My niece and nephew learned how to drive last year and my niece bought a car this year… she says buying the car was the easy part, the insurance was the "blind-sider". I don't think she fully understood the car, the gas, and the insurance as necessities beforehand.
The stamps were apparently discontinued…
@Katie P: Thank you for reminding me! (Next month is when I am paid thrice.) As for driving license lessons: at least you have a good public transit system. That makes it a bit easier to ease into learning (though I suspect there are still drawbacks to both options). Whatever the decision, I hope the conversation[s] go well!
Staying on track this month, so far. Treated myself to a small chocolate shake this afternoon [part in consolation for the stamps not working out, part because I did something brave I've been procrastinating]. A bit anxious since I've had major expenses and more seeming to appear, but still managing to budget successfully.
Thanks for the advice on the driving issue! My son just got his first job last summer and I've got him contributing to an IRA so I really don't want him to stop doing that and start spending all of his money on car expenses. I think it'll be best if we wait until he's making more money before pushing that responsibility on him/us.
@Kristen, sorry you didn't get what you were saving for but were able to make the best of it anyway!
@Kristen congrats on doing something brave!
Today is my Friday AND my company is doing a "team building" outing this afternoon so its a short workday for me!
Budget is locked in for the rest of the week; looking forward to next week and closing out October on track.
Have a great weekend!
Hi all!!
Kristen, I'm sorry about the stamps, but Hooray for bravery. I definitely know how much of a relief it is to gain satisfaction from something you've been procrastinating with.
Katie, you're very impressive in teaching your son to prioritize savings since public transit is available and working for the time being.
Sarah, Yay for Thursdays as Fridays!!!
This weekend I will revisit my budget since payday is approaching and make a pros and cons list about seasonal or part-time employment to recover the funds needed for the student loan payoff. The surveys I've been filling out don't pay cash… they pay in points and you need a shitload of points to get cash.
But, I'll keep with it anyway… and look for additional opportunities. 
Have a great weekend everybody!!
Happy Friday! My financial fitness Friday research topic today is on charitable donations. I started giving this year, in August, budgeting $100 each for the kids and myself. We picked our charities and have been doing one a month. We didn't put a lot of research into the recipients and I listened to a podcast that interviewed Lisa Greer, talking about the best ways to donate. Since I don't make much money and can't donate a lot, I want to learn how to be smart with it. I also want to pinpoint the amount I can do, since $100 was a lot to finagle for our introduction to it and I know I can't keep that up next year.
@Katie P: You may have already found this resource in your financial Fitness Friday learning, but I find that Charity Navigator is a good place to at least start looking into the different charities. Not every charity is reviewed, as I think they have to have a certain amount before an actual rating can be given, but financial reports are sometimes listed in those that are not for you to review yourself if you wish.
Sadly, the charity that plays "emotional music with sad pups" commercials seemingly all the time have a poor rating due to most of the donations being poured into overhead… While it might not be a "one stop", I do find it helpful when I try to choose my charities.
I found that a lot of donation sites also spent a lot of money on sending out stamps and other paraphernalia that probably should have been used on the people in need. I still donate money to certain charities, but I like to volunteer and donate time as well.
The article of the day mentioned teaching kids about finances (saving, spending, budgeting, etc.) and it made me smile thinking about the conversation Katie has been having with her son about saving for the future.
I started saving money for my son in a glass bottle. We can't take the money out because the mouth is too small. When the bottle is so full no more money will fit, we wrap it in a towel and I let him smash it with a hammer and count it up. We were surprised that he had a small fortune. He said wants to start another bottle but he's living with his dad now and I don't usually get a report on whether or not he's keeping up with school and chores so I have no real accountability for his savings. I may start another after I boost my own savings a bit more… but, I feel like I'm being selfish in saying that.
@Kristen, the charity navigator is awesome! I really like the Giving Basket idea because my kids and I can pick different organizations and it provides one tax receipt.
@Candice, that's not selfish at all to make sure you're financially set before saving for your child. It's like the metaphor of putting on your own oxygen mask before your kids in an airplane. I find that a lot of those articles suggesting ideas for giving kids allowances mean well, and they are great ideas - don't get me wrong, but they seem to be written assuming that the adult has their own savings taken care of. Everyone is in a different spot in their journey. I haven't yet been in that place so I save the advice for when my kids earn their own money or if they receive monetary gifts from others.
hi
Hi Jenny and hope everyone has a great Sunday!
Hi Jenny!! Welcome!!
Katie, you're a wise woman indeed!! Thank you.
Have a great week ahead everyone! 
Hope everyone has a wonderful week! The weather by me is cold and rainy this week - looks like I won't be saving money by riding my bike to work, lol. That means I'll have more motivation to not spend this week!
Monday Check in! Kept mostly on track over the weekend, although I did splurge on Pizza Night since I had one night where I ran out of time and energy to cook. Luckily, I was able to work in into the budget. Payday is Friday! According to Nerdwallet, my average spending month over month is down; still have two big bills before the close out of the month but we should close out on track.
@Katie I agree with the oxygen mask analogy. I am aiming for being an example of good spending/budgeting habits. And including my daughter in why we are budgeting and budgeting decisions. My mom, who talks to me about money stuff NOW, didn't really talk to me about that kind of stuff (and sometimes just did stuff for me without including me). So I learned about all that stuff as a young adult by doing my own research and after making many, many mistakes. And not investing nearly enough. If I can save my kid the pain of all of that and set good examples, then maybe she'll be that much better off than me when she gets to young adulthood.
Its raining here too; much needed and my allergies are really going to appreciate it tomorrow. :)
I feel as if I did really well with spending and saving last week. Outside of my monthly bills, I went out to eat once to treat my friend to a birthday dinner which was really affordable (Happy hous make me happy).
I live in the Pacific Northwest and it is the rainy season but on top of that the wind has been blowing so fiercely that it sounds like a bear is growling outside my window. It knocked the power out a few times but nothing that needs repair.
Onward and upward to saving, spending, and donating when feasible.
I love reading all of your updates, they encourage me to keep going. The only news I have is that my workplace is raising wages. It's mostly designed for newer employees, the entry level is going up by $2/hour, but they didn't want to leave anyone out so more tenured employees are getting $1/hour increase. I've been there 16 years so I'm glad they aren't overlooking me completely and the timing lines up with my regular 6 month merit increase. I have to crunch the numbers a bit more, but I think I'm going to jump from 4% to 15% contributions to my 401k, to avoid "lifestyle inflation." I'd love to max out my 401k contributions next year but, realistically, I'm probably not there quite yet.
@Katie: That is awesome! I'm glad that you are not overlooked. I also enjoy reading everyone's updates.
@Jenny H: Hello! Welcome to our little "community" thread. 
No rain for me. I did however choose to buy two used books that I've had my eye on with the stamp-money savings after I couldn't decide on a different design. Since I do not send letters as much anymore, I should be fine until I save for another booklet. Maybe by then, I'll have made another decision.
Congratulations on your pay increases, Katie!
I was told that since I'm now at the top of the payscale ladder for my position I will no longer get annual raises unless I get hired to another position in a higher class… the cost of living increase was also put on hold for 2021 and won't start again until sometime next year. I've already increased the amount taken for retirement from 3% to 5% but after I pay off the loan I will most likely increase or use that money to make monthly donations instead. I'm sure I can find a happy medium between the two.
Kristen, I've been thinking of purchasing ebooks that were recommended to me by a coworker but I probably need to set a spending budget for that too because I get carried away with books/reading.
Oh, book-talk! I loved reading books as I grew up and in my teens. Since becoming a mother at 21 and every 3-4 years having a new baby, I can't seem to get through more than a book a year. Now that the baby-making days are behind me (lol) and the youngest is already 5, I feel like I could pick that up again. Podcasts have been a great substitute but nothing beats sitting down with a good book, reading the words at your own pace, with your own inflections of the words. Any suggestions? What books did you get, @Kristen?
@Katie P: I chose two books (The Storyteller's Daughter by Cameron Dokey, What a Plant Knows by Daniel Chamovitz) that I have read multiple times and keep wanting to check-out from the library or make notes in respectively. There are a few others that I keep thinking about purchasing (The Claidi Journals by Tannith Lee being…several), but like @Candice P, I will need to set up a spending budget before I start on buying any more.
I've read somewhere (cannot recall where exactly) that it is recommended to aim for at replacing at least 75% of your annual income for saving in retirement. Anyone ever heard of this method? I do not exactly understand it [nor do I understand aiming for 15% investing…though I think that is part of Dave Ramsey], and wanted to know if anyone else had come across it and could possibly explain.
@Kristen I think the rule of thumb is somewhere in that range to maintain your current standard of living. Depending on how your lifestyle changes in retirement, you may need more or less. When you factor in social security, it may be even less than that as a percentage that you have to provide (assuming social security is intact when you are ready to retire). This is the scariest part for me; with social security, we will likely be in that range for retirement with my 401K to pad the rest. Without social security, our current savings rate won't get us there. This is part of the reason I am slowly increasing to that 15% (11% with a 4% match from employer). At that percentage, we will be comfortable in retirement. My husband is currently a stay at home dad so everything is factored after my sole income and 401K contributions. Its looking very likely that he will be able return to the workforce soon and we will be able to take everything he makes and throw it into savings/investing/retirement.
How much to have in retirement varies person to person depending on how much they spend, and what their recurring expenses are so all of the "rules" that are out there don't work for everyone. I'm choosing the 15% contribution to 401k b/c I think I can live off what's leftover and still have enough extra to save towards an emergency fund. This year the maximum contribution to 401k is $19,500 for single, and my 15% is nowhere near that so it's just my starting point. I use the FI number calculation as a goal for how much I should have before retiring comfortably. If you multiply your yearly expenses by 25, that gives you the total you'd need and it would allow you to take 4% distributions for the length of a typical retirement. They say the first $100,000 is the hardest to get to and that after that point you start earning more money on money you've already saved, and it kind of boosts your savings rate. I'm very far away from $100,000 so I need to be saving pretty aggressively before I find out if that's true or not, lol.
I've been thinking about how much money I was able to save in 2020 thanks to the pandemic and I started wondering about how others have been impacted since.
Have you developed any new financial habits since the pandemic?
What new thing are you trying?
Have you completed any financial milestones since then?
As for me, I've been following a budget, reprioritizing necessities, focusing more on retirement, and tracking my credit score.
Have a great Friday Jr.
Hope this could help. Just download the app and get your 5 dollars
https://sweatco.in/hi/mover54930721591
@Candice P: Great conversation starter questions!
I think the closest to a new financial habit is I started investing with the pandemic. I'm now moving a small percentage of side income to a sinking fund for investing (since the roboadvisor I use apparently requires at least $100 to add to an investment account. I knew of the $500 to start, but cannot recall reading about a 100 minimum addition…) Besides hitting my short-term goal of saving for stamps, I have not really hit any financial milestones, but I do believe I am becoming more mindful of my money-habits.
