Good for you sounds like you are working all the bugs out of your budget! It does take some time to make it work for you.

Finishing your BEF and $60 less on the student loan is a great start. It sounds like you are being more honest with yourself about where your money is going. Time and practice will help you be a better steward of your money. I think you should break out your food expenses from your blow money as a line item though. Then if you want to spend your blow money on a cup of coffee out it's not a big deal. After all that's what it's there for. But I would save up your blow money to pay for a $60 haircut and a $40 waxing so that it'll motivate you to stay on track. Kind of like a reward for sticking to the program.

Wish I had found DR when I first started college, it would have saved me a lot of credit card debt. One thing I found now since working the plan and being post-college is that if you have a built-in rewards system, you are less likely to cheat (or use blow money on other items). For example, because I get free, excellent coffee at work and can bring from home, I only treat myself to coffee from Starbucks during the weekends (using my blow money, of course). Then I also build in savings goals and once those are met, I treat myself/DH to whatever is next on my wishlist.

Thank you for your kind words and advice.. I listen to and consider everything and all suggestions!

Alicia, I like the rewards system you suggested. I broke down and had a starbucks Monday after work/before class, but like I said the class days really are just the days I tend to get what I want (coffee, snacks). Tonight is a class AND lab night, so I'll likely pick up a coffee again. I'll go to a little coffee stand instead, they are always cheaper than the 'Bux.

I can see making a grocery line item, but what bugs me is I wouldn't know what amounts to make "grocery" and "blow" if I did that. It seems easier to me to keep it all in the Blow category and keep trying to pinch the pennies when using my Blow. So for February's budget, I still have the Blow line but no grocery line...

This week I have been bringing coffee and an apple to work from home in the mornings and I went to the grocery store and bought my favorite Triscuits on sale and they have been lasting me the whole week (saved my butt when I got hungry before class and such!) I obviously ought to get a bit more creative than just stocking up on Triscuits, but it's a start. As long as I stock up on something and keep a little box of food in my car I am good. Next week I am thinking crackers, apples, carrots, bananas, celery and peanut butter/raisins (which I can take from the pantry). I can preportion the carrots and celery ahead of time, keep a tupperware thing of PB and the bag of raisins at my desk... No fridge at work to allow me to be super awesome at snacking, but I ought to have one!

Anyway, still working this, and will have another weekly update on Thursday