August 2018 Spending and Saving

Photo by Evi Radauscher on Unsplash

August was an interesting month for me. I started off really well with not spending, but toward the end of the month, things kind of exploded. The first reason for this was that I got a new job and wanted to treat myself to some new clothes (I have a problem, I know). Luckily, Labor Day was just around the corner which means sales! I also received my Chase Freedom Unlimited card, which offers $150 cash back after you spend $500 in the first three months, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases. Clearly, I couldn't resist.
A little recap of where I started out this month:

August 2018 Starting Funds
Checking: $145.54
Savings: $7587.30
Cash: $760.76
Gift Cards: $610.80
401(K):$599.20

I did less damage than I expected this month. I gave myself a $500 budget for the new clothes and I stuck to it. That is, if you ignore the new yoga pants that I ordered. My savings rate was still higher than last month, but that had more to do with having an extra payday rather than any good habits on my part. But I'll take any wins that I can get. I also opened a money market account with CIT Bank which now holds my emergency fund. I plan on getting it up to $7,000 by the end of the year.

September 2018 Starting Funds
Checking: $200.00
Savings: $3,918.69
Emergency Fund: $5,407.49
Cash: $515.86
Gift Cards: $803.87
401(K): $845.65

Overall, my funds did go up, which is good. Maybe not as up as I hoped, but still up.