Real Life Budgeting – Mindi and Preston

Budgeting is a family affair

Mindi and Preston are good friends of ours who started a budget together shortly after getting married.

photo by: Darby Elizabeth Photography

They’ve done a great job staying with it and really taking advantage of manipulating the Skeleton Spreadsheet to make their budget their own.

I asked them a few quick questions recently about their family budget:

What surprised you most about budgeting?

How much we were able to cut back by simply setting up a budget and monitoring it. We didn’t have to work hard to make a difference.

How do you stay on the same page together with the budget?

We both have access to the budget anytime, anywhere, through Google Docs. We talk about it at least once a week,  sometimes more.

What has been the hardest part?

The hardest part was about 2 month into the budget when the novelty of it was gone and we wanted to go out to eat somewhere, and knew we shouldn’t.

What’s the best part of following a budget so far?

We feel more in control of our lives. We can actually see where our money is going and see money start going into savings.

What advice would you give a first time budget-er?

Have a little money for fun and make sure it is available. You may never use it, but just knowing that it is there helps to ease up some tension. Also, follow your budget closely for the first couple of months, and when you think you are okay not following it as close as you were… that is when you really need to follow it.

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Thanks again to Mindi and Preston. You can follow @prestoniscrazy on Twitter, and even catch him performing live if you’re in the Phoenix area.