Dear Friends and Family,
It's been a year since I put our family on a budget. And, I'm glad I did.
There are many memories of last July that seem sad, but they were necessary. I remember partially filling the tank in the car. I remember finding ways to have a fun day with P without spending any money. I remember Mr. mouse eating lots of rice and beans. And, I remember thinking, optimistically, that if we did it for a few short months life would change.
And, it did, but we never went back to the carefree days of never tracking. We have a file I named temporary budget and we still log our daily expenses into it. We have about $200 more a month than when we started this whole exercise last year. And, while $200 might not seem like a lot to a lot of people, it makes a big difference. It means we can splurge a couple of times each month. It means we can fill the gas tank on a regular basis. It means we have steak and sushi sometimes instead of chicken and beans.
The other big thing we did was refill our coffers. We have money set aside for emergencies and for trips and for clothes for P and gifts for Christmas. That's a big difference from last year. So, I suppose we've made progress.
One area I know we should look at is insurance. We have State Farm. And, I feel like we're paying more than we need to for insurance. I asked Mr. mouse to look at some quotes I got last year that would cut our insurance payments in half. It's been a year. When he gripes about our budget, I feel like reminding him that we could find more money in our budget by changing insurance providers. But, I try to refrain from being that person.
The other insurance area I'm debating is my term life insurance. I had term life insurance at old work. And, when I left the insurance provider offered me the option of keeping it at the same rate. I've kept it because I think the money would be useful to Mr. mouse and P if something were to happen to me. But, to be honest, I'm not sure they will need the money. I think we've saved up enough. But, I'm not 100% sure. So, I keep paying the premiums on the term life insurance. But, I'm not sure it's worth it. Perhaps I should put aside the money for it every week instead of letting the lump sum surprise me every three months.
I guess Mr. mouse isn't the only one procrastinating on insurance.
Cheers!
mouse
It's been a year since I put our family on a budget. And, I'm glad I did.
There are many memories of last July that seem sad, but they were necessary. I remember partially filling the tank in the car. I remember finding ways to have a fun day with P without spending any money. I remember Mr. mouse eating lots of rice and beans. And, I remember thinking, optimistically, that if we did it for a few short months life would change.
And, it did, but we never went back to the carefree days of never tracking. We have a file I named temporary budget and we still log our daily expenses into it. We have about $200 more a month than when we started this whole exercise last year. And, while $200 might not seem like a lot to a lot of people, it makes a big difference. It means we can splurge a couple of times each month. It means we can fill the gas tank on a regular basis. It means we have steak and sushi sometimes instead of chicken and beans.
The other big thing we did was refill our coffers. We have money set aside for emergencies and for trips and for clothes for P and gifts for Christmas. That's a big difference from last year. So, I suppose we've made progress.
One area I know we should look at is insurance. We have State Farm. And, I feel like we're paying more than we need to for insurance. I asked Mr. mouse to look at some quotes I got last year that would cut our insurance payments in half. It's been a year. When he gripes about our budget, I feel like reminding him that we could find more money in our budget by changing insurance providers. But, I try to refrain from being that person.
The other insurance area I'm debating is my term life insurance. I had term life insurance at old work. And, when I left the insurance provider offered me the option of keeping it at the same rate. I've kept it because I think the money would be useful to Mr. mouse and P if something were to happen to me. But, to be honest, I'm not sure they will need the money. I think we've saved up enough. But, I'm not 100% sure. So, I keep paying the premiums on the term life insurance. But, I'm not sure it's worth it. Perhaps I should put aside the money for it every week instead of letting the lump sum surprise me every three months.
I guess Mr. mouse isn't the only one procrastinating on insurance.
Cheers!
mouse
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment