Monday, November 17, 2008

Tighter Belts


I know I already blogged earlier today, but I am just sitting here on my bed and am all warm and toasty (I cranked up the heat in the basement) and I AM tired, but I just can't quite bring myself to go through the process of getting ready for bed. Woah, that was a run-on sentence!

To distract myself, I just want to document the fact that I am working on budgeting right now. I'm not budgeting for the wedding, mom and dad are taking care of EVERYTHING pretty much, so I am so blessed. I am actually budgeting for our general finances and so we can figure out what we can afford when we buy a house in the approaching months!

This budgeting thing is pretty new to me. I don't consider myself a wreckless spender, but I have never had to put myself on a strict budget, and i've pretty much always had a job that has provided me with enough spending money to take care of whatever I needed or wanted, whenever I felt like it. Dustin and I sat down at Starbucks on Saturday and estimated what we spend on a monthly basis, and guessed on how much we want to put away and delegate towards various things.

What was the result? We are both tracking every penny we spend this month to see where it all goes specifically. I just made a spreadsheet in Excel to document my daily expenditures... I like how easy it is to organize things in there. I am about to color-code it all too! I'll let you know how it goes as the month goes on... so far all i've spent in the last two days is my tithe and missions giving and $7.79 for dinner tonight. So far, so good. I am trying to live more below my means.

Dustin has been good for me in this area, he got all excited when we were figuring out all the numbers. That is a great thing because I, on the other hand got a pressure headache behind my eyes! We fit :) I know we can do it. I can't wait to find OUR house!

P.S. I still don't feel like i'm ready to go to bed

4 comments:

Natalie said...

Budgeting is fun!... . . hmm yeah, but it is good to hear that you are doing it together actively :) So we should do little mani touch ups.. just too keep up with those nails, could even do some no charge, it was just so good catching up with you for a bit!

Lindsay said...

sounds like a plan! I love nice nails. They are only just starting to chip and grow out now. You do such a good job! What is your schedule like the next few weeks?

Rachel said...

oh, i LOVE excel. color coding and writing formulas just make my life so wonderful. and i love making lists!!

Christina said...

you are sounding very mature and grown up, discussing finances, budgets, expenditures, etc... you both are very wise to start looking at this now, knowing what you want in the future :) I admire your ability to plan ahead for your dreams and goals! I know right where you are at with spending and living within your means! I have been challenged by that being in Sweden because it's such an expensive country! Adding on the travels makes me prioritize my spending. Do I really want to spend money on those shoes or would I rather save it for a trip to Paris, hello! Learning to say 'NO' when you've been able to get pretty much what you want is a difficult and challenging discipline process. I can't wait to see your new home!!! I can't believe how much will have changed in your life when I come home!!