In May of this year, global iGaming giant Flutter shareholders overwhelmingly voted to relocate the company’s primary listing from its home in London to the shining lights of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). With 98% of shareholders voting in favor of the move, this has illuminated to many the ever-evolving dynamics of the…

Hi there.  I’m late again, as ever these days.  As busy as we were in Q3, that shouldn’t be surprising.  Click on in if you are interested in seeing what we were up to. 

You can check the latest and greatest info on the Track Our Progress page.

First, the numbers:

Net Worth:

• End of Quarter 3 Balance: $1,639,288 Up $79,0696 from Quarter 2.
• Year to Date (YTD): Up $307,450 (23.1%)
• Since January 2018 (this is when I started tracking our net worth): Up $1,334,288

Portfolio:

• End of Quarter 3 Balance: $1,342,285 Up $89,063 from Quarter 2.
• YTD: Up $305,099 (29.4%)*
• Since January 2018: Up $1,102,285*

*This is total value as opposed to an internal rate of return.

Road Warriors

We really put in some miles in Q3. In July we took the RV down to the Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky. The campground we stayed at was Hillman Ferry, and we quite enjoyed it. Our campsite was nestled below tall pine trees and there were plenty of opportunities to ride the e-bikes and explore. The highlight of the trip; however, was renting a pontoon boat and spending a day on Kentucky Lake. The boat traffic was shockingly light considering it was a holiday weekend (right after the 4th of July). Everyone loved tubing behind the boat. We also visited the Elk and Bison Prairie and got some great photos with the wildlife. With this area being less than 4 hours drive from St. Louis, we almost certainly will be back again.

Later in July, we took the year’s BIG ROADTRIP. A 900-mile voyage to Charleston, South Carolina with the RV in tow.  We knocked it out in 2 days of driving on the way there… but did it in a single, LONG, day on the return home.  Whew!  By completing the 900 miles in a single day, our eyes have been opened to future trips to points further (specifically to the west).  

Charleston, itself, was amazing.  The history of the area surrounds you wherever you are.  We toured the Provost and Exchange Building, strolled through White Point Garden, and walked down Rainbow Row. But perhaps my favorite part was taking a ferry out to Fort Sumter.  You can feel the significance of the place when you are there.  From seeing the cannonballs still stuck in the walls, and seeing the fingerprints in the bricks by the children who formed them.  Our kids got the opportunity to lower the flag at the fort, which put this tour over the top.  

Another highlight was touring the Yorktown and Laffy at Patriots Point.  These floating exhibits were done well.  As in the City, the sense of history on these boats could not be avoided.  Even those among us who are not really into “history” left impressed.  

Beyond the history we very much enjoyed a kayaking tour of Shem Creek and enjoyed the unique beauty of the swamp with a visit to Cypress Gardens.  And let’s not forget the food! I greatly enjoyed the local cuisine and personally tried several versions of shrimp and grits and seafood stew.  Yum!

In August we jaunted down to Branson with the RV for a three day weekend in a Corps of Engineer campground on Table Rock Lake called Indian Point.  The main goal of this trip was to enjoy Silver Dollar City, which we did.  I hadn’t been there in nearly 30 years and I’m happy to say it didn’t disappoint.  Our favorite ride was Time Traveler, but I personally most enjoyed the tour of Marvel Cave.  If you get the chance to take the cave tour… do not skip it!  Another fun activity was go-karting.  My extended family on my dad’s side used to have a yearly vacation to Branson and one thing we ALWAYS did, was race each other at The Track.  This was the first time either of our daughters had the chance to drive go-karts, and they thoroughly enjoyed it. 

In late August we FLEW (shocking, I know) to Nashville for Mrs. HoF’s 40th Birthday party with two other couples. We stayed in the Five Points neighborhood in East Nashville, and enjoyed our AirBnB there.  We took in the nightlife on Broadway, and dined at some tasty restaurants near where we stayed. 

For Labor Day, we hooked up the RV again and headed south to Sam A. Baker State Park.  The weather was a bit hit and miss, but we did get a good day hanging out on the St. Francois River.  As spread out as this park is, it is a great place to break out the e-bikes and so we did. 

Last, but not least, we took the RV to Columbia, MO for our annual MIZZOU game.  We bit the bullet and bought passes to one of the tailgating lots and absolutely had a blast.  The game was a sellout and a real nail biter, with the Tigers surviving Vanderbilt after 2 overtimes, and the weather just barely held out long enough for us to enjoy it.     

With all of this traveling, I don’t have a whole not more to say about Q3, honestly, other than to emphasize that these trips are WHY we track our net worth and save.    

Coming Up in 2024 Q4

We have only one remaining RV trip set in Q4 and then we will get the rig winterized and put away until spring (always a bittersweet feeling).

There is also one last vacation: Staying in a cabin in the Smoky Mountains with my extended family.

The holidays will dominate the latter portion of the quarter, and we will be doing a little book keeping on some year-end financial matters. And of course, we will start planning and booking next years RV adventures!

Thanks for reading!

Back in September I asked ChatGPT how to make chicken curry in our slow-cooker (aka Crock Pot).

I didn’t use the first recipe it gave me – I had it refine the recipe until I was happy with the results. I made it, and, while my kids didn’t like it (they’re 4 and 6 and don’t like trying new foods) my wife enjoyed it.

I’m making it again today, so I figured I’d copy the recipe here on my blog so I can reference it without searching for it on ChatGPT.

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds (about 700g) boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
• 2 tablespoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika (for color; optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional, for heat)
• 1 can (14 oz/400 ml) diced tomatoes
• 1 can (14 oz/400 ml) coconut milk
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon olive oil or melted butter (optional, for richness)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup frozen peas (optional)
• Fresh cilantro, chopped (for garnish)
• Cooked rice or naan bread (for serving)

Instructions

1. Prepare the Ingredients:

   Chop the onions, garlic, and ginger. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces.

2. Combine Ingredients in the Slow Cooker:

   Place the chopped onions, garlic, and ginger into the bottom of the slow cooker.

   Add the chicken pieces on top of the aromatics.

3. Add Spices and Liquids:

   Sprinkle the curry powder, cumin, turmeric, coriander, paprika, and cayenne pepper (if using) over the chicken.

   Add the diced tomatoes, coconut milk, chicken broth, and tomato paste.

   Drizzle the olive oil or melted butter over the top for added richness (optional).

   Season with salt and pepper.

4. Mix Ingredients Together:

   Stir gently to combine all the ingredients. Ensure the chicken is coated with the spices and liquids.

5. Cook the Curry:

   Cover the slow cooker with its lid and set it to cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. The chicken should be tender and fully cooked through, and the flavors well developed.

6. Add Peas (if using):

   About 30 minutes before the end of the cooking time, add the frozen peas to the slow cooker. Stir them in and continue cooking.

7. Finish and Serve:

   Taste the curry and adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper if needed.

   Serve the chicken curry hot, garnished with fresh cilantro, over cooked rice or with naan bread on the side.

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In today’s digital landscape, the shift toward remote work is more pronounced than ever. However, finding reliable and legitimate work-from-home opportunities can be challenging, particularly for those new to the remote work scene. This article aims to ease that challenge by highlighting 20 companies that are not only thriving in the remote work environment but […]

The post 20 Work at Home Companies With an A+ BBB Rating appeared first on The Work at Home Wife.

VA Home Loans, which are backed by the Department of Veterans Affairs, are among the best options for veterans looking to purchase or refinance a home. They offer several advantages over conventional mortgages, including lower interest rates and 0% down payments. But most buyers have to pay a funding fee in order to use this benefit. Those who pay it typically just add it to their loan balance.

Key Takeaways:

• Purpose and Requirement: The VA funding fee is a one-time payment required for most VA home loans, with certain exemptions available.
• Fee Calculation and Payment Options: The funding fee varies based on several factors, and borrowers have multiple payment options.
• Reducing and Exempting the Fee: Under specific conditions, the VA funding fee can be reduced or exempted.
• Refinancing Fees: Different types of VA refinance loans have varying funding fees.
• Tax Deductibility and Refunds: The VA funding fee may be tax-deductible, and refunds are possible under certain circumstances.

Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways:
2. VA Funding Fee Calculator
3. What is a VA funding fee? 
4. How much is the VA funding fee?
1. VA Loan Funding Fee Charts 2024 
5. Calculating the VA Funding Fee 
1. How can I reduce my VA funding fee?
2. VA Funding Fee for Refinance Loans
3. VA Funding Fee for VA Loan Assumptions
4. How do I pay for the VA funding fee?
6. VA Loan Funding Fee Exemptions 
7. Can you get a refund on the VA funding fee? 
8. Can you write off the VA funding fee?
9. More Reading

VA Funding Fee Calculator

What is a VA funding fee? 

The VA funding fee is a one-time payment to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to support the continued operation of the VA loan program for veterans. This fee is relatively low compared to the fees and additional costs, like private mortgage insurance (PMI), associated with other loan types. Although the borrower usually pays this fee, they can negotiate for the seller to cover it.

How much is the VA funding fee?

Some veterans may be exempt, and while most veterans pay a 2.15% funding fee, the actual fee can range from 0.5% to 3.3% of your loan amount, depending on the following factors:

• Loan type: The type of VA loan you choose, such as a home purchase or refinance, affects the funding fee percentage.
• Down payment: The size of your down payment can lower the funding fee; larger down payments typically result in a reduced fee.
• First-time or subsequent user: First-time VA loan users generally pay a lower funding fee than those using the benefit for subsequent loans.

VA Loan Funding Fee Charts 2024 

Here are the funding fees for purchasing a property with a VA loan:

Down Payment is	First-Time VA Loan use	Subsequent VA Loan use
Less than 5%	2.15%	3.3%
5% or more	1.5%	1.5%
10% or more	1.25%	1.25%

Calculating the VA Funding Fee 

To calculate your VA loan funding fee, multiply the loan amount by the applicable funding fee percentage. 

VA Funding Fee = Loan Amount x Funding Fee Percentage

For example, suppose you are a first-time homebuyer purchasing a home for $350,000 with no down payment. The 2024 VA funding fee percentage for first-time homebuyers with 0% down is 2.15%. 

The VA funding fee calculation would be $350,000 x 0.0215 (2.15 as a decimal), which equals $7,525. If the borrower chooses to roll the one-time fee into the loan amount, the total loan would equal $357,525.

$7,525 = $350,000 x 0.0215

The VA funding fee can be paid in cash at closing or wrapped into the loan to avoid spending several thousand dollars upfront. Your lender will send the paid fee to the VA on your behalf. 

How can I reduce my VA funding fee?

First-time and subsequent borrowers can decrease the VA funding fee with a down payment of 5% or more. Increasing that down payment to 10% reduces the funding fee even further. 

Remember, down payments aren’t required for VA loans; that’s one of their biggest benefits. However, putting money down can offer multiple advantages besides reducing the VA funding fee. Making a down payment on your house also earns you instant equity, enhancing your financial stability and potentially lowering your monthly mortgage payments.

Furthermore, refinancing your existing VA loan through the VA Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL) program typically results in a lower funding fee. Be sure to consult with your lender to explore all available options and ensure you’re taking full advantage of any potential reductions.

VA Funding Fee for Refinance Loans

The VA provides two notable refinancing options: the Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL) and the VA Cash-Out refinance. The funding fee for each type of VA refinance varies since they have different objectives.

An IRRRL, also known as a streamline refinance, serves as a tool for current VA homeowners to obtain a lower mortgage rate or aim to transition from an adjustable rate to a fixed-rate VA loan. The VA IRRRL funding fee is 0.5%, regardless of subsequent use or service history. 

A VA Cash-Out refinance offers qualified veterans the opportunity to refinance their homes while tapping into their equity and accessing additional funds. Eligibility for a VA Cash-Out refinance extends to eligible veterans with VA loans and those with non-VA loans.

The Cash-Out refinance loan VA funding fee is 2.15% for first-time users and 3.3% for subsequent users. 

VA Funding Fee for VA Loan Assumptions

When a VA loan is assumed, the funding fee is typically 0.5% of the loan balance. This fee is required regardless of whether the new borrower is a veteran or civilian. Like other loans, the fee can be paid in cash at the time of assumption or rolled into the loan amount, subject to lender approval. 

It’s important to consult with your lender to understand all the costs and requirements of assuming a VA loan.

How do I pay for the VA funding fee?

VA buyers have several options for paying the VA funding fee, including paying it out of pocket at closing, financing it over the life of the loan or requesting that the seller cover the fee on their behalf. Your lender will send the money to the VA on your behalf.

VA Loan Funding Fee Exemptions 

Suppose you are hoping to waive the VA funding fee. In that case, you may be eligible for an exemption under the following circumstances:

• You receive compensation for a service-connected disability
• You received a Purple Heart
• You are the surviving spouse of a veteran who died in service or from a service-connected disability

These exemptions are designed to cater to veterans who have experienced significant service-related challenges, ensuring their financial burden is lessened when taking out a VA loan. The list above is not exhaustive, either.

If you don’t know if you are exempt, you can check your Certificate of Eligibility (COE). It will say if you are exempt. If you don’t have a COE, check out our article on How to Get a VA Loan Certificate of Eligibility.

Can you get a refund on the VA funding fee? 

Yes, you may be able to get a refund on the VA funding fee if you are found eligible for an exemption after you have already paid the fee. For instance, if your disability claim is approved after closing on the loan and retroactive to a date prior to your loan closing, then you might be able to obtain a refund. 

To be eligible for a refund of the VA funding fee, borrowers must either have been awarded VA disability compensation before the loan’s closing date or have a pending VA disability claim that is later approved with an effective date prior to the loan’s closing date.

To claim your refund, contact your VA lender. You will need to provide documentation proving your exemption status. Once the VA processes the information, they will distribute your refund. 

Can you write off the VA funding fee?

You may be able to deduct the VA funding fee from your taxable income if you claim it in the same tax year you paid it. Generally, if you financed the fee into your mortgage, only the amount paid during the tax year can be written off.

Be sure to talk to a tax professional for further guidance. 

More Reading

VA Loan Closing Costs – What to Expect

The VA Loan Process: Explained

VA Loan Benefits: VA Non-Allowable Fees Explained

Equal Housing Opportunity. The Department of Veterans Affairs affirmatively administers the VA Home Loan Program by assuring that all Veterans are given an equal opportunity to buy homes with VA assistance. Federal law requires all VA Home Loan Program participants – builders, brokers, and lenders offering housing for sale with VA financing – must comply with Fair Housing Laws and may not discriminate based on the race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin of the Veteran.

Tired of the Lemonade Stand idea? Check out 100 new and unique ways to make money as a kid.

Why did I choose to write a list of 100 ways to make money as a kid?

Because finding ways for kids under 13 to make money is kind of difficult.

And the lists you can find online? Well, it seems to be the same thing over and over again.

Not only will your child find multiple ways they feel comfortable with to start bringing in a little cash, but I’ve included actual stories from parents and their kids who did the thing and made the money.

Excited to get started? I am!

Pssst: once your child starts earning money, you’ll likely want to figure out your Money Rules and Money Boundaries around it. Build out your Kid Money System here.

Here are the main ways a child can earn money:

• Earn Cash Around the Neighborhood
• Create and Sell Something
• Get an IRL (In Real Life) Job
• Earn Cash Online
• Earn Through an Allowance/Chore Commissions
• Do At-Home Chore Projects
• Figure Out How to Get Their Money to Earn Its Own Money

And within each of these categories, are tons of ideas.

Earn Cash Around the Neighborhood

There are tons of ideas for ways your child can earn cash around their neighborhood.

1. Clean Up Storm Debris for Tips

It seems like huge storms are becoming more of a normal thing. And this takes a lot of cleanup.

Tara from ArtsyFartsyLife shared that her son and friend went around their neighborhood after a recent large storm with a huge box of heavy-duty trash bags and made $100 in tips by helping people clean up storm debris.

2. Detail People’s Cars

Crystal from SimplifyOrlando.com has been hiring her tween since she was 12 to detail the family car. She’s 14 now and earns $10 each time she does it.

Detailing includes things like vacuuming the car, dusting it, etc.

3. Recycle Bottles for Cash

There are 10 states with bottle bills where you can earn cash by recycling bottles.

They are:

• California
• Connecticut
• Hawaii
• Iowa
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• New York
• Oregon
• Vermont

How much can a child make doing this?  

Samantha from SammyApproves lives in California, and her kids make money from their recycling bins.  

She shared, “Our kids do all of our recycling. Bottles, glass, cans, and cardboard and split the profits. We have different bins on our back porch for each type of item (glass, plastic). They take it in once a month and usually get about $60 (that’s $20 for each of the 3 kids).” 

4. Sell Icy Treats at the Neighborhood Pool

We’re lucky enough to have a neighborhood pool right around the corner from our house.

And an ice cream truck goes there about twice a day (boy do they rack up!).

I got to thinking: my own son could buy some icy treats, put them in a cooler, and sell them to poolgoers several times a day.

Yours could, too!

5. Sell School-Specific Shoe Strings

Ahead of homecoming events, or at sporting events (with permission), your child could buy bulk sets of school-colored shoe strings and sell them at a good markup.

You could do this ahead of the year’s Superbowl game as well, in your neighborhood.

6. Offer Snow Shoveling Services

Before the winter season hits, your child can talk to a few neighbors with you and try to secure 1-3 clients for the winter.

Help your child be clear on what part of the property their new client expects to be shoveled cleared, and to come up with a price per snow.

Also, your child could just take a snow shovel around to trusted neighbors after the next big snow day, and ask to shovel snow on the spot.

7. Open a Farmer’s Market Slime Stall

Kids love making slime! Wouldn’t it be fun to make pails of slime, and then dish it out at a Farmer’s Market stand one Saturday?

Create 3-4 different varieties, and then sell slime by the scoop.

Depending on the costs to create the product, your child could charge $0.25/scoop, $0.50/scoop, or even $1.00/scoop.

Here are some slime recipes to get you started:

• Fluffy Unicorn Slime
• Jello Slime Recipe
• Green Slime

8. Sell a Lot of Empty Toilet Paper Rolls

Your child can ask neighbors to save their empty toilet paper rolls (the cardboard). Have your child collect them at a certain time each month.

Then, help them set up a lot of toilet paper rolls to sell on eBay, Gumtree, or local Facebook marketplaces – people use them for crafting and more.

Of course, as with many of these ideas, your child shouldn’t expect to get rich. A look at “sold” lots of toilet paper rolls shows earnings of between $2.99 all the way up to $19.99 for 200 of them.

9. Get Into Sneaker Restoration & Customization

Your child could learn how to restore sneakers and practice on pairs they find at thrift stores.

Then, they can offer their services to restore old, or dirty sneakers and then sell them to “Sneaker Heads”.

Check out this video for more info.

And here’s information on how to start a business repairing and customizing sneakers:

10. Teach Neighborhood Kids How to Ride a Bike

Some parents love to teach their kids to ride a bike for the first time. Some would rather hire out!

Offer lessons as a service, if your child does well with younger children.

11. Be a Neighborhood Pool Helper

A mother with multiple younger children might feel a bit scared taking them all to the pool by herself (even with a lifeguard).

Your child could offer to help keep an eye on the little ones if they already know how to swim.

OR, they could be the person who stays out of the pool when some of her kids don’t want to swim but others do.

12. Donation Pick-Up and Drop-Off

Can your child have you drive them around your neighborhood on a designated date/time to pick up donations to take to Goodwill or a local charity?

They could have neighbors put these bags out on their front porch, with payment (or knock for payment).

13. Pick Up Metal to Scrap

Again, can your child use your truck to pick up scrap metal from neighbors and cash it in? Here’s a whole article on how to scrap metal for extra cash.

14. Costume Dress-Up Appearance

Kids can rent a costume of fun characters and offer to make appearances at younger kids’ birthday parties.

15. Help Set Up Easter Egg Hunt for Younger Kids

Does a local organization host a big annual Easter Egg hunt? You could ask if they need help and are looking to hire a child for a few hours.

16. Sitter for a Local Book Club or Bible Study

Do adults meet up for a book club or other club in your area? Your child could offer babysitting services (and with a friend or two, if there are lots of kids) at the meetup place so that adults are still around if needed.

Creating and Selling Something (at School, Market Day, Fairs, etc.)

Does your child have an entrepreneur fair, or classroom Market Day at school?

I’ve got loads of ideas for things they can make and sell at school (they can use these ideas to sell in neighborhoods, Farmer’s Markets, and more, too).

1. Start a Frozen Cookie Dough Business

Ella decided to create a frozen cookie dough business, with free delivery.

She made new cookie dough batches about once a week, then flash-froze them.

She also made a flyer and a Google form where people could place their orders.

You could even sign up for a membership, where you receive a half dozen balls of frozen cookie dough ($16 a month) or a dozen balls of frozen cookie dough ($32 per month).

Pretty neat!

2. Sell Customized Toys on eBay

Anna shared with me what her son is doing to earn between $1200 – $1500 this year alone: selling toys on eBay.

Some toys have been old ones of his or his friends (and he splits the profits with the ones he sells from friends).

Then there are the other toys that he customizes.

“He has some old Star Wars figures he’s customized and then sold. Sometimes it’s buying small toys off eBay he knows are worth more and reselling those or fixing them up (sanding, painting, patching, etc.) before he resells. He occasionally will sell a small part or item he can make from a 3D printer, but that’s a lot less frequent.”

3. Make and Sell Custom Cookies

Bethany says “My 14-year-old took 10 cookie decorating classes with our homeschool co-op. She has been selling cookies since June and making good money!”

Her daughter charges between $18 and $24 a dozen (and more for cookies free from gluten and natural dyes, or if they want them wrapped).

The cost is around $4 – $5/dozen to make (more if they’re gluten-free). The most costly ingredients are butter and meringue powder, and they now buy them in bulk to decrease the cost.

Bethany says, “Right now, she sells to people on my FB – so people I know. But a friend is making her a logo so she can get a FB page running. She plans to expand into cake pops and cupcakes soon. She took a cake decorating course too through our co-op. She does well with my friends alone. She had 6 dozen due this previous week. Her 4th of July special sold 15 dozen!”

4. Holiday Gift-Shopping Babysitter

Parents need time to shop for their kids (and for everything else on their list around the holidays – ask me how I know!).

Offering a service where they can drop off their child while you and our child are home to be played with could really take off around the holidays.

5. Make and Sell Roblox Items

Does your child use Roblox? They’ll need a premium account to do this – but they can create Roblox items and then actually sell them for Robux!

You’ll need to help them download Roblox Studio. This video has a good breakdown of how to sell an item, and how to create something in Roblox to sell.

6. Enter a Writing Contest with a Cash Prize

I wish I had known about writing contests when I was a child. Writing was all that I wanted to do!

Here are several your child can enter:

• Scholastic Storyworks Writing Contests
• Poetic Power Student Poetry Contest
• John Estey Student Writing Competition

7. Make Homemade Bath Salts with Fresh Petals

Mom Karen’s kids have kept their own garden beds within their larger family’s garden. They help maintain all of the garden beds, and in exchange, they get to use parts of it to earn money.

For example, the kids make bath salts with flower petals from the garden. Mom Karen says, “They charge $4/100g bag of bath salts with about a $2.50 profit.”

Karen explains, “Their “products” sell well at farmers markets and on our local community FB buy sell page. They offer free bicycle delivery in our neighborhood and we help them deliver within a 15-minute drive. We live on a small island, where literally everywhere is within 15 minutes.” 

Why are her kids so successful with this product (and several others)?

Karen says, “I think a lot of their success comes from the largely senior demographic of our community. There are lots of kids here, but not many doing this kind of thing, and tons of grandparents whose own grandkids live further away! We also uphold a high standard of what they sell (high-quality control), which I think helps. The bicycle delivery and their good manners always get a lot of positive feedback too.”

8. Make Pressed Flower Bookmarks

Karen’s kids have also been making bookmarks with pressed flowers from their own gardens from the ages of 4-10.

Karen says, “The bookmarks cost them maybe 25 cents each for the paper (we buy big watercolour paper and cut it to size) and they use our general watercolour paints so we don’t allocate that cost. They charge $3 each bookmark.”  

So, where do her kids get the money to buy their supplies? Karen explains, “They have “seed money” that we give them as part of their allowance that they use to buy supplies. When they take on an endeavour, they have to pay back their seed money first, and get to do what they like with the rest of their profits. Each week they each receive $3, 1 each for their “seed money”, “spending” and “savings”. They get to choose the savings goal. It’s usually a Lego kit.” 

9. Make Custom Notepads

Did you know you can make a custom notepad out of any papers you want, using this simple notepad kit?

You can find tutorials for how to design these using free Canva, like this one, on YouTube.

10. Make Doggy Shampoo Bars

People lovvvveeee their dogs.

Give them a chance to pamper their dog and spend money with you by creating dog shampoo bars of soap.

You’ll need to help your child with this recipe, FYI (it uses lye). But the end product looks SO great, and she explains why it’s a healthy version of soap to use on dogs.

11. Rent Out Your Drone

This idea comes from my very own 9-year-old.

He absolutely loves to fly his drone (he’s on his third – they’re surprisingly affordable, and he purchased his first one).

He came up with the idea to do a drone show. While he hasn’t managed to pull that one off yet (he asked for a steep $10/ticket), I do think that there’s money to be made by renting out his drone.

We’ll see how this goes (I’ll report back!).

12. Sell Foot-Long Cookie Bars

I kind of think Subway® has come up with a genius idea with their new footlong cookie bars.

Your child can create ones easily at home.

Find a cookie bar recipe (I used this one but with chocolate chips), and make sure it fits into a 9” X 13” pan (which happens to measure 1 ft lengthwise).

Allow everything to cool, and cut it into 1-ft. long strips.

Then package it up. I was able to fit them into a lunch bag, or in some parchment paper (you could staple the end if you want to).

13. Sell Homemade Doggy Treats at the Dog Park

Find your local dog park, and make some homemade dog treats. Be sure to print out your recipes (for anyone who asks).

Package them up, and sell them at a table.

Here are a few doggy treat recipes.

14. Sell Gourmet S’Mores Kits at Camping Grounds

Can your child set up a stand at a local camping ground on Saturday mornings to sell these kits to campers? OR, ask the camping ground to include a display of them and split the profit.

Very simple to make, and campers will enjoy them.

15. Smartphone Home Screen and Lock Screen Designs

Lots of kids/tweens/teens have their own smartphones. Your child could use a free graphic design program to design a background image for people to buy and use on their phones.

Here’s an example of one.

They might want to write up and print out instructions for how to install the background image on an iPhone to hand out to customers.

16. Make and Sell Reusable Straw Charms

Lots of people are using reusable cups with straws now, so why not offer them a cute reusable straw charm?

Here’s how to make this.

17. Make and Sell 3D Print Toys

Our library offers free 3D printing (1 per child, per week), which is a pretty sweet deal.

He’s had some fun toys printed up.

I’ve actually talked to a mother whose child creates toys at their library’s 3D printer, and sells them!

18. Make and Sell First Aid Car Kits

Check out here for how I created Dollar Tree First Aid Car Kits pretty cheaply. Your child could make these, and sell them for a profit.

19. Make and Sell Stickers

Your child can create stickers that are very kid/tween/teen-friendly, and sell those.

Here’s a whole tutorial.

20. Rent Out a Metal Detector

Kids and tweens love to use metal detectors.

If your child has some money they can invest, then they can buy a metal detector, and rent it out to neighborhood kids who want to use it to detect treasure in their yards (without having to buy their own).

21. Doggie Adventure Outings

Dog owners can feel guilty for not really playing much with their pets.

Instead of offering regular ol’ dog walking services, your child can offer a dog adventure service.

This could include taking someone’s dog for 45 minutes or an hour to:

• Trail walking
• Free play at the doggy park
• Play workout
• Etc.

22. Get Really Good at Screen Protector Replacement

Do you know how much Apple charges to replace your screen protector? I do, because I tried to get it done there. But I completely balked at the $39.99 price tag.

Your child could get good at replacing screen protectors, and offer the same service for $10-$15 (I’ve done this three times in the last six months, and it’s definitely a skill you get better and better out. I sourced my screen protectors at Walmart for about $5 each).

23. Event Cleanup Services

Is your child good at cleaning up (well, at least when money is involved)?

They could offer help cleaning up after parties around the neighborhood. Trash cleanup, dishes, sweeping the floors, etc.

24. Sell Hot Chocolate Glitter Kits

Your child can make these edible chocolate gems, then sell them in a package with a hot cocoa mix pack and marshmallows.

25. Sell Glitter Hot Cocoa Bombs

Edible glitter is so fun…and pretty. Your child could make hot cocoa bombs, roll them in edible glitter, and package them up to sell.

26. Create Thrift Store Book Blind Dates

Your child could collect adult books from thrift stores that are in relatively good shape, and add a cover to them to make them Blind Date Books.

Set up a table at a craft fair, or church fair, or wherever adults will be, and offer Blind Date Books to surprise themselves into reading.

27. Make and Sell Mood Ring Surprise Eggs

Kids LOVE to be surprised. Your child could buy mood rings in bulk, and then create these dinosaur eggs. They would put a mood ring inside of each one, and then sell them as a surprise that other kids have to dig through to find.

28. Sell Polished Rocks

Buy one of these rock tumblers, and have your child tumble lots of rocks. They can sell them in lots.

In Real Life (IRL) Kid Jobs

Ready for your child to work at a real job, or at least as “real” of a job they can get at their age?

1. Work On a Local Farm

I grew up on a family dairy farm. And we definitely had reasons to hire kids and tweens occasionally.

Such as hay-making season. Or when we opened our pumpkin stand for the fall.

You and your child can check into any local farms you have, and ask if they have the need for seasonal work or could use help on the weekends.

Also, check veterinarians and places with horses – one of my first jobs was mucking horse stalls.

2. Work On an Orchard

Kids under 16 can work at an orchard, as long as the work is non-hazardous, they have parental permission, and it doesn’t take place during school hours.

Read more about child agriculture jobs, here.

3. Hire Your Child in Your Business

Did you know that you can get a tax deduction while paying your child to work in your business?

Oh yeah! That’s a win-win.

Here’s a really helpful video all about how to hire your child to work for you.

4. Mother’s Helper for Holiday Party

My friend’s friend hired older kids to help entertain and watch younger kids at her holiday party so that the adults could relax.

This is a great service to sell!

5. Braid Hair at a Little Girls’ Sleepover

Is your child particularly good at braiding hair? They could be hired for an hour to braid hair at a neighborhood girls’ sleepover party.

6. Do Doggie Doo-Doo Clean-Up

I had to do this as a kid and didn’t get paid. How cool would it be to get paid to do something that most adults would rather not?

My friend, Aurora, also mentioned that this could be a great service for pregnant mothers/families (don’t forget cat litter box clean up, too!).  

7. Work a Concession Stand at Sports Events, Fairs, Festivals, etc.

Get in touch with your local Chamber of Commerce, and ask about any festivals or fairs happening in your area. You can reach out to vendors, and see if they could use a child to help with the cash register, delivering orders, putting together orders, etc.

8. Become a Junior Referee Official

Did you know that, depending on the sport and organization, the age range for junior referee officials is between 10 and 13 years old?

For example, kids can apply to referee at local and regional tournaments and scrimmages for the US Judo Federation starting at 10. 

Or for US Youth Soccer, starting at age 13.

9. Face Paint at Parties and Events

You can read all about 12-year-old Ella’s face-painting job here.

You’ll learn about what materials she uses, how much she charges, how she got started, permits, and much more.

10. Become a Vending Machine Operator and Owner

Your child could save up a decent chunk of change to purchase a used vending machine, like 12-year-old Adrian did, and then operate it.

He saved up and purchased a $1500 used machine (he looked at both eBay and Facebook). He purchased bulk snacks and drinks to stock his machine with and housed it in his father’s waiting room at work.

He’s learned so many lessons, such as how key location is, and to pay attention to which snacks sell out fastest.

Here are much lower-cost candy vending machines, plus further information if your child is interested.

11. Be a Mother’s Helper

A Mother’s Helper is exactly that – someone who is with a mother in their house, and who can help them with any number of tasks they need done.

For example, Shannon from ShannonTorres.com says when she was around 12, she was a Mother’s Helper to someone with two young children.

She says, “I would go there and help her with all kinds of random things. Folding laundry, entertaining kids, cleaning, and anything she needed help with at the moment. The mom was always there, so I was literally there to just help her. I think I made around $8 an hour (but that was 30 years ago lol).”

12. Work in a Distant Family Business

Maybe you don’t own a business, but your brother or parents do. Ask if your child could come to work some hours part-time for them.

13. Work at a Farm Stand

I have such fond memories of working at our farm stand on our farm (from probably about age 11 until I graduated high school).

My parents also hired our friends for some part-time work on our farm stand. Ask around at local farm stands you find!

14. Help with Farmer’s Market Set-Up and Takedown

When I was in college, I drove Amish workers to a farmer’s market each Saturday for a year. There were always kids helping their parents and relatives set up and take down their tables before and after the day started.

Online Kid Cash-Earning Opportunities & Jobs

You’ve likely noticed there are not many online kid money-earning opportunities.

Which makes sense.

BUT, there are a few, and I’ll include the minimum age requirements below.

Also, some of these sites only pay by PayPal, and you cannot have a PayPal account under the age of 18. Check out my article on if parents can open a PayPal account for their child.

1. Testbirds (Test Software and Get Paid to Find Bugs)

What a cool opportunity that kids of any age can do (as long as their guardian signs the parental consent form).

Your child can get paid to find bugs in software, between €1-5 euros (around $1-$5). 

When they sign up, they can take the Entry Test (optional) to familiarize themselves with what a test looks like, and how to use their platform.

Training is also available at The Bird School, too!

Hint: Testbirds works with the currency Euro, but you can get paid in U.S. Dollars through PayPal.

2. PlayTestCloud (Test Video Games)

I know of few kids who wouldn’t want to make a little extra cash testing out video games (my 9-year-old son told me how he wants to build video games as an adult…I think I’ll have him start with this!).

You can playtest with your child by adding them to your profile (then you’ll receive playtests for them to do themselves).

Earnings aren’t bad, either; they estimate a 15-minute playtest will have a reward of $9.

Upon signing up, your child will need to take an unpaid qualification test that will also help them learn what to do on upcoming playtests.

3. Enroll App (Test Website Usability)

Kids aged 13 and older can complete usability tasks to help test websites for how usable they are.

You can do these tests on a smartphone, desktop, or tablet. Usability tests take between 30 seconds and 1.5 minutes to complete, and you can earn between $0.10 and $1.50 each.

Compensation is through PayPal, and you can cash out when you reach at least $1.

4. Mistplay (Android Only) (Earn for Playing Video Games)

No joke…your child, aged 13 or older, can get paid to play video games! Choose from a list of video games in their mixlist, play for a number of minutes, and earn units as they do. 

This site pays in units, and kids can redeem these units for gift cards. Gift card options include prepaid Visa gift cards, Amazon, Google Play, iTunes, Nintendo, Xbox, PlayStation and more.

5. Swagbucks (Earn by Searching the Internet)

Kids aged 13 and older can use Swagbucks in a variety of ways – doing an Internet search, taking daily polls, watching videos, and taking surveys, to name a few.

I’ve personally been using Swagbucks since 2009, and I’ve earned a total of 372,296 Swagbucks. That’s a whopping $3,700 in cash to my PayPal account!

Bonus Tip: If the child qualifies, taking surveys will reap the largest rewards the quickest.

Users can choose from a PayPal deposit, Visa, or merchant gift card in return for the Swagbucks that they earn. If someone earns 2200 Swagbucks, they can cash out for a $25 gift card. Heavy users can usually get 2200 Swagbucks per month. However, you can cash out for as low as 450 points, which is worth a $5 gift card.

6. Slice the Pie

Kids aged 13 and older can get paid to write reviews on new songs, fashion items, accessories, and commercials before they are released to the public or to the market.  

Slice the Pie pays between $0.01 and $0.20 per review. How much they pay depends on the demand for your teen’s review and the quality of their review. They pay by PayPal, and teens can withdraw payment once they reach a minimum of $10.

7. Sell Beats on BandLab

Have you ever heard of BandLab?

It’s a freemium music creation platform where your child can create their own beats and try to earn some cash.

Right now, they keep 100% of their earnings through this site (WOW, that’s a big difference from the music industry!).

The minimum age requirement is 13, and your child will need parental consent.

8. Set Up a Kid Voice Over Gig on Fiverr

People need kids to read scripts and statements, and all kinds of things.

I was able to find several Fiverr gigs where parents have set up everything for their kids to get a voice-over gig. Like this one here. Or this one.

Your child could do the same!

Figuring Out How to Get Their Money to Earn Its Own Money

Let’s not overlook the fact that your money can earn its own money: through interest in a savings account.

Don’t just think about any ol’ savings account though. Your child should open a high-yield savings account online (rates right now are around 4.5%, compared to just 1-1.5% in some traditional banks).

Through Allowance & Chore Commissions

Let’s not overlook the role allowance and chore commissions can play in your child earning money.

You’ll want to have your Kid Money System set up.

But then within that?

Well, there’s some room to play with for your child to make extra cash.

For example:

1. Negotiate a Pay Raise

Your child could try to negotiate a pay raise from you for their allowance (hey, all ideas are okay during the Brain Dump session!).

2. Be Hired by a Sibling for Chores

I’m not saying everyone will agree with this…but you’d be surprised at how often it happens (from what I’ve read in comments about earning cash for kids!).

3. Hiring them When a Sibling Doesn’t Do Chores (with that Sibling’s Allowance Money)

I’ve also heard that when one child does not do their chores to earn money, some parents let those chores be up for grabs so that other kids can earn the cash.

4. Ask for Chore Projects

They could ask to do Chore Projects around the house to earn extra money above regular responsibilities.

Speaking of chore projects…

Doing At-Home Chore Projects

I think there’s a real difference between chore tasks and chore projects.

Chore projects have several steps, and are more complex. So, I’m willing to pay for those!

Chore tasks are more one-time things that I believe my child should be doing anyway, without any pay.

Chore Projects Ideas List:

1. Clean out and vacuum the family car
2. Reorganize the family command center
3. Organize all sports gear in the garage
4. Organize the family hall closet
5. Clean out the chicken house
6. Scrub baseboards (downstairs, then upstairs)
7. Clean up the wood pile
8. Match the dreaded pile of one-off socks
9. Clean out the chicken coop (this used to be my job!)
10. Scrub all of the dried food off of kitchen cabinets
11. Clean out the fish tank
12. Get rid of expired cans and boxes of food in the pantry
13. Organize all sports gear in the garage
14. Scrub out/hose down inside of kitchen trashcan and recycling bin
15. Clean up/organize all the board games
16. Dust and wipe down each windowsill in the house
17. Hose down/scrub the garage door
18. Take everything out of the freezer, and wipe clean the racks/shelves
19. Take out all spices from the spice rank, wipe them each down, and wipe the shelves clean
20. Dust off all fake plants in the house
21. Scrub/hose down all outdoor patio furniture
22. Organize the craft room/craft area
23. Scrub down the outside of the front and back door
24. Wipe down/disinfect toys for younger siblings (with gloves)
25. Collect all the pens from junk drawers and around the house, test them, and throw out any that don’t work – then organize what’s left
26. Wipe down outside of closet doors
27. Take everything down from the bulletin board, recycle expired papers, and organize what’s left
28. Organize the linens closet – including refolding everything to look nice/fit

See how these are different from, say, “set the table”, or “take out the trash”?

Another idea is what Joanne’s grandson has done. Her grandson lives with her and decided to come up with a list of chores that he could do to get paid in Robux (the currency of the Roblox video game; it’s about $5 for 400 Robux).

The chores he came up with are:

• Clear the table after dinner
• Sweep the floor after dinner
• Sweep the floor after dinner
• Make sure there are no dishes or cups in the living room at the end of the day
• Put all my dirty clothes in the hamper
• Be at the breakfast table by 6:15 a.m. on school days

Joanne says, “It is possible for him to earn 100 Robux a day, and sometimes he can do extra chores to earn more. He was not motivated when we tried allowance, but he is very motivated with Robux.”

Remember: what you want and do not want to pay for is completely up to you – these are just suggestions and inspiration to get your mind moving on this.

You look out the window of your home each night after dinner, staring across the street at your neighbors. You long for their fancy cars, their manicured lawns, and even the vacations they seem to take several times a year.
You’re not alone.

I often look out my window, too — staring at the gorgeous homes and cars — wondering how they manage to pay for them. After all, we live in the same neighborhood, our kids go to the same schools, and their salaries aren’t that much more than ours.

There are several reasons that our neighbors can afford so many of the things we would love to have, but could never fathom splurging on:

1. Perception Is Everything

Your perception may be skewed. You see fancy cars in the driveway, and you can almost feel the trim lawns under your toes. You watch work crews constantly going in and out as they work on awesome remodeling projects inside. Yet, none of this means that your neighbors are wealthier than you are.

Just because YOU see them as more affluent doesn’t mean they ARE.

You’re only able to see the surface of their spending; you have no idea what’s happening underneath.

2. Allocation Is Essential

While you choose to consistently save money for your kids’ education, and for your retirement, they could be spending these “excess funds” on their cars and homes. They might be making the shallow choice to spend their money on what people can see, while you’re spending your money on the life you want to live, both today and tomorrow. You’ve chosen to pay for peace of mind.

It’s how your neighbors allocate their income that makes them seem richer than they are.

3. Perks Matter

While your neighbors’ salaries might be slightly higher than yours, it likely isn’t enough to justify their massive leap in spending. Fringe benefits, however, can greatly widen the gap. They could be receiving perks like cars, phones, or laptops; these can give the recipient an amazing leg up when it comes to freeing money for other pleasures.

4. Luxuries of the Mature

As families mature, houses get paid off and savings grow. Even if your children attend the same school, their children are older, and the adults have a few years on you, as well. They very well could have spent those few extra years making payments on their house and putting money in the bank — giving them a huge advantage. Just imagine how much more financial freedom you would have if you didn’t have to manage your monthly mortgage.

5. Their Lives Might Be Plastic

Your neighbors might worship the power of the plastic. While you’re smart enough to understand the headaches of undisciplined credit, your neighbors might be living carelessly — buying short-term luxury today in exchange for a meager tomorrow.

6. They Know Where to Find Deals

I consider myself a connoisseur when it comes to finding great deals on groceries and kids clothing. Perhaps your neighbors also know something about finding deals on the things they need, which frees up more money for things they want.

7. They Pay for Their Immediate Wants First

Your neighbors could also have more money than you do because they prioritize differently, and pay for projects and luxuries from their savings.

While my neighbors may or may not make more money than me, I don’t let it influence the way that I live.

I spend money in the way that’s most important for my family and me — both for a better, more comfortable today, and for a brighter tomorrow.

As “The Millionaire Next Door” and “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” point out, those who use their money for homes, cars, and clothes are spending on material items and living on “rented” lifestyles. Instead of building assets, these people are living on liabilities, and that can be a dangerous mindset.

You don’t have to live like a king today if it means you’re going to live like a pauper tomorrow.

It doesn’t matter what the Jones’ are doing. Not now, or ever. Save where you can, spend when you need to, and live a life you want.

In The Meantime, Here’s How to Feel Richer

Think about wealth for a second. Is it really just about money? Or are there other factors involved?

What Makes Me Feel Rich

Even though I’m not what many people would consider “rich” in terms of income, I do feel rich in a number of ways. Some of the things that help me feel rich include:

I have a flexible job: It’s amazing the feeling you get from having a flexible job. Whether you have flexible hours at a job outside the home, or whether you have your own business and can choose some aspects of your job, there is a certain richness in being able to choose your hours, how long you work, and who you work for.

Being able to indulge in small treats: One of the things I like is being able to indulge in small treats. A matinee at the movies, a new book, or dinner out is a treat that I like to indulge in. As long as I have the resources to indulge occasionally, without worrying that it will ruin my finances, I feel rich.

Helping others: Many of us can feel rich when we help others. Whether we give our time to help someone who needs our aid, or whether we write a check to a charity, or donate canned goods to the food bank, or give blood, doing good can be a real boost. It reminds us of how much we have, and what we have to give.

Time to do what I want: Lately, things have been so crazy that I haven’t had time to practice music, or engage in activities with my family. I’ve made a little extra money, but I somehow feel poorer. We all like to have time to do something we enjoy, and when I’m so hurried I don’t have time to read a book at lunch, or make cookies with my son, I feel the lack. So, freeing up more time is a definite priority for me.

In so many cases, “rich” is a state of mind. It depends on how you view your life, and what you can do. While it’s true that, to a certain extent, money is necessary in order to live, and while money can make living more pleasant, money isn’t the only thing that makes one “rich.” Many people cite family, friends, health, hobbies and other items as things that make them feel rich. Focusing only on a dollar amount doesn’t always lead to satisfaction with your finances. Managing my finances so that my needs are taken care of, and some of my wants can be enjoyed, is my definition of “rich.”

What’s your definition of “rich”?

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What do you do when you have unexpected expenses? As you’ll see in our budget below, we try to plan ahead by adding to sinking funds for specific purposes. By adding money to each of these categories every month, we build up sums of money that will come in handy when those expenses come up.

Car maintenance is one of those sinking funds that we add to nearly every month. Most months we don’t need to use any of those saved funds, but when we do need it, having that money keeps future car repairs from becoming financial emergencies. Having sinking funds prevents us from needing to use our emergency fund.

Sometimes, the unexpected expenses are more than what we can cover with our normal budget or our sinking funds. For example, remember back in 2022 when our water bill was suddenly $1,500? We sure didn’t see that coming!

We went to our three-part plan for dealing with unexpected expenses.

1. Change how our money is allocated in the month’s budget
2. Split the cost with next month’s budget
3. Use our emergency fund (then pay it back ASAP)

Thankfully, we were able to handle the sky high water bill with parts one and two of our plan.

I love having an emergency fund, but I also love not having to use it.

In October, we had another chance to use parts one and two of our method to deal with unexpected car maintenance expenses, which I’ll discuss in this update.

Having a plan to handle unexpected expenses makes your budget robust so those unfortunate surprises are less likely to derail your financial progress.

Okay, let’s get to our October’s spending, saving, and earning for our family of eight.

Spending in October

When we first understood the concept of living on last month’s income, it rocked our financial world in the best kind of way. If you have no idea what that means, here’s a video walk-through. Or you can read up on how you can get started.

At the beginning of each month, we start budgeting by first adding up the income we earned the month before. In October, we budget and spend what we earned in September. We knew on October 1st exactly how much money we had to work with during the month.  So on October 1st, we start the October budget by taking everything we earned in September and assigning it to our October budget categories.

We can’t see the future, so on the first of October, these dollar assignments were really just best guesses and goals. We’ve been doing this for years and can make some pretty good guesses, but every month is different. Our dollar assignments at the beginning of the month almost never stay exactly the same because our needs and priorities usually change during a month. And a budget that changes during the month is good!

It’s normal for our spending plan to change as we move through the month. The important thing isn’t spending exactly how much we guessed we might spend in each budget area at the beginning of the month. It would be silly to let our October 1st guesses dictate what we can and can’t do all during the month. The important thing is to not spend more total in October than we earned in September.

If we need to spend more in one budget category than we had originally assigned, that money has to come from some other budget category. We revise the budget categories to meet our priorities during the month, but we can’t just add more money to all of them, because the total amount stays the same all month long. A changed budget is not a failed budget. A budget needs to be flexible in order to be successful!

Here’s our family’s final October spending for all of our budget categories.

Giving

Tithing – $1,144 We start out the month paying a 10% tithe on our income. Like all of our October spending, our tithing is calculated on what we earned in September, which you can see in this  Budget Update. We often get questions about this. You can read our thoughts on tithing here.

Fast Offering – $100 Each month we take one day to go without food and drink (fasting) and contribute to a program that helps people who need it.

Monthly Bills

Mortgage – $3,000  Our escrow account was reassessed and our total mortgage payment went down (from $2,823 to $2,525), but we decided instead to round up about $475 to make our payment an even $3,000. This move shaves two years off of our mortgage and saves us over $4,000 in interest. If you’re new here, we have a 15-year mortgage on our 2200 sq ft house in Northern California. We’re so thankful to have locked in our mortgage interest rate at 2.375% when we refinanced in December of 2020 (all of the details and numbers are here.) We currently have $161,319 remaining on our mortgage.

Electricity – $6 Last year we installed solar panels on our property, a $70,000 investment that we finished paying for recently.  Our electric bill is just the $6 unavoidable fee.

Car Insurance – $376 We have three vehicles with two adult drivers and one teen driver.

Internet – $105 We have cable internet through Comcast. When we bought our home seven years ago, we invested $5,000 to have Comcast extend cable internet to our property. It has been worth it every single day since then, even though the cost for internet service went up recently.

Water – $150 Our water bill comes every other month. We set aside $150, which is about half of what we expect the next bill to be.

Garbage- $53 Like the water bill, our trash pick-up bill comes every other month, so each month I set aside the money for half of the bill. The cost on this service recently increased, too.

Cell Phones – $175 We pay for eight cell phones: five for our family, and three for the Ukrainian family that we sponsor. Mike is trying out the annual plan, so we now only pay 7 phone bills per month). Our phones are all through Visible. Visible is a Verizon subsidiary that offers no-contract plans with wifi calling, unlimited cell calls, and unlimited data on the Verizon network. We’ve been using them for years. You can’t beat paying just $25 per phone each month with unlimited data.

Everyday Expenses

Food – $763 At the beginning of the month we took a road trip which included getting pizza, but other than that, all of our meals were made at home.  If you need help getting your grocery spending under control, you can learn all about my strategies and method in my Grocery Budget Hero online course.

Fuel – $809 Our fuel spending wasn’t as low as last month because we took a road trip in October. We had some drama with our big van, so we had to drive two cars to Utah.

Household Misc – $493  We had our normal subscriptions like Google Suite ($6), cloud storage ($100), crash plan ($30), Adobe ($20),  Scribd/Everand ($12), and Dropbox ($199 annual). We also bought normal household/toiletry items and various things on Amazon, including

Clothing – $31 – We got a few clothing items for Halloween costumes.

Animals – $53 We got dog and cat food.

Allowances – $130 We give our kids “practice money” as a weekly allowance.  You can read all about why we decided to pay our kids allowance that’s not directly tied to chores, as well as all the details of when and how much in this blog post.

Sinking Funds

For our regular budget categories above, we take out any funds that are still left at the end of the month and send them toward our big financial goal. For example, if we started the month with $600 in our food budget category, but only used $520 of that, the other $80 would go toward our current major financial goal. Focusing all these extra funds from each category into one goal helped us pay off our law school debt much earlier than we thought possible.

In contrast to the regular budget categories above that we zero out each month, we also put money into the categories below. These are our sinking funds. Our sinking funds are categories where we set aside money for periodic expenses each month and let it roll over and build up until we need it.

The amount in bold is the amount we added to the fund this month, followed by spending notes and the current balance of each fund.

To answer a question we often get, we do not have separate bank accounts for these funds. We had separate accounts many years ago when we first started budgeting but we learned that was overkill. Instead, all of the money sits in our checking account. Since we spend according to our budget category balances, not our checking account balance, we’re not worried about getting the money mixed up. We seriously never even look at our checking account balance unless we’re reconciling the account. We track our budget categories and spending in YNAB, a budgeting tool we absolutely adore. Yes, you can adore a budgeting tool. Don’t believe me? Try it out. If you have been using Mint or something similar to manage your finances, you’ll want to read about our switch to budgeting with YNAB.

Medical/Dental – $0 added. We spent $86 on medical and dental in October.  Current category balance is $1,653. 

Car Maintenance – $448 added.  In October we had huge spending on car maintenance. You can read all about the drama with our big van in the most recent Feats, Flops, and Funnies post. In order to manage the $4,054 we spent on car repair this month we had to push one of the charges )$2,553 off to November. I just changed the date of the expense to November 1st. This only works because we are a month ahead. To be clear, we did pay the full repair bill and also paid the credit card bill. We just didn’t have enough funds in our October budget to cover the expenses even though our accounts had plenty of money because we are a month ahead. We could have used our emergency fund, but we knew with just an extra month, we could plan for this unexpected expense. You can read more about how we handle unexpected expenses here.  Current category balance is $53.

Christmas – $200 added. In October, I spent $80 on Christmas 2024. I bought matching Christmas pajamas for the eight of us from The Children’s Place. Current category balance is $1,662.

Disability Insurance- $190 added We set aside money each month for disability insurance so that when the annual premium is due we have the money ready. If Mike is unable to do his work as an attorney due to illness or injury, this disability insurance will replace about 60% of his current income. Since our income potential is our greatest financial asset right now, we want to have disability insurance to help us protect it. Current category balance is $1,420.

Life Insurance – $100 added. Our life insurance premiums are due each November, so we set aside a portion of the estimated total each month which will go toward next year’s premium. Current category balance is $1,173.

Birthdays & Gifts – $50 added. We October we spent $0. We had a birthday, but already had gifts and had friends over to play instead of a normal party.  Current category balance is $144. 

Car Registration & Smog – $50 added. We spent $0 in October. Current category balance is $452.

Family Fun Fund – $350 added. We took a road trip to Utah and stayed in a motel one night on the way there. We also bought tickets to see a cousin in a theater performance next month.  Current category balance is $0.

Home and Garden – $1,330 added. We spent $1,479 on a new chain saw and new lighting for our bedroom.  Current category balance is $17.

Big Trips – $422 added This sinking fund is to save up for a trip we are taking in 2025. We added $363 of our own money. We added $59 from credit card points and Rakuten. I wrote in detail about how we’re saving for this trip creatively. Current category balance is $5,166.

Investing

Kids’ 529s – $150 added. Investing just $25 per child per month for college isn’t much, but we are okay with that. Neither of us had much college savings when we went to college, but with scholarships, grants, loans, and jobs during school we were able to get our undergraduate degrees without debt. We may contribute more later, but right now we’re happy with small, consistent contributions.  I looked at the balances recently and was pleased to see that this small contribution that is barely noticeable in our monthly budget has added up to over $15,000! If you want to know more you can read about how we decided to start 529s for our kids.

IRA (Steph) – $583 added. With this same amount each month, I will reach my $7,000 IRA contribution for 2024.  Mike has about $1,300 each month deducted directly from his paycheck into the state pension fund for his retirement.

Income Earned in October- $13,463

The categories above show everything we spent and saved in October, which was all the money we had earned in September. At the same time we were also (of course) earning money during October. At the beginning of November, we set up our budget to allocate spending from our October income.

This concept of getting a month ahead, has made such a huge impact on our finances! It takes some work to get to the point where you are living on last month’s income, but the effort is completely worth it!

The income section below shows the money we earned in October, which we will use during November.

Attorney Income – $9,088 Mike works as an attorney for the state of California. This is his take-home pay after taxes, social security, his pension contribution, and health insurance premiums.

Rental Income – $0 For years we rented out a one-bedroom apartment on our property through Airbnb. We gave that up to take in a Ukrainian refugee family for a couple of years. We loved Airbnb and will likely go back to that in the future. If you’re thinking about renting out your space on Airbnb, check out this post where I talk about how much you can make on Airbnb.

Law Firm- $1,600  Before working for the state, Mike did estate planning and business transactional work. Over the last few years he has had a steady stream of potential clients, most of whom he refers to other attorneys, but he still occasionally helps former clients. He doesn’t cut himself a paycheck each month, just a couple of times a year.

Blog – $1,954  I only pay myself a couple times a year now. My blogging income took a major hit when I put the blog on the back burner during Covid to start homeschooling my kids. It is slowly recovering as I put more effort into posting regularly and all of the things I do behind the scenes. Thankfully the income still covers my fixed blogging expenses (which are a lot more than most people would guess) and allows me to pay myself a few times a year.

Child Care – $821 For the past year I have been taking care of the 2-year-old of the Ukrainian family that we sponsor. The state pays for childcare while the mom is at work. It’s much less expensive and more convenient to have her stay with me than to bring her to a standalone child care facility.

Come back next month to see how we used this income to spend and save in November’s budget.

How’s Your Budget Working for YOU!?

That was a lot of words and numbers! Congratulations for making it all the way through our October 2024 family budget update!

Now we would love to hear from you!

Any questions on what or why we spend what we do?

What are your current financial goals?

Do you find that your budget is helping you reach your goals, or is it not working like you wish it was?

Let’s chat in the comments!

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