Lack of Enthusiasm II

Another major factor in my "blues" was money.

We were running out of it every month long before the month was over. Having to resort to using the credit cards to buy gas and groceries for the last week was really starting to weigh on me. I could feel the stress of it crushing my chest and making it hard to breathe. I have been setting a budget each month for the last 3-4 years. I had good intentions and I thought I was doing things right. But, it never failed that every month we would overspend. It's not like I am a big shopper and always wearing new clothes. But the money was going somewhere and I couldn't figure it out. Being poor sucks. "Living within your means" is a lot harder when you have a family of five living on $3,000 a month ($1,800.00 goes to bills so not a lot left for food, gas, clothes, various savings and fun). So after talking with some friends I decided to read Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover. I also decided to go to a cash-only way of life.

We started in May. It was really hard. I have learned that we cannot eat on $100.00 a month. It's just not possible. Up until a year ago we were receiving food stamps. We were given $645 a month. I managed to spend it all every time. It's real easy to do when it's free money. Once Ryan got the Army scholarship we began making barely too much to qualify. So, no more money. I was happy and sad. Happy, because that meant we didn't need the help any more and we were moving in the right direction. Sad, because it's free money and it's hard to say goodbye to freebies.

I had to relearn how to grocery shop. I had to start saying no. I needed to have a plan and stick to it. I also needed to increase our food budget to $130 a month. We can live on that pretty good.

I started to make plans for the future. I have worked saving into the budget. That's something I have never really done before. I was of the "we'll deal with it when we get there" mind set. That almost always ended up with using the credit card. But now, we have a plan. We don't use the credit card for anything. We did decide to keep our one credit card because we barely make enough to get by. If a real problem came up and we used our $1,000 emergency fund we would need it. So, now we save. I have been saving every month for school clothes/supplies. I have been saving (and will continue to) for Christmas. I have also been saving for McKenna's baptism party. She is getting baptized during Labor Day weekend, and we are having a huge BBQ afterward. I will be able to pay for the whole thing in cash. I am very excited about that.

I have learned that paying cash for everything has totally changed my spending habits. It's real easy not to pull into McDonalds for lunch when there is no money in the wallet. Impulse shopping is out of the question when you plan for every penny each month. I leave money in my bank account to pay the bills (I do them all online) and to pay for gas (I want to pay at the pump). Everything else is done in cash. I just wish I had started this 10 years ago when Ryan and I got married. We would be so much better off. As it sits, Ryan and I will be completely debt free (all student loans and credit cards) in less than four years. I think that is pretty good considering Ryan has been in school for eight years (ten total by the time he graduates with his PhD).

Money is stressful. It took a couple of months to get into the swing of things. I'm still learning as I go, but this is the best financial decision I have ever made. Everyone needs to do this. It will change your life.