Strengthen Your Budget - A Series

You woke up and realized you were deeply  in debt, but now you're resolved to get out.  Or you're just tired of never knowing where your money went.  One way to stop throwing money away over useless things is to make a budget.  I've talked a bit about budgeting before, but in the coming weeks, I'd like to delve into this subject in greater detail.


Our First Budgets

When we were first married I was given a book by Larry Burkett.  It was, and is, a great book.  For a numbers geek like me it made perfect sense.  However, I could never get the point across to my husband, who personifies the free spirit that Dave Ramsey talks about so much. Since I had Larry Burkett in my brain we never got into too bad of trouble.  However, with my hubby's free spirit never completely on board a budget, we also never really had a true path to follow.
 
I've talked about how we meandered through our financial lives at the start of our marriage When times got tough, The Total Money Makeover,then later Financial Peace University at our church, entered our lives and changed our financial path forever! 

Before Dave 

We would occasionally use cash, but I thought I was too smart for cash. We would buy groceries with checks, and later debit cards and I would keep a running total in my spreadsheet.

Guess what? We went over our grocery budget almost every single month. I could keep the large grocery trips to under budget, but I never thought about it when I spent $5 or $10 on a quick trip to pick something up. When I entered all the receipts on my spreadsheet it was too late I had already blown it.

Enter The Total Money Makeover

It was Dave's zero based budget that really helped us.  We would spend all our money on paper, on purpose, before the month begins.  He made me realize that I shouldn't try to outsmart my money.

The added bonus?  When you don't have all those charges in your checking account it's so much easier to balance your checkbook!


 In the next few weeks we will be talking how to trim the fat from your budget.  Obviously make sure your basics are covered first.  But, we'll talk about how to cut back on those too!  So make sure you check back over the next few weeks and join me in giving your budget a workout!  

Let's Hear From You

What's the hardest area for you to keep on or under budget?  I'll leave my problem area in the comments.  See you there!

Giving my Budget a workout Works for Me!  This post is linked to  Thrifty Thursdays, and Frugal Fridays.

**Don't forget you can still sign up for my Homestead Blessings 10pk DVD set!

I hope you've found this post encouraging.
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