JUST BRENDA: My husband is a spendthrift

Hey Brenda,

I have been married for a while now and I really love my hubby. The problem is that he is not a planner but I am. He likes spending and spending, and sometimes I am just surprised that he has upgraded some electronics or bought things we don’t even need. We are planning for children now, but I am afraid his habits will lead to our ruin. He hardly invests. After rent, shopping and other necessities, he spends the rest money on friends, drinks and his electronic gadgets, and his parents when I remind him to send them something small. I am frustrated and worried about the future.  

Hi,

This is completely understandable, particularly if you are planning to have children. There are a couple of ways you can deal with this.

One, tell him how he spends his money is really worrying you, and you feel like he needs to get more serious before the babies come, or the babies shouldn't be coming.

Two, you can suggest a fund to start saving for the babies, after you bring him some hospital print outs that show exactly how much having a baby costs.

Three, you can stop paying for the things that he should be helping you pay for. Let the electricity run out, preferably on a day you don't need internet, or on a day there is a football match, and make sure you truly do not have Mpesa to buy more.

Small things like that that will hopefully beat your man child into shape. If he's a child, he probably shouldn't be having children. Life will teach him the value of planning if he lacks the foresight to do it himself.

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