On January 12, 2011, students from Ms. Bonnie Grows and Ms. Regan Tyler’s class at the St. John Parish Child Development Head Start welcomed all parents to the Parent Committee Meeting with a song.
Feeding Your Family on a Budget
Cynthia Clifton, Family & Consumer Science Agent (FCS) with the LSU AgCenter presented “Feeding Your Family on a Budget” at the Parent Committee Meeting on January 12, 2011, at the St. John Child Development Head Start Center. She reviewed what a budget is -- a tool that helps families keep track of their money during both good and challenging times. In today’s society, living on a budget is very important. Times are hard now and families are trying to pinch pennies to pay their bills and put food on the table. The parents were given a Periodic Expense Worksheet. This worksheet is for periodic expenses that don’t occur every month. This worksheet is for fixed expense such as car insurance or predictable expense such as changing the oil or car repairs. This worksheet lets you put aside a certain amount of money every month for that expense whenever it occurs.
Spending plans or family budgets range from a simple list on a blank page to a book of recorded data sheets, but all budgets include two main parts: income and expenses. It is important to build a budget that is realistic and workable for your family. Be willing to try new ideas and make adjustments. A spending plan or budget may require many revisions before it fits your needs and works well. If your income drops, it can be downsized by cutting back on flexible or unnecessary expenses.
Parents were given five steps to success in developing a budget for their family:
1. Calculate your monthly income. Include the income of all earners in your household. If your
income varies from month to month, determine your average monthly income by adding your
income for the past six months and dividing by six.
2. Determine the monthly amount needed for periodic expenses. Some expenses only come once
or twice a year. Complete the Periodic Expense Worksheet.
3. Calculate your monthly fixed expenses. These expenses include rent, mortgage, utilities, car
note, credit card payment and insurance.
4. Determine the amount you need to spend on necessary but flexible or controllable expenses
each month. These expenses such as food, clothing, household expenses and personal needs
vary from month to month and can be managed. We as American people have to distinguish
between needs and wants. Needs are things that we need to survive such as food, clothing,
shelter and safety, but wants are things that we really don’t need, such as entertainment, gifts,
pets, and eating out.
5. Subtract total monthly expenses from total monthly income. If you are spending more than
you are making, you must find a way to “cut” from your expenses in order to balance your
budget and live within your means. Before making cuts, ask yourself:
Which expenses are essential to your family’s well-being?
Which expenses have the highest priority?
Which expenses can be reduced to keep your family’s spending within its income?
How much can be afforded in each category?
Parents were also given a Spending Plan (Budget) Worksheet to complete to see their spending and start budgeting.
Parents were also advised to remember a few helpful tips. When developing your spending plan, always include savings as an expense category. This is often referred to as paying yourself first. They were also informed that saving for emergencies is very important. Remember, everyone needs a little money to spend without having to account for every cent.