Dang. I glanced at the budget this month and it was crazy. We spent a lot on clothes and car repair (more things we budget a certain amount annually - less of a monthly thing).

But other areas we did really bad were in Dining Out. I am not exactly sure why. I know we ate out a couple of times while we were sick - probably part of it. But dining out was $100 (vs. our $30 budget).

It's okay though because we only spent $350 on groceries. If dh goes to the store in the next couple of days it will hit our September budget (card) but I didn't get the feeling we were really short on food. Our budget is usually $500 and we have been hitting closer to $450. So $350 is amazing. So the dining is okay in that regard. I think grocery bill is down because there was a full week we were pretty much sick and couldn't eat. (Lots of toast and rice). & the kids were gone last weekend as well. (They have been eating like adults though lately - they are both in a growth spurt - most definitely).

Well I put $1k to my ROTH and $1200 to the IRS for ROTH conversions, so the cash outflow this month was just HUGE. I just felt like it was a horrid month, so was surprised to see how we did on most the budget. We did pretty good (way better than usual). Oh yes, and only $200 on gas (I budget $300 and prices have been going up like crazy). I think the whole sick in bed for a week helped with that. Sort of.

I expect October to be much the same. We have some big expenses coming up, but all of us will be gone 1 week on different "all expense paid" trips so I don't expect gas or groceries to be particularly as high as usual. Then again we have to drive to the Bay 4 times to pick up and drop each other off at the airport (or now that I think about it I think dh is flying out of Sac! Maybe not so bad - I just am not sure. But not driving to work for a week, and not driving to preschool for a week, will help offset that.

Well, I will look harder at September numbers once the credit card closes. 3 more days. The thing is we both have a full tank of gas, so I know our gas expense is set for the month.

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The neighbor's cat is very sweet and likes to hang out in our yard, but this morning I caught a glimpse of her and pointed her out to the kids (who love to watch her and say hi). Of course I quickly realized she was playing with a dead mouse. Eeeeeeew. I am kind of revolted (particularly since the kids have had pet rats and they have pet rats at preschool). But then again I am thinking, if there are mice around, the fact that cat practically lives in our yard, is FAR less annoying. Kudos to her. I have a cat but she is declawed and therefore stays indoors (no I would NEVER do that to a cat - got her from the SPCA). So she is useless on the mouse front. The kids are fascinated. LOL. I hope they are not traumatized. Poor mouse.

Maybe I should be disturbed we have MICE. Eeeks.