by Hope
I’m really behind on my planning and tracking so I’m certain this change this month. But here is what currently remains in my spending plan for the month of November.
| Utilities – Gas, Water, Trash | 11/4/2021 | -100 |
| Counseling | 11/10/2021 | -60 |
| Princess – monthly allowance | 11/15/2021 | -150 |
| Car Payment Savings | 11/15/2021 | -250 |
| Christmas Money | 11/15/2021 | -500 |
| Auto Insurance | 11/15/2021 | -1021 |
| Counseling | 11/17/2021 | -60 |
| Thanksgiving | 11/19/2021 | -500 |
| Counseling | 11/20/2021 | -60 |
| Storage | 11/21/2021 | -65 |
| Kennel | 11/26/2021 | -380 |
| Dad – Flights | 11/26/2021 | -1000 |
| Counseling | 11/27/2021 | -60 |
| Netflix | 11/30/2021 | -18 |
| Adobe | 11/30/2021 | -20 |
| Amazon | 11/30/2021 | -150 |
| Mortgage | 11/30/2021 | -661 |
There are quite a few unique things about this months spending.
- Counseling – It won’t be a long term commitment, but I knew we needed help to get through some personal challenges. The counselor does not take insurance, but works on a sliding scale.
- My dad helped us with the Thanksgiving flights, but the twins’ girlfriends paid for their own tickets. And I’m planning to give dad some money towards them as well. This is my plan. Whether he accepts it or not is a whole other matter, but I will be prepared.
- I can’t remember if I told you that I told you all that I’ve rented a storage unit. This will be a monthly charge for the next few months.
- Thanksgiving trip money is just an estimate. I typically have little to no expenses when I’m at my parents.
- Kenneling a dog is EXPENSIVE! I’ve thought of having one of the kids’ friends stay at our home and watch her but I’m just no comfortable with the idea.
- My car insurance is high because…I didn’t pay it last month. Ugh!
I’m catching up. Slowly. Just been a mess emotionally so I’ve kind of slacked off in my planning and record keeping.
Incidentally, I found a wonderful little blog called Our Debt Free Family. If you get a chance, check it out. It’s well worth reading.
Hope is a creative, solutions-focused business manager helping clients grow their business and work more efficiently by leveraging expertise in project management, digital marketing, & tech solutions. She’s recently become an empty nester as her 5 foster/adoptive kids have spread their wings. She lives with her 5 dogs in a small town in NE Georgia and prefers the mountains to the beaches any day. She struggles with the travel bug and is doing her best to help each of her kids as their finish schooling and become independent (but it’s hard!) She has run her own consulting company for almost twenty years! Hope began sharing her journey with the BAD community in the Spring of 2015 and feels like she has finally in a place to really focus on making wise financial decisions.
Counseling is always money well spent.
The allowance is money Princess earned herself, right? Have you considering giving her control over her own money, instead of keeping it in your account and doling it out to her. If you are already paying room and board it’s a safe time for her to learn to budget herself. If she spends it too fast she just won’t have money for extras later.
I don’t think you’ve mentioned the storage unit before. What’s the purpose? Shouldn’t you have plenty of storage with only 1 child left in the house? Be careful, storage units have a way of slipping into the back of your mind and you end up paying for months or years of storage that end up exceeding the value of the items. Set a firm time limit.
Hi Cynthia,
We just had so much furniture in the house especially in the girls room…double everything. The carport was full of project work. I just needed some organization.
The goal is to have it all cleared out by March but may run to May depending on what Beauty’s next step is. She is talking about taking her Boards and getting her own place after her time in the dorm is over next spring. She will then take furniture for her new place; otherwise, my guess is we will once again squish everything into the house for both girls to move home for the summer. Although Gymnast may spend the summer in Texas again.
It’s really just a de-cluttering for me to have some room to breathe and think through things…there was just too much going on.
I’m sorry you’re going through a tough time. Counseling is never a bad idea, even when things are going well. We all have issues to work through.
What is the storage for?
Please check if your employer has an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). They may have benefits you can use. Mine had 5 free counseling sessions which really helped me.