I spent a month tracking my purchases and bills to see if there are any places I could fix. I noticed that I did have one small leak. Well, maybe two. It is at least two, if I am going to be honest here. The first is that on most mornings when I work, I would stop by a local convenience store to buy a soda, maybe two, in the morning for my work day. Was I drinking any water at work? No, I was not. I have the ability to get water to drink but I am so addicted to the soda, I just cannot seem to stop. I like to say I have slowed down in the years but as far as stopping, it has not stopped at all. So, the soda purchase was a slow leak. Once I truly looked at how often I was stopping and making a few dollar purchase at the local convenience store, it started to add up. So, this past week I bought a 12-pack of canned soda to bring to work. The price of the 12-pack was about the same price for at least 2 or 3 sodas a week but I got 12 cans to drink. I mainly brought them to work. Another thing that I was trying to do at work is to drink tea. I like Bigelow's Green Tea and found them at Harris Teeter. I will try to drink one a day so I drink something other than soda. I have also made myself drink the tea with no kind of sweetner added to it. I am not drinking green tea because it is popular but has a nice flavor and I am now able to drink it without sugar/honey/any other sweetner added to it.
The other slow leak was lunch. I get a good amount of time for lunch during work. One hour. I try to stay close by my job so I do not have to worry about shoving the food down my throat just to make it back in time to work. Even if I tried to make budget friendly choices, it was still money slowly leaking out of the bank. So, I have put money back on my McDonald's gift card and if I am going to eat out, I go to McDonald's and use the gift card. I have to remember to eat budget wise as this is the only amount I am putting on there each pay period. If I have money left over for next pay period, great! It stays on there and I keep using the card. McDonald's can get a bit much every day for lunch, five days a week. I will change it up and maybe go somewhere else or make some rice and veggies for lunch.
These are two areas I am trying to get under control right now. Once I can get these two a little better, I will definitely start finding other areas to start working on in my budget. Small leaks eat money slowly. I did not realize how much either. Luckly, I still have time to turn it around and to fix it!! It is getting better and I have got to keep working hard on my budget.
Jennifer
Friday, August 19, 2011
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Where I Buy Makeup/Skin Care
I will try to do another post on makeup/skin care but this one will take care of the two places that I buy them.
Sephora - Sephora sells a lot of different makeup lines, skin care lines, perfume, cologne and even some hair care items. The store was a bit much when I first went in there. So many different lines, different products, and I just did not know where to go first. After a few visits I found out where I could find the products I needed to get for me. A few things to keep in mind while in Sephora though - (1) Make sure you sign up for their rewards card. You get points for your purchases and then can redeem the points for trial sizes or even only products you can get with the points. (2) Try to find an associate you can trust to guide you in the right direction. I found one in my local Sephora and she has really been great. I have asked a few others and their advice has been pretty good also. (3) Samples are a good thing. If you are ever thinking of trying a new product, make sure that you can get it as a sample. (4) Try on some makeup in the store. Maybe even do a makeover in the store. This way you can try a product before you buy the product.
Ulta - Ulta is like Sephora and the local drug store had a child. You get the best of both worlds in this store. It is definitely worth strolling around Ulta to find out what you can get in the store. Here are some things to keep in mind while there - (1) They have a rewards card also. You get points for your purchases. You get a certain level points, you can them use them to get money off your purchase. (2) Check out to see if there is a salon in your Ulta. If so, check out to see what services they also offer. I have not tried this yet but definitely worth asking about. (3) You can try on some makeup in this store as well. I do not know if they do makeovers but I have found the staff to be friendly and knowledgeable about the products in the store. (4) Coupons. You can get some coupons to use in the store but there are some limitations to them. Make sure you ask about what you can and cannot use the coupons on.
Both stores can also be found online. I will give you the links to them as well. While both stores sound similar, they are a bit different. Definitely worth checking out both of them and see how you may like them both. If ever in doubt, just ask a store associate politely. I have always found that they seem very helpful.
Sephora's Website: http://www.sephora.com
Ulta's Website: http://www.ulta.com
Sephora - Sephora sells a lot of different makeup lines, skin care lines, perfume, cologne and even some hair care items. The store was a bit much when I first went in there. So many different lines, different products, and I just did not know where to go first. After a few visits I found out where I could find the products I needed to get for me. A few things to keep in mind while in Sephora though - (1) Make sure you sign up for their rewards card. You get points for your purchases and then can redeem the points for trial sizes or even only products you can get with the points. (2) Try to find an associate you can trust to guide you in the right direction. I found one in my local Sephora and she has really been great. I have asked a few others and their advice has been pretty good also. (3) Samples are a good thing. If you are ever thinking of trying a new product, make sure that you can get it as a sample. (4) Try on some makeup in the store. Maybe even do a makeover in the store. This way you can try a product before you buy the product.
Ulta - Ulta is like Sephora and the local drug store had a child. You get the best of both worlds in this store. It is definitely worth strolling around Ulta to find out what you can get in the store. Here are some things to keep in mind while there - (1) They have a rewards card also. You get points for your purchases. You get a certain level points, you can them use them to get money off your purchase. (2) Check out to see if there is a salon in your Ulta. If so, check out to see what services they also offer. I have not tried this yet but definitely worth asking about. (3) You can try on some makeup in this store as well. I do not know if they do makeovers but I have found the staff to be friendly and knowledgeable about the products in the store. (4) Coupons. You can get some coupons to use in the store but there are some limitations to them. Make sure you ask about what you can and cannot use the coupons on.
Both stores can also be found online. I will give you the links to them as well. While both stores sound similar, they are a bit different. Definitely worth checking out both of them and see how you may like them both. If ever in doubt, just ask a store associate politely. I have always found that they seem very helpful.
Sephora's Website: http://www.sephora.com
Ulta's Website: http://www.ulta.com
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Money Tracker and Technology Thoughts
I have been not doing well with tracking my month's money for last month. It is not that I have not had time, I do have time. It is just that I am using a spreadsheet application on a computer and by the time I get home, I really do not want to look at a computer for awhile. I use a computer daily at work and sometimes having some time away from the computer is nice.
But I got to thinking about computers, technology and money. I know that technology has advanced to where things now can be kept on your computer and writing things down may now seem like such a chore. However, in the case of me tracking my money, writing it down may be better for me. I can put the numbers in where they are needed on my little paper and have access to it at any time without having to access the computer. It might be easier to plug away with a handy pencil and paper.
I then started thinking of all the ways that technology is great. I can access the internet and find out all kinds of information on different subjects, visit different museum websites and even utilize the yellow pages online. Will there even be a Yellow Pages in 20 years?!
With the ability to access all this stuff, what has lacked? What I mean is, with the ability to access even our friends by social media, am I now lacking the personal interaction that comes with meeting friends at a local restaurant for a catch up meeting? Even with advances in cell phones, you can be out eating and not even talk to the person you are out with at that time. Will all of my friends be online only?
Please do not get me wrong on this though. There are some things that advances in technology has been great!! Cures for some disease, the ability to share some research, sharing of photos between professionals from two different places, and on and on. This has been great! I am all for these advances.
I hope that I can find a balance between technology and human contact. All of this due to not accessing a computer after work to track spending. Wow!
But I got to thinking about computers, technology and money. I know that technology has advanced to where things now can be kept on your computer and writing things down may now seem like such a chore. However, in the case of me tracking my money, writing it down may be better for me. I can put the numbers in where they are needed on my little paper and have access to it at any time without having to access the computer. It might be easier to plug away with a handy pencil and paper.
I then started thinking of all the ways that technology is great. I can access the internet and find out all kinds of information on different subjects, visit different museum websites and even utilize the yellow pages online. Will there even be a Yellow Pages in 20 years?!
With the ability to access all this stuff, what has lacked? What I mean is, with the ability to access even our friends by social media, am I now lacking the personal interaction that comes with meeting friends at a local restaurant for a catch up meeting? Even with advances in cell phones, you can be out eating and not even talk to the person you are out with at that time. Will all of my friends be online only?
Please do not get me wrong on this though. There are some things that advances in technology has been great!! Cures for some disease, the ability to share some research, sharing of photos between professionals from two different places, and on and on. This has been great! I am all for these advances.
I hope that I can find a balance between technology and human contact. All of this due to not accessing a computer after work to track spending. Wow!
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Gift Cards for a Budget?!
I know this will be one of many posts I will do concerning the envelope method of budgeting your money. I will try to describe it briefly and then how it relates to what I am doing with gift cards.
The envelope method of budgeting deals with getting those plain envelopes that you can get in any store and using them to budget your money. I like to mark on the fronts of the envelopes what each one was for - groceries, gas, rent, etc. I have used this method before for budgeting money and found that it worked pretty good for me. I am sure that there are others out there who use this method and absolutely LOVE it and would not change for the world. As of right now, I am not using it. My pay is twice a month and I have it set up that I can pay the major bills at the different pay times.
But there are the other small items I must budget for - gas and food/groceries. I have yet to get back into the groove of doing the envelopes as I am trying something new to help with the budget. At least it seems to almost be working with the gas for the truck I drive. If I use the truck to go back and forth to work only during the week and to church on Sunday, I can fill up my gas tank once a week. When I get my paycheck I will make sure I fill up my tank Sunday evening before having to go to work on Monday and also while I am at the gas station, I will put money on this particular store's gift card. This way, I already have money waiting for the specific purpose of gas. What money I do not use for gas stays on the card and gets carried over or I may use it for lunch one day. Lunch at a gas station? Yes, lunch at a gas station. I use a store in the area I live called Wawa for my gas. If you are not familiar with Wawa, I will post a link to their website at the end of the post. Click on the link to check out their site!! Wawa has a deli where you can order sandwiches, soups, side items and they try different things to see how they sell in the store. I remember that one time they did crab cakes and even had salads. You can get your sandwiches on hoagie rolls or sandwich bread. If you want them toasted, you got it!!
Okay!! Back to the gift card budgeting!! I really love Wawa as they have lots of stuff and could go on all day but I must restrain myself. I know that you can get the Wawa gift card and put different amounts on it. I keep enough for a tank of gas. This way, I always have gas money for me and I will not forget to budget for a second tank between pay days. I can reload it for different amounts and it can be used over and over again.
I have started wondering if this can be done for other stores? Maybe I could put grocery money on a certain big box store card and have my grocery money for the different times I am paid for the month. I know doing this for gas has helped me out a lot. It is based on the same idea as putting the money in the envelopes but the money is with me when I need it. No planned trips out or having to go home to get the money and then praying while I drive to the gas station that I make it there to get gas. No more scraping together to get the money for gas because I got hungry and went to get some food with the gas money. I have made sure that when I see the card in my wallet I only think of it for gas. I have been doing this for about a month or two now and it is working. The only down side is that if there is any left over money, I cannot get it off the card to use somewhere else. That is one thing to consider before trying out using a gift card as a budget tool. It has gotten easier to do after getting paid and I hope it stays that way.
Now, I will just have to figure out how to start definitely doing a better job at budgeting for other things. One step at a time right?
The Wawa website: http://www.wawa.com/WawaWeb/
Jennifer
The envelope method of budgeting deals with getting those plain envelopes that you can get in any store and using them to budget your money. I like to mark on the fronts of the envelopes what each one was for - groceries, gas, rent, etc. I have used this method before for budgeting money and found that it worked pretty good for me. I am sure that there are others out there who use this method and absolutely LOVE it and would not change for the world. As of right now, I am not using it. My pay is twice a month and I have it set up that I can pay the major bills at the different pay times.
But there are the other small items I must budget for - gas and food/groceries. I have yet to get back into the groove of doing the envelopes as I am trying something new to help with the budget. At least it seems to almost be working with the gas for the truck I drive. If I use the truck to go back and forth to work only during the week and to church on Sunday, I can fill up my gas tank once a week. When I get my paycheck I will make sure I fill up my tank Sunday evening before having to go to work on Monday and also while I am at the gas station, I will put money on this particular store's gift card. This way, I already have money waiting for the specific purpose of gas. What money I do not use for gas stays on the card and gets carried over or I may use it for lunch one day. Lunch at a gas station? Yes, lunch at a gas station. I use a store in the area I live called Wawa for my gas. If you are not familiar with Wawa, I will post a link to their website at the end of the post. Click on the link to check out their site!! Wawa has a deli where you can order sandwiches, soups, side items and they try different things to see how they sell in the store. I remember that one time they did crab cakes and even had salads. You can get your sandwiches on hoagie rolls or sandwich bread. If you want them toasted, you got it!!
Okay!! Back to the gift card budgeting!! I really love Wawa as they have lots of stuff and could go on all day but I must restrain myself. I know that you can get the Wawa gift card and put different amounts on it. I keep enough for a tank of gas. This way, I always have gas money for me and I will not forget to budget for a second tank between pay days. I can reload it for different amounts and it can be used over and over again.
I have started wondering if this can be done for other stores? Maybe I could put grocery money on a certain big box store card and have my grocery money for the different times I am paid for the month. I know doing this for gas has helped me out a lot. It is based on the same idea as putting the money in the envelopes but the money is with me when I need it. No planned trips out or having to go home to get the money and then praying while I drive to the gas station that I make it there to get gas. No more scraping together to get the money for gas because I got hungry and went to get some food with the gas money. I have made sure that when I see the card in my wallet I only think of it for gas. I have been doing this for about a month or two now and it is working. The only down side is that if there is any left over money, I cannot get it off the card to use somewhere else. That is one thing to consider before trying out using a gift card as a budget tool. It has gotten easier to do after getting paid and I hope it stays that way.
Now, I will just have to figure out how to start definitely doing a better job at budgeting for other things. One step at a time right?
The Wawa website: http://www.wawa.com/WawaWeb/
Jennifer
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