The other day my sisters and I were talking about the top 3 things we each talk about. They said mine were:

1. My boys (obvi)
2. Design
3. Dave Ramsey

That last one is embarrassing but totally true. For those of you thinking, “Who??” click here and here. After taking Financial Peace University at our church and Dustin even leading some FPU small groups, we decided it was time to actually implement the plan. As in make a budget and STICK to it. As in pay off debt. As in follow a plan. So last November, D and I sat down and did our first zero-based budget on paper. We cashed out some of our paycheck for the envelope system and started paying cash for groceries, restaurants, and clothing. We stopped using our credit cards. We got focused on our debt snowball which looked a little like this:

Credit Cards
Car payment
Dustin’s school loans
Medical Bills

I’m thrilled to say we have been following the Dave Ramsey plan for a year now and have paid off

$24,688.10

We are not done yet but we have paid off everything except the medical bills. So now the debt snowball looks more like this:

Credit Cards
Car payment
Dustin’s school loans
Medical Bills

Yay! Setting up a budget in the past totally sucked for me because I could never stick to it. The main problem was that I wasn’t being realistic with how much I actually needed in each category. I also never thought about things like car repairs, dentist bills, pharmacy costs, etc. so when it was time to pay those it would totally ruin my budget. D was awesome because he made me look at all those things I never planned for and budget for them each month. I found that budgeting doesn’t mean you are confined to never spending money, it just means you have a PLAN for your money. You know where it’s going instead of wondering where it went. I don’t feel guilty anymore if I spend money since we already budgeted for it. How freeing!

Now twice a month, D and I sit down and do the budget together. We still use our cash envelopes and document every other purchase. We never really fought about money before but living on a plan we both have agreed to has helped us set goals and dream together. We love the Dave Ramsey plan not just because it works but because it’s based on what the Bible says about money. We are both excited for financial freedom but right now we are focused on getting to that next baby step.

I know this topic has nothing to do with design, art, or decor but I just wanted to share our experience and encourage others that they can do it too! And if any of you have experience with this, I want to hear your stories!