Trying to Get Pregnant

Budgeting

I noticed a lot of people referencing budgeting the last couple days, and I wanted to see if maybe we could swap some tips or share what works for us. I love everything budget so I am always looking for ways to save money or to streamline my process. TTC, especially those of us that fall under the "infertile" category can be extremely expensive.

Any tips/suggestions? What are you doing to save money?
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Personally, I have an excel spreadsheet (I love Excel) I use to keep track of every penny. It's nice because it gives me pie charts at the close of each month that tells me where all our money went. On my sheet I have a second page that has a weekly breakdown (my DH and I get paid alternating weekly, so it's a paycheck every Friday) of all our bills. We also have planned "payoffs" of debts all the way up through 2020 (OMG, private school loans!). For expenses that don't repeat to the exact amount every month (groceries, etc.) we each have a credit card with a small limit ($200 each) and we use those and payoff at the end of the month. We never use our actual bank account except for bills and savings. We never swipe a debit card at the store. This ensures we never go over our $400 budget on "stuff." 
TTC #1 since September 2014
Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
Check out my Infertility blog 
Check out my Infertility Instagram

Loss History (TW):
BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
TTC History (TW):
3 losses in 2015
Met with OBGYN in January 2016
Me: all clear, H: OAT
November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
Next Up:
TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
ER#2 ~Jan 2019
        

«1

Re: Budgeting

  • We have joint checking and savings accounts, and we each have our own checking and savings accounts. We each have a direct deposit of $X going into our joint accounts first, then whatever is left gets deposited into our personal accounts. We use the joint to cover all household bills, groceries, joint expenses like wedding gifts, house repairs, basically anything that is for the entire household.

    I have no idea what DH does with his own money from there on out haha. But what I started doing about a year ago is doing a savings transfer and paying all of my personal bills (student loans, car payment, etc.) biweekly, so I always have the exact same amount left over each pay period for fun and extras. I have all of my bills/transfers set up to auto pay from my online bill pay, so it's really effortless. 

    Putting the agreed upon amount into savings before anything else comes out has really helped us stick to our goals. We just bought a house, so we had been saving aggressively. Now we are going to have to rework the numbers and figure out what needs to be adjusted going forward, but we will still stick with the same plan to keep building our savings.



    DS: June 2008
    Married: July 2015
    BFP: 5/20/16  |  EDD: 1/28/17  |  Twin boys born 1/16/17
  • @MommyForTheFirstTime I do something very similar. I get to pay all of the bills every month and have a spreadsheet system as well that lists the bill, its amount, when the automatic payment is setup to pull the money, all that fun stuff. In addition, I set a budget for everything from grocery shopping to animal expenses. We usually fall under the threshold but it keeps us from buying Koda a toy every single time we go to the pet store. 

    @sldp123 We have our accounts set up similarly and once we pay down some of the debt that we want to address, we will be doing the same as far as paying the bills out of the joint account and distributing the rest for personal spending. 

    Any purchases over $100 require both of our approval aside from things like going to the grocery store. And generally if we want to make a larger purchase, we sell something of value that we are no longer using to make up for the money spent. I have us on a very stringent budget and we'll have more flexibility down the line.
    Me: 23 | DH: 27
    Married: 10.11.15
    MC #1: June 2014
    MC #2: December 2015
    APS Diagnosis: February 2016
    BFP 7/24, EDD 4/5/17
    Previously nweg...7878
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  • I have a spreadsheet, too...but DH and I sit down every Sunday to go over bills for the week. However, we sit down on the 15th of every month when I get paid to go over the budget for the month. We do a "zero budget" so every penny is accounted for before my paycheck even hits our account. We also do the envelope system and have been pretty aggressive with a snowball for debt. We are making big payments on his credit card to pay it off, then we will take his payments and add them to my credit card to pay it off. Then that money will go towards other debt (mostly my student loans) until those are all paid off. It sucks because we feel like we have little money for "extras" but we are almost done paying off his credit card (maybe 2-3 months left), and then we will be able to pay off mine in about 6 months. We also pay "daycare" each month, which is just taking that money and putting it into savings until we have to actually pay daycare...but even then, I will have an HSA that will pay our child care each month, so that money will still be going into savings.
  • @sldp123 I like the idea of the separate accounts in addition to the joint one... I would love to not know what he spends his money on because I tend to nag... We have two shared accounts because we have USAA which is amazing, but makes it difficult to deposit cash since they don't have a branch, so we have a regular bank as well that we use for savings and cash deposits. 
    @nwegman7878 - Selling something you don't use to make up for large expenses is a great idea. 
    @BerkeBaby & @ReesaAnne16 - sounds like you both use Dave Ramsey. I did his class and use a lot of his systems, But the envelope system never worked for me... especially because I have lost my wallet more than once... pretty scary when it would be holding all that cash. Yikes. I also don't exactly snowball. I made my spreadsheet paying all the minimums monthly, slowly accumulating excess savings (in addition to the emergency). Every time this excess was enough to pay the smallest debt, we would. It always took too long and we would tend to overspend when we used the regular snowball idea. But I am so glad it works for you! 
    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • I have an account at a credit union that I can't access unless I physically go there and I put a small portion of my paycheck in there automatically each pay cycle. It's the best way to slowly build a real emergency cushion. 
  • This is great! I don't really have anything to add, but I am definitely taking notes from you smart ladies. We are still in grad school mode, which is living off of loans, temp jobs and tax returns. Basically, spend as little as possible. But, in May we will be transitioning to actually making more money than we are spending. So, all of this will be very important. Thanks! 

    Me: 28 year old SAHM/Birth Doula
    DH: 30 year old pneumatic electrical engineer 
    Married: October 8, 2011
    DD1: September 24, 2013
    BFP: June 25, 2016 and MC: July 3, 2016
    DD2: April 16, 2017
    BFP: November 30, 2018 EDD: August 14, 2019
    BabyFruit Ticker
  • @ReesaAnne16 I was just thinking about trying to implement Mint.com for us last night! I'm going to check it out.

    I am jealous of you all with your spreadsheets, because my mind does not work like that. I have an old school planner that I use for our budgeting. I'm in charge of our finances, and I pay all of the bills, although we have a lot of communication about our finances. In my planner at the beginning of each month, I mark down our paydays (I get paid on set days each month, and my H is every other Friday, so this changes for us month-to-month) and write down what bills will be paid with each paycheck. Since I am paid on set days each month, I utilize the hell out of auto-payments. I set our gas and grocery budgets for the month, and then any pre-agreed out of the ordinary expenses that we might have that month (we are doing some work around the house, so I'll set aside a budget for that kind of stuff).

    We have a joint checking account that all of this goes in, and we also have a savings account. At the end of each month, all money in our checking that has not been spent goes into the savings account. I get paid on the 1st of each month, so I like to think of it as a reset of our budget. Like I said, I'm in charge of our money, so I know how much we have at any given time. H usually will text and ask if he can spend some unplanned money, or else will use his credit card to pay for something, and then we will pay it off right away. 

    I like @sldp123 's system of having separate accounts for each of us for our spending money. Might have to steal that idea! 

    We have worked really hard the last few years to try and get on top of our finances. From June - February I worked a second job at a restaurant on nights and weekends to earn some extra money to pay down some of the debt we had accumulated from our home purchase and our wedding, and to save money for a down payment on a new car for me. We were also able to put money in savings. It really sucked, but in the end it was completely worth it, because for the first time in my adult life, I feel like we are in control of our finances.

    Me: 28 | DH: 31
    Together since 2006 | Married May 2015
    TTC #1 since November 2015
    BFP 5/17/16 | EDD 1/27/17 | Born 2/4/17

    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker
  • @MommyForTheFirstTime @Lecool yeah, the separate accounts probably save a ton of stress in our marriage, haha. I am pretty frugal (read: cheap) and DH isn't. He makes more money than me and he buys pricey things that I would never even consider spending money on, like autographed sports memorabilia and Pearl Jam posters. It would make my blood boil to see that coming out of "our" money, haha. But he works hard and he deserves to buy himself things, I'd just rather not have to see it in black and white.



    DS: June 2008
    Married: July 2015
    BFP: 5/20/16  |  EDD: 1/28/17  |  Twin boys born 1/16/17
  • We're on the Dave Ramsey plan also and should be debt free in 6 months or so. Woohoo!  We have budget meetings every 2 weeks on his payday.  We use a spreadsheet for budgeting and use YNAB (You Need a Budget) as sort of a digital envelope system.  I'm finding that we're still kind of overspending on eating out so, I'm gonna suggest that we go to a cash-based system for that in tonight's budget meeting. 
    Together 2007 | Married 2011 | Me: 36 | DH: 38
    Adopted Furbaby: 2014
    TTC#1 : 1/2016 | IUI #2 - BFP 12/24/16 -- born 9/8/17
    TTC#2: 11/2019 | Dx DOR (AMH 0.3), AMA
    IUI #2 - BFP 7/1/20 -- EDD 3/14/21
  • I'm loving this thread! We are both frugal but have never been great budgeters. We have separate accounts and just divvy up who pays what. H could have a million dollars laying around and I wouldn't know it!

    We only have a mortgage and my student loans for debt, and I pay aggressively on them, but I know we probably spend waaaay more than we need to on some things.

    Now that we're talking about the cost of IF treatments (which my insurance doesn't cover), I think we probably need to actually lock in a legit budget. Thanks for all the ideas!
  • This might sound horrible, but DH and I have totally separate accounts. We just have designated bills that we each pay and we split groceries each month, or if there's a large purchase that we need (i.e. we just recently bought a loveseat) we will split that. With DH opening his business at the beginning of this year, we just didn't want to complicate that more than it already was by trying to combine accounts, so once his income becomes more stable and he gets into a groove where that's concerned we will look into combining.  But for now we just have separate accounts, and honestly it's worked well.... Sometimes I have to remind him for a few days to write me a check for his portion of the groceries, but that's really the only issue.  And I'm sure the tellers at the bank find it really strange that my husband writes me a check every month from his bank account at another bank, but whatever....

    And to be honest, I'm not exactly looking forward to combining accounts, because I've worked since I was 17, and have been fully independent since age 23, and it's always been my money... but... I won't have to be worrying about that anytime soon, and who knows, we may just keep things the way they are... we've only discussed it briefly.
    Me:  33
    DH:  36
    Together since 2007
    Happily Ever After 4.30.2015
    ~~One Beautiful Daughter~~ Born:  11.6.2017
    Trying for #2!!
  • thj101 said:
    This might sound horrible, but DH and I have totally separate accounts. We just have designated bills that we each pay and we split groceries each month, or if there's a large purchase that we need (i.e. we just recently bought a loveseat) we will split that. With DH opening his business at the beginning of this year, we just didn't want to complicate that more than it already was by trying to combine accounts, so once his income becomes more stable and he gets into a groove where that's concerned we will look into combining.  But for now we just have separate accounts, and honestly it's worked well.... Sometimes I have to remind him for a few days to write me a check for his portion of the groceries, but that's really the only issue.  And I'm sure the tellers at the bank find it really strange that my husband writes me a check every month from his bank account at another bank, but whatever....

    And to be honest, I'm not exactly looking forward to combining accounts, because I've worked since I was 17, and have been fully independent since age 23, and it's always been my money... but... I won't have to be worrying about that anytime soon, and who knows, we may just keep things the way they are... we've only discussed it briefly.
    I don't think there is anything wrong with this system if it works for you guys. Before we were married, this is pretty much what we did, too. DH would give me cash or a check for his half of bills and groceries, and I paid everything out of my account because it was my house before I met him so I already had everything set up to be paid. The main reason we opened a joint account was to have a combined savings for a new house, otherwise, we may have just left things as they were. Even now, with the joint account, we both put an equal amount of money into it each pay, so it's still kind of like splitting everything down the middle. When we pay for groceries, it's half his money and half mine.

    As to the bolded, I 100% understand. I was a single mom for several years before meeting my H, I was very used to having complete control over the money. Having to discuss budgeting and spending with someone else definitely takes some getting used to. I'm sure my H would say the same, as he was single and on his own for probably 10 years before we met. That's where our separate accounts definitely help balance things out, because we both still have some independence. 



    DS: June 2008
    Married: July 2015
    BFP: 5/20/16  |  EDD: 1/28/17  |  Twin boys born 1/16/17
  • @MommyForTheFirstTime  I guess I should say we use a modified Dave Ramsey system too.
    A lot of the snowball debt pay off method makes sense, but we tackled the highest interest rate loans first, not the smallest ones like he suggested.

    We also couldn't do the envelop system (I hate carrying more than $20 cash)
    Instead, we actually buy almost everything we can with a credit card, and we pay our credit cards off every month, so we never have fees. This system works great for us, because every purchase is registered on our mint account (including my dozens of $2 coffees each month) AND we use the highest cash back cards we can find, so we earn $50-$100 cash back every month. This only works if you have a money in savings to ensure credit cards get paid off each month, and your credit card allows auto-pay (we auto-pay anything we can, so we never have late fees).

    I disagree with Dave Ramsey regarding your credit score too. With how we use credit cards, and paying off student loans, we have AWESOME credit, which was a huge bonus when we took out a loan for a car a couple years ago (got a loan for 0.8% interest...) I don't think it makes sense to ignore your credit score.

    So all that to say that, Dave Ramsey has a lot of great methods, and you can pick and choose what works for you. 

    Me 34 DH 36 Married since July 2010 
    MFI (High DNA Fragmentation) & Mild endometriosis
    TTC #1 since June 2015 
    Aug 2016 - May 2017  6 IUI's with letrozole - BFN
    April 2017 - laparoscopy to remove mild endo
    June 2017 - Mini IVF letrozole 12.5mg, Gonal-F 75IU - Cancelled early ovulation, no eggs retrieved. 
    Aug/Sept 2017 - Mini IVF letrozole 12.5mg, Gonal-F 75IU, cetrotide - 13 eggs retrieved, 11 mature
    5 eggs ICSI'd 6 eggs frozen - 1 day 5 blast transfered, 2 expanded blast frozen - BFP!
    May 2018 - Baby girl born - Our Joy

    TTC #2 since July 2019
    July 2019 - FET - BFN
    Jan 2020 - FET - canceled due to family health issues
    Mar 2020 - FET - low beta - chemical pregnancy
    July 2020 - ICSI'd remaining 6 eggs - 3 fertilized - 2 survived to early blast stage, transfered both - Chemical Pregnancy


  • @ReesaAnne16 Yeah, paying off the lowest one never made sense to me as well as ignoring your credit score. In the world now, you have to have a good credit score. You can't pay cash for a house. Well, I guess you could technically, but not realistically. We use our credit card too for our expenses and just pay it off. Not only do we not get charged interest and fees but WHOOO! the cashback and airline points are amazing perks. 
    Glad I am not the only one that thinks his system isn't perfect liek everyone wants to think.

    @thj101 I don't think it's bad at all. If it works for you, then great. We combined when we got married for two reasons. One, DH was laid off, so he couldn't quite cover all the expenses, and two, he's really old school and almost took it as offense when I suggested not combining. It's definitely been more of a struggle for me than him. I too was independent early on (I left the house at 17!) and he was from a very rich family, and was a spoiled brat (still is sometimes, but that's another story) so he liked me taking care of the finances, and I didn't like having to deal with him. It was a struggle at first, but I finally got him to submit to my control. HAHA!

    @houseofsetters It's a terrible thing that insurance doesn't cover it, right? Mine doesn't wither and DH and I have agreed we want to pay off all our debt before IVF. We will do a couple IUIs before then, but no IVF. Yikes. If that isn't incentive to stick to the budget, then what is? Looks like we have a great group of budgeters here, so when you get to the point of solidifying a budget, there's lots of people to turn to for help if needed!

    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • Also-
    I have to because we are all so good at this!:

    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • ReesaAnne16 I'm definitely going to check out Mint. Seems easier than manually doing all of that like I am currently. Thanks for the tip.
    Me: 23 | DH: 27
    Married: 10.11.15
    MC #1: June 2014
    MC #2: December 2015
    APS Diagnosis: February 2016
    BFP 7/24, EDD 4/5/17
    Previously nweg...7878
  • I also, (I'm not sure that DH does this as much as I do), put everything on my credit card each month and just use my checking account as a clearing account for all autodrafts (including my full balance on the credit card each month), and any rare random checks I might write. 

    I chose to use my credit card for all purchases after I had a few identity theft situations happen and it was a pain in the butt to get my money back in my checking account. Much easier to get your money back on a credit card if you have an unauthorized charge. Plus, I get the cash back with my credit card purchases and that's always a plus. You just have to be pretty disciplined with it, and if you can do that, it's pretty cool all the rewards and cash back you can get.  And, in my opinion, it's much safer than using your debit card linked to all of your money for everything.
    Me:  33
    DH:  36
    Together since 2007
    Happily Ever After 4.30.2015
    ~~One Beautiful Daughter~~ Born:  11.6.2017
    Trying for #2!!
  • thj101 said:
    I also, (I'm not sure that DH does this as much as I do), put everything on my credit card each month and just use my checking account as a clearing account for all auto-drafts (including my full balance on the credit card each month), and any rare random checks I might write. 

    I chose to use my credit card for all purchases after I had a few identity theft situations happen and it was a pain in the butt to get my money back in my checking account. Much easier to get your money back on a credit card if you have an unauthorized charge. Plus, I get the cash back with my credit card purchases and that's always a plus. You just have to be pretty disciplined with it, and if you can do that, it's pretty cool all the rewards and cash back you can get.  And, in my opinion, it's much safer than using your debit card linked to all of your money for everything.
    All of this is accurate. I love just not touching the bank account since everything is on auto. It it so much safer. We too had an issue with ID theft and we got the charges removed from the cc but never got all our money back into our bank. The perks are great too. We only use low-limit cards so we never go over and DH is way too embarrassed to get a denial when shopping, so he never even gets to the max. Me, well I have it down to the penny. 
    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • I don't budget! :-D

    i know, stupid, DH has a great paying job and makes a lot more than we spend, I have a casual job as well which is where our bills come from. DH only pays rent (which we live in my dads house so we're really just paying his mortgage) other than rent, we only have car insurance, contents insurance, satellite tv and daycare for DS, we have 0 debt, if we don't have the money for something then and there we don't buy it. I do really need to set up a savings account though...
    Me - 22  |   DH - 32   |  Married - 24 May 2014
    DS - January 2014 
    TTC#2 - December 2015
    BFP - 6 March 2016  |  MC Confirmed - 21 March 2016
    TTCAL  |  April 2016
    CP  |  June 2016
    CP  |  July 2016
    BFP - 25 August 2016  |  Due Date - 11 May 2017
  • @houseofsetters This is DH and I too.

    We have zero joint accounts. We keep our bills separate, neither of us have student loans, and we don't have rent/mortgage. He pays all of the house bills (aka electric, propane and kerosene), ontop of his own bills (credit cards/insurance/truck payment). 

    I pay all my own bills, plus all of our groceries and our internet. 

    The reason being DH makes literally 3x as much as I do. But we're both extremely good with money. And we have a savings account (in his name) that we both put money into. I'm saving for SAHM $$, he's saving for in case of emergency. That's the only thing we should probably get on the same page about LOL. But it totally works for us, and we never ever argue about money. 
  • edited March 2016
    Thanks for all the tips. DH and I are pretty bad with money. We have a budget...i like Dave Ramsey's budget tool www.everydollar.com....but we make it and then never stick to it. I think we really need to get disciplined about it. 

    DH and I have been together since we were teenagers and have always combined everyting since we got engaged. We have one checking, one savings and one investment account between the two of us...nothing is separate. It's just always how we've done it. We let each other know if we want to buy something and if it's a bigger thing we decide together. Buying gifts kind of sucks though...lol
    Me: 27 // DH: 30 
    Married 05/21/2011
    TTC Since Feb 2016
    RE: Dec 2016 Dx: PCOS
    5 rounds of Letrozole 5mg + Ovidrel + TI 
    BFP!!!! June 2017 // EDD: 04/01/2018
    IT'S A BOY!

  • I'm really bad at budgeting because DH and I have no willpower when it comes to eating out and entertainment. We're saving up to move out of our one bedroom apartment and when I write up our budget we should have a good amount of excess every month, but we typically don't. I'm trying to be more strict about how we spend, but it's hard.
    Previously PaukMeKiande
    Surprise BFP/MC February 2011 
    BFP May 16th 2016
    EDD January 25 2017
    DD born January 30 2017
    Surprise BFP/MC April 2017
  • I'm really bad at budgeting because DH and I have no willpower when it comes to eating out and entertainment. We're saving up to move out of our one bedroom apartment and when I write up our budget we should have a good amount of excess every month, but we typically don't. I'm trying to be more strict about how we spend, but it's hard.
    This is us! Whenever I sit down and create a budget, it looks like we should have all this extra money. Then when I get to the end of the month there usually isn't much left over. I think we need to be more cautious of the small things, like coffee, and all of our meals out. That stuff really adds up quick! 

    Me: 28 DH: 29
    Married: August 2014
    TTC #1 Since March 2015
    Diagnosed with PCOS March 2016
    SA results normal April 2016
    3 rounds clomid + trigger + TI = BFN
    3 rounds clomid + trigger + IUI = BFN
    Uterine polyp removed July 2017
    Round 1 IVF January 2018




  • @vintageandrea90 - You can do it! When DH and I got together our budget was literally week to week. We would put together the whole month and know exactly how much we had excess every week and wouldn't go over that amount. It was difficult, and we budgeted down to the penny, but we didn't overdraft because of it. If you need to go down to a budget by day even, do it. I never liked Ramseys because I always made my goals too lefty. So once I changed my mindset and was realistic, it worked. I made sure I gave us plenty of spending money because I knew if I didn't we would ignore the budget. We gradually worked it down once we got used to sticking to it. 
    @PaukMeKiande Maybe try what some of us do and get a low limit credit card? and only use that? Then pay it off every month. That way you can't go over your budget because it will deny you. But you would have to not use your debit card at all. That would be the hard part. I also keep the saving in an entirely different bank so I don't see it when I log into my regular bank. It keeps me from transferring it back into my account since it's way harder to switch from bank to bank. At the end of the month ow week or whatever, physically remover your money and take it to the different bank and deposit. 
    Just a suggestion. 
    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • MamaMunn said:
    I'm really bad at budgeting because DH and I have no willpower when it comes to eating out and entertainment. We're saving up to move out of our one bedroom apartment and when I write up our budget we should have a good amount of excess every month, but we typically don't. I'm trying to be more strict about how we spend, but it's hard.
    This is us! Whenever I sit down and create a budget, it looks like we should have all this extra money. Then when I get to the end of the month there usually isn't much left over. I think we need to be more cautious of the small things, like coffee, and all of our meals out. That stuff really adds up quick! 
    That's exactly it. All those 20$ taco trips and 20$ movie nights add up really quick. Plus DH loves being a nerd with me and going to ren fests and spending all our money on turkey legs and mead. At first I was ok with it because I wanted to enjoy being newlyweds and all the freedom from being childfree, but now I hate seeing all that money go flying out of our accounts.
    Previously PaukMeKiande
    Surprise BFP/MC February 2011 
    BFP May 16th 2016
    EDD January 25 2017
    DD born January 30 2017
    Surprise BFP/MC April 2017
  • @MamaMunn & @PaukMeKiande  For the small thing that we do together (eating out, movies, etc.) whoever is the one that suggests it has to pay. So when I want to go to dinner and a movie I ask myself, so do I really want to pay ~50$ for this out of my bidget? Since we both have $300/month to spend (including groceries, shampoo...etc.!) it makes you second guess everything you want to buy. 
    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • We use PNC Virtual Wallet and the three bucket method (which VW is set up very nicely for).

    Pot 1 is spend money, our checking account.  All purchases and bills are paid from here first.  We get an email when this account gets low so we know to shore up a bit.
    Pot 2 is scheduled money, our reserve account.  If Pot 1 is extinguished and bills need paid, we will transfer over enough money to cover them from Pot 2.
    Pot 3 is future money, our savings account.  After paying the mortgage, a significant portion from Pot 2 (and sometimes Pot 1) is transferred to Pot 3.  Pot 3 does not get touched except in case of emergency or planned significant expense.

    Right now, we do half of our income in Pot 1 and half in Pot 2 and still can comfortably move a considerable amount form Pot 2 to Pot 3 after mortgage.  At other points, we've had to put most of our money in Pot 2 to ensure we have enough to pay bills or are able to move more to Pot 3.  Maybe someday our income will mostly go to Pot 1 while Pot 2 will still cover!  DREAMS.

    It works for us because we have a general idea of our spending without having to line by line each purchase, and easily lets us adjust when we have a costly month coming up, like during the holidays.
    BabyFruit Ticker
    Me: 28 & Partner: 32 | Married 2014
    BFP 7/29 EDD 4/11
  • I have nothing to add but thanks for all the great tips ladies, I definitely need to try new ways to budget!
  • @MommyForTheFirstTime; you sound SUPER ORGANIZED I LOVE IT! Heard that @ student loans, my undergrad & grad are both from private catholic schools-WOOF. I hope to have them paid before my kids go to college (we don’t have any kids yet lol)

    For me, I definitely head the finances in our house but ensure to keep DH in the loop & involved/engaged especially when we’re getting close to budgets towards month end & to plan for payoffs. I have a list of all the bills & due dates for the month & each month I determine which bills will factor into each payroll cycle. It’s the same every month so far as which bill falls where but the 1st cycle is usually pretty tight for us & the 2nd we usually have a ton leftover which is nice to pay things @ the end of the month.

    I also utilize MINT which is AWESOME for setting budgets for things that occur monthly, annually or “just once” – you tie all of your accounts to it & it reconciles for you. I think that scares some people but I’m okay with it lol. You can also plan goals on there, that’s what we used to plan for my engagement ring, our wedding, honeymoon & our move from Chicago to Minneapolis. We’re currently using it to plan/payoff our car. I like it because since it “knows” my savings account & increases the money towards our goal when we transfer from checking to savings.

    Lastly, as for accounts, we’re joint on everything & pay for nearly everything on credit (only to gain cash rewards) and ensure to pay them off each month- ain’t nobody got time for interest! I do keep our checking split into two (still shared)- we have a BillPay account which I zero balance and an “Everyday Expenses” account which is our fun money/groceries etc. Mint helps us budget so far as how much we get for what inside of the “Everyday” account but yea J

    Wow- that is a lot of info, I hope it was helpful J

    @ReesaAnne16; DH & I are in the middle of Dave Ramsey right now! We’re currently in the process of our “debt snowball” and hoping to have our car & a few small student loans paid off this year! That is amazing you’re almost done with your debt!!!!!! Also-Yay for MINT!

     

     

    ME: 31 | DH: 31

    Married: April 2015

    TTC (BBT & FF) #1: April 2015 (Off BC: January 2015)

    Fur Baby: 1 English Mastiff (Rupert) 

  • @thefarmerswife0411 You sound pretty organized yourself! My husband says I am crazy. But as for my plan, we will have paid off somewhere around 110K in debt (damn private schools!) by the end of 2019. That's even adding to a savings, and putting money aside in a completely separate baby/infertility savings fund. My husband and I collectively make good money (He's a nurse, I'm a chemist) but we make sure to live well beneath our means to make it all worth it. It's easy for me-I grew up very poor (living out of a car at some points),but DH grew up in a very wealthy family so it's harder for him. He's learning. 
    I tried Mint at one point, but it didn't work for us. Three of our debts wouldn't link to mint, so it made it kinda unhelpful. I didn't want to manually plug it in every month so I stopped using it. But I use my own spreadsheet version that works wonderfully. I seriously have at least 12 pages on my excel. I only use two in an everyday sense, but the rest are to keep track of the balance of each debt and even adds in the interest and all!
    I hear you about the school loans and also the perks of using CC. LOVE IT!
    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • @MommyForTheFirstTime  I guess I should say we use a modified Dave Ramsey system too.
    A lot of the snowball debt pay off method makes sense, but we tackled the highest interest rate loans first, not the smallest ones like he suggested.

    We also couldn't do the envelop system (I hate carrying more than $20 cash)
    Instead, we actually buy almost everything we can with a credit card, and we pay our credit cards off every month, so we never have fees.
    I totally agree on paying the highest interest rates first. I was originally putting extra money towards our house payment but I realized my loan interest rate was 2% higher...why would I not pay the higher interest rate first!?

    We also buy almost everything with credit card and pay it off monthly. Dual purposes...downloadable ledger to know exactly where my money went and points to get free things. I hate carrying cash.

    I used to us Mint but being an accountant I like downloading my account transactions from the bank and organizing them myself.

    If anyone has a spreadsheet that they use for their loans/ house payments/credit cards (anything that accrues interest) and would like to share I'd appreciate it. I can't find/create one that I like yet.

    ***********************************************************************************************************************************
    ~Formerly @dogmomwantinghuman ~
    Me: 29 | DH: 31
    TTC #1 since January 2015
    BFP #1: 11/30/15| MC 12/16/15BFP # 2: 6/2/16 | EDD 2/16/17







  • @Lecool - Good for you for working two jobs to pay down your debt!!

    I like this thread - there are some great ideas here!

    We have a joint account. Payment for all of our bills except our credit card is automatically withdrawn from our account on a monthly basis. We spread it out so that rent comes out at the beginning of the month (no home yet, we're in our early thirties and I only recently finished university), and all of our bills come out mid-month. 

    Our budget is very strict. We each have a "personal amount" each month that we take out in cash. That's money for entertainment, clothing, coffees, lunches, etc… We pay for everything that isn't automatically withdrawn or a "personal expense" using a credit card because we get travel points, but we pay it off every. single. month. We have a very strict rule about not having a balance on our credit card. 

    Our biggest financial stress is student debt. We're living very simply because we're paying it off aggressively while also saving. Our plan is to do that for the next five years and hopefully save enough for down payment on a home.
  • Hi, new here.  

    We're in the process of debt snowballing and working on paying off our debt.  We're also looking at buying a forever soon pretty soon.  We use the envelope system and the every dollar budget app.  I've been thinking about creating a spreadsheet.
  • l9il9i member
    I do all our budgeting.  I love my spreadsheet and I account for all bills and paychecks on a running 6 month basis.  This way I can see when things are coming in and need to be paid so nothing is missed.  I put in an estimate amount for miscellaneous expenses (grocery, gas, etc) and track that so I can see if we are over, under, or on track.  For me, I like this because there's a plan and I've never worried about missing payments.  I can also see any surplus and then DH and I can plan for how to deal with that.

    Currently, we are working to pay off DH's student loans.  Since I have that handy spreadsheet I can keep our miscellaneous spending on track and then also set surplus aside to pay down the debt faster.  We're hoping to get it paid off by the end of the year and then we can ramp up saving more for a new house down payment.

    In terms of accounts.  All of our accounts are joint for the most part.  We've been together since high school and lived together in college when it was typical that one of us worked more and carried the other financially during different times, so sharing is not abnormal for us, it works best.  We have a joint checking which majority of our money gets deposited and a joint savings connected to that for short term "emergencies".  Each paycheck some money gets moved from the checking to the savings.  I mainly use this for any unexpected things.  For example, when I had medical bills roll in.  We also have a savings at a credit union which we don't touch (only way to get money is to physically go to the bank).  We each have money directly deposited from our paychecks in here so it never makes it to our "normal" spending pool.  We are using this to build both a robust emergency fund and to help save for that house down payment.  Once DH's student loans are paid off we will increase our funds going to this account even more to save faster.  

    Our separate items include credit cards.  We each have a CC (the other is an authorized user).  Mine we use for all the general/misc expenses and pay in full every month.  We do this versus using a debt card for security and because we then get cash back.  DH's we got for travel and same, any spending would be paid off, it's currently got a zero balance.  So even though some people will say credit cards are bad I think it depends how you use them.  Neither of us have ever paid interest on a credit card and I think there are some benefits to be gained if you can handle it responsibly.
    Me: 26 & DH: 25
    Married: August 2014
    TTC since November 2015
    BFP #1 12/17/15 - MC 1/28/16
    BFP #2 4/22/16 - EDD 12/30/16
  • @dogmomwantinghuman I have an excel spreadsheet for this but it's extremely basic. Each cc/debt has a different page and tracks per month so I can see what the new total is when I pay it off (or, in theory buy something) I never touch it though, It pulls my payments from a separate sheet that I use to keep track of my bank account. So it's simple, but sort of complicated. HA! I have a huge spreadsheet. I can send you a blank copy of the entire thing if you really want. I have given it to several friends and they all still use it, but I did have to walk them through how to use it. 
    @emilie250 - Student debt is so hard to pay off. We are in the same boat. I hope that someday if/when I have children I can teach them to make better decision in regard to student loans. 
    @stardust317 - how do you like the envelope system?
    @l9i - sounds like we both have a similar system. with the surplus that we've foreseen and deciding to put all that extra toward a debt. It's a great system. I agree with you on the credit cards. A lot of people see it as a bad word, but if you're responsible with them they are wonderful. You can actually make money using them. 

    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • britters314britters314 member
    edited April 2016
    The only things we spend money on right now are tithing, rent, bills, groceries, and transportation. (Every once in a while we have to add something misc. in.) Everything else (which is probably about half our money or maybe even more) goes to paying off student loans. We only get to do something fun when we get cash back on our credit cards. Then whoever's credit card it was gets to use it. We only ever go out to eat if it's from our cash back or we had extra grocery money. We are on track to pay off our student loans within a few years of being done with school and then we can actually use our extra money.

    We also use Mint and a spreadsheet to budget every single penny, like a lot of you have said. I have a really odd pay schedule, though, so the Mint budget doesn't work for us, but it does help me see what we have spent money on in the past month and it allows me to see H's credit card and loans so that I can take them into account when budgeting.

    ETA: Also, I do all the budgeting and H just reminds me if there is something extra I need to budget for in a certain week. He's able to see the spreadsheet because we use Google Drive, but I don't think he looks at it very often..
  • @britters314 I used to use Google docs so my hubby can see. He added a page and put a list of usernames and passwords to some online accounts since we have so many and some are mine and some are his. I flipped when I found out. Lo and behold the whole two days he had it up it was hacked somehow and that's how he had his ID stolen. That was a mess. So just be careful on what you put on there. 
    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

  • @britters314 I used to use Google docs so my hubby can see. He added a page and put a list of usernames and passwords to some online accounts since we have so many and some are mine and some are his. I flipped when I found out. Lo and behold the whole two days he had it up it was hacked somehow and that's how he had his ID stolen. That was a mess. So just be careful on what you put on there. 
    All we have on there is the budget itself (the amounts for each category) - no banking info.
  • @britters314 That's good. My husband just ins't always the brightest. 
    TTC #1 since September 2014
    Diagnoses: RPL, Endometriosis, MFI (count, morph, DNI, DNAS, multiple bilateral subclinical varicoceles), low progesterone
    Check out my Infertility blog 
    Check out my Infertility Instagram

    Loss History (TW):
    BFP: 3 May 2015, loss confirmed 4 June 2015
    BFP: 15 August 2015, loss confirmed 23 August 2015
    BFP: 16 November 2015, loss confirmed 22 November 2015
    BFP: 18 July 2016, loss confirmed same day
    BFP: 04 March 2018, loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    BFP: 12 June 2018, TWINS; D&C 06 July 2018
    TTC History (TW):
    3 losses in 2015
    Met with OBGYN in January 2016
    Me: all clear, H: OAT
    November 2016: HSG = All Clear!
    January 2017: H tested again,  High DNA fragmentation and stainability
    February 2017: Clomid + TI + Progesterone = BFN
    March 2017: Clomid + HCG + IUI + Progesterone = SA/wash: zero count on attempt #1, <1,000 on attempt #2= BFN
    Varicocele Embolization- 5 May 17
    December 2017 SA: Zero improvement after embolization
    January IVF- 25 retrieved, 11 mature, 8 fertilized, 3 frozen day fives (3AA, 3AA, 3AA), 1 frozen day 6 (5BB), 1 frozen day 7 (3CC)
    Three PGS normal (3AA, 3AA, 5BB), one inconclusive (3AA)
    FET #1: 27 February 2018, 3AA & 5BB, one stuck! BFP 04 March 2018.... Loss confirmed 23 March 2018
    May 2018: SHG/SIS = all clear "beautiful uterus"
    FET #2: 04 June 2018, 3AA PGS normal embryo, 3AA PGS hatching inconclusive embryo. 
    BFP: 12 June 2018, EDD 20 February 2019
    Ultrasound, 25 June 2018: There are two
    Lost Baby A 02 July 2018
    Baby B not growing, D&C 06 July 2018
    Laparoscopy, hysteroscopy, chromotubation: 23 July 2018: blocked right tube, heavily inflamed, covered in endo. Removed right tube. Removed more endo from uterus, tubes, ovaries. Endo remains on bladder and bowel. 
    Next Up:
    TTC Naturally, possibly IUIs for remainder of 2018. 
    ER#2 ~Jan 2019
            

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