2023 budget.

 I turned and thought she was sitting on Hubby's desk

She's not. She is on the arm of the love seat we have always called dog seat because every single dog we have had since 2002 has claimed this seat.

Our IRA guy gave us a heads up we needed to come in during Dec to decide what we were pulling from IRA's next year and that our investments are where we want them. 

We want to have a pleasant retirement not one of fraught with we are going without. We had set our goal to live mostly on our social security (after Daddy lost most of his IRA in 2008 and had to drastically change his life style to rebuild his retirement). Social security is meant only to replace 40% of your income. Something to keep in mind before you go on social security. We are only over budget by $2000... that is the mortgage (not including ins and property taxes) and the truck payment.  

Mine is set, I am happy with the investment and the amount I am pulling from my inherited IRA.

BUT we agreed Hubby's pull is too high for where we are now and he is not sure about a couple of his investments as he changed who was handling his IRA a couple months ago.

So I pulled up the budget with added inflation. Hey things are not going to go down a lot so might as well budget for it. I added 15 % over the 10% I just added a couple months ago. IF they don't go up that much , the money goes to savings. 

STILL ... do not need what he has been pulling. I had even moved his truck payment into the household budget in case the business can't make the payment. That might end up being for the replacement of the family truck that the frame is rusting out of.

I asked him for the financial priorities...

He rattled off a half of dozen...and then off and on would add something.

I changed the wording and asked for the essential.

Definitely changed how he was thinking and what he wanted to focus on. 

Essential 

1. To be able to live in our home instead of assistant living/nursing home.

What is needed right now? Decluttering and organization. We just need to refigure what we have for organization which probably would clear half the barn and what the need is.

We don't need to drop pedestal sink in wheelchair bathroom or drop the sink in the mudroom. We don't need a wall oven or cook top at this point. All of that would be needed later. We have options on how to access the basement where the pantry is. 

2. Having a better savings including 2023 medical out of pocket and some towards 2024 medical out of pocket. I have half of 2023 already.

I already have listed what we need to save for and the amounts needed/wanted. He did acknowledge that he hasn't been clearing it with me before buying stuff.( I brought up usage of his credit card) When he went to an auction last week I had gave him a list with price point. Said that helped so I made another list of what is on the to buy list and those price points to carry with him. SO if he does see something on the list and the price is matching or better lower, he knows he can buy it.

The budget for electric is $200/month. If it's lower the extra goes to savings. If it's higher then it can be pulled from saving of when it was lower.

I think every 3 months I will transfer from the lower interest rate savings to the higher interest rate savings. It's 3-5 days to get the transfer completely through.

3. Pay off the mortgage before we are 93. 

I already have got that down to age 88. BUT he wasn't acknowledging you have to cut somewhere else or pull more $$ to do that. He is now.  

4. Finish getting stuff for the grid that included 2 new blades for the buzz saw.

The saw blades for buzz saw is already in savings as they are ordered and come in during Jan. I transferred what I didn't spend on propane over to it figuring it would be in the heating budget instead of propane budget to cover both.

I have 1/5th of what is needed already in saving. I just need to keep us focused on ESSENTIAL instead of priorities that sends us off the track somewhat.

5. Cut what isn't essential to cut what he is pulling from IRA. 

He started pulling his IRA in 2017...It's been reduced every year. This year was 50% LESS than that original pull. Every year we have cut it by 10%. His old financial guy was shocked as most increase the pull or stay the same. 

Hubby agreed to reduce what he is pulling by 32% for next year's pull from this year's amount.   Little scary to drop that low that fast but we have definitely turn what we need to run the home and get the essentials done to a lot lower amount.

Blessed be 

Prayers for peace

Financial steps, books I am reading

I found 1 dime and 1 nickel and 4 pennies. It went in to the change jar as the Amish have been buying our change so they don't have to go to the bank that is over 20 miles from them.

We do all the daily habits, open curtains for light, keep furnace low, use wood stove when highs are in 50s (was nice to hear the Amish complaining of having to open windows because they need the stove on to cook but it's warm in the afternoons LOL), use the oil lamps (now the decorations saving on oil as it's a bit hard to get at the moment and we do have the option of electric where Amish don't, E ran out Sunday night and came over to fill a lamp. Hubby goes after oil on Friday with H) and clothes line. Hubby stacked more wood in the barn and said he is down to 1/2 cord to cut and most of it is kindling. E's dad H told Hubby to focus getting the scraps from A. R. or J.H sawmills as is saves gas from cutting. 

 I  listed the items we needed/wanted to buy...then I list the prices I am willing to pay.... then I go hunting for them. I make sure I think about sales tax or it can put us over budget

On the to buy list

hearth board with spacers for the wall behind the wood stove. Budget $100 plus tax

humidifier and filters if not like what we have. Budget $400 plus tax

Four fire alarms as the ones we bought for here is starting to act up. Budget $80 plus tax

Lighters (we have a burn barrel, wood/coal stove and oil lamps) Budget $6. plus tax

Bottled water. Hubby carries a case in the truck so if someone needs water to drink or wash with he has it. My brother does the same. Budget $20 (we planned 3 cases) plus tax* went to 4 as they had dropped in price.*

Two bags Chi Chi tortilla chips. We get them the cheapest at Menards. Budget $ 8 plus tax 

We figured $614 with 7.25 % tax  would require  a total of $658.52  We saved $675. 

Went to Menards (11 % rebate this week)  got everything on the list and some candy, hard caramels for Hubby to carry in truck, caramel creams (we only get around Christmas so being saved) soft caramels (use to cookies and ice cream) candied peach rings (me) and our standard Hershey plain and almond bars (we put peanut butter on them) and Reese's cups. Figure what ever was left in the $675 budget could be used on the candy that will last us through Christmas if not until Feb. 

We had $104.44 in rebates.  We were able to get $84 in candy. I split it up so Hubby is not tempted as he was raised and to this day his parents(diabetics) have a LARGE bowl of candy on the kitchen table. Not happening here. We will be getting back $56.82 in the 11% rebate.

On the stock up list (still) turkey (less than $2/lb.), pepperoni ($7/lb. A pound makes 12 pizzas) and G& R bologna We pay what ever they want as it is a special blend just made for them. Additional Prime rib for Christmas is a question mark still. 

I was suppose to go to Son 2's for two weeks while he was at Annual training. His last before he retires officially December 30th. It was canceled. Since I had wrote a menu of options for Hubby and brought it up to kitchen frig. freezer, we are eating from that. I tossed small potatoes from our harvest and brussels sprout I had froze in a pork roast and only enough veggies for 1 meal. Hubby loved it. I split the pork roast into 2 meals for the freezer. Both will probably make 2 meals also.  We had Autumn stew (chicken I canned (store bought chicken frozen chicken breasts), onions, garlic and butternut squash along with the dehydrated beet greens from our gardens) , ate for dinner and lunch and then with our hamburger sandwiches we had last night 1 pint going in freezer. Tonight is beef stew from the freezer with the apple cider bread I baked that isn't going to last through this week.  I still have tomatoes on the deck table turning red, should be canning those by Thursday or Friday as it's getting into the 70s (not our normal 50s) I still have 1/2 bushel of apples to dehydrate and 1/4 bushel of apples for fresh eating and baking besides the 1 full bushel in the frig for this winter.

I stocked up on vitamins and a few medical supplies that was on sale.

I put up some LED lights decorations for Halloween and fall. Hubby remembers to unplug the one set in the front room and I do the one in the dining room. We leave the one over the sink on and not plug in the night light we have there. Both use the same amount of electric but with how I hung the lights on the curtain rod , it gives more light off than the night light. Hubby thinks he would like it to become the night light if I can figure out how to make it look decent and not just a strand of LED lights hanging on the curtain rod (which has no curtain as I hang the windchimes there during the winter)

We have said no to a couple outings to lower the use of gas. As we know of at least one funeral we will be going to. Daughter 4's grandfather on biological side is dying. He has battled heart and diabetes for 20 yrs. 

We had our farm/car ins agent come over and recheck the place to make sure our coverage was up to were it should be. He added the stove and chimney, of course. AND advised us to start tracking how many miles we drive a year as we might be able to get a discount on that besides our ages. I had laundry on the line when he pulled up, he made the comment we had the same brand of dryer our neighbor had... M had her laundry out also. And then noted his mother never had a dryer until he was 10 and he is the middle child of 9.

We went through clothes, Hubby needs "dress" jeans and work pants. Dress jeans come from Rural King, work pants come from Tractor supply. Both places had jeans on sale so it worked out well. I bought 4 dresses at half price, one has no sleeves but I have different sweaters or shawls I can wear with it. My dresses are hanging on me but I will pass them to another family member that can use them. She is passing her clothes to one of the grandkids. Sale prices of jeans and dresses are 50% lower than budget.

We have stuff for the small projects we need to get done. 

I am going to need wide mouth pint jars. SIGH.

Hubby will be scheduling the winter maintenance for the lawnmower and the tractor. He will get a 10% discount for doing it now until Jan 31st. Slow time for the two businesses. 

Books I am reading

Decluttering your home in a Year or Less Workbook by Kai M. Jordan.

The Doomsday book of Medicine by Ralph LA Guardia MD

Essentialism  The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKneown.

Healing America How a Simple practice can help us recapture the American Spirit by Congressman Tim Ryan

Rereading Bay of Sighs (book 2 of the Guardians Trilogy) Bed time book.

AND 

Nov 1st (today) National Novel Writing Month of writing 50,000 this month (1667/ day).

I am also sorting seeds as next year's gardens will be limited with redoing the whole gardens over. 

I am inputting pantry inventory on to spread sheet ( 1 page per day as I have 22 pages left to do)

We decided on the 2023 budget. That's another post

Blessed Be everyone

Prayers for peace 

What are you doing to pinch those pennies?