We need to dip into emergency savings this month. I was really hoping we wouldn't have to this month, but DH won't get nearly enough overtime. As posted in previous entries, we had a lot of unusual expenses in October, and of course the CC bill is due Dec. 1. We'll have to dip into our emergency savings to cover the bill. Fortunatly, December is an extra pay check month for both DH and I (I get paid three times instead of two, DH gets paid 5 times instead of 4) plus I get my year-end bonus, so we can refill our savings right away and still have money for Christmas and our year end charitable donations. But I had hoped to put almost all the extra income towards our CC debt. Instead I've had to pay the minimum the last two months. It's zero percent interest so all of the payment is going towards the balance, but still I had hoped we'd be further along by now in paying it off.
It's just so agravating! DH and I make great money, and we just cannot seem to get ahead. We have little in the way of unnessesary spending, really just cable tv and the occasional dinner out, and every month something just comes up. I won't call them unexpected expenses, cars break and pets get sick, but why do they have to happen in the same week?. We have the money to pay for it, but then nothing extra can go towards the debt. Our food bill is low, our utilites are low, we have a cheap mortgage ($1400 inculding taxes and insurance) our cell phones are at the bare minimum, we only have one car payment. Not many places to cut back, and if we did it wouldn't make much differance. DH and I decided not to exchange Christmas gifts this year to help with the gift budget, and the gifts we will be giving will not be expensive (not that we blow a lot on gifts anyway). Fortunatly we have no kids and a small family, our list is quite short!
sigh....If we can just get through December without any major expenses, we can get back on track. I just want this debt gone ASAP and it's just anoying me to no end that we've made so little progress.
Vent!!!!
November 10th, 2006 at 03:29 pm
November 10th, 2006 at 03:37 pm 1163173033
Have ya'll done the tracking your every penny spent/cash spending thingywho??? I paid off our CC's just by not stopping for the breakfast sausage roll here, or forgoing a newspaper there, no take out today - I can run home and make a sandwich here, we'll eat beans one night and pasta another there. All those little things added up to enough extra weekly to begin making major strides on our debt.
You'll do it it just takes some adjusting! Keep dancing!
November 10th, 2006 at 03:51 pm 1163173885
November 10th, 2006 at 04:24 pm 1163175876
At least you have savings, and do not have to go deeper into debt to cover these!
November 10th, 2006 at 05:23 pm 1163179381
November 10th, 2006 at 05:25 pm 1163179528
November 10th, 2006 at 05:44 pm 1163180645
November 10th, 2006 at 06:42 pm 1163184142
November 11th, 2006 at 03:47 pm 1163260052
November 13th, 2006 at 04:28 pm 1163435305