- Tithing to our church
- Mortgage (current amount; will go down $100/month or more after refinancing)
- Oral surgeon payments ($100/month, interest-free through August or September)
- Trash
- Electricity and Natural Gas
- Water and Sewer
- TV/Internet
- TiVO
- Home telephone (land line)
- Cellular family plan (3 lines)
- Groceries
- Gas (2 vehicles)
- School lunches for 2
- Newspaper (Sunday only)
- Car insurance (2 drivers)
- Monthly allowances/personal spending
After all that, we ended up with $275/month to spend on everything else: clothing, car registration and licensing, holidays & birthdays, school supplies & expenses, Scouts/swim team, repairs, entertainment, etc. In other words, if we change nothing in our spending habits, we ain't gonna make it. Some of the items on the list above (mortgage, insurance, electricity and gas, etc.) are pretty set in stone. Others (TV/Internet/TiVO, land line, cell phones, groceries, etc.) we can try to lower, and we will.
It was a painful, depressing exercise (I need chocolate--or ice cream--or both), but necessary. It gives me a better idea of how much income I need to try to replace.
