Get Your Finances In Line In 2009: March Recap

March was a really great month for us financially! We got our federal tax refund check and my husband worked a ton of overtime (not by choice), so we REALLY made some headway on our emergency fund savings account. We also raised the level of our vacation savings and are now just a few hundred dollars short of having it all saved up! I also went ahead and pulled out our trip money for when we got to visit my parents in a few weeks, so that won't have to come out of next month's budget.

We could have done even better this month, but with my husband working overtime for a few weeks (which means I'm also working overtime at home), we did a bit more eating out and ordering in than we typically do. Nevertheless, I am so happy with the results! If only we could get a refund check and an OT check every month! Of course, I don't wish all that work on my husband. I'm just saying that the money is nice. :)

Ok, so here are the updates. And again, these are not necessarily in order:

Goal #1: Save up and pay CASH for our 5-day vacation to *SURPRISE* in June! :) ---- 75% completed ----

Goal #2: Fully fund our 6 month emergency fund and put into a money market account to be left UNTOUCHED unless there is an actual emergency. ---- 30.4% completed ----

Goal #3: Save for my husband to get a new (that means "used") car.

Goal #4: Raise retirement contributions to 12% (with a 4% match).

Goal #5: Open a money market account for each of our children.

Goal #6: Begin paying extra principal on our mortgage.

Goal #7: Establish a will and testament. (I know - shame on us for not having one yet!)

Goal #8: Get disability insurance for both my husband and me.

I don't know if anyone really enjoys following our financial journey, but I enjoy posting it, so I guess you're stuck with monthly updates for now. :) It keeps me motivated and somewhat accountable - if to nobody else, at least to the computer screen - to get it all down in writing. Errr, typing. :)