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Archive for December, 2019

christmas gifts wrap up

December 28th, 2019 at 04:33 pm

DK got lots of small toys from my parents. They also got gifts from a few other relatives So they were good. From us? 3 stocking stuff toys each between $8-12. Pikmi pop, curlylocks, and LOL ball. Then they had the build a bear I get them every year $75/each, Lego Advent $30, and a big toy from Santa $20 (shopkins) and $20 gift from us (shopkins and calico critter) and weirdly socks and blanket. That does not include the cirque du soliel show tonight or any other activities we've done. I guess with everything I've spent $300 or so on each kid. Which is a lot considering it didn't seem like a lot of gifts. Of course it wasn't things but show and building a stupid bear was ridiculous. I did get the $75 bear for 40% off buying the gift cards from costco at $60 for $100. I forgot the mani-pedi for each $15.

Anyway I'm hoping to teach the kids appreciation. It's so hard when you have so much. When I have more time I'll write my thoughts on the kids paying their way and rant on retirement.

What did you spend on the holiday? I did spend more than that with my parents, eating out, the show, etc.

no gifts

December 17th, 2019 at 07:09 pm

So I run a Girl Scout troop and we are hosting friends and neighbors this weekend Saturday friends and Sunday Neighbors. I told my troop NO GIFTS. No Secret Santa. I didn't want to.

Then our friends and neighbors asked me the same thing and I shrieked again NO gifts. Not for me or the kids.

I recall in college my roommate and friends I looked them in the eye and said I don't want to do gifts. I have no money and I don't like it. So we ate dinner together and ENJOYED each other's company.

5 years ago we moved and the kids got a tree and we stopped going to hawaii. As of next year I think we are going back to flying to hawaii. UGH. That means gifts for the family. Right now I don't do it. I send gift cards and a card.

5 years ago I got the kids 5 gifts including a lego advent which I did again and Christmas pajamas. This year I did lego advent but no pajamas. I'm debating doing it. I got them 1 santa gift, 2 gifts from DH and stocking stuffers.

This year I picked up a blanket for DK 2 and DK1 got a book. I don't know I'm buying more.

I know I feel like a scrooge but seriously! I think my kids get a lot from my parents. I give them a couple of gifts and my siblings and BIL give them gifts UGGGHH (did I mention I send gift cards to my neices and nephews). Enough. I peaked at one of the gifts was a decorate your water bottle. Another was make your own jewelery. I don't want crap.

A friend said do me do I really have no presents under the tree? I said yes. And if anyone coming over has a gift for us I'm didn't buy them one. I am done. I don't' want to.

I started at 18 years old and I haven't changed. When I first had my kids with other friends I did the same thing. NO GIFTS.

Am I really that weird? Now it's not about the money But I honestly hate even shopping for teachers. I just shove a gift card and I make cookies or a pie.

Have you changed? This is in response to laura and her new traditions. I feel more like a scrooge but I haven't changed in 20+ years. I kind of like no gifts.

FWIW DH is going heli skiing and we are taking a ski trip over new years. We are also seeing cirque du soliel with my parents and we are doing an overnight at a fancy hotel I paid for. Plus we are going out to eat and hosting 3 christmas get together.

I don't feel like I'm cheaping out. I feel like I'm doing stuff that I enjoy rather than buy gifts. I admit that I buy what I want when I want it always. But that's not why I don't shop for Christmas. I just don't need more clothes and I already stress about the toys the kids have.

10 years in

December 13th, 2019 at 08:19 pm

So 10 years ago DH and I bought our first life insurance when we had our first child. I bought a 25 year term for both of us. $500k for me and $2m for DH. Our premiums? $243/year for $500k for me. I was 30 and DH was 32. His was $1098/year. After 10 years of payments I have paid $2430 and $10,980 for peace of mind. It sort of bites to think I have spent that much but what if something happened? Or worse? What if something happens in the next 15 years?

As it stands I don't have more on myself but I have another super cheap $2m on DH through work. It's so cheap that we buy it. Might as well. Extra insurance. I have a large mortgage now and I still am not working full time.

But seeing these numbers makes me wonder if I should consider cancelling it? For sure I'll be happy when it's done. It sort of coincides with my DK2 finishing theoretically college if she finishes in 4 years. We'll be retiring so it should be great timing. But at that time we'll have paid around $25k for DH and $5k for me.

Should we cancel it?

Girl Scout follow up

December 11th, 2019 at 11:44 pm

So I had a meeting with the council. I am still going through the motions of asking the girl to leave the troop. The answer was we have to meet next week with the parents to determine what can be done. They said there are different options.

My response? I said no. I cannot take her back. Why? Because when I had started to talking to the other parents in the troop, they said "I wouldn't bring it up but since you asked..." Their kids were having trouble with the girl. I had 5 parents tell me that. Now what? My kid probably has one of the least problems.

But for the greater good of the troop I told the council I'm still going to ask her to leave. I feel that for the girl as well I think that she needs a fresh start. I think that she needs to go somewhere that people don't have preconceived notions. That she can go in fresh and perhaps change her behavior instead of trying to correct how people perceive the girl's prior behavior.

I'm not sure and I wasn't angry and I wasn't upset. I was actually overly calm. I think the council member thought I was not firm in my stance to remove the girl from the troop. But again I am going through the procedure.

We'll what happens.

so close

December 5th, 2019 at 05:16 pm

$996,205 is our combined retirement balance. So close yet so far. UGH. Ha I guess we'll hit the magic $1 million in January. I'll do a max out Roth IRA and then we'll be over. It's been a good year. Our retirement started out at $789,426 and it's grown $200k. Yes a big chunk was savings but also a big chunk was growth.

The plan seems to be firming up that we are going to stay put until DK2 is launched and finished with college in 2034. That means 14 more years? Considering how fast these years have gone I imagine these next 14 years will pass by in a blink of an eye. After all I think I found this site 14 years ago and a lot has changed.

Does it scare me? Yes absolutely. It seems surreal. They numbers on the page are real but it doesn't seem like it should be. I always wondered how did people amass so much money. It always seemed unreal The answer? One day at a time. Honestly. Keep on trucking and suddenly at 40 life is a lot easier.

At least for us we had a lot of big bills and lower salaries earlier in our 20s and 30s that made it really hard to save and see a difference. We lived frugally like college students because of our extended college educations and minimal salary. But things began to change in 2010 and then by 2015 we had really started to ramp up earning power. And suddenly here we are almost 5 years later even more so.

I will say however right now i'm crunching our numbers and I'm still tempted to buy a bigger home. I don't know though.