It's time for my second Debt Free update! I still feel like quarterly updates are best for right now so that is what I'm going to continue to do throughout 2017 and I'll re-evaluate in 2018.
June Progress:
Unfortunately, the weeks at the end of May and beginning of June were not very good for my debt snowball. Mostly because I wasn't getting any hours at Fridays and that is where most of my snowball income comes from. I also had a friend visit, so some of the money from the snowball went towards activities and gas while she was visiting. We also had some Army stuff come up that we had to cover (big surprise there). I was able to pick up a few hours here and there and put about $101 towards the debt. Not much progress, but better than nothing ... and we didn't add any debt, so that's always a win!
July Progress:
On July 7th, I put $530 extra towards the debt which accumulated between June 23rd and July 6th. In July, I decided that I was being dumb and that I should go back to Dave Ramsey's original plan of ordering my debts smallest to largest. I looked at what I put on my $6000 debt last quarter combined with what I put on my lowest debt this quarter, and I was just shaking my head. I could have just about had my lowest debt paid off by now. So, hopefully by next update, I can say I paid off debt #1 and made a significant dent in debt #2 (this part was written before we got our back sep pay)! In July I also cut up all of my credit cards and closed every account accept the one I still owe on (which is the one that should be paid off soon).
On the 10th, we had what could have been a major issue. Josh was in Budapest at an ATM and a drunk person bumped into him and he accidentally withdrew $550! Of course, it's going to be weeks (possibly months) before he can put that money back in the account (story of my life). Luckily I had the emergency fund and could transfer the money over to cover the bill that was set to come out the next day. Despite that, over the course of the month I was able to put an extra $535 onto our debts this month! $16.45 was from sales at the thrift shop (they distribute checks on the first of each month) and the rest was a mix of pay from Fridays and money left over in our budget. I also put $200 back into our savings to help replenish our emergency fund after the Hungary debacle, just for my peace of mind. Once he is able to put the money back, I'll take $200 of it and put it on the snowball.
On the 10th, we had what could have been a major issue. Josh was in Budapest at an ATM and a drunk person bumped into him and he accidentally withdrew $550! Of course, it's going to be weeks (possibly months) before he can put that money back in the account (story of my life). Luckily I had the emergency fund and could transfer the money over to cover the bill that was set to come out the next day. Despite that, over the course of the month I was able to put an extra $535 onto our debts this month! $16.45 was from sales at the thrift shop (they distribute checks on the first of each month) and the rest was a mix of pay from Fridays and money left over in our budget. I also put $200 back into our savings to help replenish our emergency fund after the Hungary debacle, just for my peace of mind. Once he is able to put the money back, I'll take $200 of it and put it on the snowball.
August Progress:
In August, WE PAID OFF OUR CREDIT CARD!!! When I decided to switch back to Dave Ramsey's original plan and go smallest to largest, we had about $1915 on our credit card. This all accumulated during our move and we're over it. We had so many unexpected expenses when I didn't have a job and it all went on the card. We put a washer and dryer on it, then both our registrations came due which we forgot about, and the last thing was my cell phone randomly dying - I had to pay off my old phone. We finally got our back-pay for family separation, which was enough to pay off the credit card and then some! I had trouble deciding what to do with the extra money and decided it was best to put it to the side for a bit since I'll have the expenses of boarding my dog in September and I had his shots and physical appointment at the end of August. I just want to be sure everything is covered and then if we're all good, I'll throw that money back on to the snowball!
Since we paid off our credit card, our next debt is my federal student loan. This loan is $3,778 as of August 1st. We are hoping to have it paid off before Josh gets home or by the end of the year at the latest. So far, we've been able to put an extra $345 towards that student loan. That's after I saved the money I'll need to board Bolt in September, and after I paid for his checkups and shots. I was also able to budget for my Mom's visit at the end of the month.
Goals Update
I feel really great about my goals since the last update! We've really started working together on this (even from halfway across the globe!) and I feel really good about our chances of getting this debt paid off before we PCS in 2019, or slightly after at the latest.
Start Meal Planning// I wouldn't say I meal plan, per se but I am much more intentional with what I buy. I've gotten myself in the mindset of "the commissary is literally 1 minute away, you can go back if you forget something". I was in the habit of buying more than I needed "just in case" and this mindset has really helped me to get out of that. The commissary is literally right down the road and Walmart is only a five minute drive.
Sell Things We Don't Need/Declutter// Still majorly winning with this one! Through June and July I was definitely purging things, but I really kicked it into high gear in August when I did the 30 day minimalism game. I was able to (just about) complete the challenge and get rid of about 465 items! I am so happy with my progress on this. I am also happy to say that I have made money each month from the thrift shop on post - some months more than others, but I'll take what I can get!
Work on a Written Budget// Win! Dave Ramsey says to do monthly budget meetings, but because my income is highly irregular, we do a budget every two weeks. The first few times were rocky, especially since Josh has to buy food every day in Europe. I started keeping track of his food spending and was able to work it into the budget and talk to him about trying to stay around a target amount. I do always budget for a bit more than I think he'll need, just to be on the safe side. Anything left over just goes towards debt, so it works out. Now I've pretty much got it down to a science. It only takes me a few minutes to work out the budget for two weeks. I get paid every week, so my second paycheck in the two week budgeting period is used for unexpected expenses (like someone accidentally pulling out $550), and whatever is remaining goes right onto debts the day Josh gets his next paycheck. I love budgeting and it's working out really well (up until the very end of the month which I don't want to talk about right now)!
Work Two Jobs// I really can't win with jobs in New York and it's frustrating AF! I still have the new job but it's very seasonal so I know I'm hardly going to get any hours over the winter which is fine by me because the management is the worst! I went down to 2 days per week at that job and am currently training to be a server at Fridays, which will be more money. I took an interview for a security job, but it just wasn't for me for a lot of reasons, so I turned it down. I am still actively searching for something in the Criminal Justice field, but after a year of searching I'm pretty close to giving up. It's more than a little discouraging. I am happy with the decision to start serving, even though I know it's going to be a major test of my very limited patience for people.
Since we paid off our credit card, our next debt is my federal student loan. This loan is $3,778 as of August 1st. We are hoping to have it paid off before Josh gets home or by the end of the year at the latest. So far, we've been able to put an extra $345 towards that student loan. That's after I saved the money I'll need to board Bolt in September, and after I paid for his checkups and shots. I was also able to budget for my Mom's visit at the end of the month.
Goals Update
I feel really great about my goals since the last update! We've really started working together on this (even from halfway across the globe!) and I feel really good about our chances of getting this debt paid off before we PCS in 2019, or slightly after at the latest.
Start Meal Planning// I wouldn't say I meal plan, per se but I am much more intentional with what I buy. I've gotten myself in the mindset of "the commissary is literally 1 minute away, you can go back if you forget something". I was in the habit of buying more than I needed "just in case" and this mindset has really helped me to get out of that. The commissary is literally right down the road and Walmart is only a five minute drive.
Sell Things We Don't Need/Declutter// Still majorly winning with this one! Through June and July I was definitely purging things, but I really kicked it into high gear in August when I did the 30 day minimalism game. I was able to (just about) complete the challenge and get rid of about 465 items! I am so happy with my progress on this. I am also happy to say that I have made money each month from the thrift shop on post - some months more than others, but I'll take what I can get!
Work on a Written Budget// Win! Dave Ramsey says to do monthly budget meetings, but because my income is highly irregular, we do a budget every two weeks. The first few times were rocky, especially since Josh has to buy food every day in Europe. I started keeping track of his food spending and was able to work it into the budget and talk to him about trying to stay around a target amount. I do always budget for a bit more than I think he'll need, just to be on the safe side. Anything left over just goes towards debt, so it works out. Now I've pretty much got it down to a science. It only takes me a few minutes to work out the budget for two weeks. I get paid every week, so my second paycheck in the two week budgeting period is used for unexpected expenses (like someone accidentally pulling out $550), and whatever is remaining goes right onto debts the day Josh gets his next paycheck. I love budgeting and it's working out really well (up until the very end of the month which I don't want to talk about right now)!
Work Two Jobs// I really can't win with jobs in New York and it's frustrating AF! I still have the new job but it's very seasonal so I know I'm hardly going to get any hours over the winter which is fine by me because the management is the worst! I went down to 2 days per week at that job and am currently training to be a server at Fridays, which will be more money. I took an interview for a security job, but it just wasn't for me for a lot of reasons, so I turned it down. I am still actively searching for something in the Criminal Justice field, but after a year of searching I'm pretty close to giving up. It's more than a little discouraging. I am happy with the decision to start serving, even though I know it's going to be a major test of my very limited patience for people.
