https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sat, 16 May 2026 11:29:51 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting/page/2#post-1028709 Mon, 19 Aug 2013 10:00:12 +0000 Mrs. Pickle 1028709@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>This might sound cheesy, but I feel like our loves got so much easier when we created our budget. It was like night and day. Our stress level went down so much.</p> <p>We use an excel spread sheet. My DH set all the formulas because I have no clue how to use Excel. We have 20 categories, we budget for everything. These are the ones I can remember off the top of my head: Bills, Gas, Groceries, Mortgage, Car Insurance, Dining Out, Date Night, DH allowance, My allowance, Pets, Travel, Car Maintenance, Birthdays, Christmas, Retirement Savings, Miscellaneous, Medical.</p> <p>We started by taking DH's bring home pay and subtracting $100. We did that so we would always have extra to put over into savings. Then we looked at our bank statements to figure out what we needed to live off of (bills, gas, groceries, etc) on a monthly basis. We divided that by 2 since he is paid twice a month. Once we took care of the necessities we divided the rest and put it in the "fun" categories (allowances, Christmas, birthdays).</p> <p>Anything extra (like overtime) goes into the miscellaneous category and we transfer savings from there. If once of us receives monetary gifts for our birthdays or Christmas then those go into our allowance categories.</p> <p>I feel like I'm not doing a good job explaining how it works. It's easier to understand if you can see it. I have a sample budget that I can email to you if you'd like. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting/page/2#post-1028681 Mon, 19 Aug 2013 09:42:27 +0000 BabyBoecksMom 1028681@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: I've been keeping a spreadsheet of our expenses for years now. I would go through all of our bank transactions once or twice a month and update the spreadsheet so I know exactly how much we spent. Then, I can get an average of what we spend or decide how much we need to cut back. </p> <p>If you're interested, Gold post your email on my wall and I'll email it to you. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028433 Mon, 19 Aug 2013 07:24:58 +0000 kjpugs 1028433@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: if you have to pay your bills mostly mid-month, I'm willing to bet that you guys spend $ on other stuff other parts of the month (going out to eat, more at the grocery, etc) when you should be putting aside money then to help with bills later. I would love to make you a budget spreadsheet or help you out if you want! Either way, it sounds like you figured out where your money goes and how much approx. you need for groceries, gas, etc- you need to map out WHEN that money comes out. If most bills are due the 15th, and on the 2nd you get paid too, you might need to take $ for the bills due later and put it aside. (That's where having multiple bank accounts really helps.) Happy to help at any time!!! Just let me know. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028413 Mon, 19 Aug 2013 06:58:06 +0000 regberadaisy 1028413@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: I bet if you tally up everything you guys spend on unnecessary items you will be shocked and appalled at how much money you're spending on coffee, beauty items, clpthes etc each month. </p> <p>We are both pretty frugal and cheap and I was disgusted at how much money we threw away each money on coffee, lunch and takeout. And we ate takeout less than most!!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028404 Mon, 19 Aug 2013 06:49:32 +0000 looch 1028404@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: I know you didn't ask me specifically, but I can SOOOO relate to what you wrote about what you should have versus what you do have.</p> <p>In your case, honestly, what I would do is one of two things, either use cash and write down every single item you spend or track everything on a debit or credit card for a month so you can see where your money is going. For us, it was the smaller spending amounts that killed us. We could say how much our rent or insurance was, but when it came to explaining how I spent $300 in two weeks, I couldn't do remember. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028331 Mon, 19 Aug 2013 00:47:00 +0000 Mrs. High Heels 1028331@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <br /> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028318 Mon, 19 Aug 2013 00:25:33 +0000 Mrs. Jacks 1028318@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@HLK208: Congrats on 5000 posts. Great advice!</p> <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: Ok, it's time to do away with the "rough idea". Starting now, you should get 2 envelopes. One for you, one for him. For every single thing you guys purchase during the month, put the receipt in the envelope. Label it with a pen if you don't think you'll remember what it's for. Each night or every other night, you should add the purchases into the spreadsheet. In about a week you'll start getting a picture, in two weeks it will become clearer and then by a month you'll have a good idea of where that money is getting burned. </p> <p>We sit down every other saturday, (but you should probably do it once a week for now) and go through all the autodeducted payments.</p> <p>Conversations go like this, "Wait, what was this $3.50 for?" "Remember that day I forgot my lunch? I bought a piece of pizza." or "Why was the gas bill so high last month?" "It was 100 degrees 5 days in a row..." (And so on.)</p> <p>We became each other's stewards, even for stupid stuff. He wanted a fancy stone ground mustard. I rerouted us because it wasn't in the budget that month. I had a baby shower gift to buy. He suggested using a gift card to pay for it.</p> <p>We shop for groceries together so we can hold each other accountable. No Starbucks, no gas station snacks, we remind each other to not forget lunches. Then we held (we don't do the receipt thing anymore) each other accountable with the receipts.</p> <p>Between accountability and finding ways to cut the things that we had previously considered "fixed" costs such as internet, phone, Netflix and the like, we freed up $900 a month.</p> <p>Running to the grocery store every other day killed us. If we didn't plan it out during the weekend and buy it on our one shopping trip, we didn't eat it... and there is really no reason to have to ever eat out if you really need to tighten things up for a while. Build your cushion, then get take out ;)</p> <p>There are so many other tips, like buying in season etc... but really, the first step is to figure out where you are burning that cash. then we can trouble shoot! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028317 Mon, 19 Aug 2013 00:25:25 +0000 Mrs. High Heels 1028317@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: i really wanted to respond to this thread but had my hands full this weekend with the two LO's! you've gotten some wonderful advice already, but i'll just chime in with my 2 cents since i was clueless about budgeting too until we finally buckled down and took a good look at our finances.</p> <p>when we first started budgeting, we used an excel sheet that i created (you can find it embedded in this blog post - <a href="http://www.hellobee.com/2012/07/27/how-the-high-heelers-budget/" rel="nofollow">http://www.hellobee.com/2012/07/27/how-the-high-heelers-budget/</a></p> <p>we started off by doing a brain dump of every single expense we could think of, then we separated that out even further with fixed expenses and variable expenses. fixed expenses are easy to determine because you just need to look at your bills each month to get a good idea. variable expenses take a bit more guesswork, and i would recommend you spend a month or two just keeping track of all those expenses by category and see how much you actually spend (these are things like groceries, retail, baby clothes, eating out, etc). once you see those numbers on paper it'll give you a better idea on what to budget per category.</p> <p>i don't use an excel spreadsheet anymore, though i'm still really proud of the one i made. i now use ynab, and it has changed my life. i am so obsessed with it. like @tarabonno: mentioned above, saving is addicting. the biggest thing budgeting taught me is to 2nd guess my purchases, and to scrutinize prices more closely. i used to shop based on convenience, but now i shop where the sales are and scour the weekly grocery ads to find the best deals.</p> <p>to answer the questions in your original post:</p> <p><b>How do I know how much to budget for groceries? Do I save receipts to make sure I don't go over? What happens if you go over and you're out of food?</b><br /> when we first started budgeting, i underestimated our food needs and kept going in the red. that was SO frustrating and discouraging because i never felt like i could make it work. i finally took a step back and used this post to help me calculate our food needs for our family - <a href="http://www.hellobee.com/2012/07/06/monthly-food-budget/" rel="nofollow">http://www.hellobee.com/2012/07/06/monthly-food-budget/</a>. i started with a more liberal plan and as we got better and better about our food (meal planning helped a lot! we used to eat out on a whim quite a bit cuz we had nothing to eat at home) we've since scaled back quite a bit on food. </p> <p>i don't save receipts because i charge everything on my credit card, then i input my expenses into our ynab every other day. ynab has a smartphone app, so i can always check how much is left in a category at any given time. that really helps keep my purchases in check too.</p> <p>if i go over my grocery/eating out categories, i pull money from one of our other categories that i call "luxury categories" (personal money, baby stuff, retail, etc). i just shift the money around somehow to make it work. it just means we have to spend less in another area. </p> <p><b>Do you budget all of your money? Or do you leave a couple hundred unaccounted for to make sure you don't go over?</b><br /> Yes, I budget all of it. This is rule #1 in the ynab philosophy - "give every dollar a job". I do have a category for "savings" too in our budget, so technically budgeting for savings is also giving that dollar a job. </p> <p><b>How do you track your budget? In an app? On a piece of paper? I need something tangible to hold me accountable.</b><br /> We track it through ynab. You download it onto your computer first, then you can download the free phone app that allows you to see your budget at the tip of your fingers. </p> <p><b>I don't even know how to SET a budget. What makes it official? Do I write it down somewhere (clueless)?</b><br /> First figure out your income for the month. Your budget needs to be below that amount so that your income can cover your expenses. Then list out all your expenses - start plugging in the numbers. Take a final look at what's in front of you... does your income match your expenses? Start tweaking and refining from there. Definitely write it down and start tracking it somewhere, whether its through an excel sheet, google docs, ynab, mint, or elsewhere.</p> <p><b>How much fun money do you get? A certain % of what's left over every month?</b><br /> We don't calculate it by percentage, we just look at how much money we have left after budgeting our fixed, mandatory expenses, and spread out the rest into different "luxury/variable expense categories".<br /> Let's say I get $5000 income per month. Let's say we pay $2000 mortgage, $500 utilities, $500 groceries, $1000 childcare. That's $4000 that I HAVE to spend. That leaves $1000 left that I can play with or save.</p> <p>Some examples of luxury categories in our budget would be - Dining/Eating out, Christmas, Retail shopping, Personal (His/Hers), Grooming. We would then assess what our month might look like and play around with the numbers within those categories. Also, define what is "fun money" to you guys. For us, it's clothes, gifts for our indiv friends, and personal shopping for our hobbies... but a friend of mine counts specialty drinks and gas in her fun money too.</p> <p>The great thing about ynab is it believes in changing around the numbers to your budget to fit your needs in any given month, as long as it's within the parameters of your income. So some months I might budget only $50 for eating out whereas other months I might budget $150 for eating out (but I'd have to figure out what other category to take that money from). Sometimes life happens. It's hard to expect to have every month be identical, and your budget shouldn't be that way either.</p> <p>So much of budgeting is like dieting. First, you write down everything you're eating so you get an idea of where those excess calories are coming from. Then once you figure that out, you start trimming that excess. Take it one step at a time. Focus on one category at first and take baby steps, then when you're ready, take it to the next level. With dieting, what sets people up for failure is when they take an all or nothing approach. It's healthier and more doable in the long run when you focus on one thing (ex: no more soda), then once you've mastered that one thing, go onto the next thing (ex: no carbs for dinner)... and soon you find that you don't even notice the lack. it doesn't become restrictive anymore, it becomes empowering as you take control of what's yours! </p> <p>we did the same thing with our budget. the one area we focused on first was food because that was by far our largest expense and largest area of waste. once we got a handle of that, we started finding all these other ways to trim, and never looked back.</p> <p>it's a lifestyle change for sure! and SO SORRY about this crazy long novel. if you have any other questions you can always wall me too! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028302 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 23:47:39 +0000 HLK208 1028302@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: so I know you didn't ask for my advice, haha but I'm awake and reading HB soo, I thought I would chime in. This was so us until we cracked down this summer (and the only reason we stopped spending on unnecessary items was because we bought our new house and we don't want to jeopordize ever losing it...the old house, eh, I hated it so I don't think I cared as much :) ) make a list of what you have bought this past month and what you could cut. For us, it started with hobbies then every day living like skipping a day watering the grass, cutting milk from our diets so the kids have milk - it seems silly, maybe a little sad and extreme but after awhile, it makes a difference! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028301 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 23:47:12 +0000 indi 1028301@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: I definitely don't judge! I'm heading to bed now, but I'll be sure to come back or pm you tomorrow. We were AMAZED at how we just frittered $ away with snacks, coffee, iTunes, etc. and switching to $125 cash at the beginning of the month made us quickly realize how we each blew $ without knowing. I'll be sure to pm you and I can send you a template of our budget. It's those tiny, sneaky categories that were sucking us dry at first. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028299 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 23:36:34 +0000 Rainbow Sprinkles 1028299@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Right now, there is $200 in checkings until DH gets paid on Friday. He is freaking out, wondering why we're "living paycheck to paycheck." We have no idea what's going to happen between now and Friday, so we literally cannot spend any money. Nothing. Today I bought the brusel sprouts we needed for dinner with change I found in my car. :/ This is definitely not how we should be living because "on paper," we are in the clear!</p> <p>I'm being super transparent regarding this but I know you all won't judge me! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028294 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 23:19:01 +0000 Rainbow Sprinkles 1028294@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs. Jacks: @kjpugs: @indi: @tarabonno: okay you guys seem like budgeting experts so I'm gonna be super transparent and talk numbers and tell you why I made this post in the first place.</p> <p>On paper, DH and I should have $500- $800 extra every month. We have a "rough" idea of what gets spent on groceries and gas, and those are accounted for on paper. After all of our expenses plus a percentage into savings, there should be $500- $800 left. But every single month (during the middle of the month when all our bills are due) money is so tight. Like, $50 in checking kind of tight. DH gets so stressed about money and thinks we're "broke" that there is a lot of tension in the house. He sat me down yesterday and told me I should consider going back to 40 hours after this baby is born (I currently work 25) which prompted me to make this post. We make decent wages (though not a ton).....where is all the money going? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028275 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 22:31:53 +0000 indi 1028275@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@tarabonno: At first DH had to get used to a budget (his $ all used to be fun money, as his folks covered expenses) but now he LOVES seeing our savings account grow. I'm Type-A, like you, so I have always enjoyed budgeting but getting it really laid out was so satisfying. Haha.</p> <p>@kjpugs: The excel spreadsheet is key for us, too. We use our "fun money" the same way, individual meals out, shopping for fun clothes, etc. </p> <p>One thing I think is really important is to make sure you set yourself up to succeed. Don't be too hard on yourself those first few months, but keep watch on your spending each week and recap at the end of every month to adjust for the next. Also, include "sinking funds" and set asides for items that you'll have upcoming for big purchases or payments (ours include $150/mo for future car repairs, $50/mo of bday and wedding gifts, $200/mo for future vacations, $200/mo for next year's health ins. deductible, $x/mo for our 6 month insurance payments, etc). That way a blown transmission or the 2x/yr insurance payments don't blow the budget...you've had the money just waiting there paying you interest until it's time to pay. :-) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028268 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 22:12:09 +0000 ninja 1028268@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: I second mint.com. It's absolutely free. I've been using it for 5 years, and it really helps! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028263 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 22:06:04 +0000 tarabonno 1028263@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@pastemoo: Us too! My DH wants to be a nurse. What about yours?? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028244 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 21:37:36 +0000 kjpugs 1028244@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our budget is my baby. I have a HUGEEEE post on my blog (link in profile- just search budget it should come up) and have made budget templates for a few bees even. To answer your questions:</p> <p><i>How do I know how much to budget for groceries? Do I save receipts to make sure I don't go over? What happens if you go over and you're out of food?</i> - We do cash each week for groceries, gas, and our personal spending. Groceries is my baby so if I go over, it comes out of my money. DH does most of the driving, so same with him- he can't go over on gas or he pays. Although we do have conversations about it- when I got pregnant and was ravenous we increased our grocery budget, lol.</p> <p><i>Do you budget all of your money? Or do you leave a couple hundred unaccounted for to make sure you don't go over?</i> We made sure to save $1000 for emergencies. We have a separate bills checking account (AMAZING IDEA- it's in my blog post) that we throw our extra money in, and pay bills out of. I keep a spreadsheet with what's in there. Usually we have between $50-$300 extra in there for more last minute type needs. We do try to budget down to $0 (we leave $10+ in our checking because of tolls - they come out $10 at a time.) DH is paid hourly so his pay changes so we have to be flexible.</p> <p><i>How do you track your budget? In an app? On a piece of paper? I need something tangible to hold me accountable. I don't even know how to SET a budget. What makes it official? Do I write it down somewhere (clueless)?</i> It's in the post too- I have a excel spreadsheet I keep in google documents. I have to check it before each month and make sure the payments line up with the dates and don't go "red," but it then tells me what bills to pay each payday and where the money needs to go. No thinking necessary on payday. It's blissful.</p> <p><i>How much fun money do you get? A certain % of what's left over every month?</i> We decided on $40 each a week. This is what we use for clothing, meals out (unless we have extra in bills account and decide together it's ok to spend it, it's more like for if I stop at Subway on the way home, etc), and any other stuff we need to spend on. I've been saving up for a haircut right now :) I just keep stopping my pregnant butt at Subway and blowing my $!</p> <p>Feel free to DM me if you have questions. I'm really passionate about this and WISH I had done it years ago. We'd be SO much further ahead in our financial goals if I had. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028238 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 21:34:06 +0000 pastemoo 1028238@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@tarabonno: Agreed--the first 2-3 months are the hard budgeting and then you get a feel for the new budget and it isn't so hard!<br /> We are also reworking the budget so DH can go to school and I will be the breadwinner! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028233 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 21:32:44 +0000 pastemoo 1028233@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@cheesetomywhine: I have an email set up for exactly this reason. pastemoo at gmail.com. Email me I will forward it to my regular account and sent you the excel sheet. It's the 2003 format (OLD). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028205 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 21:15:51 +0000 tarabonno 1028205@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I totally agree, @Indi. At first it was really hard, but my Type A personality got hooked pretty quickly. In a really strange way, being on a budget didn't make us feel constrained or like we had less money. It made us feel like we had a lot MORE money.</p> <p>The other thing it did was really train us to second guess purchases. We both can be pretty impulsive and we're trying to get better at that. So before where I would have bought something without thinking, now my normal question is, "Hmm, do I really want/need this right now?" A lot of times the answer is yes, but it also stops me from buying things that we really don't need.</p> <p>Saving is addicting, I think. We were hardly saving anything at all, and when we realized how much we were spending and with not much to show for it, it was sickening. We started just saving a few hundred dollars a month, but that adds up and it made us want to save more! When we saved enough to buy a new car, it was super exciting.</p> <p>I guess it just made us more aware of what we were using our money for... and it helped us define priorities. That's another thing we did. We sat down and asked ourselves where we want to be in 5 years. The answer was that we wanted to be in a new house with another new(er) car, and at least one baby. So then we backed everything out. We would need to save X for this and X for that. That really helped us visualize what we were saving for and made it easier to save.</p> <p>That being said, we don't go without, which I think is an important part of the budgeting process. We still eat out - just not as often. We still buy new clothes - just not as often. </p> <p>It's hard to explain and I don't think I'm doing a very good job. But we truly felt like we had more money once we started budgeting - maybe because we could finally afford some of the bigger things we'd been wanting?? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028069 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 19:24:40 +0000 indi 1028069@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@grizz: We do the same! The Dave Ramsey books/course were in line with what I was already doing, so they helped teach us a few new ways to streamline even more.</p> <p>For us, it's a very detailed spreadsheet budget and a mix of using direct withdrawals for fixed costs, credit cards only to buy gas (so we can easily track it monthly), and cash for groceries/dining out and our fun money each month. The first few months we tracked our spending very closely (online checking/debit) and shifted our categories until things were where we wanted them. </p> <p>It was a PITA to start, honestly, but by the 3rd month it was humming along and saving us a LOT in "lost money." </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028035 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 18:53:17 +0000 Periwinkle 1028035@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: You are my hero for starting this thread. We have also lived in the camp of "we have no idea how to budget" for many years and I am just so scared of seeing where we actually "are." We have used rough spreadsheets for a while now and that helps a bit, but I still feel like I have no clue what I have to spend and what I must be saving.</p> <p>@tarabonno: I would love to take you up on any advice you have. We also do not use credit cards and have relied on our debit cards for years. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1028031 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 18:51:14 +0000 regberadaisy 1028031@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@autumnlove: haha nope but he buys beer and wine. Alcohol is not part of our food budget unless it's for like a family dinner or party. I don't typically drink. So I gave him a little extra for the booze on top of lunch emergencies and stopping for a coffee. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1027899 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 17:01:22 +0000 autumnlove 1027899@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@locavore_mama: I'm not in a twist but I'm curious...does your DH eat out more? :-) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1027897 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 16:59:32 +0000 cheesetomywhine 1027897@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@pastemoo: Would you be willing to send me the spreadsheet? We really need to budget but I also don't know where to start. I can write my email on your wall (since I am pretty sure I can delete it).</p> <p>ETA- to the op Good luck!!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1027886 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 16:50:34 +0000 tarabonno 1027886@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We got on a budget a few years ago when we realized that most of our friends we thought were rich were actually just really good at budgeting.</p> <p>I started with a simple spreadsheet and estimated where I thought our money "should" go every month. Some bills are fixed (mortgage, car payment, cable, etc.) but some can vary (groceries, gas, etc.). I put in the fixed amounts and then saw what was leftover to play with. </p> <p>We stopped putting everything on a credit card and switched to using our debit cards. Not everyone does this, but for us, it works. Then, I tracked every single expense for a few months. I recommend doing this almost daily if you can, at least while you're getting used to things. Each month I would adjust our budget if my estimates had been way over or under. For example, I started out budgeting $400 in gas which turned out to be really high. $200 was all we needed.</p> <p>I don't check every day anymore, and I don't even really track how much we're spending in our categories. I do check our balances every few days. Some weeks when we spend more than usual, we go on a "no spending until Friday" kick. There's always food we can make (spaghetti), even if it isn't what we'd like to be eating.</p> <p>Every so often we overhaul our budget - usually based around a life change. My husband is going back to school so we are trying to live totally on my salary and save all of his so that when he stops working next year we'll be able to pay for his school still. This was a BIG adjustment and things felt tight for a little while.</p> <p>That being said - STICK WITH IT!! I think the first month or so on a budget is the trickiest, but then it just becomes your norm. I get a high every time I transfer money into our savings account, and when our emergency fund hit the $10,000 mark I wanted to scream it from the rooftops. I was really proud of that one.</p> <p>I'm happy to answer any specific questions if you have any. We have good friends who helped us get started with our budgeting, so I'm happy to pay it forward.</p> <p>Dave Ramsey is a good place to start if you have debt you're trying to pay down, as a side note. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1027864 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 16:34:55 +0000 pastemoo 1027864@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rainbow Sprinkles: Want me to send you an excel of how we budget? When it is tight I literally save every receipt. I did it for years. We're going to have to start again. Usually once we get the hang of the current budget we stop tracking exactly unless something goes wrong. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1027857 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 16:32:57 +0000 Boheme 1027857@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@sunny: We usually have enough notice about things like that that we bump it up for the next month and subtract elsewhere. For true emergencies we have an emergency fund in a separate account. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1027847 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 16:29:26 +0000 Mrs. Jacks 1027847@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@locavore_mama: That was us too. Every penny we had went back into my dad's business. I try to carry that same mentality with me day to day. Mr. Jacks was a spender coming into this relationship, so we are a great balance for each other. If it were up to me, we'd be extremely spartan. My depression era grandfather also had a huge influence on me. He always said that you never know when the next rainy day will be upon us. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1027835 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 16:20:09 +0000 T.H.O.U. 1027835@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think most places (ynab, Dave Ramsey) say that every dollar should have a job. So all of your income for a month should have a purpose for that month. We do have just a general "slush" category though for fun stuff that comes up but isn't a "need". DR also recommends getting at least $1,000 in saving immediately so if an emergency does come up, you don't blow your budget or turn to credit. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/talk-to-me-about-budgeting#post-1027827 Sun, 18 Aug 2013 16:16:43 +0000 regberadaisy 1027827@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@HLK208: hahah aww I feel awesome that you said that!</p> <p>@Mrs. Jacks: I'm def cheap and damn proud of it!! It's how my mama raised me! We were poor. Young immigrant family so I saw my mom pinch pennies .</p> <p>@looch: we do something very similar.</p> <p>We get fun money each month and when it's out, it's out. dH gets $80, I get $40 and LO gets $50. And before people get into a twist about why DH gets more I set it up that way! </p>