Author Topic: Celebrations Thread  (Read 1648185 times)

rubybeth

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #250 on: July 19, 2013, 07:28:05 AM »
This month, our student loan debt (only debt we have) is down to about $9k. We started with about $52k in 2009.

Dibbels81

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #251 on: July 19, 2013, 02:09:43 PM »
Purchased my first bike in a long time--a Trek 800 in good condition off of CL for $125.  I've been riding it everywhere, and I've forgotten how enjoyable and convenient of an activity it is. 

TKE Super Dave

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #252 on: July 20, 2013, 03:01:46 PM »
I took my Droid 3 over to Straight Talk from my Verizon Plan. Apparently it's one of the harder phones to take to another carrier as you have to unlock it, root it, and flash a radio ROM on it for it to work on AT&T or T mobile networks, which trust me was pain in the ass to do. I luckily was rewarded with much better signal then I have ever have had and a $40 per month savings from my old Verizon contract.

icefr

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #253 on: July 20, 2013, 05:37:42 PM »
In the last < 13 months, I have paid down a bit over 25% of my original mortgage balance. That's a bit under $75,000. I was originally expecting to pay it off by the end of 2017 and it's looking like I might have it paid off in full by early 2016. Perhaps I will bring in the estimate to late 2015 in another few months!

Part of me wants to take some cash out of my savings account and pay down the balance to < $200,000 and then re-building my savings account... But that would be silly with how much that still is. I'll probably do that when it is < $1,000 to go though.

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #254 on: July 21, 2013, 05:11:46 PM »
Just clocked a couple of significant (to me at least) achievements.  Neither DH or I have ever been mechanically inclined, though very frugal in other areas we've always paid for all work on vehicles.  Had the very wrong-headed idea that our hourly wage was relevant to the cost equation :0
Anyway, this weekend I replaced, by myself, the rear turn signals on my motorcycle.  'Course they only needed replacing because of cosmetic damage done by a learning motorcyclist.  So glad I'm over that phase.   Waited to do the work til I was confident in my bike handling skills, plus the shocks have worn in over the last 4k miles, and I can almost flat foot now; much more able to 'catch' the bike now!

And, we installed a hitch and the wiring on our 2003 Honda Si.  At  165K miles we figure this car has at least 40K of use life, so it was worth the investment for the hitch.  Plus we just purchased a used teardrop that we will use for a major cross country trip after I retire in January.  (DH retired this December.  Those graph lines officially crossed last summer!!).  So although we've spent money our cost of ownership on the trailer will decrease every camping trip we take.  Plus having the comfort of a real bed  will mean significantly less desire/need to add in periodic hotels. (At age 48 this is significant; for us camping mattresses are best left to the under 40 crowd.)

And now that we are demystifying vehicle maintenance, we'll be better able to troubleshoot for ourselves and do more routine tasks.  I will say, that having two metric socket sets that were both missing the 10mm added significant time and frustration to the shadow repair.  Will be replacing that tool ASAP, and probably replacing the bolts that some mechanic thoughtlessly (carelessly) stripped so I couldn't use a phillips head screw driver.  But I have to say I was ridiculously gleeful at my minor accomplishment.  And much more confident in general about even attempting anything mechanical.  It is very satisfying to move from consumer of services to just doin' it myself.

Russ

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #255 on: July 22, 2013, 10:43:40 AM »
Got an offer for a pretty great job today (engineering at a bicycle company). Time to start growing the 'stache!

matchewed

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #256 on: July 22, 2013, 10:56:31 AM »
Congrats

KulshanGirl

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #257 on: July 22, 2013, 11:10:30 AM »
I've got a milestone to report over here!

My net worth is just over $150K this morning.  =D  I must admit that it was thanks to Zillow that it went over, but still!  I'm making pretty good progress on the investment side too.   I'm a seventh-of-a-millionaire, sort of!  Next milestone will be hitting $100K without counting the home equity.  That one is even bigger. 

Woot!

arebelspy

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #258 on: July 22, 2013, 11:43:04 AM »
Well done!  :D
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
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NunyaBidness

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #259 on: July 25, 2013, 10:12:06 AM »
I saved 95% of this weeks check (not including 401k) which I expect to hit next week as well.
My formula is  Save/ Total Income

TrulyStashin

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #260 on: July 25, 2013, 02:41:02 PM »
In the last three months, I've worked really hard to turn my spending around -- biking to work, moving cell phones from Verizon to Ting, killing DirectTV / landline phone, turning down the water heater -- you name it, I've embraced it.  I've freed up almost $700 a month in avoided wasted spending.

Now the BIG NEWS!   I have finally cleared the decks of my biggest financial mistake ever.  A most-unMustachian decision, made one year ago and finally un-done today.

I SOLD THE BMW!!!  Hurray!!!   That damn thing was such an albatross around my neck and now it is gone, gone, gone.  [happy dance]

With that, I'll now have another $600 / mo. (payment + insurance) back in my wallet.

By September, I'm on track to live on just 39% of my take home pay.  In April, I used 70% of take home for living.   180 degree turn around, BABY!!!

NinetyFour

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #261 on: July 28, 2013, 08:25:07 AM »
I haven't done any clown car driving since the end of May 2013.  Well, there was just the time that I returned a borrowed suitcase to a friend across town--couldn't figure out how to strap it to my back so that I could return it on my bike.  Still even if that counts as a clown car trip, it was cheaper than what my former self would have done--gone out and bought myself a suitcase instead of borrowing one!

Thanks for MMM for the Clown Car post earlier this year.  It really got my attention.  I have walked/biked to my job for 15 years, but there were other instances when I would think I "need" to drive.  Not any more!

Jon_Snow

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #262 on: July 28, 2013, 09:28:07 AM »
I am now receiving over $2500 in monthly dividends, and my investable assets have finally rolled into the seven figure range.

I am getting close to saying goodbye to the rat race forever.

kevin78

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #263 on: July 29, 2013, 05:31:08 PM »
I'm moving to a new apartment that is 1.9 miles from work so I'll be able to bike there year round.  I'm freaking happy as heck about it. 

I've been searching for a place that I could afford for the last 6 months.  Seemed hopeless until I spotted the place on the map.  Immediately went there and filled out the rental app.  A couple weeks later my wish has been granted, to be able to easily bike to work. 

And I get to ditch having a roommate which I am particularly happy about.  And it will still be a net cost savings.

NinetyFour

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #264 on: July 30, 2013, 10:53:25 AM »
Recently found out that new new owners of Optimum (Charter) increased my internet bill from $50/month to $55/month.  So I called a competitor and found that I could go with them for $30/month (plus activation fee) for the first year.  I called Charter back and threatened to leave them--they quickly offered to lower my monthly rate to $30 for the next year.  It was so easy--I wonder if I should have said, "Make it two years and we've got a deal!"  Oh, well, I'm still celebrating the $300 savings.  (Oh, and thanks to I. P. Daley for helping me with ideas for lowering my technology costs.)  I will work on my cell phone next.

Silvie

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #265 on: July 30, 2013, 01:33:22 PM »
2 of my small accomplishments as a newbie:

I called my cable company and asked them to give me a better deal (TV + Internet). I now have a new package for $6 less per month than before. It only cost me 1 phone call!

The other thing is I finally discovered the Dutch equivalent of Craigslist and I bought a Wii fitness game for $17 rather than $50 on Amazon. I plan on using this for my workout at home, avoiding membership fees for my local gym.

In addition to this, I started working from home just 2 weeks ago (before I found this blog). Although commuting costs are fully covered by employers here in the Netherlands, it does save me a lot of time (3 hours per day) and money I used to spend on food, magazines and books at the train station!

NunyaBidness

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #266 on: July 31, 2013, 01:24:37 PM »
I saved 95% of this weeks check (not including 401k) which I expect to hit next week as well.
My formula is  Save/ Total Income

Saved 91% this week. Will not be able to hit these numbers for the rest of the month as I am "saving" (paying off) my cruise in October 2013

Gundy

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #267 on: August 01, 2013, 10:03:48 AM »

I feel like this is a good time to post a mini-celebration, even if these events have happened over the course of the last 8 months.
 
Dec 12- Refinanced my house. Savings = 500/mo

May- Refinanced a rental condo that me and my sister co-own. Savings = 200/mo
      - Convinced SO to downsize our joint storage unit and sell extra stuff on CL. Savings = 50/mo
      - Convinced SO to forgo cable. Signed up for Hulu and Netflix. Savings = 80/mo

June- Convinced soon to be wife that we might as well have our actual marriage 5 months before our "real" wedding. Since I am military, this adds 400/mo to my income via BAH and she saves on doctors visits.

July- Finished paying off my unmustachian car purchase. Savings = 300/mo

I've also been working the full court press with the SO on the virtues of cooking from home and not going out. She has always understood the benefit of saving money, but the concept of retiring early or being FI is a little foreign to her. Even still, she has embraced some of these changes and has been extremely positive throughout. The other day we went out to a movie and I suggested splitting a water and she balked at the ridiculous cost. We ended up getting a large sprite, but her comment made me really proud nonetheless :)

So far this year our cashflow has improved by aproximately 1,500/mo. And that isn't even adding up all of the home cooked meals we have transitioned too. We still have a long way to go on the mustachian spectrum, but it is amazing how small changes add up quickly.

grantmeaname

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #268 on: August 01, 2013, 11:22:25 AM »
...
Wow! You've got to head over to the $500,000 savings goal thread and chip in your totals!

kendallf

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #269 on: August 01, 2013, 03:47:11 PM »
Small goal met; my TSP account hit the 300k mark last week.  Then it went back down to 299.. then 300..   LOL.  So I'm sort-of-a 3/10ths of a millionaire.  I've been putting in near the max this year, as well as repaying loans from it that went to purchase the house we're renovating. 

Next big goal will be moving, getting this house ready to rent, and seeing our first rental check.  That will be a big day.. probably not until winter.

Gundy

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #270 on: August 02, 2013, 07:59:06 AM »
...
Wow! You've got to head over to the $500,000 savings goal thread and chip in your totals!

Good idea!

NinetyFour

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #271 on: August 02, 2013, 12:15:57 PM »
Two things to celebrate, in addition to getting internet bill down from $55 to $30 per month:

1) My refi will happen next week.  My rate (on $240k) will go from 6.75% (youch!) to 4.375%.  Sill higher than I would like, but a huge improvement.

2) I had been stashing cash, in case I needed it for closing the refi, but it turns out I don't. So I just took $6500 and stashed it in a Vanguard Roth IRA.  Yay!  I'm sure those 6500 green dollar bills will work a lot harder there than they had in my savings acct.

Next, I will open an account with Capitol One 360 (recommended by MMM) to stash my EF.

Woo hoo!!!

SunshineGirl

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #272 on: August 03, 2013, 09:28:15 AM »

2) I had been stashing cash, in case I needed it for closing the refi, but it turns out I don't. So I just took $6500 and stashed it in a Vanguard Roth IRA.  Yay!  I'm sure those 6500 green dollar bills will work a lot harder there than they had in my savings acct.

Woo hoo!!!

Woo hoo indeed. I'm assuming you're over 50, and therefore allowed to contribute that much to your Roth?

MoneyCat

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #273 on: August 03, 2013, 10:03:43 AM »
     I  canceled my two subscriptions to Sirius satellite radio and switched to free Pandora internet radio instead, which saves me about $30/mo.  In addition, I reached the top level on my FICO scores, so I canceled my Equifax Score Watch subscription at MyFico, which saves me another $16/mo.  That's $46/mo more that I can put toward paying off my ridiculous student loans.  Small potatoes, I know, but it's a start.

Freedom2016

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #274 on: August 03, 2013, 10:17:29 AM »
I deposited a big receivable from a client this week, and my cut is $70,000 --- more than I earned all of last year!

I also, for the first time, tracked down the current value of all of our investments (which I was only loosely tracking in Quicken) and was pleased to discover that they're worth almost $258,000. (About 30k more than I thought...)

Russ

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #275 on: August 07, 2013, 08:06:47 PM »
Sold a semi-redundant bicycle today, which brings me down to 2: one racing/fitness bike and one commuting bike. Sold it at a small loss, but it went to a friend and that's still another couple hundred in the bank to pay for my upcoming move. Very happy overall.

wing117

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #276 on: August 08, 2013, 05:53:05 AM »
Much smaller than a lot of folks in this thread, but I maxed out my IRA for the year last week for the first time ever!

SunshineGirl

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #277 on: August 08, 2013, 08:58:36 AM »
Much smaller than a lot of folks in this thread, but I maxed out my IRA for the year last week for the first time ever!

That's huge, wing117 - congratulations!

NinetyFour

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #278 on: August 08, 2013, 05:59:04 PM »
"Woo hoo indeed. I'm assuming you're over 50, and therefore allowed to contribute that much to your Roth? "

Yes, SunshineGirl, I am over 50.  I am 2X2X13.

The knitter

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #279 on: August 12, 2013, 06:52:15 AM »
Just made my final payment on my Student Loan!

Feeling great right now!!!!

arebelspy

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #280 on: August 12, 2013, 07:03:54 AM »
Just made my final payment on my Student Loan!

Feeling great right now!!!!

Well done!
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

pachnik

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #281 on: August 12, 2013, 07:10:44 AM »
Just made my final payment on my Student Loan!

Feeling great right now!!!!

Congratulations many times over!  It must feel great to have that monkey off your back and to have bought a little bit more freedom.

The knitter

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #282 on: August 13, 2013, 04:01:14 PM »
Thanks pachnik and arebelspy.

It does feel good to get a little more freedom. I'm moving forward now, instead of trying to get to the starting line from behind.

Hatawa

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #283 on: August 13, 2013, 11:12:32 PM »
Small step and celebration on the way to FI: bought a bike last week, now bike commute to work, which allows me to save at least $1.40 a day on public transportation!

martynthewolf

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #284 on: August 14, 2013, 05:24:21 AM »
Errrm... I just got a promotion that I completely wasn't expecting.

Lets just say I'm extremely happy right now.

arebelspy

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #285 on: August 14, 2013, 07:32:14 AM »
Errrm... I just got a promotion that I completely wasn't expecting.

Lets just say I'm extremely happy right now.

Dynamite!  :D

Well deserved, I'm sure.
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
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martynthewolf

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #286 on: August 14, 2013, 07:45:40 AM »
Errrm... I just got a promotion that I completely wasn't expecting.

Lets just say I'm extremely happy right now.

Dynamite!  :D

Well deserved, I'm sure.

Cheers arebelspy It's still sinking in. Going to make staching so much easier now :)

arebelspy

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #287 on: August 14, 2013, 12:38:36 PM »
Have you already run the calculations on what this will do to your projected net worth, time to FIRE, etc. etc.?  ;)
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
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I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

martynthewolf

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #288 on: August 14, 2013, 01:01:13 PM »
Have you already run the calculations on what this will do to your projected net worth, time to FIRE, etc. etc.?  ;)

I hadn't run those numbers seriously, before the promotion :-| I guess I should get on and do it. I must admit I'm not sure I'm after RE but definitely FI.

SavingMon(k)ey

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #289 on: August 15, 2013, 09:10:08 PM »
Ok, I read lots of celebrations on here and worked up the courage to share my first ones as a newbie to the site. They are small (well, maybe not the last one), but it's a start.

1) Stopped a cash bleeding wound of $38/mo by cancelling the pool membership. I love swimming, but for the past few months have been unable to do so because of a shoulder injury. Also, a year ago I moved much further away from the pool, so even when/if my shoulder gets better, I may have to find another place to swim (not too many around here that have lap swimming lanes)
2) (I already shared this one on another post, but I'll list it here for good measure) Canceled cable, which saves us about $70/mo. This was in the works already, before I found MMM, but it took a bit of getting used to the idea.
3) Resisted temptation of eating take out two nights ago, instead made a simple dinner at home even though I was dead tiring from packing for our move next week.
4) Hasn't quite happened yet, but we're closing on a house tomorrow! Woohoo! No more stupid rent checks going to nowhere.

I'll keep working at it.
« Last Edit: September 24, 2013, 12:03:35 PM by worldstrad »

KatieSSS

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #290 on: August 19, 2013, 12:59:45 PM »
This is a small one, but the mindset is what mattered here. I was saying to someone that I recently counted up my coin jar and now had $45 extra dollars. The person said to me "What are you going to do with the extra money!" And I replied, "Put it towards my student debt, of course!" They replied, "You are so disciplined! I couldn't be as good as you with it!" My reply, "Oh it is actually really easy! I wouldn't want to put my money anywhere else right now."

The celebration here is my mindset. It really DOES seem easy now to put money towards my debt. Somehow, money seems to be appearing out of nowhere like never before!

Silvie

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #291 on: August 19, 2013, 01:08:04 PM »
Today I sold my studio apartment! I borrowed 34,000 euros from my dad for my new, bigger and more expensive apartment. The previous one is a studio and now I have a decent 2-bedroom apartment which I am planning to live in for a long time.

After the mortgage on the studio was paid off, I still had 14k left which I transferred directly to my dad's bank account, making him a happier man and reducing my debt from 34k to 20k. Yay!

SavingMon(k)ey

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #292 on: August 19, 2013, 02:03:04 PM »
A few more small ones...

1) Stopped another cash bleeding wound by cancelling the milk delivery. We will be saving about $190/yr. I also switched from 1% to skim which is my SO's favorite and probably better for me, so now we can buy cheaper gallons instead of half gallons of each.
2) SO has been generally on board with all the small changes, and I would say she's got pretty much the right mindset. Reading here on the forum, I feel really lucky about this.
3) I've been riding my bike for more errands and combining more trips when I find no way around using the car.
4) I have made a total of about $800 selling things I no longer need on Craigslist and Amazon this year.

Onward! I am currently monitoring my cell data use to decide on a cheaper plan that will fit my needs. And other changes.
« Last Edit: September 24, 2013, 11:57:02 AM by worldstrad »

NinetyFour

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #293 on: August 20, 2013, 10:16:18 AM »
Nice job, nofool !!  The market has tanked a bit recently, though.  I am afraid to look at my retirement account...I will wait a few more days and then take a peek.

maryofdoom

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #294 on: August 21, 2013, 07:19:06 AM »
This has little to do with the stated topic of this forum, but this is the thread for celebrations, and I have one to share: my sampler won Best of Show in the county fair this week!

Here is a link to a picture of my accomplishment: http://twitpic.com/d9fze6

Oh, and just to make this slightly financially relevant, I won a premium prize of $105. GO ME.
« Last Edit: September 05, 2013, 08:34:56 AM by maryofdoom »

boy_bye

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #295 on: August 28, 2013, 03:36:50 PM »
This has little to do with the stated topic of this forum, but this is the thread for celebrations, and I have one to share: my sampler won Best of Show in the county fair this week!

Here is a link to a picture of my accomplishment: http://twitpic.com/d9fze6

Oh, and just to make this slightly financially relevant, I won a premium prize of $10. GO ME.

Mary, that is awesome! Wow, must've taken you so long to do that! It looks amazing! Congrats :)

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #296 on: August 29, 2013, 06:31:03 AM »
Three dinners for me and my husband, no purchases: every night this week so far I cooked out of our fridge, pantry, and garden. I didn't buy a single thing. Monday: a somewhat bizarre concoction based on a Vietnamese recipe of stirfried rice noodles with bacon, onions, and a cucumber. Sounds strange, tasted good. Tuesday: Spaghetti alla Campolattaro (from "Naples at Table"), pasta with an anchovy and tuna sauce. Threw some frozen peas in for something green. Again, sounds weird, was awesome. Wednesday: homemade pizza dough, garden tomatoes and basil, leftover cheese and ham. Yum. Tonight: going to survey the larder and see what needs eating. Baby steps.

olivia

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #297 on: August 29, 2013, 06:53:27 AM »
My husband and I currently have the most money we've ever had in our savings account because of all the changes we've made and because we sold our car this month! We have $11,500. Doesn't sound like a lot but it's a start!  We usually have anywhere from $100-2000 in there, so it's a huge improvement.

NinetyFour

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #298 on: August 30, 2013, 06:28:54 AM »
Congratulations to everyone upthread!

I finally closed on my refinance last week!  My interest rate came down from 6.75% (ouch!) to 4.375%.  (I missed out on the even lower rates because of mortgage broker/lender delays, but oh well.)  It is a 30 year loan, but I am hoping to pay it off in 10!

dorkus619

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Re: Celebrations Thread
« Reply #299 on: August 30, 2013, 09:09:10 AM »
Congrats everyone!

Last week I bought a used bike for $50. I spend the week cleaning and fixing it up and TODAY I RODE MY BICYCLE TO WORK! Woohoo!

Thanks to MMM and everyone here for tips, help, and inspiration