Money, Money, Money

Uh oh, I’m about to dive into an area that’s a little touchy. In most cases, I stick to talking about things and issues involving blue skies. Even if those skies have a few clouds, they’re usually white and still make for a beautiful day.

But talking about money ventures into grey skies with grey clouds and an awful lot of rain pouring down on many households around the world. So again, I know I’m going into some unchartered territory here so my hope is you won’t shoot the messenger.

Finances. The number one cause for marital arguments has maintained one of the top two reasons for divorce in our country for as long as I’ve been alive. Most couples begin in debt because of our infatuation with the perfect wedding and honeymoon. When I was in the hotel business I was always amazed at the amount of money couples paid to get married. A simple twenty-minute ceremony followed by food and dancing could easily (and oftentimes) climb into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

So here we are with most married couples beginning their new life together in debt and clawing to get out. Add on top of that the debt each person brought into the marriage and you have a recipe for disaster – from day one. And if that wasn’t bad enough, mix in a bad economy, layoffs, foreclosures and who can even think straight at that point?

As a couple, Keith and I decided in 2008 that we would not participate in this recession. We’d let it go on around us but we wouldn’t think about it, wouldn’t read about it and we certainly would not get involved in it. This probably sounds like we’re in a bubble…and we are. We created a bubble for ourselves and with much prayer and wisdom have continued to navigate the waters in these “interesting” times and we’ve spent zero time blaming the government, other people or the banks for anything that’s happened over the last three years.

We’ve done no blaming because we’ve not had time. We were too busy putting things into action and getting our house in order. We were making our lives “recession proof.” So how did we do it and is it too late for you and your hubby to do it too? It is absolutely not too late and my hope is you’ll join Keith and me in creating your own “bubble.”

Today’s posting has no actual details contained and that is because the blog posts related to finances comes must with a disclosure. When I created this club, I did so with the intention that women from every race, religion and socio-economic background could benefit and would not skew toward any set group. And I will continue to write blog posts with this in mind.

But when venturing into waters as deep as finances, I don’t know how to help you navigate without God as your ship captain. I’ve never attempted to do that so I can’t give advice on it. I can only speak from experience and in our household, God is the most important factor in all we say and do (many times we fail, but we always dust ourselves off and try again).

I am sensitive to the fact that many members of this club may not believe in the God of my faith. And the purpose of this blog is not to convince you otherwise. So here is the DISCLOSURE: I’m launching a blog series on finances and will be sharing how Keith and I have managed not to participate in this recession. But most of the principles we’ve followed come from the Bible, Dave Ramsey and Rick Warren.

Please know that no matter your faith, I believe you can and will benefit. But I wanted you to know there will be a faith-based component to my writings over the next week or so and I will respect your decision if you choose not to read them. But if finances have been weighing heavily on your marriage, I think you might find it worthwhile to at least take a peak…

Until tomorrow…make it a great day!

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Fawn Weaver

Founder at Happy Wives Club

Fawn Weaver is the USA Today and New York Times bestselling author of Happy Wives Club: One Woman's Worldwide Search for the Secrets of a Great Marriage, adopting the same name as the Club she founded in 2010. The Happy Wives Club community has grown to include more than 1 million women in over 110 countries around the world. She’s an investor in real estate, tech sector and lifestyle brands. When she’s not writing or working, she's happily doting over her husband of twelve years, Keith (and sometimes manages to do all three simultaneously).