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Archive for March, 2020

March Check In

March 27th, 2020 at 02:45 pm

Debts
Mortgage -$112,416.58 (-$157.39)
Helitech Loan -$2,550 (-$600)
Medical Loan -$1,600 (-$100)

Savings
Roth IRAs +$13,202 (-$2,366)
401K +$23,139 (-$2,509)
Emergency Fund +$3,010 (-$396)
Animal Fund +$506 (+$1)
Truck Fund +$1,945 (+$100)
HSA +$1,178 (+$250)

Overall: -$4,062.61

Ouch! Markets really crashed this month. In addition I paid my 6 month car insurance. Medical bills are still sorting out but I will add them to my net worth next month, so there will be another $7k+ decline in April.

We also saved and spent $600 towards vacation this month.

How Will You Spend?

March 26th, 2020 at 03:19 pm

If you live in the US, when/if we actually get checks from the government, what will you spend it on?

It sounds like they are basing it off our 2018/2019 taxes so I'm not sure if my new baby will count or not...

But I will probably save $500 for animal expenses, and the rest I will use to pay down debt. If we get the amount I've heard then it would be enough to pay my construction loan completely and we will be down to just medical debt.

I am out of work right now, except some minimal web design. I have to say it is pretty nice to stay home and do what I want all day. Although I am beginning to get a little stir crazy. It's hard to do much outside with the baby with no one else to watch her. Husband is still working 7 days a week.

Be Careful

March 20th, 2020 at 03:19 pm

So much craziness going on. It is ridiculous how many people aren't taking this seriously. But who can blame them if the states aren't testing and people don't believe it is in their area.

I live in a small town and my mom is in the medical profession. She says there have been many people that have all the symptoms but the DRs refuse to test. First they were short on tests, now they have some but they still won't. They will only test if you have been out of the country in the last two weeks or in contact with someone who has, which is silly. Also the Dr has to agree, then they have to call and get permission from the health department, which has to call and get permission from the state. It's all a big pain, so they just aren't testing... This sucks because in her hospital's case (and probably others) these sick patients are with the general population, and the nurses are not wearing proper protective gear or treating them like a quarantine case. Also our hospital is already almost at full capacity and running out of supplies. This pandemic has barely even started in the US.

Just because they aren't testing and so there are no "official cases" does NOT mean they aren't in your town. A friend of mine was soo sick I thought she was dying from an "upper respiratory problem". She was tested for like 15 things and they all came back negative, but they wouldn't test her for Corona. They told her it was just bronchitis or something. Now her husband is sick, and her elderly father. This person has been out in the community since she has been sick!

I am high risk due to lung disease so I am going out as little as possible. I had a Dr appointment yesterday (at a hospital with verified cases) and today I have to go pick up my medicines. I hope they haven't run out of the daily inhaler I take! Also my husband works in food manufacturing so he is continuing to work, and I am also still working but I work alone so not much risk. I'm doing my best to stay safe, but we aren't completely isolated unfortunately.

Since my mom knew how bad this was before the general public she gave us some warning and thankfully we stocked up a couple weeks of supplies ahead of time. It's a mad house here, shelves are bare. Any staples are usually sold out within hours of stocking. Since I have to go to Walmart and pick up my prescriptions I will see if they have any food left and get some more to replenish what we have eaten while I am there.

Stay safe guys! And take this seriously! It's way way worse than it appears because they are testing only a very small percentage of the people that are actually sick. Just assume it's in your town, and stay home!

Vacation Planning

March 12th, 2020 at 06:11 pm

Well despite all the Coronavirus scares my vacation planning has continued as normal. I will be going to Glacier and Yellowstone this fall.

I have my three different lodging places booked and my airplane tickets. The only thing left to reserve is the rental car.

I am sharing lodging and the car with family. So I have been able to keep prices fairly low.

So far our costs for us three are:

Lodging - $946
Plane Tickets - $670

Rental car is estimated at $460. Then the rest of the costs will just be gas, food, souvenirs, etc. Not bad for a 9 day trip. Can't wait!