Why did I fall off the budget wagon?
Should a family finances writer practice what she preaches?
I espoused the benefits of envelope budgeting in my first article as the family finances editor at Suite101.com and I am convinced the system creates more careful and conscientious spenders.
That doesn't mean I am one of them.
Oh, I'm careful about spending and I do have a family budget, albeit a slightly fuzzy, fluid and forgiving one. I know from my past experience with Microsoft Money (it came with the computer--I'm too cheap to actually purchase a software budgeting program) that we spend between $500 and $600 a month on groceries for a family of four. Clothing averages about $25 to $30 a month due to very generous grandparents and my sharp eye at thrift stores and garage sales. The amorphous "household" category--cleaning supplies, toilet paper, leaf bags--runs around $80 or so.
But I don't keep to a hard-and-fast budget, and perhaps I should. It's been about a year since I've tracked every purchase on the computer and I think I know why. Merely keeping tabs on every expense is enough to make anyone spend less. I grew sloppy with my record-keeping and became less willing to hound my considerably less frugal husband for every receipt. My credit card found its way out of my wallet more and more frequently.
Perhaps writing about family finances will encourage me to get back on the budgeting wagon. Now do I really need that double espresso on the way to pick up the kids from school?
