Cash diet.

Since Christina and I are both planning on traveling for one month this summer and are quickly remembering how expensive travel can be, we've been inspired to get financially organized. 

We've been budgeting, scrimping, and saving.

And the weirdest thing, is that I've been enjoying the process, an insane amount.

Creating and adjusting a budget for myself has been making me giddy. What???

Part of this grand scheme, has been starting a cash diet. Everyone always says that cash is harder to part with than plastic, and it's also easier to visualize and realize the amount being spent as the cash pile dwindles.

Generally, every paycheck I divide my income between: 

bills {rent, mobile, visa}, 

expenses {transit, gas}, 

savings {both for travel and long-term}, 

and then I give myself a portion of cash for everyday life that has to last until the next paycheck.

Before I started this project, I almost never carried cash. I also barely saved, because I figured it was more important to pay down debt {credit card & student loans} than to put money aside. 

A financial advice article I read a short time ago set me straight. So, I'm saving, even if it's just small amounts every paycheck. 

My dear friend Katie put it best, "You have to pay yourself too!" 

And carrying cash and limiting myself to it, has been a surprisingly empowering experience.

Ah, the things we are capable of. :)

Plus, saving isn't so hard to do when dreaming of the adventures that will come because of it.

P.S. This expert's advice has been so helpful throughout the process. She offers a number of helpful resources and financial tips at her website and blog.

{Top image}

{Bottom image of a Soapstone Globe available at Anthropologie}