So I skipped my August Recap. I guess I’d say I had a lot going on and, but that’s an excuse. I mentioned briefly on Facebook that a lot of it was shame, and that’s true too. September was not much better for us though, which is a hard realization. While we had some major home expenses that derailed some of our retirement savings goals, our day-to-day expenses were still too high compared to what we want to be spending on those expenses. Sometimes I have a habit of saying, “we had visitors this month,” or “we traveled somewhere this […]
July Recap + August Goals
For the first time in a long time, it seems like July passed at a normal pace. In fact, it seemed like it was a slower month than usual. Anyways, financially, it wasn’t a horrible month for us. It wasn’t spectacular. We spent a lot of money trying to make this house a home, and we’re not even close to done yet. We just began a deck renovation and we’ve knocked a hole in our dining room ceiling in an attempt to find a leak… and we still can’t find it. We’re learning a lot of skills as new homeowners […]
May+June Recap / July Goals
Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I am even writing this right now. I woke up at 5:00 AM and decided to reconcile our budget (which I have been halfheartedly following) because it was bothering me so much. Two hours later… I am ready to talk about the last two months. So, holy sh*t! We bought a house! Sorry for the language, but there is literally no other way to express this. There is so much that comes with buying a house. Watching that down payment and closing cost transaction come right out of our account, and feeling like you […]
April Recap / May Goals
I think every single month, I am tempted to start with mentioning how fast the month went by. I guess that is just part of life at this point. Anyways, here in the Bee house, we’re saying another goodbye after a quick visit from my mama! Thank goodness for cheap airfare from our hometown to our duty station. Luckily, my parents visit every other month or so, which is amazing. When we lived in Hawaii, Eric didn’t go home for 3 years! (I am rather spoiled, and went home about every 6 months, but I know that is definitely not […]
how using cash back cards for expenses gave us $300 in 6 months
Well, it seems obvious, but I know so many people who haven’t learned this yet. I add about $50 a month to our budget by using a cash back credit card for our bills and expenses. I still track my budget as normal as if I had paid with a debit card. When the due date comes, I pay the statement balance in full. (I always pay around the due date, never really early, because I’d prefer to leave the cash in my checking account to earn a few extra days of interest.) By paying the statement balance in full, […]