Beating Broke

Personal Finance from the Broke Perspective

How Getting Ahead Saves Me Time, Money, and Mental Energy

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Woman grabbing a full glass jar from her pantry shelf

Since the pandemic, I’ve been working on getting ahead in my pantry and finances. It’s taken me a few years, but I’m finally able to reap the rewards of my hard work.

How Getting Ahead Saves Me Time, Money, and Mental Energy

The two most significant ways I got ahead were having a well-stocked pantry and using this month’s income to pay next month’s bills. Here’s how each saves me time, money, and mental energy.

Pantry

I have two large shelving units in our basement that hold canned and boxed goods. I’ve grown this pantry in the last nine months since we’ve moved. Now, when I go to the grocery store, the only items I “need” are fresh fruits and vegetables. The rest of what I buy is to restock the pantry when needed.

In addition to dry goods, I have two deep freezers full of dairy-free cheese (I only buy this when it’s on sale), meats, fish, and freezer meals I’ve made in advance.

A well-stocked pantry and freezer save me money and time because I don’t have to run to the store for one or two items. If I run out of an ingredient when cooking, I get another one downstairs. I call it “shopping in the basement.”

Using This Month’s Income to Pay Next Month’s Bills

Getting ahead financially has been my goal for some time, but it was only over the last year that we’ve been able to do so. Having all the money I need to pay this month’s bills at the start of the month saves me mental energy, time, and money.

What I Used to Do

When I didn’t have extra money, I would assign each paycheck to specific bills I had to pay. Since my husband is paid every two weeks, this could get tricky. Our house payment is due on the first, but sometimes, depending on how the paychecks fell, I wouldn’t have the money to pay that bill until the very end of the month, which stressed me out. I had to keep an eye on all my bills to avoid missing any due dates.

What I Do Now

Now, I’m one month ahead on all bills in my budget. So, when June 1st hit, I had all the money I needed to pay June’s bills. I can pay my house payment anytime during the month because the money is waiting for me to make the payment. Also, on June 1st, I have the entire amount of grocery money for the month at my disposal, so I can buy groceries whenever I want or need to, rather than waiting on my husband’s paycheck to come.

When my husband was paid on June 1st, I went to July’s budget and added his paycheck to those expenses. I can’t express the comfort I get from having all the money for this month’s bills ready as soon as I start the new month. It also saves me time because I can sit down to pay my bills at once without waiting for more paychecks to come in.

Final Thoughts

If you’re financially able, I highly recommend getting ahead on your pantry and your budget. You may find, as I do, that getting ahead saves time, money, and mental energy.

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Why We’re Spending More on Our Kids Now

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Teens laying on the ground in a circle with their heads together looking up and smiling

My husband and I have been on a tight budget throughout our marriage. Every year when summer rolled around, we tried to find free activities for the kids. That was easier because they were young and didn’t care as much. They liked going out to do things, free or not. However, our perspective has changed since the pandemic and living through social isolation. We’re spending more on our kids now, especially during the summer.

How This Summer Looks Different than Other Summers

This is the first summer that’s felt like “normal” since the pandemic, so we want to go out and do more.

In addition, our oldest son has moved out and is in college, and our younger two are now teenagers. We realize how quickly time goes and that we only have a few more years to make memories with our younger two while they still live with us.

We moved late last summer, and over the past nine months, our kids have made solid friendships and want to hang out with their friends. Luckily, we parents get along, too.

Finally, my husband and I are in a more comfortable financial position than ever, so we have a little wiggle room in the budget to do some fun activities that cost more than we usually spend.

What Activities Are We Doing This Summer?

We’re still searching for and enjoying free activities. We already went to the beach with friends and plan to do it again. We also plan to see a free Shakespeare play in a local park and attend some free concerts in the area. In addition, we got Kids Bowl Free passes and are bowling once or twice a week. (We did spend $16 for a season bowling shoe rental pass for each girl plus me and $30 for a pass for my husband and me to bowl, so this activity isn’t completely free.)

However, we’re also spending more and in ways that we haven’t before. These activities are new to us:

Ballroom Dancing

The girls are joining a group of friends and taking ballroom dance lessons. This will cost us $40 per girl per month, so $80 a month.

Attending a Concert

Their friend group is also going to see Fall Out Boy in concert. The girls are so excited to go to their first concert! Tickets were $66 a piece, which we said no to. However, when there was a flash sale and tickets were $25 a piece, we said yes. So the concert cost us $100.

Rock Climbing

Man climbing at an indoor rock climbing location

A local rock-climbing business has monthly passes for $75 per person, so the girls will get those one month this summer. It will cost us $150, but they will have unlimited access to the rock-climbing studio and all classes, so we plan to go there several times a week.

Final Thoughts

We aren’t being extravagant, but we are spending more this summer on activities with and for our kids. However, we’re still enjoying free activities to balance out the expenses. After the pandemic and our son moving out, we realize time is precious, and sometimes we must spend money to make memories.

Do your expenses go up in the summer? If so, what do you splurge on?

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How We Save for Financial Emergencies

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First aid bag and stethoscope on a white background

A financial emergency, large or small, can happen at any time. Maybe you have a $2000 car repair that you hadn’t expected. Or, worse, you get laid off. You should save for financial emergencies to prepare for life’s unexpected expenses. We’ve been working on bulking up our savings for the last few years. Here’s how we’re doing.

Utilize Sinking Funds

Our first step was to create a budget that realistically represented our expenses. So, we save $138 every paycheck for home improvements. Then, we save another $138 for home maintenance. That gives us $3588 yearly for home improvements and $3588 for home maintenance. Honestly, that’s likely not enough, but it’s the best we can do for now.

We also set aside $92 per paycheck for car repairs/maintenance, giving ourselves $2,400 annually for this category. So, if we have a car repair, we pay for it from this sinking fund.

The sinking funds allow us to pay for expenses without dipping into our emergency fund.

Budget a Month in Advance

Next, we worked on budgeting a month in advance. As we earned money above what we had budgeted, we started applying it to next month’s expenses. We now have enough money to cover an entire month of costs. So, when we get paid in May, I don’t use the money in May. Instead, I use it to fund June’s expenses. Now that we’ve accomplished this goal, I’m working on budgeting two months ahead. (This might take me another year to complete.)

Have an Emergency Fund

Beyond sinking funds and budgeting in advance, we also have a separate emergency fund. I want to get this up to at least $10,000, but right now, it’s sitting at $3,500. We will use this if we have a significant home or car repair that exceeds our sinking fund. We could also use it if one of us lost our job.

Consider Credit Cards

We don’t have credit card debt, and we’d like to avoid having any in the future. However, we could use our credit cards if we had a significant emergency, such as a personal injury or a long-term unemployment situation.  We have tens of thousands available, though we’d only use them as a last resort.

Additional Safeguards

We have additional safeguards in place for financial emergencies.

  • My husband and I both work, so it’s unlikely we would lose our jobs simultaneously. Therefore, we should always have some income stream.
  • Second, my husband has short-term and long-term disability insurance since he’s the primary breadwinner.
  • Third, we have life insurance in place for both of us.

Final Thoughts

Our strategy to save for financial emergencies is an ongoing one. We will continue to save, focusing now on budgeting two months in advance rather than one month. We will also work to grow our emergency fund. Finally, when either of us gets a raise, we will use some of the increase in funds to increase our sinking funds, so we will have to rely less on our emergency fund.

Read More

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