Short term vs Long term Saving and Giving

Wow, so last night we saw Dave Ramsey Live! It was amazing! I highly recommend it. I can't believe we were there for almost 4 hours. It didn't seem like that long at all! He has such a high energy, is all over the stage shouting, has you stand up and sit down, etc.

You might be surprised to hear me say that I didn't learn anything new. Dave even says that everything he teaches is common sense and that's so true! He jokes that some people will realize they paid to hear what all of us already know about money. Despite this, it was well worth the price of admission!

Sometimes it's good just to be reminded and to get that encouragement. It jump starts the communication again and for us, I think that's important. I've said before that lately our finances are on serious auto-pilot. Very little thought goes into our budget each month because very little changes.

We realized something else last night too- we do not GIVE enough of our money. We work hard for it and we're kind of selfish with it- saving for our own future wants or needs. Sure, I donate to the United Way but it's not a lot and there are certainly some causes we feel passionately about like promoting healthy activities in children, taking care of animals, the benefits of reading, etc. So we're going to begin budgeting each month to donate some money to charity as well. We'll hand write a check and send it in the mail to a charity we decide to support. Here are some ideas we have right now-

*A program that supports child wellness and health
*Humane Society
*Library programs
*Adopt a child