by Mrs Money

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I realize that we’re almost two months into 2013, but I’d still like to go over our 2012 goals and recap how we did. I also need to set up some 2013 goals!

1. Set up a savings account for the baby. We opened a savings account with ING (now Capital One 360) for the baby a few months after she was born.  We put any birthday/gift money into it for her.  I need to research 529 plans and see if that is something we’d like to do.

2. Figure out life insurance. We have some life insurance though Mr. Money’s employer but should probably look into getting more.

3. Change beneficiaries.  Did this!  It was very easy once we got the baby’s social security number.

4. Make more money blogging/working from home. Looking back, this was quite a lofty goal.  I mainly focused on taking care of my high needs baby while trying to keep the house clean.  It was a little crazy.  Although I didn’t quite achieve this goal, I don’t feel one ounce of guilt about it.  I am doing what I love and couldn’t be happier.  I did watch my friend’s 10 month old daughter for a few weeks for her and it was nuts.  I did make a little extra money though.

5. Stay debt free. Yay! No new debt.

6. Finish up all house projects that need to be done. Ha. Who didn’t see this one coming?!  I can’t get any house projects done with my crazy baby.  :)  I did manage to paint our bathroom though!

7. Learn to relax and not worry so darn much. Having a baby really makes you stop and think about what really is important.  2012 was the best year of my life, and I would do it all over again in a second!  I can’t wait to watch Penny learn and grow over the years!

I do need to work on our 2013 goals and figure out what we want to accomplish.  I’m looking forward to great things!

by Mrs Money

It’s been way too long, and I owe you guys an update.

-Mr. Money got a job! He is the chef of a restaurant again, working noon to midnights, but he has benefits! It is awesome.  We are so, so thankful.  We were able to spend Thanksgiving with my family and my sister came to spend Christmas with us so that was nice.

-Penny celebrated her first birthday last month.  I cannot believe my baby is a year old!  She is now walking and babbling and busy being cute.

-I’m hoping we get a tax refund this year.  Hopefully with my lack of income and us having Penny will help.  I’m confused on how many exemptions Mr. Money should claim, so I’m trying to figure that out.

I have so many things I’d like to blog about, but it is so hard to find time when caring for a baby basically by myself.  I’m so thankful that Penny is such a joy to be with.  We spend  a lot of time at home playing with toys and hanging out.

I’ll try my hardest to update again soon! Thank you all for the support!

by Mrs Money

Obviously, with Mr. Money unemployed, we’re adopting a bare bones budget.  Here’s our budget and what we’ve done so far:

Mortgage- $793.00 (Can’t change this)
Escrow- $220.00 (Can’t change this)
Gas & Electric- $140.00- Since we budget this ourselves, we currently have a surplus.  If things get really bad I can use up all the money in our electricity account and start contributing again when Mr. Money has a job.  I’ve started line-drying all the clothes and we’ve turned the thermostat down a little.  Hopefully those two things will help.
Car Insurance- $92.00- I can shop around for quotes but since we bundle our homeowners insurance with it, I don’t know how much cheaper I can get it.
Groceries- $300.00 I cut this a lot, and it makes me sad.  I am hoping we can actually make it on $300 a  month for groceries.
Cell Phone- $43.00- Mr. Money is going to take over my phone since he’s losing his company phone.  I’ll go without until I get a prepaid.
Cable, Phone, Internet- $145.00- I’m going to call to see if we can get it cheaper.  I have to have a home phone and we need the internet so Mr. Money can search for a job.
Gas- $150.00- We cut this a lot since there isn’t a need to drive every day.
Retirement- put on hold
Savings- put on hold
Health Insurance- $240.00- we have to pay this all ourselves now each month.
Dogs- $70.00
Water Bill- $22.00

I won’t lie, I’m really scared right now.  Hopefully he will be able to start collecting unemployment soon. He had three interviews with one company last Monday but hasn’t heard anything back yet  I think I’ll be less stressed once I know we’ll have some money coming in.  I’m still trying to come up with some ideas of things I can do from home to bring in money.

It seems as though everything I can think of is already being done or just not a good idea.

I’m hoping Mr. Money will line up a good paying job with benefits soon. The unknown is so scary!

Do you see anything in our budget you think I should change?