Every Little Penny Counts

I can't believe it! I got the contract offer!

I know what I'm going to do with my money once I start working.

I know my debt ratio to income is very high! I'm not sure how I'm going to save every month while paying off debt!

I just hope I will continue to have a long term work!

It would be amazing if I become a permanent employee and a large raise! :) A girl can dream right?

• Fill the handy pot with water (half of it). 
• Boil it. Once it is boil, add the green tea. Then once green tea is done boiling. Add the passion fruit guava.
• Then add 2 spoons of Crystal Light Tropical Coconut.
• Then add 2 spoons of white sugar. 
• Stir and let it cool.
• Drink and enjoy!

I've been seeing people on Instagram getting these $50 planners that I wanted and love to have! Thinking about it, I was like that's too expensive for me to get for a planner. So I looked for an alternative planner. I came across this planner at Marshall's when I was shopping yesterday!

I'm sooooo happy about this planner (July 2019 - Dec 2020)! I love the way the full and weekly calendar are formatted! Also, it comes with lots of stickers just like those expensive planners! I got it for like $10!  Also, the planners and tabs are colorful!

My little aquamarine book I got at Marshall's long time ago. These are sold at Barnes and Nobles as well. I got them really cheap long time ago. This is for me to do my zero based budget for every pay check I get, what I hope to achieve in the month, and meal plans.

So, today I used the planner to list my debts.


Gosh, I love it so much! :) I'm going to start using July Full Calendar to list my pay due dates!

I can't believe I am sending $4,000 every month to pay for debts and fixed expenses! Not going to sure how I'm going to handle additional expenses when I relocate to rent!

:) I'm pretty I will know how I'm going to handle paying off my debts and save. I mean I made it this far, right?

If anyone reading my blog, thank you! Please feel free to comment!

I got a phone call yesterday from my recruiter regarding my future contract work.

I'm so excited to work for the client. Right now, I'm just waiting whether or not they will accept the amount I asked for for relocation after my two months training in my home state.

I'm praying that they will!

Yesterday, I went to Marshall's to buy a cute notebook to write my notes during trainings and meetings. Also, I bought a 2020 Planner (Aug 2019 - Dec 2020) to keep track of my meetings and deadlines from work. I'm definitely going to work harder and smarter when I start working again.

What I learned from being laidoff is that everything is going to be okay. Most importantly, make sure you have a large emergency savings for 6 months. Better yet, a year since shit happens if you have a furkid or something breaks in the house or car.  Oh another important thing, it's okay to say no to friends. They will probably give you an attitude or whatever that makes you feel guilty. But you know what? Don't fight them how they are reacting. You do you as long you are not causing drama or harm, you're still a good friend and you realize which friends are more ambitious or goal-oriented to achieve their dreams.

:) I know my social life is going to be 5% to 0%. Do I care about going out like I used to? Not really because I feel like I can cook better and I avoid tipping by percentage. I understand the point of tipping, but tipping based on percentage is just too much when you are trying to budget. I rarely go out to eat or go watch movies. I try to cut it down to every few months or years.

My mindset since I've been laidoff is to stay home to cook delicious foods and watch movies on Amazon Prime and Hulu.

I will go out for shopping or Starbucks to do work and browse the Barnes and Nobles just for fun. :) Good thing the library is still around since they do sell books as well!

As friends in real life? I'll have them but I'll be the friend who focuses on her goals and will be there for her friend to hangout during the day instead of at night. Maybe I'll hangout once in a while at night to socialize but not every weekend.

I guess this is what being 31 when you realize what's more important to you and who you really are.

Can I just say, I can't wait to start working again? I know what I'm going to do with the money when I start working again.

Gosh! I love my cute envelopes that I bought on Etsy by Emmelli Designs. Love the colors and the Gold labels! :)

So I'm trying really hard to use my cash and having self-control. It's difficult when you're so used to using the plastic cards all the time.

I'm used to having Friday be my pay day even though I've been unemployed and using my emergency savings. :) I'm just waiting for my contract offer. I really do hope they agree to what I would want to be paid after relocation! Pray for me everything goes smoothly!

Groceries - $120 <-- Food and Household Items. Household Items are expensive when you try to buy a lot of toilet papers and towel papers, and detergents.

Miscellaneous - $40 <-- Gas and for my Pup.

The other envelopes, I'm not going to put any money in it until I receive my first paycheck from my future contract.

I started the 52 Weeks Savings ($1378) challenge. These are where I will put my left over cash changes while the coins will be put in the container. This is just for my emergency in case my cards aren't working or stolen and to develop a habit of saving cash and not spend.

I'm surprised how many coins that I had laying around.

An instagrammer asked me what I was going to do once I have all my coins saved up.

I'm definitely going to use it for a weekend getaway to stay in a hotel and enjoy my weekend to eat delicious food and enjoy my own company and meeting new people.

As much as I love to travel around the world, it is expensive especially there are the things I want to do and that I like nice, comfy things.

I feel the weekend is precious to me since I'm always working and studying during the week. I'm also studying on the weekend. When I said study, it's improving my computer skills for my career and improving my drawing skills so I can be an artist selling her cute drawings.

Can't wait to see how much I'm going to get! This motivates me to keep on using cash instead of my debit card or credit card. There are times I want to use my debit card for purchases because the cashier usually don't give me the right change because they think I'm not paying attention when I am.

This reminds me, when you are giving cash to the cashier, make sure you say the amount you're giving loudly so they are aware you know what you are giving them and count it before you leave. No shame for not trusting the cashier.

Hi World!

I just experience something that I realize is important to let you as the reader or anyone who has social pressures and at the same time is trying to reach their financial goals.

It's okay to say no and give your reason why. Whether it's your friend or family. Because by the end of the day, if you were to go broke one day you don't know if they will be there to help. And besides, this is your life. If you want to save your money and you don't want to go out, that's okay. If you can't afford to go out, but can afford to spend time with your friend or family, that's okay as well. You shouldn't spend money just to please someone when you are deep in major debt and need to save money in case of an emergency. One thing you shouldn't do is take advantage of someone's kindness willing to pay for your ticket or whatever to hang out because that's a definition of being a bum especially if you do that all the time or being cheap.

Mind you, even if you say no, there will be people who will try to try to get you change your mind and shit like that, I know that's annoying. Just keep it professional and ignore it after you stated no and gave your reason. You don't repeat yourself since you stated clearly your why.

I'm willing to focus on my financial goals even more since I got my pup. I could care less going to events that cause $100+ and knowing that it's not even worth it and I need to use that money to save for my pup since he got parvo and it scared me how the insurance denies the claim and how high the medical expense for a pet is. I rather be safe than sorry.

I'm at the point in my life I could care less if I lose friendship, relationship, or family when they are not understanding my financial goals. I'm not going to lose sleep over it since I enjoy my company way more at times. Also, my pup made me realize what life is all about, which is spending time without having to spend ridiculous amount of money when you're in major debt.

That's my PSA on how to deal with Social Life! LOL

Good luck, World, on achieving your goals and make your life journey awesome!

XOXO,
Every Little Penny Counts

I checked my credit score today. Apparently it's at the FAIR Level.

:) I'm going to need to get it to the GOOD Level so that way I can rent an apartment easily. I've been praying like crazy that I get a chance for an interview and get accepted for that Ohio Contract. Like I said before, it's going to open so many opportunities for me if I get that Ohio Contract. I know I will do a great job! Hopefully, I will have a lot of great network for future contracts. I got to keep it positive even though at times I feel negative that maybe my resume might not be strong enough due to missing tasks.

Credit Score: Transuion 691, Equifax 694

Total: $282,964

Credit Cards: $26,107
Student Loans: $83,526
Real Estate: $159,916
Auto Loans: $13,415


I got these info from www.creditkarma.com. It's free!!! I highly recommend it. It's easy to navigate!

Hopefully I get that contract soon so I can stop living on my Emergency Funds.

XOXO,
Every Little Penny Counts

Breakfast : Creamy Avocado Egg Salad with Crispy Bacon, Wheat Thins

Ingredients: Boiled Eggs, Crispy Bacon, Cilantro, Lemon, Avocado, Salt and Pepper, Wheat Thins


Lunch : Avocado Salad with tomatoes, eggs, and cucumber with lemon vinaigrette dressing

Ingredients: Avocado, Cherry Tomatoes, Cucumber, Jalapeno, Red Onion, CIlantro, Spring Onion, Lemon, Garlic, Honey Dijon Mustard, minced garlic


Dinner : Spicy Honey Baked Chicken with White Rice and Broccoli Soup


Ingreidents: Chicken Thighs, Rice, Broccoli, Cilantro, Tomatoes, and Spring Onion


I tried to use the same ingredients for each meal so I can try to keep the cost down on Groceries, which I tend to overspend!

Hello World!

Welcome to my blog! I've decided to create my blog so I can stay focus on getting rid of my debt and keep myself accountable on making my goals happen. You know what they say about setting your mind to something and you will achieve it.

So on 12/14/18, I calculated the debt I owe to creditors when I first got them was $318,610.13. As of that date, it was $285,163.00. I'm also have addition of two creditors, which are BestBuy and CareCredit in 2019.

I don't think I'm going to keep track of the grand total that I owe since it's always up and down due to new additions. What I'm going to focus on is getting rid of one of the cards/loans so I don't get stressed out how much I owe or overwhelmed that it's going to take forever.

Creditors that I owe:

• Wells Fargo (Mortgage)
• Chase (Car Loans) 
• Nelnet (Student Loans)
• CapitalOne 1
• CapitalOne 2
• Discover 1
• Discover 2
• CareCredit 
• BestBuy 

I will update what my starting debt is once I get my Ohio Contract Opportunity for a higher pay and this career will open so many doors for me. :) Pray for me that I do!

I switched to using cash envelopes and having my debit cards as my backup so I don't use credit cards.

Cash Envelopes:

• CU Debit Card 1 - $200 <-- This one keeps track of whatever I'm spending OFFLINE.
• Debit Card 2 - $200 <-- This one keeps track of whatever I'm spending ONLINE.
• Groceries - $200
• Gas - $60 
• Pup - $50
• Shopping - $40
• Out - $40
• Work (Business) - $40

• 52 Weeks Challenge (Started Today)  - $1378 

XOXO,
Every Little Penny Counts