Goal Update for March
At the beginning of the year, I make a list of finance-related goals that I want to meet over the next 12 months. At the beginning of each month, I report on my successes or failures. If you're new here, you might want to read my original goals post and my February update.
1) Eat non-cereal breakfasts 4 days a week.
I'm happy to report that we are still rockin' on this goal. In fact, I'd say that on average, we are avoiding cereal more than 4 days a week. One thing that has helped in this area is simply not buying much cereal (I know, brilliant!). If I have it around, I'm much less prone to bother with making oatmeal, toast, cream of wheat, or pancakes.
Happily, I think my kids are eating more healthfully this way...homemade whole wheat toast, yogurt, whole wheat pancakes, and oatmeal are all a little more nutritious than, say, Kix or Honey Nut Chex, and they're much more nutritious than Frankenberry, Lucky Charms, and Golden Grahams!
I still would like to be better about planning my breakfast meals ahead of time...that would give us a little more variety and would keep us from repeatedly eating toast at breakfast!
2) Start saving for a replacement van.
I'm plugging away at this, but I'd be lying if I didn't have moments of discouragement when I realize exactly how long this will take. I figure that somewhere around $20,000 is about what I could expect to pay for a low-mileage used van, and even if I saved $500 a month, it would still take me 40 months to save up enough (that's 3.33 years, if you're interested!).
But, I am reminding myself that I'm pretty sure we can keep our current van running for quite some time, hopefully enough time to save. The van is getting close to having 100,000 miles on it, but it's a Toyota, so we feel confident that it should keep running smoothly for a while.
I'm not impatient to buy a van (if we had the money now, I wouldn't buy one. I'd just let the money sit in the savings account until our van died or regularly racked up repair bills)...I'm just impatient to have the money all saved up.
3) Keep Quicken updated once a week
I'd say that I met about half of this goal. I think I updated Quicken twice in February, which is much better than my usual mode of not updating it at all. However, I do think once a week is still more ideal, and I'm going to keep trying for that.
4) Spend $80/week on groceries whenever possible
I didn't do at all well on this, though I did not go over my $100/week limit. Perhaps once we get past birthday season at our house, this will help (between mid-February and the end of April, 5 out of 6 of us have birthdays!). I tend to spend a little more on food when we celebrate birthdays, which is totally worth it, but which makes it difficult to reach that $80 goal.
5) Save enough for a replacement camera body by September
I haven't made any new progress on this goal yet, but I think that next month I'll have some extra money coming in and I hope to be able to put at least some of that into the camera fund.
I'm not really sure how miles/km match up but im pretty sure 100, 000 miles is nothing for a toyota. My mom's van has over 300,000 kms ( about 186, 400 miles - i just found an online converter) and it's a Ford!! 🙂 It will be fine for awhile.
WTG on your goals! Keep up the good work. (I'm sure your food shopping will come around.)
I have one idea for a prepared breakfast. My kids have to be up and out of the house by 7:30 am. If we have a late night I know breakfast will be skipped or a piece of toast on the way out the door. On those nights I spend 5 extra min. in the kitchen and set up some oatmeal in the crockpot. Here is one link to get an idea of how I do it http://www.recipezaar.com/Steel-Cut-Oatmeal-for-the-Crock-Pot-101101 . It makes the house smell nice and pleasant when waking too.
I also prepare your recipe for fried mush some times or the quick liquid smoothie.
Either way I am still looking for easy to prepare breakfasts in the morning. There are days where 3 showers, dressing assistance, packing 2 lunches, dishing out vitamins, 2 on the bus, and 1 to work sucks up a lot of time and breakfast gets left out.
You really think you'll need $20,000 for a USED van?? I bought my car in 2004, for $10,500. It was 4 years old at the time and had 42,000 miles on it. It's a grand marquis, BTW. $20,000 seems REALLY high for a used car...I mean, unless you want one that's like 1 year old. Why not buy one that's like 5 years old and pay $8000-12,000 instead of $20,000? That 2000 grand marquis I bought is still going strong, despite having over 100,000 now.
Yeah, well, my husband and I are looking at getting a Toyota or a Honda van, so I think somewhere between $15-$20K will be necessary. Like someone else said, they are more money up front, but they last so long and have so few repair costs, it's worth it to us.
I paid $15,000 in 2003 for my used 2000 Sienna, so I imagine I'll have to fork over at least the same amount of cash when it comes time to replace it.
We're leasing a Honda Odyssey van and plan to buy it when the lease is up this summer. The final price (prior to the interest we'll pay, since we'll need a loan) will be $26,000--that's for a new van (we started the lease in 2007 with a 2007 model).
In spite of all the problems Toyota has had lately, I still think they are a solid buy. You are very wise to drive your current van until it will go no longer AND to look ahead to the time when it won't. Congratulations on doing so well in meeting your goals so far.
For a quick and easy non-cereal breakfast, what about a scrambled egg in the microwave? Here's what we do: 1 egg, 1 ramekin; spray ramekin w/cooking spray, crack the egg in it and scramble, microwave for 40 seconds (w/wax paper over it) and bingo, there's breakfast. Add a slice of toast and you're set. I like it because it provides protein which is a must to get through the morning. So simple and easy that our teenagers make their own which frees up my morning considering we are out the door early (1 by 6:50 and 3 by 7:30).
I poach my eggs in the microwave. I typically do 2 eggs, so I put 2 tablespoons of water in each custard cup. Then use a fork to pierce the yolk (to keep them from exploding in the microwave) and cover with something. In my microwave, 1 minute sets up the whites and the yolk is still a bit runny. Adjust for your own preferences of course. I like to put the eggs on toast with a bit of salsa on top. If you start the toast, then do the eggs, it will be ready to go in about 3 minutes total.
I would say I grew up on eggs in the microwave... and I know it's silly, but I tend to like them better!! 😉
Toyota's are the bomb. I bought a 2007 Dodge Caravan at CarMax in September 2009. I paid $13K and it had 24,000 miles on it. You would definitely need $20k for a used Honda/ Toyota van - but they will last longer and have a higher resale value. I love your blog and I try to follow your recipes, but some are just an enormous failure. i.e. - my fried mush, is titled cornbread souffle, because I possess a complete inability to flip those little cakes without them falling apart.
Great job on keeping with your goals! Things that you would really like to change usually end up being not that difficult once you plan ahead and are committed.
I am just curious what kind of camera you currently use, and what your wanting to get. I just recently got into photography with my first born and am interested in what you use.
I have an entry-level Canon SLR body, a 50mm 1.4 lens and a 24-70 2.8 L series lens. I love my lenses, but I'm kind of feeling cramped by some limitations the camera body has. I'm trying to decide if I want a 50D body or if I want to save longer and get the 7D. My ability to save will help in that decision, probably! lol
What limitations are the body giving you? Honestly, for most people I can't see any real advantage of using any more than the entry level stuff on digital cams.
Well, for one thing, I am getting very annoyed with the limited number of focus points. When I'm working with a very wide aperture, this really bugs me! lol I also am lusting after the better image quality a higher-grade body would get me.
And, my current camera is not built to withstand the kind of use it's getting. I know the shutter is going to give out on me at some point (I'm surprised it hasn't already, because I think I've surpassed the number of shots it's supposed to be built for).
I do use my camera ALL the time, and I get paid to take pictures, so I don't feel like it's a completely frivolous purchase. 🙂
I wonder why at under 100,000 miles you are even considering purchasing another van in the near future? Honestly, we JUST bought a 10 year old used Toyota van with 119,000 for $4,800 and will plan to drive it for years. Yes, a 10 year old van to us is "new". All the vehicles we have ever owned have been older models but we get them at such a great price and mantain them well so that they serve us well. My brother has a Toyota and a Honda and they both have over 230,000+ miles on them...so they truly are built to last. I just find it funny that close to 100,000 miles to you is a lot when it is LOW to me! 🙂
One idea that my wife and I sometimes implement for breakfast is pre-made french toast. We take an entire loaf of bread and make french toast out of it and then freeze the rest (individually or in pairs) so we can just grab them, nuke them, and eat! Its so hard for me to eat breakfast sometimes (mainly because I really like to sleep) so I have to make it easy.
I'm not totally sure how useful this is to you but we buy our cereals from Bulk barn and only enough to get us through two weeks. As a result we actually eat less grains in the morning, we've reduced our cereal buying budget by two thirds and it's benefited us a whole lot. Especially since we no longer have the added waste of cereal boxes.
Homemade granola is a great breakfast item because it can be eaten with milk or yogurt, and mixed with any fruit- dried or fresh. It's my favorite breakfast.
Other favorites: wheat toast with almond butter, egg sandwich on any type of bread or English muffin, toasted bagels with cream cheese and sliced tomatoes, eggs scrambled with spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, or any veggie you have on hand.
My brother taught me the idea of eating leftover rice of any kind as if it's oatmeal- add brown sugar or other toppings as desired. I think that's what they eat in a lot of parts of Asia.
For some reason I love pumpkin pie for breakfast, or cold leftover pizza. Also love your idea of eating sweet potatoes.
Angela, I also love pumpkin pie for breakfast! (Often cold). One of my favorite parts about Thanksgiving when I was growing up is that my mom would let us eat cold pumpkin pie for breakfast the next morning. Yum!
Kristen, first I would like to thank you for this website. It is really helping me to manage my finances better. I am single, I have one adult son who lives in another State. When I go grocery shopping I am shopping for one. During the week I eat cereal. I usually have Quaker Oats, especially during these cold months and I eat cold cereal Bran Flakes when I get tired of hot cereal. I have bigger breakfasts on the weekend, when I have more time to prepare.
I did my big grocery shopping earlier this week. I went to Walmart first,because do my banking there and shop for some things I can only get at Walmart. I did go to ALDI, but I forgot to take my bags. I bought a cloth bag at the store. Next time I'll remember to take my bags.
I need a vehicle also. I had minivan a 97 Chevy, Venture. I was earning extra money giving rides to the Amish in my area. The transmission went out. And I did have the money to fix it. I sold it to a junk yard. Knowing what I know now. I would have kept my vehicle and somehow got the money to get it fixed. I live in a rural area and I really need a vehicle. I want a smaller vehicle like a nice used (1998 to 2005), CR-V Honda. I have extendtions just for the brake and accelerator, because I'm a Little Person (3ft, 9in.) I need an automatic. I'm giving up driving for the Amish because my rides had diminished and I really need a much bigger van, like a church van size. I started selling Avon last Fall as way to get the money for my vehicle. My credit is bad, its not as bad as it could be thank God, but it is too bad to get financing.
Oh, I'm so glad my blog has been helpful to you. And I hope that you have success in saving up for your next vehicle.
This is entirely random and not related to this post, but I'm not sure where else to put it!
I went to Target on my lunch break, and on the clearance rack in the lingerie section they had CuddleDuds for $2.98, marked down from around $15! I was all set to get some, but it turned out that they only had sizes XL and XXL 🙁
Just wanted to mention it because it had come up earlier on your post about keeping warm without turning the heat up and someone had mentioned how awesome those things are. It might be worth stopping into a Target if you are in the market for some thermos. I know it's almost spring, but I'm pretty sure it will be cold next year too 🙂
Oh, I hate it when they have a great deal like that but it's not my size! $2.98 is an AWESOME price.
In the past when I needed a vehicle God supplied the means for me to get it and I haven't had any car payments. I experienced once having a car reposed and that was when I was married. I am since divorced and my ex-husband has pasted away. So I made sure to pay for my vehicles in full.
I know that what God did for me in the past He is able, willing and ready to do it again. God expects me to do my part and trust Him to do His.
I say drive it till it drops dead. But, I'm having a hard time processing this. If you can afford to save $500.00 a month, how is that much different than buying one brand new and making payments? I am assuming you're like me - idealistic thinking/planning. For me it never works the way I so nicely mapped it out on paper.
I too would be impatient to save up such a large sum. The fact that your on target with your goal needs to be the focus - a very happy focus at that. Way to go, just gotta keep pluggin along now.
When you buy brand new and make payments, the price is higher and you pay INTEREST. If a bank or finance company fronts you the money for your vehicle, it's not from the goodness of their hearts; it's so they can make money charging you INTEREST. The longer the loan term, the more interest you pay. When you buy a house, for the first few years you are paying more in interst every month than you do in principal (the actual purchase price of the house). We had a 25 year mortgage that we paid off in 10 years - we saved at least the cost of the house in the interest we did not pay as a result.
Your certainly right Anne. I suppose gone are the days of 0% interest. I really wasn't thinking of the overall picture, but rather that the given amount sounds like a "payment" to me..
Yup, what Anne said. It's mostly about avoiding interest payments, and I don't think there is such a thing as a 0% interest rate on a used vehicle loan.
And you're right...just gotta keep plugging along. It'll all add up eventually.
I had no idea that vans were so expensive! My parents used to have a Toyota Sienna, but I never asked them how much it cost them. I think they bought it new, anyway.
Kristen, I find it strange that you have so many bank accounts! Do you still have a mortgage? If you kept all that money in a floating mortgage and kept tabs on all the money that you're saving for in a spreadsheet, you'd gain so much more!
What is a floating mortgage? Is that a mortgage that you can take money in and out of? We do have a mortgage, but ours is not like that...once you put the money in, you can't take it back out again except through a home equity line of credit.
If we had such a thing, though, yes, it would definitely be the way to go because the interest on our mortgage is higher than the interest we earn in savings accounts. As things stand, the multiple accounts at ING are what works best for us.
It might be called something else in the States, but we have about 80% of our mortgage fixed and can not take money in or out for a fixed period, with a fixed interest rate. The other 20% is what all our money goes in and out of all the time (kind of like a cheque account - though we pay for everything with credit card and pay it off once a month so that we keep money in the floating account as long as possible to off-set the interest) and has a floating interest rate (changes if the bank decides to change it - great at the moment with the low interest rates around).
You have to be disciplined for this approach (not a problem for you, of course!) otherwise you are stuck with paying off your floating forever because, of course, you can always spend up to the loan limit, which is where a lot of people go wrong on this one. However, if you make sure to put all your money in there as you get it in and keep track of what's in there with a spreadsheet or something, then you should be good.
Then, when you have reached a zero balance on the floating part of your mortgage, you get another chunk off the fixed part of your mortgage and turn it into a new floating part. (Hope this makes sense)
Having our mortgage structured like this has cut our mortgage lifetime from 30 years to 16 years. Pretty good in my opinion. 🙂 You should talk to your bank if you think it could work for you!