Personal budgets

"Since the twins came, with double daipers and baby food, I've struggled to keep the grocery budget under $1000 per month. I managed about $875 last month."


Shop at Aldi's and you'll save about half on your grocery bill...If you are familiar with Harris Teeter pricing (I do shop there for weekly specials), you will be amazed at the savings...All their products are excellent...diary, fresh & frozen meats vegetables..

I researched it ..wanted to buy some stock, but it is an international privately owned company (2 brothers out of Germany)

 

Janelle feeds them - no time to make food. She did it for our first when he was a baby.

I don't even know where an ALDI is. I goto costco every other week for alot of things, meat, dairy, paper stuff, diapers.

I goto HT every Sunday. I don't have time to drive an extra 20 min each way, which is unfortunate.

 

<DIV class=MainBody><DIV class=MainCol><DIV class=ContentBoxTight id=PoiList>

The location in Matthews may be closest for you..it is a nice store located on Monroe Rd beside Eckerd at Intsection of Hwy 51 and Monroe Rd.

I watched a Discovery Channel documentary re a very large family...one of those where there were 20 some children (some adopted of course), and that family shopped exclusively at Aldi..If you went there only once a month and bought in bulkm you would save big bucks. ( You probably have to drive a bit to get to Costco..Aldi's is priced much better than Costco)




Sorry..I keep trying to print their locations.but can't..go to their website..locations are there.

 

I seriously need to do a budget - I definitely am not use to a "six kids grocery and all the other stuff" bill.

Three gallons of milk in the fridge at one time...

 

Co-pays. Scrips. 'We've all got strep.'

Just direct deposit to Eckerds.

 

no strange...i hear ya

 

I'd like to hear some pros & cons on different budgeting methods--like the 'cash in envelopes' idea, using software, using budgeting books, checkcards versus checks, etc.

In my case I don't have credit issues to deal with right now. My life is a 'Frank & Ernest' cartoon I cut out & saved years ago: "I've finally achieved financial independence. No one in town will lend me money anymore." Got in a lot of trouble with credit when I was young & stupid, & never quite recovered & learned how to make the most of my assets.

Whatever I do needs to be relatively simple to keep up with. I like using a checkcard for almost everything, for instance. The fewer the complications, the more likely I am to stick to it.

 

We started using envelopes b/c it was very easy to track - when it's empty, it's empty. Between 2 people with alot of transactions on check cards, there was never a time that we were even close to keeping it straight.

There are some things that can't go in envelopes - utilities, for example, mortgage, that type of stuff. The most important things to be in cash, we found, are groceries and what we call MAD MONEY. MAD MONEY is anything we buy just for the fuck of it, including haircuts and clothes.

We found most money wasted is 'mad money.' We each have our own pile. Mine never gets spent - I have thousands left over. I usually blow it all at once on gifts or on something like a set of dual weber side drafts for my car or some other bullshit. Janelle spends every penny of hers in a week or 2 every month.

About a year ago, we started seperate checking accounts to manage the rest of the expenses, because we found that she handled all the checks for kid stuff, medical expenses, and b/c she liked to order things online with her mad money and needed it in an account. She is pretty much constantly losing track ( no envelopes - the cash for many budgets is all in one electronic pile ), and every six months or so when she gets around to trying to figure out why she's broke I have to transfer about $600 over. I have calculated that into the budget without her knowing, because I know she'll go over, so it works out.

We also have a babysitting and housecleaning budget, both of which are in envelopes.

My bank account handles the mortgage, the initial landing spot for investment cash, the monthly savings for property tax and insurance, and more recently the lawnmowing service bill. I have written 16 checks in 1 year. The main reason I wanted a seperate account was because I knew she'd spend it if it was there, and we'd fuck up our investment $$ b/c it would need to be used for mortgages, taxes, or some other thing besides investments.

Alot of times, when there are 2 people, it gets even tougher. For example, about 10 years ago Janelle decided she was getting a housecleaner. I thought it was absurd, and then one day she just did it. I was miffed and went out and bought a car. The end result is that when one of us 'cheats', the other one feels entitled, and the problem compounds.

I'm actually starting some new items when I do paychecks today. We're adding school supplies, charitable contributions, kids haircuts, and educational tools.....also bumping up medical and adding a christmas cash category.

It was tough to get started on this whole thing, but we've been doing it for about 9 years now, and we never had anything good going on financially until we did it. I fought it when we started it, now Janelle does, but we both understand that we would definitely spend more than we bring in if left to our 'own devices'.

The end result is that we know exactly where our money goes, how much we need to get by, which expenses can be eliminated if needed ( maid, lawn service, stuff like that ), and how much more we can invest if we don't consistently waste money. And that investment part is the whole point. Knowing that I have to tow the line for 5 people for 20+ more years makes that even more important.

And whenever I show Janelle the investment statements, she gets alot happier than whatever crap she'd have spent the $$ on would make her....

 

i'm printing this thread.