Our goal in 2011 is to get out of debt and start building wealth. We have been taking Dave Ramsey’s Financial Freedom course and have been really motivated to be more purposeful with our money.
If you have been following our adventure so far, you know about the ups and downs that we have been facing, from unexpected expenses to accounting groceries down to the penny. march was our first full month working with a zero-based budget, and I am happy to say that not only did we get through it but we actually spent less in some areas than what we allowed on the budget.
For example, we originally budgeted $150 for eating out for the month but spent only $65 and also had about $34 left over from our grocery budget. We did spend more on household projects because we had to buy some new trim for the basement all at once or it wouldn’t match. To remedy this, we are deducting that extra bit from April’s household projects budget.
In addition, God blessed me with the opportunity to work some extra hours this month. While that was pretty tough and there is no way that I or my family could keep that up long term, it will give us a few extra dollars to put toward our emergency fund and our car payment. I have to emphasize that I do not recommend working 10-hour days when you have no child care or house cleaning service! The whole family had to pull together for that one. But I’m glad that I was able to do it. Now that I am back to my regular hours, I feel like I am on vacation!
We really pulled out all of the stops this month: the extra work, some creative dinners, accounting for each dollar we spent, using what we already have and just being so committed to our goals. I’m really proud of us and what we have accomplished this past month.
Related Articles:
Getting Out of Debt: It Begins
Getting Out of Debt: The Zero Based Budget and the CSA