Warning...Long-winded! LOL.
We finally got sick of making a lot of money and not having a lot of money [does that make sense?] We had a reasonable house mortage, paid for truck, a van payment and credit card debt. We did contribute to 401k [not max], charity and church giving, some savings and some long term savings [college, etc.].
One day I was flipping through the talk radio stations looking for a talk show when I heard this financial guy....well as I hate finances [
], I was gearing up to flip when I heard someone ask how he was and he answered
'Better than I deserve'.
I paused....our Sunday School teacher always said this too and I thought. Hmm. So I started listening. And crying and laughing and crying again!
I was so fired up!! Ran to the library and checked out TMMO and FP and poured through them. I checked them out soo many times before I broke down and bought them [I waited until they were on sale for $10...he has sales on his site alot]. I also listen to the free podcasts while I run.
We got that first baby step [$1K] by having a BIG garage sale and just saving quickly. Then within 2 weeks, we had 2 $500 Emergencies!! Grrrr. But thankfully we had the EF. We were able to build it back up quickly.
The first Christmas was hard.LOL. I sold a lot on Ebay to get more cash for it and was really smart about shopping sales and did GREAT. It was so nice not worrying about the bills after Christmas, the 'Christmas hangover' if you will.
We didn't see the inside of a restaurant for over 6 months. Our date nights were a movie from the library; kids at grandma's; me making a romantic dinner and a fire. I learned to be a better cook! There's always a benefit! LOL.
We paid off $20K in debt in a little over a year and celebrated by going on
our first BIG family vacation to WDW [we love to camp but can do that any time..cheap and kids love it]. I remember walking in to the bank to pay my van off. It drove better when I left. LOL.
We are now celebrating TWO YEARS of being DEBT FREE [except the house] BABY!!
We still budget. We are able to save money every month since our only payment is house and utilities! We tithe [10% gross to church] and GIVE to other charities. We occasionally splurge [I now have a laptop; got a great deal]. We have sinking funds for Christmas, new vehicles, home improvement, Vacations!, etc. We have 1-2 date nights a month and take kids out 1-2 nights a month. We budget for everything. You have to make your money work for you or you'll work for your money [another Dave-ism].
Is it easy? No... I was just at a friend's house and she was showing off her son's new POTTERY BARN decorated bedroom. I swear she had to have spent $5K on that room alone [the whole house is like a model and the new cars, etc]. I was a little jealous. But with perserverance, I know we will be able to 'Live like no one else' someday.
I WROTE A BOOK....so sorry. But I am so fired up about this topic.
Trish