You need to know everything. You both need to be comfortable with sharing everything. If you can't you are NOT ready to get married.

My writing is definitely influenced by and speaks to African-Americans because that is who I am. I'm black. I'm a black woman. I'm a black mother, wife, churchgoer, etc. I am the legacy of slavery.

Save what you can toward the emergency and life happens fund. But don't worry yourself sick at the slow growth. The point is it's growing even it's just one dollar at at time.

I write for anybody struggling to manage their money.

I'm keenly aware of how important it is to set a good example. You may not think that your kids are paying attention to you, especially with something like money, but they probably are.

You need to know everything. You both need to be comfortable with sharing everything. If you can't you are NOT ready to get married.

You don't need to waste money on a fancy program or app to do a basic budget. I've been using a simple Excel spreadsheet since 2005 to track my monthly budget.