, the baby is coming in late Feb/ early March. This way we are able to build funds for maximizing our retirement accounts, baby's college fund, baby items, etc. But that is the direction we are going after we are debt free. So you see, planning ahead is motivating and fun!

My Life: Updated!

2006-08-15T20:26:00.000-04:00

After getting very lucky with a new BETTER job closer to home, I have been busy busy busy but will try on a more daily basis to get back to my enjoyment of blogging. My job keeps me on my toes and I have a great group that has now evolved into a second family for me. Personal finance has been on my mind for the past few weeks and more strongly than ever. We are finally getting down to crunch time on our final debt: the student loan. We have $11,800.00 amassed so far to reduce the debt and have approximately 3 weeks left on our time table to complete it. I have enjoyed killing our debt so much that I hate to end it :) LOL. We are still on a budget and counting our pennies diligently. I'm already setting up game plans after the 3 weeks too. I'll explain a piece here and there as the time comes.

On the home front, things are going great. The wife is now 12 weeks pregnant and I've been accompanying her to the GYN appointments. On one occassion I got to hear a little heart beat, which to me was the most fascinating sound. Not to get too emotional there, but that is just an awesome experience for the first time. I do get to participate in some areas of the visit like me asking the doctor questions about food, activities and everything under the sun. Then comes my home improvement update with our backyard being the main project. It's a project that is coming along slowly but it will be all worth it. Plus we are paying everything in cash as we improve. I have updated our networth sheet too and will post more tomorrow.

Work/ Weekend Update

2006-07-01T01:38:00.000-04:00

Today is payday which also means time to make the monthly budget. In the month of july we seem to have less pop up expenses (no birthdays, weddings, graduations, etc). My wife made the first trip to the bank to get the "budget money". Even though she was nervous asking the teller for a high amount and carrying around that much in cash, she did just marvelous. Heres the latest work update:Its about my second week in training going over policies and just getting to know everyone in my group. I've always been good about adapting to change. I'm just glad that I am working again because I feel our paying down debt was rolling along but when I left my job it was stagnant; that made me sick to my stomach. Happily in the weekend news, I have to pick up a rental car to goto a wedding tomorrow for a college buddy of mine. Its exciting to see that my friends are all growing up... And most of them act like kids. :P

Wife is pregnant!

2006-06-29T11:06:00.000-04:00

A few days ago she mentioned that she had missed her period. I didn't think much of it because she had recently stopped birth control and knew it would affect her cycle dates. When she went to confirm with her GYN today, I got the call around the afternoon yesterday telling me she was about 2-4 weeks pregnant. Needless to say I was a little shocked, but had that "feeling" in the back of my head that told me something was going to happen (dad intuition maybe). So yes she's confirmed pregnant! Yippee! Due date expectancy is around Feb 28, 2007. Its going to be our first child so I'm a little nervous but also excited at the same time. I still think deep down that I'm a child myself, like where has my youth gone? I'm reminded of somone that mentioned to me that 'you really are never 100% prepared for having a kid'. Even though psychologically I may not be "there" yet, but financially I know its coming down the pipe pretty soon. Our goals are still the same to finish her college loan debt by the end of August and then save 10,000 in an emergency fund by mid October. Finishing up some other minor house items, a new fence, landscaped backyard and a baby room with funds by the end of December. Ideas of starting a college fund and where to park it; I think we are going to use t rowe price where our IRAs are being funded. I want to get a jump start on as many expenses as possible before March and maybe set up a 'baby' savings fund. All in all, this will be an exciting 9 months.

I'm BACK!

2006-06-24T15:44:00.000-04:00

Its funny to think how long I've gone without posting a blog! In case you're wondering, my 2 1/2 week vacation was fantastic. I met with family, friends, and spent time with the wife. Also completed master bath remodeling at my home and helped my grandmother with some bathroom and home repairs in Pennsylvainia. Since I'm back in the workforce I'm pacing myself back into a routine schedule. I started at my new career on Thursday joining a team of eight. First impressions are its a well rounded organization and the people so far have been pleasant and eager to get to know the "new guy". I dressed in business casual (black polo tucked into some khakis with black shoes) and a fresh haircut. I was glad to be back into the earned income bracket after receiving final paychecks from my previous employer last week. The job is very low stress and the change will be an exciting one. I will update my budget and charts on my blog soon. I'm just glad to be blogging again.

Housework: Master Bath Completed

2006-06-06T00:17:00.000-04:00

Im enjoying the first of my many days off by getting some housework done. Today I completed the master bath remodeling. The trim in the mitre box was probably the most difficult task but again it was my first try at one so Im guessing there is a learning curve. I always love making new changes to the home and not just to increase the value but because I enjoy doing the housework and making a change that I can say I completed. I take alot of pride in the work that I do and make sure that its done right the first time. On the plus side, I have alot of time on my hands for precision. Took most of the day to complete the trim work, caulking, and vanity. Tomorrow's goal: Hall bathroom, prep and paint. (Going to see Omen movie too)

I have left the building!

2006-06-04T10:41:00.000-04:00

After 5 years (over 2 and 1/2 years in one department), I'm officially done with my job. My last day I was showered with a cake, balloon, stuffed animal and a fantastic card from my team! I know it has been unbearable and frustrating but I am looking forward to better things. I kicked off my celebration weekend by going to my grandmother in laws 75th birthday about 200 miles away. I visited with my in-laws and their families. I always have fun and some relatives are more down to earth than others. When I return home, I'm writing a plan of what to do with the rest of the month. My new job starts on the 23rd, so I will have some paid downtime, courtesy of my previous job. During which I will get some housework done, visit a couple cousins and spend some time with my elderly grandmother. (Hopefully gathering wisdom and maybe documenting some cultured recipes yummmm). Otherwise, budgeting our monthly expenses tomorrow and updating our networth.

Frustration at the job I hate.

2006-05-25T22:20:00.000-04:00

I put my 2 weeks in for my current job because I will be starting my new one in mid-June. Thanks for the great comments and support everyone. Here's what's been bugging me at the office though. Ever since I got my new job and my manager announcing it to the rest of our team, there has been mixed emotions going around the office. Even though there are those rare individuals that are happy you are going to a better place, there are so many that have lashed out with jealousy, anger, frustration and even a dark kind of envy. This has left me to believe that some coworkers that I thought of as friends have for the worst, turned on me. At the same time I'm so excited about not only doubling my income but going to a stress free position of my dreams. So I'm a little mixed inside. I try not to show that I'm happy and try to limit the questions I ask. Example: If I do ask something job related, some coworker says, "well you're not going to be here so why do you care". Well its because its my job still. As you can read in the last post on motivation, or lack there of, its been going on for long enough. I'm over being frustrated. Why can't people just be happy for someone? I've always supported a fellow group member in good decisions. I'm just over being here and can't wait til June 2.

CONFIRMED: IM HIRED!

2006-05-10T11:03:00.000-04:00

You know the feeling... when the human resources manager calls you to inform you that you've been hired! Well thats me at about 10am today~! I knew that it was coming as you can tell from my previous posts (Ive been wanting this job for so long), however CONFIRMATION is like the nail in the coffin. I will turn in my resignation letter tomorrow. After almost 3 years, it feels good to finally be out of a place that has gotten monotonous, boring and is beating me over the head DAILY! Thanks for everyones support! Im excited and a little anxious about whats to come :)

Workplace motivation...

2006-05-07T23:10:00.000-04:00

While waiting for my results from a final panel interview with a fortune 20 company, I sadly feel less and less motivated at my current job. After my interview, the PMs (project managers) stated that they loved my previous work and showed me around the building and where my team was going to be located. If I'm hired, I am to receive a packet in the mail by Tuesday regarding benefits packages and salary information. At my current job, I will put in my two weeks (one of them being paid vacation). This is to say they are basically paying me to get my items removed from my desk, train my replacement, and leave on good terms. However it is for a lack of a better word... boring. I now feel unmotivated when I goto the office. I have bent over backwards for the past 3 years for this company and they end up screwing me for the last 6 months. So I guess I have no REAL motiviation to work. I know in my mind that I already have gotten the job, so until I leave I am stuck twiddling my fingers and practicing my ping pong in the lounge.

Weekly Quote: Every morning, I get up and look through the 'Forbes' list of the richest people in America. If I'm not there, I go to work.
- Robert Orben

Hooked on My Instant Win

2006-05-06T16:01:00.000-04:00

I love to win free things. The website MY INSTANT WIN that aggregates promotions from sites like Quaker, United, Dell, Mobil Gas and much much more. I find that after I register the first time which may take a minute or two that the next few times all I have to enter is my email address to get a chance to win some free stuff. Also, so I dont get spammed 40 different ways from Tuesday, I always remember to click on the button that says that I dont want any solicitation emails from the company or its subsidiaries. So far I won a couple gift cards and a few printed coupons for freebie products. Beware though: its addictive if you get into it! Anyone ever win anything on the internet for free?

Also if you have been following with me, Im still in the running to get this spectacular job. I had a final interview on Wednesday and will know by the end of this week. Cross your fingers!!

YTD Percentages

2006-04-30T12:21:00.000-04:00

According to my 401k portfolio and ROTH IRA numbers, YTD is holding at 8.9% on investments. There was a couple slumps during the month however it seems that the funds have recovered in the past weeks, especially on my international funds. Tracking networth - 5.9% gain overall from April to May 2006. This gain due to cash savings and an increase in home valuation appraisal. I will be tracking our home upgrade progress on here shortly.

Weekend Work

2006-04-29T14:54:00.000-04:00

I write this from my desk at work. Its a Saturday, I know but I need to get some things done and Im a little bit of a clock puncher (ie. need the money). I love to come in on the weekends because the building is next to empty and its a calm relaxing kinda feeling. Empty desks, dim lighting, and just being alone in my own thoughts once in a while has a calming effect in this hectic workplace. I brought my own lunch, a sandwich and a bottled water, so I wont go hungry. Well its back to work work work!!! Enjoy the beautiful day outside because I know I wont be :(

Going for an MBA

2006-04-28T15:06:00.000-04:00

According to the report by CNN's Money, I should be getting my MBA. It seems that in 5 years of working for whatever industry, you will be earning in upwards of 6 figures...sometimes as high as half a million. I would like to go back to school for an MBA however, we are taking the very very slow steps of making sure we can pay for everything with cash and be debt free in the process. However I dont want to be so old that I wont retain any information when I get into those tough classes! I also want to go into the MBA associates workforce with some hair left on my head! (my wife found some white hairs on my head the other day!! ahhhhh)

End of the Month Review

2006-04-27T09:32:00.000-04:00

In the past couple months with our budget, we have allowed ourselves to get the monthly cash out and physically distribute it into the budget envelopes that we have made. I know its not much of a deviation from this but before we take out the cash, we are going to put it down on paper first, then take out the money and distribute. This process also helps us when we take out all $20s and the budget envelope requires $350... so we have to get enough $10s too.

Diving into the final days...Yesterday we had hot dogs and macaroni and cheese for dinner and the fridge is pretty bare. Giving us only crystal light, milk and water to drink. On a positive note, we have realized that we are not wasting any food for April and had to make only a couple side trips outside of the normal grocery budget. Side trips this month for bread or a birthday cake. Today in our checking account, we have $7.50 after a 3 gallon gas fill. If we are this close, I know that we have been living off the budget correctly and on our way to pay off this final student loan monkey! I laugh in the face of the Starbucks and Burger Kings! HA HA!

Dreams...

2006-04-26T14:59:00.000-04:00

Quote of the Day-
Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities within us and new beauty waiting to be born. - Dr. Dale Turner

End of the month BLUES

2006-04-25T19:51:00.000-04:00

Its ALMOST the end of the month and we are stretching pretty much every dollar now. With 3 business days til we do the budget weekend again, it seems that we barely scraped by this month. First off, the gas fund has been utilized to the max and then some. Plus we ran into a couple unforseen items in the budget, I decided to get a needed haircut because of a job interview, and we went to see my wife's parents which we always decide to eat out and the gas turned out to be one of the biggest expenses up there. We are planning to bump the gas budget for May to $250. Also we had to call our A/C guy to come and do his spring maintenance in which he said we needed to add about 3 lbs outside which costs us $90 dollars out of a fund we didnt have.

Over the next 3 days we are on a strike! This means we are cutting to the bone and not spending anything. We will be eating from home and taking our lunches. Gas isnt an issue because the fund is dry after our last fill up. There shouldnt be any reason why another dollar is coming out of this household til May! Isnt budgeting fun? :)

Suggestions on Cox Cable? + Wedding Updates

2006-04-19T09:25:00.000-04:00

I have cox cable in which they charge me around $100 each month for their cable internet as well as digital cable throughout my home on 5 tvs. Even though its just the two of us I dont know why we have that many, but thats not the point since the cost is the same. Since they pretty much have a monopoly in the area that I live in, its hard to actually haggle with them about their pricing since there is no competition in the area. Until there is, I guess Im stuck with being overcharged or maybe this is just a luxury item that we have to suck up. I really dont care as much as the wife since she needs her oxygen and lifetime. We actually still use an ancient thing called a VCR for recording her "shows" when shes at work. Im curious about getting TIVO, who has a 19.99 special or maybe the digitial recording boxes Cox communications offers.

In other news, its the season for marriage and we have about 3 or 4 couples that are getting married. We are thinking about spending between $50-100 on each couple, so we are trying to make it work in our next months budget. However we still have to buy a dress, shirt and tie and also in one, Im a best man so I have to pick up the tux rental which will set me back about $145.00. Maybe if I had less friends in HS and College this wouldn't seem so costly :)

Hiring help for your home

2006-04-18T09:25:00.000-04:00

Unless you are a trained home mechanic that can do it all, you will at least once in your life have to call upon the assistance of a specialist. Mrs. Dollar and I had to do several upkeep repairs to our home when we first bought it.

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/homeimprovementguide/DIY1.asp?caret=4

In the article, it mentions to assess your skillset and evaluate what you can and cannot do. A friend of mine helped me with my airducts in selecting the correct size, shape and how to complete getting rid of the 25 year old ones in the home. It wasnt that tough when he broke it down and explained it to me. On the other hand, something like plumbing.... simply greek to me. I hired a very reputable guy in the area who has been nothing but a blessing as far as knowledge. I always love to hang around and try to soak in as much info as possible. Most contractors or maintenance workers dont want to be bothered or interrupted. Those hired hands will in fact not be the ones I call back.

NEW Job in my sights!

2006-04-17T09:30:00.000-04:00

I have a job prospect lined up for next week at a competing branch but in the same field of work. I passed the first phase of the interview a couple days ago with flying colors. They called me to schedule the final interview involving a panel. I'm excited about this prospect for a couple reasons. First off, I would get more pay; almost double what I currently make. Second they provide you with more flexible hours and less hours worked (36 per week). It also helps that it is closer to home so the commute is about 25 minutes less, saving on tons of gas and time.

Of course I may be counting my chickens before they hatch however I know there are certain factors that make me more than qualified. One of my coworkers that has less experience and less education in the field got a similar position. I don't want my basis to be off my coworker, because he may know someone inside or may have a rabbit pulled out somewhere I don't know about... But he tells me that if he got it I "definately" will get it.

I'm not what they call a "job mover" either. If a company treats me well, I have no reason to leave. I don't do month to month jobs, I stay for years. I've been working for my current company for about 4 years now and because of the "restructuring", now would be the perfect time to leave. On the money side, we will be able to complete our yearly goals by late October. My current job will allow me to finish Feb 07. On that note, I'm hopeful of the outlook, but again if I don't get the position, I will say that I tried my best. Note to self to take Monday
the 24th as a paid sick day.

Easter Celebration at the Park!

2006-04-15T19:22:00.000-04:00

We had a great celebration at our local park hosted by the college in town. The wife and I went with a couple of friends that have little ones. I was excited because they always give me the camera to take the photos! They had an egg hunt, face painting, 2 bouncy castles for the kids to jump in, easter basket giveaways, cotton candy, ice cream, popcorn, several local elementary school choirs, etc. They had all the characters there too: The Easter bunny, Dora+boots, Spongebob, Scooby Doo, a Pirate... it was a lot of fun for the kids (and us too!) Best part was the cost: $0. So I guess it is true that many of the best things in life are free :) Enjoy your egg hunts everyone.

I'm a VICTIM of PETTY THEFT!

2006-04-12T09:23:00.000-04:00

I always thought it happens to certain people and I could never be one of them. However this morning I came to the conclusion that I was a victim of petty theft. I was doing my normal morning routine when I came out of my house and jumped in my car to head to work. I noticed that my drivers side back door was not completely closed. I didnt think anything of it because Mrs. Dollar went out to get her coat she had left in it yesterday and I occasionally leave the doors unlocked. When I sat down and started driving I also noticed that my glove box was open. NOrmally I keep a few napkins and scheduled maintenance records in there. I was thinking why would Mrs. Dollar need to go in there? I closed it and moved on with the drive. Then it hit me... my ipod charger! I called my wife thinking she might have taken it with her that morning. She didnt have it. Piecing the puzzle together, my ipod charger was STOLEN! Mind you, we live in a very safe neighborhood with a patrol car right down the street and very rarely does this ever happen. I also want to add that nothing else was taken from the car, I had a phone charger, clip, sunglasses, an expensive travel mug, a couple library books and a DVD to return to a friend. None of those were touched. Rightfully so, I called the police to file a report which they said it has been logged for the area and patrols happen in my neighborhood, so it probably was some bored kids. BORED KIDS???!? Yep, "they are all out of school on spring break", but that shouldnt matter! Maybe this is extreme but I want justice! When I was a bored kid, I made up a game or played with my siblings, not go into peoples cars and take stuff. Anyway, charger loss for the ipod was about $25, however Im still a little ticked today. GRRR

GRR BLOGGER

2006-04-10T17:28:00.000-04:00

Apparently when going through trying to spice up my web blog, I LOST well pretty much everything minus my content (thank God). Well it will be back to square one on the HTML board. Hopefully I will get the main stuff up by the end of the week. Maybe Ill think twice before I try to overload the "extras". K.I.S.S. Maybe Less is more?