sgard How inspiring! I’m only 3 months into YNAB and I think this is what I’m doing it for too. Also what I think my husband should like about me YNABing 😂, as my quilty feeling around some spending permeates the communication with my close environment as well, I’m sure.

Cyan Saxophone Wow and I thought my federal student loan at 5.59% was bad (which is all gone now)!

Congrats on getting that lowered!

TechieM2 Thanks! The irony in this situation is that I work for a student loan servicer. If only I could go back to that financial aid office and give my 18 year old self advice.

Congrats on paying off your student loans, that's awesome!

MXMOM Sweet!

MXMOM I want to follow in your footsteps! I spend all year saving my cash back rewards and then stare at them during the holidays. 

Faness I actually pinched $325 to cover the MBNA balance transfer fee to move debt back to 0% for 8 months. Every little bit helps. 

Matthew I always tell my kids, "you don't get what you don't ask for".  Good job picking up the phone!

Whiskey Mama My mom taught me the same! I just need to do a better job of remembering it. (Also, her favorite saying is, "You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.") 

Whiskey Mama Great!

Whiskey Mama Congratulations on knocking that car loan out - it didn't see it coming! ;)

MXMOM Nice! I also like the Wendy's value menu junior cheeseburger for $2.00. It actually has real vegetables in it.

Couch Cat Do they have Wendy's 4 for $4 in your area? It's such a screaming deal I feel like I'm getting away with something. Choice of small sandwich (including the junior cheeseburger!), small fry, four nuggets(!), and a small drink. You can upgrade the drink to a Frosty for NO ADDITIONAL CHARGE.

Matthew doesn't look like it (in Canada).

Couch Cat wish they had a Wendy's in our food court in the mall next door.  I like Harveys too but they aren't there either.

MXMOM Bummer! But you do have the spicy chicken, right? 😄

Matthew yes we do. And thanks to all of this I am now going to have to go to Wendy’s for dinner. Good thing we still have $33 in restaurant budget. 

MXMOM and I went to Wendy’s last night. Got the junior bacon cheeseburger and used a free small frosty. Total spent $2.40. 

Violet Rain I should really try that as well. I feel resistance to selling things on (the local version of) craigslist/eBay, which I don't understand completely myself. I think it has something to do with accepting sunk costs; isn't that what you call it? when you've paid more for it then you'll ever receive back and keep off facing that by just holding onto it.

Does anyone recognize this? Any advice to overcome my resistance?

Powder Blue Pony I get that, and the psychology of it is a tough thing to overcome. But here's how I see it: regardless of whether or not I'm getting regular use out of something, the money has already been spent. So if I'm using it regularly, then I'm getting a decent ROI. If I'm not using it regularly, then I'm getting nothing in return for my investment. I would rather be able to recoup at least some of the cost than none of it. So yeah - it sucks that you probably will only get back a fraction of what you actually paid into something, but anything is better than the nothing that you're getting now from it while it languishes in a corner or a box or forgotten shelf. Hope this helps!

Powder Blue Pony what Violet Rain said, plus I find it helpful to look at the philanthropy side of things - I'm not a super minimalist, I like Things, but I dislike clutter and I dislike waste. So I tell myself often that I'm contributing to more good in the world by passing on something that has outlived its usefulness to me, to someone who needs/will appreciate it more. (This is also why I shop Craigslist/FB Marketplace/thrift stores before buying new, in a lot of cases.)

Vibrant Definitely this as well! I like thinking that my things are going to somewhere they will be appreciated and not directly into a landfill. And I'm a big thrift shopper too!

Violet Rain Vibrant Thanks. Both those sides I agree with and aren’t new. I’m going to use your encouragement to get into action. 

Powder Blue Pony Also, it's totally okay to give something away for free. I can think of a few times when I knew I could have gotten $50 for something, but knew I wasn't in a place where I was going to get it together to Craigslist or eBay it, so I put it out on the curb for free, and someone snapped it up within an hour.

(It wasn't a couch, I swear. Gotta hate the curb couch.)

Matthew This is what I do when I'm cleaning out the basement.  I take a bag into work and anything they don't want I send off to GoodWill.  I don't have the time/energy to try to sell stuff.

Mrs. AEH I know it's easier said than done, but instead of beating yourself up for this being your first budget, be proud that you've taken the steps to create one at all! Budgeting is a journey - that relief and pride will grow the longer you stick to it. :)

Mrs. AEH good for you. And don't get discouraged if you have to change things as you go along. Especially in the beginning this is pretty common. Make sure you read/watch info on YNAB website about rolling with the punches.

Krys A pretty pup for the holidays is definitely worth a quesadilla dinner - which I'm already a fan of, so I consider this a win-win. :)

Faness Even better, we had some left over roasted chicken I was able to season and add to the quesadillas, so it all worked out. The pup smells and looks wonderful! :)

Orchid Device That's a lot of things to save on by making one change - great job! Consumer loyalty is a prize, but it's time to move on when that loyalty is hurting you instead of helping you. :)

Hi Manda Manda !

Manda Manda said:
I've setup a recurring income with split categories to auto-budget most of my categories. The remainder goes to the To Be Budgeted category.

 I wanted to make sure you know that the income split into categories won't show in your reports as income. Only funds categorized as Inflow: To Be Budgeted will show as income in your reports, so this will skew the amounts you're seeing.

Faness ..bah! And I thought I was making it easier on myself. Thanks!
I'll follow what Powder Blue Pony did & setup the monthly funding goals for everything.

Slate Blue Cartridge !!

Stacy C Great willpower! You might even move your remaining category balance to another category at the end of the month, to savings, or off debt. :)

Stacy C Snap.   I said no to buying lunch and yes to catching up (either a walk or bring my lunch!)

xgirlmama Ooo, nice going! I keep telling myself to try the pick-up or delivery options from the stores nearby - or even Shipt! I think meal planning, creating a list and having someone else stick to Just that list would be a huge money and time saver!

Faness This is true. When I do drive up or Shipt I don't get the impulse buys from walking past stuff. Definite money and times saver. The $10 Shipt cost me was nothing compared to my extra pick-ups. 

Stacy C I'm the occasional victim of "Oh, I forgot I needed that." Which, if I wasn't in the store, I wouldn't have remember and I wouldn't have made a separate trip for it, so did I really need it? (No.)

Stacy C is this a free to use service, if not how much does it cost? Do you link this with your gmail account?

Lawrence Yay for staying aboard the budgeting train! I know it can be hard to come back from those unintended spending days, but powering through them not only covers that past spending but helps prepare for the future as well. :)

Lawrence Rolling with the punches is rule #3. It's ok to have unplanned spending. Just move things around. It gets easier the more months you are budgeting with YNAB. I have a daily spending category for groceries, gas, activities, eating out, etc but I have put a goal amount cap in the title. The category tells me how much I have budgeted, already spent, and left to spent. Then I move money around in that category as necessary. If I need more for the category, then it happens. :)