The end of September means my mom's birthday (tomorrow) and also the end of the 3rd quarter. We're not at market highs, but neither are we at market lows. I'll definitely see an increase over 2nd quarter earnings.

This is also the time of year that we usually hear about whether contribution limits for next year's retirement plans will increase. From everything I've read we shouldn't expect an increase. So my contributions will stay at $750 biweekly and $500 monthly.

My cell phone bill was $38.13 lower than last month. When I logged into my account to see what the difference was I found that I paid my last installment on my cell phone last month. 30 months of payments! I won't be trying to upgrade this cell phone anytime soon. I just pray that I don't start having problems with it. I upgraded to the iPhone X between my trips to England & Scotland and Greece because my phone was overheating & burning through the battery. I didn't want to go to Greece with an unreliable phone. And the iPhone X was such an upgrade as far as the camera. I have great pictures from Greece.

Although I get my credit report regularly I'm not sure if my phone was on it as a recurring payment. If so, it will probably drop my credit score by a few next update then eventually go back up.

I also received my $40 Costco gift card in the mail. It was part of the Groupon special when I purchased my membership. When I have room in my freezer I'll make another trip.

It’s a rainy day here & I have turkey chili in the crockpot. 🦃🌶 The weather seems to match the sadness of the day with the loss of RBG. I admired her greatly. May she rest in peace & power. 🖤

Yesterday I received my final 2 paychecks of the month so I did some budget planner journaling. I still have expenses for the rest of the month, but my income is largely accounted for. My check was of course larger due to the OASDI deferral. Next month is a 3 paycheck month, which means another credit card & car loan payment and another TSP contribution. Yay!!!

I learned a new move in Lyra class this morning & I’m definitely feeling it. It’s called Star on the Bar and it looks absolutely beautiful. I can tell it’s going to be one of my favorite moves. ⭐️

In professional news, I have a lot to be excited about & I hope to be sharing good news in the coming months.

Though I’m disappointed that my loan info no longer updates on Mint (because they migrated mortgage info from the mobile app to a website) the new website has a lot more information. It has neighborhood comps, home value, and most importantly, I now know that I only have 10 years left on my mortgage! I had estimated the payoff date, but it’s nice to have a definite date: December 2020.

We worked half a day today & the clinic will be closer tomorrow due the weather. Hurricane Sally is expected to make landfall near the Louisiana-Mississippi border tomorrow. My default hurricane snacks are usually a bunch of junk food & I instinctively crave junk whenever they start talking about a hurricane. I have been strong & avoided the temptation through Laura & now Sally. I’m doing so well & don’t want to stall my progress.

Today is 9-11 & we remember all the lives lost that day. I pray that our country returns to the unity we had in the days following that tragic event.

This week has been busy. My employee is out on maternity leave & another employee has also been out this week. I had to cover the lab as well as my everyday supervisory duties, plus cover for my lab manager in some duties as she took a short vacation.

Today I stepped on the scale & I saw a number that I haven't seen in well over a decade. Pretty exciting. I just hope to continue on this path.

I signed up for a level 1 hammock class at the aerial fitness gym. It will be my first time trying hammock. They also have pole, flexibility, and chair choreo classes. I have never worn heels as high as the heels they wear for the pole classes! I think I'll pass on those classes, at least for now.

Now that we are moving into phase 3, they are starting back at the salsa studio. They are having a limited sign-up social Tuesday. I'll need to do some practicing before I make an appearance!

My sister put an offer on a condo & it was accepted! I'm very excited for her becoming a homeowner. She's never had her own place, even just renting an apartment. I'm going to send her some tea towels as a housewarming present as well as a gift card, maybe to Target.

My finances are as usual. I continue to make progress on paying down debt & will soon be able to say that the credit card debt is below $10k. Still on track to pay it off by spring.

I hope everyone had a relaxing Labor Day. This Labor Day I’m especially grateful to all the essential workers.

Today I did a little laboring in the gym & kitchen. I’m working out 45 min 3x a week plus strength training. I also took advantage of a Labor Day special that the aerial fitness gym was offering: 8 classes for $50. I signed up for all of the level 1 Lyra classes which is 5 classes. All are being taught by my friend so that will be fun. I’ll keep an eye on the schedule for my remaining 3 classes.

Several years ago I thought I would try spaghetti squash as a healthier alternative to pasta. I took one look at the spaghetti squash after cooking it, decided I wouldn’t like it after all, and ended up tossing it. Today I decided to try it again. I roasted 2 small spaghetti squash with olive oil & salt. I had some excess sauce from the crockpot chicken creole I made a couple of weeks ago. The red pepper really gave it a nice kick. I browned some 93% lean ground turkey, and viola! It was absolutely delicious. I am now sold on spaghetti squash.🍝

Health update: 24 lbs down

I’m probably the only person in the world who looks forward to sitting down with my budget planner! 😄

I was just thinking about the payroll deferral. Though it doesn’t apply to those making over $104k, I can’t opt out at my full-time job, though I will surely make over $104k this year with my added income. I hope there is not a penalty for the deferral, since I couldn’t opt out. I did remember though, that I’m on track to pay off my car in December so I can use that extra $200 every two weeks to cushion the deferral payback beginning in January. Things always seem to work out! I’m counting my blessings once again this morning.

My mortgage is not being counted against my net worth as of today on Mint. I’ll update again if they get it fixed.

At least for today.

I logged into my Mint account & for the first time I saw a net worth in the 7 digits. Very exciting, yet nothing changes for me. I just keep plugging away. I can't even celebrate with a glass of wine or champagne because I'm not drinking alcohol right now. Just seeing the number is celebration enough!

Net Worth $1,006,252

It’s September & my favorite season is in sight. 🍁🍂🎃

Ka-ching! That’s the sound of another sale! I sold 4 more tea towels today. I get more excited about selling something that the money I make! I’m going to ship the package on the way to the gym.

Today is the start of the payroll tax deferral. I’m a federal employee & of course, they will opt in to the holiday. I’m going to be really annoyed when I have to pay back these taxes in the new year, but unfortunately I don’t get to opt out of this political stunt.

My third job called me in yesterday. I got in 4 hours, most which will go to taxes due to my extra withholding, but I don’t want to come up with extra money when I file my taxes.