Living a Cash-Only Life

Before I stopped posting a few years ago, I mentioned that our family was on a budget with a goal to get out of debt.

After almost four years of living a “cash-only” life, closing our credit cards and watching our expenses, we finally paid off our last credit card this month!  Woo-hoo!

I don’t even want to tell you how much debt we’d racked up while I was a stay-at-home mom, but let it suffice to say that it was way too much.  However, looking back, I still feel that I made the right decision to stay home with my babies (even if it meant charging those unexpected expenses).  We will never get those years back, and I would not trade them for anything.

I feel like we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, and it feels really good (and a little strange).  We will free up a substantial amount of cash each month now that our debts are gone.  I also recently got a raise and we are in the process of refinancing our home – which will free up several hundred additional dollars every month.  Our car is paid off and our truck is nearly so (we are not completely debt-free, but almost!).

Since we are used to living a (somewhat) frugal life, we should be able to put away some significant savings and possibly take on some of those home projects that have been on hold for the last few years (new bathroom, new roof, new kitchen…).  My ultimate dream is to purchase a vacation home at the shore – maybe someday.

Now, when unexpected expenses come up (like the $900 new water heater we had to purchase after the old one nearly exploded last week – yikes!), we have a cushion from which to draw.  What a good feeling!