January Month End- Read Without Judgment

Having started this "challenge" in the middle of the month, I entered with very low expectations, for the month of January at least. I most definitely did not think I would end with a positive cash flow, nor did I expect to break even. Nonetheless, it was still tough adding up my numbers for the month, and ending up with a cash flow of negative $300, spending $300 more than I had made this month. Not completely shocking, but an eye opener for sure. Eye openers are lessons, the lesson learned here, I must do better in February.

February's goal is to break even on cash flow, or create a positive flow if possible. Focusing on the former, in order to work my way to the latter.

To achieve this goal, I have decided to do my best to have a NO SPEND MONTH (idea found here via Pinterest). As stated on the blog linked, this does not include regular monthly bills (rent, phone, car payment, insurance, loans), or gas! Those things still get paid for, but that's it! No groceries, eating out, clothing, household items, or entertainment.

Now, you are probably wondering "no groceries, how will that work?", and this is where the "no judgment" comes in. 

On Thursday (January 29th), after estimating my income for the 30th, and looking at what still needed to be paid for this month, I realized I would only have $10 left for groceries to last me 2 weeks. In panic, I went over all of the possible options, along with their outcomes. The only true option I had was to go to the food bank. Now, some may not agree with this choice, but I honestly felt lost and without hope. The food bank was extremely generous, and everyone there was friendly and helpful. I only took what I would use/need for the next two weeks, leaving anything extra behind for those who may need it more than me. 

Once a month, to and including April, I can go in and get a hamper. The hamper includes dry goods such as pasta, cereal, snacks, and frozen meat/potatoes. These items differ each time, but it's generally the same. Twice a week I can get produce and bread. I am planning to use this option until I no longer need it. 

It took a lot of thinking and a huge swallow of pride to finally decide to go in. What made me decide and feel at ease was the fact that I promised myself I am going to donate money to the food bank when I am better off and able to. The amount of money is yet to be determined, but I am planning to keep track of the food I have received, and match that food to a dollar amount and donate that amount. I am also planning to volunteer when I have some time that I am not working. 

If anyone is in the area, and would like to donate money or time, you can visit the website and look at the options available to help them out. I'm sure anything would be greatly appreciated. 

So, for February I plan to not spend any money on groceries by using everything in my pantry, fridge, and freezer, most of which I received on Thursday. This should not be difficult at all, and will save me some money for the month! I just need to learn to be a bit creative, and less lazy, when it comes to making food. I have made an inventory list of all of the food I have, and when I need to use it by. Tomorrow I will begin working on meal plans for the month, based on the food I already have in the house. 

Wish me luck! 

First Post!

With my 21^st birthday a short 3 weeks away, I’ve made a very conscious decision to get myself out of debt, stay out of debt, and start saving as much money as possible! I’m sure this is a goal of a lot of people at the moment, after all we live in a debt filled world, where debt is encouraged. However, I have role models on both ends of the spectrum, and quite a few who are somewhere in the middle. Do I hope to get rich, fast? That would be nice, but it’s highly unrealistic. I simply want to pay off my debt, be able to live comfortably, and one day have enough money that I can travel, buy a house, raise a family, and not have to live paycheck to paycheck.

My mother is one of the most generous, loving, absolutely amazing women I've ever met, however, she lives paycheck to paycheck, and even then often has issues making ends meet. My grandfather has been my father figure since I was born. He is retired, his wife is semi-retired, and they are able to live very comfortably, they travel, and they just purchased a house! Which of these two lives would you chose? I’m aiming for the second!

With the help of this blog, I am hoping to achieve my financial goals.

Just a few days ago, I used a couple of Pinterest posts to help me form my own budgeting sheets, and started a budget binder. The sheets are extremely simple, so I'm going to share them with you! 

First is my Month at a Glance sheet, the second is my Monthly Expenses sheet. 

The Month at a Glance includes a list of categories, your goal amount to spend in that category, and the actual amount spend in the category. At the bottom there is a line for totals, your total you set as your goal to have at the end of the month, and the total you actually had left at the end of the month. My overall goal is to have every dollar in a category, so an ending total of $0, anything extra goes into savings. 

Monthly Expenses is pretty self explanatory. At the top there is Date, Amount, and Category. You list everything you spend money on, every last thing, even if bought with cash, and write the category it falls into on your month at a glance sheet. This makes adding totals easier at the end of the month! 

There you have it! The beginning of a new budget chapter.

Share your thoughts, comments, and suggestions!