When Chad and I made the decision for me to go back to school, we never really realized how hard it would be. Emotionally and Financially. This past year and a half has been something of a challenge in our home. With holidays, birthdays, and every other event, it seems like we are always a day late and a dollar short.
On the financial end we think of those things like..."Oh we could go get a loan and consolidate" but what good would that do? You just end up paying it off in the end anyway. It's not like we have huge debt, but when I left my job, it was a HUGE chunk our our income that we lost as well. The other thing we realized is that we didn't want to stop living the lifestyle that we had as a two income family. So what happened? Chad took on a second job. So then there's the emotional part of the process. I don't get to see him near as much as he is a workaholic.
So how do you continue to live, go to school, be happy, and having a thriving marriage and family? Well, it's called sacrifice!!! It's not something that I am very good at. But today I feel so much more at ease with that word. (maybe cause I haven't started yet)
It's not like we have the tax man beating down our door, or that anything is subject for cutoff...it's just that today I realized that we can't keep up this lifestyle any longer. We won't move or sell our house...but we'll downgrade the cable...or just do away with it totallly, we'll find a cheaper way to access the internet, we'll stay home more and invest in family time rather than going out to expensive places to entertain ourselves and our children. There are parks, there is hiking, there is nature to be loved here. I believe that God put this stuff here for our enjoyment and so many times, we are out spending our money on things that are not needed when we can enjoy the creation that he created for us right here.
I'll be the first to tell you, I'd much rather go and enjoy a great movie than sit outside hearing the kids scream, or working the soil in my yard, or taking care of my daily chores around the house. So what does that say about me?
So today is no longer about having an empty pocket book, it's about what we can do to manage our lives both financially and emotionally so that we can be happy, pay off debt, and please our God all at the same time. It won't be easy by a long shot....but we will have more benefits than I think I realize. God will bless us.
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Bunny, bunny, bunny. I feel your pain in the struggle to survive and succeed. There is a new book out about awoman who has hugely in debt, but ended up with I believe $15K in savings by not buying anything but the necessities. it brought her and her husband closer together. She realized that she could cook at home instead of eating out and making it family time. Going around the community to find things for free. renting/ checking out movies and stuff from the library. Extra benefit was that she became a healthier and fitter person.
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