NIKKI8's CalorieKing blog
Wednesday, Apr 9 2008 - Money, Money
View NIKKI8's food & exercise for this day
I have hardly had time to read blogs or write in my own lately. And I was thinking today about why this is and I figured out what the change is. Collin is no longer taking naps and he is going to bed earlier. So not only do I not get the nap time to get online anymore, but many times my husband is awake after Collin falls asleep (he's so exhausted that he falls asleep pretty quick now). So my husband either gets on the computer or we actually talk (gasp!! imagine that!).
So it's good, but I have less computer time and I miss reading all my cyber-friends' blogs.
On to the money issues. So Chris and I sat down the other night to look at our money. This is going to sound so ridiculous, but Chris and I have never sat down and officially looked at our finances since I quit my job 4 years ago.
I have taken care of money and have told him what was going on, but he never looked at the numbers. And we have never written out every spending area. I have written out all our bills, but not the variable expenses. So that is what we did.
And what a wake up call! We set a budget for every area, cutting every area we could. Trying to squeeze and finagle (sp?) every way we could. And we are still $1,000 over his monthly pay. 
Uh, no wonder we have such a huge credit card bill. We put all the extras on the credit card. We have not known what else to do.
For a long time he has been adament about not getting a side job. I already have a cleaning job (twice a month) and I'm starting the preschool job in the fall (although that money will go to my student loan). So me working is not a good option either.
I prayed about it out of desperation. I seriously have no idea what we should do. He called me on his lunch yesterday and told me he is going to do some side work for pools and spas on his own. Just some weekend and evening stuff. He worked in the pool industry for 15 years, so he knows what he's doing. And now that he is no longer in that industry, it's not a (what do you call that--when you moonlight in the same industry and aren't supposed to.) Anyway, that won't be a problem.
But I know my husband. And I know that when he does not really want to do something, he will procrastinate, lose focus, manage his time poorly, etc.
This weekend he was determined to mow the lawn before all the rain came this week. But that takes cleaning up the yard first. He HATES mowing the lawn. He got involved in another outside project and never did mow on Sunday. So he told me he had to mow on Monday night and prepare the kids that he would spend a few minutes with them, but then needed to mow the lawn. I watched him get off track over and over. He put a new battery in another tractor and other stupid things. I finally got the kids in the house and told him to get to it.
I digress to expain how he is.
So anyway, that is our stress right now. But at least we are no longer in denial, but are facing it with our eyes wide open. I am thankful for that. And there is hope as I will eventually go back to work full time. But I don't want such a huge credit card bill that I will be working for years just to pay it off before we see anything else from it. Ugh.
Okay, on to health/food issues.
Food was planned and was better today.
My big mistake today was when I had my strawberries and coolwhip (my planned afternoon snack) I had way too much coolwhip. Next time I need to portion it out ahead of time instead of just dippping the strawberries into the tub.
Exercise today was running on my own. I went tonight and ran on the track at the Y. It was so hard. I did a little over 2 miles and had to walk. I walked a few laps and then finished out the last mile for a total of 3. But I was frustrated that I am really struggling in my runs lately. I'm not sure what the deal is, but I know I need to run more often. I'm only getting one or two a week in.
I'm off to read some of your blogs and then plan my meals for tomorrow. Thanks for all the encouragement. It is very valuable to me.
So it's good, but I have less computer time and I miss reading all my cyber-friends' blogs.
On to the money issues. So Chris and I sat down the other night to look at our money. This is going to sound so ridiculous, but Chris and I have never sat down and officially looked at our finances since I quit my job 4 years ago.
I have taken care of money and have told him what was going on, but he never looked at the numbers. And we have never written out every spending area. I have written out all our bills, but not the variable expenses. So that is what we did.And what a wake up call!
We set a budget for every area, cutting every area we could. Trying to squeeze and finagle (sp?) every way we could. And we are still $1,000 over his monthly pay. Uh, no wonder we have such a huge credit card bill. We put all the extras on the credit card. We have not known what else to do.For a long time he has been adament about not getting a side job. I already have a cleaning job (twice a month) and I'm starting the preschool job in the fall (although that money will go to my student loan). So me working is not a good option either.
I prayed about it out of desperation. I seriously have no idea what we should do. He called me on his lunch yesterday and told me he is going to do some side work for pools and spas on his own. Just some weekend and evening stuff. He worked in the pool industry for 15 years, so he knows what he's doing. And now that he is no longer in that industry, it's not a (what do you call that--when you moonlight in the same industry and aren't supposed to.) Anyway, that won't be a problem.
But I know my husband. And I know that when he does not really want to do something, he will procrastinate, lose focus, manage his time poorly, etc.
This weekend he was determined to mow the lawn before all the rain came this week. But that takes cleaning up the yard first. He HATES mowing the lawn. He got involved in another outside project and never did mow on Sunday. So he told me he had to mow on Monday night and prepare the kids that he would spend a few minutes with them, but then needed to mow the lawn. I watched him get off track over and over. He put a new battery in another tractor and other stupid things. I finally got the kids in the house and told him to get to it.
I digress to expain how he is.
So anyway, that is our stress right now. But at least we are no longer in denial, but are facing it with our eyes wide open. I am thankful for that. And there is hope as I will eventually go back to work full time. But I don't want such a huge credit card bill that I will be working for years just to pay it off before we see anything else from it. Ugh.
Okay, on to health/food issues.
Food was planned and was better today.
My big mistake today was when I had my strawberries and coolwhip (my planned afternoon snack) I had way too much coolwhip. Next time I need to portion it out ahead of time instead of just dippping the strawberries into the tub. Exercise today was running on my own. I went tonight and ran on the track at the Y. It was so hard. I did a little over 2 miles and had to walk. I walked a few laps and then finished out the last mile for a total of 3. But I was frustrated that I am really struggling in my runs lately. I'm not sure what the deal is, but I know I need to run more often. I'm only getting one or two a week in.
I'm off to read some of your blogs and then plan my meals for tomorrow. Thanks for all the encouragement. It is very valuable to me.
12 comments so far.
12.
a decade ago
This is such a crunch time for most people, especially with taxes due. Frankly, I think there is something wrong in the government taking more from our paychecks then would go to our children. Taxes are basically the single largest expense in life.
You mentioned paying down your student loan. As you probably know, those tend to have low rates, so if you can extend your loan in some way (lowering the monthly payment but extending the payment periods), it might be worth looking into.
by BEYOU
11.
a decade ago
Good for you for facing your finances and setting up a budget! That's huge! You have an amount for every category! That will help so much in terms of giving you a sense of what you should buy and what could wait. I think what you and your husband did is awesome.
by LAURAGLAURA
10.
a decade ago
Kevin is usually pretty open about food. He wont eat broccoli or cauliflower (or pea soup I think, LOL). I try to cook with the Clean Eating rules in mind anyway, protein+carb at every meal. I think he will like the recipes, it's just a matter of picking out a few that won't break the bank. Some of them seem to have a lot of crazy ingredients that I don't have (cracked wheat, what the heck is taht???). Btw I listen to Dave Ramsey podcasts too like Nadine suggested. They are great!
by CYNTHIALS
9.
a decade ago
good for you for sitting down and facing it. that is a HUGE step, and you're right that knowing what's in store is better than NOT knowing.
:love: and don't diss your workouts - anything is better than nothing, right? a bad run is better than no run. 
:kiss:
by SFARRANT
8.
a decade ago
First - good job not throwing in the towel after a couple small transgressions yesterday!
:y: And good job planning today. Second - boo to no naps! 
:n: It's so hard when they give those up, isn't it? You miss your quiet time! Third - I hope you guys are able to figure out a budget that works for you. You certainly don't want to keep adding to your debt (and stress!). Last - to answer your question, I am thinking of finding a new job. I've stayed so long because I have great flexibility, which is important to me. But, the company has had some layoffs and some people leave who aren't being replaced, so the work load and stress are going up and the flexibility is going down. I'm trying to work it out so that I can switch up what I do so that at least I'm learning something new and adding to my resume, but I'm not sure if that will happen. We'll see, I guess.
by PJENA
7.
a decade ago
First - good job not throwing in the towel after a couple small transgressions yesterday!
:y: And good job planning today. Second - boo to no naps! 
:n: It's so hard when they give those up, isn't it? You miss your quiet time! Third - I hope you guys are able to figure out a budget that works for you. You certainly don't want to keep adding to your debt (and stress!). Last - to answer your question, I am thinking of finding a new job. I've stayed so long because I have great flexibility, which is important to me. But, the company has had some layoffs and some people leave who aren't being replaced, so the work load and stress are going up and the flexibility is going down. I'm trying to work it out so that I can switch up what I do so that at least I'm learning something new and adding to my resume, but I'm not sure if that will happen. We'll see, I guess.
by PJENA
6.
a decade ago
by ERINS
5.
a decade ago
Financial issues are never fun to deal with. But once you make a plan, at least you will feel like you have done something about it.
by HOCKEYFAN7
4.
a decade ago
You prayed about it. The answers come. They always do.
:kiss: 
:love: Great job on the running. 
:clap: 
:kiss:
by MOM22SONZ
3.
a decade ago
by NMA5632
2.
a decade ago
Sounds like you've got a good plan in place with the finances. I think there are a lot of married people who've been together for years and never sat down and really "looked" at their finances, so you are not alone in that area. And my husband has that same ability to get side tracked with projects. We call it the "chicken" complex. The saying goes: "They say I am ADD but they just don't understand. Oh look, a chicken!"
:laugh5: So whenever Kevin gets distracted and forgets to do something he tells me he saw a chicken. 
:frog:
by CYNTHIALS
1.
a decade ago
Financial issues stink and, even after all the time I have been married, we STILL never sat down and really talked about finances. We just wing it and that probably isn't very smart! I didn't have a BLT last night. I actually ate very well. I still crave the BLT though. My step daughter's 4 year old son has celiac disease and it is so hard to deal with because he is so limited in what he can eat so I feel for you. But I guess it is manageable. Once, one of my doctors thought I might have it but apparently I don't. I'm a carby and giving up so many foods sure be tough to deal with.
by NIGHTOWLPT