Budgeting. Not a very fun thing. We were bad adults and didn't really set a budget until a few months ago. It was more of a, How in the heck do we set a budget? rather than simply just not wanting to.

In the end it actually wasn't as hard as I thought. It took a little legwork of about an hour, but I did get to play with highlighters! This is what I did to finally tackle the dreaded budget.

Gather Supplies
...Bank statement, credit card bills. I even went deep and took all the Target receipts and assessed the amount of fun, groceries, etc.

 ...Highlighters. Choose as many colors as you need, depending on how you want to break up categories.

Here is how I used each color of my highlighters

Orange-Student loans
Purple-Bills/Utilities
Green-Groceries/Food
Blue-Fun

...Monthly Budget Planner.

Calculate

...Monthly income. Any income that comes in the form of a check to your household.

...The categories. Time to really dig deep and see the number form in each category. The fun and groceries were our biggest "ouch." We knew it wasn't going to be pretty once we arrived at the final number.

Subtract

...From your monthly income, subtract anything that is a set expense. These are the student loans, monthly credit card bills, some utilities. The amount you are left with after this....This is now your NEW MONTHLY INCOME.

Why? This is the amount you have left to work with every month and is a realistic look at how you really need to be budgeting for non essential items. It will help cut down on some of the larger spent categories from step 2.

...From your NEW MONTHLY INCOME; subtract the rest of your expenses from the previous month. get ready, this might hurt. Similar to ripping off a band-aid. It came as a shock to us how little we had left to go into our savings and made a lot of sense why we were struggling with that.

Evaluate

...Where is the category out of control. Shocker, it will most often be your fun category. This is eating out, going out, picking up movies, shopping at Target (ouch). It will have the most wiggle room for you to cut back on.

...Where can you cut down your spending Groceries came in a close second for us after "fun." Coupons might be an option or starting up a meal plan so you aren't digging into that fun category too. Really look at what fits within your lifestyle to cut back on. We even looked into how we might be able to get rid of our cable. Still working on that one but I'm trying to cut that back.

Set goals

Now that you have seen how much you spent last month in the Fun category, set a goal for how much less you want to have in that category by the end of this month. Do this for every category that is not set.

...make an action plan for each of these. To cut down on fun and groceries, we made the plan to utilize coupons when we are able to and to plan out our meals to cut down on groceries and eating take out.

Congratulations, you now have a budget!!! Take a deep breath. You can do it. You will do it and save yourself a lot of moola.

Newlywed Valentine's Day Gift Guide

Your very first Valentine's Day as a married couple is very special. Not only is it the first time you can buy those cute husband and wife Valentine's, but also the Valentine's Day you will reminisce about in the future. It's the first time you are celebrating with you"Forever Valentine."

Now that I've really piled on the pressure for you newlyweds to make this a special day, I have done some leg work for you if you are still trying to come up with the perfect gift.

*hint: Listen up guys and gals*

1.Wifey Sweatshirt- Guys, any new wife would love to receive anything that declares her as your wife. And this is the cutest one I've seen. 

2. Wedding Picture Frame-There isn't any newlywed Mrs. that wouldn't love a frame for all those wedding pictures she has. Easy peasy, fellas.

3. Cuddle Kit for 2-Dating Divas came up with this cute idea for a night in. If you are constantly on the go or setting Financial Goals like most newlyweds, this is a special but cost efficient way to celebrate Valentine's Day with your new Mr. or Mrs.

4. Romantic Dinner-Getting dressed up for a night on the town is a great way to celebrate your first Valentine's Day. Or maybe find a new recipe you can cook together at home. That can then lead to some dessert ;)

5. Victoria's Secret-Speaking of dessert...it's all about sexy when you are newlyweds so ladies, cook up something super sexy for your new husband on your first Valentine's Day. 

6. Panty Wreath- And if you are struggling with a sexy idea to amp up your Valentine's Day, this is the perfect option. All you need is a Styrofoam wreath, ribbon and your best panties. It will make your first Valentine's Day unforgettable.

7. Man Bag-Treat your man to a nice "man things" bag filled with naughty or Nice things to tell him how much you love him.

8. Man bouquet- Ladies, as he gets you flowers, throw together this nice bouquet just for your man. He will thank you for it.

Settling in as a Mrs.

It has been a month since the epic #MoyWedding. 

It was a thing, I promise. 

And I still feel like I haven't gotten caught up. So for everyone that just got married in June or within the last few weeks and are already posting all your honeymoon and wedding posts...kuddos to you. 

Being back to work the first week was tough. It's like you are just itching for that moment to sit at the pool with a cocktail in your hand. But you can't. Because you're at work. And there's no pool or beach in sight. Depression.

Or when you just want to not wear shoes 50% of the time again. But you can't. Because society here does not approve of such things.

Then right after I felt recuperated from that whole week, it was a whirlwind of a weekend that included working a double and changing my shifts around all kinds of crazy. 

Then I was finally able to enjoy a nice weekend for the 4th of July and breathe for a minute of a second. It was actually very delightful to spend time with my hubby, clean and see my friends. Definitely was a needed breather from work life. 

In between all of this, I made more than one attempt to change my name, (Finally had Success!!) reorganized my kitchen to fit all the fun new gifts from my bridal shower and of course, loving on my new hubby!

Needless to say, it's been a bit overwhelming and I am still trying to get into a post wedding routine. That means meal planning so the hubby has good meals, a good fitness routine to knock off the pounds from the honeymoon that I don't even want to talk about and setting ourselves on a strict budget to save for our house. 

How does that sound tiring and I'm just typing it?

So friends, that is what I have been doing and what I will be doing. I truly hope I can start our honeymoon posts tomorrow. Send good thoughts my way!

And if you are a fellow newlywed, what was your first month like trying to get organized and adjusted?