Honey Talks Money

I’ve restarted this journey more times than I can count (even blogged here before), and yep, here I am again. But this time, I’m not coming from a place of frustration. I’m coming from clarity. Life is okay, truly. But I know if we keep cruising like we are, it won’t stay that way.

After being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023, everything shifted into autopilot. We lived in the moment, because honestly, the future felt uncertain. I’m grateful we were able to pay for medical expenses out of pocket, but I didn’t give our money direction. We just… lived. And now, I’m ready to live with intention.

I first dipped my toes into personal finance as a young married mom. Budgeting felt empowering, like - "we’re doing this!”- even though all I was really doing was plugging numbers into Excel. We’d save $200 a month… and then pull $200 right back out to make ends meet.

Over time, I’ve grown to love saving. But I also kept spending. We’ve got money in the bank, in a CD, even tucked away in a safe. But we also have credit card balances that make me cringe, and an eating-out habit that’s just plain embarrassing. (DoorDash, I’m looking at you.)

And then there’s my student loan. It’s a mystery wrapped in a headache. Supposedly interest started again last Friday, but my account doesn’t show anything new. I’m still in forbearance under the SAVE plan, but I’m nervous about what my monthly payment will be. Before all the political back-and-forth, it was $978/month. That’s not sustainable.

At 48 and a half, I’ve finally said it out loud: we’re over-consumers. Easily influenced. And ready to change.

So here’s what this space is going to be: a place to document our desire to slow down, simplify, and be more intentional - with life and with money.

Yesterday, my husband sat down and canceled a bunch of streaming services and our Peloton membership. (We still have the treadmill. We don’t need strangers yelling at us to run faster.) It felt good. Like a small win.

I’m restarting our budget. It’s scary. We have too many credit cards, and the minimum payments alone would probably make your jaw drop. And the eating out? Yikes. We spent $3,000 in the last 60 days - just on our Bank of America accounts. I haven’t even looked at the other cards yet.

But I’m not here to beat myself up. I’m here to do better. To be better. And to share the journey as we learn to live with more purpose and less excess.