Goals for July.

I have decided to set a specific $ amount goal each month so that I don't get complacent about paying off this debt. I know I have to keep focused! So here are my goals for the next 30 days.

• reduce mortgage to < $150,000
• pay all other bills on time
• see accountant and submit tax
• record our spending
• sell old stuff we don't need anymore

To reach this months goal I need to pay approximately $2,177. The usual payment is $1,114 a month. We have always paid $300 a week. With the savings on food now diverted to the mortgage we are going to pay $500 a week. Then I also need to see how I can earn money elsewhere.

My big E-bay sale has now gone into my mortgage account so that is just over $300! I have requested buyers pay straight into my mortgage account rather than paypal. That way I save a few dollars in fees and I don't have to wait until the balance is $150 to transfer it over. Also I never even see it so there is no temptation to spend it on something else.

There is a lovely upmarket 'pre-loved' clothing store about 1.5 hours from here. They only take good quality clothes and shoes and they have beautiful stuff. I am going to see if they will take some of my clothes. I think they will get a better price there than E-bay. I have some really lovely clothes and shoes, evening wear and coats that I won't be wearing again.

It feels strange to think about selling them. It is like acknowledging a part of your life that is now over. I look at each outfit and I remember the occasion it was for, a wedding, a reunion, a school graduation...

But I need to be realistic. I still have the memories and somewhere there are photos. It's like a realisation of getting older. And I want my life to be simplified, not cluttered as I age.

I wonder if that's why we keep so much, a way to hold on to the happy memories perhaps?

We are also looking at selling off a lot of old furniture and cleaning out the garage of 'stuff'. There are wardrobes, fridges, a piano, kids bikes, swings. It is incredible how much we accumulated over the years of raising children! So a busy month ahead for us!

I need constant inspiration to stay on track. For me that comes from about one hour a day, every day, of reading personal finance blogs. It's the first thing I do when I wake up. It keeps me focused on suceeding.

I have recently discovered 'carnivals' where bloggers all submit posts. There is plenty of inspiration at this personal finance carnival. I love the very first story, (The Wastrel Show) of a couple who paid off their mortgage, moved out of the city and live debt free.