I did not spend a single dollar today!  I was tempted to run out and buy myself lunch but I decided to make it at home instead.  It was so hot today that I didn’t want to do anything at all…except sit in the AC.

When I receive my electric bill next month, that’s another story.

Being that 4th of July Eve falls on a Thursday this year makes for a big party night.  I had several departments at work invite me to different happy hour venues which became a difficult decision in itself (do I go to Suspenders with the Legal department, Bar 515 with the admins. or hit up Southwest with the senior staff?).  At work, I had mentally checked out the minute I sat at my desk so I figured hanging out for a drink wouldn’t be so bad.  Our office would be closing at 4 pm which would give me time to have a drink, go home and change before I went out with R and some friends.  My manager, being the great bosslady that she is, let me leave at 1 pm.  I was the only one in my office to have such an early dismissal so I decided to just go home and not wait around for my co-workers.  I think this was a great frugal move on my part.  I would’ve definitely blown some cash on drinks but instead I opted to go home and rest.

Total dollars spent  = $0

Yay…I finally have one!  I had read on MSN months ago how important it was to have one and now I finally do.  But you know what?  Now that I have $500 stashed away, it feels like peanuts.  I’m sure this is a good thing since it will make me save more, right.  $3,000 emergency fund sounds a lot better…

This year for father’s day I decided I wanted to give my dad a scrapbook, a “daddy scrapbook.”  Not just because it’s a frugal gift idea but for plenty of other reasons too.  First, my father asked me to do this over a year ago when he gave me a box full of photos (collected over his lifetime) and suggested that I arrange them into albums.  Second, I didn’t know what else to get him.  My father is a very simple guy and when he does need something, he goes out and buys it himself.  Besides, he’s the biggest mush I know and I knew he would just love the scrapbook idea.

So a few weeks ago I started my project and although it was a cost-effective project, it was still a time-consuming one.  After it was complete, here’s how I did:

• 8.5″ x 10″ inch scrapbook……..  $12.00
• Background paper………………… $  4.00
• Scrapbook embellishments……. $  9.00

Total………………………………………….. $27.00

And yes, when my father opened his gift yesterday, he said to me, “This is priceless.”

I recently signed up at Mint.com and I absolutely love it!  My cousin had told me about a few months ago when he first signed up and I checked it out back then but never signed up.  I was hesitant to have all of my information online but after researching the website and speaking with him some more, I decided to sign up too. 

 It took less than five minutes to register and see all of my “assets” displayed before me.  The website has a lot of cool features.  It’s able to pull information from your accounts and show where you spend all of your money, displayed as a pie chart.  My favorite feature is the mobile alerts where you can register your cell phone and have text messages sent you if your balance dips below a certain point.

I have to admit, I just signed up a few days ago and I’m addicted.  I log in everyday to monitor my transactions and see all my accounts.  It’s great to see that although I don’t have a ton of money, I’m definitely making progress.

Today is a prosperous day.  I made my final payment on my credit cards. Yes, that is correct.  I am 100% credit card debt free! And it’s probably one of the best feelings I’ve had in a very long time.

 This victory was  8 months in the making.  I decided back in August (after returning from a very expensive trip to Asia) that once I returned, I would get serious about my credit card debt.  I had attempted to work with credit counselors in the past to no avail.  I always felt that it put me at a disadvantage not knowing exactly where my money was going each month if I worked with a debt management agency.  So I started with a simple excel spreadsheet.  The first column indicated the name of the account, the second column showed the balance, the third showed the payment plan and so forth.  I used columns to record as much information about the account as possible. I even used a “Notes” column where I would write things like, “Pay ASAP, high interest!” 

 Once I took the first step of writing everything down (and I do mean everything), it actually became fun.  It became my little side business, where I was benefitting directly from my efforts.  I was eager to track any progress on my payments and post the new balances as soon as something was paid off.  It felt so great to see the new balances go down every month.

After 8 months of continuos, and on time payments I was able to pay off over $6,000 in credit card debt, including some student loan payments.  I am by no means a financial expert ( I cheated my way through college accounting), but I knew that if I could commit to writing it all down that it would help me accomplish two things 1) I would be able to see my financial situation in its entirety and 2) I would be able to manage and track it on a regular basis, making it much easier to pay off.

Making my final payment was an indescribable feeling.  And all it took was that first step.