old {and young} wives tales: the "m" word

It’s hard to believe we are on week 8 of this series on marriage! I have been overjoyed and humbled to learn something each week from my guest bloggers. Have you enjoyed it as much as I? Today, I have a newer blogging buddy Heather, sharing about a topic that can cause strain and stress in marriage:

Hi Y’all! I am Heather from High Heels and Scuffed Sneakers. I am thrilled to be a part of the Wives Tales’ series and grateful that Kelli has allowed me to join this incredible journey with you! Today I am going to share a little bit about my marriage and the M word!

Jason and I married two years ago on a beautiful Tuesday afternoon in front of our immediate family on a Jamaican Beach. While dating, Jason and I acknowledged that we were very different in many ways. However, since we were sooo in love, we knew that our love for one another would always be the ultimate trump card and assumed that all of the daily functions of life would be easy to us!

Fast forward to month two of marriage, we were still in love and still focusing on embracing our difference until we started talking about MONEY and made the choice to merge our check books. You see, I have always been a free spirit when it comes to money. At the age of 24, I purchased my own home, not because I planned for it and had a nice nest egg of money but because I wanted it. I worked two jobs and saved up the minimum amount for a deposit on a home and purchased it. I thought I was sooo smart and felt super empowered. Jason, also purchased a home when he was in his twenties but he’s more of a nerd! He saved his money and purchased a home without draining his savings account. He always bought used cars and never spent money on clothes when he was in a bad mood.

During month two of marriage, the dust had settled from all of our wedding festivities, our homes were finally merged and we had renters in Jason’s house. It was finally sinking in that we were married and doing life together. After some discussion, we decided to merge our checking accounts and start budgeting in efforts to stay unified. I was on board until the process started! I had a mini-meltdown and we promptly enrolled in Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. It was NOT easy!

We made the decision to enroll in FPU because we desperately needed a safe place to chat about our dreams and direction on how to achieve them. FPU made it possible for me to still be able to spend and Jason to save. Through the lessons we learned during the twelve week course, we were able to save money without compromising the lifestyle we wanted to enjoy.

{source}

FPU gave us the tools we needed to create a budget (yes, I still shop when I’m in a bad mood!). With that budget, we have been able to change our financial outcomes and plan for our future. Within two years, we have successfully paid off all of our credit cards, vehicle loans and are currently working on building our savings. FPU also helped us learn how to trust one another and learn to compromise. Without the conversations that were initiated during our FPU classes, we would still be roaming around trying to figure things out… scared and in love is not always the best combo!

Jason and I remain madly in love and have a successful marriage. Our financial struggles have proven to us that we can endure hardships and that free spirits and nerds can be happily married.

Our story is not meant to be an endorsement for FPU but hopefully encourages you to focus on the financial health of your marriage. Life is a lot sweeter when you know where you are going and how you are going to get there!

Thank you so much Heather! If statistics are true, money is one of the #1 topics that can cause problems in marriage, so we would be wise to not only discuss it with our spouse (or future spouse), but to make a plan that can fit both parties’ personalities. I have also read Dave Ramsey’s book The Total Money Makeover and found it to be highly beneficial. You can read my full review here.

Thank you so much for subscribing!

old {and young} wives tales: the "m" word

I’m Kelli

Find me Here!

Categories