Ok, so we are both feeling really committed to this cause.  And a little scared.  But fear is good, in this case.  We need to be afraid enough to never, ever let it happen again.  

Unless anyone is confused, we have $23,900 in credit card debt, not including student loans.  This is partly due to our wedding, and mostly due to carelessness and living above our means.  We have not yet reached the point where we can't make our monthly payments on these cards, and we are thankful that we are catching it in time... but obviously the point is to pay off the entire bill at the end of each month, and that is our goal.

we did our grocery shopping a few days ago.  a lot of vegetables and staples.  we are going to start shopping for groceries every other week, and start using up more food that we have on the shelves instead of running out for more of what we've used up. 

Jack has listed over 30 things on eBay, and we are hopeful about that. In fact, we might already be able to check off a few more $100 boxes from the eBay sales he just made last week. 

Also we are trying to decide whether or not I should take a few classes and become a fitness instructor.  If I do, I can phase out of my old job and into that... which would be really nice, and wouldn't cause a decrease in pay.  But if I decide not to, that money can go directly towards our debt, and would check off a lot of boxes.  

So, we are thinking about that.  I will have to make a decision after the first week of class, which starts next Wednesday.  I'm not going to decide until I've gone to at least one class, so we'll see.  

I have noticed myself holding back from buying any surplus items.  No coffee from coffee shops, no magazines, no extra, unnecessary groceries.  I thought it would make me feel trapped and poor - but it doesn't!  I feel liberated from all of that spending, and I feel smart and like I'm making good choices.  

We are already talking about Christmas.  I already have one present for Jack that I bought before we started this, and it was $40.  We might decide to stick within $50 for each of our gifts, and then focus on handmade for our family/friends.  We have said that we want to do that for the past few years, but haven't put it into practice 100%.  

This Christmas will be about meaning, not money. 

I feel more cheerful about it already!

-olivia