Our family celebrates St. Nick day on December 6th each year. The kids wake up to find a small stocking full of candy. This year I was able to find some old fashioned candies at the local Five and Dime store. It was no more expensive than most candy at the store, so I grabbed some. It made the day more special!
We don’t go all out to celebrate the day. But any day that begins with chocolate is awesome in my book.
This is the first Christmas shopping season we’ve had in ages that we are committed to not putting gifts on credit cards. That’s harder than it sounds! When online shopping, it’s much easier to plop a credit card number in and worry about it later. Except I’ve learned that I often forget to go back to it.
And that’s how it happens. The debt grows as you forget how much you’ve already spent. You always think it will sort itself out later, but it never does. Something to keep in mind as you shop.
This week we had a family emergency that made it necessary for my Hubby and one of our sons to make a sudden trip a couple of states away. If you need a compelling reason to get out of debt, this is the one. Who wants to worry about covering expenses at a time like that?
Getting out of debt has been a real struggle, because so many emergencies and repair bills seem to crop up when you have the best intentions. But even more important than seeing our debt number shrink to $0 has been getting out of the habit of using credit cards. So at least we have that going for us.
This week has taken a toll on all of us, no matter which side of the vote you find yourself on. I stayed up very late to watch election results roll in, and I’m still chugging coffee and trying to make up for lost sleep!
But today we celebrate Veterans Day. If you’ve served or your family has, thank you so much for all of your sacrifice and service to our country!
I watched my kids collect items from around the house for their costumes, and it made my heart happy. No one begged for a pricey costume this year. Contentment is a tough thing to grasp, but oh so important in life.
I’m not telling you that we’re masters of contentment. Far from it! It’s a lesson you have to learn over and over. But we have plenty of chances to practice.
The birthday boy didn’t even realize that he’d get presents! Three-year-olds are refreshingly easy to please when it comes to things like birthdays. We were lucky enough to plan our “baby’s” party for a perfect fall afternoon. No need for a lot of games or food on a day like that. We kept it pretty simple, and everyone seemed to have a nice time.
Always look for the good, and learn to be satisfied in simple things. You’ll appreciate the simplicity of life even more than the money you’ll save. Just another lesson we’re learning in our #yearofno.
I'm Jamie, and I want to help you afford a beautiful life with your family. Learn more. 
