The spending freeze is here and I’m super excited!  Your task today, if you haven’t already done it, is to set a budget for the month.  Here are some tips:

1.  Budget every dollar of income you have, even if it ends up in a misc. or savings category.  Every dollar must have a name (or it will get lost.)

2.  Make a new budget for every month.  You can reference your old budgets as a guide, but each month comes with it’s own unique set of circumstances.

3.  If you are married: One spouse in the house can make the rough draft of the budget, but the other spouse needs to look at it and have freedom to make changes.  It will only work if both spouses agree.

4.  Plan monthly for big annual expenses like Christmas, Property Taxes, and insurance.

5.  If your husband doesn’t like to budget, check out this post.

We funded every category in our budget this month, but my household, misc., clothing, and blow money categories are going in the safe instead of my purse this month.  If we have a genuine need, I can get the money, but it won’t be easy.  At the end of hte month, whatever is left can go towards our goals.

Dave Ramsey has a great cash flow plan, that gives suggestions for budget categories and percentages of total income.  It’s just a rough guide, but will help you think if you get stuck.