17 Months Later.

It's been a minute or two since I've made a post.  Yikes.  Our family went through some stuff that was incredibly difficult and as a result, I have been in a pretty deep pit of depression and anxiety.  However, I am pleased to say that I am doing better, and so are my husband and our now adopted son!  We are a family of three now, not fostering at the moment, and somehow through all the madness, we have much less debt than we did last spring!

Debts to Pay	August 13, 2018
Credit Card	992.35
P3	1,637.21
P1	2,795.71
P2	2,843.56
F	2,998.40
B	3,158.91
A	3,517.61
C	4,495.04
Car Loan	6,607.55
E	8,320.70
G	8,776.93
Total	46,143.97

Amount Paid Off Since 2016: $63,401.66
*Current chart shows adjustments for interest, pay downs, and pay offs.*

We have paid off nearly 60% of the debt we had when we first started to buckle down on becoming debt free!  We don't currently have a mortgage, and that may change soon.  We paid off one of my highest-interest student loans, made a large payment onto our car, eliminated one of our credit cards, and are making extra payments on my husband's student loans.  I can't even describe how amazing it feels to have come this far in just two years.  Although the last 17 months have truly been some of the worst of my life, there have been little pockets of sweetness here and there that have made all the pain worth it.  We got to adopt our son, buy and flip a house, build our marriage, and truly lean into each other.  To say it's been an emotional roller coaster would be an understatement.

I am planning to update our budget, as we have not kept up with it at all during all of this.  I know, I know.  My goal is to get out of debt, yet I didn't keep up with my spending for over a year.  I see the hypocrisy in that.  But I have decided to give my family (and myself) grace in this area and not stress out so bad about the mistakes we made.  All we can do is do better in the future.

I am excited about how far we have come, despite the obstacles.  Many financial hurdles have been crossed and we are in a place of feeling more peaceful.  My husband believes that if we work hard enough, we can have our student loans paid off by 2020!  I am a bit more skeptical, but I then I see how much we have paid off already, and yes.  That dream seems all the more possible each day.

So, I am looking forward to jumping back into this blog.  I have missed doing this so much!  Bear with me as I find my footing again.  And hopefully my next post won't take me another 17 months!

--chloe.