Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Things are really looking up lately. So nice!

First and foremost, I finished 60 days of yoga on March 1st. We went to our 60th class and Matt and I were the only ones there! I told our teacher that we were celebrating the 60th day, which was even more fun. And I've been keeping it up. I can't tell you how good I feel when I leave the studio. I feel so good, I drag myself out of bed at 6:20 to go to class and we spend either a morning or an afternoon at the studio (usually) both Saturday and Sunday. I love it, and I feel like it has become an integral part of my life.

Another thing that is so great is that Matt and I are working on paying off all of our debt (well, all but the investment property which is currently paying for itself). But when I say all of our debt, I mean everything. Including our student loans that started at around $140,000, our prius (lease) and credit cards. And we will be no longer leasing a car. In December when our lease is up, we are going to buy whatever car we can afford - hopefully the prius, but we'll see what we have saved. We have actually paid everything off except for the loans, but we are working on my private loan right now.

And this is such a different way of thinking about money. My way, and what seems to be the American way, has been thinking about whether or not we can afford the monthly payment. The new way is thinking about whether we have the cash to buy the thing or not. So different.

And can I also tell you, I love spending cash! Before this, I put everything I spent on a credit card. At first using cash was difficult because it's a lot harder to turn over two $20 bills than it is to give your credit card, but can I tell you that I appreciate every single thing I buy now. I'm not kidding. I know what it took to earn that cash, so I only buy what I really want, and I really appreciate that I have it.

Did I mention we cut up our credit cards? I know this sounds crazy, but we took all of them out of our wallets and cut them up. Here's proof. It was scary to do, but I haven't regretted it once.

Now I know that it's not really socially acceptable to talk about money in public (especially on a blog), but you are my friends and family. I really wanted to share all of this with you because it has made such a drastic change in my life. We have been on this plan for a few months, and I can't tell you how much peace it has given me already. I didn't realize it, but having debt is stressful. The mere thought of one day having no debt and only spending what I choose to each month is so exciting, I almost can't believe it. And I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. The lovely light of freedom.

I can't claim that I made all of these major life changes on my own. Matt is totally in on this too, but we were both inspired by reading a book by Dave Ramsay called Total Money Makeover. It's super-easy to ready and full of really great information.

I added this photo because this is how I feel inside. That's all for tonight. Sleep well.



Jessica O.

1 comment:

  1. Congratulations! A plan to achieve financial freedom - LOVE THAT!! Nate and I are working towards a very similar goal, so know that you and Matt are not alone on this path. And the 60 days of yoga is AWESOME!!! So inspiring :-) I love that we're friends!!

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