Entertaining my Preschooler

Thursdays is the new budgeting day... Normally Joel and I will sit and handwrite out where our spending is up to and keep each month in a pretty folder (yes that part was my idea). Budgeting software and spreadsheets are all great I'm sure - but they compute themselves and don't seem to get enough into my brain...which is where they need to be to be most helpful really - so pen and paper is the way forward. So Joel's not here today and its over to me. Its basically going to be a tick list of all the normal bills that come out, a supermarket table and then other tables for other things. Right now I know that its the 19th May and we have £150 left. What I dont know is whether that's all for food/school stuff and whatever or whether there are any humongous council tax bills due out before the end of the month (did I seriously just spell that word right first try!?...yes it seems so...nice one) So I get to look at the statement, tick things off as they're paid and write in EVERY trip to the supermarket for milk, any cash machine withdrawals etc into the tables and I can keep adding up where they're all up to. Seems like a lot of work... is that what every other family has been doing for years?! I always just guessed everything... which doesn't work so well apparently.
So anyway, before I started I also just gave myself a little spending fix by splurging £50 on the credit card- not spending from my credit card...but paying it off. I don't know whether we can afford it - but that made it feel a bit more exciting. I like barclaycard... they give you a colourful target board thing - a bit like a blue peter fundraiser thing - so that you can see how much further you have to go. I DO have quite a way...but I'm looking forward to seeing whether I can go on it again when I've ticked off all my bills and have £150 left to spend!