The Professional Domestic

Last update I reported that we had met our monthly goal for August with some crafty extra sales in my Etsy shop.

This month so far has been almost as good for Etsy sales so I think we are still on track to meet our goal of paying off another $1200 in debt and adding another $100 to our savings.

At the end of Week 10 we are at $31,897.69 for debt amount and $530.00 in savings. That’s a decrease of $445.85 in debt and $30 increase in savings.

Here’s the breakdown for the month of September so far:

• Week 8 – $32,343.54
• Weeks 9 and 10 – $31,897.69

Just $754.15 left to meet September’s debt goal and just $70 left to meet September’s savings goal.

Next update September 20th! – MM

Last update I reported that we had $733 left to go to meet this month’s goal of paying off $1500 in debt for August. I really didn’t have much hope in hitting that goal because I knew we still had bills to pay the last week in August and I only get paid bi-weekly so this would have been impossible with only one paycheck for the week.

But I consider myself resourceful so I got to work last week and started getting more items listed in my Etsy shop and pushed these listings on my Instagram page and by then end of the week I had made up that $733.00. Yes 14 listings sold!

So I did it! $1500 in debt paid this month and I increased our savings to $500. Both goals met.

At the end of Week 8 we are at $32,343.54 for debt amount and $500.00 in savings. That’s a decrease of $733 in debt and $60 increase in savings.

Here’s the breakdown for the month of August:

• Week 4 – $33,843.33
• Week 5 – $33,376.54
• Week 6 and 7 – $33,076.54
• Week 8 – $32,343.54

Since re-starting our debt paydown in July we have paid off a whopping $2756 in debt. We still have an enormous amount of debt to pay off and we will probably always have some kind of debt but the two credit cards we have need to go for good. That’s the ultimate goal.

Goal for September is $1200 in debt paid off and another $100 in savings. I am shooting a little lower this time because we have school taxes to pay this month.

Next update September 6th! – MM

There was nothing new to post on Monday so I skipped an update for week 6. I do have more to report for week 7 though!

At the end of Week 7 we are at $33,076.54 for debt amount and still at $440.00 in savings. That’s a decrease of $300 in debt and zero change in savings.

Here’s the breakdown so far this month:

• Week 4 – $33,843.33
• Week 5 – $33,376.54
• Week 6 and 7 – $33,076.54

Goal for August is $1,500 in total debt paid off so another $733.21 left to go and goal for savings is another $140 saved so just $60 left to achieve that goal. With only one more week left to reach our goal for the month I unfortunately don’t see it happening, but hey you never know right?

One quick thing I want to add this week. It’s something I discovered a few weeks ago that may affect some of you if you have been hired at a new job in the last year and a half.

I recently discovered that there has been no income tax being taken out of my paycheck. State or Federal. In January 2020 the tax laws changed and most people did not know this part. The payroll company the Town works with said now, as employees, we have to tell them how much we want withheld from our paychecks weekly, they no longer do that for us. Really?? That would have been nice to know, right? Luckily I caught this after only about 2 pay periods but my boss hadn’t had anything taken out all year! So look closely at the deductions on your next pay stub and make sure you are getting federal and state taxes withheld. The payroll company said it does not affect employees that have not switched jobs before January 2020. They are still on the old W-4 system. Let me know how you make out!

Next update August 30th – MM

Financially we had a pretty darn good week last week!

At the end of Week 5 we are at $33,376.54 for debt amount and $440.00 in savings. That’s a decrease of $466.79 in debt and an increase of $80 in savings.

I would have added more to savings this week but we decided happily to explore the Lake Ontario area and paid cash for our dinner last night which we most definitely deserved!

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Here’s the breakdown so far this month:

• Week 4 – $33,843.33
• Week 5 – $33,376.54

Goal for August is $1,500 in total debt paid off so just another $1,033.21 left to go and goal for savings is another $140 saved so just $60 left to achieve that goal!

Next update August 16th – MM

Once again it was an even busier week than it was last week, if that is even possible.

At the end of Week 4 we are at $33,843.33 for debt amount and $360.00 in savings. That’s a decrease of $395.13 in debt and zero change in savings.

My goal for the month of July was $1000 in total debt paid off and an increase in our savings. Below is this month’s final breakdown.

• Week 1 – $35,100
• Week 2 – $34,838.65
• Week 3 – $34,238.46
• Week 4 – $33,843.33
• Total debt paid off for July $1,256.67

We reached our goal for the month and then some!

Goal for August is $1500 in total debt paid off and another $140 saved for a total of $500 in savings.

Next update August 9th – MM

It was a busy week last week but I still managed to make a sizeable dent in our debt and savings.

At the end of Week 3 we are at $34,238.46 for debt amount and $360.00 in savings. That’s a decrease of $600.19 in debt and an increase in $110 in savings!

My goal for us this month is $1000 in total debt paid off and an increase in our savings. Below is this month’s breakdown thus far.

• Week 1 – $35,100
• Week 2 – $34,838.65
• Week 3 – $34,238.46
• Total debt paid off so far this month $861.54

Just $138.46 left to go to reach July’s goal and I am already happy with our savings increase.

Since I started posting our debt shenanigans again I have had a few of you tell me that you appreciate the honesty about our money and debt journey and how we are handling it. Debt and money management is not easy. There are all sorts of reasons why people fall into debt and I am betting most of the time it’s not because of misspending.

We didn’t get into debt because we were taking lavish vacations and buying toys and things we didn’t need. We got into debt because of divorce, a failed business and having crappy medical insurance. Seriously, all from things that just happen in life. But when bills add up to more than what we bring home in our paychecks that’s when debt builds plain and simple.

Keep the comments coming. I love hearing from you!

Next update August 2nd – MM