Budget Excitement

I hope I'm not the only person out there that feels this way, but I get excited when I put together a new budget. Maybe there's a little accountant inside me, just waiting to get out when I start up Excel? Anyway, I really do get excited to put everything in its proper place. The only problem is that I haven't been very good at making a realistic budget... until this month. I decided this month that I would start with a list of all the things we wanted to do -- from little to big, from the home improvements we should do before we move (which is NOT anytime soon) to the trip I want to take to Russia in 2014. EVERYTHING. The home improvements list took up TWO WHOLE PAGES!! And then I prioritized. The Russia trip is going to take some serious saving, so I am including it right from the first, but just a little each month will go towards that. Everything else is in order of importance -- and that means I will be buying a little each month for certain projects, but I'm waiting until next month (or three months from now, etc.) on other things. The thing is, if I can stick to the budget I've made, then I WILL be able to do those other things every month! I think it's a great incentive for sticking to the budget. My second step in this process was to think about saving in a different way. I really wanted to save 10% of each paycheck, but I've always thought of that money just languishing in an account somewhere. Well, I'm still planning on letting some of our money languish (a.k.a. accrue interest and eventually get big enough to put into a CD), but I'm also counting the money we're saving for these projects as "savings" -- something I've never done before. But it's true -- I AM saving this money, I just have specific projects I'm saving FOR, instead of some nebulous savings account in the sky. So, my budget goal this year is two-part: 1) stick to the budget! (okay, that's always the goal, but now I have another one, too); and 2) DO NOT FINANCE ANYTHING. That includes baby Smith!! And I think we've really budgeted wisely enough to be prepared. Look at me, I'm a boy scout! :)