So after we got engaged, we kind of put saving for our first house on hold. In fact, we ended up (although we tried very hard not to) raiding some of our house-savings to pay for wedding expenses. I think we did a really good job of staying within our means, but the fact remains that weddings and honeymoons come with hefty price-tags.

We are back on-track with house-savings. And we need to save A LOT of money. We have a budget. During the engagement, the budget was basically: paychecks minus rent, bills, and ramen noodles; balance to wedding/honeymoon. Now its a little more complex, especially since we’ve combined finances in a slightly different way than they were before.

So! I am designating May to be savings exercise. I am going to have to pay the rent and nonvariable utilities at their current levels. I will try to do the following things both to save money and to determine if I am properly budgeting for these categories:

1. Variable utilities- May is a good month to avoid running the A/C, to open windows when its breezy instead. Any month is a good one to be more cautious about turning off all lights and unplugging unnecessary appliances before leaving the house. I can be more conscientious about laundry loads, making sure I am running full loads and not overdrying clothing.

2. Grocery bills- I have to admit, I never budget for food. I buy what I want, when I feel like it, even when raspberries are $5.99 at Publix (and maybe 1/3 of that at the farmer’s market). I buy the expensive brand-name stuff if I have even the smallest preference for it. I don’t ever bother with coupons. For kicks, Fronzel looked at our bank account the other day and told me how much, in total, we’ve spent at Publix (our main grocery store) since the beginning of 2008. Its a pretty appalling number.

So! I am going to spend May trying to:
a) Clean out the pantry– use things that have been gathering dust in there to make meals. When I buy X perishable ingredient for one meal, try to find another meal to use the rest of it up in.
b) Set a grocery budget and stick to it– this probably means cash in an envelope.
c) Make the effort to shop where I can get the best deal– i.e. for fruits, vegetables, some dairy and meat items at the farmer’s market; non-perishables at the regular grocery.
d) Shop more frugally– i.e. stock up on chicken breasts when they are on sale, buy in larger quantities when it makes sense, avoid pricey items when something cheaper would do the job. Maybe even *gasp* try some coupons!
e) Stick to the list when shopping, so I am not led astray by my greedy eyeballs.

3. Non-grocery household items- I am highly irresponsible with things like the tupperware aisle at Target. We did a Costco trip not too long ago so we are stocked up on the absolute essentials like soap, paper towels, toilet paper. I might be able to go the whole month without suckering myself into something like a new Swiffer mop or the like.

4. Eating out- We eat out all the time, whenever we feel like it, whenever I don’t feel like cooking, whenever I work late, whenever I haven’t adequately planned for the week’s meals. And we rarely factor in the relative costs of restaurants when we do so. I’d like to avoid eating out as much as possible in May. Its pretty hard to anticipate where to set “as much as possible” bar, since I think its important to have dates (me and Fronzel), especially when he’s been eating crappy African food for a month. I also have some stuff coming up like an actuarial exam– there are BOUND to be late nights when the best option– the option that allows me to keep studying– is snagging a Chick-fil-A on the way home. And the unavoidable post-exam extravaganza. And eating out with coworkers, about once a week, which isn’t that expensive, but that is something I consider a necessary expense because it definitely promotes networking and being “part of the group” has major career benefits.

What I’d really like to do is cut out some of the lazy eat-outings, when I just haven’t planned properly or I’m sick of leftovers, and to be cautious about what we spend when we do go out. Things like taking a bottle of tap water in the car with me when running errands, instead of snagging a $2 bottle because I’m thirsty when we’re already out (same goes for Fronzel and Cokes).

I won’t be able to compare May to April to see how much better we do in May, because we were away for the whole first week of April– really not fair. But then, I might find it discouraging if it ends up not being the huge difference I hoped for, or if there were too many variables I was unable to control for. But I can use the May totals to set a reasonable budget to try to live by, something like a goal. Obviously, the A/C IS going on in June, but that doesn’t mean that I won’t be more conscientious about how much it is on.