Messed Up Finances

My husband absolutely dislikes his job. And he is the only one bringing in income right now. Honestly, it got me worried a bit. But between the two of us, I’m the one that can’t hold down a job. I absolutely hate being told what to do, which is why I’d rather own my own business. I’ve quit jobs simply because I didn’t like being there anymore and I truly believe in working/doing something that you love. 

So when he shares his frustration about work, I understand. At the same time, we have kids now; it’s not just the two of us anymore.

Remember how I got fired from that sales job not too long ago? Well, he is going to apply for that job. At that exact same company. Which is fine because when it comes down to it, it’s a great company, with good people and an excellent sales training program. I truly believe that he’ll do well there. Better than I have. When I was working there, because I had no babysitter, I had to bring my infant son with me to client meetings in addition to being pregnant. It was tough. At least, he won’t have to do that.

So…he is in the hiring process at my previous company and he’s excited about it. Which is good because nowadays at his current job, I can tell that he’s trying really hard not to bring his work attitude home. 

Another good news is that we got our taxes done this past Saturday and expecting a big return. Now I am in strategic mode because my husband plans to go on a 3 month paternity leave (no pay) and he’ll be starting at his new job soon after. So we can’t go crazy with our return and we REALLY PLAN out the next few months. 

In the bible, there was a part where a man named Joseph interpreted a dream for Pharaoh and told him that there will be 7 years of abundance in crops and then 7 years of famine. His suggestion was to have everyone submit a certain percentage of their crops to Pharaoh for the next 7 years in abundance. That way when the 7 years of famine get here, the people can buy food when their crops aren’t doing well. Or something like that. Basically, they won’t die when the famine happens!

I feel like Joseph. I feel like when we get our tax return, it will be a time of abundance, but at the same time we have to prepare to avoid the famine. 

My mother in law bought home a bunch of Money magazines that her coworker had and doesn’t need anymore. Reading through one of them makes me realize that …it doesn’t apply to me. I’m assuming it doesn’t apply to many?

It talks about investing and opening accounts with a minimum of $50,000 and all that stuff. And I’m like, “What about the rest of us who are just trying to pay bills and buy groceries?!”

So I’m trying to deal with this debt collector who has been threatening to file a lawsuit if we are unable to pay this $7,400 credit card debt.

They are expecting $100 from us by the end of this month. And $1500 by March (they think that is when I should get my tax return. I didn’t get my W2 yet because of a mailing address mix up).

We just got a collections letter from the Department of Human Services advising us that we owe the state $652 they overpaid us when our son went to a daycare. 

My son didn’t go to daycare.

I applied for financial assistance at a daycare that is $1500/month. Due to our income, the state was going to help us by paying $200/month. We couldn’t afford the difference, so we said, “Forget it!”

Now we have to go back and forth between the state and the school…and it’s just something that we don’t need right now.

Two friends recommend that I go this route. What are your opinions about it?

My husband got paid this past Friday and went into spending mode right away.

While he was at work, I texted him about the people that have been calling me regarding payments. I didn’t get an answer back from him about them. But he surely spent his hard earned paycheck.

I think it’s some kind of mind game with us and money where we spend up as much as we can without going into the negative. And when the paycheck comes around again in 2 weeks, it’s like starting new all over again. 

Also, since we’ve been sick this week, having boundaries on spending at Walmart goes out the window. 

I’m considering using a consumer credit counseling service. What do you think about that?

I feel that God had place big dreams on my heart. I know that I am called to be wealthy. I don’t mean that in a snarky way; it’s just something that I know will happen. 

It’s just situations like these where we can barely afford to pay our bills, living with parents, 1 income…it’s just my today, my reality seems so far from the big dreams that I have.

I have to keep on going

I called the debt collectors again today to work something out. In the beginning of the conversation they were asking for really high payments. The lowest is for a 12 month plan for nearly $500. I don’t have $500 lying around to make a payment every month. The lady on the phone asked how much I can pay every month and I told her $50. She said they can’t do that because they don’t have a $50/month plan.

The worse case scenario is that they file a lawsuit against me because I am unable to pay my debt. You know..you would think I would be more worried about it, but I don’t feel like I am. I should be. But I feel ok. Maybe because I  KNOW that we ABSOLUTELY CANNOT make those $500 payments. In the end, we agree that I talk to my husband (since he is the one bringing in income) and make a $100 payment for February, then at the end of March, I call them back to make a big down payment with my tax return and that’ll bring my monthly payments down to a reasonable amount. So the bigger the down payment on this debt, the smaller my monthly payment will be.

The good thing about all of this is that couple years ago, when our finances started going down hill, I would avoid creditors calling and never wanting to speak to them. Now, I feel confident to be proactive and call them AND conduct negotiations. I’m happy about the fact that I did improve!