Day #321: Yearly Goals

Okay, so it is kind of early to start thinking about goals for next summer and generally "yearly" goals are made in January as New Years Resolutions, however, I have some goals in mind and I want to document them to see if I meet these goals.
Goal #1: Run in a 5k next summer (2014)
My brother and parents are also going to train and run with me. I wonder if I will inspire Bob to do the same??

Goal #2: Deposit $25 from each paycheck into my "untouchable" savings account, which means I will have at least $600 in there. Not a ton, but a good start for someone who sucks at budgeting.

Okay, so, only two goals so far, but good ones I think! Now that 12 hour shifts are behind me, I am done with excuses. I want to go to the gym every morning before work and then hopefully go for walks after dinner with Bob and the dog each night. Just need to get started. Motivating words are welcome!

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Day #320: frustrations.

So, I finally signed up for Mint.com after it was recommended to me by several bloggers. It's a very neat way to see how much you are spending and where, as well as set financial goals for yourself.
Although, seeing how much we are spending and where the money was going, was definitely an eye opening experience. How is it that after almost a year of trying to budget, we are still in the same shape? I started this blog as an outlet from my stressful like of being fat and broke, yet I have made no strides in either department.
Epic. Fail.
So, where are we spending money? Mostly on food. Whether it be eating out or grocery shopping. See, we find recipes we want to try and then go buy groceries. We don't buy groceries in "bulk" loads, like we probably should. Visiting the store to buy groceries multiple times a week definitely adds up the spending.
Then we eat out. After work and school, who wants to cook? Plus, I HATE cleaning the kitchen. It never fails, after we cook the kitchen ends up being a disaster and I definitely don't feel like cleaning. Ugh.
Our savings account has been a roller coaster. Sometimes it has $1000, sometimes it has $5. I can't seem to keep funds in there for very long. Bob's dream job teaching hasn't turned out the way we had hoped. Instead, the school is very unorganized and can't seem to find students for him to teach. So, alas, we are again a one income household.
Which. is. so. frustrating.
Budgeting has never been my forte. I am wondering if it ever will be?
Anyways, if you are seeing a lot of sponsored posts, it's not that I have "sold out", it's that the small amount I do make from those posts, are all being shucked into a savings account that I do not have a debit or ATM card to. So that I can actually save money. So sorry for the sponsored posts, but I am a broke bitch.
I also cancelled my Pop*Sugar Must Have Boxes (which I planned on anyways) and my Glossybox subscription. Now, $25 from every check is being deposited into the savings account, rather than towards subscriptions. I will have the last Glossybox reveal sometime this week!



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Day #286: Poshmark Finds, Part 2

Hey all! Here are my latest Poshmark finds:

Michael Kors Brown Patent Leather Heels

New: $77

Cost me: Nothing, I traded an old ring for these. 

Lane Bryant Coral Top

New: $42

Purchased for: $12.50

Blue Mossimo V-Neck Sweater

Purchased New: $24

Purchased for: $12.50

Old Navy Fur Collared Vest

Purchased New: $40

Purchased for: $7

Old Navy Cut-Off Shorts

Purchased New: $33.94

Purchased for: $14

Old Navy Racerback Tank

Purchased New: $12.94

Purchased for: $6

Old Navy Racerback Tank

Purchased New: $12.94

Purchased for: $6

American Eagle Tee

Purchased New: $15.94

Purchased for: $6

Torrid Ruffles and Lace Top

Purchased New: $34.50

Purchased for: Nothing! Included in the trade for the ring.

American Eagle Hoodie

Purchased New: $44.95

Purchased for: $25

Old Navy Sweater

Purchased New: $24.94

Purchased for: $12

Old Navy Vintage Baseball Tee

Purchased for: $24.95

Purchased for: $12

Lane Bryant Zebra Sweater

Purchased New: $44.50

Purchased for: $10

If purchased all new: $432.60

Purchased for: $123.00

Then minus, my Poshmark earnings from my clothes I spent around $55.

Not too shabby!

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Day #277: Poshmark addiction.

My newest addiction is Poshmark. I love this app. I have listed some of my old items that I don't wear anymore or have never worn, but I have also found some super cute clothing items at very discounted prices!! I have been looking for some nice outfits to wear when I teach. I don't get dressed up much and in my new position I can still wear scrubs. So, on the days when I teach it is nice to get gussied up sometimes! Here are some items I purchased VERY cheaply.

Simply Vera black patent leather heels

New: $42

Gently used: $14

Not a bad deal. I love Mary Jane style shoes and thick heels. 

Wet Seal Top

New: $25

Lane Bryant knee-length skirt

New: $40

Purchased both (gently used) for $19

Value of all 3: $107

Purchased for: $33

Not too shabby I'd say!! Much better than the local Goodwill. Generally, they do not have items that fit me and anything that does, usually isn't the nicest OR my style. I am seriously addicted. 

Shop my closet on Poshmark, by clicking here. I will be adding new items this week!

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Day #269: Six tips to go broke without really trying

I have a surprise treat for everyone today! The husband of one of my friends, has a hilarious blog and he has a great guest post for you guys today! I urge you to read it and then check out his blog. You will NOT leave without laughing your butt off. 

Six tips to go broke without really trying
by Jason Wolverton

Remember that feeling when you were on the cusp of high school graduation? The whole world was your playground, possibilities were endless, and dreams were simply inevitabilities you just hadn't had time for yet.

And then you fast forward about 12 years and you're cleaning up piles of dog shit in the back yard and eating Kraft Macaroni and Cheese three nights a week because Meijer raised the price and you can't afford to eat it five nights.

  

Yeah, not exactly how I had envisioned it either.

Part of that just has to do with finances. No one tells you when you're 18 (at least in 1999 they didn't tell you this) that you'll bust your ass in college just in time to get a job that barely pays you enough to cover the costs of paying off the degree you needed to get the job that barely pays you enough. It's like what came first? The chicken or the bankruptcy?

What didn't help is that I didn't exactly manage my money well back in the day. There's plenty of books out there about how to save money or get rich, but I pretty much wrote the book on how to go broke.

In fact, here are six ways to pull that off:

1. Credit cards are your friends:
You know how your actual friends never buy you anything? Well, these plastic pals will pick up the tab every time. Expensive dinner? You got it. Tigers tickets? Sure, why not. Maddens 2000 to 2009? My cousin Visa will pick that up.

I signed up for my first credit card in the commons of the university I attended and I haven't looked back since. If you want to make sure you never have any money, this is definitely the way to go. 

2. Buy a new car:

Are you sick and tired of getting nickeled and dimed by your mechanic? $200 here. $400 there. Maybe even a $1,200 transmission repair. There's nothing more frustrating than having to repair an older car that's already paid off, so why not rid yourself of that frustration by taking out a five year note on a new $25,000 ride. Now you can replace those unexpected $200 repair bills with the comfort of a recurring $360 monthly payment!

3. Get techy:

You ever heard the phrase, "The thing women find sexiest in a man is all his gadgets."

Yeah, me neither. But from 2001 to 2006 you sure as hell would have thought it was true with all the crap I was buying. At one time I actually took out an Office Max credit card so that I could buy a Palm Pilot. I think I used its sweet stylus to make one appointment before I realized that carrying around a device the size of a VHS tape to keep the one or two appointments a week I had was a bit excessive. And seriously, what was with the size of those things? The name should probably have been changed to Frying Pan Pilot since you could fry and egg in those things they were so big.

But to get back on track, if you want to go broke you have to make sure you buy every PS2, XBox 360, iPod, iPhone, iPad, iMac, and Kindle on the market. Don't worry, though, your life will be so much improved with all the extra chicks you're picking up.

4. Transfer:

The greatest invention of modern day banking was the online transfer. No longer was it a chore to access money out of your savings account. Now, you can just go online and with a few clicks take the $300 it took you six months to save and transfer it to your spend account so you can write a check for the slow pitch softball bat you just bought. Seriously, this one took a lot out of me. The online transfer is to savings accounts what the Internet was to newspapers.

5. Get fit:

If you really want to focus on going broke, a good place to start is to look at your physical fitness. If your XL shirt is a little snug and you're too scared to move to the 2X model, I suggest looking into spending money on physical fitness. Exercise equipment, tapes, books, and classes are a great return on investment as long as your idea of a good return on investment is having something in your basement that is good to hang wet snow pants on. I can promise you that the next time you think about buying that treadmill you saw at Dick's Sporting Goods, you might as well just pull a $100 bill out of your wallet, go out to the parking lot, and take a dump all over it. When it comes to spending money on working out, pretty much the only thing that's losing weight is your checkbook.

6. Take a break:

Are the pressures of living paycheck to paycheck stressing you out? Well then you need a vacation! I know you don't think you can afford that all inclusive trip to Cancun, but YOLO, right? And besides, you really need to just get away and relax for a little while. It's the only way you won't have to talk to the creditors. 

So hopefully these tips can help you in your journey to become broke. I can personally attest that each of these methods is a good step in the right direction to making sure that you set yourself up for financial struggle well into your mid-life crisis. 

Jason Wolverton is a comedic blogger whose work can be found at www.iamjasonwolverton.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/jasonwolverton or on Facebook at facebook.com/wolvertonblog

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Day #240: Budget Woes & Friday Top 5

Happy Friday!
Today is pay day for me. Pay day is not as exciting as it used to be. Pay day now stresses me out. We continue to live off of one income, which isn't easy to do. I want so badly to pay off my credit cards but find myself making no headway. Our savings account has slowly dwindled because of extra bills...dentist appointments, license tabs, nursing license re-newal, etc. My paycheck barely covers the bills. After our bills are paid, and this isn't even all the bills that need to be paid, we will have about $250 left for 2 weeks. This doesn't include groceries or gas. Once those are purchased, there is not much left over.
It is so frustrating. I feel like we will never get ahead. Budgeting definitely isn't our strongest attribute. We both want things and buy things and eat out. Which we need to stop. Hopefully, we will find a way to budget. Despite our best efforts, we fall to same old habit of grabbing fast food or eating out. 
So, friends, if you have any tips for us, please feel free to share. Any job ideas to make extra money, possibly from home? Bob is a student so something from home would be ideal. Also, any easy and cheap meal ideas would be appreciated! How do you budget?
Okay, now onto Friday Top 5

One. My animals are kind of strange. But cute!

Two. I went to the gym...one time? A start though!

Three. Wine is delicious. Always a good thing.

Four. New planner! YAY! And yes, I wrote down the Tigers schedule. All 162 games. Don't judge.

Five. I actually did a fashion post! I am still learning how to pose and use my camera and tripod. You have to start somewhere though!!

And lastly, I am sure you have all heard that Google is getting rid of their Google reader. This means GFC will be useless because you will not be able to follow your favorite blogs anymore. I know many of you use GFC currently, but an option for the future is Bloglovin'. I personally use this to follow all the blogs I love reading. It's an easy way to read all your favorite blogs. I very rarely use the Google reader. For those who want to keep following me, click the button below:

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Day #190: Budget Plan

This year I am taking the steps towards getting out of debt. Now before you read on, keep in mind...I said steps. In order to pay off my credit cards, I am robbing Peter to pay Paul...so to speak.
Anyways, I have thought long and hard about this but I am taking out my full student loan this semester. This will give me extra money to pay off a couple of credit cards and put money into the bank. I am going to follow a snowball plan to pay off the rest of the credit cards. My credit cards will be paid off by the end of the year. This will leave me with about $300 a month in income that will no longer be spent on credit card minimum payments.
Which I can then put towards student loans. My only solace in this, is that student loans are not considered "bad" debt. 
What are you doing to get out of debt?
For those interested, here is David Ramsey's snowball plan:
Debt Snowball by Dave Ramsey

First, accumulate $1,000 to keep as an emergency fund. This is easier said than done. Should I start selling random items from my house now?! Just kidding.

Second, list your debts in order starting with the smallest balance first. Ignore the interest rates, UNLESS you have two debts with the same-ish balance...then pay the higher interest rate debt first. Paying off the little debts first, gives you instant gratification and you are more likely to stick with the plan. 

So, with the snowball you are going to pay minimum payments on all your bills EXCEPT the smallest debt. According to Dave Ramsey, you are going to attack this bill with "gazelle intensity" until it's gone. Then add the minimum payment you were paying on this bill, to the second bill's payment. You do this each time, the purpose being you are adding more onto the next payment to pay off your debt (SNOWBALL...the snowball accumulates more and more snow as it rolls down the hill). 

Third, Do whatever you can to remind yourself that you DO NOT want this debt again. Post bills on the fridge. Write down how much you are saving by not paying that minimum payment a month. Whatever you need to do to keep you on track.

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Day #188: Campus Book Rentals

As a college student, buying textbooks is one of the most taxing and expensive parts about attending school. How can ONE book cost so much money? This semester I bought five books and spent almost $500. And I will likely sell them back at the end of the semester and receive maybe $150 for them. 
Ridiculous? I agree.
So, what are other options for college students? One I have found is a website called Campus Book Rentals. You can rent your textbooks from this site for 40-90% off bookstore prices. Campus Book Rentals offers free shipping both ways. 
For example, my book "Basic Steps in Planning Nursing Research" (yes, it is just as boring as it sounds. Just sayin'.) cost me $107.35 brand-new. Used it would have costed me $80.50. Campus Book Rentals rents it for $55.45...which is 50% of the cost.
My issue and skepticism about renting textbooks came from my love for highlighters. I love highlighting in textbooks...for some reason it helps me remember the information. Anyways, if you are like me and love highlighting...guess what? No problem! Campus Book Rentals lets you highlight in their books!
Another awesome program from this company is called Rentback. Rentback is new initiative that allows students to rent the textbooks they own to other students. Why is this awesome? By renting my books, I could make two times more money than I do when I sell back at the end of the semester!  Ah-mazing. Here's a video to teach you more about Rentback.com:


Okay, class (ha, get it?), let's review the perks of renting from this company:

Now, what is Operation Smile? Operation Smile is an amazing organization that performs life changing cleft lip surgeries on children whose families can't afford it. These surgeries improve these kids quality of life. With each textbook rented, Campus Book Rental donates a portion to Operation Smile.
Well, hopefully this provides some insight into other options for all you college students out there! But don't take my word for it...go find out for yourself!
Campus Book Rentals Rentback
Disclosure: I was compensated by Campus Book Rentals for writing this post, however, all opinions are my own.

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Day #88: Budget, Smudget.

As you know, I'm a broke biotch. I mean, part of my blog title is BROKE. Don't get me wrong, I make good money. I have a house. A car. All the "necessities", however I still live pay to pay check. Which SUCKS. No one feels comfortable in that situation. So, in my quest to better myself for my family I have been trying to find budget tips.

Before starting the following steps, make a budget plan. Here is an example of how I have mine set-up. I have my bills broken up into the first half of the month and second half of the month bills. My house payment is bi-weekly, so I have it broken into two payments. Now, this could be changing soon, as I have sent this to my mother and she is figuring out how we are doing. 

Debt Snowball by Dave Ramsey

First, accumulate $1,000 to keep as an emergency fund. This is easier said than done. Should I start selling random items from my house now?! Just kidding.

Second, list your debts in order starting with the smallest balance first. Ignore the interest rates, UNLESS you have two debts with the same-ish balance...then pay the higher interest rate debt first. Paying off the little debts first, gives you instant gratification and you are more likely to stick with the plan. 

So, with the snowball you are going to pay minimum payments on all your bills EXCEPT the smallest debt. According to Dave Ramsey, you are going to attack this bill with "gazelle intensity" until it's gone. Then add the minimum payment you were paying on this bill, to the second bill's payment. You do this each time, the purpose being you are adding more onto the next payment to pay off your debt (SNOWBALL...the snowball accumulates more and more snow as it rolls down the hill). 

Third, Do whatever you can to remind yourself that you DO NOT want this debt again. Post bills on the fridge. Write down how much you are saving by not paying that minimum payment a month. Whatever you need to do to keep you on track.

Here is a link to the debt snowball instructions and worksheet.

Hope this helped! I am hoping to use this plan to pay off some debt. I will be chronicling how we do with this plan. 

Until tomorrow,

Big, beautiful & broke... Chelsea

Day #69: Crud.

I have literally done nothing today. First, I didn't wake up until 10:45am. I was seriously in a dead sleep. Although, this could be because Hubby and I were up until 2:30am playing Song Pop. We were helping each other play random games, until I fell asleep. I probably still yelled out song and/or artist names in my sleep.

So true.

Second, I woke up feeling like crap. I think I have caught the autumn crud that everyone seems to have. Boo! So, I took some cold medicine and then fell asleep on the couch. Geesh. Now, I am watching movies because my body is aching and I have no energy.

However, I FINALLY got my Birchbox! The first box that was mailed to me never made it here and couldn't be tracked. I hope someone in the world is enjoying it! Anyways, I finally got the second one that was sent today. I will reveal it's contents tomorrow when I actually have the energy to shower.

My mom's CT scan came back good, so she was able to go home this morning. It's a relief to know that all the tests came back good.

haha...also true.

So, in light of my continued financial troubles I have made a decisions. I am not going to work as much overtime. I know this sounds like a contradiction, however, the majority of my money is being spent on eating out and fast food. When I work 12 hours a day 4-5 days a week, the last thing I want to do is cook. Hubby will cook, but then I usually will clean the kitchen. Again, the last thing I want to do is clean the kitchen after working 12 hours. Hubby prefers it when I help with dinner, so that we can do it together. But when I work, work, work the easiest solution is just to grab something on the way home. By working less, I will have more time to contribute to cooking and cleaning. Thus making me and Hubby happier people. Hopefully, this will help me lose weight too.

Today, I don't feel like cooking or cleaning or moving really...ugh...

Until tomorrow,

Big, beautiful & broke... Chelsea

Day #65: Uneasy

Oh, my entry is late-ish today. I worked all day, 12 hours of caring for the classy citizens of Saginaw! Then I came home and finished one of my papers which is due on Sunday. 

Now I am tired. And trying to think of something to say!

I have felt uneasy all day. Uneasy about money, mostly. I feel like no matter what I do, piles of debt keeps piling on my shoulders. Really, I have no new debt, but the debt that I have feels like it is getting heavier and heavier. I make enough to pay the bills with maybe a little extra, which goes to groceries or the kids. I sell stuff on Etsy which mostly pays for me and Bob's hobbies. It's not super lucrative, which is fine, as long as we can do the things we enjoy. Hubby's paychecks pay child support and IRS. So, at the end of the day, we are not left with much. I can't complain, we have a house, we both have vehicles, we both have computers and most of the stuff that we want, but I still feel like debt is just piling on me. I can't make extra credit card payments because I don't have extra money laying around and when I do, things happen, like the truck breaks down. I have been able to squirrel a tiny bit of money into our savings box, however it's still not enough to make me feel comfortable. I just feel...uneasy.

I know it will get better and someday we will be debt-free. Thanks for listening to me vent :)

I have a half day of work tomorrow, so hopefully I will get some fall decor up. We'll see!

Until tomorrow, 

Big, beautiful & broke... Chelsea

Day #55.2: Accomplishment?

Okay, I feel that I did a fairly good job at getting most of my homework done. The bulk of the work is complete. However, I still don't understand the Zoroastrian religion, but I probably NEVER will understand it. Too much of it is in another language. I will be happy next year when I no longer need any cultural enrichment courses. At any rate, this is what I accomplished today:
1. Most of my homework is done...yay! This gives me more time to work on my final project.
2. Kitchen = clean.
3. Worked on some of my DIY Christmas present tutorials. Coming soon!
4. Added some jewelry to my Etsy shop...go check it out!
5. 2 loads of laundry = done.
6. Ordered some free business cards for my Etsy shop, as well as product labels. I love Vistaprint, each month they have an array of free products and all you have to pay is shipping. I got 24 product labels and 250 business cards FREE. 

Business card preview:

I love Hooters. And by Hooters I mean Owls.

Now, I am just laying back and relaxing, while watching the Tigers play. I am trying to relax at least, because I am hoping these Tigers don't screw it up. They are playing the Chicago White Sox...and we need to beat them OR we won't go to the play-offs. We'll see how this goes.

Until tomorrow,

Big, beautiful & broke... Chelsea

Day #52.2: Friday Top Five

1. Internet Deals...

Being broke I am constantly trolling the internet to find the best deals. There's a few e-mail subscriptions I have found that I absolutely love and appreciate, especially during my time of financial issues. 

First, Pick Your Plum...each day this website posts a deal. It's usually some sort of craft supply, which of course I love! Sometimes they post jewelry, sometimes little notebooks...regardless, the items are always cute and usually 60% off. If you subscribe to their e-mail, you're more likely to get the item you want because they often sell out! I highly recommend.

Second, Brad's Deals. It's an awesome website that shows you all the internet deals. You can subscribe to the e-mail and receive awesome deals right to your inbox. The website also allows you to search to coupon codes. Love!

And third, MyHabit. MyHabit is founded by Amazon and is a private fashion sale site that offers 60% off hand-selected designer items. Also, AMAZING and sells fast! I highly recommend subscribing to the e-mail.

2. BirchBox

I finally received my BirchBox subscription invite! To learn more about BirchBox click here.

3. Love bracelet

I ordered this super cute bracelet from a shop on Etsy at the end of August. Since it ships from China, I finally received it this week. It's super cute and I am excited to find the perfect outfit to wear it with! Visit the shop here. The best part? It was only $8.99!

4. SongPop

SongPop is a very addicting Facebook game where you try to guess songs and/or artists faster than your opponent. Hubby and I started playing this week. Great homework distraction.

5. Two Days off from work so I can blog, do homework, do chores and relax! Aaah...

Before you leave, please link-up at The Grant Life!

And with Lauren!

Until later,

Big, beautiful & broke... Chelsea