Budget Spreadsheets/Programs??

[sonrisa]

Hello...New to this thread...new to not just spending when we want to (meaning trying to create a budget) and I'm looking for a program or spreadsheet that could help us do that. We have a spreadsheet and well it just doesn't feel right, it is based on monthly income and bills, but not all our bills are due every month or they may be due every 6 months like car insurance and this spreadsheet doesn't account for that.

Confused and really wanting to make a budget and stick to it.

I'm so confused that I don't even know what a no spend day is... I mean dont we spend to just have the lights on??

[jgracefrank]

I think that for those bills that are only due once/twice a year, you just need to take the total owed at each interval and divide it by 12/6 (depending), and put a line item into your budget for that amount each month. For me, it helps to have an ING savings account. At the end of the month, I can transfer any money that I need to hold onto for a few months into ING. Does that make sense?

[smokeylo]

Once we have our budget written up I am thinking about using the website Pear Budget ($3/mo). It lets you create those "sinking funds" and is based on the envelope system. Right now I'm just dividing things out on an excel spreadsheet to establish our spending categories.