On September 18th 2007, Ashley and I started down a path that unbeknown to us, would change our lives forever.  Up until that point we were living the life that a lot of people our age were living.  Basically doing what we wanted when we wanted and not really paying attention to money or our finances.  We were living a breathing credit and used the credit card for everything.  New clothes, put it on the card.  Need gas, put it on the card.  Going out to eat, put it on the card.  We were so caught up in the "points/miles" game we had totally lost sight of what we were doing and spending. During this time our credit card balances would continually get higher and higher until we got some type of bonus or a tax return and then we would make a big payment.  We would then keep the card down for a bit, but it would always creep back up again.  We just felt that this is the way it was.

I remember talking with Ashley and saying that times are different now and you just couldn't make enough money to afford stuff.  Car payments and credit card debt were just a way of life and we had excepted that both of these would be with us forever.  Its not that we didn't budget, because we did.  We just didn't necessarily have the money to backup our budget.  In addition neither of us had the discipline necessary to use a credit card, we just new we were getting miles...

Once I started working at the bank I heard people talking about Financial Peace University (FPU) by Dave Ramsey.  It was explained to me as a course that would help you better understand your finances and manage your money.  I don't remember what the driver was but for some reason Ashley and I decided to enroll in the class.  Ashley and I decided after the first night that it was going to be a great class.  There were about 12 other couples in the class all with similar situations.  Some of them were much older then Ashley and I which makes their situation much more critical.  At any rate, what transpired over the next thirteen weeks would alter the entire way we viewed the world and especially how we viewed money and our finances.

Ashley and I were quickly able to knockout Baby Step #1 ($1000 in the bank), and quickly moved on to Baby Step #2 (Payoff debt using the debt Snowball).  We built up a pla, committed to it and followed it each and every day.  We cut up our credit cards, payed off our balances and closed the accounts.  We developed a strict budget, switched to an all cash envelope based system and started telling our money where it was going to go.  We vowed to keep open communication between each other and to continually talk and work through our financial situation.  Now after almost two years of dedication I can proudly say:

                                        WE ARE DEBT FREE!

Who would have thought that almost two years to the day of us starting this life changing class we will be having our first child.  It is great knowing that we are bringing her into the world with a clean slate and a clear understanding of where we need to go from here.  We both refuse to ever return to where we were two years ago.  We will no longer be a slave to the lender and now that we have broken the chains that were continually dragging us down, we will never go back!  At the time of enrollment in FPU we had over $42,000 in debt (house not included) and no money in savings.  Now with Baby Step #2 done, we can move on to building the savings that will carry the three of us through the next rainey day that we experience.

Thanks Dave, for your help and guidance!  We frequently think "what would Dave tell us to do" when making decesions and it has proven to be quite effective for us.  We continue to stick to a strict all cash envelop based budget and look forward to the day when we can pay commisions...