Evolving Personal Finance » Archive
Targeted Savings for the Non-Broke
As of January, we have resumed our use of targeted savings accounts! I missed this system so in the last 2.5 years when our life has been in flux: becoming funemployed, living apart, moving to Seattle, and having a baby. But said baby is over six months old now and things are much more predictable, so we’re back to using targeted savings. But pressing “play” on our targeted savings system again is not like starting it … Read entire article »
Filed under: targeted savings
Incorporating New Frugal Strategies
In February we incorporated two new frugal strategies into our wheelhouse of natural frugality in Seattle. Even though we’re earning more than we ever have before (hello 25% tax bracket!), we haven’t outgrown the frugality we practiced during grad school. Having a baby threw things off for a little while, but we’re getting back on track. A New Type of Grocer We heard a tip a few weeks ago from one of our friends here about a … Read entire article »
Filed under: frugality
February 2017 Budget Report
Our February was very quiet spending-wise. We had a nice victory in coming in under budget for groceries, which has been a struggle for a couple years now. We’re not really going out at all these days, but we did invite friends over to our place and go over to some friends’ houses this month. The costs for those gatherings are just rolled into our grocery spending for the month. We’re planning a couple trips … Read entire article »
Filed under: month in review
Grad Students: Attend My Free Tax Webinar
On Tuesday, 3/7/2017 at 6:30 PM PST I’m presenting a live tax webinar for grad students! The webinar is free and I’m using it as a way to get my. name out there as a person who serves the personal finance needs of early-career PhDs. I’ve been studying the tax quandaries grad students face on and off for years (and documented it here and on Grad Student Finances). I cover grad student pay and taxes briefly in my comprehensive … Read entire article »
Filed under: taxes
Finding an New Balance Between Working and Caregiving
Six weeks ago, an acquaintance approached Kyle and me about a possible childcare swap. The other couple wanted to trade full days looking after one another’s children so that the primary caregiver could work per diem occasionally. They couldn’t afford to pay for childcare (childcare in Seattle is expensive, people!) so a swap was a good fit for them. I debated (with myself and with Kyle) whether to accept this offer for quite some time. The … Read entire article »
Filed under: family, marriage, parenthood, self-employment
January 2017 Budget Report
January was a fairly quiet month around our house. We spent the first few days of it still in Virginia with my family, flying back on the 3rd. For the rest of the month I kept me and DPR almost completely housebound – it’s too cold and dreary for me to want to get out much. We did socialize a bit, but hosted our friends at our home instead of going out. If we were … Read entire article »
Filed under: month in review
December 2016 Budget Report
Our major event this month was traveling over winter break. We stayed with my parents for about 10 days. Most of the time we were just spending time at home with my family, as DPR was all the entertainment we needed. My siblings hadn’t met DPR before so that was very exciting. Traveling for that period threw off our spending in a couple ways: we mooched off my parents for food so our grocery and restaurant … Read entire article »
Filed under: month in review
Breastfeeding Ain’t Free
Before I became a mother, I had the misconception that breastfeeding an infant was free. I mean, I knew it wasn’t completely free because the calories the baby eats have to come from somewhere, but I thought the costs beyond the extra food that the mother was eating would be negligible. Breastfeeding was some magical minimalist pursuit where all you need is mother and baby. While there may be some unicorn mother-and-nursling pair out there for … Read entire article »
November 2016 Budget Report
Over Thanksgiving, our family spent 11 days with Kyle’s parents in southern California. It was a wonderful and restful trip. Kyle had to use or lose a bunch of vacation days so we planned a long Thanksgiving trip and a long Christmas trip. After paying for our flights for both of those trips this month, it was a wonderful break to be hosted by Kyle’s parents and have all of our food and so forth … Read entire article »
Filed under: month in review
Where’s the Tipping Point Between a Roth and Traditional IRA?
I love my Roth IRA (and my Roth 401(k)). Throughout my twenties, I didn’t have access to a workplace-based retirement account, so the IRA was a retirement-life-saver. I also was not making much money as a grad student, so using a Roth made total sense. When I speak to current grad students, I advocate using a Roth IRA for retirement savings. But at some point, doesn’t a traditional IRA or 401(k) start to make more … Read entire article »
Filed under: retirement, taxes
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