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Archive for January, 2009

My January SAHM value calculation

January 31st, 2009 at 07:42 pm

I've tracked all my monetary contributions for the month and here' what I came up with:

$1730!

I figured $100/wk for daycare that I would pay if I were working. An additional $20/wk for takeout meal. Then I added in all my coupon/rebate/sales savings that I scour the ads for in order to keep our grocery bill reasonable. Lastly, and a big contributor for this month, I "paid" $25/hour for my painting skills as I began painting the interior of our new-to-us home.

So, if I had been working we would have paid someone to paint the house. We would've done takeout more and I wouldn't be monitoring the grocery store sales. And, the kids would need after school care.

SAHM dollar value continued

January 7th, 2009 at 09:07 pm

I'm still working on calculating my "value" at home. I've included daycare, grocery savings, CVS/Walgreens savings, and added the cost of 1 takeout meal. I figured that if I were working we'd be doing takeout at least 1 more night per week ($20). I put the daycare cost at $125/wk for half day care (daughter is in half day Kindergarten). I've also been getting my house ready to paint (caulking cracks, filling holes, etc.) and I priced that at $25/hour. Do these prices seem reasonable? My son is in 4th grade, but I would also need after school care for him but I have no idea what that would cost, any thoughts?

Dollar value of a SAHM

January 5th, 2009 at 11:09 pm

I've been a SAHM for about 6 months (kids are 5 & 10). Some days I like it and other days I really miss working. New Years was a couple of days where I was in a funk because I felt like I had "lost myself". Since I'm home all the time, I never leave work...dishes always need done, laundry, picking up stuff, groceries, etc.. When I had a job outside of the home I got to not be the maid/cook/chauffeur for at least a few hours a day!

But, the situation at home would make it difficult for me to go back to work right now. That and the area is flooded with people with my skill set due to the financial turmoil of late on Wall Street.

So, I've decided that I'm going to start keeping track of my dollar value at home. Now, I'm not talking about how much I would pay someone to grocery shop, because even if I was employed outside the home, I would still have to do that. I'm talking about things that I wouldn't have time to do if I were employed.

Starting 1/1/09 I will keep track of coupons, rebates, home repairs, etc. that I wouldn't normally have the time or energy to do if I were employed. Let's see just how much I can make!

Adding more insulation, again!

January 4th, 2009 at 09:39 pm

Today we went to the local Lowes with a 10% off coupon and $40 worth of free gift cards (earned during a gift card sale they offered in Dec) to get insulation for our new to us house. We received a quote for $1200 to insulate the ceiling of our basement (the concrete, unfinished portion). We picked up everything we needed for less than $250! That saves us about $1000!! My husband is currently installing the insulation and wrapping the ductwork that goes through this room too. We can already tell a difference in the rooms above this area!

This is on top of the significant money we spent earlier in this year to have the attic insulated and the house air sealed. That alone increased our efficiency by over 20%. I can't even imagine how much the utility bills are for the neighbors around us that still have the builder grade insulation!

I really hope this is the end of the insulation...I can't imagine that there's anything left to insulate!

Good day to save!

January 3rd, 2009 at 07:47 pm

I used to get the weekly coupons in the Sunday paper when I lived in PA, but in NJ (or atleast the part I'm in) they come on Saturday. Today I got 5 packs of coupons in the paper! This is great because my coupon box was looking pretty light lately. There were some great coupons and even a $10 rebate on vitamins! I went through the coupons and compared the CVS ad for this week. Looks like I'll get cheap Sudafed for my husband, free shampoo/hairspray, dish soap for .74 and liquid hand soap for .64. Walgreens also has Quaker Instant Oatmeal on sale for $1.99/box, which is a really good price. I just have to find out if I can combine their coupon with a manufacturer's coupon to make this a phenomenal deal!

If my coupons get too low, I've ordered coupons from www.thecouponmaster.com before. You simply pick the coupons you need, pay a small fee per coupon and they mail them to you within a few days. It works great for when you know you'll need multiples to take advantage of sales.

New Years Inspiration

January 1st, 2009 at 10:58 pm

Where does New Years inspiration come from? Why do I feel more inspired to do something today than I did yesterday? Heck if I know! But I think the moral of the story is that you should utilize inspiration whenever it makes itself available. So, in keeping with that thought here is my list of thing to accomplish in 2009:

1. Fully fund our emergency fund by the end of the year.
2. Continue to fund our retirement accounts, increasing the amount by 3% or so.
3. Refinancing the mortgage at or below 5%.
4. Continue to find ways to cut our household expenses.
5. Expand our use of eco-friendly practices at home and while traveling.
6. Participate in more survey and rebate opportunities.
7. Make improvements to our new-to-us house using as much sweat equity as possible.

Now, I hope that New Years inspiration lasts at least a few more days so that I can actually plan ways to accomplish these goals!