The Nitty Gritty

As promised, here is a look at our income.  Both DW and I have primary jobs and I have side jobs and income as well.  We also have a roommate who pays rent monthly.  For privacy and logistic reason, I am going to include our roommates rent and side incomes as one lump.  

My Income: $1,400 - $1,800 per month

• This income varies as I take a lot of time off for appointments and issues with some of our special needs kiddos. 
• Health insurance for the entire family comes out of my paycheck each payperiod

DW Income: $2630.00 per month 

Side Income: $3,300 per month

• This obviously varies month to month by several hundred dollars up or down.
• These aren't secure forms of income as they can disappear as quickly as they come but since I bill a month behind, we will have at least a month to prepare if a income source is lost.

So we are looking at $7,000 - $7,500 a month.

EXPENSES

I don't have a list of all the debts yet but I can give a quick rundown of our monthly bills and the minimums we pay on all of our debts:

Rent: $2,100.00

Daycare: $1,060.00 (we got a really good deal)

Car Payment: $285.00 (we are always late so is close to $300.00 with late fee)

Car/Renters Insurance: $135.00 (two cars)

Cable/Internet: $135.00

Cell Phone: $220.00

Netflix: $15.00

Vonage: $20.13

Discover Loan: $558.20

West Loan: $150.00

Discover Card: $250.00

Capital One: $75.00

Water: $150.00 (every two months)

Gas: $125.00 (every two months)

Garbage: $135.00 (every 3 months)

Electric: $150-300 (every two months)

Other Debts: $360.00

So we are looking at about $5,700 dollars a month once that is all said and down. 

When I look at the $1,800 a month left over, my instant reaction is "That is a lot, why can't we make that work." Then I realize I have 6 kids, 3 dogs, and a life that is as far away from boring as one can get.  

COMING SOON:  DEBT TOTALS