To Disney or To NOT... feeling torn

Sooo... ya know 46 MONTHS later... and now seeing savings adding up.... My husband and I are feeling torn on whether we should actually spend a small fortune on a family Disney trip. 

Don't get me wrong. WE LOVE DISNEY. We love the rides, the yummy treats, seeing the characters, seeing our kids(and our own) excitement and the escape from reality. Disney really brings it all. We just DON'T love the price tag. 

I think that through those 46 months of pinching our pennies, something happened to us. WE CHANGED. We really do budget differently and we value what we have to work with SO much more now. We still have lots to learn but the feeling of dropping $2000-$3000 on a trip to Disney just isn't settling well with us. I have a whole Pinterest board dedicated to Disney with many of the posts on how to do it on the cheap... but even on the cheap, you'll still be forking over a fair amount of moola. Aaanndd.let'sbehonest. If you are going to Disney you don't want to worry about finances while you are there. They've made it so magical and inviting and EXPENSIVE... that experiencing Disney the right way -in my opinion- is not having to worry about the $$ spent on yummy park treats and a couple souvenirs as well as not having to tote around a cooler for your meals... have I made my point yet? Of course, if you are willing to pinch your pennies for Disney, you may be able to go more than once too... could be worth it.

In short, Disney = spending a small fortune 

(or stressing over every expense while you are there)

There are sooo many other WAY less expensive options that could be just as memorable and enjoyable. The real kicker is that my husband works for an airline company and gets great flying benefits. My kids LOVE Hawaii... which would cost a third the amount of a Disney trip. We've never been to Legoland and my kids have asked many times to go there.Way less than Disney. We could even buy passports for our kids and go somewhere foreign. Less than Disney. We could almost do all three for the same amount as ONE Disney trip. 

In short again, Not going to Disney = New adventure elsewhere, more adventures elsewhere, AND more than likely saving money.

When ya lay it out like that, it's hard to choose Disney. Not that we won't ever go back but maybe right now is not the time for it? After all, we have kids ages 8, 6, 4, and 2. There would be a lot of missed rides and kids who may not remember it anyway and I'd most likely end up pushing the stroller around for hours with sleeping kids. Maybe it's all about timing here. Maybe when they are all old enough to ride it all! This year got a lot busier for my husband too. He's almost finished with his dreadful but fulfilling CPA exams(Hoping this time around we-yes we- are finished with the CPA exams chapter of life). He's a lot busier at work too which had influenced our travel dates anyway. We haven't decided to ditch Disney (for a couple more years) just yet. There are some other family factors I haven't mentioned but will you hate it if our Epic Mickey gets dusty.... really dusty? 

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HUGE Epic Mickey Debt Count Down!! Month 20!

Oh goodness... 

We are only 4 months away from the mark we set to PAY OFF all our debts(besides the mortgage). This month sure did give it a good push! We decided to stall looking for a new home and put our savings for the down payment into our Debt Snowball! 

Mickey is finally changing his looks a bit! 

FINALLY DONE WITH HIS EARS! WOW! 

As for our original goal of being out of Debt in 4 months, I'm sure hoping we can do it but it's going to take selling our condo to get there! We originally were going to rent out the condo but have decided {I think} that selling it is the best option for us in this time of our lives. We'll probably never get the chance to get such a good deal on a potential investment property again but we'll get the chance to be debt free and possibly have a 20% down on a new home! 

Praying and hoping it works out that way! 

As Dave says, pay off debts first, then save and invest!

And as I have always been taught by my parents and through my faith, have faith and trust in the Lord. While we have our agency, when we involve the Lord in our lives and every decision, we can be directed to where and what we are supposed to really be doing in this life and the next! I know that as we do our best the Lord helps make up in the areas we lack. 

Thank Heavens for that!

Back Story:

**As a family we decided to change our lives by paying off debt. We needed motivation to keep us going. This Epic Mickey represents how much debt we owe. Each filled in square represents a dollar amount paid off. Once the entire Mickey is filled in, we will be debt free besides our home. Then we'll party in style with Disney to celebrate! We have included a monthly plan to have the savings set aside to pay for the trip too so we won't be back tracking just to celebrate. Take the journey with us as we share tips and tricks to save money, generate more money, free ourselves from the chains of debt and create a better future for our family and yours!

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BACK TO CASH ONLY! My New Lil' Budget Book!

For quite a while now I have been using my debit card instead of actual CASH. 

I know right?! I did WHAT?!!!

We(my husband and I) got to a place where our budget wasn't as tight and we liked the idea of earning perks for everything we spent.. BUT then it hits us.....

"We don't really WANT to earn perks as fast as we are! Just means we are spending too much $$" 

Even though it is still "technically" cash when using a debit card, I find myself feeling ok with spending a couple extra bucks here and there when swiping plastic. It's not as hard to part with when I don't see it. As for my husband, I think he's the same way but he doesn't do most of the shopping so I realize a majority of the problem is with me! 

"When you use CASH, you spend 12-18% LESS than when you spend on PLASTIC!" 

- Dave Ramsey 

As I stated before, Pregnancy and Finances don't mix too well- at least for me! SOOO I made me a new MLBB to get back into the swing of things and I'm using CASH BABY! 

I personally LOVE My new Lil' Budget Book!! Isn't it adorable?!!

(It even makes me want to start making them again!)

So to all of you who might be back at this stage again, know you aren't the only one! 

Let's get back on track and start saving more and spending less. :) 

Here is a sneak peak of my new Craft Closet too...

I still have lots to do with it but it's for sure feeling like my favorite space in the house already!

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When do you Tend to Overspend?

If you happen to notice, I published a Finance Friday post. I have always intended to give a Budget Tip of the week on a specific day each week but so far, I haven't been great at that. 

Well, we'll start this week and go from here. Finance Friday sounds Fun doesn't it? And to be honest, it is usually the weekends when my family tends to overspend so I am going to try and motivate people to do the opposite while I try and do the opposite too with a post every FRIDAY! 

I'm curious though, 

When do YOU tend to OVERSPEND?? 

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Finance Friday - Budget Tip - Buyers Remorse and Returns

Normally I don't allow myself to just splurge on things, especially for myself! And I don't think it was an actual splurge either. You help me classify it as you read on.

In about one month I lost 14 pounds!!! I was ready to celebrate! Who would be right? 

I also made a deal with my husband a while back that for every mile I run I get to earn money for shopping for new clothes :) Yeah my husband is pretty much amazing for actually agreeing to this. That was about 100 miles ago when we made the deal then we budgeted the money in too. 

Even better, part of it came straight from our PerkStreet rewards program for simply just using our debit card for purchases. We had earned over $100 to put towards a gift card. I chose T.J. Maxx (because we frugal girls all know that you can get a LOT for $100 at T.J. Maxx right??). So I headed to the store to shop for MYSELF! That alone was a pretty weird and great feeling- if you are mom, you might be able to relate to this feeling. 

I knew I had the gift card money and then some that I earned through running so I piled on the clothes to try on... I was testing to see what size I was too since I had dropped so much weight. I was so thrilled when I tried on a SIZE 4 and it was sooo comfy and easy to pull on. And even a size 2 waist fit- accept my new runner thighs did not, lol. I had previously been a loose size 10 so you can image my excitement.

That's where it really started. I was feeling GOOD! So good that I tried on a lot of clothing! he! he! 

When I came out of the dressing room with my stack, the lady asked the usual, "What are you keeping?" 

My reply..."ALL OF IT!" with a big smile! I'm not going to lie, I've never had that happen before and I LOVED it! 

I went to the register and checked out. To my surprise and bad math while trying to juggle 3 kids, the total was near $200- whoa! How did I get that much in there? Well, that's ok because that is really about where my total was with the gift card and earned money... so I just took it home with me...although I did ask, "What's your return policy?" Joking that my sweet hubby might make me return at least some of what I got. BTW, he was totally ok with it and said I earned it! Love him!

Sooo, then I tried everything on at home and made my sweet hubby sit through a fashion show. Am I so mean or what? Lol! I was still loving all my new clothes but I did leave the tags on. Then the next day came and I tried them on again and tried mixing and matching with clothes I already had. Then I realized that some of the clothes weren't screaming my personality as much as they were just screaming I lost weight and I have new clothes. So again, I set them aside still with the tags on them.

Day three came and guess what?!! Out of the 10 items I purchased, I took back 7 of them!!! Yup sure did. And I still LOVE the three I kept! 

What to learn from this story:

1) Keep your receipts- especially if you are impulse buying.

2) Ask about return policies!! Some stores only give store credit.

3) Don't remove tags for at least 3-5 days after purchase so you KNOW you love it... 

4) Try on the clothes but don't WEAR them for at least 3 days after purchase just in case you DON't end up LOVING them.

5) Return your unloved items for your money back!

What tips do you have to share with others about impulse buying and returns?

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While you are visiting be sure to enter the following giveaways:

FLASH GIVEAWAY- JAMBERRY NAILS
Tropical Traditions Virgin 32 oz Coconut Oil $40 Value

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