Planning for Retirement, and Saving for College!

Baby Step number 4- Planning for Retirement

Baby Step number 5- Saving for College

Steps number 4 and 5 are to not be started until all of babysteps 1-3 have been complete!

Now you are asking- what are babysteps 1-3.....

1- $1,000 in a Money Market Account for EMERGENCIES
2-All debt paid off, minus house
3- 3-6 months of living expenses saved up

Last night's lesson was quite intriguing! Honestly, I have never truly "cared" about retirement, and those that have talked about it, bore me because I feel that I'm too young to worry about that. HA! That's so not the case. The time is NOW to start! What is being pulled out of my paycheck, I should be matching in a ROTH IRA and having MILLIONS to live off of by the age of 65 or 70. The time to start is, well of course NOW, but until the medical bills and school loans are paid for, we aren't quite there yet!
So, as my New Year's resolution was stated- it's time to kick it into overdrive! Our budget is set for the month, I'm stashing my cash into my envelopes marked in their categories, and HERE WE GO! I've set a goal for me to only give myself $20 of blow money for this month. The past two months it's been around $50. I can do this! I want to do this! I have the WILL to do this!!!!!
Bobby Knight once quoted "Everyone has the will to win, very little have the will to PREPARE to win" . This is my new motto. I'm going to have the will to discipline myself inorder to succeed at this task. I'm going to get every single debt paid off, minus the car and the house in the year of 2012. I CAN DO THIS! No, wait..... WE can do this!!!! Gazelle Intensity Mode is setting in and HERE----WE----GO!!!!
As for the month of December, we were able to pay for Christmas, 100% in CASH. We were able to give to the local Angel Tree Ministry. We also gave a substantial amount to a local family in need that our church was helping. We also gave to another family that I love to give to because we just love them and everything that they do for us throughout the year. We still gave our monthly offering to the church, and we also paid off more debt!