Well I am trying to following a Dave Ramsey type program. But I am breaking down my baby steps into short term, mid term and long term goals. I could do the minimum on the steps and keep moving to step #7; but I need to keep increasing our Emergency fund as our jobs become less guaranteed as we get older. I also need to hit the retirement saving hard as we only have 24 years left until DH reaches age sixty five. DH has medical problems so I cant see him working much past age 65. I just hope he is able to hold out that long before he decides just to have me support him and put off my retirement indefinitely.

I have decided that since our income is about to drop again soon; March? or MUCH MUCH Sooner it is time to break my goals into short term, mid term, and long term goals so I can come up with a game plan that will work for me.

At this time I am not sure what length of time it will take for the mid term goals because that will be determined by how much DH decides he wants to work with me and hopefully be gainfully employed instead of under employed and watch TV and play Xbox 360.

Short Term Goals = 1 year or less
Baby Step #3 3 Month Emergency Fund 9,222
$2,000 saved for household repairs that currently need to be done
Baby Step #4 Max Roth IRA’s for 2010
Baby Step #5 6 Month College for Son 5280
$3,000 Braces fund for Son

Mid Term Goals
Baby Step #3 6 Month Emergency Fund 18,444
$5,000 Saved for future house repairs
Build a Deck
Replace Front Steps
Landscaping

Long Term Goals
Baby Step #3 12 Month Emergency Fund $36,888
Baby Step #4 Max Retirement deposits
Goal 645K for DH to retire @65 (Sept 2033)
Goal 525K for DH to retire @ 73; Me @ 65 (Nov 2042)
Baby Step #5 4 Years College Son = 20,217.76+ (need June 2021)
Baby Step #6 Pay off Mortgage at least 4 years early ($43,200 in principle) (no early = 2037)
Reward: New Cars 20K X 2 = 40K

Today the 5 things I want to knock out are:

1. CVS shopping; DH called and he needs gas-x, we also need 9 voit batteries to replace in the fire alarms, and finally they have the razor DH uses FREE after ECB and manufacter coupon that I have.

2. Clean DS bedroom

3. Clean Master bathroom

4. Clean Kitchen: Load dishwasher, wipe counters and sink, and take out garbage

5. Get Cash to pay DS his allowance.

I got my computer back from the company. They replaced the hard drive. Now I am resetting all my favorites after loading my printer and internet.

I went into one of my personal email accounts and low and behold I found the email to myslef from my work email reminding me to order Microsoft Office Standard 2007. I want it and it does not come on my new laptop.

I can get 1 copy for $49.99 (per account) until the 31st of Dec. One copy can be loaded on two computers. I have a desktop computer and a laptop and my husband has a desktop and laptop so technically we have a need for atleast two copies. DH is not totally crazy about having to have Office on his computers so I am pretty sure I will save a usage for the computer DH will be building DS once he gets home. Since DS is in school I think it will be a good thing for him.

I went and ordered a copy under my account and a few work uniform items then logged into DH's account and ordered a copy under that account. There was not a limit when this deal was first sent out but I guess copies have been showing up on ebay and it is against the policy to buy from this site for purpose of resale. I wish I would have acted sooner since we are a BIG computer family and would have liked to be able to put it on all the computers.

$49.99 for two application is 24.99 for each computer which is totally awesome. Of course that is $100 spent.

+++++
On a side note I have been thinking of Christmas.
I want:
A small handvac (dyson)
2 Wii Games (biggest loser & Jillian 2010)
Laptop case
Small printer

I also want to find:
Digital Camera for DS (Kodak under $50)
Leapter2 Game for DS

The handvac would be nice for my stairs, I have a canister vac and since the only carpet in my house is on the stairs something smaller would be great. The small printer I think I will be buying with the assistance of Staples ink rewards.

I am proud of myself. I finally got around to filing that small box of to be filed STUFF. I am using the file box that I set up when I was reading the financial freedom book by ????. Anyway while I was doing that guess what I found.

I will say I did look in this box while trying to find my CC for that laptop repair call. I found a total of 3 credit cards not including the store card I had also found when looking before. I totally forgot I even had the Wells Fargo Cards, they are for the overdraft of DHs checking account. I think I may have canceled them but I am not 100% sure. I think I need to call and find out.

While cleaning my table, still working on it, I came across a staples rebate check for $3, and a $4 instore credit check for Menards. My Kitchen table where papers go to stay. Sadly is also found some coupons that were mailed to me from the manufacter, sadly they expired the 31st of July. They included a coupon for a free bottle of ketchup. I really need to do something with the paper clutter in my life.

Oh well I am taking one step at a time, and made good progress so far.

I am about to start step 3 of dave ramsey s plan.

It is to have 3 to 6 monthes expenses in savings incase of emergency such as unemployment, etc. I wonder what your thoughts are on figuring out what your personal magic amount is. With the economy the way it is it seems like most fiancial advisors are pushing a 12 month cushion (atleast it seems that way to me).

I would love to have a 12 month cushion but on the other hand I would also like to be able to start putting money into, funding college for DS, paying off my house and the other steps.

I currently have a great job. I have a one year contract locked in.

The down side, one of my credit cards is trying to start charging me an annual fee so I will be canceling it. I used to feel that in an emergency I could always charge it and then pay it off in a few days etc when the funds where in hand, now I am not so sure. So I am second guessing myself. I also see a major household change on the horrizon and that causes me worry also.

How much do you have saved for Emergency and how did you come to that amount?

Today is payday, I checked and the money is in the accounts so I wrote the checks to the City! (My Baby Step #2 is done!!!!) $8380.81 was the debt total!

I need to write a check for one more bill and get that mailed. DH refuses to let my automate it because of fears once they have the account number they could try to pull more than allowed.

I also pulled $350 from prior baby step 3 savings; so I could pay off that credit card which is going to start charging me a $29 annual fee if I dont cancel it. Once I know the payment has cleared then I will be going to call them and tell them I want the card cancelled IF they are going to charge me an annual fee!

I have a work card for work only expenses and one other personal card so I think cancelling would not be that big of deal.

I used my other personal credit card yesterday, but I will pay that off in full once the bill comes. I bought a heart rate monitor/calorie counter to help with my weight loss efforts. This is one of those got to spend money to make money moments since I must make weight and fitness goals to continue my job. I also bought the wiper blades for my car, my wiper blades have atleast a two inch loose piece on each end, so safety first.

Oh and I got a deal on the heart rate monitor, The plastic package was opened because someone tried on the watch; but they did not start it, so I got $10 off. It was the last one of that style so I would have paid full price but he was real quick to offer a discount.

I am so excited! I cant wait to pay off my special assessments. Then on to baby step #3.

I need to buy some clorox or wet one wipes for DS to bring to his classes as his teacher requested. I also need to buy new wiper blades for my car. I have been super good about not spending money, just need to keep it up until the 1st. I stopped at the grocery store yesterday since I had to buy soymilk, bread and lunch meat. I used my $3 off Sara Lee lunch meat for being a FACEBOOK Fan of Sara Lee. I was able to get a 10 oz pack of Ham for $.99. Not bad, I need to buy him Ham as that is what he will eat. No point in buying something cheaper that he will not eat and just waste.

DH called and of course he NEEDS money here soon so he can mail some of his stuff home since the airplane is limiting how many bags they are allowed to bring. He also sent me a email saying I should hire someone to finish the sheetrock; how did I know after he said he would do it that he would end up asking me to hire someone.

___My To Do List__

I still need to call the repairman for the washer. I also need to pay off the one credit card as soon as possible so that I can cancel. I am kinda sad to cancel it as my available credit line by canceling the card is going to go down by $19,000 so my debt to available credit will increase.

Today is a work holiday for me, not DS so I dropped DS off at School and while driving there I realized much to my dismay that it is VERY icy under the light snow.

I hate slipping and sliding. Anyway saw way to many near miss accidents and a few nonmisses that I am not going to be doing the errands I was planning to do today.

If the weather warms up and the roads melt off, I will do them this afternoon. No point in messing with Murphy when I already have a washer needing fixing.

I came home and shoveled snow, I will finish folding and putting away laundry and adding a few more things to my car trunk to drop off at the thrift store for donation (hopefully this afternoon).

This morning while sitting with DS while he was drinking his medicine and eatting breakfast I openned some mail on my table. What was it a note from the CC that expired on the 30th of September that I never recieved. They plan on adding a $29 per year annual fee. Well I guess it is time for me to pay off that card and cancel. I have until December so I will pay it in full here either the 15th or the 1st and then call and cancel.

The last time I called to cancel a credit card with an annual fee they told me they also offered one without an annual fee, I wonder if that is going to happen this time. If so I will keep the card as I like having two cards plus my debit card. But if not oh well bye bye Bank of America.

My Washer that I bought in April of 2007 (Out of warranty), will not drain.

Silly me (okay I am using another s word at the thought of a repair man). I opened it mid cycle (was going to add am item). And I guess that comfused it so now it is giving me a F01 Error code, and according to the wonderfully internet I am reading that means my CCU is fried. Hope replacing the CCU is not expensive. Not sure what a CCU is but I think it is like the motherboard in a computer except in a washer.

I priced a new washer so I know when a repair is no longer worth it, $1000 and sadly I paid $1400 for BOTH my washer and drier in 2007. What is up with that I thought the economy was supposedly bringing costs down. Will call tomorrow and hopefully get something scheduled for Monday.

I am really sad about having to pay for a washer repair while trying to pay off my special assessments before the 28th of the month.

S word here, I was going to say I hope they take credit cards so I could hold off paying until the 1st but off course I dont have a cc at this time because CC1 did not send me my new card, and I could not find CC2 when I went looking for it when I was trying to fix my laptop.

F F F (ARRRRRRGGG)

Sorry for the foul language but I am really upset.

Today I started by packing up my new laptop and dropped it off at Fedex.

I then spent a while recording and packing up stuff to drop off for donation on Monday. It is a Holiday for me but a school day for DS so I can run errands and such without the child tag along which tends to slow things down.

I then watched a movie with DS, and finished a book I was reading.

Finally installed the hot water heater blanket, then took a shower. I am still a little itchy but that will stop as I think it is just mental at this time. Kind of like how your heat starts ti itch every time someone says the word LICE!!

Is your head itchy??? LOL

It is so close I am going a little crazy wanting to reach the finish line.

I got my Newest Special Assessment Payment receipt. It noted that I have until the 28th of this month to pay off my Specials if I do not want them to be combined with my taxes. The last note said the 15th but this one said the 28th which is awesome.

The receipt had a note that went into detail about what my bill amount would be if I did not make another payment before the 28th and what the bill amount would be if I made payments after the 28th but before the bill was paid by Mortgage Company. I can tell they figured out I plan to get this taken care of as soon as possible, and if I keep going at the rate I was going the specials would be taken care of before the Mortgage Company paid the bill but after the bill by the city was cut.

I do not want the City combined my special assessments with my taxes because I want my escrow account amount to go down. $1000 a year was going to escrow to just cover the specials partial payment. By knocking this out before the tax statement goes out my monthly mortgage amount will DECREASE by $83.

Why is step #3 moving backwards, because I have my mortgage payment on auto pay. I have it in a separate savings account; I had a little over 3 months of cushion in that account so I would not worry. Well I took out enough money out of that account to pay the specials. I did not take all the money (which would not have paid off the specials in full); I just took enough so that when I get paid on the 15th the leftover money from the 15th will go to paying the specials in full.

The extra paycheck for the first of November will then go back to step #3 and to pay my CC. I need to check when my CC’s are due but I am thinking for one month I am going to cheat and just pay the minimum so that I can free myself from that ballooned escrow payment.

I requested transfer from my online account today, so once I see the money in my checking account I will cut a check to the City and will be knocking out one special and will be down to one left to pay in full with the 15th paycheck.

Yesterday I got a NEW pair of work boots. Yes they are brand new!! We have about six members of the full time crew relocating for a year. The two that have offices across the main hall from mine were cleaning out their offices and tossing stuff in a big waste can. Today the offices even got more cleared out as the furniture was removed from the rooms so that the carpets could be shampooed before the furniture got put back in.

Anyway yesterday I am walking down the main hall and what is on top of the big garbage can, a NEW pair of work boots. I took them, no point in a NEW $50 pair of boots going to the dump. They are half a size bigger than I wear, so I will be replacing the insole with a thicker insole and that should make them fit. If after replacing the insoles they still feel to big, I will be taking them to my favorite resale shop for $$$$$. I will be lucky if I get $5 or $7 for the boots but hay they were FREE and I kept them out of the landfill.

My NEW HP laptop bought July 9 of this year will not boot up,

First they dont package bootup disks anymore. You have to see the fine print on a piece of paper and it says that they recommend you follow the following steps to create your own incase the f11 option thing does not work.

Well my problem was not just my lack of bootup disks. Seems my hard drive is bad. They will send me a hard drive right now if I give them a credit card number as collateral that I will send them the broken hard drive. Well guess what...The credit card I have been using expired on the 30th of September. I dont think they sent me a new card.

I thought my other credit card was in my office which is why my office is now cleaner, had to look for it even though I was 99% sure of where it was...Nope, had to order a new one which I will get in three to five days.

I have a debit card but heck no am I giving them that number. I dont even know what the amount that would be charged if they never recieved the hard drive.

So they will send me a box and I send in my whole computer they will fix it and mail it back. Actually since the guy on the phone was saying it could be more than the hard drive that is wrong why would I want to send them the hard drive then get a new hard drive and it still not work then need to mail then something else.

Whatever...I got the office a little cleaner out of the deal.

Now I need to call credit card # 1 and find out what the deal is with the credit card I dont think I got in the mail, and I want to cancel one of my store cards. It is not worth having and i wish I could cancel all my store cards but the remaining card does offer great savings even if I can never get their online bill pay to work and end up going into the store to pay rather than mail a bill and chance it getting lost.

Tiday is my day off and last night instead of coming home and tackling my to do list, a relaxed and read a book. So today I tackled:

1. Pretreated my winter coat for stains, I may have to just break down and buy a new coat,
2. Scraped lawn mower
3. Spray out lawn mower
4. Spray out lawn mower basket
5. Move BBQ to back wall
6. Move Smoker to back wall
7. Move weed eater to back wall
8. Move small snow blower to front
9. Move Large snow blower to front
10. Made space for Garbage Can in garage
11. Cleaned and organized 75% of the STUFF in the garage
12. Box up Razor scooter

It snowed last night but not much, their was a little snow on the roof tops and on cars that parked on the street, a few yards had a light dusting of snow when I went to drop DS off at school, but nothing I needed to shovel. I dont like shoveling and after this springs flooding I an hoping for a light snow year.

All that is really left in the garage is the area in front of the two cars, the third stall is organized and pretty. Most of the clutter is the tools that need to be organized and stored nicely. I may deside to work on that little bits at a time over the next few weeks since the rest of the garage looks so nice.

It is suppose to snow tonight at 6pm. Actually Snow has been in the forecast since friday afternoon but because I had to work this weekend I was hoping that would not happen. SO now I must get these things done. I am thinking of going home for lunch just so I can knock a few things off the list during my lunch hour.

1. Empty Ball Valve in Underground box, open last drain out – Sprinkler System - DONE @ Lunch
2. Scrape lawn mower
3. Spray out lawn mower
4. Spray out lawn mower basket
5. Move BBQ to back wall
6. Move Smoker to back wall
7. Move weed eater to back wall
8. Move small snow blower to front
9. Move Large snow blower to front
10. Move Garbage can into garage
11. Move Truck on the driveway closer to the road to allow more clearance for snow blowers and garbage to go in and out of garage
12. Cut back Roses- DONE @ Lunch
13. Cover Roses- DONE @ Lunch
14. Disconnect hose- DONE @ Lunch
15. Box up Razor scooter
16. Close the Garage Attic Access (why does this seem to always pop open/ajar the first cold snap of the yard?)
17. Install Bike Hooks in garage ceiling
18. Hang DH Bike
19. Hang DS Bike
20. Move Chemicals into house (do not want to run garage heater until DH returns home)- DONE @ Lunch

I was thinking that my check would be larger this payday because of my reduced retirement savings but the big increase will go into effect on the pay check on the fifteenth.

Oh well I need to call an found out the exact balance on the special with the highest interest. I want to make sure that I send enough to pay it in full and then a seperate check for the next highest interest so that they pay them off highest interest first, instead of lowest balance first.

After todays call (I have the telephone number written down at the office), I will have one more special paid off and be down to two different specials left. Sadly if my check had been as big as I was thinking I could have knocked out two of them and been down to one left.

Oh well I am excited to be getting close to paying these off, just need to keep positive about what progress I am making.