Mmm... Finances.

As with many couples out there, we have found ourselves in a tight financial situation. Perhaps one of our worst to date. I haven't scheduled our mortgage payment yet because I'm scared to see our bank account empty. Yubo says we should actually be ok for this month, but he's quite concerned about next month.

Despite plumbing being a seemingly recession-proof business, Yubo's job is hurting pretty bad. :(

My job hunt has been fruitless so far. I am quite hopeful for these last two positions I interviewed for, but I won't hear any news until the end of this week, perhaps. But I continue to apply to places. If nothing comes of this week, I will start applying to fast food places and other very entry-level positions. My fear is that even these places won't want me, though.

The upside to our situation is that I've finally been able to sit down with Yubo to discuss seriously financial matters. I listed out our monthly bills with their balances and monthly payments in an Excel sheet, and we figured out what we can cut if we really need to.... which unfortunately, wasn't much.

At this point, our next order of business is to cancel our television and land line. Then we're taking a more serious look at our eating habits.

Last night, I made a dinner plan for this coming week, and we were able to purchase what we needed to fulfill the plan for under $20. I'm hoping to be able to keep this up each week, and if we can stay under $20 for the week for dinners, that will help us save a lot. The other big thing, though, is how Yubo eats when he's working. At some point I will have to figure into the grocery shopping things to pack for him for snacks and lunch, and hopefully he will be content with that and not go off to fast food instead. I'm just concerned about food safety, so I'll have to find things that can be eaten cold or just don't have to be refrigerated or something. Too bad Yubo can't have peanut butter. :/

We're scared to get to a point to have to ask for help. Well, not that we're scared. There are just some things keeping us from wanting to. For myself, I don't really want to have to sit through, "If you just took your school seriously like I told you, and got your degree by now, you wouldn't be in this situation." Yubo also doesn't want me to have to endure that, especially since I tell him that if we went to my parents, the blame would be on me because they know just how hard he works. I'm probably just a lazy mooch to everyone in the world at this point. And Yubo, being the awesome son that he is, simply doesn't want to go to his parents because they've already given us so much, and I agree with that.

So we're just doing our best right now to cut down on monthly costs; I'm continuing to job hunt and try to be a better housewife; Yubo's working as hard as he can as usual. I'm thankful that we don't argue about what's going on. There's been some tension, but we both recognize the situation and are doing what we can to get through it together. That's probably what's really keeping me from curling up into a ball in the corner and crying every day. Yubo continues to love me and support us during this difficult time, and even though I am so unworthy of him, he still wants to be with me.