Nearly all marriages come with financial challenges.
Big or small, money issues are going to come up and it can be stressful.
Its the financial equivalent of a crash diet and therefore it never works.
Walker and Walker/Getty Images & Flashpop/Getty Images. Collage by Cristina Cianci
How in the hell is our grocery store bill $127 for just two people?
He suggested creating a meal plan before going to the store and buying only for those specific meals.
In addition, he says, I prefer to buy my groceries online.
This way I know exactly what my total bill will be before I buy.
A sale on shrimp and tortillas?
How luxurious with discounted couscous.
I loved the variety it provided to myalways-the-same meals.
Our weekly bill has yet to exceed $75 and once dipped to a record-low $42.
As I bang out this, my thighs are chafed.
Its summertime in New Orleans and Ive spent a month walking nearly everywhere Ive needed to go.
But I feel so rich!
I peeked at last months bill and wed spent $145 on Lyft and Uber.
I vowed to walk if the destination is within 3 miles and I can get there safely.
Tynan says, Aside from walking, public transportation is the next best alternative.
The former provided much-needed air conditioning and I could read my book or we could chat without distractions.
Bonus: Nate didnt get road rage.
But my favorite was thewalking, which was also like a completely free built-in date.
This is the worst for me because, frankly, its boring.
Our weekend fun was getting ridiculously expensive, so we vowed to stay in one night per weekend.
One Friday, we had a drink on our porch and then cooked dinner together.
Not surprisingly, this proved to be a lovely evening.
On another non-going-out night, weput together a puzzleand watched a movie.
One Friday was spent playing Trivial Pursuit and eating frozen pizza and drinking wine.
Tynan suggested booking a rental home, instead of a hotel, to save a lot of money.
For an assignment along the Florida Coast, I rented an Airbnb.
And he was right: During this tripover a holiday weekendit saved us loads of money.
We could cook breakfast in our house and sip a bottle of store-bought wine on the balcony after dinner.
My favorite part: sitting on the porch in our pj’s and watching the sunrise.
We dont even have an actual bank in the city weve relocated to and its not a big deal.
But Tynan says one of his biggest tips is to use cash.
I know what you are thinking: Who uses cash anymore?
he said to me.
Hear me out: When you set aside cash for social activities, it becomes harder to overspend.
Once the money is gone, thats itits gone.
Plan your nightlife around your budget, and not your budget around your nightlife.
The envelopes felt like permission to do something for useven if it was already within ourbudget.
