WE'RE DEBT FREE

You heard right- we are completely debt free!

We just paid off the last of our car payment, and we are 100% debt free. Wahoo! We started a year ago- on the way home from a spontaneous trip to Disneyland to celebrate our fourth anniversary- listening to the audio book of The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. We were both impressed, hopeful, and motivated. Then we started the Financial Peace University Course. We dove in with both feet. We had over $50k in medical debt, along with a car payment, and a vacation ownership. Over the last year, we built our baby emergency fund, then dug even deeper and got gazelle intent with our debt. I went from being a full time stay at home wife and mother, to a full time employer at a major financial firm. I didn't realize how much I missed the career route! (Thankfully, a trusted friend and neighbor watches our little boy during the day. It's an all day play date for him with his best friend there.) We sold our vacation home, got on a super slim budget (beans and rice, anyone?), and made a million and a half calls to lower, settle, have dismissed, and even beg down our medical debt. We become full on "ramsey-ites".

We started having budget meetings, communicating about our finances, spending, and our money, and setting goals- big and small- to achieve. It seemed touch, and long, but now that we are here, it was the most interesting and progressive year of our marriage.

And now, here we are. We are debt free. Debt Free. Those two words have so much meaning they can't possibly be expressed in two short syllables. Thank you, Dave Ramsey, for your Bible based, logical, simple, easy-to-follow guidance plan.

Shhh, listen. Did you hear that? That's the sound of our family tree changing.

I am grateful

I have been part of many online groups and networks, as my living situation and marriage have grown and developed. I start with a second wives club, added a step-mom group, was part of various crafting and hobby groups, browsed TOC and TTC groups, and then happily added pregnancy groups. I have found support and friends on all of these, and have some lasting friendships. All of these groups have helped me through some difficult times, and have aided me in perspective and a positive outlook.

Today, I wanted to express my thanks for where I have been, and the path I am on. Selo and I had a very rough time dealing with issues from our respective pasts, and I find myself grateful for the experiences we endured that now make us stronger people individually and have a stronger marriage. I appreciate the wonderful girls and all the insight given from the perspective of being a step-mom, and learning understanding and endurance, and to see the bigger picture of co-parenting and the smaller picture of observing situations through a child's eyes. I feel confident that if I want to learn something all I have to do is seek out the way to do it, and I will be able to accomplish any goal.

And, here I am now- in a committed marriage with a wonderful man, carrying a child we planned, prepared for, and conceived together. I have never felt so much love for my husband. He is the perfect man for me. He has strength where I have weakness. He has knowledge where I am without. He appreciates me for picking him up from work, making him dinner, and providing a clean home, and *melt my heart* he thanked me the other day for carrying our child.

We waited a few years to have our first child. From our past experiences, we felt it was important to have a strong and stable marriage before bringing a child into our family. Because of this, we both have a deep appreciate for our new little one. We know what a blessing it is to simple be able to conceive, and then be able to carry a child. Even through the ongoing morning sickness, the pain in my ribs every time I take a breath, the pressure put on already curved back, we have been blessed that my body is able and strong enough to carry a child. I am constantly amazed that I have a little person, a living growing part of my husband, inside my body. I feel him kick and punch and jump. I get to experience his excitement when he hears his daddy's voice. A little man that will carry on my husband's name.

I am overwhelmed with all of my blessings. I am grateful for the lessons and hardships, because that gave me knowledge I would not have otherwise obtained. And, I have a perspective of appreciate for all we have been through. Looking back on it all, I realized how small the world is, and how great the potential each of us has in it.

Pictures of our new home

The house
The kitchenThe dining room and other half of kitchen (all those boxes are gone now, so it is much cleaner- yay)The patio (out the sliding glass door in the dining room). The backyard is HUGE. The hallway. Going down the hallway: first left- main bathroom, first right- soon to be nursery, next left- laundry area, second right- office, straight- master suite.The main bathroomThe soon to be nursery. I'm still deciding exactly what I want for the nursery theme. The master bedroomThe master bathroomNo pictures of the office or front room yet, because we haven't gotten that far. The yard has tons of rose bushes. I can't wait for spring. We love our new home. It is perfect for our growing little family. And, like I mentioned before, the rent is the same price we were paying for our one bedroom apt. So we gained a dining room, two bedrooms, a bathroom, a washer/dryer, and reserved parking LOL We are very blessed. We plan to stay here until we buy a house. (No, we were looking but decided against it. With a baby on the way, and Selo's work moving sometime this year, we decided it would be better to wait. But, we are happy with our home, and won't outgrow it before we buy a house of our own.)

I am thankful for . . .

Top ten things I am thankful for this year:

1- My husband. He is an amazing man. He has been through so much in his years, and has grown so much. Even just throughout the years I have known him, I have seen him overcome so much, grow and mature, and he has taught me some amazing lessons. He is generous, he is strong, he is sensitive, he is kind, he is dedicated, he is hard working, he is spiritual, he is committed. He is the leader of our household. He is a protective husband and father. Every single day he makes an effort to be a wonderful husband, and help me with the trial in my pregnancy, even though he is working a very demanding 50+ hrs/week job. I couldn't ask for a better man. He is most definitely one of the biggest blessings in my life, and one that I am most grateful for.

2- Our families. They are so very different, and I have grown to love each member of all sides. Each person has touched my life in a different way, and I am grateful for all of them.

3- Our new baby. Babies are miracles here on earth. Their creation, their growth inside the womb, their journey into this world, and their very presence. I have felt the spirit of our little one with me since shortly after we found out I was pregnant. I love watching my husband rub my belly and talk to our little baby. I love planning for our family, and anticipating the joy our first child will bring to us.

4- My spirituality, relationship with God, and religion. This world can be a very harsh place. I am grateful to know that there is a higher power. Someone that knows all things, and has a plan. I am grateful for the gift of prayer, and being able to communicate personally with my Heavenly Father, and receive my own witness of peace.

5- Technology. Although I get tired of it sometimes, I am grateful for all the technology in the world we live in. We have refridgerators to keep our food cold, email to communicate with, cars to help us travel long distances on a daily basis. I am grateful to the people that started this all, with a simply light bulb and telegraph, and I am grateful to the people that keep it going with constant updates in technology.

6- Health. I am grateful that Selo and I are both relatively healthy. We both have our own medical setbacks, and the occasional hospital visit. But we have all of our limbs, fingers, and toes. We have access to simple medicines to help us with minor aches and illnesses. We have no major ailments or health problems.

7- Employment. Selo and I both have jobs. That, in itself, is enough to be grateful for. But our jobs are stable and long term. They are with good companies, that make a good profit. They are secure. We lived off of my salary while he was unemployed, and will be well off living on his when I become a stay at home wife and then mother. We have our needs met, and are able to enjoy some wants as well.

8- Talents and hobbies. I love to read. I love to create. I love to volunteer. Selo loves the guitar and to write music. He loves to study something and learn every aspect of it. We are both blessed with many talents, and the ability to put them to use, and to share them with others. I am a firm believer that ones talents should be used for good and shared with the world. I am grateful for the many talents we have been blessed with.

9- The blessings that come from overcoming opposition. This one is a little more complicated, but I have learned to be grateful for it. There is a saying that "Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger". I hated it for a long time, and I still don't enjoy being reminded of it. But when I look at the long term results of times in my life that I have struggled and suffered, I see that it is true. Every person has a natural strength they are born with. However, only those that have to put that strength to the test, come out stronger for it. I was a teenager when my family went through some serious crisis. But having gone through that taught me that I can be whoever I choose to be, and my decisions are not the result of others decisions. I am responsible for myself, and therefore I am stronger, more willing to make the right decisions, and have no problem looking myself in the mirror knowing I did what I felt was best. My husband went through a divorce and lost two of his children. However, he is now a better husband and more committed our marriage. He understands how sacred the gift of a child is, and has already taken an active roll in our baby's life. We both look back on our experiences with some sorrow that it had to happen that way, but grateful for the lessons learned because we are better people because of them.

10-Water. I know this sounds silly, especially when all the rest were so serious. But I love water! Not in the swimming and splashing way, but in the I can drink it anytime, anywhere, and it always tastes good way. I grew up drinking water (my mom was a big fan, too), and I have always chosen water over anything else. The crisp, cool, refreshingness of it has been more appreciated in my pregnancy than even before. If there is one thing that I can always reach for, and know I won't be disappointed, it is water.

(Thanks to Lera, for the inspiration for this post.)