What I'm Reading: The Millionaire Next Door

My long awaited copy of The Millionaire Next Door arrived this weekend, thanks to Book Mooch! I've read reviews on this book by at least half a dozen bloggers, and figured that there must be something to the hype. However, I wasn't prepared to be completely sucked in by it.

I took the book with me last night, as we headed out to NWA Wrestling's 60th Anniversary match up. YAY for free tickets to good seats. Although we didn't have any blood spattered on us from our seats, we were close enough for YL15 to drool over the Junior Heavyweights. (My head... it does hurt...). But, back to my point!

I didn't read the entire time, just here and there between bouts. My AHA moment was after the show was over. As we were leaving Phillips Arena, I had the book tucked under my arm and was talking to the children. A man came up to me and said "Is that The Millionaire Next Door?". I was a little surprised, but grinned and admitted "It came in the mail today and I couldn't put it down!" The man smiled back and said "Good. Don't." and continued on down the street.

I don't know that I've ever had a conversation that short that impacted me so much. This book obviously has large and devoted following. So far, I can see why. Common sense abounds! I'll be sure and post a full review of The Millionaire Next Door as soon as I finish reading.

Has there been a book or a concept, maybe even a blog post that has had a profound impact on the way you think? Please share them here!

Carnivals and Link Love

My Post: Cutting Food Costs - 3 Ways to Save on Dinner was included the Carnival of Money Hacks hosted by Broke Grad Student this week. Please go check it out, there is a ton of great stuff going on over there.

My Post: Coupons - Making them work for you was included at The Festival of Frugality hosted by No Debt Plan this week. NDP is running a contest this month to give away some books and is trying to reach 1,000 subscribers. I can honestly say that I've enjoyed reading his feed for a while now.

Not only am I completely psyched about being included in these gatherings, but I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the other posts there. Here are some of my favorites:

• Greener Pastures: Frugal Ways to Protect You, Your Yard, and Your Trash, From Summer Pests.
• Our Fourpence: Frugal Travel Begins Before the Trip: Vacation Preparation Checklist
• Cheap Healthy: Eating Healthy While Clipping Coupons: The Dos and Don’ts
• Slow Down Fast Today: How To Become Wealthy by Living Within Your Means
• Money Blue Book: Find Great Bargains With eBay Auction Typos and Spelling Mistakes
• Widster: Money That You Didn’t Know You Had
• The Q Family Adventure: 13 Fun (Free) Things to Do This Summer

Feel free to share your favorite links or blogs... it can even be your own. I want to hear from you :)

Tightwad Gazette - 1992

My friend, Alicia, brought me an old copy of The Tightwad Gazette last week. I have been thumbing through it for the last few days and just marveling over how much has changed, and how much has not changed over the course of 16 years. The book is broken into seasons (Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall) and is jam packed with tips.

Here are a few of my Summer favorites so far:

• Holey Rubber Gloves - "Cut the tips off the fingers to use for picking blackberries or raspberries. The gloves prevent your hands and arms from being scratched but you can still pick the berries with your fingertips." (Note: This is fabulous for the growing contingent of urban homesteaders out there!)
• Old Metal Beds - "The head and foot boards can be reused to make great gates, especially around vegetable gardens."
• Styrofoam Meat Trays - "Put them behind wall outlet switch plates for insulation. Trim to fit, and screw tightly for a snug fit." (Note: One of the most popular energy saving tips is to insulate the wall outlets. What a great, cheap way to do this while reducing household waste.)
• Reduced Fat Margarine - "Take 1 pound of regular margarine or butter, soften slightly, and gradually add skim milk while beating with an electric mixer. You can add about 1/3 of a cup of milk to a pound of margarine. The result is a light spreadable product that has increased in quantity by 50%, stays soft in the refrigerator, tastes the same, and has fewer calories."

There are outdated references to expensive long distance calls (most telephone companies and cell phone plans offer unlimited long distance for very little money these days) and most definitely the prices of bulk foods have risen over the years, but this book is still a fabulous resource. I'm not going to wait until I've read the entire thing to start implementing some of the really great frugal tips in here. I see some results posts in the future.

Research and Conversations

My co-workers are excited about the book I'm writing. They all want to talk about my process and my ideas. I think it's fabulous to receive such instant feedback, but some of the conversations it has prompted have blown my mind.

In the break room yesterday, I was speaking with a woman who is in her late 40s. We'll call her Kelli. Kelli lives alone, on one income. In previous conversations, Kelli has revealed that she has multiple maxed out credit cards that she only pays the minimums on because that is all she can afford. She is stressed and worried about her finances on a daily basis.

Kelli enjoys her McDonald's breakfast meal at her desk every morning. She can also be found at least once, and often more, per day at the Coke machine buying sodas. She wears stylish clothes and has a vast collection of gorgeous name brand dress shoes.

When Kelli and I were chatting about cost cutting and budgeting, she said "I know, I know.. the first thing everyone says is stop buying scratch offs!" Kelli is firmly entrenched in the "It's only $5 crowd."

I can rattle off 10 ways for Kelli to cut her costs without even having to think really hard about it. I can refer her to any number of my favorite blogs. She may have a heart attack if she read Lynnae's blog over at Being Frugal or Frugal Dad's words of wisdom.

I'm considering giving her a free copy of the book, when it's finished. I have a feeling she is going to provide me with a lot of valuable data for my research. It makes me a little sad to have these conversations. People like Kelli are why I am writing this book and starting my business in Household Finance Coaching.

My Project

I've decided to get off the fence and go with my passion. I love helping people improve their household finances. Over the last several years, I've read a million and one finance articles. I started reading Yahoo! Finance, then MSN Money, MSNBC Business, CNN Money, and a ton of books. I've taken online accounting courses through a local university, and even pondered going back to school to get my degree in Finance.

From the point of reading that first Yahoo! Finance article, I became obsessed with getting our family's finances on the right track and maximizing our spending. Mostly, I focused on retirement research. After I opened my 401k with my employer and maxed out my contribution, I breathed a sigh of relief and went on about my business. My projections show that with a standard rate of return, if I work until I'm 65, we'll have enough in the retirement account to live on $120,000 a year for the rest of our lives and still leave money for the kids.

I realize that retirement is far more complicated than that, but knowing that I have at least a loose plan, I felt free to make changes in other areas of our lives. I created a budget for our family in excel. It's a complicated spreadsheet and covers lots of variables for 5 years. It also has a section that tracks debt reduction, and feeds right into the rest of the calculations. This spreadsheet has been shared with quite a few friends and relatives over the last year and it's been wildly successful!

I've tweaked and adjusted and learned more and implemented tips and tricks from other bloggers and sources until I have our finances rolling like a well oiled machine. And everything I need to manage our household finances on a monthly basis is contained in one 3 ring binder. Not too long ago, Wes was watching me process the weekly grocery list and manage our household finance tasks and had an epiphany.

I think everyone is aware that the economy is going down the tubes. For most of the people in our lives, this means radical changes in their household finances... but they don't know where to start. I'm going to help give people that start.

My new career path is Household Finance Coaching. I'm writing a book to go along with the organizational binder. I already have the binder in Beta form. I'm working with several test households to get real numbers in line. I'm building a new website, and am going to give this a whirl. I really am looking forward to making a difference.

:) And when the book is finished, I'm going to give away a free copy here.

Dodging a Bullet

Thursday, on my drive to work, my Overdrive Off light started blinking on the dash. While I was driving, I could feel the transmission repeatedly engaging and disengaging the Overdrive. Then, as I was pulling into the parking lot at the office, the check engine light came to life too.

SIGH... Just when I thought we were getting a handle on things, here we go again. The last time we had to have the transmission replaced on my Windstar was 2 1/2 years ago and, at $2600, it meant that Wes and I had to fore go our wedding reception. This time, I decided that I wasn't sinking another $2600 into a repair for an almost 9 year old car with 153,000 miles on it.

Yesterday, Wes dropped the van off at the repair shop and I headed on in to work in his car. When I got here, I went online and tried to line up financing for the new (used) car we were going to have to get. I filled out a couple of online apps and within 30 minutes had 3 offers for full auto financing at conventional rates. Thank goodness I've been working so hard to get our debts paid off and our credit score boosted.

After the 3rd call from the finance departments, Wes called. The problem was a $2 sensor that the transmission place replaced for free... no labor or part cost. The owner said t hat if we refer one customer, we've done well for him. Can't beat that!

So, I've called back all of the finance places and thanked them for their time and told them we'll keep them in mind for when we replace our cars next year. WHEW... I'm glad we didn't have to go further in debt, but I'm glad to know that it's an option if we're desperate.

Charity - Giving Until It Hurts

While prepping a guest post earlier in the week, something was niggling at the back of my mind. The post was about helping my brother financially, even when he was making bad decisions. I couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to the story.

Just a bit ago, it hit me. Wes and I are charitable to a fault, at times. Yet, until recently, we never really stopped to think about our own long term financial situation. Even now that we're watching every penny, I find that we're still in that Giving mindset.

Money has never been much of a top priority to me. I've been dirt poor the vast majority of my life. Until four years ago, when I met Wes and we eventually combined our houses and incomes, I raised 3 daughters, with no child support, first well below and later just barely above what the government considers poverty level. Even when I was destitute, my door and kitchen were always open to family and friends (chosen family). What is mine is yours. It's just how families do things where I'm from.

Although the debts were there, and accruing interest, and not going away, Wes and I ignored them. They were just insurmountable, so we just let them be the elephant in the room.

Wes enjoys giving to our friends and family as much as I do. We just do it in different ways. He insists on picking up the tab whenever we're out with friends. In fact, he does this so often that it's made a few of our friends uncomfortable.

Over the years, I have allowed people to move in with me and not pay any expenses, although I was barely making it myself. I've hired family members who were in a rough place financially to clean my house, or groom my pets, or work on my car, even things I was perfectly capable of doing myself. I've found reasons to "just have this lying around" when someone I care about has a need. And, yes, I've even loaned out money to the tune of hundreds (adding up to thousands) of dollars that I knew I'd never be repaid. It didn't matter... I was just helping.

When I finally decided that it was time to take control of our finances and get this debt handled, it required a large shift in the way we responded to those around us. My extended family has gotten accustomed to treating us as the Bank of Wes and Momma. Wes has offered to "be the heavy" and let them be mad at him for saying no, but I've learned to say no on my own. I'll continue to do so until our debts are paid, our retirement accounts are fully funded, and our children have college educations.

I no longer say "Yes" when people call me for money. I do, however, offer to help them with a budget. When the conversations start to angle around to how tough their financial situations are, I nod my head and agree that we're all having a tough time. Wes and I go out far less with friends, and try to make sure that the time we DO get to spend with friends is about the relaxation and enjoyment of their company. Since we know that we're likely to insist on paying, we have decided to entertain at home more.

We still give when we can, and when it's important to us. We still live under the belief that if you're family and you're in need, we'll do all we can. We've just adjusted our priorities a little and shifted the ways we give. At least until all this debt is gone.

My Friend Owns The Coffee Shop

Wes and I have been far more careful about our spending in the last 6 months or so. We've made a concentrated effort to keep our expenses low and implement a (more) frugal lifestyle. In the past, we often stopped 3 or 4 mornings a week to have coffee and bagels at our friendly neighborhood coffee shop. The owner is someone that we consider more than an acquaintance and less than best friends. We stopped for the company as often as we stopped for the coffee.

The problem is that we became invested in her success. We want to see our friend do well. We want to contribute to her success and support her in any way we can. But, of course, our priority is to maintain our goals and financial decisions. We know that the shop is struggling, now that there is a nifty new Starbucks across the street and the economy is slowing. We sure don't want to see yet another Mom and Pop kind of place go under due to the massive steamroller that is Big Business.

I struggle with this fairly often. I know that the success or failure of her business does not depend on a single customer. I know that it's a tough business world out there and we're not responsible for the way life works. But, it's hard to see someone or something you've invested in hit rough times.

There are times when responsible spending is rough. It's not as easy to see the impact at the Wal-Mart or Starbucks as it is with Mom's Coffee and Bagels.

Cell Phone Bill - Take Two

Last month, I wrote about an adventure with our cell phone plans and my attempt at cutting some of our costs by lower the plans. After carefully combing through this month's bill, I am pleased to announce that not only is our bill correct, but it's less than I budgeted! So, that's another $3.97 snowflake toward back taxes.

Snow Flakes to date: $18.33

The Grocery Game - Unexpected Benefits

I posted last week about The Grocery Game. Since then, I've come to believe it's the smartest move ever!

The Investment
Cash
Each week, I spend $2.35 on a double edition of the Sunday Atlanta Journal Constitution. This gives me two sets of the week's coupons. The cost of the website is $20 every 8 weeks ($10 for the first store and $5 for each additional). So, for the service, I spend $2.50 or $.83 per store per week.
Total expense per week: $4.85

Time
I spend 30 minutes reviewing the list for each store on the Grocery Game website and checking the boxes of the items I'll be purchasing. I choose the option of hiding all of the items I'm not choosing, as well as all supplemental notes on the page, and print the pages.
Then, I get out the coupons and spend an hour organizing them. This includes:
-Labeling the current week's packet of coupons with the date they came out
-Clipping the coupons* for each grocery list I printed
-Putting the coupons and the list in the envelope**
Total Planning time: 1.5 hours

*I only clip the coupon when I need it. It's incredibly simple to keep up with and makes life easier, as all of the coupons on the Grocery Game are listed with the date and circular that the coupons came from. Instead, I write the date of the circular on the front and then use a large rubberband from the newspaper to hold the stack of circulars, then file them in date order when I'm finished clipping.
** I use one envelope for each store so I don't have to dig through the coupons as I shop. I know exactly what I have with me and exactly what I'm buying, so I only have to take the coupons out at the checkout line.

Shopping
The Publix and Kroger are across the street from one another. The CVS is on my way ho me. So, I stop at Publix first, drive across the street to Kroger, then hit CVS on the way home. I make one small circle and there is no running all over town.
Total Shopping Time: 1.5 hours, including driving.

Special note on the shopping time: I now shop with lists, so I don’t forget anything. I no longer have to stop at the store during the week, which saves me about an hour or so every week. This evens out the planning/clipping time completely.

The Benefits
Cash
Between the sales, the coupons, gas, and not stopping the store during the week to pick up random things and adding impulse buys, I save about $100 - $150 a week.

UPROMISE
SO many of the name brand items that I have coupons for are also UPromise items. These are things I would never buy the name brands of before it was exceptionally more affordable. (Rice A Roni for $.12 a box this week.) Not only do I get the food at insanely low prices, but I get a percentage of the original price applied to the children’s UPromise accounts.

School Donation
Another benefit of being able to buy name brand items at incredibly low prices are the Boxtops For Education labels. A good percentage of items I have coupons for have these labels. Our PTA program receives $.10 for every Boxtop redeemed. This is not a direct benefit to me, but it definitely helps out our children.

Other Donations
There are, often times, coupons and sale prices that combine to make the price of the items FREE. Except that, some of these free items, no matter how great, are not a good fit for our family. Diapers, Formula, and Cat Food are not items we will ever need. Wes is allergic to cats, and our baby days are far long gone. Rather than let these deals go to waste, I go ahead and get the free items and donate them to animal and people shelters. If one wanted to work the system, these donations are tax deductible at market value. I haven’t done this, but if it turns out that I make enough of these donations, I may just go for it.

I'm sure I'll post about this again, as I get ramped up. But, let me just say that my freezer and pantry are filling up. There is less money going out the door for food. My children are loving the variety of new things I'm stocking, and I'm saving enough money that I don't have to scrimp when it comes to rising food prices on fruit, milk, eggs, and meat.

Back on the Wagon

This has been a crazy few weeks. Wes and I took a business/pleasure trip to Boston and then hopped a train on up to Dover, NH a couple of weeks ago. It was well needed time to ourselves. Along the way, he and I learned a few things about our finances. Mostly that we don't practice frugality when we travel. Even though we have good intentions.

On the upside, I went to Retail Me Not and purchased our Amtrak tickets to and from Dover for a total of $17 each way on a buy one, get one free offer. That was less than the tolls for the toll roads, much less the gas it would take to drive back and forth. We used the MBTA or the "T" subway system for $2 a ticket going to and from the Amtrak station.

We still ended up spending $156 on taxis (business meetings) and $68 on a trolley tour. I know the trolley tours are not the best idea, but it was too cold to walk and we really wanted to see the city. Most of the trip was tax deductible, but we still spent way too much money.

We're both getting stressed out because Wes has been contracting now for 3 months without a paycheck. The first company he contracted for is now 30 days late paying the 1st invoice and 15 days late paying the 2nd. The 2nd company (and current) is not late for another 2 weeks, so we're crossing our fingers that they'll be on time.

In the meantime, I'm very happy that we've managed to make our emergency fund stretch to cover 3 months of living expenses. Now to figure out ways to replenish it!

Reimbursable Expenses

I've had this entry on the back burner for the last several days. For some reason, the words are not finding their way onto the page. I know what I want to say, but... hmm.. there's a block. So this will just be a ramble, I think.

Wes and I will, at times, spend money that isn't budgeted for things that are to be reimbursed. I recently purchased sodas, film, and craft items for the PTA Sweetheart Ball. I need to submit the receipts for these purchases so that I can be reimbursed. Yet, I've been so lax about this that I have not only forgotten to fill out the check request form and turn in the receipts, but I've misplaced the receipts. It's not as though I don't care about the $250 that I spent on these items. I'm just lazier than I should be when it comes to pulling the money back into the account.

Wes has always had this barrier when it comes to reimbursable work expenses too. When he traveled for work, he used to put off the expense reports for months, then scramble to gather the $10,000 or so in expense receipts, send in all the reports, and get a huge check. Now, this isn't so bad until you realize that when he lost receipts, he couldn't submit them for reimbursement. Often times, he lost income for several weeks worth completely because they were outside the 90 day requirement.

We've purchased major appliances and equipment with significant rebates that we've never mailed in. Even though I've filled them in and had them ready to go.

I have a lot of reflection to do about this. Why do I so carefully guard the money that we have by budgeting and planning, but not work aggressively to put the money back in that should be coming?

Food for thought this morning.

Cell Phone Plans - Frugality is not always easy to impliment.

One of the most popular frugality tips is to lower your cell phone plans. I'd hazard a guess that it's among the top ten ways to free up a few dollars a month.

Last month, I decided to go ahead and lower our plans. Wes has his Blackjack that has an unlimited data line and the 1350 minute plan, and 8000 rollover minutes. Obviously, he doesn't use them all so I lowered his plan to 900 minutes a month for a savings of $20 a month.

The kids and I have a family plan. We started with a plan of 2100 minutes and unlimited text messages for 4 phones, but since the children don't really use theirs except to call us and calling us doesn't count toward the minutes, we lowered the plan to 700. This lowered our bill by $40, or so we thought. The bill came in the mail the other day, and instead of going down by $60, it went up by over $140.

Unfortunately, this is par for the course with AT&T. Over the years, we've made occasional changes to our cell phone plans with Cingular, and the service is no different now that they have merged into AT&T. When we added new telephone lines for the children, we received hundreds of dollars in unrequested "premium" text messages.. from the people who had the lines before we got them. Then those same messages started appearing on Wes' plan. Once again, things we haven't subscribed to. They've even removed services we used, and charged "per use" charges instead of the plan amounts.

So, this month when the bill came, I expected it to be in the low $200s. Instead, it was $400! They changed my family plan to the 700 minute plan, as requested. But they removed my unlimited texting! Upon further review, they kept the 2100 minute plan AND the $40 a month unlimited texting on the phone for our 10 year old, who only uses the phone to keep in touch with Wes between visits. He doesn't text.

The unlucky representative who took my call was very patient, but not apologetic. He promised it was an "easy" fix. They fixed the rate plan. They removed the 2100 plan and one month of unlimited texting. *NOTE* The cell phone companies charge you for the current month and then a month in advance for texting.

The rep then said "I'm only removing one month of the unlimited texting, since it was available on YM's phone." I'm afraid that Momma lost it at that point. I informed him that he had lost his mind if he thought I was paying $40 for texting for a TEN YEAR OLD that did not send nor receive one single text message, and the people who actually use the messaging had no access to it at all.

The end result is that for this month, they removed $155 in ridiculous mistaken charges, reinstated our text messaging for all phones, and corrected the plans. We'll take a look again next month and see if the corrections stick.

Investing In....

There are some fantastic resources on the internet and at the public library who can point you in the right direction for just about any type of investing. You can research and buy stocks, bonds, CDs, property, and the list gos on... I will willingly admit that I don't pay much attention to the investing resources yet, as I am still very deep in debt and this has to be my first priority.

This morning, I had an epiphany. I am already investing. I'm investing in me. I'm investing in my marriage. I'm investing in my family.

Right now though, my main focus is on investing in my career. Receiving calls about a job making more than double my salary has made me re-evaluate some things. If I am qualified for this job, and it's a market that has a lot of openings, I'd be kind of silly not to exploit that.

I've started taking online tutorials and education modules to increase my knowledge and marketability. It's not costing me anything but time. The tutorials are all free and there for the taking. The more I expand my skills in this area by doing the practice drills, taking the skills assessments, and developing generic items to add to my portfolio, the more I am investing in me... and therefore my family and my marriage.

How does this correspond to my family and marriage? Simple! For every dollar I increase my income, the amount of time to pay off our debt decreases. For every decrease in our debt, the less stress and strain on Wes and I, and the less we have to put off things we want for the children. In short, this investment has the potential to free my family from the monetary constraints that have limited Wes and my ability to provide in the ways we WANT to for everyone.

I feel good about my current investment portfolio :) It's not large... but it WILL BE!

Experiment #1- Yesterday's Spending
I Spent: $18.22 for hair color and PTA supplies

Hiccups and Money Stress

This weekend was a difficult one for me. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the emotional relationship I have with money. I am relieved to have enough money saved that I can replace the tires on my car without worry. If the electric bill is more than expected, there is no financial crisis for us. If we forget to lay out something for dinner and we just decide to jump in the car and go to a restaurant, there is no big dilemma.

However, there really is. Or, there will be. Maybe.

Starting our own business was a great idea! We had enough money in the bank to cover 3 full months worth of expenses while Wes concentrated on contracting work, as well as looking for a "regular job" so that he kept all of his options open. Wes has already completed one contract and we've invoiced for (OMG) $10,000. He started another contract today, for a considerably larger amount. Why am I worried? Am I completely crazy?

Once again... Maybe.

The invoices have been sent out for the completed contract, but nothing has been paid. In 3 days, we will be at the "Net 30 Days" for the 1st invoice and I am nervous that it won't be paid on time, or at all if the company decides to be difficult. Ok, so even if that invoice doesn't get paid... Wes is still working on the 2nd contract! No problem! Except... that contract is "Net 45 Days" ... so, no paid invoice for 2 months. Ut oh... now we may have a problem. No money from our consulting company for 2 more months is a definite possibility.

Jumping in the car for that "no problems" dinner is suddenly seeming like the beginning of a possible problem. Wes doesn't seem worried. I have complete faith in him to provide for our family. I also have a job, but it barely covers the house payment and half of the utilities. So, if nothing else, I know we won't be homeless or starve. I am just SO emotionally attached to that number in the ING account. It causes me great amounts of distress to see that number going down.

Granted, we planned for this. It's been budgeted. We've looked at everything from every possible angle. We've discussed it. We both agreed to this course of action. So, why can't I get my head wrapped around the depletion of our savings to bring our dreams to fruition? Whew... I hope I work through it soon.

Changing Income Without Changing Lifestyle

I was contacted by a recruiter friend yesterday. He knows of an opening for my dream job, which I am qualified for, at more than double my current salary. He's offered to pass on my resume for the position.

Upside:
More money
Extensive experience in a growing field with too few qualified candidates
Challenging job where I get to learn more and love what I do
Likelihood of a long term career with a HUGE nationwide company

Downside:
It's contract work, and the contract ends at the end of the year (but will likely renew).
Our health insurance is through my current employer
The hours will be less flexible than they are now
I lose my accrued vacation time (2 weeks starting at the end of April).

Of course, these are not the only considerations. Currently, I work for a nationwide moving company. We are entering/have entered a recession. The first thing that happens in a recession is that people and companies stop relocating (using professional movers anyway) which makes my current employment extremely precarious. If the economy does not improve, I will not have a job in two months, much less the end of the year.

So, I'm rolling the dice and I'm at least hoping to interview for the new slot. I've pulled up my handy dandy budgeting spreadsheet. I have input all of the numbers, and even with the expense of COBRA coverage, changing jobs is hands down the best financial decision.

The real challenge will be in maintaining our current spending habits and lifestyle in the face of a substantial increase in salary. Wes has already had the High Life. He's had the 3 story house blocks from the beach in LA. He's had the multi million dollar net worth. For a redneck, he's had a pretty charmed life financially (until he hit the bump in the road that everyone else did when the .com bust happened).

Right now, when there is extra money in the budget, he doesn't talk about saving or getting out of debt. He talks about replacing the carpet, fixing the front steps, rebuilding the back deck, adding a room onto the house, etc. If I do manage to pull a rabbit out of my hat and double my salary, I'm going to have to keep a tight reign on the finances until we're on steadier footing.

Looks like I'm going to be reading up on how to deal with this situation. I'll be sure and post any links that are helpful. Does anyone else have suggestions?

Getting Started

I've written blogs in the past, but never targeted ones. This one is devoted to our family's trip on the road less traveled.

I met my husband almost 4 years ago. We'd both been divorced, him twice, me once. I had three daughters that lived with me. He had two daughters that lived with their mother, and one son that lived with his mother. So, we've got 6 children ... in 4 cities ... in 2 states. Their ages range from 10 to 18 and grades from 4th to Freshman in college.

I work a full time job. With the most recent round of layoffs, my husband Wes (not his real name) and I decided to start our own consulting firm. He has an incredible business concept with lots of interest so far. He's even gotten the ball rolling on, not one but, TWO contracts in the last two weeks. This is astronomical for a startup business that only opened its proverbial doors two three weeks ago.

However, when I married Wes, he and I both had baggage from our "past lives". He also brought with him $70,000ish in tax debt, to toss in with my student loan from college and my car payment.

This blog will be my way of keeping track, and sharing with you, the progress we make toward financial independence, the growth we achieve as a family, and as a business.

Feel free to keep me company
Momma