10 on the 10th....Money Edition

It's time for another 10 on the 10th hosted by Leslie from Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After. This months questions are around money since it's tax season. I'm thankful that my parents were always good with their money and my husband is great with our money as well. It has helped us so much on our journey to be as debt free as possible. 

1. What was your first job? When I was in High School I started babysitting. This was the perfect job because it allowed me to be flexible with pep band, drill/dance team, and other things I wanted to be a part of. 

2. Tell us about the best job you've ever had? Without sounding cheesy, the best job (not really a job) was being a mom. I was so glad I got to stay home with our girls. I would say my current job both outside the home and as a Virtual Assistant are my favorites. But I'd say I honestly found something to like about all my jobs. When I went off to college I worked for a nursing home as a CNA and then when I moved to Portland to go to Bible College I worked for Napa Auto Parts Distribution center. When I finished there, I moved home til I got married and worked for a Chiropractor. Once married I worked for a heating and air conditioning company until we had kids, then I stayed home for 17 years. 

3. Are you a saver or a spender? Oh man, that's a tough one. I would say both...I (we) save to spend (whether now or in the future), if that makes sense. I'll spend money but only if I know I have money to pay for that item when the credit card bill comes or I pay cash at that moment. If there's something larger I want, I decide how much it is and how much I need to save. We save for vacations, cars, etc. I put money aside each month for things I have subscriptions for or for Christmas gifts. 

4. Have you ever played the stock market? Nope, I'm not a real risk taker. We've recently begun investing more and working with a financial advisor, but that's more my hubby's thing.

5. What is your favorite way to splurge? I think it depends, but lately my splurges have been on skincare and nutrition supplements from Arbonne. They're a bit spendier but I love them and my daughter is a consultant so I like to support her as well. I also enjoy visiting the local coffee shop where my youngest daughter works on the days she works. 

6. How do you save money? When my hubby and I were first married we followed Larry Burkett and his "envelope system". Years later we also did Dave Ramsey's course and still follow a combination of both their methods. We have several different savings account for different items that we are saving for. Vacations, cars, weddings, our home project, etc. We are working towards being debt free. At the moment the only debt we have is our house, and our credit cards, but those (the credit cards) are paid off every month. We do not carry a balance.  

7. Who pays the bills? Both of us. I pay the credit card bills and a few of the other ones, and hubby handles the rest.

8. Name brand or generic groceries? It just depends. I try to buy mostly organic or less processed foods so it usually depends on what's on sale. I will often buy the "store brand" version of organic...for example Safeway has "O organics", Walmart has "Great Value Organic", etc. those are often cheaper than more name brand products. I also will hit our local Grocery Outlet (kind of like an Aldi's) and they often have Organic products. I'm a label reader. We have chosen to eat this way so we budget our grocery money accordingly and I know where to shop to get the best deals. 

When it comes to other things like makeup and clothes, etc...it really just depends. I like a deal but also want things to last. I have no problem buying a Walmart brand, or a more name brand, if the price is right and I like it. Make up and skin care I'm more picky because I want to know what's going on my skin so I'll buy organic, or mineral makeup. I use quite a bit of Arbonne skin care products. 

9. Do you shop thrift stores and yard sales? YES! I love thrift stores and yard sales, though I haven't been to very many in the last year. I also love having them (garage sales that is). When my girls were younger and we homeschooled, I would have a yearly garage sale and that was how I paid for their homeschool books. Also selling on Ebay. 

10. Is there anything you collect or save, thinking it will be valuable someday? Not really. My hubby is not one who finds purpose in saving or "collecting" things...lol. Usually things I collect or save are just because I love them, not because I think they're worth anything. I do have a stamp collection but I think I got my grandpa's hand me down stamps so I don't really think they're worth anything. Maybe one day I'll look into it. 

There you have it. Simple and sweet. The beauty of budgeting, and managing finances well is there is less stress. Often times people see budgeting and think of it as restricting, but it is so freeing, and we have plans in place if something very unexpected comes up. For years we were in full time ministry and therefore did not have retirement, etc. so we've been working to be very intentional about saving for the future. We drive cars that are used and older but paid for, though I do get envious of people driving newer cars with more bells and whistles....haha. We decide what is most important and put our money into that.  

I used to joke that people would be surprised at what we made because we managed money well that it seemed like we made more than we did (without a lot of debt). We are currently in the process of finishing our home we started in 2008. It's been quite the journey and if you search home building here on the blog you can find posts about it. I need to write some update posts. We've literally built it ourselves and the last two years with the help of a good friend of ours, and we hope to be completely done by the end of the year. We shall see. 

That's not to say we haven't made financial mistakes over the years. Who doesn't? But we've learned from them and tried to not repeat them. 

With Joy Unquenchable,

Kirstin