<prompt> Human: Hi guys.I am a long time redditor but posting from a throwaway because this is so embarrassing. I try to live pretty frugally but somehow my husband and I have found ourselves in this situation.The Basics - We make combined 60K before taxes, bring home 44,650 so 3722month- We live in a pretty low cost area and we have the fortune of having 500month rent for a 2 bedroom house on 7 acres. Weve lived here 8 years. Our landlords are family friends and clearly very understanding.- I knew we were behind pretty bad, but I didnt know how bad it was. I received a letter from our landlords yesterday saying that we are 11,500 in arrears. I stood in the kitchen and considered suicide for a moment. It just seemed so hopeless. I have 14 in my bank account right now.The Plan- I snapped out of it and made myself a budget this morning. I am in charge of all the bills and shopping, so though my husband is involved, it is mostly me who can turn things around.- If I can pay and extra 1000month in rent, we can get out of the hole in a year. - Ive never had a budget before. When Ive tried, Ive been completely overwhelmed by all the templates that include investments and escrow and 401Ks and all that. I need a very very basic place to start.The Implementation- Ive finally gotten pretty good at paying bills before they are due. Currently I pay half our bills with my check, half our bills with my other paycheck, and rent with my husbands when we pay rent. - My plan is to go ahead and pay for our variable spending using that same system. When we get paid, Ill go ahead and buy gas and cigarettes and groceries for the week. For gas I plan to buy Walmart gift cards and go ahead and fill up at the beginning of the week so we dont get screwed on gas. And buy cartons of cigarettes for my husband because its cheaper and those are our necessities.- So if we have bills, rent, gas, groceries, and cigarettes covered, everything else is just cake.The Concern- Im concerned that we will fail. That I cant get my husband on board. That Ive planned incorrectly.- The 600 I have budgeted for Household is a little high, so Im hoping we can have some rollover there.-  <response>: When we get paid, Ill go ahead and buy gas and cigarettes and groceries for the week. Wrong answer. When you get paid, you PAY YOUR RENT. The solution to overspending is not spend more and earlier. 