My wife received her Q2 bonus (first bonus) at her new company! He earned a $1,006.83 bonus (gross). We plan to deposit this money into savings until our son is born and then it will be seed money for his 529 Plan. Go wifey!
July 2011 Income Statement
We had another very good income month in July ($9,800.70 total), however, we also had a higher than average expense month ($6,975.51 total) (click on spreadsheet below).
In addition to our regular paychecks, my wife received a third “extra” check in July and a $25 reimbursement from her company for internet. We earned $25.00 in credit card cash back rewards. We also earned $23.04 in interest income from our online savings account.
Our expenses lower than June, but still high, totaling $6,975.51. This included a number of large bills: $400 for a 50% payment to our doula, $327 for a traffic ticket, $320 for 20 prepaid chiropractor visits, $233.50 for life insurance, $213.48 for clothing, and $185 for new brakes.
August should be a pretty standard income month, but may be an above average expense month because we have purchases for the baby, including possibly $1,800 after discount cord blood bank.
July 2011 Net Worth Update (+$3,714.78)
We were blessed with another net worth increase this month. In July, our net worth increased $3,714.78 from June, to a total of $150,553.96 (click on spreadsheet below).
What Worked
We passed the net worth milestone of $150,000 this month! We contributed $1,213.00 to our retirement accounts in July and saw them increase $1,841.10 to $95,700.56. We also continue to increase our savings account balance for a house down payment and private adoption. Of the $31,047.79 we have in savings, $23,425.66 is earmarked for a down payment and $7,622.13 for adoption. We still have a long way to go to reach our savings goal for both.
What Didn’t Work
N/A 🙂
Next Month
August is our last full month to prepare for the arrival of our first baby. As a result, we will need to purchase any necessary items that we didn’t receive at the baby showers. As a result, we will be contributing less money next month to retirement and savings.
Net Worth Milestone – $150,000
Today we passed the $150,000 net worth milestone!
We passed our last milestone of $140K, in May. As you probably have noticed, our networth milestones are in $10,000 increments. Since January, we have passed a networth milestone 4 out of 7 months. Way ahead of our expectations. Based on my forecasts, we should hit the next net worth milestone of $160K by October.
I will update our net worth meter (on the left side of the screen) at the end of the month.
June 2011 Income Statement
We had our best income month ever in June ($14,358.74 total), but ended up spending a good deal too (click on spreadsheet below).
We were shocked to receive a $4,470 class action settlement from my wife’s old company at the end of June. This was a windfall was a total blessing. In addition to our regular paychecks, I received a third “extra” check in June and my wife received a $25 reimbursement from her company for internet. We earned $125 in credit card & hotel rewards and made $90 selling items on craigslist. We also earned $21.11 in interest income from our savings.
Our expenses were high in June, totaling $8,633.86. This included: $1,464.90 for auto insurance (Cars 2 & 3), $376.82 for rental insurance, $447.59 for Cobra insurance, and of course, more baby items.
July will be another great income month (>$10K) thanks to a third “extra” paycheck that my wife will receive. It could also be a pretty reasonable expense month even though we have a few good size bills to pay: $233 for 6 months of life insurance premiums (Husband & Wife), $400 for a 50% prepayment to our doula, and a $327 traffic ticket.
June 2011 Net Worth Update (+$4,791.04)
We were blessed with another net worth increase this month. Our net worth increased $4,791.04 from last month, to a total of $146,839.18 (click on spreadsheet below).
What Worked
We received a huge windfall in the form of a $4,470 class action settlement from my wife’s old company (that she worked at for ~6 weeks). She was automatically included in the settlement, and frankly, we weren’t expecting much to come of it. Imagine our surprise when a check for $4,470 showed up. This helped us dramatically increase our savings account balance. One step closer to having a home downpayment.
What Didn’t Work
We contributed $1,419.50 to our retirement accounts in June and saw them decrease $970.28 to $93,859.46. Not a big deal.
Next Month
My Wife receives a third “extra” check in July, but we also have a few large bills including $233 for 6 months of life insurance premiums (Husband & Wife), $400 for a 50% prepayment to our doula, and a $327 traffic ticket. God willing, we hope to hit a net worth milestone of $150K in July.
May 2011 Income Statement
May was a very good income month and an relatively low expense month (click on spreadsheet below).
This was my wife’s first full month at her new job. She takes home $2,142.21 (net) each bi-weekly check. That’s a total of $444.84 per check more than her previous company! In addition to our salaries, my wife received a $45 reimbursement from her company for internet. We earned $20 in credit card rewards, received a $100 gift from my parents, and sold an old GPS for $40. We also earned $19.34 in interest income from our savings.
Our expenses were pretty reasonable, at a total of $5,708.25. We have worked hard to spend less and save more and were very successful in May. It helped that both my wife and I were traveling on business part of the month. Some of the larger expenses in May were: $223.80 for cobra insurance, $285.49 in clothing, and $424.01 for a little vacation.
I wish I could say we will carry over our low expense level into June, however, we have some large bills due. We have to pay $1,464.90 for auto insurance (Cars 2 & 3), $376.82 in rental insurance, and $447.59 in Cobra insurance. Thankfully, I will be receiving a third “extra” check for $1,781.07 in June.
May 2011 Net Worth Update (+$3,263.10)
Since passing our 2011 net worth goal of $138,100 last month, any further increase helps with our 2012 net worth goal of $173,200. In May, our net worth increased $3,263.10 from last month, to a total of $142,048.14 (click on spreadsheet below).
What Worked
Passing our 2011 net worth goal so early in the year is a major blessing. We contributed $1,063.00 to our retirement accounts in May and saw them increase $340.00 to $94,829.74. Remarkably, our traditional IRA balance did not change from the month prior. We were also able to sock away a nice chuck of change into savings.
What Didn’t Work
All accounts moved the right direction this month:)
Next Month
I’m hoping the good progress will continue next month. I receive a third “extra” check in June, which also includes an extra 401(K) contribution. However, we also have a few large insurance bills due in June for a total of $2,289.31.
Net Worth Milestone – $140,000
Today we passed the $140,000 net worth milestone!
We passed our last milestone of $130K, in February. Based on my forecasts, we should hit the next net worth milestone of $150K by August.
I will update our net worth meter (on the left side of the screen) at the end of the month.
April 2011 Income Statement
April, for how chaotic it was financially, ended up looking pretty benign on paper. Our bottom line income and expenses remained pretty typical (click on spreadsheet below).
This was a transition month, with my wife leaving one company to join another company for a higher paying position. Because of this, she only received one (much larger) paycheck in April. In addition to our salaries, my wife received $1,037.55 for her cashed out vacation, and a $75 reimbursement from her old company for her cell phone. We earned $100 in credit card rewards, sold a table for $50 and received a $2,325 tax refund ($2,155 Federal & $170 State). We also earned $16.63 in interest income from our savings.
Our expenses were much lower than the insane spending we had in March, but still high at a total of $6227.99. Some of the larger items were: $447.59 for cobra insurance, $763.50 in vet bills, and of course more baby stuff.
May should be an interesting month. It will be my wife’s first full month employed at her new company. We will also both be traveling for business in May, so hopefully our expenses will be lower than normal (living on the company dime).
