Climbing Out One Family’s Adventure in Becoming Debt-free

It was a good weekend and we hammered our first budget into place.  That shit is hard!  However, both The Wife and I are sold on Dave Ramsey’s ideas and there is a palpable paradigm shift happening in our house.

The switch that was thrown must have been a big one because I’m ready to castrate my suburban manhood right now.

Ten years ago I went from renter to home-owner and began my new life as Tim “The Toolman” Taylor.  I own (and know how to use well) two circular saws, a compound miter saw, three drills and a drill press, a table saw, a belt sander, a band saw, a Bosch jig saw, a router and router table… you get the idea.

I’m selling all of them this weekend. And I kid you not, I am happy to do it.

Our first budget is a bit messy.  Okay, maybe we’re a bit messy.  We are more than $47k in debt and our combined take-home pay is $5,400/mo.  Our mortgage is $2,200 and we owe $265,000 on the house.  And we have no savings.

Having never put it all down on paper before I have to admit a) this is humbling & scary, and b) I am a friggin magician for getting us by this long without going to jail.

Dave Ramsey says first take care of Shelter, Food and Utilities.  So we did.  Then down near the end of the budget are payments to credit card companies, looks like we won’t get to them on time this month.  Then there is the stuff in the middle… More than $300 on phones (home, The Wife’s cell, the Dad’s cell), more than $100 on dish tv, Netflix, ballet class for the girls, beer…

So we are slashing. Netflix is gone (the library offers online dvd reservations for free, did you know that? I didn’t).  Cell plans are cut to the minimum — The Wife will not allow me to go without one and I understand; I have an hour commute to work.  We didn’t cut Dish out all together, but we cut it to the lowest plan available that still had HD (I know, I know… not exactly martyrs on that one).  Beer… I’m dusting off my homebrewing skills.

I cannot really remember every place we trimmed the budget (over and over and over it seems), but we got it down to a point where we could send the credit cards something at the end of the month, but we need a jump start.  We need that first $1,000 in savings that let’s us cut up our cards without fear.  How about that yard sale?

And we now reach the part about the Dad’s tools. What the hell, right?  I can buy more tools when we’re rich.  I’m keeping the Dewalt cordless set and one corded drill.  That will handle any home repair I can think of and the rest can go for CASH to start our emergency savings fund!

Wish us luck.  I hate dealing with yard sale people.