Our Journey to Financial Independence

This is going to be a bit of a different blog series then I normally write. But I wanted to share this journey with you!

Our journey to financial independence may seem like an extremely off-topic for my blog but in my eyes, I see quite the opposite! Our finances can really put a toll on our health in several different ways. It can add extreme stress and we all know that stress has a major negative effect on our health. Same with our jobs they can be extremely stressful and demanding of our health.

I also wanted to start blogging about our journey to keep up more accountable. It’s like every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I hop on Snapchat and Insta Stories to tell everyone I am going to workout and then I check back in after I’m finished. It’s a way for me to hold myself accountable and hopefully I inspire at least one person that day to move there body and make healthier choices!

Did you get your workout in today? I sure hope so! =)

So what do I mean when I say Financial Freedom? Or we want to achieve Fire?

F- Finacial

I- Independence

R- Retire

E- Early

As a family, we have decided we don’t want to be tied down to the typical American standard. Where you spend what you make, rack up high credit card debt, and you work until 65 plus years at a job that doesn’t bring you joy.

To many times we hear that this is normal and just the way things are!

We want to jump off the hamster wheel and start living!

this …

We have slowly been heading this way but something lite a fire 😉 under us and we are all in!

Our goal is not to feel deprived or that we are missing out we are just consciously choosing where, when and how we spend our money.

This is how we stand right now.

• We currently have 2 mortgages one of which is a rental with nice cash flow.

• We have paid off: Both our cars, our camper, student loans, and our credit card debt.

• Our biggest expense currently is our home mortgage. Which is ridiculously high and takes up about 1/3 of our income. No Bueno!

• We have eliminated cable which can cost up to $100 or more a month. Think about it, that’s $1,200 a year that you could be investing or saving for a Mexico trip!

Don’t get me wrong we still watch way too much TV we have an antenna (Cost $10 one time) and my brother gave us another one for the family room. We can watch all the main TV Channels for FREE. We have Netflix for FREE through our cell service. Do we feel we are missing out by not having cable? Absolutely NOT!

Once you start doing the math on a typical day to day expenses and then think about the total it costs you over a year you would be amazed at how much you can save by just eliminating stuff that we as Americans think is a “must-have!”

Our Goal

Our goal is to fully fund both of our ROTH IRA’s, buy at least one more rental property this coming year, either sell and buy a more affordable home or aggressively pay down our mortgage on our current home.

Simple Example of Saving Time & Money

Here is another example of saving time and money not going to the store is by starting to make things at home. I’m a big fan of DIY projects. I think it is fun, saves me a trip to the store (Hello saving on gas and time!)

I have started to make my own dishwasher tabs! ANd guess what?! They work amazing! I’ve tried a few different recipes and have found the perfect recipe!

The Dishwasher Tabs I makes approx 36 tabs at a cost of $0.14 each vs. store-bought natural tabs at $0.27 each. This might not seem like a huge saving but let’s do a little math here.

Homemade cost approx $5.04 cost each batch and $60.48 per year, if you make a new batch each month.

Store bought Cost approx $11.99 you will spend $143.88 a year on dishwasher tabs.

Total Savings for making your own Dishwasher tabs: $83.40

Let’s take this a little further! Let’s look at this over 10 years!

Homemade Cost for 10 years: $604.80

Store Bought over 10 years: $1,438.80

That’s a total saving of $834

Lets just think about that for a second!!!! What could you do with an extra $834???

Now that’s a saving! Want my dishwasher tabs recipe so you can start saving? Check out my blog post here.

Today’s Audible Recommendation:

The 4-Hour Workweek

Both my husband and I have listened to this audible! In fact, we both are talking about re-listen to it!! Check it out here.

“Forget the old concepts of retirement and a deferred life plan. There is no need to wait and every reason not to, especially in unpredictable economic times. For living more and working less, this book is the blueprint.
This expanded edition includes dozens of practical tips and case studies from people who have doubled their income, overcome common sticking points, and reinvented themselves using the original book. Also included are templates for eliminating email and negotiating with bosses and clients, how to apply lifestyle principles in unpredictable economic times, and the latest tools, tricks, and shortcuts for living like a diplomat or millionaire without being either.

If you don’t already have an Audible account click the image below and receive your first 2 downloads FREE!

Blog Post I recommend Checking out: Mister Money Mustache

In this new series of blog post, I will be updating you on our journey as well as sharing life hacks we have found and are using to save money.

Until Next time! Have a wonderful day!