My usual Saturday would include an automatic $50 spent by noon at the hair salon maybe another thirty to forty at a restuarant for lunch. Than no telling what other household products/groceries I'd need to pick up. I am very happy that I wrote my budget out on paper and kept cash in my pocket. I find it too easy to overspend money when i'm swiping my debit card. I'm more prone to think twice when I have to give up the cash out of my purse. I ended up spending $1 on chicken nuggets for my little one on our ride to the store. I had to purchase juice which cost me just a little over four dollars. However, $5 is a great number for me as I am determined to get out of debt.

Therefore I actually have money left over in my account. My inital thought was to "treat" myself to the nail salon. Than I thought twice and realized what too many "treats" have caused me. (Debt) My plan is to transfer my weekly set amount towards Orchard Bank which is $10 and allow the remainding $70 sit in savings.(just in case) I have money set aside for gas but it seems the moment I utilize all funds left in my account the unexpected happens some how.

I'm happy about that now I have to wait until this Friday to pay off the remainding two. I didn't want to take a chance on mailing the last two because its going local. They usually process the checks electronically so they'll try to debit my account before my paycheck hits friday. I am quite happy that have gotten over this hurdle. Thanks guys for your great advice!!!

The check is for $106 I was planning to add $56 to the total and pay off all four tickets on my side bar. I've been stewing if I want to make a $40 payment towards my Orchard Bank card before the cycle closes friday. This will bring my balance just under $200. But than i'll be stuck paying off the very last $40 tickets in two weeks in my next pay period. What do you guys think? What would you do? The ticket is already overdue but no late fees or penalties will be assesed.

I am happy to report that once again this month I was able to double the min payment. My original plan was to pay at least half of the $270 balance however, that changed. Of course "something came up" and well that went out the window for now. My other half owes me $100 until his payday next week. So i'm really pondering if I want to just send that $100 onto my credit card which will technically cut the balance in half. I'm not sure next week is payday and i am due my tire refund sometime next week also. I'm very eager to receive that check as I have allocated those funds towards the remainding $40 tickets you see on my side bar. I will have all of them paid off so I'm looking forward to that indeed.

Of course the unexpected came up today i blew a tire this morning it had a nail in it. Luckily I am a member of the Allstate Motorclub under the best plan they have to offer. The plan covers tire reimbursement up to $250 twice per year. They only cover the cost of the tire not the mounting and balancing. (i'm happy they cover anything lol) But any how I submitted my invoice and was informed they will cover $107 of the $114 I paid out of pocket. I am very happy as I can defenitely use that money towards a debt. Really looking forward to paying off two of the $40 tickets I have. The check takes 7-10 business days and by than it will be my next payday. Thefore I only have to budget $53 to cover all of my outstanding tickets. I'm very happy as I feel this is a wiser choice rather than paying off my orchard bank card. As eager as I am I also need to cover these tickets before they are sent to collections.

I made chicken fajitas two nights ago and I still have steamed veggies lefft over. Therefore this morning I went to the local grocery store and bought ground chicken, pasta noodles and sauce to make a big pot of beef and mac. (chicken is a healthier choice for me) My neighbor calls it lazy that i'm making a big pot to last more than one night. In my opinion I am doing what I have to do to cut out the urge of eating out. While I trim my debt I plan to trim at least 40lbs right along with it. Last night I also wrote out my budget for the month of August and if all goes well no mishaps i'll be able to pay down my orchard bank card. I'm so excited and actually looking forward to paying the bill now. Whereas in the past i'd pay the min and than get depressed when the new statement issued and the balanced didn't move.

So I haven't blogged in what looks like almost two months I am still here and still making progress. I am very proud of myself as I have adapted the many great suggestions I've learned here. I'm happy to report that in the month of July ALL of my bills were paid on time. Which for me of course meant no late fees. Wooohoooo I was also able to get my orchard card down to $272.oo due to a $55 payment I easily "found" in my budget. Although it isn't much it is a huge accomplishment for me as I have only paid $15 which was the minimum in the past.I'm going to keep on trucking away at this card and am hopefully I can "find" at least $135.00 this month in my budget towards this card. I'm so anxious to hopefully type 30 days from now that I have Officially kicked ORCHARD BANK out of the house for good!!!!!