The good thing about goals is that they are flexible and ever changing. J & I seriously set down our goals in August of this year and the major one is to save up enough money for a home deposit so that we can get a mortgage by next year. Since August, we've saved up $8000 together. I've never been much of a saver so saving $4000 by myself in a short span of time (while still paying down debt) is an achievement for me. Now I know I can do it and I can do it easily.
Our goal to get a mortgage is still intact but there are other forces in play such as an impending wedding, paying down debt and travelling. Initially, we were going to save up 5% of our loan and get a mortgage immediately, now we've decided to save up a little bit more so that we would have more money to use for our mortgage. But that can change any minute as I'm quite impulsive.
J & I are going to have two weeks off for Christmas & New Years this year and we don't usually get to spend December holidays together because J has to work most NYE so we wanted to celebrate somewhere special. At first, we were planning on going for a 7-day road trip from Sydney to Queensland. I made a budget and it was going to be much expensive than I thought it would for an Australian holiday. And honestly, I don't think it was going to be worth it and I wasn't going to be happy with it in the long run. So we've decided to go to JAPAN!!! Yep, we're heading off to Japan for two weeks this December to celebrate Christmas and NYE in TOKYO! I'm so excited!!!
This will of course impact heavily on our savings. We already have $4000 each (plus J has an EF of $2500) saved up and we've decided NOT in any circumstances touch this money. So what we're going to save in the upcoming months from October to December will be our Japan money. I think it's definitely going to be worth it!
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
September Goals Review
Financial Goals:
1. Savings of $1000 in personal ING account - DONE!
2. Pay off $292 in university debts (to tax office) - DONE!
3. 10 NSD Challenge - FAIL! I only had 4 No Spend Days in September. How sad is that?
4. Don't use the credit card - FAIL! Yes, it was used. Again and again.
5. Fill out green form and send it off to work's Financial Services so my HECS debt can be automatically taken off my tax pay each year - FAIL! Completely forgot to do this.
6. Record every spending for the entire month - FAIL! I'm pretty sure I may have missed (or omitted) a few days or items here and there.
Other Goals:
1. No Sweets Month - EPIC FAIL! This is not ever going to be a goal again because it's just not possible.
2. Exercise 3 times a week including PT session - FAIL-ish! Sometimes we went for 3, sometimes 2 or none at all. Must do better in October.
3. Drink alcohol only 2 nights a week - DONE! I probably only had 2-3 drinking days in September!
Next month I am going to have more greens!
1. Savings of $1000 in personal ING account - DONE!
2. Pay off $292 in university debts (to tax office) - DONE!
3. 10 NSD Challenge - FAIL! I only had 4 No Spend Days in September. How sad is that?
4. Don't use the credit card - FAIL! Yes, it was used. Again and again.
5. Fill out green form and send it off to work's Financial Services so my HECS debt can be automatically taken off my tax pay each year - FAIL! Completely forgot to do this.
6. Record every spending for the entire month - FAIL! I'm pretty sure I may have missed (or omitted) a few days or items here and there.
Other Goals:
1. No Sweets Month - EPIC FAIL! This is not ever going to be a goal again because it's just not possible.
2. Exercise 3 times a week including PT session - FAIL-ish! Sometimes we went for 3, sometimes 2 or none at all. Must do better in October.
3. Drink alcohol only 2 nights a week - DONE! I probably only had 2-3 drinking days in September!
Next month I am going to have more greens!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Eating out is awesome
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
0
but expensive - very expensive!
I've ate out a lot in the last week, probably more than I was expecting which really didn't help the budget (and even though J paid more for it anyway). In the past week, we've eaten at:
(1) Siam Square Thai - one of our local Thai restaurants. The restaurant itself is cosy and the service is always excellent. That is, if you're actually at the restaurant. We've tried their delivery service once and ended up waiting for almost 2 hours. It was a marvel that we still came back but their food is hard to beat. I especially like Mussuman Beef & their satay prawns are to die for. It's pretty cheap as well and it's BYO. For an entree & lots of main to share, expect to pay around $20 each.
(2) Sushi Samurai - J's sister & I had a dinner/movie night on Friday because J was at work all night. We had dinner at my fave Japanese restaurants. I ordered some karaage chicken to share and a chicken & avocado inside out roll and some green tea. The serves are generous and the price is a little bit more expensive than a typical Japanese restaurant. All that I ordered came to exactly $20!
(3) Ichiban Boshi - the best budget Japanese restaurant in Sydney, hands down! J & I have been going here ever since we started dating and that was more than 5 years ago. Since then, the prices have probably gone up less than a dollar but the quality has never wavered. We try and go here at least once every fortnight. On Sunday, we watched An Education (for free and it was a good movie!) and had lunch here. We both had drinks (Calpis water), had an entree to share (gyoza), had mains (karaage cheese curry for me & Aburi Chasu-men for J) and the bill came to less than $35.
I foresee no eating out until maybe this weekend. We're trying to rein it in as we impulsively planned a holiday in December (post on this later!). October is going to be an expensive month as it is because it's my birthday month. I don't have a birthday - I have a birthmonth. I actually celebrate for the whole month because I love birthdays and funnily enough, I actually welcome getting older now. November is going to be a tight-ass month for sure and half of December is too. I don't even want to think about Christmas presents yet!
I've ate out a lot in the last week, probably more than I was expecting which really didn't help the budget (and even though J paid more for it anyway). In the past week, we've eaten at:
(1) Siam Square Thai - one of our local Thai restaurants. The restaurant itself is cosy and the service is always excellent. That is, if you're actually at the restaurant. We've tried their delivery service once and ended up waiting for almost 2 hours. It was a marvel that we still came back but their food is hard to beat. I especially like Mussuman Beef & their satay prawns are to die for. It's pretty cheap as well and it's BYO. For an entree & lots of main to share, expect to pay around $20 each.
(2) Sushi Samurai - J's sister & I had a dinner/movie night on Friday because J was at work all night. We had dinner at my fave Japanese restaurants. I ordered some karaage chicken to share and a chicken & avocado inside out roll and some green tea. The serves are generous and the price is a little bit more expensive than a typical Japanese restaurant. All that I ordered came to exactly $20!
(3) Ichiban Boshi - the best budget Japanese restaurant in Sydney, hands down! J & I have been going here ever since we started dating and that was more than 5 years ago. Since then, the prices have probably gone up less than a dollar but the quality has never wavered. We try and go here at least once every fortnight. On Sunday, we watched An Education (for free and it was a good movie!) and had lunch here. We both had drinks (Calpis water), had an entree to share (gyoza), had mains (karaage cheese curry for me & Aburi Chasu-men for J) and the bill came to less than $35.
I foresee no eating out until maybe this weekend. We're trying to rein it in as we impulsively planned a holiday in December (post on this later!). October is going to be an expensive month as it is because it's my birthday month. I don't have a birthday - I have a birthmonth. I actually celebrate for the whole month because I love birthdays and funnily enough, I actually welcome getting older now. November is going to be a tight-ass month for sure and half of December is too. I don't even want to think about Christmas presents yet!
Saturday, September 26, 2009
sydney is in mars
Saturday, September 26, 2009
0
I woke up on Wednesday morning and the sky was bright orange. I thought the summer bushfires has started and that it was nearer to our place than usual. It turns out that it's just a big roll of dust from the country. The sky was tinged orange until the middle of the day. During the night, I went to the city and there was dust everywhere. [photos from sydney photographer tomhide - visit his flickr!]
Friday, September 25, 2009
End of the week
Friday, September 25, 2009
0
I can't believe I haven't posted anything since Monday night - this week has been such a blur of bad sleep & work.
Remember in my previous competitions post, I joined a magazine competition to win a free pass to a wedding expo. Well, I won and we went. And it wasn't anything special. I'm just so glad I didn't pay for it since the tickets cost $95 each.
Someone called me on Monday to say that I've won (yay!), I left work early on Wed and met up with J's sister in the city and we headed straight to the expo. This is our second wedding expo together and the first one was $10 and was tackorama all the way with a fashion lingerie show (in nurse's outfits!) but this one was held at the Tea Rooms in QVB which is a very expensive and popular wedding venue. The exhibitors were very good brands but I think it's just the whole wedding business that puts me off especially when I see the prices ($8000 for a one-day photography and video package?!) and the whole hoopla on just one day. It's just not me at all but anyway, they're good fun while you're there and you end up with a free wedding magazine or two and about 10,000 brochures and calling cards that goes straight to the bin once you get home.
On the money front, there have been no major dramas or purchases but I have been really lazy and haven't been preparing my breakfast for work. Here are the misses of the week:
Tuesday (22nd Sept)
$5 - breakfast usually consisting of a small coffee & huge slices of raisin toast
$32.50 - Groceries
$48 - ok, so there have been a major purchase. A friend of mine went to China on a holiday and is kindly bringing me back some DVD's - this is for 6 boxed sets.
Wed (23rd Sept)
$4 - yummy chocolate-covered coffee beans
$11.40 - expensive lunch at QVB in the city. This got me a spinach & feta filo with salad (which means 3 lettuce leaves) and a small coffee. Ah! The price we pay for living in Sydney. J, his sister and I went to an awesome Thai dinner though and J paid (thanks love!)
Thurs (24th Sept)
$5 - Breakfast
$6.50 - Lunch (the best chicken, avocado, sun dried tomatoes and other goodies on a huge brown roll)
Fri (25th Sept)
$5 - Breakfast - this time a bacon & egg roll
$32 - I treated J to lunch in a fancy cafe near work
$20 - Dinner with J's sister at Sushi Samurai (the best Japanese place in our area!)
$3 - my share for the ice cream which turned out to be really bad. How can someone mess up chocolate ice cream?
Total: $172.40
Remember in my previous competitions post, I joined a magazine competition to win a free pass to a wedding expo. Well, I won and we went. And it wasn't anything special. I'm just so glad I didn't pay for it since the tickets cost $95 each.
Someone called me on Monday to say that I've won (yay!), I left work early on Wed and met up with J's sister in the city and we headed straight to the expo. This is our second wedding expo together and the first one was $10 and was tackorama all the way with a fashion lingerie show (in nurse's outfits!) but this one was held at the Tea Rooms in QVB which is a very expensive and popular wedding venue. The exhibitors were very good brands but I think it's just the whole wedding business that puts me off especially when I see the prices ($8000 for a one-day photography and video package?!) and the whole hoopla on just one day. It's just not me at all but anyway, they're good fun while you're there and you end up with a free wedding magazine or two and about 10,000 brochures and calling cards that goes straight to the bin once you get home.
On the money front, there have been no major dramas or purchases but I have been really lazy and haven't been preparing my breakfast for work. Here are the misses of the week:
Tuesday (22nd Sept)
$5 - breakfast usually consisting of a small coffee & huge slices of raisin toast
$32.50 - Groceries
$48 - ok, so there have been a major purchase. A friend of mine went to China on a holiday and is kindly bringing me back some DVD's - this is for 6 boxed sets.
Wed (23rd Sept)
$4 - yummy chocolate-covered coffee beans
$11.40 - expensive lunch at QVB in the city. This got me a spinach & feta filo with salad (which means 3 lettuce leaves) and a small coffee. Ah! The price we pay for living in Sydney. J, his sister and I went to an awesome Thai dinner though and J paid (thanks love!)
Thurs (24th Sept)
$5 - Breakfast
$6.50 - Lunch (the best chicken, avocado, sun dried tomatoes and other goodies on a huge brown roll)
Fri (25th Sept)
$5 - Breakfast - this time a bacon & egg roll
$32 - I treated J to lunch in a fancy cafe near work
$20 - Dinner with J's sister at Sushi Samurai (the best Japanese place in our area!)
$3 - my share for the ice cream which turned out to be really bad. How can someone mess up chocolate ice cream?
Total: $172.40
Monday, September 21, 2009
Budget Update : Sept 21
Monday, September 21, 2009
2
This weekend has been heavy on the budget due to us hosting a BBQ at our place. I always over prepare for these situations. I shop too much and prepare too much and at the end of the day, there are a lot of leftovers. This time, there weren't so many and J & I are having what is left for lunch. I think that's the last BBQ we're hosting for the year at our place. October through to December are busy times and I'm still not sure if we're hosting a Christmas dinner/BBQ at our place this year since they all usually happen at J's parent's place.
Here's how I did starting
Thursday:
$7 - breakfast (I was not at work on Thursday, I was doing a course and I only had 4 hours sleep because I woke up at 3am for some reason and I couldn't get back to sleep so I had a very large double-shot coffee and a cake of some sort hoping that the sugar buzz will get me through the morning)
$3.50 - another coffee boost
Friday:
$14 - cake tin & A Long Kiss Goodnight DVD from Target
$11 - 1 kilo lamb mince
$20.75 - 2 kilos chicken breast
$28 - Groceries
$24 - 2 huge bottles of champagne & beer
Saturday:
$12 - Blockbuster
$5.60 - Groceries
Sunday:
$15 - Groceries
$7 - muffins
$10 - groceries from IGA (what a rip-off!)
$3.60 - bag of mixed salad leaves
Total: $161.45
That means I have $28.55 until Wednesday! Today is another day off and it's looking good to be another No Spend Day. I'm not going out unless it's going for a run tonight.
Here's how I did starting
Thursday:
$7 - breakfast (I was not at work on Thursday, I was doing a course and I only had 4 hours sleep because I woke up at 3am for some reason and I couldn't get back to sleep so I had a very large double-shot coffee and a cake of some sort hoping that the sugar buzz will get me through the morning)
$3.50 - another coffee boost
Friday:
$14 - cake tin & A Long Kiss Goodnight DVD from Target
$11 - 1 kilo lamb mince
$20.75 - 2 kilos chicken breast
$28 - Groceries
$24 - 2 huge bottles of champagne & beer
Saturday:
$12 - Blockbuster
$5.60 - Groceries
Sunday:
$15 - Groceries
$7 - muffins
$10 - groceries from IGA (what a rip-off!)
$3.60 - bag of mixed salad leaves
Total: $161.45
That means I have $28.55 until Wednesday! Today is another day off and it's looking good to be another No Spend Day. I'm not going out unless it's going for a run tonight.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Cheap & Easy: Penne with Meatballs
Saturday, September 19, 2009
2
The ultimate cheap and easy meal is pasta - get a few grams of meat, a pasta sauce and you're set. Or if you have pasta, some olive oil, herbs, spices and some vegetables, toss it together and it makes a simple healthy meal.
J & I love our pasta. We try and not have it often (due to high carbs!) but it's definitely one of our fail safe meals. Tonight, I'm cooking a simple penne pasta with meatballs. The recipe called for frozen meatballs but I made my own tonight for the first time. The frozen meatballs are usually around $6-7, the home made ones are less than that and yummier. I usually get mince when they're on sale for around $2.50 per half a kilo. Most of the other ingredients you should have in your cupboard.
Meatballs
1/2 kilo pork mince
1 egg
breadcrumbs
1.5 cup tasty cheese
salt & pepper to taste
fresh herbs
Mix these ingredients together and roll them up into little meatballs.
Then fry them. Once they're cooked, add mushrooms and the pasta sauce of your choice. In a sauce pan, bring water to a boil and put your penne in. Mix together. Sprinkle with some more fresh herbs.
Eat with gusto and a glass of wine!
J & I love our pasta. We try and not have it often (due to high carbs!) but it's definitely one of our fail safe meals. Tonight, I'm cooking a simple penne pasta with meatballs. The recipe called for frozen meatballs but I made my own tonight for the first time. The frozen meatballs are usually around $6-7, the home made ones are less than that and yummier. I usually get mince when they're on sale for around $2.50 per half a kilo. Most of the other ingredients you should have in your cupboard.
Meatballs
1/2 kilo pork mince
1 egg
breadcrumbs
1.5 cup tasty cheese
salt & pepper to taste
fresh herbs
Mix these ingredients together and roll them up into little meatballs.
Then fry them. Once they're cooked, add mushrooms and the pasta sauce of your choice. In a sauce pan, bring water to a boil and put your penne in. Mix together. Sprinkle with some more fresh herbs.
Eat with gusto and a glass of wine!
Friday, September 18, 2009
Free... All Free!!
Friday, September 18, 2009
0
FREE MOVIE!
I scored two free movie tickets today to see An Education at Dendy Opera Quays cinema. It was from a ladies fashion company that I'm a member of (thank you David Lawrence!). The movie stars Peter Sarsgaard (who's brilliant in everything he's in!) and it won the Audience Choice award at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Can't wait. I'm taking J of course since it's on a Sunday and it's his day off. We might as well make a day of it and have a nice lunch afterwards.
FREE MOO CARDS!
Moo, the cute printing company that sells business cards, post cards, mini cards, sticker cards, etc are giving away a free 50-pack of business cards. You only have to pay for postage which in my case was about $6 (From the UK to Sydney). I've ordered from them before and I was very happy with the over all quality of the cards and their efficiency. This time, I had some picture of J&I printed with a Love Always message at the back. I'm planning on using them for Christmas gift cards.
Free stuff is awesome!
I scored two free movie tickets today to see An Education at Dendy Opera Quays cinema. It was from a ladies fashion company that I'm a member of (thank you David Lawrence!). The movie stars Peter Sarsgaard (who's brilliant in everything he's in!) and it won the Audience Choice award at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Can't wait. I'm taking J of course since it's on a Sunday and it's his day off. We might as well make a day of it and have a nice lunch afterwards.
FREE MOO CARDS!
Moo, the cute printing company that sells business cards, post cards, mini cards, sticker cards, etc are giving away a free 50-pack of business cards. You only have to pay for postage which in my case was about $6 (From the UK to Sydney). I've ordered from them before and I was very happy with the over all quality of the cards and their efficiency. This time, I had some picture of J&I printed with a Love Always message at the back. I'm planning on using them for Christmas gift cards.
Free stuff is awesome!
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
$4964
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
0
New Networth updated on the right side bar! Yippeee... That's another $530 added in the last two weeks.
Leaking Money & New Budget
My CC debt went up from $387 to $620 in the last week. Yikes! We were short while paying for the groceries so I had to pay using the black CC. J sent me $50 by direct debit for his share but silly me, spent the money instead. Oh well, my savings are still intact and I'm putting more on my CC for this pay.
J also had an unexpected expense this week. He wears monthly contact lenses and on April this year, he got an ulcer in his eye from a cut possibly from his contacts. So he had to go to his optometrist then to the eye hospital to get eye drops. Last night, he came home and his right eye was really red and looked infected so he had to go through the same process again this time. The eye drops and the consultation are expensive but hopefully he can get some of it back on Medicare (public health system) and on NIB (our private health). Contact lenses are a bitch and he's planning on getting LASIK next year. I got my eyes done in 2005 and it was the best thing I've ever done! More on this later...
Payday tomorrow so here's the budget for the next two weeks. I thought I was going to be short of my goal to save $1000 this month as I had to send extra money overseas to family but it turns out that I got paid a bit more than anticipated.
Income (next two weeks): $1965
Rent: $400
Family: $359
Personal Training: $87.55
Uni Loan Payment: $146
Credit Card: $175
Home Deposit: $450
Week 1 Budget: $190
Week 2 Budget: $150
Week 1: Sept 17 to Sept 23
Week 2: Sept 24 to Sept 30
My week 1 budget is about $40 more because we're having a party at our place on Sunday. J & I are going halves so our budget is going to be around $60 for food & drinks but I budgeted extra anyway, just in case.
P.S. That black card is going to be locked away again! It's just too dangerous to be around.
J also had an unexpected expense this week. He wears monthly contact lenses and on April this year, he got an ulcer in his eye from a cut possibly from his contacts. So he had to go to his optometrist then to the eye hospital to get eye drops. Last night, he came home and his right eye was really red and looked infected so he had to go through the same process again this time. The eye drops and the consultation are expensive but hopefully he can get some of it back on Medicare (public health system) and on NIB (our private health). Contact lenses are a bitch and he's planning on getting LASIK next year. I got my eyes done in 2005 and it was the best thing I've ever done! More on this later...
Payday tomorrow so here's the budget for the next two weeks. I thought I was going to be short of my goal to save $1000 this month as I had to send extra money overseas to family but it turns out that I got paid a bit more than anticipated.
Income (next two weeks): $1965
Rent: $400
Family: $359
Personal Training: $87.55
Uni Loan Payment: $146
Credit Card: $175
Home Deposit: $450
Week 1 Budget: $190
Week 2 Budget: $150
Week 1: Sept 17 to Sept 23
Week 2: Sept 24 to Sept 30
My week 1 budget is about $40 more because we're having a party at our place on Sunday. J & I are going halves so our budget is going to be around $60 for food & drinks but I budgeted extra anyway, just in case.
P.S. That black card is going to be locked away again! It's just too dangerous to be around.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Free books & magazines
Sunday, September 13, 2009
0
A trip to the library got me these 12 books for free for three weeks! I should probably finish half of these by three weeks and the rest, I just renew which is another three weeks (also for free). I'm a really fast reader though so I don't have too many renewals.
Our check-out lady from the supermarket also gave me these for free - two cookbooks! The big one usually retails for around $12.95 so I'm really happy with that. Free stuff is awesome!
Yikes : Groceries!
J & I went to our local supermarket, Woolworths today to get some groceries for the week. The bill came to $95.57! Definitely more than what we've budgeted for, I thought it was going to be around $60. It's ok since we should have dinner until Thursday and this also include lunches and snacks. This will help me have a couple of NSD's next week, especially Monday and Tuesday!
We don't have a set budget yet for groceries but at our next pay which is this Thursday, we're going to start putting money in a kitty just for grocery shopping. We'll probably start with $50 each a week and see how we go.
Here's some of what we bought that made a big dent in the total price:
$10 - 10 tins of tuna (good for salad lunches, we bought some springwater and some flavoured ones)
$7 - 5 tubs of yoghurt (they're bigger than a normal pot-sized so this should be a good snack to bring to work)
$5.99 - extra virgin olive oil
$8.94 - 1 kilo chicken breast fillets (should be good for a few meals and left over lunches)
We're having a BBQ party at our place on Sunday with about 6-8 people coming over. They're bringing their own drinks and a plate to share but I still want to have everything pretty much covered. I'm going to come up with a summery menu later on this week.
We don't have a set budget yet for groceries but at our next pay which is this Thursday, we're going to start putting money in a kitty just for grocery shopping. We'll probably start with $50 each a week and see how we go.
Here's some of what we bought that made a big dent in the total price:
$10 - 10 tins of tuna (good for salad lunches, we bought some springwater and some flavoured ones)
$7 - 5 tubs of yoghurt (they're bigger than a normal pot-sized so this should be a good snack to bring to work)
$5.99 - extra virgin olive oil
$8.94 - 1 kilo chicken breast fillets (should be good for a few meals and left over lunches)
We're having a BBQ party at our place on Sunday with about 6-8 people coming over. They're bringing their own drinks and a plate to share but I still want to have everything pretty much covered. I'm going to come up with a summery menu later on this week.
Competitions
I've never had much luck with competitions unlike my friend who won two competitions on the same day to win 4 Harry Potter premiere tickets on the other and 2 of the same on the other competition she entered (both in magazines). Or colleague at work who regularly wins DVD's from entering competitions online. I haven't won anything!
So lately, I've been entering a few competitions. After all, I'm bound to win one someday right?
1. Helga's Bread A Taste of Europe competition - prizes are holidays at the Whitsundays, a road trip on the Great Ocean Road or a trip to the Hunter Valley by private jet. Not bad at all. But I didn't win. Maybe I should buy more bread.
2. Myer One's 5th year anniversary competition. The prize is a 5 day Fiji holiday!
3. Hoyts birthday free tickets. This is not really a competition, more like a free give away on your birthday. As I've posted before, movies here are so damn expensive at $16.50 and it increases by 50 cents every year. As my birthday is coming up next month, this is a good idea for a night out. We just have to buy a ticket for J. Score!
4. Optus. Optus is my mobile phone company and I buy a $30 re-charge card every month which gives me $150 worth of calls and text messages. Handy when calling my family overseas. Everytime I buy a recharge card, they send me a code to enter a competition and most of the time, I win prizes such as 25 free texts or $40 worth of calls. Today, I won 100 free texts!! I just have to use it within 14 days.
5. Madison Magazine are giving away 2 double passes for the Wedding Establishment event this coming Wednesday. The tickets are $95 for two people and it would be a great night out if I win.
From now on, I'm going to start entering more and more competitions. And as my birthday is coming up, I know there are companies there that offer a few birthday free goodies. Nothing wrong with a free goodies on your birthday!
So lately, I've been entering a few competitions. After all, I'm bound to win one someday right?
1. Helga's Bread A Taste of Europe competition - prizes are holidays at the Whitsundays, a road trip on the Great Ocean Road or a trip to the Hunter Valley by private jet. Not bad at all. But I didn't win. Maybe I should buy more bread.
2. Myer One's 5th year anniversary competition. The prize is a 5 day Fiji holiday!
3. Hoyts birthday free tickets. This is not really a competition, more like a free give away on your birthday. As I've posted before, movies here are so damn expensive at $16.50 and it increases by 50 cents every year. As my birthday is coming up next month, this is a good idea for a night out. We just have to buy a ticket for J. Score!
4. Optus. Optus is my mobile phone company and I buy a $30 re-charge card every month which gives me $150 worth of calls and text messages. Handy when calling my family overseas. Everytime I buy a recharge card, they send me a code to enter a competition and most of the time, I win prizes such as 25 free texts or $40 worth of calls. Today, I won 100 free texts!! I just have to use it within 14 days.
5. Madison Magazine are giving away 2 double passes for the Wedding Establishment event this coming Wednesday. The tickets are $95 for two people and it would be a great night out if I win.
From now on, I'm going to start entering more and more competitions. And as my birthday is coming up, I know there are companies there that offer a few birthday free goodies. Nothing wrong with a free goodies on your birthday!
Friday, September 11, 2009
The weekend ahead...
Friday, September 11, 2009
0
I went over $38.70 in my Week 1 budget (which was $145) which I've borrowed from my Week 2 budget which is $145. I could probably that on the phone recharge card I had to buy which was already $30.
Today I spent:
$20 - new shower curtain from Target. We have to replace our shower curtain every 6-7 months or so because it gets super mouldy.
$8 - chicken & pesto salad from Sumo salad for lunch. J bought us drinks & sushi.
$5 - groceries
$50 - Country Road top (from black CC - I have a $30 gift voucher but I couldn't find anything I liked within that price range so I finally picked an $80 top... oopsss)
$58 - Natio skincare & make-up from my previous post to get the GWP's. For Free as I used a gift voucher!
Total: $33
I have a total of $80 until Thursday! The weekend hasn't even begun yet!
Tomorrow, J & I are going to an open day for Macquarie University because I'm still deciding on whether to pursue a Masters degree in 2010. And we don't really have any plans for Sunday other than a dinner here at home with J's sister. I'm hoping to get all my groceries done for breakfast & lunches on Sunday afternoon and get a few more NSD next week!
On Wednesday, I have to attend a training day for work. The fare would probably cost me around $15 but I would be able to get that reimbursed from work but not until the week after so I have to leave around $25 on me for Wed. So that means $55 to spend between Saturday & Tuesday which will most definitely be spent on food. No more clothes shopping!
Today I spent:
$20 - new shower curtain from Target. We have to replace our shower curtain every 6-7 months or so because it gets super mouldy.
$8 - chicken & pesto salad from Sumo salad for lunch. J bought us drinks & sushi.
$5 - groceries
$50 - Country Road top (from black CC - I have a $30 gift voucher but I couldn't find anything I liked within that price range so I finally picked an $80 top... oopsss)
$58 - Natio skincare & make-up from my previous post to get the GWP's. For Free as I used a gift voucher!
Total: $33
I have a total of $80 until Thursday! The weekend hasn't even begun yet!
Tomorrow, J & I are going to an open day for Macquarie University because I'm still deciding on whether to pursue a Masters degree in 2010. And we don't really have any plans for Sunday other than a dinner here at home with J's sister. I'm hoping to get all my groceries done for breakfast & lunches on Sunday afternoon and get a few more NSD next week!
On Wednesday, I have to attend a training day for work. The fare would probably cost me around $15 but I would be able to get that reimbursed from work but not until the week after so I have to leave around $25 on me for Wed. So that means $55 to spend between Saturday & Tuesday which will most definitely be spent on food. No more clothes shopping!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
No Spend Day
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
0
Finally, I have finally have something to show for the NSD Challenge (or nothing to show?). Yesterday, I brought my breakfast to work (PB&H sandwich), had a cooked pasta for lunch and had 2-minute noodles for dinner! I did went grocery shopping today though and it was $41.30 with nary a sign of meat. Why are groceries in Sydney so expensive?
This what I have to show for $41.30:
1kg cous cous - $4.49
Marinade 160g - $3.19
Maltesers x 4 small packs - $3.96
Girly pads - $5.74
Grain waves chips - $2.99
Moroccan seasoning - $2.93
Greens Pancakes mix - $2.99
Pepsi Max 1L - $1.09
Schweppes Lemonade 1L - $1.09
3L milk - $3.66
1kg Jasmine rice - $2.49
1 loaf of bread - $3.99
12pk eggs - $2.69
These items are also mostly on sale except for the pads and the milk. Some of them are supplies that will last for a while like the cous cous, the seasoning and the rice and the bread should last until next week.
Tomorrow is going to be another NSD. I'm not even bringing cash to work so I don't get tempted. That brings my total to 2 days out of 10 and it's already the 10th tomorrow.
This what I have to show for $41.30:
1kg cous cous - $4.49
Marinade 160g - $3.19
Maltesers x 4 small packs - $3.96
Girly pads - $5.74
Grain waves chips - $2.99
Moroccan seasoning - $2.93
Greens Pancakes mix - $2.99
Pepsi Max 1L - $1.09
Schweppes Lemonade 1L - $1.09
3L milk - $3.66
1kg Jasmine rice - $2.49
1 loaf of bread - $3.99
12pk eggs - $2.69
These items are also mostly on sale except for the pads and the milk. Some of them are supplies that will last for a while like the cous cous, the seasoning and the rice and the bread should last until next week.
Tomorrow is going to be another NSD. I'm not even bringing cash to work so I don't get tempted. That brings my total to 2 days out of 10 and it's already the 10th tomorrow.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Spring Shopping
Monday, September 7, 2009
0
The black Visa card went in my greedy little hands this morning and this is all I came up with, my first purchase in more than a month! And it's only $35! I went into so many stores and before I would have just gone away with hundreds worth of clothes but my self control is getting stronger. This just means I have to forego a dinner out for this top but it's worth it cos it's so pretty.
I know I'm on a shopping ban at the moment but I really need skincare. Not want but NEED. I haven't been taking care of my skin for a while and I can tell, I'm getting breakouts every week. I hardly even moisturise which is a sin in winter. There are some sales going on at the moment with GWP's (Gifts with Purchase) and I'm thinking of getting these. If I spend $49 on Natio products, I get the following products for free! They include an SPF15 Daily Protection Face Moisturiser (badly needed and oh look, it has SPF 15 just in time for spring!), Illuminating Primer, Brightening Eye Cream (wouldn't hurt), Lip & Cheek Tint in Blossom, Spa with Organics Pep-up Body Cleanser, Spa with Organics Heavenly Hand Cream (always needed!), mirror, Tinted Moisturiser, Gentle Foaming Facial Cleanser and Ageless Hydrating Mask. I'm getting this on Saturday - I have a voucher to cover it so it will be free!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Increased Net Worth
Sunday, September 6, 2009
0
My Net Worth has increased by $860 in two weeks. Yippee! At this rate, I would be closer to my goal of 8K by the end of this year. I still don't think I'm going to make it since I have to dip into my savings for travel (more on this later) but I'm also not taking any ridiculous loans soon.
Out of my $150 budget for the week, I have $45.80 left. Friday was a very bad day food-wise. I don't even want to think about it. On Saturday, J's sister and I had a day out at the markets & the city. Tally below.
Friday
$10 - breakfast at work. Yeh I know. B&E roll & a large coffee makes everything better
$30 - recharge card for my mobile - this would be good for a month
$3.70 - chicken wrap for lunch
$4 - large V Berry drink
Saturday
$10 - Fare
$9 - chicken roll for lunch
$3.50 - a giant Belgian chocolate cupcake!
$5 - iced mocha. We were so tired from all the walking. And yeh, the eating.
$12 - 3 movies from Blockbuster
Total for 2 days: $87.20
I also got a new MAC Studio Fix using a $50 voucher. If I didn't have a voucher, that would set me back $48 but they're the best and they last more than 6 months on a daily use so they're worth it.
Tonight, J & I are having dinner at a Chinese restaurant with J's family for Father's Day. And tomorrow, I'm having a cheapie dinner out with the girls after work. So much for my NSD Challenge! I'm still on a 0 out of 10 days.
So far today, I've spent nada since I've been home all day. J's brother moved out yesterday so I've been hauling furniture around and tidying up our place since 6 in the morning. I am going to do some grocery shopping to last us until Wednesday though and I have to cook some lunches before we head out for dinner at 7pm!
Out of my $150 budget for the week, I have $45.80 left. Friday was a very bad day food-wise. I don't even want to think about it. On Saturday, J's sister and I had a day out at the markets & the city. Tally below.
Friday
$10 - breakfast at work. Yeh I know. B&E roll & a large coffee makes everything better
$30 - recharge card for my mobile - this would be good for a month
$3.70 - chicken wrap for lunch
$4 - large V Berry drink
Saturday
$10 - Fare
$9 - chicken roll for lunch
$3.50 - a giant Belgian chocolate cupcake!
$5 - iced mocha. We were so tired from all the walking. And yeh, the eating.
$12 - 3 movies from Blockbuster
Total for 2 days: $87.20
I also got a new MAC Studio Fix using a $50 voucher. If I didn't have a voucher, that would set me back $48 but they're the best and they last more than 6 months on a daily use so they're worth it.
Tonight, J & I are having dinner at a Chinese restaurant with J's family for Father's Day. And tomorrow, I'm having a cheapie dinner out with the girls after work. So much for my NSD Challenge! I'm still on a 0 out of 10 days.
So far today, I've spent nada since I've been home all day. J's brother moved out yesterday so I've been hauling furniture around and tidying up our place since 6 in the morning. I am going to do some grocery shopping to last us until Wednesday though and I have to cook some lunches before we head out for dinner at 7pm!
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Epic Fail
Thursday, September 3, 2009
0
Misses today:
$5 - breakfast
$7 - lunch
J gave me $5 before I left for work this morning and I just managed to scrape enough coins for lunch. That means my weekly budget is still intact!
Hits today:
$556 - savings which brings the total to $3600!
After a very long and tiring day from work staring at the computer for hours, crunching up stats and hours of reading, I really needed a break and a dinner out so we're heading out to our favorite cheapie Thai restaurant tonight, Wock Bar! Because the last thing I want to do tonight is cook. I just want a big curry with rice. I still have a long day of work tomorrow with a 20-page report that I have to finish by the end of the day (I'm probably halfway).
Tomorrow night J is going to cook dinner! Off to Thai!
$5 - breakfast
$7 - lunch
J gave me $5 before I left for work this morning and I just managed to scrape enough coins for lunch. That means my weekly budget is still intact!
Hits today:
$556 - savings which brings the total to $3600!
After a very long and tiring day from work staring at the computer for hours, crunching up stats and hours of reading, I really needed a break and a dinner out so we're heading out to our favorite cheapie Thai restaurant tonight, Wock Bar! Because the last thing I want to do tonight is cook. I just want a big curry with rice. I still have a long day of work tomorrow with a 20-page report that I have to finish by the end of the day (I'm probably halfway).
Tomorrow night J is going to cook dinner! Off to Thai!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Free Money
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
0
While transferring contents from one bag to another this morning, I found $15 in one of my bag's pockets! And yes, I've spent all of it. Good thing it's pay day tomorrow! I don't have lunch for work tomorrow either. The dinner that I cooked tonight was loved and finished by all. Not a great start to September. My No Spend Day September challenge is still at a lovely 0! But with enough preparation, hopefully I would have 3 NSD next week!
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Budget : Period from Sept 3 - Sept 16
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
0
Income: $1965
Rent: $400
Family: $259
Private Health Cover: $127
Personal Training: $87.55
Uni Loan Payment: $146
Credit Card: $100
Savings: $550
Week 1 expenses: $150
Week 2 expenses: $145
Week 1 - Sept 3 to Sept 9
Week 2 - Sept 10 to Sept 16
Alas! My new budget for the next two weeks. I think this will work better than separating my expenses into categories. Now, if I buy a $100 dress, then I have to make do with $50 for the rest of the week.
Rent: $400
Family: $259
Private Health Cover: $127
Personal Training: $87.55
Uni Loan Payment: $146
Credit Card: $100
Savings: $550
Week 1 expenses: $150
Week 2 expenses: $145
Week 1 - Sept 3 to Sept 9
Week 2 - Sept 10 to Sept 16
Alas! My new budget for the next two weeks. I think this will work better than separating my expenses into categories. Now, if I buy a $100 dress, then I have to make do with $50 for the rest of the week.
Budget Recap
Period From: August 20 to September 2
Rent: $200 ($200)
Family: $259 ($259)
Personal Training: $86 ($87.55)
Uni Loan Payment: $146 ($146)
Credit Card Payment: $100 ($100)
Savings: $800 ($800)
Gifts: $30 ($40)
Groceries: $85 ($111.40)
Entertainment: $100 ($120.60)
Personal Items: $20 ($0)
Shopping: $50 ($0)
Misc: 34 ($35.95)
Too much red! As I said before, category budgeting is not working for me at the moment. I just end up using money from the other categories. My next budget will be a set amount weekly. I'll withdraw the money allocated at the start of the week and see how I go from day to day.
New budget coming soon!
Rent: $200 ($200)
Family: $259 ($259)
Personal Training: $86 ($87.55)
Uni Loan Payment: $146 ($146)
Credit Card Payment: $100 ($100)
Savings: $800 ($800)
Gifts: $30 ($40)
Groceries: $85 ($111.40)
Entertainment: $100 ($120.60)
Personal Items: $20 ($0)
Shopping: $50 ($0)
Misc: 34 ($35.95)
Too much red! As I said before, category budgeting is not working for me at the moment. I just end up using money from the other categories. My next budget will be a set amount weekly. I'll withdraw the money allocated at the start of the week and see how I go from day to day.
New budget coming soon!
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