We enjoyed the sunny month of August. There were very warm days and we had to turn on our portable air conditioner. We don’t have central AC. In fact majority of the houses in the Pacific Northwest do not have AC. We rarely experience 90 degree weather and it always cool down at night. An open windows and a fan makes it comfortable at night. It cost over 5K to install central air and it doesn’t satisfy the cost considering it will only be use 10 times a year, at most.
In August our early retirement spending are $2,408.77
Food and Dining – $711.34
We continue on our Plant Based / Whole food diet. One of the barrier on promoting a plant based diet is cost. Our snacks are fruits and veggies. It is ridiculous that fresh fruits and vegetables are more expensive than junk foods. For example, a Costco size Ruffles cost $5.99 while a pack of mangoes cost $7.99. Both are also not taxable. The only fruits that are not expensive are bananas. Eating healthy is still cheaper than taking medications later on. I am also enjoying the sweet peaches, mangoes, cantaloupe, and apples. Our household love fruits! We also ordered a Burger King take out. It wasn’t as good as I thought it would be. I think my taste pallet is changing.
Auto and Transportation – $475.84
We paid $356.64 for annual tab for our Prius. It is high because of a new tax subsidy for light rail. We also spent $98.36 to get a change oil, $18.84 bucks for gas and $2 bucks for parking.
Utilities – $447.46
This looks high because I forgot to pay for electric and gas last month. We also paid for water and garbage bill this month. Our sewer, internet and and very cheap cell phone plan are consistent month over month.
Kids – $378.57
We bought this expensive high chair for MBP. I’ve been looking for a second hand for a while but this is hard to come by. I think people keep this chair until their kids go to college. AHP is starting to seat by himself and we started on some solids. I want to move MBP out of his high chair where he would feel comfortable and seat on the table. He loves his “big boy” chair! He can seat and get off his chair by himself. He also wants to seat there to color. I’ve been thinking of getting him a table, but I probably won’t do it since he can just use the dining table now with his chair. We also bought a coloring book and pull ups diaper for MBP.
Pets – $115.55
This is our furbaby’s kibble, treats and some toys ordered online from Petco and Amazon.
Health and Fitness – $96.98
I bought contact lenses from Costco. This should last me a year until my prescription expires.
Others – $183.03
Some household stuff, a printer cartridge and our HOA fees.
Below is the details of our spending. This line item is very detail. I added more categories on mint. I like to see trends for each item so I can see if there are opportunity to optimize some expenses.
| Description | Amount | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Groceries | 658.23 | A lot of fresh fruits and veggies |
| Auto & Transport | 356.64 | Annual Tabs |
| 529 College Fund | 200 | |
| Electric and Gas | 143.67 | 2 months for electric and gas |
| Kids Gadgets | 131.65 | MBP's High Chair |
| Water | 113.79 | Water Bill |
| Service & Parts | 98.36 | Change Oil |
| Pet Food & Supplies | 97.52 | Kibble |
| Health & Fitness | 96.98 | Contacts |
| Garbage | 68.92 | |
| HOA Dues | 68.25 | |
| Sewer | 60.16 | |
| Shopping | 53.24 | Cartridge, etc |
| Internet | 45 | |
| Household Supplies | 44.8 | Sanitizer, etc |
| Baby Supplies | 40.97 | Pull Ups |
| Alcohol & Bars | 40.14 | Alcohol from Costco |
| Gas & Fuel | 18.84 | |
| Pets | 18.03 | Some other treats and toys |
| Mobile Phone | 15.92 | The cheap phone plan from Xfinity |
| Fast Food | 12.97 | Burger King (a disappointment after going on a plant based diet) |
| Toiletries | 9.62 | |
| Subscription | 6.55 | Prime Monthly Fee |
| Kids | 5.95 | Coloring books |
| Parking | 2 | Street Parking when Mr. went to Seattle to visit our rental condo |
| Electronics & Software | 0.57 | Hosting fee for this blog |
| Total | 2,408.77 |
