My husband and I have lived together for 10 1/2 years now. And up until about 5 or 6 years ago I was absolutely awful with the money. So was my husband,,, he might still be I don't know because one day I just decided we needed to get with the program and took it on myself! 6 or 7 years ago we filed bankruptcy ( yes it was that bad) WE just had crazy bills, bills from Dr's, he had bills from before we were together,,, I used to just throw bills away when they came because I knew we couldn't pay them. My parents bailed us out numerous times,,, and finally we decided with their pushing us a little that bankruptcy was our only option if we were gonna ever get anywhere with our credit. We decided that it was better to file and then just build our credit up from the bottom and ya know what it worked! I didn't want to screw anything up so every since I have worked very hard to make sure every thing is payed on time. I have tried out numerous ways of managing the money and within the past year have stuck with the same thing. Its the most simple thing. And the more I think about it I have figured out that anything will work, you just have to know what is coming in and know what is going out and you need to make sure that whats coming in is more than what needs to go out! Whala,,, budgeting made simple:) Now I'm sure I could make it more complicated and one day I will but for now this is what works for me.
I have a note book and at the top of the page I write the month,, hubby gets paid every two weeks, so I break up the bills into being paid twice a month. I list the bills and then write how much his check is at the top,,,, then the bill that has to be paid,,, then what is left after paying,,, for example
January 2009
$$$$$$-this is how much his check is
van ----- $$how much the bill is /money left after bill
truck---- $$$$$$/$$$$$$
water-----$$$$/$$$$$$
After all the bills are paid, then I factor in groceries and all that because then I know what I have to work with....
Eventually once we get doctor bills paid and some stuff we are paying on there will be new coloms made up for a vacation fund and more savings,, things like that. For now though the focus is on getting the payment plans I made for the hospital bills paid.
So you can see how simple it is. nothing special but I know where the money is going and how much I have to work with when i need things..
the problem right now is because of the little work problem that happened with my husband, is there wont be enough money to even pay the main bills for the next two months,,,, so I'm trying to figure out how to make money appear from nowhere :)lol
Anyone figured that one out yet! :)
6 comments:
Often simple is better cause you'll actually stick with it!
if you figure out how to make money appear out of nowhere do let me know K???!!!:):)
Don't you have one of those money trees growing in your backyard? All this cold must've killed it, huh? : ) My best advice for getting good advice on money is Dave Ramsey. He doesn't tiptoe around and tell you what you want to hear. He tells you exactly what you need to hear. He's on tv, radio, and the web.
That is so funny, i pretty much do the same thing! Every payweek (biweekly) i sit down and write down all the bills that are due the next 2 weeks and how much our checks are and whatever is leftover is for groceries and whatever might be coming up in those 2 weeks. Birthdays, get togethers, etc... So far it is working pretty good! There isn't a lot leftover each check but at least bills are getting paid!
Steph,,, great minds do think alike! :)
I don't handle money well. :( My hubby is a math whiz that's why he handles all the money! :P
If I want something outside of our budget I talk to him about it and see if it's possible. Communication. What all husbands and wives need. :)
My in-laws love Dave Ramsey!! He has helped them save money. I would check him out.
Our renters furnace went out a few days ago and we are wondering how we are going to pay for that bill on top of our other ones. It's not pretty.
I know it's pretty stressful but try not to stress on it. Look at the good things that happen every day. :)
Lots of hugs!
Shannon, I will be hoping everything works out with you furnance.
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