Okay, if you are saying, "Barb, the words 'fun' and 'savings' do not belong in the same sentence together," I totally get that. We know we are supposed to save, but it is always easier said than done.
You've likely seen this before:
The same is true for each of us and our finances. Unless you are independently wealthy you likely have a financial struggle - most of us do.
Here is ours.
We bought our house in 2005. Because we bought our house later in life it also means paying it off later in life. I think it is scheduled to be paid off in 2034.
I know, right? My brain can't even comprehend that! That would mean Michael working until age 82 and me working until age 72. Well let's just say that is not going to happen.
Our financial goal is to get our smaller debts taken care of so we can instead put the money spent on those each month toward our biggest debt, our home, and get our house paid off much, MUCH earlier than scheduled.
We love our home, it is perfect for us and where we want to spend the rest of our lives if our health allows, but we need to pay it off earlier in order for that to happen. In short, we need to be better stewards of the resources God has given us.
We are working hard on being better with our finances. It is something most of us need to constantly work on. So whether you have big financial goals or small ones, here's a savings plan to get us started in the new year.
You've likely seen this before:
The same is true for each of us and our finances. Unless you are independently wealthy you likely have a financial struggle - most of us do.
Here is ours.
We bought our house in 2005. Because we bought our house later in life it also means paying it off later in life. I think it is scheduled to be paid off in 2034.
I know, right? My brain can't even comprehend that! That would mean Michael working until age 82 and me working until age 72. Well let's just say that is not going to happen.
Our financial goal is to get our smaller debts taken care of so we can instead put the money spent on those each month toward our biggest debt, our home, and get our house paid off much, MUCH earlier than scheduled.
We love our home, it is perfect for us and where we want to spend the rest of our lives if our health allows, but we need to pay it off earlier in order for that to happen. In short, we need to be better stewards of the resources God has given us.
We are working hard on being better with our finances. It is something most of us need to constantly work on. So whether you have big financial goals or small ones, here's a savings plan to get us started in the new year.
The 1st week of the year you put away $1, the 2nd week $2, the 3rd week $3, etc., until the last week of the year when you add $52. By the end of the year you will have $1,378!!
I started this last year ("started" the key word).... I didn't complete it. I was going to surprise Michael with it at Christmas, but things came up and, well, you get the idea.
This year Michael and I are doing this together so it is easier to stick to. We set aside a special jar just for this purpose.
See the quarters in there for weeks 1 and 2? Michael sets aside his change, so that is what we started with for the first two weeks. We have since added the remainder of the money for January.
I love that we can visibly see how we are doing. It will be fun to watch it build up. Our goal is to use the money to pay for our tickets for the Iowa Wild next season - and we will have money left over (always a plus)!
By setting aside money for our hockey tickets, it frees up other money in our budget that we can put toward a debt. Pay off debt A, then put the payment you made for debt A towards debt B. Pay off debt B, put A and B's payment toward debt C, etc. It truly is a snowball affect.
For now our money jar is next to our joy jar so we never forget to add to it. I also wrote the amounts on the calendar so we always know what amount to put in next.
What would you like to save up for?
Vacation?
Christmas?
Help with unexpected expenses?
(those can suck the lifeblood out of any well-planned budget)
A weekend away?
Or something more simple like dinner out?
No matter where you are in life or how little wiggle room your budget has, we all can look at ways to try to save a bit. If you can't follow the plan perfectly, do whatever you can!
Pop can money... loose change... it all adds up!! If you even put in $5 a week (skip that stop at Starbucks), you would have $260 by the end of the year.
And if you have young kids, it is a great way for kids to take part in the saving process, see the jar fill up over time, then see the reward of using it for what it was saved for. Teaching your children about saving money is so important.
And if you have young kids, it is a great way for kids to take part in the saving process, see the jar fill up over time, then see the reward of using it for what it was saved for. Teaching your children about saving money is so important.
Our money jar is just one step we are taking this year to improve our overall financial picture. Getting started is always the hardest part.
I had this blog ready to go a couple of weeks ago. Then in church yesterday the message was on this topic exactly. Boy, God has awesome timing! We always write out a check to our church first when we get paid.
There is a saying I love, "Let your giving determine your living - rather than letting your living determine your giving." Simply put, your money came from God, give back to him first. Don't pay bills, do some shopping, and go out to eat, etc., only to discover you then don't have enough money to offer back to God.
It would be fun to have you post pictures of your money jar on my blog Facebook page and hear what you did with your money at the end of the year!
Get saving!
I had this blog ready to go a couple of weeks ago. Then in church yesterday the message was on this topic exactly. Boy, God has awesome timing! We always write out a check to our church first when we get paid.
There is a saying I love, "Let your giving determine your living - rather than letting your living determine your giving." Simply put, your money came from God, give back to him first. Don't pay bills, do some shopping, and go out to eat, etc., only to discover you then don't have enough money to offer back to God.
It would be fun to have you post pictures of your money jar on my blog Facebook page and hear what you did with your money at the end of the year!
Get saving!
I saw that savings plan floating around a while ago. I think it is a great idea if you can swing it. I've also heard some people do it backwards so they can put away the high amounts while they have then so they aren't struggling around the holidays.
ReplyDeleteWe thought about doing it backwards too! But January can be pretty similar just coming off the holidays (and we have car insurance in Dec - rotten timing huh?).. so we decided just to do it as is and see what happens. A person could also just figure out what it would be to do the same amount every week and always put in that amount. Lots of ways to mix it up!
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