God and Money - Baby Step 2 ...CHECK!

God: I have to start out by giving praise to God, maker of the heavens and earth, the one who has given Mat and I the strength and perseverance for the past 17 months to make it through Dave Ramsey's Baby Step #2.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! We could not have gotten where we are today without His blessings.

Money: So here's the update - Mat and I are FINALLY DEBT FREE!! We have worked so hard for the past 17 months of our lives, that's one year and 5 months...a very long time to sacrifice for the bigger picture.

Our debt consisted of a small amount of medical bills, a brand new car, and student loans for both Mat and I totaling about $68,500!  WOW!  It's amazing how much money you can *borrow*!  We are no longer slaves to the lender as of today.  It's a truly marvelous feeling and Mat and I are so incredibly blessed - I can't stress that enough.

Mat and I talked about it a lot today on our drive home from San Antonio and reflected on what the hardest part of this process was.  One of Dave's questions that he always asks was "did you have anyone make fun of you during the process" and our answer is definitely yes and that was tough.  We had some really great support from family and friends and also some not so helpful support of people laughing and challenging our efforts.  It was tough not being able to go out and spend time with our friends and go out and make new ones too. We learned to be patient and really stick to our principles on what we believed in.  We sacrificed a lot though but I can tell you now, it is so worth it.

We paid off the final payment on my car on October 30, 2011.  A day in history that will stand out in our lives and the lives of our children and grand children forever and ever.  We have set up the foundation for a successful and prosperous future and we couldn't be more excited for all of the hard work to come.

Baby Step #2 is still #2 out of 7...so we have a long ways to go!  Mat and I are establishing new goals and refocusing our minds for Baby Step #3.

We also have a few friends that have started Dave Ramsey in our small group and I am so excited for them.  Mat and I know how tough it can be and we can't wait till they can celebrate and toast their glasses after many months of hard work!

Cheers!

Thank you everyone for all of our love and support and we hope to be able to pay our blessings forward in the near future!!

And besides thanking God, we must also thank - Dave Rasmey!!