The Dog Ate My Wallet

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Sunday Evening Post #97

When it comes to the goals listed in this post, it’s going to look like I should just write the month of May off as a total failure. But personally, I’m counting May as a resounding success. It was our first month of parenthood. We managed a family road trip that included the dogs. I have spent the entire month unemployed and not driven anyone crazy, plus have had some solid interviews.

Blog goals and writing goals have fallen a bit behind. And I am okay with that. Life requires readjustment.

Blogging

The purpose of these two goals is, yes, to grow my blogs, but also to support and highlight blogs and bloggers I enjoy. Just like I will be posting 2 new to me blogs every week in my round ups, the point here is to draw attention to blogs that others might not be familiar with. (Blog swaps will not count toward either of these goals.)

Write one guest post per month.

January- yes

February- yes

March- no

April- no

May- no

Publish one guest post per month.

January- yes

February- no

March- no

April- no

May- no

I do have a request in with one blogging friend to write a guest post for me, so hopefully I’ll get that soon.

Writing

Writing fiction is my side hustle, though I have yet to make any money from it. I’ve found that I devote much more time to the blogs than I do my fiction, though, because I am on a schedule. I feel accountable to my readers to get posts up when I say I will. And because I am a procrastinator, deadlines are a must for me. I get the energy I need to work on something from an impending deadline.

I am hoping to transfer the power of those two things- accountability and deadlines, to my fiction this year.

Submit at least one piece to a paying venue per month.

December: Yes (rejected)

January: Yes (rejected)

February: Yes x4 (2 rejections)

March: No

April: Yes (rejected)

May: No

Complete the first draft of my novella and start edits. No real writing these last couple of weeks, but I am thinking about what happens next.

Finances

A lot of financial goals will actually end up as floating goals- ie they will be things I expect to complete well before the year is out. But I do have some long term financial goals that I think will work for year-long tracking.

Create and track a practice stock portfolio. On track

End the year “on budget” in the categories I’m tracking.

Final May Numbers

Category	On Budget
Category	Month	Year
Groceries	No	No
House	No	No
Eating Out	No	No
Allowance – E	No	No
Allowance – C	No	Yes

The budget looks like it went all to hell, but it really didn’t. I completely paid off the credit cards not just from April, but most of May as well (normally would be paid in June), so I think June will show us as being in pretty good shape.

Floating Goals

Find a new job. I’ve had two interviews that I expect to hear more back on next week. And we’re getting to the point where I am expecting to start hearing back on more of the applications I’ve put out. (Since it takes about 4-6 weeks after applying to hear back on many of the jobs I have applied for.)

Replace all the windows in the house. In 4-6 weeks, I will have new windows

Fix the plumbing issues. We have a number of little plumbing issues all of which we really need to get fixed.

Get an Exterminator. Ant season seems to have passed. I still want to get someone out, but it’s less urgent at the moment. And since the ants always come in at the windows, it is possible replacing the windows will end the ants.

Publish new photography/flash fiction book. One of my goals for my “down time” is to start working on this project. Sadly, my down time hasn’t been very down.

Refinance the house. DONE.

Earn my Certified Supply Chain Professional designation. DONE.

Rebuild savings to $5-10k. DONE. (Though savings will actually grow considerably over the next 24 weeks as I get severance and hopefully a new regular paycheck.)

Date: 02/06/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Sunday Evening Post Bookmark: Permalink

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Confession of a Breadwinner Mother

There’s a new study out now that says in 40% of homes where there are children, the wife is the primary breadwinner. According to some pundits, this apparently signals the end of the world as we know it. It will destroy marriage and families and is responsible for the downfall of this country. (Or something along those lines.)

Since we added SP to our family one month ago, we are now one of those 40%. I am the breadwinner wife. And this is my confession.

I LIKE being the breadwinner. It’s probably more than that. A good portion of my identity (perhaps too much) is tied up in being good at what I do. The one time in our lives that C started to make more money than me, I decided I was underpaid and went out and found a better, higher paying job. We have known from the earliest days of our relationship that I would likely be the primary earner. And truth is, I like it that way.

When C lost his job in 2009, it was hard- it always is going from two incomes to one. But I was the primary earner, so with unemployment, we were okay. And then I got an even better paying job, and we were more than okay. In fact, we got to the point where C was able to stop looking for work and go back to school full time- with us cash flowing the process.

Of course, I have recently lost my job due to a lay off. I have a nice severance package and am able to take the time to find the right next job, instead of the next next job. And coinciding with that, SP came into our lives.

One month in, and I love being a mom. I want to be very clear about this. We have a child because I wanted a child, because I could not picture living my life and never being a mom. And I am very much enjoying this time I have to go with C to drop her off and pick her up from school almost every day.

At the same time, I am actively job hunting. I hope to start a new position before her summer vacation is over. Because that is who I am. C will be the primary caregiver. I will be the primary earner. I will continue moving my career forward and taking the step necessary to do so. I may be a mom, but I have no intention of going on a “mommy track”.

Do I think this is going to harm my family? Do I think that I am somehow going to ruin my daughter’s childhood by being a working mom? By being a mom who not only out earns dad, but a mom who is the only earner in the family, who leaves dad to take care of taking care of the kids?

Absolutely not. In fact, I feel like I am setting a great example for my daughter. Letting her know that women can (and should) be and do whatever they want to do in their lives. And that men can (and should) be and do whatever they want to do in their lives. That within our families, we sometimes make choices because of what is best for the family, but that when families truly love each other, they find a way to make it work where everyone is able to be and do what it is they want to do with their lives.

I am a breadwinner wife. I am a breadwinner mother. And I do not want to be anything else. I love being a mom. I love seeing that little face smiling up at me and I adore spending time with SP. But I cannot be anything other than who I am. So I am going to work. I am going to be the primary breadwinner. Because that is what I WANT to do.

Date: 30/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Everyday Finances, On the Job Bookmark: Permalink

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Pre-Interview Routine

Getting a good night’s sleep is the most important thing the night before an interview

I have an interview in the morning. That means that tonight, I went through my pre-interview routine. It’s not that I purposely went about setting up a pre-interview routine, more that I simply realized I have one.

First, I have to try on what I am planning on wearing. I have to like it. C has to like it. I have to feel professional and confident in it. Once I decided that I have the right outfit, I do my hair the way I intend to in the morning and put on the jewelry I want to wear. Confident that I have the look down, the first part of the routine is complete.

I then put the entire outfit on one hanger and hang it outside of our room, so that I don’t have to find it in the closet. This also makes it easy for me to get dressed either in our room or the bathroom the next morning.

After that, I put everything I need to go to the interview together. I have my leather portfolio with extra copies of my resume, note pad and pen. I add to that my email string with the recruiter/interview scheduler, so that I have all the directions and their contact information in one place.

The portfolio then gets set on the dining room table under my purse.

I know this doesn’t sound like much, but I’m not the kind of person who usually plans what I am going to wear, let alone sets it aside. I’m also much more likely, on a normal morning, to be running around gathering what I need two minutes before I walk out the door.

But when I have an interview scheduled, I don’t want to have to think in the morning. I want everything set and ready to go, so that I can be on autopilot until I have to find my way to where ever it is I am going.

Do you have a routine when you have a big event the next day?

Date: 28/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Interviews Bookmark: Permalink

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Sunday Evening Post #96

I’m not doing a regular Sunday evening post this week, mostly because I am too exhausted. We took a long awaited trip to the full sized Stonehenge replica in central, southern Washington this weekend. It also happens to be a WWI memorial.

The trip involved 4 people and 2 dogs, one of the 65 cloudy days in this part of WA a year (meaning the trip to the observatory was a bust), a tire with a manufacturer’s defect, and a few major downpours.

It also involved a wonderful dinner, some absolutely gorgeous views, a chance to see my cousin on the way back, a very well behaved 9 year old, 2 amazingly (for them) well behaved dogs, and the replica Stonehenge. Add to that a trip to the original (and still in use) cemetery for Goldendale on Memorial Day weekend.

So now I am home with an exhausted family, and really, quite ready for bed. Here are a few pictures for you.

Real Stonehenge 2008

Replica Stonehenge, 2013

Date: 26/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Uncategorized Bookmark: Permalink

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What I’m Reading: Road Trip Edition

While you are reading this, we will be road tripping to the full size concrete Stonehenge replica/WWI memorial in Maryhill, WA. In addition, we will be heading to the Goldendale Observatory (one of the largest public telescopes in the country) to star gaze tomorrow night. Basically, I will not have internet access for a little over 24 hours, as our entire household (me, C, J, SP, and June and Larry) takes a road trip.

So while I am in the middle of a 4 hour drive, here are some blogs for you to read.

I have had a number of people ask me if I was going to take this layoff as a chance to become a full time blogger or other freelance worker. For me, the answer is no. And for Shannyn of Frugal Beautiful, the answer used to be yes, but recently, it has become no. She writes a great post about it in You Don’t Have to Quit Your Job and Start Your Own Business To Follow Your Passion.

Also on the work front, check out Krantcent’s post Too Young to Retire. While I am not in this boat, I do know a number of people who do feel like they are too old to be hired, but definitely too young to retire.

I got stuck on a bit of a frugal theme this week, so our next post is from Frugal Portland, who recently bought herself a condo. Congrats on becoming a homeowner. The whole process is something no one can quite prepare you for, though Kathleen tries with What Wikipedia Can’t Tell You About Buying a Condo.

Our final “frugal” post this week is from John at Frugal Rules, who wonders What Would You Give Up for Food? Sadly, many people in this country do have to make a choice between eating healthy and eating what they can afford.

Along those lines, Aloysa at My Broken Coin writes about 5 Ways to Gain Control of Your Household Budget. Dining out is definitely one of those things that we need to plan for.

Our new to me financial blog this week is Everything About Investment. Since we all know that I am trying to learn about investing, this is perhaps a place I should spend some time. I’m highlighting his post Investing in Real Estate in 4 Simple Ways, partly because we are about to no longer be invested in real estate. Our renters in Reno are moving out, so we’ll be selling the condo.

One of the things I love about reading blogs is getting to know other bloggers and their families. So I love this post from Cascadian Nomads, because It Is True, Everyone Adores the Cascadian Nomads, especially as we get to know more about them.

Last week was BlogPaws. I did not go, but a number of my blogging friends did, including Leslie from Bringing Up Bella. Bella herself is a little too crazy to go to a conference (so are my dogs), so she got to go to Camp Nana’s. We don’t quite have a Camp Nana, what we have is a roommate who takes care of our dogs. They may be almost as spoiled as Bella.

At Beagles & Bargains, it’s time for another Beagle Training Day. In this case, it is time to discuss one of the reasons we do training with our dogs- to keep them safe in a disaster.

From the serious to the lovely, I had to share this Petrography from the House of Two Bows.

I want to congratulate our neighbor to the south, the Portland area shelter alliance on receiving a $1 million dollar grant for saving animals, and thanks to the Poodle (and dog) blog for sharing this with us.

And finally, our new to me pet blog- Snowieners– the story of long haired Dachshunds in Alaska. It was their lovely Black and White Sunday post that got me to click. I’ll be clicking again.

Date: 25/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Round Ups Bookmark: Permalink

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Twenty-Three Days In

I know this is a personal finance blog, but tonight we’re going to hit on the “personal” much more than usual. In fact, here’s the whole financial connection – kids cost money.

I have been a parent for a whole 23 days now. It’s not a lot of time, and I know it. And I’m starting at a very different point than most people- with a nine year old, who has been through things that no child should ever have to go through. And on some level, still is.

You see, I believe, that from the day of birth, every child deserves a parent who will promise them forever. Sometimes that’s doesn’t happen for a variety of reasons (and not always the parent’s fault), but I still believe that kids deserve to hear, and need to hear, from the adults in their lives, that they will be loved forever. In animal rescue, we talk a lot about finding animals forever homes. I believe children deserve forever homes, too.

And yet, right now, I can’t promise SP forever. I want to make that promise. So does C. She wants to hear it. She wants to know there will be stability in her life. She asks questions about the future, or make comments about hoping she is adopted by time X. And both C and I want to make the promise. But we do not.

Why not? For reasons specific to SP’s life, no one thinks it is in her best interest right now to make the big promises. There is a chance that something will happen that would make it impossible for us to keep that promise. The chances are very small, very small, and yet, she has had enough promised to her broken that we all agree, it is not yet time for us to make them- at least not the big ones, not the ones she most wants to hear.

Being a parent is hard, no matter how or when children come into our lives. I am not trying to say that what we are doing is any more difficult than what my friends who have given birth are doing. On many levels, I think it’s easier. I mean, I have only been a parent for 23 days, but she’s slept through the night from day one, there are no 2am feedings or diapers to change. She can tell me what’s wrong (though she may not chose to), dress and feed herself. Compared to having an infant, I have it easy. But the challenges are different, both for the child, and for the parent.

And right now, my biggest challenge is that three weeks in, I want to promise forever. When she talks about her 16^th birthday, I want to say we will figure it out when the time comes, but I can’t. Because no matter how much she wants to hear it, and no matter how much I want to say it, being promised forever is not what is best for her right now.

That said, it doesn’t stop me from thinking that I really need to figure out these 529 plans and get cracking on a college fund. I’ve only got 9 years to get one in place.

Date: 23/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Lessons Learned Bookmark: Permalink

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The Universe is Hitting Me Over the Head

Earlier today, I was positive I was going to get this post written and scheduled to post “on time”. We can see how well that turned out. Because I had time. Well, I thought I had time, but then I needed to apply for some jobs, and the rain stopped long enough for me to get the other half of the side yard mowed. And then it was time to pick SP up from school, after which, we swung by Trader Joes for oatmeal and Papa Murphys for a pizza. Then we took the dogs to the dog park. Back at home, it was time for homework, making dinner, and getting the dishwasher loaded. Then we ate. After dinner, we practiced spelling words for tomorrow’s spelling test while SP did my hair. Bath time came next, followed by watching a movie as a family, brushing teeth, and finally, bed time tongue twisters, hugs, and lights out. And now, I finally have time to sit down and write this post.

Which is when I realized that for the second time in less than a week, the universe is hitting me over the head with something, and perhaps I should pay attention. In this case, it is to go easy on myself. I do not need to hold myself to a strict 4:30pm PDT posting time. As long as I get a post up sometime before 8am Wednesday or Friday mornings, I am going to consider myself to be “on time”.

What does this mean for my readers? It means you should probably plan on reading new content here Wednesday and Friday mornings instead of Tuesday and Thursday evenings. But I think a lot of you might do that anyway.

What was the other thing the universe hit me over the head with recently? Something much more relevant to this blog- the need to network in my current job search.

I have written about how this is the hard part for me. It’s not that I think networking doesn’t work. I know it does. I have helped a number of people get jobs. But I have never gotten a job through networking, and, I am a “typical female” in the sense that it is hard for me to ask for myself. I have no problems asking for other people,

However, on Friday, I had my meeting with my career coach and we once again talked about networking. So I came home and posted about applying to Valve, and I also sent an email through LinkedIn to the venture capitalist I am connected to.

It turned out the venture capitalist was actually looking for someone to do administrative operations here in Seattle, though not quite at my skill level. And, one of my friends happens to have a relative who has been at Valve since its startup days, and she offered to put my cover letter and resume directly in front of him.

Contact from both of these people came within hours of me reaching out on Friday night. And yes, it felt like the universe was hitting me over the head. Even though I know one isn’t going to work out, and Valve is a long shot for me, it is still a reminder that it won’t hurt me to ask. It will help me to ask. And I am not the only person who likes to help their friends find jobs.

So the universe is hitting me over the head, and I am going to listen. Posts will go up when they go up, and I am going to keep mentioning to friends that I am looking for work, and where I am looking for work. I may get a new job that way; I may not. But it never hurts to ask. Worst anyone can say is no.

Date: 21/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Lessons Learned Bookmark: Permalink

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Sunday Evening Post #95

We did not go to CostCo or the grocery store 4+ times this week. I am calling that a win. My interview on Tuesday went well. On Friday night, the universe decided to pound it into my brain that yes, I really do need to be networking on this job search. And today, my writing group, which is filled with amazing people, gave us our first “family” gift – a family membership to the aquarium.

It was a good week.

Blogging

Write one guest post per month.

January- yes

February- yes

March- no

April- no

Publish one guest post per month.

January- yes

February- no

March- no

April- no

April turned out to be not any better than March when it came to getting guest blogging done or posted. With my certification out of the way hopefully I’ll get my act together in May.

I do have a request in with one blogging friend to write a guest post for me, so hopefully I’ll get that up this month.

Writing

I am hoping to transfer the power of those two things- accountability and deadlines, to my fiction this year.

Submit at least one piece to a paying venue per month.

December: Yes (rejected)

January: Yes (rejected)

February: Yes x4 (2 rejections)

March: No

April: Yes

Complete the first draft of my novella and start edits. No work on the novella this week, but I did start on something to be submitted.

Finances

Create and track a practice stock portfolio. The latest post went up on Thursday.

End the year “on budget” in the categories I’m tracking.

May Numbers

Category	On Budget
Category	Month	Year
Groceries	Yes	No
House	No	No
Eating Out	Yes	No
Allowance – E	Yes	No
Allowance – C	Yes	Yes

We had our first “eating out” of the month on Saturday, when we went to Red Robin. We had a free burger on the loyalty card, so, with tip, only about $20 for three people. Definitely getting ourselves back on track there.

Floating Goals

Find a new job. Meeting with the recruiter got moved to this coming Tuesday because I was sick last week. Networking is paying off, at least in small doses, and I’m still feeling good about the process.

Replace all the windows in the house. They measured our windows this week, and now they are making our windows. In 4-6 weeks, I will have new windows

Fix the plumbing issues. We have a number of little plumbing issues all of which we really need to get fixed.

Publish new photography/flash fiction book. One of my goals for my “down time” is to start working on this project. Sadly, my down time hasn’t been very down.

Refinance the house. DONE.

Earn my Certified Supply Chain Professional designation. DONE.

Rebuild savings to $5-10k. We’re up to $8,075. I’m calling this DONE. (Though savings will actually grow considerably over the next 24 weeks as I get severance and hopefully a new regular paycheck.

Date: 19/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Sunday Evening Post Bookmark: Permalink

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Stock Market Project – Month 5

Turns out that back in mid-March, Zipcar was bought out by the Avis group. Oops, there goes one of my stocks. I never saw any news on how that was handled, so basically, I decided that I had sold it at it’s last value, and was not charged transaction fee. I don’t know if that is how it would actually work, but that’s how I’m playing it.

My “smaller” stocks are actually doing quite well. EA and Barnes & Noble are both up nicely. Starbucks is up a little bit, and Amazon is down. I was feeling a little lazy this month, so I used my money to pick up one more Amazon stock, and two more from Lenovo, which is also down from where I originally bought it.

Here’s my chart of where the money stands:

Stock	Shares	Buy Price	Buy Value	Transaction Cost	Current Price	Current Value	Sell Value	Profit/(Loss)
LNVGY	5	19.22	96.10	7.00	17.9	89.50		(13.60)
LNVGY	2	17.90	35.80	7.00	17.9	35.80		(7.00)
EA	9	13.77	123.93	7.00	22.02	198.18		67.25
BKS	9	13.40	120.60	7.00	19.83	178.47		50.87
ZIP	9	12.16	109.44	7.00	0	–	83.97	(32.47)
GLUU	25	2.29	57.25	7.00	2.77	69.25		5.00
AMZN	1	273.63	273.63	7.00	264.12	264.12		(16.51)
AMZN	1	264.12	264.12	7.00	264.12	264.12		(7.00)
SBUX	4	58.56	234.24	7.00	63.55	254.2		12.96

TOTAL			$ 1,315.11			$ 1,353.64		$ 59.50

Not much exciting going on this month. I’m “up” about $59.50, on my total investment of about $1,300 , about a 4.5% increase, once my buying fees are taken into account.

Date: 16/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Stock Market Project Bookmark: Permalink

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My Credit Card is My Friend

Maybe a month or so ago, I mentioned in passing that C and I got the CostCo American Express card. We had gotten by without one for over 10 years, so it wasn’t necessarily a need, but I knew I wanted to purchase the laptop and that we would be getting him glasses. We could have afforded either without putting it on a card, as long as we moved money from savings, and since they were big purchases, that is normally what we would have done.

But, we got the card. And can I tell you how happy I am that we did. The addition of Small Person (SP) to our lives has necessitated more CostCo trips than I was ever imagining. For the most part, the items we are getting will eventually be absorbed into our normal shopping schedule and budget, but when you have no school appropriate snacks, you need to go get them.

To go along with that, we both seem to have “mommy brain” in that we realize 5 minutes after we leave CostCo that there is something we forgot to get. Or we go there for something specific and while we’re there realize there is something else we need. As a result, we have been to CostCo maybe six times in the last two weeks, where our goal had been once every two weeks.

This is what my life has felt like in the last two weeks, but in a good way

We can afford everything we have been spending, but since it is out of our normal pattern, I would have had to move money around from savings to keep the checking account solvent. Instead, we get to use the CostCo card, which I pay off 2 times each month, and I am able to just work the added expense into the budget much more naturally.

For the most part, SP is not adding to our budget very much. She doesn’t actually eat a whole lot, and she’s not super picky, so we’ve been able to adapt our normal dinners to her, but there are those one time, or first time, expenses that we’re not used to. And for those, I am so glad we got the CostCo American Express. Because otherwise, I have very little doubt that I would have accidentally overdrawn the checking account at least once in the last two weeks. And that’s one headache I just don’t need.

Date: 14/05/2013 Author: Erin Shanendoah Category: Budgets, Everyday Finances Bookmark: Permalink

Personal Finance in a World of Excuses

Sunday Evening Post #97

Confession of a Breadwinner Mother

Pre-Interview Routine

Sunday Evening Post #96

What I’m Reading: Road Trip Edition

Twenty-Three Days In

The Universe is Hitting Me Over the Head

Sunday Evening Post #95

Stock Market Project – Month 5

My Credit Card is My Friend

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