WHOOPEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!

I am so excited! I've been very careful for the last 5 years, getting everything paid off, taking care of overdue bills and such. I went to a credit counseling service and signed up in December of 2001, and by May of 2006 all my debts were paid off. (I had a lot!) Now, my credit score isn't great, but it's getting better. I have myself on a budget, and I stick to it. I'm careful about my money now, where before I just spent it whether I had it or not. Part of my success here has been in keeping myself out of stores. I don't go shopping a whole lot, and when I do, I make sure I have money to shop with. I've found that if I have specific things I need to buy and have the money to buy them, it satisfies some of my desire to shop.

So now, I've been able to begin some home improvements. I was smart about it, I wanted to replace all the carpet in my home with Pergo. All my kids seem to have either allergy or asthma problems, most likely stemming from their bio-moms smoking during pregnancy. I decided one thing I could is get rid of the carpet and have flooring that's easier to keep clean and allergen free. But I can't afford to replace all the carpet at once. So I saved up enough money and had Pergo put in my boys' room and the hallway. (The boys have asthma and allergies where the girls just have allergies.) Now I'm saving enough money to put it in the living room and kitchen. I had the flooring place measure the whole house so every time we're ready to do a room, I can just call them and tell them which room, they can look up the measurements, give me a price, and order the flooring.

But flooring isn't all I'm excited about. I'm most excited because I've been approved for a loan to buy a van. I'm excited because the car I have is very old, and not practical for such a large family. The van I'm getting seats 8, and is perfect. My little car barely seats 5 and only if they are thin. We generally have 8 people living in our house at any given moment, so I need this van. It's such a huge accomplishment to me to get myself out of that hole, and be able to do the things my family needs me to do! It makes me feel good!!!