Life Lately | An Update

Life has been such a whirlwind as of late. So many things seem to be occurring and coming into fruition. We seem to be in a good groove and I am alright with that. I haven't done  post like this in a long time, but as a bit of an update and some link love thrown into it....

 I am almost half way through my Whole 30, look for a post on that tomorrow.....I haven't felt this good and confident about myself in a very long time. People are starting to notice and comment and I'm only half way. I feel that is a good sign. Read my first post on my first week, if you haven't already. 

Work is in full swing as always and I'm just trying to live out a good "hustle." I've been editing photos like a crazy from a wedding the we photographed at the end of June. Any spare moment I have, during nap time, late at night: I edit. 

I've been loving the library as of late. A library card is literally one of the best things to happen to me. I can't even begin to tell you how much money I was spending on books that I would only read one time and then would fall back in place on a shelf, left untouched. The library is awesome. Currently on my nightstand, I am reading: this, this, this, and this.  I also am really into audio books and nerd up every time I am driving in my car. My current listen is this.  I read the book years ago but it's wonderful because it's read by the author and I like her vibe. How can one not love the library? My book list of things I have on hold is ever growing. I wish I had more hours in the day where I could get lost in a good book. Sometimes nap times allow me to do so but most of the time it's before I go to sleep at night. I read with the roar of the A/C in our room and the baby monitor humming next to me. 

Yesterday, we did something that we have been talking about for a long while but I never thought would actually happen. WE BOUGHT A NEW CAR!!!!! I no longer have to drive the mom mobile. The minivan was great for the years that we had it. We played a lot of shows with that car and crammed it full of music gear. I've driven Marin all over the place. I've fretted about how the van is running and whether or not it will make it to the next season. I have never in my life had a new car. My own NEW car. Dodge had some amazing deals out there and we spent the day at the car dealership. Overall, it was a great experience. I am not a big fan of dealerships but we had a great experience, albeit a long one. We drove home a new Dodge Journey, which is literally the bigger brother to my husband's car. I love it. I can't wait to go drive it today. 

That being said, I've also been researching ways to live more frugally in our lives. With a brand new car, comes a brand new car payment. We managed to get our payment in a decent range, but I need to tighten things up around here a bit. I won't be frequenting Starbucks per usual, that is for sure. Here's what I've been reading lately..... 

Keeping Our Household Budget Under $300 Monthly 

Tips on Living on Next to Nothing

Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps

Pinterest is full of ideas... 

And on a kind of related note...I found this article interesting: Take the 1000 Day Challenge!

The Numbers Are In: No Spend July

The numbers are in and No Spend July came to an end a few days ago. What I have seemed to discover in the midst of this experiment is that....wait for it.....

WE HAVE NO MONEY.

Even in the midst of behaving myself and not spending money on Amazon, going out to eat at work, or further encouraging my latte habit, I still feel like we have been taking one step forward and eight steps back financially.

Hospital bills are killing us.

In the month of July we also both had to pay for our car plates & registration. I renewed my license.

I had people clean my house for one glorious month. That has now come to an end because we just can't afford it. I'm back to scrubbing my toilets like a normal person once more. It was nice while it lasted. I will look back and remember it fondly.

To be honest, I caved a few times. I'm just going to put that out there.

One day, I bought a chicken sandwich at Chick-fil-a. I was heading home to edit a real estate photo shoot and wanted nothing more than that sandwich. And waffle fries.

On the very last day of the challenge, we went through the Starbucks drive-thru.

I also ordered two things from Amazon but will argue that they were necessary. We ordered these for the crib because of my child's gymnastic and aerobatic abilities. We also ordered this teether because times are getting rough around here. Drooly & tough.

What are we going to do moving forward?

I probably need to start couponing again or use something like this.

Still no more Amazon. JUST SAY NO.

We are going to try and start paying our mortgage bi-weekly instead of once a month. We aren't hit so hard at the beginning of the month with a mortgage payment that pretty much empties out our bank account and we freak out until Ryan gets paid on Wednesdays. It also will help us pay off our mortgage faster in the long run.

Baby steps. Maybe I should do a no spend year? 

What are some of your financial habits? 

I would love to know. 

No Spend July: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

I've decided to embark upon a season that probably seems crazy to most. For one month, the month of July, I am not going to spend any extra money. Obviously, we still need to buy groceries and diapers, and pay our bills,  but other than that....nada, zip, zilch. I've been realizing over the past few months that I spend way too much money on way too much stuff. Amazon and I are very tight friends that need some time a part. We need a "break-up" period, if you will. I should probably admit to the fact that I might have a bit of an online shopping addiction. There's so much cute baby stuff, so many new books, so many new anything and everything-s that I don't need to buy. The FEDEX and UPS guy probably know the location of my house by heart by now. That is a problem.

I know a lot of people do No Spend November, but I am doing No Spend July. Maybe I'll do November too?

It's simple. Don't spend any money except for the bare necessities. (I feel like Mogli from the Jungle Book should sing us a little tune every time I write those words.) 

WHAT IS ALLOWED: 

+ Obviously, groceries and diapers are needed.

+ We need to pay our mortgage, bills, and buy gas to get to work to pay those bills.

+ One date night out with my husband is allowed. Finding a coupon for the evening's festivities will be a must. 

+ Anything related to building my business with Doterra falls under what I can spend. I need to spend a certain amount each month to keep building my business and earning commission. Which is awesome! I have a few classes this month so I shouldn't need to dip into my spending. 

WHAT IS NOT ALLOWED: 

+ Coffeeshops. (Boo)

+ Any salon appts. (ex: manis, pedis, eye brow wax, etc, etc, etc.)

+ Nothing from Amazon

+ Nothing from Target, Ross, or any other store for that matter.

+ Eating out. Grabbing a big ol' delicious salad at Whole Foods. Then leaving after buying half of the store, ie. half of my paycheck. 

+ Etc.

+ Etc.

+ Etc.

I am ready. I need this change. I need this challenge.

I will update periodically as to how the challenge is going.

This will be a month of taking my lunch to work. Making my coffee at home. Not looking at Amazon, ever. 

I can totally do this. 

It's funny because as I have been working on this, I have seen so many ads for 50% off everything in the store, BOGO free with this purchase, and the list goes on and on. The struggle is real! 

Here are resources to help: 

+ Read about how Fun Cheap or Free buys her groceries. No coupons! 

+ Cheap or Free Date Night Ideas

+ 5 Simple Ways to Accomplish Your Financial Goals 

+ Dave Ramsey is the master of getting out of debt. Here are few of his budgeting forms. 

+ I've been using ReadyForZero to help manage my payments and get us out of debt. 

Goals for July

June. Good ol' June. I didn't accomplish nearly half of my goals for that month. Life was busy. Crazy busy. It was full of shows and anniversary celebrations. I was sick for half of it because I've been breathing in smoke from all of the fires in Colorado. I still have a pesky cough that just doesn't want to go away. I was a bad blogger. I did drink a lot of tea and read some, but that was about it. 

But, alas, here we find ourselves in July! The fourth of July is upon us. Usually once that hits, the summer flies by in the blink of an eye and I beginning preparing for fall (My favorite season of all!) I'm ready for fall already. Cooler weather is probably my main desire. That and boots, scarves, lattes, and preparing for the holidays. My favorite. I even want to try and start shopping for Christmas now. (Yes, I am striving to be one of those crazies.) 

Until that time though, I will continue to sweat like a crazy women in our un-airconditioned home and pray that it cools down long enough for us to sit in our house for a while every evening. I need some good BBQ's on the back porch. Some wine. A good book. July is promising. 

Work through this book with my man. We need it. 

Find a killer sangria recipe and enjoy it on our back porch. 

I've been brainstorming meal planning for the two us. I would like to expand upon that endeavor. Dinners together sound wonderful. 

Write my new 27 before 27 list. My birthday will be here before I know it. 

Go thrifting. I'm on the hunt for some maxi dresses/skirts.