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Our Debt Free Family

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How We Are Preparing For Our New Arrival

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<p>If you have ever prepared for the arrival of a new baby in the age of the internet you know there is a plethora of information out there. Sometimes it seems like too much. Do I have all the items deemed necessary by blogger moms for delivery? Will I have everything I need for recovery? Should I write out a detailed birth plan? Honestly, it can be overwhelming. That's why we decided to dial down the use of the internet and focus on we can best prep for the arrival of our baby girl.</p>::pexels

If you have ever prepared for the arrival of a new baby in the age of the internet you know there is a plethora of information out there. Sometimes it seems like too much. Do I have all the items deemed necessary by blogger moms for delivery? Will I have everything I need for recovery? Should I write out a detailed birth plan? Honestly, it can be overwhelming. That’s why we decided to dial down the use of the internet and focus on we can best prep for the arrival of our baby girl.

Preparing for Our New Arrival

My mom has told me about a dozen times that she didn’t need much in terms of creature comforts when she went into labor with me. “You don’t need that much, don’t overdo it.” While I trust my mom’s judgment and value her input, you could also smoke cigarettes in the hospital when I was born. It has been a while since she’s gone through pregnancy, labor, delivery, and postpartum recovery. She will undoubtedly be a rock of support for me but when it comes to how to best prepare, we’ve done our research to figure out what will work for us.

We got our hospital bags packed this week. Baby Blankenship is due September 2. Hopefully, she will at least be on time (if not a little early). I’ve done so much reading when it comes to prepping for our little one. What foods should I eat for breastfeeding, hospital bag must-haves, and even how to best introduce our beloved family dog to the new member of the family. More recently, I’ve been researching what to expect during labor, things we should have with us (and things that are provided), and have been attempting to be as prepared as humanly possible.

My husband realized it was stressing me out a bit. After all, the internet is literally full of information and every mom thinks she got it right when it comes to how she prepped for the birth of her child. That’s the thing though. It is a very personal experience and you should cater it to your personal preferences.

For instance, many moms said they packed makeup for their delivery so that they could look nice in photos. I read this and thought to myself, “Seriously?” There’s no way I’m going through the trouble of putting on makeup when I just birthed a baby. However, I do think it will be worth it to pack a comfortable blanket, robe, and comfort items from home. We also hit Costco and stocked up on some snacks, which will come in handy, especially if I give birth at an odd hour of the night. The hospital cafeteria doesn’t open its doors simply because you had a baby, unfortunately, and most restaurants are closed in the middle of the night.

On top of that, we are also making sure we have phone chargers, vape chargers (for my husband), and some essential toiletry items to clean up during our stay. This, according to many people, is a bare-bones hospital bag list, but it definitely works for us.

What did you pack when preparing for your own new arrival?

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Pre-Baby Debt Update

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We have less than two weeks before our baby arrives and things are falling into place. As mentioned in some of our recent posts, the main focus for us has been saving and preparing for the new arrival. That doesn’t mean we’ve stopped paying off debt by any means, but it hasn’t been a hyper-focus of ours in a few months. We are preparing to shift our focus back to paying off debt. Before we do, here’s a quick snapshot of where we stand.

Where We Stand

This year has brought some MAJOR changes for our family. First, my husband started pursuing a new career. He is freelance writing for several websites and is doing a phenomenal job!  He has quickly caught up to my salary with what he is able to produce each month with his writing, which is fantastic. This takes a lot of the financial burden off of us and will make it easier to pay off debts and reach our goals.

Speaking of debts, it has been a while since I provided a numbers update. Here’s where we stand:

  • Credit cards: $451 – This will be paid off in full soon.
  • Collections: $1,213 – We are working on getting these removed.
  • Car loans: $16,398
  • Student loans: $24,185

We are continuing to take the federal student loan payment break during this time. Once payments resume, we will attempt to tackle that debt in a similar way that we plan to pay off the car (see below).

Plans for the Coming Months

There are some things changing in our finances over the next few months. Of course, we are having a baby. So, household expenses may be a bit higher than they have in the past. Additionally, we will need to add our little one to the health insurance. We are also looking into purchasing life insurance just in case something was to happen to one of us.

On top of those additional expenses, our rent is also going up by $110 per month. This is to renew it another year. If we were to renew for two years, it would go up another $140. Neither of us wanted to make a two-year commitment to renting here, so we are going with the one-year renewal. So, our rent is going from $1,495 to $1,605 (plus the $25 pet rent). Hopefully, within a year, we will have some savings and enough debt paid down to look at buying a home.

Our car payment is another big monthly expense we are hoping to trim down. The car still has under 75,000 miles and we will drive it for several years. However, the $488 monthly payment can be crippling. So, we are hoping that my hubby’s additional income will help us pay it off sooner. We hope to double the monthly payment and get it paid off within the next year or so.

Outside of that, we are going to continue trucking along our financial journey with our new baby. We can’t wait to keep you updated on our progress!

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Debt Update: May 2021

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<p>If you are a regular follower of Our Debt Free Family you may have noticed there hasn't been a hard numbers debt update from us in a while. Honestly, with COVID-19 last year, moving, and then finding out we are expecting a child, our debt progress hasn't been front-and-center like it used to be. However, that doesn't mean we haven't still been making progress.</p>::pexels

If you are a regular follower of Our Debt Free Family you may have noticed there hasn’t been a hard numbers debt update from us in a while. Honestly, with COVID-19 last year, moving, and then finding out we are expecting a child, our debt progress hasn’t been front-and-center like it used to be. However, that doesn’t mean we haven’t still been making progress.

Debt Update: Where We Stand

As of May 2021, we are holding about $42,000 in total debt. Here is the breakdown…

  • $525 credit card debt
  • $621 in collections
  • $24,185 student loans
  • $16,842 car loan

Considering where we started just a couple of years ago, we have paid off more than $20,000 in debt. That is great progress, but we thought we’d be so much farther along by now. Last year, my husband lost his job and then switched careers. I have been taking advantage of the break from student loan payments, for now, trying to save for our new baby (and praying for student loan forgiveness to pass). We’ve been paying minimums on everything else just trying to get caught up from last year and the move.

All in all, that’s okay for us. We’ve stayed afloat and that’s more than a lot of Americans can say after the cards that were dealt to many people in 2020. For that, I am thankful.

Goals

So, what’s next for us?

We certainly want to shift our focus back towards paying off more debt. Of course, having the debt paid off means more cash flow month-to-month. More specifically, we’d like to pay off the car loan and free up the $488 per month we make in payments there. With the new arrival coming, our main goals have been focused on saving money and preparing though.

Some of our main goals right now include having a substantial emergency fund stashed away before the baby arrives, paying off all the credit card debt, nixing the new phone upgrades in September to save money on our bills, stocking up on items for the baby and food so we have lower month-to-month expenses when she arrives, and creating a nice space here in our home. We haven’t gotten much of a chance to settle in yet over the past few months. We are still in need of a dresser for our room, for instance. My husband needs a desk (so we don’t have to share one) and we need a frame for our bed.

Once all of those things are properly tackled, we are going to focus on doubling up on our car payment every month to hack away at that quicker. If we are successful, it should help us have it paid off within a year (a full two years early). Then we will shift our focus to getting the rest of our finances in order to hopefully buy our own home and save a good chunk of the $1,520 in rent we pay each month.

While we haven’t made the progress we were hoping for by now, the debt freedom journey is always humbling. You have to go with the flow and shift your focus as needed.

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Continued Student Loan Payment Relief Through 2021

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<p>COVID-19 has changed a lot of things in everyday life for most people. Many of us have transitioned into working from home, or not working at all. Others have had their entire lives uprooted. In many cases, it has also impacted people's ability to pay their bills. Because of this, the United States government is offering student loan payment relief options through December 31, 2020, which is beyond the initial September extension.</p>;;pexels

COVID-19 has changed a lot of things in everyday life for most people. Many of us have transitioned into working from home, or not working at all. Others have had their entire lives uprooted. In many cases, it has also impacted people’s ability to pay their bills. Because of this, the United States government is offering student loan payment relief options through December 31, 2020, which is beyond the initial September extension.

Changes to Student Loan Payment Relief

In the wake of the coronavirus in the U.S., the government announced there would be no interest on student loans through September. This also meant no payments were required of borrowers during this time. Early in August President Donald Trump announced this extension would continue through December 31, 2020.

On top of suspending payments during this time, loan providers will also stop collections on defaulted loans. Loans will also be interest-free through the end of the year.

Should You Keep Paying on Your Loans?

Because loans are interest-free at this time, it is a great time to continue paying (and even pay more) on your student loans. For people who are able to keep up payments, this is the perfect time to really attack those loans. You could potentially make some serious debt freedom progress.

However, not everyone is able to continue payments at this time (I haven’t been able to). The student loan payment relief couldn’t have come at a better time for us. We are looking at moving again because of the cost-of-living here as well as a number of personal reasons. Recently, we were hit with about $1,500 in unexpected expenses, bottoming out our emergency fund.

So, when it comes down to it, don’t beat yourself up about not making these extra payments right now or being able to keep up with everything. Most of us can’t right now. By all means, if you have the ability, pay as much debt off as you possibly can, but if you’re working on just keeping your head above water right now, that is okay too.

Readers, how has the student loan payment relief impacted your finances? Are you still making payments or have you taken a break?

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COVID-19 and Mental Health: Are You Checking in With Yourself?

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<p>The topic of mental health is no stranger to this blog. For our family, the debt freedom journey has been very much so a mental journey but it has been nothing like the mental journey we've been through the past few months. (And we were homeless at one point.) I knew if it was impacting me so significantly, it had to be having a huge impact nationwide. So, I decided to take a look at COVID-19 and mental health.</p>::pexels

The topic of mental health is no stranger to this blog. For our family, the debt freedom journey has been very much so a mental journey but it has been nothing like the mental journey we’ve been through the past few months. (And we were homeless at one point.) I knew if it was impacting me so significantly, it had to be having a huge impact nationwide. So, I decided to take a look at COVID-19 and mental health.

COVID-19 and Mental Health Numbers

There are a lot of things that can come up when you are urged to spend most of your time indoors. For many people, depression is one of the first things that starts to set in. In general, humans are social. Most folks look forward to human interaction. So, without it, it is easy to start to get depressed.

For individuals with pre-existing mental health disorders, the threat of a mental breakdown during this time is even higher. Add the struggles of the COVID-19 era into that, and you have the perfect recipe for personal disaster.

“We’re talking about a population that struggles with being housed, being able to feed themselves, being able to take care of medical issues, having enough of an income,” Dr. Fumi Mitsuishi told Healthline.

How Coronavirus Impacted My Mental Health

I struggle with anxiety and depression anyway (typically seasonal), but this entire ordeal has had me out of sorts. I’ve noted more mood changes recently and definitely more low/sad points. It hasn’t been a fun time and my life hasn’t changed that much.

There were a number of things I was looking forward to that were canceled (two stand-up shows, one concert, two trips). We also weren’t able to celebrate our first wedding anniversary the way we would’ve liked. Also, because we are stuck in a 500 square-foot studio apartment, we spend a lot of time right on top of each other.

But, we have a lot to be thankful for. We’re able to get by financially and we are both in good health. However, it is so easy to slip into depression or even fall back into bad habits with everything going on in the world.

If You Need Help

No one should let COVID-19 and mental health take over their lives. If you need help, there are resources available to you.

  • Have a friend or family member to check-in with on a regular basis.
  • Reach out to the Suicide Prevention Hotline if you are having suicidal thoughts or feel depressed. The hotline number is 1(800)273-8255.
  • The Mental Health Hotline can help you talk through your feelings. They can be reached at 1(800)950-6264.
  • Individuals with a substance abuse issue should call their sponsor or reach out to the Substance Abuse Hotline. Their number is 1(800)662-4357.
  • Call your health-care provider or therapist. Ask for their recommendations on how to handle your condition and feelings.

Remember, your own mental health and well-being is the most important thing. This will pass with time and you will come out on the other side stronger. Readers, how are you dealing with COVID-19 and mental health? 

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Picking and Choosing What to Pay During the COVID-19 Pandemic

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<p>Jobless claims in the United States have reached more than 6.5 million as of last week due to layoffs amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of this, many people are falling behind on their bills, despite the stimulus package. In our home, our monthly income has been sliced in half, leaving us picking and choosing what bills get paid now.</p>::pexels

Jobless claims in the United States have reached more than 6.5 million as of last week due to layoffs amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of this, many people are falling behind on their bills, despite the stimulus package. In our home, our monthly income has been sliced in half, leaving us picking and choosing what bills get paid now.

Establishing a Financial Cushion

If you’ve been keeping up-to-date with our financial journey, you know we just recently established our $1,000 emergency fund (again). Well, due to my husband’s layoff, we needed to use a chunk of that to cover expenses of moving his tools and covering bills. After doing that in March, we are re-evaluating how we are going to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic financially.

Initially, I was just going to maintain all of my payments across the board, but that leaves us essentially paycheck-to-paycheck (which is a little iffy in the current environment). However, after seeing our EF drained, I reconsidered that and decided to take a break from 2 larger monthly payments just to refund our emergency savings. Having cash saved and on-hand right now would provide our household with some peace of mind.

That being said, my student loan is under forbearance until September and my car company is giving me a three-month break from payments. This will allow us to bank $768 each month for the next three months, which will be a nice emergency savings fund.

Consider What You Need

For us, having that buffer cash on hand is going to be key in keeping us financially stress-free during this time. Believe me, the last thing you want to do is to be stuck in the house with your spouse fighting about money. You may be thinking, “well, we HAVE to make payments on the credit card, car, etc.” That may not be entirely true.

Many companies are offering breaks on payments or lower payments in order to help individuals impacted by the coronavirus outbreak. Call and discuss your options with each business. Get your bills as low as possible.

If your available cash still doesn’t cover what’s due, consider what you need. Tiffany Aliche, aka the Budgetnista, told NPR in an interview, “then I would ask myself, is this something that I must pay for because I have to maintain my health and my safety? That comes first and foremost.”

So, if it doesn’t pertain to your health and safety right now and you don’t have it, take a breath. It is important to remember what you do and do not control at a time like this.

Putting Plans on Hold

<p>This photo will be us for a while: at home. Unfortunately, many of our plans have been put on hold, postponed, or canceled for the next few months. It is not yet clear whether some events will be refunded or not (I wish!).</p>::Pexels

This photo will be us for a while: at home. Unfortunately, many of our plans have been put on hold, postponed, or canceled for the next few months. It is not yet clear whether some events will be refunded or not (I wish!).

We’ve put plans to visit home (Charlotte) on hold indefinitely. Hopefully, by mid-May, we can decide on a solid date to re-plan that trip. On top of that, just about everything else has been postponed or canceled in some form. This will likely help save us money and, in the long run, staying home will too.

Finding Ways to Stay Busy at Home

I’ve thankfully been able to continue working because I’ve worked remotely for more than five years. That isn’t to say being indoors isn’t driving us a little crazy! We have been able to find ways to stay busy though.

<p>I, for one, have been cooking a LOT. We recently discovered Sam the Cooking Guy on YouTube and his videos have me looking in my pantry to see what I have and what I can make. Here's one of his quarantine recipes...</p>::Pexels

I, for one, have been cooking a LOT. We recently discovered Sam the Cooking Guy on YouTube and his videos have me looking in my pantry to see what I have and what I can make. Here’s one of his quarantine recipes…

In addition to cooking, we’ve also been taking Enzo on a lot of walks (and he certainly isn’t complaining). Remember, you can still get some fresh air. Just avoid contact with people and if you can wear a mask!

<p>When we aren't doing those two things, I'm fully reaping the benefits of some of our subscription services. Amazon has a plethora of free Audible books, Kindle reads, and things to watch right now. I've listened to about six books in the past week and a half (ha!).</p>::Pexels

When we aren’t doing those two things, I’m fully reaping the benefits of some of our subscription services. Amazon has a plethora of free Audible books, Kindle reads, and things to watch right now. I’ve listened to about six books in the past week and a half (ha!).

No matter what you do to keep busy, it is important to stay inside and stay healthy. Remember, you have options when it comes to your finances. The most important thing is your health. Stay well. 

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Value of Bitcoin in This Digital Era

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The crypto-currencies are digital gold. The Blockchain will be the main tool in the finance sector from 2020, according to experts. Such data storage and data transmission technology is already becoming the mainstream in financial applications. Many affirm that money will flow through blockchains in the very near future, something that was also recently highlighted in the framework of the Moneyconf event by the new director for Spain of Circle, José María Cobian. [Read more…]