The Rachel Cruze Show - How to Stop Overspending on the Holidays

Episode Date: December 6, 2021

Put high quality, personalized, and beautifully wrapped gifts under your tree without busting your holiday budget.   In this episode, you’ll find out: How to Wrap a Beautiful Gift Without Breaking the Bank Are You Wasting Money on These 11 Hot Products? Are Home Repairs an “Emergency”?   Resources: How to Build the Ultimate Cheese Board on a Budget Try our favorite budgeting app, EveryDollar!    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I got my wife's wedding ring on Etsy. So that is the biggest purchase I've made. I know. I know. I had no idea. They sold. Wow. Yeah. To me, worth it because it's unique.

Me too, George. Me too. It says I'm thoughtful. Hey guys, welcome to this episode of the Rachel Crew Show podcast. I'm so glad that you're here. In this episode, we're going to go over ways to save money on gifts this holiday season. You're going to hear a conversation I had with George Camel. on some trendy products that people like to spend their money on,

but they may or may not be worth it. And then you'll hear a conversation I had with Daisy and Allen about whether or not home repairs are considered an emergency. But first, let's talk about some creative ways to wrap a gift without breaking the bank. Take a listen. All right, when it comes the holiday season and saving money, it is so key.

In a place that you tend to overspend, and you don't even realize that a release for me is wrapping gifts. Americans spend $3.2 billion a year on wrapping paper. It's not crazy. The more gifts you buy, the more wrapping you've got to do, the more chances you're going to bust your budgets. And let's be honest, there is just like,

there's envy when it comes to beautiful wrapping paper and all the things that go with it. I mean, the container store has the gift wrap Wonderland. and it is beautiful, color-coded, gorgeous. But I'm telling you, you can easily spend $100 or more in a second because it looks so beautiful. And I am so guilty of this. I'm like, yes, you want the really cool, beautiful paper,

and you spend so much, and the role doesn't even have a ton, and you're like, oh, got to go buy more and more and more. And suddenly you're spending so much money on just wrapping gifts when there are free and affordable options out there. to talk about today on this episode. So a couple of free things to think about. Instead of buying little trinkets to decorate your packages, think about what is in your yard. So pick a flower or a branch and you can put it together and it looks beautiful. So we have this plant. I wish I knew plants. I don't know the name of it. I don't know. I don't know. But it has these like sticks with little

purple blooms and they're beautiful. And so in the spring when my girls have birthday parties, I'll just do craft paper, and I'll go out and cut two of those little flowers and just criss-crossed them in the ribbon, and it looks beautiful. And it was free. It was free. You can even get expired calendars and use those as wrapping paper. A friend did this and it was so cute. I was like, what? She was like, yeah, it was my old calendar and I was done with it. So you can use it as wrapping paper. You can even let your kids color on white craft paper and create their own creations. It's amazing. So, especially for grandparents, right? And you You slapped a little bow on it, and you're like, oh, it's so cute, so cute.

You can even use brown paper bags from the grocery store to get that brown paper packaging look, like Trader Joe's is the best because their paper bags already have holiday printed designs. And again, it's free. It's awesome. Now, I've never done this one, but I saw it on how this is a great idea. So if you have an old Christmas sweater or festive fabric around that you're never going to to use again, you can actually cut some of that and use it as ribbon, tie it together, and it looks so festive and great. Also, instead of buying gift boxes, save your boxes from Amazon and wrap those.

And a lot of online purchasing comes in these boxes. So keep them around you guys so you don't have to go and buy boxes. Just use what came in the mail. And I would also say strategically buy gifts from places that gift wrap for free. So places like Barnes & Noble, Bedbath and Beyond, Gap, Nordstrom, Sephora, you don't have to pay for it. I mean, that is free beyond free. It's great. Okay, here are some cheap gift wrap ideas that I think are just adorable. Now, when it comes to big gifts, okay, like a bike or TV or something just massive, you can actually go to the dollar store and buy Christmas-themed plastic tablecloths and use it, even just one, possibly, right, and put it together and just tie a big bow or a giant garbage bag, again, with a big, cheap

bow, you can make that really easy, really easy. Now, for more of a personalized presents, instead of gift tags, you can actually make photo tags. Now, this is stinking adorable. So you can print pictures from Walmart for like nine cents. a picture. Takes a little bit of time, but it's so thoughtful and so inexpensive, and it makes your gift just so different. And everyone's like, that is so cute. Now, if you want to wrap smaller gifts, you can actually use tissue paper. So tissue paper, very inexpensive. Walmart

sells like a 20-count bag of tissue paper for 98 cents. You can get some twine. You know, it's like $8, I think, for a thing, twine from Michaels. Make a ribbon. And then you can add some cute, really inexpensive little ornaments to it, okay? So this can be at the dollar tree. Hobby Lobby has these. The dollar aisle at Target has some. But again, what's fun about this is you're spending basically no money on the wrapping.

And then maybe a little bit more for something like this, which is so cute. But then whoever you're giving the gift to, they can use this on their tree for next year. I love it. Or even if you have little things, you know, like bells or something, you can tie that to, I mean,

just find these things, again, that just give a little bit of an oomph to the gift, and it's not expensive. Now, another great option, too, is to get just classic craft paper. You can get a whole roll of this at the dollar store for a dollar, and you can use the twine we just talked about. You can even do just a really pretty ribbon, but tie it together, and then what we talked about earlier, you can get some lavender, some rosemary, and you just put together.

It just kind of elevates the gift. You know, it just kind of goes from like, oh, it's nice, to just a little bit of festive. It's so fun. Now, Joy Creative Shop sells gift wrap sets for $110. It's crazy. You guys, you do not have to spend hundreds of dollars to make and give beautiful gifts.

You can get 40 square feet of wrapping paper from the dollar store or 100 square feet of wrapping paper from Hobby Lobby. It is possible to not break the bank, spend hundreds of dollars to make some really creative, cute gifts, you guys. I mean, it's so fun. And what I love about this, too, is, yeah, you can do like the simple wrapping paper ribbon, wrapping paper ribbon, which is fine.

But some of these ideas, it just gives some creativity, and it's really fun. I always get motivated by this because this is not my natural bent. I'm not naturally like, ooh, let's do it. But then you see it, you're like, it is fun. There's just something about it that's beautiful and difference, and I love it. Now, when it comes to everything Christmas, whether it's wrapping or it's pictures or anything, again, I want it to be in your budget. So making sure that you're budgeting with every dollar, if you don't have every dollar,

you can start a free trial today. You can just text Rachel Plus to 33789. To start that trial, start budgeting, be in control of your money, make some beautiful wrapping gifts that are inexpensive or free, and have a very... Merry Christmas. And back again, Mr. George Camel. George, thanks for being here. Back by popular demand.

No one asked for it, but we're here. No, you know what? I talked to my mom on the phone like two days ago, and she said, Rachel, I just finished your podcast with George, and it was so funny. Oh, my goodness. I'm Sharon's biggest fan, so I appreciate that she's a fan. Well, if no one else loves us together, George, Sharon does.

I love it. But you are on podcasts a lot with the fine print and Andrele Leadership. So you're doing an incredible job there. It is. I'm here for it. So true. But what I can't wait for this episode. So you listed out products.

They're great, fun products that a lot of people will use. A lot of people will buy. But everyone has their opinion on, is it worth it? So George and I have not talked about this ahead of time, because we're each going to give you our own opinion on, is it worth it? I'm scared to disagree with Rachel Cruz. Very scared. Freedom.

The freedom is here, George. But you are very, your very opinion. Are you aggressive sometimes? Sometimes. I might be a little aggressive. You're just passionate. It's just passion. It's an opinion.

This is not a factual-based episode. Fair. Which is kind of fun. That is fun. All right. Are you ready? Yeah. Let's go.

First item. The newest iPhone. Ooh, okay. I used to work at the Apple store, and I'm going to say not worth it. I was going to say not worth it. Okay. You get your reasons and y'all do mine. I just think that from model to model these days,

there's not enough of a difference to go try to get rid of yours and then pay a thousand dollars plus for a new one. It's not there. I would agree. Now, if it's like eight phones behind, you're going to feel the upgrade and it's going to be amazing. If you have an iPhone six and you're upgrading to a 10, that's going to change your life. Yes. So yes. But the newest one while you have the latest one year before, not worth it. I'm with you. See? See? Look, we have the same opinion. All right. We're off to a good start. Okay. Next. Unique gifts on Etsy. Ooh. To me, worth it because it's just... unique. Me too. It says I'm thoughtful. Yes. Okay. Top favorite Etsy guess. Have you done this before?

I got my wife's wedding ring on Etsy. So that is the biggest purchase I've made. I know. I know. I had no idea. They sold. You can do that. Wow. Yep. And it was very unique. And it was very unique. You can't walk into K jewelers and find this wedding ring. Jared? Heck no. Who needs him? Who needs Jared? You got Etsy. Okay. So my favorites, I did a sign. for mom and dad's lakehouse, and the sign had three different arrows pointed in three different ways.

So one said to the lake, and it pointed down to the lake. One said to Mimi's kitchen, and it points to the house. And the one says to the dog park because they have this huge fence at the lakehouse for all the dogs, because we all have dogs.

Yeah, and it points to the dog park. See, unique, thoughtful. Super cute. And you can I keep going? You support local businesses. Can I keep going? Let's go. Okay, so then another one,

my sister gave me the necklaces that have, like, they're like little pendants, very, very small, but they have letters on them. And so if you have kids or your spouse or anyone, the letter of their first name, the first letter. And it's crazy's little necklace. So anyway, she got me that.

I thought it was super cute. My sister-in-law got my in-laws for Christmas, a big pillow that had, like, grandparents' house and all the grandkids' names on it. Oh, that's cute. So I'm with you, George. I just thought of one. My groomsmen got leather journals, and I inscribed their favorite lyrics or Bible verse on the journals from Etsy. So Etsy. Boom.

Big fan. Big fan. Okay, next step. Air pods. Ooh, okay. This one, I will say, was a life-changing item for me. Specifically, AirPod's Pro, with the noise cancellation. Absolutely worth it. Wait till it's on sale. You can get them right now for probably $180. Totally worth every penny.

Okay, well, last time, we were talking about this. You hadn't gotten them yet. I had not gotten them. And I did buy them. I went and did it. What do you think? Worth it? I'm not going to like. I just deflated like a balloon. Here's the deal. You went to life-changing on a scale. I'm going to go to, like, convenience. I've not used them as often as I thought I was going to.

Maybe that's it. I don't know. I mean, not that they're not worth it. Again, you just went on the side of life change. You've made it clear. Not worth it, worth it. I know, I struggle with it. Okay, next.

Epic charcutory boards. Ooh, I will say worth it, but you and your friends build it. Paying for one? Astronomical. Yeah, they're expensive. I mean, you might as well just get the 12-houry boards. Fulay mignon. It's so true.

But doing yourself can be fun. Go to Trader Joe's, your local grocery store, and have fun making your own. Yes. We actually have a video from an episode I did on making a circuitry board, and it was really great, really fun. You can do it, like you said, you know, inexpensively. And it is an experience. Okay, so I, I just might be kind of boozy, George, but it's my, might be my favorite

appetizer at a restaurant. Even though I know you're paying so, I know, you're paying so much for it. It's not even a food group. It's just meats and cheeses. But it, but it, I think it elongates the time you're at the restaurant. And that's my goal. I want to be there as long as possible. Don't make me go home.

When it's on a date night. And I'm like, oh, we're out with friends. It's just a, it's like a, I don't know. I'm going to say worth it. I will say worth it. But again, like splitting with friends, it's worth it. Okay. But they are astronomically expensive.

They're very expensive for what you get. It's fair. Very fair. All right. Next, crypto currency. Ooh. Okay. this is a dangerous one, but I'm going to say not worth it.

And it's only because we dug into it on the fine print, and it is stressful. No one talks about the anxiety. There's new coins every day. There's new headlines. What's this one doing over here? It's not based in anything. And so you're just hoping that everyone else wants it to, and so that goes up in value. I would say not worth it.

I would agree. When it comes to anything with money, I am. I'm kind of just old school. I need a long track record, predictability, because my thing is to my, I work hard for the money that I make. So if I want to go put it into something, for the most part, I'm like, I want to know that, like, yeah, that's going to be worth it.

And it's not quite worth it for me yet. Again, this is one that I always say it's not going to be a forever thing for me. Like, I'm forever going to say it's not worth it. It might be in a few years. I don't know. But as of today, for me, not worth it. Yeah. I mean, if you want to use some fun money,

if you're debt-free, you're already investing 15% into retirement and you just want to have some fun, that's great. Yes, yes. But treat it like fun and entertainment and not like your retirement strategy. Amen. Amen. All right. Next. Boojie, speaking of boogie. Boogey New Year's Eve parties. Oh, boy. I'm going to say not worth it. I'm shocked. I know. Not worth it. What are you going to say? I was going to say not worth it. Really? Yes. We're on the same here. I've been to one and we got free

tickets. I don't remember how. We're not that cool. Yeah. And I was like, okay, I get it, but I would not pay $150 for the pleasure of being at this party. being at the party. I'd rather be with friends. Yes. We all get some Trader Joe champagne, a charcutory board, DIY. We have a great night. Yes. I'm like, I'd rather just be with friends where we actually can hang out and talk and be together and still celebrate.

I still want the fun of everything. But yeah, no, I don't want to pay extra. And I don't know. And I'll be honest, George, the past couple of years' ease, I can barely even stay up until midnight. I was just going to say that. We're both old people, okay? Who's got the time? Dired. So tired. So, tired. So we're going to ring in the new

year with just our friends, right, George? With a 10 p.m. bedtime. That's right. Amen. Sounds so great. That's the life. Sounds so nice. Okay, next Amazon fashion. Ooh.

Okay, I will say I like the prices sometimes, but the quality for what you get, and truthfully, nothing fits me right. I've tried it. I've tried it all. Oh, that makes me sad. So for certain things, yes. But I'm more of a buy-it-for-life type at this point in my life.

So, like, buying, like, cheap fashion that's going to last me three months, I'm kind of like, I'd rather spend $20 more and guess a minute's going to last me two years. Okay. That's where I'm at. I'm all about some Amazon. Oh, gosh.

Okay, what have bought you love? I have bought a lot. Like tops, jeans, earrings. Most recent, most recent, I wanted like a really soft sweatshirt. Like, I love the material. It's like basically feels like silk, right? Like, it's just so soft. Anyway, so I found it and it's like tight-out.

I was super cute. This is amazing. I went and bought two more. And it was really high quality. It expensive. Well, no, I mean, I don't know. It feels like it. I loved it. I love the material. Okay.

So that I bought two long-sleeved shirts. So I needed kind of fitted shirts to wear these certain jeans. Anyways, they were like $9.99. I got a Navy and a black. All right. I get a lot of jewelry. A lot of jewelry off Amazon. I get bathing suits.

I did my two bathing suits this year and my swimsuit covers. And everything fits properly. Yes. For me, it does. And again, you sometimes have to take it back. I have, definitely not everything has worked. Yes, I've done swimsuits, I've done swimsuit cover-ups, I've done... Give it to go.

Yeah, I love it. They do have a great return policy. And they have like the try-on now you get the box and you can just ship back what you don't want. Yeah, I don't do the try-on necessarily. Okay. But anyways, I am a fan. I love it. If Rachel Cruz says it's worth it, it's worth it.

I love it. I'm wrong. But I'm more quantity versus quality. So if you're quality, you may get it and be like, oh, this is so cheap and blah, blah, blah. like George. Or you can be like, let's just have fun in life and just get some fun and expensive new clothes. That's true. You know what?

It's going to be out of style next season, so you might as well get it cheap. Did you read my book, Know Yourself, Know Your Money? Yes. That's all I talked about, George. Chee cheat. The cheat cheat cheat. Okay. Next, I don't know if I have an opinion on this one, but the latest video game console.

Ooh, okay. I have a lot of friends that are into gaming. I am personally not. Okay. So to them, because it is one of their main hobbies, sure, it could be worth. But nowadays, you don't need the newest, the latest, the greatest. The old system still works just as fine. Sure.

So I'm not into it. I would say not worth the $500 you might spend on the newest system. Dang, it's $500 bucks. They're very expensive. See, I don't even know. I'm sorry. I will yield to you on this one. I genuinely have no idea.

I went. But I'm going to say not worth it. And it's a huge time suck. Yes. And I already have enough time sucks in my life. That's good. You know what I'm at. Just say no.

Just say no to drugs, people. Come on. All right. Next. We're using the word boozy again, which I really appreciate it. It's a great word. Taking boozy vacations to show off on Instagram. There's the little...

Are you saying people are choosing their destination based on what their photos will look like so that they can impress their friends? According to some sources, that is correct. Oh, gosh. Actually, it happens a lot and it's really sad. We don't want that. It's worth it if you're not doing it to show off and you're out of debt. But if you're doing it for the wrong reason, it's always going to...

to be a no for me. We just went to Cabo. It was beautiful. I did not do it so that I could, I haven't even posted on Instagram about it. My wife did, I know. Look at you. But the photos are gorgeous.

Yes. Amazing. I'm the same way. I don't post vacations anymore. Like maybe every now and then I'll post like a sunset. Now I say this and then probably I'm like, you're going to post your next vacation. But it's a difference.

You don't have anyone to press. You're not going, hey, look at me in my awesome vacation. You're just like, this is some memories we made in a beautiful place. It's great. And that was, I will say that. It's, again, I'm not as, like, hardcore about it now. But early on, Sweet Winston-Cruz, he's not a fan of social media. He thinks it's a negative to society, like, all the things.

I love Winston. So, but that was, like, kind of our rule, especially when we first had Amelia, he's like, you know, when we go on trips or all of this, you know, it was like posting, you know, all this. And he was like, can we just, like, not? Can we just not? And so we talked about it. Anyways, long story short, I realized, in that season specifically, I was like, man,

I'm taking pictures on a vacation for us. Oh. Just for us. Like every picture I take, I know it's not going to be posted because I agreed. But yeah, I won't do that. But man, I don't know. It just... It's a sign of maturity.

It changes something in you. So there's a thing there for sure. Don't do it for the gram. All right. Next, front row tickets to see your favorite band live. This is a tough one. We're out of COVID season. There are concerts happening, George.

People are itching to get out there. Here's a thing. The front row is always the most expensive. And so what you're really saying is, is it worth... $350 to see Taylor Swift front row. You would say, yes. I think you'd see a lot. A thousand dollars.

Yeah, I was like, I think it'd be a lot. That's why I only like bands that no one else likes so that you can get to the front row really easily and cheaply. Really? Don't spend a lot to that. I would say if it's your absolute favorite band of all time, this is a once in a lifetime, and you budget for it, yes, that could be worth it for the experience and for the memory.

Otherwise, I'm going to say no. I'll get in the balcony, I'll have a great seat, and I will have paid $200 less. Yes, or more. Or more, depending on the concert. I know. I don't go to the big concerts like you. See, those are the only ones.

I don't know music. Music is not my thing. So all the bands you know, I probably have never heard of. Taylor all the way. T. Swift, I think it's the only one I know. I went to John Mayer once, very back seat in the whole arena. Not worth it. So either front or back, not worth it.

Somewhere in the middle. I don't know. I'm not a big. I love experiences, though. I mean, if I could have front road to Taylor, that would be pretty cool. It's more like front road of Disney on Ice these days for you. That is true. and definitely not worth it.

If that's the case, it's not worth the money. Okay, next. Ugg slippers. Ooh. Okay, here's the thing, I have to admit. I own a pair of Ugg moccasins. I don't remember purchasing them. But I love them.

But I love them. They're good quality. So I'm going to say worth it, but you can get a generic brand that's probably going to be just as cozy for half the price. Guess where I got my house shoes. No, that we're talking about it? No.

Oh, Target. No. Oh, Amazon. Yes. I'm not kidding. I'm genuinely not kidding. Yes, I got them from Amazon. And you love them?

Yes, they're great. And they're probably a quarter of the price of... Oh, I'm sure. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. But I can see the quality of a, because I think they do make great shoes. I've had them for a decade, and they're holding on. I know, that's fair. That's fair.

Okay. George, I appreciate you being on. You're like my Gucci friends. I really am. I'm glad that someone else connects with this stuff. And I feel like we agreed on a lot. I was surprised. Yes, I was too.

I... And disagreed on surprising things. I know. Like Amazon fashion. And New Year's Eve parties. Who would have thought? Who would have thought? Okay, so where can everyone find you, George? So you can subscribe to the Fine Print podcast.

Season 1 is out now. We've got 10, 11 episodes there, Entree Leadership Podcast, and on Instagram at George Camel. Let me know of the things that you love, hot new products, that we should check out. The bougie stuff that's worth it. We like this, we like this. Well, thanks again, George, for being on.

Always, so, so fun. And again, you guys, remember all of these things need to be in the budget. This holiday season, I feel like we splurge a lot. lot on ourselves and other people. So make sure that you have the money. You're budgeting for these things. You're not going into debt for them. All of it. But find some fun stuff that helps your life, you know? Yes. It's great. I love getting you on the show to talk through your money questions and money situations. And today I have Daisy and Allen with me. Welcome you guys. Thank you. Thank you for having us. Absolutely. Thanks for coming on. Okay, where are you guys

calling from? Tyler, Texas. Tyler, Texas. Very nice. Okay. So before we jump in to your question. I'm just kind of curious, where are you guys in your money journey? What does life look like right now with you and your money? So we're in baby step two. We have been in baby step two since February of 2019. We actually started three days after I had our youngest. Oh, wow. He's kind of our marker. So obviously during the quarantine, I had to work from home, and we started noticing some things with our home. And, you know, our home would always kind of, our garage always had a little bit of water,

but we really just never thought anything of it. Well, now we're both home, and we get to see all the cracks and things, but we found major foundation issues that weren't disclosed to us when we bought our home. One thing led to another, we had to have, once we got a foundation involved, then we had to get irrigation involved.

We had to get a tree removal. We had to get a fence. We had to get an AC. All these things just so that they could get, get essentially all of the water that's collecting right at our house. And so even though we have a garage, it's almost acting like a basement. It's flooding every time that it rains and there's foundation issues. And so our home is, you know, just kind of taking a beating. Yeah, absolutely. And, you know, I love our home and I want to make it, you know, our home forever. I wrote a letter to

the seller when we bought it that I wanted to raise my children in there. I told Alan, I'm going to be buried in the backyard. I love that home. And so with all of the things that have been going on, the idea of July 2020 being our debt-free date and then saving three to six months and then fixing our home was that's going to be another 18 months. And that's also with us doing all of the things. Alan doing the three jobs, me doing the three jobs because we didn't have much margin. We don't have much margin in our full-time jobs. So we have to have all the side hustles in order to pay off debt in order to save. Yeah. To cash flow anything big. You know, our oldest had dental. We had to cash flow that, you know, things like that. So the idea of going this hard for almost

three years and then another six months and then another six months. And then another. another eight months to get, because I think, though, the worst case scenario we got was about $8,400 in order to get our home fixed. And that's irrigation foundation. That doesn't even cover anything cosmetic. Okay. It's literally just fixing our home. Yep. Okay. So in this instance, what I would say is the things that you have to do to make the home livable. Okay. So if there are things like mold, right, things that are like bad for, for your health, what is livable, right? The AC unit goes down and you're in Tyler, Texas, in the summer.

That's not livable. You have to have AC, right? So, like, what are the things that are absolute that you have to have? So those are the things I would pause my debt snowball for. That would be considered an emergency, right? Something happens that we have to fix. But considering what you guys have done, I mean, as much as you cannot pause it and press play, and if you can get through six months.

I mean, how long have you guys been in the house? Four years. Four years. Okay, so you've been in it for four years of this time period, and you've been okay, right? Like different elements. So I don't want the house to get worse and worse and worse, but I would say what you can do that is not necessary right this second,

I would hold off on until I'm out of debt because your momentum is going so strong right now and to get you guys through it where you have no bills, that's going to free up money. When you're not paying out debt, you're going to have more income to save up for that emergency fund. You're going to be able to save quicker and not just for the emergency fund,

But then to put some money, hey, we're out of debt, let's put some money, maybe a couple of thousand, we'll save up to throw out the house and get something fixed, then save up a little bit for your emergency fund to have a little bit more padding. And then maybe you say, okay, now we're going to fix the next thing and put a couple of thousand towards the next thing. And then go back to the emergency funds, right? So you can kind of teeter, because again, the house stuff, we don't want it to get worse and worse and worse, but the things that you can live without, I would push that so hard,

if I could to get you guys past that finish line. And I know it's been a marathon. I mean, it has. And we say it all the time, you know, around Ramsey that it's a marathon. It's not a sprint. But you're feeling it. Like you're rounding that like 19th mile and you're like,

we're exhausted, right? You're so tired. But there is something to be said about keeping that momentum if the home again is livable. Like that's my big thing. I don't want to put you guys in any kind of danger or anything. But I would do that. And then also just with house stuff, I mean, over the years, I would just really.

maybe you guys have done this, but get multiple bids. Don't just use one person. You know, have a couple of people come in because one guy could say, oh my gosh, you've got to bulldoze the house, and it's going to cost, you know, hundreds of thousands of dollars or just something crazy. And then another guy comes in, he's like, oh, no, I could fix this for four grants, you know, or whatever.

So get multiple options and multiple bids to be able to make these decisions. I would say that as well. Okay, so one question I do have is, what do you guys, if you feel comfortable saying it, because I know your face is on here. It's a little bit, it's not like the radio show. But on your full-time jobs, what are you guys making? So, out of our full-time jobs, no extra side hustles, right?

So me, I make after-taxes probably close to 36. Okay. And then Allen makes about 31. So together we make about 65 after-taxas. Okay, that's great. Yeah, and I just know in today's, world, I just feel like there's so many options, not to say to leave your day jobs, but I would be curious to see, okay, if you're working full-time, are there other places that maybe you

could spend the same amount of hours but make more in the season if it's not a job that you necessarily, you know, maybe love and are super passionate about? But like, what are things, what are choices you can make to help the situation when it comes to the income side? Because you're doing everything else, right? You're doing all the side hustles. I mean, you're literally doing it textbook of what we talk about. But, but, you're doing the situation. But, you're doing it's not, but, But I just wonder if there are other tweaks just to bring in a little bit more, right? Because, I mean, five grand between both of you in a year, 10 grand could change a whole lot pretty quickly, you know? So what are those small little things that maybe you could look at to is just an option?

But does all of that help answer your question? Yes. I think my initial question, I may have even asked it wrong, was if we used the emergency fund to fix our home. But I think this answered absolutely. And we have done job changes. Alan used to have a job where he made about the same, but he worked six hours, six days a week and had like a 30 minute lunch. And so then he was able to make what he made. And then we were able to add all the side hustles. But I mean, it has. That's great. We definitely feel we're burning the

candle at both ends. Yeah. Oh, absolutely. I asked our FPU group, I said, I don't, I don't know if we can keep, if we can keep doing this. I mean, like I said, our youngest is our marker. So his entire life, he doesn't know anything but us doing this and having multiple things. And there's always dogs in the house. There's a dog in our house right now, two of them. Yes. To go back just for a quick second.

Yeah. So with your emergency funds, if I was in your seat, I would want a little bit more cushion after you get out of debt of that $1,000. So I would want to build it up a little bit. Maybe it's a month's worth. and then the things that are really dire to the house, then save up for those. And then once you fix a couple of things,

go back to that. You can build it a little bit slower while at the same time doing the house. But I wouldn't just save up and then use it for the house. I mean, you can kind of tag team it, if you will, if you just kind of map it out to see what's the most urgent with the home and what's not. But I would also say, you guys,

you are doing such an incredible thing for your family. You really are. And, I mean, I think back even on my childhood, and, you know, my mom was a, my mom was a stay-at-home mom, but my dad, I'm like the amount of hours and travel and things that he did, I mean, I'll be honest, I don't even really remember it. It was just normal. And then by the time I was 8, 9, 10,

where we actually could go out and do family stuff, right, and travel and do these things, they had the margin financially to be able to do that. So the fact that you're sacrificing right now in this time for your little one, it is one of the most beautiful things that you can do for your family because you're changing. You really are. You're changing.

family tree. And I know it's hard and I know it's exhausting, but we see people just like you all the time here at Ramsey Solutions. They come in and they do their debt-free screams and they have their kids and they tell the story. But, you know, we look at you guys and just think you are absolutely amazing and incredible and you're not going to regret it. You know, the worst thing could be is you decide being debt-free is terrible and you can always go get back in debt if you wanted. But getting out, it's hard. It's hard work, you guys. And it's just, so you're doing an incredible, incredible job. I know it's exhausting, but I'll just say, for your little one, 33 years later, they are going to be so grateful, so grateful for parents that are doing what you're

doing. So keep it up. Thank you so much. And thank you for taking the time to answer our question. Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Well, you guys are incredible. And all of you watching and listening, if you want to come on and join this conversation, we would love to talk about your money situation, your money question here on the Rachel Cruz show. So you can go to any of our social media platforms, whether it's Instagram or Facebook or YouTube, and ask your question, and maybe you can be a guest on just like Daisy and Allen

and be the incredible people like they are killing it day in and day out. So you guys, thanks again for coming on. I love hearing couples like Daisy and Allen, you guys. I mean, just the sacrifice and the commitment and determination that they have for themselves and their family, it's amazing. Absolutely incredible. And I'm so thankful they came on the show. And thank you George Camel for coming on. Always a great time with him. And thank you guys so much for listening. If you have not

subscribed to this podcast, make sure to hit that subscribe button. And if the spirit leads, you can leave a review. As always, make sure to take control of your money and create a life you love.