@whateverist I'm glad you get to be home
I follow the 50/30/20 rule for budgeting (50% of paycheck goes towards needs/bills, 30% is spending, 20% is savings). However, sometimes if our bills are higher that month, I'll do 60/20/20, or even 70/10/20, we just try not to spend too much because I don't want to touch the savings. I don't know if this is the
best way to budget, it's just what works for us.
My biggest tip is MEAL PLAN. And stick to your grocery list! I physically sit down and allot time for this every Sunday. Usually my week looks like; cook Monday and Tuesday, leftovers Wednesday. Cook Thursday, leftovers Friday and Saturday. Sunday is just for eating whatever is left in the fridge, usually I'll make a nice big breakfast so we don't eat a whole lot later in the day anyway. So, I decide what the 3 meals are going to be, then write down all the ingredients I'll need for each meal, and
stick to that list. This was the biggest money saver for us. It also helps get you into cooking. I've learned so much about how to cook food from doing this. I hated cooking when I worked. Now that I have more free time, it's become almost like a hobby, and it's the cheapest hobby there is.
Another big tip would be to stay away from fast fashion. Thrift as much as you can, and save your money for high-quality clothes. They last way longer. You're going to be throwing a lot of money away buying cheap clothes that fall apart in a small matter of months/years.
Don't drink when you eat out. We only eat out maybe once or twice a month if the spending allows, most months not at all because I cook a lot. This also helps with not feeling guilty when you've had a particularly rough day/week and just don't feel like cooking.