Revisiting your Budget
I have written several posts about budgeting over the past year and a half:
- how to make budgeting work for you
- why do a budget reset?
- budget friendly snacks
- no spend month, how to be successful
- lower your bills
- don’t break the bank at Christmas
These are a few of them. After the past 6 months of not really trying to be thrifty, I decided it was time to get back to my roots of wanting to share more about budgeting in all areas of my life. Now budgeting in my current situation may look different than it looks last year when our income was different but the principles are the same:
- know your income and necessary expenses (bills)
- save every month whether it is $100 or $1000+
- give yourself some “play” money: I find that if I do not allow myself a treat whether it is an outing, some clothes… then I tend to just go a little overboard. Have an amount or item in mind
- see where you can cut expenses whether it is bills or your groceries budget or your miscellaneous spending
- plan ahead (I love using The Budget Mom Budget by Paycheck workbook) so you know what expenses are coming up each pay period.
So my goal for the last 5 months of 2020 is to be conscious of what my food and miscelleaneous spending. I will go back to challenging myself to spend less on groceries (and hopefully sharing some of that on Instagram) and make more snacks to cut on food expenses and I will have a plan for my fun money and not click add to cart at will (that is an exageration but I do want to exercise more self control). And yes, I do have some things I want to buy (which hopefully will resock) during the Nordstrom sale such as these grey Wit and Wisdom Jeans .
Your budget is never a one and done thing: you need to REVISIT it when your circumstances change, when you want to start saving more or spend more in an area. Even though we are not planning any big trips anytime soon, I am still diligently putting money into our vacation savings account, putting cash aside for a anniversary getaway or day outing and saving for Christmas. Of course, we are also putting aside money for the future. Each month looks a little different but I am working on our goals and making adjustments as they are necessary.
A bientôt!
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26 Comments
Jennifer
Great tips! I’ve been trying to budget more!
Jennifer
Curated by Jennifer
mimifce
Good luck!
Lizzie
These are great tips! Budgeting is so important, especially now!
Lizzie
http://www.lizzieinlace.com
mimifce
Yes! It is good to be prepared!
jodie filogomo
You’re right about needing to revisit the budget and sometimes change things. I’ve definitely gotten out of control with my clothes spending with all of the incredible deals lately.
XOXO
Jodie
mimifce
At least it’s because they are good deals, lol!
Carrie @ Curly Crafty Mom
We really need to revisit our budget. We set everything up in Mint, but now we need to see where we’re going overboard and fine tune it. Some extra spending money is always nice!
Carrie
curlycraftymom.com
mimifce
Yes, I always can tell where I need to improve at the end of the month: usually clothing or misc spending.
Lovely
Thanks for sharing the wonderful tips! It’s so important to follow and be consistent with the budget!
xoxo
Lovely
http://mynameislovely.com
mimifce
Being consistent has allowed us to take nice vacations.
Kimberly F Malkiewicz
You are so wise to be aware of your budget. Raising children always comes with its unplanned expenses. Braises, anyone? It’s so nice that we’re leaving the years when we had to care for so many people.
Kimberly F Malkiewicz
Gah! Braces! Too early in the a.m.!
mimifce
lol!
mimifce
Yes, we have one in braces! Thanfully the oldest doesn’t need them. We shall see about the youngest 2 when they get older. What got me this supply list for school was the fancy calculator for the honors math classes: told him, he loses it, he pays for his new one.
Laurie
I’ve found budgeting getting tough with the house renovation. I want to set myself some pocket money aside for a rainy day!
mimifce
Yes! It always costs more than planned, even our small pergola ended up costing more than expected.
heather noire
This is such great advice. I think people need to really learn how to do this sort of thing the right way so they can see a major difference 🙂 http://www.bauchlefashion.com/2020/08/5-reasons-why-i-prefer-smaller-bags_15.html
mimifce
Yes, needs to be a regular occurence.
Amy Johnson
Great advice! Many people had to revisit their budget when covid restrictions hit home.
mimifce
True! Anytime life circumstances changes is a definite must.
Grace
Now that I have a job and big girl expenses, I’m definitely trying to get into budgeting. I thought it would be super easy, but it’s honestly a lot harder than I thought to find a method that works for you! Thank you for these tips!
Miles of smiles,
Grace
gracefulrags.com
mimifce
I really like to use paper and pencil, a calendar and what comes with each pay period. Good luck!
Shelbee on the Edge
I really appreciate your budgeting posts, Mireille. I am the worst at it. Thankfully, my husband does it all. But I really do need to be more diligent with my own personal spending. Thanks for sharing and linking up.
Shelbee
http://www.shelbeeontheedge.com
mimifce
That is where I need to be careful for the rest of the year: having more cashflows has me spending more on clothes and I really do not need more! I have one pair of boots that I would like to replace but I am hoping to stick to only that till the end of the year. Wish me luck!
Kathrine Eldridge
These are really helpful tips! Budgeting is not my strong suit.
https://www.kathrineeldridge.com
mimifce
I am going to be working on my clothes shopping: I have got to cut it out!