Create A “Fun Money” Budget Category
November 25, 2008 – 5:34 am
Budgets are a way to identify, in advance, where you money will go. A budget can be complicated or simple, and the budgeting process will be easier if you’ve got some slack between your income and expenses. Most of us, however, don’t have much slack.
So when do you get to have fun? If at all possible I highly recommend having a “Fun Money” or “Mad Money” account within your budget. This category should be a no-questions-asked fund that can be use for any (legal) purchases. My wife and I have separate fun money accounts, and we pay purchases from this category however we see fit.
My wife struggled initially with spending money when we first got married. But she struggled with it by spending too LITTLE, not too MUCH (boy did I find the woman of my dreams!!!). When we first combined our accounts and finances she felt a combination of “bad” and “uninformed” on what could be spent, and she didn’t like the idea of having to write down everything we spent.
Our solution to this was a fun money account for both of use. I found it interesting that it wasn’t about the amount of money she wanted to spend. It was simple that “no questions asked” fund made spending and life much more enjoyable for her.
It had a major benefit for me as well. She didn’t like having to record everything that was spent. I’m meticulous and like having exact records of where our money goes, but I didn’t want her to feel like she had to go ask for permission to spend money (even if it was after the spending occurred). I want a wife, not a daughter looking for daddy’s permission.
On a quirky personal note I’d just like to mention that I always roll over her unspent fun money at the end of the budget year (which is fair), and I always save any excess in my fun-money account. 
Although your budget may be tight, I think its’ very important that you plan to have some fun. If you lock down your budget too tight you’ll never stick to it. Just like a diet, a little restraint is beneficial but cut back too far and you’ll end up binging and weighing more than when you started the diet.
Image Credit: benimoto
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One Response to “Create A “Fun Money” Budget Category”
This is a great idea. I think I will try this with my family. Thanks.
By Vanessa Collins on Nov 25, 2008