I haven't done this in quite a while (like since August) so here's a quick catch-up on my approximate net worth as of the end of 2006:

NetWorthIQ: Just Breached $111k

For the first time ever, we have more than $10,000 spread across our checking and savings accounts. A nice chunk of it resides at Emigrant Direct (review), so I'm hoping that before too long, we will have reached my goal of tucking away a full $10k in our Emergency Fund. For those of you familiar with Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps, doing so will mean we've accomplished Baby Step #3.

So all in all, 2006 wasn't bad to us. We started the year with a rough net worth of $86,606. A little math tells me that over the course of the year, our net worth increased $25,211, or about 29 percent. That's fine, I guess, but to be honest, I'm happiest for now just to see our cash savings increase — even as we tackle (slowly!) repairs around our home.

Nasty Facts: During the year 2006, our household rang up $2,008 in dining-out expenses — considerably more than we spent on auto fuel ($1,095) but less than half of what we spent on groceries ($4,296) and medical insurance ($5,590).