January is a looong month.

As a state employee, I get paid once a month on the last work day of the month. It has its pros and cons. But in December, I've traditionally gotten my paycheck early (i.e. before Christmas). This makes for an easy month in December, but a very, very long January. Basically, I go for six weeks without a paycheck!

This year, the Legislature made some changes and state employees were no longer going to get an early paycheck in December. I guess there was a lot of outrage, because we just got a letter saying we're getting paid early. Boo!

I'm really going to have to budget well in December or those last few weeks of January are going to drag on and on and on (which means I might overspend or not meet my goals). I'm going to plan out my December and January expenses to make sure I don't wind up with $0.00 on January 15th.

January is an expensive month because I'm just wrapping up buying Christmas gifts and I have to turn right around and buy birthday presents for my mom, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew! Looks like I'll be putting in some extra time at the part-time job!