Dog Days Of Working... I Mean Summer!

We have a busy month upon us here at the Grant household. Jake has five weddings to photograph in the next four weeks, which means that in between each wedding he will have lots of photos to develop. I have my first Fitness Challenge Group to manage, plus learning the ins and outs of my new business venture, and preparing for next month's Challenge Group. On top of that we have several family functions to attend, a half marathon to train for, and our regular jobs.

Whew! Just writing all that makes me want to take a nap!

But when life gets busy I just have to stop and remember what my goals are, and remind myself that it is just for a season.

We desire to live debt free, and if that means taking on extra work to get there than we are willing to do it.

We desire for me to be a stay-at-home mom—once we are blessed with kiddos, that is—and if that means trying to start up a new business than we are willing to do it!

We desire to bless others financially, whether giving through our local church or supporting a missionary, and if that means taking on extra work than we are willing to do it!

You get the idea.

We have prayed and sought after what God wants for us at this point in our lives, and we have come to a place where we are willing to accept whatever He sends our way. So while this month may be super busy for us, we are thankful for His abundant blessings. Plus, I'm planning a fun date night for this Friday because we are in need of some "couple time."

What are you willing to do to be out of debt? Cut the cable? Take on part-time work? Stop eating out? Commit today to doing something about your finances, and let us know what it is in the comments below!

Keep pinchin' ;-)

A New Adventure - Beachbody Coach

I don't know about you, but I'm feeling 22...

Oh, wait, that's not what I meant to say. What I meant to say was that I don't know about you, but I find that when I start disciplining myself in one area of my life it eventually spills over into other areas. For instance, it's been almost two years since the hubby and I first started working faithfully on our financial situation, and our discipline has paid off in more ways than one.

A couple months ago, as we began the search for an alternative healthcare solution, we both decided to work on taking better care of our bodies. For Jake that meant doing Sean T.'s Insanity, a 9-week workout program. For me it meant doing whatever I could to stay in shape—I ran for a couple weeks, then I started doing this walking program, then a 30 Day Ab Challenge... but the problem was I had no plan. I had no one supporting me or working with me.

Then a friend told me about PiYo, the newest Beachbody program that blends Pilates and Yoga, but PiYo takes those things to the next level, cranking them up to give you a full-throttle cardio, strength, and flexibility workout. Unlike that crazy Insanity program my husband does, PiYo is low-impact and involves more deep stretching and muscle work and not as much jumping around.

I had learned a lesson during my 30 Day Ab Challenge: you can workout all you want, but if you don't change your eating habits you won't get the best results. Even though I was able to do 125 situps, 200 crunches, 65 leg raises and a two-minute plank, my abs were still hiding under this soft cushion of... FAT. I decided that I wasn't going to continue sculpting these amazing abs unless I also got to see them.

So when I began PiYo I decided to follow the get lean eating plan, and that was a good decision if I do say so myself. In the three weeks I've been doing PiYo I have lost 6 lbs, and 3 inches! It feels good!

Of course when you do any Beachbody program you hear a lot about Shakeology. All of their programs promote it—Insanity, PiYo, P90X. Shakeology is a literal meal replacement, loaded with nutrients and healthy stuff. Unfortunately, Shakeology costs quite a bit of money, and while most people have ways they can cut back to cover the cost—less coffee, less eating out—us Penny Pinchers have already cut out everything we can. Jake and I don't buy coffee. We don't drink soda. We hardly ever eat out. For us, affording Shakeology is a big deal.

Jake was sold on it long before I was, but once I heard of its health benefits, how that it's clinically proven for weight loss and lowering cholesterol and blood sugar, we agreed to try it out.

But, then again, there was this whole issue of money. *shakes fist* Why must everything cost so much?!

So I decided to make the move from just being a Beachbody customer to being a Beachbody coach! Doing so gives me a discount on Shakeology, but, even more than that, I found so much inspiration and motivation through my Beachbody coach and her Challenge Group that I wanted to offer the same hope and encouragement to other people. Hopefully, this way, I will also be able to continue this accountability for myself.

On August 4th I am starting an August Challenge Group, for those who choose to order the PiYo Challenge Pack or any of the Challenge Packs through me. This group will offer encouragement, tasks to complete, accountability, and a place to discuss any questions that come up. I will do my best to help you be successful in working towards you fitness goals, be it to lose weight, tone up, or maintain your fitness level.

I would love to have you join my group! If you purchase any of the products through me I will automatically be assigned as your personal coach, which would be totally awesome. You can look at the workout programs here: http://www.beachbodycoach.com/danigrant. Or if you have any specific questions, leave us a comment or click the "Contact" link at the top of this page.

Jake and I have worked hard to get our finances in order, and we're still striving to make wise money choices. At this point I think we are ready to take on a new challenge: being good stewards of the bodies God gave us. It should be an interesting journey!

Keep pinchin' :-)

10 Financial Principles Straight From The Bible

It amazes me that Dani and I, who both grew up in Christian homes, who were both saved at young ages, didn't start learning all of this financial stuff until we were married. In the 16 months since taking Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University we have discovered a whole world of biblically-based financial advisors, blogs, websites, books, and more that talk about managing your money from a God perspective.

Neither of us learned this growing up. I never once heard it preached from a pulpit. I never remember hearing it on Christian radio. Maybe the whole trend of managing money God's way is just now starting to catch on, but I also think it's sad that more pastors don't preach this stuff. The more I learn, the more I think, "It's so obvious! Why didn't I get this sooner, and why aren't more people doing it?"

Here are 10 financial principles straight out of the Bible that I'm, A) stunned I never heard about before, and, B) want to pass on to someone else so they don't waste their life digging themselves into debt. Because, let's face it folks, America isn't getting any better. The government is not going to protect your assets, your 401k, or even your hard-earned retirement. Don't count on it. Put your trust in the only thing that has proven trustworthy: God. The following financial principles are tried and true. They're real, and if put into practice will change your financial future.

1. God is the source of everything. Learn this. Learn it now and it will make the rest of your life a lot easier. All throughout Scripture we're taught that everything we have comes from God and we give it out of His hands. God owns it all, from the earth (Psalm 24:1) to all the silver and gold (Haggai 2:8) to me and you (1 Corinthians 6:19–20).


2. Giving isn't a good thing to do, it is an ESSENTIAL thing to do. Like I blogged about yesterday, Deuteronomy 14:23 tells us that tithing wasn't created for God's benefit, but ours, to teach us that God comes first. The Bible encourages us to give a tithe to the Lord (Proverbs 3:9, 10) from the "first fruits" of our earnings—yes, that's before taxes. The book of Hebrews suggests a tithe should be 10%.


3. You've got to allow some room in your life for the unexpected to happen. By all means, make your plans and live out your plans, but do so with an understanding that God may ask you to do something different. The Apostle Paul was running around murdering Christians when God radically changed the direction of his life. The same goes for the disciples, as well as Jonah, Job, and countless other Biblical figures.


4. Set something aside for a rainy day. The Bible says that only a fool spends everything he has, but in the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil (Proverbs 21:20). We should all be setting aside a little bit of what we have because no one is exempt from hard times. A house fire. A lost job. Sickness. The Bible essentially says that not planning for hard times is idiotic.


5. Avoid unnecessary debt. As I've written about before, the Bible doesn't necessarily condemn or condone debt, but it does strongly caution against it. In fact Proverbs 22:7 essentially calls anyone who is in debt a "slave to the lender." Debt isn't usually worth it. Stay clear of it.


6. Be content with what you have. Despite what cultural philosophy might tell you, happiness is not found in the "American dream" or by having more money, better cars, or bigger homes. Scripture teaches that covetousness and lust are wayward desires of the flesh that just pull us away from Christ. Just read The Ten Commandments.


7. Keep records. People who run their businesses without keeping records are morons. Their businesses fail. No intelligent person would run a business like that, yet it's how we run our lives every day. Proverbs 21:23 says to be diligent in knowing the state of your wealth, and 1 Timothy 5:8 says—and this is the heavy one—"If anyone does not provide for his own, especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever." So know what you've got and what you're doing with it.


8. Don't go into debt with someone else. Cosigning on a loan? I'd hesitate on that one. Proverbs 27:13 suggests that poorest credit risk you could take is to agree to pay someone else's debt. Think about it, the only reason a lender requires a co-signer is if they don't trust the borrower to pay the money back. If you agree to cosign, this means that the lender is smarter than you!


9. Don't be afraid of hard work. The Bible doesn't pull any punches on this one. God values labor, and richly rewards those who aren't afraid to work hard (Proverbs 14:23, Proverbs 28:19). This whole concept of work is all throughout Scripture. God worked to create the world (Genesis 1:1), and when Jesus called the disciples away from their fishing, it wasn't so they could just follow Him around and listen to Him preach, it was to make them "fishers of men." A different kind of work.


10. Seek Godly counsel. The Bible says that people who seek the counsel of the Godly are blessed (Psalm 1:1, Proverbs 15:22). If you need financial advice, don't talk to friends and family members who are just as in debt as you are. Talk to your pastor, your elders, and, above all, seek God's guidance through prayer and His Word. And be prepared to hear hard things because they're most likely going to tell you that some of your financial decisions are downright stupid. But if they won't tell you, who will? And if they don't tell you, where does the roller coaster of spending and debt end?

Keep pinchin' :-)

This blog was inspired by an article by Christian financial advisor George Fooshee. Click here to read his 10 biblical financial tips.

Why Dave Ramsey Should Hire Us

Sometimes I feel like we pretty much work for Dave Ramsey, minus the fact that he doesn't pay us, of course!

Why do I feel like this? Maybe because since the start of this year Jake and I have spoken in four different churches, sharing with them about our experience with Financial Peace University and encouraging everyone to take this course. On top of that we just completed leading the nine week course at our home church!

I can't recall in my lifetime ever advocating for something specific like this in such an extreme way. I mean, how many people travel to other churches to encourage people to take a class when the compensation for their time will be $0 and it's someone else's class? I don't know if this poll has ever been taken, but I have a pretty good feeling that statistically not many.

It could be easy to become bitter, tired or frustrated that our "ministry" is to basically sell a class to people when financially we gain nothing. Ok, hold on, I said "it could be."

And it's not. We don't expect compensation. We don't share about this class in hopes of gaining something or because we think Dave will hire us. We do it because we believe in it, and have first-hand experienced that Dave's plan works. Not because it's Dave's plan, but because it's really God's plan. Dave just breaks it down for people in an easy to follow seven step process.

We desire for Christians especially to get their finances straightened out. We have come to realize that as long as believers have debt they have something hindering them from being easily used by God. When you don't have debt, and you have a bit of wealth, you can not only offer to pray for others with financial needs but you can help those needs too. That family that is trying to adopt, you can give toward the cost. The single mom whose electricity is about to be shut off, you can pay the bill. And if God calls you to the mission field, you don't have to wait to get your debt paid off before you can go.

Financial freedom isn't just about building wealth and living your dream life, it's about being a good steward in every aspect of your life so that God can use His resources the way He intends them to be used THROUGH YOU!

So, even though being "Dave Ramsey Spokespeople" isn't a paid position, we will continue to share in the hopes of helping others become better stewards of what they have on loan from God.

Keep pinchin' :-)

The Great Shopping Trip

I think I was in high school when my older sister and I had the bright idea to do our family of eight's grocery shopping for the week. We figured this way we could get all the food that we really like that Mom never seemed to buy. We were both naive enough to think that since we had both grocery-shopped with mom for years that we had this thing down!

First, we knew that mom always built our meal plan around sale prices, so we spent some time scouring the weekly fliers to find out what was on sale. Mom gave us the same budget she would have and told us we had to have 7 days worth of food, and sent us on our way.

I honestly don't remember how long it took us to do the grocery shopping, but I'm sure it took us hours. Neither of us had ever really paid that much attention to where things were located in a grocery store, so, naturally, this part took us quite a while.

Finally we arrived home, exhausted, broke, and pretty darn frustrated because we had spent so much time trying to buy everything that mom told us we needed for meals that week that we hadn't had any money to buy the things we really wanted. In fact, I think we found that we could barely even purchase all the meal items. Talk about an eye-opening experience!

Needless to say, that was the first and last time we ever took on that responsibility!

I share this because even though my sister and I  may not have entirely succeeded on our mission, we obviously learned some things by observing and participating in the process of grocery shopping. I think it's important for parents to have their kids take part in activities like this because someday they will have to do it for themselves, and learning to do it properly takes time and practice.

As your kids get into their teenage years you might even want to challenge them to take on the job of grocery shopping so that they can have real life practice in a skill that will help them be good stewards of their money later on in life.

Although I don't shop for groceries exactly the same way my mom does, the basic core is with me—look at sale flyers, know prices from different stores, and stick to the budget!

Do you have any memories of trying to do the family grocery shopping when you were young? Or an experience with your own kids? Leave us a comment to tell us all about it.

Keep pinchin' :-)

The Giving Bucket List

I think God made me a giver. Ironically he also made me a spender—or maybe that was the devil's doing. Either way, I find that giving is a hard thing to accomplish when I don't have any money left to give.

And getting married hasn't made things any easier. Dani and I both have the same vision when it comes to giving, but there are many financial burdens that come with joining our lives together, buying a house, and planning for children. We give regularly to our church and to others as we are able, but there's a lot we need to accomplish with our finances before we can, as Dave Ramsey says, "give like no one else."

I dream of being able to give more though. Like on my 40th birthday, instead of getting presents, I want to go out and do 40 random acts of kindness—pay for someone's lunch, someone's gas, wash someone's car, help a little old lady out of the store with her bags. Some of this will require some money, unfortunately.

Other things I'd get a kick out of doing someday include:

• Finding a need within our church and taking care of it anonymously—e.g. paying a widow's bills, help a single mother make a payment, give that missionary what they need.


• After eating out at a restaurant I want to leave the waiter or waitress a massive tip.


• Treat my local fire department or police station to a BBQ complete with burgers, hotdogs, French fries, chips, soda, salads (for something healthy), and cookies (to negate the salads).


• Buy a bunch of gift cards to a local coffee shop and hand them out to random strangers as they enter.


• Help a friend or family member out with a need—anonymously if possible.

I feel really guilty sometimes about not being able to give more right now, but I keep reminding myself that the wife and I will get there some day though. Some day we can be the givers I want us to be. Some day money won't be so tight and we can spend our days amusing ourselves by giving and giving and giving.

I'd be curious to know if anyone out there has done any kind of radical giving. Don't be shy. You don't have to brag, but share with us how the Lord has led you to bless others and what kind of experience it was.

Keep pinchin' :-)

New Years Resolutions 2 Months In!

Two months of the year 2014 are already in the books. Craziness! I swear that every year time goes by faster. Gone are the days where summer vacation felt longer than the school year :-) This past month has thrown my schedule for another whirlwind, as I've finally been transferred to my program here in Bethlehem, but have been working 8-4 Monday-Friday. It's hard being 'faithful' when I'm still in limbo with getting to my end goal of being the awake overnight staff.


Faithfulness in our finances. February proved to be another solid month in working on getting to be debt free. We base our budget on a four week plan, and so in a year's time we come up with an extra month of payments, which helped our mortgage greatly. In the past year and a half we have almost paid off $20,000 on our mortgage which can only be summed up as a God thing. Financial Peace University is also going well, and it has been fun to get excited over other's success in this area. 

Faithfulness in living a healthy lifestyle. Since transitioning to Bethlehem I have been trying to walk to work any day it isn't sub zero temperatures, which unfortunately has not been as often as I would like. Hopefully in the next couple weeks it will warm up so I can walk and also change to being overnights so I can get my exercise in during the night.

Faithfulness in my spiritual life. I went ahead and got the year subscription to the Word of Life Quiet Time Diary. I like devotionals because it is strictly Scripture with some commentary and thought-provoking questions. It doesn't take long to do it though so my hope is once I start overnights I can beef it up with other things or even just committing to spending part of my night in prayer and Scripture memorization. 

Faithfulness in being good stewards of the homestead God has blessed us with. This month we have begun hosting a small group bible study called FAITH Group, in our home every other week. This was our heart's desire when we were looking at purchasing a home. We wanted a space big enough to have other believers in and it's nice to finally see that happening on a more regular basis.

Faithfulness in being the wife my husband needs me to be. I completed my 14 days of Love for Jake, with writing something I love about him every day. It was good for me to think about things I sometimes take for granted and put words to things I should say on a more regular basis. I have been home in the evenings so I've been able to enjoy making dinner for the two of us, which is a nice change from the 3-4 nights I would get to be with him in the past.

Any progress on your resolutions or word for the year? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

Keep pinchin' :-)

Being Content When Life Isn't As Easy As I Want It To Be

If you remember our crazy lawnmower story from last week, it's easy to see how sometimes God decides to make things a little bit easier for people. Dani and I had spent a lot of time in prayer over our lawnmower situation, and God answered in a big, big way. Today, instead of pushing around an ancient little mower, we are blessed to have a brand new riding mower that was given to us by a very generous anonymous donor.

It's winter now, and for some reason God has decided not to miraculously bless us with a snowblower in the same way—imagine that. As any hardened New Englander will tell you, a snowblower is needed almost as much as a lawnmower up in these here northern parts, but God hasn't answered. It's not like we're expecting another giant yard appliance to simply fall into our laps, but to be offered a good deal on one would be nice, or maybe an affordable plow for the lawnmower. Something. Anything but shoveling it all by hand.

Alas, nothing. Nadda. God hasn't seen fit to answer us in that department.

It occurred to me on my way to work yesterday that whenever I pray for God to bless us with a snowblower, what I'm really asking Him is, "God, please make my life easier." That's what we usually pray isn't it? I mean, really, deep down, it's what we're asking—God, help me earn more money; provide me with a better car; give me a good night's sleep tonight.

Don't get me wrong, these are all good prayers—God wants us to verbalize our every need to Him, and He delights in fulfilling those needs—but I think sometimes we need to take a step back and accept the fact that maybe making our lives easier isn't always God's main objective. Maybe, for now, He wants me out there toiling in the snow by hand. Maybe it's His way of keeping me fit. Maybe He just wants me outside away from the computer, the TV, the phone, and all the other distractions of every day life. Maybe it's His way of spending some time with me.

And I've squandered it all away because I've been too busy moaning over the lack of ease in my life.

I think I'm going to be shoveling snow differently now. I think if that's what God wants me to do then there must be a good reason for it. We'll get a snowblower someday, I'm sure, but for now God wants me out in the snow with a shovel in my hand. I'll try to just trust His judgement and not complain so much... well, I'll probably still complain. A little. But not as much.

Keep pinchin' :-)

New Year's Resolutions - Three Weeks In

We are about three weeks into the New Year. Do you even remember what you're resolutions were? Usually by this time most people forget they ever made a resolution, have given up on it, or haven't even started it yet. Maybe 2015??

While the word "Faithfulness" isn't constantly on my mind, overall it appears to be ingrained in me already, or at least so far. So here is my three weeks update.


Faithfulness in our finances. I've continued to use cash for my groceries based on a monthly allowance. This has been very helpful because I know exactly what I have to spend, and if I go over my budget for one week I just have to cut down the following week. Last week we took another look at our overall budget to see if we could squeeze out any more pennies to put toward our mortgage, and we came up with over $100! We were able to do this because after more than a year of following this budget we now have a better idea of what some of our expenditures actually are.

Faithfulness in living a healthy lifestyle. I continue to try to work out four or five days a week, and although it's not always for as long as I would like, it is a start. This past week I had a hard time finding some motivation, but after reaching out to a friend we motivated each other to go for a walk that lasted about 45 minutes. Jake and I have been eating a lot more fruits and veggies—salads probably four days a week, at least, which is a huge improvement for us. I also made some yummy banana muffins, substituting the butter for applesauce and eggs for flaxseed. Even though they're technically "healthy muffins," I tried them out on some of the kids I babysit, as well as the husband, and I'm pleased to announce the muffins are "kid tested and husband approved!" :-)

Faithfulness in my spiritual life. I have continued to do my personal quiet time daily, and although it's not at the same time (sometimes 10am sometimes 11pm) it's happening! I continue to read Beth Moore's "Believing Day by Day," and I find that encouraging! This week I plan to listen to my home church's Sunday sermon, which I missed because I was working in the nursery.

Faithfulness in being good stewards of the homestead God has blessed us with. Once again not a whole lot happening in this realm, probably due to the time of year. I did make a Valentine's Day garland, which I plan to share later this week, and I made my Thankful Jar. Last week I ordered two Apple trees, two Blueberry Bushes, and 100 Strawberry plants, which I'm super excited about! We already have Raspberries, Grapes and one Apple tree on the property, which I plan to work on taking care of this Spring.

Faithfulness in being the wife my husband needs me to be. Over the past couple of weeks I've been able to continue to keep our home picked up, make homemade meals, and keep up with the laundry. I am thankful for this because I know I can think better in a clean and organized house, but I also know my husband appreciates it. Our Sunday School class has been going through Love & Respect by Emerson Eggerichs. It's hard to remember to put the principles he talks about into practice outside of the class, but today when my husband tried to help me make lunch in a manner completely wrong from my point of view, I was able to remind myself, "Not wrong, just different." Years from now when we have kids, I'll probably beg him for the help and not care what route he takes to get there.


So, where are you at with any resolutions you made? Do you remember your word for the year? If you find that you have already "failed" don't give up and think, "Maybe 2015 is the year," but instead jump back in and recommit to your goals!


Keep pinchin' :-)

New Year's Resolutions - One Week In

So, it's been a week since the new year began. Have you followed up on your resolutions? Don't answer that.

My word for 2014 is "faithfulness," and I've begun working on the different areas that I know I need to be more faithful in. I know I'm not going to reach perfection overnight, but as long as I am striving to work toward these goals I'm ok with that.

Faithfulness in our finances. Since going back to using only cash a few weeks ago I've found that it's much easier to keep within our budget, especially when it comes to our grocery budget. I also decided to take out my whole monthly grocery budget at the beginning of the month, which enables me to spend a little extra some weeks when I see some good deals, but still be aware of how much I have left to spend for the rest of the month.

Faithfulness in living a healthy lifestyle. I committed to trying to exercise on a more regular basis, especially during my overnight shifts because it helps me stay awake—not to mention that it's just plain good for me. I also bought lots of fruits and veggies this past week and have found that if I am purposeful in using them in my cooking we eat a lot more of them every day.

Faithfulness in my spiritual life. I've been making it a point to spend time in the Bible each day. I was also able to download Beth Moore's "Believing Day by Day" to read, and I've been making a point to listen to Christian radio and/or sermons when I'm doing housework.

Faithfulness in being good stewards of the homestead God has blessed us with. Not a whole lot has been done on that front, but we did spend Saturday putting away Christmas decorations, cleaning the house, shoveling the driveway, and draining the never-ending pool of water in our basement.

Faithfulness in being the wife my husband needs me to be. This week I tried to put some extra effort into picking up the house, doing the laundry, and making good meals. It's hard when I'm gone for three days straight each week, and I want my husband to eat healthy, so making sure he's cared for in that way is important to me (see amazing dinner at right). I think he appreciated my extra efforts on the home front, and that even though I kept pretty busy we still got to enjoy some quality time together ;-)

Overall it's been a good start to the new year, and hopefully by keeping my goals in the front of my mind and letting you all know how I am doing I will continue to be faithful in all I want to accomplish this year.

Keep pinchin' :-)

Choices, Choices, Choices...

It's all about choices! Every one of us makes choices every day—whether or not we realize it—as to what is important to us, how we want to live, and where our money will go. Jake and I make very careful choices based on the type of future we want to have. Sure we could live it up like most Americans today, but in 30 years those people are going to be just as broke as they are now while Jake and I, hopefully, will be living peacefully in financial security.

But this type of living does not mean that we are poor. Some people may think that, but we're certainly not. We could very well go out to eat several times a week and spend money on ridiculous cable TV packages and brand name clothes, but we choose not to.

This type of lifestyle—which we jokingly call "penny pinching"—is a choice that we feel God is calling us to make. We believe it's the right choice, not just for the hear and now, but for our future family. It's a lifestyle that's not for everyone—although it probably should be ;-)—because it takes a lot of hard work and discipline. To make it succeed, you really need to know what you want out of life and you need to be willing to do whatever it takes to get there.

Do we stray sometimes? Sure. Is it hard to keep on track? Yup! But here are some ways we stay motivated:

1. It's my dream to be a stay-at-home mom. I believe I told this to my hubby very early on, before we were even officially "dating." I needed him to know how important it is for me to be at home with our kids, and that I don't want to have other people raising them, such as babysitters, daycares, schools, etc. Much to my delight, this is one of the first things we agreed on as we pursued a relationship with the end goal of marriage in mind.


2. We want to adopt. This was another thing we agreed on early in our relationship. We both have a heart for adoption and believe God has called us to care for orphans.


3. We want to be "hilarious givers"—as our pastor would say—able to spontaneously, without reluctance, give to those in need. We want to give back the blessing of abundance that God is giving to us.

None of these three goals would ever be realistically possible as long as we have debt. In order for me to stay home with our children I'll need to substantially cut back my hours at work and probably quit my job, which means losing half our income, and that's a pretty big deal. Adoption costs are astronomical, especially if you want to do so internationally, which is our hope. And, finally, we can't be generous, spontaneous givers if we don't have any extra to give.

So, for now, does that mean we don't go out to eat very often or see every movie we want in the theater? Yes, but we are having a blast doing this, and anytime we start to get down or think this isn't going to work God does exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we could ask or think, which encourages our hearts to keep on our crazy path to financial freedom.

Keep pinchin' :-)