I suppose I wouldn’t be a FIRE blogger if I didn’t share the obligatory monthly budget. So I have decided to share my actual numbers not so much to be judged but to give a realistic look into the journey. I personally hate reading blogs that give opinions about budgeting or personal finance but fail to make it personal. I hope that I can offer encouragement and example that shows budgeting doesn’t have to be difficult. So here goes…
The Budget:
So about the budget, I budgeted $4893 and the actual amount spent was $4961. Over-budget by $68.00 and in my opinion that’s a successful month. I am not a strict your-going-to-hell budgeter. I use the budget as a guide. I do treat it like a puzzle and I do get excited when I come in under budget. I don’t beat myself up if I go over or if an expense pops up that was unexpected. I’ve learned with time not to take the FIRE journey, the budget, or life very serious.
A couple categories stand out that helped balance the budget. Spending less than budgeted on gas, car repairs, fitness, personal care, and clothing helped off-set the unexpected gift, more spent on dining out and higher costs for our dogs vet visit. Oh, The joys of having an elderly dog. My hope is that by sharing it encourages you to review your spending to see how it fits into your goals. I hope you meet and exceed your goals.
Until next month… Enjoy life!
AHA FIRE 
If you were to buy an expensive piece of fitness equipment, like say a Peloton, how would you handle that in your budget? Would you just go way over on the fitness category for one month?
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Hi Jeff, thank you for the comment. If the purchase was planned then it would be included in the monthly budget. If it was an unexpected purchase, that happens even with Pelotons, then yes the fitness category would just be over budget. Great question.
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