ruadisneyfan2
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 20, 2006
To all our newcomers,
I was noticing all your awesome trips in your sig (you got to the world 4 times this year! so jealous!) and I’m sure you have tones of awesome memories from those although I have no cc debt and have paid off my student loans, I kinda wish I’d done a bit more in my 20s, even if it meant dealing with a bit of debt - my mom had always drilled us away from spending
THIS. Seriously you hit the nail on the head! This will technically be our third Disney cruise, but in a way it's like it's my first. I went on the Wonder when I was 12 and barely remember, plus I didn't have much say in the booking process obviously. We got married on Castaway Cay last year, which was just a dream come true and like something out of a movie, but I feel like with all of the wedding stuff I didn't get to experience a lot of the things cruise guests typically get to experience, so I'm like a newbie and am REALLY looking forward to these experiences.
This is amazing!! How incredibly special!
Oh yes I feel this way already- and it's only going to get worse I'm sure!! What's your favorite ship? I've only been on the Wonder and the Magic so far, we're booked on the Dream this Sept!
Be prepared for the 12-step program. I'm booked for our 20th cruise.
Check out the DCL boards, there is LOTs of helpful info there.
Wow, that's funny we just booked a cruise. I'll be in the same program then, paying off that. We are going on Carnival though, I've never been on DCL. OK, so now I have as debt this cruise to pay off by March 15 and finish paying off my DD's school by April. I have to also figure out the stopping point to the other help I've been giving for a long time now.
My main goal this year is to pay off all our credit card debt (about $10,000 worth). I also need to begin saving the down payment for my house (need $12,000 by 12/31/2019). My current plan of attack is to save 25% of my paycheck and use the other 75% for regular bills and debt payoff. My seasonal position will be split 10% savings & 90% debt payoff. My husband's paychecks will go towards rent, CC debt and the car loan.
*CC 1: $1200
*CC 2: $2000
*CC 3: $2000
*CC 4: $4000
I'm hoping that posting here will help keep me accountable! We need to knock this out!
JMHO, but I would attack the debt before trying to save. Trying to achieve both at the same time makes both take longer and can make you feel like you're not making a lot of progress. If you have at least $1000 emergency fund, attack one debt at a time, starting with the little one, and you will see amazing progress. Seeing the progress happen quickly is very satisfying; I was never so happy to pay bills before. It appeases that instant gratification that we like. Not exactly instant but rapid. Sometimes I would even just log into paid off cc accounts to look at the $0 balance again.
DH told the kids on Friday. They took it like champs. I sat down and did a number crunch budget to be able to go and NOT incur any new debt. Ironically, all of the money I was going to save for spending can be put towards the monthly payments and we could, quite possibly, still go! It may sound absolutely bonkers, but Alaskan Airlines had a credit card offer for a free companion ticket (yes, there's an annual fee of $75), so we save nearly $500 on that. Crunched the monthly menu, which is my bane because I'd rather be lazy and pick something up on the way home. Gave the DH an allowance because he'd already surrendered his cards.Do your trip and move forward. Tell your kids in advance, if they're old enough to understand, that saving for the trip means not having extra to spend on other things for a while, both before and after the trip. Maybe you can trim it down so it's not a huge splurge? Like 1 day at each park and 1 rest/non-park day instead of a full week. That saves not just on hotel but food costs too. Stick to what's most important and you will get through this.
Seriously, read Dave Ramsey's baby steps. It was very inspiring.
Good luck to you!!
DH told the kids on Friday. They took it like champs. I sat down and did a number crunch budget to be able to go and NOT incur any new debt. Ironically, all of the money I was going to save for spending can be put towards the monthly payments and we could, quite possibly, still go! It may sound absolutely bonkers, but Alaskan Airlines had a credit card offer for a free companion ticket (yes, there's an annual fee of $75), so we save nearly $500 on that. Crunched the monthly menu, which is my bane because I'd rather be lazy and pick something up on the way home. Gave the DH an allowance because he'd already surrendered his cards.
I can do this! It's encouraging to see the path out of this pit. I'm sure there will be times dirt falls in my face, but I'm starting up that path tomorrow.