Pump it up

November 21, 2010  Blessing #206

Today we hosted Chip's party at Pump it up--a giant inflatable zone.  It was a great party for him--family and friends, tons of exercise, pizza, and one of my Granna's homemade cakes.   I was so pleased that we could do that for Chip-I know there are parents who wish they could and can't for financial or scheduling reasons.  Don't get me wrong---it was pricey, but we planned for it.  That's our new thing--we only spend on what we plan for. 

Speaking of, we have paid off a few things since the "come to Jesus" meeting with our new financial adviser also known as my super-here loving father.  We got a car paid for, one credit card paid off, almost paid off Trey's student loan, and finished paying our IRS bill from 2009.  Oh do we still have a long way to go--however, it is important to stop and acknowledge what we've done, if only so we'll keep working.  The trick is to pay all this stuff off while keeping enough cash to avoid using credit cards for things like gas and groceries.  We're doing great so far, but when you send most of your cash to debt eradication and the rest to food and gas, it doesn't leave a lot for extra spending or saving.  I am loving that we are being so disciplined--even though with the Holidays approaching it is hard. I mean, I LOVE to buy Christmas presents for folks--and this year will have to focus on only doing what we can instead of what we wish we could.  We're looking at  few more years like that till all the credit cards balances are gone and the student loans are paid off but we are resolved!

So today--I'm grateful we swung one last party at pump it up.  I'm proud of our progress and grateful to my Dad for helping us plan our strategy.