Spending Journal 2020 for Momof2Still

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Momof2Still
Posts: 173
Joined: Mon May 14, 2018 10:05 pm

Spending Journal 2020 for Momof2Still

Post by Momof2Still »

I am starting this journal at this time to better track my spending for the rest of the year and as a daily journal. I have been good with staying within my budget so far this year. I haven’t been perfect, and I move my allowable spending around within categories so that I do stay within budget- but I have stayed within allowable spending limits. My largest expense is travel (or was travel), but I am blessed that I can go visit my children and that my work schedule allows it. I visited my DD and DSIL a couple of days after Christmas last year and ushered in the new year with them. I know it would have been less expensive to have waited, but I postponed my trip last summer due to not being able to afford it, so it had been over a year and a half since I last saw her, and almost 3 years since we have been able to spend just her and me time together. I was with her a couple of days prior to her wedding and then the next year prior to her brother’s wedding, but weddings are a hectic time and certainly did not allow alone time.

My year to date (06/02/2020):

Last week the school year ended, and what a school year it was. I had a classroom full, and I do mean full (19), of wonderful individuals with amazing personalities, but as a collective was exhausting. As one teacher said, I had the class that had the students with BIG personalities- also some that should under no circumstances been placed into the same classroom as they played off each other making behaviors worse. I gained 15 pounds the first month of school because I was exhausted by the time I got home and immediately took a nap each day when I got home and didn’t have the energy to exercise. The good news was, I also didn’t have the energy to spend money. I thought by October that we had it together, but then I took a day off when my DS and DDIL came to visit. It was a wonderful visit, but I did not take another day off, even when I was sick with a fever-I caught it at school, so the students were already exposed to whatever I had. My students could not handle me being gone, and I did not want to return to a classroom that looked like a garbage dumpster exploded, subs that had been brought to tears and will no longer sub, and/or teachers that let me know before I could even get across the parking lot that it took three other teachers to get my class under control enough to get them back into the classroom after lunch-we won’t even discuss the behavior during lunch. It was a rough group collectively. We finally had most behaviors under control (barely), and we were making learning gains when Spring break came, and we never went back to the school room. I work in a school with children with very little parent support. I had students that came to school after 12:00 because no one woke them up, and they had not had anything to eat so I had to find food for them since my class had already been to lunch. Many of my students took food packs home on the weekend to ensure they had something to eat. One of the hot topics in the classroom was whose parent (mom/dad) was getting out of jail soon. Very few students had internet access or devices. Devices and hot spots were given out on loan, but only one device per family and some families had more than 5 students in the family. Many did not have anyone to assist them or was capable of assisting them. I was flabbergasted that I had most of my students (17) online working in some capacity and very proud of them. Some did not do a lot, but many of them did much more than I anticipated at the announcement we would be doing school in this manner. I am looking forward to next school year and work on tracking my spending better.

I am currently in quarantine at my DS’s house, so spending should be kept within limits or even less. When DS and DDIL came to visit in October, they announced that they were expecting a baby. They also asked that I come and spend the summer with them since they were due near the end of my school year. DGS was born soon after I arrived. I am so excited to be able to hold him soon. I will be adding a category to my budget, because to think that I will not buy anything for him is delusional. I know I will do much better staying within a budget than to think I will not buy anything at all.

I will have the same household expenses while I am at DS’s home since my lovable fur babies are still in Florida being taken care of by a friend. I drove RM’s car to get to my DS’s home since I am here all summer. I would say that I will be saving gas money, but that has been a minimal expense since March. My driving up was planned so that I would have a car to go places during my stay, but I don’t think I will be going anywhere. I would not want to risk DGS’s safety and health, or his parents. At least by driving, I did not come into contact with many people, so that was a plus. I think my budget will stay the same except for adding a baby category and lowering my savings slightly. I am okay with that, especially since I have saved more for savings than I budgeted for to date. I have saved in the entertainment category, because I have not gone anywhere or spent any money on food other than groceries in months. I have a minimal entertainment budget, but it is money that is being saved at this time.
alliesmama4
Posts: 8591
Joined: Sun Aug 30, 2015 10:10 pm
Location: Southern IL

Re: Spending Journal 2020 for Momof2Still

Post by alliesmama4 »

Momof2Still wrote: Tue Jun 02, 2020 4:04 pm I am starting this journal at this time to better track my spending for the rest of the year and as a daily journal. I have been good with staying within my budget so far this year. I haven’t been perfect, and I move my allowable spending around within categories so that I do stay within budget- but I have stayed within allowable spending limits. My largest expense is travel (or was travel), but I am blessed that I can go visit my children and that my work schedule allows it. I visited my DD and DSIL a couple of days after Christmas last year and ushered in the new year with them. I know it would have been less expensive to have waited, but I postponed my trip last summer due to not being able to afford it, so it had been over a year and a half since I last saw her, and almost 3 years since we have been able to spend just her and me time together. I was with her a couple of days prior to her wedding and then the next year prior to her brother’s wedding, but weddings are a hectic time and certainly did not allow alone time.

My year to date (06/02/2020):

Last week the school year ended, and what a school year it was. I had a classroom full, and I do mean full (19), of wonderful individuals with amazing personalities, but as a collective was exhausting. As one teacher said, I had the class that had the students with BIG personalities- also some that should under no circumstances been placed into the same classroom as they played off each other making behaviors worse. I gained 15 pounds the first month of school because I was exhausted by the time I got home and immediately took a nap each day when I got home and didn’t have the energy to exercise. The good news was, I also didn’t have the energy to spend money. I thought by October that we had it together, but then I took a day off when my DS and DDIL came to visit. It was a wonderful visit, but I did not take another day off, even when I was sick with a fever-I caught it at school, so the students were already exposed to whatever I had. My students could not handle me being gone, and I did not want to return to a classroom that looked like a garbage dumpster exploded, subs that had been brought to tears and will no longer sub, and/or teachers that let me know before I could even get across the parking lot that it took three other teachers to get my class under control enough to get them back into the classroom after lunch-we won’t even discuss the behavior during lunch. It was a rough group collectively. We finally had most behaviors under control (barely), and we were making learning gains when Spring break came, and we never went back to the school room. I work in a school with children with very little parent support. I had students that came to school after 12:00 because no one woke them up, and they had not had anything to eat so I had to find food for them since my class had already been to lunch. Many of my students took food packs home on the weekend to ensure they had something to eat. One of the hot topics in the classroom was whose parent (mom/dad) was getting out of jail soon. Very few students had internet access or devices. Devices and hot spots were given out on loan, but only one device per family and some families had more than 5 students in the family. Many did not have anyone to assist them or was capable of assisting them. I was flabbergasted that I had most of my students (17) online working in some capacity and very proud of them. Some did not do a lot, but many of them did much more than I anticipated at the announcement we would be doing school in this manner. I am looking forward to next school year and work on tracking my spending better.

I am currently in quarantine at my DS’s house, so spending should be kept within limits or even less. When DS and DDIL came to visit in October, they announced that they were expecting a baby. They also asked that I come and spend the summer with them since they were due near the end of my school year. DGS was born soon after I arrived. I am so excited to be able to hold him soon. I will be adding a category to my budget, because to think that I will not buy anything for him is delusional. I know I will do much better staying within a budget than to think I will not buy anything at all.

I will have the same household expenses while I am at DS’s home since my lovable fur babies are still in Florida being taken care of by a friend. I drove RM’s car to get to my DS’s home since I am here all summer. I would say that I will be saving gas money, but that has been a minimal expense since March. My driving up was planned so that I would have a car to go places during my stay, but I don’t think I will be going anywhere. I would not want to risk DGS’s safety and health, or his parents. At least by driving, I did not come into contact with many people, so that was a plus. I think my budget will stay the same except for adding a baby category and lowering my savings slightly. I am okay with that, especially since I have saved more for savings than I budgeted for to date. I have saved in the entertainment category, because I have not gone anywhere or spent any money on food other than groceries in months. I have a minimal entertainment budget, but it is money that is being saved at this time.


Momof2 so good to see you posting again. Congrats on being a new Grandma. Glad you will be able to spend time with him and your DS and DDIL.

Sounds like you had a really rough school year even before the pandemic. I admire your ability to stay with the class and try to get them in educational mode. So sad what some kids have to deal with at home.
Good luck with your savings and budgeting.. Looking forward to see how things go for the rest of the year.
Janet Alliesmama
Dgflorida
Posts: 4381
Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2015 8:10 pm

Re: Spending Journal 2020 for Momof2Still

Post by Dgflorida »

Welcome to frugal journals. I have found it very helpful in staying on the frugal path. I hope it will serve you as well.
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