Month End Money Recap

I know it's technically the first of the month but June was so incredibly busy and I just didn't get many chances to update. BUT since the beginning of July marks the years halfway point I thought I should update.

Soooo... how am I doing?

Honest answer - not as great as I hoped. We have a lot of unexpected this year and that always stinks. On a positive note, the Lord has faithfully provided and we have avoided much debt!

1. Organization. I wasn't home in June so not much got done however, I have been making very steady progress on this front through the year and plan to continue in July and the rest of summer. My big goal this month is the dining room which has recently become my dumping ground for all other rooms. Unless I get completely bogged down in cosignment sale prep I should be able to get it done next week.

2. Decorating. YES! Finally :) My dad drove myself and the kids home from Florida and due to a minor incident he didn't have enough time to renovate the kids bathroom so instead we re-did our living room and for under $200 the whole room is re-made. I'll share in a later post when it's all put together but I am SUPER excited with the results - even more excited about the price!

3. Spending less and saving more. Ummm, June is THE worst month for this. We're on vacation and Kirk is in VA and I'm in FL with the kids. On the plus side, my parents had stocked up a LOT on groceries so we are way ahead in that area :) For July as well so that will help a lot but I'm still hoping to be more on track come August.

4. Do a little more deal hunting. I was able to do this in Florida and stocked up on a few grocery items which was fun. It also helped my stockpile here in VA (yes, I brought groceries home!) so that I can continue to do it through July and August proving that the better stockpile you have the less you have to spend because you just don't need as much. You've also seen that I've done more at CVS trying to roll my ECB's into more deals and a larger stockpile. I was also able to save money on clothes by using sales and coupons at Gymboree as well as getting a great deal on used clothes from some other multiples moms.

5. Monthly meal planning. Didn't have to for June since we were at my parents but I'm back at it for July and still loving it :)

Writing out my goals and successes helps! Instead of feeling like I've accomplished nothing I see what I have done and look forward to the second half of the year to get even more done. Looking forward to doing even better in July!