In in! Thanks for starting the thread
@pblack
2021 Financial Goals:
Save:
-$2000/month towards our military retirement goal of $75,000. Currently at $12,000. Deadline is September 2023, so we can definitely get there if we stay consistent with this one. This amount of savings is non negotiable. It goes in automatically every first of the month.
-$500 to 1000 per month towards "vacations", which also includes our
Disneyland Annual Passes, whenever we start having to pay for those again. Hoping to take some trips in 2021, but also have a BIG one planned for summer 2022 to celebrate 2 major graduations in our family. Currently have $6000 in this account bucket.
-$100 to $500 per month into "emergency savings." No real goal on this one. This is money we dip into if we have an unexpected car repair or something that we can't just cash flow with our monthly income. We don't ever really have expensive home or medical emergencies, as renters and military. This bucket is around $350 right now.
-MAYBE pay off my husband's car loan. It will be done with in May 2022, but I have been thinking about paying it off using my husband's raises. He will get a raise in Jan and another in March, to the tune of an additional $600/month, so I could use that to pay the car off early. I could also use it to up my ROTH contributions, which is probably a smarter use of the funds. Still thinking about this one...
-Continue to be conscientious about our monthly spend. We have cut WAY back on eating out, but I've compensated by spending WAY more on groceries, so it's been a wash, mostly.
Personal Goals
1. Stop eating so many sweets. I have a serious problem. I want to lose weight and I haven't lost ANY this year. Haven't gained either, but I know that I am routinely eating 300-500 cal every day of straight junk that I simply need to stop doing. I have a massive sweet tooth. I just like ice cream and cookies and chocolate and sour candy and all the indulgent things. My health is absolutely perfect, and I don't have any concerns there. I just know I would look better 15 pounds lighter. It's a total vanity thing and I will own up to that. I'm going to try harder going forward.
2. Teach myself (and my son) how to be a pastry chef. I want to work my way through The Fundamental Techniques of Classic Pastry Arts, the textbook used by the French Culinary Institute. I bought it last year for my 16 year old autistic son who wants to be a pastry chef. He is a really good baker, and I want to prepare him for the future and possible schooling in this area. I also always wanted to be a pastry chef, so I'm gonna "homeschool it." I am already a good cook and baker, but I want to learn the true French way. Plus, the Hybrid school schedule is conducive to adding this in to my son's day as a "vocational skills" class of sorts. We shall see how this goes.
I know this goal flies in the face of the previous one, BUT I think I will make ONE recipe per week and that will be the only time I indulge in a treat.
3. Try and get in at least 6000 steps per day. This is easy on my workout days, but on my off days, I tend to sit around a lot. Need to stop being so sedentary.