Thankful Thursday

I enjoy participating in Thankful Thursdays each week.  Join us this month at Women Taking a Stand.  Here is my list of what I am thankful for this week:
~ my husband who is so loving and wonderful.  I always feel like I love him more every day!  I told him this week that the way he treats me and loves me has been an example to me of God's love, and I appreciate that so much. 

~ holding my sweet boy.  This week he was super tired, and I held him a while before bed.  It felt so nice to hold my big boy in my arms! 

~ a sweet Mother's Day weekend.  I got to see my Mom and Meemaw on Saturday.  We had a nice visit and lunch.  My Mom brought some magic cookie bars and a fruit pizza.  I wish I'd taken a picture, it was so pretty!  It had strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and kiwi in the middle.   Then on Sunday my boys woke me with waffles for breakfast complete with a flower Caleb had made in art class on the table.  After breakfast he gave me the gifts he had made.  He had worked so hard on them and was so excited to give them to me.  He's so sweet!  His cards were so thoughtful and he made a necklace for me at school.  It is made out of a domino.    (I have tried multiple times to upload pictures of the flower and necklace and it is not working!)

~ 14 months and 21,000+ miles later, our new car is paid off.  :)

~ all the things that happened in my day Tuesday that made me smile...finding books my boy likes at the library (and seeing his excitement about reading them when he got home from school), thinking about how my boy will be with me on trips to town again very soon, yummy lunch at Chick Fil A with my cute husband, a phone call from the girl who was the flower girl in our wedding, seeing our garden growing.

Have a day of blessings!

Marriage Monday: Money

Our topic on Marriage Monday today is money. One of the topics was: In Eden, God assigned Adam the role of "master gardener," and to Eve he gave the role of “helper.” In the matter of bread-winning, how do you and your husband fulfill these roles in your marriage? (Gen 2:15-23)

My thoughts:
I taught school for the first three years of our marriage, and then became a stay at home Mom in 2004 when our son was born.   This was always a dream of mine, and I am thankful beyond words that my husband is so supportive of me.  He had always hoped we would be able to make this dream of mine come true.  Thankfully we have, and it is a blessing that he understands my heart and supports me as he does.  I feel blessed that he works so hard to provide for our family.

My husband led a FPU (Financial Peace University) class at our church several years ago.  After attending this class and reading Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover, we made it our goal to be out of debt.  At the time we had a car and truck loan plus school loans.  It was a great feeling to be able to pay off these debts in 2009 (except our home).  We had a bank account where we started putting money back so we could get a replacement car one day.  We made that purchase in March 2011.  We did not have enough for the full amount so we did have some debt with that purchase.  It was very hard for me as we looked because I'd wanted to be able to do it all with cash.  After praying though and thinking things through, I knew it was the right decision.  If we waited we knew we'd have expenses with our old car that would prevent us from putting more money back to savings for the new one.  I'm happy to say that the new car will be paid off in the next month or so.  Now we will be saving towards my husband's truck replacement. 

I have always been very careful with money.  When we did FPU, we started keeping a budget and started using the envelope system.  It was amazing to me to put a dollar amount to our spending and watch where our money goes.  I have some envelopes I keep with me in my purse that I use on a more regular basis (they are kept in a little plastic coupon binder type thing with dividers) and other envelopes that stay at home.  I have a lot of envelopes, but it is so nice to have the money there to go to when something comes up.  I have envelopes for Christmas, vacation, gifts, and birthdays that I add to year round. 

As my husband is the provider for our family, I like to help in any way I can to save us money.  I try to conserve gas on my trips to town.  I look for discounts and  use coupons when shopping.  It makes me feel good to find products on sale that we frequently use.  I get excited when I find a bargain at Goodwill or a consignment store.
For someone engaged or just starting out in their married life, I would encourage them to talk openly regarding their feelings about money.  Don't assume it will all work out and won't be a big deal.  This is something that needs to be discussed honestly so it won't turn into a big problem down the road. 

Have a day of blessings!

Another birthday weekend and new car

We had another birthday weekend! Sunday was my husband's birthday. He took off work on Friday. It was the 2nd anniversary of his Mammaw passing away, and he didn't really want to be at work that day so he took off. So on Friday we went car shopping.

We have been looking for a new car. We have had the Buick for nearly 7 years now. It's been a great car, very reliable with few problems for us. It was getting on up there in mileage so my husband was looking to replace it.

We had paid it off a couple years ago when we went through Dave Ramsey's FPU. Once we paid off the truck as well as the student loans we started a car savings fund. My husband found a couple Nissan's online that would be in our price range, but when we got to the dealership they had already been sold. We went over to another dealership in town. They showed us some used models and then we drove a new Toyota Camry. We both really liked it and talked about it over lunch and then went to talk to our bank to find out about financing because our car savings fund wouldn't cover it. We went back to the dealership after we picked up Caleb from school so they could tell us how much they'd give us for the Buick. They let us take the Camry home for the night too because we weren't going to just sign the papers right then. I needed to process all the numbers in my head first.

I don't like making decisions, especially big ones! I went back and forth in my head about it....I'd really wanted to use cash for our next car purchase. The money we have saved plus some from our income taxes would not pay for a new car. But I also knew if we used the cash on one that cost less it would already have a bunch of miles and we'd be back to needing another one in a shorter time period. If we saved for another few months or year, the car prices will just go up and we still wouldn't haven't enough. I shared all my feelings with my husband. Saturday morning we prayed together before leaving. I needed some peace that it was the right thing to do because I felt like it was okay...but I wanted to be sure. The phone rang before we were leaving. It was another dealership returning a call for an inquiry I'd done online. They couldn't match the deal we were getting locally. Then my husband talked to our dealership here and asked if they'd go up a little on our trade. They agreed to that. After both these things I felt ready to go!

Here is a picture of the car. I'm very thankful!! We've never had a new car before. We will have it paid off shortly, and I'm already working on the plan to begin saving again for a truck replacement for my husband.

Sunday was my husband's 32nd birthday. Caleb woke me up and blew up balloons and we hung a birthday banner. I made a breakfast casserole. It was so easy to make and very yummy! I'd never made one before. I'll have to share the recipe here sometime. We let him open his presents before church. We went out for lunch and had an afternoon at home. In the evening we went out for supper with a couple from our new church.

This week is spring break. Hooray!!

Have a day of blessings!

Marriage Monday: Our Holiday Spending Plan

Today it's time for Marriage Monday. This month we are sharing about financial contentment in marriage. The topic I've chosen is "Our Holiday Spending Plan."

The holidays will be here soon. It is a good idea to make a plan when it comes to your holiday spending. Otherwise it will get way out of hand! Decide who is on your list and how much you have available to spend. Also consider other extra expenses that will come up this month like special food/snacks, travel, etc.

Since we have done Dave Ramsey's FPU I have had an envelope labeled "Christmas." Each pay period we put the same amount of money into the envelope. Whenever I buy gifts, I use the money from this envelope. It has come in so handy as I've already ordered and purchased some gifts. Since the money is designated for Christmas gifts, I don't feel bad using it or thinking that I'm taking money away from somewhere else where it might be needed.

Also when it comes to gift giving, I think it's important to consider making donations in the names of family members instead of just buying a gift for the sake of buying something. There are certain people that are harder to buy for than others, so instead of buying them something they don't want or need, why not make a donation in their name to a charity?

Have a day of blessings!

Guess what....

Last week in my Thankful Thursday post I told you I had some exciting news to share! I can officially make that announcement now.....

We're debt free!

It feels so great to type those words. Something that wasn't even important to me or in my vocabulary just a couple of years ago now means so much! I'm so thankful that my husband read Total Money Makeover and encouraged me to read it too, even though I was skeptical. I thought we were doing fine because we were paying our bills on time and not having any balance on our credit card. TMM showed me we could do even better!

I'm so happy to say that the last student loan payment is processed and paid, and we are debt free (besides the house, as Dave says!). We plan to call in to his radio show to shout We're Debt Free. Caleb has been practicing. :)

I don't know your financial situation, but I'd like to encourage you today. If you are struggling with your finances or debt or even not struggling and just want to make a difference in your family tree, consider taking a Financial Peace University course and reading Total Money Makeover. Click on the link to find a class in your area by entering your zip code. New classes are up all the time. I encourage you to do something instead of living the way you've always lived. You don't have to live like everyone else! You don't have to live paycheck to paycheck with no thought of the future for yourself and/or your children. You've got to do something different if you want to see any change in how things are going.

One of the verses I remember from the course is from Proverbs 22:7: "The borrower is servant to the lender." It is a verse I hadn't really paid attention to before this course. It is true though. Now that we are no longer borrowers we have more money to plan for the future.

Thank you for letting me share our excitement about this. I thought before I posted it I don't want it to seem like I'm bragging about it. We did FPU earlier this year and wanted to share our success with you. We are so excited to move on to the next step of our financial plan and to be able to give more to others. I'm so thankful for my wonderful husband and his wonderful financial wisdom. He has made sacrifices for our family. He has taught me so much and I'm glad we can continue to learn new things together on our journey. We are so thankful to God for His blessings. We know it is all His, and we pray we are wise in how we use what He has given.

If I can be of any help to you or if you sign up for FPU please let me know. I'd love to encourage you on your journey.

2009 Book #14: Financial Peace Revisited

I finished Financial Peace Revisited by Dave Ramsey that I've been reading along with our FPU classes. We have one more week of class left.

I enjoyed reading this book along with the videos we watched for class. It is very easy to read and is a good review of things Dave talks about in the videos. He has things called "Peace Puppies" at the end of each chapter that are little tips of what to do as you move towards financial peace. The back of the book has the various financial management forms you will need also. There is really something for everyone in the book, whether you are married or single, working or retired. We can all learn more about managing our finances, and this is a great resource.
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"People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. 10For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. 11But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness." I Timothy 6:9-11

Proverbs & Prayers Week #6

Last week I couldn't help but think of our FPU class with the verse about honoring God with your wealth. I talked with Caleb about the words "honor" and "wealth" in terms he understands. The word "firstfruits" has made me consider what I give to the Lord. Do you give to Him first or do you wait till the end to see what is leftover? He wants us to honor Him first by giving to Him first before we do anything else with our income. Do you like getting the leftovers at the "bottom of the barrel?" Most people do not, most of us want the best. The Lord is no different. I believe once we do this then He can bless us in new ways.


This week's verse is Proverbs 3:21 (this is the last week I chose one from chapter 3!):

"My son, preserve sound judgement and discernment, do not let them out of your sight."


Do you have any prayer requests this week? Leave me a comment or email me if I can pray for you.


I am thankful to report these praises---


~ baby Harper is now home!

~ Wesley's surgery was successful, he went home, and is hoping to return to school at least for half days this week!


~ Also, I'm rejoicing for Christy that her husband is home for R & R from Iraq. I am praying for their time together to be blessed.

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"Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music..." Psalm 98:4

A monumental occasion!

Last night was FPU lesson #4 Dumping Debt. It is such a wonderful lesson, and I love the stories told by Dave Ramsey. Since my husband is the coordinator I'd looked ahead in his book and realized last night was the night it said to cut up the credit card. We've talked about this for a while. To be honest it always made me nervous! We really don't have any reason to keep the thing. Still I was nervous about actually cutting it up. Just as Dave talks about in the movie, we get these feelings associated with our card that we can't get rid of it, we've had it since college, it was my first credit card, etc. These were the feelings I had--it was my first credit card and I'd had it since college. Also, it had a picture of ACU on the card of Chapel on the Hill where we got married.

I'm happy to say though we did cut up our card last night. It was a good thing to do, and I hope others in the class will join us in future weeks in saying NO to our culture who thinks we have to have credit cards to live. That is just a myth we've come to believe as truth.
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"The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender." Proverbs 22:7