Starting the New Year off Right!

So that bonus from work…

I was stoked! We've decided to become as debt free as possible going into the New Year. This will be made possible due to a number of factors. First, here's the lowdown on our debt. I've not posted this before, because it's rather humiliating, but here it is:

700 (on BFs amex)

1400 (on interest free card)

1200 (on Shell card - note that a lot of this is normal Dec. budgeted items, but there were definitely some unbudgeted expenses too)

0.00 on Chase card (yay!)

So. BF got a freelance job over xmas, which paid 700 (or will pay within the next two weeks). And that totally wipes out the AMEX.

The Shell card will be down to about 200 after I use our regular Dec. $ to pay it off, plus some extra which I "borrowed" from my "extra" paycheck. I was originally putting it towards my car insurance. But… I'd rather get the credit cards wiped out. Honestly. I mean, the interest rate for the car insurance is like negligible. And it's not due for another 6-8 weeks anyway. I can pay it off entirely in January.

I'm using 1,000 from my bonus towards the interest free card. Which leaves 400. I can have that paid off by March. The interest doesn't pick up until June/July so that will be gone before that.

I'm uber relieved.

I was thinking of just paying off the entire card with my bonus, but then I decided that we should really enjoy some of it. Particularly, because we haven't had any "fun" money in years. So, with the remaining 500, we hit up the outlets back east! We got two pairs of designer jeans (one for me, one for bf) for 80 bucks TOTAL. I got two cashmere sweaters from JCrew for 100 bucks TOTAL. This is exciting because we got both for less than the cost of one at full price (sweaters and jeans). I got two polar fleece jackets for 17 bucks each. A spaghetti portion measurer for just 4 bucks, and a pastry mat for 14. Good deals! The rest of the money is being saved in our joint account. We have a silent/live auction we're attending in late January, so now we'll have money to bid on a few items. The rest will be saved and we can use it for Valentines day. I think that was a pretty good use of the money. I still need new clothes, but these, plus my Christmas loot will get me pretty far. I'm pleased.

And BF's freelance prospects are looking good. He has a job in a few weeks that we know of, plus this new company he's freelancing for will likely give him lots of things (hopefully!). I'm trying to think positively now that we have a lot of monkey's off our backs. We're nowhere near where I'd like to be, but we're definitely making progress.

Christmas Recap!

Well, Christmas was fantastic! We spent it with BF's family on the East Coast, got a lot of wonderful presents, tons of time with our family and friends and a blizzard to boot!

Here's what I ended up getting (a bit attention whoreish, but I think it's fun to see what other people got!)

- 1,500 Bonus from work! This was totally unexpected, but it's going to save my ass this year. More on that in another post!

- Gift cards galore (pretty generous amounts too: Victorias Secret, Crate and Barrel, Williams Sonoma, Panera, Cheesecake Factory and UGG)

- A new watch/clothes/a necklace/Vera Bradley wallet

- A new crockpot (!), 4 Weight Watcher cookbooks (which are amazing, we've already used them a bunch!)

- A pasta maker attachment for my Kitchen Aid stand mixer (can't WAIT to use this!) and a ravioli stamp

- The entire book series of Harry Potter (the British Editions!)

- My plane ticket out there (boyfriends mom is uber generous!)

- And I'm probably forgetting a ton of other stuff!

We're still deciding what to get with the WS and CB cards. We really want a Le Cruset dutch oven. But… we'd have to kick in about half to get it, so we're not sure. But it's definitely on our list! Not to mention a waffle maker… so many options! And a ton of stuff that we will probably get at CB including a new bread loaf pan, a new cookie sheet, wire cooling racks, etc. So exciting!

BF and I did stocking stuffers this year, with a 100 limit. Here's what he got me: A snuggie (one of the really nice ones from Brookstone, which is ten times nicer than the original!), a back massager, a pasty rolling/baking mat, a slap chop (but the OXO one), a cake tester, VS gift card, lots of delish chocolates… and I honestly cant' remember what else!

Before I go back to work Monday we want to hit up some stores and make use of our gift cards! We'll be eating at Cheesecake Factory for dinner tonight (our NYE tradition!). It's been a great holiday, despite the lack of sleep, temperature change and all that which led to my coming home with a full blown cold yesterday. Ugh! I'm trying to overload my system on sleep and Emergen-C, although I suspect the NYE festivities tonight will hinder that.

Is this my reality?

I added up all the monies I want to save in categories this coming year (ie: car insurance, emergency fund, investments, IRAs, etc.) and determined that I in no way shape or form, can meet all of them. Or really, any of them. And it sucks.

When I started this blog, it was because I wanted to get serious about money. One of my very first goals was to save 10k in an emergency fund. I am no closer to that goal today. And it's depressing. Sometimes I think, that maybe I'm never going to be financially sound. Maybe I'll always be treading water. What a terrible thought. I know money doesn't "buy" happiness. But I know for SURE that I would be happier if I had some bank.

Our financials suck. There, I said it. The Shell card will be paid off by the end of the month, but then we've got two to go. BF's Amex, and my 0% card (until July). Total: about 2 grand. Not a horrific number, but not manageable (it seems). And I'm having serious doubts about our ability to pay them off (this coming year). My dental payments are 190 a month. I've been paying 300, quite frankly because it's all I can do to pay THAT. This month, I'm paying the minimum and putting the rest towards the credit card. We were supposed to be debt free next month. Now I'm beginning to wonder if we'll ever see the light at the end of the tunnel. My car insurance is due in February. 1400 (ish). I was going to use my "extra" paycheck this month for that. But so far, I've only been able to save 330. The rest, I decided was probably better served on my credit card payments. And the only way I can pay my Shell card off this month? Is on the assumption that I get an xmas bonus this year. Pretty pathetic.

HOW DID I GET HERE?

As you can probably guess, BF's job is no more. :-( He actually quit. It was a very toxic office, and it was seriously detrimental to his health (not only did he put on about 10 pounds, he was more stressed out than I've ever seen him. Picture if you will: The Devil Wears Prada. And then multiply by two. Not joking). I'm glad he did it. He's glad he did it. We discussed it to DEATH and decided that it was the right thing to do. The funny thing is, the person they hired to replace him quit after a week. A WEEK. That just goes to show how crappy the environment there was. But it still sucks, financially. We were able to make some headway, yes. But I do wish that in retrospect, I'd put ALL of that money in savings. It would make me feel much better at the moment.

So, he's actually doing well, and making some headway on a career path that he's passionate about. This time of year, between Thanksgiving and New Years is a slow one for his industry, so he's doing all he can to get work. He's done freelance work here and there. And he's waiting to hear back from a freelance job after the holidays. That's what he ultimately wants to be. A freelance writer. And he can do it, but it scares me. I could NEVER be a freelancer. I rather like knowing where my money is coming from. But I support him in this endeavor, and hopefully it will work out for the best.

But it's still depressing as fuck to look back at where I started, and where I am now, and see that really, nothing has changed.