Monday, December 22, 2008

Budget Follow Up & Story of my Parents


Well, we tracked our spending for an entire month, November 16-Dec 16. We reviewed and made charts in Excel. I am surprised that I did NOT spend anything at Starbucks or Caribou for an entire month! ANDDD I only spent $14 on clothes! ANDD I only spent $2.50 on entertainment- to rent ice skates at Centennial Lakes. Those numbers are slightly skewed when you take into consideration that Dustin pays for most of our entertainment on dates... and he spent a lot more money taking me out to eat... but I can't believe I didnt spend any money on coffee! Woah.

From those results, we made a goal of where we want to be for next month. It really helped to see what our total income and expenses are. Now we have a better idea of what our monthly house payments should be. I think things will be tight for a little bit, but my dad really encouraged me. He reminded me that we would never do ANYTHING or take any risks if we had more than enough right away to do it. Dad then preceeded to tell me something I had never heard before...

The week before my parents wedding my dad got laid off of his job. He had a small house to pay for, would have a wife in a week, and was leaving for their honeymoon. I can't imagine all of the stress and pressure that I would have felt that week... but my mom and dad gave it all up to God. My mom said she honestly wasn't even worried. My dad prayed a simple prayer, "God, I can't worry about this, I'm going on my honeymoon. Please just take care of this, I know you will provide." When my parents returned from their trip, a consulting job landed in his lap that lasted for 3 months.... and then God provided again after that for another job.

All this to say, my parents are totally behind us and supporting our decision to buy our first house right away. I do not deserve to have such amazing parents, honestly. Sometimes I get really annoyed with dumb things (as most children do with their parents), but they love and support they are extending to me and Dustin is astounding. Sometimes I tend to believe (a lie) that God looks out for everyone else and provides for everyone except for me. But I know thats not true. God has a plan, and we're going to follow it. Dustin is confident that we will be ok... this is just harder for me because I have never had to put myself on a budget..... ever. Ever. This is good though, I am learning and growing.

We are having a meeting with the bank the first week in January to discuss financing, and then we will meet with Kevin Norwood, the May's realtor. I just know its all going to happen so fast. Its an exciting time, I am just trusting and waiting.
P.S. If anyone wants to re-finance their house... i've got connections! Talk to me.

1 comment:

Rachel said...

Linds, I'm so excited for your future home. I can't wait to see what you find and see how you decorate it to fit your personality and new life as a wife! I understand how easy it is to worry about small things that we make into large deals. I'm always astounded at how solid and straight-headed men can be. I'm looking forward to having that relationship that will balance me out...Good luck on your budget!