She Hath Done What She Could in the Home

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Keep Your Money May Day 2!

It's only day two, but temptations lurk everywhere! They started in the form of my Anthropologie catalog arriving yesterday and ended with a drive to the city, to my favorite area, with my favorite coffee shop and I resisted! Score one for Peg!

Today's Dave Ramsey lesson was on "The Debt Trap". Because of my husband's planning and fore thought, we have never done debt (save our mortgage - which is only a 10 year) but the lessons today made me really, really re-think my use of credit cards for convenience. Statistics show people spend something like 20% more when using credit cards as opposed to cash.......hmmmm......food for thought. I know to me, using cash hurts much more than swiping my card. The loss of funds is immediate, so I really have to think twice if I want the product.

Anyhow, I think I'm off to a good start. I'm even feeling like I am going to return some "unnecessary" items I bought at the end of April (Dave Ramsey has that effect on you!) Today for potluck I made veggies that I already had on hand and a cake I had on hand with homemade icing (only takes powdered sugar, butter, vanilla and a dash of milk)! Typically I would spend about $15 on the dishes I prepare for potluck, but today the brethren had to endure my "pantry" food!

Only 29 more days to go!

4 comments:

  1. Way to go, Peggy! I think the first week of you cash-saving month will probably be the most difficult because there will be a lot of getting used to things, but it'll get way easier.

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  2. Hey - question for you, Peggy. When Dave says 3-7% of your income can be for clothing...is that gross or net? I'm pretty sure I spend close to the 7% gross and my husband wants me to spend less then 3% net - lol. I'm curious what # I should really be aiming for. It's hard because we too are debt free, and it feels like I'm not hurting anything by spending money we have - BUT - there are MUCH more valuable things I could be investing in or saving for or helping others, etc. I mean we do those things too, but less so if I weren't using disposable cash on Anthro - kwim?

    Good work staying away from the pitfalls this morning!

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  3. Hooray! I'm so glad you're sticking to your spending less goal! I totally agree that using your credit card can lead to spending more. For that reason, I make it a point to check my online statements diligently. It helps for me to see the reality of how much I'm spending, even if I'm not parting with physical cash.

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  4. Thanks Lisa - I think you are right. I think I will get going in money saving momentum soon!

    Amy -that's a great tip! Someone else also told me to pre-pay your credit card, so then it is like a debit card, but with the Visa protections.

    Jan, Jan, Jan why can't we be neighbors?? That is the same thing I have always thought, if I'm staying within budget, and still giving, saving, etc, what does it hurt? It's a hard call. For me it is getting out of balance. It begins to take up a lot of time, following the new arrivals, checking in on stores for markdowns, keeping up with blogs so I don't miss a sale. I have to ask myself, am I spending too much time in this one area of my life? For me, I need to gain more balance. I also don't do well with tons of choices. I really function better if I have a few quality items that i can put together- otherwise I just stand in front of my closet with a blank stare trying to figure out what to wear! John MacArthur (author & speaker) also had a great lesson on women recently online -he had a lot of great points that really made me think. And to answer your 1st question - from what I've gathered from the videos thus far, Dave Ramsey is talking about net pay for all expenses! Bummer eh?

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