Saturday, March 22, 2014

What Happened to Our Emergency Fund?

This feels like a confession.  Truly I am dumbfounded that our whole emergency fund is gone.  We worked and saved for almost 2 years to reach our goal.  It feels pretty bad.  I don't have a better word.

So here's what happened:
  • 56% - We REALLY needed to replace our family vehicle.  It was a 1995 Suburban with 237,000 miles on it.  It still ran OK, but it was pretty tricky to start. Also the power windows didn't work anymore so I had to open my door at the drive-thru.  Also the front driver's side door didn't latch easily so I would sometimes pull over multiple times at the beginning of a drive to try it again and again.  I had the most success by getting out of the vehicle and slamming my ample backside against the door.  Then I'd crawl in the passenger side, over the console, and back into my seat - sometimes this happened at stop lights.  The last straw was one day when we had a terrible downpour when I was out running errands.  The door wouldn't even close poorly, so I drove with my right hand across my abdomen holding the door semi-closed while I steered with my left hand.  There was a big enough gap that my hand was getting pretty wet trying to hold the door closed.  Anyway - I was so frustrated that we agreed to go car shopping even though we'd only saved $700 so far.   We ended up with a 2001 Yukon XL which is basically a Suburban with 117,000 miles on it.  It was an excellent price, and my brother the car-guy, went with DH for a test drive.  Anyway, I love having a CD player, window that work, a door that closes, a starter that works every time.  I am very thankful but I am bummed we had to use our emergency fund even though this was kind of an emergency because the old car was so, so, so, so bad.
  • 25% - We totaled our second car about six weeks after we purchased the Yukon.  DH found a great replacement and a great price.  After taxes & licensing it was another 25% of the emergency fund gone.
  • 4% - We hadn't planned to travel for Thanksgiving but found out a week ahead of time that DH's Dad was ill.  Of course we changed our plans, but we hadn't budgeted for the long drive.
  • 15% - Sweet DH wanted to surprise me for our 10th wedding anniversary.  We were in good financial shape before the car issues, so he splurged for our 10th.  And I love the custom designed charm bracelet he had made. We just had to use the last of our emergency fund to cover it.  
 So there you have it.    *sigh*

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