Upcoming Expenses

The next six weeks are going to have a few major expenses. I've known about some for awhile, and I've tried to budget for them, but I suspect there will be a few indulgent purchases too.

The boring stuff: 

There's an insurance bill sitting on the kitchen table, waiting to be paid, for almost $200. I think we have another two weeks before it's technically due, but I really ought to write a check and send it out. 

And we have a home repair that needs to be taken care of. It's been an issue for the past year, and I've pushed it off about as long as I can. I had a few estimates done last fall, and it was going to run about $1000. I'm not sure if it'll still be that much, if we'll be able to get a discounted rate because of the economy, or if it'll cost more because it's the "peak" season. I'm going to call around after the 4th of July to get updated estimates, and then we'll hopefully get it taken care of later next month. 

And now for the fun stuff: 

The latest Apple iPhone 3GS comes out tomorrow, and I'm pretty sure that we're going to upgrade and get one. It'll be a couple hundred dollars up front ($199 + tax + AT&T activation fee), plus our monthly cell phone bill will go up. And of course there will be the requisite accessory purchases - a new cell phone case, a clear screen protector, some spiffy applications from the iTunes store. 

I'm taking a mini-vacation next month with some friends, and it'll be at least $100. I haven't decided whether to drive or take public transit, and I'm sure we'll try to keep it cheap for dining and entertainment, but the absolute bare-bones cost would be $100.