Debt Free

I don't know if Weight Watchers coined the phrase 'Nothing tastes as good as thin feels,' but they use it. I know from experience they're right. Know what else is right? Nothing feels as good as being debt free.

For the last 3 years, finances have been stretched to the limit at our house. A decrease in income, combined with medical debt and other expenses, have conspired to make things pretty grim financially. We've paid our bills, but there has been little for extras. Dinners out have been rare. We haven't had a vacation since summer 2009. We've had Christmas and birthdays, but it has required scrimping and working overtime. I don't want to talk about grocery shopping. It's stressful enough without having to constantly watch your pennies.

I wouldn't trade the financial hardships of the last 3 years for anything. They have taught this family lessons that we wouldn't have learned any other way. You don't grow as a person through the pampered good times. That's just human nature.

Michael started a garden and learned to can. I honed my skills at thrifting and started this blog. I learned to refashion clothing and remake jewelry. I discovered what a thrifty gentleman my husband is, and learned from his example. We had family nights at home that were so much fun, but didn't cost much money. You truly discover and reorder the important things in life when you have to draw on resources you already have, instead of throwing money or credit cards at the problem.

I also discovered that most people have NO CLUE what it's like to live on a budget. It boggled the mind when I heard so many people say 'We have no money, we have to watch every penny!' and then say 'We're going to the Bahamas! We just bought another new car! We're building a bigger house!' None of these things are wrong, but it was frustrating to see how many people think they have no money, yet can afford so many luxuries we could only dream of. It's not poverty, it's PRIORITIES. I've preached that on my blog several times.

This was a good discovery, though. Living on limited means cleared our minds and allowed us to see things we wouldn't have otherwise if we had been able to fulfill every material desire. Poverty can be extremely clarifying.

Thankfully, we had made good choices in the early years of our marriage that helped us during this financially difficult time. I had received stock from my prior marriage, and we used that to pay off our house and our cars. In addition, we had bought a boat! I don't recommend owning a boat if you have other debt! It's an expensive pastime! We used it and had fun with it, but in the last few years we had been so busy with our kids' other pastimes, we just couldn't justify owning the boat, especially since we were paying through the nose to store it. So, we decided to sell it.

This past week, God finally found us the perfect boat buyer, and we sold it for only $2,500 less than what we bought it for 7 years ago. Once the check cleared, we paid off every single stitch of debt. I can't even begin to describe to you the feeling we have of relief. It's incredible.

So, does this mean we'll start living it up? Eating out nightly, taking expensive tropical vacations, and shopping constantly? No. The lessons of the past 3 years were too precious to forget. We will be able to provide Claire with a wonderful senior year, buy things when we need them, and occasionally enjoy dinners out and date nights.

I'll still be thrifting everything I can, too.