$20K Savings Challenge Report for JULY 2012

Ok, here is my JULY Savings Challenge Update post for 2012.

This post is NOT about bragging or showing off.  It's just what we are able to save given our income and being able to hang tough against "unconscious" spending.

Just to update, My Savings Goal for the Year in 2012 is $20,000.  It's well below what I've saved in previous years I know.  But we also have a goal of paying for 4 home improvement projects at Chez Sluggy this year.  We plan on cash-flowing these projects with the additional money we save and/or our income tax refund. 
Our background info--We are a family of 5(kids are 21-16)with one living away from home.  We have 2 dogs. We own 3 cars at present and live in/own free & clear a 4 bedroom house in a small town.

On to the July report.....

I have posted my JULY End of Month $20K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the side bar to your right for the specific numbers.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $1,666.67.

I have to report that we finished up July in the black!
The extra cash amount we ended the month of July with?.......$1641.83.

Income
We had $1639.44 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.
Add in $2.39 in interest income(HAHAHAHAHA!) and  you get a total of $1641.83.

Outgo
The usual along with a couple of large irregular bills......1 expected and 1 out of the ordinary.

As for the expenses this July......

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

* The water bill decreased by $30+.

* The electric bill decreased by $21+.

* The credit card bill decreased by $702.
* The cash withdrawals went down $1170.....even with that they were high!

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  Home owner's insurance was due, but expected. $596.

*  Bill came in for the Minivan from last month's repairs. $1496.68.

The Food Budget costs for JULY are in another post, which is located HERE.

YEAR-TO-DATE GRAND TOTAL.....
With 7 month behind us, our Savings Grand Total for 2012 is $15,613.23.

We missed our monthly goal in July by $24.84. Since June's savings but us ahead for the year, I am not sweating a shortfall of $25 in July.

With 7 months done, we should be at $11,666.69  saved for the year, so we are $3946.54 ahead for the year as of now!

In the next 2 months we have largish irregular expenses coming due.
August is semi-annual car insurance at about $1500.
September is school taxes about another $1950.

They are irregular because they don't come every month....like the water or electric bill.  But two things about irregular bills--
1.They are usually for large amounts(due to the fact that they don't come round every month).
2. You KNOW THEY ARE COMING!  Yep, every year....so don't stick your head in the sand and ignore them.  Plan for them. Set a 12th of their amount aside each month so that when the due date rolls around, you have the money saved up to pay them in full.

We may actually get a break with our car insurance.  #1 Son is buying himself a car.  Since it will be in his name, he will need to have his own insurance policy, therefore we can have him taken off of our policy.  We tired to tell him that with our driving records, ages and the fact we get multiple discounts on our coverage, he's better off putting the car in our name and staying on our policy, and just paying us the extra it costs us to cover him and his car.

But 21 year old men want to feel virile and independent I guess, and paying through the nose for their own policy must be a testosterone inducing manly thing.  

But what do I know....... ;-)

At this point, I need to come up with $4386.77 for the rest of the year to make my $20K goal.  This breaks down to $877.35 per month for the next 5 months.


As for a look ahead at AUGUST.....
* Car insurance due.
* No celebrations here, no parties, just Boring McBorington at Chez Sluggy.

So how was your July financially?
Did you spend less than you made?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
How much did you save in July?

 Even if it doesn't look like a lot of money, figure out what percentage of your income you saved.  You might feel that it's a more substantial amount in those terms!

We saved 28.74% of our take home income in July.  My goal is to shoot for 50% each month. If we hadn't had that car repair bill, we could have achieved saving 55% of the take-home income. 
Dang that car repair bill! lol

Leave a comment and share with us what you did with your money, both the good and not-so good.
Did you have debt you were able to pay on?
Did you pay off a car, a house or a credit card?
Did something financial blow up on you last month?
What are you doing financially to change your life?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check you out too!

Sluggy

My Crush is Gone

I was saddened to hear this morning that composer Marvin Hamlisch had died at 68.

He was a much lauded American composer.  He is only one of two people who have ever been awarded Emmys, Grammys, Oscars and a Tony Award, as well as the Pulitzer Prize.(Richard Rodgers was the other person.)  Marvin also won 2 Golden Globe Awards.

If you went to the movies you may not recognize his name but you'd recognize his work.
Like this one.....



Or this one.....



Or follow this LINK to a medley of his hits.


But this is how I remember Marvin.....


Back in 1975, when I was a 16 year old high school student who was working toward a career in the Theater and dreamed of making it to Broadway, Marvin Hamlisch was a god.
"A Chorus Line" had hit the boards and it was the biggest thing in the Art World.  It single handedly revitalized a dying Musical Theater industry.

Marvin Hamlisch was everywhere in the media.  A constant guest on Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show along with every other talk-type show.

He was twice my age but I thought he was about the sexiest thing on two legs.  I guess my "type" of man at 16 was an older Jewish geeky looking man with glasses and an unglamorous name.

But I'll tell you, there is nothing sexier about a man as what is between his ears.
This is my words of wisdom for all you young people out there who lust after all those hard bodied hotties.

This man was talented!  From what I ever saw, he was genuine and a class act.  He also had a great sense of humor.

And it didn't hurt that he looked mighty fine in a tux back in the day.....

Marvin occupied many a nightime dream of my 16 year old self.
I know this is too much information but I had this recurring dream that I went to New York and auditioned for a show and Marvin was playing piano accompaniment for the auditioners, including me.
He saw and heard me and fell in love with me, whisking me away into his world of theater, art, and the New York society world and we would have a torrid love affair.

I guess you know that things didn't quite work out that way for me. ;-)


Here's an interview with Marvin about his Audition at 6 to Julliard Music School.


 And here is some more Marvin love in an interview I found online. (It's about a 1/2 hour long, but worth it if you have the time.)





R.I.P. Mr. Marvin Hamlisch


Sluggy

It Changed My Life!.....Seriously.....

Dear Anonymous Blog Writer Who I Follow & Read,

I am so glad you decided to go to a Blogging Conference.
Really....I am!
I hope you had a blast.
And I already know that you did!

Because, between me and you, THAT is the point of attending a Blogging Conference.
Spending all that money to spend a long weekend away from home with other Bloggers is just an excuse for having a party.
The only people who actually make money from Blogging Conferences are the people who are in the business of setting up and running conferences.

I know, I know.....you will defend your choice to go by saying that it's "important" for your Blog.....
That you are learning so much from your fellow Bloggers......
That you are "connecting" with corporations......
That you are getting "your brand" out there for all to see.....
That you are treating your blog as a "business".....

But let's get real here.
Unless your blog really is a "business"......meaning you make enough income off of it to support yourself.
Unless you really learn something that will benefit me as your reader?
You are going on vacation.

I really don't care that much about your conference experience.
I don't want to hear how you agonized over every article of clothing you brought to find the perfect ensemble so you could go whore yourself for swag or get stinking drunk with your bloggy friends at the after party in the hotel suite.

I don't want to hear about the ridiculous spread of food and the ice carvings.
I don't want to hear about the corporate booths full of mousepads, t-shirts, samples of products, hats, etc. etc. etc. and how much flirting, smiling, cleavage, fake enthusiasm & interest, etc. you had to show those corporate stooges in order to haul a suitcase home bulging with freebies that just add to the materialistic waste stream we are already drowning in in this country.

Losing your dignity over a sample free roll of Charmin is NOT empowering to women.

Constant Tweets for 3 days and multiple posts about how FABULOUS it is to be there and LOOK AT ME! in Yet another Photograph with these other tipsy, smiling Bloggers just makes me want to hurl and block you into eternity.

So next time........and I DO KNOW there will be a next time because you are an attention junkie.......go spend your money(as long as you aren't in debt and you don't pay for the trip with credit)and have a great time!
When you get home, write ONE POST complete with links, photographs and your profound words about how this 3 Days have "changed my life".
One Post.
So that if I don't give a rat's ass about Blogging Parties I can easily scroll past it and we can get on with our online relationship.

Sincerely,

Your Reader(for now)


Sluggy

Food Spending August Week 1 & Meal Planning Week 2

Ain't it the truth.....

*****************************
And here is the "meal plan" that actually happened last week.....

Sunday--BBQ Chicken, Collard Greens

Monday--Hamburger Helper type casserole, Pickles

Tuesday--Leftovers/Fend For Yourself

Wednesday--Subway Sandwiches

Thursday--KFC, Mashed Potatoes, Coleslaw, Biscuits

Friday--Leftovers/Fend For Yourself

Saturday--Fried Fish, Yellow Squash, Coleslaw

I cooked 3 meals at home last week.  Hubs and I got a sandwich on Wed. since no one else was home, I didn't see the point of cooking a big meal in the heat.  KFC was our splurge/eating out for the week.  It gave us 2 full meals worth for $21.

#2 Son wasn't home for dinner Mon.-Fri. due to band.

The weekly food spending was $119.98 done in 2 trips to Weis and 1 trip to the local Shursave Market. I had a $5 WYS $50 Q for Shursave so I bought ice cream, milk, carrots, 2 types of fruit, deli meat, 2 loaves of bread, tartar sauce, 6 jars of spaghetti sauce, 6 bottles of salad dressing and 2 boxes of tea bags.

The last few items were part of a Spend $20/Get $7 Catalina Q Unilever Deal.  The 2 trips to Weis to do the Purina Dog Food and the Nestle Deals.   The Purina Deal didn't produce the Catalina so I got a $10 gift card which I promptly forgot to use for the Nestle Deal. doh!  I did receive the $5 Cat for the Nestle Deal.  Between the 2 stores I have $12 in Cats and a $10 Gift Card to spend on future free food in the coming weeks.

Besides the Cat Deals at Weis I picked up some cheap chicken cutlets, pork ribs, some steaks and some reduced bakery muffins.

I have $280.02 left of my $400 food budget for August.

Going into the new week I have the following leftovers to use up......nothing at all.

***********************

This week's menu.....

Sunday--Chicken Parmesan, Spaghetti, Green Beans

Monday--Meatloaf, Squash Casserole

Tuesday--Tuna Helper, Tossed Salad

Wednesday--Chicken in the Crockpot, Stir-fry Veggies

Thursday--Tacos or Taco Salad

Friday--Pizza, Salad

Saturday--Leftovers

I have squash and green beans to use from the garden this week.  

We are suppose to have some cooler days this week so I'll be turning on the oven 1 or 2 nights(2 nights if I make a homemade pizza instead of using one of these gift cards I have for a couple of pizza places around here).  I'll make enough meatloaf for leftovers.

What I need to buy this week to serve this menu?..... lettuce.  Also more lunch  meat, fruit, eggs, yogurt and milk for non-dinner needs.   This should be a light week for groceries.  I'm figuring $30 for all.

So what's on deck for your menu this week?

Sluggy

"Finally Frugal and Happy" Blog & Judy UPDATE

I finally heard back from Judy last night via email.
She is ok first off.  She isn't sick or anything.

She IS dealing with some "personal family issues" which necessitated her shutting down her blog again.
I'm not at liberty to go into the details but trust me, she had to!

Between work and these personal issues she hasn't even had time to bop around and read/comment on the blog of anyone else either.
Is her blog gone for good?......not sure.
This is just how it is with Judy for now.

If anyone wishes to contact her, feel free to email me a message and I'll send it on, or leave a comment on this post and I'll tell her to get her rear over here and read them.

It saddens me and makes me angry to see her going through the crap she told me about that I can't share.

I think Judy could use a little encouragement for all of us right about now so leave her some love if ya can!

Sluggy