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As a person with a similar prescription, I'm totally on board with not going to do this online. I think it's actually the one thing I DON'T discount shop online. That being said, if you knew you needed new glasses (which is a need, not a want), then why wasn't this in your budget? Did you forget you can't see? You didn't buy them last year because you couldn't afford them. And right before (or as?) you started the thread, you dropped $60 on cosmetics. While you were wearing an outdated prescription due to money. I just want to point this out.
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Jul 2, 2013 12:27
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Eris posted:As a person with a similar prescription, I'm totally on board with not going to do this online. I think it's actually the one thing I DON'T discount shop online. I know. The makeup was stupid. A friend started selling Mary Kay and I was helping her out. I was going to start saving for glasses once we got that $1000 saved. We should have it by the middle of the month. I figured I've waited this long... 
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Jul 2, 2013 13:02
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For what it's worth, I've had good success purchasing glasses from http://www.zennioptical.com/. I was able to pick up a pair of prescription sunglasses for around $35.00 that I use for driving and hiking. Sounds like that isn't an option for you but it's something to keep in mind for the rest of the family if they have less dramatic prescriptions.
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Jul 2, 2013 13:07
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TouchyMcFeely posted:For what it's worth, I've had good success purchasing glasses from http://www.zennioptical.com/. I was able to pick up a pair of prescription sunglasses for around $35.00 that I use for driving and hiking. I've used them as well, they cost $22 for a pair of backup glasses that I use when I'm too lazy to have contacts in but still need to see for a few minutes. They're really good for people like me with a really low, normal prescription.
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Jul 2, 2013 14:27
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LoveMeDead posted:I needed glasses last year when I got my exam, but couldn't afford them then. My frames are 5 years old, discolored, and chipped. My current glasses are -12 and -12.5 with a +1.25 astigmatism. My script last year was -12.5 & -13 with +1.5 astigmatism. As an aside: I worked at LensCrafters for a couple years in college, and that might be the strongest script I've ever seen! New glasses definitely falls under the category of a need, and you should make sure you get something you'll have comfortable wearing and will last a while.
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Jul 2, 2013 17:23
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HookShot posted:I've used them as well, they cost $22 for a pair of backup glasses that I use when I'm too lazy to have contacts in but still need to see for a few minutes. They're really good for people like me with a really low, normal prescription. I'll keep that in mind. My daughter wears glasses with a much lower prescription.
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Jul 3, 2013 14:54
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Doing well for July so far, even with the move. BoA offered $825 for its to be our by August 1. After vacation we are going to go in and clean. We leave in the morning for vacation. We are going to take out the spending money in cash and only use the card for gas. My husband's first two paychecks have gone straight into savings do we have about $875 in savings now. The budget looks good, we only spent $115 on groceries Friday, but it was for three days and the car trip. No more grocery shopping until next Monday.
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Jul 8, 2013 04:12
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Enjoy your vacation. I hope that when you return your husband will start looking in earnest for ways to increase his financial contribution to the household (his hours are due to drop next month if I recall correctly).
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Jul 8, 2013 05:02
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Not to beat the beater car thing to death but the roadmaster's are very reliable cars. My FIL has one with well over 200k on it and it's still going strong. The LT1 engine in it is pretty tough, I'm pretty sure that's what they would have used in the police cars and taxis of that vintage, aka reliable. You seem all ready to scrap it, and that's fine, just wanted to let you know that they're very tough old cars.
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Jul 9, 2013 13:51
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dreesemonkey posted:Not to beat the beater car thing to death but the roadmaster's are very reliable cars. My FIL has one with well over 200k on it and it's still going strong. The LT1 engine in it is pretty tough, I'm pretty sure that's what they would have used in the police cars and taxis of that vintage, aka reliable. The LT1 was used in the 93-97(?) Camaros, and the generation before that's Corvettes, I believe. I imagine it gets pretty weak gas mileage, though.
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Jul 9, 2013 14:25
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I just skimmed everything in one sitting to get up to speed, but have you pulled the trigger yet on the bankruptcy yet? Reading your situation, I agree that your house is a money pit and based on your other obligations, your husbands (lack of) career path, there is no way you can claw your way out of it. Keeping it is throwing good money after a deal that should have never been done. That said, have you thought of doing a short sale? This is where you find a buyer for the house who will pay what its worth, and the bank takes it and forgives the rest of the debt. It is less of a hit to your credit than a foreclosure and bankruptcy. The bank will do better having it sold retail where you find the buyer instead of taking over a house that they don't want and having to take an even bigger loss when they sell it. I wouldn't say everyone comes out ahead, but the damage is minimized on all sides. If you did a short sale and had the debt forgiven, a bankruptcy no longer does anything since most of your debt is student loans and you have no credit cards. I imagine the attorney who thought it was a good idea was a bankruptcy attorney. There is a place for it, but there is also the idea that if you have a hammer, you think every problem is a nail.
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Jul 14, 2013 22:23
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It doesn't sound like it would be able to pass any kind of inspection, and they don't have any way to pay to bring it up to code. Or does that not matter for a short sale? I'll admit I don't know much about buying/selling houses.
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Jul 14, 2013 23:09
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monsieur fatso posted:It doesn't sound like it would be able to pass any kind of inspection, and they don't have any way to pay to bring it up to code. The items you bring up really lower it's value. Pretty much you would be limited to investors who are buying it with cash to fix it up and flip it. That said, there is still a value and the bank would still rather they go that route as opposed to the expenses and time of foreclosure. People generally stop making the payments while the house is up for sale and that softens up the bank as to if they will accept the offer. Their credit will be still be ruined, the bank will still report bad stuff, they will still take a loss, but I compared to foreclosure and declaring bankruptcy to protect yourself when they come after you, the short sale is the much less painful option. For the bank too. They don't want to own a rotting house and bank owned real estate is even more distressed.
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Jul 14, 2013 23:25
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As a side note on glasses chat, I paid $95 for glasses from http://warbyparker.com
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Jul 16, 2013 04:47
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I used http://www.optical4less.com/ a decade ago (before I got LASIK) to have a spare pair of glasses for travel. I liked them so much that they became my main pair.
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Jul 16, 2013 13:12
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The house has already been foreclosed on and was sold to Bank of America at auction. Vacation went well. Gas was a little more than expected, but I think we can stay within our budget. My mom took the kids clothes shopping, so we don't need to spend much more. That helps.
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Jul 17, 2013 08:53
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Have you thought about asking your or your husband's parents for help getting a car? A loan from them could cause family issues and yeah its debt, but it sounds like you need a second car and it would help your family earn money.
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Jul 17, 2013 14:25
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LoveMeDead posted:The house has already been foreclosed on and was sold to Bank of America at auction. Glad to hear that's all done and behind you. I imagine it's a huge relief to have that finished.
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Jul 17, 2013 15:49
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Just wondering how things are going OP. How's the new house working out? How did you go with July's budget? How are things looking for August - November?
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Jul 28, 2013 21:19
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Lolie posted:Just wondering how things are going OP. Things are going good. We went a little over budget for July because of things for the new house. We had to buy a new vacuum, but only spent $35. Also bought some curtains at goodwill and a couple storage containers because a box was crushed. Our income was $1200 more than the budget though, so we put about $1000 extra into savings. We went over on our gas budget by $55 because we underestimated gas for our trip. August looks pretty good. We already have the rent money set aside. We have about $2000 in our savings account, so that's great. We are trying to put off buying another car as long as possible. No loan. I'm still not sure what to do about school lunches. I don't think we can pack lunches for less than $1.50 a day. My husband is looking at some online jobs he found through the thread here. He's created a curriculum for himself based on the Mit courses and another site and is going to start in two weeks when the drive in closes.
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Jul 29, 2013 04:03
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I don't know if anyone is still following this thread, but I have a little update. We might be getting a second car. In one of my Facebook groups someone is selling a 1993 Mustang with 66k miles for only $1875. We talked her down to$1700 and are going Wednesday to look at it. My friend's roommate used to be a mechanic so he's going to meet us. The blue book value on the car is around $6000, so this worries me. The seller's story is that it was bought at auction for her son who is about to turn 16. It it's a5 speed, and he doesn't like it so they want to get him a different car. The sun roof is sealed shut and they replaced the front seats. She says there are no mechanical problems. They live in a nice neighborhood, and one off the pictures of the car shows it in a large driveway in front of a very large boat. I'm just nervous about it being priced so low. We have $2400 in savings and will be adding $350 more this month at least. We offered $50 for the ex-mechanic to meet us and look at it. I quoted our insurance and it raises it very little, only $41 for the six month premium. What are people's thoughts on this? I'm cautiously optimistic.
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Aug 13, 2013 09:18
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LoveMeDead posted:I don't know if anyone is still following this thread, but I have a little update. If it's mechanically sound, then you might just have a great little beater for your family. Hopefully it's a V6 so your teenagers don't get into any trouble (tickets are very expensive on your insurance!).
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Aug 13, 2013 12:54
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LoveMeDead posted:We have $2400 in savings and will be adding $350 more this month at least. We offered $50 for the ex-mechanic to meet us and look at it. I quoted our insurance and it raises it very little, only $41 for the six month premium. They didn't make a v-6 mustang in '93. If you're lucky it's a 4 cylinder and hasn't been beat on too much. I'm not sure how you got a blue book of $6000. $1700 seems like a reasonable price if it's in nice shape.
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Aug 13, 2013 16:45
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LoveMeDead posted:We offered $50 for the ex-mechanic to meet us and look at it.
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Aug 13, 2013 19:13
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Leroy Diplowski posted:They didn't make a v-6 mustang in '93. If you're lucky it's a 4 cylinder and hasn't been beat on too much. I'm not sure how you got a blue book of $6000. $1700 seems like a reasonable price if it's in nice shape. It is a 4 cylinder. I got the $6000 by putting the info into Kelly Bluebook. We are going to look for a mechanic in the area and see if we can take it tomorrow. If we can't get it in, would it be reasonable to ask for a 2-3 day period to get it into a mechanic and get or money back off anything is major wrong? Does that fall under lemon laws?
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Aug 13, 2013 20:32
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LoveMeDead posted:It is a 4 cylinder. I got the $6000 by putting the info into Kelly Bluebook. Lemon laws are only for new cars. You should take it to a mechanic before you agree to buy it.
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Aug 13, 2013 20:48
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There is no reason to pay them before having a mechanic look at it. They should be bending over backwards to help you, not the other way around. (Also, ask for a lower price and they will probably give it to you. They don't want to have to think about the car any more than they have to and they clearly don't care about getting its full value.)
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Aug 13, 2013 20:50
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LoveMeDead posted:I don't know if anyone is still following this thread, but I have a little update. Oh yeah, we're all still following. 
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Aug 13, 2013 21:18
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Jeffrey posted:There is no reason to pay them before having a mechanic look at it. They should be bending over backwards to help you, not the other way around. (Also, ask for a lower price and they will probably give it to you. They don't want to have to think about the car any more than they have to and they clearly don't care about getting its full value.) The $1700 is lower. They first asked for $1875 but won't go lower than $1700. I've never bought a car from a private seller so I'm not sure how to go about getting it looked at and talking to the seller about that. I know there are a couple other people interested. tuyop posted:Oh yeah, we're all still following. Sorry I'm not more of a train wreck to entertain.  Things are actually going really well. The only budget we are going to blow this month, probably, is education because we didn't allow for all of the back to school fees.
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Aug 13, 2013 22:43
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LoveMeDead posted:Sorry I'm not more of a train wreck to entertain. Well, I think you're doing great. You responded really well to the advice and criticism in this thread. And I like hearing about how your kids get on board with the budget – or not. It's something that I wonder about all the time since I want to have kids as well.
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Aug 13, 2013 23:07
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tuyop posted:Well, I think you're doing great. You responded really well to the advice and criticism in this thread. And I like hearing about how your kids get on board with the budget – or not. It's something that I wonder about all the time since I want to have kids as well. The 17 year old is still not getting it. He blew through $20 of lunch money the first week of school, then deposited the $10 check we gave him for a class fee into his lunch account. So we put $10 less in his account this week. He has this huge list of things he "needs" money for, and gets upset when we say no. We've already said no to an ACT prep class that would be $225, because he isn't happy with his 28. And he wanted us to buy video editing software for his journalism class because he doesn't like the one the school has. Can't get out of Club dues and graduation fees though.
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Aug 13, 2013 23:20
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That kid needs a job, and to learn that mommy and daddy aren't a money tree.
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Aug 13, 2013 23:42
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Nocheez posted:That kid needs a job, and to learn that mommy and daddy aren't a money tree. I know. But with one car and all of the after school stuff he does, it's almost impossible. We are just trying to not feed his idiocy.
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Aug 13, 2013 23:43
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An ACT prep class is a waste of money? When you spend money on alligator juggling?
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Aug 14, 2013 02:57
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three posted:An ACT prep class is a waste of money? When you spend money on alligator juggling? It is when he has already taken the act twice and gotten a score good enough to get into the college's be wants to, and get scholarships. He has two colleges actively seeking him out and suggesting scholarships. What does alligator juggling refer to?
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Aug 14, 2013 03:12
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LoveMeDead posted:It is when he has already taken the act twice and gotten a score good enough to get into the college's be wants to, and get scholarships. He has two colleges actively seeking him out and suggesting scholarships. quote:What does alligator juggling refer to? My guess for your hobby.
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Aug 14, 2013 03:18
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I check frequently for updates, so please give us them still!LoveMeDead posted:I know. But with one car and all of the after school stuff he does, it's almost impossible. We are just trying to not feed his idiocy. Don't make excuses for your boy. I am a full-time student with six science classes a semester and a research job. I spent about 70 hours a week on school work and I got the paid research gig on top of that to make ends meet (20 hours a week.) Going to college is a luxury. After school activities are a luxury. He should get a Saturday/Sunday job! He would respect money a lot more and improve his time management. Hopefully this car works out.
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Aug 14, 2013 03:26
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three posted:
I think you're mixing her up with that other thread with the mystery sport.
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Aug 14, 2013 03:31
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Why are his activities so sacred? I had to choose one activity because my parents couldn't afford to put me in forty-three different clubs. If I wanted to do more, it was up to me.
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Aug 14, 2013 03:33
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pomme posted:I check frequently for updates, so please give us them still! Until we get another car, there is no way he can get a job except at the few places in town. None of them are hiring. I don't juggle alligators. I don't have expensive hobbies anymore.
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Aug 14, 2013 03:34
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