Well, it's tuesday. Yesterday was relatively low-expense. I worked, then went to yoga. Honestly, it's the best $5 I've ever spent every time I go. Thank goodness for student pricing

In good news, the fair trade place I went to the other day was having a drawing, and I got pulled out of the hat. How's that for good karma? I get a $10 gift certificate! Woot.

Worked today, and tutored for an hour, so that's an extra $30. I hit the grocery store on my way home and spent $22.22. That's the first time I've bought groceries this month. I dont starve by any means, but I hate eating food at home that I didn't even pitch in on. So I picked up a few things we needed for the hosue, and some food for me to make dinners, breakfasts, and the like.

I'm doing some work from home tonight, so a couple more hours will be added. I may have to put off some of it til the morning, though. I'm getting really tired. Stayed up a bit too late last night. It's catching up with me.

Tomorrow I'm not sure what's going on other than working and tutoring. May or may not be hangning out with BF. It's strange that we're both so busy now. My schedule is almost as bad as his now. lol. Come the next semester it'll be even worse... sigh.

I already miss seeing him. haha. Hopefully things will ease up closer to the holidays.

Either way, I should get some work done! Hope everyone has a good night.

Well, the week has come to a close. I didn't quite make my goals for the week, but I'm not going to be too hard on myself. I had a lot going on, and I'm still transitioning into this new schedule. I unfortunately cant do everything, and it was a drill weekend. That really limited my time to do anything this weekend.

That being said, it wasn't terribly expensive either. I did buy the roomie an xmas present at the fair trade store. I managed to resist temptation and bought nothing for myself... quite a feat. I did, however, get dinner out. $7, but delicious. And spent $7 at the coffee shop... only because I got a small bag of these delicious tiramisu covered almonds... mmm.

Stayed for the poetry reading at the coffee shop, and managed to make a new friend. A girl that was at the last poetry reading. I'll be seeing her again at this thursday's poetry reading. I have to prepare for that, now that I think about it. I need to write more poetry. One more thing to throw on the laundry list of things I have to do.

Tomorrow is going to be a very busy day. Work 10:30-4:30, then clean my boss' house from 4:30-6, then yoga from 6-7:30. Finishing up the night hanging out with the BF. Hopefully getting some good sleep. I'm going to need it. Busy busy week.

I would put up my week's goals, but I dont have them yet. Perhaps in the morning. For now, it's time for sleep.

Night everyone!

So my first week of work came to a close. Everything went entirely well, and I'm looking forward to another productive week. There is some good news on the financial front:

I apparently misheard my tutoring client when we agreed on $15/hour. Apparently she said $15/half hour. So I'm actually making $30 more every week than I thought I was... Nice So in total, I'm making $80/week in tutoring alone. 3 hours of work for that much! You cant beat that.

I wrote a review of a local business that sells fair trade goods and postHaed the link on thier facebook. The woman that runs the business is fabulous, and she was incredibly happy with the article. In turn, she posted it for all to read, and said that she owed me and would return the favor somehow soon. I'm going to be in there tomorrow evening for thier 2 year anniversary celebration, so that could mean good things for me I really do love her business and the products she carries. They're pretty fabulous, and really well priced.

Had a doctor's appt today, and perscription I'm going to have every month. Luckily, the perscription is only $18 every month. 2 months of pills and the visit today cost me $74. Big ouch. Had to throw it on my CC, which was a bummer But I'll get that paid off in no time if work is going as well as it has been. I went from relatively no income to making quite a bit. It's a bit overwhelming, but also fabulous

When it works out, I'll be making $9/hr (I'm getting a raise as of next week. Go figure, right?). If we're talking a 15% tax rate (I'm going to have to save to pay taxes next year), I'll be making more like $7.65/hr. If I work 30 hours every week, that's about $230/week.

$230 Weekly salary
$80 Tutoring
$30 House Cleaning
$7 for Writing
$347 Total per week

$347x4=$1388 per month.

There's even talk of having another raise if business goes well, so I could be up to $10/hr in no time. Things are looking good over here.

If I stay with my roomates for another few months, I'll have the money for my car and laptop taken care of, and then my CC paid off in no time. Then I'll fly the nest and look for my own apt. Good stuff, for sure

So other than my medical stuff, the only spending I did today was on gas. I went through $10 in gas so quickly! Granted, my appt today was a bit far. And I've driven quite a bit in the last week. I'll have to keep track of that so I'm not spending quite so much on gas. I forgot what a big expense that could be... Ah well.

I'm playing army this weekend, and BF is going to be out of town, so it should be a super cheap few days. Very low key. As it is, I need to get going to get ready for tomorrow. Gotta love being a weekend warrior! lol. Hope everyone has a good evening!

Well, my tutoring session went well yesterday. I'm actually tutoring this girl 2 times a week, at $15/hr. So that, plus tonight's session will make an extra $50/week

So that's going well. In other income news, AC accepted 2 more of my articles, so that's another $7.02 to add to my challenge money. I published 2 articles on Examiner, and I get pay per views. I'm at $0.30, but that's not too bad given they've been up for less than 48 hours. I've got more posting to do up on social networking sites and whatnot. I'll get those up

Also working the rest of this week. It's amazing how things just kind of exploded for me. In the course of 3 days I've got a job and a car... and all these side projects!!

Goals are coming along well, but I have a lot to do today. Better get back to work!

Well, I woke up early to get some work done, so hopefully I'll be productive this morning. Yesterday was a very busy day, and I forsee today being the same.

In financial news, I forsee today being a no-spender. Well, unless I have to get gas. I'm not quite to empty yet, and likely wont be travelling far. We shall see. Other than that, however, my goal is to not spend any money.

Actually, here is a list of my goals for the day:

*Start web content for work, possibly finish.
*Finish article I started last night.
*Lengthen my article for AC and resubmit.
*Run at least 15 min.
*Read a bit more of the book I started yesterday on constructing curriculum.

I have a tutoring job on wednesday for a little boy who has been diagnosed with ADD. Not to insult the parents, but I dont really believe in ADD. They just went through a divorce and I'm sure he's having some issues adjusting (his mom believes this as well). Either way, he's obviously going to need a little extra attention and care when it comes to tutoring, and I'm trying to do my best. When I posted my ad I mentioned I have background study in child psychology (I do), and even though I'm NOT a psychologist or therapist, I feel I can use my education to maximize the effectiveness of any tutoring that I do.

I did pick up another tutoring job, but not with a 3rd grader. lol. Highschool algebra isn't going to be nearly as difficult to tutor, thankfully. But hey, that's 2 gigs in a week So I'll be tutoring algebra this evening, and 3rd grade math and reading tomorrow. I'll have a little extra income for the week. Woo!

Alrighty, well, it's time to get running! Literally... lol. I need to be more active. Especially considering I sit in front of a computer all day at work now. Need to stay active!

Everyone have a great day!

Well, for the first time ever in my life, I am a *car owner*. Woo! Very exciting time over here. I just drove it home and I couldn't be any happier! With insurance and the money that I put toward the car, I officially have $65 left in my bank account. haha. Not pretty...

The good news is, however, that today is my first day of work. So I'll be making money the remainder of the week to pay off what I owe my boss on the car, and to make up what I need for my bills for the remainder of the month. I'm not going to be spending a whole lot on anything else until December. I really cant.

One more monthly goal to knock off the list

That's about it in news Here's my new baby:

well, I put down the money to hold my car til tomorrow, and I head to the bank in the morning. By 10:00 tomorrow morning, I will have my set of wheels Very exciting. This will be the first time in almost 4 years that I have a car to drive, and the first time ever that I have a car in my name. I'm very happy with my decision, and I think it's a sound financial decision as well. I'm throwing the insurance on it tonight, so I'll be out and about come tomorrow

That's one more goal I've reached this month as of tomorrow. I evaluated my goals for last week, and I've managed to hit every single one:

*Write and submit 5 articles.
*Keep track of all my finances.
*Have 2 no-spend days.
*Pick up tutoring gig.

I'm very content with that. Hopefully I'll do as well with my goals for this coming week:

*Write and submit 6 articles.
*Keep track of all money spent/made.
*Buy a car (obviously going to happen).
*3 no-spend days.

Ideally, I should have more than 3 no-spend days, as I really shouldn't be spending ANY money for a while after I buy this car. As it is, I'm going to be struggling to pay all my bills. I have faith that I'll meet them, I just have to make some sacrifices through the rest of the month. BF and I are both working on spending less money, so having someone in it with me is great I think we'll both have a positive influence on eachother.

I start work this week, so that's pretty exciting. I'm not really going to make any money over the course of the week, as my boss fronted me $400, but I'm still excited. I feel like things are finally falling into place and I'm getting back on my feet. It's taken a few months, but I'm getting there. It's a nice feeling.

Tonight BF is taking me out to dinner at a restaurant that just opened up and my roomies say is excellent. It's a kind of celebratory thing, and will be our last hurrah before cutting out the spending really for the rest of the month. It's absolutely GORGEOUS outside, and I'm definitely going to put on a cute dress for the occasion

So wish me luck for the rest of the week! It's going to be a very busy one...

Well, my car search has come to an end. I found my new wheels today I'll be finishing up the transaction over the course of the next couple days. Have to round up some cash-- difficult with the banks closed, it may have to wait til monday morning. However, I'm very satisfied with the car. I was really only looking for something that would hold me over for the next year or so. I honestly think this will run at least for another 3. It's a 91 Corolla, with almost no problems to speak of. Mechanically, we're looking at a possible radiator leak. But it's a cheap fix that my mechanic friend is going to assist me with.

With tax and title, we're looking at $1350. Not bad. And no car payment! Insurance isn't going to run me much, and I'll have a dependable set of wheels

In other financial news, I had another no-spend day (though tomorrow will be a major purchase). For the next few weeks I'm going to be working like crazy. Between the new job, and all these articles I'm going to be writing. I guess it works out that it's the end of BF's semester, and he'll be incredibly busy. Not only that, but after buying this car I'm going to be beyond broke. So I wont be going out much!

I guess it's a good thing I made out like a bandit at this book sale at the library the other day. I know, I probably shouldn't be spending money on books. I have so many. But I left the library with about 10 books and only spent $4.50. You really cant beat that.

The goal for tonight is to write another article and submit. I have 2 processing currently. I'm still getting set up at examiner.com, but I'm pretty excited about that. Tomorrow I have quite a few articles to write, as well as some web content for work. My boss is paying me $10/page. I also have to prepare for this tutoring session I have on wednesday. And plan to stop at the nursing home one afternoon this week. Even though I'll be busy, I still have to fit my volunteering in. And I have drill next weekend. So much to do!

Either way, it's exciting times around here, and I'm pretty pumped Successes all around. I hope everyone else is feeling as productive! Have a great evening, guys!

So in good news... I got the job! I'll be working part-time hours this coming week, then moving to full time. Very exciting! I'm definitely going to be a busy girl.

Now that I've got the job, this weekend I'm getting a car. I know, I know. I've already gotten the "you cant buy a car in one weekend!" speech. And I know it's haphazard, but it's what I've got to do. I dont really have a choice in the matter. Transportation has become a must. It's now or never, kids! So I'm going to go out over the next 2 days and see what I can get. I'd ideally like to finance an older toyota or honda. Spend between $3-5k. But that's wholly dependent on whether or not I can get financing. My credit score isn't terrible... close to 700, but my debt-income ratio isn't all that great. So we'll see what I can get.

If worse comes to worse and I cant get financing, my employer is going to help me out and front me some money to buy something cheaper... closer to $1200. So we'll see what I can come up with over the next 2 days!

In other news, my application for examiner was accepted, so I'll be writing for them as well as associated content. Exciting I'm almost positive they pay better than AC, and they're much more selective, so we'll see how it pans out!

Yesterday was also a no-spend day. I wrote 2 articles. I only have one more to make 5 for the week. Excellent!

So it's time to be off! Wish me luck!

So yesterday was a *No-Spend Day* Woot! I did in fact paint grandma a b-day card, and had dinner at mom's. In other successes, I lined up a tutoring job for next week. $20/hr. Only an hour a week, but still. That's an extra $80/month! Hopefully I'll pick up more of those.

Today I clean. I have a weekly gig doing that. It pulls me in about $50/week, which is nice to have. So for being unemployed, I'm still making a bit of cash. Listening to my music and cleaning isn't a terrible time, either!

So I'm off to start my day. I hope everyone has a great one.

Well, I certainly spent more than I had intended last night... about $40 when everything was said and done. That was a few for me, a few for mom, and one for my newly dumped friend. Plus a sandwich. The rest of my week is going to be very low-key as a result. Either way, had an excellent night hanging out with my friend before he leaves and doing some karaoke

On the positive financial front, however, I've written 2 articles for associated content and applied at examiner.com. So hopefully things will prove successful on that front. I've also gotten 2 replies to my ad listed for tutoring services on craigslist. So that's also a win.

Today is my grandma's birthday. We're doing dinner and cake at mom's house. I was going to buy her a card, but I really dont feel like spending the money now. Instead, I think I'm going to make her one I just got a painting set a few weeks ago that I should attempt to use anyway. I think it'll be nice.

So I have a fun painting project to do as well

I have $5.67 in my paypal account from my last associated content payment. There were some accumulated per view payments in there (pennies, really, but every little bit counts right?). I'm putting that money toward my pseudo-$20 challenge. It's going into my vacation savings, anyway. I'm in the process of linking my new bank account with my online savings account. It'll all go there eventually.

So I've got $25.67 toward that vacation. I dont have much time to get all that money in order. So I need to start working on it. All my writing money is going to go toward that vacation for sure. I'm definitely going to keep track of how much money I'm banking on this writing. If I can make over $35 this month, I'll be happy. That's my goal there, then, I suppose

So many goals... so very little time. Guess I just have to kick it into overdrive!

Either way, time to go start my day (finally. haha). Hope everyone has a good one!

Well, it's already november. Again, I haven't been keeping up with my blog here, and consequently my wallet has been suffering. I need to be more conscious of my spending or I'm never going to meet the goals I've put out for myself.

I'm still in the process of looking for a job. I had 2 interviews about a week and a half ago, and no word yet. The one place said, however, they weren't doing any hiring for another 2 weeks. I'll have to give them a call here soon.

The army has managed to really mess up my pay. I'm still being paid active duty pay... good I guess because I'm getting a lot of money. Bad because they are in fact going to take it back... through my pay for the next year or so. I guess I can treat it like a loan. They also managed to mess up my job training scheduling so poorly that my enlistment bonus is up in the air...

So very frustrating.

So, I have no car still. And no job. These are kind of top on my priority list at the moment. The good news is that I'm getting unemployment, and I'm enrolled in classes for the spring. A shining glimmer of hope indeed

Also, my student loan payments once again get deferred as of January, so I wont be shelling out over $500/month on those... I'll focus more on paying down the CC then.

With my finances being so screwed up it's relly difficult to budget and predict what my income is going to be for this month. I guess all I can really do is attempt to spend as little as possible. The good news? There's a new boy And staying in to cuddle and watch movies costs nothing at all!

I'm going to start tracking my spending again. It seems to be the only way I curb my spending. With xmas coming up, I'm going to need the extra cash for sure. Not only that, but it looks like I'm going to have to fund my own trip out of the country this summer if I cant get that bonus money. I'm not going to depend on it. I cant, or I know I'm just going to let myself down in the end.

Xmas is going to be a rough one. I'm definitely planning on buying the new BF hockey tickets. Because he loooves the Penguins. And so do I. Therefore it's really like a present for both of us! Mom's present isn't going to cost me a dime. But she's going to love it I'm making the BFF a scarf. There'll be a few more $ on that, but nothing crazy. We'll see what happens for everyone else.

This week is a busy one. Going to do karaoke tonight with a friend who is in town. I'll probably have a couple drinks. I'm limiting myself to about $10. Tomorrow night is my grandma's b-day celebration. FREE Wednesday night is a going away celebration at an open mic. I'll have a couple drinks there as well. Thursday night is going out night. Sigh. More drinks. The good news I suppose is that I've been DD the last few times we've went out, so I drink substantially less. Much cheaper. haha.

No plans for the weekend, but I see it being rather low-key. I like that. The halloween hubbub has passed, and it's kind of a relief, though it was a great one

So enough of this blabbing. Time to go do something productive! Hope you all have a wonderful day.

Well, sat down this morning and went over the damage from the weekend and put it in the books. Yay. Not terrible... could have been worse.

My babysitting clients sent me a text this morning, I have a job lined up for saturday night. Woo! I'm making more extra cash here than I anticipated. Excellent news.

BFF's husband (my other great friend and roomate) gets home from his stint in Egypt tomorrow. Much excitement! So it's going to be an eventful week for sure. I have drill this weekend, so I wont be doing anything particularly crazy. Sunday is only going to be a half day, though, because I already went in and got my paperwork done.

Still need to head down to the university to get everything in line for January. Sometime this week, for sure.

Other than that, just talked to BF for a bit today. It's the first time this week we've really had time to talk. Things seemed to have calmed down a bit on base. He's feeling much better. A relief.

I'm off to get some dinner with the roomies, then I think we're coming back here and watching some movies I rented from the library. woo!

Hope everyone has a great night!

Well, as I should have expected, I spent a little more than I had intended at the Indian Festival on saturday. It was a really fabulous day, though. I bought 2 tunics, a yoga video, a henna tattoo (it looks excellent), and a bunch of amazing food. Got to have a girl's day. I would say it was worth every penny. And I was still under $100 for the trip in its entirety.

Not spending a whole lot this week, however. Last night went to dinner with Pop, BFF, and Bro#3. Pop covered the meal, which was incredibly nice of him. That's twice in one week, though. I'm beginning to feel like a mooch... bah.

I met with a man yesterday who posted on craigslist that he wanted someone to clean his house once a week. Took bro#3 with me for security measures, and it seems like he's not going to cut me up into little pieces, so I'm going over there today to start. Yay for odd jobs! I definitely need the cash flow, and he also runs an online radio station, which is pretty cool. Gave him a copy of my demo, so he may actually play it. Added bonus

Went to the movies last night with a good friend. His roomate is the manager at the theatre, so we got in for FREE So I got to see District 9 and pay nothing. A great deal, I must say. And the movie was awesome.

So other than that not a whole lot going on. Need to go to the unviersity tomorrow to get all my paperwork underway. Yoga tonight. Then meeting with a friend I'm having issues with so we can rehash the past... ugh. His idea, not mine. But I guess we'll see how it goes.

BFF's hubby comes home from Egypt here on wednesday, so it'll be quite the celebratory weekend. I have drill, though, so not too terribly celebratory for me haha. I can be DD...

Heard from pseudo-BF finally... something had gone down over in the big sandbox. Specifically, a black hawk, inside base. I found an article on it online, but there were no specifics, and he's not allowed to release the info. I'm just happy he's okay. There was one person that died in the crash and 12 that are hurt. I'm hoping they all recover successfully... I cant wait til he's home safe. It's hard to think of how much danger he really is in while he's over there. Sigh...

Welp, hope everyone has a great monday! I'm off to get my day started!

So I snagged a babysitting job last night, which is great. Only watched the girls for a few hours, but made $27. Not bad for last minute, out of nowhere!

Went grocery shopping during the day, and spent about $45. Could have done better, but BFF wanted to go to Marc's, so we ended up there instead of Aldi... next time for sure. Not only that, but I have to get back into the swing of things... cooking, planning meals is something I haven't done in almost 7 months. I'm so used to the military making my meals for me... and not having to pay for them. haha.

After the kids went to bed last night I hammered out my october budget. I'll post it here closer to October. Still working on my goals for october, but I think I've more or less finished my financial goals for the remainder of September:

*Dont use CC-- AT ALL.
*Get a job.
*Make at least $75 in extra income ($27 of which I already have covered).
*Minimal spending on entertainment.

I opted out of going to the bar last night, so I likely saved at least $10. Probably more... heh. I'm going on saturday to this Indian Festival in Columbus, so I've given myself $50 to work with, including meals. We'll eat breakfast before heading out. I'll probably pack a granola bar or two in my purse, and hope they have some cheap(er) food around the festival. It'll probably be better if we avoid sit-downs. And I'm sure I'll want to buy something while I'm there, so that gives me a little money to work with.

Going job hunting in a few hours with a friend of mine who is also unemployed. He has wheels, so it helps a bit. About to go on a nice 6 mile run here in a few. As my first sgt used to remind us all the time, "PT is free!" I should be keeping in shape anyway.

Not sure what the plans are for tonight. I may be going to watch my little sis play in the highschool band at the football game. Or I may just stay in. I haven't been feeling terribly social since I've been home. Not sure what that's all about, but hopefully it will pass.

Either way, time to get running! I've got quite the full schedule today. Hope everyone has a good one!

So I wrote out a list of things I needed to get done, and I've completed quite a few of them...

Had a job interview this morning, which went pretty well. It's an assistant teaching position at a childcare facility, which is fabulous. But they dont really have all that much time available. So I'll likely end up working there on a substitute basis. They're going to call me back with the hours they can guarantee. The good news about this is I'll still get the training for free, which I can use elsewhere. Not only that, but it's through the YMCA, so I'll get member benefits as well. So it's not all bad. And if they do end up needing a more permanent person, I'll already be around.

So there's that... I'm leaving here in another hour or so to go fill out job applications elsewhere. I've been searching craigslist, and emailed my resume to a couple other places. Checked my credit score for the first time in a while... 696 Not TERRIBLE, but not good either. No bad accounts, just a lot of debt, and a CC very near its limit.

I started car shopping online. I found a couple that look promising. The one is a great deal... 2007 Corolla with only 50k miles for $8k. The only problem is that it's a private seller (I'm sure the reason the price is so good), but I only really wanted to put $4-5k down.

See, I'm getting my bonus, which will be around $8500 after taxes are taken out. I wanted to use about $2k to pay off my CC, the other $1500 to throw into a short-term CD to use to go to Kenya next summer. I mean, paying for a car in cash means I wont have a car payment, but it also means I'll still be paying on my CC... which has an outrageous interest rate. So I really need to find either a cheaper car, or one that I can put less down on and make monthly payments for a couple years. Even so, I'm not looking to spend more than around $8k on a vehicle.

Bah... this is all so much. Also called the University, and left a message for the military student office... hopefully they'll call me back so I can get the ball rolling on all that. Left a couple voicemails pertaining to other things as well. So the day has seen some progress.

At any rate, time to go put some laundry away and do more of it! I'm going to attempt to seek employment, and everyone have a great day!

So... called the bank today. That was a total mess... As it turns out, the branch I opened my account at in PA was taken over by an entirely different bank, so my account is through a bank that is nowhere near Ohio... Fabulous. The only good news is that they had already mailed a debit card to my mom's, and I have checks. So at least I have access to my money.

I just have to open a new account locally and transfer everything and it's all a big mess. Sigh...

Went to my armory to get my paperwork all in order, which went well until my readiness NCO mentioned me being a 15V. I told her I was trained as a 15S, and she said, "oh. we may have some problems." Both jobs are "small helicopter mechanic," but they're different models. My unit doesn't carry the model I'm trained on. So it's looking like I'm going to be reclassed here in the near future... joy of joys.

Someone messed up and put me in the wrong school. It's bad because I'll have to go BACK to school, which means however many weeks more. The good news is that I'll be trained for 2 different jobs, which means more promotion points. And versatility. But it's another big pain... hopefully I'll know within the next month or so what's going to happen. They told me to still enroll in school, that they wouldn't pull me out in the middle of a semester for something like that. So we'll see what happens.

Other than that, the day has been pretty low-key. Phonecalls made, paid my student loan bill, rescheduled my job interview, and just continued trying to sort everything out. I'm going to my yoga class this evening, after having dinner at my mom's. Then back home to continue unpacking and hang out with the BFF.

I wanted to get a jump on the job application process, but my time spent at the armory was much longer than anticipated. I'll have to work on it tomorrow. I'll also have to go on a run tomorrow. I was bummed about not having time this morning, but my yoga class will be plenty of physical activity for today. And I certainly need it.

I've been awfully stressed out these last days home... it's hard to be back, with everything around me reminding me of the ex. Things with us are still sketchy and messy and all over the place. It's a really stressful situation. I think it's just going to take some getting used to. And time. And keeping busy.

Either way, hope everyone has a great night! I'm off to eat some ravioli!

So I made it safely home, thank goodness-- after almost missing my flight due to a bank error. Bleh. Words to the wise: if your platoon sgt tells you to wait to the last minute to get money out of the ATM to pay the cab driver to get you to the airport, do yourself a favor and just kick him in the face.

My checking account is frozen, zeroed out online for some strange reason. It says something about transfer balance for conversion, and I know they're switching systems here soon, but I have to pay my bills, and I cant if my money is locked in limbo. So I have to call them or go to the bank tomorrow. Yippie.

Other than that, my travel home was really quite painless. No terrible delays, spent a good portion of my layover chillin on a couch in the USO (those are pretty fabulous, by the way). And it was free! Didn't have to pay for a cab in the end, the flight, or my baggage (and there was a LOT of it).

Went to my storage unit to get my clothes out and pay my bill... mom was slacking. Told them I'd be out by the end of the month, so I'll get the rest of my stuff moved and I wont be paying for storage anymore woo! Thankfully the BFF has plenty of space in her house for all my crap.

We went out to dinner last night with a couple friends, which was *amazing*. And went out dancing til the wee hours of the morning, which is always a good time. It was a pretty excellent day. Well, except for the ex driving me crazy... but that's a whole different story. Sigh... I'm fairly certain men will be the death of me.

As for today? Art in the Park. The BFF is in the shower, and I'll be following, then we're off! And making dinner for her father in law tonight. His wife died a few months ago... everyone we know was really close to thier family, and it was pretty devastating to him. BFF goes over there every sunday to have dinner with him, and now I get to be part of the tradition

Other than that, no plans for today. Finish unpacking my clothes... try not to go insane... haha. We have to go get keys made for me. Party... haha.

Tomorrow I go to my unit to get all my paperwork copied and in order. Get my bonus paperwork in so it can get processed and I get *PAID*. Get my scholarship paperwork in and my GI bill rollin for the winter. I have to go to the university here soon as well, and get everything straight for school in January.

And job hunt... I need to do a whole lot of that too. There are a whole list of places I need to grab applications from. I did see my LES, and I will be getting paid on tuesday. Woo! So I'm not totally screwed for the month. It's a total relief. I just have to watch the spending. As soon as I get my bank situation under control, I'll get my budget in order and really buckle down on things.

So I'm going to go get my day started. Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend!

So it's come to my attention that I'll be back home in Ohio in less than a week. Holy crap. heh.

I've been trying to prepare for this for a while now, and each day it gets a little easier and I get a little more excited. I was dreading my return not a month ago, but I feel I'm finally ready. It's time.

Money is going to be INCREDIBLY tight until January. My grace period ended on the student loans, and I'm paying out about $400 a month until I'm enrolled back in school. The good news is once I am enrolled, my loans will be deferred again and I'll be getting my GI Bill-- with kicker. Which means the army will be giving me more or less $500/month. That's on top of paying for my school. So I'll still hold at least a part time job, and be good to go.

Until then, however, I have work to do. I'm lucky in that I'm going to be living with my best friend in her house, and she wants no rent from me. I'll secretly hide money in her pockets come November, but for the next couple months, I'll likely take advantage of that while I get back on my feet.

I'll get my bonus money within the next 2 months. After taxes that should net me somewhere around $8000. A chunk of that is going into a savings account for emergencies and my travel savings. The rest will be used to put a down payment on a car. I'll definitely need one come the wintertime. For job and school purposes. Until then, I'll be pedalling it on my bike and bumming rides.

I was looking at the local YMCA website, seeing if they had military discounts, and I went out on a whim and looked at job postings. They had a few, and I filled out the online application for the hell of it. Got a call a couple days ago from the director of the childcare department. I have a job interview the week I get back. I'm rather excited about that. I love kids, and I think I would like it a lot. I do need to discuss what I would be getting paid/hours I'd be working. At this point, however, it's nice to know I have the job hunt started. And with the way the job market is looking in Ohio these days, even if I'm getting close to minimum wage, something is better than nothing. I've got bills to pay.

Even if I dont get a very high paying job, the good news is that I get $150/month in drill pay. Not much, but it's something. And I do my fair share of babysitting. And I'll be getting back into my music once I get home, with a friend who is an exceptional guitarist. We're hoping to start playing out in the next few months. It would be great if that generated some income as well. Every little bit helps.

I'm going to post my financial goals here in the next week. I'll be posting much more often once I get home. My internet access out here is limited, so it's rather inconsistent. I also have to establish said goals, so look forward to them!

I've started doing some lightweight budgeting, but it's hard when I have no clue what my income is going to be. So it's a rough draft thus far. It's going to be pretty tight for the next couple months for sure. But I'm okay with that. Lucky for me, my friends and I do many cheap(er) things for fun... like playing board games and drinking haha. I'm definitely looking forward to spending time with my friends. Particularly my best friend. We'll call her DW, because on facebook we are technically married. haha. Her husband is actually returning from his deployment next month as well. It's going to be quite the party.

The only clear goal I have is going to Kenya next summer. I'm budgeting $2k for plane ticket and spending while I'm there (which will be minimal). If I use a chunk of my bonus money, monthly saving wont be too bad. But we'll see. I've been trying to get out of the country and see the world for a while now. I think this is my chance. I'm rather excited about it

So I think that's enough for now. Hope everyone is doing well, and I'll post again soon

So it's come to my attention that I'll be back home in Ohio in less than a week. Holy crap. heh.

I've been trying to prepare for this for a while now, and each day it gets a little easier and I get a little more excited. I was dreading my return not a month ago, but I feel I'm finally ready. It's time.

Money is going to be INCREDIBLY tight until January. My grace period ended on the student loans, and I'm paying out about $400 a month until I'm enrolled back in school. The good news is once I am enrolled, my loans will be deferred again and I'll be getting my GI Bill-- with kicker. Which means the army will be giving me more or less $500/month. That's on top of paying for my school. So I'll still hold at least a part time job, and be good to go.

Until then, however, I have work to do. I'm lucky in that I'm going to be living with my best friend in her house, and she wants no rent from me. I'll secretly hide money in her pockets come November, but for the next couple months, I'll likely take advantage of that while I get back on my feet.

I'll get my bonus money within the next 2 months. After taxes that should net me somewhere around $8000. A chunk of that is going into a savings account for emergencies and my travel savings. The rest will be used to put a down payment on a car. I'll definitely need one come the wintertime. For job and school purposes. Until then, I'll be pedalling it on my bike and bumming rides.

I was looking at the local YMCA website, seeing if they had military discounts, and I went out on a whim and looked at job postings. They had a few, and I filled out the online application for the hell of it. Got a call a couple days ago from the director of the childcare department. I have a job interview the week I get back. I'm rather excited about that. I love kids, and I think I would like it a lot. I do need to discuss what I would be getting paid/hours I'd be working. At this point, however, it's nice to know I have the job hunt started. And with the way the job market is looking in Ohio these days, even if I'm getting close to minimum wage, something is better than nothing. I've got bills to pay.

Even if I dont get a very high paying job, the good news is that I get $150/month in drill pay. Not much, but it's something. And I do my fair share of babysitting. And I'll be getting back into my music once I get home, with a friend who is an exceptional guitarist. We're hoping to start playing out in the next few months. It would be great if that generated some income as well. Every little bit helps.

I'm going to post my financial goals here in the next week. I'll be posting much more often once I get home. My internet access out here is limited, so it's rather inconsistent. I also have to establish said goals, so look forward to them!

I've started doing some lightweight budgeting, but it's hard when I have no clue what my income is going to be. So it's a rough draft thus far. It's going to be pretty tight for the next couple months for sure. But I'm okay with that. Lucky for me, my friends and I do many cheap(er) things for fun... like playing board games and drinking haha. I'm definitely looking forward to spending time with my friends. Particularly my best friend. We'll call her DW, because on facebook we are technically married. haha. Her husband is actually returning from his deployment next month as well. It's going to be quite the party.

The only clear goal I have is going to Kenya next summer. I'm budgeting $2k for plane ticket and spending while I'm there (which will be minimal). If I use a chunk of my bonus money, monthly saving wont be too bad. But we'll see. I've been trying to get out of the country and see the world for a while now. I think this is my chance. I'm rather excited about it

So I think that's enough for now. Hope everyone is doing well, and I'll post again soon

So... it's been a while... over a year, as I look at my previous entries. What the hell happened, you ask? Well. It would be silly to sum it all up in a few paragraphs, but this is what I'm going to do anyway

My last entry was October of 2008. The BF was preparing for his deployment, and things were getting hectic on the job front. I was wanting to rip my eyes out every day studying accounting. Things were monotonous and frustrating and I realized I was far from happy.

In November I decided to enlist in the Army National Guard. Big step, right? haha. I did it for a few reasons: Mostly money. A $20k bonus, $18k in student loan repayment, and unlimited options for future employment in a rather unhealthy job market seemed like a good combination of rationality to up and do it. There was also the notion that I would have something to do for the year the BF would be away in the big sandbox.

That's probably the best decision I've made in a long time. I spent a few months working at my original job at the poultry place because I quit that bartending job I had. My boss made me miserable.

The cons to joining the military: Gave up puppy... that was probably the hardest and most depressing thing I've ever done. I still miss the crap out of that dog, despite the fact that she chewed up my favorite cookbook, and peed all over the carpet... There will always be a special place in my heart for Madi.

I also broke the lease at my apartment, as no one would be living in it. All of my things are now sitting in a storage unit, and I'll be living with my bestest friend in the whole world when I get back.

Basic Training was one hell of an experience. I left on St. Patrick's Day of 2009. I finished up on my birthday at the end of May. Since, I've been in fabulous Ft. Eustis, VA. My job is probably the best part about being in the military. I work on these tiny little helicopters. I'm a mechanic, and I love every minute of it. Like, a lot. It's definitely not psychology or accounting or any of that fluff. Just straightforward wrench turning and pulling out and putting back in.

BF and I split about a month and a half ago. It's a looooooong complicated situation and I'm still incredibly bummed about the whole thing. It's been a rough time. Really rough. Long story short, he wanted the freedom to do what he pleased when he finally comes back to the states, and neither of us wanted me to be the one to hold him back from that. A relationship with such distance in the way is hard enough to maintain without one person not really having their heart in it. I miss him terribly.

I go back to Ohio in a little over 2 weeks, and I'm not ready in any way, shape, or form. I never thought I would dread returning home, but the fact of the matter is that I've had all my decisions made for me for the last 6 months, and it kind of works for me. For anyone who has been on this site since 2004, you've seen me live my life, seen me change my mind and make decisions that have totally reorganized my world time and again. It's hard to tell if the decisions I'm making these days will really be all that good for me. It's hard to trust a 5 year crazy streak...

Not only that, but I do love what I do in the Army, and I dont have a steady job waiting for me when I get home. I do have a rent-free place to stay, which takes much of the burden off, but I dont want to be a total mooch.

I will be purchasing a new car when I make my return. Haven't had one in the last 4 years. I'm pretty sure it's going to be essential to the job-getting process. That, and I get the first half of my bonus... so I'll put about $9k down and pay off the remaining balance over the course of the next 2 years. Have a warranty and a car that shouldn't break. I'm buying a Yaris. Drove BF's back before I left, loved it. It'll be a manual. Much more fun, and much cheaper. I'm pretty excited about it.

I need to find a job ASAP. I'll be attempting to find a full time tech position at my unit. Pays great and I'll be doing something I really love. I'll return to school either full or part time in January, depending on what job I find. If the tech thing doesn't work out, I'll probably go back to waitressing, and do school full time-- reaping the benefits of my GI Bill.

Other than that, things are just kind of suspended til I get home. The last month has been really crappy, and I'm hoping that getting back will get me in gear rather than make me feel more hopeless, which is what I'm dreading.

Regardless, I apologize for the depressing nature of this entry. I'm hoping that getting back in control of my finances will help me feel some amount of control over the rest of my life. I'm a single gal now, with endless possibilities. That should be exciting. Really, it's overwhelming because I have no idea what in the world I want to do.

Sigh.

At any rate, I want to say hello again to all the old friends hanging around still, and I hope to find some positive support here in my financial endevours. As always, what I intended to do didn't really end up happening, and the amount of money I saved/paid off my CC with wasn't nearly as much as I had hoped for through all this.

Time for change.

At this time, I'll let y'all move on to other entries or the activities of your everyday life, but I look forward to blogging with you all again

Hello again, friends!

It's been quite a while since I've posted a blog... I've been incredibly busy with school and work. No big suprise, I'm sure

I'm not 100% on what my last post said, but things are going alright. I still have yet to get my financial aid pushed through... have to talk to the office tomorrow. Class itself is going well, but it's tough while working full time. I've been slipping financially because of my constant motion. I grocery shopped on sunday, however, so I can stop dumping so much money at restaurants Things are getting back on track progressively as I get accustomed to this new schedule.

BF and I are doing fabulously. It's 9 months now. It's scary that he's going to be leaving for his pre-deployment training here in just a couple weeks. It's coming up so soon! That being said, the new puppy will likely be bought next month. I cant say I'm not excited. I've wanted a puppy for many years now.

Work is going alright. I'm making good money, though I'm a bit miserable working for my boss. He's turned into quite the monster over the last couple months. I need to talk to the university career center and work on getting an internship or part time job for the spring semester. It's in the works.

I put together my october budget, and I'm determined to stay on track. I never put one together for september, which would explain the casual spending left and right :/ That's what happens when I stop tracking my expenses...

At any rate, I'm going to get going. There is homework to be done! (always).

I hope everyone is doing well, and I'm happy I could pop in and give you all an update!

Have a wonderful night!

Well, I'm registered for my classes. The trick now is paying for them. This is not my favorite game, let me tell you. I'm one of the lucky random students being audited for my fafsa, so it's a mess of paperwork before I can even get evaluated for my financial aid. It'll take another 5 weeks. Because of this, I have to sign up for a payment plan, which includes a $30 fee and a $500 deposit. Argh. I'd have the money if I didn't just spend it all on my summer classes...

Soooo. I have until this coming monday to come up with the money, or I'll be slapped with a $50 late fee. Then, I have until next friday to come up with the amount plus the late fee or I get my classes dropped.

Why does it always seem like I'm racing against the clock? Or the calender, as it were.

The good news is that I think I may be able to wing it by monday. Assuming that I make semi-decent money at work in the next couple days. But then again, it is nearing the end of the week, so that may not be a possibility. We have more people on staff at the end of the week, thus more people to split tables between. Let's hope there are a lot of people out there who wanna drink at my restaurant!

In a guilty fuss I'm going to admit that I *gasp!* spent money on clothes in the last week. I was at walmart and saw plain tanks for $4 each, so I bought 2 (mine are getting kind of gross because I wear them like crazy). I was also at the consignment shop picking up the last of the profit my clothes generated (a whole $9) when I spotted a pair of american eagle jeans in my size for only $14.38. I reeeeeeaally needed another pair of jeans. Mine are all full of holes, and it's getting quite ridiculous. Thus, spending the money was well worth it. There you have it. My back to school shopping. $23-ish.

It's been a stressful week, and it seems that it's not going to get any better. I've got quite a bit of pressure on me to make some money. I have tuition and books (to the tune of $200) to cover in the next week. My credit card will be maxed out, and my EF is gone. It's times like these that make me happy that I opted to do school part-time this semester. I want to get some stuff caught up and whittled down. I hope business picks up a bit.

I was hoping to go out this weekend to celebrate the new semester, or at least mourn the last weekend I'll have free. My schedule is going to be quite hectic come next week. Here's how it stands:

Monday: Work 11-6pm. School 6:40-7:55pm.
Tuesday: School 7:45-9:00am. Work 11-6pm.
Wednesday: Work 11-6pm. School 6:40-7:55pm.
Tuesday: School 7:45-9:00am. Work 11-6pm.
Friday: Work 11-6pm.
Saturday: Class 12:00-2:40pm.
Sunday: Sweet sweet relief.

Saturday class wouldn't be so bad except it's 35 minutes away, so it's more like class from 11:15-3:30pm, which pretty much kills my saturdays. Ah well. Guess it's time to put those time managment skills to work.

It's looking like I wont meet all my goals for this month afterall, but I'm hoping I will have my classes all situated before long. That's definitely top priority.

At any rate, enough rambling. I hope everyone is doing well, and good luck to the rest of you students out there. I hope we all have a great semester!

Finally, the moment of glory has come. My summer classes are all paid off. Thus, I can go into the university and put in a form, pay a fee, and register for my classes. Things are finally coming together.

In other news, BF and I opened that joint checking account today. So we're on our way to having a system down. I'm quite thrilled. I made some stellar money this week at work, so hopefully I'll have a little to contribute to it.

I've been going a little off-budget in the last week or so. All in food and dining out. Always the culprit... However, other than that I've been really good. I just need to cook more. For someone who loves to cook as much as I do you'd think that wouldn't be a problem, but I've been spending too much on food at work again. And everywhere else.

A new week is starting soon, however, so things will get a fresh new start. I'm excited to register for my classes. I feel a bit accomplished that I've almost got everything set. It brings me closer to graduation and a job, so I'm doubly pleased

Good and bad news: BF may not be going to Iraq afterall. Good news is that he likely will not be going (at least not this year). The bad news is that he really wanted to go, so I feel bad in some respect. It would have been great for him financially, and he wanted to experience it. There is opportunity for him to go with his own unit in 2010, however. So things still may end up going down that road. In the mean time, he's got some stuff to think about in terms of what he wants to do with his future and all that.

So anyhoo. I'm going to cut this here. Too much rambling and all. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Well, it's been a little while. I cant say that there is much news outside of my boss driving me absolutely crazy at work. Last week was quite hellish. I really dont get employers who give no training and expect their new employees to be perfect at their job after only 2 weeks. It's beyond me. But, for this week, I have a job. And my boss has not threatened it yet this week (of course, it is only tuesday. haha). Let's hope he removes whatever object is stuck in his rear-end.

It's getting close to tuition time, and I have almost what I need. BF owes me a bit of money (I paid the security deposit, the stuff we got at IKEA over the weekend, groceries for the last 2 weeks, etc). He only gets paid 2 times a month, and I'd rather it all be in one lump sum. That way I cant spend it.

I'm a little concerned about how tuition will work for the fall, but I'm going to cross that bridge when I come to it. Hopefully I'll be able to get on a payment plan.

Other than that, just settling in the new place, trying not to lose my mind. You know. I made my goal of making $150 in extra income already this month. I made $106 selling books on amazon in the last couple weeks, and I babysat the other day which netted me $60. So perhaps I'll shoot for $200?

I think that's it for now. Everyone have a wonderful day!

Well, not that much on the financial front. I made really decent money yesterday, which was great. Ate dinner in last night: zuchinni and shells in chunky marinara. Mmm. BF and I were both terribly tired and ended up going to bed fairly early.

I have a couple of errands to run this morning. I need to go to the bank to make a deposit, then I have to go to the post office to send out the books I sold on amazon.

Then work til 6. Bleh. Work has been going good except my boss has been a raging jerk for the last few days. We need to call in a doctor to surgically remove the stick that's been up his *ahem*. Enough griping, however.

Tonight BF and I are going to mom's for dinner. My little brother is in town (he's been doing basic and training with the Airforce for quite a while now). I'm pretty excited to see him and hang with the fam

Well, I've got to get this day rolling. Everyone have a good one!

Well, my fiscal July is over, thus fiscal august is here. I made over $100 last night at work, so the month went out with a bang

I met all of my July goals save one: I only made $108 in additional income, so I didn't hit my $150 mark, but it still wasn't too shabby.

The same goal in August will be very easily obtained, as I have a babysitting gig, an editing gig, and sold 2 books on amazon this week. That alone will bring me up to over $100. It looks like it could be a good month

As for today, it's been somewhat of a lazy day, though I need to start stepping things up. I slept in, but also didn't get home from work until a little after 3am. Bars... bleh. Still, I have to do my grocery shopping, and then BF and I are going to go to the old apartment, get the rest of our stuff out of it, and then clean. Yippie. haha.

Still have yet to tackle that desk... I may just have to do it on my own. We'll see.

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone that commented on my last post about how BF and I are working out our finances. It makes me feel a little better about things. And to reply to BA briefly: Yes, it probably is easier to just split the bills and not bother with a joint account, but it's the act of doing it together that I think is going to really strengthen our relationship financially. Considering the rate of divorce and some of the popular rifts (financial problems being one of them), I'd like to make sure we can work together when it comes to money *before* we get married. So I'm thinking of this as a sort of beginning step to marital bliss in the future

Other than that, I have no ground-breaking news. It's going to be a very busy week, but it'll hopefully be a profitable one. I need to really step things up in the next couple weeks so I can be assured that I'll be going to class in the fall.

Wish me luck!

Everyone have a great day, I'm off to grocery shop!

Well, BF and I have had the chance to sit down and talk about some things concerning our finances. We've decided to open a joint bank account for our living expenses, and split the bills 30/70, as he makes substantially more than I do. I was really uncomfortable with this at first, but the more I think about it the more it makes sense. Besides, it will fluctuate, and who knows... there may be a time when I make more than he does, and the percentages will change accordingly.

I'm fairly excited to see how things will pan out with the joint expenses. I think it will be a good experience for both of us. I think it will help work more compromise into our relationship (not that we do poorly in that area, but still), and I also think some of my frugal budgeting hooplah will rub off on BF, and do him some good.

We got set up with renter's insurance. It's going to run us about $17/month. Not bad at all. I still need to talk through my life insurance policy with ma and see what my options are, and perhaps cancel my policy for the time being. $321/year really isn't THAT much money, but part of me would rather be investing it. But we'll see...

We're almost set in the new place, but we still need to get the desk organized. That's going to be a big project... ah well, a little at a time, I guess.

I sold 2 books on amazon, totalling about $80. Very nice. It will do wonders for the tuition payment I have to make here in a bit.

I'm not going to write out my total august budget here, but I am going to put down my goals. My fiscal august starts on monday, so here it is:

*Pay off summer classes by the 15th.
*Register for fall.
*Save up at least $100 for Kenya trip in may 09.
*Make at least $150 in additional income.
*Dont touch CC (except for paying off classes).
*Stay under budget.
*Pay off at least $150 on CC.
*No buying: Fast food, clothes, CD's, movies, or books for pleasure.

We'll see how it goes. Alrighty. Time to get ready for work. Everyone have a great day!

Well, we're getting moved into the apartment just fine. I'm loving the extra space and all the natural light. I never noticed just how dungeon-like the old place was until I had windows in every room!

I've resolved to not move again for at least another 2 years. This whole moving every year thing has gotten quite old...

There is no internet in the new place yet, so I've been doing a lot more reading at home. It's probably a blessing in disguise, considering the hours I waste away on the computer usually. I finished Suze Orman's YF&B, and it has definitely given me some things to think about. I'm going to start really planning out for my financial goals. Not just the small, short-term things, but also the longer-term things, such as retirement, buying a house, eventually owning my own business, etc.

I'm going to talk to my mom (my insurance agent) about different options on my life insurance policy. It's a variable policy, which means it does have an investment element to it, but I realize it's probably too expensive. All of the mail I recieve about the financial advisors and such makes me think I'm probably paying too much. So I'll get quotes on term life, and I'm going to look into opening a Roth IRA sometime in the next year or so. I'm going to do some shopping around for a while first. I'm assuming that a term life plan for someone as young as me isn't going to be very pricey, and I can put the difference into a Roth and probably fare better.

I'm also going to sit down and go over joint financial hooplah with BF. I like Suze's idea of having a joint bank account for living expenses. I think it'll be good for sorting through things together. Besides, I want to get out of that "his money, her money" mindset. We go out and I "let him pay" quite a bit, knowing full-well that his and my money will one day be the same, and he shouldn't be "paying for me," he should be sticking that money to something a little more useful (and we should just not go out to eat at all out of convenience).

Started my new shift at work yesterday, and I think it's going to be very successful. I'm pretty excited. I'm definitely ready to start making the big bucks.

I'm trying to get things in order for school this week. I have to call my university in PA and have them mail this university my transcript. I'm going to do the part-time thing in the fall, try and pay down my CC (that will be racked up to pay off these summer classes), and make up for it next summer by taking a few classes (that I will save up the money to pay for so I dont get stuck like I did this year).

It's almost time to do my July totals and budget for August! I cant believe how fast this summer is going by! Less than a month before school starts again... jeez. I'm looking forward to it, though I'm not going to get all hyped for fall until these summer classes are paid for. With my luck things will go awry and I'll have to put it all off. I'm hoping this is not the case, but in the event that it is, I dont want to let myself down.

Other than that, I dont think I have any real news. I'm just trying to get my mind-set in order to make the most money and get the most out of my job I can, while at the same time get my life in order and come up with a plan. It's strange to me trying to be a grown-up now. I'm trying to balance the things I love with paying off my debt, and planning for the future. It's a lot of work and most certainly a huge thing to tackle. But I'm enjoying tackling it, which is the nice part. I feel so much more responsible.

Either way, I should get going. I have more fun to have at the library before walking over to work.

Everyone have a wonderful day!

BF and I had quite a breakthrough yesterday. We're trying to get everything set to start moving next weekend (seems so close!), so we have to get all the paperwork sent in, etc. We were filling out the rental application yesterday, and there was a section where you fill in your liabilities, and how much you pay on them every month.

Up to this point, BF wouldn't tell me how much debt he had. It really bothered me, as we may potentially be getting married in the next year, and working together on money-related issues is a big deal when your married (if you're going to have a successful marriage, anyway). I want to start working together *before* we get married, so that when we eventually are, it wont be some huge change.

That being said, I got to see. I even offered to not look at it if he was uncomfortable with it, but he said it was okay. He's really embarrased about his debt, so it's not something he ever shares. With anyone. But he shared it with me, and even acknowledged that he needs a little help dealing with it. He doesn't have as much debt as I do when you talk straight numbers, but most of his is CC debt, and he has to pay the car off still.

He's convinced that once he get's back from Iraq that it wont be a problem anymore, because he'll get a check enough to pay off all his debt and then some leftover. I stressed the importance of paying them off as soon as possible, however, so he doesn't end up losing a bunch in interest in the mean time. He's trying really hard. He never uses his CC anymore, and we've been working together to save on the little things.

I feel like we're really working as a team now. It's fantastic. I think a lot of it has to do with moving-- into "our" place. In BF's eyes, I've been more or less "squatting" at his place. But he told me yesterday that he was looking forward to moving into "our" place. I can say the same, and it made me so happy to hear it from him We'll be splitting bills and really mingling finances now. haha.

It's a big step to move in with someone, I think. I've done it in the past, and it's tricky. I think it's really the closest thing to being married without actually being married. Technically BF and I have been "living together" for 3 months now, but this will be different. It's a little peice of home we're building together. I love it! But I also acknowledge that it's going to take a little bit of work and organization to get us on the same page.

I've been reading those personal finance books, and it got me thinking about financial goals. I have the basic ones: pay off debt, eventually buy a house, travel the world, retire by 60ish, have enough money to really raise a kid, put him/her through college (or at least help). I asked BF about his, and really the answers were similar. He wants to retire young (50-55), he wants to travel, he wants to have kids.

We want to raise our children in a foreign country, at least through thier teens. We definitely want to live in a foreign country. That's a huge step, and one we're going to have to think through very carefully (for obvious reasons). I want my kids to be bilingual and go to a school better than the ones you find in my area. haha. I want them to have cultural exposure, as so little people, even adults, do in the US. We've talked about how many kids we would eventually want, but he caught me off guard yesterday when he told me he wants to have as many as we can afford and raise well. He thinks we would both make great parents I hope he's right. I guess we both come from relatively big families, but I dont know about popping out more than 3! If we could split the labor maybe it would be different, but unfortunately, he doesn't have the equipment But of course, this is all a really long way off.

I just feel really good about things. School will hopefully work out. I'm putting all my savings on my CC so I can lower my interest payment on the 2nd of the month. Then I'll put basically all my tuition payment on my CC. Then we're back to square 1. I'll spend the rest of the summer trying to pay it off. Sigh. I have to admit I'm a little worried that I'm not going to be able to pay the difference. I had my can-do attitude the last time, and it got me really far (about $1500 far), but not far enough.

Falling short never feels good, so perhaps that's affecting my attitude. But this time I dont want to be caught by suprise. If I cant pay it, I'm going to take the semester off. I really dont want to do that, because I want to get this degree asap. But on the positive side, that will give me some time to get my finances in order, perhaps pay off my CC.

On another positive note, Associated Content Published 2 of my articles:

The Best Sushi in Akron, Ohio

Friends with Benefits: A Healthy Alternative

The first is a review of Sushi places in my area, the second is an unorthodox relationship piece. Total of $7.55 for both. Half of it is already in my paypal account.

In other little tidbits, I've successfully taken leftovers and not ordered food from work all week. That is to be continued today and tomorrow, saving me approx. $10 for the week. And I've been eating much healthier!

A little team victory last night: Went to mom's to cook dinner and do laundry. Mom and sis were heading to the drive-in, and we were invited to go at a really good price ($10 for both of us). However, we opted to watch movies we got from the library at home instead. Also, on the way home from mom's, we passed Taco Bell, and even at the mention of possibly getting something by BF, we opted to just go home and eat some homemade hummus and smoke the hookah

BF's foot is doing a little better, but he's still off work til tomorrow. I'm enjoying having him home!

Alright, enough rambling. I'm sorry if you read all the way through it. Must have been painful