I did sell one item as a Buy It Now, earlier this week. Right now I have 4 items with bids out of 7 listings! The listings end on Sunday, so I will give you a final update early next week.

I have already thought of a few more items I could list! Not sure when I'll get them up though. Do you have unused items around your house you could sell? Go check a drawer or a closet and see what you find!

My youngest daughter has been home since Friday with a cold virus. The fever is mild, but just won't go away. There is coughing, too. No aching, so I don't think its the flu. She's been up and around everyday, but feels low on energy. So...tomorrow we are going to the doctor.

I'm hoping for an antibiotic. I don't usually like them, but this thing is holding on too long. I guess I'm impatient! What me?

The good news: I have one bid on an ebay items and some watchers on a couple others. I priced low and with exact shipping, so my items are attactive for bids!!

I'm also glad the stock market had an UP day. Here's to more of those to come.

I finally listed some items on ebay. Eight items to be exact. Now I have my fingers crossed for 8 sales!

I've been away from ebay for awhile. I think my craigslist success brought back my motivation. That and the upcoming holidays!

While I'm here I will update my Ebay Challenge Sales:

Oct Total = $42 (so far!)
Sept Total = $110.00
June Total = $55.25
May Total = $197.75
April Total = $22.22
March Total = $83.13
February Total = $66.50
January Total = $4.95

A woman picked up a couple Barbie cars this morning for $5. That was a craigslist posting from last week. Nice to start the weekend with a sale.

My youngest daughter has decided to use a costume we already have or her dance costume from last year for Halloween. That means I don't need to buy anything!! Love it. (The older daughter is done with the trick or treating.)

I think I'm going to get some items up on ebay this weekend. Craigslist works, but it is slower.

Good news!

I received $10 in the mail today from mysurvey.com. I'm popping that money in the second checking account. It needs a little cushion.

The DOW ended up over 10,000 for the first time in over a year. Experts don't seem to think it will stick in the long term. It was fun to watch. I was working in the mutual fund industry back in 1999 when it reached 10,000 for the first time ever. Pretty cool!

Tomorrow is payday...so I'll have a few financial updates!

Well, those craigslist postings are beginning to work!!

I sold all of the girls Polly Pockets for $10 around 9:15 this morning. I left for the gym right after.

Another woman was scheduled to arrive at 1pm, but showed up in the driveway as I pulled in from the gym. I sold her a pair of ballet shoes for $7!

Quick and easy. That's how it should work. I hope I get a couple more sales today.

I just spent over an hour listing a few more items on craigslist. It is kind of tedius. The pictures took awhile to upload. I finally changed the settings on the camera!!

I didn't sell anything since the halloween costume last week. A woman said she would buy one this weekend, but I didn't hear from her. Yet.

I have some nice things to sell...just not enough for a garage sale. And it seems to be too cold for those now!

I listed 4 Halloween costumes on craigslist on Saturday. I'm only asking $5 each, since they are used and only bought at Target and Walmart.

I sold the first one tonight!! That's another $5 in our pocket. Thanks sale fairy. It would be nice to have a few more of those sell this week.

Borrowed books at the library.

Six hour sale at the local grocery store. Stocked up on quite a few things. Only spent $32.

Found 10 things to sell. Listed them on craigslist. With pictures. Hoping for some quick sales.

Crockpot smells of something good to eat for dinner. Will throw together a salad. Easy!

Funny. No mail for us today. No bills, no junk. No complaints here!

Yesterday, we received our Verizon rebate of $50 in the form of a Visa debit card. I guess I'll have to incorporate this to be used as part of our spending money. More money in our pocket is always a good thing!

I was hoping for the Army to pay my husband's travel voucher today. I checked and it is not there. It may be delayed because the travel was for last fiscal year and now we are in new fiscal year. My fingers crossed for Monday!

It's getting to be a bit comical, how many sales can I make on craiglist this week? Today makes 3!

First the ugly couch sold on Sunday for $100. Then Monday night, I sold a wall shelf for $10. Today, I sold a pair of tap shoes for $10!

The interesting thing about the tap shoes is that I gave them away to my neighbor last year. I even thought her daughter was wearing them last season. No. Last year they were too big for her daughter. This year they are too small. So, she returned them to me! Her daughter IS wearing the ballet shoes I gave her.

This week I heart craigslist. Hmm...I wonder if I will sell any more. Right now, there is only one item left.

I put three items up for sale on craiglists on Saturday after we purchased our new sofa. As you know, I sold the couch yesterday for $100.

This evening a woman paid $10 cash for an oak wood wall shelf. Yipee! I love cash in my pocket.

Two items down, one more to go. The final one, I'm actually torn about selling. I have it listed a little high. If and when I get an inquiry, I'll make the call about whether to sell it. I have it listed for $150. The cash would be nice. We still like the item. It just doesn't really match anything any longer, so I suspect it will end up in the basement pretty soon.

Umm...I think someone is on my side today. I sold the ugly couch!! For $100. The cool thing is it is going to a college kid who is colorblind...he doesn't care that the colors are outdated! Perfect.

Turns out Wii game systems are on sale this week. I bought ours at Target. They dropped their price by $50! Since this is the only thing the girls want for Christmas, I jumped on it.

So a very spendy weekend in some respects. However, our spending money for the remainder of September sits at $200, which is awesome for us. I think I can use the most of this toward paying back the EF for the braces later this week.

It's all working out...even if the plan has changed a bit along the way!

Finally, I am pleased to report that I redeemed 1000 points with Global Test Marketing for $50!

This company begins payouts at 1000 points. And it seems to take quite awhile to get there. However, I do enjoy a $50 check once in awhile!

The check will take at least four weeks to arrive. Again, one must really have patience to work with this company.

The weekend has been great as far as keeping spending to a minimum. We have $32 left in the checking account and payday is Tuesday. I completely expect tomorrow to be a no spend day!! I must say it feels good to be in control of the money.

Yesterday, we picked up $17 worth of items at Walmart. Only $8 of that was an unnessary eyeglass case for our youngest daughter. It is a hard case with a magnetic closure and she'll have it for a long time. The free one given with the eyeglasses is soft and has a open side. Not the best kind for a child!

Today, I ran to SuperTarget and bought minimum groceries to get us through the next two days. Much of it will cover lunches for the remainder of the week, too! I spent $18.

On Tuesday...I will make a much bigger grocery run. I think I will aim for buying for about 10 days. I guess I need to start writing a meal plan and grocery list!

Right now, I'm off to make mini loaves of banana bread and jello in case the kids need a snack! After that, I'm thinking about finding some items to list on ebay. I'm dreading that though.

I'm one of those people that does pretty good about getting rid of our excess stuff/clutter. In the past, I have held garage sales, sold on ebay, listed on half.com, taken clothes to consignment sales and stores. I've sold used books, and old cell phones. But right now...

I'm unmotivated.

And the truth, I have stuff to sell. The girls are always growing out of their clothes and shoes. They've recently decided to give up Barbies, Polly Pockets and Bratz. There's an extra coat in the closet. There are movies we won't watch again. There is real stuff to sell.

Right now is when I SHOULD be motivated. I have braces to pay my emergency fund back for, and a home equity loan that I want desperately to go away!!

But for now...I'm not motivated. I'm just being honest! Maybe I'll think about it more tomorrow....

As I mentioned in a previous post, we changed our homeowner's insurance deductible. Specifically, we increased it to $1000. It seems we will most likely get a refund. If I'm reading our online statement correctly, the refund will be equal to $68.53!!

That is money I can use towards those braces!! Things did go well today. She's in minimal pain with Advil every four hours. Our orthodontist even called to see how she is doing!! I wasn't expecting that. He even offered his home phone number which I took down. I love this guy!! He's one of those people that you can tell really loves his work. We should all be so lucky.

I completed a Pinecone survey today, so I expect so see an additional $3 in our bank account soon. Our checking account has about $35 left until Monday. So, we hope to have a very limited spending weekend. I think we can do it!!

Once payday arrives, I have to buy new jazz shoes for one daughter and a leotard for the other. Turns out they both grew over the summer!!

Our checking acount is down to $73.33. My husband needed cash and fuel for the car. He's working weekends...so a few extra trips into work increases the amount of gas he needs. The cash is probably for Monster drinks, so he can stay awake at work!! He's exhausted.

I received an rebate in the mail a few days ago for $15. Yesterday, I qualified for to cash out some MySurvey points. I will get a $10 check in a couple of weeks. All the money is going towards those braces right now!

I really want some more Global Test Marketing surveys. I'm less than 200 points from being able to claim a check for $50!!

Our debit card points are adding up too. We have enough to cash out $50. I will actually cash out when we get to $75.

Yesterday, was a no spend day, for me. I hope to make today another one!

My girls and I found a great deal on some toys at Kohl's yesterday. Each item was $8, with one being half off, for a total of $12. Lucky for me, I had a coupon for $10! My total with tax was $2.10. These toys need to be mailed to a good friend for her birthday on Monday. Priority mail will cost me $4.95. Pretty good deal don't ya think?

I'm looking for all the extra money I can find in anticipation of the braces. Here's what I am expecting in the next two months:

My Survey Rewards = $20
Global Test Market = $50
Debit Card Rewards = $75
Oral B Rebate = $15
Interest = $25

I'm going to pull the interest we've earned from our money market account this year towards the cause, too. I'm not worried about paying that part back, since it is only $144. If I do find a way to pay it back...that's a bonus. All of those items together bring us $329!!

The girls recently decided to get rid of my little ponies, barbies, bratz and polly pocket dolls. We worked on sorting them today. That means brushing their hair and dressing them. I hope to find a way to sell these for a few dollars at a garage sale, consignment sale or ebay.

Yep, life keeps getting in the way. My husband called from work at 8:45pm last night, with a dead car battery. He works 30 minutes away, but we bailed him out anyway!

The battery was only 1.5 years old, so we get a credit on that. While he's getting the new battery, he decides the car does need an oil change and the transmission fluid flushed (this alone is $150!). I haven't heard the total yet.

As Boo commented on my last post, sometimes it is best just to focus on getting rid of the debt rather than within a set period of time. So, here is the new plan.

I will pay for my daughter's braces on August 28th in full. This saves us $189.05. The total is $3,591.95! I currently have $953. Of course, this is going to be less after the above mentioned car maintenence. Ugh!! The remaining money will come from our emergency fund. I know...it's not a true emergency, but I don't want to add more debt. Luckily the US Army provides my husband a stable job, so no worries there.

Since, the money is coming from the emergency fund, our first priority is paying this money back to ourselves. I hope to have this completed by the end of October. But if it happens later...so be it, right Boo?

Once we have paid ourselves back, we will turn our focus back to the home equity loan. I can't wait! Even though I've estimated when I think we can pay it off, I'm going to let the chips fall where they may.

While on this journey, I'm going to increase my focus on things I can sell on ebay or consignment stores. I'm going to do as many surveys as possible. I'm going to reign the spending in as well. We do pretty good with the spending...but I'm going to make an extra effort!!

That's the plan. I guess it's time for another ticker!

Some of you may remember that I bought a piano over a year ago, so my daughter could take lessons. Well, for numerous reasons, that did not happen. Now, she's not interested. At all.

So, I listed the piano on craigslist this past Sunday. I just sold it for $300. The man just left. Yipee!!

For now, I'm going to hold on to the cash. There are school expenses coming up and my checking account cushion is lower than I would prefer. But, this may mean some extra cash towards the home equity loan at some point.

I also received the other MySurvey check in the mail today. It was for $10.

If anyone is keeping track, did you notice that I seem to have had about $360 come into my life in the past week? Crazy, but good.

I received a $20 check from MySurvey yesterday in the mail. I redeemed another one recently for $10, so I expect to see it soon, too.

I returned a pair of capri's yesterday to Old Navy and then let the girls get two shirts each for the start of school. We bought several shirts before our vacation. I will still need to buy one daughter a swimsuit, socks and a pair of running shoes for school. Otherwise, we are set in the clothing department for a few more months.

DH went to the dentist recently. The dentist suggested an electric toothbrush. He wants to get it. It retails for $66.99. The dentist did provide a $10 coupon and a $15 mail in rebate. I found the toothbrush on Amazon for $48.99, including shipping. So, I can't use the coupon, but I save $8 by ordering it online. I can still redeem the rebate. In the end, it will cost about $34. That's so much better than $67!

I sold the roller skates on ebay. Net proceeds $9.13! Can't complain. I made out pretty good on the other pair through craigslist. I have added this money to the Ebay Challenge totals below.

June Total = $55.25
May Total = $197.75
April Total = $22.22
March Total = $83.13
February Total = $66.50
January Total = $4.95

----------

I have added the proceeds of the sale to the Disney Vacation Fund.

Our new total is: $1977.00!!

I have two ebay items that will end on Sunday evening. No bids yet, but they are being watched.

I went through the girls clothes yesterday in preparation for our Disney Vacation. They had a few things that no longer fit. I will list a few of those items on ebay. We still have clothes to buy for our vacation. A couple of us don't have any shorts!! I think capri's will be too hot down there. Don't you?

I've been able to have the air conditioning off for a few days now. That always helps with the utility bill. Luckily, my DD with allergies is handling it fine, too!

Payday is Monday. The paycheck is pending in our bank account. I'm looking forward to making another deposit to the Mickey Fund!

I just transfered my net ebay proceeds to our checking account. The amount $11.32! I only sold two small items.

Disney World Savings = $1,326.00

All those small amounts have really helped!

Today was the first full day of summer break from school for the girls. Okay, they were off Saturday and Sunday!!

This is how the day played out:

We slept in. We went grocery shopping. They helped unload groceries. We went to the library. They watched a video from library. One daughter printed photos from the computer in preparation for scrapbooking.

Tomorrow. Band lessons in the morning. Scrapbook and craft a good portion of the day. I still have to finish our trip from two years ago! I will finish before this trip.

Weather is so cool and rainy. Can't swim at all this week. Boo hoo. That's okay. I'm still trying to keep money in check for the vacation that is coming up very soon!!

-------

I have two items on ebay. Both are being watched!!

I'm going to list at least one item on ebay later today.

Last week I sold two items on ebay. My net proceeds were $11.12. I will add this to the ebay challenge money.

June Total = $46.12
May Total = $197.75
April Total = $22.22
March Total = $83.13
February Total = $66.50
January Total = $4.95

My monthly average is currently $70.11. I'm still not hitting the $100 goal I set, but I have no complaints!

I sold an another item on ebay on the Buy It Now option!! Yes.

The other two items are ending today. One will sell for sure. Fingers crossed on the other one. I plan on listing at least two more items on Sunday.

I will update my challenge totals once all the money is in and I pay my fees.

I put three items up on ebay late last week. They have about 2 more days to go. One will sell for sure. The other two are being watched by one person each.

I hope all three sell. I really dislike relisting. In June, and months following I believe, you can list 5 items for free. So, if they don't sell, I'll try again.

I still have roller skates on craigslist. I've had a couple inquiries...but no buyers. These may go on ebay next round.

Fingers crossed that I can sell these items before our vacation!

I'm adding my garage sale proceeds to the ebay challenge. So far, I have not even listed anything on ebay this month. I do have a few things I could sell, so I will try to get those up this week.

May Total = $197.75
April Total = $22.22
March Total = $83.13
February Total = $66.50
January Total = $4.95

My monthly average is now $74.91. I'm still not to my goal of $100/month. However, I have plenty of time to work on it!!