Budgeting: Past Month (Sept 09) & This Month (October 09)

September went pretty well as far as spending went. All the bills were paid on time, frugal finds sourced and stockpiles increased. The grocery budget of $380 came right on target. The budget included all food and drinks (not takeouts), health and beauty, baby products (wipes and diapers), paper products and items for the stock pile. Bella's pretty pleased with keeping to the $80 a week.

The gas was $5 over budget (Bella had budgeted $30 a week). But the miscellaneous spending came in under budget, with $70 left over! This will go straight into savings. Considering that Bella started the month with $20 in savings and now has $236 is great. From January to August she had saved zilch and had maintained the $20 balance just to keep the account open.

There are still cuts to be made, eating out being the main one. Bella and Co., spent $158.61 eating out this month (about $31 a week). Her plan is to cut this by 50% for October.

The Toddler's clothes and new shoes also came under the miscellaneous spending, at $47.47. Bella is letting this one go. After all, she was able to get all clothes that looked brand new from Goodwill at $1.99 piece (read more here). She also received a $3 of the shoes as they didn't have them in stock, so the cashier printed out a coupon that gave $3 off for having to go to a different store. And lets face it, children have that awful habit of growing!

So for October predictions:

Income: $3748

Fixed Bills: $1701

Fixed Variable Bills:$917

Installment/Credit Cards: $646

Occasional: $168

Left over: $316 (this will also be used for savings and misc. spending)

Let's see how it goes ....

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