TO BEGIN WITH: I began the month of October with $102 in my checking account, $18 and some coins in my wallet, a quarter tank of gas in the car and half of a tank of fuel in the truck. Not a bad way to get the month started off. I topped up my car and prepared for my trip to Minnesota. With my first paycheck I was able to pay all of our monthly bills and the mortgage payment for November. I also made all of my savings goals. My next check was much smaller due to the fact that I missed quite a bit of work while at the Mayo Clinic the first half of the month. I used all of that check to pay some of my travel expenses I used the money left over from September to fund our grocery budget.
NEXT
STEPS: I used some of my savings to
cover the balance of my travel expenses so I will want to replace that as soon
as possible. Our annual car insurance
bill is due in November and I have the money in savings to cover that in
full. Then I will be working to save up
for the next one due in 2022.
WAYS
I SAVED $$: We were super careful with
our power use, we made sure to have virtually no food waste, and we only spent
money on items we needed. I packed food
from home and took my small crockpot as well as an electric skillet to prepare
my meals at the hotel. I also had a
microwave and small refrigerator in my room.
While in Minnesota I went to the grocery store to get food a couple
times using my travel money and helped myself to the daily breakfasts offered
each morning. I was gone for 18 days and the only time I ate out was on the last day of travel coming home. I spent less that $14.
LOOKING
BACK: Despite the lower paychecks and
the added expense of my trip to Minnesota I was able to pretty much break even
which is much better than I was expecting, quite honestly.
I was blessed with gorgeous scenery
LOOKING
AHEAD: I have much more ahead of me in
the coming months and a lot to be thankful for.
I'm a little nervous, but also excited actually. With the holidays coming up we have plenty to
look forward to and I'm happy about that.
Even with all of the challenges I've had this year I know I'm a very
fortunate person and have much to be grateful for.
I'm glad to hear that you are doing so well health wise and getting some answers.Being as organized as you are sure helps to keep a lot of stress away.I was wondering if you could share some of the meal ideas you made while you were away in your slow cooker and electric skillet? That is a really good idea to keep food costs down.
ReplyDeleteI would love to. I will work on that. :)
DeleteYou are one amazing girl. Not everyone would be gone that long, and do it so thriftily! I'm betting you saved on your hotel bill, as well. Good for you. And please God, you finally get some helpful ANSWERS to put into use on your health questions. Please keep us posted.
ReplyDeleteI will Cindy. Thank you!
DeleteYou are so good at managing your money!!!! You truly think ahead.
ReplyDeleteI try hard. :o)
DeleteWow, you did great!! Very inspiring too! I love how you were able to save money on food even while you were traveling. I hope that you can get some answers and that you will be feeling better.
ReplyDeleteWishing you and your family a wonderful holiday season.
Thank you so much Kathy. :0)
DeleteHow amazing that you had a thrifty October in spite of over half the month away from home at Mayo clinic. Congratulations! I love your attitude of gratitude and positive outlook.
ReplyDeleteThank you Elaine. :-)
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