Personal Update – 2nd Quarter 2012

It’s been over a month since I’ve last updated. I had to sacrifice my part-time writing to get things in order in anticipation of the arrival of my baby girl. This included finishing the nursery, escorting my parents to their medical appointments, attending childbirth classes, and many other family responsibilities. It is my hope, since I am now on paternity leave, that I will be able to catch up with some writing. By the time this post is published I should be a new dad!

I know being a new parent comes with a lot of new responsibilities and a bunch of new expenses. At this point, I’m not sure how having a child in the family will affect my spending habits, but I hope to stay on track with my budget and debt repayment plan.

2nd Quarter, 2012 Budget Update

•  Fuel costs continued to be an over budget expense. Even though prices decreased over the quarter, our driving time increased while running errands in different parts of the county.
• As expected, spending for clothing went over budget in April as my wife finally had to go out and buy maternity clothes. Luckily, she is a very frugal shopper and is good at finding deals. She really got a lot for the money.
• Dining out weighed heavily on our budget this last quarter. Being foodies, we spent a lot for our anniversary and my birthday. We also ate out a lot due to time constraints and pure laziness. Eating out gets really expensive!
• I spent my home improvement budget to rent tools and purchase materials to work on the nursery. However, I did save money on labor since I did all the work myself instead of contracting out.
• Overall, we were under budget every single month and managed to save some money.

Modified Total Money Makeover Update

• Progress of the “Debt Snowball.”
  • Completely paid off my wife’s car loan in April.
  • We discussed paying off one of my wife’s student loans in full, but are deferring to keep some extra cash on hand until we know the baby is safe and sound.
  • We put the debt snowball on hold temporarily, but will return to “gazelle intensity” in the 3rd quarter.

Anyone can create financial security with a little discipline. It may feel hopeless while you’re working and have enormous debts to pay, but I’m in the same shoes. The key is to start implementing restraint when it comes to spending, chip away at debt, and chip into your future through savings and investments.