Today was the day. THE day. That long awaited day, that seemed to take forever and yet another day to arrive. In reality it was only eight days, a full thirteen days ahead of schedule, but who’s counting? So what is this magical day? It’s the day when that nifty “IRS To Go” app showed my federal refund as “Approved”, a step up from “Received”. Now, “Approved” doesn’t mean I have my money, not by far. What it does mean is that they’ve looked it over, and decided to go along with my shoddy math and set a date for my direct deposit, in about five days or so. Maybe. So, the battle is half won. Maybe. For anyone who filed anything other than the 1040EZ last year, you know that “Approved” can turn into “Huh? What Money?” in less time than it takes you to launch the app, and your refund set for deposit in two days doesn’t end up showing up for another two months. Talk about a let down! Long story short, it seems H&R Block (and others) didn’t have an updated tax form, so anyone claiming self employment income (lucky me) or school expenses (luckier still) had their taxes delayed for what seemed like an eternity.

In the spirit of counting my chickens before they hatch, completely my style, I’ve decided to make a plan this year for where my tax return is going to go.

In an effort to be the responsible grown up I’m supposed to be, I guess I’ll start with the required items first. I use the word “required” instead of necessity, because when any drug store diva is shopping, EVERYTHING becomes a necessity! But I’ll get to that later. Ok, first thing’s first. Wipe out the small credit card balance. I’ve done the math, it works out to 1/37th of my total. Not too shabby, I didn’t even break a sweat! Next would be the ginormous cable bill. It’s time to pay it off, shut it off, and switch to Optimum. Sorry to say, but the whole switch from AT&T U-Verse to Frontier left a pretty sour taste in my mouth. So, that’s a bigger chunk of the pie, closer to 1/8th. Maybe I’ll pay half of it…….

I should probably throw something to the electric and the gas, it’s always good to get ahead when you can. But then again, extra cash on hand is always good, too…….

Now on to the fun! MY necessities! Of course, right off the bat comes the Wen. I can’t wait! My hair is just there, and if you’ve read my Wen review, you know it’s the only thing that gives me that WOW hair I’ve always dreamed of! After the Wen things get difficult. There’s a million things bouncing through my head, all with little signs saying “Pick me, pick me!” But the big one on the list has probably been on my wish list longer than anything else. Every time I see it I fall in love all over again. The smooth, flawless shape, the way the light catches it just the right way… This beautiful slice of heaven, more gorgeous than any diamond, this perfect creation can be none other than the iMac. Everything about it is perfect, all 27″ of it. With its slim, wireless keyboard and magic touchpad, it doesn’t get any better than that! But that’s another big chunk of the pie, probably another 1/7th. It will probably stay on my wish list for another year, but it’s nice to know its possible if I really need it. While we’re on the topic of Apple, a new iPad would be really nice! I bought one 3 years ago, an iPad 2, but by now it’s full, slow, and has been confiscated by my girls. If I did get one, it would have to have a data plan, the 3G on my old iPad came in handy a few times, it would be nice to have in case of an emergency… Or extreme boredom! And of course it has to be the biggest one they make, 128GB I think? My 64GB was filled almost instantly with photos, videos, and pretty much every app available to download, more added every day!! 🙂

Of course the girls both need clothes, and I plan on getting my hair and nails done for the first time in forever, but now that I’m writing this, I really can’t think of anything else! This is the first time all of my return won’t be going towards future bills. Well, that’s assuming I keep my job, which is something I want to assume!

It’s funny, when you’re broke, as I usually am, there are a million and one things you need and want, but can’t get. I think the biggest thing I’m getting this tax season is some breathing room. One less stress in my oh-so-stressful life. That is the best thing of all.