So I'm officially off the hook for all my dis-chargeable debt. Which is all of it, aside from a $12,000 student loan.
How does that feel?
Pretty darn good. I have to say, however, that once the initial filing and 341 meeting was done, I somewhat put it out of my mind. I knew there was a chance that an issue would crop up, but I didn't dwell on it. After the first 30 days post-341 I mostly didn't think of it at all. The last 30 days flew by.
What would I have done differently?
Well... I would have filed a lot earlier. It was a fairly painless process that mostly required the ability to fill out a ton of worksheets for the lawyer and then wait. And wait. And wait. It definitely stretched my patience. Other than that, it was easy. This seems to be the general answer that everyone on the bkforum website give as well. They wish they'd have done it sooner.
What are my next steps?
Well, for one, I've got a reminder note to check my credit in about 75 days, including paying to see my credit score. They said to check it after 60 days, but I'm going to give it an extra couple of weeks, just in case something takes a bit longer. At the end of the week I'm going to call Tampa to get some certified copies of the discharge mailed to me. I had thought I'd receive one via the mail, but the only notification thus far has been an email with an attached pdf from my lawyer's office.
After everything has been straightened out I need to figure out which cards still work. I'm not sure if any survived the fallout. If one did, then I'm going to use it for something like gas or groceries and billpay a check to pay it off as soon as I return home. I figure if I get a monthly "pay as agreed" going on, then that's the best way to start. Next I'll start paying my student loans as soon as my deferment has expired next summer.
Job Update?
We're both working. It's a huge, huge change. The kiddo is in daycare and she loves to go to "school". We're both working full time.
Our expenses have increased. We're spending more on gas, food, and childcare than we were before, simply due to the change in circumstances. However, with adding that additional amount into the budget, we still have about $1000 left over to split between our FSA and savings. (FSA is for all the things we need that are random or scheduled but not monthly, such as the car breaking down, replacing a water heater, or car insurance.) After the FSA is funded we don't have a lot for savings, but it keeps things that are going to happen from becoming emergencies.
Showing posts with label daughter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label daughter. Show all posts
Monday, October 4, 2010
Sunday, March 7, 2010
What to tell our daughter
I'm currently reading How To Raise Financially Fit Kids.
It's made me think about something.
When our daughter is older, how much do we tell her about our bankruptcy?
She won't know any different, being 2, but eventually the topic might come up.
Should it be part of her financial education? I believe, wholeheartedly, that the only purpose of an allowance is to teach her about money. It's not a reward, a bribe, or something she deserves. It's a teaching tool.
I want her to be much more financially literate than I was.
It's odd, really. I can see how my parents would have assumed that I was financially literate. After all, I've had a job since I was 14 years old. I was excellent at saving money for things I really wanted even when I was only 6. (I paid cash for a Gameboy, $99 back in the mid-80's, that I had saved up all by myself.)
I knew how to balance a checkbook. I knew how to put money in my savings account.
But what I didn't know was how to use credit.
I also didn't know about compound interest. I would like to have learned about that long ago and used it to my advantage rather than becoming a victim of it.
(Sidenote: A salesperson I used to work for once tried to explain compound interest to me when I was 20 in relation to retirement savings. I nodded and let my eyes glaze over as I wondered how many highlighters one man really needed. Why didn't I pay attention? Grr.)
I don't blame my parents. I'm just not surprised that I ended up in a situation very similar to where my father was before he died. (The same situation that led him and my mother to bankruptcy.)
I'm agreeing with the concept list in HTRFFK. It's a nice idea for various targets and goals to cover with kids. The book also suggests ways to do this for different ages. I'm going to make my own list.
Back to the topic at hand, however. Do I tell her about the bankruptcy?
I believe in being honest with kids. I want her to know that there are consequences to abusing credit and not being realistic about your situation. I want her to see that people can recover from the bottom of the barrel financially. I want her to know that mommy and daddy can admit they made a mistake and ask for help. That a strong marriage makes it through the toughest of times by supporting each other rather than turning against each other.
I don't want her to throw it in our faces, spread the word around to her friends (and their parents) or otherwise abuse the knowledge like most teenagers are wont to do.
Of course, no one says we have to tell her as a teenager.
Hmm. Would you tell your children about your bankruptcy?
It's made me think about something.
When our daughter is older, how much do we tell her about our bankruptcy?
She won't know any different, being 2, but eventually the topic might come up.
Should it be part of her financial education? I believe, wholeheartedly, that the only purpose of an allowance is to teach her about money. It's not a reward, a bribe, or something she deserves. It's a teaching tool.
I want her to be much more financially literate than I was.
It's odd, really. I can see how my parents would have assumed that I was financially literate. After all, I've had a job since I was 14 years old. I was excellent at saving money for things I really wanted even when I was only 6. (I paid cash for a Gameboy, $99 back in the mid-80's, that I had saved up all by myself.)
I knew how to balance a checkbook. I knew how to put money in my savings account.
But what I didn't know was how to use credit.
I also didn't know about compound interest. I would like to have learned about that long ago and used it to my advantage rather than becoming a victim of it.
(Sidenote: A salesperson I used to work for once tried to explain compound interest to me when I was 20 in relation to retirement savings. I nodded and let my eyes glaze over as I wondered how many highlighters one man really needed. Why didn't I pay attention? Grr.)
I don't blame my parents. I'm just not surprised that I ended up in a situation very similar to where my father was before he died. (The same situation that led him and my mother to bankruptcy.)
I'm agreeing with the concept list in HTRFFK. It's a nice idea for various targets and goals to cover with kids. The book also suggests ways to do this for different ages. I'm going to make my own list.
Back to the topic at hand, however. Do I tell her about the bankruptcy?
I believe in being honest with kids. I want her to know that there are consequences to abusing credit and not being realistic about your situation. I want her to see that people can recover from the bottom of the barrel financially. I want her to know that mommy and daddy can admit they made a mistake and ask for help. That a strong marriage makes it through the toughest of times by supporting each other rather than turning against each other.
I don't want her to throw it in our faces, spread the word around to her friends (and their parents) or otherwise abuse the knowledge like most teenagers are wont to do.
Of course, no one says we have to tell her as a teenager.
Hmm. Would you tell your children about your bankruptcy?
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