Wow, I feel so... unprofessional or lazy or something, having just made our budget on a piece of notebook paper, lol! I'm not even sure where it is, because all of the amounts are fixed in my head, bright glowing number that flash each time I look at a bill, or put money into the savings account.

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"And the state of his bathroom -- I'm not one to gossip, but there are things crusted on his sink that have not simply developed intelligent life but have in all probability by now evolved their own political systems." Cain describes Abel in in SANDMAN #70

Yes, we have a budget and it changes all the time. Like in the summer we have the lawn sprayed and in the fall/winter we bowl. So in the summer I take all the extra money that we use for bowling and pay down on our debt or save for christmas, birthdays, stockpile the freezer, etc.

Then there is the gas and electric bills that are readjusted because we are the budgeted amount and once a year they look to see if our bill can come down or go up. Last year the gas bill came down $25 and this year it went up $11.

So I am always working on our budget.

I have ours in excel speadsheet so once a year I load all the receipts in and check to see if we need to increase or decrease that area of the budget too.

I use cash for food, entertainment, and misc. things during the week. Everything else is paid thru the checking account. Which I have direct deposit of my check. All our gas for the vehciles go on a gas card that get paid every month in full.

Since I started my budget I have paid off all of our credit cards and started our emer. fund. Now we are working to pay off our school loan, blazer loan, and trailer (RV) off. School loan should be paid off in a year, blazer loan should be in a 1 1/2 yrs. and trailer (RV) in 2 years. Then I can save for a new truck for DH.

I am new to the budgeting thing (like, oh, three days new), and this is one of my biggest fears. How do you handle your children wanting things? Do they understand?

We stick to our budget, but have had to adjust for groceries and gas . . . . This means less in the clothing area and the eating out area.

If you are just starting, I would suggest that you watch what you are spending for a couple of months and then adjust your budget figures accordingly. You have to be realistic about the amounts or you won't be able to stick to it.

Marlene

I am learning to be better at sticking to mine. The place where I get snagged up the most is when we are at the end of the rope, and DH really wants something, or to do something. I always give in (which puts us over) because I feel that HE is the one working a job he dislikes, HE is the one who drives 2+ hours each day, and HE is the one working for the money. I feel really guilty for not contributing monetarily, and in my mind he should be able to get what he wants first.

I need help ~ I am working on it.

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Hmmmmmmmm...I have kept a pretty close eye on how much I spend for certain categories for awhile now. I think my estimated monthly expenditures are fairly accurate, but I do plan to review them in a few weeks to make sure I haven't over/underbudgeted a category. Thanks for the advice!

This is me as well. I keep a small notebook in my purse and pull it out as a reminder of how much I can spend on groceries, gas, etc. I also shop with a list and try to stay out of stores that I know I will want to spend money in such as target, kohls, etc.

I really don't take my children with me when I shop. It can open a Pandora's box for wanting things especially with three kids in tow. They have learned to accept no and put it on their b-day or christmas list.