JanH's Journey to Freedom

is what filled yesterday. I got a call from DS that their ultrasound showed the grandbaby healthy and sweet. Later last night, DD sent me some pictures of the ultrasound pictures. (She went, too!) It's amazing what they look like now compared to a little more than twenty years ago when I had one! You can really see the baby! How cool!

DD called and she has gotten the little house that she was hoping to rent. I was SO happy for her. Brand new so that her allergies won't be acting up with old wood and old carpets. She will also have a roomie so that expenses actually will be going down. So not only will she be budgeting on her own, the bills will be going down in a month or so. I was very glad to have the mini fund set up so I could go ahead and give her the deposit money without any squeeze on the budgets. I SO appreciate what I've learned here!

We've decided to set apart a fund for house repairs. Going to take some of our bigger fund and set it aside to draw from. That way, we won't be getting regularly into the emergency funds for household stuff. I have a household fund, but I've only used it for plumbing, etc., and would really need to space out repairs to let it build up between each one. This way, I'll take the money we set aside each month for household maintenance and return it to the big fund to replace the money we are setting aside. Same thing, but having that bigger amount lets us go ahead with more projects, but sets a limit on the repairs so we don't go crazy and do too much this year. Can't afford to rebuild the house all at once. I have a feeling this is a multiyear project!

We went to see DS's last performance at school this week. And learned he had received an award! A long enjoyable experience for me is closing. And DD is moving on in life, too. But it looks like after yesterday that new adventures await....!

the feeling I got when I opened the mail. People have mentioned in their blogs about getting unexpected checks in their mail. I read those thinking it would be cool for that to start happening to me. Today, I got a check in the mail as a refund from a medical place from two years ago! Not a big amount, but it's a start. Going to watch for more! It's going into the fence fund. Closer and closer we get....

The next step to getting my DD on the budget bandwagon was this weekend. She had to come home for a bridesmaid dress ordering session, so we sat down and went through what her bills are and what she needs for the rest of her spending. She has already on her own dropped her old phone plan and gotten a new one that is half what the other one was. She is definitely on the right track. We worked out what she would need and set it up for May 15th. I will be giving her half of the monthly money then and half on the end of the month. We are both excited that she is on the next step! I can't wait to start it for her.

Hubby is definitely more on board with things. He is wanting to delve into the savings and pay off more of the debts. Unfortunately, we have several large things coming up and also many house repairs this year. So I'm going to give him the low down on it all this week and let him help me decided how to organize it all. So glad we are both moving in the same direction!

DS is finishing school except for his thesis. I'm going to attend his last jazz concert and cry through the whole thing. He is directing part of the program and I'm so proud of all he's accomplished. And it's been a lot of fun hanging out with him afterward and catching up. I won't be able to do that this time, but that's okay. Because I will be in tears anyway.

This month has been filled with extra expenses. I finally just filled an extra column with them and will sort it out when the 15th arrives. Gasoline has been a big drain this month. But, you know, since most of it has to do with the kids, I don't begrudge it a bit. I am just glad we have it so we can enjoy the moments we have now. Because the kids do grow up on you......

On Sunday, DD called. I knew that she'd been sick all week, but she sounded horrible on Sunday. I packed a quick bag and went to see about her. Hubby ran up with me for the day, then he came home to go to work. While he stayed with her, I ran to the store and got some things that she needed. Then on Monday, DD and I found her a doctor just down the street so that she can go whenever she gets that sick again. I stayed until Tuesday and we just hung around and had a restful time. The steroid shot she had turned her into a Santa elf with round, rosy red cheeks. I called the doc to make sure she was okay. At first, I thought it might be the antibiotics. She is still swollen and pink, but that should clear up.

We talked about something that Hubby and I had decided to try. We are going to give her biweekly "paychecks" for her expenses and let her budget it herself. She pays her own bills, has files for each, and I think she would really like this. She has worked and had her own money before, so this would be like getting paid and having to budget. I can see my way to do this now that I have a budget and know what we usually give her. Also, I told her about this website so that she can read and get creative like the folks here. I can't wait to get started. I need to figure out all the particulars and maybe get it set up when our month starts on May 15.
Then she can get started before summer sessions start.

Next step, Hubby and I are talking about paying off more of the credit cards with our savings. The problem is that we have a lot of big expenses coming due. So we need to sit down and plan. It will be a relief to get more of the debt off our shoulders.....

about eating out. We've been doing much better with our eating out dollars. We plan more and try to be smarter about it. Often, we split meals. I'm still working on Hubby getting water instead of a drink, but he's getting on board with most of it. Yesterday, though, he ate lunch out with a co-worker who paid for the meal. He had Chinese and had leftover rice and an eggroll. He didn't bring it home. I could have used those as a leftover lunch. He promised to do better next time. This week, we broke down after several months and gave in to the pizza craving. We used a coupon and got the pizza for 8.55 total. Hubby's half lasted two meals, mine four. So it only cost us about 1.43 per meal. I am still working on avoiding fast food, but occasionally something just screams your name......

deposit box. We had that debate in the forums. I received my letter saying that my SAFE deposit box was due for its renewal. The rate schedule said that my SAFETY deposit box would stay the same price. I already had on my calendar to transfer my box from the main office of the credit union to the branch office just opened by my house. The last time I was at the main office, it was just two stories of girders and the vault. They had so much hurricane damage that they had to gut the place. They were operating out of small buildings on the site. Since the new branch is a couple of minutes down the street vs. a 15 to 20 minute drive, I decided to go ahead and transfer the box now. I made sure the branch had a box available in the size I needed, and went to the main branch. I had to thread through the construction to get to the lady at the vault. She gave me a slip that read SAFETY deposit box (in print--she didn't write it). I went back to the branch where they set me up with the new hand scanner and showed me how to get myself out of the vault. No more waiting for someone with a second key to let me in. Wow. I asked about the debate....is it SAFE deposit box or SAFETY deposit box. They said that their material calls it a SAFE deposit box. So I guess that is the real name. But, I've called it SAFETY deposit box for so long that I'll have to practice this one.....

was the diagnosis by Hubby when my almost new shredder quit working. I was bummed, thinking I would have to buy another new one when I couldn't get this one to working. I saw some papers were jammed, unplugged the machine, and tried to clear it. I couldn't figure out why it wouldn't clear completely. Seemed okay to me. But Hubby went and got a screwdriver from my toolbox, took apart the motor housing, and found the entire housing completely jammed with little bits of paper. Nary a clear spot in sight. I have never had a shredder do this. I was busy doing something else, so he declared it constipated, removed a ton of paper, and put it all back together. Works like a charm now. So I didn't have to go into my household goods fund and get a shredder. And I won't let the paper get too full in the little container because unlike my other one, this shredder doesn't work well that way. Now, I can shred up the pile that accummulated recently. It would probably be better for me and the shredder if I figured out how to get rid of all this junk mail that comes here.....

are in WAY too many categories at the end of this budgeting month. It ended on the 14th, and as I transferred the funds to Christmas Club and whatever, I took a really good look. Yikes! Of course, Hubby will get some back on the gasoline budget because of a company trip, but the fun categories were off kilter. The bright spot was groceries. I had 35 dollars left out of 200. That was a first. I usually hit close to zero on that one. But I really have to clamp down on the rest. Sheesh.

I've decided to change the way I do the $20 challenge. I can't really pay myself for things as much because I account for every dollar. So I decided to review the final results for the months of this year. I have a total at the bottom of my budget sheet that represents where I have saved money in each column. That's where the eat at home, not spend on clothes, not use gas monies show up. In the little savings each month. They add up. So I decided to keep on trying to save on water, food, gasoline, electricity, etc., and use those totals as my challenge money. Because it is a challenge to figure out ways to conserve and not spend. Because now, I drink my own water and eat my own food and so forth. I will add up all the little dollars here and there. And those negative numbers are subtracted out. So I only have what I actually did save. The only snag I see is that January falls in the middle of my first month (Dec. 15-Jan. 14)so I will count only half of that one.

Totals: Dec./Jan. 173
Jan./Feb. 337
Feb./Mar. 313
Mar./Apr. 106
$20 challenge total so far...929

So far so good. At this rate, hopefully I'll have 3000 at the end of the year. That will be my goal. Now, I'm off to unplug the television and the microwave....

I asked Hubby when he came home. Especially since he held it out to me. Oh, goody! I love something in a bag. This time it was fruit. The March of Dimes walk we were supposed to go on Saturday was cancelled due to the weather, and the people-in-charge at Hubby's company didn't want the fruit they had purchased to go to waste. So they let the employees take it home. Hubby brought me a bag of small oranges and bananas. I've been eating on them all weekend. Yum! I LOVE free food. Funny thing is, I've been reading about people getting money after focusing on it. I had spent several days last week saying I wish I had some fresh fruit, but hadn't gotten to the store. Mostly because I was waiting until the 15th when my next month's grocery budget started. Then fruit appeared.....I definitely should start focusing on money...just have to figure out how much.....

tax papers to the IRS! I always feel relief to get those done. I even hand delivered them to the post office to make sure they got on their way. I love our post guys and gals, but they walk a long way around our neighborhood. A nice kiddo delivered an errant piece of mail to us the other day that got misdelivered to his house. Doesn't happen often, but I sure wanted the tax papers in the brick building and on their way. We're getting around 400 back and that will finish off the fence fund. It's exciting that we have a fund almost completely funded--outside of last year's Christmas Club, I haven't had that success yet.

Looks like the budget took a hit on the kids front this month. We saw various combinations of the kids three different times this month. That includes gas, some eating out, etc. It was so worth it, but I find myself not wanting my end of month savings totals to go down very much. I'll have to save in other areas. And that's okay.

Wow, the hardware store was packed with people yesterday. I guess we are all in that period of time here where we can actually do some outside repairs and inside planning before the extreme heat and humidity hits and we melt just breathing. I picked up paint samples and other small things. I used the new self check out. Since those poor people have a ton of checkouts, but only two people working them, it takes forever sometimes. So I need to remember that I can check out those easy small things myself. Got the samples spread out all over the dining table. Making the decisions is the hard part for me. I am really glad I've been putting money into the household maintenance account. It took a big beating with the plumbing, but now I can buy paint supplies with it. Going to be a busy spring......

My little elderly neighbor called me last night. The one who has me and my daughter mixed up. She was upset. Our area has been besieged since the hurricane with unscrupulous people who claim to be contractors, or roofers, or tree people, etc. She got a tree person. He quoted a large price, but she said no. Then they settled on a smaller price, and she designated all she needed done. He agreed, then didn't do but a very little of it and demanded money. She said no because he hadn't done much of anything he agreed on. He cursed at her, called her vile things, and threatened to have an "accident" on her property. He was doing this to a little elderly lady while he stood there with a crew of grown men. She stood up to him. He left without his money. She called the city and the police took a report. Hope they find these guys and run them out of town. They were bullying a little elderly lady. Too bad she didn't call the neighbor on the other side of me. He was home yesterday and would have easily handled those bullies. I sat with her a bit. We got to talking about finances. When her DH passed away in his eighties, she had never paid bills and didn't know anything about their finances. She's had to learn the hard way. And his pension stopped on his death. And she said he left some debts, probably from his final illness. She is rather upbeat about it all. She wanted to know if my insurance had changed the windstorm coverage like hers had. She has to figure out how to come up with a large lump sum at her age. She does have family here that could help, but it made me think. I am very glad that I help do finances and know where everything is. I am very glad we are getting out of debt. I'm very glad we are starting to plan more for retirement. Wow, it sure was a wake up call....
She sent me home with half a cake and a wonderful candle. She's so sweet!

Hubby needed a couple of things from the store, so I went to pick them up. Apparently, Wednesday is the day that the store sets out baked goods that are priced for quick sell. Because last Wednesday I succumbed to the lure and bought some yummy muffins. And another kind was there today. Cheap. I know that I can make muffins. I know there are still some in the freezer. I know that I want to do a killer job on the grocery budget this month. I have about 40 left out of 200. I have never had this much left over. And with only 4 days left. So I dawdled. Contemplated. And put them back. And walked away. Whew! That was hard! Next time, maybe I'll skip Wednesday....

okay, I did it. I indulged in a little retail therapy yesterday. Wasn't a good thing because it is the last week on my month and the categories are about depleted. We'd had a great time on Easter--crazy weather, but DD was home for a couple of days and we had fun. Monday was a bit stressful because she had to go to the doc to get her meds changed and readjusted. Symptoms were coming back, and we were stressed because we had to figure out the best combination to try to get back on track. It is such a tricky thing to get the meds right and I could tell she was frustrated. The doc is great about letting her decide what is working for her because she is inside the body. But it is hard to tell what is normal feeling and what is symptoms. For some reason, we had a two hour wait to see him! We had a great lunch afterward with Hubby, and off she went to return to school. Hubby went back to work, and I was in another town with a little time. I went to the bookstore.....

I need to answer a couple of questions I found on my blog. Sorry that it took me so long. I think baselle asked about why Hubby couldn't write over a $25 check. I sure was confusing, wasn't I? It is because he can't spend money. And paying bills while I'm out of town about does him in. He can spend on gifts for others really easily, but everything else is hard. So I had to write the check returning his extra money to old company. He couldn't have done it very easily.

Sunshine Suz: My memory is like a sieve these days, but the thing I think I was referring to is in a little town between the Louisiana border and Houston off interstate 10. The little town is called Winnie and I checked the website to see which weekend it is, since I haven't been there in a long while. It said it is held the weekend after the first Monday of the month. It is called the Old Time Trade Days or something like that. On over twenty acres of land. There is another thing between Houston and Austin, but I can't remember how far and I've never been. I just remember there being LOTS of cars trying to get in. The one in Winnie was easy to get in and park, had refreshments and was really interesting. Course it might have had hurricane damage. But I enjoyed it. Was funny to see DD's school principal selling things one time we went. Small world!

Hubby is out of town today. I'm eating leftovers, staying home, and staying out of the stores.

waiting for the corrected W-2. A thank you to the lady we reached that sent it the next day. So I have been able to pencil in the figures for the tax return. Hubby has looked over my numbers and the lines they are on--you can accidently do so much craziness if you aren't careful--and I am ready to finalize, copy and send. We went from owing taxes this year to getting a smidge back. That's just fine with me. Hubby has adjusted his forms at work so we won't be getting big refunds anymore. I've learned from this site that we don't need to loan out that money. We need to put the savings into our accounts and make it work for us! The amount we are getting back is going to the fence fund. It should just about complete the fund. This saving for stuff is a good thing....

Our insurance company has decided to drop windstorm coverage. We have to get coverage from the state. I met with the agents today from our regular insurance to get the facts and figures. It is going to cost a bit more, and we have to decide on deductibles and so forth. We can have this in escrow, but I think we might do this like the flood policy and pay it ourselves. There is no grace period so the payments have to be on the nose and I don't want there to be a hangup with escrow or the bank. Since I've learned from people on this site to put money aside each month to pay for these once a year things, I know I can do it. We just have to figure out what policy particulars we need. I also have had the lightbulb finally go off from reading posts that we need to put aside the deductible amounts on auto and homeowners and whatever. Makes a lot of sense! So, now we just have to hope for gentle breezes.....

is one of the places my extra monies have been going. The challenge monies that I haven't been real good at keeping up with is going in there. I've been doing the stuff I laid out, but I've not been keeping up with the amounts. I've just been putting the extra savings a month into various places. I do put some extra on credit cards, but I've been also building up various funds. Since the kids took all the beds, I have a bed fund. And I have a fence fund. Especially since the air gun has been visible behind us a lot. They shoot at squirrels and birds and have on one occasion hit our house. Today, I added a refund check into the fund. Funny thing is, the check is made out to Hubby, but it is for my mammogram/ultrasound that I had last year. And I paid the bill. Seemed sorta funny since Hubby doesn't get mammograms.....

One of our family members has a birthday this week so we went to visit this weekend and had a pre-birthday fun time. We did pay for gas (in the budget) and the birthday dinner (money saved for it), but it was a great time and we laughed so hard at some stuff that our sides ached. It's great to be able to spend on times like these by learning to save on other things. Thanks to all here who have helped teach me that lesson.

However, today, I am sleepy and foggy and slightly cranky. I did take some extra medicine yesterday, but that was in the morning. I think it is due to a sugar "hangover." I just can't eat too much sugar. We bought a special really yummy cake from the local bakery for something a bit different. And the birthday person is like me, cuts BIG pieces. But the company, the food, the laughter, the gifts, the cake were all terrific. It was so worth it....

Is there such a thing as car flu? We own four cars. DS and DIL have one of them until DS graduates from graduate school. Then we will give it to them (along with all its ills). DD has one and DH and I have one each. All are approaching or have reached old age and/or high mileage. So repairs are logical. And I set up a repair fund for autos just for that reason.

Last weekend, DS couldn't go on his school trip because both their cars had broken down. We went up to help with the repairs. They found another major leak in DIL's car, so they need to save for that, and we usually pay for the big stuff for our car. They take care of maintenance costs, etc. DD's car needs her third (!) windshield. I haven't been driving mine much, but yesterday after errands, I smelled something funny. Yep, my car also has a major leak of some kind. Rats. My auto repair fund doesn't have near enough for the car flu we've been having.

I took a look at the budget and decided that emphasizing the auto repair fund for the next couple of years will be a real good thing. I siphoned monies off other categories that we haven't used as much, like clothing, and am trying to build that fund up even more. I was so proud of having money in there. At least I did have SOME saved. I guess I will need to go to the emergency fund after I get the quote. And like people illnesses, the cars seem to get sick right before weekends.....

College basketball on TV is in full swing--March Madness is here. I tend to watch football more, so I don't watch the basketball games until the final few. Hubby watches as many as he can, so I have migrated to the enclosed porch area to chill in the evening and watch a little TV while I do other things. The beauty of sitting out there is that eventually the Stuff that has wandered out here to take up residence begins to get on my nerves. So, I am working my way through Stuff. Some of it is stuff to evacuate with during hurricane season. But, let's face it, the rest is Stuff I've gotten lazy about. If I ever get through this Stuff, I need to go sit out in the garage and watch TV until the Stuff out there drives me crazy....

Not long ago, I wrote that I found a can of green beans in my bedroom. I have been distracted and have caught myself putting potato chips or things like that in the fridge. Now, I tried to store the potholders in the freezer. Hubby just laughs and when I can't find something, he says check the hamper or something like that. Can't blame him. I've been easily sidetracked. Funny thing is, I've always been able to tell anyone where something is in the house. But lately, I've had a busy brain. I do know that a lot of it is thinking about ways to conserve and use up. My brain has been happily percolating new ideas from these blogs and the forums. So I guess I shouldn't worry too much. My brain being busy on saving money is a good thing, even if I freeze the potholders.....

Saw more signs at the food booths at the festival. There was one for fried ribs--Hubby loves ribs. Wonder if he'll try them fried? And one for fried green beans. I saw something called oreo balls. I wonder if they are different from fried oreos. Anyone have any idea what a Scottish Ball is?

Sadly, our area made CNN Headline News yesterday. We'd heard the story on the local news channels, but never dreamed it would go national. It happened in a neighboring town. Eighteen months after Hurricane Rita, a potential home buyer checking out a damaged house and yard found a man who had died after the storm and had been there the whole time. His neighbors thought he had evacuated and never returned. That happened a lot. His family was estranged, and even though they lived nearby, they didn't know he was there. I can't say anything about them because I don't know if he was dangerous to them. It was just too eerie. He was only in his 50s. After all the people helping each other during that thing, it's sad someone fell through the radar. On the financial front, I was curious how eighteen months of nonpaid bills or mortgages or rent or whatever went unnoticed? I guess the companies just turned everything off since the house looked damaged and unoccupied.

Festival food is expensive. But it is for charity. So we delved into the budget and took the basketball money we didn't use from having the flu and went to the food booths. Can't believe we actually went on a budget! We budgeted about 10 a night. Last night we took our own drinks and spent 9.75. Hubby usually gets some kind of meat on a stick. I usually eat first and go for a dessert. Or maybe I'll get some barbecue. We roamed through the booths to get an idea of what's new. Since the neighboring fair in the fall had something called fried coke, I was curious to see if they were selling it here. They had a lot of fried stuff--funnel cakes, onions, potatoes, shrimp, and fried pies. I spotted the fried oreos from before. I didn't see the fried twinkies again. But I did see something new--fried snickers and fried baby ruths. Good grief! I decided that tonight I might try the new Death by Chocolate that I saw. I don't know about you, but I don't think I like my chocolate deep fried.....

Today starts the local Festival. It's free to get in and we often go for the food. Gotta be 30 local groups from churches, sports teams, drill teams, scouts, service organizations who have booths that sell tons of homemade food. From pies and meats on a stick to Cajun favorites. And the free music is toe tapping (Cajun mostly) and local talents. We used to be designated parents who roamed the grounds for the first few hours of the night so that the group of kids belonging to us could have adults around. (Other parents of the group did the second half of the night.) We used to buy passes for the kids to ride free all night all week. But now, just us. Last year on Friday night, we roamed by the craft people setting up for the Saturday sale. There was a guy putting out beautifully handcrafted wooden crosses with three long spikes crisscrossed attached to the fronts. With the cross was a story. It went something like this.....

(In religious circles, carrying your cross often means carrying your own burdens)

A man said that his cross was too heavy to carry. He was told that he could take his cross into this room and lay it down. Then he could look at all the other crosses and choose another one. He went in and laid down his cross. After looking at all the other crosses, he quietly picked up his original cross and carried it on.

Sometimes, I get so wrapped up in my own world and problems that I fail to see the burdens carried by my fellow travellers. I hope that I don't do that here. I am trying to change that about myself. Anyway, we pooled our pocket cash and had just enough to buy a cross. I gave it to my mother as a gift. The next day we were there for lunch, browsed through the craft fair; and while most were just getting started, this guy's two long tables were bare. The crosses were all gone. We talked a bit. He was surprised that everything was sold. I wasn't....

in my teeth are becoming a hole in the pocketbook. I just had a filling replaced, and today I'm having a couple of tiny holes filled. I've put these off long enough. I have saved enough in the eye/dental fund, so it's going to be okay. The ironic thing is that my kids are off doing really cool things for spring break. Hubby is taking over for his boss this week and will be busy. And me....well I get to go to the dentist. But I've been putting this off, so it is better getting it done and over with. And it's a nasty, rainy day so it will go with my mood. I'll just come home and chill. Hubby will eat leftover steaks from grilling last night and I'll treat myself to comfort food. Why not, a filling is as good an excuse as any.....

I think we have achieved a milestone. There is more Stuff going out of this house than coming in. Things are flowing out, and we aren't buying more to bring in. It wasn't very noticeable until after the holidays with all the presents and food and things you buy then. And we aren't counting DD's household, just this one. We are concentrating on using up Stuff. And limiting buying Stuff. And having Stuff leave if we buy something to bring in. And getting rid of Stuff we already have. It's pretty easy for Hubby. He doesn't need any Stuff. But I liked Stuff. Until it was too much. Until it was evident that it was using money that I could save. Until I realized that I didn't need a lot of this Stuff anymore. Actually, I'm really excited! Goodbye, Stuff. Hello, bank account!

They are having a county hazardous waste day this morning. I've been waiting for another one to come around. I'm so excited! I can get rid of some stuff that has been hanging around in the garage with nowhere to go. Now it is off to the pickup site. Financially, I'm going to bug Hubby about returning car batteries for the money instead of forgetting them in the garage next time. We both do things like this. My kids are off for spring break and they have great plans. I told them this was a great way to start off MY plans. They thought I was nuts. Perhaps they're right....

Writing big checks is not my thing. Hubby can't write one over $25, so I got the honor of writing the two paycheck refund check. Ouch! We never incorporated that money into our life, but writing checks that size is hard. Except if I was paying off a credit card. Now that would be fun. So I wrote the accompanying letter, wrote the check and all is ready for Hubby to sign. Since it was his old company and his money, I thought that it would be less confusing if his name was on the stuff. Now to await the W-2. I'm going to do a run through with the tax forms next week while I wait for it. Since Hubby got paid some vacation money when he left old company and it was unexpected income, I don't know if the taxes will be as close as the last year. I sure hope I don't have to write another big check....

has been dragging along, but now we have the way to return the two extra paychecks that Hubby's old company sent us by mistake. With new Frugal knowledge, I should have put the money into a high interest account for the two months, but I just left it in the account to write the check. Now we will be able to get our corrected tax forms to do our taxes. What a relief!

I set up a chart to pay several local accounts weekly amounts that add up to the monthly totals that I pay. I can't wait til next week to start. This will be more gratifying.

So far my grocery budget is quite a bit under the limit with a week to go. I've got to go get basics though, and I'm going to pick up a few of the sale items. So I probably won't end up with a savings for the month. But at least I'm not down to four dollars like last time!

I went around to the various banks yesterday and paid bills. I like doing that on warmer, sunny days because it gets me out and I get a huge satisfaction on seeing things go down immediately. I have been pondering something that someone mentioned somewhere. Forgive me that I can't seem to remember to give credit where it is due. The something is that I could break down my payments and pay bi-weekly or even once a week and reduce interest. Not only that, I get that lovely feeling of lowering balances every week. Many people put extra things each week on their balances or in their savings and I have watched their progress. However, I seem to wait til the end of the month to send extra from the budget to various accounts. I WANT THAT THRILL MORE OFTEN! So I took yesterday's bills and made a list for after the 15th. I am going to break these local ones down into four ways, pay on them each week, and watch them go down, down, down! I am excited to try something new. At the same time, I am going to add some of the savings built into the budget into the savings accounts each week. This will take so little time, but give me a big reward. I SO love the little things.....