Fincial woes - too many desisions. ( major whinefest!)

luvbug00 wrote: As most of you know I was givin a gernerous sum of money from my recently parted grandmother. I planed on taking this money and putting into the wedding rings and honeymoon and have some left over for whatever. Recently there have been opinions from EVERYONE about what I should do with this money and it's causeing me major stress.

Brad wants me to:
buy 4 new tires and get my car fixed up
give him 3 grand to get a new car
save it for I dunno what else..

My parents want me to:
Honeymoon it
well just that...

My B/F wants me to:
save it and put it tward useful things for home , car, savings and all this other borring stuff.

My brother wants me to:
spend it all on me and Mya and get rid of it so I stop whining to him about it.

I realized the honeymoon thing to somwhere exotic is just not happening. I just want a nice honeymoon, ( which by the looks of it is a trip to Kansas city and a chiefs game ) and I want to use the rest to get some nice stuff so if and when we have another child we can have nice things for them. ( especially that $300 pram stroller I've been drooling over) Since you all are wiser then I, what do you think I should do???

Bee_Kay replied: What is the ballpark amount of $$$$ ?
If you don't mind me asking.

mckayleesmom replied: Personally...I would save it as FALL BACK money...if you are ever in need of it.

coasterqueen replied: I don't know what to tell you Nadia. If it were me, looking at my situation, I'd use at least 1/2 of the money to pay off some debt or to our car that needs repaired badly. The other 1/2 I might put towards a honeymoon, or a bit of it at least.

DH and I got some money as wedding gifts, not a lot, but some and instead of going on an elaborate honeymoon, we went camping (which was fun!) and used that money to fix up the shack we were living in.

You have to do what is right for you, not what anyone else thinks you should do.

Bee_Kay replied:
I agree.... I think a decision should depend on the amount I guess (that's why I asked).

If it's considerable, I'd probably, use some of it for necessities, blow a little on fun stuff and save the rest.

luvbug00 replied:

$5,000 is the amount for the woes ( there is more but that is in savings for a house and it's in a No tuchy zone )

3xsthefun replied: I don't know what to tell you. I would probably put some of it away in the bank, and maybe put some towards the car. And some towards a honeymoon.

We didn't have a fancy honeymoon. We went to some little resort at a State Park around here. We got little bit money from some people came to our wedding as gifts. The money we didn't spend on the honeymoon, we ended up buying some things we needed for the house.

PrairieMom replied: First I would use it to pay any out standing loans and get caught up that way. Then i would put it twards something that will increase its worth like a down payment on a house or something like that. It also doesn't hurt to have some in savings just in case.
You should ask OPRAH she is on a new 'get America out of debit " kick. She's inspired me!

jem0622 replied: If you have any unsecured debt (credit cards) then I'd pay them off. If you don't have that kind of debt, then I'd put it away in a CD (certificate of deposit) that you cannot touch without getting a penalty.

If you really need 4 tires on your car, then get 4 tires on your car. If you soon to be DH has a running car, then I would not buy a car just to buy a car. I think that is wreckless spending.

You could really make this money work for you and grow and make it more than what it is if you choose the best steps.

GL!

J-rod replied: take care of the essentials. wedding etc.

definately put some away for a "rainy day"

but definately buy yourself something fun too. that way you can treat yourself and not do all the grown up things...buy something for the kid in yourself.

mckayleesmom replied: I agree with J-rod...at least treat yourself to something....that way if you chose to save most of it..its doesn't burn a whole in your pocket.

C&K*s Mommie replied: Ultimately, it is all up to you.

IMO, a nice new car, a nice wedding & honeymoon, are all great. But that kind of money does not come around often. And it is the marriage that is most important not the wedding.

Saving some for Mya, getting your car running safely, socking it away for a rainy day, and other future plans may need to be where the focus is at. Just IMO.

If you work together as a couple, you can plan for things later down the line. A 10yr vow renewal & major honeymoon may be possible. For one of the anniversaries when money is more free flowing, you may be able to get that dream ring.

But these are all my opinions. It is not often that a large chunk of is available for free use, and no payback. Think hard, and use it wisely.

b&bsmom replied: As everyone has said, I would pay off some debts and put some away for emergencies. I would also make sure you buy or spend some of it on you. That way you feel like you got something. Good luck on your decision. Ultimately it is up to you.

Cece00 replied: I would fix my car and pay off bills.

If there is any left over, I'd use that for the honeymoon. Sounds like you are already doing great since you saved for a house

My3LilMonkeys replied: If I were you I would probably put $1,000 in savings for an emergency, put at least $500 as "fun money" and use the rest for things you really need - paying off debts, wedding, honeymoon, tires, etc.

luvmykids replied: ITA that it's ultimately up to you, but credit card interest could cost you well over $5000.00, if you have it. I am a spender not a saver, so I know what I would probably do but I think I would wish later that I had been more "sensible" with it. Why charge tires when you can just pay for them now?

I also totally agree that you should do something nice for yourself, but until you KNOW you guys are having another baby I think I'd hold of on spending it on that kind of stuff too. Just my


Good luck!

mysweetpeasWil&Wes replied: You didn't mention anything about debt, but if you have it, I recommend paying it off now. And then use what's left over for the honeymoon and other wedding stuff.

I guess what I'm saying is to make sure you don't overspend on the wedding so that you are more in debt. Boring, I know, but you will be more happy in the end. Nicole is right, getting married is what's really important, not the honeymoon, the size of the ring, etc. We had a small wedding and not an elaborate honeymoon, but my marriage is happy and that's all I ask for.

A home is an investment which will appreciate over time, so I think you're doing the right thing by putting money towards that. But money spent on things for the wedding, elaborate things that is, is just money spent, kwim?

Turn the money into more money by saving or investing it!

MyBrownEyedBoy replied: How about if you do decide for Brad's solution, you get the tires and stuff for your car, and Brad gets yours. Then you get the new one.