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Join our participants as they reduce debt and increase savings with the help of Summit financial coaches.
Join our participants as they reduce debt and increase savings with the help of Summit financial coaches.
We Love the Idea of Budgeting!
November 21, 2023
We follow a pretty loose budget. In fact, it is more of the idea of a budget than the actual set amount to spend in specific categories. For instance, we have an idea of the amount that we should spend on our groceries each week, so if it goes below $120, we feel so smart! On the other hand, if it goes over $150, we feel like we didn’t do very well! Our budget fluctuates from week to week and month to month depending on what we need to pay in any given time period. The real difference that we have made in the past six months is that we have been experiencing negative emotional reactions when we know that we have overspent. This shows up in different ways, such as:
Lucky #23
November 15, 2023
This is the 23rd blog post! What a milestone, and 23 is our lucky number, so there must be something lucky about this week that hasn’t been realized yet! Sometimes it’s difficult to see that the work we’re doing now with our finances will pay off in the future because:
Seasons
November 8, 2023
Since the beginning of this project, we have been through late spring, fall, and now we are heading into winter. We are noticing a seasonality to our finances as well. For example, we began spring full of excitement and hope as we learned about new tools such as debt consolidation and budgeting. Fall found us more experienced with making good financial choices, and we faced challenges as we put all the knowledge to action. Winter has us reflecting soberly on the journey that we have taken thus far and what we have learned along the way.
Christmas Lists
November 1, 2023
Halloween isn’t even over yet, and we are already thinking about Christmas lists. Other years, we have been able to wait until the last minute to shop for our kids which resulted in going to the stores without a budget in mind. This time, we asked for their lists ahead of time in order to get a handle on what the kids are wishing for and how much we can afford.
Responsibility
October 25, 2023
Bills used to be a lot easier to ignore, but of course ignoring them was not the right thing to do long term. For instance, the water bill, which arrives in our mailbox on a quarterly basis, always seems to show up when we are least prepared for it. Last quarter, I misplaced the bill, and it was out of sight and out of mind, so it was paid late.
A Fall Getaway
October 18, 2023
This week, we took a few days to go on a trip together! We called it a ‘Midwest tour’ and started out in Wisconsin Dells. The highlight of this stop was taking a ride with the WI Dells Boat Tours and taking in all the natural scenery on a beautiful fall day. We also liked strolling around downtown and had a tasty lunch at a local bar and grill. A favorite part of our travels was taking in the local sights and getting a feel for each place.
