Blogging Away Debt Blogging Away Debt follows real people on their journey to debt freedom — with tips on the debt snowball, budgeting, cutting expenses, and staying motivated.

by Hope

My numbers for April will go up this afternoon.  In the meantime, I thought I would just give some quick updates on other things that happened during my first month here on BAD:

1. New Job – I’m on week three of my new part time job and it looks like I’ll average about 11 hours a week.  I haven’t received a paycheck yet but have set the direct deposit up to feed 50% into a new emergency fund and 50% into a checking account to go toward debt.  Needless to say, it will not be a lot, but every penny counts and I’m really enjoying this new schedule.
2. No More Allowance – The kids have acclimated quickly to no longer getting a weekly allowance and almost daily ask for paid jobs.  I’ve been writing them on a big whiteboard we use for school stuff a couple of times a week and refusing to pay for poorly done jobs.  It’s a hit! (And right now, I’m paying out far less than previous allowance amounts and getting things done that would have otherwise languished or had to have been done by me.)
3. No More Coke – I went cold turkey a little over a month ago and have not had a single sip of soda since.  The temptation has been strong but I’ve held out and am really proud of myself.
4. Groceries, groceries, groceries – The kids continue to do our weekly shopping, feeding 5 for seven days on $100.  It’s still a struggle, but I see improvement on the quality of our food.  We still squeak to the end of the week with little that they want to eat, but that’s part of the lesson, I suppose.  In an effort to help with the “healthiness” of our meals, I have joined Relay Foods for weekly deliveries of fresh, locally grown produce. This will not only make sure we get some fresh veggies in our diet, but forces us to try new things, which we all need. *Note: the Relay Foods link is an affiliate link which if used, will give us credit toward some food.
5. Dogs – We found a local teacher in training who is graciously house/dog sitting for us while we travel beginning at the end of next week. A big load off both my mind and my budget!
6. Birthday Party – I have decided that we will not be having a birthday party this year.  I haven’t told the kids this yet, and the cost will not be wholly eliminated as I’m going to find something small but special to do for them.  In the end, I have decided that I just don’t have the mental/physical fortitude to take on a birthday party on a stringent budget this year.
7. Emergency Fund – I will begin funding an emergency fund this month. I cannot bring myself to stop my debt payoff in its entirety to do this, however, I will be siphoning off some income to be put away.  Still working on the details, but the account is set up and ready.

Our summer travels begin this month which will bring on a whole new set of circumstances so stay tuned to hear more about that later this month.  And as mentioned at the beginning of this post, my April numbers will go up this afternoon.