Cash and the Envelope System

Today we began a new adventure.  We have started an envelope system and are pretty much living off of cash.  We don't have credit cards, but I am limiting even debit card usage.  I want to see if Dave Ramsey and others that I have read are correct.  Is it too easy to spend money with a swipe of a card than by laying down cold, hard cash?  Will using cash save us money?

I have noticed problems with using a debit card.  First, both my husband and I have a card. I balance the check book.  He doesn't always remember to give me the receipts in a timely fashion...  especially if he's tired from work.  We've not had any major catastrophes from this, but the potential for overdrawing our account and incurring fees is there.  I don't want that to happen.  Using cash, if he needs something or just wants a cup of coffee, I don't have to worry that I haven't figured it in.  I've given both of us a small amount of free cash each week for just this purpose.

We are using the bank to pay bills.  I think if I can pay a bill on payday with cash, then I should.  That isn't usually possible since most of my bills have to be mailed.  However, there are a couple bills I can pay directly.  There is one I have to mail in because using online banking seems to mess up the account for some reason.  The rest I can pay with online banking.  Either way, this still cuts down drastically on check and debit card usage.

I went shopping today for groceries using only cash.  It did make a difference in my thought process.  I knew I only had a certain amount.  It wasn't the same as using a check or my debit card.  I knew that the cash I had allotted for my purchases was what I had.  With a check or with my debit card I think I always felt I could fudge a little if I wanted and the money could come from a bill or money on hold for a bill or the gas budget or something.  This was tougher.  I'll be honest.  But when I got home, I was proud that I'd stuck to it and didn't blow my budget.  Maybe I just have horrible self-control or I've gotten into some bad habits.  Using cash only today was a challenge I didn't expect.