Super Duper Excited :)

Well we did it :)

Something we have been working on for some time now.

We finally made our last credit card payment~ YAY :)

We are officially out of Credit Card Debt :)

There were times I never thought this day would come.  Every time we made a plan, something happened.  Whether it be unexpected vehicle repairs, sick pets, house repairs, broken appliances, unplanned dental bills~ something always happened.

It was very easy to get discouraged and want to quit.  But we kept plugging away.  If we had anything left over at the end of the month, it got added to our credit card debt.  

One thing that really helped us "see" our credit card debt was a coloring page.  It was fun to watch how pretty paying off our credit card debt could be :)  And we knew that the closer we colored to the end of the page, the closer we were to having a $0 balance :)

Next on our Debt Free Journey~ paying off our vehicle.  I have a scheduled payment going in next week.  I will update the actual amount we have left to pay as soon as it updates.

Where are you currently in your debt free journey??

No Spendvember 2016 :)

We are so excited about our No Spendvember or No Spend November :)

I am getting so antsy about paying off our credit card debt that I suggested our family have a no spend month.  And they are crazy enough to go along with it :)  I am excited to see if our family can pull if off.  Anybody want to join us on our no spend adventure?

You can set up "rules" that fit your family.

Our No Spend "Rules" are:
- Use pantry and freezer for menu planning- get creative

-To reduce our grocery budget from $400 to $200

-Only go to store once per week.  If we run out of something, figure out alternative or go with out.  I find if I run to the store for an emergency item, I end up walking out with a lot more than the 1 item.

-Not to spend any money on activities.

-No eating out


A few years ago, we consolidated a couple of credit cards into 1 credit card.  We have been working super hard to reduce that massive number.  We still have a ways to go and want to see how much we can put towards our debt. This is the last of our credit card debt :)  And I want to gone ASAP :)

I can't wait to see how much we have to put towards our debt at the end of the month~ so exciting :)

Ready?  Set  GO!!!!!!!!

Happy Happy Joy Joy:)

Today is a fantastic, awesome, great day.  I am doing the happy dance ~ WOOHOO:)  I can barely contain myself.  You are probably asking why I am so cheerful on this dreary, rainy, wet day?

I am super excited for a couple of reasons:
#1~ My cousin Brittany and her hubby welcomed a brand new baby boy into their lives late last night.  I wish them all the best on this exciting life changing new journey:)

#2~  We just wrote a wonderful, nice check that just paid off one of our credit cards- YEA!!!!  I have become very excited to see what our financial future holds for us thanks to reading Dave Ramsey's book, The Total Money Makeover.

And to make things even more happy happy joy joy, we were able to finish funding our emergency fund Monday from Step 1.  I can breathe a sigh of relief knowing if an emergency pops up, we can take care of it without needing to use our credit cards or trying to figure out which credit card it will fit on. 

So,  now that we have paid off credit card #2- it is time to use the same gazelle type intensity to pay off credit card #3- which should take us 5 or 6 months to complete.  And that means that we will succeed with our 2012 goal of paying off 2 credit cards this year- YEA!!!!!

It feels so freeing to watch our debt shrink:)  Which baby step are you on?

Total Money Makeover ~ Dave Ramsey

I was able to finally be able to check out the Total Money Makeover book by Dave Ramsey and here is what we thought of it:

My husband and I went into debt to survive when my husband switched jobs.  It was my plan when we got married to switch jobs and start a family.  Well, the switching jobs part didn't quite go the way we had planned.  We had decided that it would be better financially for me to stay at home with the kids instead of paying the crazy high daycare rates and with the cost of gas and a long commute- there was nothing left of my little check.  And this started my stay at home mom adventure.

My husband was later blessed with a better paying job but the mountains of debt were stilled there.  We paid of one credit card and rolled that amount onto the next credit card.  Well, we have been plugging away for a year now with no real results.  It is amazing the "emergencies" you have when you head is not in the game.  We thought we had everything figured out.

I had visited Dave Ramsey's website and saw the 7 baby steps.  But we were not prepared to do them in the order Dave Ramsey specified.  And to show for that we are still paying off the same credit card from last year that we had hoped to have paid off by now.

I borrowed the Total Money Makeover book from the library- what did I have to loose except debt.  I don't even know where to begin~ this book is amazing and so addictive.  I had a hard time putting it down.  I read every chance I got- I read at the gym- I read before going to bed (which I don't recommend, will explain later)- I read while cooking dinner.  A couple of nights our dinners were well done- oops.

I became so excited by what I was reading.  This book gave me the hope I thought we had lost to climb out of debt alot faster than our previous method.  The bottom of every page it is written: "If you live like no one else, later you can live like no one else."  Love that saying:)  I mentioned that I don't recommend reading this book before going to bed and here is why~ I became so excited about our getting our debt journey, I got so pumped up, I couldn't get to sleep.

My husband and I are finally on the same page about our debt.  We sat down and reviewed our debt- which is something we had never done before.  Normally, I write all the checks so I have control of all the money.  But I didn't want all the control.  I was so happy to sit down with my husband and review our debt and make him see we were in our debt.  We looked at our budget with new eyes and decided to follow Dave Ramsey's plan to the letter.  We reorganized our budget and found that very soon we will be able to pay off the credit card we have been pounding away at for so long- YEA!!!!  And the other credit card, will be paid off in 5 months- I am so excited:)  I almost can't stand it.

If you are nervous and scared to get on this debt reduction journey, don't worry, Dave Ramsey will take you by the hand and walk you step by step and you will get out of debt.  Dave Ramsey explains that personal finance is 80% behavior and 20% knowledge.

If you are in debt- no matter how small or how large- and have a desire to live debt free, please look into getting this book.  Borrow it from the library, borrow it from a friend or ask if your library can interloan the book from another library.  Read this book, learn from this book and become encouraged at the stories in the book.  Be in control of your money and tell your money where you want it to go.

I was very encouraged at the end of the book Dave Ramsey writes, "God has a plan for your life and that plan isn't to harm you, it is a plan for your future to give you hope."  So true:)

If you live like no one else, later you can live like no one else.  Sounds like great advice to me.

So, who is ready to start their Total Money Makeover with me?