*Sigh*
Another $9.00 goes to Burger King. At the end of the week, which was an irregular "holiday" week, our pantry and fridge were somewhat bare. We didn't do a regular grocery shopping this week for several reasons. Suffice it to say, we still haven't got our groove back after the holidays.
On the up side, $57 is a whole lot more than I usually have left after week 1. It's stretching my fun dollars into week 2 that's the challenge most of the time.
Balance for this pay cycle $57.
Happy Spending!
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Friday, January 10, 2014
Satisfaction
Today I was reminded of a valuable lesson as a consumer, Satisfaction is (almost) everything. Today after taking Lily to the Dr. for her one year check up, I stopped into Beall's Outlet store. In Sedona it's one of the few places to shop that isn't an expensive boutique or grocery store. Lily had fallen asleep in her car seat and I wanted to take advantage of her sleep time while I could.
I go to Beall's on Friday because people under 50 get an extra 15% off. So, if I'm going to shop there, why not wait till I know I will get an automatic discount? I was on a mission. At the top of my "I Want" list is a To-Go coffee mug and a "mine at home" coffee mug. Both of mine broke in the month of December.
As I looked through the shelves of housewares, I came across several options for both kinds of mugs. As I held them, looked at them, clicked the lids, and tested the "spillability" I wasn't quite sold on any of them. Some at home mugs had teeny tiny handles, some were too top heavy, and therefore easily spilled by table bumps or little hands. Some of the To-Go mugs had lids that were hard to remove, or hard to click open. Other just had ugly designs. I refuse to settle. These are things I will use every day. I want to feel a sense of satisfaction when I wrap my lips around them and sip the nectar of morning.
Call it picky, but I call it not wasting my fun dollars. I want to be sure that I will truly enjoy and appreciate what I spent my money on. I think that somehow this links in to America's mindset of disposability, "Well, if I don't like it, I can just get a new one." I might throw my money away on food, but when it comes to personal things like clothing or accessories I am very judicious about what I buy. I don't buy something that I am not truly in love with. I call that "settling". I don't settle. I hunt. I search until that perfect purchase walks into my shopping cart and comes home with me.
So, because I was not completely satisfied with what I saw today, I passed on the purchase. I'll wait till next Friday after a new shipment comes in and I still get my 15% off.
Moving right along, I was suuuuuuper hungry by the time we were done with the Dr. appointment and a quick browse through Beall's. So, instead of going home to make something, I swung through Taco Bell/KFC again. When I got to the drive through the line was backed up past the intercom. I waited there for 5 minutes, which in hungryville is like a week. When I heard the car in front of me say, "I'm not close enough to see the menu," I lost it. Fuming at their lack of capability to keep the line moving I took the side route to exit the black hole of fun dollars. "I'll make it faster at home myself!" I said out loud as I waited to turn left onto 89A.
I was NOT satisfied, so they did NOT get my fun dollars.
Every dollar we spend is a vote. Where do you vote? What do you vote for?
Balance this pay cycle $66.00
Happy Spending!
I go to Beall's on Friday because people under 50 get an extra 15% off. So, if I'm going to shop there, why not wait till I know I will get an automatic discount? I was on a mission. At the top of my "I Want" list is a To-Go coffee mug and a "mine at home" coffee mug. Both of mine broke in the month of December.
As I looked through the shelves of housewares, I came across several options for both kinds of mugs. As I held them, looked at them, clicked the lids, and tested the "spillability" I wasn't quite sold on any of them. Some at home mugs had teeny tiny handles, some were too top heavy, and therefore easily spilled by table bumps or little hands. Some of the To-Go mugs had lids that were hard to remove, or hard to click open. Other just had ugly designs. I refuse to settle. These are things I will use every day. I want to feel a sense of satisfaction when I wrap my lips around them and sip the nectar of morning.
Call it picky, but I call it not wasting my fun dollars. I want to be sure that I will truly enjoy and appreciate what I spent my money on. I think that somehow this links in to America's mindset of disposability, "Well, if I don't like it, I can just get a new one." I might throw my money away on food, but when it comes to personal things like clothing or accessories I am very judicious about what I buy. I don't buy something that I am not truly in love with. I call that "settling". I don't settle. I hunt. I search until that perfect purchase walks into my shopping cart and comes home with me.
So, because I was not completely satisfied with what I saw today, I passed on the purchase. I'll wait till next Friday after a new shipment comes in and I still get my 15% off.
Moving right along, I was suuuuuuper hungry by the time we were done with the Dr. appointment and a quick browse through Beall's. So, instead of going home to make something, I swung through Taco Bell/KFC again. When I got to the drive through the line was backed up past the intercom. I waited there for 5 minutes, which in hungryville is like a week. When I heard the car in front of me say, "I'm not close enough to see the menu," I lost it. Fuming at their lack of capability to keep the line moving I took the side route to exit the black hole of fun dollars. "I'll make it faster at home myself!" I said out loud as I waited to turn left onto 89A.
I was NOT satisfied, so they did NOT get my fun dollars.
Every dollar we spend is a vote. Where do you vote? What do you vote for?
Balance this pay cycle $66.00
Happy Spending!
Food, Glorious Food!
On Wednesday, as I mentioned, I was sick. Yesterday, Thursday, I was recovering. My fever had passed but m body was still slow-moving and I would get the occasional chills. I had very little appetite and even less desire to be in the kitchen cooking. My solution? Take m fun dollars to the new Taco Bell/KFC that just reopened.
Yeah, I'm not proud of it, but I didn't want to go into a grocery store looking like death warmed over just to get a side of mashed potatoes. Not to mention my son was home from school yesterday (he goes MWF) and I didn't want to take two kids into a store for one little thing while I still felt weak. The drive through offered the simple solution. My son even chose to use his fun dollars on a bean burrito with a side of nacho cheese, his favorite.
Ever since going through the drive through yesterday, I realized just how much I depend on fun dollars to get me meals. For as long as I can remember, I have avoided being in the kitchen. It has only been in recent years that I started to find confidence and maybe even a hint of enjoyment while creating meals. But when I get so run down, like I was yesterday, the only thing I can think of is, "Someone else, PLEASE make me some food!!!!" I notice this happening when I get caught up doing housework too. I could fold and organize and put away laundry all day long. In fact, some days I do that. When that happens, I find myself shouting to the rooftops, "FOOD, NOW!!!!" I get so wrapped up in what I am doing that I don't plan ahead to stop and make food before I get hungry. Then I use the crutch of fun dollars to get something off the dollar menu.
I think when I ask myself, "Where did my 2013 fun dollars go?" I can safely answer that with "into the toilet."
So what can I do to ensure a more responsible expenditure of my fun dollars? Maybe I can start a sub-category of fun dollars that is just for food, and when it runs out, it's gone until next pay period. Or I can be proactive with my eating habits instead of waiting until my hunger pains get the better of me. Or a combination of both. One thing is for certain, I need to cut back on my emergency eating expenditures so that I can have more money to spread to more worthy purchases than dollar menu items.
$2.00 at Taco Bell/KFC for a side of mashed potatoes
Balance remaining this pay cycle $66.00
Happy Spending!
Yeah, I'm not proud of it, but I didn't want to go into a grocery store looking like death warmed over just to get a side of mashed potatoes. Not to mention my son was home from school yesterday (he goes MWF) and I didn't want to take two kids into a store for one little thing while I still felt weak. The drive through offered the simple solution. My son even chose to use his fun dollars on a bean burrito with a side of nacho cheese, his favorite.
Ever since going through the drive through yesterday, I realized just how much I depend on fun dollars to get me meals. For as long as I can remember, I have avoided being in the kitchen. It has only been in recent years that I started to find confidence and maybe even a hint of enjoyment while creating meals. But when I get so run down, like I was yesterday, the only thing I can think of is, "Someone else, PLEASE make me some food!!!!" I notice this happening when I get caught up doing housework too. I could fold and organize and put away laundry all day long. In fact, some days I do that. When that happens, I find myself shouting to the rooftops, "FOOD, NOW!!!!" I get so wrapped up in what I am doing that I don't plan ahead to stop and make food before I get hungry. Then I use the crutch of fun dollars to get something off the dollar menu.
I think when I ask myself, "Where did my 2013 fun dollars go?" I can safely answer that with "into the toilet."
So what can I do to ensure a more responsible expenditure of my fun dollars? Maybe I can start a sub-category of fun dollars that is just for food, and when it runs out, it's gone until next pay period. Or I can be proactive with my eating habits instead of waiting until my hunger pains get the better of me. Or a combination of both. One thing is for certain, I need to cut back on my emergency eating expenditures so that I can have more money to spread to more worthy purchases than dollar menu items.
$2.00 at Taco Bell/KFC for a side of mashed potatoes
Balance remaining this pay cycle $66.00
Happy Spending!
Thursday, January 9, 2014
No Movie
I passed on the movie yesterday so that I could spend the day on the couch. I caught whatever bug was going through town.
Balance this pay cycle is still $68.
Happy Spending!
Balance this pay cycle is still $68.
Happy Spending!
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Incidentals
So, after 2013 was gone, I looked back and thought, "What did I do with $2600? What do I have to show for it?" That is the primary reason for blogging about what I do with my fun dollars. I want to be able to look back and see what exactly I spent my money on. Have you ever tried doing that? It's harder that it sounds, keeping track of expenses. Never mind keeping track of what is necessary to pay each month, like rent/mortgage, groceries, gas, phone bills; those can all be tracked. But have you ever kept track of what you spend "just for fun"?
How much do you spend on eating out, whether it's McDonald's or Cheesecake Factory? How much do you spend on clothes, just shopping for fun? How much on alcohol? How many bottles of wine or drafts at the pub? I invite you, as you journey with me on my spending to also keep track of what you spend. Save receipts, or jot it down in a notebook, or a calendar and see what you are spending on. Don't change or judge it, just observe it.
Today, after stopping by the bank, this is what I bought:
$12.00 at Walgreen's on:
-A three pack of chap stick
-Three rolls of clearance Christmas wrapping paper
-a box of Christmas lights (also on clearance)
-candy for the movie tomorrow (I plan to save some cash on the popcorn)
-and a beverage for the road while running errands.
I also set aside $20 to jump start my earmark fund. I'm thinking of saving up for something fun for my birthday.
Balance for this pay cycle- $68
Happy Spending!
How much do you spend on eating out, whether it's McDonald's or Cheesecake Factory? How much do you spend on clothes, just shopping for fun? How much on alcohol? How many bottles of wine or drafts at the pub? I invite you, as you journey with me on my spending to also keep track of what you spend. Save receipts, or jot it down in a notebook, or a calendar and see what you are spending on. Don't change or judge it, just observe it.
Today, after stopping by the bank, this is what I bought:
$12.00 at Walgreen's on:
-A three pack of chap stick
-Three rolls of clearance Christmas wrapping paper
-a box of Christmas lights (also on clearance)
-candy for the movie tomorrow (I plan to save some cash on the popcorn)
-and a beverage for the road while running errands.
I also set aside $20 to jump start my earmark fund. I'm thinking of saving up for something fun for my birthday.
Balance for this pay cycle- $68
Happy Spending!
Monday, January 6, 2014
New Week, New Dollars
So today is payday for the Sheridans. Normally, this means I pick up a check or two (sometimes there is a separate commission check) and deposit them in the bank. When I deposit, I ask for $210 cash back. Corey and I each receive $100.00 and Carrick, our son, puts $5 if the remaining $10 in his pocket. I give him his balance the next week. I can't have a 5-year-old running around with $10, it would be too easily lost, or spent.
Today is an exception, we have family still visiting from the holidays, and Corey finally has a real day off. He has worked almost straight through two weeks because of a move of venue at one of the galleries he manages. He said he was absolutely not setting foot in work today. I told him I would be okay with waiting a day before getting fun dollars to put in my wallet.
Having family in town changes a little bit how we spend our fun dollars. Things that would normally fall under the heading of fun dollars are now fair game, like a trip to get frozen yogurt, or buying a bottle of wine. It's the holidays and we are feeding extra people. We don't do this all the time, so we do have separate "rules for spending".
So, tomorrow, when I deposit our checks, and get cash back, I will ask for my $100 with a $40 in 10's and 5's. This helps me earmark or set aside money for things on my "I want" list. I keep a running list of things that come up that I think, "I want that" and I write it down. Sometimes I save up for a month or two in this reserve style until I can buy what is on my "I want" list. I don't like to spend all of my money all at once, so that's why I save up for bigger things. One of the things I have earmarked for this go-round is a matinee at the movie theater. I want to see a show that neither Carrick nor Corey would want to see, so I am taking myself out, with my fun dollars.
Until next time,
Happy Spending!
Today is an exception, we have family still visiting from the holidays, and Corey finally has a real day off. He has worked almost straight through two weeks because of a move of venue at one of the galleries he manages. He said he was absolutely not setting foot in work today. I told him I would be okay with waiting a day before getting fun dollars to put in my wallet.
Having family in town changes a little bit how we spend our fun dollars. Things that would normally fall under the heading of fun dollars are now fair game, like a trip to get frozen yogurt, or buying a bottle of wine. It's the holidays and we are feeding extra people. We don't do this all the time, so we do have separate "rules for spending".
So, tomorrow, when I deposit our checks, and get cash back, I will ask for my $100 with a $40 in 10's and 5's. This helps me earmark or set aside money for things on my "I want" list. I keep a running list of things that come up that I think, "I want that" and I write it down. Sometimes I save up for a month or two in this reserve style until I can buy what is on my "I want" list. I don't like to spend all of my money all at once, so that's why I save up for bigger things. One of the things I have earmarked for this go-round is a matinee at the movie theater. I want to see a show that neither Carrick nor Corey would want to see, so I am taking myself out, with my fun dollars.
Until next time,
Happy Spending!
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Why Fun Dollars?
"So, what's the point?" you may ask. Why should I care about what you spend your money on? Isn't the whole point of fun dollars is no one can tell you how to spend them or criticize your purchases?
Deep down inside, I think we all wish we could just go out and spend money with no consequences. Some people are shopaholics, or they buy just for the thrill of it. Some people save so tightly that they never give themselves the pleasure of a purchase. Other people might have such a limited income that they wouldn't dare spend a dime on themselves. While others still have so much disposable income that an allowance for personal spending seems laughable. I want to share my fun dollars experience to show that no matter what your income level, no matter what your spending pattern, there is a joy to be found within the spending of fun dollars.
There is another reason I want to be totally transparent with how I spend my fun dollars. Even though what I purchase is my business, I still feel a sense of guilt about some ways I spend my money. I find myself justifying a trip to Wendy's because I "had fun dollars". Having fun dollars doesn't excuse me from making decisions that contradict a personal value. I really want to teach healthy eating habits to my children, and if I go to Wendy's every time I don't feel like cooking, what message does that send them? This is just a specific example of a personal value that I betray sometimes because I have fun dollars. This is one of many facets to be examined during my year of public spending.
And lastly, some of the creativity and personal growth I have experienced in the past year and a half of using the fun dollars system comes from when I don't spend. When I think about choices I've made, ideas I've come up with, and new ways of doing things, just because I either ran out of fun dollars, or I didn't want to spend what money I did have, the list is too plentiful to name. And that's most of the fun for me. It's the appreciation for what I have, the anticipation of wanting something, and making it happen, as well as the challenge to think outside the box that makes fun dollars truly "Fun".
Happy Spending :)
Deep down inside, I think we all wish we could just go out and spend money with no consequences. Some people are shopaholics, or they buy just for the thrill of it. Some people save so tightly that they never give themselves the pleasure of a purchase. Other people might have such a limited income that they wouldn't dare spend a dime on themselves. While others still have so much disposable income that an allowance for personal spending seems laughable. I want to share my fun dollars experience to show that no matter what your income level, no matter what your spending pattern, there is a joy to be found within the spending of fun dollars.
There is another reason I want to be totally transparent with how I spend my fun dollars. Even though what I purchase is my business, I still feel a sense of guilt about some ways I spend my money. I find myself justifying a trip to Wendy's because I "had fun dollars". Having fun dollars doesn't excuse me from making decisions that contradict a personal value. I really want to teach healthy eating habits to my children, and if I go to Wendy's every time I don't feel like cooking, what message does that send them? This is just a specific example of a personal value that I betray sometimes because I have fun dollars. This is one of many facets to be examined during my year of public spending.
And lastly, some of the creativity and personal growth I have experienced in the past year and a half of using the fun dollars system comes from when I don't spend. When I think about choices I've made, ideas I've come up with, and new ways of doing things, just because I either ran out of fun dollars, or I didn't want to spend what money I did have, the list is too plentiful to name. And that's most of the fun for me. It's the appreciation for what I have, the anticipation of wanting something, and making it happen, as well as the challenge to think outside the box that makes fun dollars truly "Fun".
Happy Spending :)
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