I am addicted to StarBucks and here's how I make it a little more affordable

I am not much of a coffee drinker.  But I love me my lattes.  Recently I was listening to the Bro-rista Coffee Culture podcast from the Stuff Mom Never Told ladies and it was totally on the money, for me at least.  I don't like straight coffee or espresso or whatnot but I love my sugar syrup ladden drinks from starbucks.  I guess that makes me a girl?  My absolute favorite would be a Creme Brulee Latte that I've only ever seen on the menu in Starbucks Japan but the Caramel Brulee Latte that they have in North America during the holidays comes in a close second.  My regular go to drink is their Cinnamon Dolce Latte, tall with non-fat milk and no whip cream.

I have a starbucks lattee almost every work day (Mon-Fri) and how do I rationalize spending $4.15/day on coffee when I can spend half of that at Timmies?  I buy discounted gift cards online to pay for my purchases bringing the average cost of that latte down to ~$3.60.  I am a member of the my starbucks rewards program where every 12 drinks you buy gets you a free one.  Based on my buying habbits, that brings the cost of my latte down to ~$3.25.  I check my starbucks app to see if there are any promo codes out there I can take advantage of.  Finally I walk to work almost every single day which would be a little over $5 every day I would spend on transportation.  That last part is just me telling myself what I need to so I can sleep better at night but hey $3.25 isn't so bad.  There was a time when I was even ordering short drinks so it would work out to be slightly cheaper but now that I am working, I get the talls.  I am movin' on up as they say...

Boxing Day Shopping

So I was only out for about an hour but I did my fair share of shopping.  I can't stand crowds and I often find my sizes are gone if I shop later in the day, so I was at the mall bright and early at 8am when it opened.  I thought I was early but there were already lots of people at the mall.  Old Navy opened earlier than the mall and there was already huge line ups to the cash register that I didn't even bother looking inside. 

After going to a few stores at the mall, I stopped by some outlets that were near by.  I wanted some sweatpants from Roots but alas, they were not on sale.  The Jacob outlet however, rocked!  It was 50% off everything and if you don't mind buying items a season late, I'd recommend going there.

The damage

• 2 tops from Medicino ($50)
• 1 top from Smart Set ($10)
• A gazillion things from Jacob ($36).  Ok not a gazillion but seriously their outlets kicked ass.  I bought Ts for $2.50 and even this dress I had been eyeing when it was over a $100.  It would've rung up for $12 but when I looked at the receipt when I got home, I didn't see it on there.  I wonder if the lady missed it because I bought a bunch of items from there.  Regardless it would've been the most expensive thing I bought there.
• Ratchet and Clank All for One from Amazon.ca ($33 but paid for using the gift cards I got from swagbucks)
• Assassins Creed Revelations from EB Games ($20)

Budgetting again

I think I need to relook @ my spending habits.  I am planning on moving next year with no job lined up!  Crazy I know. I have savings but I don't know how long it needs to last so it's safe to say I am a little stressed.  I just took back a pair of pants to Banana Republic that I just bought because I decided I didn't absolutely need it.  I think I need to create a monthly budget again starting with the new year and figure out where most of my money has been going towards over the last few months. 

Lowest Credit Card Bill Yet

Not sure what it is but this billing cycle has been my lowest with my amex card in practically forever --> Less than $400! Normally I easily average double that a month.

Not sure what it is but lately I haven't been spending too much on random things. Also my grocery bills haven't been too crazy and I have a huge credit with Rogers which results in me not having to pay them for a few months. The best is I haven't cut down on the social activities which I always thought was the root of my spending issues.

I am itching to travel somewhere so this low bill may not last for long!

First snow fall...

It was wishful thinking to hope that the snow free days would last through December. The drive into work this morning wasn't too bad because I imagine lots of people are on holidays with the Christmas season close by. There are a ton of people at work taking days off because they can't carry over them over into 2010 so it's either use it or loose it! That's why I think the roads weren't as crammed as it could have been. The snow also turned into rain half way through my drive, making things easier. However when I got to my parking lot and trekked into the building, my socks & pants were soaked from snow getting into my shoes, reminding me that I still need a good pair of winter boots

Last year I debated investing in a good pair of boots. I ended up going through the winter freezing my little piggies because I never bought that pair. This winter, I am in the same spot thinking about a good pair of winter boots that will keep me warm & dry.

I still really like the North Face Hailey Boot below from last year retailing at a whopping $165!

A new favorite this year is also the North Face Payton boot retailing for $140.
I still can't stomach the retail prices for these even though reality is if I want warm + waterproof, I am going to need to bite the bullet. The plan for the moment is to hold off for a few more weeks and see if I can get them in the US when I am there for the holidays. I am crossing my fingers for my wallet & toes.

MIA

I've been out of action lately. There have been days where I come home and don't even turn my computer on! This is very unlike me but I feel like I've been productive.

I've also been spending lots of money mostly on eating out because sometimes I am still on the road and dinner time strikes. I've been trying my best to make wise choices both in the cash & nutrition side. The sucky thing is I haven't been keeping track of my finances this month in my little spread sheet so I have no idea how over or under budget I am. I imagine over but not totally sure.

I had poutine at New York fries the other day and I don't know if my tastes buds have changed but it honestly was not that great and it cost about $5! New York Fries always leaves me disappointed. You'd think they'd have fries nailed down considering it's their specialty but no.

July 2009 Spending Recap

I've been a little hesitant to do a recap for July because I knew I was over early on in the month. Looking back, I found that I didn't think too much about going over budget and if I wanted something within reason, I gave in and bought it.

• Clothes & Beauty: Budgeted: $100 Actual Spend: $169. I purchased my makeup for little over $100 with shipping and duties but I have no regrets. I expect my foundation to last for another year and the blushes to last forever. I also spent some money thrifting and impulsively at Ardene. I purchased earrings I didn't need, wore them a few times and have since forgotten about them. I am putting them up on my earring rack so atleast I see them and will be more inclined to wear them. I also spent some moola thrifting.
  
• Eating out: Budgeted: $150, Actual Spend: $189. Over by approximately $40. I blame the bf but that's not really an excuse. We've been spending our fair time eating out this month on top of my normal eating out with friends. Add in a friends birthday where I pick up their tab because I refuse to let friends pay for food on their birthday and there you have it.
  
• Entertainment: Budgeted: $25, Actual Spend: $24. This covered tickets for Second City and movie tickets for Bruno. Second City was great and worth every penny. Bruno was not.
  
• Gas: Budgeted: $125, Actual Spend: $99. Don't think I drove any more than usual.
  
• Groceries: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $92. Not much to say here except that I tried out a new recipe this month that's a keeper.
  
• Misc: Budgeted: $20, Actual Spend: $35. I purchased three things here, batteries, wires and a folder. All things that I needed.
  
• Total Budgeted: $520, Actual Spend: $608! Over by $88.
  

A little disappointing that I didn't foresee my spending a little better. I thought I had accommodated for my huge splurge in makeup but looks like I still went a little crazy in the beauty category.

For August, I am going to make my budget $500 because I like nice round numbers. I am also going to increase my eating out budget while decreasing my beauty budget because there's no reason for me to go crazy buying makeup again.

June 2009 Spending Recap

I hope everybody had a great Canada day. I've heard lots of people complain about the fact that it fell on a Wednesday this year but I loved it. I felt like it gave me a boost and I was rearing to go today!

Looking back, I am proud I can finally say this but I came in under budget for once! WOO!

• Clothes & Beauty: Budgeted: $50 Actual Spend: $28. I actually bought a few clothes but at great deals. i.e. $3 Graphic Ts at Old Navy, $10 tops at The Bay during their Bay Days. I even bought a tshirt for the bf within that $28.
  
• Eating out: Budgeted: $150, Actual Spend: $128. I probably would have gone over had I not done a few BBQs instead of eating out at restaurants with friends so that worked in my favor. Hopefully I'll keep this up over the summer months.
  
• Entertainment: Budgeted: $50, Actual Spend: $30. I signed up for a 5k and put the fees here. I probably should have a health category and put the fee for signing up there but since I hardly spend money on health related activities beyond my monthly yoga fee, I couldn't be bothered. I also watched a few movies this month: Hangover & Transformers.
  
• Gas: Budgeted: $150, Actual Spend: $103. Typical driving and I am actually getting most of the money back because work is going to pay gas for some work related travel. At the end of last month, I decided to up my overall budget by $50 to accommodate rising gas prices. Looks like I didn't need to but it's probably best I leave in the extra $50 because gas is sure to go up.
  
• Groceries: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $50. I didn't starve myself but I did eat a lot of things that I have in storage (i.e. canned beans, frozen pizzas, ect.). It's good because I sometimes forget what I have in my cupboards. I also got invited to lots of family things and as a result got lots of leftovers which helped the cause.
  
• Misc: Budgeted: $20, Actual Spend: $100. Sound the alarm, I am majorly over! I bought lots of miscellaneous items for an 'event' that I helped out with and had to purchase lots of last minute things the night before the event that wasn't budgeted for the event and I ended up paying out of my pocket. Is that vague enough for ya?
  
• Total Budgeted: $520, Actual Spend: $439!
  

I upped my budget in June and it looks like I could've stuck with the normal $480 but it's the summer and I want to have fun.

Looking forward, I see spending and lots of it but I am going try my best to stick with the allotted $520 for next month as well.

I am planning on spending a buttload of money (~$100) on makeup at everyday minerals. I currently use their foundation and I am almost out so I am going to place an order. I could live spending about a third of what I am planning on spending but I want to buy an extra foundation as well, a few blushes, their retractable brush and maybe some eyeshadow. I would feel guilty but my last container of foundation lasted me almost a year and what makes me not have a heart attack at spending $100 at one place is that their products don't break me out and I can't say that about too many things. I feel like I am investing in something that I know I'll eventually use up.

I am also planning on taking advantage of the summer weather and doing some day trips here and there (i.e. Niagara falls, some sort of beach, ect.) However, I am going to try my best to plan ahead for these and pack some food for the trip and perhaps even do some baking because why get fast food when you can eat cake!

Birthday Moneys

My birthday was last month and I came into some cash & gifts cards as a result. Awesomeness! Normally it'd all be spent by now but I am trying my best to be rational and spend it on things I need to spend on especially since I dont't really have anything I am really pining for right now. Does anybody still say pining any more?

Anyways, back on topic. Since I overspent in the eating out category last month, I am going to put $50 bday money towards it this month so I can sleep better at night. I am still going to track it as an expense though just so I can see how I do at the end of the month.

May Spending Recap

May was a fly the seat of your pants month which didn't bode well for my budget. I was still high on coming back from vacation, the bf returning and summer finally arriving and didn't quite curb my spending as I had hoped.

• Clothes & Beauty: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $138. With the start of summer, I wanted summer gear. I also wanted to paint my nails again & be girly. The good thing is I don't see myself needing to buy any more nail polishes for the summer so I think I can bring this budget down & shift some cash over elsewhere (i.e. eating out!). I also am going to see if I can sell some of my clothes online.
  
• Eating out: Budgeted: $110, Actual Spend: $170. I never improve here! I know this is my biggest weakness & I guess I am just not willing to give it up either. I can trace this back to two big meals. One, I treated my family to lunch (~$70) & another was when I treated the bf to a nice dinner (~$60) to celebrate things going well at his work.
  
• Entertainment: Budgeted: $50, Actual Spend: $53. Watched some movies & played some bingo. I am happy here.
  
• Gas: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $170. I didn't drive any more than usual but gas prices keep going up and as a result I keep spending more on it. I think as the summer goes on, this will become my big budget buster.
  
• Groceries: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $135. What put me over here was gardening stuff that I debated throwing into misc. Since the gardening items related to herbs which I plan on using cooking, I decided to put it in here. I really should put the herbs here & the supplies in miscellaneous but I can't be bothered to split the receipt up into multiple categories. This is my first foray into growing herbs and I am excited at the idea of being able to pick & choose herbs on a whim.
  
• Misc: Budgeted: $20, Actual Spend: $55. I spent $50 buying some health items. If I had a health category, this would go in there but since I don't Miscellaneous it is.
  
• Total Budgeted: $480, Actual Spend: $721.
  

Over by $241. Not good! I realize that I am not willing to compromise on Eating Out so I am going to increase it by $50 for June. I am also going to up my Gas category up by $50 as well. Clothes & Beauty will be decreased by $50 because I don't see myself needing to spend much here.

March Spending Recap

I was determined when this month started to come in under budget but I sucked again. While I went slight over in most categories, it was mostly purchasing makeup online that killed me.

• Clothes & Beauty: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $220. So I upped this category from last month allowing myself to splurge this month. Well I splurged & then some. I also was silly & didn't factor in US Can conversion or duty when ordering online.
• Eating out: Budgeted: $110, Actual Spend: $121. Slightly over. Treated BF to a nice dinner @ a semi fancy place that we've both wanted to check out for a while. We also found that you can bring your own bottle of wine & pay a small corking fee. The restaurant was a nice find & we'll definitely go back once in the future.
  
• Entertainment: Budgeted: $50, Actual Spend: $18. Woo! I am actually under!
• Gas: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $116. Slightly over & pumped gas on the last day of March.
  
• Groceries: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $115.79. Pretty close to budget and I was adventurous this month & tried out two new recipes!
  
• Misc: Budgeted: $20, Actual Spend: $13. Bought some crafting supplies to convert my palletes into a magnetic pallete.
  
• Total Budgeted: $480, Actual Spend: $606.
  

Over by $126. Had I actually met my $100 beauty budget, I'd pretty much be on par.

I don't plan on keeping my budget bars updated for April as I will be away for most of the month & won't have online access most of the time.

Went out for drinks last night

And as a result I am over in my food budget for March. I made dinner at home and went out just for drinks thinking I'd be good. However the place that we went to was a little on the pricier side and I had such a great time talking to my friend that one drink turned into 2.

Sunday is a lazy day as are most Sundays. Planning on doing some grocery shopping today so I can make some food for the week. Since I am still a little under in my food budget, I want to try being adventurous and try a new recipe. Also planning on cleaning up my place a little and testing out some new things I got at shoppers drug mart yesterday!

off to google recipes....

February Spending Recap

This month was a fail! A big fat fail. I did fairly well in Jan and with Feb being a shorter month I thought I was set. Well things didn't go as planned to say the least. Here is a quick recap of how things went.

• Clothes & Beauty: Budgeted: $30, Actual Spend: $96. This was a fail on two levels because I blew my budget and I also failed my lotion & potion challenge. I do however like the Purity cleanser I purchased & it is something I know I will finish up. I just wished I waited till I finished my current one before purchasing it.
• Eating out: Budgeted: $130, Actual Spend: $160. On family day, I actually went out for lunch w/ the family & paid for the lunch. It was expensive paying for 4 people but I don't regret it one bit. It's nice being able to pay for my parents but not so nice for my budget.
  
• Entertainment: Budgeted: $50, Actual Spend: $10. Went glow in the dark mini golfing w/ the bf & it was fun. They always give you a 2 for 1 coupon every time you play so we never actually pay for 2 tickets anymore.
• Gas: Budgeted: $150, Actual Spend: $117. Hurray for cheap gas prices!
  
• Groceries: Budgeted: $100, Actual Spend: $130. Went a little overboard here but bought things like cereal, oatmeal and other things that will last me a few months.
• Misc: Budgeted: $20, Actual Spend: $42. Doh! So last month this category was $50 & I didn't spend anything that fell in here. I figured it would be the same for this month. Wrong! I purchased my toilet flapper, a candle holder & scissors that fell in here. A random assortment of items I didn't forsee myself purchasing but it happened. I absolutely needed the flapper & scissors. The candle holder though only $5, I didn't need. It was just so pretty & a steal that I had to get it.
• Total Budgeted: $480, Actual Spend: 552.
  

Grr, over by about $70. I am disappointed at myself for going over.

So next month, I am abosolutely going to come in under budget. I am determined! Plus the bf is travelling so a I think the eating out category will come in light. For March, I am going to take away $20 from my eating out category and move it to my clothing & beauty section. I am just itching to buy some eyeshadow.

Jan Spending Recap

My budget, spending & sad explanations of why things went the way they did.

• Clothes & Beauty: Budgeted $30, Net Spend: $2. I actually spent around $22 but returned a top I bought on boxing day for about $20 canceling out most of the purchases made here.
  
• Eating out: Budgeted $100, Spent $111. I knew this would be hard to maintain & sure enough, I spent $111 for Jan. I didn't have anything out of the ordinary, it was a normal month of eating out w/ friends.
  
• Entertainment: Budgeted $50, Spent: $16. I originally had more here but the bf paid for a show I went to earlier & so I removed that. Even though it cost $35 for my ticket, I didn't pay for it. How do you & your significant other pay? We have a laissez-faire approach where I pay once & he pays the next kinda hoping that it evens out at the end of the day.
  
• Gas: Budgeted $150, Spent $109. Wohoo!
  
• Groceries: Budgeted $100, Spent $104. Pretty close to what I had budgeted so no complaints despite going slightly over.
• Misc: Budgeted: $50, Spent: $10. I originally put in a gift I had purchased, in this category for $56. After lots of thinking I decided that gifts should be something separate and not part of the monthly budget. My reasoning is that gifts are something I don't expect to buy every month. Also I have my brothers wedding to attend to and I plan on spending a few hundred on that. I don't want to limit myself or try to stick w/ a budget for that one. It's my brother and I want to get him something thoughtful with butterflies & rainbows & don't want oh, you're blowing your budget thoughts in the back of my mind.
• Total Budgeted: $480, Total Spent: $352
  

Overall under budget but over budget in the food area. I guess I am a girl that loves her food as the two areas I went over in was eating out and groceries.

For February, the budgets the same but I am going to up my Eating Out bucket to $130 and bring my Misc down to $20.

Winterlicious 2009

So I am debating joining my friends for some winterlicious action next week. It's great to be able to eat a 3 course meal for $35 but at the same time, it's still $35. I have to remind myself that scrimping & saving sometimes leads to having no fun. It's hard finding that balance in between.

The months almost over & I didn't go over budget as much as I thought I would in the eating out dept. I am still definately going over but it could've been worse. I think I might up the budget for the next month. Maybe by $20 or $50.

Also I pumped another tank of gas & it came to around $26. The most a tank of gas has cost me this month is $32! I would love for the prices to continue at this rate. I remember easily paying over $50 just a few months ago.

Trying something new...

Like most good people trying to take charge of their spending, I try my best to track expenses. I've tried various methods from tracking things in excel to writing everything down.

The thing with writing all my expenditures in excel was that the document was saved on my home computer. There I'd be at work with an expense & no way of tracking it besides sending myself an email saying hey when you get home, write this down in the tracking document. Well that wouldn't work because by the end of the day the email I had sent myself would be way down in the inbox & I'd forget.

I also tried writing everything down with in a physical notepad that I carried around. While this worked, I felt like a lunatic when I'd go back to the car after a shopping trip & take out my pen & pad & write things down. Sometimes I'd be out with friends & no opportunity to write it down. I felt a little silly doing it in front of them. I know I shouldn't care but I am a little self-conscious in that way.

So what I am trying now is to track my expenses in Google Docs. They have a spreadsheet program which has almost the same functionality as Excel and the best part is I can access it anywhere there is an internet connection. So I've set a little something up and we'll see how it goes. It's very minimalistic at the moment but if it works for me, I might try & spruce it up.

Mid month budget check

Reviewing the budget I had set for myself at the start of the year, I have spent about 60% of what I had budgeted for Jan'09 already. Let's see how I've done

• Clothes & beauty: Surpsingly on target with nothing too expensive I am lemming to buy!
• Eating out: Already @ 90% with 3 dinners scheduled for next week! So definitely going over. Think when I adjust the budget at the end of this month, this area will unfortunately have to be upped.
• Entertainment: I have not entertained myself this month! The biggest factor is that it's cold out there & I am a major homebody when it's cold. This is good because I can save this for when it gets warmer.
• Gas: On track.
  
• Groceries: I think I might be going over on this one as I am a little low on food at the moment.
  
• Misc: Gift purchase from end of December killed this one --> Reiterating that I need to add in a gift category next month.

I don't for see any big expenditures for the rest of Jan so hopefully I don't falter over the next two weeks.

In the mood for boots

I've been debating spending obese amounts of money on a pair of boots that will keep me warm. I have the stylish ones that I look good in but do nothing for my dainty toes when I am outside for hours. I have a couple in mind but can't justify spending ~$100 & don't want Uggs. I am not an Uggs girl. If I see a good sale on any of these, I am there....also almost half of my 2009 clothes & beauty budget will be blown but that's a different story.

Columbia Sportswear Women's Maci Tall Boot @ $105

North Face Women's Haily Boot @ $160

Timeberland Women's Hollace Tall Boot @ $100

Hey, where'd these guys come from? They look so hot that it almost makes freezing your toes worth it.

In the spirit of the lotion & potion challenge, I returned something!

That's right. I returned a body cream you see on the right hand side from Fruits & Passions for a cool $27! Yup just one bottle cost that much. Now in my defense I purchased it not knowing the price and based primarily on scent so I had good intentions. After I bought it I felt bad. This was in December. Well I was going through items I had and I realized I really did not need this. I mean the good ol' Vaseline Intensive lotion for $5 that I already have and is almost double the size will do.

So huzzah for $27! I think I'll add it to the budget even though it's from a December purchase.

Ugh, I think I might need to update my budget

So a few weeks ago I was all gung ho & created a budget. Looking @ it, reality is hitting me that perhaps I was too optimistic when setting it. I am already @ almost 60% of the monthly budget & it's only Jan 6th!! I mean I was keen & started tracking things from the last week of December as opposed to actually starting in January. In retrospect, that was definitely a bad idea considering my big birthday gift purchase for a friend that was higher than expected and as a result has already maxed out my misc category. I think perhaps the best is to budget a $10-$20 gift allotment.

I told the boy about my budgeting for 2009 & he was impressed. He however laughed @ my clothes budget. He thinks there's no way I can do that. Considering I'd easily spend $50-$100/month before. I realize it's aggressive but I am motivated to do it.