I just got back from a meeting with Megan. Yes, I have meetings with my spouse. Scheduled meetings for particular purposes. It works brilliantly. About every few weeks Megan and I will schedule a meeting to sit down and go over our budget. We’ll look at the shape of monthly income and expenditures. We’ll chat about any big purchases on the horizon. And we’ll make changes to the budget accordingly. We usually meet in coffee shops so it’s a little more business-like than just chatting — and its the quickest budget entry ever — coffee into the coffee line.

I haven’t blogged much about money before, so what follows are a few random thoughts, and some questions for the blogosphere.

First, our relationship would not be nearly as peachy were it lacking our money meetings. If money issues aren’t addressed, money thoughts can become all-consuming. On the other hand, if money matters are never addressed, well, checks bounce and things can escalate quickly. We’ve found no better way to deal with such challenges than addressing them head-on, but in a particular place at a particular time (yes, we’re both pretty strong “J”s).

Second, we keep account of everything we spend (well, we try to get darn close at least). Megan’s been the one to do so over the first few years of marriage by using a spreadsheet, but I’m going to take the reins next month. So, I need to find a method to call my own. I’m not a huge spreadsheet guy, or at least, I’d prefer to find a bitter way if one exists. Here’s where the blogoshere comes in…

I’m looking at Mint.com, Wesabe, and Geezeo. Anyone have experience using them? I think the interface of Mint looks great, but I wonder if it’s smart enough to handle our budget (not that it’s a big budget, just lots of line items that can be tricky — e.g. toothpaste, even if you buy it at the grocery store, must not be counted in the food line item). I’d say budgeting is my top priority for these sites, and then other functionalities are bonus.  Any other sites/resources you’d recommend?

Finally, I’d just like to say in public how strange I think it is that folks don’t have more real conversations about money and budgeting. I mean, sure, people talk about it when they reach a breaking point. But I’d love for churches and groups of friends to offer safe places to have other types of conversations as well.

One of the ideals I love held by those who are members of the Iona Community is that they meet annually to check in, to pray, to keep each other accountable, and also to talk about how they are using their money to serve God and others. Maybe that’s a bit idealistic of me, or maybe it’s not. In either case, I’m happy to schedule a meeting with Megan and to talk it over.

image by sanja gjenero