I don't know about you, but as a one income family we have a really tight, no-room-for-error budget. It seems like money is always on my mind and it's always regarding the fact that we never have quite enough. There are days where I feel like we're treading water pretty well, but the majority of the time it feels like we have this rock of debt attached to us and it's dragging us under. There always seems to be more month than money and I have yet to succeed in finding the key to getting out of this hole.
It all goes back to the days before my hubby and I got married. He LOVES cars and his hobby was always buying, modifying, and selling them so he could buy something new. I love that he has a passion for cars but they aren't exactly money makers.....so when we said our vows "for richer or poorer" we most definitely had to mean it. This is not to say that I didn't bring any outstanding debt to our marriage. I was fresh out of university and had just bought a car with the help of my parents. They offered to pay for it outright and then I had to pay them back - just without the interest that bank loans charge you. This was a pretty sweet deal so I obviously said yes. But, I wasn't very meticulous at paying them in the first few years so I'm still paying them for my car four years later (although, I have to remind myself that our payments to the car were put on hold when they helped us with a down-payment for our house and we paid them monthly for that as well). So let's just say that between my husband and myself we unfortunately came into our marriage with bank accounts in the "red" and didn't think to do much about it.
Looking back though, I really wish we had been smarter with our money. We had two incomes and no rugrats to take care of and somehow we never got out of debt? It boggles my mind. What the heck did we spend our money on? We now have one income, thanks to my hard-working husband, but it's less than what he used to make. Just over a year ago we made the decision to move from Edmonton, Alberta to South Surrey, British Columbia. We have no regrets about our move as we love, love, love it out here (let me tell you something about having a beach seven minutes away from your house....it's a little slice of heaven!), but hubby did take a pay cut and when my mat leave ran out we were left with much less than we were used to.
Now don't get me wrong, the decision for me to be a stay at home momma was the perfect fit. I take such joy (most days) in being there for my little girl every day and night and being able to look after the household, but it's definitely not easy. Some days I really feel selfish that I chose to raise our child and not contribute to our income. But then I have to remind myself that our life isn't supposed to be about money; it's about memories and relationships and raising the next generation to be better and greater than we are now. It's not a glamorous job but it's the job I chose and I am slowly learning how to do it graciously and how to make the best of it.
So, here we are. We have a never ending battle with money and there doesn't seem to be any sort of reprieve in the near, or distant, future. I keep trying to figure out a solution but have yet to find the winning ticket. I have a new idea for next month - September - and I'll tell you all about it in my next post :)
It all goes back to the days before my hubby and I got married. He LOVES cars and his hobby was always buying, modifying, and selling them so he could buy something new. I love that he has a passion for cars but they aren't exactly money makers.....so when we said our vows "for richer or poorer" we most definitely had to mean it. This is not to say that I didn't bring any outstanding debt to our marriage. I was fresh out of university and had just bought a car with the help of my parents. They offered to pay for it outright and then I had to pay them back - just without the interest that bank loans charge you. This was a pretty sweet deal so I obviously said yes. But, I wasn't very meticulous at paying them in the first few years so I'm still paying them for my car four years later (although, I have to remind myself that our payments to the car were put on hold when they helped us with a down-payment for our house and we paid them monthly for that as well). So let's just say that between my husband and myself we unfortunately came into our marriage with bank accounts in the "red" and didn't think to do much about it.
Looking back though, I really wish we had been smarter with our money. We had two incomes and no rugrats to take care of and somehow we never got out of debt? It boggles my mind. What the heck did we spend our money on? We now have one income, thanks to my hard-working husband, but it's less than what he used to make. Just over a year ago we made the decision to move from Edmonton, Alberta to South Surrey, British Columbia. We have no regrets about our move as we love, love, love it out here (let me tell you something about having a beach seven minutes away from your house....it's a little slice of heaven!), but hubby did take a pay cut and when my mat leave ran out we were left with much less than we were used to.
Now don't get me wrong, the decision for me to be a stay at home momma was the perfect fit. I take such joy (most days) in being there for my little girl every day and night and being able to look after the household, but it's definitely not easy. Some days I really feel selfish that I chose to raise our child and not contribute to our income. But then I have to remind myself that our life isn't supposed to be about money; it's about memories and relationships and raising the next generation to be better and greater than we are now. It's not a glamorous job but it's the job I chose and I am slowly learning how to do it graciously and how to make the best of it.
So, here we are. We have a never ending battle with money and there doesn't seem to be any sort of reprieve in the near, or distant, future. I keep trying to figure out a solution but have yet to find the winning ticket. I have a new idea for next month - September - and I'll tell you all about it in my next post :)
I am SO glad to read this! I am relieved to hear I am not the only person who is struggling a bit with the whole financial side of life (although I take no pleasure in hearing you're fighting the fight, too!). My fiancé and I are doing "ok" - in that we are managing to stay afloat in this big pool of bills, payments, expenses, due dates, and installments, as well as trying to have fun and go out and just enjoy the money we have. But sometimes it's hard to really understand just what I'm doing wrong when it comes to building up our savings, or paying things down faster. It just doesn't seem to ever be a possibility! And it doesn't help that In our neighborhood there are quite a few people YOUNGER than me, driving these fancy cars, living in these beautiful homes.. I just can't quite understand how?! I agree - life is about making memories, relationships, experiences, love.. but sometimes, I'd LOVE to drive a BMW up to my mansion with hot tub and huge a$$ pool in the back! Did I miss that "how-to" lesson in class?? Oh well, there's definitely something to be said for being rich in experiences, and learning to appreciate what you have in the moment that you have it.
ReplyDeleteI guess I just wanted you to know that I appreciate this post, and will be following you from here on out. Because not only is it nice to feel like your not alone, it's even nicer knowing the person who is making you feel like you aren't! So thanks for posting this, Roz! I hope you succeed in your plans for savings, and congrats again on girly #2 :)
I'm so glad that I can make you feel a little less lonely in your struggles - and it's so nice to hear from you! I think a lot of people, especially our age, struggle with finances but are too afraid or embarrassed to talk about it. Our generation is expected to have all the nice things right from the beginning....but I truly believe that the majority of people who have those things at our age are actually sitting in tons of debt (I mean, yes, there are those people that have wealthy families or super awesome paying jobs that CAN afford those things at a young age....but I assume they are a minority). I think the concept of struggling financially in our younger years (these years we're in right now, unfortunately!) is what most of our parents and grandparents all went through, and I believe in the end it will make us stronger and allow us to appreciate the things we've worked so hard to get! I constantly struggle with not looking around and "trying to keep up with the Jones." It's hard though! It's in our nature to want all the nice things and have an easy, cushy life. But, I've come to realize that that is definitely not the cards I have been dealt at the moment so I'm going to try and make the most of it :)
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