Banker Gurl's More Bang For Your Buck!

Current Balance $11,910.00
+$20.00 Bingo Tips
New Balance $11,930.00

Bingo Money $75.00
ING $7400.00
Home Improvements(cash) $255.00
HSBC $4200.00
Total = $11,930.00

Added $19.09 to Bingo Tips
Bingo Tips total
Tips total - $79.01
Wage total - $0
Total Bingo Money - $79.01

Current Balance $12,000.00
-$112.00 to ROTH IRA
+$22.00 Even Out Amount
New Balance $11,910.00

Bingo Money $55.00
ING $7400.00
Home Improvements(cash) $255.00
HSBC $4200.00
Total = $11,910.00


Bingo Tips total
Tips total - $59.92
Wage total - $0
Total Bingo Money - $59.92

We are doing ok on our Discover Card Challenge that goes from 9/28/11 to 10/27/11. So far our bill is at $343 (trying to keep it under $1300 for the cycle). We need to go grocery shopping and DH needs gas in his car. We also have to get oil changes on both of our cars. We are going out to eat tomorrow for dinner, but we have mapped out the rest of the week and there should not be any other eating out the rest of this week. Also since I have the CVS giftcard, I won't be spending any OOP there. Hopefully we only add about $200 to the card this week.
$60 - 2 oil changes
$50 - groceries
$30 - Eating out
$50 - Fuel for DH's car
$1346.85

Women in Red (WIR) Racers is a online financial support group I have been a part of since about 2005. They have many groups you can join and I was part of the savers group until 2007, because we didn't have any debt at all. In 2007 we bought our house and aquired our mortgage loan, so at that time I joined their debt boards as well and have been racing with this great group of ladies and gentlemen ever since.

Every month (or more often or less often if you like) you post your debt total as you "race" to become debt free. Others will cheer you on and give you advise to help you on your way. It is completely anonymous. I love the WIR and encourage everyone to check it out! They have helped me immensely as we have gone from $170K in debt to $125K in 4 years...and just keep picking up speed as we go!

Racers come with all kinds of debt, student loans, credit cards, personal loans, boats, cars, houses, campers, garages, LOC....you name it, we've seen it...and destroyed it!!

Please come check it out as we, as a group, help to bring down the national (and international) debt!!

Here is the link if you are interested, just click on your region to get started, please let me know if I can help you, I go by Banker Gurl on those boards as well!

http://www.notmsnmoney.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=redracers

CVS

First Purchase
2 pack of Crest 6.2oz Toothpaste
Regular Price $6.29
-$1.00 mfr coupon
-$1.50 EB
-$2.00 EB
Total OOP $2.05 ($1.03 per tube) (CVS giftcard)

Received $2.00 EB


Second Purchase
Pur-Absorb Iron Supplements 28 pack
Regular Price $19.99
-$4.00 Sale Price
-$2.00 EB from last purchase
Total OOP $14.95 (CVS giftcard)

Received $15.99 EB

So I spent $17 on my CVS giftcard today, and I still have a $15.99 EB, so I go both items for total spent of $1.01 if you figure back in the EB.

Then I went to Target because I had a bunch of items that I could get with both a mfr coupon and a Target coupon.

Glad Odor Shield Garbage Bags 84ct
(this will last us YEARS!)
On sale for $13.00
-$1.00 Target coupon
-.75 mfr coupon
OOP $11.25

Venus 4ct Razor Refills
Regular Price $10.99
-$3.00 mfr coupon
OOP $7.99

Garnier Fructis Leave in Conditioning Cream
Regular Price $2.99
-$1.00 Target coupon
-$1.00 mfr coupon
OOP .99!!

Tampax Pearl Compak 18pk (2 boxes)
Regular $3.99 per box
-$3.99 (BOGO Free mfr coupon)
-$1.00 Target coupon
-$1.00 mfr coupon
OOP $1.99 for 2 boxes = less then a $1 a box!!
I got to use 3 coupons on one purchase! Whoo hoo!

So at Target I saved $13.53 just by using coupons, and these were all needs. Gonna go add them to my stockpile.

I think I am going to put a cap on a few things in my stockpile unless then are absolutely rock bottom prices. I think toothpaste, tampons, bar soap and shampoo/conditioner are going to be on hold for now, unless I can get them for insanely cheap. It is hard for me to pass up a good deal, but I don't want to be one of those crazy people on TV that keep TP under their kids beds....lol....as long as I can keep it contained to the bathroom cupboard and linen closet storage I should be good!

This just made me happy so I thought I would post it. I organized our "junk drawer" (I hate to call it that as it is too organized to be a junk drawer).

It's so pretty!

Had a great week at work. They treated us to free lunch and breakfast all week and also had lots of prizes and games all week.
-Slingback backpack
-Soup mug and spoon
-3 Candy bars
-Fruit snacks
-$5 Giftcard to Schlotskys Deli
-$3 Gift Certificates to McDonalds




Also a coworker brought free pumpkins, so now we have some for Halloween decorations, which is awesome cause pumpkins are expensive.

Lastly I went to CVS and they had Covergirl products BOGO 50% off. I don't usually wear much for makeup (HUGE moneysaver), but because of that sale and I had an $8 coupon from the newspaper, I decided to use it to my advantage.

I bought 2 blushes (9.98) $4.99 a piece
-$2.50 for the 50% off
-$8.00 mfr coupon
=-.45!
*ETA - Sold 1 for $2.50 at 9/7/12 rummage sale - $2.50 profit
*ETA - Sold 1 for $2.50 at 6/15/13 rummage sale - $2.50 profit
Total Profit - $5.00

What a great deal! So I saved $10.50 and paid $0 OOP!

At my work they let us enter our workout minutes and healthy eating choices to get funds for your HSA. I am able to earn up to $500 a year and so is my husband. I reached my $500 this week! DH has not entered his information in a long time, so I need to get him moving on it as he has only earned $25 so far. It is a great program that they offer to help get extra funds into our HSA.


We also have a program to help with the premiums. My insurance premiums are only $600 a year ($25 a paycheck)for me and DH. They offer a metobolic screening test, and if you meet the requirements then you get credits to your insurance premium. I can earn $300 by meeting the 3 of the 5 criteria (blood pressure, blood sugar, waist circumference, cholesterol and triglcyerides) and DH can get a $300 credit just for doing the testing, he doesn't even need to meet any criteria. Last year the testing was only offered to the employees, not to the spouses. I met all 5 of the criteria last year, so I am expecting to get the full $600 credit, so I won't have to pay anything for health insurance premiums! Testing is in about 2 weeks so we should have the results in about a month and then we will know if we have any premium for 2012.

My tips for this week were $36.23. Added to the challenge plus a little even out amount to get us back to $12K!

Current Balance $11,940.00
+$35.00 Bingo Tips
+$25.00 Even Out Amount to EF
New Balance $12,000.00

Bingo Money $55.00
ING $7490.00
Home Improvements(cash) $255.00
HSBC $4200.00
Total = $12,000.00



Added $36.23 to my Bingo Tips total
Tips total - $59.92
Wage total - $0
Total Bingo Money - $59.92

Target

I needed some new jeans for Bingo so I went and picked up a pair from Target. While we were there DH found some good deals for him on the clearance rack.

Khaki shorts - Regular $19.99 - Clearance $9.98
Dry Fit shirt - Regular $9.99 - Clearance $5.48

Saved $14.52

This was very weird as DH never buys clothes, but he wondered over to the clearance rack while I was in the dressing room. I am glad he did as now he will have shorts for next year that were 50% off!


Grocery Shopping

Went to the grocery store to get a few things and saw that they had Pillsbury cake mix, regular $1.71 a box, on sale for .80 a box. This is what we use for our cupcakes for the rummage sale. So I bought 15 boxes for $12, saving $13.65!! Only have to sell 2 cupcakes to make back the cost of the cake mix. This is also a great way to stock up for making cupcakes for DH's students, or if I bring a cake to work.

CVS
I scanned my EB Card and received an extra $1.50 EB from my Quarterly EB rewards!

1st Purchase

23.6oz Olay Body Wash
Regular Price $7.99
-$1.00 Sale Price
-$2.00 mfr coupon
*Received $2.00 EB
Final Price $2.99
*ETA - I had bought this to keep, but I had a buyer, so sold on 3/17/14 for $5.00 to a coworker = $2.01 Profit!

1 Liter Scope Mouthwash + a free sample mouthwash
Regular Price $4.49
-.40 Sale Price
-$2.00 mfr coupon

-$7.00 EB from last week
Total OOP $1.17

Received $2.00 EB from Olay
Received $1.50 EB from Scope


2nd Purchase

7oz Edge Shave Foam
Regular Price $2.77
-.78 Sale Price
-.55 mfr coupon

10 oz Skintimate Shave Cream
Regular Price $3.59
-$1.60 Sale Price

-$1.50 Quarterly EB
-$1.50 EB from last purchase
Total OOP .58


3rd Purchase

1 Liter Scope Mouthwash
Regular Price $4.49
-.40 Sale Price
-$2.00 mfr coupon
-$2.00 EB from last purchase

Total OOP .76

Received $1.50 EB from Scope



All of this for $2.51 OOP - Plus I still have $1.50 EB for next time.

October 2011 Savings update
As of October 1, 2011:

Regular Savings:
Bingo Money $20
Home Maintanence $575
Mortgage Payoff Account $105
Cushion $1830
HSA $5130
New Patio Door(cash) $255
September 2012 $225
Emergency Fund $550
New Car $2035 - Complete
Vacation - $2570 - Complete
Anniversary Cruise $4200 - Complete
Total Regular Savings = $17,495.00

Retirement Savings:
Retirement Hold Account $1400
Roth IRA $4000
Rollover IRA $1380
401K $14,600
403B $13,200 (est)
Total Retirement Savings = $34,580.00

Total Savings = $52,075.00

Down $1,060.00 from last month.

Current Balance $11,885.00
+$5.60 ING Interest
+$29.40 Even Out Amount
+$20.00 to Home Improvements
New Balance $11,940.00

Bingo Money $20.00
ING $7465.00
Home Improvements(cash) $255.00
HSBC $4200.00
Total = $11,940.00.

I am setting up 2 new challenges for DH and I!

October Discover Card Challenge

I am challenging DH and I to see how low we can get our Discover card for our Oct statement (Sept 28 - Oct 27). No "extra" purchases, limiting eating out, fast food and fuel as much as we can. Last month our statement $1900 and this month was $1600.....according to our "budget" we should be around $1200. Hmm. So I am challenging us to get it as close to the $1200 as we can. I would really like to see it under $1300.


CVS Giftcard Challenge

I cashed in $45 of our Discover card cashback rewards for a $50 CVS giftcard today. I am going to see how long I can make that last with EBs and how much merchandise I can get for FREE with this FREE $50 giftcard!

1st Purchase
ThermaCare Heat Patch $3.79
Total OOP $3.79
Received $3.79 EB (FREE!)

2nd Purchase
Re-nu Contact Solution
Regular Price $9.99
-$1.00 Sale Price
-$2.00 mfr coupon
-$3.79 EB from last purchase
Total OOP $3.20
Received $7.00 EB

So I got both items for $6.99 OOP, and I still have a $7.00 EB, so I actually made .01 by purchasing these items in this way! Whoo hoo! Hope I can keep finding deals where CVS pays me to take their merchandise home.

I will use the contact solution, but not the Therma Care Heat Patch. My Dad uses those, so I just gave it to him since it was free other then tax.

Well I only worked one shift for about 6 1/2 hours and I got to go pick my tips up on Monday. $23.69! Not bad! They are shared tips and then divided by the number of hours you work. With tips I am making a little over $11 an hour, which I am happy with for an easy part time job. So for now I am just going to save that money seperate till I decide for sure what I want to do with it. I am only going to add this to the $20K Challenge in $5 increments so that it doesn't get confusing, so I just added $20 to that instead of $23.69.

Tips total - $23.69
Wage total - $0
Total Bingo Money - $23.69

Still can't decide if I want to save this for a snowblower or to the EF, or the mortgage savings account.....hmmm......oh well no hurry on what to decide.

Current Balance $11,620.00
-$178.00 to Roth IRA
+$3.00 Even Out Amount
+$20.00 Bingo Tips
+$135.00 Cross Country Money
+$100.00 to September 2012 Savings
+$100.00 to EF
+$85.00 to Retirement Hold Account
New Balance $11,885.00

Bingo Money $20.00
ING $7430.00
Home Improvements(cash) $235.00
HSBC $4200.00
Total = $11,885.00.

I sent in a rebate for pop today. Menards had 6 packs on sale for $1.50 with a rebate of .75 per pack. So I bought 4 that we can sell at the rummage sale, the end price will be .75 for a 6 pack, only 13 cents per can.

Yesterday was my first day at my second job at the Bingo hall. It was super fun! It is definitely a crazy enviroment and I was beat when I got home, but I think the job will be a good fit because I like a fast paced enviroment.
I caught on very quickly, though Bingo is a lot more confusing then I thought it would be.....lots of different kinds of games and different packages you can buy for different costs.
Tomorrow I can pick up my first set of tips, probably won't be much at all as it is shared tips and then divided by the number of hours you worked, and I only worked 7 hours this week....but something is better then nothing and I am still trying to decide exactly what savings I want this going towards....

october 2011 Mortgage Payment

Balance $126,850.00
+$396.41 Interest
+$307.59 Escrow
-$1311.16 Regular Payment
-$577.84 Principle Payment ($35.00 in change)
New Balance $125,665.00


$125K = 125 months left = 10.42 years left

Next month we will meet our goal for the year (getting under $125K), I can't wait!!

First Purchase
8ct Excedrin .99
8ct Excedrin .99
Total OOP $2.10
Received $1.98 EB

Second Purchase
4 cans Progresso Soup Regular $2.99 per can ($11.96)
On sale for 4 cans/$5
-$1.00 CVS coupon
-$1.98 EB from last purchase
Total OOP $2.02
Total saved $9.94

2 bottles of Excedrin and 4 cans of Pregresso for $4.12 OOP!



There were a few other things I wanted to get that were on good sale, but the coupons I need for them are at work, so I will try to get them tomorrow.

My work is changing their payroll in March 2012. Currently we get paid for 1 week that we have worked and the next week that we have not worked yet.
The payroll is going to change to getting paid for the last 2 weeks that you worked. So for 1 paycheck in March we will only get paid for 1 week to make the adjustment. A lot of people are freaking out about it, but I don't think it will be a big deal since my paychecks are pretty small since I have taxes, 401K, HSA, medical premium and charitable donations taken out before I see any of it. So I will only be missing about $400 and I also get a bonus in March that should cover any missing pay.

My Mom's friend had brought a ton of stuff for the last rummage sale, and when it was over she said we could have what we wanted from her stuff and donate or toss what we didn't want.

I finished going through everything as well as weeding out our old stuff that wasn't selling. I ended up taking 4 boxes to donate. I also took 4 prom/bridesmaids dress and 2 graduation gowns and donated them to a local charity that helps homeless teams with normal teenage activities like prom etc.

I found several items that I wanted to keep for myself to wear.
4 Tanktops
2 T-shirts
1 Cardigan
4 Long Sleeve shirts
1 Sweater
1 Pair of shorts
2 Skirts
So I then went through my closet and picked out all the same items to get rid of of my own. A perfect exchange, I got 15 new items for FREE and got rid of 15 of my old clothes that I don't wear anymore. This is a great way to keep the clutter down in your closet when you get new clothes.

Then I went through everything she had left and marked them for the next rummage sale.
60 Shirts
35 Pairs of Pants
5 Dresses
3 Skirts
3 Coats

Should make a pretty nice profit on all of it at the next sale!

*ETA - Here is what I have sold so far from this stuff:

5/18/12 $7.50
6/23/12 $11.25
8/24/12 $20.50
9/7/12 $57.75
6/15/13 $9.00
Total made so far - $106.00 Free!!

One of our local grocery stores had a good sale on cereal, plus you got a free gallon of milk when you buy 3 boxes.
5 boxes of cereal plus a gallon of milk for $9!

I went back to JCP today and bought the rest of the flip flops.....another 15 flip flops for .17 per pair. They did not have the extra 15% off today. Total saved on this purchase was $147.45 and total spent was $2.70!

Then I went to CVS to pick up a few things.

4 boxes of Cheerios
-Regular $3.39 per box
-On sale for $2.50 per box
-Minus $1.00 off of 4 mfr coupon
-End price is $2.25 per box
-Savings of $4.56

Scanned our CVS card and got a BOGO Free coupon on 5 Gum
-Regular $1.57 per pack
-On sale for $1.00 per pack
-Minus $1.57 BOGO coupon
-End price of .21 cents per pack!!
-Savings of $2.71

3 cases JBT 24 pack of Bottled Water
-Regular price $3.99 per case
-On sale for $2.22
-Savings of $5.31

Then I used $3.69 EB I had from last week, so my total OOP was $12.40.

Total spent between CVS and JCP was $15.10 and total saved was $165.32!

All of this for just $15.10!

I made out like a bandit today at the mall.


Victoria Secret
-Free Lace bridal thong
-Paid $0
-Saved $14.50

JCPenney
Swim trunks for DH
-Regular Price $35.00
-Clearanced for $1.97
-Additional 15% off
-Paid $1.77
-Saved $33.33

Mens Flipfops - Bought 21 pairs
-Regular Price $10.00 a piece
-Clearanced for .17
-Additional 15% off
-Paid .14 a piece ($3.12 for 21 pairs)
-Saved $207.06
*ETA - Sold 2 pairs at the 8/24/12 rummage sale for $3.00 each = $5.72 profit
*ETA - Sold 5 pairs at the 9/7/12 rummage sale for $3.00 each = $14.30 profit
*ETA - Sold 1 pair at the 6/15/13 rummage sale for $3.00 = $2.86 profit
*ETA - Sold 1 pair at the 8/23/13 rummage sale for $3.00 = $2.86 profit
*ETA - Sold 2 pair at the 9/5/13 rummage sale for $3.00 = $5.72 profit
*ETA - Sold 1 pair on 3/17/14 to a coworker for $3.00 = $2.86 profit
*ETA - Sold 1 pair on 9/4/14 rummage sale for $3.00 = $2.86 profit
*ETA - Gave 1 to BFs sister
*ETA - Sold 1 pair on FB on 6/17/16 for $3.00 = $2.86 profit
*ETA - Sold 2 pair on FB on 7/24/16 for $3.00 = $2.86 profit
*ETA - Sold 3 pair at the 5/5/17 rummage sale for $2.00 each = $5.58 profit
*ETA - Sold 1 pair for $2.00 on FB on 10/1/17 = $1.86 profit
Profit = $50.34

Total for the day
Purchased 23 items for $4.89 and saved $254.89!!!!

WOW! The swimtrunks and 1 pair of flipflops went to DH. The rest of the flip flops I marked for $3.00 a piece for the rummage sale. When I sell all 20 pairs that would be a profit of $57.20!

I may stop back tomorrow if I have time and pick a few more pairs if there are any left.

Forgot to add this one on to the total yesterday.

Current Balance $11,535.00
+$85.00 to retirement hold account
New Balance $11,620.00

ING $7320.00
Home Improvements(cash) $100.00
HSBC $4200.00
Total = $11,620.00

DH got his first paycheck for Cross Country. We thought that he would be getting it all at once, or at least in a few paychecks, but turns out it is spread out during the whole school year. So each paycheck it is an extra $275 per paycheck. I asked DH what he wants to do since it is his money. He wants to save 1/2 for home maintenance/improvements so we can get a new patio door, and 1/2 for saving for something fun. So the portion that is going to the new patio door I will show on the $20K Challenge, but the other half I am not going to track on here since it will be spent I suppose....but it's his extra work, so he gets to pick how it is done.
We also started the September 2012 savings account.

Current Balance $10,925.00
-$355.00 To checking
-$20.00 for new toilet sear and new shower handle
+$600.00 Rummage Sale Money
+$100.00 to September 2012 Savings Account
+$100.00 to Anniversary Cruise
+$25.00 to Mortgage Payoff Account
+$25.00 to Home Maintenance
+$135.00 to Home Maintenance from CC pay
New Balance $11,535.00

ING $7235.00
Home Improvements(cash) $100.00
HSBC $4200.00
Total = $11,535.00

Also met 2 more goals!
Checking Cushion $1800
HSA $5000

I don't track those numbers towards the $20K Challenge since they are not funds we can use for whatever we want. Super happy with how we are doing on our goals for the year! We have to go back and re-meet the EF goal since that was where we pulled from during the paycheck shortage, but everything else is going very well!

I was at Target to buy some soup on sale and stopped by their little $1 section. A bunch of their $1 items were on 70% off. So I bought a ton of stuff for .30 that I know I can sell for $1 a piece at the rummage sale next year.




20 Small File Folders - All sold
11 Marker Boards - All sold
11 Flashcard Packs - 1 left to sell
5 Dictionaries - All sold
3 Large File Folders - All sold
1 Mini Journal - All sold

So if I sold each item for $1 a piece that would be a profit of $35.70!

ETA - So far I sold these at the 5/18/12 sale:
6 File Folders for $1 each
4 Marker Boards for $1 each
2 Flashcard Packs for $1 each
1 Dictionary for $1 each

ETA - Sold at 6/23/12 Rummage Sale
4 Marker Boards for $1 each
3 Flashcard packs for $1 each

ETA - Sold at 8/24/12 Rummage Sale
7 File Folders for $1 each
1 Marker Board for $1 each
4 Flashcards for $1 each
4 Dictionaries for $1 each (these are all sold)

ETA - Sold at 9/7/12 Rummage Sale
8 File Folders for $1 each
2 Marker Boards for $1 each

ETA - Sold at 6/15/13 Rummage Sale
2 File Folders for $1 each
1 Mini Journal for $1
1 Flashcards for $1

The rummage sale was total insanity! DH and I did awesome, makeing $593! The most I have every made at a rummage sale by over $300!

A big part of it was our snacks. I got out my little snowcone machine that my husband got me when we were dating about 8 years ago and made snowcones. I sold them for a $1 a piece......I made over 250!! WOWOWOW!
The snowcones had virtually no cost, just snowcone cups and syrup, ice was free from my ice maker....about $20 for the cups and syrup.
We also bought 2 cases of bottled water for about $7 and sold every bottle of water for $1 a piece, another great money maker!

Here is my little snack shack



Here is a rough breakdown of what we made
$250 Snowcones
$50 Bottled Water
$20 Pop
$15 Juice, Brownies and Cupcakes
$110 DH Sports Cards
$55 FREE stuff from my friend
$100 Misc rummage sale stuff (clothes, books etc)

Here is a picture of how busy the rummage sale was around 10am on Friday morning.


The rummage sale as a whole made over $3700!!!!!! YEAH!