March 5, 2014

LET'S TALK BUDGETS + SPENDING ALLOWANCES.

budgeting  in its time
Maybe it's the tax season effect or maybe it's just because I'm working in the real world (aka not just babysitting anymore), but I've been thinking a lot about budgets and budgeting lately. 

I know it can be a personal thing to talk about, but this is my personal blog, so I'm going to put it out there: I've never really had much of a budget. I know, I know. It's terrible and something I shouldn't admit. But it worked for me growing up and here's why: I'm not what you would call a spender. I'm a saver. I've never really been a spender. As a kid, I used to love the idea of saving up money and putting it into my bank account (yes, I am a nerd) and only spent money here and there in the summer when I wanted a new toy or computer game. 

It's not that I don't like new stuff, though, because I do! I've always loved the idea of buying things, but always back myself out of hitting "purchase" or getting in line at the store. If I got an award, it'd probably go to being the best at window shopping. At any given moment, you'll find tabs open of Etsy products, Pinterest wishlists, and the like on my computer. I'll hit favorite or like, but will never commit to buy.

I just save. And save. And save.

But now that I'm working, I'm earning money and have been doing a little more thinking about spending money. I'm still a very cautious spender, but I also want to spend a little money on myself every now and then. A top from Target, a cute pendant on Etsy, or maybe even a camera bag (still don't have one of those, by the way). I don't want to be reckless and spend all my paycheck, but I also want to spend a little money and invest in myself every now and then--is that weird?

So I'm asking for your help--if you're interested. How do you budget your spending money? Do you have a weekly/monthly/yearly allowance for spending money on yourself? Do you have separate allowances for coffee and clothes? Or do you just save and then splurge every now and then? Do you even budget at all?

I'm seriously interested and want to know what works for you!

I also think this could make for a really good discussion and I welcome your thoughts and I also invite you to comment and read other readers' responses, too!

p.s. I've got my first guest post for the Everyday Moments series lined up and ready to go tomorrow and I'm really only sharing this because I'm so excited! Join me in the excitement, won't ya?

20 comments

  1. Dave Ramsey. The Hubs lived and breathed Dave Ramsey budgeting system when we first got married. Now we've sort of tweaked it to our needs. The Hubs is the one the "writes the budget" and then shows me and I help him get more realistic... usually putting more into the grocery section! Ha. He's the saver, I'm the spender. One thing we do is use our credit card for all our monthly purchases( a big no no if you follow Dave Ramsey). But we pay it off completely each month and use the rewards at the end of the year as our Christmas budget. Works for us.

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    1. It's funny that you mention Dave Ramsey, because it seems to be something that a lot of other people use/recommend, too. I've honestly never really looked into books/programs or stuffy like that but I think it's an interesting idea and one that I might look into in the future! :)

      I also love that you two really do balance each other out, it's so cool!

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  2. we kinda do the Dave Ramsey envelope system. but instead of using actual envelopes of cash - i created an excel spreadsheet (cause i'm a nerd) to keep track of it. we have monthly envelopes & yearly envelopes. in our yearly, we have car maintenance, propane, dog shots (vet), home insurance, car taxes, savings, etc. anything that is paid yearly. in our monthly, we have our categories like groceries, bills, eating out, gas, tithe, and misc. i take our income for that month and allocate it to what we need for each category & the leftover goes into miscellaneous. misc is our spending money for the month. so at the end of the day, everything in yearly & monthly (x12) adds up to what we bring home for the year.
    so we have an envelope for what we want to save during the year & then we can feel free to spend what's in the misc envelope each month. we are still tweaking things but it works great for us. of course the biggest thing about a budget is that it's only helpful if you stick to it! :)

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    1. Ooh, I like the envelope system! I actually do something sort of similar but it's more mentally. Granted, I don't have all of the expenses as most people do since I still live at home, but I've realized that I need to start doing a little something to at least get into practice for when I'm really in the "real" world, haha. :)

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  3. Budgeting is extremely new to my life, and I'm 24. Unfortunately, unlike you, I'm not a saver. I'm not really a spender either, but I typically live paycheck to paycheck and I want to be able to save and like you said, treat myself by spending money on something other than rent.

    Like the two ladies above, I'm using the Dave Ramsey methods. His ideas are so simple...you literally budget everything, and included in those budget categories and things like "pocket money" that you can use to spend on whatever you fancy. His methods are also very easy to personalize and make your own...plus contrary to popular belief you don't have to be married for his ideas to work. I'm single and they are helping me tremendously.

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    1. Same! I love that you find Dave Ramsey's methods to be simple AND easily personalized, too. I'll be honest and tell you that I'm a bit intimidated by programs or methods like that but if you're finding it to work for you (as are other people, apparently!), I'm definitely intrigued. Thanks for sharing!

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  4. I am a spender, so i could learn something from you my friend :)
    but since starting grad school, i've actually been a little bit more conscious about my money.
    Since i now have to pay rent and bills.

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    1. Haha, well, right now it's only because I don't have much time to actually go shopping! But on a serious note, I am lucky in that I'm not paying for rent and such right now. But I think it's all about personalization and as long as it works for you, it works, right? :)

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  5. ah budgeting. gag. ;)
    i used to be a HUGE saver - lately i've been more of a spender.
    BUT THANK THE LORD i was a saver.
    living on my own, owning a pet, a car, etc emergencies come up.
    unexpected $300 vet bills, my car breaks down and its $700 to fix it...all within 2 months of each other on top of bills, etc.
    yeah if i didn't have a cushion i would be screwed.
    i'm now trying to work on RE-VAMPING my coushin.
    i try to do a monthly budget and i attempt to keep a binder with a little zipper pouch with ALL of my receipts from the month, and a page up front with each bill when it was paid, how much it was, etc including tithing. (which i haven't been that great at).
    if you really watch what you spend your $$ on you can save big time.
    ALSO start putting money away for a vacation, or something really big that you want - that way you're not only saving for your cushion (in case of emergencies) but for things you can enjoy later on!
    there definitely has to be a balance between spending and saving.

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    1. I know, right? Honestly, I don't really pride myself in my saving habits because I always say I'll get stuff and never do (and have been catching myself in saying I'll do stuff and won't do it either, you know?). Anyways, it's not that I want to spend a ton of money, but I also want to keep myself accountable.

      But anyway, I love your system! I think it's a great one and I think it is something that I could see myself doing. I love organizing stuff and I like the idea of having a binder that keeps everything in one place. Right now I have a few binders and mentally keep track of stuff (a great system, right?) so I'm thinking a little consolidation is probably not so bad of an idea. :)

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  6. I have never ever had a budget either!
    Until this year - a "grown-up" job will do that to ya.

    Right now we do each pay period. Which for me is the 15th and last day of the month so we split the month up into two parts. We list the income we'll make and all of our expenses for those two weeks (it's different each time because we only pay rent once, Netflix once, etc.) We take out cash for our "flexible" spending - coffee dates, each of our allowances, and eat out money.

    The two best "pieces" of advice we've heard {which are probably from Dave Ramsey...} are to budget to zero {make all of your money "go somewhere" even if its to a savings account} and build to make a savings of 3-6 months of living expenses.

    We have yet to stick completely to our budgets each month - but it definitely creates good boundaries for us.
    We're learning! :)

    P.S. You are such a wise one! Spending a little on yourself with each paycheck (or saving it for something special) is definitely a good idea!

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    1. Budgeting and all that really is part of that grown-up job thing, right? Honestly, I sometimes wish I was back in college or back in school and didn't have to "deal" with stuff like this, haha. :)

      Anyway, I like what you said about learning--I feel like I'm doing just that right now. I'm in a little different of a situation right now and that I live at home and don't have to pay for the traditional expenses like a lot of people I know. It's nice but I also feel like it's prevented me from really having a budget system since I'm saving most of my paycheck right now for the future (school, when I move out, etc.).

      And as for spending on myself, I would hardly call it wise! It works for me right now, but I'm thinking it won't always be the case, either, so I'm going to take it and enjoy it for the time being! :)

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  7. Well it's been said several times already... Dave Ramsey. Best thing that ever happened to me. If you can find a Financial Peace University class being offered in your area it is well worth the money and the time. Best money I ever spent. Changed our life. I actually have a post in draft that I'm working on about how Dave Ramsey saved us this winter... because he taught us what we needed to know about finances and it set us up to not have to go into debt when something happens like no longer having income.

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    1. Dave Ramsey really seems to be a lifesaver and life-changer for a lot of people! I'm always a little skeptical when I see commercials or hear about some books/programs like this because I tend to be really paranoid about things like that and if they really work/are worth the investment. But from what I've read, it really seems like it does work! I'm in a sort of different situation than most my age because I am at home, but now that I am working, I do want to sort of grow up, if that makes any sense! :)

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  8. I NEED a budget. I'm currently just allowing myself to spend my whole paycheck for the month on living expenses+rent. I'm not really saving any money, and I want to get off this path.

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    1. I feel like a lot of people our age are like that! It's crazy how living expenses and rent could be so expensive, right? I'm lucky in that I don't have to pay for rent right now (living at home has its perks, haha). :) But I do get what you mean and I hope you get off that path soon! :)

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  9. I stiiink at budgeting. It's something I really should work on, cause I know when I become a REAL adult (you know, kids and a husband and all that jazz), budgeting will have to happen. But for now, I'm pretty much in a schedule of paying the bills, tithing, sending 10% to my savings, and then maybe doing a little treating myself. {Sometimes, a lot of that.}

    Great topic, Kiki!

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    1. Same! I still live at home, so I fortunately don't have to worry too much about money, but I've definitely been doing a lot of saving and have been trying to think of ways I can use my money for Him and for others, not just for "the future" (even though that's super important too!!!). That probably didn't make any sense, but I'm glad you agree with me on working on budgets--that's something I know I'm going to have to do to be a real adult, too! , haha. :)

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  10. My Husband and I are Financial Peace University grads too and I operate on a cash system. My husband can't give up his debit card but we keep a close watch. We have an overall monthly budget and a spreadsheet we recreate each month to show where the money from each paycheck is going. I'm a number cruncher so budgeting is something I thoroughly enjoy. I like to spend and have money in the bank so a budget comes in very handy for that :)

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    1. I love cash systems! I've heard multiple places to spend only what you have in your wallet/purse and have actually been doing that for a long time now (informally or unofficially). I didn't even think it was a real system until this past year! :)

      Thanks for sharing! I really love seeing how people work their money and since I love organizing, it was a lot of fun to read the comments and think of new ideas for my own budget, too! :)

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