Do We Earn Things Anymore?

After stealing, errr.. borrowing, my husband's Men's Health, I came across this very interesting article about the fiscally fit man. The author had 5 areas for "debt weakness", but the one that struck me the most was perverting the American Dream.

Decades ago, the American Dream was pretty simple. If you could afford to buy expensive things, like a car or a house with a white picket fence, you were doing pretty well. Most of the time, you had to buy with cash or a large downpayment. People saved for years and years to buy big ticket items. They tightened their belts and budgeted down to every last penny. With the explosion of buying things on credit and having long-term loans, it seems most people have lost the concept of earning nice things. People max out their credit cards or take out multiple loans in order to get something they feel they deserve. Do you know the average American household has nearly $11,000 in credit card debt? I understand that times are still tough for a lot of folks, and credit cards are a necessity just to get by when you're in between jobs. But I would make a guess that not all people who carry a large balance on their cards are people who are out of work and trying to support a family.

I will acknowledge I'm part of this perversion. While my husband and I saved for 2 years for a house downpayment, it wasn't a traditional 20%. True, to save 20% to buy a house in the Seattle metro area likely means you would be saving for at least 10 years, and I know that's the case in many other parts of the country. And while we have paired down to be a one car family, we still have a loan for our car. We put down a chunk of money and got the shortest loan term we could, but we don't own either of our big ticket purchases free and clear.

On the bright side, we have ZERO credit card debt and have had it that way for nearly 3 years. And now we save for mostly everything else. Taking a vacation? We have a vacation fund...if we can't afford it, we wait until we can. How about a shiny, new appliance, like an energy efficient washing machine that I've been lusting after? We're saving up to hopefully buy one in the fall. We have a 6-9 month emergency fund that we spent a year to build in case something drastic happens. We don't have the desire (or ability, after becoming a one income family) to go out and spend a ton of money on non-essential items.

I understood the concept of earning better when I was 12 than I do now. If there wasn't enough money in my wallet, I couldn't get it. I could do more household chores or babysit more neighbors, but I didn't have the option of buying it now and paying for it later like so many of us do today.

The question still nags me - do we earn things anymore? Often, people feel they deserve luxury or expensive things because they work hard, or they're a good person, or insert other reasons here. And while I'm all for celebrating success and rewarding ourselves, does it come at too high a price? Keeping up with the Joneses is costing us big time.

What do you think? Do we earn things anymore? What was the last big ticket item you purchased? Did you charge it and pay it off little by little, or did you save for awhile and pay for it all up front? How did it feel?

Discussion: What's Your Biggest Splurge?

Greetings y'all! I hope most of you are staying warm - it looks nasty in most of the country. The Northwest has the makings of a perfect winter's day - crisp, sunny and dry!

Anyway, my friends over at WiseBread had an interesting question posed to their readers this morning, and I thought I'd ask you all: what's your biggest splurge?

This was a question that took me awhile to answer. I allow myself to spend $25 every month at coffee shops...is that a splurge? I recently upgraded to a nicer gym with amazing amenities and cleaner facilities for an extra $5 per month than I paid at my old gym. Splurge-worthy? I don't have expensive clothes or shoe habits, I don't get weekly manis or pedis, I've had 4 massages in my whole life...what the heck do I splurge on?

The closest things I could think of as splurges are a) food and b) home improvement. With food, my husband and I cook 5-6 nights a week, and when we go out to dinner, we usually go to a delicious restaurant that doesn't cost more than $40 for the two of us (including tax and tip). Hardly splurging...BUT when it comes to groceries, we probably spend $75-$90 a week. What do I buy? Lots of fresh produce (which is often organic), Greek yogurt, and hardly any processed foods. This means that our grocery bills might be a little higher than average, but eating good and good-for-you food is important to me. If you can, I totally recommend buying from a farm that participates in community supported agriculture (CSA). You are buying directly from the farmer, so your produce is super fresh, seasonal and supports your local businesses! One more food-splurge: grocery delivery! While I don't do this all the time, I have ordered from AmazonFresh on a handful of occasions. It's not necessarily more expensive than a grocery store, but there is a delivery fee if you don't purchase a certain amount of food. It's convenient (I've had groceries delivered at 6 AM before), it saves me time and money on gas, and it might even stop me from those impulse buys.

As far as home improvement go, I think it's almost in our biology to prepare our home for a new member of the family. Before little Claire came into the picture, my husband and I wanted to put in California Closets or pimp out our backyard. Maybe make the basement into a man cave. After we knew we were expecting, all those fun projects got replaced with buying new carpet (not fun, but necessary) and getting a nursery ready to go. And while we didn't go over budget too badly, it's just hard to say no to buying things for your unborn child. The willpower is not so strong with us when it comes to getting cute art for her room or a onesie that says "It was the dog." (yes, we have it in orange).

But I do have a splurge goal now: traveling. I want to see more of the world, and I want Claire to see more of the world with us. I think exposing children to different people and places is extremely important for them to learn and grow.

What about you? What do you splurge on and why?