First week of holidays...

...went so fast.

I wish a work week went that fast :-)

It was a quiet week off. To many, a boring week off.

For me, it was restful. I did baby walks outside (10 min ones seem to be the 'safe' distance before colitis wants to play). I dusted off treadmill and walked there too. I realize how sick I was. How weak. (and even more overweight). I think of the hour or more walks I used to do and feel sad that those are not currently in my wheelhouse.

I cleaned out many of those clutter collector spots: top of fridge, junk drawer, top of my dresser. Amazing how much crap collects there.

I had to send off copies of my tax form to my colitis med provider so they will (hopefully) continue to pay for the almost $4000 a shot med.

I sat out and had coffee at my little patio and felt the breeze and heard the birds.

I got to catch up on my blog reading.

I cut our lawn, twice. I cut my mom and dad's as well. Thought I was going to pass out (refer back to incredibly weak from illness and out of shape from.............yeah anyways).

I got the oil changed in my car.

I read and read and read.

I hung laundry on the line and watched it blow in the breeze.

I talked to two of my neighbours. Not much time for more than a wave during the school year.

I started watching Nashville on Netflix.

I did NOT crack a school book.  A record for me I think.

I ate fresh fruit and veggies. If I have to stay close to the bathroom I might as well enjoy!

I drank a  ton of water.

I lost weight.

I am very appreciative of this past week.

Evolution of the Jars

I know plastic ruins a LOT of lives, but five little jar shaped pieces of plastic saved mine. Honestly.

They provided a way for me to visibly control my expenditures.

Such a gift those little plastic jars were.

I started on Money Jars in December of 2008. It was an exciting day. I had started this blog 6 months prior and was using an envelope system. I laugh hysterically when I think of what I had been putting in those 'envelopes' for each category. HUGE amounts. Unnecessary amounts. Unrealistic amounts. Nothing like deciding what was going in the envelopes before considering my income, my expenses and my goals. Such a newb!! 

but at least I tried.

But 6 months into this little budget experiment of mine, I slowly grew wiser. The jars were calling my name.

What are these jars?   Well I had been voraciously watching every episode of Gail Vaz-Oxlade's Til Debt Do Us Part. Part of her way of helping people was calculating variable expenses and putting them in jars for people to SEE how much they had (or didn't have) for the week.

The sheer simplicity of it was genius.

Here was her premise of what to do. THE JARS


My original amounts were higher than what I have now, but I don't seem to have them written down in the blog.  I had five categories back then: Gas, Entertainment, Grocery and household items, spending money and Clothing and Gifts.

Since then my dollar amounts and how I handle them have evolved slightly. Here are two instances where I actually wrote the amounts down.

June 2010

1) Food and Household - $680 a month ($170 a week)
2) Spending Money - $80 a month ($20 a week)
3) Gas/Transportation - $200 a month ($50 a week)
4) Entertainment - $160 a month ($40 a week)
5) Clothing and Gifts - $100 a month ($25 a week)

And

August 2014
Gas - $60 a week
Entertainment - $40 a week
Spending money - $20 a week
Grocery and house hold items - $220 a week

I know when I first started I had amounts that required me to get bills other than $20s. That proved to be annoying as the machines didn't cooperate and it meant my going in to the brick and mortar. So I tweaked them not long after to reflect ATM cooperative 20s.


Over time...
I used to have my Clothing and Gifts in a jar but it proved to be easier to make this an invisible 'category' in my savings and just transfer it.

My gas money increased because gas prices kept soaring.

My entertainment money was cut in half. I wasn't using it properly and that other $20 could go to a dif goal.

Grocery went down to $180 when DS1 left and I reallocated that $40 a week towards money I was transferring to him.

I found this great post in 2009 that talked about how the first month of jars went. It was interesting to go back and read it after all these years.


I have to say, I have started and stopped a ton of 'new routines' for diet, exercise, money, housekeeping...you name it. The jars is the ONLY thing that has had this longevity.

If you are thinking of starting a system to help you save, or get out of debt, DO. Whether it's jars or envelopes or online tracking. Whatever works for you. Just start! Know that adjusting your amounts or how you do it is NOT a failure. It's showing you are learning from the experience.

Just start.

After 8 years of blogging...

... yup. It's 8 years today that I was brave enough to start a little blog that I didn't expect anyone to read. It was more for me. To document. To reflect. To plan. To motivate.

It did all of those things.

And a few people read it too.

I had nothing ground breaking to share. No big successes. No advice on investments (seriously, don't ask me! I am still fuzzy on all that after 8 years). No press. No media.

Just me, and my thoughts.

So after 8 years of blogging...

• I know a LOT more than I used to, but still have so much to learn
• I haven't carried a CC balance since early 2009 - but I do have a LOC I am working on
• I still put money in jars. Not 100% of the time - but a great deal.
• I still fake a payday four times a month, since I really only get paid once a month. I dutifully go out and pull out my weekly money. It works.
• I still budget and go over numbers
• I still make mistakes
• and spend too much on my kids
• and college, don't even get me started on this (voluntary) path
• I still get rattled by upcoming expenses, but going back to my spreadsheet is soothing...reassuring.
• I still plan ahead for things like Christmas, Summer, back to school. etc
• I still look for ways to save and ask questions to avoid surprises in things like phone plan, cable bill etc
• I still suffer from poor health but keep valiantly trying to get better
• I still get sad when a favourite blog disappears, or isn't updated
• I still roll change  and cherish its zen like feelings
• I rarely charge to my CC without going home immediately and paying it off
• I rarely buy books or magazines anymore.
• I still buy the occasional lottery ticket and hope and wish
• I still keep reading your blogs and learning from your experiences
• I still read and appreciate every comment, even if I don't answer them all

I don't have a lot new to say these days, and sometimes I go quiet. But every single success I have had moneywise, little or small, owes its credit to this blog and the community I discovered, 8 years ago.

One Red Paperclip

It's just after 7 AM. It's grey skied and cool but I am out on my little patio, sipping my coffee, listening to the birds sing, and catching up on my blog reading. In my jammies!  It's glorious.

The sheer privilege of time to do this is incredible. I certainly don't get this during the school year.  I am blessed.

My summer reading is from an activity I actually did with my class in Social Studies this year.  It was one of the highlights of their year.

My actual cover is far more simple. It must be from a different edition of the book.

It's an amazing story of a young man who set out on a journey to trade one red paperclip up, and up, with a goal of trading for a house.  He quickly realized that it was NOT that final goal of a house that was the richness of the experience.....it was the journey; the story of each trade and the social (and mainstream) media that were captivated by this unique adventure.

Here is a link to the webpage for those interested. 

http://oneredpaperclip.blogspot.ca/

For many of us, it is far too easy to get our focus wrapped up in 'the end', that long away elusive goal. I know I do. As a teacher it's the next long weekend, or Christmas, or the end of the school year. As a mom of college kids, it's the next time they will come home, or I will go to them. As a woman with debt it's the next monthly paycheque.  As an obese woman it's the next time I step on that damn scale.

And when those moments come, they are not celebrated. They are not savoured. They are almost hollow.

And then the wait for the next end point begins.

Even now, in the beautiful gloriousness of this grey morning, I catch myself thinking of payday at the END of July, weighing in next Thursday, and the date my kids leave me. There is no joy in this kind of living.  I have little joy and it's all of my own creation ( or lack thereof)

Thus far, I have two favourite quotes from this book, and they both happened to be on the same page.

The first is for anyone who is looking to change something. Weight. Debt. Budget creation. The ones who stay stuck in the " I wish but I don't know how" phase. Been there.

"If you don't start, then how can you finish...It starts with a step. Just get a foot through the door and make your move. Right foot or left foot, it's your choice"

The second is for those for whom the end goal is the ONLY thing with meaning; who live a life that is missing the joy.

"If it works small, it might work big, but if you have fun along the way, it won't matter either way"

The start of summer

Yup I've been totally awol.   To give you an idea of how whirly my brain is, I didn't realize for a month that my favourite AM weather guy had moved to a Calgary station.  Miss that guy :-)

We finished school yesterday.  The first year at my new school definitely went fast. I guess that all do when you look at them in the rear view mirror.   It definitely is different in a High School than in an Elementary School. Far fewer 'events' happen at the upper end - no big track and field events, field trips, assesemblies...that sort of thing.  In a lot of ways it was nice to have so many of my year end responsibilities off my list - but I do miss the experiences. There was definitely more of a team atmosphere there - but perhaps this will grow.

It's a quiet Canada Day here. DS2 is working up north (double time and a half mom!! he said). DS1 is with his gf and her family.  They were home last weekend to visit. DS1 and DH built some shelving in the garage. To quote DS - dad and I only fought twice. That is a huge record for us.

My plans for the summer are inconsequential. No big trips planned. Just the one long weekend in August at the lake, as per usual.   I promised myself I would stay out of my school until July 25. I brought some things home that I will either do or not, but I won't let myself live there this summer, as I did in the past.  For this summer, I simply want to get healthy. rest. walk on my treadmill. drink lots of water. Hopefully my colon will heal, my knees will stop aching, my skin won't be lizard like, my head won't ache, and I won't be so exhausted 24/7. Not big goals, but vital ones. I am so tired of not living.

I am going to attempt to pull myself off milk for the month of July and see what changes that brings.

Moneywise - I have little savings goals and will continue to work against that darn debt.