Asked around for walking partners, as I'm too out of shape to get to a gym & actually go in...............and I'm too cheap to pay someone to tell me to exercise. I figure this will be good for finances too, as I'm not able to wear my clothes, always need to buy bigger sizes.............if I can wear my things I do have, it will be way cheaper.
Also, I'll hopefully get on the nutrition track too & quit paying for extra food and the horrible drive through junk.
More money saved.............
Plus, the other side of the coin........the woman that is meeting me this AM wants to learn to sew, knit & crochet so we're going to start in on those too. She will alternate & come to my place every other time, so we can each save on gas.
I'm hoping there will be others she knows that will be willing to pay a fee for the "classes" or to pay to have me alter something for them........I'm using her as free advertising. (my $20.00 challenge was to advertise & get the sewing business back up and making money)

Thanks to my daily check in here..............I'm much more conscious of my spending habits these days. Everything runs through my savingAdvice "filter". I have a crock pot full of dinner going........the dishwasher is set to air dry & the washer is on FULL load with cold water. (wish I had my clothesline & I would skip that dryer phase)

Got a refund check yesterday for the freezer that didn't work..........it took many phone calls, but I got the check. Will aim for a bank run this AM too, so I can pick up the $75.00 gift check from the bank for the new account.

I am paying out a big check this AM, the deposit towards the kitchen floor. Can't justify this expense, the other floor is perfectly fine..........except it is white. In the kitchen!! With kids, dogs and a back 40 full of mud, horses & such. We look so bad most of the time...............so, Thursday it is getting switched out to a floor more the color of mud!!

Mine is going to involve sewing, knitting & crocheting. I am going to use the $20.00 to place an ad locally, as well as order some cheap business cards online. I'll advertise the 3 areas, as well as finishing work and teaching. When I get the word out to just a few, the business will pick up by word of mouth & then there are no further expenses to speak of.

I have one person coming next Tuesday for a sewing lesson............so that gives me a week to get my things unpacked & ready. The sewing room is still in boxes! Good to have a deadline............I know myself!

I will continue to put the free ads on Craigs list also. Once I get my business cards done, I can make the rounds of the dry cleaners in the area too.

Onwards! I always work better with a challenge!

Yes, I'm definately getting more excited on the days I won't be spending any money. Too fun. Today is another............staying home, like usual. All meals here..........and both lunch & dinner from leftovers taken out of the freezer & doing one of the "encore" meals. Loved that term, saw it in someones post here. I'll never call them leftovers again!
I can tell I'm spending less, by how many checks I'm not writing! It will take me years to go through a packet of checks. The difficulty with my current plan is I pay for most things with cash from my pocket, so there is no record of those purchases.............. Will tighten this up!
Also using bill payer (free) to take care of normal household bills, so I save time and postage.
I've also got the saving piece coming out as an automatic deposit from my check, into my money market/stock fund. Love this.........and it will be the first place I call to increase the amount. I'm only at $100 now, but without knowing the expenses here at the new place, I wasn't confident enough to pick a bigger number!
I've been thinking about the $20.00 challenge here; and think I'll use it to put an ad in the paper & start up the sewing/ alteration business again. I've got the machine now, need to repair the serger, and I've set it up in the garage. Added drapes so the place is private................will use the carpet from the bedroom remodel that is upcoming.
If I buy business cards on line, I think I can swing the ad and the cards for under 20. I've tried a Craigs list post, but no clients, interest yes..........but no clients. It has been so many years since I've sewed for people..........good thing it is something you never forget!!
How grateful I am to have a skill or two that people will pay me for!

And, another no money spent day. Love these. If I rack up a bunch of them..........hmmmm, doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out I'm saving money!

I will be sending a check off tomorrow, for a 50% deposit on some landscaping. I'm not doing it myself.........reclaiming the land is beyond me. There are no gardens here, so it is going to take WORK & I want some help. The company I'm using, has been bringing their trimmings from other jobs and dumping them here for me. So, I'm getting half off the total anyway. Can't pass that up. Looking forward to having some plants here!!!

Pondering the idea of keeping track of my expenses in a more detailed fashion. I've always tracked the bills...........but no tracking of my pocket money. I include things like my haircut, groceries that aren't covered by the tenant and the inevitable fast food. I could loose weight & save more money if I decided to NOT do the fast food. I quit buying coffee out a couple years ago & I could see a big difference in my cash...........didn't miss the coffee either.
Not sure what method to use..........read here about people recording all their receipts on a weekly basis...that might work, if I remembered to get a receipt.
I do have to come up with a bookkeeping system for C & my new job here with him. Not sure how to set that up either.
By the end of this month, I'd better have a start on both, huh? Can't be waiting til summer to try & figure out a system. Better to have something in place & be able to add or tweak it, than to not have anything going at all.

Waiting for the money to start coming in from leasing the pasture here. Nice addition to the income line............as well as a wonderful lift to look out and see 4 horses cavorting around in my pasture. I'm learning so much about them already.....as well as learning about myself. Basically pretty lazy here, already thinking I wouldn't like taking care of the horses if they were mine. This arrangement might be the best way to be close to them, but not have bottom line responsibility for them. I should start asking about the cost to keep the horses.........the money might be the real scary part to this hobby.

Dinner from the freezer today..............all meals already prepared, just need to take them out, heat them up and add a salad & fruit. Love days like this.

Wow..............I found a huge sum of money in my dresser. I remember putting it away before the move..........not sure how it actually got moved. Too funny if it just came in the dresser, I really don't remember unpacking all of that stuff.

I have been putting things from the bedroom in boxes in preparation for the remodel.............and was sorting through all my drawers that have things in them, not clothing............and here was all the paperwork, and envelopes. I think the money will be added to the checking acount to be used for property taxes in April.....I won't have to sweat those bills quite so much.

Property taxes: I should get an exact number on paper for these. I think the actual number will go up, selling the piece & replacing it with this one.............I'm pretty sure the value will be up rather than down. Haven't got any paperwork on either of the 3 parcels yet.

All this attention to finances is certainly paying off!! I found my fung shui books too when packing up the room, and will overlay that with the new design for the bedroom/bath area. Should be paying close attention to the wealth area!!

I'm hooked. Always known I was into keeping my own journals.............I found them everywhere when I moved. But, now..............here I am hooked to reading others journals! Getting ideas & inspiration from everyone's regular entries to continue to shave costs & add to savings here. What a great habit! A cup of coffee & some time, plus the cost of the internet connection I guess.................cheap thrills!

Today is going to be another no spending day.....easy when I don't have to go anywhere. Working today, so making money instead of spending it.

Making the list for the monthly carpenter/handyman visit in Feb. Most items on the list are things that will either make or save money in the long run. Especially looking forward to getting the clothesline designed & put up..........as well as the chicken coop & run. Clothes hung outside & fresh eggs!! Doesn't get any better. Again, cheap thrills! I truly don't think the chickens are cheaper than buying eggs on sale...........I don't want to know the numbers; the fresh eggs have now become something I'll fund. If I buy the chicks, pay for supplies, heck.............here I'll have to pay for the construction of the abode too.............it will be a long time before the eggs are truly FREE. Rationalizing that I won't run out, no extra trips to the store.............

Getting flyers in the mail this week re; the empty lot & the listing running out. Unsure of what to do re; this. Actually forgot about it with the move. I'm not willing to pay for the road & the cost is so high I'm pretty sure I can't find a buyer willing to pay either. Waiting seems to be the best choice here. Perhaps I can out wait the county & live long enough to see the R5 change so I can divide the parcel up. Or, the tenant in the neighboring piece will make an offer?? Either way won't hurt anything. I can continue to pay the property taxes, which are coming up soon here.

I advertised the small wood stove on Craigs list................the new one comes this week. I was going to just let them take the old one, thinking it would be hard to get rid of. But, after doing some research, it seems to be worth some money. Hopefully, one of the inquiries will turn into a sale. That would almost pay for half of the upgrade on the other stove. Also planning on opening up a wall, making a walkway through from the room the stove is in.................creating better air flow so the new stove is capable of heating the rest of the house. Fans aren't doing the trick & I hate turning them on & using electricity to move the heat from the wood stove. Something just WRONG about the whole process.

Still on my de-clutter, clean it up, move it out of here binge. It does feel like resources appear when I remove the un needed items. Maybe it is just psychological, but it works for me. Freecycling is the greatest! Moving several boxes of goodies out of here today..............and I won't even miss them.

Dinner from the freezer tonight............with enough left for lunches tomorrow. Cheap meal too...........

Enjoying the process of the financial challenge. Coincidently, I've got a week of vacation here, no clients........so have the free time to bring a cup of coffee to the computer & follow through with the daily assignment. I'm really enjoying it!

Just finished signing up for the 3 accounts. I think I've done all I can do now, just going to settle in and wait for the mail to complete # 2 & #3.
I've also got a gift check at my brick & mortar bank locally...........$75.00 for opening a new account there! A profitable week for not really working!

My one area where I'm not making headway is my freezer snafu! I had bought a refurbished one in Oct, it quit working in Nov & I can't get the company to refund the money or pick up the old freezer. They promise they are handling it, I call every week to check up.........Nothing! I'm not usually this ineffective! Didn't want to get them really mad until I had my money & the freezer was gone, then I was going to report them to the BBB for sure. Now, I'm not so sure I shouldn't just call them in to everyone I can think of.

Also need to call the renters & remind them of the late fee for their check. They picked the number & then they didn't comply. Hmmm More money uncollected. Terrible trend this AM.

Still managing here without the heat pump. It was pronounced dead. Haven't figured out what to replace it with. Doing all the research I can..........haven't been able to get anyone to come out, nor give me a bid on replacing it. Can't figure that out. People seem to be out of work, but no one has responded to my emails, or phone calls. I will need to purchase something, I can't have the house without a real heat source...........not everyone is as frugal as I am........ I'm very OK with the wood stove & a little fire every afternoon/evening. If I'm working around here, it seems warm enough to me. Also helps that we are having a really MILD winter here in the NW.

Will have to decide between replacing a heat pump, adding an electric forced air furnace or coming up with a furnace that runs on propane. I haven't come up with a comparison that I can understand to see what would cost the most...........what is the most cost effective..........etc.

No spending day here. Love that!!! Even using leftovers, since I'm not cooking for the tribe.

Took the challenge...............did #1,2 & 3 today. Spent most of the morning on them actually, counting all the time spent on hold with the credit card companies. Made progress.
Made my list of credit card accounts. (3)
Have them listed in order of highest interest rates first. (Paid $1000 on the top one just now)
Made a list of the totals due on all 3. It was like hitting a brick wall. Never thought I owed this much. But, after the business closed and the move............there is just over 10,000. on all 3 cards totalled.
I vow to pay them all off this year.
I applied for another zero % for balance transferred card today. Will put card # 2 on this one, lowering the interest by several points on this account. Card #3 is only at 10%, not sure I can get much lower than that.......but will keep my eyes open.
I have been paying much more than my min payments on all 3 accounts. Will switch to paying minimum on the lower 2 until the first one is paid off..........should be 2 months or less. TA-DA!
Then, on to Card #2.

Added up my income.............again, it was a surprise. The monies coming from C. for room & board add up! Along with the private pay..........and my salary, it was a nice sum annually.
I will vow to add to the Schwab account this year, aiming for at least the $600 monthly I was doing before everything changed with CY last year. I did make the call to Schwab & paid off the balance owing, and changed the account so the monthly deposits are added to the sweep. Still happy with the 4 things in the account.

Did spend $90.00 today on the piano.........never did have it tuned before. It sounds so great now...... This did go against my plan to not spend in January, but I've been on this guys schedule for 2 months, I didn't think I could explain to him why he couldn't come today!!!

No other expenses today............
I love reading others journals....I am getting so many ideas & getting inspired to raise my bar here!!

I evaluated my money in the bank and made a few changes. I qualify for a platinum account so I switched to that.........no charge, and all the usual bank extras are now free. Not like I use many of them anyway....but, the account earns interest, so I'll be making money on my money.
I did open a short term CD, my first time at this. Felt accomplished. It's the money for the capitol gains taxes in April. I know I've got enough in the account, so there should be extra after taxes. Will add that to the platinum account when it frees up.
Forgot for the 3rd time to pick up the free money from the bank. A $75.00 check for opening up a new account. Gads, you would think I would remember money someone wants to give me??? But, no. I got all the way home before I realized I had forgotten yet again.
The checks are all in for January. I have made a form to log them in, since my memory wasn't working well doing this on my own. Adding in the SSI account, as well as the rental and the private pays...........I was having a hard time remembering who owed me, and no way to prove I hadn't been paid. Feels good to have it as a hard copy.

Will also have the money for leasing out the pasture..........forgot to add that to the list. Will do.
Can't wait til I've been here long enough to see what the monthly expenses are. I feel like they are so much lower..........but that could just be the abrupt end to the major expenses I had last year. Anxious to know the exact number....I'm so used to knowing to the penny what it costs for a month here.

Enjoying vacation this week...........not spending wildly, that is for sure. Spending time with others.......
Did have to spend on the vehicle this month, 2 times............neither was a planned repair. I still think it is a good decision to put money in this vehicle & not buy another. This one works for my needs, I don't drive much anyway.

Anxious for the remodel to get underway. Some of the expenses since Oct, will cut costs in the long run here. The new stove comes in next month..........should make heating cheaper. The new door goes on next week, cutting down the heat loss from the poor job on weather stripping and poor fit on the door.

Need to replace the fridge & freezer with newer models, energy efficient ones, getting the county rebate as well as cutting costs to run them.

Thinking always of ways to cut costs or make money...............it is just like a great game to me! Operating in the black makes it even more fun!

No, not spending rapidly, but taking a fast from spending. My usual way to get over the commercialism from the Christmas advertising blitz the last quarter of the year.
I enjoy seeing how much I really don't need...........as well as cleaning out the pantry & freezer to feed us throughout the month. Keeps me from going into hoard mode too.
So far, doing OK................I always pay the usual household expenses like utilities, etc. I've got a remodel starting soon here & I predict I will have one check going out to begin that project...........and I'm going to do that one. If not, the whole project will be put off for another month. I'm not willing to do that..............this is my bathtub we're talking about!!! How I bought a house without a bathtub is beyond me!

Using the wood stove insert...........miss my old one. These clean air requirements make for a stove that doesn't work very well in my opinion. We are managing to keep the house toasty however. It does help that we're at 46 degrees again today!! Can't imagine we're "done" with winter...........but maybe!!! That would be nice...............a real money saver!

I am anxious to order my seeds & for the first time get some of them started indoors. I took off the blinds from the warmest window we've got...........& will bring a table in to set up my plant nursery on. With luck, I'll have my own tomato plants in addition to any other starts I can convince to grow. The veggie garden is "cooking" away under black plastic..............with a layer of compost & lime. This warm weather should just be perfect...........I can almost hear the dirt getting enriched!!!

Off for the day.................enjoying reading other journals, giving me more of a push to be diligent re; the finances here.