HisHersMoney

Being a frugal family buying new “toys” isn’t something that is front and foremost in our minds, but sometimes it just happens. Our new gadget is a Breville Juicer. I shopped around online for it to compare capabilities, reviews and prices. We ended up choosing this model which had a larger motor, more speeds and the fact that all the pieces were dishwasher safe!   

When we had narrowed it down to a few models we then turned to price. The Breville Ikon model seemed to be at a good price point in the market and the cost didn’t vary too much depended on where we bought it. We bought ours from SurLaTable which had a good price and had a store locally which meant we could drive right over and pick it up. No shipping costs and no waiting because they had it in stock.

So far for fruit juices we have made fresh orange juice which was so delicious, orange and strawberry juice and mixed fruit juice with oranges, apples and strawberries. FOr vegetable juices I made a carrot juice yesterday which was surprisingly yummy and we have also made a celery, cilantro and lime juice which I put too much lime in and a tomato, celery and carrot juice which I put too much tomato in.

A few adjustments are ongoing as to the balance between the fruits a vegetables but so far most everything has been really good. I foresee a future with lots of fresh fruits and veggies making their way to my home from costco!

Let me tell you, being strapped for cash totally bites the big one! The whole goal of living our frugal lifestyle is so that we won’t have to live paycheck to paycheck and yet, here we are, looking forward to pay day like the day will never get here quick enough.

We recently posted that we were buying a ski condo share in Colorado, Steamboat to be exact. Well we are actually buying a portion of a ski condo for $18,500 plus a few hundred in closing costs. We are paying cash for the condo which means we had to raid every account we owned to come up with the money. Not only our joint accounts but the individual savings accounts that we had from before we got married this past fall.

Well, we scraped together the cash. We were able to hold off on cashing in the savings bonds and scraping the bottom of all the barrels thanks to a $2700 tax refund which arrived prior to the closing date which was today.

We finalized the offer about three weeks ago and knew the amount we had to come up with so we have been in a cash is King mode ever since. Every time we even spend a dollar on groceries it required thought as to how it affected our bottom line and our ability to pay for the condo.

Once we were under contract we had our $2500 earnest payment on the line and we weren’t walking away from that. We also weren’t going to run up our credit card or get a loan so cash was the only way to go.

So, how did we do? The cash was wired to the title company yesterday in full and closing went through today without a hitch. Condo done.

Our living expenses while we pulled together the cash on the other hand were tight and I have to say we really didn’t do a very good job at “cutting back” during this time. In fact, our effort lacked all commitment on both of our parts! We ended up with about $550 put on the credit card this month. There are a couple grocery charges, a few eating out and social bills as well as a $200 Breville Juicer that I had to have (post to come).

We plan on paying off the bill before any interest is charged but it just means when we get back on our feet with our paychecks it will be another month before we get back ahead of the game and stop living paycheck to paycheck. Our lesson learned here is that we wish we had a bit more in savings because now our savings is cleaned out and we are starting from scratch but it’s also another opportunity to do the right thing.

The best part: we own a ski condo free and clear!!!

Just opened up a bottle Chimay Ale (Red). In case you haven’t heard of it before, Chimay’s origins reside with the Trappist monks of Chimay Belgium. It’s made from historical methods and ingredients even though they use modern technology alongside. Some friends had gotten it when we were out this past week and it was the first time I had tried it. Fairly appalling was the price at the bar. $28 for a 750ML bottle, or roughly double or more the price of a regular beer.

I happened to see it at a wine store this weekend when HERS and I were walking around Annapolis, MD after going for a drive with the top down to enjoy the nice weather. I decided to purchase a bottle after seeing the much more reasonable price of $10.49. For an occasional drink of a special variety for about the price of a bottle of wine, this is good value in my opinion and I’m looking forward to trying more of the Chimay offerings.

So a little over a week ago was that most American of holidays, Valentines’ Day. The hype machine of America is in full force telling our lovely ladies that they MUST have fancy dinners, chocolate, flowers, and who know what else bought for them. Now don’t get me wrong. I fully go along with this just like most every other male that’s involved in a relationship. And I have to admit it’s kind of nice to have a day set aside every year to be romantic. Sometimes we men forget about that sort of thing. So in the spirit of the occasion I made reservations for Hers and I at CityZen, one of the more well-respected eating establishments here in the DC Metro area.

Chef Eric Ziebold is relatively young for the industry but has already made a name for himself as a master of food. Hers had been wanting to go there ever since we started dating. I am not what I would consider a ‘foodie’ but Hers and I go out to a nice meal probably at least every two to three months so I appreciate the additional service and treats that are part of the fine-dining experience. The entrance to the restaurant is mostly hidden inside the lobby of the Mandarin Oriental hotel in downtown DC. There is no street or public parking available so it’s either hob a cab ride or use the valet, which is $7 if you are eating dinner. So still cheaper than the probably $18 or so cab ride from our apartment.

Once inside, you walk past a little seating nook that is part of the bar and are met at the end of the bar by a host, asking if you have reservations or are going to sit at the bar. Note that this is no ordinary bar, the menu is a prix-fixe three course meal that is still more expensive that the majority of restaurants out there and there is still a dress code as well. We had reservations and were escorted back to the private dining area that I assume is normally for larger parties or for a chefs’ table when Mr. Ziebold is doing that.

Originally I had wanted to do the six-course meal along with wine pairings. However the extreme price ($125 a head just for the food portion) along with the fact that Hers didn’t find some of the options appetizing made us choose the $75 a head, three course option. We were started off with a wonderful little amuse bouche and a few options of different kinds of bread and butter, all of which was delicious. I forget exactly what either of us had ordered as appetizers but I had Emerald Farms Rabbit Loin
Braised Swiss Chard, Anson Mills White Grits and Hers had Paupiette of Stoltzfus Ranch Nature Fed Veal, Russet Potato Gnocchi Gratin, Arrowleaf Spinach and Périgord Truffles for the main entrees. Dessert was whipped brie and black truffle for myself and a chocolate-filled soufflé for Hers.

Overall the food was well prepared and the service was excellent also. For those kind of prices I hope you get well taken care of. However we both thought that the food acould have been seasoned a little more and been a bit more adventurous. I want to taste things unusual and exciting when I have a meal like this. The rabbit I thought was by far the best part of the meal as it was just so tender and flavorful. In the end we were both overly stuffed and satisfied, but left wanting more out of it. So we probably won’t be back anytime soon. There are some other restaurants locally where you get almost the quality of food at about 1/6th of the price. It wasn’t a bad experience, just not good value.

We are currently trying a cash only system in order to help save us money. Whether it works or not we’ll see over the next two months. Our plan is to take a certain amount of money out in cash every two weeks and then have to live on it.

We started out with $200 last Sunday and currently have $35 left. I don’t have the exact amounts of what everything cost but here’s pretty decent estimates of where it went so far:

Rx and vitamins $16

Sunday morning breakfast $15

Tip for valet $5

groceries $50

eyebrow wax $12

Dry cleaning (we had a lot this week) $35

Sushi take out $32

So far I think we are doing ok but I’m not sure how the $35 is going to last us all week but I’m sure we’ll survive. I think our long term plan will be to go with $150 a week which needs to include food, misc expenses and entertainment but this week we had an expensive meal out for Valentines day which we used the debit card for so we left more in the account.

I will leave HIS to post about the valentines dinner and other valentines related info.

We are in the air flying to Chicago as I write on this Christmas Day. As Hers wrote previously, we were on a ski trip to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. We had a phenominal trip and I experienced some of the best skiing of my life. It’s hard not to as it snowed almost every day we were there including 19 inches in one night at the summit!

I grew up about 5 miles from a small ski hill in Pennsylvania. Both of my parents worked there at various times and so I skied for free every year. We also all had our own equipment. For those unaware, skiing is similar to golf in that both the initial barrier to entry and the long-term costs are expensive. Of course, since I went skiing probably 30-40 times at the minimum every year it ended up being cheaper in the long run to purchase equipment rather than buy.

Today, it’s probably not so. We don’t live very close to any ski areas, the closest being about a 2 hour drive. Last year we actually only got a single day on the slopes. This year I’ll probably ski somewhere between 8-12 days and Hers probably 18-24 days. She already owns all of her equipment due to previously wintering in Steamboat as a ski instructor. My equipment has long since become outdated and misplaced. So should I purchase new equipment now that we plan to make skiing a higher priority in our lives?

First off, I would love to get all of my own equipment again. The advantages are thus:

• Better quality and condition of gear
• Custom fitting for boots
• No waiting in line to pick up rentals
• Being intimately familiar with performance of equipment

However, there are cons as well:

• Cost of flying with or shipping own gear
• Over many years, equipment will become outdated
• Initial cost of equipment which will easily cost between $1k-$2k for good quality

For now we’ve decided to keep renting equipment for me. At this point we can’t justify the full cost for the amount of skiing that I do. Next season we possibly will purchase some boots and get them custom fitted at our favorite shop in Steamboat. Boots are actually the most important part of the equation as no rental will ever fit as well. This will take away some of the performance disadvantage of rentals but will still save money over the cost of the skis, bindings, poles, and helmet.

As a last note, when looking to rent ski equipment, check the local shops in the area of the resort that you’ll be going to. Many times you get better quality rentals at lower prices by using these local shops instead of renting at the slopes.

So as you may have read previously in this space, Hers and I will be heading to Jamaica in less than two weeks for a much-needed vacation. Neither of us has been there before and we are very much looking forward to. In order to be able to relax more we decided to go the all-inclusive route and will be staying at Sandals.

The price is most definitely not cheap. However, if we do it right and do not go adding on extras once we are there then I think it is reasonable. We get 3 meals a day and all drinks included while at the resort. Our plan is to mostly just relax on the beach or by the pool for the majority of our time there. This is not one of those vacations where we have a strict schedule of things to see. We just want to sit and enjoy each others’ company.

Now about those extras. Sandals offers everything from guided island tours, horseback riding, dinner ON the beach, and in-room massages. These are all great and obviously we would love to do them all. However, that is where most people make the mistake. They think “We’re on vacation, we should enjoy ourselves and do whatever we want!” The problem is that usually this is where they will pull out the plastic to pay for it as these were unplanned expenses on the trip. If you have things that you absolutely MUST do while on vacation make sure to budget for those expenses so that the month after you get back there is not a huge charge on your credit card that you can’t remember what it was for.

Once we return from our trip I’ll share with everybody how well we were able to limit our expenses.

As you had read before, we had set up a Smartypig account recently. I like the idea of it. I think the extra money from retail stores is really great for when you already have a specific item already in mind. However, if you change your mind or an emergency comes up, then you are stuck as the funds are not liquid.

Smartypig has stated that at some point they are going to allow you to EFT the funds back into the account from which you originally funded from. This was not the case when I went to close my account on 15 May. I was planning on getting Amazon gift cards as there is a speaker set that I’ve been saving for there. The process was easy and I was notified that any extra funds left over from the gift card purchase (they only allowed $25 increments) would be funded into an electronic Smartypig gift card that I could put towards my other savings goal.  That’s a nice feature.

My big complaint is that it supposedly will take 7-10 business days to get me a gift card! If they are indeed partnered with these companies, it should only take 1-2 business days to get the card in the mail to me. As of now I have not received the card. Now granted, we moved and the mail is forwarding so I will check the postmark when it comes but it’s disappointing.

In the future I’ll be forgoing Smartypig and just creating sub-accounts with ING. It will be slightly less return but it’s worth it for less headaches in using my money.

Like so many other people now I have received my stimulus check. Unlike Hers, I apparently don’t make too much money in the eyes of the government and got the full $600. Also unlike Hers, I plan on actually going out and using that money to have some fun!

You see, I have another large financial windfall that just finally came in as well. Ninety percent or so of that is going straight towards my credit card debt and will pay off between 65-70% of it. With some other additional income that I’ll be receiving from now through July, I will pay off my credit cards completely! That will leave me less than $8,000 in debt with just under $5,000 on my car loan, which we are seriously considering selling and living with one car.

This is also the first year that I’m planning on fully funding a Roth IRA or doing any real retirement investing. So Hers has obviously gotten me on the straight and narrow path towards financial independence. It’s great that we’re going on this journey together and I can’t wait to see where it ends up. I’m sure we’ll have a big post up soon as we’re about to go ahead and combine the checking accounts and bills, which obviously is a big step and also a pain in the rear.

So back to this extra check from the government. What am I doing with it? I’m going to Atlantic City and playing poker, blackjack, and any other game that I feel like at the time with a buddy who’s moving away very shortly! If I come back with money still in my pocket, then it will go straight into the emergency fund. I’m guessing that there are many PF bloggers out there who shudder at the thought of just ‘throwing’ that money away. I consider it entertainment with a great friend.

I’m actually a pretty decent poker player. Hers doesn’t like me playing that often and I respect her wishes, realizing I was risking too much when I had as much debt as I did. I just want to point out that poker is a game of skill and I actually made an extra $12,000 (yes I claimed it on my taxes) in 2006 from playing online. In the future I will discuss how people that like to play poker can do so without risking debt and going broke through what is called bankroll management. It’s sound money advice that I think most of you will get the idea behind right away.