Medical bills are all paid off!
But besides that I'm at a loss for what to write about! Things have been going soo extrememly well that there's not much else happening. We are on track with our plan and are sticking to it 110%. We've been selling extra stuff still, including my husbands beloved XBOX (his decision), which is being put towards debt. And, I've been working over 40 hours a week (keep in mind my average week was about 25 previously), so that is also changing things for us! However, Thanksgiving break and Christmas break are coming up soon which means I will have a lot of down time. I contemplated getting a part time holiday job, but decided against it as I didn't want to have to stress about scheduling when I am doing my daycare. And, we are both still donating plasma twice a week which is bringing in the majority of our extra money towards debt.
It has been 3 full weeks since our Sacrifice Plan has begun and we are well on our way to being debt free. Smallest first credit card is paid off, medical bills are paid off, and so far an extra $200 has been put towards our next smallest credit card.
For me, the hardest part has been not shopping. I want to be shopping for Christmas presents for our families and friends, but we're not giving gifts this year which will save us easily a few hundred dollars this holiday season! The hardest part for my husband has been not eating out. I can't even count how many times he's asked to go to Taco Bell to eat (TB IS HIS OBSESSION)! During these last 2 1/2 years of marriage, we have both lacked obedience and willpower when it comes to spending money, especially eating out, but we are remaining so strong in this time of sacrifice! I do believe it's God's strength, love, and grace getting us through this time!
Friday, November 22, 2013
Friday, November 15, 2013
Progress
Well, I'm happy to report that our smallest credit card is officially paid off! It was only a balance of $250 we owed, but having it gone feels wonderful! And, it is also was our smallest monthly payment of $25, but now that that card is paid off, that $25 will go towards our next credit card!
We are making very good progress and are super proud of ourselves. To some our progress wouldn't mean much, but to us it's everything! It's been awhile since we've set a goal and budget and stuck to it 100%. We are extremely proud of the fact that we haven't eaten out once since we started this! :)
I am still bleeding...I'm pretty certain that I'm back to my old ways of bleeding everyday which disappoints me! I guess we really are taking the next year off! I'm wondering if I should just go back on birth control...maybe it would help me get back on a cycle, or at least prevent me from bleeding daily!? I'm not sure yet.
We are making very good progress and are super proud of ourselves. To some our progress wouldn't mean much, but to us it's everything! It's been awhile since we've set a goal and budget and stuck to it 100%. We are extremely proud of the fact that we haven't eaten out once since we started this! :)
I am still bleeding...I'm pretty certain that I'm back to my old ways of bleeding everyday which disappoints me! I guess we really are taking the next year off! I'm wondering if I should just go back on birth control...maybe it would help me get back on a cycle, or at least prevent me from bleeding daily!? I'm not sure yet.
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Help Me Find It
Period? Not sure. I mentioned 5 days ago that I had been spotting well that stopped that evening. But today, late afternoon, I started spotting again. I wouldn't say that it's an actual flow, but it is enough for a thin, regular pad. As I was wondering again if it would turn into a period, I got to thinking that I used to spot like this daily before starting Progesterone. So now that I'm no longer on that medicine, I wonder if my body is going back to that? If so, I will be really frustrated! Praying that that isn't the case!
Anyway, I heard this song on K-Love this afternoon- Help Me Find It by Sidewalk Prophets. I was waiting in the car to get my daycare kiddo from preschool and ended up being a little late to go in because I was just dumbstruck by this song and how it fits me! As I sat there, with tears in my eyes, I prayed over and over the words of this song. I feel like there are so many areas in my life that I am trying to change right now and though I know I can't do it without Jesus, I sometimes still have a hard time letting go. I will just leave you with this song; maybe it will touch you as it touched me!
Anyway, I heard this song on K-Love this afternoon- Help Me Find It by Sidewalk Prophets. I was waiting in the car to get my daycare kiddo from preschool and ended up being a little late to go in because I was just dumbstruck by this song and how it fits me! As I sat there, with tears in my eyes, I prayed over and over the words of this song. I feel like there are so many areas in my life that I am trying to change right now and though I know I can't do it without Jesus, I sometimes still have a hard time letting go. I will just leave you with this song; maybe it will touch you as it touched me!
(I was on mobile and couldn't see the video so if that's the case for you, here is the link: Help Me Find It)
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Two Steps Backwards
Thankfully we have been doing really well with not spending and making extra money to save, but we've gotten some extra bills in the mail too so we're not actually ahead like we thought! So frustrating! I just got my first bill from August for a progesterone blood test I did- $157...what makes me mad about this is that my doctors office never asked me if I wanted to pay it that day. Had they asked, and had I paid it, I would have received a discount and therefore saved some money. Anyway, so I'm just now getting this bill. And, from our most recent trip home last month, we didn't have cash for two toll roads and my hubby thought we could just use our debit card...turns out ya can't and we went through the "no cash/EZ Pass" lane...so we got two bills in the mail each with an additional $25 fee. Sucks! So all extra money from last week and this week getting put towards debt is now going to be paid to these new bills!
Thankfully this hasn't brought us down too much and we are still staying on track!
Thankfully this hasn't brought us down too much and we are still staying on track!
Saturday, November 2, 2013
So Far, So Good...
We officially started our new journey yesterday, however, we were actually following all of the rules since this past Sunday!
This week I continued donating plasma for the extra cash. I also picked up any and every extra hour offered with my daycare families this week which was a nice little bit of extra change. And to top it off, I added a bunch of items online to sell and just yesterday I made an extra $51 from doing that! So this week alone, we've put an extra $192 towards debt! I can't even tell you how happy that makes me!
I also started spotting yesterday, and today, so who knows what this means. I'm interested in seeing if it turns into a period or not. I'm currently on CD43!
That's all for now! :)
This week I continued donating plasma for the extra cash. I also picked up any and every extra hour offered with my daycare families this week which was a nice little bit of extra change. And to top it off, I added a bunch of items online to sell and just yesterday I made an extra $51 from doing that! So this week alone, we've put an extra $192 towards debt! I can't even tell you how happy that makes me!
I also started spotting yesterday, and today, so who knows what this means. I'm interested in seeing if it turns into a period or not. I'm currently on CD43!
That's all for now! :)
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
New Journey
We don't consider ourselves on a TTC journey anymore. I mean, technically, IF my body were to start working the right way and IF I were to just get pregnant on my own...great! We'd be so happy and excited. However, since that is not going to happen anytime soon, we are thinking we are done TTC for the next year! Starting this Friday, we are starting a new journey!
We are calling it "A Year of Sacrifice- A Financial & Spiritual Journey"! We have decided to take a year off of EVERYTHING!
From this November to November 2014, here are some rules or outlines we are following-
Like I said, cold turkey...it's going to be so difficult but it's something that needs to be done. Unfortunately for us, anytime we try to commit to something or change something, we stick to it for a very short amount of time and then go back to old habits. This is part of the reason why we need to go cold turkey, because allowing a dinner out here and there would only make us want to eat out even more and sooner or later, we'd be back to eating out numerous times a week.
We have $9,995 in credit card debt and our goal is to pay it all off by next November. That's a lot of money and because it's a large sum of debt, we are taking on any and all extra cash! My husband is currently working on changing to a new position at work where he'd be able to get more overtime! We also are going to donate plasma twice a week, which brings in an extra $400 per month with us both doing it! (I just started last week, and hubby is starting next week.)
Because we won't be wasting money on eating out and shopping, we will also be able to put that money towards the debt! And because we won't be eating out and because we'll have a simple and small budget for groceries we are certain we'll lose weight! Also we will, more than anything, be relying on God's strength as our own isn't enough! We hope to grow closer to Him on this journey as well!
We would so much rather sacrifice this year in order to have financial peace for our future family! We don't want to be stuck in this cycle of debt any longer!
I'm telling you all here about our new plan to remain accountable. At least once a month I will update you on how we're doing and where our grand total of debt is at! Prayers to remain obedient and strong are greatly appreciated!
We are calling it "A Year of Sacrifice- A Financial & Spiritual Journey"! We have decided to take a year off of EVERYTHING!
From this November to November 2014, here are some rules or outlines we are following-
- NO fast food or eating out
- NO vacations or trips home
- NO shopping for anything, including presents for others (besides groceries)
- Cut back on monthly expenses
- Stick to a new budget
Like I said, cold turkey...it's going to be so difficult but it's something that needs to be done. Unfortunately for us, anytime we try to commit to something or change something, we stick to it for a very short amount of time and then go back to old habits. This is part of the reason why we need to go cold turkey, because allowing a dinner out here and there would only make us want to eat out even more and sooner or later, we'd be back to eating out numerous times a week.
We have $9,995 in credit card debt and our goal is to pay it all off by next November. That's a lot of money and because it's a large sum of debt, we are taking on any and all extra cash! My husband is currently working on changing to a new position at work where he'd be able to get more overtime! We also are going to donate plasma twice a week, which brings in an extra $400 per month with us both doing it! (I just started last week, and hubby is starting next week.)
Because we won't be wasting money on eating out and shopping, we will also be able to put that money towards the debt! And because we won't be eating out and because we'll have a simple and small budget for groceries we are certain we'll lose weight! Also we will, more than anything, be relying on God's strength as our own isn't enough! We hope to grow closer to Him on this journey as well!
We would so much rather sacrifice this year in order to have financial peace for our future family! We don't want to be stuck in this cycle of debt any longer!
I'm telling you all here about our new plan to remain accountable. At least once a month I will update you on how we're doing and where our grand total of debt is at! Prayers to remain obedient and strong are greatly appreciated!
Thursday, October 24, 2013
Two Years!
This week marks our official two year "anniversary" of TTC! TWO. YEARS. NO BABY!?!?
These last two years have been full of sadness, disappointment, and grief as we dealt with two miscarriages, lots of tests and medicine. Having made the decision recently to stop all treatment and give it all to God has made us so much stronger in faith!
With my jealousy issues taking over less space in my heart and head, I have more time to reflect on how much of a blessing these last two years have been. We still have quite a bit of debt to eliminate, and weight to lose. Had we gotten pregnant earlier, we wouldn't be able to focus on these two areas and give them the attention they deserve.
Also, I've posted previously on how wonderful and how much stronger my marriage has grown because of this whole ordeal. It has connected us in a way that might not have happened otherwise. I'm so proud of us and how much we've grown together.
However, I think the relationship that has grown the most is my relationship with the Lord. I honestly, wholeheartedly, believe that He put me on this journey so that I could connect with Him and grown in Him. I can admit that two years ago when I started this journey, I thought we were special, that we deserved a baby. I was naive. Don't get me wrong, we are great people and will make wonderful parents. But, we are human; we have sins, and we have many areas that need strengthened. We thought we could do this on our own; that we were good enough and perfect...and that couldn't be farther from the truth. We needed to find God in a way that we hadn't before. We needed to trust in Him and Him alone. We needed to be humbled. We needed to be tested so that we could grow in many different areas. And it took us the majority of the first two years to realize this.
I have full faith that as we continue to grow and change, we will finally get our miracle!
These last two years have been full of sadness, disappointment, and grief as we dealt with two miscarriages, lots of tests and medicine. Having made the decision recently to stop all treatment and give it all to God has made us so much stronger in faith!
With my jealousy issues taking over less space in my heart and head, I have more time to reflect on how much of a blessing these last two years have been. We still have quite a bit of debt to eliminate, and weight to lose. Had we gotten pregnant earlier, we wouldn't be able to focus on these two areas and give them the attention they deserve.
Also, I've posted previously on how wonderful and how much stronger my marriage has grown because of this whole ordeal. It has connected us in a way that might not have happened otherwise. I'm so proud of us and how much we've grown together.
However, I think the relationship that has grown the most is my relationship with the Lord. I honestly, wholeheartedly, believe that He put me on this journey so that I could connect with Him and grown in Him. I can admit that two years ago when I started this journey, I thought we were special, that we deserved a baby. I was naive. Don't get me wrong, we are great people and will make wonderful parents. But, we are human; we have sins, and we have many areas that need strengthened. We thought we could do this on our own; that we were good enough and perfect...and that couldn't be farther from the truth. We needed to find God in a way that we hadn't before. We needed to trust in Him and Him alone. We needed to be humbled. We needed to be tested so that we could grow in many different areas. And it took us the majority of the first two years to realize this.
I have full faith that as we continue to grow and change, we will finally get our miracle!
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