Thursday, February 18, 2010

Where has the year gone?

February is almost over. Can you believe it? It's almost March and I'm still wearing boots, gloves, coats, and the heating bill is sitll high - UGH....come on Spring.

Well, I took stock of my spending these past two weeks (to include my V-day spending) and I think I am ok. I received payment on BOTH side jobs (yeah, suckie client came through with payment in full, FINALLY) and I received a check for my consignments (woo hoo!) so I was able to pay on the money borrowed for school (yeah), put a little in savings and of course, I spent some:

1. Gifts: $85 (includes V-day gift for The Fella and steam mop (gift for my house))
2. Eating out: $55
3. Clothing: $33 (a pair of shoes and a gym bag)
4. Parking: $12 (1 day) - I know that's highway robbery but I needed to get in to work early to take care of some things.  Also, I will get reimbursed for 2 days of parking earlier in the month.

All in all, my spending over two weeks totaled: $185 and I have money in the bank between pay periods - YEAH!

So Action Plan for this coming pay period:

1. Use budget sheet (check - already updated for the rest of the year and already filled in for this paycheck).
2. Cancel parking contract for the train (I am taking the bus from the transit center right near my house so I don't have to drive far and parking is free).
3. Make an appointment for March consignment.
4. Start writing down what I spend money on (it's difficult to remember where all these pennies go).

I think my baby steps are finally starting to pay off.

5 comments:

karen@fitnessjourney said...

Writing down everything you buy is a great idea. Sometimes we needlessly spend money on convenience items that we really can do without. This recession has taught me a lot about what I can do without.

The Merry said...

Sigh... I know you're right. I need to write down what I spend. I just don't wanna :(

On the plus side, it's actually spring 'round here. (Weird, but I'm not arguing with Mother Nature.)

Angela said...

good for you. i keep a track of my daily spending and it works wonder for me.

Sheila said...

That is such a good plan! I have a two-week paycheck budget of $200 - all my entertainment and shopping comes out of that (which is why I shop second-hand so much!). I take out the cash - knowing that's all I have means I really question every purchase.

Thanks so much for commenting on my blog!

Cheers,
Sheila

LaShaune said...

Thank you all for your comments.

Learning to budget and be more adult with my money is a real struggle. Before I purchased my 1st new car (this will be my last), I had an extra $500/monthly to do as I pleased. I didn't have to worry about my overspending because I didn't have a car payment.

So that is the big shift for me. Learning to be adult and stop overspending.

Baby steps.