Getting the Snowball Rolling

I said I would give updates along the way about our personal goals to get out of debt and gain financial freedom. Chris started Dave Ramsey's finanacial peace course about a month ago at his work. It is amazing to see the change in him and us as a couple. We definitely have not "arrived," but we are already finding so much peace and contentment in our home. We are finally communicating in a healthy way about money, and we are setting common goals which really gives us a sense of partnership.

We have been incredibly blessed that with this years tax return we will be embarking on to baby steps one and two. Setting aside some money in our emergency fund and paying off one outstanding debt, two and a half credit cards, and all of the doctor's bills from Micah's birth except the hospital bill. What a great feeling of weight that is lifted. We are getting our debt snowball moving, and we are like giddy school children watching it gain mass and pick up speed.

We still have many tough decisions ahead. We will still have a car payment and a sizeable portion of student loans, but our resolve is strong. We are finally coming to terms with making some short term sacrifices for long term gain. I am excited and naturally a little fearful. We are almost certain we will put our house up for sale this summer. Even with the downturn in the housing market, our neighborhood has retained a reasonable value and I believe we can make a profit that will set us even further down the road to eliminating debt. We will probably downsize to an apartment for awhile and use the extra cash flow to really get ahead and finish out our emergency fund. It really does bring a lot of heart issues to the forefront. I start to realize how want driven I was. What will people think of us if we move from a house to an apartment? Will it look like we went backwards? In my heart of hearts I know this is not the case, and our true wealth will begin to build. Still I am only human, and this process is exposing some of the rough edges I try to hide so often. I can only pray that God will continue to work on me. The peace in our home is definitely worth it!