More Freebies

In addition to my grocery/ drugstore spending freebies, today I got a free BBW hand sanitizer (w/ purchase - bought something for $4, but used a gift card so no oop) & free iced chai latte from Seattle's Best at Borders!

Student Loan Update

I am at $24,002.93 total student loan debt - almost $10,000 lower than this past September when I owed $33,878.14! I might actually be able to pay everything off within 2 years after all. I am excited now and to make things better July is a 3 paycheck month so I can use one whole paycheck towards my debt. Yea!

misc. spending

Okay so I have been good during the whole semi-annual sale during my part-time job, but today I gave in and bought some things ranging from 50 to 75% off and was able to use a $10 off 30 coupon since I wasn't using my employee discount. I ended up spending $28.05 which isn't horrible. I know this doesn't show me being frugal, but it does show I am human and I give into temptation every now and then. : )

Total misc. spending for the month:
BBW: 28.05-credit
Coffee Beanery: 1.40-cash
Coffee Beanery: 1.40-cash
vending machine at work: .75-cash
vending machine at work: .75-cash
vending machine at work: 1.25-cash
vending machine at work: 1.25-cash
vending machine at work: .75
= $35.60

+ air fare for OH trip: $119.20 ($49 each way + taxes!)

Total: $154.80

Student Loan Update

So instead of trying to rapidly pay back my citi student loan, I've decided to concentrate on my Perkins since it has the lowest balance. I figure if I put $500 a month towards my Perkins then it will only take me about 8 months to pay it off. There is also the added benefit of keeping motivated so hopefully I can pay it off even sooner.

Total owed on all student loans as of June 24th is $24,498.94. I'm making progress!

Grocery/ Household Spending

Because I primarily use my Chase credit card for my grocery spending (5 pts per $ on gas, groceries, & drug store purchases) and it is set up on a mid month pay cycle, I figure out how much I have been spending on groceries the 15th to the 15th. My goal is to stay between $100 and $200 per month for me, my boyfriend, and our two dogs. This past month I came under budget!

Spending for May 15th - June 15th:

Walgreens: 9.65
Jewel-Osco: 27.62
Dominicks: 23.33
Dominicks: 15.21
Walgreens: 5.51
$ Tree: 6.65

Total: 87.97 / 2 = 43.99 a person

So far this month (June 15th - July 15th):

Dominicks: 19.06 (saved 57%! or $24.38)*
Dominicks: 5.46 (cash) (saved 17% or $1.00)
Dominicks: 6.83 (saved 64%!! or $11.70)*
Dominicks: 2.55 (o. debit)
Subtotal: 33.90

$ Tree: 5.11
$ Tree: 3.05
$ Tree: 2.05 (cash)
$ Tree: 2.02 ( o. debit)
$ Tree: 1.02 (cash)
Subtotal: 13.25

Walgreens: 4.48 (cash)
Walgreens: 2.32 (cash) (saved $1.74!) received 3 RR
Walgreens: 3.10 (cash) (saved $.99) received 3 RR
Walgreens: 3.92 (cash) (used RR on this purchase)
Walgreens: 5.10 (saved $5.50!)*
Walgreens: 1.63 (o. debit, saved $.30)
Subtotal: 20.55

Target: 23.35 (saved $1.36)
Target: 3.51 (cash) (saved $2.00)
Subtotal: 2.86

Harvest Time: 2.55 (cash)

7 11: 2.75 (cash)


Total Saved: $48.97 (+ received $6 RR ) (Freebies for the month: 1 ketchup, 1 can of Purina dog food, 2 toothpastes, & 2 almost free liners from Target - paid only 2 cents a piece!)

Total Spending as of July 13th: $99.86/2 = 49.93 a person

Balance available through July 15th = $0.14

New Budget & Moving

So, my budget has to change to account for a couple of things: My paychecks are back to $800 (Probably something involving taxes), I have to start paying the regular payment for my Direct loans in August, and we're moving which could be for the better or worse financially depending on cost of rent, utilities, etc.

Average monthly income: $1600 (800*2)

Monthly Expenses (Until we move)
1/2 rent: 462.50
1/2 utilities: 100 (summer)
gym: 21
monthly transit pass: 86 (paid w/ credit card)
groceries: 100 (paid w/ credit card)
cell phone: 55 (paid w/ credit card)
Total: 824.50

Debt Repayment:
Citi Loan: 500
Perkins: 63.64
Direct Loans: 80.16
Total: 643.80

Savings:
ING: 10
Chase: 25
Total: 35

Debt 643.80 + Fixed Expenses (824.50) + Automatic Savings (35) = 1503.30

Income (1600) - Everything = 96.70 (Extra money!)

Obviously this budget doesn't account for yearly expenses like for the pets, contacts, traveling, etc. However, I was very concerned about the extra loan payment so the fact that this looks doable is exciting to me. My boyfriend is aware that things are going to be extra tight though so this means no movies, eating out, etc. unless we save for it first.

Student Loan Update

My Direct Loans payment finally posted and I am now down to $26,709.75 in total student loan debt. I keep telling myself to stay motivated, but sometimes it still feels like forever. I must admit though whenever I see it going down, even if it is just a little bit, I get excited!

Puppy

So, my boyfriend surprised me with a puppy last night. Keep in mind that we already have a 4 year old husky/lab mix in a crowded apartment. (Luckily we have a back yard though.) I wasn't too happy at first because a. puppies take work, b. german shephard puppies turn into huge dogs, and c. it is going to be more expensive. Still, it is impossible to resist a 1 1/2 month old pup! We'll see how things go.

Quick Update

So, I started an ING account! Not a whole lot in it so far, but I hope to change that in the next few months. I am also trying to pay down my student loans as much as possible since I will have to start making regular payments of $156 on my Direct Loans in August. Just put $200 towards this today, but probably won't post until Mon. Still trying to pay down my citi loans too, but after Aug. I get 6 months grace period, so regular payments for that one shouldn't start until Feb.

Aside from that, I am trying to find a balance between living frugally and having fun. The one area where I tend not to be frugal is traveling. I went to a wedding a couple of weekends ago which ended up costing close to $700 in total (for both bf and me). I would still really like to plan a mini trip with my boyfriend this summer. Possibly Lake Geneva, WI. We went there for the day last year and it was fun, but I'm having trouble finding reasonably priced lodging so it may have to be a day trip again this year. However, since we still do not have a car, I am not sure that is even going to happen. I am also planning to go home to OH the week after the 4th of July because I have family coming in from CA and SC. It would be a short trip - probably a Mon. morning to Thurs. morning, as long as Southwest Airlines keeps up its summer deal of one way tickets for $57 each. Lots to look forward to this summer!