When Kelly and I got married, we had a little bit of debt - around $30,000. Most of it was tied up in car notes and from scraping by while one or the other of us was out of work the year before we married.
The week we got back from the honeymoon, Kelly said:
Shannah, we can't live like this.
His plan, which became our plan was to develop a budget, live on the budget and use it to pay off debt. And so we did - all $30,000 paid off just under 2 years. Not too shabby when you consider we were in starter jobs, hardly making anything.
It's funny to look back on those days now. We walked to Blockbuster and Kroger to rent movies. A big dinner out was On the Border, or perhaps ordering Domino's Pizza.
Those days are long gone, many years behind us, but the budget is still with us. We close each month by sitting down to make adjustments to the next month's budget. We account for gifts coming up, clothing needs, special dinners out - and now, for home owner's insurance and mortgage payments.
I used to dread the budget process. When I was single, I couldn't stand the thought of making one, let along living on one.
Now I can't imagine surviving without a budget.
Because the truth is: if you develop and live on a budget, you don't just survive. You start to thrive. And that's the kind of living I really want to do!
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