2021 was a good year for us despite the pandemic. 

2021 Goal Priorities
1.) ($3,500 / $3,500) Medial OOP
2.) Regrade Yard & Install Water Heater
3.) ($3,000 / $3,000) Vacation

We managed to complete all our goals, plus some extra ones! We gutted and redid our kitchen which was $10k+, we got a much newer car as a gift from family, we had a new baby and didn't need to take out any medical loans for our crazy high out of pocket expenses $7k+ and we managed to survive on only one income. 

2022 feels comfortable and I am unsure what goals I have. Almost everything I can think of it less about money and more about living. Which is good I think. I no longer have to have laser focus to pay down debt or save for the next big purchase... we are okay and happy. 

But here are a few easy to reach things I want to accomplish this year. 

Goal 1.) $5,000 Added to Roth IRAs

I have already put in $775 and with another $3k earmarked from our tax return this will be easy but necessary since we have put retirement on the back burner that last couple years while having and paying for children. We are nearing 30 years old and need to make this a priority. Extra income will probably also be added to this. 

We also just bumped husband's 401k contribution up to the match which is 5%.

Goal 2.) New Water Line & Bury Gutters

This was sort of part of last year's goal which got pushed back because the price of materials went from $2 a foot to $10. (Yikes!) Money is there and we will wait until prices regulate before finishing the project. 

Goal 3.) Go on Vacation

This is a reoccuring goal. We always try to take a long vacation somewhere and make memories. We have one big and several shorter trips planned this year. Approximately $3,000 for the main one. 

Goal 4.) Be More Organized

Not a financial goal but a personal one. I would really like to be a better steward of my time. Which means keeping a cleaner house, cooking more healthy meals, and wasting less of my time on things like social media and stuff that doesn't matter. This will be my first full year not working (except my web design which I am doing minimally). With our finances pretty much on auto pilot and us now being a family of four it's time to get the rest of our house in order. Which will help free me up for my last goal.

 Goal 5.) Enjoy Life

I want to spend more time enjoying the important things and things I love. Spending more fun time with the kids, such as going to the park, library, swimming. More time with my goats, more time with friends, etc. 

Here's to 2022!

I received my stimulus today and used it to finish saving for my medical out of pocket max for the year. What a relief to have it already saved for! No more medical debt. I am still fighting out of network charges from last year but I am hopeful for a resolution soon. 

Which means we have nearly completed all our goals for the year except for regrading the yard. We are waiting on the weather to cooperate, but the money is saved.

We went ahead and added another saving/project goal which is a small kitchen remodel. I already have $3,000 set aside for that. If we go over budget I may have to save a little more, but hopefully that will mostly cover it. 

Now that all our goals and wants this year are basically saved for I'm not sure what we will use extra income towards. I do know I need to save a bit for some time off work I will be taking this fall. So I have been taking a small amount from each check. Otherwise I'm not sure if we will contribute more to retirement, save for more home projects, a new car, or perhaps just a general savings fund and then decide later. What a good problem to have!

I got my federal tax refund this week. Still waiting on state. I got over $6k this year. So I took tithes out, put $3,000 into our vacation fund, and put the rest back for medical expenses. Unfortunately I am on a new medication that is about $300 a month and not covered by insurance. So that will be a drain on our medical fund which I did not count on. 

I also received another unexpected medical bill from our NICU stay in January 2020. Sigh. It was supposedly taken care of back in September but here it is again. So I'm working on still fighting that. I am hoping I can get it from $3k+ down to about $400 which at the point I will just pay it and be done. I still think I should have to pay none of it, but I'm tired. 

I think I have husband convinced to replace our kitchen cabinets and get a dishwasher. I think I can do it for around $3,000. So we'll have to save that up first. Hopefully within the next few months. 

The goals for 2021 are a bit harder for me. We finished paying off our non-mortgage debt and now that we are onto savings I am a little unsure about what our priorities are. Although I've always had 5 goals a year I can only come up with 3 for now. I may add more later. 

Goal 1.) $3,500 for medical OOP max

We already have $4,500 being saved into our HSA but we want to save the remaining $2,500 for our OOP max plus an extra $1,000 for an uncovered medical expense. 

Goal 2.) Regrade the yard and install water heater

This is been a waiting project for almost two years now. We have the money set aside and I'm just waiting on contractors. The water heater is supposed to be installed next week.

Goal 3.) Go on vacation

We aren't sure where or when yet, but we want to take a vacation and pay cash. Approximately $3,000.