April Budget

Well, this month was even more painful!  Here is how we did....

Savings Goal:
$500/month of Victor's usual monthly income (2 paychecks)

Total Savings in April:
$180 :(

Costs:

Food:
Over $130 -- This is due to the fact that I ordered 3 months worth of grass fed ground beef.  It costs about the same as our grocery store lean beef (full price) but you have to order in bulk so that was an additional $80 over normal groceries.

Fixed Costs:
Under $100 -- thanks to lower gas/electric

Entertainment:
Under by $30

Household/Unexpected Costs:
Over the goal by close to $700!! 

What were the big expenses??

MEDICAL costs are killing us at the moment
Total this month was $515!
We have good insurance but it is allergy season so Victor, Erik, and Lainey all saw the doctor at least once plus they are all on Singulair (expensive) and Claritin on a daily basis.
We also had to pay $150 for Victor's new c-pap machine (thanks to the airport employees who "gently" tossed V's bag onto the plane and broke the last one).

We also spent close to $300 on a new mower.

Anticipated expenses next month?

Vehicle registration/driver's license x 2 -- $360 for 2 cars/people
Victor's birthday
Swimming class and gymnastics registration for the kids

We owe the hospital and obstetrician approximately $1100.  We are just going to pay this out of our savings though, rather than try to squeak it in over the next 2 months budget and still try save $500/month.  It would cause me stress to include it in our monthly budget and would probably reduce my grocery list to rice and beans.  We figure hospital bills for a new baby are a reasonable thing to use our savings for!  He is certainly worth it!

How are we doing after 4 months on a budget?

Overall, we are doing well. 

I am happy that we have always spent less than we made and feel we have been spending our money wisely. 

It is a little stressful to be in a position were I feel the need to plan how every dollar is going to be spent before spending it.  I think it is probably a good fiscal policy to live this way but a little frustrating to feel like it is not a choice - after living pretty freely for a number of years!  

I am getting creative at finding fun things to do for free and making sure to get the best deal on things.  It is a sometimes fun to see how many days we can go without spending a penny (never more than 7 since that is how often I get groceries). 

We did get a nice tax return this month so we were able to fund an IRA and add to our minivan fund.