This past week Mike had to take our 12 year old Rock into a orthopedic vet to fit him for a cast for his back leg. Rock messed it up some time back and we are trying this as an alternative to surgery. With four dogs, vet bills tend to be a big part of our budget. When the bill was presented, Mike paid the $850.00 from our savings account.
I still can't believe that I am writing this. We are pretty new to the whole idea of a savings account. Yes, we both have retirement savings but this is different. This is an account we use for emergencies, and with companion animals one never knows.
So what is a savings account? It's an account that we have set up at our bank that we put money into the first of every month. It's kind of like the whole saying goes, paying ourselves first. We have been doing this for over a year and it's pretty awesome. And for those who don't do this, we highly recommend it. It doesn't have to be a big amount of money. But think about it. Think about putting $25 or $50 a pay period into an account that you only use for emergencies (and in our case, vacations).
The impetus for this is that we don't want to use credit cards. Our savings account makes this a lot easier. Carrying credit card debt is terrible for any activist or anyone wanting to be a voice for the voiceless. What we pay in interest could be going to support groups making the world a better place for all living beings. Also, we don't have to support companies who support candidates we can't stomach.
Check it out! Go to your credit union or bank and ask them about it. Some places require $100 in your account to get fees waived, so simply take your change jar with you. I personally have found that I get just excited about saving money as I do spending it.
Thanks for reading. I would love your feedback!
Awesome article, as I try my best to pay myself first, however it seems sometimes that is not possible!
ReplyDeleteSo true! Having a savings account is so important. Credit cards are an evil necessity in some cases, but credit card debt is an awful thing to have. We use our credit cards for large purchases that we know we can pay off by the end of the month since we rarely use checks anymore. In our house the motto is...if we can't afford it, we can't get it. It really puts the needs vs. wants debate into a realistic perspective.
ReplyDeleteWe use an envelope system for those things that come up like vet bills and vacations. Each payday we take out cash and distribute it into envelopes marked "vacation", "pets", "christmas", "association fees", "clothes", etc.. We avoid using credit cards.
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