Rich and I decided to take the plunge and signed up for Financial Peace University at our church. We started the program and the beginning of June - and WOW, what a difference it is making for not only our finances, but our marriage!!! Admittedly, I kind of registered us under the "ask forgiveness later" operating procedure and begrudingly, Rich went to the first class with a bit of a chip on his shoulder. His attitude totally changed by the time the first class was over. Afterwards, we could both see the difference this was going to have on our life.
Anyone that knows me is aware that I am a shopper, but I am also a bargain hunter. I don't like to feel ripped off when I purchase anything and I suffer from frequent buyer's remorse. I also tend to be pretty frugal about certain things but not so much about other things. I also think I NEED a lot of things I don't - and I also tend to think the kids really need a lot of things they don't because I love buying them things. As the person in my marriage primarily responsible for finances, or the "nerd" according to Dave Ramsey, I have been diligent about setting a budget for our family each month - BUT we do not always follow it or update it as the month progresses. WE ALMOST ALWAYS OVERSPEND. A few months ago, we started doing one piece of the FPU plan, the envelope system. We created envelopes and started using cash from them for some of our purchases such as groceries, dining out, entertainment, fun money, etc...we could see a difference. After seeing the impact that minor change had on our spending, signing us up for the full monty was a no brainer for me and the natural next step toward what we need to do. We should never feel strapped for cash with the amount of money that we make. And we will never feel that way again. It's worked for family members and close friends, there is no reason it can't work for us too!
I feel like we survived one of the biggest hurdles, our first budget
committee meeting. As forewarned, there were arguments, accusations and
some very tense moments, but we made it through. And I can honestly say
that after the meeting, I felt a huge weight lifted off my shoulders for
many reasons; one is that I am no longer the sole person involved in
our finances and secondly, we have a plan. We know where we want to go
and have a plan for how to get there. That is something!!! I know it will get easier...and now that it is over, we are both actually EXCITED about the budget - isn't that WEIRD? We are going to be able to enjoy a lot of the things we love to do and not have the remorse that has plagued us in the past about overspending. We now have the tools we need to fall back on and are already asking ourselves "What Would Dave Do?".
So today, 3 weeks into FPU, I can tell you we have accomplished a few of the Baby Steps and are making significant progress on others. But, the biggest realization that we have both come to is that it is weird to be financially secure in this day and age and that most people aren't. In our small discussion group at our FPU class, we have every end of the spectrum - a young, engaged couple that don't even balance their checkbooks all the way to parents of older children drowning in debt and overspending. It has been very eye opening to listen to their stories and realize what we need to do and what we need to stop doing. As of now, our three major goals in the next 18 months are:
1. Pay off all debt
2. Save at least 6 months of living expenses
3. Purchase Rich a car that gets good gas mileage with CASH
4. Implement a commission system rather than the chore chart we have been using for Vaughn so she can start earning money for the extra jobs she does around the house.
4. Implement a commission system rather than the chore chart we have been using for Vaughn so she can start earning money for the extra jobs she does around the house.
The fact is, today, in this country it is normal to be broke! As Dave Ramsey says (I confess that I thought this was cheesy at first), you have to "live like no other so you can LIVE like no other". So, 18 months of sacrifice and the shift in our attitude about how we make our money work for us is well worth it.
I will keep you posted on our journey!
