This is part three of my money story spanning over 11 and a half years of personal finances in our family of growing of learning from our mistakes of finding our way through the advice and rules of other people to what worked for us. In this final installment of our money story, I'm going from March of 2019, which is when Debt Free Mom began up to today in the spring of 2022. 

This is also the season 1 finale of the Debt Free Mom Podcast! We're planning to take a break from our regularly scheduled programming for the summer, but we'll do a mini series or two throughout the summer so that we're not just leaving you high and dry until the fall. We'll take the opportunity to do something fun, do something different than what we have been doing, and then start back strong in the fall with our guests coming on to talk about money, frustrations and money goals.

Would you do me a favor as we close out season one? If anything in this podcast has encouraged you to persist in your budget or empowered you to get off the fence with a money decision you needed to make and take action, or simply made you smile instead of worry about a topic as heavy as personal finances, would you do us a favor and rate or leave a review? Those numbers help our podcasts become visible to even more people just like you who are out there maybe confused about their money, but afraid to take action for fear of what other people will think of them, or for fear that they'll make the wrong move. We want them to find relatable and realistic advice here at the Debt Free Mom podcast, and your reviews can help us accomplish that goal. 

This is a special bonus episode of the Debt Free Mom Podcast. This episode is from a recording of an Instagram live sharing with my audience why a monthly budget might fall apart even when it looks right on paper. I also share why a pay period budget might be better instead. So the audio might sound a little different than what you’re used to here on the DFM podcast, and you’ll hear me answer a few questions from audience members. So just know that this was originally a live video. 

You can join Pay Period Budget Academy today at debtfreemom.co/pba

How do you pivot your relationship with money when you had one singular goal, you finally accomplished it, and you realize you haven't at all prepared for what life on the other side of that goal might look like? Today's episode is part two of My Money Story, right after we became debt free. What did we do next?

I started Debt Free Mom in March of 2019. We were debt-free, we had three kids, and we were about to buy our first house. But we had also been married for over seven years, and the way our finances looked over those seven years was nothing like it looked when I started Debt Free Mom. So I thought to close out season one of the Debt Free Mom podcast, I would take three episodes to break down our story, Kyle and my story of money management and learning what we needed to do with our money no matter where our income was at from the time that we got married in December of 2011 all the way up to today. The big picture story I want to tell is from debt, to debt-free, to Debt Free Mom.

Visit debtfreemom.co/template to start budgeting by pay period today with this best selling template and mini course for only $9. You'll receive four tutorial videos on setting up a budget by pay period, a worksheet to help you gather your numbers into one place, and the signature budget by pay period template with space to plan out your money, no matter what pay schedule you have or how many income streams you're working with.

How do we sort through our money goals? When we have big deadlines, like a baby due date, a car that won't fit the whole family, and then just a general desire to be investing more today? Jenny and I talked through a game plan for financially preparing for a new baby and then which goal is to focus on after baby arrives. Do we do the goals that just feel good or should we run the numbers first?

The Debt Free Mom Custom Budget provides you with a one-time service for building your pay period budget. We'll gather all your real numbers, your frustrations, and your goals into a plan for your next 6 pay periods. The pay period budget system cuts out the confusion for every situation:

• If you're paid weekly, monthly or anything in between,
• If you have one stream of income or 5 part-time jobs,
• If you live within your means or watch your debt grow each month,

a Custom Budget will give you clarity and confidence around your home finances. Book your Custom Budget today at debtfreemom.co/custom

Lacey is a full-time accountant who has been married for nine years and they have floated in and out of being debt free, most recently a move in 2021, putting them back into debt. She lives and breathes numbers and spreadsheets professionally, but didn't find a budgeting system that stuck until trying the Debt Free Mom template. Lacey comes on today to talk about sinking funds, saving, setting aside money in advance and organizing bank accounts.

If you'd like to be a guest on the show to talk with Carly about a money issue or share your story of taking charge of your home finances, go to dfmpodcast.com and fill out the guest application.

Anytime I do an audience poll about why budgeting is so hard, the number one word that comes up is "overwhelming."

• It's overwhelming to try and start.
• It's overwhelming to be in the middle of a budget and have things change.
• It's overwhelming to choose what goal you should be focusing on.

Today on the podcast with Anna, we talk about how to address this feeling of overwhelm so that she can simplify the process and simplify what it takes to track and follow the plan.

Click here to join Pay Period Budget Academy today for 20% off with the code "PODCAST" at checkout. 

Let's talk through your money questions! Join me as a guest on the show by applying at dfmpodcast.com

Some of us have always been in the role of managing our family's finances, but other times a transition in job or relationship or family structure can land you in this role for the first time in your adult life. Cortney comes on the podcast today to talk about becoming the family's budgeter after being married for 13 years. I'm excited for you to hear her story today as she shares all the things she learned about her family's money and managing the family budget.

To start budgeting by pay period today, get the best selling DFM Pay Period Budget Template + Mini Course for only $9. You'll receive four tutorial videos on setting up a budget by pay period, a worksheet to help you gather your numbers into one place, and the signature budget by pay period template with space to plan out your money, no matter what pay schedule you have or how many income streams you're working with.

Click here to get the Debt Free Mom Template + Mini Course for just $9!

All this budgeting talk sounds great, but what if you're currently spending more than you make? You might be counting yourself out of this budgeting conversation because you know that each month your credit card debt is growing or your savings is shrinking, or both. This is for all the people who are consistently spending more than they make - you are not the only one!

This might not be something people are willing to say online or share with those closest to them, but I want you to know that you are not the only one spending more than you make. There are things we can do to correct it. 

Start your own pay period budget today! Visit debtfreemom.co/store to download the free budget template or purchase the $9 Mini Course + Template to get also some helpful explainer videos.

Congratulations, you got a raise! Now, what are you going to do with it? Without a plan, these hard-earned dollars can disappear quickly making it feel like you never got a raise in the first place. Hayleah is thinking hard about this question as she's preparing her family's budget for a large raise. We talk about how to prevent lifestyle inflation, enjoy the extra room in the budget while still tackling goals, and how worriers can make the best budgeters.

A custom budget will give you the confidence and insight you need to take action on your money goals. Visit debtfreemom.co/custom to book your custom budget today. 

If you'd like to join Carly as a guest on a future episode and talk through a question about your home finances, fill out the application at dfmpodcast.com.