<< Back to all Blogs
Login or Create your own free blog
Layout:
Home > The Dreaded Weekend

The Dreaded Weekend

August 7th, 2009 at 01:44 pm

The weekend is our family's budgeting nightmare. When it comes to the weekend, I am weak. After fighting with everyone all week (no, you can't have that, we're not going out to eat, and no, there's no money put aside for that), I lose my resolve over the weekend in exchange for a few moments of peace.

Before the kids were born, we lived simply, but we were out every weekend -shopping, going to museums or the movies. Even after the kids, I find we're still going out on the weekends, and whenever we leave the house - we spend. I never manage to get the kids fed before we're out, so there's always snacks and lunches, and sometimes dinners out. Every other weekend or so, we go for breakfast at a local diner. (Why, I'm not sure- the kids are not great about eating in places with actual utensils) Every weekend there's some new home related crisis involving multiple trips to the hardware store, and for some reason, the kids always need shoes. We start out with the cash method, but by the end of the weekend, that's gone and we've used the debit card too.

I'm resolved this weekend to keep the expenses down - especially since we transferred a good portion of the discretionary funds into savings accounts this month. I'll report on Monday as to my success (and failures)! Any advice on how you handle the weekend is appreciated!

Posted in Budgeting, Shopping | 4 Comments »

4 Responses to “The Dreaded Weekend”

  1. Caoineag Says:
    August 7th, 2009 at 01:48 pm 1249652931
    1249652931

    It sounds like you aren't making a very realistic budget. You might try budgeting at what you actually spend and then slowly lowering that amount. Its easier to give up a little at a time then to suddenly go from lots of spending to none.

  2. creditcardfree Says:
    August 7th, 2009 at 02:32 pm 1249655546
    1249655546

    I highly suggest looking for free or inexpensive activities. Some museums have free admissions on Saturdays. In nice weather, parks and hikes are free. We have found free music at our mall on Sunday evenings. Once you have found something make a plan for your weekend. Plan nicer meals at home. Take time to cookout. Play backyard games.

  3. baselle Says:
    August 10th, 2009 at 04:04 am 1249877072
    1249877072

    I have issues with the weekend too, like after 5 days of tightness, the 2 days are the reward...only the reward is too reward-y.

    I think making a plan for the weekend is a good one, with avoiding "want" shopping. Should have only 2-3 components out of 4: food, free or cheap entertainment, the home repair project, necessary shopping - and should be formed on or about Wednesday, Friday at the latest.

    I've found that if you start on Saturday morning, its too late. Smile

  4. MomEsq Says:
    August 10th, 2009 at 03:46 pm 1249919171
    1249919171

    Thanks for the good advice! Planning seems to be key -and you're right, Saturday morning is absolutely too late. By that time, I'm too desperate to think straight!

Leave a Reply

(Note: If you were logged in, we could automatically fill in these fields for you.)
*
Will not be published.
   

* Please spell out the number 4.  [ Why? ]

vB Code: You can use these tags: [b] [i] [u] [url] [email]