https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Thu, 14 May 2026 18:37:26 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/budgeting-after-baby-is-born-with-a-spouse-wfluctuating-income#post-2583083 Fri, 08 Jul 2016 11:16:05 +0000 ShootingStar 2583083@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I would do a look back for the past year and try to get a handle on what the least you can reasonably expect is, as well as which months have a pattern of having lower/high commissions. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/budgeting-after-baby-is-born-with-a-spouse-wfluctuating-income#post-2583081 Fri, 08 Jul 2016 11:00:44 +0000 Truth Bombs 2583081@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My husband and I are both salaried + commission. I guess the biggest thing we do is don't change our spending pattern in good months. My husband's commission check this month was the same amount as my annual salary. So obviously it was a very good month. We won't buy anything extravagant or anything we wouldn't normally buy. We'll just put a crap ton of money in to savings. So should he have some bad months on the future, we're well padded. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/budgeting-after-baby-is-born-with-a-spouse-wfluctuating-income#post-2583067 Fri, 08 Jul 2016 10:26:10 +0000 youboots 2583067@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Same here. He gets bonuses quarterly. I have a monthly budget including spending money. The difference between his salary and our budget is in the negative- I multiply that number by 3 and transfer it to savings when he gets his bonuses. The amount in excess of that goes to travel/paying off dept/permanent savings etc. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/budgeting-after-baby-is-born-with-a-spouse-wfluctuating-income#post-2583057 Fri, 08 Jul 2016 10:15:21 +0000 birdofafeather 2583057@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm the one with the fluctuating income so we use YNAB to budget and I also pay myself a set amount that's based off my estimated monthly. Extra $$ goes into a buffer for the lean months. This way I can budget based on my income spread out over the year but it's already in my account. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/budgeting-after-baby-is-born-with-a-spouse-wfluctuating-income#post-2583023 Fri, 08 Jul 2016 09:19:13 +0000 catgirl 2583023@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm a SAHM and my husband is paid salary plus bonuses. His bonuses are paid out monthly and it's not an all or nothing, so we have never had a month of no bonus just ones that are way smaller. I know (almost) exactly what we need in a month so any amount over that is moved to savings, excluding a small buffer we are both comfortable with. We thankfully only need a small amount of the bonus to pay our bills, so it only really changes how much we save. On the off chance we need to we can dip into an easily accessible savings account to cover the difference. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/budgeting-after-baby-is-born-with-a-spouse-wfluctuating-income#post-2583009 Fri, 08 Jul 2016 08:52:05 +0000 MaryM 2583009@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DH used to work for tips, so we were (in the past) used to fluctuating money. Thankfully (maybe) pay is more stable now so we're able to better budget (but he probably made more in tips, so it sorta sucks)</p> <p>But because we had that mindset previously, once pregnancy is confirmed, we start setting aside a "daycare" payment each week into savings. We figure it helps us get used to living without that money, and it also creates a cushion we can dip in to once baby is here if money gets tight. </p> <p>I'm facing having to take leave without pay, so i think it'll be pretty essential to us this time to have that cushion. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/budgeting-after-baby-is-born-with-a-spouse-wfluctuating-income#post-2583005 Fri, 08 Jul 2016 08:47:47 +0000 Paddington10 2583005@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Wondering if any of you ladies are in a similar situation: Does your spouse make a salary plus a commission?</p> <p>Mine does. His salary alone isn't enough for our HCOL area. His commission makes a large difference (probably 40k worth). It has been fairly reliable by quarter.</p> <p>My question is, would this scenario panic you and also how would you account for the money? I am going to be taking time off and not working (I work for myself), so this will impede our budget also. It is beginning to seriously stress me out as I begin to plan out my "maternity leave" such as it is.</p> <p>My husband is more laidback and says we can count on the money or most of it.</p> <p>WWYD? </p>