Four years ago this week I graduated from my Masters program and began working full-time.  

My immediate financial future looked pretty rocky.  I had no assets and I owed $33,000 on my student line of credit (I was not able to apply for OSAP or government funding).  I managed to land my dream job right out of school and made a pretty penny at that. 

Over the past four years my average income has been approximately $53,000 (plus benefits + RRSP matching).  

Fast forward four years later and my once -$33,000 net worth is now +$30,000.  Sometimes when I look at my positive net worth I feel that it should be higher, but sometimes I need to remind myself that in four years I've been able to increase my net worth by $63,000!!!

Sometimes you need to look at numbers in a different light to appreciate a significant change  :)

 

(source)

Broke the $30,000 net worth marker!

I finally broke through my next net worth marker!!

Despite my investments taking a hit this month, my net worth increased again over the past 30 days.  I'd felt lately similar to what dieters feel when they've hit a weight loss plateau when it came to my net worth.

But, this month I'm happy to share with you my updated net worth:

Assets	February 2012	June 1, 2012
Condo	$192,000	$192,000
Vehicle	$6,500	$6,500
Investments	$2,100	$3,744

Liabilities
Mortgage	$173,250	$171,592

Net Worth

$27,350

$30,652

This represents a change of +8.9% since February this year.  

While it should be at about +13% based on my planned savings (oops!), I am happy that it's going up.

Between February 15th and June 1st I have "taken home" approximately $11,250 (after tax deductions, but not pension deductions), while my net worth has increased by $3,302 through investments (RRSP and Pension, and paying down my mortgage) .  Not too shabby!

Free Dietitian Services - Yes, Please!!

While searching online for "healthy eating Ontario" I stumbled upon this website. 

"EatRight Ontario allows you to ask nutrition-related questions and receive feedback by phone or email from a Registered Dietitian. Nutrition tools and links offer many additional resources to support you in developing healthy eating habits for you and your family."

Wow, so instead of paying to speak with a dietician in person, I can call and speak with a dietician over the phone FOR FREE?!?

I checked around online and here are a few in-person options:
- London, ON - initial consultation: $90, follow-up appointments $30 for 30 minutes
- Ottawa, ON - initial consultation: $90, follow-up appointments $35 for 25 minutes
- Toronto, ON - initial consultation and plan: $125, follow-up appointments $5

I want to point out that if you're looking for a one-on-one ongoing relationship with a Registered Dietician, the in-person option is likely worth the investment and regular appointments would be more beneficial. 

In my case, yesterday I called Eat Right Ontario to speak with a Registered Dietician about calorie intake, to ask a few questions about coconut oil, and about protein, fiber, carbohydrates, and healthy fats.  I feel confident enough to design my own meal plan to ensure that I'm eating right (no pun intended) after having all of my questions answered, so for me, an infrequent use of  Eat Right Ontario is perfect.  If I wasn't, Eat Right Ontario has a meal planner too!

Just another tool in my back pocket to help improve my overall health! 

 

If you don't live in Ontario, does your province/territory offer a similar service?

Investing in my Health

......or rather Spending for my Health?!?

I ditched my gym membership; I just couldn't justify spending what amounted to about $6/workout.  I bought a bike (this one from Walmart), I'm eating healthier, and I bought a heart rate monitor (this one from Sport Chek).

Within the past month I've spent just over $230 on "sporting goods".  I've sacrificed a great balcony space for pieces of equipment that will improve my fitness and overall health.

I've also been eating healthier.  This is what I made for dinner tonight:

I've been shopping the perimeter and included only fresh ingredients found on the outside aisles for this meal: tortilla with 12g of fiber (so this puppy will keep me full for while), avocado, red leaf lettuce, cucumber, shredded carrots, grilled onions, red/green peppers, mushrooms - cooked in EVOO.  Alongside a big glass of water. I did cheat and use 1 tbsp of store bought salad dressing. For any fellow calorie-trackers....only 395 calories for both the wrap and salad!! 

Back to finances....Since I started eating healthier I've actually spent less on groceries.  I've been budgeting $240/month on groceries and I've been able to stick to it.  My fridge is always stocked with healthy foods and my freezer is full of ready-to-reheat-at-work for balanced lunches. 

While getting into smaller clothes (I'm down from a 16 to a snug 13) might be a budget booster for most people, I have been a smaller person - a 10 is the lowest I've been as an adult out of school.  I literally have an entire suitcase and 1 dresser drawer worth of clothes sized 10 and 12.  I know, not practical to store and move a wardrobe worth of clothes I don't fit into across the province, but I knew that I'd get down to a comfortable weight at some point.

Thank you again to all PF bloggers on twitter using #pfworkout.  When I check twitter every morning and see the hard work everyone is doing -- while I was getting up at my usual 7am -- it's an incredible motivator!!
 

How did I get so busy??

Within the last month or so my daily calendar seems to have something every day....aside from work of course!

Last weekend I began French classes I'm taking through Algonquin College.  I'm enrolled for 8 weeks.  Classes take place Saturdays and Sundays between 9am and 12pm.  On top of classes I have about 3 hours of online homework/week in addition to about an hour of textbook homework and studying (I have quizzes, a midterm and final exam).  So much for just taking a French class to brush up on my skills!

I posted back in February that I'd joined by condo's Board of Directors.  We're now getting into the Reserve Fund Study and Performance Audit time of the year, so that's keeping me busy.

I've also signed up for Boot Camp (starts later this month) and I've been hitting the gym about 3x/week in addition to heading outside on my new bike - I have a 1 month membership to try a new gym out.

I've started volunteering with three other organizations, two are recreation development organizations/organizations who raise money to offset sports costs to low-income families (definitely in my field), another unrelated to my field which raises money towards activities for children who are hospital-bound. 

On top of all of that, I'm still keeping up my goal to go out with former colleagues/classmates in the hopes of making new/old friends in the city!

I've been eating healthy thanks to the Eat Clean Diet and Clean Eating Mag and this morning I pulled on a pair of pants I haven't worn in about 2 years!!  Thanks to everyone on Twitter using #pfworkout....it's definitely motivating to me!

(Source)

Net Worth Update - April 2012

I'd posted my first net worth update back in February and I figured it was that time again to check in and see where I stand.

Here goes:

Assets	February, 2012	April, 2012
Condo	$192,000	$192,000
Vehicle	$6,500	$6,500
Investments	$2,100	$3,188
Liabilities
Mortgage	$173,250	$172,146
Net Worth	$27,350	$29,542
	Change	$2,192
		9.7%

I'm pretty middle-of-the-road happy with the progress.  I know that I could have done better in the savings department, and one of my goals for the year was to make two extra mortage payments and that has yet to happen, so over the next coming months I need to make that a part of my monthly plan.

My end of year goal is to have a net worth of $38,000 sooooo, only $8,458 to go over the next 8 months -- eek!!

Budget: May 2012

Budget for May is complete!!

Crossing my fingers that I'll be able to stay on track:

	Budgeted
Full Time Job	$2,810.24
Transfer from Planned Spending Account	$270.00
Mortgage + Taxes (3x this month)	$1285.54
Condo Fees	$75.01
Insurance (Car/House)	$97.69
Hot Water Tank Rental	$50.79
Car Maintenance/Licensing	$49.00
Extra Mortgage +Tax Payments	$65.00
Natural Gas	$95.00
Hydro	$45.00
Rogers	$140.00
Pension	$333.32
Emergency Fund	$50.00
RRSP	$100.00
Travel Fund	$200.00
Clothing	$17.00
House Stuff	$30.00
Gifts	$50.00
Food/Restaurant	$200.00
Entertainment	$40.00
Gas - Car	$140.00
Memberships	$15.00