Seven years ago my husband and I read through The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness by Dave Ramsey with a group of young couples from our church.  It was a great time in our marriage to review our spending habits and find ways to get our finances in order.  In just a few years we paid off all our debt (with the exception of our mortgage) college loans, cars, credit cards, and saved up enough money for emergencies, 12 months of expenses, and to start our own business.

It was freeing for us as a couple to have structure with our money including doing a budget together and being smarter when spending.  It took some sacrifices to meet our goals but reading this book and going through it with friends helped us stay on track.  We are still learning and adapting as we adjust to what life brings are way (including some financial setbacks, 12 weeks of bed-rest and beautiful twin daughters who spent time in NICU).  The neat part about the setbacks is you now have guidelines already in place to help you get back on track.

Dave Ramsey’s has a lot of great financial tools for your family.  I encourage you to start by reading or listening to this book.  He has a Workbook that goes along with the book and a CD if you prefer listening over reading.

Workbook – The Total Money Makeover Workbook.

Audio Cd – The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness

I wish you the best as you find ways that work for your family!  Going through this with friends provides an additional support structure while you learn together.  We have given our book out to family and friends numerous times!