Farm Raised Family | Financial Planning Series – Article 2
Expense Tracking – Before you can save, budget, or pay off debt, you need to know exactly where your money is going. Sounds simple, right? But for many families—especially those juggling irregular farm income, fluctuating seasons, or side hustles—tracking expenses can feel like chasing chickens in the wind.
The truth is, you can’t fix what you can’t see. Expense tracking is the first and most powerful step toward taking control of your finances.
🧮 Expense Tracking – Why Tracking Expenses Matters
Most families think they know what they spend—until they start tracking. Little costs (coffee, drive-thrus, unplanned tractor parts…) add up fast. Here’s what expense tracking helps you do:
- Identify leaks in your spending
- Set a realistic, informed budget
- Find room for saving or debt payoff
- Reduce financial stress and decision fatigue
- Make better money decisions as a family
🛠️ Expense Tracking – Simple Ways to Track Your Spending
Whether you’re a pen-and-paper kind of person or a tech-savvy app user, there’s a method that fits your style.
1. Notebook or Ledger
Perfect for those who like writing things down. Keep a notebook near your purse, in your truck, or by the fridge. Jot down every expense—even small ones.
2. Printable Expense Tracker (We’ll include one in the downloadable workbook!)
Use a pre-designed sheet to track daily, weekly, and monthly spending.
Bonus: Involve the kids for a family money lesson.
3. Spreadsheets (Google Sheets or Excel)
Great for families who want to sort, sum, and visualize where their money’s going. You can use separate tabs for each month or category.
4. Apps (like Mint, YNAB, or EveryDollar)
Link to your bank account and let it auto-track for you. Most allow you to set spending categories and goals.
📊 Expense Tracking – What Should You Track?
Track everything—especially for the first 1–2 months to get an honest picture. Categories may include:
| Fixed Expenses | Variable Expenses | Periodic Expenses |
|---|---|---|
| Mortgage/Rent | Groceries | Annual subscriptions |
| Insurance | Gas | Vet bills |
| Utilities | Dining out | School fees |
| Loan Payments | Farm supplies | Holidays/Gifts |
| Childcare | Misc. purchases | Car registration |
Pro tip: Don’t forget cash transactions—those are easy to lose track of.
🐮 Expense Tracking – Farm Family Tip:
If your income or expenses fluctuate with the seasons, track with a quarterly view as well as monthly. Spring may bring high feed costs, while fall might bring in more sales.
🧭 Expense Tracking – How to Make It a Habit
- Set a weekly check-in (Sunday evenings work well for many families).
- Involve your spouse so you’re both on the same page.
- Keep your system simple—the best method is the one you’ll actually use.
- Celebrate small wins, like spotting and cutting out an unnecessary subscription.
📌 Try This:
Track every dollar you spend this week. Just for one week. You may be shocked by what you learn—and it’s the perfect prep for an upcoming step: building a family budget that works for you, not against you.
✍️ Up Next:
“Pay Off Debt Without Losing Your Sanity”
We’ll dive into practical ways to tackle debt while still keeping food on the table and your family’s future in sight.
We have multiple new series starting now to give you the best in information concerning financial matters for families. Join our community so that you never miss anything, plus get some great exclusive insight!
MORE WAYS TO CONNECT
We also, as a homesteading family, have a variety of blogs that might interest you. A Life on the Farm focuses on the more personal side of the homesteading life. We discuss subjects like family, parenting, relationships, homeschooling, cooking, canning and so much more.
Two Oaks Farm Talk concerns the more technical side of homesteading. We discuss subjects like gardening, food prep, and farm building and construction with lots of tutorials!
Farm Raised Family is basically a hub for everything under the Two Oaks Farmstead umbrella. You can learn a great deal about all parts of the farmstead there. The Farm Raised Family blog focuses on financial matters such as budgeting, saving, and more and on current events affecting families.
You can also have a more in depth look at all that we do by visiting our Two Oaks Farmstead YouTube Channel and be sure to subscribe so that you don’t miss a thing!
Farm Life and Freedom is the new podcast we are in the process of launching! It is going to be so much fun! You could also check in with our Farm Life and Freedom Youtube Channel.
Two Oaks Farmstead is the farm store… the one that holds the umbrella! Check us all out and join us, not only on our blogs and Farm Life and Freedom podcast but come join the fun on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter… wherever you get social!
