Money Matters
als1982
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Week/end Accountability
1. How MM was your weekend?
2. Any progress toward goals?
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired?
2. Any progress toward goals?
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired?
HeartlandHustle | Personal Finance and Betterment Blog
Re: Week/end Accountability
Good. Took the dog in for a regular vet appointment before our road trip $240. Gas and tolls were around $60. Snacks for the family pool party $5.
We took drinks with us and didn't buy any food or drinks other than for a quick dinner when we were en route Friday $10.
2. Any progress toward goals?
Since we didn't spend much over the weekend it is a good start to having a (hopefully) low spending month.
We also used some of our time in the car to go over what purchases we want to make in the future and how to work them into the budget.
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired?
I like routine, it helps me get started each day.
1. Ick, spendy. $17 West marine, $103 Home Depot, $25 Gas, $7 TjMax. $200 b-day shopping/lunch (money was a gift)
2. $150 to our Home Depot CC. We have $ to save, but won't be stashing until next weekend, we have a few things to pay for first this week and I don't want to leave us short the cash
3. Routine is a biggy for me, and I just do things....I don't procrastinate.
1. Light! $67 at Costco, but then I also cashed out my annual savings check from them for $53. That purchase ranks up there with one of my lowest ever for a warehouse store, lol. I did only need a few things.
2. No goal progress last week (sigh). There will be some this week, but not even as much as usual.
3. After my 4-day weekend, I definitely needed inspiration this morning! Just sheer will power, I guess, lol. I did keep reminding myself that, since Monday was a holiday, this week will be shorter.
We're not going to talk about exactly how much money we pulled from our cash savings...but our siding project (removing old what was essentially cardboard/pressboard siding and replaced it with Hardie) is finally done! Aside from significantly improving the resale value of our home, we removed siding that would have eventually caused serious water damage to the structure of our home with a little more time.
2. Any progress toward goals?
Last week was payday so I moved more money into savings.
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired?
I try to get myself organized by making lists of things I need to do. It helps me stay focus when my mind is still on the weekend.
2) I got a good disability policy in place, I paid the annual premiums on our increased life insurance (we now have enough for kids in case that happens quickly), and we paid off H's car. It was a big week!
3) I'm usually bored by day 4, so I don't have a lot of trouble getting motivated to work.
2. Any progress toward goals? $500 went to savings this weekend.
The built in linen cabinet and the basket weave tile floor are installed. The 2 small shower walls are next, then grout, touch up paint, install toilet, sink, shower fixtures, lights, mirror, towel bars. Goal it to have it finished by Columbus Day weekend since we only have Saturdays to work on it now that DH is back to school.
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired? I usually stay busy at work- taking a 15 minute walk outside seems to help refocus.
Quick AW moment: DD#1, DD#2, and DH are back to school today. Everyone was all smiles and did a great job with drop off/bus pick up. DH was even happy to go back today now that he's part of a great school district.
2. We put $350 in savings on Friday. Our hotel room this week is also covered exclusively in hotel points, so that's a huge savings for the week!
3. Coffee! Haha. Really, there's usually at least one thing for me to look forward to every week, so everything is do is to gear up for that. Since I have a long commute, routine is the biggest factor in my schedule.
2. No... the one downside of the party!
3. Clearly, as I'm on here and not doing the pile of work that's in my email inbox, I'm not very good at this "motivation" thing. But, I always tell myself I'll get to work after I eat my breakfast (ie a protein bar). So off to slay this inbox...
Really good. $12 at Olive Garden for lunch with my BFF, $5 for entry into a wine festival, and $90 on gas for 3 cars.
2. Any progress toward goals?
We are likely going to book our trip to Hawaii this week or next! We sat down and looked over everything and we have enough to book all of it. I also found our preferred flight options and found the rental car for $200 cheaper. So I'm giving our travel agent a chance to hopefully find us a direct flight (I'm finding none), then we'll go from there.
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired?
This is a real struggle for me. My position has to be a lot of self-motivating.
On Friday afternoon I make a list of the things I NEED to accomplish the next week. It makes me feel better being organized in what needs to be done.
Then on Monday I prioritize the list and work down it. Around Thursday is when I get bored out of my mind because I'm usually ahead. So I have to create little projects for myself. I'm an insurance agent so I'll re-quote policies for clients, look over their coverages to see if we need to meet and update things, etc.
It also helps that on Mondays I make a huge pot of iced coffee and bring it to the office, and add some fun creamer to it. I also force myself to get up 10 minutes early and do my hair and makeup. Usually the only day it's done, but it helps.
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Congrats! I LOVE Hardie siding! It is so sturdy. I resided half of my house with it in 2013ish and the other half in 2014ish. My previous siding was (I think) made of decent wood, but was very old and we were starting to have spots with issues.
It was spendy. I feel your pain. But, for the long haul, well worth it. Especially since the main alternative is vinyl siding, which does not hold up well in our hot/humid climate.
Well, if you look at our general spending, it was pretty good. We spent about $100 on groceries and dog food, and ate out a few different meals with friends (spent $45).
However, we bought DH's new vehicle (old one was destroyed in hail storm). We disagreed a lot about the total budget, but finally settled on $30k or less. DH managed to stay under by buying a new 2016 Jeep Cherokee Limited (top end model) for $29,075. He managed to find it after a great deal of research about an hour away from our hometown and it was $4,000 less than our local dealership. MSRP was $37,500. So after rebates, sales promotion and negotiating, we saved $8,425 from MSRP. The exact same models in our hometown were a lot more too. Kind of a strange thing to see.
It was the most stressful day and an ultimate test of our ability to communicate and work through financial disagreements. We put $8,000 down ($6,700 came from insurance check) and can easily afford the $450 per month payment (60 months), but we will pay it off in two years.
Would I have preferred he spent less? Yes. But I have learned life (and especially marriage) is about compromise and working toward shared goals. I do not care about cars and spend a lot of less. DH is a car and tech guy. He doesn't spend much money on most things, but for some reason, this really mattered to him. I am at least thankful we align on 90% of other financial goals.
This did prompt another discussion about savings though. So now that he got his new car (first time owning one after two other used ones), he agreed to up his 401k contributions by $250 per month going forward.
I am so glad the process of purchasing a car is over!!!
2. Any progress toward goals?
-Purchased DH's new car. Goal was simply to replace previously totaled car.
-Increased emergency fund to 9 months savings.
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired?
-I am a list writer. So writing down tasks and crossing them off motivates me by the pure satisfaction of completion. It could be something small or tackling something big.
Also congratulations on the increase in retirement savings! That didn't happen overnight with my H either but now we are finally there many budget discussions later
2. Any progress toward goals? This summer has been crazy with spending, so we haven't had any definitive goals except to keep things semi-in-check. Now that my brother's wedding is over and fall is nearing, we need to get organized and back on track. Tho at the wedding we talked to my cousin who may be interested in purchasing our old car at a decent price, so I guess that's progress?
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired? I've been getting addicted to Starbucks mochas :S So not MM...help...
I know some people will think we are crazy for spending that much on a vehicle and judge...but I am at a point where I know we can easily afford it, it will be our only debt (other than mortgage) and it will be paid off quickly.
And retirement has been an ongoing discussion too, so I feel you! I have been saving pretty aggressively for the past 6 years, but I just got DH to max out his Roth IRA this past year. So getting him to do $250 in a 401k is a huge step!
2. Any progress toward goals? Just the usual. We tried to cash in an old savings bond but the new teller at the bank couldn't figure it out so we have to go back when the manager is there. Kind of annoying, but it's free money (DH's grandparents gave them as birthday gifts when he was little and we have one or two to cash in every year now that we're in our 30s). The insurance check went straight to savings. However we woke up to a broken boiler this morning so I'm home waiting for the repair man - fingers crossed it's a cheap fix but if we need to replace it that is what savings is for at least.
3. How do you motivate yourself at the beginning of the work week or when you need to be inspired? Bullet journal all the way. I need to write it all down so I can organize myself and get focused. I half-jokingly call my notebook my "pensieve", but it really is my second brain. I'd rather lose my smartphone than my notebook. Otherwise coffee - for IVF prep my doc made me cut back on the caffeine, but I can have as much decaf as I want! I need the flavor as a psychological kick more than the caffeine anyways.
When I was in college, I was getting ready to go on my first cruise. Fortuitously, my mom cleaned out her safe deposit box about one week before I was leaving. She found a savings bond, from my aunt, that was given to me around the time I was born. Extra $150 in spending money! I sent my aunt a thank-you card and some pics when I returned, lol. I started the ty with something like, "You may have totally forgotten about this, but..."
When it comes to learning/remembering, I have always been a "handwrite" kind of person. For me, even typing doesn't have quite the same "staying power" as handwritten notes and lists.
Granted, we haven't had our Hardie siding that long, but it has been totally maintenance free. We also DIY'ed painting it and even my "very NON handywoman" self was able to paint it easily and it looks great.
Between the Hardie siding and using a high quality exterior paint (Sherwin Williams), our house looks just as freshly painted as it did three years ago...and that has been through three harsh summers.
I don't know if this pic will show up or if you can see much of a difference but I took an old photo from about a year ago and then I took a new one this morning. We went with the same color scheme because I didn't want to look exactly like my neighbors and nobody else has the same gray-green color we do. I feel like there isn't a HUGE difference in the photos cause it's hard to see all the defects in the old stuff from a distance but to me in person looking at it now it's just
2 - not any this week. I did book a last minute gig on saturday and made an easy $200. It was for a party at a super nice house. We were the cocktail hour. The dad had just found out he had stage 4 cancer and wanted to throw a party for his 3 teenage daughters.
3 - I too like schedules - I can't live without them. If I need to be inspired I do yoga or play/teach music. Also can't be productive without 8-9 hours of sleep a night and a morning cup of coffee. Today I'm super non productive because I woke up an hour and half early and started thinking about something that was stressing me out.
2-Unfortunately not. We paid a big boiler service bill instead of adding to savings. The bill arrived after the above purchases, and we decided to just pay it and be done with it. Still, everything we bought was really needed so I can't feel too bad about it.
3-I tend to lose focus in the afternoon, and have found that a high protein snack really helps. I've been making my own trail mix with pumpkin seeds since I can't do nuts, but almonds or something like that is probably the easiest solution for most people.
2. Nothing this week.
3. Caffeine. I really struggle with analysis paralysis and imposter syndrome, so I have to work at being ultra productive every day. I have found that starting the day being "positively positive" by smiling and saying hello in the elevator to strangers and warmly greeting our receptionist each morning as well as stopping by to check in on my staff. Being cheerful seems to always help no matter how I'm struggling!
I am not familiar with this term. What does it mean?
And caffeine. Oh yes, yes, yes. I don't know how I neglected to put that in my answer, lol.