Starting our 2018 No Spend Challenge

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alliesmama4
Posts: 8591
Joined: Sun Aug 30, 2015 10:10 pm
Location: Southern IL

Re: Starting our 2018 No Spend Challenge

Post by alliesmama4 »

Forgot to mention that my insurance company has reduced my house insurance payments by $6.74 a month! I pay by phone and noticed that the payment on the phone was lower than the amount quoted to me in July. I called my agent to make sure I was not shortchanging them due to some kind of error. She looked up my account and told me that due to my outstanding payments, I am usually a month ahead, they were lowering my monthly payments.. woo hoo. She said laughingly, " we are sending the updated payment information to you in a letter but it does not go out until tomorrow." I had already paid my payment before I called her. I am going to try to put the savings in to a separate area to save towards hopefully paying them a lump sum in July and that will reduce it even more. Janet Alliesmama
Janet Alliesmama
alliesmama4
Posts: 8591
Joined: Sun Aug 30, 2015 10:10 pm
Location: Southern IL

Re: Starting our 2018 No Spend Challenge

Post by alliesmama4 »

Where do I begin. I am trying to stay positive and focus on what I have but things are sliding down hill. I have lost Medicaid as a co-payer on my medical bills after medicare. Found out that we will be getting a cost of living raise in January for Social Security 2.8%.. woo hoo. Then found out medicare is increasing Medicare B payments to $135.50.. I have done the math and I will be loosing money even with the increase in SS due to having to pay for my Medicare B. I will be short $85.00 per month compared to my current income plus pay for medical needs beyond what Medicare pays. Also with the increase I will most likely lose the medicare extra help for Medicare D plus getting very close to being cut off from Department on Aging assistance for my in home care aide. Need to call my nurse to see about that. I could sit in a corner and whimper but that does not help except to make me more unhappy. So get up and dust myself off and get in to a more frugal mode if that is possible. At least with the money saved from my home insurance premium ($6.74) a month I can divert that to buying something or putting it towards my Medicare D payments. I really need to revamp my budget and try to work the cuts and the increases in to some kind of manageable budget.
Janet Alliesmama
Janet Alliesmama
alliesmama4
Posts: 8591
Joined: Sun Aug 30, 2015 10:10 pm
Location: Southern IL

Re: Starting our 2018 No Spend Challenge

Post by alliesmama4 »

Although my circumstances have not changed as stated previously I am feeling ok and working on moving things around cutting where able. It will amount to only a few dollars here and there but hopefully I can manage.

I made breakfast this morning and realized how frugal it was. I cooked pork sausage last night and had one patty this morning. Here is my breakdown for breakfast.... Sausage patty .26 cents, 1 egg .08 cents, gluten free toast 2 slices .18 cents and a smear of butter on the toast. Cannot factor the cost of the butter it was minuscule not even a pat between the 2 slices. Bought gf bread for $1.00 on sale. Rare to get it this cheap but I bought 4 loaves..Coffee as stated previously free with this canister.. splash of milk minuscule in cost...57 cents for a half gal of whole milk. Grand total approximately .53 cents. I can eliminate the sausage and bring things down to .27 cents.. Of course I will not eat this same breakfast every day but rotate it with other breakfast foods. Food is one of the few places that is not fixed in stone as far as monthly payments. The concern is the fixed in stone payments.. However if I can squeeze some money out of the food budget that will help somewhat. The funny thing is a while back I found a site that stated that the money I was spending on groceries did not even meet the barest minimum government guidelines for extremely poor. Now that I have had the shock and time to mentally adjust I will work towards some kind of resolution/solution. I am looking where I can get more budge in my budget..
Janet Alliesmama
Janet Alliesmama
alliesmama4
Posts: 8591
Joined: Sun Aug 30, 2015 10:10 pm
Location: Southern IL

Re: Starting our 2018 No Spend Challenge

Post by alliesmama4 »

Last night was pizza and a movie night..I tape movies when Dish offers free HBO or Showtime.. Cannot afford to rent anything plus my DVD player is broken and my computer does not have sound..lol. I was so busy yesterday doing laundry and working on my budget that I did not get around to making the dough for pizza so went with pizza bread. It was yummy. First I toasted the bread lightly since some gluten free breads get gummy when they come in to contact with something wet like tomato sauce ( 4 slices of bread .09 cents each bread bought on sale for 1.08). No tomato sauce so opened tomato paste and spread it on thinly like buttering toast.( cannot factor the cost minuscule in use) Then a sprinkle of pizza seasoning/spices ( again cannot factor the cost minuscule in cost and use). I rarely buy pizza sauce but do like the one from Dollar Tree but I had used up all that I had. I combined regular mozzarella cheese ( 1.91)with some faux mozzarella cheese made from almonds. Do not remember the cost and the faux cheese has been in the fridge then freezer for a long time. Since the gf bread is usually smaller slices than regular bread I just went with 3 slices of pepperoni on each piece of bread (1.00 + tax for a package and I used 12 slices and froze the rest for approximately two more pizzas or pizza bread so about .34 cents for pepperoni). Two whole slices and one split in half to fill in the corners. I then baked it in the oven for 10 min at 400 F. I must say it was the best pizza bread I have made at home or I have ever bought. Approximate cost for 4 slices of yummy pizza bread $1.03. Made a nice glass of limeade using True Lime..True lime was bought several years ago on special sale ..buy 500 get 500 free... so I am pretty sure I am down in to the free 500 now.. Used a tablespoon of Stevia to sweeten it not sure of the cost. Dinner was very quick, frugal and satisfying. Lunch was my Italian sausage .65 cents on a a gf bun .25 cents.. Did not get around to making the sauteed onions and bell peppers was too busy working on my budget and doing laundry. Total for all three meals today was approximately $2.46. If I can continue to keep foods at this level I can divert about $25.00 a month towards something else.

The no spend for 2018 has been a challenge and getting even more interesting and challenging.Janet Alliesmama
Janet Alliesmama
Dgflorida
Posts: 4381
Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2015 8:10 pm

Re: Starting our 2018 No Spend Challenge

Post by Dgflorida »

I sure hope that you are able to find a work around to your issues. My thoughts for better times.

I did figure the increase in ss would be eaten up by medicare. So I didn't even think hard about it.
alliesmama4
Posts: 8591
Joined: Sun Aug 30, 2015 10:10 pm
Location: Southern IL

Re: Starting our 2018 No Spend Challenge

Post by alliesmama4 »

Dgflorida wrote: Sun Oct 14, 2018 7:47 am I sure hope that you are able to find a work around to your issues. My thoughts for better times.

I did figure the increase in ss would be eaten up by medicare. So I didn't even think hard about it.
Thanks.. I know they are people going through a lot worse now with all of the hurricanes so I count my blessings. I have a lovely home, warm clothes, and food to eat.. Plus my little Teddi.. He is so cute and loving and when he sits on my lap at night to snuggle his little body warms me up.. Janet Alliesmama
Janet Alliesmama
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