Have you ever noticed that we all have one area of our life that we seem unable to conquer no matter how hard we try?  Budgeting has been mine.  I can make lovely budgets but I am not nearly as good about KEEPING those budgets.  It is a discipline that has eluded me for years.

I finally, about three years ago, quit trying.  It seemed to me that it was a waste of time and energy to do it.  I needed to spend my time on more worthwhile pursuits and since we aren't forced by circumstances to budget, why stress about them?

Then, a few weeks ago I was musing about my lost battle with budgeting.  I consider budgeting to be one of the talents of an accomplished housekeeper.  I consider budgeting to be as important as knowing how to keep a bathroom clean, cook a healthy meal, properly laundery clothing, and construct a sturdy and attractive garment.

I can do almost anything in relation to home keeping.  I can plan menus and I cook well.  I am well known for my sewing abilities.  I can easily and quickly clean and organize a house.  I iron beautifully and minor home repairs are not daunting to me.  I have a nice sense of decorating.  Yes, I know how to make a home look homey and inviting as well as attractive.

I have never, however, managed to stick to a budget for longer than 2-3 weeks.  I decided that this isn't acceptable.  When I've been stumped by other skills I've wanted to learn, I've always fought until I could do them well.  I'm going to do it again.  I am going to learn how to make a realistic budget (I think I have one but we'll see), stick to it, learn from it, and then learn how to teach my children the same skills. 

So, for the next 3 months I am eating, sleeping, and BREATHING budgets.  Every day I come in here an dI open the budget spreadsheet and I think of anythign that is going to come 'out' of it that day etc.

And when I'm done with this... maybe I'll have this skill down and I can work on liking to home school...

NAH.