My first budget meeting with my wife
My wife and I have been happily married for 24 years now.
Ever since an almost tragic accident happened to our second girl, when she was 3 months old, my wife and I decided that she would be a full time mother and home manager, whilst I brought home the bacon, so to speak.
It was accepted that I’ll be the general and she the major. So she made all the major decisions, while I made the general decisions.
Though we never make any significant purchases without consulting each other, (now we consult our two elder girls, too), my wife and I have never sat down and drawn up a family budget together.
I took the plunge this year.
I fortified myself with a wealth of advise and ideas from :-
a) LazyMan’s “How to have a successful budget meeting with your spouse”,
b) Yahoo Finance’s Five-point peace plan to help couples avoid a war over finances, and
c) Millionaire Mommy Next Door’s “How to make money management a family affair”.
I am the accountant in the family, so I drew up the monthly list of expenses, expected for 2008, and discussed it with my wife. (I think this is also the first time, my wife has a clear and complete understanding of the expenses of our family).
We have now agreed that we shall have a budget day every month to review actuals against budget.
I am glad and actually feel a sense of relief that we have done this. I am looking forward to the day when the family is comfortable with the monthly budget day, and we can then move to Stage 2 - Implementing the Millionaire Mommy’s great ideas to make our family money management a family affair.
I am sure that many couples do not have family budgets. Perhaps because of earlier experiences or disagreements on spending etc. After all women and men do not think alike, do they?
I ask you to persevere. I am sure only good can come out of this joint facing of the major issue of family expenses.
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