I'm the one who 'manages' our money. By this, I mean I stalk (yes, literally stalk) our bank account daily, freak out about overspending in certain areas and make sure bills are paid on time and all balances are favourable. Admittedly, I like it this way but there are times when I wish D wanted to know a bit more about what was going on with our finances. You know, accountability and all that fun stuff.
When I look at what we earn and all our fixed expenses, I am continually floored by where our money goes. Yes, I know I don't NEED that $5.14 latte every.single.morning but I feel like I do in that moment. I've also slacked on taking a lunch, which means eating out (costly AND unhealthy). We tend to eat out a fair bit on weekends and with that means having a drink or two. It all adds up, right? D & I both have indulgences where we can scale back so we're working on those.
Earlier tonight, my friend told me about Mint, which is a free online program that brings all your financial accounts together in one place, categorizes transactions and sets budgets. It's safe, fun (no, really, it's fun!) and FREE. Did I mention it's free? It's so much better than a crappy Excel spreadsheet because it is live and updates every time you sign in. I set everything up tonight and I *think* I've got all our fixed expenses listed. Mint was kind enough to immediately tell me where we've spent too much money this month -- alcohol & bars (oops!), clothing (it's all for M, I swear... and he needs it... change in seasons and all) and groceries (um, yeah... no surprise).
I'm curious to see how this program works for us over the month of October and if it actually pushes us to watch our spending. By our, I mean, me. D & I have set some mini financial goals for the winter -- things we want to accomplish or do around the house -- and at some point, we need a swift kick in the butts to get on the saving train. I'm excited to use this program and look forward to updating at the end of October!
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