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About Me:

Monkey Mama

Just a 46-year-old mom of 2 in Northern California. My kids are Monkey Monkey(MM) and Drama Llama (DL). I am married to Monkey Hubby (MH).

We were a one-income family for 13 years. In late 2015 my spouse returned to work (minimum wage/part-time/seasonal). Something recent on his resume just buys us more options for the long run. The main benefit of this job is that he just works while the kids are in school. As always, we are saving 100% of his income.

{2023 Update: I expect that MH will retire from this job when kids are done with college and/or home is paid off. I think he likes the idea of finding more interesting or full-time work, with kids both adults now. But practically, might just stick out the *good* and very flexible job as long as possible. The very part-time job is allowing him to pursue his film passions. We are only about 5-ish years away from financial independence. Would be very different if we "needed" the money or he thought he might have decades of working years ahead of him.}

We saved a lot while we were very young and also moved to a lower cost-of-living area, to make life much simpler. We still live in California though (in one of the most expensive regions of the U.S.). *Simple* and *inexpensive* is relative.

Likewise, we have never had debt aside from our mortgage.** My blog is a testament to how much simpler life is without debt; how we have that much more money to both save and enjoy!

**Caveat: I have no problem whatsoever with credit cards paid off monthly, or low-risk credit arbitrage (for example, 0%-interest debt while earning 5% on FDIC-insured cash). These are the kinds of debt we have had. Just not interested in high-interest debt, using debt to buy beyond means, and not interested in the hassle that comes with loans and payments. With age and means, the latter (hassle) is our biggest debt avoidance motivation.

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2024 Goals

[ ]Small monthly Charitable Contribution
...($35 @ 1/31/24)
...Trying to be more mindful about how the little amounts add up and are helpful.
...This is not an all inclusive list of charitable giving but it is a new habit I want to add in addition to other donations of time, goods and money

[ ]Pay cash for college
...This is so much a given, to me. But I realize not everyone can read my mind, and so will memorialize in my goal list.
...#1 We don't do Debt
...#2 The student loan system is a scammy and corrupt mess.
...Seriously, wouldn't touch these student loan servicers with a ten foot pole.
MM YEAR 1 ✔
MM YEAR 2 ✔
MM YEAR 3 ✔
MM YEAR 4

DL YEAR 1 ✔
DL YEAR 2

[ ]$10,000 to savings
...($4,529 @ 3/31/24)
...$1,000/month, plus interest
...Topping off with snowballs

[ ]$7,500 to investments
...($1,750 @ 4/30/24)
...$350/month, plus snowflakes
(Snowflakes: credit card rewards and dividends)
...Topping off with snowballs

[ ]$2,025 to mortgage
...($0 @ 4/30/24)
...Topping off with snowballs and/or excess cash
...Keeps us on track with $10K principal paydown per year

[/]9% of household income to work retirement plans
...(9% @ 3/31/24)
...This is the minimum for the match; I'd otherwise rather fund IRAs.
...Note: Total retirement savings rate is 20% (with IRAs)

Goal savings rate = 25% of gross salary, plus funding IRAs from other sources.

[ ]$14,000 to IRAs 2024 (MAX)
...($0 @ 4/30/24)
...Will fund with MH's income
...Will not fund until the year is over. This is for tax and planning reasons. I won't know what mix of Traditional/ROTH IRA we literally can contribute until we do our 2024 taxes. In addition to that, can make a more informed decision based on our financial and tax situation for the entire year.

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**Long-Term Goals**

[X]$500,000 in retirement accounts by age 45.

Current big picture goal:

[ ]$1 Mil in retirement accounts by age 52.

Stretch Goal: Achieve by age 50

Have decided to pretty much stay the course. Keep saving 20%+ to retirement. This means taking 401K match & maxing out IRAs.

NOTE: WE HAVE NEVER CONTRIBUTED LESS THAN 10% TO RETIREMENT. NO EXCEPTIONS.

If we can't achieve at least 10%, then something else has to give. I share because it's infinitely easier to save for retirement if you start early. Let the investments do the hard work for you.

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Debt: $85,000 mortgage
{Home Purchase Price $290,000}

Ongoing goal is to *never borrow money again.*

Took on a $230k mortgage in 2001 and have not added to that.

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Net Worth: Increase net worth by $600,000 in the next 10 years. This is my "financial independence" goal.

2017: +$ 70,000 (partial year)
2018: +$ 51,000
2019: +$105,000
2020: +$104,000
2021: +$215,000
2022: <$ 65,000>
2022: +$ 85,000
TOTAL: +$565,000

This is in line with prior goal, saving 100% of our expenses every year.

{Our expenses are far more consistent than our income. Also, helps to prevent "living up to income."}

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My Pages

Lunch Challenge

February 1st, 2011 at 04:04 pm

The Lunch Challenge

I eat in most of the time, anyway, but welcome the opportunity to share how I do it.

Since I have been out from work quite a while and just going home for lunch (since my return), the challenge reminded me it was time to restock some food at work.

On hand already:

BBQ Sauce
Salad Dressing
Apple Sauce (large jug)
cereal (in tupperware)
raisins

Brought today:

Granola bar (breakfast)
yogurt
Bag of frozen chicken nuggets
Banana
leftover pasta casserole (dinner last night)

I forgot the ramen!

I don't think I have ever had ramen in my life, before, but dh picked some up on sale rather recently and I have come to enjoy them as a light snack. (Not enough nutrients or calories for a meal - but a nice winter snack). IT was funny because at first I looked at it and said, "Should we really be eating that???" But, in the end I decided I was a little overly concerned. My motto is always moderation, and my initial reaction was overkill considering we don't eat that much of it.

I'll have to bring some ramen in tomorrow - my work stock is gone.

I primarily drink water. No beverages to bring, but I usually bring a large cup (32 oz?) so that I don't have to run to the water jug every hour all day. A cup is just easy to grab, easy to clean, etc. Over the years I see more co-workers copying my idea. Wink I usually just bring one cup every Monday, and take it home to wash at the end of the week.
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For the challenge, I have 23 work days this month.

I will aim to bring lunch 19 days out of 23. I meet dh or friends for lunch once a week. For me, I find it necessary for my relationships, to not hole up and eat in ALL The time. But, it's a challenge to remember and make the time, some times.

On the weekends, since I get paid overtime, I am usually a little less concerned about eating in. If I have to work on a Saturday, might as well eat some decadent fast food or something like that. BUT, when I eat in, I can get out of here faster. Since I didn't work most of January, I will just aim to eat in Saturdays. Will see how it goes.

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When it comes to saving money in some areas so we have more to save (& splurge in other areas), these are the three biggies for us:

**Home - cut home costs as much as possible (moved to low cost region)
**Cars - cut vehicle costs as much as possible (buy older vehicles, for cash, and keep them a LONG time)
**Food - Eat in (most of the time) to cut food costs

Those are the three biggies, for us. Food is one of those things that can add up to a ton over time.

Posted in What We Eat | 4 Comments »

4 Responses to “Lunch Challenge”

doxie Says:
February 1st, 2011 at 09:56 pm 1296597384
1296597384

I just wanted to comment that the way I add some nutrients to ramen is to add 2 eggs right into the boiling water, let them cook about 3 minutes. That way you at least get some protein, and it makes a satisfying lunch. I've never tried it in the microwave, but I'm sure you could experiment.

Also, they sell healthier ramen noodles in places like Whole Foods. They are more expensive (about a buck a piece), but have less sodium and no MSG. Just an option if that was a concern for you.
HouseHopeful Says:
February 1st, 2011 at 10:22 pm 1296598935
1296598935

I have several 32 oz water bottles that I take to work each week. I fill at the filtered water cooler in the office when I first get in & refill in the afternoon. This way I always get 64 oz of water per day.
MonkeyMama Says:
February 2nd, 2011 at 12:26 am 1296606370
1296606370

Oooh - the egg idea is a good one. We have an electric tea kettle at work.

Spending a $1 on ramen? Teehee. I am just not interested in the Whole Foods concept (whole paycheck - little more than marketing if you ask me). But, that is intereting - Whole Foods ramen - I had no idea!
doxie Says:
February 3rd, 2011 at 12:58 am 1296694701
1296694701

I agree MonkeyMama, I don't shop at Whole Paycheck either. I get my healthy ramen at Henry's, but I don't think you have those in the Bay Area. I figured Whole Foods must carry them too.

Yes, $1 is a splurge for ramen. I actually like the 25 cent kind, but a couple times I've gotten migraines after eating them. Just in case it was the MSG that was the trigger, I figure it's worth 75 cents so I won't be in bed the whole day!

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Monkey Mama*s Monkey Money Blog

Over Prepare, Then Go With The Flow

Lunch Challenge

4 Responses to “Lunch Challenge”

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