March Monthly Totals- Merchandise Total (before coupons): $2,188.14
- Value of Coupons & Store Sales: $1,162.39
- Rewards/Gift Cards/ECB's Used: $762.82
- Rewards/Gift Cards/ECB's Earned: $523.70
- Rebates: $236.79
- Total Cost to me (after rewards earned and rebates): $336.86
- Total Profit: $70.07
- # of Items: 652, # of Free Items: 423
I really am not quite sure how I spent $300 this month! Some months are more stock-up months where you buy things that are on a great sale, rather than free. I guess that's what happened here...I'm not quite sure! lol
Savings Updates
I tell ya, this month was crazy! I sold oodles of stuff online and was so busy packing stuff up and shipping it, I really didn't pay that much attention to my finances this month.- I redeemed $40 worth of rewards earned by using my Discover card for a $45 CVS gift card. This will last a long time and ensures I don't have to spend cash at CVS. I get 5% back on gas and automotive purchases (can we say $600 car repairs??) and 2% on everything else.
- Used two $15 gift cards from an Olay rebate to purchase a $30 Walgreens gift card.
- Received a $50 gift card for buying my new Verizon phone. I thought the rebate was going to be cash, but this is ok too. I used $25 on a CVS gift card and the other $25 on a Walgreens gift card.
Deposits to Emergency Fund - goal $10,000
- $10 bonus for referring friend to ING - thanks again! :)
- State tax refund of $183
- $13.52 - difference between budgeted and actual electric bill
- Rebates - $6 Nasogel DBF's name, $6.99 Ensure, $6.99 Ensure DBF's address, $29.95 reimbursement for RX, $4.50 Windex, $2.50 Windex DBF's address, $2.50 Windex parent's address, $7.99 escencia, $7.99 escencia parents' address, $7.99 escencia DBF's address, $3.99 Hillshire Farms turkey, $3.99 Hillshire Farms DBF's address, $6.99 Ensure parent's address, $3.29 Pert Plus for Men
- eBay Earnings - $517.05 - holy smokes! A good deal of this money went towards shipping costs - $239.70 (and I charged all of that to my Discover card to get more rewards!). $13.45 went towards a stamps.com scale I purchased and $13 went towards an order of checks. $197.71 of it went to a whole bunch of clothes I bought - at least I didn't have to dip into my savings to pay for these! I got a bunch of great deals - a couple of clearanced t-shirts for $4.99 each, two pairs of jeans for around $20 each, some great new work pants and a bunch of t-shirts. I've never been good at buying clothes slowly. I tend to not buy clothes for ages and then get urges to shop like crazy. So this was my spring splurge. :) That leaves around $100 leftover money from my profits, and to be honest, I don't know where it went! lol I probably spent a little going out to dinner, a little on odds and ends, etc. I'm going to do better in April, I promise!
Debt Progress
- I paid off my car! My March payment was $265.69, and I made an extra payment of $527.88 to pay it off entirely. I had been listed under my parents' insurance but due to the whole AIG mess, they are going to be changing companies. The financing on the car was in my name and my dad's, so I wasn't sure if getting insurance in my own name would be difficult because of that. I figured it would be easiest all around if the car was just in my name. I have the title and I have to look into different insurance companies.
I'm going to put April and May's car payments into my emergency fund to replace the money I took out for this payment. And then after that, the entire payment will be going into a savings fund designed to purchase my next car...when my Honda dies years from now.
Balances as of Today
- Short Term Savings $1,000.68
- Emergency Fund $1,201.38
- Credit Cards - ZERO!
- Car Loan - PAID OFF!
- Student Loans - ugh, and I was on such a roll! $79,255
Target - can buy any kinds of Pepsi for this deal
The park was beautiful. We encountered this rock formation about 15 minutes into the hike. We were having a bit of trouble with the trails. We started on the blue trail and then without warning, the trail markers suddenly turned to white markers. And there was no white trail on our map! Hmm, that's odd we thinks. Continue on, we shall...
Isn't this gorgeous?
After an hour or so, we were rewarded with this amazing view. I really like this funky looking tree. One thing I didn't like - darn thorny bushes that kept attacking me. I have two small cuts on the backs of my legs where the thorns actually got me through my pants!
These trees looked so interesting compared to the older, taller trees right behind them. 
Finally, DBF tells me he's spotted the road. Good news! The bad news is that we have to scale down a mountain the size of the Grand Canyon to get to it. Uh oh, that's definitely not good. (have I also mentioned I have a fear of heights? I don't especially hiking up things, but I definitely don't like getting back down again) 
Here's a slightly better shot of our downward descent. I wasn't getting any closer than I had to!
DBF scouted around for a minute and found this "stairway" down to the road. Umm, thanks honey, but I definitely would have preferred a banister!
We're now back on stable ground again, phew. But umm, now the question is, where exactly are we?
Along the way, we spotted another unfortunate hiker who'd gotten hopelessly lost and had to rest along the side of the road. To his regret, he did not have a rucksack stocked with supplies and didn't make it. 
Poor fella! By now, I'm starting to realize that the drive in that had taken 10 minutes tops, is now taking quite a bit longer on foot. We got to the park around 11:30-12, its now 3:00. I'm totally sweaty and sticky and the muscles on the tops of my legs that connect your thighs and hips are screaming with every uphill step I take. Luckily for me, the roads leading back to the truck are only 90% hills. There are some plateaus every 15 minutes or so when I can rest. Suffice to say, I was definitely feelin' the burn. At one point, we walked by an alpaca farm. These have to be one of the goofiest animals I've ever seen! I would have taken a picture but they were ALL staring at us and I was a little creeped out. We looked to the left just avoid their stares and a lone cow was standing at the crest of the hill, munchin' away and staring us down. Those darn animals watched our every move from the moment we came into sight to the moment we turned the corner. Creepy!!
After walking mostly uphill for another half hour or so, I was ready to collapse. My wonderful boyfriend deposited me by the side of the road (with the rucksack of course) and RAN up the rest of the mile long hill to the truck (in combat boots nonetheless). By the time I sat my ass down, he was already out of sight. I love that man. I sat there in shock for a while and I can only imagine what passing motorists must have thought of me. I was too tired to even stand up for a couple minutes. Here's a lovely shot of my shoe and water bottle (CVS of course).
I finally gathered my strength back to stand up and look around. Imagine my surprise at discovering this beautiful view right behind me. DBF came to the rescue (with a pickup truck instead of a white horse -- I'll take it!) a minute later and we happily left Jenny Jump park. Jenny, it was nice to meetcha, but I think we may have to take our hiking shoes elsewhere. I hope you understand. :)
