I am not an only child. I’m blessed with 4 siblings, and let me tell you, those relationships become even more precious the older you get. And I’m so excited that this holiday season will see all of my siblings together, in Indiana, for the first time in years. I’m looking forward to evenings of coffee, cookies and reminiscing.

Our three oldest siblings are spread out across the country, so my brother and I will both be hosting siblings at our homes. Arranging this has meant that my brother Steve and I have been spending a little more time together than usual, and I think I’ve been putting that sibling bond to the test these past few weeks. The problem is that I’m pretty opinionated, and I really, really care, so as we’ve enjoyed these past few weeks together, I’ve noticed something about Steve that I think a lot of pre-retirees can relate to: he LOVES his credit cards.

This came up when we met his kids for lunch one day last week. We all enjoyed a good meal, and when the bill came, Steve swept it up and offered the evil eye to anyone else trying to get a look at it. To be honest, I was going to hand it back to our waiter and ask for separate checks, but to no avail. Steve was set in his ways, and they looked something like this: if the kids are there, Dad pays. Now keep in mind, said kids are now in their 20s and capable of picking up their own tab. But you don’t argue with Dad at the dinner table, and Dad put the bill on his Visa card.

I’m not going to tell you that if you have the money, you shouldn’t take your family out to dinner. Obviously, it’s up to you. But I happen to know that Steve has been putting a substantial chunk of his weekly paycheck into retirement, so while he still has the good credit to pay with plastic, it’s possible he won’t pay it all off at the end of the month…and that’s a problem. Many people looking towards retirement still use credit to make purchases, and when you’re not able to pay it all off every month, you’ll end up paying interest on everything from coffee to a tank of gas. Not only does this eat away at your future savings, it’s also a habit that’s hard to break, but one you really can’t afford when you’re living on a fixed income.

So as you can imagine, I discussed my concerns with my brother. Luckily, we’re pretty close and we’ve talked about retirement before, so he knew my heart was in the right place. After years of unsolicited brotherly advice on marriage, raising children, and driving, I guess he felt he should hear me out for a change. I’m not sure if he’ll change his credit habits anytime soon, but I know it’s good to at least be aware of them. Sometimes we’re so comfortable in our habits that we don’t even notice them anymore, and it takes somebody else to point them out. If you’re struggling with credit card debt, the best time to handle it is now. Whether that means talking it over with a nosy sibling or heading into Afena Federal Credit Union, the sooner you stop owing debt, the sooner you can start investing money where it really counts…yourself.