| TOTAL INCOME | $ 43,992.00 | $ 3,666.00 | $ 1,692.00 | $ 1,853.62 | $ 1,812.38 |
| Yearly total | Monthly | Average biweekly | Actual | Difference | |
| INCOME TAX | |||||
| taxes, work | $ 2,710.24 | $ 225.85 | $ 104.24 | $ 113.54 | $ 112.31 |
| NET INCOME | $ 41,281.76 | $ 3,440.15 | $ 1,587.76 | $ 1,740.08 | $ 1,700.07 |
| CHARITY 10-15% | |||||
| fast offering | $ 719.94 | $ 60.00 | $ 27.69 | $ 60.00 | $ (0.00) |
| tithing | $ 4,399.20 | $ 366.60 | $ 169.20 | $ 185.36 | $ 181.24 |
| SAVINGS 5-10% | |||||
| emergency fund | $ - | $ - | $ - | $ - | $ - |
| kids savings | $ 57.20 | $ 4.77 | $ 2.20 | $ 1.10 | $ 3.67 |
| retirement | $ 1,319.76 | $ 109.98 | $ 50.76 | $ 54.41 | $ 55.57 |
| HOUSING 25-35% | |||||
| dream home | $ - | $ - | $ - | $ 16.52 | $ (16.52) |
| homeowner's insurance (Jan) | $ 503.00 | $ 41.92 | $ 19.35 | $ - | $ 41.92 |
| Household improvement/ repair | $ 139.88 | $ 11.66 | $ 5.38 | $ 32.59 | $ (20.93) |
| real estate tax, county (Jun and Dec) | $ 1,210.40 | $ 100.87 | $ 46.55 | $ - | $ 100.87 |
| real estate tax, town (Dec) | $ 180.70 | $ 15.06 | $ 6.95 | $ - | $ 15.06 |
| UTILITIES 5-10% | |||||
| internet | $ 251.40 | $ 20.95 | $ 9.67 | $ - | $ 20.95 |
| phone- cell | $ 251.68 | $ 20.97 | $ 9.68 | $ 11.28 | $ 9.69 |
| phone- home | $ 189.12 | $ 15.76 | $ 7.27 | $ - | $ 15.76 |
| power | $ 2,174.90 | $ 181.24 | $ 83.65 | $ 116.37 | $ 64.87 |
| water& trash (odd months) | $ 1,288.56 | $ 107.38 | $ 49.56 | $ - | $ 107.38 |
| FOOD 5-15% | |||||
| groceries | $ 4,212.00 | $ 351.00 | $ 162.00 | $ 158.09 | $ 192.91 |
| TRANSPORTATION 10-15% | |||||
| car insurance (Jan and Jul) | $ 451.66 | $ 37.64 | $ 17.37 | $ - | $ 37.64 |
| gasoline- buick | $ 767.42 | $ 63.95 | $ 29.52 | $ 21.93 | $ 42.02 |
| gasoline- van | $ 973.54 | $ 81.13 | $ 37.44 | $ 32.14 | $ 48.99 |
| registration, buick | $ 39.42 | $ 3.28 | $ 1.52 | $ - | $ 3.28 |
| registration, van | $ 44.42 | $ 3.70 | $ 1.71 | $ - | $ 3.70 |
| repair, maintain, and replace | $ 218.92 | $ 18.24 | $ 8.42 | $ - | $ 18.24 |
| taxes, property- county (Dec) | $ 107.26 | $ 8.94 | $ 4.13 | $ - | $ 8.94 |
| taxes, property-town (Dec) | $ 84.86 | $ 7.07 | $ 3.26 | $ - | $ 7.07 |
| CLOTHING 2-7% | |||||
| me | $ 14.30 | $ 1.19 | $ 0.55 | $ - | $ 1.19 |
| kids | $ 34.06 | $ 2.84 | $ 1.31 | $ - | $ 2.84 |
| husband | $ 23.40 | $ 1.95 | $ 0.90 | $ - | $ 1.95 |
| MEDICAL 5-10% | |||||
| health care | $ 2,600.00 | $ 216.67 | $ 100.00 | $ 344.93 | $ (128.26) |
| health insurance | $ 5,994.30 | $ 499.53 | $230.55 | $ 230.55 | $ 268.98 |
| PERSONAL 5-10% | |||||
| Christmas | $ 16.12 | $ 1.34 | $ 0.62 | $ - | $ 1.34 |
| gifts | $ 8.06 | $ 0.67 | $ 0.31 | $ - | $ 0.67 |
| personal, me | $ 15.34 | $ 1.28 | $ 0.59 | $ 1.02 | $ 0.26 |
| personal, kids | $ 149.76 | $ 12.48 | $ 5.76 | $ 0.70 | $ 11.78 |
| personal, husband | $ 173.68 | $ 14.47 | $ 6.68 | $ - | $ 14.47 |
| pets | $ 676.00 | $ 56.33 | $ 26.00 | $ 41.29 | $ 15.04 |
| work | $ 0.78 | $ 0.07 | $ 0.03 | $ 5.98 | $ (5.92) |
| RECREATION 5-10% | |||||
| entertainment | $ 15.34 | $ 1.28 | $ 0.59 | $ - | $ 1.28 |
| vacation | $ 87.10 | $ 7.26 | $ 3.35 | $ - | $ 7.26 |
| disney | $ 1,300.00 | $ 108.33 | $ 50.00 | $ 50.00 | $ 58.33 |
| DEBT 5-10% | |||||
| my student loans | $ 573.24 | $ 47.77 | $ 22.05 | $ - | $ 47.77 |
| husband's student loans | $ 896.04 | $ 74.67 | $ 34.46 | $ - | $ 74.67 |
| husband's student loans extra | $ 9,076.86 | $ 756.41 | $ 349.11 | $ 376.11 | $ 380.30 |
| NET SPENDING | $ 41,239.61 | $ 3,436.63 | $ 1,586.14 | $ 1,740.37 | $ 1,696.26 |
| DIFFERENCE | $ 42.15 | $ 3.51 | $ 1.62 | $ (0.29) |
Saturday, October 10, 2015
Budget update
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Budget category explanation: food
For such a small line, this category can sure warrant an explanation! I separate our budget for groceries from eating out. I consider eating out as part of the entertainment category, as it is purely a discretionary item, but food is not.
As I mentioned in the Housing category post, I include household supplies in with our food budget. This includes anything "consumable" like paper towels, toilet paper, diapers and wipes, first aid supplies, laundry and cleaning supplies, etc.
Our youngest is still in diapers, but we use cloth diapers during the day, so we usually only go through about one small pack of diapers per month for overnight use.
Our food budget, to be transparent, is padded a bit by the WIC program. We receive some food (milk, produce, peanut butter, cheese, eggs, juice, cereal, bread, and beans) that is paid for by WIC. Definitely not as much as we use, I have to buy additional, but it helps us afford more of the healthy foods our family needs. The value is approximately $60 each month. Our kids age out of the program when they turn five, so we'll be down to one child on WIC when my oldest daughter turns five next month, and our grocery budget will be going up.
I cook from scratch a lot. Probably the processed food we eat the most is cereal, but usually only when we're crunched for time. My husband eats it a lot when he has to leave for work early, and we probably eat it once a week for breakfast, and other times for snacks.
I keep our budget in check by using coupons (especially for household supplies) and limiting myself to a price of no more than 99 cents a pound for produce and $1.99 a pound for meat. Probably about half our protein comes from beans and eggs (we get lots of free eggs from a friend that brings them to church each Sunday).
Our grocery budget is pretty much the only category I use cash for. If I do pay for it in another way, I take out an equivalent amount of cash from that week's stash and lay it aside for the next week. Before I take out cash the next week, I first subtract whatever I charged to a card, so I'm not spending more than my budget. I've really found that cash has kept me within budget a lot better than using a card, because I am constantly tempted to spend more than I've budgeted, especially if I see a really good deal, but it's not a good deal if I don't have the money to pay for it. If I run out of money, I go home, end of story.
I used to go grocery shopping every two weeks to conserve on gas, but I've found that going once a week is easier for me to stay within budget, because I am more certain to buy the things we really need, and if I can't afford something semi- necessary, it's not hard to wait a week for it and make do with what we have at home. I do stock up when well- used items go on sale, so I have a good pantry to work from in a pinch.
As I mentioned in the Housing category post, I include household supplies in with our food budget. This includes anything "consumable" like paper towels, toilet paper, diapers and wipes, first aid supplies, laundry and cleaning supplies, etc.
Our youngest is still in diapers, but we use cloth diapers during the day, so we usually only go through about one small pack of diapers per month for overnight use.
Our food budget, to be transparent, is padded a bit by the WIC program. We receive some food (milk, produce, peanut butter, cheese, eggs, juice, cereal, bread, and beans) that is paid for by WIC. Definitely not as much as we use, I have to buy additional, but it helps us afford more of the healthy foods our family needs. The value is approximately $60 each month. Our kids age out of the program when they turn five, so we'll be down to one child on WIC when my oldest daughter turns five next month, and our grocery budget will be going up.
I cook from scratch a lot. Probably the processed food we eat the most is cereal, but usually only when we're crunched for time. My husband eats it a lot when he has to leave for work early, and we probably eat it once a week for breakfast, and other times for snacks.
I keep our budget in check by using coupons (especially for household supplies) and limiting myself to a price of no more than 99 cents a pound for produce and $1.99 a pound for meat. Probably about half our protein comes from beans and eggs (we get lots of free eggs from a friend that brings them to church each Sunday).
Our grocery budget is pretty much the only category I use cash for. If I do pay for it in another way, I take out an equivalent amount of cash from that week's stash and lay it aside for the next week. Before I take out cash the next week, I first subtract whatever I charged to a card, so I'm not spending more than my budget. I've really found that cash has kept me within budget a lot better than using a card, because I am constantly tempted to spend more than I've budgeted, especially if I see a really good deal, but it's not a good deal if I don't have the money to pay for it. If I run out of money, I go home, end of story.
I used to go grocery shopping every two weeks to conserve on gas, but I've found that going once a week is easier for me to stay within budget, because I am more certain to buy the things we really need, and if I can't afford something semi- necessary, it's not hard to wait a week for it and make do with what we have at home. I do stock up when well- used items go on sale, so I have a good pantry to work from in a pinch.
Thursday, October 1, 2015
October's challenge!
How did you do on September's saving water challenge? I feel like we did fairly well, though only the bill will tell. Watch it be higher- haha! It at least made me more aware of where we tend to waste water (like not monitoring how long our 9 year old has been in the shower...)
October's challenge for our family is saving electricity! Feel free to join us and see how much you can save on your power bill! All of our excess is going into our dream home fund- what is it you are dreaming about to put money towards?
October's challenge for our family is saving electricity! Feel free to join us and see how much you can save on your power bill! All of our excess is going into our dream home fund- what is it you are dreaming about to put money towards?
Budget update- Final numbers for September!
| TOTAL INCOME | $ 43,992.00 | $ 3,666.00 | $ 1,692.00 | $ 4,240.53 | $ (574.53) |
| Yearly total | Monthly | Average biweekly | Actual | Difference | |
| INCOME TAX | |||||
| taxes, work | $ 2,710.24 | $ 225.85 | $ 104.24 | $ 259.84 | $ (33.99) |
| NET INCOME | $ 41,281.76 | $ 3,440.15 | $ 1,587.76 | $ 3,980.69 | $ (540.54) |
| CHARITY 10-15% | |||||
| fast offering | $ 719.94 | $ 60.00 | $ 27.69 | $ 60.00 | $ (0.00) |
| tithing | $ 4,399.20 | $ 366.60 | $ 169.20 | $ 424.05 | $ (57.45) |
| SAVINGS 5-10% | |||||
| emergency fund | $ - | $ - | $ - | $ - | $ - |
| kids savings | $ 54.60 | $ 4.55 | $ 2.10 | $ 5.25 | $ (0.70) |
| retirement | $ 1,319.76 | $ 109.98 | $ 50.76 | $ 121.67 | $ (11.69) |
| HOUSING 25-35% | |||||
| dream home | $ - | $ - | $ - | $ 1.84 | $ (1.84) |
| homeowner's insurance (Jan) | $ 503.00 | $ 41.92 | $ 19.35 | $ - | $ 41.92 |
| Household improvement/ repair | $ 131.56 | $ 10.96 | $ 5.06 | $ - | $ 10.96 |
| real estate tax, county (Jun and Dec) | $ 1,210.40 | $ 100.87 | $ 46.55 | $ - | $ 100.87 |
| real estate tax, town (Dec) | $ 180.70 | $ 15.06 | $ 6.95 | $ - | $ 15.06 |
| UTILITIES 5-10% | |||||
| internet | $ 251.40 | $ 20.95 | $ 9.67 | $ 20.95 | $ - |
| phone- cell | $ 251.68 | $ 20.97 | $ 9.68 | $ 27.31 | $ (6.34) |
| phone- home | $ 189.12 | $ 15.76 | $ 7.27 | $ 15.76 | $ - |
| power | $ 2,174.90 | $ 181.24 | $ 83.65 | $ 131.60 | $ 49.64 |
| water& trash (odd months) | $ 1,288.56 | $ 107.38 | $ 49.56 | $ 214.60 | $ (107.22) |
| FOOD 5-15% | |||||
| groceries | $ 4,212.00 | $ 351.00 | $ 162.00 | $ 331.53 | $ 19.47 |
| TRANSPORTATION 10-15% | |||||
| car insurance (Jan and Jul) | $ 451.66 | $ 37.64 | $ 17.37 | $ - | $ 37.64 |
| gasoline- buick | $ 810.94 | $ 67.58 | $ 31.19 | $ 86.57 | $ (18.99) |
| gasoline- van | $ 1,028.74 | $ 85.73 | $ 39.57 | $ 71.51 | $ 14.22 |
| registration, buick | $ 39.42 | $ 3.28 | $ 1.52 | $ - | $ 3.28 |
| registration, van | $ 44.42 | $ 3.70 | $ 1.71 | $ - | $ 3.70 |
| repair, maintain, and replace | $ 205.66 | $ 17.14 | $ 7.91 | $ 191.77 | $ (174.63) |
| taxes, property- county (Dec) | $ 107.26 | $ 8.94 | $ 4.13 | $ - | $ 8.94 |
| taxes, property-town (Dec) | $ 84.86 | $ 7.07 | $ 3.26 | $ - | $ 7.07 |
| CLOTHING 2-7% | |||||
| me | $ 13.52 | $ 1.13 | $ 0.52 | $ - | $ 1.13 |
| kids | $ 31.98 | $ 2.67 | $ 1.23 | $ - | $ 2.67 |
| husband | $ 21.84 | $ 1.82 | $ 0.84 | $ 26.45 | $ (24.63) |
| MEDICAL 5-10% | |||||
| health care | $ 2,600.00 | $ 216.67 | $ 100.00 | $ 196.39 | $ 20.28 |
| health insurance | $ 5,994.30 | $ 499.53 | $230.55 | $ 461.10 | $ 38.42 |
| PERSONAL 5-10% | |||||
| Christmas | $ 15.08 | $ 1.26 | $ 0.58 | $ - | $ 1.26 |
| gifts | $ 7.80 | $ 0.65 | $ 0.30 | $ (40.00) | $ 40.65 |
| personal, me | $ 14.30 | $ 1.19 | $ 0.55 | $ - | $ 1.19 |
| personal, kids | $ 140.66 | $ 11.72 | $ 5.41 | $ 23.39 | $ (11.67) |
| personal, husband | $ 163.54 | $ 13.63 | $ 6.29 | $ 15.00 | $ (1.37) |
| pets | $ 676.00 | $ 56.33 | $ 26.00 | $ 35.47 | $ 20.86 |
| work | $ 0.78 | $ 0.07 | $ 0.03 | $ 448.02 | $ (447.96) |
| RECREATION 5-10% | |||||
| entertainment | $ 14.30 | $ 1.19 | $ 0.55 | $ - | $ 1.19 |
| vacation | $ 81.64 | $ 6.80 | $ 3.14 | $ - | $ 6.80 |
| disney | $ 1,300.00 | $ 108.33 | $ 50.00 | $ 100.00 | $ 8.33 |
| DEBT 5-10% | |||||
| my student loans | $ 573.24 | $ 47.77 | $ 22.05 | $ 47.77 | $ - |
| husband's student loans | $ 896.04 | $ 74.67 | $ 34.46 | $ 74.67 | $ - |
| husband's student loans extra | $ 9,076.86 | $ 756.41 | $ 349.11 | $ 864.72 | $ (108.32) |
| NET SPENDING | $ 41,281.65 | $ 3,440.14 | $ 1,587.76 | $ 3,957.39 | $ (517.25) |
| DIFFERENCE | $ 0.11 | $ 0.01 | $ 0.00 | $ 23.30 |
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