February 15, 2009

Financial Goals Update- February 2009

It has been just over a month since I sat down and put a few short-term financial goals on paper. Below is a brief update on my progress...

I have not officially paid off my $1,950 credit card. I was a little slow on the draw submitting my federal tax refund paperwork. That being said, I am expecting $2,183 back from the Federal Government (hopefully arriving in the next week or so). This card has a 1% interest rate so I am not worrying too much about the extra interest.

I will be able to *Snowflake* $233 left over from the tax refund and apply it to my American Honda Finance payment for March! I am hoping between the regular payment of $285.53, plus the Snowflaked $233, plus recent Ebay sales, I will reach my goal of a $1,000 for my first super-sized car payment.

Hours at my part time job are picking up; I'm back to 8-10/week. This is great as it usually ends up being just enough cash to put into my envelope system for the week; gas, groceries, entertainment.

In addition to my debt-elimination goals, I have also refrained from using my credit card. I do have some occasional transactions on the check-card, but even those have decreased to 3 or 4 non-bill related items.

It is still a long road ahead, but month by month I will get there!

February 14, 2009

Frugal Find: Freecycle Frames


I started using Freecycle about two years ago in order to accumulate free household items as I was preparing to move out on my own. If you are not familiar with Freecycle; I encourage you to visit their site, sign up with a group in your area, and start offering or accepting free items!

I don't utilize this program as much these days, but still regularly receive emails of "offer" posts. This past week a Freecycler was offering 5 8X10 black frames and I received them! It worked out pefectly as the pick up location was just a couple miles from work.

I am so excited! I think I will be using them in my dining room as I have a large wall that is in need of a substantial piece of artwork so it does not look so lonely. My 2008 calendar had beautiful pictures of flowers on it, they would look perfect in these frames.

Voila! A completely free wall decoration:)

February 8, 2009

Keeping It Real

I was a bit hard on myself this week for exceeding my "Out to Eat/Entertainment" budget by $20. This has only been intensified by the fact that I haven't been able to get as many hours at my part-time job the past couple weeks due to inclement weather...which means even less money going towards paying down debt:(

Then I read this post by another personal finance blogger and it put things into perspective for me. It is so true that finding a balance between spending and saving really encourages you to stop and smell the roses.

I went over budget. But it's $20 and I can easily make up for it in the coming weeks; surely this blunder will not define my financial future. And just for the record (because I feel better about things when I can justify them:) the $20 was well worth it. I had a weekend filled with good times spent with family and friends.

Here's to another week of focusing on what is really important!

February 3, 2009

Frugal Recipe- Strawberry Banana Smoothies, Yum!




This recipe is simple, delicious, healthy and frugal! I've broken down the out-of-pocket cost for you below.

1 medium banana (quite ripened)
6-8 frozen strawberries
1/3 cup of skim milk

Blend ingredients for about 30 seconds, poor into a beautiful glass, and enjoy! The trick is to use frozen strawberries thus eliminating the need to add ice which will water down the smoothie. Also, the natural sugar from the banana gives this all the sweetness it needs.

Aldi's price breakdown:

Strawberries- $0.57 a serving ($3.99/bag)
Milk- $0.08 for 1/3 cup ($1.99/gallon)
Bananas- $0.15/banana ($0.45/lb)

= $0.80/smoothie

Less than $1 for a yummy snack, could life get any better?