A Week In Philadelphia, PA, On A Joint $301,000 Income

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Occupation: Director
Industry: Real Estate Development
Age: 33
Location: Philadelphia, PA
My Salary: $87,000 base with a $39,000 bonus
My Husband's Salary: $135,000 base with a $40,000 bonus
My Paycheck Amount (Biweekly): $2,561
My Husband's Paycheck Amount (Biweekly): $2,917 (Our bonuses are paid yearly at the end of the year.)

Monthly Expenses
Mortgage: $2,100
Student Loan Payment: $1,250 (for both myself and my husband)
Gas: $18 (This is much higher in the winter.)
Electric: $214 (This is much lower in the winter.)
Cable/Internet: $218
My Husband's Car Payment: $400
My Husband's Car Insurance: $302.60
Spotify/Apple Music: ~$30 (I know we could save money if we agreed on one service and did a family plan, but we're both stubborn and cling to things we are used to, so here we are.)
Cell Phone: $52 (We're on my husband's parent's family plan, but we still pay our share, and my husband's work subsidizes his cell, so this is our share after all is said and done.)
Rent The Runway: $159
Water: $58.63 (This is pretty similar each month.)

6:45 a.m. — Wake up, dog snuggle, and then scroll Instagram/email/news/etc. I finally drag myself out of bed when my husband, A., comes back upstairs to get the dogs so he can take them both to daycare. I'm nervous because it's one of our dog's first time going. She normally comes to work with me and she's a rescue puppy mill breeding dog, so she has all sorts of anxiety issues that we've been working on for the four months we've had her. We're trying to socialize her and we think the occasional day surrounded by other dogs may help. I hop on our treadmill for a part-incline walk/ part-run workout. I cover 5.5 miles in an hour and call it a day.

8:45 a.m. — I shower, throw some makeup on, put my hair in a top knot, and make a green smoothie (frozen spinach, a whole orange, half a frozen banana, pineapple, and almond milk) to take to work with me, along with a Special K frozen egg sandwich.

9:30 a.m. — Leave for my walk to the office, stop and grab a coffee, and drop off a Rent The Runway return at the UPS store on my way. I do the unlimited program and I love it so much. It lets me focus my shopping on longer-term basic investment pieces and stop buying seasonal trends all while still being somewhat trend-conscious. $2.75

9:45 a.m. — I make it to my desk, and a barrage of issues have popped up. I put out a few fires and then set about my normal morning routine.

11 a.m. — I have a meeting with a staff member to go over some of her tasks. This is the first time I'm having this weekly meeting with her; her performance has been somewhat lackluster lately and I'm hoping that the weekly face-to-face will help hold her more accountable and increase her performance. Fingers crossed.

12:15 p.m. — My boss shows up and we have a weird conversation about an argument I started with him yesterday. I'm very vocal about my opinions and sometimes this leads to serious disagreements between us, but we usually manage to work through and patch it up. All my friends joke that I have a second husband at work because of the way we bicker.

1:30 p.m. — The office orders lunch and I get a salad topped with roasted brussels, squash, goat cheese, fried pita pieces, apples slices, and chicken ($17.49 expensed). I also get a credit card notification that A. spent $11.79 on lunch. $11.79

2:30 p.m. — Another meeting, this time to go over some unaccounted for expenses with the office bookkeeper.

4 p.m. — It's Friday and I'm officially out of mental and emotional steam. I browse the internet a bit, reading the news, and browse Intermix's website. I cave in and buy a pair of Attico faux croc kitten heel mules I've had my eye on for fall. I have a 15% off coupon code and they have an offer right now that will give me $50 back on my card as well as 4% cash back on Ebates. When I take all the rebates/coupons into account, the shoes are $390.64, which I feel like is a decent reduction from the $540 full price tag. $390.64

5 p.m. — I run out of the office right at 5 p.m. today. Normally I stick around the office until 5:30 or 6, but we have dinner plans with friends and I have to get the dogs from daycare and make myself presentable before our 6 p.m. reservation. I walk over to the daycare to get the pups, and they are super hyped to see me. The owner tells me our little anxious one did great, although she stuck next to her older brother quite a bit for guidance. I get a notification that A. spent $59.80 on gas. $59.80

5:45 p.m. — I'm ready to go, and grab an Uber to pick up our friends ($9.45 with $2 tip). A. is meeting us there straight from the office. We are doing the omakase at a hard to get into sushi spot, and everyone is very excited for dinner. $11.45

6:30 p.m. — We're all there and seated. We order a bottle of sake for our party and the omakase begins. Dinner is fantastic — 18 pieces of sushi, each handmade in front of us by the chef. My favorite bite is a scallop topped with lime juice, zest, and caviar, and the mackerel topped with sesame oil and sesame seeds takes a close second. I have a glass of white wine when we make it through all the sake, and A. orders another pour of sake for himself. Our half of dinner is $396.25 after gratuity. $396.25

8:30 p.m. — We go to a bar a few blocks from the restaurant. A. and I each have three drinks; they aren't cheap here, so the tab is $108 after tip. I have two really interesting daiquiris (no, not the frozen kind) made with Smith & Cross rum instead of the usual white varietal, so they are much funkier tasting than a normal daiquiri. I end the night with a glass of rosé. $108

10:45 p.m. — We take an Uber home and take the dogs for a walk around the block before passing out. Our friends live a block away from us and end up paying for our Uber.

8 a.m. — I wake up and lay around in bed for a bit. A. wakes up about 10 minutes later and immediately starts rushing about. We walk the dogs and get a coffee ($6.75). A. leaves to go get his car from last night, and then heads to a work event for a few hours. I do a BBG power workout and go for a three-mile outdoor run. (A.'s Uber is $6.89 plus $1 tip.) $14.64

10:30 a.m. — A. is still at work after I get out of my post-workout shower, and I'm feeling hungry. I defrost and toast a bagel and have it with smashed avocado and tomatoes on top. (I'm going to miss tomato season so much when it ends soon.) After my brunch, I set about to some closet reorganization and tidy up the first floor of our house a bit since we may or may not have guests stopping by tomorrow.

2:30 p.m. — A. is back. We have to go to Total Wine in New Jersey to pick up the booze for his sister's wedding shower that I'm helping host. $396 and a car full of booze later, we're on our way back to PA. We also stop at Target and grab some cleaning supplies and orange and grapefruit juice for tomorrow's mimosas at the shower. ($88.67 — we got A LOT of juice.) We drop off the booze and juice at the venue for tomorrow's event on our way home. $484.67

4 p.m. — We crash on the couch for a bit, have a snack (popcorn for me and tortilla chips with salsa for A.), and watch an episode of Patrick Melrose. I was very much not into the first episode, which I feel like was just a drug abuse filled shit-show, but I've been hooked since and actually appreciate why the first episode almost needed to be what it was to set up the story.

6 p.m. — We walk the dogs and I stop to get a card for the shower tomorrow. I also stop at my office to grab a pair of heels that I want to wear tomorrow that have taken up residence under my desk for the last few weeks. $4.99

8 p.m. — A. and I put on a Clash record and start cooking dinner over respective cocktails. Aviation for me, rum Negroni for him. I make bucatini in a fresh tomato sauce with clams. (I buy the frozen whole small clams and they are great for a nice and quick pasta sauce.) We hang out, have a couple more drinks, and listen to music before turning in for the night.

8 a.m. — Take the dogs for a walk and stop for coffees. $6.75

8:30 a.m. — Another BBG workout — today is legs and abs and a one-mile run outside.

10 a.m. — I shower and get ready for the festivities. It takes forever — I have long hair and it's a legitimate workout to give myself a blow out, and then I can't decide which dress to wear. I still have to pick up the four dozen donuts I ordered, and I am supposed to get there by 11. Time management life fail.

11 a.m. — I pick up four dozen custom donuts for the celebration — white chocolate strawberry, blueberry cheesecake, old-fashioned chocolate cake, and citrus glazed. Two kinds are vegan and two are normal, so all will be happy and fed at the event. Thankfully, donut pickup is only two blocks away from the venue and everyone is very much accustomed to my chronic lateness. I manage to arrive only 10 minutes late and find everything very much under control and running smoothly. $144

12 p.m. — The shower kicks off and everyone seems very happy with the food and beverage options. I sip on mimosas (really just champagne with a splash of juice) and pat myself on the back just a tiny bit for what a good venue I picked and how smoothly everything is going. I love entertaining and planning events for friends and family — it's so fulfilling to see them going well and everyone having a great time.

3:30 p.m. — Things have finally wrapped up; A. and other male family members showed up about a half hour ago and those of us still looking to hang out head to a street festival about a 10 minute walk away. I have a beer at the festival (someone else in the group pays) and A. and I pop into a local bar for one more drink and several snacks on our way home. $68

7 p.m. — We order and pick up Chinese food. We significantly over-order. $49

8 p.m. — I end up falling asleep on the couch promptly after eating an egg roll. A. wakes me up and drags me up to bed around 10 p.m.

7:45 a.m. — Get up, get dressed, and walk one of our dogs to daycare; the other one is going to work with me today. I don't normally take him this often, but we're starting with new house cleaners today and I want him out of the house. I stop and grab a coffee after I drop the pup off. $2.75

8:45 a.m. — Back home, I pay the cleaners. It's $240, but it's going to be $120 each visit after this time. Since it was their first visit today, they are charging us more because they want to account for the fact that they do things differently and (hopefully) more thoroughly than our last cleaner. $240

9:15 a.m. — Back out the door, this time with my other dog in tow. I drop off another Rent The Runway package at the UPS store on my way in.

9:35 a.m. — Get to my desk — eat a frozen egg sandwich I had in the office freezer and get to work.

11:30 a.m. — Get an email that I can pick one new item from my Rent The Runway — so I choose a pretty burgundy fall floral Nicholas long-sleeved maxi dress that I plan to wear to Yom Kippur dinner this week. I also do a quick Amazon Fresh order for the week: zucchini, tomatoes, kale, frozen spinach for smoothies, oranges, bananas, frozen mango, almond milk, almond creamer for my office, yogurt, granola, pre-cooked chicken breasts, bagged salad mix, a variety of cheeses for a mac and cheese I'm making for the holiday dinner on Wednesday, and dry pasta. $159

12:30 p.m. — I snack on some masala-seasoned popped water lily seeds (basically popcorn without the kernels, and literally the best snack discovery I've made in years) while figuring out what to order for lunch with some coworkers. We end up just ordering from a nearby deli — I get a spinach salad with chicken and avocado on top. $13.36

2 p.m. — The food finally shows up. (We ordered through GrubHub, which always takes way too long.) We should have just had one of us walk the four blocks to pick up, but it's Monday and we're all lazy.

5:45 p.m. — I leave work and pick up the other pup. We're due for a new daycare five-pack, so I pay $125. $125

6 p.m. — I get home to a spotless house! These cleaners were a world apart from our last person, and they are going to be much cheaper on their bi-weekly cleanings than the previous one as well. I'm thrilled and spend a slightly silly amount of time reveling in all the newfound organization and spotlessness.

6:30 p.m. — Once I get over my clean house high, I do an hour-long yoga class at home on YogaGlo. Kathryn Budig, the teacher of the class, might literally be my favorite human I've never met. She's just so effervescent and lively.

7:30 p.m. — I take a quick shower. A. gets home as I'm getting out, and we eat leftover Chinese for dinner and veg out on the couch. We watch three episodes of The Sinner, take the dogs for a quick loop, and go to bed.

6:30 a.m. — Lounge in bed for a few with the dogs and scroll Instagram before I get up and go for a three-mile outdoor run and do a BBG arms workout after.

8:45 a.m. — Done with my workout — so I make a green smoothie for breakfast (frozen spinach, orange, half banana, some frozen mango and pineapple). I also throw in a dollop of Greek yogurt to mix it up and add some protein. I throw together a quick salad (salad mix and chicken, so creative, I know) and grab a birthday cake-flavored One protein bar for a snack to take to work with me.

9 a.m. — I shower, very half-heartedly curl my hair with a wand, and throw on some vitamin C serum, tinted moisturizer, and lip gloss. I recently got eyelash extensions and it's reduced my getting ready time in the morning. I now need zero eye makeup for daytime events, which is great, but it took three hours to apply them and was kind of costly, so I'm on the fence as to whether or not I'll get them filled in again or not.

9:20 a.m. — Out the door with one of the pups and on my way to the office. I stop for an iced coffee en route. $2.75

9:35 a.m. — At work, I sip on my smoothie and answer many emails.

10:30 a.m. — Take a little mental break to book A. and me flights to Mexico City. We are going over the holidays with another couple and one of them just texted me to tell me the flight we were eyeing dropped in price. I have a lot of credit card points, so I use them for a significant chunk of the cost — so it comes to $153.40. (Tickets were $680 per person without the points.) I also get another Rent The Runway notification to pick an item, so I get another Nicholas dress, this time a rust-colored satin gown that I plan to wear to a wedding we have this coming Saturday. $153.40

1 p.m. — I take the dog out for a loop around the block and eat my salad at my desk while I work.

5:45 p.m. — I leave the office and stop and get my nails done. I have to get gel or the polish pretty much immediately chips off. I go with a pretty standard red color and zone out while the woman does my nails. ($27 plus $8 tip.) $35

6:30 p.m. — I stop back my office and pick up my dog, since I left her behind for the nail appointment. We walk home and run into A. as he's walking up to the front door. He's just dropping off his laptop and has to run to a community meeting — he's on the local neighborhood community organization's executive committee and has meetings for various issues about once a week for it. I walk the dogs to A.'s meeting with him and then continue on for a nice long walk with them.

7:30 p.m. — I start dinner while waiting for A. I'm making a healthy(ish) play on cheese fries. For the base I'm doing salt and vinegar roasted potatoes (very heavy on the paprika and garlic) topped with caramelized onions, leftover crumbled lamb merguez sausage, chopped up peppers, and manchego and other random cheese I find in our fridge . We also have some sautéed kale on the side. A. gets home while the potatoes are still in the oven and we chat about our days while finishing cooking and eating.

9 p.m. — We watch MSNBC for a bit, get depressed, and decide to make a switch to an episode of Shameless before bed. I also eat a frozen chocolate chip caramel almond cookie that I found while rummaging through the freezer. I always bake way too much when I make treats and end up freezing the leftovers.

6:30 a.m. — I wake up and then lie around in bed with the dogs and my phone for about 20 minutes. I get up and run 3.5 miles outside and do a BBG abs workout.

8:30 a.m. — Same routine as yesterday — make smoothie, throw together salad, shower, get ready leave. This time no dog in tow. A. is staying home for Yom Kippur. He fasts and is basically the grumpiest person alive when he doesn't eat, so he's going to work from home today and spare the world from his wrath. I'm not Jewish (just married a Jewish person), and I'm not fasting in solidarity.

9:15 a.m. — Make it to the office, get to work straight away, and try to be super focused since I'm leaving early to make mac and cheese for the Yom Kippur dinner tonight.

2:30 p.m. — I'm out the door. I ended up skipping lunch (and leaving the salad in my office fridge) because dinner will early and I decide I may as well also be starving when I get there since everyone else will be.

2:45 p.m. — Get to work on the mac and cheese. I decided to use gruyere, brie, and a mild cheddar. I toss in chopped onions that I caramelized first and I top it all off with thinly sliced tomatoes, panko, and some extra butter for good measure.

4:30 — Mac is ready and we have to get out the door. Dinner is 45 minutes away and we're going to be late!

5:15 p.m. — Get to dinner and there is So. Much. Food. I have a couple of glasses of wine and eat until I am more than stuffed while catching up with family and friends and playing with the resident pair of German Shepherds because if there is a dog in the house you better believe it's going to get the majority of my attention. Dogs > people, always.

9 p.m. — Finally home, and we watch the news on the couch for a half hour before taking the dogs for a walk and heading to bed around 10:30.

7 a.m. — Wake up with a food hangover. Drag myself out of bed to do a leg workout and 30 minutes of walking at an incline on our treadmill.

8:30 a.m. — Shower, get ready, make smoothie, and leave with the dog.

9:15 a.m. — Get to work, put out some customer service-related fires, and settle in to the rest of my work day. I'm putting together lots of financial reports today so I shut the door to my office, turn on some music, and pray for a a lack of interruptions.

12:15 p.m. — A reminder pops up on my phone to spend a Saks gift card I have that expires at the end of the month. (It was a promotional gift card that I got for spending X amount of dollars during a promo last month.) I peruse the site for a bit and don't pull the trigger on anything. Everything I've got my eye on is kind of pricey and I'm not feeling like spending irresponsibly today. I reset the reminder to next week and if I'm still not feeling it, I'll pick something closer to the actual value of the gift card so I don't waste the $$. Its $400, so it feels silly to let it go to waste.

1 p.m. — I eat my salad while working. Afterwards, I take the dog for a walk and stop for an iced coffee. $2.75

3 p.m. — I'm starving and in need of a break, so I wander to the back of my office and find a bag of chips to tide me over.

5:30 p.m. — I head home with the pup, pick up the other dog at home, and take them both for a walk around the neighborhood.

6 p.m. — I do a half-hour YogaGlo class (Kathryn Budig again) and take a quick shower.

7 p.m. — A. gets home and we cook dinner and have some wine. I make pan-grilled flank steak over goat cheese polenta with sautéed zucchini and mushrooms on the side.

9 p.m. — We move over to the couch, split the rest of the bottle, and veg out in front of the TV for a bit, half watching the news and chatting while looking for the perfect Airbnb in Mexico City.

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