Money Saving Mom®

Guest post from Liz of The Hesitant Housewife

When my husband and I decided to become debt-free, it was a firm decision. We had a plan, a timeline, and a finish line.

We forged ahead day after day, week after week, paycheck after paycheck, and chipped away at the mess we’d gotten ourselves into. We got second jobs, sold cars, sold our home, canceled everything, and said “No” — a lot.

If you’re working on getting out of debt right now, you can probably relate. It’s like a diet, in a way. Once you see those pounds melt away, you become so motivated and you press on, full steam ahead. However, like the old saying goes…

Keeping it off is the key!

We’ve been debt-free (except for our home) with a fully-funded emergency fund, contributing to college funds as well as retirement accounts for nearly six years now. I thought breaking the chains of credit cards and instant satisfaction was difficult during those 18 months, but I wish I had known the hard work had just begun.

Here are the five lessons I’ve learned about staying debt-free.

1. Mourn the spending.

The first few months after becoming debt-free will be exhilarating! After that, however, you will realize how little you can do with cash compared to credit. Talk with your spouse often about your feelings and struggles.

2. Tell Everyone and their dog about your success!

I find telling people about our debt-free lifestyle, the blessings it has bestowed us, and even blogging about it, has held us accountable. You are much less likely to fall back into old habits when people are inspired by your story. It’s like a workout buddy!

3. Make some “debt-free and loving it” friends!

I really struggled with feeling alone in our lifestyle when saying “No” had become the norm. Having a support group to make you realize the sacrifice is worth it will help you stay on track!

4. Make special plans to splurge.

Whether you decide to save for a big splurge like a vacation, a home improvement project, or a date night — spending money on something that makes you feel successful and is really healthy on a regular basis.

5. Find new hobbies and ways of enjoying life

If you were deep in debt, you most likely did things and shopped a lot. Adjusting to being at home and bored can be shocking. Going anywhere except the grocery store can be a bit depressing.

Plan fun, free activities that make your life feel full! The library, new parks, free community events (say “no” to the $4 snow cones!), and even volunteering can help to keep your mind off buying!

Do you have any other tips for STAYING debt-free?

Liz is redefining ‘having it all’ while being a homeschooling housewife. She enjoys finding strength from God’s word, the Today show, talking on the phone with friends, and being real about finances and parenting. She’s blogging about homeschooling and much more over at The Hesitant Housewife.

photo source

Guest post from Rebekah of SimplyRebekah.com

Anyone browsing the produce section of a grocery store can tell you that living a green lifestyle can be expensive! You could also add overwhelming, time-consuming, and flat out hard to that list. Yet it doesn’t have to be that way.

Reducing, reusing, and recycling can actually save you money while making a positive impact on the earth and/or your health and it doesn’t have to be hard!

Here are 10 free ways you can go green that are easy enough for you to do today:

1. Visit the Library

Save a tree and borrow your next book instead of buying a new one. While you’re at the library, look into the other programs they have available. With DVDs, story time programs, and Kindles, libraries go way beyond books.

2. Donate Unused Items

You might not shop at thrift stores, but other people do! Instead of throwing out your old clothes or knick-knacks, give someone else the opportunity to reuse them.

3. Unplug Unused Items

Any electronic that is plugged in is using power whether it is turned on or not. Cut back on your electricity use by unplugging that lamp in the guest room, the rarely used second TV, or your empty cellphone charger.

4. Get Some Fresh Air

Sadly, the air in our homes isn’t always as pure as we think it is. Paint, candles, and cleaners are just a few of the things that can be polluting the air in our homes. So open a window or go for a walk and breath deep.

5. Turn Off The Lights

We all know we should turn off the lights when we leave a room, but knowing and doing are two different things. Take a look around the house right now and see if there are any lights you can turn off.

6. Skip The Meat

I would love to be able to afford to eat 100% organic, free range, hormone free, grass fed meat everyday, but I can’t. Perhaps you can’t either. Don’t stress about it. Instead skip the meat all together every once in a while. My family loves black beans & rice and curried lentils.

7. Call for Updated Recycling Information

If you have been living in your neighborhood for several years, then it is possible that the local recycling program has been updated. Perhaps more items are being recycled than you realized.

8. Upcycle An Old T-Shirt

There are hundreds of ideas online for turning an old t-shirt into something fun like a scarf, pillow, skirt, bracelet, or necklace.

9. Open (or Close) The Windows

Depending on the time of day and season, closing or opening your windows and curtains can help keep your home the temperature that you want it. Recently my area experienced an intense heat wave. Despite temperatures in the 90s outside, my AC-free house was a comfortable 72 inside because I closed up all the windows and shades.

10. Educate Yourself

Conquering ignorance is truly the first step towards living a green lifestyle. A good place to start is the dirty dozen, a list of the 12 worst offenders in the produce aisle. Maker sure your organic purchase is worth it by choosing items from the dirty dozen list.

What is your favorite way to go green without spending a lot of money?

Rebekah shares frugal lifestyle tips, going green baby steps, and all of life in between at SimplyRebekah.com.

Testimony from Jessica of The Abundant Wife

When my husband and I got married in 2005, we had $70,000 in student loan debt. We promptly bought a duplex with an 80/20 mortgage for $150,000 and a used truck for $18,000. We had barely been married a year, and we were already looking at $238,000 in debt!

Now fast forward six years. I have become a loyal follower of Dave Ramsey and Money Saving Mom®. Despite leaving my job to stay home and care for our two kids, we have paid off our truck and our two smaller student loans. Soon we will pay off the second mortgage on our home.

Today we owe less than $143,000. We have paid off $95,000 in debt!

It’s not always easy to live like no one else. Many people think we’re pretty weird. We cloth diaper our kids, and we got by for years without a dryer.

We haven’t had texting on our phones since 2007, and we sold our second car last year. We’ve never paid for cable, and we gave away our television. We rarely pay for “date nights” but instead spend time together at home after the kids have gone to bed.

We don’t buy paper towels, and our cupboards look bare because we make most of our meals from scratch, wasting very little. I get more excited about finding new strategies to save or make money than I do about new purchases.

Before my children were born, I would ask my mother if it hurt to deliver a baby. She would tell me, “Yes, but it’s pain with a purpose.”

Pain without a purpose feels meaningless and unending. When pain has a purpose, you know it is leading you toward your final goal.

When I feel hopeless about our debts, and wonder for the umpteenth time why we are doing the things we are doing, I look at our goals. And I look at how far we have come.

Paying off our debts is pain with a purpose. As Dave Ramsey is fond of saying, “Live like no one else now, so you can live like no one else later.”

When it comes to eliminating your debts and saving money, there are probably things that seem painful to you. Organizing, budgeting, couponing, taking on extra jobs, and making sacrifices can be a challenge.

Change is painful at times. No one said it would be easy. But remember, it’s pain with a purpose. Keep your eyes on your goals, and remind yourself how far you’ve come.

Jessica and her husband Brad left their teaching jobs in 2007 to enter full-time ministry.  In six years of marriage they have lived in six different places, including China, Maryland, Minnesota, and now California. Jessica blogs at The Abundant Wife about family, faith, and finances.