It's been a spendy few days. On Friday, we switched cell phone providers. It is somewhat of a forced move, since our previous provider was ending their service. My phone was free. My husband wanted a slight upgrade. His cell phone was $92 with tax, but we will receive a $50 rebate in a few weeks.

We went out of town for one night to visit family. We bought gas, food, snacks, beer, and wine! Too bad these visits just can't be free. Oh, but I did get some KFC for free....since I waited over 30 minutes to get our food. I don't think I will ever go there again. Ever.

Today, instead of buying a kitchen sink and faucet, we went to the zoo for just under $20. That was a good move. We stopped by a state park with a lunch packed from home for a picnic. Also another good move. We had a great conversation with the kids...love those!

My husband took the van to be washed...and lost our rear windshield wiper blade!! The part is only made by Honda since our van is less than 2 years old. That will be an expense for later this week.

I've bought the groceries for the week and wrote a check for my youngest daughter's school pictures. Here's crossing my fingers that there are a few no spend days ahead!

In my previous post, I mentioned making a payment on my husband's government credit card for an airline ticket he didn't use or request.

I checked the account today. It now shows that the travel agency finally made the adjustment yesterday...so there is now a credit for the airline ticket. We owe zero. That's good news!!

The bad news is we made the payment, too!! Ugh. It will show up on Tuesday most likely. If only I had known.

The other good news. My husband has a two week trip this month where he will use the card for travel expenses. These are always reimbursed a few days after he returns. He can request the money come straight to us rather than the card. So...by the end of Septmember we should have our money back. That's good news!

At least I know how it all is going to play out...but I still wish I had known yesterday.

I just made a payment to my husband's government credit card in the amount of $644. It's for an airline ticket he didn't request or use back in July. He has requested a refund of the ticket. Because of government bureaucracy it will take up to 2 months for the credit to be applied to the card!!

This government card does not charge interest, so in theory it would be okay not to pay it. But the Army has access to the card and can see if he doesn't pay on time. Not paying on time can result in a counseling session with a notation on his record.

It will all work out in the end(we will get the money back)...but right now it feels like I'm just throwing money away! It doesn't help that I'm trying to get these braces paid off at the same time!

---------------

Thanks for the well wishes yesterday. I feel much better today! Have a great Labor Day weekend, too.

It's been cool enough lately, that we have kept the air conditioning off. That is always a nice treat.

I'm under the weather and out of energy with a cold. I way overdid it yesterday, with cleaning and helping at school. So, today I'm on the couch. The plus is that I won't spend any money! Yesterday was also a no spend day. Gotta love those.

My water bill came in under budget by $16. Yipee!!

The utility company changed their system last month. At that time I was charged for 45 days worth of water. Today the bill covered about 10 or 11 days worth. It will all even out eventually.

For now, I'm enjoying a smaller bill.

Officially, I'm not going to participate in my daughter's school fund raisers. It's not the money. I'm just tired of the same stuff! And I don't even need the stuff.

I'm actually helping both PTO's with teacher appreciation meals throughout the year. That is something I feel good about giving.

If I feel guilty later for skipping the fundraisers, I can always cut a check straight to the PTO. I did that at least once last year.

It feels good to know where I stand...before the order forms come home. I will let the girls know the plan, too!