What the Christmas?

I just found out boyfriend is not going to be back for a while now. He may stay down on the border till February (!) which is wonderful because he's making really good money down there but this puts me in a predicament for the dogs. I have to board them for NINE days since I have no one else to watch them and my parents still will not let me bring them. OUCH. So this will have a great impact on my debt and put me in the hole another $224. Yikes. Thanks Mom and Dad!!

Financial goals for December:

• Pay $400 towards debt
• TRY to pay for boarding with cash ($224)
• Pay off Vitamix on layaway ($225 left)
  

I'm struggling right now with Christmas and unexpected crap. My rent takes up almost one whole paycheck so that really hurts! I really have tried to find a place similar to mine for less, but I'm finding that I'm in a very reasonable house and I'm NOT moving to an apartment (and really, an apartment isn't much less than what I pay anyway) No offense to apartment people, but I like having my backyard for my dogs. I'm just not an apartment-type person anyway.

I have 4 hours of overtime coming on this paycheck which will help, but I still have to buy a few Christmas presents for some family members so that's going to set me back more. Grr. Are the holidays over yet? With my plane ticket ($374) and boarding ($224) and gifts (??) this is getting
expensive!

Mint.com: How did I not know about this?

anyone who knows me well knows that i love payday specifically to pay bills. nothing gets me going like paying down my debt. seriously, i have an excel spreadsheet that outlines my debt, notebooks where i write down everything.. it's like an obsession. i just love knowing how much money i have and how much debt i owe..and then watching the $$ go down (on the debt side!!! not in my account!)

there was a really great post on apartment therapy today How To: Get Real About Needless Spending. well, a few individuals commented on mint.com to track one's spending.. i immediately went to check it out. from the mint.com about page you can find out more about this FREE site that uploads your accounts from checking and savings to credit cards and investments; it tracks your spending and let's you know where one's money is going (categories like utilities, food, gas, shopping, etc.). it even shows your spending habits compare with the average american, compares this months with previous months...i could go on and on about the cool features that this site offers.

it's like the shameless grandmother that points her witchy-poo finger in your face and says, "you spent HOW MUCH on that?" yeah. it's shaming, but it's a huge wake up call to me and where exactly all my money is going. i think this tool is really going to maximize my awareness and i'm really exciting about using it on a daily basis.

the only problem i found thus far is that it said i had a $50/month grocery budget and a $20/month gas budget. really? $20/month for gas?! i can't even fill up my tiny honda civic for that...granted i don't use a lot of gas and fill up about once every two weeks but $20/month? really? i need to find out where they come up with the numbers on that one.

anyway, please, if you're like me and am money obsessed or even just want to track your habits, check it out and sign up. :)