Lunapads

“What? That’s crazy! How can he take his whole family out to eat, charge it and then complain about not having money?  We cut costs by eating at home.  Elizabeth even uses cloth  pads so she doesn’t have to spend money!  She washes them! Yeah, she sticks them in the washing machine so she doesn’t have to buy any! That’s how serious we are about getting out of debt!” my husband pointed to the washing machine exasperated and tried to catch his breath.

His mom was visiting us for lunch and had just finished telling us about how my brother-in-law and his family of four went out to eat at a fancy restaurant the night before.  However, every time he called home, he complained about being in a financial pinch.

I blushed a little and said, “Yeah, remember, I use Lunapads.  Actually I just ordered a new set.  They’re very comfy and last a long time.  And, last week I calculated that over the last two years I’ve saved anywhere from $200 to $400 or more.“  I smiled happily knowing that my contribution was very much recognized and appreciated.

You see, in early 2006 my husband had a crazy notion, he wanted us to become debt free.  He had been listening to a radio show and was convinced that we could accomplish that goal and have a better life because of it.  I was doubtful but looked into it and realized that it was possible with some planning and effort.

We spent our income on paper, on purpose, and created a budget.  We listed all of our debts, smallest to largest, to see what we would pay off first, second and so on.  At first things seemed daunting.  Medical bills, credit cards, gas cards, car loans, personal loans, furniture loans, student loans, and store cards all needed to paid in full.  Working together we focused and saved enough money to open our first ever savings account for emergencies, and within two months pay off the first debt in full.

After that there was no stopping us.  We sold the house we just couldn’t afford along with a new car we had purchased less than a year earlier.  In addition to our regular full-time jobs we took on a part-time newspaper delivery job for eight months and later started dog sitting at the condos where we now live.   We cut costs by planning out our meals, packing lunches for work, reducing our car trips to save on gas, changed our phone service and car insurance provider, and lived without cable tv for a year.

When I ordered Lunapads in the fall of 2006 I intended to use them as a back-up to my menstrual cup.  And, of course, once and for all stop buying disposable pads and liners in an effort to save money and have a happier, healthier period.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but having Lunapads encouraged me to be a saver and really changed my attitude about having a period and being a woman.  I became self-sufficient and felt empowered.   I felt protected while walking dogs in the rain, and comfortable while delivering newspapers in the middle of the night.  I was doing something good for the environment and saving some money every month.  It’s a surprising effect of using and washing your own reusable menstrual pads.

Today we continue to work to reach our goal to become debt free.  We are proud owners of two paid-for cars, have no medical bills or lines of credit, and have only student loans left to tackle.  We estimate that we will be 100% debt free by December of 2009.
Elizabeth S.

This entry was posted on Friday, September 26th, 2008 at 1:24 pm by Guest and is filed under Guest Bloggers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.