by Hope
As I looked at the next couple of months, I realized that this will be our last quiet month for a while. April will bring spring break and the younger two kids are planning to spend some time with their dad. And May will bring graduation and family visits. All this followed by a summer that’s completely up in the air…
For March my goal is to keep it quiet – stay home, do not eat out, no travel and no extra expenses other than what is already listed in my budget.
To this end, I have done several things:
- Created a meal plan and weekly grocery list
- Planned out the month calendar wise – track meets, kid’s have a single day off school, etc.
- Been very clear with the kids that there will be no “extra” this month
- Given myself a to do list with lots of “housekeeping” type chores to keep me busy when I’m itching to do something
I anticipate coming to the end of the month with a couple thousand dollars extra (between my W2 and 1099 jobs) and will decide them how much extra to put toward my car debt this month.
Oh, and I have to begin the process of filing my taxes. I gathered everything together that I could in January, but noted recently that I am still missing some documents. Reaching out to clients and following up on those documents will be a high priority this month.
Has anyone filed their taxes already? Are the changes significant?
Hope is a resourceful, solutions-driven online business manager with over two decades of experience helping clients streamline operations, manage projects, and grow their businesses through digital marketing and technology.
But life has a way of rewriting your plans.
A year ago, Hope made the decision to move in with her aging parents full time – a season she wouldn’t trade, even as it came with its own financial and emotional weight. Earlier this year, she lost her mother, and is now walking the tender, disorienting path of grief while learning what “forward” looks like from here.
Hope came to the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015 as a single mom raising five foster and adoptive children. She’s written through job changes, financial setbacks, and the bittersweet transition to an empty nest. Her kids are finding their footing in the world now – and so is she.
Rooted in faith and fueled by the same perseverance she’s brought to every hard season, Hope is ready to face her finances with fresh eyes and an honest pen. She believes that clarity, courage, and community can change the trajectory of anyone’s story including her own.
She lives in Austin, TX with her dad, loves adventures with her dog Addie, and is figuring out, one step at a time, what this next chapter is meant to be.
Good luck on your month. Have you considered posting a retrospective on how it goes at the month’s end? Was your last challenge month was November? I don’t remember hearing much about it other than that one post.
I also would love to see some posts with a month end what you budgeted vs. what you spent.