JD has a snow plowing business that has helped us out in a big way in the past few years. We've been able to rely on "plow money" to pay property taxes, pay for preschool for the big kids, and finish off our upstairs without a loan. Last year, we had a ton of snow, and I referred to it as the year of the Big Snow. If last winter was the year of the Big Snow, then this year is the year of No Snow.
The only snow (more than an inch) that we've received this year was just before Thanksgiving when we were in Florida. It snowed about 8 inches here, and the snow was gone before we got back. As each week goes by with no snow, it becomes more real that there will be very little "plow money" this year.
We're going to turn this tough spot into something good. I'd like to look back at this year as a time that we smartened up and were more serious about our finances because we had to be. Our no-spending spree continues, and we're both doing great with not spending anything extra (I even turned down the thermostat---big deal for me). We're getting on board with Dave Ramsey and going to watch all of the DVDs for his Financial Peace University. JD read Financial Peace Revisited this week, and I'm about half way through it. We've had several unexpected "gifts" including a tax refund that was greater than expected, finding out we could turn our credit card points into cash, and the surprise at how quickly a few jars of change can add up (the crew and I rolled all of our change on Saturday-$285!).
March will be our first-ever month with a real budget. I'm hoping we can stick to it and still praying for some real winter!
No thank you snow!
ReplyDelete