Money, Day 12: Spa Day!

This has less to do with money than it does with following up on something from awhile back.  (But there is money stuff at the end, so it’s not a total wash of a post.)

Money, Day 11: Small Windfalls

Whenever you discuss money in Christian circles, you’re going to hear ‘God will Provide’.  I mean, it’s just a given, you need to go in right away and accept it.  You also need to prepare to be told that if you give, God gives back, suggesting that the way to …. sort of buy favor (?) is to tithe properly, I guess?    I know that’s not really the spirit of the thing; it’s a matter of demonstrating trust and the various rewards that come of putting your trust where it counts, and that’s not something I would ever argue with.  But just in terms of practical conversational expectations, you’re going to hear or be told those things.  God will Provide, and If You Tithe, You Will Be Rewarded.   Bring up money in any Christian environment and wait for it, and then say ‘There it is.’, because it will always be there.

Money, Day 10: Down to the Wire

Okay.. I just checked the account.  With about ten days left to the pay period, we are down to a working total of $37.   Granted, that is not including the $67 that is currently snuggled up in our Savings account, but for the sake of, you know, not being ridiculous about this, I’m going to pretend that money isn’t there.  So.  $37… to last a family of six for ten days.

And I plan to have two other families over for Chili on Saturday.  I’m good. >_<

Money, Day 9: Luke’s Birthday

Well, I did pretty well.  Luke’s birthday gifts cost me about $40, and included a little soccer set, two wooden puzzles, two new books, a game, and toy train.   I’m very pleased by this, because that really was a pretty conservative birthday for ME, spendingwise, and yet Luke was very happy with what he got.   At three, of course, he doesn’t exactly have aspirations of Nintendo DSes and Wii games or anything, which definitely makes the going there much easier.. But in the past this wouldn’t have mattered that much to me.  This actually gave me a chance to examine how I handle gift-buying, too, which was sort of educational.

Money, Day 8: Too Much Month at the End of Your Money

Actually, for once, we’re doing semi-okay, given that the month ends on Saturday.   Well, okay..fiscally for ME, it ends next week on Thursday, but still.  I did the grocery shopping today, using a meal plan, and I think I did pretty good.  All of the supplies I need to finish the kids’ Halloween Costumes are bought, the candy and stuff for Trunk or Treat have been paid for, and I really just have groceries and Luke’s Birthday to think about.

Money, Day 7: Relationships Before Money

The Dave Ramsey Bible Study resumed at church today.  (It had started, run for about two weeks, and then had to go on haitus to make way for — ha ha — this year’s Stewardship campaign.)   Since it’s been about four weeks since we met, most of what went on was just recapping what we’d learned and discussing it in small groups.   It was nice, actually, because we were sitting with Cheri and Chris, good friends of mine who struggle just as much with money as we do.  They have six kids, though, so they have a bit more of an excuse than we do.

At one point in the discussion, the question was, “Do you value relationships over money? What would your friends and family say about you in this respect?”

Money, Day 6: Billpay and Lag Time

Okay…if there’s one thing checking my bank balance every day has taught me, it’s that lag times are sort of annoying.  I paid our mortgage this month using the lender’s online bill-pay, which was, admittedly, convenient… however, it’s now been about three days since I did it and my bank has not been notified.   This doesn’t matter much either way; I paid it early, and it’s not due until the 1st, and I already have enough of a grip on my account now that I know the money is there and will continue to be there no matter what. I would just feel better if the account reflected the debit NOW, so I could more definitely assess my current situation and figure out what it means for the rest of the month.

Money, Day 5: Phase 1 Complete!

I guess that’s sort of a silly title, since I’ve never actually set down Phases for this thing.  Until Mel asked, I hadn’t even set down a plan!

So here’s the the plan, complete with phases, as far as my current intentions go:

Money, Day 4: THIEF!!

OMG, I stole $300!

Money, Day 3: Budget

I woke up this morning in a full-on anxiety attack over money.   I’ve been dallying with this stuff for three days now, but I haven’t made any appreciable headway.  This cannot continue.