Budgeting: Weekly Money

I read a bit about Dave Ramsey’s envelope system, and in intrigued me.  I just knew that I wasn’t comfortable getting all our money out in CASH at the beginning of the month.  I’d lose it.  I also worry I’d spend it and then we’d have a real “need” and then I’d just blow it with my ATM card.  I needed that renewing feeling weekly.

Does that make sense?

So I came up with weekly money.  Each week we get out 80 dollars at the grocery store.  I should say, we minus our total from 80.  That means, of course, that my total needs to be less than 80 (which, doesn’t ALWAYS happen, but about 90% of the time it does).  Any extra money goes in my wallet to take care of other necessities of the week.

SO, if the grocery store trip was 50 bucks, I get out 30 and put it in my wallet.  That’s all we have to spend the rest of the week.

We have a few other pots that we use a spread sheet to take care of (see our other budgeting posts), but the main money is our weekly money and that’s what we have to spend each week.  Do the math, that averages 360 for groceries.  We have 3 kids, and as soon as Drew is done with school I REALLY want to bump it to 100.  I would like to buy shrimp more often, and nicer cuts of meat, but for now this will do. {we do have 150 in a Costco budget — so the grand total for groceries really should be just over 600 bucks}

I know this budget isn’t for everyone, and I will admit that the purse strings have been drawn a few times and the budget has gone down (it used to be 100).  I am hopeful the budget can expand at some point.  But the main point is that you need to look at what works for YOU.  Hopefully you make more and you can SPEND more, but you need to decide a realistic number for groceries.  It’s too easy to get out of hand and say you “need” this and you need that.  I only buy things on sale, I stock the pantry and if we’re out of something and I can’t get it at a good price, I don’t use it.  I make something else.

So, would weekly money work for you? For me it’s the fresh slate I get each time I head to the grocery store.  I’m hoping to, at some point, only do grocery store trips every 2 weeks.  I think this will save us money and give us some cash in my wallet for little things that come up, or if we want to go out for dinner.

This is the second my budgeting series.  You can read more here.

I also have a post with an example on how to budget right here!

*I am not putting these budget numbers out there to be “woe is me” or “woo-woo look at me!  We’re rich!” type feeling.  I really think if people were more transparent with their own expenses it might make people re-think what they are doing with theirs.  I am sure we spend more and less then many readers on my blog.  I hope this is helpful to some of you.  I would LOVE to see other people’s.  There’s really no reason that our budgets have to be hush-hush.  I didn’t give you my social security numbers, or how much we actually make — this is just our goal to spend.

Check out my other budgeting posts:

Photos from Dollar Photo Club