She Lost EVERYTHING In a Hurricane

Summary

Frugal Friends Podcast - Episode: "She Lost EVERYTHING In a Hurricane"

Hosts: Jen Smith & Jill Sirianni
Guest: Emily, a registered nurse affected by Hurricane Helene
Release Date: August 1, 2025

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Introduction

In this emotionally charged episode of the Frugal Friends Podcast, hosts Jen Smith and Jill Sirianni welcome Emily, a registered nurse who experienced significant upheaval due to Hurricane Helene. The discussion delves deep into the financial and emotional aftermath of losing her home, exploring how such crises impact spending habits and long-term financial goals.

Emily’s Harrowing Experience with Hurricane Helene

[03:02] Emily:
“My name's Emily. I am married, I am a registered nurse, got affected by Hurricane Helene, took my house. So currently living at my mother-in-law's house. Going through lots of life changes right now, but working through it. And I'm about to start a new job.”

Emily shares the devastating impact of Hurricane Helene on her life. Her home in St. Petersburg, Florida, close to the Intracoastal Waterway, succumbed to severe flooding unprecedented in its 50-year history. The storm surge brought seawater and sewage into her home, destroying most of her furniture except for cherished items like her dining table and a 1912 baby grand piano.

[04:14] Jill:
“Wow.”

Emily’s narrative is a poignant reminder of how natural disasters can uproot lives, leading to unexpected financial strains and emotional trauma.

Impact on Finances and Spending Habits

[05:30] Emily:
“...I was not being very thoughtful in my spending and I was taking the easy way out... Instead of me packing up and buying all these groceries to pack in Trader Joe's bags and bring to my mom's house, I'm just going to buy food out and then just be good with ads because it was the easiest option at the time.”

Before the hurricane, Emily considered herself a frugal spender, often returning items she regretted buying. However, the crisis forced her into a situation where convenience outweighed cost-saving measures, leading to increased spending on eating out and essential items during upheaval.

Detailed Spending Analysis

1. Food Expenditures

Emily’s spending on food surged due to her unstable living situation. Balancing between her mother-in-law’s home in Largo and her new job in Sarasota, she found it challenging to maintain her usual frugality.

[13:35] Emily:
“Groceries were. Was $2,136 over the span of three months.”

Emily admits spending over $2,000 on groceries and another significant amount on eating out, primarily at convenience spots like Starbucks and Chick-fil-A.

[22:01] Jen:
“In short seasons we can kind of try new things... It’s less expensive though than all of the takeout.”

The hosts suggest that Emily could benefit from meal planning and using cost-effective grocery strategies to reduce her food expenditure without sacrificing convenience.

2. Coffee Costs

Coffee emerged as a surprisingly large expense in Emily’s budget.

[24:20] Emily:
“I spent $119 on Nespresso pods and $170 on Starbucks alone.”

Jen and Jill discuss strategies to reduce these costs, such as limiting visits to Starbucks, exploring local coffee shops, or making coffee at home, which Emily has started to adopt by using her Nespresso machine.

[26:06] Emily:
“I have not gone to Starbucks since [February].”

This reduction has positively impacted Emily’s budget, freeing up funds for her primary financial goals.

3. Clothing Purchases and Returns

Emily’s approach to clothing has always been cautious, often returning items post-purchase. However, the hurricane disrupted her routine.

[35:07] Emily:
“I have bad buyer’s remorse. I just keep returning and going through this, like, vicious cycle.”

The hosts commend Emily for her responsible behavior in returning unwanted items and suggest leveraging tools like the Benny Extension to find affordable, secondhand clothing alternatives online.

4. Disney Annual Passes

A notable part of Emily’s spending includes her Disney annual passes, costing approximately $448 over 90 days.

[48:35] Emily:
“We added on the water parks option because the days that we're blacked out, we can go to the water park.”

While annual passes offer recreational benefits, Jen and Jill highlight the additional costs incurred, such as food and merchandise purchases, and suggest budgeting strategies to manage these expenses effectively.

5. Self-Care Expenses

Emily maintains her self-care routines, investing in nail and hair care to manage stress and personal habits.

[52:58] Emily:
“I started getting my nails done just to stop that. But I just got an at-home gel nail kit.”

Jen and Jill acknowledge the importance of self-care but also encourage finding cost-effective methods, like DIY solutions, to maintain these habits without overspending.

Actionable Insights and Recommendations

1. Meal Planning and Grocery Strategies

Jen introduced a 15 Emergency Meals guide with simple, cost-effective recipes that utilize common pantry items. This approach can help Emily and listeners manage food expenses without compromising on convenience.

[20:02] Jill:
“Let’s try out 5 ingredient or less meals.”

2. Reducing Coffee Expenses

Emily has already made strides by cutting back to two cups a day and relying more on home-brewed coffee. The hosts suggest further reduction by leveraging workplace coffee options and exploring local, cheaper alternatives.

[24:26] Emily:
“$119 on Nespresso pods and $170 on Starbucks alone.”

3. Clothing Cost Management

Using browser extensions like Benny and following thrift store accounts on social media can help Emily find affordable, stylish clothing without the need for frequent purchases or returns.

[38:23] Jen:
“Download the Benny Extension to find secondhand alternatives.”

4. Leveraging AI for Cost-Saving Solutions

Jen and Jill advocate using AI tools like ChatGPT to find discounts, free items, or affordable alternatives, especially for higher-ticket items like work equipment.

[45:14] Jill:
“Ask ChatGPT for ways to get things for free or low cost.”

5. Balancing Self-Care and Budget

While self-care is essential, finding DIY methods or lower-cost alternatives can help maintain these routines within a tighter budget.

[52:58] Emily:
“Got an at-home gel nail kit.”

Emily’s Reflections and Future Goals

By the episode’s end, Emily acknowledges the positive impact of her spending review:

[59:44] Emily:
“Since doing this, like, things have changed already. I really have a lot less eating out now.”

She estimates that the changes could save her up to $500 a month, which she can redirect towards her goal of purchasing a new home.

[59:48] Emily:
“Yeah. $500 a month to put towards your home goal.”

Conclusion

Jen and Jill commend Emily for her resilience and proactive approach to managing her finances amid crisis. They emphasize that while spending during such times is unavoidable, being mindful and strategic can help regain financial stability and work towards long-term goals.

[60:35] Jill:
“Permission to lean into what’s most beneficial for us financially, emotionally, relationally.”

Emily expresses gratitude for the support and insights, reinforcing the podcast's mission to help listeners navigate financial challenges with empathy and practical advice.

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Key Quotes with Timestamps

• Emily: “...I was taking the easy way out... I'm just going to buy food out...” [05:30]
• Jen: “That's less expensive though than all of the takeout.” [22:01]
• Emily: “I have bad buyer’s remorse... vicious cycle.” [35:07]
• Jill: “15 Emergency Meals.” [20:02]
• Jen: “Download the Benny Extension to find secondhand alternatives.” [38:23]

Final Thoughts

This episode serves as a powerful testament to the unforeseen financial strains that life-threatening events like hurricanes can impose. Through Emily’s story, listeners gain valuable insights into balancing immediate needs with long-term financial aspirations, all while maintaining emotional well-being.

For those navigating similar challenges, Frugal Friends Podcast offers not just understanding but actionable strategies to regain control over their finances and build a secure future.

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Stay Connected:
For more tips on saving money, embracing simplicity, and living a richer life, subscribe to the Frugal Friends Podcast on your favorite platform.

Transcript

[Jen]

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[Jill]

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[Jen]

Welcome to.

[Jill]

The Frugal Friends podcast, where you'll learn to save money, embrace simplicity, and live a richer life. Here are your hosts, Jen and Jill.

[Jen]

Emily, welcome to the Spending Intervention.

[Emily]

Hello. Yes.

[Jill]

Thank you so much for being here. We always know this is such a vulnerable thing, so we so appreciate anyone who comes on the show. And as you know, anything that we say or do is not to guilt or shame you, but to hopefully help you help our listeners. So, yeah, to that end, tell us about yourself. Give us an overview.

[Emily]

My name's Emily. What all of you want me to say?

[Jill]

Are you married? Tell us about your living situation.

[Jen]

There's some of the life situations that impact your finances and life stages.

[Emily]

Like my job, too. Yeah. Okay. Okay. You want to say it again? No.

[Jill]

No.

[Emily]

Okay. I'm Emily, I am married, I am a registered nurse, got affected by Hurricane Helene, took my house. So currently living at my mother in law's house. Going through lots of life changes right now, but working through it. And I'm about to start a new job.

[Jill]

Yeah, yeah. Okay. Not just. We kind of glossed over this. Not just affected by Hurricane Helene. I mean, you did say it took your house, but can you share a little bit more about what happened to you through that hurricane?

[Emily]

So, so our house is here in St. Pete's and it is really close to the intercoastal. Everyone's like 50 years, no flood. And then Hurricane Helene came along and I knew deep in my gut that this was going to be the storm. My husband's like, no, we're fine. I packed up all my stuff. I'm like, no, we're good. We're getting flooded. And we did. So our house got flooded. Thankfully we didn't lose like many sentimental things, only a couple things. And washed all of my husband's clothes and saved all of that. But unfortunately the house is still getting repaired. We lost all our furniture except for like our dining table and my great grandma's 1912 baby grand piano. Somehow that survived.

[Jill]

Wow.

[Emily]

Yeah. But other than that, we lost like all of the major, major things. So.

[Jen]

And this was not flood water, this was seawater.

[Emily]

Yeah, it was seawater that got pushed in from a storm surge, which is.

[Jen]

Extremely damaging to wood, to it's. You don't identify it so much with its force, but just with like its grossness.

[Emily]

Yeah, there was like probably sewage water in there too, and probably some fish got in my house. Not really sure when we got back it was all gone. But yeah. Yeah.

[Jill]

So this is really devastating and we are kind of intersecting with you at this point when you're still kind of reeling a little bit in the aftermath of that. And a lot of that does come up in the spending transaction. So we'll talk about that. But really important to acknowledge that you have gone through crisis and trauma and you're kind of in the aftermath and kind of the ways that that impacts your spending will be a little bit of what we look at.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So let's talk about your 90 day transaction inventory. How did you feel about like, what did you feel before going into it, like about your spending and then how did you feel after doing the inventory? Did anything surprise you?

[Emily]

Yeah. So really since like my whole life I have not been a major spender. Like I am the remorseful person who I'll buy something and Then immediately return it. That has been my like thing forever and ever. My husband and I are like pretty good with our finances and even like spending money out. We would go out to eat like once every two weeks. Really like not a whole bunch of luxuries. We find a lot of free things to do here in St. Pete's there's a lot of free things to do. But with the hurricane, I'm kind of between two homes right now because my mother in law lives up in Largo and my job's down in Sarasota. And so my been split between two places. I feel like a child of divorce, almost like packing up my bags once a week. So going through this, I like knew that my finances had changed due to my current circumstances. But I was surprised because I was not being very thoughtful in my spending and I was taking the easy way out and just saying, oh, instead of me packing up and buying all these groceries to pack in Trader Joe's bags and bring to my mom's house, I'm just going to buy food out and then just be good with ads because it was the easiest option at the time. So this honestly brought me back to reality a little bit and said like, oh, I didn't mean to spend that much. Also I did have jury duty in here too.

[Jill]

We saw that.

[Emily]

Just to add to it. It actually was very interesting. But I had ju. So they didn't have a place for me to like have food. So I did spend money out there as well. But I got, I got reimbursed for a lot of things with jury duty. So there was a lot of eating out and that was the most surprising thing because that has not been like a normal for me my entire life either. So I was able to evaluate it and kind of going back towards my nor my new normal.

[Jill]

Okay.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

So you're kind of already beginning to. Oh, yeah. Some of your goals.

[Emily]

Yes.

[Jill]

What would you say you want to get out of our time together?

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

What do you want to see with your spending?

[Emily]

Yeah, just going back to like, was this an impulsive buy? Like being more thoughtful in my spending and just looking at things that. Could I have done something a little bit differently here and there? Yeah. Just getting back to like our main goals of like saving for retirement, like doing things that are going to better us in our future and like our future family. And then also realizing that I do need to refurnish a home. So saving that money towards our future house that we're trying to get.

[Jen]

Yeah. So you're. Are you still planning to sell the house and where do you think, like savings wise, you'll. You'll be ready to look for a new home?

[Emily]

Yeah. So we, my husband's very set on selling our house first before buying a new house, which I know is the responsible thing to do. But my emotional side is like, I want to just like get this thing going. So insurance money is paying for like the repairs of the home, but not the items of the home that we lost. So main goal is like, you know, we try to buy second hand anyways, but even a secondhand couch is still, you know, a larger expense. Like our washing machine isn't counting towards like insurance money. So like that's not a cheap thing that we have to like rebuy, so.

[Jill]

Right.

[Emily]

Yeah. Just thinking of like being more thoughtful and knowing, like I have a financial goal and like my future home and saving towards.

[Jen]

Is the current home like sale stopped by like permitting?

[Emily]

Yes. Okay. Yeah.

[Jen]

So we're kind of in limbo.

[Emily]

Yes, we, we're in limbo right now.

[Jill]

Yeah. So wanting stability for your future, but also it sounds like a little bit more stability for you right now financially, like both things.

[Emily]

Yeah. Okay, cool.

[Jill]

I think we'll be able to help with that.

[Emily]

Cool.

[Jen]

All right, sweet. So. Okay. We wanted to start out with some good things.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

That we saw before we dive into.

[Emily]

Yes. You are debt free. Yeah.

[Jen]

So there's student loan debt. There's no revolving credit card debt. So there is clearly you've been intentional with in the past. So now that you are in this time of. Of upheaval, of crisis, you are not in as dire of a situation because you don't have this existing stuff to worry about.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So that was really great to see. There's clear that there's intentionality towards being cost effective, toward wanting to get the best value and to be intentional and efficient with your money.

[Jill]

Yeah. Even in your searching for convenience, because it is clear that that's been necessary for this season of life. That as you buy convenience things that you are looking at, how can I make sure that I'm getting a good price for this if it's going to be happening more regularly? If the volume's higher, how can I keep the cost slower? So that's clear throughout the last 90 days. So. And of course we said you're debt free. So there's the spending within your means, which is great.

[Emily]

Right.

[Jill]

Any time that you are even buying things that maybe even it was an impulse purchase, but you're not going into debt for it. And so that's also a positive thing.

[Jen]

But you have had to put some things on hold because of, you know, everything. So like your retirement savings and things you were doing before.

[Emily]

Right.

[Jen]

Have had to go on pause. So I do think that there's room to where we can start to refine so we can get back to some gradually get back to these good habits you were having. Yeah. Okay.

[Jill]

So the first category that we want to dig into, where there might be some room for growth going forward. Again, we are fully acknowledging this is been a wild season. You gotta do what you gotta do. But I think it's worth also acknowledging that we need to keep a pulse on when we have the acuity of the season. Right. The week and weeks following, having your house flooded, moving what you can, moving into your mother in law's. That's a very specific season. This is now becoming kind of a long term situation. Longer term. Maybe midterm. Right. This hopefully isn't gonna be years, but it could be over a year.

[Jen]

There's not a foreseeable end.

[Emily]

Right.

[Jill]

And so now trying to identify what can we do now that we know that the water is gone. Yeah, we are figuring it out with the house. We do have a place to lay our heads at night and how can we get a handle on this to maintain or find some stability now and create stability for ourselves in the future. So of course in the last 90 days there was a lot of spending on food and we love to talk about food. One of our favorites. And I know that when you sent me over this 90 day trip transaction inventory, you even said we listen and we don't judge.

[Emily]

Yes, that was my mom and we're gonna respect that.

[Jill]

I am here for that. So it's certain that there was a lot of convenience items in those initial times. But it also looks like some of that has carried over. If you were to guess how much money would you say that you spent in the last 90 days on food out?

[Emily]

Probably over a thousand, maybe even 2000. Honestly, I'm just the higher the number, like I'm just gonna guess higher and hope for less.

[Jill]

Okay, so not including coffee, you are at about 16.50 on. On food out.

[Emily]

Yeah, that makes sense.

[Jill]

Groceries were. Was 2136. 2000. About. About $2,100. Now again, this is over the span of three months.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

But we are talking, you know, more than $500 in each category monthly.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

And like you said, it's, it's for you and your husband here so that we need to factor that.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Are you buying food for anybody else?

[Emily]

There's times that we've had friends over and so, like, bought food for that. I have been living with my mom and my dad, like, when I'm working. So I was kind of like, oh, let me just buy us dinner. Like, I'm staying up their house to try to like, as a thank you. So it wasn't just for me and my husband in those, but definitely was eating out more than we ever have, like, ever. Yeah.

[Jill]

And what would you say is your favorite spot to get takeout from?

[Emily]

I wouldn't say these are my favorites. They were just the most convenient. So my. Like, I said, my commute for work is down in Sarasota. And really the only thing open. My job starts at 6am so the only thing open before 6am is Starbucks. So a lot of Starbucks that I bought and then a lot of Chick Fil A on the way home.

[Jill]

Okay. Okay, We'll. We'll get to the coffee. That's going to be in some category.

[Emily]

But I would say Chick Fil A, but not that it's my favorite. Just it was the most convenient thing.

[Jen]

You did spend $200 at Chick Fil a past 90 days.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So, yeah, that definitely was the number one place.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

And then as far as groceries, it was interesting. Like, there were definitely more frequent trips to like, I would say fast. Fast food or fast casual, but there was more money spent on groceries. Making 20 trips to Publix across 13 weeks is almost twice a week. So what is that? Like, are you meal planning at all? Do you have the capacity to meal plan? What does your grocery strategy look like?

[Emily]

Yeah, so prior to this, it was meal planning and like, finding better options than Publix. So, like Aldi's or going to Trader Joe's and the meal prepping with, like, items from there. I have been trying to be as strategic as possible, but I'm definitely going to the grocery store more than normal. It was once a week and now it's like multiple times. And like, Publix is obviously not the cheapest option.

[Jill]

Sure.

[Emily]

So, yeah. So how.

[Jill]

How does it look for you? Do you. Are you just going to the grocery store and kind of looking at what. What looks good here? Are you going. Knowing here are the meals that I'm gonna.

[Emily]

Oh, no, I meal plan. Like, I do have the meals that I want to make for the week and, like, what items that I need. So I do have a list. I don't just go in there willy nilly.

[Jill]

So I think Our goal in this, like seeing the weight that you are carrying in this is to maybe help find ways to lift that burden so that you can continue to have some convenience while also being able to put some money aside to be able to refurnish your next place.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Because you will find yourself not living with your mother in law anymore.

[Emily]

Oh yeah.

[Jill]

Soon.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Want you to be able to save quicker so that when those permits do come in, when the house does get sold, you can act very quickly or maybe you're doing so well that you can afford to do all this before you sell the house. Like your success and your momentum can convince Matt that this can be done like simultaneously. So like that's what we hope for you.

[Emily]

Thank you.

[Jen]

And it's. This is like a short season. So like I know I personally love the meal planning and meal prepping portion and I wouldn't give it to Travis because I enjoy it and yeah, he's just not as good at it as me. But like, so in short seasons we can kind of try new things. So like our old meal plan that might have been. I'm cutting up vegetables because that's what's most cost effective. Maybe turns to. I'm buying pre chopped everything. I'm buying pre marinated chicken that's pre cut up. Like I am getting the, the easiest, lowest barrier to entry things from Publix. That Yes. Is a little bit more expensive than what I would have done in the past. It's less expensive though than all of the takeout.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

And like gets me doing my gold faster without like making myself suffer through like the arduous process of cooking.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Which is I guess not a shared belief about cooking, but it's my belief. Yeah.

[Jill]

Isn't it so interesting how much our spending shows us about like what's actually going on and like what we want to be addressing in all these different aspects of life. And again, this isn't to say do more. That is not what you need right now. I think it is. This is showing you need convenience. You are living in two different locations. You are displaced from your home and you're hoping to be able to get into a new home. And so that's important. We can't say that you're going to have a leisurely Sunday after meal plan and prep and grocery shopping. So. Absolutely. But I think as you've described, you know, now, now in this sit situation that is going to be at least a few more months. Where can things be tightened up just a smidge? And so yeah, I think like what you said, Jen, being able to call upon the other person who is eating to chip in. But also considering some of these really simple things to be eating. I don't know exactly what types of groceries you're buying, but I think it could be worth leaning into some super easy meals, like looking up 5 ingredient or less.

[Jen]

Yeah, they'll give you, we have a 15 emergency meals little cooking guide. It's free. We'll put it in the description for you as well, listening, but we'll give you that. And it's 15 literally 5 ingredient or less emergency meals that are either, you know, usually stuff in your pantry or your freezer or your fridge already.

[Emily]

Yeah, I will say in January to February I was doing a workout program at that point in time where like they gave me meals to like coincide with that. So there were specific like meals in there that ingredients that I did not already have.

[Jill]

And so that's an interesting one because it's convenient in the sense that there's a meal already decided for you by somebody else. However, it might not be utilizing in season produce for the, that you're living in and you might not have the ingredients for it. And so what seems convenient might not actually be that convenient or cost effective because now you have to run back out to the store or you have to spend more than you would have on groceries or somebody else in your household doesn't want to eat those things or there's not enough in the recipe to be able to be left over. And so it could be better for you in this season to plan your meals around what you already have on hand and to be purchasing minimal amounts of ingredients to know I can just get this amount of chicken, I can get these two vegetables, a bag of rice, couple cans of beans, and I'm able to make three different dinners throughout the week out of these things. And maybe you'll go back to that in another season. Right. Maybe then it'll be convenient that just your meals are planned for you. But it's, it sounds like it's maybe working against you and not actually creating the convenience that maybe they told you it would.

[Jen]

And also we'll give you the link to our link to cook smarts for.

[Jill]

A free two week trial.

[Jen]

We'll put that in the description of this video as well. But you get two free weeks and what they do is you'll get four meals per week with their meal plan. And they do use in season produce. They do reuse ingredients throughout the week or over several weeks. So they're very Good. About creating meal plans that reduce food waste. Also eliminate the need to meal plan. If you want to take that off your plate. It's not seven days. It's just four days a week. And they create grocery lists as well. So something to try out. It's not going to be right for like in. You may just need the emergency meals right now. Right. But it's indifferent. Once you get to a place where you are more capable of meal planning, it's a really good thing. It takes a plan off your plate and you're able to just focus on the feeding.

[Jill]

Not to mention, it can be so much more comforting too, when you've chosen what you're gonna cook that night and it's something you're looking forward to. It's hitting me how you're saying I don't even like Chick Fil A. That that's just on the way home. And what a bummer, especially in the season to be buying convenience and not even really enjoying it.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

So that's going to be an important one too. How can we get something that's even easier than takeout? Enjoyable. I look forward to it. And more cost effective.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

So, yeah, I'm hoping that Our list of 15 meal ideas with things that you probably do have on hand can really help with that.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Sounds good. So since we're still on the. We're going to go to the peripheral food area. Just one place that stuck out to us is coffee. And I do think now that you're saying that a lot of that is breakfast too. I think that this is the lowest barrier to entry for you. If you were just to focus on the coffee and the other things you buy while buying coffee, I think that could be a really good first step to lower overall food expenses.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So how much do you think, not just on Starbucks. How much do you think you spent on coffee in total?

[Emily]

Is that including like nine Nespresso pods? Over 500.

[Jen]

Oh, close. See, we always think it's worse than it actually is. Everybody consistently always thinks it's worse.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

433.

[Emily]

Okay.

[Jen]

So you were not far off. 119 on Nespresso pods and 170 on Starbucks alone. I will point out, if you're a listener of Frugal Friends and you were here for our groceries episode, go back and listen to that. It was just a few weeks ago. I said, my favorite grocery purchase is coffee. And I like good local coffee, but it is artificially flavored. It happens to be bones. And then, oh, I do like Bones, we see it on your transaction inventory.

[Emily]

So. Yeah, I just want to say to.

[Jen]

People that I'm not devoid of taste.

[Emily]

No, I'm the odd man out here.

[Jill]

Because I didn't know. I don't drink coffee.

[Emily]

But it depends on how you're using it. Like I like to make cold brew with it. Okay.

[Jen]

Yes.

[Emily]

Okay. So like I like it hot too. I like it hot too. Like a big, like I have a big pitcher and I'll just like use Bones coffee to make flavored cold brew. Okay.

[Jen]

Nice.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So what we saw was a lot, a lot of coffee.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Some of it was out and some of it was in. So we've got the Nespresso, we've got bones.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

We've got some coffee shop. We got local and Starbucks.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Tell me about your relationship with coffee.

[Emily]

I love coffee. I love coffee shops. I'm with you.

[Jen]

I'm. I see you.

[Emily]

Yes. I don't love Starbucks. Starbucks was the easiest way out and I'm actually boycotting them because my friend just lost their job from there. So it like coincided with this and I was like, well, there you go. Done with Starbucks officially.

[Jen]

Let me give you another reason to support your boycott. Last year, a coffee shop I went to when I was in college in Orlando, very successful. Their lease was not renewed in their most. In their busiest location and they wouldn't give them an explanation why. And four months later, a Starbucks pops up in that location. And this coffee shop subsequently like had to close their business. Cause their busiest location closed down.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So if you're wondering if you should be buying Starbucks. Yeah, there you go.

[Emily]

Go and buy Starbucks. Yeah. Support local coffee shops. Support Starbucks. Since probably like one of these last.

[Jen]

Transactions I'm seeing February 18th.

[Emily]

That sounds about right.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Emily]

Yeah. I have not gone to Starbucks since then. The like local coffee shops are between like my friends and I like to go get coffee. Book club. I have a book club and we usually go to coffee shops, but also like my house stuff that's been going on. I've been going to like nearby coffee shops there, like because I have to be near the house in case they need anything when we were getting work done. But like my mother in law lives in Largo, which is too far away. So I'm like just a convenience, convenience, like hang out at the coffee shop. But then I feel like, oh, I'm supporting like a local business. So is this.

[Jill]

How do you feel about spending that amount of money on coffee?

[Emily]

So I will say I don't shop a lot in the sense of like buying clothes and things so I justify it and like coffee's my thing. Yeah. Like.

[Jen]

And does it make you feel like. Because for me when I have a coffee it's like an extension of my arm. Like it just feels empty without something in it.

[Emily]

Yeah, I do, I do feel like that's a part of my personality.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Emily]

I love coffee.

[Jen]

I see you.

[Emily]

I like different types of coffee depending on the day and how I'm feeling. So I like to have options which is why like there's so much going on.

[Jill]

Are you able to buy coffee guilt free?

[Emily]

Yes. Okay. That I don't feel the Starbucks, I did feel guilty about that but the coffee shops and the coffee for my house, I don't feel guilty about that.

[Jill]

Yeah, I love that. Needed to spend this money.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Okay. So what have you been doing since it's been over a month that you haven't been to Starbucks? What have you been doing in the mornings?

[Emily]

So well, okay, so I'm about to start a new job and that's one thing that I've made as a life decision. So I'm actually going to be living like full time in St. Pete. Well not St. Pete, full time at my mother in law's house which is a lot closer to St. Pete. So that's one thing that I've already done, that's like a big life thing. What I've done differently besides like changing jobs that I've been doing since February is I. So my job starts at six o' clock and it's about an hour and ten minutes in the morning from my mother in law's house to my job. So I've just been getting up at 3:45 in the morning.

[Jill]

No, of course you needed coffee.

[Emily]

So making sure that I have like a full hour before I have to leave for work to make my coffee and make my breakfast before because honestly like pre made eggs is like not not it for me. I did try making this chia seed pudding thing and it was like a texture thing for me. Oh. So what I've found like the best option is like making just a bagel sandwich. So like Dave's killer bread again that like I don't buy cheap groceries. I will say that too. Like I'm buying like like things that are more expensive but the Dave killer bread has like protein in it and fiber and so it's going to keep me fuller for like when I start my job like in the day. Cuz I don't know if I'm going to get a Lunch break sometimes. So I've been doing that with, like, eggs and a slice of cheese and making like a bagel sandwich before work and then making my nespresso coffee.

[Jill]

So do you get any food or coffee at your work as a nurse?

[Emily]

No, I. I used to, like, every now and then. Also, my co workers love to eat out, and I have not been buying food out with them at work recently, so. And they're like, we're gonna order out. I'm like, I'm not. But we do have, like a cafeteria and stuff, but I haven't been going to it. And then we do have a coffee machine on the unit. So if I want like another cup of coffee, I just use the free coffee that's at work.

[Jen]

How many cups of coffee do you drink per day?

[Emily]

I've actually cut back. It was like three cups, and now it's like maybe two.

[Jen]

Okay.

[Emily]

Which is not cutting back a lot.

[Jill]

But small changes are still changing.

[Jen]

But we have, like, noticed that when you're going through, like, really increased times of motions, anxiety, the more caffeine you add to that, the worse you are, the more heightened those experiences get, so. But that's good.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Yeah. I think it's also worth acknowledging and this. This might carry over into the next category we want to talk about, but kind of being able to keep a pulse on when. When the coffee is serving its purpose and when the coffee is maybe a coping mechanism that might not actually be helping you to cope. So certainly the times when I need a. I need a place that's comforting for me to be while I'm available to the contractors working on my home makes sense. But there could be other times that these purchases are being made and it's for self soothing, but it might not. And to your point too, like, is the caffeine gonna do it and is this particular purchase gonna do that? That does take a lot of awareness, which we might not always have the capacity for. But when you do, and you're noticing that today is a RO and I am feeling emotional, what I typically might go for is, let me just get a cup of coffee. But is that actually gonna meet the need?

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

So if you are able to, when you have capacity for it, identify what is the need that I'm experiencing at this point, and is there a way for me to meet that need possibly even more fully? Because it might not be a cup of coffee. It might be a phone call with a close friend. It might be to go home, snuggle up, read a good book. Like, it Might be. And maybe it's not. Maybe it is. Nope, it's the coffee, and I'm sure of it. But to allow yourself some alternative options to just try out for sustainability. Because when our experiences of crisis increase, so does the need for care for ourselves. And that can be really frustrating for those of us going through those crisis times. Cause it's like, I don't have more.

[Emily]

Capacity for this, but it will help.

[Jill]

That kind of cycle that we're on. And so if you are able to find ways to increase some of those care pieces for yourself. And I don't just mean ways that we purchase that. I also mean the ways that we care for ourselves mentally and emotionally and relationally. And so when you have moments of more capacity, maybe even writing down a list of. Of what can I try out when I am, you know, feeling stressed or overwhelmed and be able to have that list available, whether it's on your phone or it's an actual list that you can keep on, you can reference back to of. All right, what can I try out here instead of this? And some of it might be just throwing spaghetti at the wall, but you might find something that fits that need a little bit more accurately.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Okay. So along those lines of potential ways that you might be trying to care for yourself in this time is clothing.

[Emily]

There was clothing in here.

[Jill]

There was some clothing, yes. Now, like you said, there were some returns of clothing.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

So. So there is kind of a purchase of clothing. And I'd be curious kind of if you remember there was one purchase on Amazon.

[Emily]

It was like $119. Okay.

[Jill]

But yeah, somewhere around $100 of clothing. And then you said, I immediately returned it.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

And I feel like this might be surfacing, something about maybe the state that you were in when you made that purchase. Can you tell us that this is.

[Jen]

Something you regularly do?

[Emily]

I've done this my whole life. Like, I just buy things, and we have a cruise coming up with my family. And so I was looking at, like, a potential dress to wear, and I lost, like, some shoes in the flood. Like, you're not super casual, but you're not fancy shoes, like that good in between shoe. And so I was buying a bunch of stuff on Amazon, trying to see because I couldn't find anything in person. And I was like, let me just see what's out there. And I was like, oh, this all sucks. And like, return it all. But I've done that my whole life. Like, I have bad buyers remorse.

[Jill]

I will say it is a good thing to follow through on a return. If you did purchase something impulsively, of course we want to. And not saying that this was an impulse purchase, it sounds like you'd been looking for a while. But whenever we might make a purchase and later we're like, I wish I wouldn't have bought that. Being able to return something is an excellent step. Certainly we want to catch our purchases before that and be sure of it. But I think a lot of people will forget about an ability to return something and it just is money that's gone and an item that we're not going to use and possibly discard. So hats off for returning it knowing that you're not going to use it. But I think that there is something to say about the way in which clothing is purchased. So there was some Amazon, some Old Navy. Tell us about the stores you typically shop up, how you. How you look for clothing.

[Emily]

So honestly, I don't wear real clothes. I'm usually an athletic wear or my scrubs. So I go. I. I mean, I go to your normal stores in person. I go to the thrift store. It's really like, I can't ever find anything in the women's section at the thrift store that like, fits. I also don't really know my style. Trying to figure that out. But we go to like Sunshine Thrift store, like off of 34th Street, Goodwill and like Salvation Army. But I have a really hard time finding things that fit me and that I like. So I'm like, I'm not gonna just buy something because it's cheap at the thrift store if I don't actually like it. So I typically buy stuff that's gonna last me a long time. But I don't go. I don't really buy that many like, like real clothing items. It's usually athleisure stuff. So I was just that I went to Old Navy and actually I'm wearing it today. But I found some things that actually fit me and like, I felt good in. So I was like, okay. Like, these are things that I can wear that are not just leggings and a pullover and like a tank top.

[Jen]

The problem with the thrift store is that it's not carefully curated. Like an Old Navy.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Something that has really helped me and expand my, like, affordable clothing shopping. Two things. The first is online. So like going. We use an extension called Benny.

[Emily]

Okay.

[Jen]

B E N I. And basically you could go to the Old Navy website. And if you already know that there's something you like, once you download the browser Extension. It'll pop up and you can click it and it'll show you either the exact items or the items closest to it on secondhand sites like Thredup, Poshmark, ebay, all those.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So that's been a good one for like, maybe higher end stuff.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

I'm looking if I saw somebody's like, Lululemon half sip that I really like.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Looking for it secondhand. The other has been following thrift store accounts on social media.

[Emily]

Oh.

[Jen]

So I follow this girl called Backyard Bundles. She lives in Canada. She creates thrifted bundles for people, so you can even buy one of her bundles. But she will try on things that on the hanger, I would never touch. Wouldn't, Wouldn't think about it doesn't look good. Not my style. Then she tries them on and they look so hip, so good without even any styling. So I think that's really expanded my idea of like, okay, if it's my size and my colors, like we got our colors done last, last year. You. Oh my gosh, a year and a.

[Emily]

Half ago at this point.

[Jill]

Yeah.

[Jen]

And so like knowing what colors, what shades really look good on you. So if it's my shade trying it on just to see and see if it's like really a dud or if it actually like, like just looked bad on the hanger because it's not in this curated rack with all the other clothing, you know.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Take it. It has encouraged me to take more of the. Of the chance at the thrift store.

[Emily]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Jill]

And I can understand again, convenience given your life circumstances, but certainly something to consider as you keep going and as your life finds more and more stability to be kind considering more sustainable stores to be able to purchase from like, certainly secondhand stores, but also these brands that might be slightly more expensive but durable. Like you're describing. If you want something that goes with a lot of things will last me a long time, then it can be worth investing in a couple of pieces with these stores who are, you know, paying good wages to their laborers and using, you know, ethical business practices and the types of materials that are going to be. Yeah. Better for you, better for the environment. And, and, and like you said, the Benny Extension is amazing for that. So if you know about. Okay, I know that this brand. I. This is my sizing. This. These always fit me. Then from your home, you can do that. You don't have to be going out and digging through store rack. Some of us like that. Like myself, I. I love the dig.

[Jen]

I love the thrill of the I do not love.

[Emily]

I don't like digging.

[Jen]

But I. And I also have a similar experience with you that it's hard for me to find or. Or in my head, it's hard for me to find things at thrift stores that look good on me.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

And I've also found another thing is that I just don't see. I have a untrue vision of myself.

[Emily]

Oh. Yeah.

[Jen]

So, like, so much of it is internal. It's not what's actually left, like, external. So that's been another thing like, that I have been healing from and trying to like. And. And I'm. That might play into the buyer's remorse, like, thing too. Like, I'll buy it, hoping it looks good on me, and then just nothing feels like it looks good on me. And so, like, I just keep returning and going through this, like, vicious cycle. So I don't know if, like, that's your experience, but. But yeah. Another thing is just like separating ourselves from this decades long, really centuries long idea of what we should look like as women and how we should dress, how we should style.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

It is difficult. It's difficult.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So. But try it.

[Jill]

Getting our colors done was actually really helpful.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

And I think father following different accounts that, you know, might be similar in, like, body size or style can also really help to know what do I want my style to look like and how can I make these informed purchases to know I'm going to feel really confident in this rather than kind of just like willy nilly with it.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

There was one other semi clothing item that I want to talk about. Your work stethoscope.

[Emily]

Oh, yeah.

[Jill]

So this got stolen.

[Emily]

So I had. I had a stethoscope from when I graduated nursing school, and then that one was, like, on the verge of breaking and everybody was making fun of me for it. So I finally, like, caved in. It was bad. It was like permanently, like, in an S shape. Like, it just neither. I really needed to.

[Jen]

None of your patients know what they're not supposed to be in an S.

[Emily]

The reason I finally did get rid of it is because. Because it finally broke. Like, I couldn't actually hear anything out of it. So I finally was like, okay, fine, I'll repurchase it. I repurchased it and then I left it in a room, brought my patient upstairs, came back down, it was gone. And I looked at the housekeeper and I said, did you see a stethoscope? And he said, no, I'm pretty sure it got thrown away on accident. But so then I waited four months trying to make sure, like it didn't just turn up again. And I'm like, like it's not turning back up. So I. And I was just borrowing other people's stethoscopes. I'm like, this is for my job. I really need to buy another one.

[Jill]

Doesn't provide this for you?

[Emily]

No, I mean, we have like a stash of stethoscopes that like, you can like. I'm pretty sure it's just like other nurses on the unit's personal stethoscopes, though it's not ones that they've purchased for us.

[Jill]

Okay.

[Emily]

They don't purchase those things for us. Yeah, yeah.

[Jill]

So $100, that's like no small amount. Certainly it sounds like you might buy these once every hopefully couple of years. But it did get me thinking, how might you have not been able to spend a hundred dollars on something for work? So, a couple of things. One of the things that we've been talking about in our podcast, our new formatting for it is how can I get it for free? How can I get it for low cost? How can I get a deal on it? How can I spend guilt free? So going through these filters and AI is excellent in helping us with this. So ChatGPT has been our third co.

[Emily]

Host of the podcast.

[Jen]

Essentially we call him Chad GPT. He's the third frugal friend.

[Jill]

You just called him that now. But I'm here for it.

[Emily]

Chad. We can ask Chad.

[Jill]

Usually you don't want to ask Chads for advice. I'm going to go out on a.

[Emily]

Limb and say that.

[Jill]

Yeah, Chad GPT.

[Jen]

ChatGPT is a whole different type of chat thing.

[Jill]

So I did a really quick search of in ChatGPT. How can I finish stethoscope for free? So here's a couple of things that it spit out for me. Now, not all of these might be working for you or accessible, but an interesting exercise for things like this going forward. So of course employee employer provided. So certainly worth looking at. Employer reimbursed, union reimbursement. I don't know if you're a part of a union. No company promotion. So meaning the company that makes the stethoscopes will oftentimes give their products away. So being able to reach out to a stethoscope company that you like asking them for, whether they're giving away to nurses or if they've got any sort of discount or coupon code that they could offer you. There's also organizations like the American Nurses foundation, who will give away medical equipment. That was just after my, like, very quick search that I'm not a nurse. But something to keep in mind for the future if there ever is things that you need to purchase for work or just in general. Ask Chad.

[Emily]

Ask Chad.

[Jill]

How can I get this for free? How can I get this low cost? Maybe one of those options could have worked for you, maybe not, and then you move on. But it's worth employing that filter on the. These higher ticket items because what could $100 have meant for you when it comes to furnishing your next house?

[Emily]

Right.

[Jill]

Like potentially a used couch.

[Jen]

Like maybe.

[Jill]

Yeah, definitely a bed. And so there's definitely a trade off there. And you needed it for work. But could there have been other ways? So something to keep in mind to be asking yourself in the future.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

All right.

[Jen]

And the last thing we wanted to talk about.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Is also something near and dear to my heart. Disney.

[Emily]

I love Disney.

[Jen]

I know. I love Disney too.

[Emily]

Disney's my thing.

[Jen]

Okay. So. But we want to talk about. Yeah. So you are an annual passholder.

[Emily]

Yes.

[Jill]

And I was actually surprised by how inexpensive it is to be an annual Florida resident. Florida resident.

[Emily]

And I only put mine in there. I. Matt has one too, and I just included.

[Jen]

Okay.

[Jill]

So $70 a month.

[Jen]

And that's, you know that we're not talking about that.

[Jill]

But. But I do want to know how often do you go?

[Emily]

Once a month.

[Jill]

Okay.

[Emily]

Yeah, you do Sometimes twice a month. And we also added on the water parks option because the days that we're blacked out, we can go to the water park. So we wanted to include that.

[Jill]

You're definitely getting your money's worth out of this activity, which is great.

[Jen]

How long have you been annual passholders for?

[Emily]

2018.

[Jen]

Love it.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

So what we wanna talk about is really the additional expenses that come with being an annual passenger, which that is why Disney offers annual passes to residents is because they know once we get them in, they will be buying food.

[Emily]

Oh, yeah.

[Jen]

They will be going to Disney Springs. They will be buying merch.

[Emily]

All of this stuff. Yeah.

[Jen]

And so we know that there was some purchases made for other people that were reimbursed. So on the surface, in your 90 days, $448 was spent on Disney. And that is in addition to the annual pass. It looks like just $110 if you take back the reimbursements. Does that sound correct?

[Emily]

Probably because we had our friend ran the half marathon, like recently and so on my app I can. And they are not annual passholders, but on my app, I can just like, mobile order food. So I was just mobile ordering for everybody. So probably because usually we just. When Matt and I go, we just get lunch there. We're not getting like multiple meals. We like eat lunch on or breakfast on the way, have a lunch there and then eat dinner when we get back.

[Jen]

Okay.

[Emily]

So, yeah. Trying to think.

[Jen]

So you don't have to be an annual passholder to order food on your app. Did you know that they were.

[Emily]

She had just ran a half marathon and I wasn't going to.

[Jen]

I run Disney half marathon and I.

[Emily]

Still have enough energy back for it.

[Jen]

She paid me back, ordered my food.

[Emily]

She venmoed it to me. It was. I was just being nice.

[Jill]

If you had a friend there who was offering ordered for you, probably take her up on it.

[Jen]

Possibly. I just.

[Emily]

I don't have it. Pay me back, though. But yeah, I mean, I don't know the exact number. So I.

[Jen]

But I also saw like an expense at the. Then you went to Disney Springs and you saw a movie too.

[Emily]

Yes, that was for my birthday.

[Jen]

Okay.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

All right.

[Jill]

So. Okay.

[Emily]

Okay.

[Jill]

Sneaking by.

[Jen]

How do you. So how do you feel? So that would have been three, essentially. Probably three trips to Disney are. Am I guesstimating that right over the past 30 days?

[Jill]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

If you go.

[Jen]

So then $110. You're spending each visit, like 35 bucks a visit on lunch.

[Emily]

Yeah. That's. That's okay, right? Yeah. Okay. $35 for lunch between, like. That's me and Matt's. Yeah. Usually two people. Okay. Yeah.

[Jill]

So that's not too bad if you're being reimbursed. But that is something to keep in mind. Like when we have subscriptions to things and it makes sense for us and these are the activities that we're doing. What are the costs that we are also incurring that we might not totally think about?

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

And so are there ways to even cut down? I have been surprised you can take food into.

[Emily]

Yeah, yeah. It's kind of like our thing when you're.

[Jen]

Yeah. When you're a Disney girl, the food is also part of the Disney experience.

[Jill]

I got a hot take on it. I have not liked any of the food I've ever gotten at Disney.

[Jen]

I don't know where you haven't gone.

[Emily]

To the right place.

[Jen]

Some of it is.

[Jill]

I'm willing to give it one more try.

[Jen]

If you're getting pizza and burgers, you have not.

[Emily]

I don't Believe I've been right on that.

[Jen]

You have it.

[Jill]

The best place that I have been in Disney, but it's nothing to write home about is the Toy Story, like, little luncheon spot.

[Emily]

Yeah. You get like, tater tots.

[Jill]

It's like, okay, you didn't mess up tater tots. Congratulations.

[Emily]

See, it's like you gotta go to the oh, gosh festivals, which is not cost effective. I do have a trick for that, though. You buy a gift card and say, this is how much money I. I'm willing to spend here. And you can't spend any more than that is. That's my trick.

[Jen]

We are, you are very lucky Food and Wine festival wasn't on this next 90 days.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

So you are very lucky.

[Emily]

Yeah. We didn't actually go to Epcot at all in these past 90 days, but.

[Jen]

Okay.

[Emily]

We still don't go crazy when we go there. It's still probably about $35. Okay.

[Jill]

For lunch.

[Jen]

Good.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Well, then that's good. So then curveball.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

One more thing.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Self care.

[Emily]

Yeah. I want you first.

[Jen]

I, like, there's no judgment. I want you first to just define, like, what self care is for you.

[Emily]

So I have been a chronic nail biter. So I started getting my nails done just to, like, stop that. But I just got an at home jail nail kit. So I've been doing them at home. Okay. Recently.

[Jill]

Is this.

[Emily]

This is. Is.

[Jill]

You've done that?

[Emily]

Yeah, I did this.

[Jill]

Beautiful.

[Emily]

I did get, like, the olive in June or whatever it's called, at home nail kit. Because I did this just to start that process and try to stop biting my nails because they were, like, really bad. Like very bad. So has it worked?

[Jill]

Has it?

[Emily]

Yes. I have not fit my nails since our trip to Austria in December.

[Jill]

Yes.

[Emily]

Well, I haven't. And I can't do anything but gel because. Because I wash my hands so much at work that it comes off. So it has to be specifically like gel or gel or dip.

[Jill]

Are you allowed to as a nurse? I thought most nurses would be able to.

[Emily]

So I mean, technically, no, but they don't, like, really enforce it, especially if it's gel. Like. Yeah, like, they don't want, like, acrylics, like artificial nails, but like, just like normal polisher. Gel, like, had been fine.

[Jill]

Listen, they're making you buy your own stethoscope.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Yeah, they can deal with a little gel, Manny.

[Emily]

And back to the stethoscope. Actually, hadn't had to purchase a stethoscope. I've had that one since 2016.

[Jill]

Uhhuh.

[Emily]

So it lasted, like. Yeah.

[Jill]

A long time.

[Emily]

A long time before it finally, like.

[Jen]

I think the stethoscope was fine.

[Emily]

Thank you.

[Jen]

It is fine.

[Jill]

I think it's just worth knowing that there could be ways.

[Jen]

I love example.

[Emily]

Yes. That the walk through.

[Jill]

Get it for.

[Emily]

Yeah. Because I know there's people out there that, like, that would be like, a big thing.

[Jen]

And I think the lesson too, like. Like, in my mind, I didn't even add the stethoscope to the list of things I wanted to talk about. But because there's two of us doing this, two different mindsets. Like, you were able to look at it and be like, let me get creative with this. So, like, that's the benefit of the hive mind, is that. That we are be able to get creative with things we would have never thought we could get creative with.

[Emily]

No. That's really, like, good information to have have. Yeah.

[Jen]

And so I will say you labeled nails and hair as self care.

[Emily]

Yeah. I get my hair done like twice a year.

[Jen]

Okay.

[Emily]

So.

[Jen]

And what are you doing that. It costs $333 a top. Okay. And how much is the tip?

[Emily]

I think it's 20%. Okay. I go twice a year. Okay. Twice a year. And I get balayage. Okay. So it can grow out nicer. So that. Because my hair is not this blonde. Okay.

[Jill]

It's darker and my hair is blonde normally.

[Jen]

Are you committed to blonde?

[Emily]

Yeah, I did try last year, like, letting my natural hair kind of just grow out. Like, I didn't. I went for one that was just a cut and I hated it. Like, I did not feel good. Good with my hair being darker, so. Okay. Yeah. But again, it's like twice a year that I get my hair done. And that's been a conversation with me and my husband because he's like, I can do your hair, like, at home.

[Jill]

And I like, just said, no, you.

[Emily]

Can meal prep your food at home, prep your breakfast. Yeah. Yeah.

[Jen]

That is what he can do.

[Emily]

Cuts his hair. Like, of course he does.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Emily]

But I'm like, no, this is something that, like, is important to me, like, hair wise. Yeah. So.

[Jen]

Okay.

[Emily]

Yeah. All right. Yeah. Twice a year. I'm like, it is expensive, though.

[Jen]

Yeah. That's almost 700 a year.

[Emily]

Yeah. And I've been trying to find someone cheaper. And like, I have not been able to find, like, he was actually. He just raised his rates actually recently, but it was like, even cheaper than that before.

[Jill]

Yeah.

[Emily]

So.

[Jill]

So here's the things we're not gonna touch, touch yeah. We're not going to touch coffees that hit the need entirely. We're not going to touch lunch out at Disney. We're not going to touch the hair that is perfectly balayaged twice a year.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

But what we will touch is being able to find, just to recap, some ways to be able to get what you need and what you want for free, for low cost, for a deal.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

And guilt free. So you've been able to find some of those things. Right. Like the hair is guilt free. The lunch out is guilt free. The coffee sometimes is guilt free. As well as convenient for this season. But keeping a pulse on when this season is over and you are able to kind of move into some of the norms that have worked for you in the past. I'm not saying return back. There's no returning back.

[Emily]

Right.

[Jill]

Like, you are now becoming a different person, your lifestyle's becoming different. But keeping a pulse on the types of rhythms and routines and habits that you create now that serve you now. But also how can I make a shift in the future when they're no longer going to serve me anymore? So keeping an eye on the ways in which you purchase clothing and the food piece, I think the food piece is one of the biggest things that you can make some small changes in now that will both help you now. Now and in the future will kind of potentially even help you feel some normalcy because it might even feel more akin to how life has gone for you in the past. Right. Even give you that sense of usually this is how I do things. Usually I'm not getting takeout from Chick Fil a on my way home every day and I don't even like it that much. So how can I find some things that are going to feel comforting to me, the ways in which I used to kind of comfort myself and even new ways. And so like we said, we're going to give you that list of 15 free or 15 ideas for easily preppable food. Like, easier than takeout is kind of what we're calling it. And so I think that that'll be a really good first step. And then using that filter when you are purchasing things with ChatGPT.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

And I How much do you think, like, after hearing all this, do you think you could shave off to put towards that new home goal?

[Emily]

I don't know if I can think of an exact number, but I will say, like, since doing this, like, things have changed already. So, like having gone to Starbucks, like I said, I really haven't been to Chick fil a either. Like I can't tell you the last time. So a lot less eating out now. Cool. So it really has like. Cuz I think I was like brought back to reality. Yeah. Yeah.

[Jen]

I feel like you could it in food alone.

[Emily]

Oh, probably I was going to say.

[Jen]

500Amonth to put towards your home goal.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jen]

Like immediately.

[Jill]

So does that feel realistic to you?

[Emily]

Oh yeah. Yeah.

[Jill]

Cool.

[Emily]

Yeah. End on cry.

[Jill]

Why not?

[Jen]

And it would feels so good. I want to. I. I hope that you realize that goal much sooner than you anticipate.

[Emily]

Me too. Yeah. Gna happen.

[Jill]

We are hopeful with you and we're so grateful for you being you represent something that a lot of people do go through and it is okay for our spending to not be perfect and it's okay to pay for convenience but it's also good and helpful to know. Know when we can kind of rein it in.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

And give ourselves. Yeah. Permission to. To lean into what's going to be most beneficial for us financially, emotionally, relationally.

[Emily]

Yeah.

[Jill]

So thanks Emily. We appreciate your vulnerability.

[Emily]

Also I appreciate you guys saying on camera that my husband needs to start cooking. Oh, we got you on camera and on.

[Jen]

Yeah.

[Jill]

Here we go. Here we go. Don't cut her hair, but do cut up the veggies.

[Emily]

Yes.

[Jen]

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[Emily]

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[Jen]

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[Emily]

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[Jen]

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[Emily]

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[Jen]

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