At the beginning of December I paid all of our monthly bills
before they were due. I also paid the mortgage
two weeks early as I have been doing for almost a year and a half now. Just paying the mortgage a half month early
saves me interest and it will really add up in the long run.
I paid a full year of insurance for the new car. In doing so my insurance company offers an
additional discount. If I paid semi
annually, quarterly or monthly payments not only would I miss out on the
discount but I'd also be charged a service fee each time I made a payment.
I received my annual Christmas bonus at work and have put that in
savings for the time being.
Despite some extra expenses this month, Christmas and otherwise, I
still made all of my financial and savings goals. I was thrilled to pay off one of my larger
debts in full. I had been working
diligently on it all year.
I kept grocery and personal spending in check. Since I had already finished my Christmas
shopping in November I didn't need to worry about that. I did, however, need to get the girls new
school shoes. Thankfully I found a
wonderful sale.
I bought one tank of gas this month and used my rewards card to
save an extra 10¢ a gallon. Since I
didn't buy a whole lot at Fred Meyer this month I did two store surveys to add
bonus points to my card.
I went through all the cabinets, drawers, freezers and the pantry
so I know what I have and then I made a list of the items I feel I will need in
the coming year. I also started a
grocery list for next month. Short-term
planning for the future helps me to stay on top of things and seek out the best
prices for the things we need. My goal
is to spend as little as I can on the things we need.
I am ready to take 2016 on by storm. I have new goals and big plans.
