My pay day is on Wednesday, the 30th, but we can check our pay statement 3 business days prior to our pay day. So I checked my paycheck and it is $500 more than I was expecting.

Being that I'm part commission, my last paycheck of the month is usually unpredictable. It includes any overtime I've worked, plus my regular 2 weeks of pay, plus my commission for the previous month. I can usually come up with a ballpark figure and I budget off of that. I knew my paycheck was going to be pretty nice, more than it was for the summer months, but I wasn't expecting what I saw!

I always aim and budget for lower, that way if I do get more, it's a surprise. I thought maybe it'd be $100 more than what I had budgeted for, but it's $500! I double checked it to make sure it wasn't a mistake and everything matched up. They just didn't take out as much as I expected for taxes.

So what am I going to do with my extra $500? Well, since I'm already putting extra toward the BofA loan anyway during this paycheck, I decided I'm going to put $400 in my Emergency Fund, an extra $80 in my slush fund and an extra $25 in my Christmas Fund. I'm so glad to be able to put more money in my E-Fund which I have ignored for so long!

Labels: budget, christmas savings, emergency fund, savings

This weekend I was terribly sick with a horrible sore throat and a nasty cough. I still have the cough, but my throat seems to be better this morning. I was afraid I had bronchitis or even strep-throat. But it seems like it was just a 48-hour bug. Unfortunately, it completely ruined my weekend. However, it kept me indoors so I didn't go anywhere or spend any money, which is a good thing because I have $33 until I get paid on Friday. That shouldn't be a problem since I'll be bringing my lunch to work most days this week and buying the cheap coffee from the gas station next door instead of hitting up Starbucks.

J leaves for Boston on Tuesday where he'll be doing work for his dad and talking to an Air Force recruiter while he's there. And even though I'll miss him terribly, it will definitely save me money. It's much easier to budget for one person than it is for two people, so J being gone will essientially save me some money.

I'm also going to start posting my weekly budget, like the way My Pretty Pennies does. I love how she starts with her beginning balance, then her weekly spending, then the ending balance. She is paid monthly, where as I am paid every 15th and 31st (or 30th). So, each pay day I'll begin with my starting balance, then list my weekly expenditures, then my ending balance, then start all over again on the next pay day. I'm excited to track it like this and I think it'll help keep me focused.

Labels: budget, money, sick