Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, its impossible to be completely prepared.
My family of three had no debt.
We were saving money and felt pretty good about our financial situation.
Then I was hit with anxiety and depression.
In doing so, we would lose about $10,000 a year.
I started reading all the books wed been given on money and researching money management online.
Ive been astay-at-home momfor four months now.
Heres how were making it work.
Probably not as good as youd like.
It always seems like an uphill battle to build (and keep) a decent amount in savings.
But what if your car breaks down, or you have a sudden medical bill?
Ask one of these companies to help…
So, instead of focusing on cutting spending, I chose to focus on cutting waste.
I also started buying groceries in cash.
This forced me to be more conscientious about what I purchased.
In one month, our grocery bill went from $300 to $150.
However, with my depression, some days its too much to even warm up food in the microwave.
Now that my medication is starting to work, Ive found a little push is sometimes all I need.
I put it up after reading Richard Paul Evans The 5 Lessons a Millionaire Taught Me.
He says to put the card somewhere youll see it every day.
Ive found it most helpful to put it in a place where Im most tempted to spend money.
Each month we do a little better, and hopefully it will soon be $20 or less.
We Curbed Our Impulse Spending
We cut our impulse spending by accident.
She sent me The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo.
After reading it, I decided tofollow her instructionsand go through the entire house in one sitting.
I made my wonderful husband read parts of the book so he could participate, too.
Now when we buy things, its because its something we wouldreallylike to own or something we need.
Our impulse spending went from around $70 a month to an average of $10.
After reading The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey, I decided we needed $1,000 in emergency money.
And it needed to be a priority, just as Ramsey suggests.
Now we put 10% of every paycheck straight into savings and work with what we have left.
When we spend less than what we budget, that extra money goes straight into savings.
As a young couple with a growing family, $1,000 seemed like a lot of money.
Then I started putting all of our money in one place.
Its hard to realize how much money you actually have until its all in one spot.
We were able to save $900 in three months.
A large chunk of our emergency fund is in cash.
Its out of sight, so its easy not to spend it.
On the days I worked, I often bought breakfast and lunch.
And we no longer buy gas every week because we dont use the car every day anymore.
And, we can still afford to dofun thingsas a family because we use our timeandmoney more wisely.
Stephanie Stewart is a public relations specialist and emergency dispatcher turned stay-at-home mom.
When you log into your bank account, how do your savings look?
Probably not as good as youd like.
It always seems like an uphill battle to build (and keep) a decent amount in savings.
But what if your car breaks down, or you have a sudden medical bill?
