Well now. Life has been busy and it has been full of many things, but blogging has not been one of them. Where have I been? In August, I gave birth to a beautiful and healthy baby girl weighing in at 7 lbs, 8oz and 20 inches long. She is now over 13 lbs and […]
I try to be responsible about my finances. I track expenses, balance my checkbook, stick to a budget, and am not extravagant with my spending. I compare costs, coupon, research purchases online and by asking friends’ recommendations before I outlay any money. My husband and I talk about money a lot and won’t spend more than […]
I am a budgeter. I love balancing my checkbook. I track every penny meticulously. I actually love doing it because I feel in control of my money and my life. But I often find myself feeling disappointed when I victoriously get all the numbers to match up then see how little is left in my […]
This is Part 2 in a series. You can read Part 1 here. We first began looking at homes online through Zillow (geez, I can lose hours on Zillow) to see what was available, checked out a couple of open houses, and contacted Quicken Loans to get a quote on a mortgage. We pulled our […]
There are so many purchases that we make regularly that we often don’t have a line item for in our monthly budgets. Things that occur every few months or bi-annually can be especially tough surprises if we haven’t budgeted for them. Sure it would be great to set aside the money I know I will […]
We are officially homeowners now! My husband and I just closed on our first home and we are beaming with boundless excitement, hope, and possibilities that come with buying a home that we hope to grow into for years to come. Our home buying story began last spring. My husband and I had been talking […]
Image Source Black Friday has some great deals! And Cyber Monday’s sales are stupendous! By late November, the deals are all around you and life is awash in blinking “sale” signs. We all love a good deal and have a budget we have to plan around, so shopping these sales seems like the logical choice […]
July has been a very busy and expensive month for me. Great and filled with fun memories and family, but expensive. My husband and I started out the month by flying to England to meet up with my family, host my little sister’s bachelorette party in London (the Brits call it a hen party) including seeing […]
I was out for a run and listening to the Dave Ramsey show a couple of weeks ago and he was advising a caller about setting up a budget for his first household with him and his new wife. Dave mentioned budget items such as rent, utilities, and groceries, but then said that the average two person […]
Politics aside, there is much we can learn about our own finances due to the government shut down. Immediately, government workers are thrown into turmoil and are concerned about whether they will be allowed to come to work, scramble to finish the project they are working on before they get furloughed, and worry about the […]