Financial Tips Installment #2--Setting Up a Budget

This is by no means the ONLY way to set up a budget.  It's just how I do it.  I've played around with a bunch of budgets over the years and this seems to be the best method for us.

I set up a budget for every pay period.  There are a few reasons why I do this: (a) I can look at the calendar and see potential money traps (i.e. birthday parties, date nights, etc.) a lot easier if there are only two weeks to look at (b) If something unexpected comes up (like tires or medical expenses) then it doesn't ruin my entire budget for the month and (c) because I'm a micromanager like that.

So each pay period, I open up my excel spreadsheet and enter my figures. 

I have the month-at-a glance on the left.  Then the two pay periods.  Each bill is split exactly in half so that the financial burden doesn't fall on one paycheck.  Presents and dining out are grouped under miscellaneous.  The 0 in column H is the amount left over at the end of the check minus all the estimated expensives.  Whatever is in there is then put on the debt we're trying to pay off BEFORE we start spending that check's money.

My next task is to calculate  how much we overspent the pay period before (column I).  Obviously, most of our expenses are set amounts every month, but there's a lot of room for overspending in groceries, gasoline, and miscellaneous.

At the end of the two pay periods for that month, I then calculate the amount we overspent in those key areas, slap my wrists and go on to the next month.

Over time, I have found that if I *see* how much we've overspent the previous month, I'm a little more mindful of what I'm spending in the future.

I use Quicken to put in all our transactions.  This connects automatically to my bank account and downloads the information so I don't even have to enter it in by hand.  Very smooth.  While it has a lot of cool features on it to do budgets and savings goals and what not, it's a little busy on the screen, hence the excel spreadsheet.

So here's my advice:

Set up a budget however you think your family will benefit the most.  Some people have one check a month designated for mandatory expenses (mortgage, cars, utilities, etc.) and the other check for discretionary expenses.  Some are only paid once a month which has it's pros and cons.  Whatever works for you, set it up.

Next, follow it religiously for the first couple of months, checking in a couple times a week at least, to see if you're still on track.

As you get into your groove, you'll eventually get to where you don't have to check your budget every day to make sure you're still on target.

Re-evaluate your budget every quarter to make sure that it's doing what you want it to do for your finances.

What's For Dinner Wednesday--Lasagna

The hardest thing about lasagna is making it, right?  And homemade lasagna is so much better than that frozen crap you get out of the grocer's freezer, right?  But you have to put in the time.  There's no getting out of putting in the time, but lo and behold I found a recipe that eliminates some of the time involved by using uncooked noodles.  Another good recipe from the Amish.

Man, I'm loving the Amish.

As before, since there's only 2 1/2 of us that eat,  I halved the recipe.  However, I'll give it to you in all it's glory just in case you're ever in the market for a HUGE pan of lasagna.

3 pounds hamburger (Wade and I switched 100% over to ground turkey about 4 years ago, so I used ground turkey)
2 large onions, chopped (didn't have those on hand--again--so minced-onions-in-a-jar)
4 small cans of tomato paste
8 cans water
4 tsp garlic powder
6 tsp basil
salt
4 packages mild Cheddar cheese (I thought the cheddar cheese would be weird, but it wasn't at all.  Also, 4 packages would be a bit much.  I shredded up about 6 oz.  I would say 8 oz would be totally fine.)
2 large containers cottage cheese (I don't like cottage cheese, so I used Ricotta cheese instead)
Parmesan cheese (I just shook some in.  Maybe 1/2 cup?)
Lasagna noodles, uncooked.

Brown hamburger (or turkey) and onions together.  Mix in tomato paste, water, garlic powder, basil and salt and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to simmer for 1 hour.  (I covered it because I didn't want it to dry out.)

Mix Cheddar cheese, cottage (ricotta) cheese and Parmesan cheese together.  In pan, put small amount of hamburger (turkey) mixture then a layer of noodles, then a layer of cheese mixture.  Next, put a large amount of sauce, a layer of noodles, a little more sauce, and cheese.

Basically just layer it until (a) you run out of room or (b) you run out of stuff to layer it with.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Overall, I thought it was a great meal.  Next  time, I'm going to sneak some spinach in there.  And perhaps serve it with something instead of just the lasagna.  Like a salad or some bread.  But multitasking really isn't my thing.  So lasagna this time.  Lasagna and salad next time.

Baby steps, people.  Baby steps.

Spiritual Thought Sunday--Shutting Your Trap

Nature has given us two ears, two eyes,
and but one tongue-to the end that we
should hear and see more than we speak.
Socrates (BC 469-399)

My Father, The Spy

A few years ago--wow! seven years next month!--my niece was born at 23 weeks.  She weighed 1 pound 2 ounces and stayed in the hospital for six months.  She was released in September under strict guidelines that she not be allowed out in public until the end of RSV season (around April).  My brother and his wife did not take her out of their house for six months except to visit the doctor's.

Both of  my parents' birthdays are at the end of March and my brother thought it would be a nice present--especially for my mom--to surprise her at her house with my niece.  We set this elaborate plan into motion.  How to hold a dinner party at my mom's house without her knowing.  My father's only task was to secure dinner.

In hindsight, I know realize that perhaps this was the worse assignment to give my father.

But, we all arrived that Sunday afternoon and my mom was overjoyed to see her grandbaby.  Then I asked where dad was.

"At the post office."  My mom replied.

"The post office?  That was the best thing he could come up with to get away and secure dinner?  The post office on a SUNDAY?"

And exactly why didn't my mom question this when he left for the post office?  Did he often go to the "post office" on Sunday?

It was then that I realized that perhaps there's more to my dad then what meets the eye.

I grew up not really knowing what my dad does for a living.  Still, to this day, I'm not entirely sure what he does on a day-to-day basis.  When I ask him, he just replies that he's working on military communication.  He's an electrical engineer--I think.  At least that's what I've always categorized him as and that's what (he says) his degree is in.  He's never said anything to make me think otherwise.

However, there are a few things that don't add up.  Like, he might be the worse liar under the sun.  And he needs weird things like anti-static shoes, GPS-enabled watches, and backpacks and hiking boots to carry equipment onto submarines. In Korea.  Also, boat shoes for Germany.

Which only points to one thing--he's a spy.  With a lot of shoes.

For the record, I've confronted him with these allegations and he's neither denied nor admitted to their truthfulness.

Which, of course, is an admission of it's own.

We--as a family--have been joking around for the last few years that perhaps he really is a spy.  A couple of summers ago, my mom went to the spy museum in Washington D.C. with a friend of hers.  Francie made a comment--having no idea that we were on the same wavelength--about my dad being a spy.

Weird.

Growing up, we always went to weird places off the beaten track where my dad insisted on walking 10 feet ahead of us and mumbling in German.  And he's always checking his Blackberry when we're out at restaurants.

Belatedly, I realize that perhaps I blew his cover when I joined Toastmasters.  However, he's played it really cool.  Only missing a few meetings.

Now, it's the first thing that pops into my head.

Mom:  Why do you think your father wants a GPS-enabled watch?

Me: Because he's tired of asking for directions when he parachutes into the forested lands of Germany.

Mom:  Ah.  Well, that makes sense.

If I go missing soon, I guess we'll know the answer.

Proud Mama Moments

• Josh is starting to read.  Like full-on reading.  I've been a little hesitant in nurturing this because what else does he have to learn in kindergarten?  However, he's ready and it's really cute to watch him try to sound out the words.  It's also really aggravating.  Bedtime story time was once 10 minutes.  Now it's like 30. 
• Aunika took 10 steps yesterday.  Unaided.  So, yeah, she's nearing 15 months old and still refuses to walk, but she's SO close.  Which is, actually, really scary because then she'll be impossible to catch.
• I ran into the store the other day while my mom sat with the kids in the car and when I came back, Josh had learned a new trick: How to spell Mississippi.  Why Mississippi, I'm not sure, since I rarely use that word in any conversation nor do I need to know how to spell it for any document I might be filling out.  But, pretty impressive for a four year old.  Best part is that two weeks later, he still knows how to spell it.
• We plopped Aunika on the toilet a few times last week, and Viola!  Success!  However, since she can't walk, it's pretty useless to try potty training her right now.  That, and I don't think she really got the idea.  But perhaps, by 18 months?  
• Josh has figured out how to bathe himself (with soap even) and get out of the tub and get himself into pajamas.  That makes me doubly happy.
• I heard Aunika say "Hi, dada" yesterday.  Nevermind that it's ME who's been with her most of the time since she was born.  I'm not  bitter or anything.  She's also said something akin to "kitty".  
• Josh has a crush on Lego Girls, which I, naturally, like to tease him about.  Why he's so into the boxy, androgynous, yellow-skinned type, I'm not sure.  But at least he's differentiating between boy and girl and is seemingly attracted to the opposite sex.  Nevermind one of his favorite colors is pink.  It takes a real man to acknowledge he likes the color pink.

What's For Dinner Wednesday--Chicken Pot Pie

This was a little more labor intensive than I thought it would be and as a result, dinner was at 8 pm.  However, if you tend to cook a lot of chicken at one time and freeze it, then that will speed up the process.  I halved the recipe because there's only 2 1/2 of us that eat.  The amounts I'm listing here are for the full version.

4 chicken breasts (giggle), cooked        4 sliced carrots
2 diced potatoes                                   1 C frozen peas
1 onion                                                 1 cube butter
3/4 C flour                                            Chicken bouillon granules
1-2 C milk                                            1-2 C water

Crust:
2 C flour                                               4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp sugar                                            1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp salt                                            1/2 C shortening
1/2 to 2/3 C water

Boil chicken in water.  Cut chicken into chunks.  Boil vegetables 15-20 minutes.  Chop onion.  Add butter, onion, flour, bouillon granules, milk and water in pan on medium heat.  (Will thicken--fast).  Add vegetables and chicken to sauce; put in 9 x 13 pan (sprayed with cooking spray).  Top with crust.  (Apparently, sometime during the process you're suppose to make the crust.  That's why dinner was so late.  And that's what I get for following each line of the directions.  Note to self: read everything first and then plan it out better.  So make your crust while the vegetables are cooking.  Roll it out so that it fits nicely over the pan.) Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes.  (Check after 30 minutes.  Mine was done.)

Overall, this was a pretty good chicken pot pie.  Wade said he liked it better than the store bought ones.  I think I put in too much onion.  So next time, I would use less onion.  But, it was pretty good.  And if I would've been a little more prepared, it wouldn't have taken so long to make.

Say HII to February

Incidently, February's Home Improvement Ideas will be the same as January's Home Improvement Ideas because nothing from the list got done.

Except for I did buy a new lock for the front door. 

That I'm going to have to take back because I also need a matching one for the garage door.

So yeah...

February's list is something like this:

• Repair Window sills
• Change out hardware
• Change out light fixtures
• Hang drapes
• Hang Pictures

Look familiar?  Well, pay close attention because something tells me it's going to look awfully familiar when March rolls around.  But...

Eventually it will get done.