Hi, I’m Tara! Welcome to Our Bill Pickle, a personal finance blog that has nothing to do with actual pickles.
I launched this blog in May 2018 to document our debt-free journey.
Since launching this blog, we:
- Paid off almost $50K of debt;
- Saved a $5k (and later, a $10K) emergency fund;
- Had a baby; and
- Purchased our first home
As of November 2021, we have about $16K of debt remaining, all student loans. Repaying our debt is still a priority for me, but a lot has changed.
The Our
Jeff and I started dating in February 2011. We got engaged in January 2014 and married in October 2016.
We are:
- New parents
- BA grads (different disciplines, different years)
- Still cat parents
- New homeowners
- Still chipping away at our debt.
Conquering our mountain of debt (and managing our finances in general) is a team effort, hence the our. However, I am a writer by profession, so when it comes to this site, I’m the one holding the pen.
The Bill(s)
Our financial situation has changed a lot over the last 10 years.
We both brought debt to the marriage. I brought a credit line and a car loan and Jeff brought a five-figure student loan.
I saved some money, spent a chunk of it moving, then started saving again.
I opened an RRSP and used a portion of it for a downpayment on our house.
After our kid was born, we opened an RESP and finally moved all our investments to a robo-advisor.
Our bills have changed a lot since 2011 — and I’m sure they will continue changing.
The Pickle
“A personal financial dilemma is known as a bill pickle.”
After I finished laughing at this joke, I wondered: what are our bill pickles? It didn’t take long to identify a few:
We want to pay back debt but a huge chunk of our income goes to basics, like, uh, our mortgage.
We want to travel more, but bills and debt payments account for the bulk of our budget.
We have a kid now. How do we balance all of that while also securing her financial future?
These dilemmas — our pickles — change all the time depending on what stage of life we’re in. The one constant: they exist. And they require us to make decisions about how we steward our resources.
Our Bill Pickle
My goal with Our Bill Pickle is to write about how a real family lives life while managing their money — including their (very) real debt.
If you’re looking for a story about paying off a huge amount of debt in a short period of time, you’re in the wrong place. I do my best to be transparent and honest about our financial situation and aim to ensure this remains a judgement-free space.
Wanna chat? Give me a shout!
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