I noticed a lot of people referencing budgeting the last couple days, and I wanted to see if maybe we could swap some tips or share what works for us. I love everything budget so I am always looking for ways to save money or to streamline my process. TTC, especially those of us that fall under the "infertile" category can be extremely expensive.
Any tips/suggestions? What are you doing to save money?
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Personally, I have an excel spreadsheet (I love Excel) I use to keep track of every penny. It's nice because it gives me pie charts at the close of each month that tells me where all our money went. On my sheet I have a second page that has a weekly breakdown (my DH and I get paid alternating weekly, so it's a paycheck every Friday) of all our bills. We also have planned "payoffs" of debts all the way up through 2020 (OMG, private school loans!). For expenses that don't repeat to the exact amount every month (groceries, etc.) we each have a credit card with a small limit ($200 each) and we use those and payoff at the end of the month. We never use our actual bank account except for bills and savings. We never swipe a debit card at the store. This ensures we never go over our $400 budget on "stuff."
TTC #1 since September 2014Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI
(count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low
progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
Loss History (TW):
BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
TTC History (TW):
3 losses in 2015
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All
Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt
#1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
Next Up:
TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
Re: Budgeting
I have no idea what DH does with his own money from there on out haha. But what I started doing about a year ago is doing a savings transfer and paying all of my personal bills (student loans, car payment, etc.) biweekly, so I always have the exact same amount left over each pay period for fun and extras. I have all of my bills/transfers set up to auto pay from my online bill pay, so it's really effortless.
Putting the agreed upon amount into savings before anything else comes out has really helped us stick to our goals. We just bought a house, so we had been saving aggressively. Now we are going to have to rework the numbers and figure out what needs to be adjusted going forward, but we will still stick with the same plan to keep building our savings.
Married: July 2015
BFP: 5/20/16 | EDD: 1/28/17 | Twin boys born 1/16/17
@sldp123 We have our accounts set up similarly and once we pay down some of the debt that we want to address, we will be doing the same as far as paying the bills out of the joint account and distributing the rest for personal spending.
Any purchases over $100 require both of our approval aside from things like going to the grocery store. And generally if we want to make a larger purchase, we sell something of value that we are no longer using to make up for the money spent. I have us on a very stringent budget and we'll have more flexibility down the line.
Previously nweg...7878
Our best tool is Mint.com. It pulls in all the data from credit card spending, loan repayment and all our saving accounts. We use it to categorize all of our spending (very insightful!) and budget for each month. DH is very good at managing our money (and I'm very good a spending it!), so the online tracking helps keep me accountable to our joint goals.
We've been living below our means to pay off student loans, and we will continue to so we can save for a house, and it looks like we might have to CONTINUE to live like students for the rest of our lives if we have to pay for fertility treatments
My best way to save money is always by second hand if possible. I never buy new clothes, furniture, or household items (rarely new household items). I also NEVER go to the mall, window shopping turns into real shopping very quick.
MFI (High DNA Fragmentation) & Mild endometriosis
Aug 2016 - May 2017 6 IUI's with letrozole - BFN
April 2017 - laparoscopy to remove mild endo
June 2017 - Mini IVF letrozole 12.5mg, Gonal-F 75IU - Cancelled early ovulation, no eggs retrieved.
Aug/Sept 2017 - Mini IVF letrozole 12.5mg, Gonal-F 75IU, cetrotide - 13 eggs retrieved, 11 mature
5 eggs ICSI'd 6 eggs frozen - 1 day 5 blast transfered, 2 expanded blast frozen - BFP!
May 2018 - Baby girl born - Our Joy
TTC #2 since July 2019
July 2019 - FET - BFN
Jan 2020 - FET - canceled due to family health issues
Mar 2020 - FET - low beta - chemical pregnancy
July 2020 - ICSI'd remaining 6 eggs - 3 fertilized - 2 survived to early blast stage, transfered both - Chemical Pregnancy
@nwegman7878 - Selling something you don't use to make up for large expenses is a great idea.
@BerkeBaby & @ReesaAnne16 - sounds like you both use Dave Ramsey. I did his class and use a lot of his systems, But the envelope system never worked for me... especially because I have lost my wallet more than once... pretty scary when it would be holding all that cash. Yikes. I also don't exactly snowball. I made my spreadsheet paying all the minimums monthly, slowly accumulating excess savings (in addition to the emergency). Every time this excess was enough to pay the smallest debt, we would. It always took too long and we would tend to overspend when we used the regular snowball idea. But I am so glad it works for you!
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
DH: 30 year old pneumatic electrical engineer
BFP: June 25, 2016 and MC: July 3, 2016
DD2: April 16, 2017
BFP: November 30, 2018 EDD: August 14, 2019
I am jealous of you all with your spreadsheets, because my mind does not work like that. I have an old school planner that I use for our budgeting. I'm in charge of our finances, and I pay all of the bills, although we have a lot of communication about our finances. In my planner at the beginning of each month, I mark down our paydays (I get paid on set days each month, and my H is every other Friday, so this changes for us month-to-month) and write down what bills will be paid with each paycheck. Since I am paid on set days each month, I utilize the hell out of auto-payments. I set our gas and grocery budgets for the month, and then any pre-agreed out of the ordinary expenses that we might have that month (we are doing some work around the house, so I'll set aside a budget for that kind of stuff).
We have a joint checking account that all of this goes in, and we also have a savings account. At the end of each month, all money in our checking that has not been spent goes into the savings account. I get paid on the 1st of each month, so I like to think of it as a reset of our budget. Like I said, I'm in charge of our money, so I know how much we have at any given time. H usually will text and ask if he can spend some unplanned money, or else will use his credit card to pay for something, and then we will pay it off right away.
I like @sldp123 's system of having separate accounts for each of us for our spending money. Might have to steal that idea!
We have worked really hard the last few years to try and get on top of our finances. From June - February I worked a second job at a restaurant on nights and weekends to earn some extra money to pay down some of the debt we had accumulated from our home purchase and our wedding, and to save money for a down payment on a new car for me. We were also able to put money in savings. It really sucked, but in the end it was completely worth it, because for the first time in my adult life, I feel like we are in control of our finances.
Me: 28 | DH: 31
Together since 2006 | Married May 2015
TTC #1 since November 2015
BFP 5/17/16 | EDD 1/27/17 | Born 2/4/17
Married: July 2015
BFP: 5/20/16 | EDD: 1/28/17 | Twin boys born 1/16/17
Adopted Furbaby: 2014
TTC#1 : 1/2016 | IUI #2 - BFP 12/24/16 -- born 9/8/17
TTC#2: 11/2019 | Dx DOR (AMH 0.3), AMA
IUI #2 - BFP 7/1/20 -- EDD 3/14/21
We only have a mortgage and my student loans for debt, and I pay aggressively on them, but I know we probably spend waaaay more than we need to on some things.
Now that we're talking about the cost of IF treatments (which my insurance doesn't cover), I think we probably need to actually lock in a legit budget. Thanks for all the ideas!
And to be honest, I'm not exactly looking forward to combining accounts, because I've worked since I was 17, and have been fully independent since age 23, and it's always been my money... but... I won't have to be worrying about that anytime soon, and who knows, we may just keep things the way they are... we've only discussed it briefly.
DH: 36
Together since 2007
Happily Ever After 4.30.2015
~~One Beautiful Daughter~~ Born: 11.6.2017
Trying for #2!!
As to the bolded, I 100% understand. I was a single mom for several years before meeting my H, I was very used to having complete control over the money. Having to discuss budgeting and spending with someone else definitely takes some getting used to. I'm sure my H would say the same, as he was single and on his own for probably 10 years before we met. That's where our separate accounts definitely help balance things out, because we both still have some independence.
Married: July 2015
BFP: 5/20/16 | EDD: 1/28/17 | Twin boys born 1/16/17
A lot of the snowball debt pay off method makes sense, but we tackled the highest interest rate loans first, not the smallest ones like he suggested.
We also couldn't do the envelop system (I hate carrying more than $20 cash)
Instead, we actually buy almost everything we can with a credit card, and we pay our credit cards off every month, so we never have fees. This system works great for us, because every purchase is registered on our mint account (including my dozens of $2 coffees each month) AND we use the highest cash back cards we can find, so we earn $50-$100 cash back every month. This only works if you have a money in savings to ensure credit cards get paid off each month, and your credit card allows auto-pay (we auto-pay anything we can, so we never have late fees).
I disagree with Dave Ramsey regarding your credit score too. With how we use credit cards, and paying off student loans, we have AWESOME credit, which was a huge bonus when we took out a loan for a car a couple years ago (got a loan for 0.8% interest...) I don't think it makes sense to ignore your credit score.
So all that to say that, Dave Ramsey has a lot of great methods, and you can pick and choose what works for you.
MFI (High DNA Fragmentation) & Mild endometriosis
Aug 2016 - May 2017 6 IUI's with letrozole - BFN
April 2017 - laparoscopy to remove mild endo
June 2017 - Mini IVF letrozole 12.5mg, Gonal-F 75IU - Cancelled early ovulation, no eggs retrieved.
Aug/Sept 2017 - Mini IVF letrozole 12.5mg, Gonal-F 75IU, cetrotide - 13 eggs retrieved, 11 mature
5 eggs ICSI'd 6 eggs frozen - 1 day 5 blast transfered, 2 expanded blast frozen - BFP!
May 2018 - Baby girl born - Our Joy
TTC #2 since July 2019
July 2019 - FET - BFN
Jan 2020 - FET - canceled due to family health issues
Mar 2020 - FET - low beta - chemical pregnancy
July 2020 - ICSI'd remaining 6 eggs - 3 fertilized - 2 survived to early blast stage, transfered both - Chemical Pregnancy
Glad I am not the only one that thinks his system isn't perfect liek everyone wants to think.
@thj101 I don't think it's bad at all. If it works for you, then great. We combined when we got married for two reasons. One, DH was laid off, so he couldn't quite cover all the expenses, and two, he's really old school and almost took it as offense when I suggested not combining. It's definitely been more of a struggle for me than him. I too was independent early on (I left the house at 17!) and he was from a very rich family, and was a spoiled brat (still is sometimes, but that's another story) so he liked me taking care of the finances, and I didn't like having to deal with him. It was a struggle at first, but I finally got him to submit to my control. HAHA!
@houseofsetters It's a terrible thing that insurance doesn't cover it, right? Mine doesn't wither and DH and I have agreed we want to pay off all our debt before IVF. We will do a couple IUIs before then, but no IVF. Yikes. If that isn't incentive to stick to the budget, then what is? Looks like we have a great group of budgeters here, so when you get to the point of solidifying a budget, there's lots of people to turn to for help if needed!
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
I have to because we are all so good at this!:
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
Previously nweg...7878
I chose to use my credit card for all purchases after I had a few identity theft situations happen and it was a pain in the butt to get my money back in my checking account. Much easier to get your money back on a credit card if you have an unauthorized charge. Plus, I get the cash back with my credit card purchases and that's always a plus. You just have to be pretty disciplined with it, and if you can do that, it's pretty cool all the rewards and cash back you can get. And, in my opinion, it's much safer than using your debit card linked to all of your money for everything.
DH: 36
Together since 2007
Happily Ever After 4.30.2015
~~One Beautiful Daughter~~ Born: 11.6.2017
Trying for #2!!
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
i know, stupid, DH has a great paying job and makes a lot more than we spend, I have a casual job as well which is where our bills come from. DH only pays rent (which we live in my dads house so we're really just paying his mortgage) other than rent, we only have car insurance, contents insurance, satellite tv and daycare for DS, we have 0 debt, if we don't have the money for something then and there we don't buy it. I do really need to set up a savings account though...
DS - January 2014
TTCAL | April 2016
CP | June 2016
CP | July 2016
We have zero joint accounts. We keep our bills separate, neither of us have student loans, and we don't have rent/mortgage. He pays all of the house bills (aka electric, propane and kerosene), ontop of his own bills (credit cards/insurance/truck payment).
I pay all my own bills, plus all of our groceries and our internet.
The reason being DH makes literally 3x as much as I do. But we're both extremely good with money. And we have a savings account (in his name) that we both put money into. I'm saving for SAHM $$, he's saving for in case of emergency. That's the only thing we should probably get on the same page about LOL. But it totally works for us, and we never ever argue about money.
DH and I have been together since we were teenagers and have always combined everyting since we got engaged. We have one checking, one savings and one investment account between the two of us...nothing is separate. It's just always how we've done it. We let each other know if we want to buy something and if it's a bigger thing we decide together. Buying gifts kind of sucks though...lol
Married 05/21/2011
TTC Since Feb 2016
RE: Dec 2016 Dx: PCOS
5 rounds of Letrozole 5mg + Ovidrel + TI
BFP!!!! June 2017 // EDD: 04/01/2018
IT'S A BOY!
BFP May 16th 2016
DD born January 30 2017
Surprise BFP/MC April 2017
Me: 28 DH: 29
Married: August 2014
TTC #1 Since March 2015
Diagnosed with PCOS March 2016
SA results normal April 2016
3 rounds clomid + trigger + TI = BFN
3 rounds clomid + trigger + IUI = BFN
Uterine polyp removed July 2017
Round 1 IVF January 2018
@PaukMeKiande Maybe try what some of us do and get a low limit credit card? and only use that? Then pay it off every month. That way you can't go over your budget because it will deny you. But you would have to not use your debit card at all. That would be the hard part. I also keep the saving in an entirely different bank so I don't see it when I log into my regular bank. It keeps me from transferring it back into my account since it's way harder to switch from bank to bank. At the end of the month ow week or whatever, physically remover your money and take it to the different bank and deposit.
Just a suggestion.
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
BFP May 16th 2016
DD born January 30 2017
Surprise BFP/MC April 2017
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
Pot 1 is spend money, our checking account. All purchases and bills are paid from here first. We get an email when this account gets low so we know to shore up a bit.
Pot 2 is scheduled money, our reserve account. If Pot 1 is extinguished and bills need paid, we will transfer over enough money to cover them from Pot 2.
Pot 3 is future money, our savings account. After paying the mortgage, a significant portion from Pot 2 (and sometimes Pot 1) is transferred to Pot 3. Pot 3 does not get touched except in case of emergency or planned significant expense.
Right now, we do half of our income in Pot 1 and half in Pot 2 and still can comfortably move a considerable amount form Pot 2 to Pot 3 after mortgage. At other points, we've had to put most of our money in Pot 2 to ensure we have enough to pay bills or are able to move more to Pot 3. Maybe someday our income will mostly go to Pot 1 while Pot 2 will still cover! DREAMS.
It works for us because we have a general idea of our spending without having to line by line each purchase, and easily lets us adjust when we have a costly month coming up, like during the holidays.
Me: 28 & Partner: 32 | Married 2014
BFP 7/29 EDD 4/11
@MommyForTheFirstTime; you sound SUPER ORGANIZED I LOVE IT! Heard that @ student loans, my undergrad & grad are both from private catholic schools-WOOF. I hope to have them paid before my kids go to college (we don’t have any kids yet lol)
For me, I definitely head the finances in our house but ensure to keep DH in the loop & involved/engaged especially when we’re getting close to budgets towards month end & to plan for payoffs. I have a list of all the bills & due dates for the month & each month I determine which bills will factor into each payroll cycle. It’s the same every month so far as which bill falls where but the 1st cycle is usually pretty tight for us & the 2nd we usually have a ton leftover which is nice to pay things @ the end of the month.
I also utilize MINT which is AWESOME for setting budgets for things that occur monthly, annually or “just once” – you tie all of your accounts to it & it reconciles for you. I think that scares some people but I’m okay with it lol. You can also plan goals on there, that’s what we used to plan for my engagement ring, our wedding, honeymoon & our move from Chicago to Minneapolis. We’re currently using it to plan/payoff our car. I like it because since it “knows” my savings account & increases the money towards our goal when we transfer from checking to savings.
Lastly, as for accounts, we’re joint on everything & pay for nearly everything on credit (only to gain cash rewards) and ensure to pay them off each month- ain’t nobody got time for interest! I do keep our checking split into two (still shared)- we have a BillPay account which I zero balance and an “Everyday Expenses” account which is our fun money/groceries etc. Mint helps us budget so far as how much we get for what inside of the “Everyday” account but yea J
Wow- that is a lot of info, I hope it was helpful J
@ReesaAnne16; DH & I are in the middle of Dave Ramsey right now! We’re currently in the process of our “debt snowball” and hoping to have our car & a few small student loans paid off this year! That is amazing you’re almost done with your debt!!!!!! Also-Yay for MINT!
ME: 31 | DH: 31
Married: April 2015
TTC (BBT & FF) #1: April 2015 (Off BC: January 2015)
Fur Baby: 1 English Mastiff (Rupert)
I tried Mint at one point, but it didn't work for us. Three of our debts wouldn't link to mint, so it made it kinda unhelpful. I didn't want to manually plug it in every month so I stopped using it. But I use my own spreadsheet version that works wonderfully. I seriously have at least 12 pages on my excel. I only use two in an everyday sense, but the rest are to keep track of the balance of each debt and even adds in the interest and all!
I hear you about the school loans and also the perks of using CC. LOVE IT!
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
We also buy almost everything with credit card and pay it off monthly. Dual purposes...downloadable ledger to know exactly where my money went and points to get free things. I hate carrying cash.
I used to us Mint but being an accountant I like downloading my account transactions from the bank and organizing them myself.
If anyone has a spreadsheet that they use for their loans/ house payments/credit cards (anything that accrues interest) and would like to share I'd appreciate it. I can't find/create one that I like yet.
~Formerly @dogmomwantinghuman ~
TTC #1 since January 2015
BFP #1: 11/30/15| MC 12/16/15BFP # 2: 6/2/16 | EDD 2/16/17
I like this thread - there are some great ideas here!
We have a joint account. Payment for all of our bills except our credit card is automatically withdrawn from our account on a monthly basis. We spread it out so that rent comes out at the beginning of the month (no home yet, we're in our early thirties and I only recently finished university), and all of our bills come out mid-month.
Our budget is very strict. We each have a "personal amount" each month that we take out in cash. That's money for entertainment, clothing, coffees, lunches, etc… We pay for everything that isn't automatically withdrawn or a "personal expense" using a credit card because we get travel points, but we pay it off every. single. month. We have a very strict rule about not having a balance on our credit card.
Our biggest financial stress is student debt. We're living very simply because we're paying it off aggressively while also saving. Our plan is to do that for the next five years and hopefully save enough for down payment on a home.
We're in the process of debt snowballing and working on paying off our debt. We're also looking at buying a forever soon pretty soon. We use the envelope system and the every dollar budget app. I've been thinking about creating a spreadsheet.
Currently, we are working to pay off DH's student loans. Since I have that handy spreadsheet I can keep our miscellaneous spending on track and then also set surplus aside to pay down the debt faster. We're hoping to get it paid off by the end of the year and then we can ramp up saving more for a new house down payment.
In terms of accounts. All of our accounts are joint for the most part. We've been together since high school and lived together in college when it was typical that one of us worked more and carried the other financially during different times, so sharing is not abnormal for us, it works best. We have a joint checking which majority of our money gets deposited and a joint savings connected to that for short term "emergencies". Each paycheck some money gets moved from the checking to the savings. I mainly use this for any unexpected things. For example, when I had medical bills roll in. We also have a savings at a credit union which we don't touch (only way to get money is to physically go to the bank). We each have money directly deposited from our paychecks in here so it never makes it to our "normal" spending pool. We are using this to build both a robust emergency fund and to help save for that house down payment. Once DH's student loans are paid off we will increase our funds going to this account even more to save faster.
Our separate items include credit cards. We each have a CC (the other is an authorized user). Mine we use for all the general/misc expenses and pay in full every month. We do this versus using a debt card for security and because we then get cash back. DH's we got for travel and same, any spending would be paid off, it's currently got a zero balance. So even though some people will say credit cards are bad I think it depends how you use them. Neither of us have ever paid interest on a credit card and I think there are some benefits to be gained if you can handle it responsibly.
TTC since November 2015
BFP #1 12/17/15 - MC 1/28/16
BFP #2 4/22/16 - EDD 12/30/16
@emilie250 - Student debt is so hard to pay off. We are in the same boat. I hope that someday if/when I have children I can teach them to make better decision in regard to student loans.
@stardust317 - how do you like the envelope system?
@l9i - sounds like we both have a similar system. with the surplus that we've foreseen and deciding to put all that extra toward a debt. It's a great system. I agree with you on the credit cards. A lot of people see it as a bad word, but if you're responsible with them they are wonderful. You can actually make money using them.
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
We also use Mint and a spreadsheet to budget every single penny, like a lot of you have said. I have a really odd pay schedule, though, so the Mint budget doesn't work for us, but it does help me see what we have spent money on in the past month and it allows me to see H's credit card and loans so that I can take them into account when budgeting.
ETA: Also, I do all the budgeting and H just reminds me if there is something extra I need to budget for in a certain week. He's able to see the spreadsheet because we use Google Drive, but I don't think he looks at it very often..
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog
Check out my Infertility Instagram
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again, High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo.
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two!
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel.
ER#2 ~Jan 2019