Yesterday, I was getting the house cleaned up. My DH was coming home after 3 weeks out of state. I was able to erase the evidence (ETE) all day long. My girls even joined in and erased their own evidence. That was a huge breakthrough. I hope it continues!! I save so much time, if I don't have to pick up after them.

Another beautiful day here. Nice enough to open the windows and turn off the air. I've had at least four days this month with no air!! I'm guessing weather wise there could have been more, but youngest daughter's allergies also play a factor.

Yesterday, I bought groceries and spent less than $100 for our family of four. This should be enough to get us through the end of the month. I also used my new canvas shopping bags. I brought only one plastic bag coming home. I think I usually come home with at least ten. Huge difference!

I turned off the A/C last night. It is cool and not very humid here right now. Usually, we keep the house closed because of daughter's allergies. She medicated so she seems to be doing fine. It just feels glorious to be in the fresh air...in addition to saving a little cash. It looks like we may have this nice weather all week!!

Today, the girls and I have dentist appointments. No copay. I expect today to be a no spend day. I could really use a few of those.

To fill the time, while I'm not spending money, I will mow my lawn and do other yard maintenence. I'm also going to plant some flowers for a neighbor. She just left for a vacation and just didn't get them in the ground.

Tomorrow, my mom is driving here for a day visit. She likes to treat us when she is here, so I expect that tomorrow will be another NSD.

I'd really like to make it through the whole week without spending. I was thinking garage sales for Thursday or Friday...but that might mean spending a few dollars. If we don't buy anything it would be cheap entertainment...if we do, it will be a good deal.

Happy Tuesday!

I decided to do some calculating on our escrow account. This is not the one associated with our mortgage for insurance and taxes. We have a escrow set up for ourselves to pay for annual or semi annual expenses.

In our case, we escrow for my life insurance, our auto registrations, auto insurance, and a gym membership. I will also be adding in money for dance/tumbling lessons.

Recently, we bought a van. As a result our insurance went up by $70/year. There is also a major increase to our registration fee since we traded an 11 year old van for one that is less than a year old. The increase for registration is $294.00

Old escrow payment: $124/mo

New escrow payment: $239/mo

I will start the new escrow payment amount in July.

Last year, our first summer in our new town, we purchased a combined membership for the zoo, the science center and a histroy farm. Total cost $199. I'm pretty sure it was worth our money as we went mulitiple times.

This year we are opting out of the zoo and science center. We've been zoo members for many years and as our girls have grown it doesn't seem to be as interesting to them. The science center doesn't change their exhibits frequently, so we are also opting out of that one.

We've decided to stick with the history farm membership for $70. I will buy it this weekend when my best friend and her family come for a visit.

The history farm is one of those unique things about our city and is really educational with hand on chores for kids to experience. There are also several other out of town family members who have expressed an interest in going. We will save quite a bit with a membership if all those out of town visitors want to go.

What is your take on memberships? Do you use them or avoid them? Which ones do you use the most?

This last year one daughter took tumbling lessons and the other dance (tap, ballet & jazz). I paid the bill monthly since I didn't know if they would complete the whole year. Turns out they liked it, well enough to continue for another.

Early registration is in two weeks. One will take tumbling again...moving up to an advanced class! The other is thinking about Hip Hop...which make the older one want to try that, too. If I pay in full, I don't have to pay the recital fee. That will save me $84...so I think I will do that. Looks to be $1027 if they both take hip hop, or $730 if only one is in hip hop.

I will then need to add dance classes to my escrow account so that next summer I will be sure to have the extra cash when registration comes around. I just lucked out this year to have it at the right time this year!!

$1027/12 = $85.58/ month to escrow
Or
$730/12 = $60.83/month to escrow

I will base the amount I save based on what they actually do this year. I should be okay either way.

Our bank, provides rewards on our debit card transactions. I just cashed points for cash...$50 cash!! Just for spending like we usually do.

New $20 Challenge Balance: $868.31

We've been contributing monthly to our retirement accounts. We plan to max out our Roth's this year at $5K each. My husband is contributing 4% to his TSP...the government's version of a 401K.

I track the balances on a irregular basis...especially since the market hasn't been so great. Today I checked and things are beginning to move up...we've hit a new high of over $88K invested! Such a nice feeling to be approaching the $100K mark. It would be nice to have that number by the end of the year. I think it is possible if the market starts to rebound, if just a little.

to my gas fireplace has now been turned to OFF! I hope to see a little savings next month on the gas portion of my bill.

I have a gas stove, so I think I may look at microwaving more items. I think I use the stove too often for simple items that could be microwaved. Need to get out and grill, too!

I've also noticed that I stay home more because of gas prices. It's nice that the bus picks my girls up for school, too.

I figured out a way to save a little cash while making dinner!!

I need to cook out on the grill as often as possible. We have a propane tank that is at least half full. We probably bought the fuel about 2 years ago. I wonder how much we paid?

I use a gas stove...crazy I know...so if I cook outside on the grill I will reduce my gas bill temporarily.

It's also time to turn off the pilot light on the family room fireplace. If it does get cold again...I'll just use a blanket!

Only bad part about my bbq could be the cost of meat! I guess one can grill veggies. Can you make pizza on a grill? How about pasta? Would I need to buy a special pot?

I've started running! Usually, when I'm at the gym I lift weights and use the elliptical machine. For some reason, I've had the desire to run. So, I started with a mile at the indoor track.

Today, I ran two miles straight outside in about 20 minutes. There were even hills to run! Those were challenging. I just kept looking up the hill to the horizon. I knew at the top would be relief...either downhill or flat land.

I never quit. It was tempting at times, but I feel better knowing I didn't have to stop. I want to run a 5K in about a month. That's 3.1 miles. So, obviously, I will have to keep running to work up to the 3.1 miles.

It's interesting how investing, debt payoff or other money goals have similarities to running. Some goals are short term...getting to the top of the hill. Some are long term...running a longer distance.

Who knows where this new hobby will take me. Maybe someday I'll be a marathon runner! I do know that our savings and investing goals will bring us great dividends and most likely millionaire status.

Reach for your goal and keep looking to the horizon!!

to drive in my new home state. I moved a year and half ago. Ssshh! Don't tell anyone.

I paid $23 for a 5 year license. I think they have two year licenses, but I'm pretty sure I'll be here for a little longer than that. It is quite a drive to the location, so I figure by getting the 5 year license I save myself time by not having to renew my license again and gas by not having to drive such a distance.

My neighbor went with me to get the license. It was nice of her to support me and stay on my case about getting it. I bought her a juice drink later. My coffee was free, because of a frequent buyer card I have. My mom usually buys when she's in town.

I also picked up a little candy for May Day baskets. We used cups we already had. Popped one bag of popcorn to divide among the cups. Added the candy...with some leftover for us.

Oh, I need to add our April interest to the challenge. It was down this month, of course, despite my balance being slightly higher. We received $11.95.

New Balance = $532.81

My oldest daughter just turned 11 a month ago. When she was born in 1997, my grandfather, her great grandfather was still living. As a gift he purchased her a $50 Series EE Savings Bond.

For those of you who don't know. These bonds are purchased at half the face value. In this case he paid $25.00. The bond accumulates interest every 6 months for 30 years, when it will mature to a total value of $50.00.

The bond is payable to her in her correct name. It was intended to list me as the recipient in case of my daughters death. It has the correct last name, but the nickname of my sister when she was growing up!

I tried once soon after the gift was received to cash it in for the current face value...which would have been $25.00. I was going to then put the cash in her UTMA account. The person who handled these was out to lunch...and I never made it back.

So, today I find the bond when looking for other papers. I decide to check out the treasury departments website to determine how much it is worth. Can anyone guess? It's not $50, but $38.08.

Seems pretty good for only accumulating interest for 11 years! I know, I know, it would have earned so much more in that mutual fund.

So, do I help my daughter get it cashed? She has no id. My name technically isn't on the bond. I also don't have a local bank. All our banking is done online, so I don't have a bank that "knows" me.

It's probably worth emailing my bank. Any banking people that might have some insight?

Every month at this time, we have our Roth IRA investment money deducted automatically from our checking account. Right now we are each investing $432 per month.

Yes, I'm aware that that would put us over the $5,000 minimum investment for the year. For three months we were investing the amount to get us to $4K. We added a little extra to get us to $5K by the end of the year.

It feels good to have it happen automatically. It's just done and I don't have to think about it other than to record it in the checkbook. And because it is on auto, I don't think to spend that money elsewhere.

my husband is out of town. All his costs are covered by the government on his federally issued charge card. Well, there are limits to what he can spend!!

While he's away, I cook simpler meals. I drive fewer places. He's not here to stop at the store and pick up things he wants to add to dinner. We don't use any gasoline to get him to and from work. He drives 60 minutes round trip each day, so that adds up. The TV is on less in the evening. I wash fewer clothes. All less electricity and water. His diet coke habit is included in his travel money...more savings there. The list goes on, but I won't bore you.

I'm just now beginning to notice these things as his job has quite a bit of travel. You'd think I would have noticed when he was deployed! We did save a lot cash that year...mostly because he was making so much more at the time then we were used to...so we just saved it!

Anyone else notice that they spend less when a spouse or significant other is away?

My food scale saves me time and money. Want to know why? I use it to weigh my packages I sell on ebay! This scale is a cheap one I bought at Walmart for $9.99 a couple of years ago.

I use it to weigh the package prior to listing. Once I know the weight of the package I visit the US Postal Service website and view their rate chart. This helps me decide what to charge for shipping. I do add a little extra to the shipping to cover my costs for packing tape and envelopes. Knowing the weight of the package ahead of listing the items, saves me the mistake of underestimating shipping an item. That would then cut into my profits on the item itself!

I save so much time by being able to weigh my packages at home. After an item sells, I reweigh the item and pay for shipping through Paypal and print out a paid shipping label from my computer. I could arrange for the post office to pick up the packages, but I drive by the post office everyday on my way to the gym, so I simply drop them off. I do not have to wait in line...AT ALL! I'm the post office for about 20 seconds!

All this because of my food scale!!

We own a Wahl Clip N' Trim for my husbands hair. We use it for his neck hair for the most part between haircuts. The trim part of the clippers had a little plastic piece break off.

I contacted Wahl thinking I would need to purchase this replacement part. I couldn't find it on the website, so I sent an email through the site. I chose 'Item not found on website' as my subject. Within 24 hours, I was emailed that a replacement part would arrive in 7 business days.

Today it arrived in the mail! The exact part I needed and described. It should be easy to snap it back on. Thank you Wahl.

I mentioned in a previous post that I learned quite a bit from Mary Hunt, author of The Cheapskate Monthly Total Money Makeover. Her advise about a freedom account is what I now call my escrow account, because it works just like the escrow account attached to our mortgage.

Planning for large annual bills or expenses is key to keeping our budget intact each month. It really does give us freedom!

I have a page on the left sidebar explaining a little about our escrow account. We only have 5 items in ours at this time. If you are just beginning it may make more sense to pick one or two to convert to this escrow system.

An escrow account can included anything that you pay less frequently than monthly. Some examples are: life and auto premiums, auto registration fees, annual gym memberships, tuition, holiday gifts, birthday gifts, and vacations.

To begin total up the annual amount that you expect to pay for the items you wish to escrow. Divide this total annual amount by 12 (for the number of months in a year). This monthly figure gives you a starting point for how much you should put aside each month.

It's important to then evaluate that monthly number against actual outflows. I have one month where I need to pay auto registrations and insurance premiums equal to $643.00 Obviously, this cannot be covered by one months escrow deposit.

I find it helpful to go month by month, starting with the current month, looking at inflows and outflows and each monthly balance. Some months will be positive and some months are negatives.

If you start escrowing without some money already set aside and come to a month where the net balance is negative you would need to find additional money in your current month's budget to fund that particular bill.

The other option is to start the escrow account with an amount equal to the largest negative balance you arrive at when evaluating inflows and outflows.

In the first year you could also divide negative cash balance by 12 and add it to your monthly escrow account. You still may have negative months, but by the end of the next year you should have a balance to begin you escrow account with. And as a result your monthly escrow amount should go down.

I know this was a little long on the explanation. I hope it helps someone out there in blog world with their budgeting, planning and debt payoff. If you have questions let me know. If I made an error in explaining, it would be helpful to know that too. We're all here to work together after all.

We began our marriage almost 12 years ago with over $10k in credit card debt. Around that same time, I heard of a book called The Cheapskate Monthly Money Makeover by Mary Hunt.

This began my quest to pay of our debt quickly using her snowball method. At least that is what I think she called it. Many of you already know the concept. You list your debts smallest balance to largest. You pay the maximum dollar amount to the first or smallest debt. You simply pay the minimum to the remaining debts. Once the first debt is paid off, the amount you had been sending in as a payment gets added to the next debt while continuing minimums on the rest. The total amount sent towards debt remains the same during the entire payoff, unless you find MORE to send in. That then would speed up the debt repayment process.

I also learned how to escrow and save for annual, semiannual,and unexpected expenses. It was nice to read a book where someone was honest about their debt and how they got to that point. Even better, she found a way out of the debt and was able to convey that to others.

The book is older and not as popular now, but it still has relevant information. I looked it up on Amazon. It can be purchased used for one penny and a couple dollars in shipping!! Of course, there is always the library. If you are just starting out, this may be a resource you'll look to often. Debt payoff can be done!!

We paid off that credit card debt in less than two years on very limited salaries using the snowball method.

This is the last and final post in this category of "don't do's." This one will be a list of several things I don't do...that some people might. Most of these save my family money.

I don't...

1. Buy very many brand name foods
2. Use a full dryer sheet in each load
3. Buy brand new cars
4. Pay for magazine subscriptions
5. Own more than one purse
6. Buy fast food...it is very rare that we eat out.
7. Pay any bank or ATM fees...EVER
8. Heat my house at night...I let the thermostat drop by about 10 degrees
9. Develop pictures...its all digital!
10. Make or eat dessert, except special occasions.
11. Send any bills through the mail...saves on stamps!
12. Buy many DVD's or CDs.

I'm sure there are more things I don't do. Many of these things I don't do, keep us from spending more money than necessary. Thanks for listening. Making the list helped remind me how well we do. In some cases, because of your responses, I have been reminded we could still do better.

I know I'm not going to be alone in this one either. I don't do cable TV!!

We have been married almost 12 years and have managed to live without cable all of those years. How much have I saved? At the low end cable probably costs $30 a month. I have avoided spending $4,320!! And that is the low end. What if I paid $75 a month? I would spent...$10,800 in the last 12 years.

Currently, we have just about 7 over the air channels. The girls watch PBS every morning. I can sleep in and know they aren't watching anything inappropriate.

I'm not a big TV fan to begin with. I don't watch ANY TV during the day. We all sit down and watch Deal or No Deal and Biggest Loser each week as a family.

If you have cable TV and can pay for it, that is great! I just feel free not having that bill to pay each month as well as the free time to do other activities. Trust me, I would never see DH, if we had cable. He watches too much TV as it is.

A comment was left on my last entry about priorities with spending. My examples of things I don't do are just ways that my family has chosen to save. We began some of them out of necessity when our income was significantly less. Now that our income has risen, we continue to do these things while we splurge in other areas, wine seems to be one of those right now!! All the while we are saving almost 20% of our gross to fund retirement and college education.

My third "don't do" has to do with insurance premiums. We don't pay our premiums monthly. We pay them semiannually or annually. When we were on a tight budget I realized I could save by paying less frequently. As a result, I set up a way to put the money aside each month, so that when it came due I had the money available. I don't remember now how much the difference is in paying semiannually verses monthly, but at the time it was significant to us.

This system of escrowing our money to fund semiannual insurance payments led me to add more items to the list for budgeting purposes. I now have included auto registration, gym membership, and school registration fees in addition to the auto and life insurance. As a result I put away over $130 a month to cover these expenses as they come due.

I'm going to guess many of you do something similar. If you haven't considered paying less frequently, in any area, it would be worth looking into. It just might save you some cash that could be put to use elsewhere. When we first began, we put ours towards debt repayment.

Next week I hope to talk a little more about how to set up an escrow account for these types of expenses. Stay tuned!

Turns out the last "don't do" I posted wasn't so unusual. I actually get my hair cut by someone else, but many of you responded that you cut your own hair!! I am so impressed. I've done some trimming occasionally, but never a full cut. I suppose with my curly hair I could actually get away with it. I'll let you know if I try it.

The second thing I don't do is pay for my kids to eat the lunch the school provides. They pack their lunch everyday. The school lunch is $1.80 per day. With two children that is $3.60 per day. If they took their lunch everyday of the school year I would spend about $650 on hot lunches. I would estimate that I spend about $0.85 per child per day. This means I spend just over $300 per year for school lunches. A savings of $350!!

Now, I can't say that this came about just to save money. My oldest just preferred to take her own lunch so she had more time to eat. This all began in kindergarten. She tried the school lunch, but the routine of it was just stressful on her.

My youngest daughter also tried hot lunch, but decided it was cool to have a lunch box with characters on it! So, packing our lunch is just the way we do it. I really think they eat better because they have more time and get a variety of different foods to eat.

My husband also takes his lunch. Turkey sandwich, banana, and granola bar washed down with his favorite diet coke. I won't calculate how much that saves us...but I know that it does. He also helps keep our fridge clear of leftovers.

If any of you have read The Millionaire Next Door, you know that millionaires are millionaires because some of the things they don't do...such as buying brand new cars and so on.

We are not millionaire's yet, but I thought I'd share a few things I don't do that would qualify me as a future millionaire.

The first one is that I don't get my haircut every month. I have naturally curly hair, so it is not as noticeable when my ends are uneven. I visit the local Great Clips with a coupon about every two months. I get a cut only. No styling or blow drying. I say no to all their attempts to sell me special curl shampoo. My use of a coupon, saves me money and allows me to leave a fair tip.

I tend to only take my girls about every two months as well. My husband gets his cut every three weeks, but how his hair looks is important to his job. The Army has some standards you know!! I get the joy of shaving the back of his neck once a week so that he doesn't have to get a haircut that often.

This has been our routine all of our married life. The only change I see is that someday I might need a little color to cover up some gray. I'm sure I'll find a way to save on that too!

Feel free to share your "don't do's" and stay tuned this week for more of mine.