Why Budget?

For some people, the very thought of the household budget makes them nervous.  But for me, I enjoy it.  In fact, I can usually complete our monthly budget in 10 minutes.


When we were first married, a monthly budget was an absolute necessity.  We were (and still are) a single income home with my husband working in law enforcement so you can imagine the sometimes meager amount we had to work with each month.

Fast forward 16 years and I honestly think budgeting is still a necessity for us.  Even though we are more flexible in how we budget and several of the category amounts have increased, I still like knowing what we spend in each category and how much we are able to put in savings each month.

I feel like we are somewhere in the middle of spending for our salary..... We have very basic cable, our home phone is dirt cheap, and we have no loans or credit card debt.  However, we have 4 cell phones (including two smartphones), a date night category (for my husband & the kids as well as for my husband & me!), two growing teens (clothes and food!) and are about to add a 3rd child to the family (more clothes and food!).   


I'm a firm believer that no matter what your income is, whether small or large, you need a budget.  There is no other way to know how your money is spent each month.  By creating a household budget, you know where you are wasting money, where you can cut back and where you are not spending enough.  You'll be able to save more and pay off debt.  

I know some people just don't enjoy creating a budget.  It is hard for me to motivate people to start budgeting.  I know the end result is worth the hassle of budgeting, but it is hard to get others to see that when it's simply something they don't enjoy doing......

This evening, I have the opportunity to talk to a group of women at the church we used to attend about budgeting and money saving tips.  It is my goal that the women take what they learn tonight and put even just one idea into practice in their homes and see if it is helpful in saving money.

I'm looking forward to tonight.... To seeing some familiar faces... To sharing a few things I've learned over the years... To facilitate questions and other ideas... And to share something that I am passionate about, no matter how weird that sounds to other people!  ;)