Rite Aid Trip

So I am slow to start shopping/saving at Rite Aid, but I think I did pretty good:
-Vitamin D softgels
-Two bags of halls
-Tampons
-Breathe Right strips
-1L bottle of Listerine
-2 cadbury creme eggs (yuck - for Peter)
-2 reese's eggs (also for Peter and yes one is missing from this picture)

Originial total: $32.27
Paid out of pocket: $4.40
Total saved: $27.87 or a savings of 86% (I think...my math struggles)

Win!

Financial Peace University - Officially Registered!

I am super excited! I registered for BFF Dave's Financial Peace University (FPU) Friday! The instructor had an extra kit so I was able to pick it up ahead of the start of our class!

FPU runs for 13 weeks starting in May! Woo hoo!

Five years ago, the world stood still...

Every year, I re-post this blog somewhere with very minor updates. I wrote it shortly after everything that happened at Virginia Tech. For me, it is so important to reflect on what happened so that the memory of those 32 victims doesn't fade away. For some people, it is just a spot in history, but for me, it is part of my life.

"This is a tragedy in American history. so for today, forget any and all of your college affiliations. For today, We are all Hokies."

My heart hurts.

I really can't explain the amount of pain the events that happened at Virginia Tech truly caused. I know there are various levels of grief and I wonder if I'll ever move past the "shock/not being able to accept" phase...even four years later.

My dear sweet Hokies, while you are with us in spirit, you have so many friends, families, strangers who wish nothing more for you to be with us physically. To my friends, Ryan, Caitlin and Erin, I've had dreams where you are alive and well...waking from those dreams causes an eerie sense of reality. Ryan, to hear your outrageous laugh, would literally be music to my ears...

There's just so much pain that simply won't go away, and it never will. The Hokie Spirit and community is one of pride, but we still feel so much pain. The Hokie community, one that is so loving and warm, was struck with an enormous amount of evil that shook each of us to our very core.

The questions that linger...all of the "whys" and "what ifs," that might never have an answer. The fact that one individual could take the innocent lives of 32, injury 23, disrupt the peace of a school community of 28,000 and to make the world look at Virginia Tech in sheer and utter disbelief.

One. One person. One individual. One former student, who walked our halls, our campus, shared in our community. One.

One. One school. One spirit. One legacy that will not compromised by the actions of one.

I miss you, Virginia Tech.

We use this quote a lot in sorority life, but to those who are severely immersed in the Hokie culture as a student, alumni, faculty or staff member - the love that we feel towards our sweet Virginia Tech - rings true more and more each day, "From the outside looking in, you don't understand and from the inside looking out, you can't explain." There are simply no words to explain my love and adoration for the campus and spirit that was my life for five years and that continues to stay with me.

When I say that I am a graduate of Virginia Tech – a proud "double" Hokie – I say that with so much love and pride. When people give me the sad, "Oh I'm so sorry" look or don't really know how to respond, I sometimes just want to say: April 16^th is NOT Virginia Tech.

The students, the resilience, the Hokie Spirit, the academic excellence, the community, the mountains, the Drillfield, the residence halls, the outlaying area, the cheers ringing out from Lane Stadium, the thunder of a new sense of belonging for our basketball team, the overall athletic and academic prestige, the research, the amazingly gifted and talented students and faculty, the reasons that I could go on for days with this list – THIS is Virginia Tech.

We will NOT be defined as "the school where the shootings happened." We will be remembered for all of the greatness and esteem that our traditions, spirit and continued excellence exude.

This has been the longest but at the same time shortest four years. I still remember April 16, 2007 like it was yesterday...

Ashley had come to visit me for the weekend in Blacksburg and she was going to leave on Sunday, the 15th but ended up staying until Monday. I was going to go into the Theme Housing Office but was actually going to go to Charlottesville that day. As she was about to leave, everything began to unfold. I remember her calling me when she was on the interstate saying there were police cars and ambulances coming in every direction.

I turned on the tv in shock and disbelief that there was a shooting in West AJ...the same West AJ that the year before I had worked inside of as a community advisor and as advisor to some of the residents in that residence hall. Then the phone calls, emails and ims began saying that one of my friends who was an RA had been shot, but that he would be pull through...unfortunately, that was not the case. You probably saw Ryan's beautiful smile plastered on your tv; oddly enough I had been prepared to see that smile in person later that evening at a special program devoted to the ten-year anniversary of the Imaginarium (special RA programming and resource room on campus).

The nightmare didn't end there and we all know the rest of the awful story. I remember watching some of Caitlin's residents on tv being interviewed and saying that they were worried about her and hoped that she was safe...only to find out that yet another beautiful Hokie, a student I had meetings with and had a working relationship with, was also taken from us.

The following day all of the names had not been identified but the lead facilitator to the freshman class I co-taught sent an email to each of our students making sure they were safe. Later, I went into the theme office and one of my former colleagues asked if I knew the news. What news? Two students from the WING (the theme program I co-taught) had also died. I remember screaming right then and there when she read Erin's name.

I feel like every single time I think, dream, read, etc. anything involving the tragic events of April 16th that I am in a really, really awful movie. There are some wounds that never heal. While we try our best to move on, it is an image and constant reminder to the pain, terror and fear that we lived.

Alesha and I went to Poor Billy's for dinner the same day all of the additional information came out from NBC and there were reporters every where. One lady tried talking to me us, twice, and thankfully Alesha was composed enough to tell her nicely that we weren't interested in talking because words were not coming from my mouth, only sobs...

Nikki Giovanni's poem at the Convocation Ceremony was beautiful. As she said, "no one deserves a tragedy." It was poignant and thoughtful but also filled with strength and passion to begin the long road to recovery.

"We are sad today, and we will be sad for quite a while. we are not moving on, we are embracing our mourning. We are Virginia Tech."

Dr. Zenobia Hikes did so much for our Hokie Community to help us regain our sense of belonging, even though we had lost our beautiful innocence. She was a powerful woman in a petite frame and lead us in a much-needed round of "Let's Go Hokies!" that day. She too, is missed as she passed away a couple years ago due to a heart condition, but she is a permanent fixture in our Virginia Tech family.

My heart hurts, but my love has never been more powerful. Leaving Blacksburg has been - and continues to be - one of the most difficult situations for me. Not because of what happened in April, but because of all the beautiful, exciting, wonderful experiences that happened in the years that I spent in Blacksburg. Thank you, Virginia Tech.

Mobile blogging?

This. Is. Awesome.

I am blogging. From my phone. Faaantastic!

I apologize in advance for the random blogging that is sure to happen :)

Also, hello to anyone finding this blog by way of my That's Fit blog! Thank you for joining me over here as I continue my quest for fitness!

New Tires! BFF Dave would approve.

So today, April 13th 2011, I am getting new tires on my kia sportage.

Why on earth is this important?

It's quite the accomplishment really. Since around October/November, I've been on a crusade to save money, reduce spending and payoff debt. It - in one word - sucks. It's hard, it makes life even more difficult than it already was and it can sometimes be frustrating.

Today is one of those moments where I feel like my hard work is paying off. New tires are not cheap. Peter put a little bit towards them because he wanted to make sure I had very good, very safe tires but I saved $530. I DID IT. For three months, I've tucked away $10 here or $20 there. Our tax return was small, but we decided to put that towards the tires. Whenever I spent under my budget on groceries or other things for the month, that went towards my tires. Instead of buying a new shirt or new pants, I threw that money towards my tires. Whenever I had any spare money at all, it went into my "Tire Fund" envelope.

Other than housing or the down payment on my car, these tires are probably the largest purchase (in terms of the amount of money) that I have made. I know that perhaps $530 doesn't sound like that much money, but to me, it's a mini-fortune! AND I SAVED IT!

The best part about it, is that I paid cash for new tires without having to add to my enormous amount of debt - woo hoo! Yay! This is my first of hopefully many 'paying cash' milestones :)

I *really* needed this accomplishment because I've been really down the past week. I started last week with two additional sources of income. While not much, they did provide a nice little bit of padding for my savings account. This week, both of those side jobs have ended - which is fine. We are going to be ok; these jobs were helping to fund my next savings goal ($2000 saved) so it will just take me a little bit longer to get there.

Another thought that weighed heavily on my mind was the possible government shutdown. Neither Peter or I work for the government; however, most of his customers where he works are government contractors or employees. If they had shutdown, it is highly likely Peter's income would have suffered.

But it made me question how would we survive if either of us either lost our jobs or if we were laid off for an undetermined amount of time? It is a really scary thought! My goal after reaching the $2000 saved mark is to try and get enough in savings that we would have one-month of expenses stowed away for our emergency fund. I know that BFF Dave wants you to have your debt paid off before working on your three to six month emergency fund, but life is way too uncertain and we must all be prepared for the unexpected.

So, more cuts will be made to my budget. Through couponing, planning ahead and looking at various grocery store sales, my goal for the rest of April is to trim $30 each week off of our grocery budget which would lower our grocery budget each week to $50. It will be a challenge, but through savvy shopping and proper planning it is totally doable!

Goals for the remainder of April:
1. Register and pay for BFF Dave's Financial Peace University class being offered in Leesburg starting in May.
2. Cut grocery budget by $30 the last two weeks of grocery shopping for April thus allowing me to pay for said class.
3. Using the final round of paychecks from the side jobs to reach $2000 goal.
4. Plan out May's budget.

I can do this. I will do this. And again, I do apologize if I seem boring or ridiculous about saving money. I'm just so determined to be debt-free by the time I'm 35...and considering I have approximately $55,000 (remainder on car + student loans), I have a looooong way to go. I refuse to waste money right now.

Everything I spend money has a line item in my budget. If it's not in the budget, it doesn't happen. You may be thinking, but Ashley if you are saving money, the doesn't that mean you can spend it? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Emergency funds are intended for emergencies, not for going out with friends, new clothes, shoes, random things that look nice. Emergency funds are there when true catastrophes happen (job loss, death in the family, major illness). If you don't have an emergency fund, I highly suggest you start one. BFF Dave suggests a $1000 fund to start (or even $500 depending on your monthly income and expenses). Currently, we live paycheck to paycheck. If either of us were to miss out on a paycheck, our ability to pay our bills would be jeopardized so trust me when I say this: if we can get an emergency fund, you can too!

Looking for ways to save money? Perhaps some of these thoughts will help:
Do you really need cable? Internet? Nope. (We don't.) Those are luxuries, not necessitates.
Do you really need to spend a ton of money on groceries? Nope. Be a smart shopper!
Do you really need a fancy coffee drink every morning? Nope. You will survive. I promise.
Do you really need a new pair of pants? Nope. There will be plenty of clothes to purchase - when you are out of debt.

Also? Every time I feel discouraged or feel like I'm not getting anywhere, I'll just look at those new tires and receive an instant dose of encouragement.

"Setting a goal doesn't guarantee success; it just gives you a target. You still have to work your tail off to hit it." - BFF Dave

Oh BFF Dave, you are spot on with that quote. You want success? Work hard. Not willing to work hard? You don't get success. Makes perfect sense to me.

Speaking of working one's behind off, my to-do list is a mile long this week. Seriously.

So, I've decided to take today (Monday) as a day to figure out what the heck I need to accomplish this week, make a to-do list and cross things off as they get done:

-Take all the miscellaneous crap out of my car.
-Vacuum said car.
-Wash said car.
-Run Tuesday.
-Run Wednesday.
-Attend cycle class Wednesday.
-Run Thursday.
-Run Sunday.
-Do ALL of my laundry. Every. last. bit. of. it.
-Straighten out the disaster I call my side of the closet.
-Figure out the April budget.
-Actually take an hour of my life (or two) and SERIOUSLY organize my coupons.
-Go to RiteAid.
-Follow-up with application references.
-Finish 'Forbidden Daughter.'
-Complete my blog for That's Fit.

Actually, this list doesn't seem too bad. It's just a matter of finding the time and energy to kick myself into high gear.

Ready, set, goooooooooooo!

“Your actions should show you care about money by learning something about it.” - BFF Dave

Why is saving money, being on a budget and working towards your goals so difficult?

Because it causes you to stare at yourself, criticize your habits and realize that you – yes you – made and continue to make really, really bad decisions. No one WANTS to be criticized and told that he or she is doing things incorrectly, but to make serious changes it is a necessary evil.

I am really struggling this month and I’m not quite sure why. I have done a fairly good job of saying no, putting money into savings and being a better budgeter but this month has been disastrous. It is also frustrating knowing how hard I’m working and not seeing that reflected in my bank account.

BFF Dave says to do whatever you have to do to take in extra income when you are going through his baby steps plan. I’ve already started a part-time job one day a week, but I briefly considered picking up a second shift at the gym on Wednesday nights, but after one evening shift I was so sore, so cranky and so tired that the extra money didn’t make up for how awesome I felt. Sorry, BFF Dave…

BFF Dave also says that fixing your financial plan is 80% behavior and 20% knowledge and I truly believe that. I know WHAT I need to do, I need to actually do it. It’s like saying you want to lose weight, but not changing any of your behaviors. You can’t lose 20 pounds and still eat fried foods, drink sugary drinks and eat massive portions daily. I can’t save money and pay down my debt if I lose focus and start falling back into some old traps.

Saving money + paying off debt = happiness (and a house in the future.)

Spending money frivolously + not paying down debt faster = failure (and no house in the future.)

I choose happiness over failure.

So, here’s what I’m going to work on this weekend:

-Organize my coupons.
-Plan my menu for the week and make a grocery list.
-ONLY buy items on said grocery list.
-Figure out the budget for April.
-Figure out the budget for the rest of March.
-Change direct deposit form for work so that $25 automatically goes into savings.
-De-clutter and go through items to see if anything could be sold at a consignment shop or on Amazon.

Final quote from BFF Dave, “I am not against the enjoyment of money. What I am against is spending money when you do not have money to being with.”