Good morning readers! I hope everybody had a happy Thanksgiving. We had a hectic holiday since we had family from out of town, and then went to visit family out of town, as well. It was fun, and have some great memories! I really can’t believe Christmas is around the corner. With our vacation coming up, buying gifts, hosting family, visiting family, and god knows what else, money is and is going to be pretty tight. I honestly dread this phase of our lives where we are building up cash in the bank, but it doesn’t feel like we are making much progress. One of the reasons we are not making much progress is because we are young and just want to enjoy ourselves.
- Xbox 360 bundle (Cost $225) plus extra batteries
- Xbox controller 2 and Halo 4 ( Cost $105)
- Xbox Madden 2013 (Cost $27)
- Antonio Melani Purse (Cost $45)
Sadly, this mentality does not bode well with our pockets.
I want to see I am an awesome PF blogger and have my stuff together. I manage my household’s finances with an iron fist, and we are always saving money. The truth is I’m an awful PF blogger. Last time I kept up with my budget was in June! In June, I gave up. Yes, I gave up. We were bleeding so much money, I just couldn’t keep track of it all. I still can’t. Honestly, I’m not sure if I’m going to have enough time or motivation to track it completely in December. I want to but….ahhh…I’m a little lazy and money is stressing me out right now.
Another reason, we are having such trouble controlling our spending is because we are young and just really want to enjoy ourselves. Not to mention everybody thinks we have money, and sort of expects us to spend like we have money. I’m not going to lie, it has been pretty nice not having to stress whether our next paycheck is going to be enough to pay rent. But maybe we have gotten a little to lenient? No maybe, we have. So what do we have to do to spend less? Eat out less, and cook at home. Convince my husband to stop buying energy drinks at the gas station, and finally ween him out of nicotine lozenges. I need to stop buying clothes, shoes, and/or purses. I need to shop groceries better. Sigh it sounds easier than it actually is.
If you are young and just starting out in the workforce, be aware that most of your paycheck will disappear with taxes, social security, medicaid, 401k, health insurance, and FSA contribution. Not to mention life will eat your paycheck with rent, utilities, sales tax, food, gas, snacks at the gas station, and other random stuff. Just saying. BE PREPARED!
There are a couple things we are trying to do (mostly me) to control our finances:
- Pay Ourselves First (Transferring money into savings account before it’s spent)
- Eat at home more, plan our meals, eat healthier.
- Track spending in spreadsheet
- Consider writing net worth updates to stay accountable
How’s your spending?
Savvy Financial Latina 
No need to best yourself up over your leniency. The most important thing is that you know how to get things done:-)
Thanks Ornella
I would tend to agree with Ornella. Th important thing is that you know to get started once noticing the problem and you know how to get it done.
Thanks John.
are you spending more than you earn, combined, at the moment? did you guys charge the xbox with a credit card that already has a balance on it? if no, then are you concerned about your spending because you want to save up for a vacation/big item? I’m just trying to figure out why you feel guilty about spending the money you earn.
Hmm no we are not spending more than we earn. We are trying to save up for a down payment which is a big ticket item. Hence the guilt.
stop feeling bad about spending money! you guys are doing GREAT financially and you pay yourselves first! i say thats the best way to do it : )
LOL it’s so hard! Mostly because I am a PF blogger, so I have to be an advocate for saving, and keeping track of expenses. But I’m no expert.
Hope you are doing well!
It’s good your recognize where your weaknesses are. As far as the budget thing-I used to be the same way where I’d just spend so much I just gave up on the budget, but I’d say keep trying. Even if you go over it’s OK, you have some way to look at everything from a visual perspective. And I don’t think life is all or nothing, either fun or not fun. I think you can have fun and save. You have a good head on your shoulders and I’m sure everything will turn out fine.
You must be so tired of my rants
I try not to be repetitive, but money is something all my friends including myself struggle with. How much to save, spend, etc.
Mostly, I write to remind myself not to freak out 🙂
No one’s perfect, plus I like to read that other PF bloggers have struggles keeping to their budget and stuff like that because I do too and so do many readers! It just shows you’re human 🙂
PF bloggers are all different sorts, so don’t stress! And its true life does add up, but what’s the point of having money if you can’t enjoy some of it right?
True! Very true!!! I love my new Antonio Melani purse 🙂
It’s a give and take. Goals are great – but sometimes you need to let yourself live a little along the way otherwise you might get burnt out. As long as things are balanced in a way you feel comfortable with, then it’s all good. Don’t worry about what others think as long as it meshes with your own priorities.
I gotta learn to relax 🙂 Thanks for stopping by Mrs. Pop
We are in a similar spot right now as well. We are making more money than ever and we are definitely spending more than ever as well.
It’s definitely hard to save money, but at the same time it’s hard to see the savings account not increase as much as I would like it to 🙂 It’s a never ending loop.
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