She said everyone introduces her as “Single Ma’s daughter” and she hates it. She said people treat her differently when they find out, so she wants to be introduced as “BabyGirl” and earn her own respect. LOL

Poor little grasshopper.

I told that I understood her concern, but one day she will learn to appreciate the benefits of knowing people in high places. She gave me the side eye. Ha!

1. MAXIMIZE INVESTMENT CONTRIBUTIONS

January’s Goal: Contribute the maximum ($23,500) to all of my investment accounts by December 2009: 401k - $16,500, IRA - $5,000, BabyGirl’s 529 - $2,000.

Semi-Annual Update: All contributions are on autopilot and tracking well for the end of this year.

Corrective Action: None.

2. MEET ALL PERSONAL SAVINGS GOALS

January’s Goal:  Save an additional $11,750 by December 2009: E-fund - $5,200, Non-Retirement - $4,550, Other (#3 below) - $2,000.

Semi-Annual Update: I’ve already met my “efund” and “other” goal.  However, I’ve been slacking on the non-retirement.  Part of the problem is this statement I made in January, “the second will be funded by manual savings contributions when there is a surplus at the end of the month.”

Do you realize how non-committal that line of thinking is?  In other words, I said to myself: IF there is any money left at the end of the month, I MIGHT save a little something towards my non-retirement.  There is no incentive to keep me on track and no real plan to make sure I attain it.  No wonder I haven’t contributed anything yet!

Corrective Action: For the rest of this year, ALL of my savings will be on auto-pilot and 100% will go towards non-retirement investing until I reach the pre-established amount.

3. SAVE $2,000 FOR BABYGIRL’S SENIOR YEAR EXPENSES

January’s Goal: By the end of December 2009, I will save (and probably spend part of) $2k for planned senior year expenses.  As mentioned in #2, this will be funded by one of the two extra paychecks in the year.

Semi-Annual Update: This goal has been met.

Corrective Action: None.

4. EARN $500/MONTH FROM ONLINE OPPORTUNITIES

January’s Goal: I think it’s a stretch goal because I’m slowly losing my spark for blogging.

Semi-Annual Update: Some months, I meet (or exceed) this goal. Some months, I do not.  Despite any online earning potential, my thoughts in January were right on target.  Blogging doesn’t interest me anymore, so at some point, I’m going to quit.  If anyone wants to keep up with me when I’m not blogging, follow me on twitter.

Corrective Action: None.  All good things must come to an end.

5. ENJOY ONE “MAJOR” VACATION

January’s Goal: This year, I will not restrict myself to a specific location or time of year.  I’m wide open to possibilities - even last minute excursions.  The only limitations to this goal are minimum of 7-14 days and cost less than $5,000.

Semi-Annual Update: Instead of taking one MAJOR vacation for 1 to 2 weeks, I’ve taken (or have reservations for) several mini-trips: NYC, Myrtle Beach, Nagshead, Ocean City, and three college tours turned weekend excursions.  With BabyGirl working this summer, I doubt if we’ll get to take any major trips before Labor Day.  Then once school begins, opportunity for travel is limited.  But there’s always Christmas.  I shall keep hope alive!

Corrective Action: Enjoy all vacations - long or short - and cherish the memories.

6. REMAIN NON-MORTGAGE DEBT FREE

January’s Goal: No debt.  No debt.  No debt.  Got it?  Good!

Semi-Annual Update: No debt.  No debt.  No debt.  I got it!

Corrective Action: None.

7. NET WORTH

January’s Goal: Although I failed miserably last year, I will go on a limb and try to hit that $200,000 target again by the end of 2009.

Semi-Annual Update: I track my net worth quarterly: Jan, Apr, Jul, Oct.  At the end of April, my net worth was $169,657, which is more than $30k short of my goal.  Is a $30k gain from April’s numbers within reach by December?  Depends on which way the wind blows.  The next update is due at the end of July.

Corrective Action: As stated in #2, I plan to contribute 100% of planned savings to my non-retirement account until I’ve invested $4,550.  When added to #1, and with proper asset allocation, anything is possible.

Semi-Annual Summary

Of the 7 goals, I’ve already met 3 with very little effort, 1 will take some discipline, 2 aren’t that important to me anymore, and 1 is hit or miss.  These are very typical results of goal setting.  Some are easy, some are not, and some change.  That’s life.  The important thing is to keep challenging yourself to be in a better place next year than you are today and allow enough flexibility to enjoy the journey of life.

• I spent $174 more than planned on BILLS because I paid my auto insurance premium in full ($304.20).
• I also spent $492 more than planned on NECESSITIES because I paid the final tuition payment for BabyGirl’s summer camp ($600).
• And finally, I spent $15.28 more than planned on BUSINESS because I renewed my PO Box for six months ($46).

But the one thing I’m most excited about is my FUN category, which came in $3.31 under budget.  Yes, UNDER budget!  Just last week, I said I would limit myself to $500 per month, effective July 1, but it worked out well for June too. FABULOUS!

All items that were more than planned were not really budget busters.  They were one time, necessary, expenses that exceeded my usual monthly outflow.  However, in the spreadsheet, their values are spread evenly throughout the year and cash was readily available to pay them in full.  I expect to see more of these one time expenses in July, such as:

• 70k auto maintenance, also need new breaks
• optometrist visit for both, more contacts for BabyGirl, glasses for me
• dentist visit for both, cleaning for BabyGirl (she’s wearing her retainer again, all on her own, woo-hoo!), need the works for me

Other than that, I expect July to be more of the same with regular bills and such.  And I plan to stick with my $500 FUN limit.  We’re only 1 week into the month and I’ve spent $268 of it already.  Oh my!

Armed with a few gift cards, I made my way to the Maxx - TJ Maxx that is. And boy was I in luck! Look at what I scored…

HOOOOOT!!  This mustard handbag was only $29.99 and I couldn’t believe it! I love the texture of this leather, it feels soooooooooo soft and delicate. I must admit, the smell of the genuine leather is a bit strong though. Based on my inspection of the seams, interior lining, straps, and hardware, the workmanship of this handbag is A+++++++++. Although this isn’t quite the “summer” bag I had in mind, I couldn’t dare pass up this steal. It will get lots of usage this fall.

This type of shirt isn’t usually my style because I don’t do the visible bra look - maybe a little peek-a-boo of the lacy trim, but not a straight up display of my goodies. At any rate, I thought the fabric was cool and summer-y, which is what I was looking for. Perhaps I can wear it on top of my strapless one piece pant set for a layered effect. If I’m feeling mischievous, there’s no telling how I might wear it. For $14.99, I’m sure I can think of many ways to get my money’s worth.

I also picked up a zebra print cosmetic caddy for $7.99, a pair of hater blockers (BabyGirl taught me that term LOL) for $9.99, and a chunky hot pink necklace for $10.99. I quickly scanned the shoe selection and…*shock*…nothing caught my eye. Overall, it was a productive shopping trip for little to nothing out of pocket.

Do you shop at your local TJ Maxx?  Any great finds lately?

Savings - 20%
Bills/Needs - 50%
Fun - 30%

That breakdown is so simple.  It should be pretty easy to follow, right? Wrong!

Lately, my expenditures have been looking like this:

Savings - 10%
Bills/Needs - 40%
Fun - 50%

I blame it on the Goose! LOL

In the past few weeks, my spending has increased significantly.  Why?  *shrug*  I always track my spending so I knew where my money was going, but I wasn’t paying attention to my money.  The difference?  I dutifully kept my receipts and updated my spreadsheet at least once per week.  But tracking my money doesn’t mean a thing if I don’t use the information to prompt action when I notice that I am overspending.

Instead, I watched the fun category triple what it should have been.  As long as I wasn’t incurring debt, I justified the expense in my head and convinced myself that it was acceptable.   Now don’t get me wrong - staying out of debt is great - and so is having fun!  Oh boy, fun can not begin to describe my life over the past few weeks. Whew!  But I needed to remind myself that all good things are acceptable in moderation.  If I continued down that slippery slope, I may have found myself in a ton of trouble.

So what did I do?

I had to redistribute my cash flow and give myself a reality check.  Now, my budget spend plan looks more like this:

Savings - 30%
Bills & Needs (long/short term) - 60%
Fun - 10%

Savings: I was getting lax with my savings.  I’d already reached my goals and I had nothing else to keep me motivated, so I began to spend the surplus. Wait!  *pump the breaks*  There’s always a reason to save!  I mean, how long have I been dreaming about going to Paris?  Yea, umm…let’s just say I am recommitted to saving/investing 30% of my net income, in addition to maxing out retirement accounts.  No more ’save some through payroll’ then ’save a little more’ at the end of the month. Nope!  I don’t trust myself, so I’m putting ALL of it on automatic allotment!

Fun: This is where all the overflow went.   Whenever one of my friends would say “Hey, let’s go ____!” I’d be the first person responding to the email.  Dining out became a natural occurrence.  Taking weekend trips with unplanned expenses was the second runner up.  And the biggest problem - being punked by BabyGirl when she did something exceptional at school.  What can I say?  I’m a sucker for a couple of As and a few awards.

In an attempt to pull in the reins, I consolidated and reduced my ‘fun’ elements from 8 to 4: personal pampering, dining out, entertainment, and shopping.  Fewer categories to track make it easier to manage.  And beginning July 1st, I am giving myself a monthly allowance to spend guilt free.  Shoot, I may even try a cash only system! We’ll see about that part…

Do you follow the basic budget formula (or some variation)?

Have you ever noticed your spending get out of hand before it hurt you financially?  What did you do?