Last year Linley and I planned early and purchased all of our Chrsitmas presents early (around Thanskgiving) to take advantage of sales and to get it out of the way. This year should be no different. However, the amount spent might change a little. My knee surgey wiped out our savings and has slowed my work pace a little. We are finding that Linley is doing well with the photography, and we should continue to see a steady increase in shoots and card ordering with the Holiday Season coming around the corner. However, lately instead of that money being extra and going into savings, we are using it to pay bills. I've gotten used to it and we keep pushing forward and maintain positive attitudes. I think about this challenge and how it has made us mindful of what we do with discretionary money (very little) which has made positive changes in our lifestyle. I was driving around downtown yesterday with my boys in the car and we saw more than a dozen people living on the street and I spent time talking to the boys about how blessed we are to have a roof over our head, food on the table and warm clothes in this wet and cold weather. I love how this challenge has opened our eyes to the importance of talking to our children about finances and making the right decisions financially and being in a position to help those less fortunate. My son's school is collecting for a food drive to provide food for needy children and my boys love getting involved. We thank God everyday for what he provides for us and we know we are blessed to have trivial problems such as not being able to pay a phone bill on time or not having cable. We are able to pay for our healthcare, our utilities and provide for our children. So Thank You Florida Commerce Credit Union for helping us provide the best possible life for our family.