I was so tired after a crazy week, I went to bed at 9pm last night. I woke up at 3:30 this morning and couldn't go back to sleep... and it's Saturday!!! I don't feel tired, but I know I will be dragging later. I need more than 6 hours of sleep. All I can think of was that I didn't take a sleeping pill last night (lately I have been), and I woke up really hungry. So either my body doesn't sleep as long naturally without a sleeping pill or my stomach woke me up... I guess I can always take a nap later on, especially since we will be going to a Halloween party tonight.

Since I had all of this free time on my hands I downloaded a couple templates that I set up for managing the rental house budget. Now that the place is officially rented I want all expenses to be paid out of a different account so I am not mingling my personal expenses and income with rent received and rental expenses.

I'm looking forward to saving again, I haven't had much increase in my savings account lately.

She signs the lease tonight. The security deposit will be deposited into a separate savings account. I'm starting a new spreadsheet for condo expenses and income, with a page for the tenant's deposits to be recorded. After the rent has been recorded and deposited, I will pay my mortgage and other condo expenses and transfer the rest into my personal savings. I'll track my profit on the spreadsheet.

I will work on the tracking spreadsheet this weekend. I welcome any suggestions from fellow bloggers who have ideas on how to set up an efficient tracking system!

I need to take action to get my condo rented. I'm going to post flyers at the base this week, and look into listing it in the local online paper. If I do that this week, I will feel like I have accomplished something. I also need to swing by there after work one day and check the mail, clean the bathroom. Besides that it is in move in condition.

This weekend was fabulously productive and quiet. I got about 8 hours worth of planning and paperwork done for school. Since the kids weren't home I didn't feel upset about it, I kind of enjoyed getting all of that work off of my plate. I also ran, met up with a friend for coffee, and did errands.

I got a wonderful massage yesterday. I know that massages are supposed to be really beneficial healthwise. I think I can set a mini goal of $60/month for a massage. I will have to "earn" this money somehow, through savings elsewhere, ebay, I don't know. I'll have to ponder that for a while...

I've been working really hard on trying to think more positively. Some of the positives of my awful work situation this year:
-I've lost almost 10 pounds due to never sitting down and just drinking a smoothie for lunch everyday because I don't have the time to sit down and eat lunch
- I get great sleep. My days are filled with work, kids, and running for stress relief. By the end of the day I don't want to lay in front of the t.v. or computer. I look forward to sleep soon after I tuck the kids in bed.
-I'm so tired by the end of the day it is faster to whip up something quick and nutritious for the kids (if it has a dairy, grain, protein and veggie I'm happy!) than to sit down for a restaurant meal.
-I think long and hard before going to a store. If it is a shopping trip I don't have to make, then I don't make it!
-I don't plan elaborate weekend activities. Even the kids look forward to easy weekend mornings where we can sleep late, then bake or take the dog somewhere.
-My grocery bill is about $25 cheaper per week than usual, because I prepare very simple meals now. Some weeks I don't even have to go to the grocery store because we have enough food to last us another week. I still don't do processed foods or frozen meals, but I do rely on frozen veggies, bagged salad and precooked chicken. Because I don't buy a lot of snacks or boxed items, we still come out ahead at the register.
There you have it, how I live healthier and save money by staying employed when any other sane person would have left!

It felt great to have 48 hours to recuperate from the week! SO came home for the weekend, so I had a partner to share the weekend activities with. I'm all caught up on the cleaning, laundry, and groceries, thanks to SO. I also have leftovers for dinner tonight. SO is heading back to training today, but only a few more weeks.

I got lots of sleep and ran 4 miles yesterday. I am ready for the week! I'm looking forward to payday, we are getting a small bonus, my first bonus/raise of any kind since I started working here almost 5 years ago! I plan to put that in savings for now, I haven't earmarked it for anything just yet.

I took new pictures of the condo this weekend and submitted my listing paperwork. I also produced a "for rent" flyer for friends to post at the local bases.

I found out where to go for the mail key for the new condo, so I plan to do that right after work. I am sure I have a stack of bills and new house mail waiting for me! When I go through that and pay whatever I owe (utilities set up, HOA fees, arrange my first mortgage payment), I'll set aside that money each month so I know exactly what I will have left to spend and save.

I also filled out some listing paperwork last night so that I can list my condo for rent. All I'm waiting on now is some pictures my family took of the condo that I want to attach to the listing. Hoping to get those by tonight so I can email my information off. My goal is to have a tenant by November 1, when my first mortgage payment is due.

I got word on a full-time position available at a local university, doing what I used to be doing, academic advising. Sigh. I loved that job... I did brush up my resume and wrote a letter of interest for it. I think I will type up the rest of the required documents, just because. I don't know if I could actually accept it, or if they would even offer it to me. I just know how miserable I am right now at work.

I have been keeping myself busy with my girls and the house when I get home at night so I don't even think about work, which is a good thing. I really needed to work on not bringing stress from the job into other areas of my life.

I've got the condo now and soon my first mortgage payment will be due. I'm lucky that it's less than some people's car payments but I'm still planning to rent it out. Even though I'm tempted to keep it as a summer place some days! Now I just have to set up automatic payments for mortgage so I always know that is paid. Then I can determine what will be left for savings.

Work is still really tough, but I'm feeling better able to cope with it all. Medication seems to help with that! October will be "scary-busy" with a bunch of demanding paperwork on top of my daily expectations I'm trying to reach with my students. I'll just do my best, my students' needs come first, paperwork second.