Q and A Debt

Recently, I mentioned that Mr. Man had decided to use one of our lower interest cards for work related expenses. Welllllll.....off he went to his business meeting.  He had a bit of cash on him. We paid off about half the balance on said credit card. His room and expenses would be reimbursed so we were going to pay that back towards the card. We were quite proud of ourselves. Making an active effort to pay off that card completely. Mr. Man calls me from the hotel saying he cannot check in. Our credit limit was lowered after paying down the card!!! We had cut every single other credit card we had. Plus we did not have the $500 the hotel needed. I was so embarrassed for Mr. Man. Thankfully, my mother in law saved the day. It never occurred to us that the credit card company would do that. We realized that not using it every now and then actually hurt us. Needless to say, we would not be in this predicament if we had a little money tucked away.  Talk about lesson learned.

Yesterday, Mr. Man dared to venture out with me in tow.  We went to run some errands and visit my Dad, sis and brother at the indoor fleamarket. My Mom and Dad have a booth there so now my sis goes with Dad. I hobbled on by to visit.  The lady next door to him had this gorgeous frame which I had to snap up.  Her asking price...$25!  It is huge and the colors are so vibrant. My pic does not do it justice at all. I love it so much...I had Mr. Man put it over the fireplace. Afterwards, we went to visit my Mom. I had not been to the cemetary in a few days and was eager to see the Valentine's flowers and decorations my wonderful sister had put up around mom's site.  It was beautiful :*)   Today, I'm trying to pick up around the house.  There is no school tomorrow for the kiddos which is a big relief.  Mr. Man will be leaving on business later today so I'll be on my own with the kiddos till Tuesday.  Yikes.  Before I leave I have to address the fact that my photo on

I am so excited right now. Sometimes the smallest things can bring the biggest joy.  I'm here at home recovering from surgery, feeling a bit glum for a few reasons when I decide to read some of my favorite blogs.  I head on over to  My 1/2 Dozen Daily and begin to read Carla's 5 Things Friday post.  After I'm done admiring her super cute pouches that she sewed yesterday, I realize I have won her latest giveaway for the most adorable pouch ever.  It totally has made my day. Thank you so much Carla! Now that I have a bit of pep in my step, I think I will attempt to get through a pile of paperwork that has been sitting by my desk. It has a little of everything and I'm ready for it to be gone! I've posted a photo in attempts to shame myself into not putting it off. Hope everyone has a Happy Friday!

My surgery is over and I'm recovering at home.  The most difficult part has been missing my mother. She took care of me after I had both kiddos and both of my previous surgeries. So not having her here to just talk to, cheer me up and make her yummy chicken soup has been difficult. I am thankful all came out fine. The last thing we are waiting on is some testing but the doctor was optimistic. On the financial front, our reimbursement came in so we should be okay till Mr. Man's payday. I guess it helps that I'm home bound for a few days. Lol. Also, we found a bit of money on those government unclaimed money sites. Not a huge amount but a little to go to a medical bill. On the EBay front, I will be listing this week and will be updating my money made totals. I also will be updating my debt totals. I'm hoping to eliminate a credit card much sooner than anticipated. Mr. Man will use it for work so we will also have a near zero balance on it. I'm off to get some

Well, I'm scheduled for day surgery once again (different procedure). Mr. Man said his promotion came at the right time because of the added expenses.  I'm grateful I can have the procedure done and hopefully relieve some pain. The past 30 days have been terrible.  Between losing my mom, the holidays, sibling drama and my health, I'm about ready to go hide under a rock somewhere. I won't complain.  I know others are dealing with bigger issues so I have to be grateful for all my blessings.  The total oop expense should be about $2000 for the surgery.  Our flexible spending account should reimburse us $560 of that so I'm hoping it does. The hospital does not require the full amount up front so we only need about $1300 by the time I preregister. I really hope I'm feeling as close to normal after all this. I have been listing here and there on Ebay.  Brought in a few dollars and need to ramp it up after I'm feeling better. More than likely that will be the b

Financially this month has been absolutely horrible which only mirrors our month on the emotional front as well.  Now that the air is slowly clearing, I am getting in a better headspace to begin planning for next year.  With Mr. Man's new job comes a little more income. So what are our goals for 2013... 1. Reduce my credit card debt by 30%.  Currently we have about $23,000 in credit card debt alone.  I would like to pay off at least $8000 by December 31, 2013. 2. Create an emergency fund of at least $3000.  This was my goal for last year and we failed miserably. I'm hoping to have better luck in 2013. 3. Reduce our daily expenses. I'd like to have more no spend days.  I will try to plan better and also modify my grocery lists with more healthy snacks that we can take from home when we head out to music class or therapy. 4. Open bank accounts for each of the kiddos.  They expressed interest at having their own accounts.  I'm all for them learning to be responsi