Birthday Week #2

This week was my daughter's birthday.. double! She got older one day and we celebrated on another. This week my expenses are summarized on groceries, birthday costs and gas.

My gas expense has increased $3 per week since the beginning of the challenge. During the last two weeks, I have been out driving more due to birthday shopping. Also, I have been assisting my sister, who needs a ride for work/school during some days. Moreover, I have been attending some sports games at another town. All these trips, plus the gas price increase, has allowed the need to refuel at shorter spans of time.

I went to the supermarket last Friday and spent approximately $145, the greatest amount during this challenge yet. The bill was split into two, one side was the food for the birthday party (appetizers, refreshments, cups, silverware, plates, paper towels, tablecloths, birthday cake, candle, and candy for souvenirs). The party was Santa themed, so some appetizers that are usually consumed on Christmas were a bit pricey. The other half of the groceries was on snacks for school, breakfast items and such. Many of the food items that were bought for the birthday can and will be used for regular consumption, as well.

Below a list of the expenses on April so far:

Expenses on April	Cost (monthly)
Internet Bill
Daughter's school	$200.00
Cellphone Bill	$27.88
Electricity Bill	$33.18
Water Bill	$35.85
Rent	$300.00
Gas	$59.00
Food	$180.28
School miscellaneous	$1.00
Entertainment
Church	$2.00
Emergency	$4.00
Other	$18.31
Actual Total	$861.50

Extra paycheck expense:

Expense	Total
Party	$128.36
Summer Camp	$180.00
Enrollment (1/3)	$150.00
Oxygen Sensor	$54.78
Total	$513.14
Extra Paycheck	$535.63
Available	$22.49

The money left from the extra paycheck will be used for shoes. My daughter and I need new shoes! Obviously, $22 will not be enough, so the Other tab will go a tad up.

Cheers,

Mushu

Welcome Rainy April

It feels like I have not written since forever, probably because it has almost been forever. Eleven days already gone in April, incredible! I know, I know, I missed March's summary; please don't beat me up so hard, among work, daughter's school, sports activities, exercise and getting ready for a birthday party soon, time flew by. Would you still be interested in reading the summary in mid-April? Let me know.

Now, how has the rainiest month of the year been treating me? Pretty good. I have an extra paycheck this month, which makes things a lot easier. I will be using the extra cash for the birthday necessities, pay for summer camp in advanced (gets me a discount), save a third for school enrollment next year and buy my car an oxygen sensor to improve gas performance. Gas is getting pricey, so this last expense will be a most needed one. I'll be left with $0 from that paycheck, but all things that are taken care with that money are important for me. I should save 10% of that paycheck, since the goal was to save 10% of what I earn. But, since, I was not expecting to get an extra paycheck, I'll use it all, because, basically, I need to do so.

This past week I've done a little spending getting things that I need for my daughter's birthday party coming up. I still have some shopping to do. Nonetheless, I have really saved some money due to the nature of what my daughter wanted as her birthday theme. I asked her on late January this year, and my daughter being the preppy little girl who loves parties and Christmas, decided that her birthday should be about Santa Claus. Yep, you read that right: somewhat Christmas party in April. So, I am using my Christmas decorations and I'm just preparing some extra stuff with cardboard along with other party favors. I will be getting assistance with the food that will be served that day. However, I am not spilling too much details because I want to write a special blog about birthday parties on a budget. Don't roll your eyes, I promise it won't be like the March Summary. I pinky promise... there, things got real.

Remember when I talked about how the last few weeks of March were full of birthday gift expenses? Well, the first few weeks of April are not the exception. I have, already, bought my daughter her birthday gift, another gift for her cousin's birthday party coming up this weekend, and a gift for a baby shower that will be hosted the week after. I had already purchased some things for the future mother of a baby girl (she has two boys and has been waiting anxiously for her female offspring), but I got her two extra outfits to go with the other things. Consequently, April has a lot of gift spending as well.

Bills were, also, taken care of this week, including: cellphone, water, rent, school, and electricity. I have not yet received my daughter's child support assistance to help pay for school and groceries. Yet, thankfully, I have the extra paycheck that has allowed me to manage not to spend my accumulated savings, until my next paycheck. Due to the timer placed for the water heater, I have reduced my electricity bill by a 32% (almost a third), saving some cash to invest in other things.

So, I believe April began as a pretty good month. Lets hope this stamina can keep up.

Below my spending for April up to now:

Expense on March	Cost (monthly)
Internet Bill
Daughter's school	$200.00
Cellphone Bill	$27.88
Electricity Bill	$33.18
Water Bill	$35.85
Rent	$300.00
Gas	$39.00
Food	$85.67
School miscellaneous	$1.00
Entertainment
Church	$2.00
Emergency
Other	$18.31
Actual Total	$742.89

For extra paycheck info, see below (the only actual paid expense is the party supplies one, but the other money I have it kind of reserved... until I pay myself back the money that I used for the bills mentioned above. Thing I'll do when I get my second monthly paycheck.)

Expense	Total
Party	$19.65
Summer Camp	$180.00
Enrollment (1/3)	$150.00
Oxygen Sensor	$54.78
Total	$404.43
Extra Paycheck	$535.63
Available	$131.20

xoxo,

Mushu <3

Outdoor fun week

This week involved a really great weekend where my daughter had a blast. I spent quality time with family, people I hadn't seen in a while, and friends. I did overspend in gas, and this evening my need gas indicator was turned on; but that will be April's problem.

On Saturday, my daughter and I went to my daughter's best friend birthday party. These girls have been best friends since preschool. We had a really good time. Cultivating friendships is a wonderful thing.

During the week, I went grocery shopping on two occasions: 1) to buy breakfast ingredients and juices for my daughter's snacks, and 2) to get the ingredients to make snack sandwiches for a Sunday Easter brunch/egg hunting activity that I had with a group of family members from my Dad's side. It was great, what kid doesn't love to hunt for eggs in the drizzling rain? After that event, I had another birthday party/Easter egg hunting activity on my mother's side. The food was amazing and, again, we connected with family members that we hadn't seen in a while. At the end of Sunday, my daughter had an extra large Ziploc bag filled with candy. On Monday and Tuesday, I let her take some to school, that way she shares her candy and does not consume it all. Wednesday and Thursday were candy free day.

On Wednesday, we went to a local recreational park constructed recently that offers cafes, outdoor exercise machines, running area, kid's swings/slides, Zumba classes, basketball court, etc, etc. It's a really nifty place with lots of things to do for free. Obviously, the cafes are not free and I did not verify the prices, but it's a good place to exercise and/or hang out. It was swamped and we will be definitely visiting it more often.

I did not make many expenses during this one and a half week. Only two grocery shopping outings and two trips to the gas station. One of those trips to get gas cost me an extra 89 cents. My daughter asked me for a drink... the drink I had been longing since the beginning of this experiment: I gave in. She was the perfect excuse to please my unnecessary spending needs. Will power is hard, and when you know you can't have something it seems to be even harder.

Below, my expenses up to this week, marking the end of March:

Expense on March	Cost (monthly)
Internet Bill	$37.20
Daughter's school	$200.00
Cellphone Bill	$27.88
Electricity Bill	$48.78
Water Bill	$35.85
Rent	$300.00
Gas	$104.89
Food	$166.86
School miscellaneous	$5.50
Entertainment	$18.97
Church	$9.74
Emergency
Other	$30.46
Actual Total	$986.13

On Sunday, I will post my March monthly Summary. It was a month full of learning experiences, emotions and savings. I was hoping to spend more on birthday things for my daughter, but I was unsuccessful on that task; I only have $10.87 to spend on that. We'll see how my low budget birthday party goes next month.

Best Regards,

Mushu <3

Thriving weekend

This week was centered on the contrast between the weekdays and the weekend. It was a successful week, but an exhausting one (exhausting good, though!).

This week I bought the birthday gifts for this upcoming weekend birthday parties. I spent less than $10 for good quality items on sale: a movie, an art set, and a book. Amazon rules! I, also, bought the canned cheese and candy for my daughter's English Week Easter party last Friday. There, I spent $3.50; I had left over Easter eggs from last year. That is the only spending I did on the weekdays. The weekend was a different story.

On Thursday, after going to basketball practice, I decided that I wanted to take my daughter out to eat. I wanted to celebrate that she had won first place on her school's Spelling Bee and second place on the poster competition. I had some Burger King coupons, so we went to eat there. She picked what she wanted from the twenty something coupons. On Friday, I went to an Agriculture Fair nearby where they have farm animals exhibitions, plants sales, artisans crafts, food-trucks and fair machines for kids. There I spent some cash on a petting zoo like activity where they had goats (my daughter loves petting animals). I, also, let her choose which fair machine she wanted to get, she chose a small Ferris wheel- the one with the longest line. I bought ourselves two slices of pizza for $2 each. My partner drove us there, so I did not waste any gas money on that. On Sunday, we went to a small island near Puerto Rico in the west coast. Our experience that day belongs on another blog; we had fun, don't get me wrong, but there were too many inconveniences. Now, on the financial part I spent $0. How can that be? I was invited by my partner to go to the beach, have a good time and spend some time with family and friends. My partner spent money on groceries, gas to get us to the beach, and dinner. 

When I began this experiment, there was a lot of talk about accepting eating invites. I was suggested to track the activities where I did not spend any money, but still enjoyed. I used to go out a lot more before accepting this challenge. Before, almost all Fridays, my partner and I would go out with my daughter; sometimes we would split the check, and, often times, he would just pay for the three of us altogether. When I decided to begin living minimum wage, I knew this had to stop. I could not allow to get to experience things at someone else's expense. 

So, why did you go out on Sunday, then, you might ask? Because I was tired of rejecting invites. I had been controlling the times I go out and finding cheaper alternatives. So, I decided, after a month and a half, that I could enjoy an invitation that did not allude a special day (St. Valentines/ Birthdays). In this process, I have learned something really valuable: how family and friends are an important part of surviving minimum wage. It makes you feel more appreciative of those around you.

Below the expenses for this week:

Expense on March	Cost (monthly)
Internet Bill	$37.20
Daughter's school	$200.00
Cellphone Bill	$27.88
Electricity Bill	$48.78
Water Bill	$35.85
Rent	$300.00
Gas	$70.00
Food	$141.43
School miscellaneous	$5.50
Entertainment	$8.00
Church	$8.00
Emergency
Other	$30.46
Actual Total	$913.10

Until next week, the last entry on March and the March Monthly Summary, where I plan to expand on the activities that I financially don't take part in or I get help with like this past Sunday.

Have a good one,

Mushu

Bill-a-palooza Week

This week was all about paying bills: cellphone, electricity, water, and Internet bills, to be precise. It's hard having these responsibilities that amount to hundreds of dollars spent. But they've become basic necessities in our everyday lives, so they must be rendered. With this challenge, I have been able to stay up to date with all my bills; I need to assess my expenses weekly, so this allows me to make sure I am on top of bills and pay them on time.

This week I, also, began planning my daughter's birthday party that will be next month. That way I can take advantage of offers, since I already know the route I want to pursue. At the supermarket this last Saturday, I was able to purchase a few things that were on sale and draw a check mark on my party list. Plastic cups for 99 cents and guava paste for a dollar, to name a few. This party has to be on a budget, the main reason why I need to be conscious on my spending, beginning now. Planning goes a long way.

Moreover, I was presented with expenses that I was not counting on. My daughter's school celebrates English this upcoming week, which means they will be holding various activities that have and will hit my pocket. Twin day, for example, is an activity where two classmates dress exactly the same. This means, I had to coordinate with another mom to buy the girls matching outfits. We went to a department store and got them matching blouses, jackets and skirts, for only $16.20, each outfit... which is not that bad for what we got, but bad for my tight budget. The school, also, has an activity where they celebrate an Easter egg hunt with the kids before letting them free for the whole Holy Week. My daughter needs to bring canned cheese dip. Plus, she needs to bring six Easter eggs with candy inside them. Probably, another $5 or so. We'll see next week how that spending went.

On Saturday, I was responsible for a little more spending on groceries at the Supermarket, $56.70: snacks, eggs, ham, drinks, water, dish-washing detergent, chicken, among others. Groceries are expensive. On the first month, groceries were a tad easier because on January I had been able to shop with my regular groceries budget: which was none. So, this month I'm really feeling the pain. A friend once told me, when you don't have money for food, that's when you know you're poor... I don't ever want to be there. Thankfully, in my less privileged college days, while raising a family, I had government aid, and food was never an issue. Food-stamps can really assist you in a time of need, which is what they are there for. I believe that if you need the help to become a better version of you, and the help is available, you should accept it. In my country, many people judge those who live on food-stamps. I, once, was there... I know why some of us need to ask for assistance at some point of our lives. Alas! That is the key: at one point of our lives, not forever. Unless, we are really unable to perform a job because of a medical condition or age (our elders, who, probably, contributed to our economy already). With this being said, I never want to be in the position of having to choose between buying food or paying a bill. And, I hope not to be.
On another note, that Saturday, my daughter, also, got to participate at a religious event because of Lent. There was a donation of $3 that needed to be made, but she had a lot of fun.

On Sunday, I visited my grandma. She gave me an errand to pickup some medications at the drugstore for her. There I spent $3 on a fee. For obvious reasons, I did not ask for the money back and just gave her the pills. Grandmas are worth much more than $3.

This week I realized that there are a few upcoming birthdays that my daughter has been invited to. This translates to $$$ being used for gifts. Things, I had not budgeted for. The Other category will be a bit heavier this month. I'll see what new things from previous Christmas seasons/birthdays I have in my Closet and what things I can find the cheapest on Amazon.

Below, a list of my expenses up to this week for the month of March:

Expense on March	Cost (monthly)
Internet Bill	$37.20
Daughter's school	$200.00
Cellphone Bill	$27.88
Electricity Bill	$48.78
Water Bill	$35.85
Rent	$300.00
Gas	$36.00
Food	$133.77
School miscellaneous	$1.00
Entertainment
Church	$6.00
Emergency
Other	$19.20
Actual Total	$845.68

Ciao,

Mushu <3

Rough Week

This week has been a rough one. From two unplanned meals out, to lady pain, to electricity bill, to almost buying a dryer and savoring debt,...

I began my week slow. Refueled my car and did some grocery shopping on Tuesday. Lists work wonders, you get exactly what you were looking for and buy nothing else, so you stay on budget. Who knew? I used to make lists all the time, I just did not stick to them. Another lesson well learned.

On Wednesday, I was invited to a good friend's birthday gathering, so I couldn't say no. This involved going out with my two honey boos and a group of friends to eat a local hamburger restaurant. The ambiance was good and the food was great. Prices were not bad, but I couldn't go crazy. I ordered the day's special: nachos, ate half there and saved half for lunch the next day. My daughter had some chicken tenders with fries. My partner offered to pay our bill, but I just couldn't let him. He ended up paying for my daughter's meal (after much insistence on his part). I paid $8.91, tip included. I had a lot of fun with some good people, so I believe it was well worth the almost $9.

My electricity bill came really high this month $50, instead of the $30 I had approximates for. I had connected an inline water heater that I used to not use. So my electricity bill was really low. But these past months have been really cold and I was tired of heating water in the microwave. Yet the bill came too high due to the water heater's inefficient system; I am buying a timer to control when the water is heated.

Sunday came and I had programmed to visit my cousin who recently had a baby. She lives far away and was visiting her mom's, so it was a perfect setting. But then the trouble began, one of my other cousins knew the other one was in town and decided we should finally go out, an outing we were postponing since December. Oh, boy, did my wallet hurt, already. We were a little group of 8.We went to a local restaurant, which has a really good and cheap menu variety for kids and average prices for adults. This time, I just could not afford getting a decent plate for $10-$14, plus paying a $5 kid's plate, taxes and tips; it would result in approximately $20 or more. So I decided, to get my daughter a plate; kids should never be accountable for a parent's bad decision. If I decided to accept the invitation, go out and take her along, then she should be treated as is, not mattering my financial situation. Everything went well, food came and we were all talking and having a good time. But then it happened, from a corner as I saw 5 piña coladas approaching our table. My daughter and I had arrived later than everyone else to the get-together, so they had ordered beforehand. Now, my frustration comes because my daughter loves smoothies, frappes, piña coladas and the like, so imagine how my breathing got heavy and my heart sank. I did not look at her; I just could not bare to see her little face as she watched everyone get the refreshing drink.
I knew, just there in that unbearable moment, how every parent who is in a budget feels when they cannot give their children something they know they love. I couldn't get it, that drink alone would be $5 or more, and we couldn't afford it. We kept on eating, and since I had told her before we were only getting food and no drinks (just tap water), she did not ask. What little blessings we have, and sometimes take for granted. Thankfully, one of my cousins decided she no longer wanted more of her drink and offered it to my daughter. I think I love her more now since that moment, and I don't think I thought that I could love her more. Friends and family are great, they understand. We should be grateful, I know I am. It's in moments like these where we have accountability of those who care for us the most.

Below my expenses up to this week:

Expense on February	Cost (monthly)
Internet Bill	$37.20
Daughter's school	$200.00
Cellphone Bill	$27.88
Electricity Bill
Water Bill	$23.71
Rent	$300.00
Gas	$53.00
Food	$122.41
School miscellaneous	$2.00
Entertainment	$39.55
Church	$2.00
Emergency
Other	$112.99
Actual Total	$920.74

Still have $76.26 left before my next payday. This week is my birthday, meaning I will have many free meals. Yay, free things!

See you next week,

Mushu

Trip Ahoy

How can you get paid today and be almost out of cash? Oh, do I know the answer to that question. I work to live and live to pay. Bills and planned expenses dry up all your revenue. On Friday, I got paid $535.63 and all I have left to spend between bills, groceries and gas is $136.96, before my next payday in two weeks.

On this entry, I am going to focus on one main event that happened this week: an already planned and paid for trip. This event can drive you nuts and can make you waste more money than you should.

So lets begin in chronological order. On Tuesday, I got on a plane and returned on Wednesday. This trip involved airplane tickets, hotel room, car rental, food expenses, and game tickets. Most of these had already been paid for in advanced. When I began this experiment, I knew I had this trip, but if I kept postponing the challenge, I was sure to never accomplish what I wanted. Life does not stop for us and I saw this as an advantage.
What if I lose my job after having planned and paid for a vacation? What if things get shaky at the company and there is unpaid time off and I already had a vacation planned? What ifs... in this economy, these are really probable what ifs. What is someone to do... oh, chucks! I had planned this trip and paid almost everything, but now I can't go; not only because I can't spend a lot of money, but, also, because people of my financial state are not "supposed" to be making these trips. I'll just cancel it, even though I will not get all my money back. Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? That's exactly how I felt this week. People near me, who knew of my experiment, made similar remarks to the ones mentioned above; they expressed it as cheating. It was then that I knew just how important it was that this trip took place. People with a minimum wage salary should be able to plan a trip, pay for it and have fun. People who are now making less than they were (because of any situation) and already had plans, should be able to keep them and not feel judged because of their decision of sticking with them.
I am glad I made this trip. I was not alone, so some of the expenses were shared as I will detail below. There were some expenses I did not want to take part on, since they were more of a luxury than a necessity. I did not pay for those, you will understand below.

Expense	Expected	Extra
Airport Parking	$44.75
Car Rental	$7.13	$70.77
Food at Airport	$0.00	$4.46+$3.00/ $9.00
Lunch/Dinner	$8.47
Goodies/ Souvenirs	$8.72
Game Parking	$0.00	$40.00
Food at Game	$0.00	$14.00
Breakfast	$0.00

Okay, so here's the breakdown: in the above table we have the expenses that had not been covered beforehand and needed to get paid. The Expected column is how much we spent without any upgrades or added commodities; the Extra column refers to the money we spent or could have spent because of upgrades or luxuries.

First, the airport parking cost was divided into 2 people, so I ended up paying $22.37. For the car rental, it had been decided last year that my partner would take care of this since he had a free day with the Rental Car company. He would have only paid $7.13 of taxes, but he decided to upgrade to a cooler car and ended up paying $70.77. I did not think this upgrade was necessary so the payment was up to him. I did love the cooler car and had a lot of fun in it, don't get me wrong, but it was an expense I would have not made. Because of our choice of car, we needed a safe place to park the car when assisting the basketball game that we had planned the trip around. Go Spurs! So, my partner ended paying $40 worth of parking. There were parking spots that were cheaper and others free of charge, but those were considerably farther and solitary; hence, unsafer for us to leave the car in and walk to the stadium. 

Next, the food... my favorite topic. I made breakfast Monday night and packed lots of snacks to make sure we didn't go hungry and had to spend money on things we could get at a lower cost. Yet we cannot go past the TSA with liquids, so Mr. Complicated needed something to drink. He offered me a drink on him, so I gave in; that's where the first $4.46 on extra food expenses come in. When lunch time was approaching we decided to go to Chili's, and Chili's had an awesome lunch special that included a starter and an entree. I chose a delicious chicken enchilada soup and for the entree a chicken Mexican bowl, pure deliciousness. Since I had a starter, I did not finish my entree and asked for the remaining of the meal to go; there I was able to score dinner: WIN! I snacked before the game to make sure I did not need to buy anything at the game, food there is really expensive. I was not hungry, but we all know who was; $14 was spent on this (on him, of course... I just had a small bite). The hotel included breakfast, so we were good on breakfast again. On our return flight, he bought a bottle of water, I did not fuzzed because the airline we were flying in this time offered no drinks unless they were paid for; so the $3 spent here were understandable. Now, the last $9 we did not actually spend but we did consume so I am including them here. The person who sat next to us in the flight was a really jolly spirit, he befriended us and wouldn't stop talking, telling us about his family, life, and so on. When the lady passed with the refreshments advertising, he offered to buy Mr. Complicated a beer and a bottle of water for me. He would not take no for an answer, so we accepted. Another WIN!

Lastly, my goodies/souvenirs expense. I wanted to get something for my daughter, so we went to Target and I got her a small Dr. Seuss book that was on sale and some candy; give me a break, it was St. Valentine's week! My sisters were taking care of my daughter these two days, so I bought them chocolate. I spent a total of $8.72. I spent a total of $39.56 on this trip counting as entertainment.

Now, for Saint Valentines day: I cannot speak a lot about expenses made on this day. All I spent was $6 on chocolate covered strawberries. I always buy my daughter's valentine cards on the day-after-Valentines-day sale. Something that will probably not happen this year. Also, I had purchased my partner's gift  last year during Amazon's Thanksgiving lightning deals. I enjoy taking advantages of deals. Something I have to be very careful nowadays. We went out to eat but my partner took care of the bill; we spent $24 between the three. 

Below I present the expenses up to this week and the money I have left to survive before payday.

Expense on February	Cost (monthly)
Internet Bill	$37.20
Daughter's school	$200.00
Cellphone Bill	$27.88
Electricity Bill
Water Bill	$23.71
Rent	$300.00
Gas	$35.00
Food	$79.71
School miscellaneous	$2.00
Entertainment	$39.55
Church	$2.00
Emergency
Other	$112.99
Actual Total	$860.04
Actual Money Saved	$244.09 ($107.13 is the goal)

Things that still need to be taken care for: gas for the remaining weeks of February, electricity bill (which I think will come pricey, will expand on the topic when it comes at the end of the month), and groceries (mainly breakfast and snacks). As you can see, I am a bit tight; I'm hoping no emergencies arise. But that's why they're called emergencies... we'll see. Hope you didn't die of boredom. If you have any suggestions or comments please let me know below.

See you next week. By the way, sorry for the one-day-late entry, but, again, it was Valentine's day, gimme a break. :)

-Michelle <3