Tuesday, 04 August 2009
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Splurging on a Budget: Nice Dinners and NASCAR
I confess.
I love to spend money on special occasions.
Yes, my husband and I could save money by cooking nice dinners at home rather than going out. Yes, we could rent the movie instead of going to the theater. Yes, we spend as much going out for two ice cream cones as the whole gallon would cost us at the store.
But for me, half the fun of a nice dinner, a movie or an ice cream cone is the experience! Our town has a fabulous homemade ice cream shop, tons of great restaurants and funky little theaters.This is why I budget for splurges. For example, my husband and I don't have cable. We'd rather spend that $50 per month on eating out a time or two per month. We both drive 10-year-old cars - we'd rather save $200 per month into a weekend-getaway fund. This weekend, I took my husband to his first NASCAR race. It was an expensive weekend (um...$30 for a six-pack of beer? Good grief!), but we'd planned and saved for it, so we did it up right. BBQ'd brisket, beer, funnel cakes, the whole bit.
What do you think? On a tight budget, is it smart to splurge? How would you do it?
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- From: twentyfivecents
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Comments (5)
I definitely think this is a good idea! I currently don't have a job (one of the million college grads still searching...) but my boyfriend does. And he likes to/doesn't mind splurging a little so we can go on a weekend trip or do something extra fun after saving up for it.
I'm all for the idea of driving an older car, living in an older home and spending money on experiences rather than things. Coming from my parent's household when I was younger, I've seen the other side of things...where people spend money on new furniture when the old furniture is just fine, buy a new car because they're bored with the one they have...generally spending money on "stuff." Even my mother laments about the fact they "never have any money" to go on vacation...
Stuff is just that....stuff. I'd rather go boating or hiking in the mountains or go to a concert than buy a new stereo for my car or a new rug if the one I have is fine.
I agree with enterthelabyrinth, it's better to budget for experiences rather than stuff. We, too, cut off the cable so we could have more in our budget for entertainment. We love taking our son out to enjoy the great outdoors and activities rather than staying home and doing much of nothing.
Its a good idea to budget for a spurlge just so you can let yourself go sometimes. I do the same thing, but I invest in pieces for my wardrobe ehehe.
@enterthelabyrinth@xanga - I love that you and iaretheocean put the emphasis on experiences over stuff. I hadn't even thought of it in those terms, but that's exactly what we're doing - choosing memorable experiences over accumulating stuff!
We splurge sometimes, but there aren't many things to do around here anyway. :(