“I Don’t Have Time” and Other Budgeting Excuses You Can Fix Right Now

Written by on · 7 Comments
budget budgeting excuses fix tips

I’ve been recommending doing a written monthly budget for many years now.  That’s not gonna change any time soon. Today I’ll cover what are probably the most common excuses for not making a budget.  I’ll give you tips on how to overcome those excuses, and provide you with a load of killer resources at the end to help get you moving forward.   Everybody Has a Budgeting Excuse Doing a consistent, written budget is the best thing you can do to start getting your finances under control.  When you start this valuable habit and stick to it, you’ll stop living […] Read more »

The Magic Bullet To Combining Finances Successfully

Written by on · 38 Comments

I knew the minute I finished the sentence that someone would comment on it, and I was right.  In my post last week describing an afternoon at a food and wine event I mentioned that I bought two bottles of BBQ sauce, but not before checking in with my wife first. I wanted my wife’s approval before buying $12 of BBQ sauce. I didn’t expect her to disapprove of the purchase.  As the commenter articulated, it was simply an act of respect.  We are a quad income family (we each have two sources of income), but we choose to combine […] Read more »

First Budget Post Debt Management Plan: How Did Our Spending Change?

Written by on · 50 Comments

My wife and I sat down last Friday to go over our budget and spending plan for the weekend, just like we always do.  Except this time the numbers looked very different. March is the first month in over four and a half years that we don’t have to make a payment to our debt management program.  More accurately, this is the first time in seventeen years of marriage that a significant percentage of our monthly income isn’t going towards credit card payments. That feels freakishly awesome. I made my usual income and bill statement for the month and looked […] Read more »

How Does It Feel to Pay Off $100,000 of Debt?

Written by on · 76 Comments

Last Thursday we made the October payment to our debt management plan. After hanging up the phone, I leaned back in the chair to let the gravity of the payment sink in. To be honest with you, my bottom lip trembled a little bit as tears started to form in the corners of my closed eyelids. With our 52nd payment, the amount of debt that we have repaid through our debt management program has hit the mark of $100,000. Sitting in a conference room at work with the door closed, I couldn’t quite figure out the exact reason behind my […] Read more »

Waiting For An Emergency Will Cost You Money

Written by on · 26 Comments

I looked down at the dashboard and noticed all the lights on the dash were flickering. Suddenly the radio cut out, and turned back on. I could feel my heart thumping in my chest when it happened a second time. When the radio came back on again, it was accompanied by a “ding” and several warning lights on the dash board which remained illuminated. Not exactly something you want to happen while driving in rush hour traffic. We carefully drove to my brother-in-law’s house, as we discussed our course of action. We knew the battery was due to be replaced, […] Read more »

Your Perspective On Money Changes….When You’re Paying the Bills

Written by on · 22 Comments

My son looked at me like he didn’t believe what he was hearing. He believed that his parents have an unlimited source of money. My son has been saving his allowance as well as the money he’s earned mowing lawn this summer to get his own computer, and has amassed a pretty good chunk of coin. We had planned on a building a computer together as I thought it would be a cool father and son activity plus save us some money by assembling the computer ourselves. However, recently he found a pre-built computer online that had the required specs, […] Read more »

The Return Of The 100 Foot Water Slide

Written by on · 20 Comments

It’s been over twenty five years, but I remember it like it was yesterday. Standing barefoot in the damp grass with the sun beating down on my back, I waited patiently. When it was finally my turn, I sprinted and dove onto the wet plastic. Refreshingly cool water sprayed on me seemingly from every direction for the few seconds it took me to travel the short distance to the pool of water at the end of the slip n slide. On Saturday I closed my eyes and remembered those days from my childhood and smiled. When I opened my eyes […] Read more »

Review: Month One Using A Cheap Wireless Plan Through Walmart Family Mobile

Written by on · 19 Comments

I walked onto the baseball field and squatted behind home plate to warm up my son who was pitching. It was the last game of the end of the season tournament, and my eyes watered as he hurled the first pitch at me.  Next year he will be trying out for the high school team. Is he good enough to be a pitcher at the high school level? Will he even make the team?  These are questions I cannot answer, and I couldn’t help but wonder if this is the last time I would watch my son wind up on […] Read more »

How Much Would You Pay For A Child’s Birthday Party?

Written by on · 38 Comments

A few years ago, I put together my daughter’s 8th birthday party for under $35. Her 11th birthday, which we celebrated over the weekend, was a different story. There’s a huge difference between the two ages, and we’re dealing with an entirely different set of rules. The suggestion of playing games for prizes now results in the newly perfected pre-teen eye roll. The last few years, having a sleep over with her friends as been the foundation for keeping the cost of her birthday celebration down. This year she was adamant she did NOT want a sleep over party because […] Read more »

Why Zombies Seem Easier to Face Than Real Life

Written by on · 9 Comments

Just in case you have been living under a rock, Zombies are all the hotness.  The story is not really new, but the popularity of the genre is reaching a critical mass thanks to hits like The Walking Dead. What strikes me about the trend is the timing. There seems to be (to me anyway) a solid correlation between the rise of the Zombie/ post-apocalyptic genre and the decline of the national economy. Let’s explore some common themes. The total eradication of modern technology…no more cell phones, TV or gadgets. A return to living off of the land and the […] Read more »

Cable TV Is Cheap Entertainment

Written by on · 52 Comments

Our cable company has been advertising new packages and lower prices, so this weekend Vonnie and I stopped into the nearby office to investigate our options, and see if we could lower our bill. Thirty minutes later we walked out the door having been upgraded to their new gold package that includes 4 DVRs, almost every channel they have, and a broadband speed double what we had previously. AND a lower bill. Driving home with the new DVRs in the trunk, I thought about our decision and wondered if we had made the right choice.  The TV portion of our […] Read more »

Beer, Friends, and Losing Control of your Spending

Written by on · 22 Comments

My last few Monday posts have been a bit heavy and serious, so today I thought I’d talk about something a little lighter: Beer and Movies. Well, to be completely accurate, it’s more about my weekend spending relating to beer and movies. My house is a convenient central meeting point for my brother-in-law and his two best friends from high school. A couple of times a year they meet at my house, go out, and have a great time together. I’m always invited to come with. The first few times I felt a bit out of place, but I know […] Read more »

My Secret Weapon In the Fight Against Grocery Overspending

Written by on · 34 Comments

“Ha, I did it again!” I exclaimed to myself. My total was illuminated on the screen of the grocery store checkout register: $110.57.  It was the third week in a row that I was within just a few dollars of my estimate, and right on budget for the week’s groceries.  I had certainly done all of the pre-shopping steps to ensure success at the grocery store. I meal planned for the week, made a list of the items I was going to buy, and yes I had even estimated the prices of all the items.   Unfortunately, I’ve followed these […] Read more »

What Will You Do…With Your Tax Refund

Written by on · 29 Comments

If you are one of the millions of Americans slated to receive a tax refund this year, why not make your refund work for you? Of course you will be tempted to splurge on a vacation, start home renovations or maybe even buy something frivolous, but why not use it to improve your financial situation. If you are struggling with debt, have little to no emergency fund, or haven’t even begun to think about retirement those refund dollars could make a big difference. Reducing your debt and preparing for the “what if” are a great way to reduce daily stress […] Read more »