The purse strings

First off, I think I'm in recovery from the stomach bug that laid me out for a couple days this week. Ugh, I am not good at being sick... don't have time or patience for it. So, I'm very happy to feel like myself again today.

Since Brian admitted to some moodiness on here, I can also fess up to causing some angst in our household this holiday season. I've always been the one in charge of finances in our house, for the most part. And while we never have much extra to go around, the shortfall always seems to intensify this time of year — right when we're hit with the holiday spirit and wanting to spend more than usual on family and friends.
We've majorly pared back gift-giving on my side of the family, and Brian and I are talking about largely forgoing gifts to each other this Xmas... but there's still so many people to buy for and just not enough money to go around. Plus, there's the pull as parents now of wanting Ellie to have everything, wanting it to be the best, and all that jazz. It's really too bad we love her so much.
While I've accused Brian of being to lax about spending, I recognize that I'm usually too uptight about it. And I don't handle that stress very well. But after a long discussion the other night, I think we're settled on a resolution heading into the new year that will hopefully cut down on the number of fights we have about money. I won't get into all the details, but we're planning a couple strategies to cut down on our credit card use and track spending more carefully. (Note: I'm happy to report that while Brian and I use our credit card for most purchases — to build up points — we pay off the full balance each month. So we're not worried about interest charges, thankfully. We just want to cut down on the habit of pulling out the plastic at the checkout and not thinking hard enough about how much we're spending and on what.)

As much as I hate talking about and stressing about money — I hate fighting about it more. If Brian and I can have fewer conversations that start with: "You spent how much going out to lunch??"... our world will be a happier place. And I'm glad we are working on that goal together.