1. We tend to give way over budget each month. And we simply haven’t figured out how to curb that and feel good about it. ::snort::

2. We are debt free, have established an emergency fund….but with 9 children (2 working for a ministry - read doesn’t pay real well), 1 in college, 7 at home….we aren’t putting a thing aside for retirement….and Mike will retrie from the miltary in about 8 years.

We keep plodding away. We are scheduled for another “budget planning session” “soon”….I think the main thing is to get husband and wife on the same page - one goal and then attack it.

Oh Tax “refunds”, economic stimulus packages could probably wipe out that 5K debt and then you could save for that computer and have it in no time…..or we’ve been known to designate say 5 - 10% of such returns for something like a laptop and then put the rest on debt or savings. I suspect this year it will go to 1. a new commuter car or 2. retirement investments.

Gods grows us much in this area. I’ve begun to wonder if my “giving” has become a, well - hmm, a sort of substitute for the out of control spending I had 14 years ago……something to ponder and pray about. I have a really hard time budgeting “giving” - and obviously Mike does the same thing. LOL

We’ve been in a similar situation many times through the years. We dig out and end back in the hole. Looking back, we’ve realized that it is the credit card mentality that got us. Instead of living off of what we actually make, we live in the future. Buy now because we “need” it now and then count on future earnings. Of course this never works because the unexpected always happens and we have no money and have to charge that, too. In my mind there is nothing more defeating than paying interest each month on things that have already worn out or lost interest or been digested!

We are currently out of credit card debt (thank you, tax return) and our goal this year is not to use our credit card at all. We are trying to live on what is in the bank only. We set aside as much for savings as we can each month to build up a reserve for sure to come emergencies.

We would LOVE a laptop and it is so tempting just to go and get one. But, there goes that mentality again. Buy today and trust that in the future somehow the money will magically be there.

So we’ll wait on that one a while longer until there is more of a “cushion” in the savings. we won’t be using next year’s tax return to pay off our credit cards so maybe then:)

Blessings to you and your family as you sort it all through. It’s a lot of work, but you’ll get there.

you and kathy are the best! keep up the good work.

OK, one more thing - you should only follow one leader - choose one of the avenues mentioned by others, but don’t try to pick and choose the things you like from one and try to combine it with another — follow one path and only after following that path for awhile, will you know if it works for you.

Have A Great Day!
Kristin

Now about the needs part. Since we were paying off the debt with debt paying money we still had a small savings accruing (sp) for our needs and used that to pay for car repairs, new computers etc. We pay everything cash now. We have no credit cards but we do pay a car note which will be done in a few months and we are looking to buy a home (rent now) which we have been saving for.

We don’t try to become super rich or anything just be good stewards of what God has blessed us with. We tithe first to Him and He sees to our needs. Sometimes what we think we need we don’t and He shows us another way.

My husband and I used to be terrible with money. Several years ago we decided to really buckle down and get a handle on our finances. We canceled all our credit cards, and closed out Brad’s separate bank account.

I made a list of all regular bills and when they are due, and also a list of things we needed to put aside money for. Based on how often and how much Brad got paid, I simply used a calculator and divided his paycheck accordingly.

The next step was to really get a concrete idea of how much money we really had. When you put all your money into electronic accounts and such, it becomes a very vague notion, and therefore easier to overspend. So rather than deposit his paycheck, Brad began to cash it.

He would bring the cash home to me, and I would literally sort it into the various piles I had worked out for our budget. I would work out how much money actually needed to go into the bank to pay bills, and would deposit only that amount. The rest I would sort into various labelled envelopes. We always saved 10%, which we converted into gold bullion to increase its value.

If we had a medical or vehicular emergency, we would draw it from this savings. If we wanted something, like a new computer, we would spend a lot of time discussing and researching it, finding the best price, then either save for it separately (by creating a new envelope for it) or also take that out of savings if we felt it was important enough.

So if I had debt, I would consider those bills separate from savings and wants, but I’d give each equal attention. Paying off debt and saving money is a lot more palatable if you are also not neglecting yourself.

Once we started adopting, we realized we had to stay out of debt as much as possible…adoptions are not cheap. Instead of getting a newer car, we adopt again!

If we do get in debt, we pay it off as soon as we can. Any money windfalls, tax returns, overtime, gifts or refunds, would go toward debt reduction.

We have a small, normal savings account that is our emergency fun. We use this for things like appliances breaking.

The biggest advantage we have going for us is that we don’t tend to be spenders. I do not enjoy shopping like most women I know. I would rather go to the garden center than clothes shopping. I only go to WalMart about once a month. Any money we have extra goes for doing things rather than accummulating things. We like to camp and do things like that.

I have been enjoying the answers you are getting. I’m sure we could all use help in this area.

I just finished reading “The Treasure Principal” by Randy Alcorn and it has a lot of wonderful insight for such a little book. I would recommend it.

Aunt Kate