About Me

exI had to figure out money on my own. I pieced together bits from mentors like Dave Ramsey, Ramit Sehti, Rob Berger and Denise Duffield-Thomas. I sort of just ignored money until 2018. We were never unable to pay the bills, but there was definitely not a plan.

I was as free-spirited and “normal” as it gets. My husband and I spent and hoped the credit card could be paid off in full each month (bonus if they threw us a few extra $ in cash back). We had a mortgage, we had three car loans, we often had a little bit of credit card debt. We had some money in retirement, but life was not going to look the way I wanted it to be when CJ retired from the Air Force.

One day, I looked at how much we’d already paid on our 30-year mortgage and how little of it went to the principal. Want to kill your appetite? Go check that out. That’s it. I was fed up. And when I put my mind to something, I go at it like a starving dog with a bone. Thankfully, CJ is used to my wild ideas and we started dreaming… “what if…”.

Until 2021… the answer to every chance at income was yes. The answer to every chance to spend was no. But I’m weird like that. I have no low-gear. 

I drove my mom crazy because I’d take a $150 out on Monday and that was my spending money for the week… including groceries. No more mani-pedi days. I drove my kids crazy because I wouldn’t buy them anything in a drive-through unless I had leftovers in the cash. I drove my husband a little crazy because we almost NEVER went out. I was cheap. But I look back and don’t feel like I missed out on anything. 

I knew CJ was on board when he sold his fancy super Durango and replaced it with an almost 20-year-old Tundra. My hero. With the freed-up payment, we very quickly paid off my mini-van and his classic Corvette. 

Next up… the mortgage. I figured that if we didn’t have a mortgage when CJ retired, he could take any job he wanted. Even if it was teaching high school, we’d still be able to live comfortably. I’ll go into details on the blog, but we attacked that mortgage principal with every dollar we could spare. We didn’t pay it off by retirement. We paid it off 3 years prior, before CJ’s 40th birthday.

Suddenly we were able to live like no one else. My photography business was in full gear, CJ still had his Air Force income. We went to Vegas and spent a boat load (in cash) on experiences and some shopping. 

Today, he’s retired. We are living a life beyond our wildest dreams. Does money stuff still come up? You betcha! Do I still go into cheapo stockpile mode occasionally? Yup! Would I go back and do the hard work again? Yup. But this time with a few tips and tricks. 

Those tips and tricks… I’m letting you in on them with Barefoot Budget. If you want advise, tools and a personal cheerleader, I’ll help you get where you want to get without the pain and confusion I went through.

Join me?