I can't believe it is January again. I feel like we were just here.
Dustin is still off work and working on the utility room. However, it iced this morning and has switched over to pouring rain for most of the day. He needs to haul the shiplap home from the hardware store and can't until the rain lets up. He is basically stuck cleaning and working on a few small things while we wait for the rain to head out.
I am working on our January budget, and decided last week to make it a no spend month. Despite the obvious purchases for the remodel, it will be a month of only purchasing what we absolutely need. Although I might do a grocery stock up toward the end of the month, like I mentioned in other posts.
I am so thankful for how our debt free journey has changed our lives. We never imagined our lives would be how they are now. However, sometimes I worry that the lack of struggling will affect us in some negative ways eventually. I don't Dustin and I or the kids to never forget what it is like to struggle or to grow complacent over time or even become spoiled or expectant of things that they 'deserve'. I'm not saying we have become that way completely, but I will admit that I occasionally struggle with the thought popping into my head that I 'deserve' something. That kind of self talk can be unhealthy. I want to make sure we strive to make responsible financial choices, and that we are modeling it for our children.
In the last year, our budget got a little out of balance. It was mainly because grocery prices fluctuated uncontrollable and it was just a matter of paying what you had to pay. Some of it was unexpected purchases, and some of it was me just not being as conscious of what I was spending at times. It was a crazy year, and that's not a good enough excuse...but it is the truth. I let it happen.
Did it get completely our of hand? No
Did we go into debt? No
Did we spend more than we made? No
But...
We did eat out more than we should have.
We spent more on impulse than we should have.
I did not keep track of things as closely as I should have.
We did buy way more Starbucks than we needed to for our budget and our health.
I did shop at some stores out of convenience and not at some stores to save money when I could have.
We/I could have done so much better on the financial department last year. My plan is to bring it back into line this year, starting with this month.
This 'No Spend Month' is not a challenge to see how little we can live on. It is a practice to get back in the habit of watching what we spend more closely, and curbing the small impulse buys that sneak in.
I will also admit that I am trying to cut back on the amount of food we are keeping on hand. I am all for being prepared and always have been. Although in the past few months I have kept more in the house than needed out of fear of not having enough. That is not a healthy way to live. We still live in the land of plenty, and have never gone without. At least never in the true sense of the word. I am praying about this and working to decide how much is truly enough to keep on hand. This is something to find a balance of between me and the Lord. I will always be someone who likes to be prepared and who will combine and condense trips to the store for groceries, but I never want to become someone who hoards excess food out of fear. Given the past year, I can see how I started to fall into this way of feeling and thinking. I have spoken to a few friends who have dealt with the same thing. It was a strange year. It shocked the balance of life for most people in our country and all across the world. I plan to write more about this later, but for now, I'm working to make sure that we have enough, but not too much.
I use a paper and a budgeting app each month. I am old school with my budget and can comprehend it better with a paper budget. I do like the Every Dollar app for on the go, and to keep long term track of our budget. Plus I usually lose the paper budget halfway through the month. Yep. I just admitted that. Ha!
Depending on how I feel about this post later, I might continue to share my budget each month. I also might come back and update how the 'No Spend Month' goes. Although I already had to stop myself from buying something this morning. Can we say impulse buy? Ouch. Wish me luck!
Have you made your budget for January?
~Lyndsay
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