See that countdown clock? Guess what it is for…do you know?
CHRISTMAS!!!
Yup, it’s coming again this year. Guess what?!? We are ready for it! Are you?
Before discovering Dave Ramsey, it seemed to surprise me that Christmas was going to happen. Sounds silly, I know. I was never ready. We usually used credit cards to pay for gifts and then spent the beginning of the New Year paying it all off.
When I met Dave back in 2007 {via book not in person} I decided that we were no longer going to use a credit card to pay for Christmas. It didn’t work. I ended up using a credit card and I think we finally paid for Christmas by February. The following year, I scrambled to save as much as could starting in October. We were able to have a cash Christmas. It wasn’t a HUGE Christmas, but it was paid for. Last year, we were on the Dave Ramsey plan and began putting cash in an envelope. Last year was the first year I did not stress about paying for Christmas.
This year, I’m a little bit giddy…I actually have a nice chunk of change put away to purchase gifts. Woo Hoo!!!!
Was it hard to put a set amount in an envelope? Yes. Is it hard to not want to spend that cash and pay off debt? Yes. But today, I was able to purchase the #1 gift that my Star Wars obsessed seven year old wanted most!! I bought it today because not only did I have the cash, but it was on sale. I have no worries about the holidays. I am not worrying if I will be able to put money away. We made a plan and put a little away every month since the beginning of the year and will now enjoy the holidays rather than stress about them.
