JawJaw is right...hmmmmm...how does one respond?
I thought about being flip and saying the way we handle it is...Dave makes it and I spend it...it's a 50/50 split and seems to work well enough for us, at least most of the time.

Okay, now that every one is finished laughing...
We have a rule - which ONE of us has only broken once & been caught <g> that neither of us will spend more than $100 without talking it over with the other person. Another thing that helps us with finances is we're together 24/7. It's hard to spend money on impulse buys when we're together all the time. We're fairly simple people but we do live in a big farmhouse and it's expensive to live here. Windows are 9'x3' and in the winter it's difficult to heat. We make choices...we'd reather live here and have high heating bills than live somewhere else and spend money on something else. The animals cost money but I'd rather have them than a newer car. If I want that new car smell, I'll buy one of those new car smell freshners.

I suppose, coming toward the end of my rambling here...it all boils down to choices. Do you and your husband talk about what you want out of life? Do you have goals? Do you have plans? It sounds trite but putting stuff down in black & white will help both of you. It's easier to "see" and make adjustments, changes, etc. when it's in black & white. And, black & white doesn't mean in stone. Get a pencil with an eraser, makes things easier.

Congratulations on starting out. Life is a grand adventure, especially when you are beside someone you love.