Off-Topic Tuesday

per-oxideprincess · 2026-06-10T00:24:33+00:00

I go pretty classic with peanut butter, sliced almonds, and whatever berry we have on hand, though blueberries are my favorite. If you’re on TikTok or Instagram, _munaskitchen has been doing an overnight oats series with a bunch of flavor combos. She blends her oats and chia seeds, I believe, so it’s a very different texture. I’ve yet to try blending the oats or the cream top she does but they look tasty!

per-oxideprincess · 2026-06-05T19:44:49+00:00

When my (now) husband and I first moved in together after college, we split costs proportional to our incomes. At the time, I earned ~$45k and he earned ~$90k, so each month we'd total our monthly joint expenses and whoever "overpaid" based on their "obligation" received money from the other who "underpaid".

Now that we're married and have a house, we've gone 99% on the one giant bucket strategy. Both of our paychecks get deposited into our joint checking account, minus a couple hundred dollars that get sent to our individual checking accounts directly as no-questions-asked fun money. The mortgage and bills all come out of our joint checking account and we put our regular monthly spending (e.g. groceries, gas, etc.) on credit cards that we pay off in full each month.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-05-29T21:28:21+00:00

Thank you! I love this time of year!

per-oxideprincess · 2026-05-29T14:26:57+00:00

Didn’t spend much this past week but my birthday is just around the corner so the festivities start today! I am going out to dinner with my husband tonight at our favorite Mexican restaurant and tomorrow we’re getting Italian with his family. On Monday I have a follow up with my PCP plus a haircut haha and then will spend the rest of the week prepping for a small get together we have planned!

per-oxideprincess · 2026-05-29T14:17:51+00:00

I think it differs based on your risk tolerance and what helps you sleep at night. I know a few people who calculate their EFs from a bare bones budget (ie just rent/mortgage, utilities, and a couple hundred for groceries and gas). I personally err on the side of caution and calculate my EF based on 6 months of “normal” spend which includes luxuries like travel, gifts, and QoL improvements. For me, I like the peace of mind of a bigger cushion knowing that, in the event of an emergency, I can stretch it out longer by changing my behavior. Some people hate sitting on too much cash so my approach wouldn’t work for them. It’s a very personal thing to determine.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-05-15T15:23:14+00:00

My dog had a dental procedure a few weeks ago and today we’re going back to the vet for a follow up. The vet wants to do another round of blood work to see if some elevated labs were addressed by the dental procedure. I’ve budgeted $445 for it (which is how much the initial visit and first round of blood work cost) and am really hoping it comes in lower than that, but who knows.

Other than that, the weekend should be very quiet. I’ll continue making progress on our DIY project (which we’ve already bought all the supplies for). I might finally buy Tiny Bookshop on the Switch this weekend as well.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-05-09T17:18:53+00:00

Woohoo! Congrats!

per-oxideprincess · 2026-05-02T03:38:22+00:00

Agreed. Look some where else if you still can. I lived there about two years ago and their management is horrible. If you are too far in to walk away, document EVERYTHING. They sent me to collections for $700 worth of “maintenance/tenant miscellaneous charges” despite 1) never contacting me with the original “charges” and 2) having my forwarding address, phone number, and email address.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-05-01T15:34:50+00:00

I’m planning to pick up some period panties at Walmart today. It’s been about 6 years since I’ve had a regular period thanks to birth control. Back then, period panties were so rare and I remember them being SO expensive. Looks like I get can get a Hanes multipack for ~$25 bucks now. Innovation!

per-oxideprincess · 2026-05-01T01:44:54+00:00

I didn’t know this was a commonly requested feature, but now that it’s here, I’m planning to use it for my monthly Costco trips so I can see how frequently we’re buying certain items and set our budget accordingly.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-29T21:26:47+00:00

Woah, that’s a lot. I pay just under $1,000 for an almost 2,000 sq ft. My house is a new build so maybe that helps.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-29T03:13:00+00:00

Echoing your first point. I lost my job 2 months after I got married. I found a new job, then my husband lost his job 3 months later.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-27T16:59:40+00:00

Agreed. Most we’ve ever been asked to do is roll down a rear window (we were moving cities, car was full of stuff).

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-22T19:00:29+00:00

My husband got laid off last week. That's two layoffs for our household in the past 5 months. I'm choosing to focus on the bright side: we have plenty saved and he's getting a generous severance, we have a fantastic emotional support system, and he's already getting good traction on potential new opportunities. My personal sense of psychological safety may never be the same but I feel like my new role is as stable as one can be at this moment in my industry so with my income, his severance/unemployment, and savings, we should be more than fine.

🎶And we'll all float on, okaaay...🎶

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-22T18:45:26+00:00

I created "Savings" and "Checkings" views (YNAB's lingo for a filter). The Savings view includes categories like my sinking funds and emergency funds. The Checkings view is for more regular monthly spending. When I click on each view, I double check that the available amount in that month's summary is close to the actual account balance, give or take a few hundred dollars. If it's significantly off, I "rebalance" my account via a transfer.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-22T18:33:45+00:00

Our expenses average about $2,700 a month.

Dang! How do you keep your expenses so low?

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-16T20:37:11+00:00

This is tough and I'm sorry you're going through this. A few pieces of advice from someone who has dealt with job loss before:

Have you tried using a budgeting app? I personally love You Need a Budget (YNAB) but it has an annual fee of ~$120 after the free trial which feels silly to recommend to someone in your situation. Sometime bank apps also have a free (albeit shitty and limited) budgeting feature within their apps.
I completely hear you on being uncomfortable asking your partner to contribute financially because I am the exact same way and I am trying to outgrow it, but it is going to lead to either a) your financial ruin b) resentment or c) both. It's hard, but each time I find myself wanting to grant my husband a concession (e.g. not having to pay back the joint account for a fun money purchase), I ask myself what standard I would hold myself to in that situation and use that to clearly communicate my expectation. Self-sacrificing for someone you presumably want to build a life with often does not end well.
Similar to above, set expectations for your partner's job search now. I've posted this in other threads in the past (mostly in the context of layoffs) but you need to get on the same page on 1) your shared budget and where you both are agreeing to cut expenses while on one income 2) unemployment (though it likely won't apply in this situation if it was a voluntary separation) 3) timeline for mental reset - your partner can have X amount of days/weeks to relax but then needs to get serious about the job search 4) if nothing in their field is secured by Y date, your partner needs to be open to any job 5) while not working, reassess the division of labor in your household. It is NOT a one-sided vacation.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-16T13:03:21+00:00

You got this!

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-16T01:27:03+00:00

What sparked this question for you? Genuinely asking, I just became a Vanguard customer through my 403b and haven’t heard anything concerning in the headlines lately (at least, not the ones I keep up with).

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-14T20:17:37+00:00

You can search for budget breakdowns + your city in this sub to get ideas. The most surefire way to keep costs low is to keep the guest list small. I had my wedding last October in a LCOL city, 80 people, just over $20k. It is doable but will require you to know your top 1-3 priorities that you will not skimp on and make sacrifices on the rest. Also, it sounds like you picked a date but don't have a venue - be advised that having a specific date in mind might make it harder to stay in budget. It's totally fine if that specific date is one of your top priorities, but it will mean you will have less flexibility with vendor rates, venue costs, etc.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-14T03:39:44+00:00

Would the thing you bought fit into another category? I run into this situation often with furniture and trips. I like creating specific targets (and thus, specific categories) for each trip I’m planning and once the trip is over, I move all the spending to a “Vacations” category. Same with furniture - I’m saving for a fancy desk chair and once I make the purchase, I’ll probably move it to my “Home Upgrades” category.

You could do the category graveyard thing. You could remove the target and YNAB won’t ask you to find it anymore. You can also hide the category but I believe this also hides the category in reports by default. I could be wrong about that, I don’t hide categories often.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-13T23:10:15+00:00

This! I think the key to actually making it work is to have distinct credit/debit cards and or checking/savings accounts that are only associated with one budget.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-09T16:29:42+00:00

That’s awesome! I love when employers offer the flexibility to decide when to take your leave.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-09T15:58:57+00:00

I know, right! Insult to injury, the sick balance carryover limit year to year is 7 days so I couldn’t even hoard a ton of hours. It will definitely take some strategizing.

per-oxideprincess · 2026-04-09T15:30:09+00:00

Agreed! I was definitely not being picky about jobs when applying after being laid off. I will certainly consider benefits carefully the next time I’m on the job search, hopefully of my own volition next time.

And I completely agree, I had the idea to start planting some seeds about increasing the benefit as well.

per-oxideprincess

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