There’s nuance in every number!! For example, some of the money we spent on restaurants in July didn’t land in our “restaurants” category at all. We categorized it as gifts because we were buying food to celebrate people we love. Technically, it was still restaurant spending. But the reason behind the purchase mattered more to me than the fact that food was involved. One of the things we want our money to make room for is celebrating people, treating family or friends, and being able to do thoughtful things just because. I feel very differently about spending $70 on a meal for someone we’re celebrating than I do about spending $70 on takeout because I didn’t feel like cooking. Neither one is automatically “bad,” but they don’t mean the same thing to me. This is also why I think categories should help you understand your spending, not shame you for it. Our restaurant spending is usually higher than July’s total, but even then, we tend to eat out when we’re already on the go and usually choose something pretty budget-friendly. Shoutout to the @dairyqueen $7 meal deal 😂 we are also complete gift card hoarders, tbh. Birthdays, holidays, random gift cards we’ve saved… those are often what we use when we do want to go out. Personal finance is personal. The point isn’t to categorize every dollar the “right” way. It’s to understand why you spent it, whether it aligned with your values, and whether you’d make the same choice again.

The bag that accidentally became my whole personality over the past month 😂 For YEARS, my everyday “purse” has basically been the same athletic belt bag because It worked. 🤷‍♀️ I’m not someone who needs a different purse for every outfit or occasion. But, when I started going into the office more, I realized I wanted something that felt a little more put together with my work clothes, but was still casual enough that I’d actually use it every day. Enter this @portlandleather bag that I’m OBSESSED with. I wanted something I could carry to work, throw on with jeans on the weekend, or bring on a date night when I actually put on real clothes 😂 since getting it, it has pretty much gone everywhere with me. So yes, after years of carrying an athletic belt bag everywhere, I think I may officially be a leather bag girl. If you’ve been eyeing one too, comment BAG and I’ll send you my link for 30% off. 🤎 #plgpartner

A niche??? Never heard of her!

What is a niche? Never heard of her!!

I think one of the hardest parts of motherhood is that you can love your kids more than anything in the world and still not have an endless amount of yourself to give. Some nights I’m playful and patient and fully present. Other nights, I’m making dinner while unloading the dishwasher, answering a question from across the room, thinking about tomorrow’s schedule, and counting down the minutes until bedtime. Which feels sad, I know. 6 years into the best job in the world, I’ve learned that I know I’m not alone in that. 😅 But I’m still learning not to measure how much I love my kids by how much energy I had left at the end of a long day because love doesn’t always look like getting on the floor to play. Sometimes it looks like cutting up the fruit, finding the missing stuffie, listening to a story while folding laundry, or reading just one more book when you’re exhausted. There are a hundred quiet ways we show our kids they’re loved every single day, so if tonight wasn’t your most patient, playful, present night, I hope you remember all the ways you showed up anyway. 🤍

July was a high-spend month for us, but this is exactly why I like looking at our money from the big-picture view instead of just asking, “did we spend too much?” Our normal baseline spending stayed pretty consistent. We just had a few bigger expenses hit this month, including my hair appointment, prepaying for an upcoming family trip, and some things for our animals. We also started getting more aggressive with our mortgage payoff, and I’ve been testing a debt payoff calculator I built to see just how much those extra payments can change the long-term picture. At the end of the day, the question I care about most is: are we actually spending our money on the things we say matter to us? I’m less concerned with having a “perfect” month or spending as little as humanly possible. I care more about whether our money reflects our priorities. And right now, that looks like investing in our future, our home, and the life we’re building here. If you want a simple way to start doing the same, the budget template we use to track our spending is linked in my bio. 🫶

You know what else felt like approximately 47 years?? Editing this series because you know my brain can’t focus on just ONE thing 😅 buuuuut I am happy to report that I do have a few things lined up so your wait time will be short ☠️ I have been getting coop questions in my DMs about the plans we used - we used @thirdcoastcraftsman plans. We made a few minor modifications, mostly in the cut lengths and the side we put the run door on, but overall - they were easy to follow and we are sooo happy with the final result! #chickencoop #coopbuild #chickens #backyardchickens

Welcome home babies!! #ducks #ducklings #homesteadhumor #homestead

Welcome home babies!!! #ducks #ducklingsofinstagram #ducklings #homestead