Budgeting

There is nothing like seeing a child’s eyes light up on Christmas morning when they discover all the presents that have appeared beneath the tree. At our house that feeling is just finally getting to the place where it is in full swing. We have three daughters, an almost 5 year old, a 2 year old, and an infant. The older two girls know enough to be excited, and are still not to the age where the things they ask for have begun to dramatically climb in price. Some of you remember those days. Some of you are living them now.

Often we lack the confidence to move out of the rut we are in and explore new ways of thinking. Thinking differently usually results in acting differently. When we act differently we see different results. We’ve all heard the quip –The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

I don’t know about you, but during big events of my life I often spend a great deal of time in thought. Things like the end of another year or a birthday force me to realize that another year has passed and to give some honest and critical reflection on how I did through the course of that year. Very rarely have I looked back and felt like I accomplished all I meant to.

Our daughter and grandchildren were driving home from church when our oldest granddaughter, Amelia, spotted 4 deer. “Deer, deer, deer, deer!” she exclaimed and then the game was on. Each grandchild, in turn, would state what they saw as they were driving. Car! School! Tree! Tree! Tree! Then our youngest granddaughter decided to enter the game. Ana spoke up and with a casual voice stated: Dinosaur.

What does it mean to live on a budget? Being on a budget is sometimes misunderstood to mean that you do not have much money. For example, you have probably heard someone say they are on a pretty tight budget. They might refer to a lower cost item as a “budget” item to mean that it is cheaper and of lower quality. However, a budget is not something you only need when you are short on money.

What you think about family vacations probably largely depends on your past experience with them.  For me, they have been a tremendous blessing.  Vacations were always an important part of our family life when I was a child and they continue to be as an adult with my own children.  The most important part was rarely the destination, but more significantly the company. 

When Rich and I took our first Crown Financial Money Management class, they challenged us to write down every penny we spent for a 30 day period of time to see where our money was going.  I believe they called it the Hole in the Bucket.  I have to admit that I was less than enthusiastic about doing this because I had a little secret.

That’s the first question most people ask themselves when they hear about what we do at The Money Coaches.  It’s a fair question and one that bears investigating.  Why would you need a money coach?  As it turns out, there are a lot of reasons why you might need to talk with us.