Heading in to the fall I'm more than ever conscious about my spending. School events, fundraisers, sports, holidays and lots of family birthdays are coming up! Perfect timing that my church is starting a money series all about Godly budgeting, spending and saving and I've never been more excited for a sermon. Dave Ramsey is actually coming this weekend to speak as the church is starting Financial Peace courses. I have a love/hate relationship with Dave. Some things I agree with and others I don't, however if you are in debt there is no doubt his method works. It helped Alex and I pay off $45,000 in 3 years. I recommend reading Total Money Makeover if you are interested!
Today I'm sharing what we spent on eating out and clothing in August. I'm thinking of switching these spending categories. If you have a separate category you would like me to cover in the future let me know! Maybe home decor? Home maintenance? Entertainment? Or maybe a specific money topic?
EATING OUT
Spent: $973
I thought we would be getting in to more of a schedule once school started....WRONG! Turner started little league baseball and it has really thrown our schedule off. I'm sure my sis is rolling here eyes at this...haha! She has 5 girls and they are all very active in extracurricular activities so I can't imagine what her weekly schedule looks like. Turner has two practices a week from 5:30-7pm twice a week and then a game. These nights we're usually eating out. I feel bad eating out so often, but then again the convenience is a life saver and not having to cook or clean up a kitchen saves my sanity.
Alex has been eating semi-keto lately so a lot of nights he's pretty much cooking a steak for himself. We've found the individual HEB pre-packaged individual meals in the deli area super convenient. Anyone else have a family member who eats a completely different meal?
SAVING TIP: We frequent Chick-fil-A at least once a week and use their app at every check out. Simply download the free app and scan for points. I usually get around 100-250 points per transaction
(the more you order the more points your rewarded). 250 points gets me a large sweet tea, 500 points will get me a chicken sandwich! Definitely adds up and makes me come back for more ; )
CLOTHING:
Spent: $438
Spent about $200 more than I usually do in a month but I did what I usually do before I go on vacation...buy new clothes. Here's what I bought:
- Gap Utility Jacket
- Gap Cheeky Jeans (these are my new favorite and comes in lots of washes)
- Gap Plaid Flannel Shirt
- Gap Camo Chinos
- Madewell V-neck tee (green and gray)
- Target Pleated Skirt
We bought Turner a Nolan Ryan baseball cap at the Round Rock Express game, and I hit up the Dillard's Summer Sale and spent almost $200 on shirts and shorts for Alex. He rarely shops, and we usually hit up Dillard's twice a year for his clothes.
Gifted Items:
Joules Kid's Clothing
Hanna Andersson Gift Card ($60) - Saving for potential Christmas jammies
OZ Naturals Facial products
Photos by Madeline Harper Photography | Location: Woodbine Mansion
It's about that time of the year when I start thinking about Christmas budgeting. If you're a Dave Ramsey fan you've heard him say it over and over again. "It's no surprise! Christmas comes the SAME time EVERY year yet millions of Americans go in to debt to buy Christmas presents." When Alex and I use to do the cash envelope system we would put aside cash every month for Christmas (usually $50-$100). These days we don't save specifically for it but in my mind I know the range of what I want to spend. We are not extravagant gift givers, but still probably spend about $1,000 on family and kids. As someone who LOVES gift giving, it's hard to not buy everything but sticking to budget is extremely important. My advice is to write out each person you plan on giving a gift to. Don't forget co-workers, white elephant with friends, teacher gifts, and school holiday parties. Put an amount for each person and add it up. Keep that total in mind, and start brainstorming gifts within that budget. Shop now for good deals and sales.
Thanks for following along and happy saving and conscious spending!
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