Saturday, January 31, 2015

Feeling Blessed...

For several days, I felt so very overwhelmed.  I felt that everyone wanted a piece of me and I did not really understand why.  Part of it was being upset with my finances and feeling lost on what to do about my 401K and pension.  

Back in November, when I started looking for ways to cut down on what I was spending, I saw I was spending an enormous amount on the mobile phones.  I had two accounts - one account was the company plan and the other was a regular plan.  With the various changes regarding employee discounts on plans and such, there was no reason to continue.  I was paying over $200 each month for all plans.  Ridiculous.

So, there was a pretty awesome deal where the plan was based on data.  Nutshell, I asked to get the 15 Gb plan and the company doubled it to 30 Gb.  The plan had unlimited talk and text, so that was even better.  During that time, I dropped a phone that was not being used and moved everything on the regular account over to the employee discounted account.  That way, I was able to drop the regular account.  

In December, I got a large bill, but also got a fairly decent refund on the now discarded regular account.  In January, I received my next bill and it was still over $200.  Now, that frustrated me.  I figured it should be at least $150, so I called customer service.

In the end, I found out I had to go to an internal website and check off that the additional lines were part of the employee discount and the plan would get the proper discount.  This month, my bill is just over $100.  That is a HUGE savings!  I felt truly blessed in that regard.

Next, I filed my taxes a couple of weekends ago.  For the past couple of years, I would be a bit lazy about it, but this year, I needed the money to help with Chloe's medical bills.  Usually, I had used that money as a gift to myself, getting season tickets to the hockey games.  Not this year.  That money as well as the bonus money would be put together as a fund for Chloe's medical bills.  That way, I avoid charging vet bills on my credit cards.

After I filed, a couple of days later, Turbo Tax sent an email stating that my return had been accepted by the IRS.  I downloaded an update to the Turbo Tax "Where's My Refund" app to my phone and checked.  I was told not to expect anything until 2/20/2015.  Bummer.  I also needed to get Chloe into the vet's office this month and that was weighing heavily on my mind.  She needs a recheck for her Cushing's and a lump to be removed from her hind leg.  I already know that will be quite a cost and the refund would help.

Yesterday, when I going through my morning routine with the dogs, I decided to check on my bank account.  Boom!  There was my refund money sitting in my account!  I cried I was so happy.  Yesterday, I made an appointment with the vet's office to take Chloe to get her check up and such. 

Also, I found out how much of a bonus percentage everyone got for this year.  While I will say I was disappointed, I am thankful that it is *something* and not *nothing.*  That money will go into a separate account for Chloe's needs and I will work to add more money to it each month.  That way, there is some money there for both dogs and that is their fund.  Perhaps, I can come up with some creative ways to keep socking away money for everything.

So, as I got up this morning and was walking the dogs, I was feeling much calmer and very much thankful and blessed.  The extra money I got from the changes I made to my mobile bill will help with paying down credit card debit.  Getting the refund early will help Chloe and that means a lot.  Knowing when and approximately how much bonus money I get will help me know what I will have for the upcoming year for both dogs.  

I will get through this and feel much better about my situation.  

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