June To-Do List Update

Here's the update on my June To-Do List.  I post a To-Do list on the side bar of my blog's homepage every month.
Let's see how ol' Sluggy did this month on her list, shall we? ;-)

* Pay Bills  DONE  
Everything got paid and on time, as per usual.

* Bike Something DONE
Well it was something.  The bike finally got set-up on June 30th and I think I biked 1 mile total for the month. lolz  I need to get use to this bike AND get my knees use to using it again as it's been 2 months. bleck.

* Declutter DONE
I used June and having Daughter and the BF here with all their stuff as an excuse to to pitch more of my own things.  Decluttering will continue into the near future as well.

* 1 Load to Salvation Army DONE

Hubs and I took 1 car load to Sallie's.  Some was Daughter's stuff too. 

Plus all that large furniture type stuff Sallie's was suppose to pick-up, we otherwise got rid of in town by giving it away to those who wanted/needed it.

* Read 1 Book DONE
I didn't finish the book yet as I only read at night before bed and it's a thick book.  I am more than halfway done with it so will have to find another one to read by next month.

*  Plant Something DONE

We finally got a dozen tomato plants and 2 zucchini plants mid June into the ground.  That's the extent of our garden for this season.  I just put in stuff that the chipmunks and rabbits will leave alone as we couldn't come up with a way to keep them out of this area without going to Herculean efforts and spending a large sum of cash.
This is how the plants are doing as of June 30th.....still smallish but looking healthy and they all have blooms on them already.  Perhaps we will get some veggies from them eventually.

* 1 Doc Appointment DONE
Had my every 3 year pap smear done in June.  All my lady parts are well and in good working order.  Yes, I felt you needed that critical update. lolz

* Vacuum and Shampoo Bedroom Carpet DONE

Cobwebs also cleaned up, room cleared out and a/c unit put into window.  The room was ready with days to spare.

* Clean Ceiling Fans in Bedrooms DONE
With assistance from College Boy we got this done.  He is taller......

* Put Shelving in Bathroom DONE

Got the shelving moved to the bathroom, scrubbed down and vinyl liner  sheets put into it.  It is now filled up to the brim with their personal care products so it's not all just piled under the sink cabinet in the dark.

* Buy/Replace Ceiling Fan/Light in Kitchen PARTIALLY DONE

It has been purchased but is still in a box sitting in the kitchen waiting for the weekend when the menfolk will be here and available to install it.  It will be so nice to again have lights over the kitchen table. 8-)
It has been soooo long!

* Clean and Seal Deck DONE

It finally got done the weekend before July 4th! rah!!!  Though I didn't personally do this chore I did have a large hand in the nagging/pleading/begging for it to be done.

* Clean Out Shed FAIL
I DID drag out two old bicycles to give away and a bike helmet to toss while Hubs was at work but the bulk of the shed still needs cleaning/clearing out.  The shed is Hubs "kingdom" and I dare not go there, so I am left with begging/pleading/nagging about it.  Besides just finally getting it cleared out of all the junk in there we need a place to put a large car jack and other car type items the BF brought with him so we aren't tripping over them in the garage.  If for no other reason, making space for BF's "manly" stuff is a reason to tackle this job.
I don't know.....if Hubs isn't careful Daughter and I might just decide to get in the shed and "have at it" one of these days.......

So there you have it an almost perfectly completed June To-Do list.  But then again, it wasn't very extensive or strenuous, was it?
And I had help with some of the items on it.

I think the fact that I stayed sane in June and am not a stark raving lunatic at this point indicates I survived June well and am doing AOK.
On ward and upward to July!

How did you do with your To-Do list for June?

Sluggy

Cracker Deal at Weis

There is a good deal this week at Weis(PMITA)Markets on Nabisco crackers thanks to a coupon and a Checkout 51 rebate.

Weis has various Nabisco crackers and cookies on sale for 3 for $6(Must buy in multiples of 3).

Pair that sale price with a Buy Two/Get One Free coupon for some of these varieties of Nabisco products at SmartSource dotcom.  Print 2 coupons and buy 6 boxes.
*Pay attention because some of the varieties on sale for $2 aren't valid for the B2G1Free coupon though.

And then apply for a Checkout 51 Rebate of $2.50 off when you buy 2 Nabisco products(no size specified).  Apply for 3 of these rebates(there is a limit of 5 rebates)to earn $7.50 back.

Here's what the deal looks like.....

Buy 6 boxes of crackers and/or cookies=$12.00
Use 2 B2G1Free Coupons $12-$4=$8.00
Upload your receipt and claim 3 Checkout 51 Rebates for $7.50

6 boxes of crackers/cookies after sale/coupon/rebates will cost you .50¢ OOP.

And that's what I did........

Only the cashier put the regular price of the crackers on the coupons, so she took $3.69 off for each coupon instead of the sale price of $2.00.
This meant after all is said and done Weis(PMITA)Markets actually paid me $2.88 to bring 6 boxes of crackers home.
Go me. 8-)))

This sale at Weis ends on Wednesday so you have 1+ day to get there and do it.

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

It's the "Happy Fourth" Edition.............

We had a low key July 4th cookout here.  Just burgers, dogs and 3 sides(grilled corn, pasta salad and homemade baked beans)plus dessert(an apple pie on sale from the store with an ice cream topped option and homemade strawberry shortcake).

I smoked those 3 small pork shoulder roasts on Sunday and will finish them off in the crock pot later this week for a barbecue pulled pork dinner one night.

Moving on......

Onward to the meal planning!

Here's what was planned last week--

1. Sunday--Leftovers or FFY
2. Monday--Spaghetti with Meatballs and Sausage(using leftover sauce and sausage too)
3. Tuesday--Italian Chicken Thighs and Potatoes, Collards
4. Wednesday--Cheese or Pork Enchiladas, Spanich Rice
5. Thursday--Salmon(breaded fish for BF), Mac & Cheese, Veggie TBD
6. Friday--Pizza, Salad
7. Saturday--Leftovers

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--Hubs & I had Subway(2 others working, 1 fended for themselves)
2. Monday--Spaghetti with Meatballs and Sausage(using leftover sauce and sausage too)
3. Tuesday--Italian Chicken Thighs and Potatoes, Collards
4. Wednesday--Cheese & Pork Enchiladas, Spanich Rice
5. Thursday--Pizza take-out(special 1 day deal)and nobody wanted a salad lolz
6. Friday--Salmon(breaded fish for BF & CB), homemad Mac & Cheese, Roasted Brussels Sprouts
7. Saturday--Leftovers(I had a Pimiento Cheese Sandwich and Salad)

5 meals cooked at home, 1 of them nights of leftovers and 2 nights of take-out.

As for my grocery spending..... I spent a total of $160.21 on 2 trips to the stores. $52.75 of that went onto June's budget and $107.46 went onto July's budget, meaning I have $342.54 left of my $450 food budget with 26 days to go in the month.


Leftovers going into this week.......Risotto, Stuffing, Sausage/Meatballs and Spaghetti Sauce, Spaghetti, Spanish Rice.  The leftover enchilada sauce and chicken stock went into the freezer for another time.

Here is this week's "food plan"--

1. Sunday--Leftovers or FFY
2. Monday--Cook-Out Foods
3. Tuesday--Chicken Parmesan, leftover Risotto(for those who want it), Salad
4. Wednesday--Pork BBQ, Cole Slaw, Buns, leftover Cook-Out sides
5. Thursday--Meatloaf, Sugar Snap Peas, leftover stuffing(for those who want it)
6. Friday--Shrimp Dish(Shrimp and Grits or Garlic Ginger Shrimp Stir-Fry or Shrimp Scampi)
7. Saturday--Leftovers

This week will see 5 new meals cooked and 2 nights of Leftovers.
I plan to use up the leftover Risotto, Stuffing in dinners.  The Rest will be lunch fodder or eaten on leftover nights(hopefully).


What I need to buy for this menu.....cabbage, corn, hot dogs(we are out!), hamburger buns, maybe fresh stir-fry veggies.

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?

Sluggy

Happy Fourth!

 Vote Yes, Vote Yes, Vote for Independency..........


Enjoy this live production of "1776".
This musical should be mandatory viewing every July 4th.

This show speaks to me as a few of my ancestors are depicted in it. ;-)

I especially like the number which was cut from the movie version(due to objection by then sitting President Richard Nixon)called "Cool Cool Considerate Men".

Sluggy

2016 $38K Savings Challenge.....June Update

Every year I keep a close eye on our monthly expenses and our monthly income.

Our income is mainly the salary my Hubs draws from his job.  We have money taken off each paycheck from the top to put into savings, before we even get our hands on it.  This money that's taken goes into various pots....life insurance, health insurance premiums, long term care insurance premiums, investments and retirement savings.  It's automatic so we are never tempted to NOT put it into savings or these other categories.

Once the automatic savings amounts, plus taxes and medical/dental/vision premiums are taken out, it leaves what we get to "live on".  From this amount we budget for bills, both monthly and irregular bills(semi-annual, annual etc.) and our variable bills(like food, eating out, clothing  etc.)  Anything left over once our monthly expenses are paid, I put aside into an interest bearing Savings Challenge account.

For 2016 I am continuing my Yearly Savings Challenge.  I am raising the Goal amount to $40,000 this year, $10K more than my goal for last year.

I have reconsidered and changed my Goal from $40K to $38K for 2016.  With some things coming down the pike this year I thought it prudent to back up my Goal a couple of thousand.  8-)

On to the June report.....

I have posted my June End of Month $38K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

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 $3,166.66.

I have to report that we finished up June with a less than stellar amount.
The extra amount we ended the month of June with?.......$1962.66

Income

We had $1734.33 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted.

Other monies received in June totaled $228.33.  This included interest made on non-retirement accounts, a per diem and stock dividends.

This brought us to our gain of $1,962.66
Since we have no debt, this goes into savings.

Outgo

As for the expenses this June, here are the good and the bad side of things....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges, electric bill and internet were approximately the same as last month(With $1 or so).
*  The cash withdrawals were down $100 from last month.  Considering we took $500 in cash on our LA trip and we didn't go anywhere this month but had more food spending, that sounds about right.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  Water use was up $21.35 from last month.  More people's laundry and showers so it was expected.
*  The gas card spending was up $111.89, mostly due to charging gas on the May trip to that card.
*  The credit card bill was up $1948.10 from last month.  Most of that was trip spending in May.
*  The direct medical spending was up $110.65 from May's total.
*  We "recycled" 2 tvs in June and had to pay $60 OOP in fees.

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

With 6 month accounted for, our Savings Challenge Grand Total for 2016 is $19,399.50.

Final thoughts on June---

June was a fairly expensive month for us, given all that credit card/trip spending.  Some regular expenses went up too and will be up for a couple years into the future.
No irregular bills due this month, that happens next month.

But compared to June 2015 we put $593.29 more into savings this June. 8-)
.
We have $19399.50 saved so far in 2016, and we have only $18,600.50 left to save over the next 6 months at this point to reach our goal of $38K saved.  That averages out to $3100.08 a month for the rest of the year.  We are just a little over saving half of what I want in 2016 so we are right on target at this point in the year.

We are at the halfway mark for the year folks!  I can't believe the year is half over.

In 2015 we put $18,797.36 into savings at the halfway mark so we are averaging slightly more saved per month in 2016 so far.

THOUGHTS going forward into July----
The only irregular bill I have to pay in July is a quarterly Garbage bill and that's not much.
August and September will be my Bill Armageddon however.(House and car insurance AND property taxes.)
There may be a short trip in July which will mean some c/c spending to pay in August. Our c/c balance due in July is hovering at $1K($550 of which is a car repair...ugh) so that bill will be a bit less this month that what it was in June(over $2500).

So how was your June financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in June?
Did you stay within your budget or not?
What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?
Did you pay off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

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

As we go forward into the last half of 2016 why not make this year the one were you clean up your finances and pay off your debts.
Plan to set something aside if you don't already now or increase what you bank now for your future self.
Or pay extra on the principle of your mortgage is your house isn't already paid off.

Live below your means and keep some change for a rainy day....because no matter how sunny it is in your life now, dark clouds come along and you'll be glad you have that umbrella to keep you dry.

Sluggy