It's that Time Again...Saving Money for Trips

Last year, I wrote about a challenge where I tried to find only free activities to do on weekends for 10 weeks in order to save money for trips.  It was mostly successful and helped me pay off some of my debt from the holidays so I could save up for my trips to Legoland, Santa Cruz, and New York.  I didn't quite reach my $6000, but I got close enough that I wasn't hurting at all and was even able to take an extra smaller trip with my oldest son.

This year, I once again find myself in a similar predicament.  I spent too much during the holidays and I have trips I want to take.  We will be going to Disneyland in November for Thanksgiving and staying onsite, which is no cheap date for 6 people, but we haven't stayed onsite in a long time.  I'm also hoping to take a short day or 2-day trip in June to see Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge...but I'm not sure if I'm crazy enough for that one.  We'll see.  Also in June, we're taking a trip Gold Country and the Sierra Nevada mountains for a week.  Most of that one is already paid, but I still have to rent a car, consider gas prices, and include money for food, excursions, and souvenirs.  And, there's that ever-present plan to hopefully go to Walt Disney World in 2021...I need $15,000 for that one alone and, well, let's just say I'm nowhere near close right now.  So, with that in mind, it's time to save again.

This year, in addition to doing my 10-week "free stuff" challenge once again, which won't begin until Martin Luther King Day weekend since we have to celebrate my twins' 5th birthday before that, I am also setting myself a budget to follow for at least the next 6 months.  I've realized looking at my credit card bills that I spend a lot of money on things that I don't really need.  New shoes, new clothes, extra toys for the kids...it adds up.  I won't disclose how much I spend on average, but my new budget for personal expenses and extras every month is going to be $300 per month.  This does not include my monthly bills, gym membership,  payments on my Knott's season passes, gas, car payments, or student loan payments.  But it does include eating out, clothing for my kids and myself, and fun activities/extras.  My goal in all of this is to keep my credit card payments down (and pay off Christmas) and start some heavy duty saving.

I'm going to try to update monthly with how my vacation savings is going and tips I've found along the way.  Here's hoping for some positive results.