Goodbye bookstore credit card account

We are down one more bill. I said goodbye to my bookstore credit card account. This one was a toughie for lots of reasons. The credit account was to a bookstore that I adore. Not only is it a local place to buy books and talk with staff but, it is also one of my favorite places to pick up gifts. I closed my eyes, handed over my debit card and signed on the dotted line. That was it. I was out the door before I could change my mind (or find something else to buy).

Temptation wasn't finished with me. I was surfing when the ad to open a credit card account at a major online bookseller smacked me in the face. It's hard to tell you how strong the temptation was to open the account. Sitting on my hands is one of the lessons that I'm learning as we dig through the debt pit.

My tactic was to close the computer and take a walk. This gave me time to think things through. Paying off the credit card account at the other bookstore gave me another measure of freedom. Did I really want to exchange that freedom for another ball-and-chain load of debt?

You should have heard the argument in my head. Then again no, you shouldn't have. Reasoning won out in the end but it was a very close call.

My thinking is that if I could find the willpower to limit my Black Friday shopping, then I could say goodbye to the bookstore credit card account and leave it closed. There is no point in opening another account and struggling to pay it off. It's time to say "enough is enough" and walk away. It's a small victory but it feels good. I think that I'll leave it that way.

Reducing my Black Friday spending

This year, I am limiting my Black Friday shopping to the bare bones experience. Black Friday is one of my favorite times of year. I have fond memories of going shopping with my daughters and having a breakfast snack of Cracker Jacks. A store named Proffit's gave tons of the stuff away on Black Friday. The prize in each box ranged from some really cool items to deep coupons.

It was also a day for spending money. Granted, everything we purchased was either on sale, bought with a coupon or I used a combination of coupon and sales when possible (sound familiar). We were always sucked into the shopping frenzy and blew our budget.

Things are a little different this time around. Every time I think about overspending I take a minute and evaluate where we are financially (see blog post). It's giving me more confidence to leave the debit card behind. I'm still going to go out to enjoy the Black Friday crowds a little wiser than in previous years and it's giving me more confidence.

Duggar family loses child; has my sympathy

I just heard the news that the Duggar family has lost a child. My sympathy goes out to them. There are people who don't approve of the lifestyle that this family of 20 has. The Duggar family inspires me to push harder for my clan to become debt free. 

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar share some of their secrets in this MSNBC interview. My family has a hard time saving money and there are just four of us. We're slowly learning how walk the path to become debt free. The road we are on is filled with land mines but one thing helps keep me on track. People like Jim Bob and Michelle who are already debt free have lots of tips for us to emulate. Here's why following the website and blog is helpful for me. 

Is a Disney Cruise right... Sorry, wrong blog.

Ooops. This post is being moved. I actually placed it on the wrong blog. Part of the way that I make extra money to get out of debt is to blog about my travel experiences, projects and product reviews.My posts are created offline then uploaded here. 

The problem is that it is all my blogs run through the same dashboard. If I'm not careful (or if it's late at night) the posts can easily be put in the wrong place. Please accept my apologies about this. The above titled post is now on www.youvebeenreviewed.net with my other writing. That puts this blog back to covering my journey out of debt.

Thanks for your patience. I appreciate it. :)