Lost My Cape

Pregnancy has really sucked the superwoman right out of me. I can not stay up until 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. sewing because I am so tired. Life seems a bit more overwhelming in general with the lack of productivity I have been having. Every emotion is seemingly at the surface...tears, annoyances, tears from happy things, more tears. I cry more during pregnancy than any other time...and I can't seem to recover...getting emotional about one thing leads to the next thing that really isn't that emotional bringing back the tears. Oh my. I'm a mess. But what I really sat down to write about is our Total Money Makeover path and progress. I am extremely happy (tears) to report that the debt snowball has rolled over for a 3rd time and we are now knocking out those pesky student loans as fast as we possibly can. Our financial goals are aggressive and we are well aware of that. Our friends think we are crazy, which is fine by me. I often enjoy their uncomfortableness at the lengths we are going to to get rid of debt and get on a much brighter financial future. It's hard work and probably because of the pregnancy or that we've been tackling this debt with "gazelle-like intensity" for over a year now, I am getting a little weary. No worries, I won't stop until it's finished, but this girl misses giving some of her money to Banana Republic and Chipotle. I miss traveling. I WANT to shop at The Cottage Collective. There are these great spools and this wonderful old locker basket that have my name written all over them. And then there is the unfinished basement that could be would be so lovely to have completed for the extra space to function regularly in. Oh and then there are my floors...I look at them everyday picturing how much better my whole house would look with wood floors and non-stained carpet. I still long for these things, some days a lot more than others. Then there is the fact that we are a one car family for the time being...inconvenient, yes. Can I haul everything that I want to take to the cottage in "Gramps", my family car? Nope. Is it annoying? Sure. Is this slimmed down lifestyle impossible for the time being so that before we know it we have paid off all our debt and get to tell our money where to go? No, it's how our grandparents lived their whole lives. Delaying pleasure is a sign of maturity...financial maturity. We are gearing up to lead the TMM group again in a couple weeks and I am excited about it! This time around we are still paying down the debt but we can also share that we've paid off over $26,000 in one year...on one salary...a church salary. We will be able to give a glimpse of the program actually working and what happens when you stick to it. This keeps me motivated. I have the Dave Ramsey app on my phone and I read new stories everyday of his insights and others successes. We are fantastically blessed with the best neighbors ever, who were in our first TMM group and are also living the slimmed down life to improve their situation...built in support!! I have a husband who is fully on board. I have a kid who doesn't know the difference...he just wants to go to the "play" (park) and find trains to watch, both are free and easy to find around here. And I actually do get to do a little traveling this year at very little expense and they are going to be some pretty great trips. It is going to be like water for my very thirsty soul and I can't wait. God is good to me. I can't wait to be done with debt. It sucks.