Day 10 and Giving

Well, first off, a success! We went to the ballgames last night and only spent the money to get in the games, then came straight home and ate the chili and baked potatoes I had ready for supper. Did you know you can bake potatoes in the slow cooker or crockpot? More on that in a minute. We have another ballgame tonight. Our goal is once again to only spend the money it costs to get into the game.

An important component of many financial plans is giving or tithing. Dave Ramsey and Mary Hunt (author of Dumping Debt and other books) both suggest giving 10%. With us being in as much debt as we are, it's hard to give that much, but we have started giving off the top before we do anything else. We have become true believers in doing this, as we have been blessed beyond belief by doing it. Last summer, when we first recommitted ourselves to trying to follow Dave Ramsey's plan, we had our "zero budget" almost too well. We didn't know how we were going to have enough $'s to put gas in Tom's car. But I went ahead and gave and a couple of days later, we got a rebate check from our car insurance that was just enough to put gas in Tom's car to make it to the next payday. I have been able to get enough grants and scholarships to pay all of my tuition and fees and even been blessed with enough extra to help pay for my books. That means I'm going to school this time without acquiring any debt! There are many other ways too numerous to mention. So, to paraphrase one person in our FPU class "Tithing is something that doesn't make mathematical sense, but you'll be very blessed if you do it".

Now, back to the baked potatoes. Wash the potatoes, and cover them in foil. Then put them in the crockpot or slow cooker on low for several hours (how long it takes will really depend on how hot your cooker gets). This makes for a great quick meal on a night when you're pressed for time.

Thanks to all of my friends for their help and support and for listening to me!