In Three Years...

Haaaaaapy New Year! If your New Year's Resolutions include anything to do with finances, then you've come to the right post. 

A few years ago, we started our journey to become debt free.  Luckily we never made horrible financial decisions in our marriage, but we weren't totally awesome financiers either.  Then we stumbled across Dave Ramsey.  I've talked about him on this blog before, but I just love the guy.  Well, maybe not him, but I honestly love his ideas.

We jumped on board after attending a live seminar.  That was in May of 2008.  After that seminar we literally cut up our credit cards and vowed never to purchase anything on credit again.  So far we've been able to stick to that goal. We've paid off student loans, and our van.  We've put together a 3-6 month fund that should cover any expenses we may have in case of an emergency.  We've increased our investments and started college funds for the kids. We purchased Aaron's truck with cash, and we've become completely debt-free except for our house. All in all, we've saved or paid off close to $60,000 since May of 2008. And as of this month, we are just THREE YEARS away from paying off the mortgage on our house!  Woo-hoo! That seriously excites me! It hasn't been easy, but it's so nice knowing you aren't indebted to anyone. 

So, if your New Year resolutions have anything to do with finances, I HIGHLY recommend getting started on Dave's Baby Steps plan outlined in his book, Total Money Makeover, or on his website HERE.  I'm not saying it's a quick fix, and I'm not saying it's easy, but I am saying it works. And, to make it even easier for you to get started, I'm giving away a couple of his books! I know, I know, the best giveaway EVER.  :P

So leave a comment by Saturday, January 8 and I'll pick a couple of lucky winners and then I'll mail you this book that outlines exactly what you need to do to get started.  And since there are about 3 people who read this blog, your chances of winning are pretty dang good!  I'm not gonna lie to you, it's hard work, but the results are awesome!

Almost anything and everything you need to know about the Dave Ramsey plan can be found on his web site HERE.

Wa-hoo!

I've mentioned before that we're plodding through Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover program. We're excited because we've just completed Baby Step 3, which is to have a 3-6 month fund to cover any expenses that may come up in the event of an emergency such as unexpected job loss or illness. We've just completed that step and now we get to move on to steps 4, 5, and 6 which we attack at the same time. They are to put 15% of income into retirement, to work on funding the kids' college education, and to pay extra house payments. If things go as planned, the house should be paid off in 5 years or less. Hooray!

I've had several people ask me what plan we're following. I've enjoyed many of Dave Ramsey's books, but the one with the most detailed plan to follow is The Total Money Makeover. I should just break down and buy it, but our library has one, so that's good enough for me! There are also some great forums here that offer lots of helpful hints and advice from others who are following the same plan.

I know this sounds like a Dave Ramsey commercial, but following his plan has made so much sense for us and has really helped us figure out where our money goes and has guided us in how to best take control of it. It took a few years for us to finally get on board with his entire plan. I think one of the hardest things for us was to stop 401(k) contributions so we could channel that money to get debt paid off faster. The turning point for us was when we attended a live event. It really lit the fire for us to be all gung-ho about following his plan.

Alright, I think I should get paid for all the Dave Ramsey plugs I'm doing here. So I'll stop now. It will be another 5 years or so before we've completed the rest of the Baby Steps, so I promise no more Dave Ramsey stuff until then. :)

Baby Steps!

Aaron and I are all gung-ho about getting out of debt. We attended a Dave Ramsey seminar about a month ago and we are truly excited about following his plan to become debt-free. We like his plan because it really makes sense, and I think it's right in line with what our Church leaders have been telling us over and over again.


I'm really thinking about it today because we've just conquered Baby Step 2! Wahoo! It is a great feeling. Aaron has made lots of sacrifices to get us to this point. Including giving up his hard-earned bonus to pay the van off faster. We're on our way and it really is fun to do. Not easy, but fun to see the results. We are baby-stepping along. We'll get there...eventually.