I paid off my student loans!

20 April 2012 3,768 views 8 Comments

Remember last January when I posted that one of my goals (as lofty as it seemed) was to pay off my student loans? Well, I finally did it!! Wahoo!! You have no idea the incredible freedom I feel right now!!

Any stay at home mom with a degree will tell you that it majorly sucks to be paying off your student loans when you are not using your degree in any wage-earning capacity. The guilt heaps on, especially when your family is sacrificing so much trying to keep afloat so you can be home caring for your kids. It doesn’t help when others are constantly offering you ideas on how to earn a buck so you can contribute financially or asking you when you are going back to work. Because, you know, SAHMs don’t contribute much.

I’m not here to debate that topic.

I’m just here to scream it from the rooftops!!

My Student Loans are paid off! Two degrees: BS in Secondary Education: Social Studies and MA in Education: Curriculum and Instruction. Both from private, Christian schools: George Fox University (where I met and married my handsome man) and Azusa Pacific University (while I was teaching 7th grade full time - before kids). That means, I owed a LOT of money. A heaping, guilty pile of money.

BUT.

I’m experiencing FREEDOM!! I really love freedom.

Maybe I’ll go back to teaching, but probably not.

Maybe I’ll work outside the home, but probably not.

In the meantime, I’m using my very expensive degrees to build up my own businesses in my little template shop at The Digichick, my Cash Envelopes store on Etsy and my new adventure in designing adoption profiles.

At least that is what I tell myself.

And, you know what? I love working for myself!

I love that all of YOU helped to make this dream a reality!! Thank you SO much for your encouragement and support! I couldn’t have done it without you!!

What’s next? We’re going to start saving for a mattress, since the one we sleep on is over 30 years old. Then we are going to put away money to replace one of our 15-year-old-falling-apart vehicles while beginning to pay off our massive HELOC (which we used to live off of in the first few years that my husband started his business). I might attempt to throw a trip to Disneyland in there, but we’ll see. I can dream about showing my kids Disneyland some day!! Freedom, and the confidence that I can accomplish such a lofty goal, help keep that dream alive!

I can’t end this post without plugging my cash envelopes, can I?

Going to a cash based budget helped us significantly cut back our expenses and finally get a handle on our finances. I highly recommend it! You can check out my little post on cash envelope categories and what works for us, and then purchase a set or make one yourself with my free cash envelope template!

Have any of you recently reached some financial goals? I’d love to celebrate with you!! Post in the comments!

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8 Comments »

MaryBeth said:

Congratulations! I feel the same way about being a SAHM doing nothing with my degree from an expensive private college, also where I meet my husband. Plus he went on to grad school for his teaching license. We have a lot of debt to pay off on just a teacher’s salary but I know we will do it because we are so mindful of our money. Love my cash envelopes made from your free template.

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Kelleigh Reply:
April 20th, 2012 at 5:15 pm

Wonderful, MaryBeth!! You can totally do it! It might seem overwhelming at times, but you are making a HUGE impact on your kids right now, and your husband is as well. Keep it up!

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# 20 April 2012 at 3:44 pm

Chris P said:

Wonderful for you!!! I got serious about debt last summer-and eliminated all credit card debt in February-now, I am doubling my monthly mortgage payment. All I have left is the mortgage and my auto-both will be paid off in the spring of 2014.

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Kelleigh Reply:
April 20th, 2012 at 5:16 pm

Oh, Chris, I can’t WAIT to get there!! My dream is to have our mortgage paid off and be completely debt free!! How awesome that will be!!

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# 20 April 2012 at 4:27 pm

JuleeTilman said:

Congrats, Kelleigh! I remember the day I finally paid off my loans…they seemed so insurmountable when I first graduated, and for much of the time when we were first married I only worked very part-time. I remember so many guilty sleepless nights thinking about all the things I “should” be doing to earn the money to pay them off. Enjoy your newfound freedom. I just love the options that come available with paying off debt.

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# 20 April 2012 at 10:43 pm

Our Micro Accounts: How we save for expected expenses | Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs said:

[...] I’ll need to increase that amount, but I guess I’ll have to reevaluate that, now that I’ve paid off my student loans!! (Had to plug that. It’s just SO amazing to me! Hee, [...]

# 21 April 2012 at 6:01 am

Lauren said:

I love the ideas you have. Back in the 70′s I too had envelopes and it was a sensation… then we made lots of money and yes, you know…….got cocky and let it go. Now husband is very ill, becoming worse and worse and we are now poor. Thank you for the reminders……..

Have tried to log in and cannot remember any of my info…..sorry.
I am going to try and steal your “tabbed” envelope pattern for wallet. Made the small envelope to slip in wallet but I like the tabbed idea so much more.
Good luck in your peaceful and safe ideas. I hope your family appreciates all you do.
Lauren

[Reply]

# 22 April 2012 at 11:13 am

Our Disneyland Experience: The Planning Stage - Budgeting | Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs said:

[...] We paid off my student loans (which had a balance in January 2011 of $27,000!!) this March, a little more than a year later. I worked my hiney off (creating adoption profiles, in my papercraft template shop, and in my cash envelopes Etsy shop) in 2011/12 to get rid of that debt, and this summer my husband suggested that we start planning our Disneyland trip!! YAY! [...]

# 4 October 2012 at 8:32 am