Those of you who read Maria's teaching blog may already know this, but we've had a major change in our lives recently: Maria decided to leave the classroom this school year to focus her energy on blogging and spending more time with Dessa. Obviously, this is a huge deal, but … [Read more...]
How We Paid Cash for a New Car (and How You Can Too)
So you may have read in one of Maria's recent posts (specifically, the one about our recent no-good, terrible week that just would not end) that we bought a new-to-us van. If there's one lesson that was truly driven home to me in that whole car-buying experience, it was this: I … [Read more...]
How Buying a House Affected Our Finances
Holy wow, the past couple months have been pretty crazy around the Gavin household! Between buying a new house, painting the interior, coordinating contractors, hiring movers, packing, moving, unpacking in the midst of renovations, all while taking care of a baby, wrapping up the … [Read more...]
7 Things to do with Your Tax Refund
It's just about that time of year again: tax season! If you're like Maria and me, you play it safe and get a tax refund nearly every year. We try hard to minimize the amount of our return (after all, a tax refund is really just the government paying back an interest-free loan you … [Read more...]
How I Pay for My Stitch Fix Clothes
It's no secret that I adore Stitch Fix and have a whole closet filled with clothes that have been hand-picked over the years by my personal stylists. I've been asked several times by friends, acquaintances, and other bloggers about my relationship with Stitch Fix and whether I … [Read more...]
I Was Broke, Too – A Look at my Early Finances
I know how crazy it is to look at Rob and my success at paying off our debt, to watch the video of our Debt Free Scream on the Dave Ramsey show, and to listen to us talk about how we paid off $250,000 worth of debt in 13 months time. I also know how easy it is to look at our … [Read more...]
Sinking Funds – Why You Need Them & Why We Love Them
In sharing our financial stories and advice, Maria and I get one question over and over again: “What are sinking funds?” We've talked about saving money before in a general way, but we haven't really discussed many of the specifics about sinking funds. Well, get out your pen and … [Read more...]
Our Budget After Going Debt Free
Let me tell you something: paying off my student loans was a huge weight off of Maria's and my shoulders. It was our overriding financial goal for almost our entire relationship. We weren't saving any money and we kept our discretionary expenses in our monthly budget to a … [Read more...]
The Champagne Incident – Talking Real About Money
I recently found myself explaining our entire financial plan and philosophy to a stranger. The man knew a little about my background and asked many typical questions, but I could tell he didn't really believe me when I said that Rob and I never really fight about money, since we … [Read more...]
