Debt Dumpers 2020

[bellylaugh]

Sending my love and best wishes to everyone having a hard time right now, whether that be grieving for a loved one or struggling with the loss of income.

Things are chugging along here. We are both still employed and adjusting to working from home. It will be interesting to see the effect on our overall spending - gas is obviously down, but utilities will be up, we’re not spending money on buying lunch at work, but our general grocery spending is higher...

Our debt dumping is chugging along and I just calculated that we have dumped over $5000 of debt since the beginning of the year! I’m very happy with this as while we’ve been careful with our money, we haven’t felt stretched too thin.

Hoping everyone is keeping well, both emotionally and physically. All my family lives in the UK so between reading their news and reading everything here in the US, I’m definitely having days where everything feels so unsettled and strange. Trying to make the most of the positives (spending extra time with DD! No commute!) and looking forward to brighter times for all.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

This is not the best year and a hard April ahead for me. It's hard to write, but my mother passed away. I'll be a bit silent as I deal with the loss and am the one making final arrangements, and as happens many times a loss in the family brings out a lot of other pain for others in particular one of my siblings, I simply don't believe can recover from this because of already underlying mental disorder with them they won't believe her death, though not diagnosed aligns quite closely with schizophrenia and delusion. That, I just don't know I am capable of dealing with. I'm faced with making arrangements, and they are in complete denial, and of course all the decisions to be made, it's just a really hard time.

It's a heavy heart with massive guilt from me wishing I had spent more quality time before she passed with her, and had not lived so far across country and world for that matter some of the time all those adult years of mine when I went off on my own. When I finally moved within a few hours drive a few years ago with a job with DH went to, she was already too ill to really even recognize me, and also too otherwise physically ill, so we never got that great time I desperately wished I had. I went to visit often, but it was sad every time and me longing we could have quality time. One of my favorite pictures was from some 10 years before all this, as she watched a Disney parade lit up like a child would, I had taken the picture, and I will always love that feeling the picture evokes for me, you can see the joy the entertainment Disney gave, the fun and magic, it's just a simple yet beautiful glimpse I get to see from her point of view, as she watched it. As it's said, it's like grieving twice and for a really, long time when dealing with a loved one's memory loss. I find myself wondering the same I have heard from people older than me, where does time go? What an unbearable time right now, with all these things going on in the country, and then one thing after another. Feels like one blow after another, really!

Words cannot express how sorry I am to hear this. Having recently gone through the loss of my mom too, I can say for sure that nothing on the planet prepares us for this.
Praying for strength and peace for your family.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

March Update:

2020 Financial Goals:
Pay off my car (Goal: $12,800): $8800 paid. Payoff plan date is still June.

Max out 401K contributions – Done (essentially, based on my contributions it will be maxed out by end of year).

Begin contributing $50/paycheck to my HSA – Auto setup via payroll complete. The goal will be $1500 total by end of year (currently at $350) so I will plan a few extra non-payroll contributions throughout the year.

Contribute $2500 to DS14’s 529: $500 contributed YTD.

2020 Personal Goals:

Have a will drawn up - Not yet – wondering if this is something that can be done over the phone as I’d like to get it done sooner rather than later with the current state of the world. Maybe a bit morbid, but I lost a cousin last week to the virus and he left 2 teenagers orphaned (they lost their mother last year) and while it sounds like he had everything taken care of for them (an older half-sibling will be their guardian), it does make me have a greater sense of urgency to get this done. I have been documenting all of the financial stuff this week for DH as a “just in case”, so have at least started a few things.

Get back into running and lose enough weight to fit back into clothes that are in my closet: The world has brought this to a screeching halt. I have time to do it, and even bought a desktop that works with my treadmill so I could at least walk and work, but the motivation has been completely lost. I’m hoping to do better here in April.

Read more and spend less time on stupid iPad games: I’m in a book club with some women at work, so this is the best I am doing right now. Now would be the perfect time to up my game on this, but just haven't done it.

Vacation plans – This has completely turned into Nada at the moment. Which is depressing, but maybe we can manage something by the end of the year.

If the online calculators are correct, we should be getting a $2500ish stimulus check. I was debating about throwing some on the car payment so that I could potentially have it paid off next month, but then again does one month really matter? Not really. We really don’t know what is going to happen with my husband’s job (auto manufacturing) and while we can live on my pay comfortably enough and have a solid savings account, it might be better to just have that extra sitting in there as well for now. Not to mention, I am also not entirely clear on how this plays out on next year’s taxes.

Otherwise, everything else is ok-ish. I am an introvert, but I am despising the social distancing. All of my immediate family is healthy but I miss visiting with my parents and sisters and seeing my grandson. We love going out and finding new places to eat and are so bored with eating at home (despite the $ savings we are seeing there). But it is what it is and we are doing our part. This too shall pass, right?

Jackers I am so sorry for your loss. Praying for strength and peace for your family and especially your cousin's children.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Well, we were swimming along just fine until lately. Where did I leave off? Oh yes, I was sick and getting tested for covid after 2 coworkers tested positive. Luckily, I was negative and several techs were tested as well and were negative. whew!
We have surgical masks at work, (N95s are for people taking care of covid patients, which we are not.) but still it is very stressful being that close to people and the constant worry that I'm going to be exposed again. Also our commuter trains are not at all crowded and I'm never less than 10' from other passengers but I skeeve everything I touch. I stopped sitting and putting my bag and lunch bag down on the seat. I just walk on, ride standing with hands in pockets, then walk off. To drive would cost $15/day parking plus $5 bridge toll whereas the train is only $5 round trip.

Our pt load is getting less and less so they need more volunteers to "flex" which means time off and either use up my banked time off hours or take it with no pay.
We all have different things that stress us out. Some coworkers are completely panicked over losing hours at work and some, like me, would much rather be home, even if it means no pay. We can recover financially; but not everyone can recover from this virus. I don't even care about $ at this point. So I offered to be off as much as possible so that the others who are stressed financially can keep working. Some coworkers have husbands laid off completely so I can see why they don't want to give up any hours. Dh is essential and was paid while being home waiting to hear test results from his coworker and then waiting for my results. That is a huge relief.
We have savings plus a 0% balance transfer offer from Discover. I will resort to that if I'm desperate. I've never really had anxiety in the past but this thing has me feeling like I just need to stay safe at home. My sister jokes that she wants to hide under the bed.

HR has ok'd staff to apply for unemployment if our hours were reduced. I am 53 and never collected unemployment in my life. Crazy, but I applied and waiting to hear. Between that and dh's pay we will get by. My last paycheck I was still able to snowball $100. It normally would have been $600 snowball but I was happy to have anything leftover.

If we can just come through this dark tunnel healthy, I don't mind working hard later to catch up.
Ds23 is essential so he is still working but ds19 is in limbo. He delivers for an Italian restaurant/pizzeria and they were doing ok with just takeout and deliveries but then his boss (the owner and chef) became sick with covid and closed abruptly. His father has it too. I have encouraged him to apply for unemployment too. I had paid his car loan out until Sept with bank bonuses I was churning in his name. Then that bank offered a 4 month deferment so he accepted it hoping he won't need to wait that long to start paying again. His next payment isn't due until late Jan 2021. No pressure there!

This Sunday we're meeting my dad in a park between his house and ours and ordering take out for lunch and we'll just sit at separate picnic tables. We did this once before I got sick and it was so nice! It's so good to visit with him without worrying that we'll give him our germs. I told him to bring his own plate, knife, napkins, cup, ice, etc and he drove himself there. The park has a running track around it and the playground is closed but still some little kids ride bikes along the running track. Seeing little kids play brings so much joy to him now and it's good to get him out of the house and take in some scenery. I'd love to hug him but can't for now.

Take care everyone!! Stay safe & keep swimming!!
This too shall pass.

 

[MN_Andi]

Late-ish update from March...

Financial Goals for 2020:

• Have student loans under $20,000($28,000 --> $24,412)
  • All of my loans are federal, so it is weird seeing 0% interest rates on all of them. I'm glad that they decided to suspend payments and interest for 6 months, I really think it is going to help a lot of people. My auto payment comes out in a few days, and that with a payment I threw at it, will send my loans into the 23's.
• Save $3,000 for my vacation to Walt Disney World in late October/November($1835.22/$3000)
  • My friend and I bought our plane tickets for the trip the previous weekend. I'm not sure how things will be by October, but I'm hoping we are at least at a place where we are able to travel. I think the entire world could use a very long vacation! Working where I do, we are just bombarded with COVID-19 news and constant updates, so I feel like I can never really get away from it. My friend is letting me plan the entire trip, she just has a few requests, so I'm keeping myself preoccupied with that right now.
• Keep my financial spreadsheet 100% up to date
  • Definitely did not happen this month, which is a bummer. I would say with things being fairly closed down in Minnesota, I've probably spent less since I'm not going out for lunch or anything like that at work. Been buying more groceries and trying to mix things up a bit, so April I'll be right back on it.

Had to take my car into the shop this month which took out my emergency fund. I do have funds from my vacation savings, so I'll dip into that if needed, but I hopefully won't have anymore car issues this month! The stimulus check will likely become my new emergency fund, unless I save it back up before then.

Stay safe everyone!

 

[bellylaugh]

So about 30 minutes after my last post where I said things were chugging along here, We were eating dinner and DH got a piece of meat stuck in his throat. He was able to bring most of it up but there was still something stuck, he could breathe fine and take small bits of liquid but taking bigger gulps of water would just agitate it and make him vomit. It happened once before a few years ago and eventually cleared on its own so he decided to sleep on it. It wasn’t better today so he called the teledoc and they recommended a trip to the ER as it may need a scope. DH took himself to the ER because we have DD and I wouldn’t be allowed in with him anyway... they tried a drug to relax his throat first but that didn’t work and he ended up having to have a scope and they cleared the last of the blockage.

There is no price to put on his health of course, but boy am I anxious about getting another hospital bill. We can always pull money from savings but I am really fed up with our health insurance options. It would be enough to make me look for another job with better benefits but we know how the job market looks right now!

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

There is no price to put on his health of course, but boy am I anxious about getting another hospital bill. We can always pull money from savings but I am really fed up with our health insurance options. It would be enough to make me look for another job with better benefits but we know how the job market looks right now!

The important thing is that he's ok. With all the business being shuttered, there are still many options depending on your experience. I can only speak for our area but it seems all the essential businesses are hiring because they're busier than ever. Amazon announced it would be hiring 100,000 people. Our supermarket has been desperately hiring since before the hoarding stuff began. Without knowing your career or salary range, it's just a shot in the dark.

Dh took a pay cut when our kids were little to have a much better benefit package, better hours, paid holidays and less travel. Just having him be in the same city every day and always get done at 3:30 and be able to pick up the kids from day care/school and get an early start on dinner was a massive help. Plus his holidays were more in line with the school calendar compared to my hospital job which only gives 6 holidays. We both agreed less stress was well worth the sacrifice in paycheck. Sometimes money isn't the most important thing. Just saying...

 

[bababear_50]

Well, we were swimming along just fine until lately. Where did I leave off? Oh yes, I was sick and getting tested for covid after 2 coworkers tested positive. Luckily, I was negative and several techs were tested as well and were negative. whew!
We have surgical masks at work, (N95s are for people taking care of covid patients, which we are not.) but still it is very stressful being that close to people and the constant worry that I'm going to be exposed again. Also our commuter trains are not at all crowded and I'm never less than 10' from other passengers but I skeeve everything I touch. I stopped sitting and putting my bag and lunch bag down on the seat. I just walk on, ride standing with hands in pockets, then walk off. To drive would cost $15/day parking plus $5 bridge toll whereas the train is only $5 round trip.

Our pt load is getting less and less so they need more volunteers to "flex" which means time off and either use up my banked time off hours or take it with no pay.
We all have different things that stress us out. Some coworkers are completely panicked over losing hours at work and some, like me, would much rather be home, even if it means no pay. We can recover financially; but not everyone can recover from this virus. I don't even care about $ at this point. So I offered to be off as much as possible so that the others who are stressed financially can keep working. Some coworkers have husbands laid off completely so I can see why they don't want to give up any hours. Dh is essential and was paid while being home waiting to hear test results from his coworker and then waiting for my results. That is a huge relief.
We have savings plus a 0% balance transfer offer from Discover. I will resort to that if I'm desperate. I've never really had anxiety in the past but this thing has me feeling like I just need to stay safe at home. My sister jokes that she wants to hide under the bed.

HR has ok'd staff to apply for unemployment if our hours were reduced. I am 53 and never collected unemployment in my life. Crazy, but I applied and waiting to hear. Between that and dh's pay we will get by. My last paycheck I was still able to snowball $100. It normally would have been $600 snowball but I was happy to have anything leftover.

If we can just come through this dark tunnel healthy, I don't mind working hard later to catch up.
Ds23 is essential so he is still working but ds19 is in limbo. He delivers for an Italian restaurant/pizzeria and they were doing ok with just takeout and deliveries but then his boss (the owner and chef) became sick with covid and closed abruptly. His father has it too. I have encouraged him to apply for unemployment too. I had paid his car loan out until Sept with bank bonuses I was churning in his name. Then that bank offered a 4 month deferment so he accepted it hoping he won't need to wait that long to start paying again. His next payment isn't due until late Jan 2021. No pressure there!

This Sunday we're meeting my dad in a park between his house and ours and ordering take out for lunch and we'll just sit at separate picnic tables. We did this once before I got sick and it was so nice! It's so good to visit with him without worrying that we'll give him our germs. I told him to bring his own plate, knife, napkins, cup, ice, etc and he drove himself there. The park has a running track around it and the playground is closed but still some little kids ride bikes along the running track. Seeing little kids play brings so much joy to him now and it's good to get him out of the house and take in some scenery. I'd love to hug him but can't for now.

Take care everyone!! Stay safe & keep swimming!!
This too shall pass.

Phew I am so happy it came back negative!
Yes you have all your priorities right,,Home is where you need to be.
My oldest and I are meeting up tomorrow for a Parking Lot date,,,he brings his coffee and a lawn chair and I stay in my car,,but it's nice to see him.

BUG Hugs
Mel

 

[bababear_50]

plugging along here.

I learned last night that our Union has reached ratification with our school Board/Gov. I actually didn't realize how stressed I was about this until today,,,I always get a BIG headache following stress relief.

So Monday I will be doing what I do,,,just online now,,,this is definitely a learning curve for me, but I am thankful to still have a job. It will also fill my day with something other than Covid-19 .

Now I need to review my budget and do a bit of long range planning,,,,I was hoping to retire in 4 years,,I'm not sure that is going to be possible now.

Hugs
Mel

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

For everyone feeling stressed, I found this today. Even if you don't have a cat, it works on people too.

 

[bababear_50]

Dropping by to say hope everyone is hanging in there and better days are ahead.
My go to stress music

Hugs
Mel

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

I went to the hospital on Tuesday for my 20 week anatomical ultrasound. All is well and it is definitely a boy. It was nerve wracking to have to go to the hospital though and I was surprised by how many people in the fetal diagnostic center waiting room didn’t have a mask.

We are mostly chugging along here. It is tough for DH and I to work full time while also caring for DD. She needs full time care at this age, no real independent play. DH seems so stressed out. He is having trouble focusing. I have asked him about changing our schedule around or using some of the bank of time that the university is providing to workers that need it for sick leave or childcare. He hasn’t seemed to want to talk much about it though.

My work is extremely busy. We are getting so many COVID related legal questions from local and state health departments, it is a crushing amount of work and doesn’t feel like we have the ability to slow down.

Budget wise, we are doing alright. There are some expenses that have gone down. No housekeeping, no activities for DD, less gas, etc. But our grocery budget is up as we have been buying a tad more than normal to ensure we are well stocked And could go a bit of time without if necessary.

I have decided not to pay extra towards the car or HELOC right now. It will all go into our emergency fund and when things calm down, I will make large lump sum payments later on. We will also be putting the stimulus check into the emergency fund. Better to have the extra funds right now I think.

 

[dayvewc]

Well, our governor just announced that school buildings will remain closed to students for the remainder of this school year, but that education will continue using our Alternative Methods of Instruction. So, until May 20th. I'll be handing out and grading take-home packets of worksheets and instruction. Our district is NOT using online instruction as the majority of our students do not reliably have in-home internet capabilities. It's all doable, just going to be different.

 

[pblack]

Good to hear all is going well with your pregnancy @Jen and Ashwin!

I've been working on my budgeting spreadsheet for the last hour and a half or so. (My work duties are really light this week, at least right now.) And I feel like my budgeting spreadsheet is the one thing that I can control during this crazy crazy time. If all my calculations are correct and if nothing catastrophic happens (more so than what's already going on) I think we should have my student loan paid off by mid-July. This will end up being a combination of refinance refund/stimulus checks/aggressive paying off. This will definitely be a weight off my shoulders!

Once it's paid off I'm thinking maybe we'll aggressively save towards our roof or car replacement. I have too many things I want to save for before the end of the year and I'm not sure which one is going to win out. Having been stuck at home with our house-mate for the past few weeks, I'm really ready to live without our housemate lol. We really never saw him before (honestly I still don't see him much now even though he's been home), but just certain little things he does are driving me insane. I'm hoping by the end of the year we'll be ready to have him move-out. If he decides to move out on his own before then (highly doubtful) we'll deal.

Our school districts are definitely out through the summer, so I'm not sure what this will mean for me. I think it will really depend on when the "shelter in place" order is lifted. Once it's finally lifted I'm sure they'll want us to report back to the office. (I don't work for any one school district in-particular, but my employer works with all of the school districts in Sacramento.) I'm actually looking forward to going back into the office. I'm kind of tired of being in my house. The nice thing about being at home though is that we haven't spent nearly as much money as we normally do, so hopefully that continues. We did go out over the weekend though and bought a pressure washer that was on sale at Lowes. We've been wanting one for awhile and this was a really good deal. My plan is to get out in my backyard within the next few days when it warms up and clean up our patio for spring/summer use.

Sorry for the long ramblings, I'm really craving other human contact lol. I hope everyone is doing well!

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I went to the hospital on Tuesday for my 20 week anatomical ultrasound. All is well and it is definitely a boy. It was nerve wracking to have to go to the hospital though and I was surprised by how many people in the fetal diagnostic center waiting room didn’t have a mask.

We are mostly chugging along here. It is tough for DH and I to work full time while also caring for DD. She needs full time care at this age, no real independent play. DH seems so stressed out. He is having trouble focusing. I have asked him about changing our schedule around or using some of the bank of time that the university is providing to workers that need it for sick leave or childcare. He hasn’t seemed to want to talk much about it though.

My work is extremely busy. We are getting so many COVID related legal questions from local and state health departments, it is a crushing amount of work and doesn’t feel like we have the ability to slow down.

Budget wise, we are doing alright. There are some expenses that have gone down. No housekeeping, no activities for DD, less gas, etc. But our grocery budget is up as we have been buying a tad more than normal to ensure we are well stocked And could go a bit of time without if necessary.

I have decided not to pay extra towards the car or HELOC right now. It will all go into our emergency fund and when things calm down, I will make large lump sum payments later on. We will also be putting the stimulus check into the emergency fund. Better to have the extra funds right now I think.

Congrats on your baby boy! I'm so happy for you.
I've never worked from home so I can only imagine what you're going through, trying to work and take care of a 2 yr old at the same time.
Maybe you can work different "shifts" unless one of you has meetings to be 'present'? Also do you have any family nearby who could take her outside for a few hours per day? Here in NJ, businesses and schools are closed but people are still allowed outside as long as they keep the 6' distancing. I've notice kids here are very mindful of that while riding their bikes. Do you have a swing set and slide in your back yard? Being able to run and play is good for kids and now that it's spring, the urge is stronger. Maybe you can work outside in your back yard while your daughter plays?

Also a lot of people are very stressed out now with the whole world trying to find balance between public health and the economy. What's good for one, is bad for the other and they're both important to everyone.
I'm no expert but ds23 went through a time of depression during college and had the same signs: stressed, trouble focusing, won't talk about it, trouble sleeping, etc. Pregnancy adds a lot of stress on daddies even if it was planned and they're excited to have a new baby. Maybe your dh could try some counseling by telehealth. My family has sought counseling for far less stressful things and I believe it's very underrated. Having some objective, unbiased person to talk to is so helpful.

I would agree more savings will help you feel more secure and when the world starts turning again you can always pay it toward debt later.

I've often wondered how my grandparents felt while my parents were born in 1942 and 43. They both had older siblings and there was so much turmoil all over the world then too.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Our school districts are definitely out through the summer, so I'm not sure what this will mean for me. I think it will really depend on when the "shelter in place" order is lifted. Once it's finally lifted I'm sure they'll want us to report back to the office. (I don't work for any one school district in-particular, but my employer works with all of the school districts in Sacramento.) I'm actually looking forward to going back into the office. I'm kind of tired of being in my house. The nice thing about being at home though is that we haven't spent nearly as much money as we normally do, so hopefully that continues. We did go out over the weekend though and bought a pressure washer that was on sale at Lowes. We've been wanting one for awhile and this was a really good deal. My plan is to get out in my backyard within the next few days when it warms up and clean up our patio for spring/summer use.

Sorry for the long ramblings, I'm really craving other human contact lol. I hope everyone is doing well!

I wonder what will happen when kids return to school in September? Will they automatically be promoted to the next grade? Would they all have to repeat the grade they were in? From a math perspective, how would they be prepared to move on to a higher level if they didn't learn the current grade level skills? I also think of our medical students affiliated with our hospital paying $60k per year and not getting their full learning experience. Whew! Glad I don't work in education!
You can see I've had a lot of time to wonder about things that really have nothing to do with me. I'm not accustomed to having so much down time to ponder things about the world.

That's wonderful to be so close to paying off your student loans. Paying anything off is such a weight lifted off of us. It feels great all over, like losing 20 lbs.

I'm not tired of being home yet. I do have to admit, now that I have so much free time, I have no excuse to not exercise. I'm also enjoying that my allergies are not nearly as bad as usual since I'm not outside as much and I am when working.

I haven't heard from unemployment yet. They are probably swamped with work.

We are spending very little also. I did buy some hair dye to cover my grays. I'm a bit scared since I can't run to my hairdresser if I screw it up and turn it green or orange. I'm going to just hold onto it for a while until I really feel desperate. Just in case.

We get a lot of use out of our pressure washer. It has different settings but dh and ds19 both use it to wash their cars. Ds19 got some kind of foaming bottle attachment so it sprays out foamy soap all over his car like the car wash does. I think he just likes using it.
Over the weekend he cleaned my dad's driveway and sidewalks. Our neighbors have asked him to pressure wash their house. It's nice he can make some $ while playing with his toys.

I'm still waiting for our refund from DCL. They are taking their sweet time. Funny how quick they are to charge our cc when it's time for us to pay.

Hang in there everyone!

 

[pblack]

I have no excuse to not exercise.

Be careful with that. I went on a walk last Friday because it was super nice oustide, and came back with a bad blister on the ball of my foot. I limped all weekend long. Luckily today it feels better!

Glad you're doing well and that your DS has found a small side hobby to make some extra cash. It drives me nuts that companies take so long to issue refunds!

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

Congrats on your baby boy! I'm so happy for you.
I've never worked from home so I can only imagine what you're going through, trying to work and take care of a 2 yr old at the same time.
Maybe you can work different "shifts" unless one of you has meetings to be 'present'? Also do you have any family nearby who could take her outside for a few hours per day? Here in NJ, businesses and schools are closed but people are still allowed outside as long as they keep the 6' distancing. I've notice kids here are very mindful of that while riding their bikes. Do you have a swing set and slide in your back yard? Being able to run and play is good for kids and now that it's spring, the urge is stronger. Maybe you can work outside in your back yard while your daughter plays?

Also a lot of people are very stressed out now with the whole world trying to find balance between public health and the economy. What's good for one, is bad for the other and they're both important to everyone.
I'm no expert but ds23 went through a time of depression during college and had the same signs: stressed, trouble focusing, won't talk about it, trouble sleeping, etc. Pregnancy adds a lot of stress on daddies even if it was planned and they're excited to have a new baby. Maybe your dh could try some counseling by telehealth. My family has sought counseling for far less stressful things and I believe it's very underrated. Having some objective, unbiased person to talk to is so helpful.

I would agree more savings will help you feel more secure and when the world starts turning again you can always pay it toward debt later.

I've often wondered how my grandparents felt while my parents were born in 1942 and 43. They both had older siblings and there was so much turmoil all over the world then too.

We are taking shifts. I work from 6am-noon and DH works from noon-6pm. I also work during DD’s nap time and DH tried to get a bit in before DD wakes up. Then a little evenings and a little weekends to fill in the gaps.

On nice days we have been going on a walks or DD has been riding her bike. Or DH takes her on a ride in the bike trailer. Parks are hard because DD just wants to go on the playground equipment. She had a little playhouse in the backyard. But the neighbor kids have been out a bit and it will be hard to keep DD apart. She doesn’t really understand needing to keep distance from others at this point.

I am not sure if DH would think that counseling would help. I am still going once per month and I like having someone objective to talk to about things.

I feel weirdly calm overall. Maybe it is just being so busy but it also isn’t like I am avoiding the news or anything. I work in public health and am actively addressing issues related to COVID every day. I am just trying to control what I can and not worry about what I can’t.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I am just trying to control what I can and not worry about what I can’t.

Great philosophy! I have said this for years.

 

[jackers]

ruadisneyfan2, our school is saying that come August our kids should be ready and prepared for their next year as normal. We do have a good school system here so I believe that most kids will be fine, but I do worry about DS14 who is not a strong student. They start back up this morning after Spring Break with eLearning so we shall just see how things go for the next 8 weeks.

Found out yesterday my husband is getting furloughed. Could be worse I guess. I am not sure what this does for insurance (he covers himself and our son) and he has a car payment that comes out of his paycheck so we will need to look into both of those things. I imagine they actually said how this impacts insurance but there is a reason I'm the one on this board... he is not a details person Not a huge game changer for us at the moment, thankfully. Outside of the car payment, we typically live off my check and bank his or use it for "extras" like vacations, going out to eat, entertainment, etc. Extras don't exist right now and our savings account is strong. And unemployment will more than cover his car payment. I should be able to continue on the same financial path we have been on for now.