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I was looking at bills for this payday and figured how much we should have left over each month. We have not been saving anything! So I went and looked at our spending for May. Oh my gosh!
We spent $319 on eating out.
$616 at Walmart/Albertson's for Grocery and dh eating out during his graveyard shift.
$95 at Target. I am sure the Target spending is not food. I know I bought little dd panties and a potty seat.
We spent $289 on gas. I filled my van twice($112) The rest is dh commuting to work.
We spend $1875 on bills (House, 2nd mortgage, one car payment, car insurance,cell phone, and utilities)
And the list the list goes on. We ended up over spending by $700 last month.
So I really need to buckle down and watch our spending more. I admit it has been hard with being sick. I don't make it out to the store regularly and so we eat out more. Or we run to the store for one meal at a time, plus we always throw in a few extra wants.
So I called dh tonight and told him we really need to make some changes. He listened and agreed. Then he ended the conversation by saying "I'm going to grab me something to eat tonight." I said "can't you come home and get something."
He called me back and he is coming home to get the pizza in the freezer.
So I am sure I will be reading more in this part of the message board and getting some ideas to save some money.
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It is amazing how all of those purchases really add up. It's been awhile but I need to go through and do this myself. Ugh!
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the first step is that you actually put it on paper and saw what was happening cause you can't change it unless you see it.!! good luck you can do it!
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I am so proud of you for writing everything down. I just installed Quicken 07 onto my computer and am going to sit down this weekend and take control of our spending. It is so easy to overspend these days and I know that we are right now but not sure where. I know that you can get control over your spending just like I can. It's all about discipline and knowing where your money is going.
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It's so amazing howquickly things add up. The first time I did that we spent over 700 eating out! And that didnt include the grocery store. And that was it for us we started a budget for everything. We are much better now! I don't even miss going to the resturants anymore, it's easier staying home and cooking, especially with the kids.
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Originally Posted by Schmare528
It's so amazing howquickly things add up. The first time I did that we spent over 700 eating out! And that didnt include the grocery store. And that was it for us we started a budget for everything. We are much better now! I don't even miss going to the resturants anymore, it's easier staying home and cooking, especially with the kids.
I totally agree about staying home being easier. All we have to do is go out once with all three kids and that "cures" us of wanting to eat out for a long time!