Budget

What to Expect when You Weren’t Exactly Trying to Expect Anything..

November 12, 2016 katemcgate1 Comment

Back in January, I was still trying to pursue my Insta famous and blog lifestyle, when something in the pit of my stomach told me that I may be pregnant. I was not trying nor was it the right time for my husband and I to bring a child into the world. However, after taking a pregnancy test and having a class five anxiety attack… I realized it was a blessing in disguise.

My pregnancy was not my favorite thing, but the reward at the end was so amazing. Although everyone says that a baby is expensive– but not in a way you can see right away…so I’m here to uncover the hidden expenses of your new bundle of joy.

Your Doctor Appointments aren’t always covered
Depending on insurance, you can be caught paying for ultrasounds, blood work, and various genetic testing that are always good to get…but not the most cost effective. Don’t even think that your cool 3D image of your baby is remotely covered…and if it is, you’re lucky AF. If your experience is anything like mine, your doctor’s office might not completely understand your insurance and tell you there was no copay, and send you various bills in the mail. Later on in my pregnancy, I went to the doctor every week. Each week, I would receive an envelope in the mail containing a bill for my copay. #super

Maternity Clothes
You know what’s fun? Shopping for overpriced maternity items because the clothing industry KNOWS you have to give in and buy some maternity items. Talk about a fun lesson in economics. Even though I didn’t buy much, I had to buy pants…and the cheapest I could find were some pairs at target on a major sale…so go there for some clothing staples. My suggestion? Find jeggings and maxis. If you are pregnant in the winter, invest in two pairs of pants. Jeans and another pair. It’s easy to find cheap and pretty shirts than a pair of pants for a reasonable price.

Breast Pumps
Ask your doctor about insurance covered pumps…and if you are not pumping– ask your doctor for samples of formula. (The pediatrician will have plenty) An average pump can range in price anywhere from $150-450! I don’t have that kind of cash, my friends.

The Hospital Copay
This can depend on your insurance also, but mine was $500…so keep that in mind when you are planning your birth plan. Also- I didn’t have a birth plan, so don’t ask me for advice on that.
For 500 bucks, get your money out of it– grab those newborn diapers and mesh underwear for your postpartum weeks ahead.

Necessities
So you are having a baby shower? Great. Make sure to REGISTER smart. Yes, clothes are adorable…but no one wants a baby with cute clothes and no diapers. Very messy. Trust me, your friends and family will buy you clothes.

Register for wipes, diapers, dreft, and things you NEED. My go-to list for cheap will be up in a couple days, so stay tuned.

Make sure to get some basic onesies and 4-5 outfits in newborn. My baby was in newborn for just TWO WEEKS…so keep that in mind. AND, at 5 weeks, my baby is almost out of 3 month because he is so tall.

If your friend/family member is having a baby– give them a necessity. It is a lot more of a relief than a cute outfit (then get some cute clothes when the baby is born!)

Food
You think you’re going to want to cook after giving birth? Yea, you’re a psycho. Not only will you forget to go to the bathroom, you will forget what time it is, too. If you want to help a friend out, cook some frozen meals. If you have some time before you give birth, put some crock pot meals together and make some casseroles. Try not to order food every night, even though it’s tempting.

Food for the baby? Don’t give up on breastfeeding right away, try it for a couple weeks. Formula is VERY expensive. Much like maternity clothes, the industry knows you have to buy it. I tried pumping and breast feeding for 3 weeks, and then switched to formula. This is when you ask the pediatrician for those samples.

Childcare
Yea, we all know childcare is an expense…but do you know HOW expensive? I’m literally still having panic attacks about it. Unless you’re a Rockefeller, you may have to go back to work. Nannies, in-home help, and day cares have fees and tuitions that are actually insane. It’s not Harvard. If you have an irregular work schedule FREAKING FORGET trying to find weekend help. So make sure you budget yourself, and ask for some favors along the way. A plate of brownies for your in-laws or neighbor could go a long way.

I’ve only been a mom for a month, so give me some other ideas! The only thing I know is that I have to leave my 6 week old baby while I brave the retail world JUST in time for the holidays. Don’t dogs get 8 weeks?

No Dog is Free

Clearance puppies ain’t cheap.

January 25, 2016January 25, 2016 katemcgateLeave a comment

A couple of months ago, my husband and I were getting something most folk call, “puppy fever.” We just purchased our first house, we had a handle on the bills, and we had worked out our daily schedules. There was nothing serious thrown around until my husband’s best friend told us about a dog that needed some love.

As the all time biggest pushover, I decided to take a leap of faith and make the trek out to Philly. As I sat in my car, I felt as if I was about to go on a first date. I was nervous, and excited to meet the potential newest member of our little family. Voices in the back of my head made me doubt myself, as visions of not having enough money for the mortgage danced in the back of my head. I still went through with the meeting…as I said, I’m a pushover.

As I walked up the stairs to meet this nugget, I could feel myself getting clammy. I’ve had dogs for years, and yet I was standing outside an apartment door with my husband’s best friend asking myself, “Do I put my hand out first? What if she hates me?”

As he opened the door, a 50 pound lug of a mutt came over to me and immediately jumped on me. Her name was Roxie, and she was free. I can’t exactly remember the next couple of hours, as we trotted around the parking lot of the apartment complex. She was far from leash trained, and as we have found out recently, far from being a listener either. 🙂

I made the game time decision to bring her home with me, with the option to bring her back is she wasn’t right for us. The first night, I renamed her Marlow and she slept in our room. She was very attached to both my husband and I as we tried to watch TV before crashing from a long day. She cried for the better part of the next day, and would not stay in her crate. In fact, she literally BROKE a $100 crate by pure force and anxiety. She wasn’t crate trained either. So, that was fun. My first day as the owner of Marlow, and I had already spend close to $500 on supplies for her.

After having a couple of accidents,tearing most of our office walls to shreds, and stealing my favorite blanket as her own, I decided to take her to a vet about separation anxiety. When I say she would lose it when we left…she would LOSE IT. Most of our wall behind our office door was scraped and torn from 1) getting out of her crate and 2) being in a bedroom for a couple of hours. Needless to say, she doesn’t stay in there anymore.

Anywhos, that vet visit came to a whopping $100 for the visit, and the anxiety meds. (Which we never picked up because I cannot rationalize giving my animal a human sedative.) After a couple of days, and lots of advice from dog owners, we learned other ways to develop a routine with her so that she wouldn’t lose her shit each time we left. After a week or so, we started seeing marked improvement.

After another week or so, homegirl decided to get all fuzzy eyed on us, and start peeing everywhere in the house. Let’s call this vet visit another $150 for a UTI treatment…for a freaking dog. Girlfriend got it bad, and it took well over a week for all of the symptoms to go away. So, let that sink into your carpet…no, literally. -_-

Over the holidays, I worked long hours, and attempted to see my parents in New York a couple of times. With my husband being injured, I felt it best to let Marlow stay at the pet hotel…and JEEZ was that another whopping total of about $300 for all of the stays put together. Not to mention the first time we took her to be boarded and she got so nervous that she went to the bathroom all over herself and we had no choice but to get a bath included, partially because “the other dogs won’t go near her.” By the way, that’s super expensive when they are 50 pounds and over.

I am not exactly complaining about Marlow, because she is a love…I guess, after seeing all of the animals and pets that have been given to children this past holiday, I have to say that although Marlow is tough, my husband and I saw the meaning of having a dog. When a dog is given to you, or a dog is “free,” it’s not. It takes a real fool to not realize that, and this spoiled brat will be with us for at least 10 years or so.

Damn mutts. 🙂

Buying a House

November 4, 2015April 5, 2017 katemcgateLeave a comment

Buying a house? Like a real house? To some, that kind of thing makes people quiver. According my husband, it’s the best possible move for us to make rather than renting. Granted, everyone is different…but in our real estate market (PA), it is certainly the right move.

But, buying a house comes with a couple of really…real responsibilities. Ones that you wouldn’t imagine in your wildest dreams. Coming from a girl rifled with anxiety and over thinking, you would think I wouldn’t miss something as big as..oh, a water heater, a roof, or a purchase of a lawn mower…but, we all make mistakes. Right?

I’m here to walk you through this, because as much as other people say, it is almost impossible for a young couple to buy a house…I’m here to tell you, it’s possible. You just have to plan a hell of a lot. (Which is hard for me)

First thing you have to get in order:

Start saving: I’m not talking about $5 every paycheck. I’m talking $100. Rip that band aid off, and get it together. kate spade will ALWAYS be there…and you don’t need to keep up your closet’s appearance, you have bigger fish to fry. If you are already paying rent, make sure to budget yourself. Sit down, and budget into your budget to save about $50-$100 each paycheck…or even every month. It adds up, and it is so worth it in the end.

Start a Savings Account: Transfer your monthly deposit into a savings account that you can’t get your hands on if you have a moment of weakness in Longchamp. We chose to go with Capital One 360, and it seems to give us the best interest rate for the amount of money we had saved up for the house. It also has a really easy app and very pleasant customer service people. We all know I’m hard to please, so obviously they’re doing it right.

Save your pennies: Okay, so this one is dumb, but it helps Michael and me have a little extra cash for when we do want to go out to dinner. Usually, I don’t use cash, but every once in a while we both will withdraw a couple 20’s and use it for the week. ANY change we get goes straight into a huge vase in our room. Since Michael used TDbank, we can change in our pennies and dimes for some crisp hundies if we wait long enough. Some use it as a vacation fund, or a puppy fund…but we use it as a food fund because we’re in love with going out to eat.

Which brings me to my next point….budget your ass.

Sorry, but it has to be said. You literally have no idea how much you hemorrhage in money in ONE DAY if you don’t watch yourself. I’m all about the treat yo’ self…but don’t treat yo’ self to a Chanel if you can only buy a tote from the line at Home Goods. Embrace the cheap, and don’t get tears on your new reusable tote.

I go by the rule: $5 a day on any item you want. Make your food at home, and don’t buy any snacks during the day. Now, the $5 rule is only applicable to frivolous purchases. We all know you have to pump your gas, and buy your groceries…so my $5 is used on my coffee…because I am a beast without it. I sit down after receiving my check and budget in my gas for a week, my groceries, student loans, water bills, electric bills, and our mortgage. After calculating all of our expenses, I see how much we have left.

Since both Michael and I get paid bi-weekly…we multiply 5 times 14…which is obviously 70. I usually give myself $100 in case I forget my lunch one day…but you can you know…not eat or something. I then subtract my “allowance” from my total left…and viola! What you save in that paycheck. It seems like a lot of extra work, but my co-worker turned me into a saving machine when she told me about her unwritten rule! ( thanks G!)

Anyway, back to the important stuff, the house and stuff.

Go Slow: Trust me, you would rather be in your situation and saving for 3 years than buy a house without much planning and be house poor…the worst kind of poor. Not only are you bound by contracts and bills…but you can also be charged a hell of a lot of interest, fees, and garnishing of your freaking paycheck if you can’t pay. This holds true for buying that beautiful new couch for your cozy new living room as well. If you can get a free couch for now, TAKE IT. Take anything you can and say thank you. It doesn’t matter if you don’t like the color for your theme…take it and don’t complain. Second hand furniture is the best kind…because it’s mostly FREE. Save that money for a new couch down the line, when you can afford to drop $700 and not cry as they swipe your credit card…oops.

Expect the impossible: You think you won’t have a bum roof? You will. Concrete problems? Yes, those too. Make sure to allot for the unexpected and impossible, because 9 times out of 10, a new (for you) home will have it’s issues, whether it’s carpenter ants or a water heater that leaks…make sure to are prepared for it, because it will happen.

Now that I’ve thoroughly discouraged you…sorry…I will leave you with one thing:

While I am sitting at my kitchen table, that we bought by ourselves for $500 off of Close5, I will say, it feels pretty damn good to know that I have at least on thing handled.

Now, if I could get my dog to stop jumping onto my bed…

Love you, mean it.