I've been having trouble lately staying focused on not spending money. About 5 years ago I wanted to be a stay at home mom really bad. I was so focused on cutting expenses and paying off debts, we made a lot of progress in a short time. I never did get to stay home with my kids, but I've come to really like my job so I'm happy. But now I can't seem to really get that motivated again. We went from having an almost $13,000 emergency fund to having less than $1000 because we had to put such a large down payment on our investment condo. You would think I could find that motivation again and focus on rebuilding the emergency fund. But I keep seeing things I want to buy. Today, it was a groupon for an indoor water park/hotel. We could take the kids on Mr. Ripples birthday. The package includes the tickets to the water park, a suite and dinner for only $105. I even went as far as calling to see if they had the date available. Luckily the hotel's computers were down so I would have to call back. I've almost talked myself out of it...almost.
I should shut up, but that is a really good deal for such a trip! Something that helps is actually making a category in your budget with your goal in mind. So creating an EF refill line and making sure it meets with the rest of your budget would guarantee it is always looked after. I do that every time I have a set goal to meet, but then I leave unmarked funds (mostly from my PT job) to do whatever else/non priority items.
ReplyDeleteI actually went back and tried to purchase the water park package. It just sounded like a lot of fun. But the weekend packages were sold out. Probably better that way. I do need to set an amount for saving in our emergency fund each month. I try to put any extra money in it and it leaves me disappointed or guilty feeling when I spend money for other things.
DeleteI think having an emergency fund is a good thing, and having money aside for something "fun" like a family event is pretty awesome. We do things in a while that cut into the budget, but I find ways to replace that money, whether it's being a little more careful with spending, or making sure that all the left overs get taken care of...I wouldn't have a problem with using the cash to get the tickets for my family. Look at it this way, you saved some money, put it aside for what ever reason, and it is not putting you into more debt, or cutting cash out of your monthly bills...if your paying cash for it, it's OK in my world.
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