Uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, cinco, seis - Our Total Money Makeover Journey

That's right, uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, cinco, seis... making it six and a half budgets for the month of September.  With only uno fighto about mula! Actually our fighto wasn't about the mula, so much as we weren't listening to what the other person was saying - which was the exact same thing the other person was saying only lost in translation from blue microphone to pink hearing aids.

The last time we had to "re-do" the budget was thrilling for us!  All 12 pages of it was a joy!  Here's why... We have a big old house.  It's leeeeeakkkkkkyyyyy!  Around this time last year we had some insulation guys come in and run a test on the house.  They close all the windows and doors and put a huge 'ol fan in the door and with some sort of meter doohickey jobey deal and they give you a number... I don't remember what number our house got or what number is good.  What I do remember is that our number was bad, bad, bad.  In fact, we were told that we had the 2nd leakiest house that they ever tested. Uh-oh spaghetti-o! We already knew that we needed to re insulate, but were hoping to score a bit higher on the meter doohickey jobey deal. ;) Long story short it took many weeks and some odd encounters (for another blog another day) and our house was done... kinda.  We have lots of construction projects left that need to be finished up and then we will have a tightly sealed house. 

So what does this have to do with our thrilling budget you may ask?  We have been on even pay with Alliant Energy since we moved in and we pay a lot... and by a lot I mean we pay A.LOT.  Not quite so bad as we did when we lived in the old farmhouse in Arlington and paid $1,000 a month in the winter, but still we pay A.LOT. So Hotsauce, the resident nerd, was paying bills via the phone and was told by the Alliant lady that we had a credit with them... our even pay was too high and we had something like a $500 credit with our name on it waiting for us to cash it in.  So cash it in we did, which left us with $79 for next month.  AND our even pay was lowered!  Woot wooters!  We may have done a happy dance!

So we had to reallocate a little over $400 to other areas of our cash flow plan and that was a pure joy my friends!

There have also been some small victories that make me giddy too.  Now, I'm the free spirit in our house which means that I like to spend ... but I have nerd tendencies too... and I love a good deal.  I will be the one who wheels and deals and waves the cash around a store saying, "That's not good enough."  Well... someday when I have cash to wave around I will! Anywhoo my small victories for the week.  We have 4 of our 5 kids needing new shoes.  And it's always a stressful thing to come up with the cash to do that in one month.  But, we budgeted for it and I came in under $35 of our budget for the shoes and did another happy dance!!  Now, this next one is not going to sound very exciting, but it put a huge smile on my face.  We drive a Suburban and filling the tank is enough to give anyone a heart attack.  I know, Dave, we should drive the van... but it has issues.  Well, I always forget that we have a coupon to get 5 cents off per gallon if I drive to a less convenient gas station.  But, I finally remembered to bring the coupon and after filling up I saved $1.32!  If I keep this up in 3 years we will get a free tank of gas! ;)

I know you're shaking your head right now... but that $1.32 is an indication of the change that is taking place in my heart and in our lives.  That $1.32 means something to me.
 

Turkey Bottom Haven Now Open!!! Our Total Money Makeover Journey.

The beginning inventory!

Woot woot!  I'm so excited!  The "doors" have opened for Turkey Bottom Haven (my online store) and I'm sooooo excited.  Have I mentioned that yet??

So what is Turkey Bottom Haven you may be asking yourself.  Think General Store.  Or consignment shop.  Here's the big idea.  I LURVESAUCE DECORATING.  It is a passion of mine.  I love it so much that I don't just look at Pinterest, I dream in Pinterest!  And because of that I have collected many, many, many items along the way.  You know, things that I'm going to do that will look amazing... if I ever get to it. 

Well, here's the thing.  Our TMM journey has given me the kick in the pants that I have needed to get it done.  Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately?) none of these wonderful things will be finding there way into our home.  They have found there way into the shop windows of Turkey Bottom Haven... my new Facebook shop.  The plan is to list as many items as possible to sell and see how it goes.  If there seems to be a good response, I'll get another kick in the pants and work on some more projects that are hanging around.  Eventually I may open an Etsy shop.

Here's the thing... I don't have a ton of inventory and my tastes will only appeal to people of similar (wonderful) tastes.  So, I've asked a few talented women to start collecting items that they would like to sell also.  My friend, Julayne, is an uber talented artist.  She plans on selling some of her paintings as well.  I have another friend, Beckie, who will be displaying embroidered dish towels, baby blankets and other items.  Then a few others who are on the fence ... you know that whole finding the time thing can really be a pain in the bum!  I'm also open to others who would like to join us on this endeavor!
So, if you haven't checked out Turkey Bottom Haven on Facebook, please do! And click that "like" button and "share" it with your friends.  It could help us towards our goal of ...

 

Baby Step #1 ... Our Total Money Makeover Journey

Are you tired of hearing about this yet?? Well, let's assume that I'm a little more excited in these first days then I will be as time wears on!  You know, if you would just read the book already, then you might share in my excitement and be able to start your own blog! ;)

Dave (yes, we're on a first name basis) outlines in his book 7 Baby Steps.  The first one is to have a $1,000 in an emergency fund.  I was telling a friend this the other day and she exclaimed, "THAT'S A BABY STEP??"  I completely understand.

So how do you get $1,000 in your emergency fund? Well, you can either bring in more income, save it by cutting out extras, or by selling things you already have.  Well, I mentioned that Ben and I are praying about one of us getting a part-time job... but in the meantime we are digging through our stuff and looking for things that we can sell.  Dave says that you should sell so much stuff that your kids start to wonder if they're next!  Now, there's a good idea!

Any idea what this is?  That's 3 20 dollar bills and 3 5 dollar bills.  20+20+20+5+5+5= Just the beginning.  We sold an old laptop that's been laying around collecting dust. It needed a new motherboard and we had already "had it fixed" twice.  So when I came across a guy on Facebook who said that he bought broken laptops I thought, we have one of those!  And I sold it.  And it felt great.  Now, maybe we could have gotten more for it and you're going to try to burst my bubble and say that you know a guy that would have given me twice that much.  Well, maybe so.  But, here's the thing.  We stopped talking about starting the TMM and we have begun our fund. 

Now, $75 isn't exactly a fortune.  But, it's preparing me for letting go of things that I really want to hold onto.  I want to get start pushing the snowball and not running from it!  So this is our first success and we will celebrate it!... and not by going to HuHots and wasting it!


Here's another look at our new beginning!!

And with a Sepia tone!  

Actually we're celebrating by watching the Financial Peace University DVDs that a friend lent to us for the long Labor Day weekend!  And you know how the rest of you are enjoying a 3 day weekend?  Well, Hotsauce worked today... yep, OVERTIME BABY! :) Normally I would be whining and crying and kicking and screaming because he had to work and I wanted him to be home with me.  But, now I realize it for the gift that it is... another blessing from God that is going to push that snowball! So that money will make it's way into the emergency fund too.  I can almost hear Davey (yes, he likes that nickname, but only when I say it) cheering us on! 

I'm also excited that some friends are asking about reading the TMM or asking if I know where they can the FPU class.  Well, let me say, I've got the wheels turning on that class thing...

Stay tuned for Part 4 coming soon!!

Call for Future Generations... Our Total Money Makeover Journey

Perhaps you've seen these faces before...


Benjamin, Hannah, Jack Henry, Emma, Gabriel

Or really their faces usually look a little bit more like this:

Oh, these Turkey Bottoms keep a mama on her feet I tell ya!  I could post far more "silly" pictures than I could ever come up with pictures of all five of them looking at the camera, smiling without cheesing, all eyes opened and no one crying.  You'd think it was torture?!    Speaking of torture (and trying to get back on subject) you know what I am really very fearful of?  I'm fearful that my bad habits will pass from me to these adorable Turkey Bottoms.  It's one of the reasons that I keep running even though I hate it... because when I come home from a run every.single.one.of.them will ask me how far I ran and if I ran fast.  I want them to be healthy and I feel it's important to model that for them... and if I end up looking like a model in the process then woot woot Mama! ;)

 

 

I belive that God has called us to run another race that will require more perseverence and more mental strength then a 5k or even a marathon will ever require of us.  It's the race to get out of debt.  It's the race to redeem the time and blaze a trail for our Turkeys that will teach them that God has a plan for all parts of our lives, including our checkbooks.  I also believe that the way a person chooses to spend (or not spend) their money reveals the state of their heart.  For instance, if I make a choice to go to McDonalds or even HuHots (how I love you) instead of paying off debt I have made a choice that reflects what's important in my heart...                                                                                                                      

 

 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8

 

I want my children to know that God intends for us to be free of debt.  That we don't have to live a life of slavery to our debtors.  And even more than that we want to use money to bless others.  We want to be able to give to those in need, we want to support our church in ways that we can't with debt, we want to be prepared for emergencies, invested in our future and we want to have lots and lots and lots of fun and do things that we currently can't do! 

 

I'm sure we all know that statistically the number one thing that married couples fight over is money and finances.  It's also one of the major contributors to people getting a divorce.  And while divorce is NOT AN OPTION (Hotsauce is stuck with me and I with him) we have had a minor tiff once or twice about money. ;)  Actually this isn't something that we fight with each other over much, but there is stress because of it and there is definiately a weight that Hotsauce carries because of it.  Imagine a home free of financial stress?  Imagine a lighter Hotsauce! Whew-wee that would be a great environment to raise kiddos in!!  And so we strive in our Total Money Makeover not just for our own freedom, but to pass this legacy on to future generations of Turkey Bottoms.

Call for Freedom... Our Total Money Makeover Journey

Debt enslaves so many Americans from living the life God intends us to live... a life of Freedom! According to www.americandebtadvisor.com 80% of Americans carry debt with them.  Hotsauce and I have been burdened by debt for 10 years now and it.is.not.fun.

I honestly didn't know that you could go to college without getting a loan or having rich parents.  Hotsauce worked his way through college (thankfully we never had to worry about paying off his student loans, while mine never seem to go away).  And when I landed on the UNI campus I was offered a "free" UNI T-shirt if I would sign up for a "UNI" Mastercard!  I was the first sucker in line!  And so I began my debt path...

Hotsauce and his friend had a great money making idea when they found out that they were being deployed to Saudi Arabia ... they would buy a cheap home and fix it up.  While they were deployed the Army would pay the mortgage and they would save money for the repairs.  When they returned state side they would finish the house and sell it for more then they bought it for... it would be the perfect flip.  Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans!  And so Hotsauce began his debt path...

When two soulmates meet on the debt path it's always a recipe for success disaster!  I'm not even going to mention the timeshare that we were literally suckered into buying on our honeymoon... boy did they see us coming a mile away... and before I go further into details that would utterly embarass both of us, I will simply say that you can see where this story is going.  Now, factor in five kids and one income and you can see where we are living a life of slavery of our own making.  Oh, if I could go back and tell us as young people what we were getting ourselves into...

A few years ago, my good friend, Angie, went to Financial Peace University.  And she talked about it All.The.Time.  She used his envelope system and would constantly say things like, "Dave Ramsey would be proud."  Ugh!  It's hard to be drowning when your friend is succeeding.  Not that she was bragging or prideful, I just knew my own heart and my own situation and thought that we could never experience the freedom she found.

Other friends and family have either gone throw FPU or have done the Total Money Makeover and when finances came up they would mention that we needed to go to the class or read the book. Well, during a Driscoll family reunion (where it comes up every year) our debt slavery was discussed. Later Katie told Ben that she reads The Total Money Makeover every.single.year.  Ben jokes that while some people are reading through the Bible in a year, Katie's pouring over TMM!  Katie and Jes promised to mail the book to us when they returned home.  True to their promise it arrived about a week later.  Hotsauce was the first to crack it open and we decided that he would read at night while I read during the day when he was at work.  We may have fought over it at times when I didn't keep my end of the bargain and would read it when he was at home...

We have both completed the book and Ben has started to reread it... wonder if he's still making fun of Katie??  We finished our first budget that we have ever both agreed on in 10 years, 6 months, 1 week and 3 days, no exaggeration.  We are on the same page and we have the eye of the tiger!  I am hands down the most competitive person I know and I am looking forward to defeating this thing called debt!  I would also say that for the first time in 10 years, 6 months, 1 week and 3 days we have a real sense of hope.  We've had the desire for a long time to get out of debt, but we never had a plan and now that we do there is a call of freedom that rings deep in our souls.

My hope is to keep you posted as a form of my own accountability.  I know I will have no problem celebrating with all of you... hopefully I will be able to share struggles too.  Please ask us how it's going from time to time!  Below is a list of ways that you can pray for us if you choose to do so.

Prayers:
1. We put that house that Hotsauce and his friend bought (11 years ago) on the market yesterday.  This will be our 3rd time trying to sell it.  The realtor seemed very positive that we have it priced well and that we should be able to sell it this time! Please pray that we do sell it and for a fair price.  Pray that we will be patient.

2. We have offered to let Julayne move back in with us in October.  The situation will be mutually benefical financially, but will come with its challenges.  Please pray that as the 8 of us make adjustments that God will be glorified and that we will act in love.  Pray that each of us get the privacy that we need.

3. I have been planning on selling a few items that I have worked on for awhile... a small online shop called Turkey Bottom Haven.  Please pray that it will be well received and that it will be a benefit our family.

4. We are also praying about whether Hotsauce or I should get a part-time job to help get the snowball rolling a little faster.

Well, that's about it for now!  If you haven't read Dave Ramsey's book I would highly recommend it.  We hope to watch the Financial Peace University dvds soon!