We had a spendy weekend. By choice. Since DH was home for a long weekend visit, we treated our time together a bit like a staycation. Primarily this meant we ate out much more often than we usually do. It was enjoyable not to cook and to eat some yummy food. We did make dinner together at home one night and that was fun, too. I hope to try that more next time he is home.

We enjoyed our time together. It was worth every penny!

We received our payout for the DITY (Do It Yourself) move. It was less than estimated. Boo.

We were quoted $1,141.68 based on 1000 pounds and mileage of 1117 miles. DH moved 980 pounds and I assume drove that distance(!). We received $989.94. A difference of $151.74.

As I write this post, I looked up the Travel Advice of Payment (AOP) and it shows the amount I estimated based on the new weight of 980 pounds: $1,118.85. But then they subtracted out $128.91. Boo again. Not sure if the constructive costs changed from the time we received the estimate and the move occured.

The AOP shows our out of pocket expenses were $603.20. This means per army records we earned $386.74 on the move. This will be considered taxable earned income for 2011. I've got to remember to keep an eye out for that tax form!

All the money for the move has been paid. Things are getting back to normal, as much as they can, considering we are living in different parts of the country. I'm beginning to put my extra time towards small home repairs, improvements and cleaning in preparation for moving or renting this house out.

Eye appointments were yesterday. My oldest daughter wanted to get the same frame as last year, so we headed to Target Optical. I was expecting to pay around $180. Instead I got away with paying only $26.50 (includes tax) for a whole new pair!!

Last year I bought the worry free guarantee for $25. Which would replace the glasses if there was a prescription change or damage to the lenses. It is valid for 15 months.

For a $25 copay, we are getting the same frames and lenses with her new updated precription. All we have to do is give them the old pair when the new pair arrives.

She won't have a recent back up pair, but at 14 we rarely have issues with lost or damaged glasses. And we can get glasses made in an hour if really desperate. I actually could have her pick out a inexpensive back up pair at Walmart. Hmmm...something to think about.

Just thrilled with getting two new pairs of glasses for a combined total of $126.44. Average price: $63.22. For a years worth of vision it feel nearly priceless!!

My daughters are back to school. We kept spending on clothes to a minimum with needs only. Unfortunately, for one daughter that meant new capris since she put holes in each pair she owned over the summer. We bought the basic supplies and supplemented some with used items from last year.

Today the girls visited the eye doctor. Eye exams were covered by our insurance. Only have purchased one pair so far...at JCPenny's for about $99. The other pair is likely to be purchased from Target. They have a sale...so maybe that pair won't be too much more. Finger's crossed.

School pictures are coming up. Getting ready to dole out some money for those. These are really the only professional photographs I have of my kids, so I try to keep the cost in perspective and buy a pretty basic package each year. I think the pictures turn out pretty good.

My ice maker part is not yet in, or I haven't been called yet at least. Since the leaking part outside of the refrigerator seems to have stopped, I'm not so worried about how quickly I get the repair for the ice maker done. I should just go to making my own cubes. I did order the part, or authorized it, so I feel obligated to follow through. I'm just second guessing my need for the part, if I can just make my own cubes.

That's the financial news from here. Just trying to keep spending to a minimum. And it is working pretty well.

My husband left school early, with permission, to get a money order to pay the late rent and outrageous late fee. He drove over an hour round trip to the management office. I thought it was closer. Guess not.

He is paid up for August and wrote a personal check for September's rent. He received receipts for both payments.

All very irritating. Caused my husband to lose sleep over it. Since the company still didn't have the check, all we can think, was the postal service didn't do their job. Lost in the mail literally.

We did put a stop on the original check and the rental company was informed of this. Nice thing is our bank didn't charge for this service. Maybe most banks don't. First time we ever stopped a check.

I have reworked our budget to handle paying the rent at mid month. We did stop college contributions for the remainder of the year. I'm also stopping our automatic Roth contributions for a time being. I expect, we will still make all of our contributions, but it helps to not have that money flowing out when things are a bit unstable with two households. Besides, I have until April 15th to make sure I get those contributions in.

We are still waiting on a payment from the government for my husband doing his own move. It should arrive in the next two weeks and equal over $1100. I'm looking forward to that.

Ugh. My husband mailed his rent check to the address as instructed. He mailed it on Saturday, July 30. It was due by Friday, August 5th. It apparently has not arrived, even though it's destination is a 20 minute drive north.

He arrived home today to a late notice. He has to pay a 10% late fee, plus some other concessions that generally are waived if payment is due on time. Total late fee is over $185!!!

My husband was warned by front office of his apartment complex when he moved in that they are very strict on late payments and even went as far as to suggest he drive a check to the office each month. Their office hours are 8-4:30pm Monday thru Friday. Guess when my husband has class? Right during those times.

DH is quite upset. I'm upset, but know that we simply learned a lesson about the type of company we are dealing with or the postal service. Not sure which. We will pay the fee, of course. And we are even going so far as to pay September's rent now. DH will call the company in the morning to clarify that they have not received the check and then leave school early to drive there and make the rent payment, late fee, and next month's rent. Oh, and we might just put a stop on that check that was mailed. We'll decide that tomorrow after speaking to them.

Frustrating at the very least. We tried to pay on time, but it just didn't seem to work out. New plan of attack is for DH to pay the rent in person out of our mid month pay. And get a receipt!!

My husband and I are contemplating a temporary stop to the college fund investments. Right now we fund each daughter's ESA account with $2,000 per year, which is $167 per month. Each month that is $334 allocated from our budget.

While running two households our expenses are tight. We are not yet clear what all the new expenses will be, as some utilities bills have not arrived. Gas usage is still up in the air. I'm on the low side right now, since school and activities are not in session. DH seems to be using more money on food than I expected. He is working on it though. I think some of it comes from boredom.

If I showed you a proposed budget with our investments and required expenses and cash we have budgeted for groceries and fuel, we would have about $330 extra, which is an average of $165 per pay period. It feels really tight.

I'm aware of upcoming expenses that I'm just not sure where the money would come from except from the emergency fund, if we don't stop the college investments. Examples: at least airline tickets for return visits and eye glasses for two.

I'm not decided yet. But it seems that if we stop the contributions we could set that money aside for these bigger expenses on the horizon with out dipping into our emergency fund. Now, if at the end of the year, we have some of that money left we could still make a lump sum contribution.

One idea would be to simply reduce the amount of contribution to $50 each. And make up the difference later.

I actually thought of reducing retirement, but changed my mind when I remembered we can't borrow for retirement! We can borrow for college if needed. Although, we think we will have access to GI Bill funds for our kids, scholarships, and more income at the time they attend where we could cash flow some expenses. We also aren't against them working during college, too!

Some expenses have already been reduced around here: cancelled the newspaper (but miss it), gym membership is going down by about $25 since DH isn't using it. I'm also considering cancelling the netflix discs that come to our house and just go with streaming.

Any thoughts? Would you stop college investments temporarily to keep from raiding your emergency fund, knowing that the reason you are running two households is for the stability of the kids?

My husband leaves today for school. We are sad here. He's leaving too soon after returning from overseas. However, it has been in the cards for awhile.

I came across a form he filled out requesting a Do It Yourself Move (DITY). He estimated he would move 1000 pounds. The estimated payment for that amount is $1141.68.

Yesterday he weighed the truck and trailer, empty and then full. The packed amount weighed 980 pounds. Of course, in the meantime, he's packed a vacuum, winter coats and his final suitcase. Thus more weight. I guess he should have waited to weigh it right before leaving.

So those 980 pounds are very close to the estimate, and I now feel confident we will make some money off the move. He already spent $396 for the trailer rental, a dolly rental, purchased a hitch, a couple of boxes and minimal insurance on the trailer. It also cost $10.50 to weigh the truck and trailer twice.

Although the estimate is for just a little over the amount we packed, I expect the amount to be very close to the estimate. So maybe we'll make $600-$700 that will be taxable. It depends on a few other expenses that will occur on the way.

In other news, I bought a tv from Goodwill. We have a plasma tv in our living room and one tv in our bedroom, that we turn on for weather information. Yesterday, my husband packed that bedroom one up. On a whim, I decided to check Goodwill and found a 20 inch tv for $7.99. We hooked it up to our antenna and digital converter and it works great. DH should not need the converter or antenna as the apartment complex he is moving to provides cable free of charge.

Right now all our money is pooled in one account and we both spend out of it. I handle the paying of bills and recording spending. His part in our finances is earning and spending. Don't get me wrong. We do talk about these things, but often in an abstract way.

Later this month, we are going back to the allowance method for his spending. He will write the check on the first of the month for his rent and another check for utilities when they are due. This will come out of our regular account. Each pay period, I will transfer money to our second checking account for his fuel, food and miscellaneous expenses. The beginning plan is $340 per pay period. This is his to manage and track. And, if he needs more, we'll talk about it. It is a very rough estimate to start with.

We think this is the best way to handling our spending since we are in different cities. It worked pretty well to give him an allowance while he was deployed. Of course, he didn't have too many needs for spending.

I personally like this way, so that I don't have to nag. I know the amount per pay period that is his and I don't need to worry about recording it, or even judge what he spends his money on. I also think it holds him a little more accountable with the money he has available. Right now, because I record everything, I notice how quickly the money dwindles. I don't think he sees that.

We will both still have access to both of our accounts, but the second one will be set aside for his spending only.

I officially packed about three or four boxes for my husband's move. Again. Very weird. However, I like packing and organizing, so it is kind of fun. All of his stuff is taking up a huge amount of our basement at the moment. In addition to excess furniture, bikes and garage sale items, our basement is packed full!

Youngest daughter wanted something to do, so I had her write garage sale stickers and start marking things for our garage sale. The date is still yet to be determined. We marked three bins of items and there are at least two more that could be marked. After that it will be a matter of going through the house for more stuff to get rid of.

My basement will be very empty by the time DH moves his things and the garage sale is over. Then it will be time to organize what is left. I'm kind of looking forward to that part, too!

As a result of my husband's move, he will receive a Dislocation Allowance (DLA). It will be lower than if we moved with him, but we expect him to receive $2,283.16 which is based on his rank. This allowance is non taxable and put in place to help offset some costs of moving such as deposits for utilities and so forth.

He could have received this as an advance, but as I stated yesterday, he prefers not to take advances from the government. So we will wait until he submits his travel voucher after the move.

We are actually still waiting on his deployment travel voucher payment which should be close to $1200. He made errors on the first two vouchers and they were rejected. It was submited just over a week ago, and I expect it to be paid shortly, if he didn't make any more errors. (Apparently, it is a third party contractor that processes these and receives $35 each time they touch a voucher, thus they are very picky and look for ways to reject, so that the voucher is sent back in, earning them another $35. Yuck!)

So, on the horizon, I see nearly $3500 coming to us. There may be a little more, depending on if he makes any money on the Do It Yourself (DITY) move. Fingers crossed he does.

A couple of you have inquired about my husband's need to rent a moving truck. The answer is yes. Actually, since he has a truck, he will rent a Uhaul trailer and attach it to the truck. I think he's arranging that today. The base price of that is around $250.

The good news is that moving expenses are covered by the Army. Of course, there are rules involved. He will have to keep track of all expenses, including the trailer, gas, hotel, food. It is also important that he weighs his truck and the trailer empty and full. Most of the reimbursement is based on weight.

Since he is moving household goods himself, he will receive 95% of the amount that it would cost a common carrier (moving company) to move the same amount of goods the same distance. Once the amount is determined, they subtract the actual expenses involved in moving. This can include boxes and bubble wrap, and of course, the trailer. The amount left after the expenses is considered an incentive payment and is actually taxable income! The Army automatically takes 28% out for taxes, which unfortunately is more than our tax bracket. I guess we'll get that back next year when we file our taxes.

So the costs of getting things to the destination should be covered. We could ask for an advance to help cover the costs as we encounter them, however, DH has reasons not to do that. In general it just complicates things. Luckily, we have resources to cover them in the meantime. I'm really hoping by this time next month, things will be sorted out from a financial standpoint. Fingers crossed anyway!

I signed the girls up for another year of dance and tumbling lessons. One 30 minute class each. Same day of the week, but nearly two hours apart. It will probably mean two trips there and back, so no savings on the transportation costs.

As usual, I prepaid for the entire year, which waives the family recital fee of $90. This is a saving of 10%. Our total for the year: $808. Not bad for a little year long fun.

It is the strangest thing: to set your husband up for apartment living. I don't think I will ever do this again. Once will be enough. Although, it does give me empathy for those who have sent children off to college. It can be a very hard thing.

We spent $180 at Walmart yesterday, for a couple of cooking pots, some utensils, basic cleaning supplies, a trash can, a toaster, cutting board, shower curtain and rod, glass cups, a clock. Oh, there more on the list, but I'm not going to list it all.

We also stopped at two other stores for a printer and a set of lamps. Another $90 spent there.

I am grateful for all the things we don't have to buy: sheets, blankets, towels, dishes, coffee mugs, and other utensils. We also have a loveseat, glider rocker, a dresser and a night stand that he will move with him.

There are still a few more things to buy: a twin mattress and an end table. He also wants a coffee table, but it is a cheap $20 item, so I'll probably give in.

My husbands desires and expectations of needs are a bit different from mine. I would be fine with garage sale items, but him, not so much. I would not need a coffee table. I guess he does. And really because this is a stressful time, I'm trying really hard not to rock the boat too much. It just irritates him. And the truth is, I don't have to live alone away from home, like he does. It is going to be hard on him, too. The least I can do is let him get a $20 coffee table.

Hi. Me here. Reminding myself to stay the course for the next year. It is likely to be hard. There is not much wiggle room each month. Maybe $800. Maybe. It seems like enough. It is just far less than we are used to.

We will have to be mindful of ALL spending. This will require heightened communication between DH and myself. We need to start communicating about how that is going to work now.

I commit to look for sales and coupons. I commit to selling things we no longer need for cash. I commit to reviewing our current expenses for ways to cut back. I commit to thinking further ahead for items I will need to purchase.

Staying the course means we don't take on additional debt. Staying the course means minimizing the amount of cash we use from our emergency fund. Fingers crossed we can keep that emergency fund intact!

A free haircut. From Great Clips.

My daughter has been growing out her hair for over a year. Maybe two. There have been some trims here and there. She recently decided to cut it short and donate the hair to Locks of Love. Apparently, Great Clips provides a free hair cut when you donate. I tipped the stylist $5. I should have probably given more, since I realized after we left that she spent nearly 45 minutes on her hair! Nice surprise to no be charged.

I suppose someone could grow out their hair and every two years donate the growth to locks of love and never have to pay for a haircut (if you use a salon that doesn't charge)! That would be one way to save some cash.

We are getting DH ready for school. Tonight we ordered four dress shirts for his uniform. I guess the uniform shirts have changed since the last time he needed to wear it. And he so rarely wears it! And don't ask me why he needs four. Two are short sleeve and two are long sleeve. Cost $115!

Right now he is getting ready to order a new ribbon rack for his uniform, too. He's earned another Bronze Star and another ribbon for recent service. Time to get it all updated in time for school next month. Price of the ribbon update:

I bought my Dad a gift certificate for a golf store for Father's Day. My sister is splitting it with me, so my cost is $30. Now to figure out what to get DH. I think I have a $10 cash card to Sports Authority that will help cover a pair of shorts or a workout shirt. I will be checking with the girls to see if they have a good idea.

I have an appointment with the Honda Dealership to have the oil changed and tires rotated this week. More money will flow out then.

I really feel we are going to be in a spendy place until fall, when we are all settled and back in our routines. I think I'll just go with it and know that it will work out in the end.

We went out of town for an Army family event. That sounds more fun that it was, but it also wasn't as bad as it could have been.

The Army scheduled us to ride a bus on the six hour trip, feed us all meals on Saturday and breakfast this morning, and paid for our hotel. We actually skipped the bus and drove ourselves.

Our allotted per diem was $111.50 for each of us to cover meals on Friday and Sunday. That is $446 total. We knew this would be plenty to cover gas and our food expenses, thus the reason we drove ourselves. We spent about $80 in fuel, $40 in miscellaneous expenses and $80 on a dinner out including tip. Thus we came out ahead by about $240.

Can you tell, I'm just ball parking those numbers? It's been a long day, but I'm still pretty close. We could have banked more, but it was nice to take the girls out to a nice dinner and spend quality time together on the drive to and from our destination.

I just wrote a check towards DH's new apartment application/deposit. It was $185. Thus the money we made on the trip can cover this expense, too.

I seem to have a swarm of money thoughts running through my head. I'm not even sure if this post will make any sense.

I know of money coming in: approximately $1200 from DH's deployment, which should have been paid by now, but is being rejected for payment for a second time. Long story. Also, travel reimbursement for a trip this weekend for the Army. Maximum amount $440 allowed. We'll have to keep our expenses low to end up with extra funds.

I have $65.95 in my paypal account from the sale of dvds, and survey payments. I've noticed that MySurvey has been offering quite a few surveys recently. Nice! We have $50 in rewards from our debit card that are tempting me. My plan at the beginning of the year, I told myself that I would not redeem these until the holidays. Must hold strong!

DH has decided on a place to live. It is an apartment rather than a weekly extended stay hotel. Obviously, it should feel more like home that way. We will need to buy him a twin bed, and a coffee maker. Right now, we think we have enough extras of things in our home that can be moved with him.

The rent will be $945 a month, prorated for partial months. Utilities should be less than $120 per month. The deposit is only $150. There are allowances provided by the military for moving. Once these funds are paid we can use them to cover some of his living expenses.

Some of the payments from the military for moving might be taxable. I need to see if this is going to be an issue for us. I don't think that it is since four months of this year our income was tax free.

It's about time to sign the girls up for tumbling and dance. One year total for the entire experience is $808. I pay in full each year, because they waive the $90 recital fee if you do. I should save up for this expense, but for some reason I don't. I just pull funds from our account when it is time to pay it. This might be the last year since will be living elsewhere the following year. It just depends what they want to do.

I should list some items on ebay. I have an ipod, teva shoes, a very nice film camera and flash, and a router that I think could be sold for some nice cash. But right now, I'm just not motivated. It feels like there is just a lot going on.

See? My head is swarming with thoughts.

DH returned home from a three night trip to check out housing options for his five month school. There are two options he is willing to stay in. We will be discussing those and making a decision over the next couple days.

This quick trip cost us: $710.22. This included airfare, car rental, fuel, food and hotel (which was actually free with Marriott Reward points). Of course, I would have rather spent the money on something else. But not bad considering!

My girls wrapped up the school year yesterday. My youngest finished 5th grade and around here that is the end of elementary school. I can't believe how fast it goes!

So far our only summer committment is one week of vacation bible school that my youngest will attend with a friend. Cost $10. I used earnings from surveys to pay for this out of my paypal account.

I'm sure more things will come up. However, we will try to keep the costs minimal. The library and the neighbor's swimming pool will come in handy.

Right now, we are not planning a big vacation. It is too expensive to go while getting DH ready for his summer move. We'll fit one in sometime later in the year or next summer when things settle down again.

What summer plans do you have? Are you spending more or less than last year?

DH is going on a house hunting trip soon. Okay, apartment hunting. We have booked the airline ticket at a cost of $438.20. Not bad for a trip that is short notice.

DH also booked a three night hotel stay for $77 a night, which is $231 plus tax. And a rental car for $175. I told him we could do better.

I searched online for member discount codes and coupons for the same rental car agency. I was able to book the same car for $148. Savings: $27. I will keep watching the rates up until the moment he goes. It does pay to shop the rates. Often you can get a better deal closer to the travel date. Not always, but sometimes.

The hotel. I gave him two alternatives. The same hotel he booked at $40 a night using earned points. Which would save $37 per night or $111. Or another hotel which we have earned rewards for free. He chose free! Wise man. The second hotel includes free breakfast and is closer to the airport and the area he will likely be looking for apartments. Savings: $231 plus tax.

Right now, without food and gas the trip will cost us $586.87. Without making the changes I did, we would have spent at least another $258.

I just thought of another savings idea. We might be able to use some airline miles towards the rental car. The air miles weren't an option with the short notice trip and the dates of desired travel. I'm off to check into that.

What a weekend! We were required to attend a post deployment event in Colorado this past weekend. We drove because of lack of flights at our needed times. It's a 10 hour trip each way from where we live. We left Friday and returned last night. Quite exhausting!

We saved the government $4,600 by driving and leaving our girls at home. My husband's unit made last minute (specifically Wednesday) flight arrangement for all four of us to leave on Thursday and return Monday...total cost of the weekend would have be over $5200 for the four of us. Actually more, since I'm not including the hotel stay. However, with the girls still in school and one headed into finals we did not want them to leave on those flights. The alternative was for the two of us to drive out and invite my Mom to stay with the girls, which she was happy to do. She was only available Friday through Sunday.

So we drove. The government paid for a rental car, will cover gas, the hotel and some of our out of pocket food cost. The cost to them less than $600!

It was a nice time with DH. We could see mountains from our hotel room. Wished the girls could have been with us. Now I need to recover!

Since my husband is now home from deployment we expect to see his paycheck amounts go lower. He no longer qualifies for tax exemption, or combat pays, worth nearly $1100 per month. Boy, it sure was nice!

I will need to rework the budget in light of lower paychecks, a new loan and an upcoming move for DH. I expect the next year to be tight particularly because of the move.

It seems I will need to start watching those pennies a little closer. I might need to decide about canceling the newspaper and the landline. So hard to give up, especially when those would only save us $50 or so a month. I would expect the groceries may be the bigger issue. It seems everytime I go to the grocery store in the last month some item has increased dramatically. Yesterday, it was shredded cheese. I will need to watch for these items on sale and stock up!

I know some of you reading have already cut back in light of job losses and paycheck reductions. It now appears to be our turn. Any advice?

My husband's Ipod which he purchased used for $100 stop working during the deployment. He brought it home on leave and we could never get it to charge using various methods. At that time, I checked the Apple store to find out that it would cost $59 to purchase a new battery. DH decided that was too much to spend since he did have another MP3 player that worked.

Fast forward to this weekend when he was using that MP3 player and he realized the headphone jack was no longer working because any headphones he used would not allow for easily uninterrupted listening.

Today we found a local battery store that could install a generic brand battery into the Ipod for less than $32. He now has access to all his music, as well as movies and tv shows that were originally on the Ipod when he purchased it. A very good deal!

I received a Pinecone survey payment today. And I deposited a $100 check that was given as a gift on our anniversary.

DH and I talked yesterday about the truck money. We are going to stick to our plan and use it towards the purchase of the truck. The savings is only about half of the purchase price. The remainder will be taken out as a loan. We plan to keep our current van and this truck until our girls graduate college, which is at least 10 years away.

In the next year, we should be able to live on our current income even while maintaining two households. And we have our emergency fund we can dip into if needed. And hopefully it won't be needed. Once we move, we should be able to make new goals and progress towards those.

It feels good that we decided. I'm happy that we are sticking with our original plan.

The deployment is almost over. Yipee!!

The deployment is almost over. Darn. I say darn because the increased income and lack of tax withholding has been oh so very nice. We will have a drop in income by about $1100 per month. We have made great strides in the last year with this income. We paid off the remainder of the home equity loan, paid off our van and started saving for a new to us truck. We were able to keep saving for retirement and college along the way, too. It has been a great 'financial year'. Really great.

But when one door closes, another one opens. This time it is opening to the gift that is my husband. Today we celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary. Tomorrow we see each other again for the first time. We are fresh with new experiences. We know more about ourselves individually and as a couple. There is definitely something about this experience that makes us better and stronger and I for one can't wait to see what waits around the corner.

See, I don't care too much about the income drop. I know we'll be fine.

We have no idea where we are moving to, yet. However, my brain is considering the scenarios and possibilities. So here's what I'm thinking about. Feel free to chime in with your thoughts.

We currently have a 30 year fixed mortgage on our home and will have lived here just over 5 years by the time we move. The house does not appear to have appreciated much at all in that time frame. Maybe $3000. We have paid down quite a bit of principal in that time because we paid off our home equity loan. So we will walk away with more equity then we started with. Possibly around $35K.

We have been quite lucky to have lived in one place for 5 years. Many military families move every two to three years, which makes me think buying a house is just not a good idea, since we might move in three years the next time.

The idea of renting feels very odd after owning two homes for a total of 14 years. I can see the positives: we won't pay for home repairs, we won't do home upgrades or landscaping, we can move just about at anytime with out much cost, and no debt! The negative: possibly higher house payments, unable to paint or customize the house. Okay that is all I can think of at the moment.

Should we consider an ARM and still buy a house? Payments might be less than renting, but we would have the ability customize our living space. We might not increase our equity, but we don't get that with a rental either. Or maybe a 15 year loan, so that more money goes to principal.

I figure if we can keep our house payments as low as possible, we might be able to put away even more cash. Can you see I'm running in circles with my thinking? I'm guessing we will be able to make a decision once we know more about the area we are moving to and what types of housing are available in the areas we want to live.

Any thoughts? What else should I be thinking about or considering while making this decision.

Well, it seems Congress came through and made a deal so that all military personnel can be paid on time. I did get a glimpse of what our 8 day paycheck would have been. We would have been short about $1700 for the pay period, which is about the amount I was going to put aside for the truck. Interesting.

However, it appears DFAS (payroll office) took down everyone's pay stubs yesterday when it wasn't clear whether the deal would go through or not. I think the payroll office did a good job with their notice about how the pay would be affected depending on the date of agreement. They definitely did right by the customer considering they didn't have control of the decision.

This is definitely an example to all military that it is important to have an emergency fund. There really are scenarios where pay can be affected. We need emergency funds just like everyone else, regardless of the security of the job.

On a side note, I found out one of my sister in laws, along with her husband, are taking a Financial Peace University class. So excited for them to be getting on a path for financial freedom. They are using cash for about everything, using envelopes, making a grocery list and eating home cooked meals rather than take out. Again, so very excited!!

I'm not completely against the government shutting down. If it needs to be done to move our country forward then so be it. However, it appears we will have a delay in pay for as long as it is shut down. We should get back pay for all days of the shut down once it is over.

The really good news? My husband is back on US soil!! I got the news last night. He will be back home as soon as possible. There is still out processing paper work to be done.

So...to figure out how to handle a lack of pay in the short term. Obviously, we do have emergency funds that we can rely on. Once we get paid we will reimburse ourselves. I know not everyone can do this. For that, I feel sad.