As parents, it’s tough to see your children struggle. Watching them suffer in sickness or pain tugs at your heart strings. You want to relieve their suffering or take their place. It’s easy to see how the parental love that compels us to rescue and save our children would extend to other areas of hardship. With […]
4 Things you should tell your kids about YOUR finances
Learning to talk openly with your kids about your own finances is one of the best ways to give them the financial education that they’re not getting anywhere else. Keeping finances hush-hush does more harm than good. If you don’t teach your kids about finances, they’ll likely have to get their education from the school of […]
5 Habits that Helped Us Pay Off $144,000 in Debt in 3 Years
When we started paying off our law school debt, we owed over $130,000. At the time, my husband was making $39,000 before taxes and I was bringing in some side income with my Etsy shop. We set an audacious stretch goal of being debt-free in three years, but when we calculated how much we needed […]
Are you missing this important step in your debt payoff?
There’s one step in paying off debt that seems so obvious to me that I’ve never really considered an alternative. However, as I read more widely in personal finance, I discovered that many people intentionally skip this important step. The question is whether to start paying off debt immediately or to first save up an […]
Debt Smash-athon NOV-DEC 2020 Progress Report
Hey Debt Smashers! This update is long overdue! I’ve been putting all of my blogging time and energy lately into helping my students in my Grocery Budget Hero course. I wanted to get this update out to all of you before 2020 is too far off the radar, though! UPDATE: Grocery Budget Hero is now […]
Debt Smash-athon OCTOBER 2020 Progress Report
I’m so impressed with how you guys have rocked the debt smashing even though it has been a crazy year! I love reading about your successes and positivity through your trials. It hasn’t been easy, but you’re on the way to reach your goals even if the timeline isn’t what you had originally planned. For […]
Debt Smash-athon SEPTEMBER 2020 Progress Report
I love getting a peek into each of your financial journeys as you share a few details in your Debt Smash-athon reports. I really am rooting for each of you! I’m encouraged by your progress and by your willingness to get up and keep going even after disappointments and struggles. 2020 has definitely not been […]
Debt Smash-athon JULY & AUGUST 2020 Progress Report
Life got a little crazy here, so today we’re catching up with TWO months of your debt smashing progress! I love reading of your progress and how you are working hard to reach your financial goals even in these crazy times. In fact, some of you even reached the exciting milestone of being free of […]
Debt Smash-athon JUNE 2020 Progress Report
I’m not sure how July nearly got away from me before I got June’s Debt Smash-athon Update posted! I was so excited to read of your milestones this month. It’s a hard financial time for many people, but it’s exciting to see you still working toward your goals. Some of you are newly debt free! […]
Debt Smash-athon APRIL 2020 Progress Report
It’s kind of a weird time for debt payoff right now. Many people were caught off guard by the pandemic. Okay, pretty much everyone was caught off guard, but some were more prepared than others. Some people are in survival mode, just focusing on keeping afloat with the bare essentials. Some have had no change […]
Debt Smash-athon MARCH 2020 Progress Report
Well, March wins for the craziest month ever! In March’s report, I asked our Debt Smashers how the current world conditions (I’m looking at you covid-19) were affecting (or likely would be affecting) their debt payoffs and financial goals. Many of you are putting financial goals like debt payoff on hold in favor of bulking […]
Debt Smash-athon FEBRUARY 2020 Progress Report
Well, life in March may be crazy, but you guys did an awesome job smashing debt in February! We smashed nearly $100K of debt between us! Let’s go back to February for a minute and celebrate you amazing financial accomplishments and talk about your big wins and how you did it! It’s so motivating to […]
Debt Smash-athon JANUARY 2020 Progress Report
When I asked if you wanted to continue the Debt Smashathon in 2020, I got a resounding YES, so we’ll keep it going this year as well! This is our first debt smashing report of 2020. If you don’t already get the link to report your progress at the end of each month, sign up […]
Debt Smash-athon DECEMBER Progress Report & 2019 Year-Long Totals!
Well friends, we did it! We smashed debt throughout 2019. We’ve all had ups and downs, wins and fails. In 2019, some of you made the decision to start tackling the debt that has been looming over you for years. Some of you celebrated debt freedom during the year! And lots of us are somewhere […]
Making Your Debt Attack Plan
One really important piece of your Frugal Fresh Start is getting a handle on any debt that you have. Our own current financial goal is to pay off mortgage debt, so this is a topic that’s always at the top of our minds. If you don’t have any debt at all, congratulations! You can skip […]
Debt Smash-athon NOVEMBER Progress Report
I’m very late in posting our November Debt Smash-athon progress report this month because I’ve been posting daily with my Frugal Festivities 25 Days of Christmas Cheer on a Budget series. I am so excited to recognize those of you who are working hard and participating in the Debt Smash-athon. You are making amazing progress […]
