Tuesday, September 4, 2012

August? Who Needs August, Anyway!

Hmm--the summer kinda got away from me. That's what having six grandkids, ranging from 2 to 15 will do, especially when back in May, I made the silly statement: "Sure! I'd love to have the grandkids! August is good."

Dang, if the parents didn't take me up on that!

But I did survive.

Sort of.

Emotionally, it was fun. Financially, not so much.

But the good news is, notwithstanding six voracious mouths to feed for most of the month (and don't even talk to me about school clothes), I still managed to reduce my overall debt by $560.13 during August. For that, I am grateful.

Just another $84,370.37 to go!

I did take a look at my blogroll (especially after I got eliminated from "Blogging Away Debt" for just a one-month hiatus. Really?? ONE month away, and I'm history?). I'm hanging in there with most folks, but Judy seems to have finally left the building, so I removed "Finally Frugal." "Budgeting with the Bushmans" ended just as I discovered their blog. I took that one off, too.

If you know of a good financial blog I'm missing, let me know.

I think of September as a month in which to 'start over.' That's probably a left-over from my mommy-years when September marked the beginning of a new school year. But no sooner had I made all kinds of financial resolutions when I remembered that this is the month I need to buy heating oil. Then my twenty-two year old daughter was hospitalized for a week (she's fine, and her stay was mostly covered under my medical insurance--Thank you Obamacare) which ran out my medical FLEX program so now I have to make all the co-pays with after-tax dollars until next March. Then my grandson decided to join his sister in community college so that's TWO tuition payments to make. The end result is, my resolutions are fast fading away.

But I'm back, and I promise to be more attentive.

15 comments:

slugmama said...

Hi,
Judy is indeed gone for good.....for now. ;-)
You're a brave woman to take all the grands for a month.

Grace. said...

Brave? Or insane. Sometimes it is hard to tell the difference.

Anonymous said...

Good job on not getting into more debt and actually chipping away at the debt.

Good luck on this month!

Anonymous said...

Just wondering why you are paying for your grandchildren's college education. Are your children (their parents) not able to contribute financially, or are you just being extra generous?

Consuelo said...

Good for you to still have debt reduction even with all your grandkids! I know come straight to your blog--I, too, think it is a bit ridiculous to remove bloggers after only a one month hiatus...oh well....

Grace. said...

Anon--the two grandchildren I support in college are my oldest daughter's children. My daughter is quite a success story, but her opportunities are limited by the fetal alcohol effects she suffered at birth. She provides the housing and the transportation while I provide the tuition.

Consuelo, thank you. For some reason, your comment came up twice so I eliminated one of them.

Sharon said...

Just so you know Grace, I would wait at least 6 mos. before I would hunt you down. :)! I would NEVER delete you!

Great job on making the debt go down. August was very expensive for me so hopefully September will be a saving month/

Anonymous said...

Thank you for answering my earlier question regarding paying your grandchildren's tuition. You are such an inspiration. To be taking care of so much (family, finances, etc...) and doing it with such grace - no pun intended! I aspire to be as responsible as you. Please keep at it, I enjoy visiting your blog and do so on a daily basis.

Mutant Supermodel said...

Your daughter's story (in the comments) sounds interesting.

You are the best grandma ever. I so appreciate every single little thing my mother does for my children. Grandmas are wonderful.

LC said...

Wow! Reducing debt any at all with six extra mouths to feed deserves a "Bravo!", and if the 15 year old is a male teenager, that is equivalent to feeding 9 or more extra.

Susan said...

Good on you for continuing to reduce debt in the face of so many non-routine expenses. And hooray for health insurance! As I watch my nieces approach their 20's, I'm so grateful for health care reform knowing they won't have to risk being uninsured while they get their feet under them.

It's ironic you were eliminated from a blogroll. Of all the bloggers I follow, you're the best about keeping up with your own blogroll and making sure it's updated (without prematurely ditching people), which I appreciate.

Jane said...

That's amazing that you were still able to reduce debt in August!! I'm impressed!
I've noticed on my blogroll that some of the blogs I've followed haven't had any action for SIX months so a cleanup is definitely needed. But you're still there :) !

Petunia 100 said...

"The Hustle of Sistah Ant" hasn't had a new post in a year.

Maura said...

Grace: Good to see you back. I figured you were busy with all the grandkids. Glad you survived the month of AUgust! Paying down debt in the process is huge! Great job. August for me? eh.....not so good.

Revanche said...

I'm stubborn - a month is nothing, in the lifespans of some blogs and I was sure you'd be back. You didn't say goodbye, after all, I was sure you'd do that if you were leaving.

So glad you ARE back and survived the month long incursion!! :) Though it would have been nice to have been stocked with supplies along with the six new mouths, I'm sure.