I’m going to start this post off with the obligatory, “well it’s the end of the year, my how fast time goes by, I can’t believe 2023 is almost over”. Once a quarter I do like to do a little pause for reflections on my own personal finance journey. I’m a big believer in celebrating the small victories, and expressing gratitude when I can. As we wrap up 2023, I wanted to share some updates!
Income
Earlier this fall we welcomed our third baby – TresMoneyFinance into our family. I’ll do a “Reflections on being a Dad Part 3” in an upcoming blog post! We are thrilled to have welcomed TresMoneyFinance into our lives and it’s been fun (and a lot of work!). On the income front, we’ve had some adjustments as Mrs. Money and I have both been on leave. Mrs. Money recently went back to work but for the 2 months she was off she only had half of her normal paycheck (which we’re thankful wasn’t a $0 paycheck!). I have also been on leave (and have more time which is nice) but how my paycheck works somewhat being in a sales role is that I get more of my OTE (on target earnings) up front each paycheck vs. waiting until bonus payout time. So, thankfully Mrs. Money’s temporary decrease in pay has been offset by my temporary increase.
On the landlord side – our previous tenants moved out at the end of June and left the house in great shape. Unfortunately it took us 2.5 months to get it re-rented but we’ve found good new tenants and are thankful. It was a bit of a gut punch having it sit vacant for 2.5 months but a good reminder that I’m thankful we built in a buffer with our rent vs. mortgage payment!
Finally, December marks the month that I receive my employee stock purchase for the 2nd half of the year. Our stock has done quite well and with the lookback of almost a year back (the 2nd ESPP purchase you get a full year lookback i.e. the lower price today vs. one year ago) – so once the stock is bought I’ll instantly have made a nice return! I’m thankful for the chance to participate in my company’s stock purchase program!
Expenses
Well with 3 kids our expenses have continued to go up. Thankfully #1 is into a state funded pre-K so that’s one less daycare expense to worry about, and with #3 I’m staying home until March (thanks generous paternity leave!) and so we won’t incur that daycare expense for a few months.
I know the Federal Reserve will tell us that inflation has slowed down a bit but sheesh it sure doesn’t feel that way! Perhaps in the winter months when our spending naturally increases (Christmas shopping, travel, end of year charitable giving, end of year festivities etc) we feel this inflation a bit more. THANKFULLY I think I met one of my goals this year of “saving for winter in the summer” and this winter hasn’t felt as expensive as it could have.
We did finally sign up for Netflix – we tried for so long to hold off but the family sharing finally caught up to us (as I’ve heard it’s done with other friends of mine) and so we finally gave in and got the plan. As with subscriptions – we plan to periodically re-evaluate to make sure we’re getting the most out of it!
Saving/Investing
Earlier this fall I maxed out my 401(k) contributions! This marks the 2nd year that I’ve been able to do so and I’m grateful for my paycheck that allows me to do so and to our commitment to saving this amount by cutting back on other expenses! This year I actually for the first time took advantage of the after-tax plan offered by my company. It’s a mechanism to contribute more to your 401(k). TBH it feels like a dumb loophole (completely legal) that should be offered to all, but hey I don’t make the rules I just play the game! I am only contributing a small amount but it was a goal of mine to contribute at least $1 to my after-tax 401(k)!
I did a poor job throughout the year saving for the kid’s college funds – I’ve set a goal of saving $4,000 per kid per year for their college. Who knows what college will look like when they go and what it’ll cost but I’m trying to make the most with the information I have at hand so I’ll save what I can! Over the past 2 months I’ve been playing catch up on my contributions and although it’s going to be close – I think I’ll meet my goal!
Finally – in a short blurb neither here nor there – Bitcoin is bouncing back! Ha! I’ve definitely gotten my head out of the crypto craze I was in in 2021 and 2022 but still hold a small amount of Bitcoin and it’s fun to watch it – especially when it increases in price (although I’m still down overall!)
Giving
Practicing gratitude is a helpful way of living life in my opinion and physically giving money to charities I think is a great way of doing so. Typically in December we give to a few other charities than our normal ones with an end of year gift. I’m thankful that we’re in a financial spot to do so!
Overall
This Q4 has felt a lot less stressful for me (maybe it’s because I’m on paternity leave?!?) and I think having saved for the winter in the summer has really helped. I got ahead of several big expenses (that I normally pay or reconcile at year end). I’m thankful for this time with TresMoneyFinance and am enjoying this season of life!
Blog
My big hit of the quarter was my article on the interview that I did with a colleague that has a pretty detailed plan to retire early – like at 50. If you haven’t read it give it a read – I personally learned a lot and it’s helped reframed how I’m thinking about my income, my investments and my future. Probably my favorite post was my reflections from having hiked the Camino. It was such an amazing trip and it’s fun to go back and reflect on what I learned while doing the hike! Finally the last one I am really proud of is “What I would tell my 23 year old self”. This post was inspired after I had the chance to connect with my sister (who’s basically 23 year) and some of her friends for a personal finance bootcamp session. It was super fun to get the chance to give them a few tips and tricks and also clear up some misconceptions that they had!
Thanks as always to my readers and fans of the blog! I appreciate you and hope you have a great holiday season!
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