How To Effectively Manage Your Business Budget

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The first thought that comes to many people's minds when they hear the word "budget" is "constraint." The idea of budgets has been seen as a mechanism to hinder financial freedom. This is also the misconception seen in many organizations as managers and line heads struggle to balance costs and profits without following a budget. In some cases, where there is a budget, there is a challenge following it. Creating and sticking to a budget ensures a business's success and the smooth running of its operations. With that said, how can you effectively manage your business's budget? Here are a few tips to consider.

1. Ensure your numbers are always accurate

Your budget plays a significant role in the decisions you take daily concerning your business. Therefore, if the numbers are inaccurate, you may steer your business in the wrong direction. That said, accuracy is very important. Experts advise that the best way to ensure all numbers are accurate and complete is by improving how expenses are submitted through defined categories for your team members. By creating categories, you can create more context and ensure your numbers are not mixed up. For instance, an increase in employee overtime rates can be categorized as an HR expense.

You want it to be as convenient for your team as possible to submit expenses. To do this, choose budget management tools with added features such as automatic categorization, photo capture for receipts, and many more. These features help streamline the process, ensuring that expense reporting takes only a few minutes. 

2. State items within your budget

 

In addition to setting accurate numbers, your budget must be well-detailed. It is only until the right items are recorded that you can properly follow your budget. For instance, your company may spend a significant amount on office supplies every month. In that case, simply noting the expense and not the item makes it difficult to make the right adjustments. Therefore, it is important to take time to allocate the item details to ensure better management. 

If this task is challenging, you might consider breaking down your budgets to the departmental level as an organization. You might also need a budget that makes way for occasional tweaking and adjustment based on department performance. 

3. Learn to delegate

 

When starting a business, you will most likely be in charge of all major decisions, including creating and managing the budget. As the brand grows and evolves, bringing on more staff, it is vital to delegate this task. The truth is, some of your staff members are better suited to handle this financial responsibility due to their skills and expertise. That means you could have your budget well-managed as you focus on other aspects of your business.

4. Collaborate with all departments

As mentioned earlier, it is advisable for departments to create and categorize their budgets. However, for these budgets to benefit the company as a whole, they would need to be merged, and that's where collaboration comes in. Through collaborating and working together, various departments can find reasonable ways to help your business find innovative ways to save money and create a more effective budget. For example, your marketing and sales teams may have overlapping expenses and needs. Instead of following separate budgets, you can find ways to encourage collaboration so that both departments work harmoniously to satisfy these needs.

5. Aim for balance

In rare cases, your organization might have to spend money on something that isn't included in your budget. Budget experts advise that in such instances, your team agrees to postpone or remove an equal amount of money elsewhere within your budget. This simple act is known as a trade-off, and it's done to ensure that things always balance at the bottom. 

A trade-off involves spending a little less here and a little more here because, let's face it, things rarely go as we plan when you create a budget. 

6. Be frugal

Sometimes, a trade-off might be impossible, as ever expensive is a critical need to the company's growth. In such instances, you and your team might have to be frugal. Frugality is common in situations where your revenue does not develop as planned. It involves identifying where your intended monies were meant to go and skipping those until the intended revenue comes in. organizations don't need to spend as much to support their non-existent revenue streams. 

7. Standardized budget reports

Within an organization, there are several different departments, each with its budget, expenditure, and revenue. With every department managing its budget independently and differently, any update they make to their budget needs to reflect in your overall business budget as soon as the change is made. 

The best way to achieve this is by keeping a central budget management system. This means having a real-time form where all budgets can be reviewed, updated, and accessed. The system ensures that all budget reports are executed in the same manner, ensuring that the combination of the different reports is uniform, accurate and easy. 

8. Set budget update meetings

Every business experiences a crunch period where an intense workload causes every department to drop their tasks in a bid to finish up urgent projects. It is advisable to treat your company budget as an urgent project that always needs a hands-on approach by every member of the team. Set recurring dates and meetings for budget reviews, book clubs, and budget updates. It can be monthly or quarterly to ensure that overspending is caught on time and nipped in the bud.

9. Keep notes to be better

To ensure that your next budget is more effective than your last, it's imperative to review your budget and take note of any insight you gain. Reviews can be from your financial statements, as these documents illuminate spending patterns you might have missed in real-time. Keeping notes from your financial statements is a great way to prepare your next budget and make it more understandable than your last. 

The best and easiest way for a fast track to achieving its profit goals as a business is to build a working budget. Over the years, we learned the importance of a budget, but education surrounding how best to work with a budget is lost. Hopefully, with these management tips above, you know how best to work with your business budget to avoid overspending and backtracking. 

Finding Room For Luxuries Without Breaking Your Budget

 When people hear the word budget, they think it means cutting out everything fun that you normally spend money on. If you’re in a really tight spot and you need to turn your financial situation around, you might need to come up with a drastic budget that cuts out all of your luxuries. 

However, the average budget should still have room for luxuries in it, but a lot of people struggle to find a place for them. What usually happens is that people go over budget because they still want to enjoy small luxuries. If you want to avoid that, try these simple tips to fit more luxuries into your budget. 

Budget for Small Luxuries

This might sound like it doesn’t really make sense because, when you are creating your budget, you differentiate between luxuries and essentials. However, everybody needs some small luxuries in their life, so you need to make room for them in your budget. Instead of removing all luxuries from your budget and then trying to find extra cash each month for things you want to buy, you should set aside a small amount for luxuries. That way, you don’t feel guilty about going over budget every time you want to treat yourself. 

Look For Deals And Offers 

If there is a luxury item that you want and it doesn’t fit within your budget, look for deals and offers. There are some great sites like Checkout Saver that will automatically search for coupon codes and discount cards when you shop online. Instead of buying things straight away, why not wait a while and see if they go on sale? You don’t need to buy luxury items straight away and you’ll waste a lot of money if you buy things on impulse. But if you can learn to be patient and search around for deals and offers, you will ultimately find it easier to fit luxuries into your budget.

Buy Things Second Hand 

Buying things second hand is one of the easiest ways to get luxury items without the big price tag, but a lot of people don’t consider it. Second-hand doesn’t mean buying things that are years old and most items dip in value a lot after just a few years. If you’re looking for a new phone, for example, there are some great refurbished ones that are just a year or two old and they’ll be far cheaper. You can get a lot of second-hand designer clothes online too, so as long as you’re not obsessed with fashion trends, you can get some great stuff for a fraction of the price. Next time you want to buy anything, check whether you can get it second hand or not. 

Find Savings Elsewhere In Your Budget 

Sometimes, there are big luxury items that simply don’t fit within your budget, so what can you do? Going over budget is one option but if you want to stay in control of your finances, you should find savings elsewhere in your budget and set that money aside for a few months. That way, you can still buy luxuries without messing up your budget. You could look for ways to manage your grocery budget, for example, or find ways to cut back on your energy use at home. This is a great strategy because you will initially make cutbacks so you can afford more luxuries, but if you continue with those new spending habits, you’ll have more money in the long term. 

Look For Alternative Brands 

People struggle to fit luxuries into their budget because they always buy branded items that are way more expensive. The thing is, you can usually find alternative brands that are a lot cheaper, even though the quality is just the same. In most cases, you are just paying for the brand name rather than the quality of the product. However, some brands do sell quality and there is a benefit to spending more money on things that last. So, find a middle ground and avoid the cheap brands while also finding more affordable alternatives to the high-end luxury brands. 

Are you terrified of the word budget because you think that it means draining all of the fun from your life? This is the reason that a lot of people avoid budgeting in the first place because they think that it means they can never enjoy any luxuries. But it doesn’t have to be that way because, if you follow these steps, you can fit luxuries into your budget. 

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Budget Boot Camp: To Do #5 - Budget for Irregular Expenses

We're now officially getting into "budgeting all-star" territory. If you budget successfully for irregular expenses, you're well on your way to having a budget better than 95 percent* of the American population. Most people budget for regular expenses, but when the opportunity to take a vacation, give Christmas gifts, or pay to get the car fixed comes, there's nowhere in the budget for that money to come from, so they resort to their emergency fund, credit cards, or savings earmarked for other purposes. But not you. Here's how to budget for irregular expenses.

If you're just joining us, don't forget to check out our other Budget Boot Camp posts.

• Calculating your net worth
• Setting financial goals
• Tracking your spending
• Budgeting for regular monthly expenses

To Do #5: Budget for Irregular Expenses


Step 1: Brainstorm potential expenses and their amounts

Take a moment to brainstorm those irregular expenses that crop up during the year. Personally, when it comes to creating expense categories, I've found that it's actually easier to be specific (within reason) than general for a few reasons. First, it's easier to figure out how much your going to spend if you break it down into sub-categories. For example, you're probably going to come up with a more accurate amount for "gifts" if you've broken it down by holiday. Find out if there's anywhere you can save online as well using a cashback extension.  For example, just like eye care, you will know when you are due for a check-up. By planning ahead and keeping money aside in case you need new glasses, then you can make sure you can afford some that you really want. To find some fabulous men's glasses, find it here.

Second, it's actually easier to categorize when things are specific. If you have a category for parking at the airport, you're not going to waste time trying to decide if you need to use your monthly parking budget or your irregular travel budget. If you're using our free budget template, we've gone ahead and brainstormed a lot of categories for you (listed below), and left you with spaces to create your own custom categories. Download our free template on our Facebook page. Do any of these apply to you? Do you need to create additional categories?

• Insurance: Car, renters/homeowners, medical, dental, life, disability
• Car Related: Registration, safety inspection, oil changes, car washes, excise tax, car repairs, miscellaneous parking
• Travel: Plane tickets, car rentals, gas and tolls for road trips, parking at airport, transportation to airport, food for travel, checked luggage fees, entertainment on vacation
• Gifts: Wrapping supplies, birthday, Christmas, wedding, baby shower, Mothers Day, Fathers Day
• Medical: Copays, parking at the doctor's office, flu shot, prescriptions, contacts/glasses, dental bills, vision bills
• Memberships/Subscriptions: Costco membership, Amazon Prime membership, newspaper/magazine subscriptions, anti-virus software subscriptions, museum passes
• Children's classes/activities: Swim class, preschool
• Hobbies: Race fees, craft supplies
• Photography: Family pictures, photo books
• Education/Career Related: Tuition, books, CPA renewal fees
• Clothing Related: Dry cleaning, clothing purchases (although I use a fund to keep track of this-- we'll talk about this more next month)
• Miscellaneous: Hair cuts, stamps, credit score requests, will software, cash withdrawal

Now assign an amount to each expense. If you don't know the amount, estimate it. As you live with a budget, it will get more and more accurate over time.

Step 2: Divide the total of that expense for the year by 12 and put it into your monthly budget. If you're using our free Excel file, available on our Facebook page, you enter the amount for the year in the total column at the end, and the monthly amount will automatically populate into each month's budget. As you enter the actual amount each month, you'll see the actual total accrue in the total/actual column. If you are using Mint or Yodlee, I believe there is a "rollover" feature that you can use to rollover the unused amount in each budget to the next month. However, in the month when you do use the accrued funds, it will show you as "over" budget if you go over the monthly amount.

Step 3: Save that money each month so it's there to use when you need it. There are several ways you could do this. We send the amount we budget each month for irregular expenses to a separate savings account, and then transfer the actual amount spent on irregular expenses back into our checking account each month to make sure we don't "accidentally" spend that money on other stuff. I believe Lisa pays large irregular expenses out of that separate bank account directly. Or you could just hold your budget in the other areas and float the amount accrued for irregular expenses in your normal checking account (works better when you're not on a tight budget). We'll talk more about cash flow strategies with irregular expenses later in our budget boot camp.

Step 4: Refine over time. It's not going to be perfect the first time. It's a combination of both trying to live within your budget and improving your ability to forecast your spending as you continue to track it that will give you a workable and effective budget.

*I made up the 95 percent-- but seriously, it's got to be high.

Share- What are the random expenses that you always forget about in your budget?


And for the mom products I'm loving: Since we'll be moving to New York City in a few months, and space will be TIGHT, we put our baby in a pack 'n' play. The combination of this mattress pad (we're using the bassinet attachment, so we didn't want a thick pad that would make it too high) and these oh-so-soft crib sheets actually makes it a really great and comfy space. 

Budget Boot Camp - To Do #4: Budget for Monthly Recurring Expenses

Give yourself a pat on the back for getting to this point-- the actual BUDGET part of the budget boot camp!

So far, you've

• Calculated your net worth,
• Set financial goals, and
• Tracked your spending for a month.

I know it took us a while to get to the point of actually creating a budget, but now that you've done those other three things,

Budgeting--Are you doing it right?

Why Budget: According to studies, the most powerful predictor of successful weight loss is TRACKING what you eat. So it shouldn’t be a shock to realize the best way to ensure healthy spending is to TRACK WHAT YOU SPEND. Take frequent and honest looks at your spending habits. For anyone who’s ever kept a food diary, you may be surprised by what and how much you are eating (FIVE bowls of Frosted Flakes! Really?!). Spending money is the same way—we’ve all developed some nasty habits. The first step to making those corrections is to track your spending so you can identify where you can “trim the fat.”

How to budget in three easy steps: 

Money Hip Friends: Budgeting with a Plan

Remember this post where I said we were trying to get our smart friend to write a guest post for us? Here it is. (And for those of you who don't know her, Paige is one of those people that is always #1 (usually literally) at whatever she does, so she's a good one to listen to.)

Paige, Lisa, and I are good friends from the BYU accounting program. She's a young mom of two little girls (2 ½ and 7 months), so life is busy, but having a budget and financial plan in place really helps her to simplify. She also loves to help others with their budgets and help them gain the peace of mind that comes from being in control of your finances.

I think I’ve made a budget, now what? Budgeting with a plan

From my experience, one of the main reasons that people fail at budgeting is because real life doesn’t always fit into an identical monthly mold. After you have worked and drawn up your first budget draft, there are three things to consider to make sure that you have a real, complete budget and sound financial plan:

Budget Boot Camp - Help Your Marriage - Have a Monthly Budget Meeting

So I was reading this article about how arguments over finances are the #1 predictor of divorce. I think a lot of people suspected or assumed that was true, but this study proved it. The part of the article that got me excited was the researchers' suggestions for preventing and repairing those issues because they're both related to budgeting. They are two very simple things, yet so crucial, they could be the difference between making or breaking a marriage. And they're things anyone can do, financially-minded or not.

Marriage-Saver #1: Each Spouse Should Have a "Fun Fund"

The first solution is for each spouse to have their own "fun fund," as mentioned in a previous Budget Boot Camp post.

Marriage-Saver #2: Have a Monthly Budget Meeting

To quote one of the study's co-authors Sonya Britt, "Couples should set times where they talk about the budget and if changes need to be made to the way they are allocating their money." She continues, "This advice remains the same no matter how long the couple has been married. Our preferences change all the time, so it is important that how the couple is spending money reflects changing preferences."

Budgeting may be a pain at times, but it's a *whole* lot easier than dealing with the fallout from not doing it. Budgeting doesn't have to be hard (see our "How To Budget" here) and it doesn't have to be perfect. It's about putting something together that is good enough to facilitate that monthly discussion revolving around:
- How are we currently spending our money?
- How do we want to be spending our money?
- What changes do we need to make to reach those goals? (e.g. "How can we lower our gas expense?" "Do we need to allocate more money to groceries?")

These monthly meetings from advice from JL Collins helped up reach millionaire status in our 30s.

Getting Started

My marriage isn't perfect (my husband won't play Ticket To Ride with me anymore--I'm kind of a sore loser). But despite our shortcomings, we don't argue about money or finances, largely due to our commitment to making a budget AND sticking to it. By having a budget, the discussions about finances occur when everyone is cool and you are logically making decisions based on needs and wants instead of pointing fingers and being accusatory about the spending habits of your spouse.

What A Monthly Budget Meeting Might Look Light

Every Sunday night, my husband and I spend about 15 minutes updating our budget (meaning, downloading the transactions and re-categorizing as necessary).Once a month (usually on the first Sunday of the month so we can review the previous month) we have a "budget meeting" to review how we did and make adjustments as needed. Some months are smooth and it's a happy, 5-minute "looks good" discussion. Occasionally we realize certain expenses have gotten out of control and it takes 20 minutes to figure out how we're going to deal with it (e.g. "Maybe we need to take money from our entertainment budget and increase our grocery allowance" or "Ugh...time to cut back on eating out. Our "dining-out" budget got slaughtered this month.") It's a time investment, but because those discussions happen regularly in a productive and structured setting, we spend little to no time outside of those meetings discussing money and virtually no time arguing about it. It's a beautiful thing.

If you and your spouse argue about money, you're in the majority. But decide now to do something about it by taking these two steps towards a healthier relationship (and healthier finances!). It takes a bit of work, but the payoff is huge. Consider it an investment in the most important relationship in your life.

Arguing About Money? Two Things That Could Save Your Marriage

So I was reading this article about how arguments over finances are the #1 predictor of divorce. I think a lot of people suspected or assumed that was true, but this study proved it. The part of the article that got me excited was the researchers' suggestions for preventing and repairing those issues. They are two very simple things, yet so crucial, they could be the difference between making or breaking a marriage. And they're things anyone can do, financially-minded or not.

Marriage-Saver #1: Have a Fun Fund or "Mad Money" Account for Each Spouse

Our own MHM author Lauren addressed this issue months ago and she was dead-on. One of the first conclusions drawn by one of the study's co-author's Sonya Britt: "When one partner makes more money than the other partner, the couple has to decide if they each get to spend equal amounts of money on personal preference items." So how does a Fun Fund work?

Marriage-Saver #2: Have a Monthly Budget Meeting

To quote Sonya Britt again, "Couples should set times where they talk about the budget and if changes need to be made to the way they are allocating their money." She continues, "This advice remains the same no matter how long the couple has been married. Our preferences change all the time, so it is important that how the couple is spending money reflects changing preferences."
If Your Response Is, "Aww man...but I don't wanna budget.":
How much time per week would you be willing to dedicate to preventing the #1 predictor of divorce? If your answer is at least 30 minutes, then you have officially committed yourself to budgeting.
Have you ever heard that successful marriages take work? Well, this is exactly the kind of work they were talking about! Budgeting may be a pain at times, but it's a *whole* lot easier than dealing with the fallout from not doing it. Budgeting doesn't have to be hard (see our "How To Budget" here) and it doesn't have to be perfect. It's about putting something together that is good enough to facilitate that monthly discussion revolving around:
- How are we currently spending our money?
- How do we want to be spending our money?
- What changes do we need to make to reach those goals? (e.g. "How can we lower our gas expense?" "Do we need to allocate more money to groceries?")

Getting Started

Our marriage isn't perfect (Bryan won't play card games with me anymore--I'm kind of a sore loser). But despite our shortcomings, we don't argue about money or finances, largely due to our commitment to making a budget AND sticking to it. Even if you've never budgeted before, throw something together and adjust later as needed--it will never be perfect (it doesn't need to be), but you'll find it gets easier over time. Plus with all the free budgeting programs out there (as mentioned in Step #1 of our budgeting post), most of the work is done for you. Keeping your budget up to date may just be a matter of setting up your accounts and checking back on a regular basis to correct any errors the program may have made. By having a budget, the discussion about finances is when everyone is cool and you are logically making decisions based on needs and wants instead of pointing fingers and being accusatory about the spending habits of your spouse.
I'd suggest "tuning up" your budget (making sure the transactions get downloaded and correcting any mistakes) on a weekly basis, preferably around the same day/time each week so you don't forget.

Real Life Example

Every Sunday night, my husband and I spend about 15-30 minutes updating our budget. Once a month (usually on the first Sunday of the month so we can review the previous month) we have a "budget meeting" to review how we did and make adjustments as needed. Some months are smooth and it's a happy, 5-minute "looks good" discussion. Some months we realize certain expenses have gotten out of control and it takes 30 minutes to figure out how we're going to deal with it (e.g. "Maybe we need to take money from our entertainment budget and increase our grocery allowance" or "Ugh...time to cut back on eating out. Our dining out budget got slaughtered this month.") Sometimes it’s important to think about your major recurring expenses, as these can become too much for any budget for a variety of reasons, and it can be important to consider if it’s time to search for new Apartments for rent. It's a time investment, but because those discussions happen regularly in a productive and structured setting, we spend little to no time outside of those meetings discussing money and virtually no time arguing about it. It's a beautiful thing.

If you and your spouse argue about money, you're in the majority. But decide now to do something about it by taking these two steps towards a healthier relationship (and healthier finances!). It takes a bit of work, but the payoff is huge. Consider it an investment in the most important relationship in your life.

How have fun funds and budgets helped your marriage?

4 Things to Decide on when Remodeling Your Kitchen

 

via Pexels

When it comes to remodeling your kitchen, the sky's the limit. But before you can start ordering new cabinets and appliances, there are a few things you need to decide on. Here are four things to consider when remodeling your kitchen: budget, layout, materials, and appliances.

1) Budget

How much are you willing to spend on your kitchen remodel? This is an important question to ask yourself, as it will dictate the scope of your project. If you have a limited budget, you may have to make some sacrifices in terms of materials or appliances. On the other hand, if money is no object, then you can go all out and get the kitchen of your dreams. Just be sure to set a realistic budget so you don't end up spending more than you can afford.

Once you've decided on a budget, stick to it! It's easy to get caught up in the excitement of a kitchen remodel and start adding things that aren't really necessary. By staying within your budget, you'll be able to keep your kitchen remodel on track and avoid going over budget.

2) Layout

The layout of your kitchen is important for both function and aesthetics. When deciding on a layout, think about how you use your kitchen and what would work best for your needs. For example, if you love to cook, you may want to invest in a larger stove or an island for food prep. If entertaining is your thing, then you'll want to make sure your kitchen has enough space for guests. And if you have a large family, you'll need to make sure there's enough room for everyone to gather around the table. Once you've decided on a layout, it's time to start thinking about materials.

3) Materials

The materials you choose for your kitchen will have a big impact on the overall look and feel of the space. When selecting materials from Cabinet&Stone, consider both function and aesthetics. For example, if you're looking for durability, then you'll want to choose materials that are built to last. But if you're more concerned with style, then you may want to select materials that are more visually appealing. Just be sure to strike a balance between form and function, so your kitchen looks great and works well for your needs.

4) Appliances

Another important decision you'll need to make when remodeling your kitchen is what appliances to include. When choosing appliances, consider both your needs and your budget. For example, if you love to cook, then you'll want to invest in high-quality appliances that will make cooking easier. But if money is tight, then you may have to compromise on some of the bells and whistles in order to stay within your budget. Just be sure to choose appliances that will suit your needs and help you make the most of your kitchen.

Remodeling your kitchen can be a daunting task, but it doesn't have to be. By taking the time to decide on a budget, layout, materials, and appliances, you can ensure that your kitchen remodel goes smoothly and results in the space of your dreams.

Budget Boot Camp: To Do #6 - Budget for "Funds"

Note: To join our once-a-month e-mail Budget Boot Camp, sign up here. Here are the lessons we've done so far:

• Calculating your net worth
• Setting financial goals
• Tracking your spending
• Budgeting for regular monthly expenses
• Budgeting for irregular expenses

I like to budget for expenses that are more flexible in terms of when you spend them, like money for dates, decorating, clothing, personal spending, etc. using "funds." Basically all this means is each month you add a specified amount to your specific fund. The unused portion rolls over to the next month. 

Why do I love budget funds? I love using funds in budgets for a lot of reasons. 

• Funds are extremely powerful tools to cap runaway spending. The types of things they are best at tracking (clothing, random fun personal purchases, home goods, etc.) are just the types of things that tend to be impulse buys.
• They make your budget more flexibility-- and that's something that really makes living with a budget more enjoyable and successful. It helps not feel so pinched if you know you can still buy the things you enjoy, you just have to save up for them. 
• They can help your marriage. Even if you and your spouse are both frugal, you're not the same person, so you're not going to value everything the same. Having a personal fund enables one spouse to buy things they enjoy without guilt (or resentment from the other spouse). Lisa gives some other good marriage money tips in this post.

How do you track funds? There are a couple of ways to track funds-- in Excel, on paper, online, or using the envelope system.

• Excel. I have a separate tab in our family budget file where I track our funds. There's a column for each different fund. You can download our free template on our Facebook page here. Or you can make your own that suits your needs. The monthly budget shows the full amount of your fund flowing out every month. But you track the balance on a separate tab. Here's what ours looks like.

• Paper. I know historically I haven't been super supportive of using paper for budgets, but here's one area where it can work pretty well. When we were first married, we tracked most of our budget in Excel, but we had a sheet of paper taped to the fridge where we tracked our fun spending money. On the first of the month, we would add $15 to our account (we've since increased it a bit). Any time we spent money for fun discretionary items, we would write the expense on the paper and update the running balance. It was kind of fun to have it up in an easy to see place (although we would usually move it if we had people over...)
• Online. Honestly, I haven't tried to do fund accounting using software because I found it a bit frustrating. But, similar to budgeting for irregular expenses, I think you could use the rollover function to make this work on Mint (or whatever you're using).
• Envelope system. This system uses cash. You deposit your monthly allotment in an envelope, jar, or other container each month and spend out of it throughout the month. The leftover stays in the envelope at the end of the month and "rollsover" to the next. Pros: You will never overspend. Cons: You have to go get the cash each month, and it doesn't work as well for online purchases. 

To Do #6: Set up your funds

1. Decide what types of funds you want to have (date, individual spending, etc.)
2. Decide what amount to allocate to each fund monthly.
3. Set up your system (Excel, paper, online, or envelope).

And here are the products I'm loving: Mr. Clean Magic Erasers (gets crayon off walls, need I say more?) and these leather earrings. My baby always rubs her face up against my cheek, but these are nice and soft and don't scratch her. 

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