Blue as Heck

Well, last week I had work done on my car. It overheated & ended up needing new radiator hoses. Unfortunately, the labor for the installation & testing of the system drove the bill up to $400+. This on top of the $1,000+ I paid on my husband's car. But I was like: OK, I have an extra paycheck this month, I can probably catch up. So I spent about $120+ on genealogy books at the genealogy conference I went to; a little more than what I had planned & this will probably hold me over for a looong time. Maybe I should have held off; I don't know. But today I brought in the car for an oil change & they called me back & said that I urgently needed new brakes (I was told last summer that I would need it eventually; so now is that time). Of course I need to get them done because I don't want to endanger myself or my family. Another $300+.And today I opened up our company's benefits enrollment materials. The employee contribution is doubling. Of course my last raise does not cover that, so it's back behind the 8-ball. One step forward, 2 steps back. And here's another killer: under Obamacare, your kids can be covered up to age 26. But up to what age are you able to claim a dependent deduction for them? 17! That's messed up...Now, I know this all isn't the end of the world. I can charge the car work & it will get paid off; maybe even by the end of the year, with that extra paycheck & Christmas bonus (unless they decide to take that away). And at least we do have healthcare, such as it is. I still have a roof over my head & my health, and my soul is saved. But gee whiz! I feel like I'm squeezed dry with nothing leftover here for me. (I so want to go to NGS 2014!!) Plus I do want to see my daughter in college after she graduates! But it's all on me, and my resources are limited. H's most recent paycheck wasn't even $300. Argh...