Finally, it’s starting to warm up! Pretty soon the spring sports season will start, and I’ll be spending a lot of time at the baseball diamond. But even with stubborn piles of snow still refusing to melt away, my little man is determined to head outside. It’s been a long winter, so despite the lingering snow and the mud pit that is currently my front yard, we’ve spent a good portion of the last week enjoying the mild weather, walking up and down our sidewalk, hopping over puddles (or into puddles, if you’re one) and arguing about the purple gazing ball that he is certain is really the BEST and MOST WONDERFUL BOUNCY BALL OF ALL TIME!

 

When I think back on my family’s journey towards financial fitness, it bears a striking resemblance to this early springtime ritual. There were lots of puddles and muddy sidewalks to navigate through and around, and yes, every once in a while, we’d seem to jump right into them. Before my husband and I committed to being more mindful of our spending, I’d sometimes use my credit cards like they were gift cards from my future self. I’ve never suffered from low self-esteem, so I would always assume that I’d have more cash in the future, and I’d go shopping for some presents from Future Claire. And I’d put them on the Visa or the store credit card with the best of intentions. The problem, of course, was Future Claire didn’t always show up in the next 30 days to pay those credit cards back. I was creating a lot of mud puddles for myself back then, and I was almost as stubborn as those snow piles about smartening up.

 And we’ve slowly started to enjoy a sunny outlook on our financial future. The puddles are starting to dry up. That’s not to say that there won’t be a raincloud or two on the horizon, but I’ve learned from my little man this year. Even with the mud, the snow, and the puddles, you can still enjoy being outside, and even with the financial difficulties you might have in your life right now, you can still find room for gratitude for the things that are going right, and remember that with some determination and discipline, you’re bound to see the sunshine sooner or later. For me, I know that I can always count on Afena to help me weather those financial storms in the future. I’m Claire, the Afena blog mom. Thanks for reading.