13 Apr
I am Starting to Believe
There is a moment in the Polar Express, after a movieful of skepticism, when The Boy holds a bell from Santa’s sleigh in his hand, gives it a shake and finally hears its jingle. It is the wonder immediately following the birth of belief. Whether it’s the spirit of Santa Claus, true love, or a working written budget, there is magic in the moment where one believes.
This week marks the end of our second month on a written budget. Budget committee meetings are getting easier. Communication between The Wife and me is better than ever. I am starting to look back on how we lived the first ten years of our married financial life with regret and awe.
Even the day The Wife came home from the grocery store with a receipt that read $120 when we had budgeted $60 for groceries can’t compare to life without a plan (I’ll let her write about that one if she wants to).
My moment of belief came last Sunday night at FPU class when the coordinater asked if anyone had a milestone to share with the rest of class. The Wife’s hand went up and I looked at her with raised eyebrows. I had no idea what she was about to say. We hadn’t paid off anything new, gotten any new income, or had anything financial happen that I could think of.
“We are sending $1,000 to our smallest debt this month!”, she said. What? We are?
I pulled out the budget, which I originally wrote, mind you, and she was right. I hadn’t even registered it. Earn as much as possible, allocate everything one must, squeeze out the fat, then put the rest on the smallest debt, right? That’s what we did, however emotionally I hadn’t connected with the numbers that were on that paper.
Everything is current. Everything. The mortage for April was paid on time (haven’t done that in months), minimums are paid on all debts, and we are sending $1,000 extra to the smallest one.
Holy crap.
This stuff isn’t a joke. It’s not a myth. It’s not even really magical, although today I feel like it is. Living financially on-paper, on-purpose in lock-step with one’s spouse can be done, and the peace when I go to bed at night is tangible.
I think I can hear that bell jingle, my friends. I really do.
the Dad
Posted by Granny on 04/13/09 at 2:24 pm
Mazel tov! Congratulations! Hallelujah!!!!!
Posted by Dustin on 04/14/09 at 5:09 am
Congrats!
It gets easier and easier…. You have officially changed your life when you come to that point of deep sacrifice for the sake of future winning. Keep hard at it!
Posted by Suzanne on 04/14/09 at 8:18 am
i’m new to your blog – love it! – and just starting dr – empowering! – but can’t seem to get my food budget under control – help! we are a family of four (me: 43, hubby: 42, boys: 17 and 10), and i’m spending about $600 – $700 each month (this includes pet food: dog & cat, and toiletries). all of the budget spreadsheets say this is too much! any suggestions? thanks – suzanne
Posted by the Dad on 04/14/09 at 10:00 am
Hi, Suzanne. I will defer to The Wife, but can offer a few thoughts of my own on this. Our food budget is $400/mo. No dog, one cat, lots of beans-and-rice (and by that I mean simple, homemade meals).
If you are a subscriber, the “Budget Living” forum on TMMO.com has helpful tips as does Trent at The Simple Dollar and Frugal Dad for free.
For toiletries Southern Savers has a great guide to saving at your local drugstore.
Hope that helps!
Posted by Danielle on 04/15/09 at 12:32 pm
YAY Great job! I’m so happy for you guys!
Posted by Catroorda on 04/17/09 at 9:20 am
Hi, ClimbingOut! I read your blogs regularly now. I always look forward to the stories you tell so well. This post made me tear up. Ring those bells, my friend!