January is over and I can't say I'm sad to see it go. I have a myriad of reasons that I dislike January, but that's a post for another time. But, while it may not have been the best month for me, it wasn't too bad and there are a
First things first, I have two new kitties in my life and they make me so, SO happy. I've been a crazy cat lady without cats for the past year and a half and I was so ready to care for another animal, but the timing was never right. I was visiting a friend on Christmas Eve and their friends foster kitties and they had two brothers that needed a home...everything fell into place and we drove to LA a few days later to pick them up and the rest is history.
It's been a bit of an adjustment, but overall it's been awesome to get to know them and their personalities. They are wild, playful, social and cuddly, often all four in a five minute time span. Sometimes they get into trouble (you know, jumping on the dining room table, kitchen counters, etc...they are kittens, after all) but it's hard to get mad at these faces. I mean, really...
In order to keep this post at a somewhat reasonable length and to keep it from getting too choppy, I'm just going to bullet point the rest.
Money: I didn't track my spending this month, but I'd give myself a "B" in the 'spending money' category. I didn't make any major purchases and I kept most of my spending down. I opted to eat leftovers more often than not and I was fairly good about using up stuff in the fridge and pantry. That being said, I spent way more than I should have going out to lunch and buying coffee. I mean, nothing unreasonable or anything...but I got really lazy in this area and it needs to stop.
While my spending habits still need work, I did manage to save 15% of my take home pay in my emergency fund. That's huge for me. HUGE!!!! (note: this does not include retirement/investment funds...this is just a good, old-fashioned savings account.) I was close to 20% at one point, but I miscalculated a due date for a bill and needed to take a bit out to cover it.
Realistically, I'm not sure it's reasonable to save more than 25% on my current (modest...very, very modest) salary while still paying down loans and paying rent/bills and such - I hope to hit that savings rate in the next couple of months.
So far, February is shaping up well money-wise - I got my tax refund today and promptly put 85% of it into the emergency fund. The other 15% is going towards a few minor splurges and general living stuff (if you can call a Trader Joe's run a splurge.) I keep logging into my bank account to look at the number because it makes me happy and I've never hit that number before in my adult life (sad but true...I'm good at saving for retirement...not so much for the near future.) I've also recommitted myself to tracking all my spending. I find that when I have to write it down (even though nobody but me sees it) I'm much less likely to purchase things...I hate seeing a diary of my wasteful spending habits.
Weight: UGH!!!!! I gained 12 pounds over the holidays (likely from a lot of sugar and booze...followed by more sugar and booze) and I'm a solid 20 pounds from my lowest post-college weight. I generally don't make a habit of weighing myself (another post for another time) and I've been maintaining within the same 5 pounds for a few years, but I couldn't deny the fact that my pants were getting really, really tight and I felt like I had multiple chins...so I finally bit the bullet January 4th and checked the damage on the scale. OUCH!
If I'm being honest, I'm kind of upset about it because I swore I'd never let myself get heavy again (I was overweight/obese from 2007-2010 and it was super uncomfortable and generally awful.) Thankfully, I'm still 30 pounds lower than my highest known adult weight, so it could have been a lot worse...but I've definitely noticed a difference in how I feel (bloated and beefy with a sore knee) and I hate it. Yes, me wanting to lose weight is vain...but it's also for my own health.
I've been working out more and trying to get the food stuff under control (it's less of a stuffing my face thing and more of an 'eating all the junk' thing.) While it came on quickly, it's not leaving quite as fast. I lost 5 pounds in January...but I have a lot to go, especially since I want to be somewhat lean for marathon training (that's going to require a lot more discipline on my part) but I really just want to at least get back to my October weight.
Running: Slowly, but surely getting back into it. I booked my hotel for Chicago and word is getting out that I'm running a marathon. I'm a bit nervous about the whole thing - running 26.2 miles is hard. Really, really hard and I'm doubting my ability to do it again. But I also have days where I'm so excited to take on the challenge and less nervous. It's still 8 months away, so I've got time.
So, I think that concludes my monthly blog update :-) Y'all know I don't generally like to set goals/commit to things, so I'm not sure what my plans are for February. I'd love to see if I could save $1000 this month (between a bit of overtime and my usual deposit every paycheck, it may very well happen) and get more of this annoying weight off. Oh, and maybe blog more...but we all know how that's gonna go.
Stay tuned, my dear readers (all three of you!)
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