I have come to the hard, cold realization today, that having a baby means shelling out a whole lot of cash.
And let's be honest, my cash pretty much abandoned me for Italy. And tuition. And a car payment. And Salt Lake City rent. Should I keep going? Because if I do, I will just get more depressed.
So, as we watched our poor little bank account shrink and shrink over the course of January, we decided that the time had arrived to become "budget nazis."
Now, instead of going out to eat, we recreate our favorite restaurant dishes at home. Instead of dropping $100 bucks at Costco every Saturday, we bag the cart, hit up the samples (two, three, four times) and head out just $15 dollars poorer. Miraculous? We think so.
All was well for the first few weeks of February, until today. Unfortunately, an expense we weren't expecting decided to jump out at us. Now I usually adore surprises, but not when they mess up my meticulously calculated monthly budget.
So here I sit, on my green couch, in my bathrobe, feeling extremely grouchy about that stupid green stuff that is so essential to survival. I am trying (really, I am) to feel grateful for the fact that both Reece and I are employed, that we have always had enough to get by (and then some), and that we will continue to be fine, as long as we live like we are supposed to.
But seriously, how much would I love to win the lottery right now? Very much, that's how much.
Am I the only one who stresses about this stuff? Let me know I'm not alone!
(SIDENOTE: I promise to return to my chipper self tomorrow. Really.)
Monday, February 9, 2009
Grouchy Over Green...
Posted by Jessica and Reece at 2:39 PM
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12 comments:
I'll just say I feel your pain. We've been trying to escape the "paycheck-to-paycheck" mode of life since the start. We've been fortunate to have pay raises and bonuses here and there, but it's still pretty scanty. I do like how simple things are, though. I am sure I will look back on these times with fondness one day.
Hang in there...I'm sure something good will come your way. Oh, and keep that Costco membership for diapers and wipes! You will save BIG TIME.
Wait a second! Hold the phones! You made it out of Costco for $15? What did you buy? This is like that episode of The Office where they have a fire drill and wind up playing Desert Island. "If you only $15 to spend at Costco, what would you buy?" I'd die. That's the bottom line. I've never done it, and I don't know if I'm capable of it.
I hit that same brick wall today - the excitement of "I'm finally getting everything I ever wanted!!!" met "everything I ever wanted is insanely expensive and will probably cost me my job...." ouch. I feel your pain.
Jess, I hear you. I have decided that I want to build a house that we can't afford. Since then, I have applied for every game show I can think of and even sent a video of the twins to AFV in the hopes of winning that $100,000 grand prize. Talk about hoping to win the lottery!
I think we've all been experiencing the tightening of the belts since the whole economy crisis started. I know Brian and I have become really thrifty. We bought this book "America's Cheapest Family" that is chock full of amazing tips for saving money and doing a budget. I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone.
you're def not the only one. I stress about it all of the time-even when we're doing fine. I stress so much I make my husband stress which then makes him mad and then we're both in a bad mood...money is of the devil!
I know exactly how you feel, it was so stressful to figure out costs with our huge Bay Area rent and knowing I'd be staying at home, etc. etc. etc. My advice? As far as baby furniture goes, decide what items you want to keep from baby to baby, and what items you'd be okay with not being as "fancy". Our example, we "splurged" on the crib and the rocking chair, knowing we'd definitely use both for all of our kids after that. The dresser and armoire were Ikea purchases, all in white so that it'd match. Matchy match match. And be gender neutral, and I would recommend that for as much stuff as you can, stroller etc. That way, even though some things are pricier, you'll know it's a one time payment.
And...end of saga. :)
Also, just watched the Oprah episode about money saving tips. Am currently cutting coupons! WOO! One idea I might use is to unplug things I'm not using. One lady was a nazi about it, more nazi than I'll be, but she had her bill go from $260 to $63. Enough for me to go hmm...does that lamp need to be plugged in ALL the time?!? No...
I feel you Jessica. We were able to save enough money for Jason's first year of law school and, with me working, can pay all of our living expenses. But that will end after this semester. Needless to say, I am freaking out. We are in total money-saving mode!
I laughed at your Costco thing. When Jason and I lived in Provo, our cheap date night would be to go to Costco, eat the samples, and then go to the dollar theater. Talk about cheap!
Oh man, I feel ya. Jason, Adam and I live off of about $1500-$1600 a month. I currently have an unpaid balance of $500.00 dollars at Adam's daycare, which means that I avoid talking to anyone there like the plague. And Jason just cut his hours down because he needs more time to focus on his more than overwhelming classes. I am more than anxious to end the school year so I can have a school paycheck and work for a second summer job paycheck. Then we'll be living the good life.
don't worry...we can just share a plate of hummus at atlantic
Hmmm... can't say that I can relate. Casey and I are filthy rich soo... I don't really get what the stress is about.
JK! So it is for this reason alone that I still don't have any kids. I mean first there is the monthly expense of diapers and formula but then I have to by a crib, dresser, car seat, stroller, portable crib, clothes, and not to mention the medical costs of having a kid. I would like to be able to afford the essentials before we get started.
With Casey in school full time and me working full-time if we were to have a kid there wouldn't be anyone left to bring home the bacon.
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