Rounding out the Year . . .

I began the year trying out goals instead of resolutions in hopes of sticking to them better.  It seems to have paid off:

ü  Goal #1--get my PMP certification

ü  Goal # 2--start a Blog

ü  Get our Financial House in Order

ü  lose weight

So 2.75 out of 4 is a pretty good percentage compared to my success rate on past resolutions.  We've been working hard at getting our financial house in order but there is still more work to be done.  The Christmas Holiday and a septic tank issue caused a little back sliding, but no worries we'll get right back on track after the new year. 

One thing I've determined during this year of working on our household finances is that you ABSOLUTELY CANNOT try to pay off debt unless you track your spending and have a budget set up.  These are mandatory requirements. 

I've used several softwares in the past including Money and Quicken but they are too much software for personal home finances.  As you will recall from an earlier post, I set up an account using Mint.  This works well and if you use your banks online bill pay is really all you need.  However, we still do a lot of our finances the old fashioned way--writing out a check and putting it in the mail.  (I know, we need to get with the times!).  To that end, I'm considering using this Personal Finance Template I found while doing a Google docs search for budget sheets.  It works like a check book register but allows you to categorize your spending. 

2013 was a good year and 2014 will be even better!!

In closing out the year, from our house to yours, we wish you a very merry Christmas and a joyous and prosperous new year.