vacations on a budget

Vacations...on a budget. It seems counter-intuitive, but even as we try to pay off all our loans we still want to save for vacations.

So, the way that our budget works is this. First, we pay all the things we have to pay. This is rent, utilities, Alex's mortgage, etc. The things we need to live.

Then we have a formula that we apply to any extra income we have. We put a certain percentage (most of it) towards loans, some towards savings, and some towards savings for vacation.

In this way, our vacation fund has grown, little by little! I'm looking forward to a weekend away this month, and we will continue to save towards bigger vacations!

rock climbing on a budget - cont

I described the costs of indoor climbing in my previous post. (That's me, climbing at the indoor gym.)

There are ways to offset this cost, such as getting a membership to the climbing gym, or using a punch card if it is available. The gym I climb at offers a punch card with 20 punches for $220, $10/climb.

It also helps to own the necessary equipment. I have a harness that was given to me when I was in high school, as well as a belay device. I also have a pair of climbing shoes that I purchased a couple years ago.

When I moved to Colorado (2 years ago!) I bought one of the 20-climb punch cards. I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I just used the last punch....

Anyway, I need a new one. Alex and I had a bit of an issue figuring out where the $220 for the card would come from in the budget, since we are really trying not to spend any extra money.

Here is the breakdown of where that money is going to come from:

$120 - Sara's slush fund

$50  - extra food budget

$50  - entertainment budget

We have also decided that I will cut down to climbing once every other week instead of once every week, to make the punch card last longer.

packed lunches

I pack myself a lunch for work everyday, to save money, and to eat a little healthier.

We do have a cafeteria in my work building, but it would cost me about $8/day to eat there. Alternatively, going out somewhere would cost about $10/day. (That's about $40/week in food expense)

My packed lunches cost from $2 - $5, usually closer to the $2 side. This means that I save $30/week by packing a lunch.

When I pack my lunch, I follow this format:

1. A main dish 

     sometimes this is a leftover, sometimes specifically made for lunch, it just depends

2. A diet soda 

     I like diet soda better than regular, and I like the caffeine in the middle of the day

3. A side

     This can range from a piece of fruit like an apple or banana, yogurt, pudding, pretzels, whatever I have in my pantry!

I've found that having these three things will keep me full and I typically enjoy the lunch I pack.

10: budget 101

This post is a continuation of the post 10 ways to reduce your monthly expenses. Here is number ten on the list. I intentionally haven't included an amount we saved with this, because budgeting can help you save a lot, or just better help you reach your goals.

10. Make a budget

I must confess, when we first created a budget for our income/expenses, I was skeptical. I was afraid that it would mean a complete lock down on the money, and absolutely no more fun.

After sitting down and figuring out how much we make and how much we spend on things that must be paid for (electricity, rent, food, etc) helped us get a better grasp on our financial situation. We knew how much leftover income we had after living expenses, and could budget it out based on how much we want to save.

Having a budget for things like going out to eat, seeing movies, etc (what we have categorized as ‘entertainment’) has helped us spend less on them.

Before we made a budget, it wasn’t uncommon for us to spend an extra $400/month and have no idea where it went at the end of the month. It had been spent on the occasional cookie, a cup of coffee every so often, lunch out at work a couple weeks a month, nights out, etc. 

Having the budget also forces us to prioritize what we want to do as far as entertainment goes. It makes us think about if we want to go to breakfast this Saturday morning, or save the money and get a nice dinner next week. It makes spending money very intentional, which is what prevents the huge credit card bills at the end of the month due to impulse buys.

Three easy steps to a budget:

1. Determine total income

2. List all mandatory payments

3. Subtract mandatory payments from income and determine how to allocate extra income

Here is an example of a budget, similar to what Alex and I use. (Remember, this is just an example, things can be added/subtracted based on your life.)

Monthly Income	Income 1	1500
	Income 2	2000
		Budget	Amt Income Left
Expenses	Tithe	350	3150
	Food	200	2950
	Rent/Mortgage	1000	1950
	Couch Payment	50	1900
	Student Loan	70	1830
	Car 1	82	1748
	Car 2	283	1465
	Cell Phone	84	1381
	Insurance	185	1196
	Natural Gas	80	1116
	Internet	53	1063
	Entertainment	150	913
	Cars (Maint + Gas)	150	763
	Savings	500	263
	Other	263	0

Keep in mind that your budget should reflect what is important to you. For example, if saving for a house is a priority, savings should be increased before entertainment.

Happy budgeting!