The Value of a Dollar

One week from today we get on an airplane to head back to the States. One week!

The movers come in 5 days! (we are not returning to this house when we get back so our things have to go into storage.)

In fact, yesterday the movers dropped off a pile of boxes and tape for any "personal goods," that we wanted to pack up ourselves. And I was totally not going to pack a single thing, besides my suitcases. I really wanted to keep things as normal as possible for the girls in our house. Keep toys and books out, everything on the wall, their rooms the same, etc. But I suppose losing a few days of normalcy is better than having a stressed out Momma come the end of the week, right?

I have move induced insomnia and have been waking up at 2 or 3 am all week. Awesome.

As a side note, in the five years of our marriage, Ian has never, ever had one night of sleep issues. Lucky. I don't think he understands having your mind whirling a hundred miles per minute in the middle of the night. Sweet man, he'll rub my back though in the middle of the night, conscious or not.

So. In my sleep deprived state of mind I got to thinking. Mainly I was looking through the Target ad online, like I do every week. I was marveling at how cheap everything was (cereal! goldfish! meat! clothes!!) and started thinking about how I no longer have a real concept of how far a dollar will get me in the States. It's been over 3 years of living on a foreign currency and I just have forgotten some of the basics.

So, if you have time, would you mind answering some of these questions based on a family of 4 with two small kids?

• How much do you spend on a weekly grocery bill, without coupons?

• How much do you spend on a Target or Wal-Mart run?

• How much does it cost to fill up a car? And how often do you have to fill up?

• How often do you eat out? And how much is your average bill at a sit down restaurant? 

• Produce is really cheap here, is it the same in the States?

• Any other cost that surprises you on a weekly/monthly basis?

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The Value of a Dollar

Budget, Budget, Budget!

I'm really excited about something...

And, if it wasn't obvious about the title, it has a little to do with budgeting!

And by a little, I of course mean everything!

Last week, with the arrival of our April paycheck, Ian and I sat down and hammered out an estimated budget for the first time EVER in our married life!

We've always wanted to have a budget, but with 8 months of unemployment and the other 14 months or so with a very unsteady and unpredictable income, we were simply getting by and were not able to budget.

Now, though we have a very tiny paycheck (close to half of what a teacher would expect,) it is at least dependable, and we were able to sit down and list what types of items we wanted to budget for. So here's a list of things we came up with:

Tithe- it's important for us to give back some of what God has blessed us with.

Savings- in addition to our retirement fund, this is savings for any contingency that may come up, or any large purchase we may want to fund (car, adoption, house down payment?)

Investment- also in addition to our retirement fund, this is our long term savings, meant to supplement our retirement.

Vacation Savings- We opened up a whole new savings account to start putting aside funds for vacation or travels. I'm really excited about this one, because in our {almost} 2 years of marriage we haven't gotten to take one vacation {boo!} but with some careful savings we will!

Credit Card and Student Loan Payments- probably the least fun of our budget items, but it will feel SO good when this is payed off. We're not really using our CC anymore, except for items that our company reimburses us for.

--Pulled out in Cash--

Grocery- This part was interesting, because groceries up here in Canada are VERY expensive, but we {almost} stayed within our weekly budget! Next week we'll only eat out once and I will keep my baking for others done to a minimum, since that is where we went over.

Spending- !!! Ian and I are giving ourselves a small set amount each week to do whatever we want with. Whether it's coffee, date night, a book, or a video game, or even something you want to save up for {can you say camera lens?!?} this is our own money that we don't have to discuss with each other before hand. I'm super psyched about this!

----

And last but not least, we are leaving a little bit each week in our checking so that eventually we'll have a cushion to fall back on!

That's all. And maybe that was too much personal information, but I love finances and it's great to feel like we are being wise stewards with all that the Lord has provided us with!

How do YOU budget {or do you?}

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Budget, Budget, Budget!

Schooled

Economics really isn't my thing.

It's really my husbands thing.

So, by default, it kind of becomes my thing.

Even when I don't want it to.

But today, I was thoroughly entertained through an economics video put out by a bunch of economists that pretty clearly explains the two schools of thought on this recession.

Plus, it's all set to a rap.

Score.

Make sure you pause the music at the bottom of the page first!

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Schooled

Shopping List

Since we finally have some money (due to the sale of my car,) combined with the fact that I haven't gone clothes shopping since January (I bought two pairs of jeans and a shirt,) Ian and I have decided we need a wardrobe revamp.

I called my sister, Heather, because she is the fashion guru of the family, and asked her for some advice. I needed a launching point of sorts, in order to know where to even start!

We have spent alot of time weeding through our wardrobe and donating clothes and shoes to charity. Now we each have about 20 things on hangers and two dresser drawers. And that's it! It's really opened my eyes to our country's over indulgence and need for "more."

We established that we were going for quality over quantity, mainly because we need to be able to fit all of our clothes/shoes/hygiene items in 6 suitcases, ha!

Heather sent me a little list to work off of, and I have been browsing and adding for a sort of "shopping inspiration list" in order to keep myself focused and on track!

Tim Gunn's "Top 10":

1. The trench-ish coat (we decided a wool coat was more practical,)
2. A sweat suit alternative (something to wear on weekends that doesn't look trashy)
3. The boot, the pump, the ballet flat. (I will be getting Ugg's, per everyone's suggestion, and new pair of black flats, because mine are a mess!)
   
4. The shapely jacket and the go-anywhere top (This sweater jacket from JCrew has sold out, but it is what I am searching for now!)
5. Signature jewelry. I have this necklace that Ian gave me for our 1 year dating anniversary, that is a heart with my name in Arabic script, but I am thinking I might like a little something classier. I will be searching for something for our 2 year anniversary- when we have been on payroll for awhile!
   
6. Good under clothing :) VS is best!
7. Day dresses (I'm moving to the Middle East, so dresses are pretty much out. Think pretty conservative!)
8. The little black dress
9. A new, cheap, terribly trendy item - spend money on classics and 5 bucks on the latest necklace at F21
10. Denim - 1 dress up and 1 every day (Got em'! Express' Eva jeans are the only jeans I have found that fit me right! We picked up 2 pairs yesterday.)
    

I'll let you know how our shopping goes!

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Shopping List

Church Shopping and Other Such Neccessities

It's been awhile since I have give you an update on what is going on with us, so, let me catch you up to date....

Ian and I are still living outside of Nashville with my parents.

Ian is still looking for a job.

He has a BS and a Masters in International Business.

Ian has completed over 400 applications.

Ian has gotten one interview, and it was a bust.

We are still waffling over what to do next. Alright, truthfully, Ian is still waffling over what to do next. I've already decided that we can handle living here for the next 5-6 months (September-February,) until we head for training in March ish for our overseas job.

Ian isn't so sure. But you know how that is. You can handle your own parents, but learning the intricacies of your in-laws is just tiring.

Right. So I am pretty sure we will just stay here and substitute teach. Both of us, that is. We don't have that much in the way of monthly bills, and we will be able to pay off some credit card debt that has accrued due to our 3 moves in 3 months without any job. We'd love to be able to save up some money, and, honestly, to finally have some money to spend!

{Ian's tennis shoes are seriously 4 years old and are ridiculously unattractive. Those will be the first things to be replaced, I promise!}

I have a whole list in my head of things that should be replaced or just acquired. And, since all of our winter things are locked away in our storage unit in FL and are unaccessible, we will have to purchase coats, sweaters, pants, and... closed toe shoes. (what are those again?)

Along with our {hesitant} decision to just stay here, comes the need to find a new church. Our church home will always be back in Oviedo, where we grew up and were married. Our church membership will stay at our church in Gainesville, where there is excellent leadership and a desire to stay connected while we begin our new jobs as M's.

But, we know how important it is to be actively involved with a church, and to have healthy fellowship, so we began our search today.

Bleh.

I hate walking into a new church. No matter how friendly it is, I always feel like everyone is staring.

Moving on...

So the church we tried today was pretty good! It reminded me of my home church at FBCO 12 years ago. Not too big or small. Plenty of ways to get involved, and a nice mix in worship. Ian loved the preaching but I am not sure if he wants to just settle quite yet. We might try out a few new places, but this was the only one in the area that really interested us, so we'll have to do some research.

That's all for now. I hope everyone has had a wonderful weekend and are well rested for the start of a new work week!

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Church Shopping and Other Such Neccessities