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by Hope

I do plan to post my actual spend at the end of the month. (You can find this month’s plan here.)  But thought I would go ahead and share September’s planned spending.

Debt Payment Goal

You will see the current plan is to pay the Amazon CC off in its entirety. So far the votes on that post are pretty consistent. But I am watching to see if anything changes. Assuming that happens. I will have paid off and closed three credits cards and two personal loans since February.

Helping Princess

You will also note that I expect to contribute $750 towards Princess’ October rent next month. Her internship ended last week and despite numerous applications, she does not yet have a job for this semester/school year. I’m certain she will but it hasn’t happened yet.

Travel Savings

There’s is nothing unexpected here. I won’t dive into my savings again especially on the travel side since we do have a Thanksgiving in Texas trip planned. I want to make sure that trip is covered by cash. By November, I should have $1,688 saved in my travel fund which should be plenty for that trip. (I used all of my personal savings and the bulk of my August travel savings to pay off one of my credit cards.)

Full Disclosure

At the time of this writing, I’ve been having this ongoing urge to head to Texas in September for a couple of weeks. I don’t know if this is my typical “just go somewhere” bug, worry about my parents, or just a premonition that it’s getting closer to the end for my mom. (For those new here: My mom has Parkinson’s and is bed-ridden, unresponsive, and requires 24 hour care. The only body function she still controls is her swallow and my family is reporting that she is less and less inclined to eat. Which is to be expected at this stage.)

My dad’s health has been suffering as well with recent surgery and living with consistent, undiagnosed pain for almost a year now. I’m sure that’s also tied to the stress and hardship of being my mom’s primary caregiver.

I just feel like I need to go and stay a while and help. Or be there. Or something.

I’m not committed to it. I haven’t mentioned it to them (my dad would make it happen in a minute if I did.) But it is a pretty consistent mental nudge.

If I do, do it, I will drive and take a dog. Assuming Beauty is still living at home (that’s a whole other story,) she would keep the other two dogs. I really don’t know what I will do. I don’t WANT to go, but I also do. Does that make sense?

I appreciate that I have a job and now the freedom from parenting to be able to make a last minute move like this should it come down to it. I will keep you posted.

Hope

Hope is a resourceful, solutions-driven online business manager with over two decades of experience helping clients streamline operations, manage projects, and grow their businesses through digital marketing and technology.

But life has a way of rewriting your plans.

A year ago, Hope made the decision to move in with her aging parents full time – a season she wouldn’t trade, even as it came with its own financial and emotional weight. Earlier this year, she lost her mother, and is now walking the tender, disorienting path of grief while learning what “forward” looks like from here.

Hope came to the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015 as a single mom raising five foster and adoptive children. She’s written through job changes, financial setbacks, and the bittersweet transition to an empty nest. Her kids are finding their footing in the world now – and so is she.

Rooted in faith and fueled by the same perseverance she’s brought to every hard season, Hope is ready to face her finances with fresh eyes and an honest pen. She believes that clarity, courage, and community can change the trajectory of anyone’s story including her own.

She lives in Austin, TX with her dad, loves adventures with her dog Addie, and is figuring out, one step at a time, what this next chapter is meant to be.