2009 Wrap-Up

With welcoming a new year brings looking back at the past year and acknowledging accomplishments and seeing what changes need to be made.  So here we go...

• Took Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University course and got a good handle on where our finances were, where we want them to be, and what we need to do to get there.
• Set a budget and worked our best to stick to it!
• Paid off all credit card debt and now pay the balance off each month to bring it back to $0.  Also-closed many credit cards that we didn't need any longer (all "store" credit cards).
• Began funding our Emergency Fund, and contribute a bit to it each month.
• Eventually saved up enough money to go on our much-awaited week-long honeymoon!
• Opened a Roth IRA for Hubby.
• Worked on couponing and searching out the lowest priced items that are bought regularly.
• Paid extra towards student loans and our mortgage each month to live a debt free sooner!
• I became a direct sales consultant to bring in a bit of extra income.

I am sure there are many more things that we had done along the way; these are just what stick out in my mind right at the moment. 

And of course, our goals for 2010:

• Become a One Income Family (living on one income, and saving the other for future)
• Live BELOW our means
• Give 75% handmade gifts
• 100% cash Christmas shopping for Christmas 2010 (for gifts that are not handmade)
• Develop a good price book method
• Purchase online thru only cash-back websites
• Use a coupon everytime we gas a car  

Here is to a much better and more prosperous 2010!