Total Money Makeover

So, many of you know we have been following Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover for a few years now. A few months ago I was going to tell you how we did the previous month. Well, our emergency fund was depleted and then some. So we are starting anew for December :o)

So, emergency fund as of end of November - $47 and change. Ick.

One thing I learned is you pay cash for anything. It's hard to hand over the green and so easy to play with plastic, even if it's a debit card. So, one way we save up is by not using coins. When we hand over $25 to pay for our purchase of $24.56, I put the 44c in my pocket and into "The Piggy" at home. And then at the end of the month, we take it to the bank. The kids are learning how to count change and they understand that these quarters and pennies are going to give them bigger rooms and grass to play on (new house!), so every now and again, they'll ask us to put a few pennies they found on the floor into "The Piggy" for their new house :o)

I'll have to do a new tally, but from last October (2009) until this past October, we paid off nearly $20,000 in stupidity debt (personal loans and student loans) with two PART-time jobs! I wish that we were done, but the journey continues...