Geez, this kind of sounds like a testimonial on an infomercial, lol!

About 4 months ago I decided that I was in a horrible place financially. I was in danger of losing my house, all my utilities were on the verge of being shut off, and I had some awful debts at very high interest rates. Luckily for me I stumbled onto this website and a new lifestyle was born.

Now four months does not sound like a terribly long time, but it has certainly been enough to make some major changes. I have refinanced my debts, paid off a lot of small bills, and made changes to make my existing expenses more manageable. I have downsized cable, internet and phone and gotten rid of many other unneccessary expenses. I finally know how much money I need to survive every month, something I had never had any real concept of before. My bills are in a pretty good place right now, nothing on the verge of being shut off, and life is easier.

As most of you know I lost my job last week. Had this happened 6 months ago I would have been totally lost. Everything would have been lost. Now, I know that I can live for nearly 3 months on my severance package alone, without the help of Unemployment Insurance. I know exactly what I must make to make a new job worthwhile for me in terms of childcare and expenses. I am feeling very little financial stress at all over this, and it is because I know I can get by on less and live BENEATH my means now. I can have no spend days, and cheap grocery weeks, I know how to prioritize my bills, and I will be just fine. I know that now I can follow my dream of writing professionally because I can get by on less, I do not have to work 50 hours a week.

I know this is a bit of a novel, but how about you? How has this lifestyle changed your life, whether for better or for worse?

I can't say that anything has changed drastically for me. We haven't been in dire straits, so I haven't gone nuts with the frugality thing. However, being here at this site is making me far more mindful of how our money is spent. I've worked more on a budget and a payment plan for our debt, and I'm working to stay within that. For example, DH was wanting to see a movie this afternoon. We've found a fairly cheap theater that shows new releases for $4 during the day. Not bad. However, because there is a birthday party at a restaurant next weekend for one of DH's friends, I suggested we just rent a movie ($2.49) instead. He agreed. Before, I probably would have just said, "Sure, let's go to a movie!" Now I'm thinking carefully about how our money is being spent and thinking ahead.

I'm also being better about eating at home. It's so easy to run to Taco Bell or Sonic, but also pretty easy (I'm learning) to just have quick stuff on hand at all times for when I don't want to or feel like cooking. I ate out this morning (breakfast meeting with jr. high girls from church), but that was my first meal out in a couple of weeks! (The last meal out was for DH's birthday.)

we use to spend ALOT of money eating out and ALOT of money on groceries every week because of convenience foods. i started our frugal living in jan. and now i know that if we have a short paycheck (theyre bad about shorting paychecks) as long as we get the bills paid, we're still doing good. because i have started my little stockpile, i cook nearly everything from scratch now (except a few things that i prefer to come from a box) i have downsized a bunch of things that at one time i thought were neccesities, and have realized weren't. im not embarrased about using my coupons or pointing out the fact that they missed my .30 off on baggies. im just more conscious of where our money is going instead of just spending and then worrying about the lack of funds later down the road. we are in the process of snowballing our credit cards and hope to have them paid off in a year. none of this would be possible if i hadnt come across some of these sites.

This biggest thing I have learned from this site and being frugal is to be aware of my spending. I now have tons of no spend days, I used to have to spend every penny that was in my wallet. Now, I can go weeks and still have the same $20 in my wallet. That never would have happened before.

Daisy, you're a success story!! WTG!!

I second what Tervs just said. Money would absolutely "burn a hole" in my pocket. If I had it, I wanted to spend it. I would have very few no spend days too. Now, I have lots of no spend days. I am very cautious about waste and rethink every penny I spend. I am learning what my necessities are vs what my wants are. I really believe it helps to come here everyday to get "refueled".

I've found that through frugal living we've been able to realize our dreams a lot faster than most of our friends (we're just about the only one of our friends that doesn't have massive amounts of debt) and we have a much greater peace of mind (similar to what Daisy was talking about). We've also just hit the point where we've stopped focusing on debt reduction and can move to wealth building/financial independence. It is a really good feeling!!!

There used to be a time when I needed frugality to survive. I finished graduate school in Dec 2004. For a little while now I've been comfortable, and have gotten away from my frugal practices. I got married last year, and my husband and I both work on the bills. I'm realizing that I need to go back to some of my frugality ways so I can achieve my dreams of not having to work full time my entire life. I want to be able to stay home when I have children, and not struggle. I know that learning from this site, and putting it into practice is the only way to make it work. I know doing it right works, because it's worked in the past. It's always so good to hear how people have turned their lives around by practicing frugality.

I don't spend every penny that comes in anymore. I don't do credit, and if I do I pay it off within the month, but it is rare. The biggest thing is knowing I can get by on much less than I thought andd I am in control, not the cc companies.

I grew up poor and when I had money I would spend it fast to get as much stuff as I could before it would be gone again. I realize now that that reaction was about fear. I"m not afraid of money or the lack thereof anymore. I am more at peace with where ever I am financially and I have more control over where I am financially. I guess in a nutshell frugality has allowed me to relax about money instead of worrying myself sick.

babs

I had to become frugal when I found myself divorced with two children. I have always been a saver, but now I had bills to deal with by myself for the first time. I think for the first time in my life I grew up. I was very wasteful in the past and very impulsive. I am working the Dave Ramsey Plan and I am working to change the family tree so my children can have a sound foundation for their future.

When I came to this place - 1 month ago, I was near :censor: !!!
My DH was about to leave and the children about to go to college. Now my DH has seen the progress I've made and I make notes daily on what I'm spending and what bills I'm paying. I have the small CC paid off now !!!:blush: On to the next. The peoples at work have really noticed a difference. I have enjoyed this site with a co-worker who is now "seeing the light" :cents:

Wow, there are some great stories here! Seems like everyone has a story to make such a break from the mainstream lifestyle. Thanks for sharing them. It is really motivating to read about the progress of others.

Would you believe it's given me a personality and confidence?

So many people chuckle at my frugality and such. It's really pretty funny. I took a notepad with me this weekend when :smooch:'s father and step-mother went to CostCo and wrote down a bunch of prices. :smooch: laughs at me, but I think he appreciates it.

It's also given me confidence. When I do little things like save broccoli stems or clip coupons, I know I'm taking charge of my finances and doing what I need to do to keep my head above water and achieve my goals -- like getting divorced in December and moving on with my life.

I haven't been on this site for very long but I have learned from everyone else and I hope that we can turn our lives around and make a difference. I think reading about people that are just like me make it more real then hearing about someone on tv or something like that.

I have learned that I don't mind cooking (I rather enjoy it). I can stay home and get more things done then having to go here or there all the time with no real reason. I have learned that the library is a good way to get free entertainment (books, Dvd's and things like that). I have learned that dh and I can do this and we will do it but we have to do it together.

We are skalling back for Christmas this year and not everyone is getting high end items or big ticket they are getting nice simple gifts.

We have started a EF this month (nothing in it yet but pay day is friday and so is my garage sale) I have also learned I don't need all this stuff so I am having a major garage sale this friday and saturday and hope to sell it all. But we have agreed some of it will goto the ebay store to try to sell and other things will go to goodwill let someone else who needs something have it to buy.

It is really sad when I think of all the money we have wasted on this and that and we really didn't need any of it. I am going thru the dogs toys today and taking some of then to the human society he doesn't need all these.

Dh and I have been married almost 14 years and last year was the 1st time we went on vacation we went to Las vegas with my family for my brother to get married and we had a blast but we never had the money before to do things like that and we are really trying to save up so we can go again next year. My goal is to move out there but for now we need to save some money and pay more off on the house.

I am also not afraid to use my coupons and shop the right ads. I am now a cherry picker because of my great stockpile so that helps with the budget a lot.

But it is great to come to this site and learn from others.

Good luck to everyone who is paying down there debt and also learning to live a little differently.:cheer4:

let's put it this way... it's nice to not get a bill with 'FINAL NOTICE' !!

I grew up poor and when I had money I would spend it fast to get as much stuff as I could before it would be gone again. I realize now that that reaction was about fear. I"m not afraid of money or the lack thereof anymore. I am more at peace with where ever I am financially and I have more control over where I am financially. I guess in a nutshell frugality has allowed me to relax about money instead of worrying myself sick.

babs

This is exactly how I feel.. I was finally tired of letting money run my life. I finally have the freedom and wisdom to make my money do what I want it to do.

Thanks for all of the help!!!!!!

I found this site about 5 months ago. My life have changed so much since then. For 5 months now, NO MORE Over-draft at the bank...Always have a little $$$ left in checking account...And A lot less stress in my life. Have start an EF fund....and will get CC#1 paid-off by the end of this month :)

BF is also frugal too, He's very proud of me for convince both of us to live frugal.
Looking back, We have wasted so much money. If we knew then what we know now, we would be debt-free (except for mortgage). However, we're proud that we learn to live frugal now.....than later..... We're still in our mid 20s...and will be Debt-free in 6 to 7 years.

Great thread
My husband and I never used to think about money and would just spend it till it was gone and charge anythings else we thought we had to have. I really wish we could go back and start over, but maybe we have learned something. We understand we have to pay off our debts and save money. We hope to have that last credit card payed off in less then 3 years, from there we will be able to sock away larger chunks into our 401 K plans. We are both completely frugal and think about how much this will cost and how can we find a cheaper way to do this or that. At first it was hard, but it has become a challenge and sometimes fun to figure how to stretch that dollar even furthur.

I love not having to cross my fingers when using my debit or credit card, hoping the transaction will go through. I love knowing that if the car breaks down or DH is out of work, we've got money in the bank and a stockpile in the pantry. I love knowing that in a few years, we'll be debt free and have a downpayment for a house! :)

I had to become frugal. I became seperated and raising 2 girls on my own you have to think smart about money. This was 3 years ago. Since then my frugal ways are starting to pay off. I can remember worrying about where the money would come to pay for rent and also all of the utility bills. I really pulled on my frugal strings and have started to take care of business. I have taken my taxes last year and paid down a majority of me debt and this year I will do the same. I can even say that I am planning a vacation for a few days next summer for the girls and I. I am very excited.

My ultimate goal is to buy my own home so that I can feel a sense of security and my girls will have their own yard to play with.

The biggest change is I have been able to stay home with my children for almost 16 years! That is priceless!!! Knowing that being frugal most of the time has made the difference between a life with much more stress due to working outside the home and our more peacefull life now is awesome. My kids don't have to do daycare shuffle, early mornings, waiting for supper, evenings with both parents running around trying to catch up, coming home to an empty house, having to say no to school and outside activities because of time constraints, having to stay at school when they are sick b/c mom can't leave work again, having to go to school when not quite better so mom can go to work, or worse having to stay home alone sick b/c mom cant take time off etc... I remember most days my mom would be sitting in the same chair when I came home from school waiting for me. I try to do the same things with my kids everyday. I remember one day when the oldest came home first and I wasn't in the living room waiting he wasn't in the door 2seconds and hollared for me. When it is raining or severely cold I am there to drive them to school. Last year when someone threw DS's sneakers in the school toilet I was able to bring him another pair versus him having to sit in the nurses room or wear wet sneakers. Most priceless is the extra time I have to talk with them. I am not running around at night trying to catch up on laundry and cleaning. Wow I guess I had something to say!!!

The biggest change is I have been able to stay home with my children for almost 16 years! That is priceless!!! Knowing that being frugal most of the time has made the difference between a life with much more stress due to working outside the home and our more peacefull life now is awesome. My kids don't have to do daycare shuffle, early mornings, waiting for supper, evenings with both parents running around trying to catch up, coming home to an empty house, having to say no to school and outside activities because of time constraints, having to stay at school when they are sick b/c mom can't leave work again, having to go to school when not quite better so mom can go to work, or worse having to stay home alone sick b/c mom cant take time off etc... I remember most days my mom would be sitting in the same chair when I came home from school waiting for me. I try to do the same things with my kids everyday. I remember one day when the oldest came home first and I wasn't in the living room waiting he wasn't in the door 2seconds and hollared for me. When it is raining or severely cold I am there to drive them to school. Last year when someone threw DS's sneakers in the school toilet I was able to bring him another pair versus him having to sit in the nurses room or wear wet sneakers. Most priceless is the extra time I have to talk with them. I am not running around at night trying to catch up on laundry and cleaning. Wow I guess I had something to say!!!


I also want to add that I realize that what I have is an awesome gift. Many single moms and many who are not do not have the choice I do. But also many who think they must work can perhaps learn from this site that a litte frugality goes a long way. To the ladies and gents who want to be home but cannot you are the true heros working your a*** off and still coming here to learn and make a difference in your life.

I guess the biggest change is I don't feel so stressed out all the time now. I Know now that by changing our ways we can get out of debt so I see there is light at the end of the tunnel. I'm learning there's a big difference in wants and needs. Most of my wants were things I THOUGHT i needed.

Dixie J
Southern Missouri

it's been huge. It's like with eating healthy...if I do it I feel great, when I don't I feel crappy all over. Example...

recently DH and I paid off our credit card so we've been a little fast and loose. The boys requested dinner at McDonald's...which we almost never eat. We went all out. For dinner for 4 it was almost $30...I almost had a fit. That will be the last time I blow $30 on something that stupid. It's back on the wagon for us.

But overall, it's eliminated so much stress in our lives it isn't funny.

i haven't been here long, but in the space of a few months i've really started to change things. just getting current on my bills and not having gas/phone/internet/electricity cut off is amazing! i also have my bef and some sinking funds. plus i was able to finally get my car serviced and pay nearly $700 in cash. plus went to the dentist - all things i couldn't do before.

i have wasted so much money in the past, and i believe its related to what a person said earlier (the lady with her tongue sticking out :D), ie growing up poor and spending fast before its taken away. i never learnt a thing about budgeting from my parents - its been this site and spam! It is better fried than typedspam! It is better fried than typedspam! It is better fried than typedspam! It is better fried than typedspam! It is better fried than typed.com that have taught me. now, even with carrying this great big debt, i finally feel that i can raise my children properly without them missing out, and that i can get out of debt and one day even get my own home. i guess i never felt that i deserved it before.

i'm a single mum, i would love to stay at home with my kids (LOVE to) but i can't, i'm the breadwinner. i would like to work a bit less next year, with my son starting high school- no after school care and more homework, so i'd like to be around more, i get so tired at the end of the day, just as described above by leela21 - its hard. i've decided that i will ask if i can work say 0830 - 1600 each day, just half an hour less than full time, but would make a huge difference to our lives if i could go every day at 4! now that i've started to learn about the frugality, i think i could manage it financially. it would be so great for us.

my dsil mentioned to me yesterday that she had a meeting at school for her 5 y.o. she really wants her daughter's to go to a school closer to home and with a much better reputation. unfortunately it requires a $600 downpayment. she didnt have it and was hoping they'd let her pay it later (they won't), so i was able to offer it to her (i will give it to her next week, from my $400 sinking fund and $100 from my buffer and $100 from my bef). she was SO relieved, never thought to ask me - and normally i wouldn't have been able to help. i know they will pay me back by feb (should be a great snowball!) so i'm not worried. best of all, she has decided to save her own bef and follow the babysteps! i've been talking to them a lot about it, but they didn't seem interested until i came up with some money.

anyway, many thanks to all on this site. i've actually been a bit lazier with money the past couple of weeks, so i need to get busy again. i come here everyday to 're-energise'.

can't wait to see how everyone is going this time next year!

I started learning frugality when I left my ex. I was raising 4 kids on $30,000/year and then my ex disappeared and left me with $10,000 debt. But learning to live on that income and still being able to pay everything off within a year and a half taught me alot.

Now I've been a sahm for 4 years thanks to my wonderful dh. We still only make $30,000/year and now we have 5 kids but we can afford what we need and a little extra for fun, and we are happy. The kids are happier and doing better in school, I'm happy because I get to be there for them and because I have a time for myself and dh is happy because everyone else is and because dinner is ready when he gets home.

I also grew up poor so being frugal and finding creative ways to survive has always been a part of my life. I am lucky to have a dh who also is frugal. We are not stingy like a lot of people think. We give freely to those in need. This site has allowed me to be frugal and live the simple life that I do and to be around people who understand this life. So many of our friends and family don't understand our lifestyle, but they are up to their necks in debt and cannot understand why we don't want all the "toys". We have our toys...our horses are our toys. I am just blessed that I found this site and can come here to learn new things about being frugal...thanks gals!!!!

Well I guess for me it all started back in December 2005 when I realized I was totally swamped with credit card debt and I had enough!

As most of you ladies know I have totally changed my ways, I no longer have a whopping $12,000 in CC debt (I paid that off in less than 3 months - with home refinancing and income tax refund in January 2006) and I can say that I have not charged another thing on my CC without having it paid in full that month or even 1-2 weeks after I charged it.

Really funny though, I had a job in 2005, working from home but because I was part-time I wasnt able to collect unemployment so I had to make do without that extra $600-800 a month, so I cut corners, made the family eat left-overs, cooked at home, turning off lights, keeping the heat off till absolutely necessary and other little things that save us $$. That's what really got me wanting to beat the CC trap.

I try my best NOT to use CC's and to get the family on board and I really hate having to tell DH we canot afford it when he works so hard but I dont want to go into debt again, I feel free and I want to stay that way.

Gosh sorry for rambling but that's my infomercial, I hope you enjoyed reading it, lol :)

Being frugal has changed how I look at things. Reading these posts and books/articles on the lifestyle helped me change my thinking from "poor me/us" to "we can improve our lives by making changes". We don't think about how much we use to eat out or worry about if the purchase going on the credit card is going to put us over our limit.
Since I seperated from my husband in July I have paid off two small credit cards, set aside money to start an emergency fund and have stopped using the credit cards. I use cash or the debit card and I have to say it feels good to pay for two gifts with cash for Christmas than to put 5-6 on a credit card knowing I will have to juggle money to make the minimum payment come January.
I have less stress by being a little more organized and staying on track and I hope to pass the things I am learning on to my kids so they don't go through the same thing.

well i guess i always thoguth i was frugal, buthis past week has shown i was not. now we are struggling and finding out how frugal i can become.

We have been able to reduce our income from $52,000 to $24,000 a year without much drop in our standard of living. We do live in a smaller home, but it is large enough for the three of us, and I love it when my gas and electric bills are around $40 because I have only 768 sq. ft. to heat and cool! We eat at home, rarely dining out, and never get take out food. Now when we do go out for a meal (two or three times a year) it is a real treat, and we enjoy it much more than we did when it was routine.

Since I started shopping at thrift stores, our clothing budget has dropped dramatically, and we now have nicer clothes (designer labels, even!). When I go through my closet and find purchases I made before I got "smart", like a $60 pair of shoes that I purchased on impulse and wore ONE time, it makes me feel sick!

Buy shopping sales and using coupons, I have cut our grocery budget by more than $200 a month. This is while eating MORE meals at home.

Best of all, I no longer have to work outside the home. I had always bought the theory that "It takes two incomes nowadays". Well, I am here to tell you, that unless you have a lot of debt, or live somewhere with a very high cost of living it does NOT! I am so glad to be free of the stress I had while working 55+ hours a week as a retail store manager. Now we live on what DH makes as a breakfast cook in a neighborhood restaurant, while he attends college on a PELL grant. Life is good.

Frugality has simplified my life in sooo many ways. It started when we bought this house--dh wants me to be a sahm and after looking at the numbers, it made sense. It would cost more for daycare than I can make. Then a month after we moved in, his hours got cut and suddenly the money just wasn't there. Now, at the time, I had already given some stuff up--weekly manicures, expensive bubble bath, etc. We weren't really feeling the pinch even though our cost of living went up due to a house pmt and utilities, as well as a 60 mile drive for him to go to work.(Our apt had been a mile from his shop and utilities were included in the rent). But suddenly, we had no money for the basics. It took a major adjustment and it was rough--I can't tell you how many times I cried because there was something I wanted that I couldn't afford anymore! But with the choices came an odd realization: I didn't really "want" stuff, I just thought I did because everyone else had it. Now, we have everything we need. The kids are well-clothed, as am I. We have plenty of food and don't have the hassle of eating out. We rent movies. I shop more carefully for gifts and am careful with the electricity and the gas. I'm making a conscious effort to make better choices on what my money gets spent on.

And as a fringe benefit, my life is actually easier. We're not worried about whether the cc will accept yet one more "emergency" because we missed a few payments. We don't waste as much gas driving here and there because we're "bored" and head to the mall. I have more time to spend on the things I enjoy because I'm not going crazy running helter-skelter because my time is overbooked and I want to appear richer than I really am. I'm learning to recycle--and I mean more than just throwing cans into the bins lol! Some people look at me like I'm crazy, but even in the craziness I'm living in right now, I'm happier than a lot of my friends because I don't have the stress level. I'm not kicking myself for making impulse purchases I can't afford, or overbuying just because I have a few extra dollars in my pocket. Not spending as much is quite liberating. With frugality, forced or otherwise, comes a feeling of control you just can't get any other way!!

I am way to new at this way of thinking to say it has changed my life, but it has opened my eyes to see the error of my ways, especially when it comes to spending money.

Being more frugal has helped me be able to pay extra towards my CC balance each month. I sat down and looked at my CC debt over the last year. I thought I had been paying extra every month and it turns out some months I hadn't been paying more than the minimum payment. So for the last 6months I have paid extra each month and I have been unemployed for 3 of those months. I had started saving for Christmas about a month before I was let go from my job. I just didn't touch that money and I was able to use it for Christmas, just like I had planned all along. I cut paper products, except for TP out of my budget. I also am not going to spend more than $100 this year on my wardrobe. I got a few clothing store gift cards for Christmas, so that will cover my wardrobe this year! I used to spend money on clothes that weren't on sale and then after I gained 30 pounds in the last 2yrs I realized that I now have enough nice clothing...if I lose a few pounds I won't need to buy as much. So that is my goal for the new year, to lose weight to fit into more of the clothes I already own.

Mostly, trying to be more frugal for the last several months has helped me put life in perspective. I don't have the newest clothes, furniture, electronics, car, but I am okay with that. I am glad now for what I do have. I have stopped comparing myself to the family and friends that can afford those newer things. If I had the money right now for newer things, because of my frugal attitude I would put the money into a savings account for retirement or a house someday. I wouldn't spend any more of my hard earned money on the newest consumer products.

the idea of simplistic living is very liberating. i actually like challenging myself to spend less and accomplishing that goal. i am going to be able to take a job i really like instead of doing one that i HAVE to do to make more money to be able to buy things that we don't really need to begin with. i'll be able to wear casual clothes instead of suits and uncomfortable things. i love cooking and i'm doing more of that. we won't be eating out anymore, i never liked the smell of the restaurant that i brought home on my clothes and in my hair anyway. and there's always so much waste in restaurant food. i was taught to clean my plate as a child - "starving children in china would be glad to have that food" - and so i always felt compelled to eat ALL of the restaurant servings, so i gained a lot of weight. and restaurant food isn't usually very healthy.

i also like the environmental aspect of voluntary simplicity. my footprint on the earth has shrunk and will continue to shrink. i've learned so much about how certain things negatively impact the planet that i never even considered before. it's also made me realize just how much we "need" compared to what we "want" and how it has negatively impacted my bank account in past years.

dh and i just married 1.5 yrs ago. he had never been married before. he brought a lot of cc debt to the marriage so we really have to work on paying that down more. it's a challenge, but very satisfying to see those balances shrinking, yet we're eating healthier, losing weight, and giving back to the planet at the same time. it's like a win-win all the way around.

now if we could only convince the rest of the family that 68 degrees is not "cold" - and they won't put on any more clothes!!!!! running around in a short sleeve t shirt complaining that it's cold!!!!!!

It lets me stay at home with my boys! I think that's the big reason I wanted to live frugal in the first place.

But it has also made me look around me and pay attention more. A couple we are really close to always seems to be able to buy the things they want (new computers, Xbox 360, video games, always ordering pizzas) then after I was talking to the wife about how we were saving money and our C.C was only at $500 she admitted to being almost $15,000 in debt! Like holy bejeebies. I stopped being jealous of them right then and there then gave her a few books on frugal living.

I stopped worrying so much about the material stuff we couldn't afford and focused more on my family. Having the newest gadgets isn't as important as sitting on the floor playing legos with my boys or cuddling with DH. We may not have a lot of money but we are living comfortably and we are HAPPY!

For me it all started in April of 2004. My husband and I were both working fulltime, me on evening shift and he worked a rotating shift. My son was diagnosed with a severe illness, so much backstabbing at work, always on the go, spending money on takeout because I was too tired to cook. I was so overwhelmed.I quit that job and decided to stay home for a period of time, working to budget and save any way I could. Somehow it worked,I even forgot to add a weeks deposit to our account and we still made it!( I kept that extra money for a cushion!)I thought, "Just what the heck have we been doing with our money?"
I took a part time job in January 2005, working 24 hours weekly, then dropped to 16 hours,then decided to give being a SAHW a try! I love it! It's nice to have a clean home, supper on the table and more time with my DH. We both make sacrifices that some would not care to make. But here, people understand.

Well it has been a rollercoster ride for us since we moved out of state, away from family and had a baby. DH took a much lower paying job so we would be able to live somewhere nice to raise a family. I remember times when we had to charge the groceries or so I thought. A few years ago I got serious, real serious. I didnt want to live like that anymore. I wanted to know what it was like to have 0 credit card debt. Slowly, yes very slowly I pulled us out of the debt and now feel free. I can honestly say I can now sleep at night without worrying about being able to pay my credit cards. I dont charge anything that I cannot pay off the next month. I feel blessed that we have a house, our health and each other. I want nothing more than for my son to have a better life than I did growing up and so far I think we are doing a pretty good job. Yes we do without some luxeries, but it is well worth it to me.

In 1992, my husband and I were $9000 in credit card debt on $28k in annual income. Neither one of us could sleep at night, because we were so overwhelmed with worry. Then, my grandmother died, and my parents gifted my brother and I with $10k each from the estate. My husband and I were so relieved to be able to pay our bills, but mixed in with the relief was envy that my brother, unburdened by debt, took off to Europe for six months. I was disgusted with myself and made a vow at the moment that I would never rack up that kind of debt again. I wanted financial freedom so badly, I could taste it.

Now, it's years later, and I've kept my promise. My husband's career flourished, but we resisted upgrading our lifestyle anymore than necessary, affording me the option of staying home full-time with our two children. At this point, we have a very healthy retirement fund and have managed to squirrel enough away that we will buy our next home for cash later this year. We have no debt at all, only assets, and it's an amazing feeling to be here. It wasn't always easy, but knowing that we are well on our way to financial independence has made it all worthwhile.

I visit this forum to bolster my commitment to debt-free living. While I can't say that I'm frugal, I am very aware of where our money goes. I've found this site to be a real source of support when I'm faced with the temptation to spend too freely on things that have little value to my family.

This is a wonderful site and I'm so glad I found it!