December Giveaway #1.....Come Enter!

This is the ninth Sluggy's Boring Blog Box Giveaway for the year.
December is here and the Holidays are here!  This box includes some Winter/Christmas themed items as well as the always popular-chocolate!
Come on and enter.
Somebody has to win and it might just be YOU!

Here is what you can win if your entry is picked.

1 x Colgate mouthwash
1 x L'Oreal total repair shampoo
1 x Simple face scrub
1 x Secret women's deodorant(cherry scent)
1 x Noxzema razors
1 x Snow Babies trinket box
1 x Lindt white peppermint chocolate bar
1 x Oral-B toothbrush
1 x Boyds Bears Christmas bear in stocking
1 x Haribo cola gummies
1 x Scotch pop-up tape holder
1 x Rite-Aid gift tape
1 x Scunci hair ties
2 x Maybelline Eye Studio eye shadow duos(Carbon/Frost & Tantalizing Teal)
13 x Lindt chocolate Truffles


Over $80 in regular retail of goodies.

Closeup shots of the goodies up for grabs......

I'll leave this giveaway open until Sunday, December 17th, at 11:59pm Eastern Time, so that gives everyone 12 days to enter this one.  On December 18th  I'll mark all the valid entries and use Random dotorg to pick a number and that corresponding person's entry wins.

*Please note the rules*
I'll post the name/Id of the winner on this blog and that person has 48 hours from then to contact me privately via email(my email addy is listed on my "About Me" page).
If I am not contacted via email I'll attempt to contact the winner via the email they supply with their entry and if that email is not responded to within another 48 hours I'll pick another winner.

There are three ways to enter--1 Daily and 2 One-Time Only........

1. Leave a comment every day.

2. Be a follower of this Blog(Hit the "Follow" button on the right hand side bar.) Let me know if your comment for this entry the name you follow under to verify.  You can do this entry once.

3. Post on your own blog(or on your Facebook page)about the Giveaway and leave a link in your comment/entry to where I can find it.  You can do this entry once.
In your Daily Entry tell me in your comment......something like what here is the thing in the box you most would like to win, what food is a MUST to have on Christmas or Hanukkah, what's the one thing you want for Christmas or Hanukkah and/or how big is your Christmas or Hanukkah gathering, if you have one.

Disclaimer--This giveaway is open to those with mailing addresses within the US only.
As the cost of postage to foreign countries has gotten to high I am sorry to say I can no longer afford to mail boxes outside the US.  These giveaways are not sponsored by any companies, I pay for it all(cost of items given away and the postage to mail it all)out of my own pocket.

***PLEASE NOTE***

Please make sure there is a way for me to contact you in your comment.

If you're not a registered Blogger User with your contact information on your User page, please put your email addy in your comment or email me your email addy privately when you leave a comment so I can get a hold of you. If your Blogger associated user profile is a GOOGLE one with those Google Circles nonsense I CAN NOT CONTACT YOU as Google Circles doesn't show your contact info.

If I can't contact you then you can't win.  I am still having to disqualify entries due to this issue and I sure don't like doing that.  Thanks!

So let's get this started!

Sluggy

To-Do List Outcome.....November Update

Here's my November To-Do List and what got done and what didn't.......

* Pay Bills  DONE  Always first on my list of things to get done. All paid early or on time.

* Read 1, 2 Books  DONE  I read two of the books in the "The #1 Ladies Detective Agency" Series.  

They are a quick read but fun so I may hunt for some more in the Series at the Library next year.
And I also got halfway through this one before November ended.

As I am a history nut, this one is riveting!

*  Puppy to Vet for Shots   DONE

And he was NOT too happy about that!  Poor little guy yelped something awful. This mommy thinks it's because they wouldn't let me go back and hold him for the shot. 8-(

*  Get Giveaway Boxes Ready  DONE  

I gathered a bunch of my mostly Rite-Aid freebies and 6 mailing boxes and made up Giveaway Boxes for the next 6 months.  They are ready to go one per month at least until May 2018 as long as the little bit of blog revenue continues to roll in so I can afford to mail them all.  ;-)

*  Sell Stuff  DONE  While I wasn't able to sell anything on the local tag sale site I did get 8 things listed on eBay in November and sold $207.99 worth of goods.  

*  Make Motel Reservations  DONE  I made advance motel reservations for Hubs "rescue" mission using certain loyalty cards we have for two different chains to save a few dollars and earn some points toward future rewards.

*  Hold Giveaway  DONE

* Mail Giveaway  DONE  And I have it on good authority that the chocolates were the first things to be removed and "disposed" of. lolz

*  Declutter  DONE  Unpacking my dishware from the garage led to more decluttering of said dishware, which led to other things leaving the house as well.

*  Load to Sallie's  DONE  

Just some of what got carted off.  

A total of 24 more items left Chez Sluggy.

*  Clean Bathrooms  DONE  And just in the nick of time before Thanksgiving company arrived.

*  Change out Wardrobe  DONE...sort of  I got the Winter stuff out but there are some not-Winter stuff I didn't put away yet.  I'm calling this mostly done.

*  Unpack Dishes in Garage  DONE

Dishes are now residing in the Dining Room in the buffet.

*  Move Dishes in Kitchen  DONE  As part of the organizing dishes the ones hiding in the cabinets over the stove were moved to the new Buffet.  I put some items for the kids and things I can't display but want to keep in those inaccessible cabinets over the stove.

*  Get Blood Work Done  DONE  I got stuck and all the tests came back with good results. Yay me!

*  Pick-up College Boy  DONE

*  Turkey Day!  DONE  And it was yummy.

*  Take College Boy back  DONE 

And we got to see him again this past weekend.


*  Put Furniture together  DONE

With much gnashing of teeth and choice words it got done.  I am under pain of death orders NEVER to order furniture that has to be put together again. lolz

So we  basically got everything done that was on my list-a rare occurrence indeed!
Onward and upward to December's To-Do List.

What did you get done in November?


Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "The Relief That It's Over" Edition--

After Hubs got home late Friday night, he returned the cargo van Saturday morning, and then we drove up to school to see College Boy's Senior Recital.
I'll share photos of that in the coming weeks.  Here's a shot of College Boy afterwards, when we took him out to dinner.  He was just so glad that recital pressure was off and 1 more week of classes and just 2 finals and his semester(and basically his college career)is over.  This semester has kicked his ass he says.  There was some partying done on Saturday night after we left I hear tell.  But by Sunday afternoon he was feeling nostalgic for being in school and said he'd miss most of it. lolz

Moving On....

Onward to the meal planning!

Here's what was planned last week--

1. Sunday--Beef/Broccoli/Mushroom Stir-Fry, Jasmine Rice

2. Monday--Leftover Chicken Thighs, leftover Thanksgiving sides, Stuffed Mushrooms

3. Tuesday--French Bread Pizza, Salad

4. Wednesday--Chinese Take-out

5. Thursday--?
6. Friday--?
7. Saturday--?

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--Beef/Broccoli/Mushroom Stir-Fry, Jasmine Rice

2. Monday--Leftover Chicken Thighs, leftover Thanksgiving sides

3. Tuesday--Primo Hoagies for 2(Daughter paid)

4. Wednesday--Fend for Yourself

5. Thursday--Leftover Stir-Fry, Rice
6. Friday--Chinese Take-Out for 2(I paid)
7. Saturday--Eating Out after recital(3 at Perkins)

Daughter wasn't feeling French Bread pizza so we shoved that loaf into the freezer to use another week.  She was feeling Chinese(isn't she always?)and take-out Subs so I little variation from the plan.

Last week saw 1 night of home cooked dinners, 3 nights of leftovers/fend for yourself, 2 nights of take-out and 1 night of Eating out.
Weis was the only store I shopped at last week and the bill came to $49.85.  That brings December's food spending to $49.85.  There are 27 more days in my shopping month.

My savings percentages last week was 51.79% and the monthly savings so far ends up at 51.79%(without Rite-Aid trips added in).

Leftovers going into this week.......Thanksgiving side dishes(Mashed Taters, Stuffing, Carrots)and 4 rolls.  The rest of the stuffing is going into the freezer for later and we'll incorporate the other side dishes into this week's menu.

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

1. Sunday--Fresh Mushroom Soup, French Bread

2. Monday--Mushroom Stroganof, over Leftover Mashed Taters, Asparagus

3. Tuesday--Sloppy Joe, Rolls, Carrots

4. Wednesday--Tacos

5. Thursday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Caesar Salad
6. Friday--Leftovers
7. Saturday--Leftovers

This week will see 5 new meals cooked, 2 nights of leftovers, 0 nights of Take-out.  I went to Maines Restaurant Supply on Sunday(bill goes on next Monday's grocery spending)and they had a shopping cart of 12 oz. packages of whole mushrooms for .50¢ each.  I guess they overestimated the demand for Thanksgiving. lolz   So I bought 5 more boxes to go with the 1 I had leftover still from Turkey Day so the front end of this week will be heavy with mushroom dishes w/out meat.  ;-)

The only thing I need to buy to make these meals is some iceberg lettuce and milk.  We are also out of cream cheese and I plan on picking up a few loss leaders this week(besides the Maines trip).

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

Income & Spending Report.....November Update

* As Hubs retired effective July 1, I am no longer doing my 2017 Savings Challenge.
We ended that on June 30th.  The goal was $17.5K saved for the half of 2017 that Hubs was working.
We actually saved $21,100.42 all totaled, so $3600.42 over goal!

Now that we are living on an annuity and 401K$(no 401K$ until October)I am still going to keep track of our monthly spending and income, and hopefully we'll still be able to live BELOW our means and I'll have some leftover monies each month to tuck aside.
But this money leftover at the end of each month, at least for now(as we find our new financial "normal")won't be saved toward a yearly Savings Challenge.

The issue now is to cover all the bills with just the annuity payment each month plus some liquid savings(checking account cash)until October.
October is when Hubs turns 59.5 and then we can access the 401K retirement savings.  Until then things will be tight here at Chez Sluggy, so all the leftover monthly cash will get tucked aside to pay irregular bills that will be popping up for the rest of the year.

Got it?
OK, let's move on.

Though nothing will be put toward it the rest of 2017(probably), the 2017 $17.5K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals are still available
Check out the Savings Challenge page tab at the top of the blog for the specific numbers HERE.

On to the November report--
I had 2 goals for November......
The 1st is to actually finish the month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to try to have a little cash leftover at the end of the previous month to apply toward irregular bills that are coming due in subsequent months.

I have to report that we finished up November in the black.
The extra amount we ended the month of November with?.......$4007.15

Income

The income in November was the monthly annuity payment,the healthcare account reimbursement and the October overage of $3454.25 that carried over.  I also had interest on non-retirement accounts and a blogging revenue check in November and brought us to $8855.11 of total income.  Expenses(including funding the Sinking Fund)came to $4847.96.

This brought us to our gain of $4007.15  If you deduct the overage from previous months that carried over into November and the Healthcare payment and reimbursement from the euqation, this means we spent $97.11 LESS than what we brought in in November for the annuity payment only.  So far we are doing ok without accessing the 401K account.

Since we have no debt, this November overage will get put aside to apply to the irregular bills coming due in December(of which there are none due that month)and then rolled over into 2018 to pay either $3K HDHP costs or property taxes that are due near the beginning of the year.  Plus we have to take a chunk out of this overage to pay for the "rescue mission" costs.

Outgo

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

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges and internet were approximately the same as last month(Within $1 or so).
*  The gas card bill was $12.54 lower than last month.
*  The cash WAM withdrawals were $165.00 lower than in October(extra WAM was taken out in October but I don't recall why/what for).
*  After paying the semi-annual car insurance the Sinking Fund carries over at $366.74 into December.

HERE are the BAD THING

*  The water bill was $5.44 higher than in September.
*  The electric bill was $53.67 higher than last month's bill.
*  The credit card bill was $757.10 more than October's bill(mostly furniture purchase).
*  The car insurance was due(paid for out of the Sinking Fund).
*  A dental bill was due and paid in November.
*  We had to pay the November health insurance premium of $1771.94.

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

So we end November in the black with $4007.15 to apply to irregular bills going into 2018.
Plus the Sinking Fund goes into December standing at $366.74.

FINAL THOUGHTS on November---It was a pretty good month financially, even with buying the buffet......until Hubs had to go on his "rescue mission" to IL.  This will impact our December bills as the charges were put on the credit card.  Just a few extra bills in November so we didn't have to dip into the 401K yet.


THOUGHTS going forward into December of 2017----

Electric usage(and thus costs)will rise this month.
Food spending shouldn't be over $400(even though it's Christmas this month).
Most of the usual bills will be about what November's levels were.
But the credit card bill will be higher than usual, not because of Christmas spending but because of the "rescue" mission we bankrolled.  Thankfully we are not traveling anywhere for Christmas which would have added charges to the c/c.
We are just trying to hold a line on the bills and not have to access the 401K account until 2018.

So how was your November financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in November?
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!

I hope this year was the one were you cleaned up your finances and paid off your debts.
That you planned to set something aside if you didn't already or increased what you banked now for your future self.
Or paid extra on the principle of your mortgage if 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

Net Worth......December 1st Update

We have gone from acquisition mode with money into spend-down mode since we are now officially retired here at Chez Sluggy.

Our Net Worth will no longer be growing(well that's what I thought going into this phase)so I have to stay on top of what we have and where it sits.
I shared where we keep out money and why in the first Post-Retirement Net Worth post HERE.

So here is how the money did in November......

* Checking Account #1 Went down by $2081.35(life is expensive sometimes)
* Checking Account #2  Went up $86.87(monthly interest & blogging revenue)
* Savings Account  Went down $1.00(monthly fee)
* Online Accounts  Went down $620.22(monthly interest was a lot less than the withdrawals to buy gift cards)
* Certificate of Deposit  Went up $253.69(interest)
* US Savings Bonds  Went up $5.00(interest)
* Cash on Hand  Went up $87
* 401K Account  Went up $2,146.27(monthly interest) We didn't have to tap it in November so it just grew. 8-)
* HSA Account  Stayed the same.  Again we didn't have to tap this account for medical expenses.
* RMSA Account  Went down $1342.46.  The interest earned on this account offset the healthcare premium reimbursement amount by $429.48 so it didn't go down as much as it might have.

Overall we are $1771.94 down from October's Net Worth.  Between the interest on all accounts and income received, weighed against our spending last month,  our holdings sank by the amount of our healthcare premium in November.
Decreasing our wealth holdings is the norm in full retirement but we didn't lose much ground last month so I'll take that as a win.

I am by no means a financial expert but I'll readily share what worked for us on our financial journey if you have questions.

Did you increase your net worth last month?
Do you have a retirement plan in place?

Sluggy