Tax Refunds, Stocking Up, and Spending with Prudence

Are you treating your tax refund like “free money,” or like the hard-earned money God has entrusted to your family to spend with prudence?

In this special episode, Amanda and Jonathan Teixeira of WalletWin join Timmerie on Relevant Radio to talk about tax refunds, rising costs, stocking up, and how Catholic families can make financial decisions to spend with prudence instead of panic.

It is easy to feel overwhelmed when the cost of groceries, gas, housing, and everyday essentials keeps rising. Add in tax season, supply chain concerns, and the pressure to make the “right” money decisions, and many families can start to feel anxious or behind before they even sit down to look at the numbers.

But Catholic stewardship does not require fear. It requires clarity, responsibility, and trust.

In this conversation, Amanda and Jonathan offer practical guidance for using a tax refund wisely, preparing for uncertain financial times, and making everyday money choices that serve your family’s real needs.

Your Tax Refund Is Not Free Money

One of the first points Jonathan and Amanda make is simple but important: your tax refund is not a bonus from the government.

It is money you already earned.

A tax refund usually means that too much was withheld from your paycheck throughout the year, and now that money is being returned to you. That matters because when we think of a refund as “free money,” we are more likely to spend it casually or impulsively. But when we recognize it as the fruit of our labor, we are more likely to steward it well.

That does not mean every dollar has to go toward something serious or heavy. It does mean the refund deserves a plan.

A tax refund can be a real opportunity for your family. It can help you pay down debt, build emergency savings, get one month ahead, cover a necessary expense, or make progress on something that has felt stuck for a long time. Without a plan, though, it can disappear quickly into small purchases and short-term decisions that do not actually change your financial picture.

How to Budget Your Tax Refund Wisely

Amanda and Jonathan recommend putting your tax refund into your budget instead of treating it separately from the rest of your money.

That means asking a few honest questions before spending it:

• What is our next best financial priority?
• Do we have a starter emergency fund?
• Are we living paycheck to paycheck?
• Is there a debt we could make serious progress on?
• Is there a necessary expense coming up that we should prepare for now?
• How much can we give, save, spend, and enjoy responsibly?

The goal is not to remove all enjoyment from the refund. A healthy budget can include generosity and a small amount of fun. But most of the money should have a meaningful job, especially if your family is trying to become more stable.

For many families, a tax refund can create momentum that is hard to build month by month. It might help establish a $1,000 starter rainy day fund, push a family toward being one month ahead, or knock out a debt that has been draining monthly income.

Used wisely, a tax refund can create breathing room.

Should You Adjust Your Tax Withholdings?

Another important part of the conversation is tax withholding.

If you regularly receive a large refund, it may be worth reviewing your withholdings with your employer or a tax professional. A large refund may feel exciting in April, but it can also mean your family had less money available in each paycheck throughout the year.

The ideal situation is usually not to owe a large amount at tax time, but also not to overpay by so much that you are waiting months to receive money your family could have used sooner.

For some families, adjusting withholdings can increase monthly cash flow and make budgeting easier. Even a modest increase in each paycheck can help with groceries, gas, debt payments, savings, or other family needs.

Amanda and Jonathan suggest making adjustments carefully rather than drastically. If you are not sure what to do, this is a good area to discuss with a CPA or qualified tax professional, especially if your family situation is more complex.

Catholic Prudence in Uncertain Financial Times

The episode also turns to a question many families are quietly asking: should we be stocking up?

With rising prices, supply chain concerns, and uncertainty around everyday costs, it can be hard to know the difference between prudence and panic. Amanda and Jonathan make an important distinction here.

Catholic prudence is not the same thing as fear-based hoarding.

Stocking up, when done well, is not about clearing shelves, profiting from scarcity, or protecting your own family while ignoring everyone else. For Catholics, prudent preparation should be ordered toward responsibility, peace, and charity.

If your budget allows, buying a little extra of what your family already uses can be wise. That might include pantry staples, diapers, toilet paper, basic toiletries, meat for the freezer, or household essentials. The point is not to build a bunker out of anxiety. The point is to reduce future stress, lock in prices when possible, and be in a better position to help others if a need arises.

A well-stocked home can become a place of generosity, not fear.

Stocking Up Without Panic or Guilt

One of the most helpful parts of this conversation is Amanda’s reminder that not every family can afford to stock up.

If your budget is tight, you are not failing because you cannot buy six to eight weeks of groceries or fill a freezer with meat. Catholic stewardship is about being faithful with what has actually been entrusted to you, not pretending you have resources you do not have.

For some families, preparation may look like buying one extra bag of rice, one extra pack of diapers, or one extra household item when it fits the budget. For others, it may look like learning how to stretch ingredients, cook more from scratch, bake bread, make yogurt, start a small garden, or use what is already in the pantry more intentionally.

Preparedness does not have to be dramatic to be valuable.

Small, steady habits can help a family become more resilient over time. Learning basic homemaking skills, preserving food, using leftovers well, and planning meals around simple ingredients can all reduce financial pressure without requiring a large upfront expense.

Budgeting Is for Every Family

A major theme throughout the episode is that budgeting is not only for people who are struggling financially.

Amanda points out that many people avoid budgeting because they associate it with being poor, restricted, or embarrassed about money. But in reality, a budget is one of the most practical tools for living stewardship.

A budget gives your money direction. It helps you decide what matters before the money disappears. It also gives married couples a way to communicate about priorities, responsibilities, and goals.

For Catholic families, budgeting is not just a spreadsheet exercise. It is a way to practice virtue with money.

A budget can help you give more intentionally, spend more honestly, avoid unnecessary debt, prepare for emergencies, and make decisions as a united family rather than reacting to every expense as it comes.

Managing Money Together in Marriage

Jonathan names one of the most common financial mistakes he sees in married couples: not managing money as a team.

This can happen whether one spouse works or both spouses work. Sometimes couples divide bills in a way that keeps them functioning more like roommates than spouses. Other times one spouse earns the income and treats the other spouse as if they are on an allowance.

But in marriage, the family is one household.

That does not mean every couple has to organize their accounts in exactly the same way, but it does mean money decisions should reflect unity, transparency, and shared responsibility. A husband and wife are not competitors for control over the family’s income. They are partners working toward the good of the family.

That unity matters especially when money is tight, because financial stress can quickly become marital stress if couples are not communicating honestly.

Listener Questions: Cars, Rent, Financial Planners, and Roth IRAs

Amanda and Jonathan also answer several listener questions throughout the episode, offering practical guidance for different stages of life.

For a family living paycheck to paycheck and considering a vehicle purchase, they recommend avoiding a car loan if possible. Taking on a new monthly payment while already stretched thin usually adds more pressure, especially for something that goes down in value. Instead, they encourage saving cash, looking for reliable used options, asking around through parish or community connections, and upgrading gradually over time.

For a young engaged woman wondering whether she needs a financial planner, they explain that a traditional financial planner may not be necessary at that stage. What she does need is a financial plan. For many newly married couples, the first step is learning how to budget, communicate about money, and make decisions together.

For rent, Jonathan gives a helpful guideline: housing costs should generally stay around 25 percent or less of take-home pay. That number may not be possible in every market or circumstance, but it is a useful benchmark because housing that takes up too much income leaves little room for the rest of family life.

They also touch briefly on Roth IRAs for young adults, explaining that a Roth IRA can be a strong retirement tool because the money is taxed before it goes in, then grows and can be withdrawn tax-free in retirement. For many young adults, simple investment options may be enough to get started without paying someone to actively manage the account.

Faith, Family, and Openness to Life

Before diving into the financial topics, Amanda and Jonathan also share a personal update about welcoming their fifth child, Peter, through adoption.

Their adoption story brings a deeper context to the episode because Catholic money conversations are never only about numbers. They are about vocation, family life, generosity, sacrifice, and trust in God’s providence.

Jonathan also speaks to the hesitation some men may feel around adoption, pointing to St. Joseph as a model of fatherhood. St. Joseph gave himself fully to a child who was not biologically his, and his example reminds Catholic families that fatherhood is not reducible to biology. It is also provision, protection, love, and self-gift.

That witness fits naturally with the financial themes of the episode. Money is not meant to be managed in isolation from our faith. It is meant to serve life, family, generosity, and the mission God has entrusted to us.

Spending with Prudence, Not Panic

This episode is ultimately about prudence, which helps us ask better questions. It keeps us from wasting money, but it also keeps us from becoming fearful or controlling. It helps us prepare without panic, budget without shame, and spend in a way that reflects our actual priorities.

Whether you are deciding what to do with a tax refund, wondering if you should stock up on essentials, trying to stop living paycheck to paycheck, or learning how to budget as a married couple, the goal is not perfection.

The goal is faithful stewardship.

God does not ask us to control the economy, predict every crisis, or solve every future problem today. But He does ask us to be responsible with what we have, honest about what we need, generous when we can be, and peaceful enough to make wise decisions.

A tax refund, a grocery budget, a rent payment, or a pantry shelf may seem ordinary, but these are exactly the places where Catholic stewardship is lived.

Check out https://walletwin.com/ and download our free resource “The Catholic Guide to Budgeting“.