Three thousand dollars.
That’s how much we’ve just knocked off our family debt.
No treasure hunting. No gold fossicking equipment. No sorting through screws, leaves and nearly 2,000 coins.
And, thankfully, no standing at a bank machine for half an hour while it repeatedly spits our money back at us.
This time, our latest Debt Smash came courtesy of something that doesn’t always bring good news.
Tax time.
And for once, the numbers worked in our favour!
A little help when we needed it
If you’ve been following our $32K → $0 family debt journey, you’ll know that our family has had a rather eventful run of expensive surprises.
Our work truck needed repairs. Our household water tank gave up after more than 25 years of service. And our main family vehicle decided that having a functioning transmission was apparently optional.
Naturally, the transmission failure happened about a week before our newest twins were due to arrive.
Because apparently ordinary bad timing just wasn’t dramatic enough.
When we needed another vehicle to keep our family moving, a family member stepped in and lent us money to help.
It was a huge help at a difficult time, and it’s something we’ve always intended to repay.
We don’t need to share their identity or the details of the arrangement. What’s important is that they helped us when we needed it.
And now we’ve been able to make a meaningful repayment.
The tax refund that already had a job
We recently received money back from our tax.
Now, there are plenty of things a family of eight could find to spend an unexpected bit of money on.
With six children, two sets of twins, a home that constantly needs something and a little family business to keep running, the possibilities are practically endless.
But this time, the money already had a job waiting for it.
We put $3,000 towards repaying our family member.
Not the entire debt, but a substantial chunk of it.
And what a fantastic feeling that is.
We haven’t bought anything new. We haven’t suddenly become wealthy. And there certainly isn’t a spare $3,000 sitting around waiting for somebody to invent another household emergency.
But we owe $3,000 less than we did before.
And that’s worth celebrating.
From loose change to a serious chunk of debt
Our first Debt Smash was a rather ridiculous exercise in household financial archaeology.
We started with 17.8 kg of old coin jars, converted the gold fossicking station into a sorting facility, and spent ages counting coins.
We thought we’d found $358.50.
The bank eventually informed us that we’d actually deposited $377.10.
Apparently our skills at estimating and counting money both needed a little work.
You can read that adventure in Debt Smash #1: The Great Coin Jar Massacre.
This second smash is rather different.
| Our debt-smashing efforts | Amount |
|---|---|
| Debt Smash #1 – Loose change | $377.10 |
| Debt Smash #2 – Tax refund repayment | $3,000.00 |
| Total Debt Smashed by Us | $3,377.10 |
$3,377.10.
That’s money we’ve personally directed towards reducing our debt since beginning this journey.
And it feels pretty bloody good seeing that number grow.
Why this one means so much
It’s one thing to reduce a balance owed to a bank or financial institution.
It’s another to make progress repaying somebody who personally helped you through a difficult situation.
Family support is something we don’t take lightly.
When someone steps in during a difficult time, it matters. And being able to make a significant repayment is something we’re genuinely happy about.
There’s still more to repay, and there are plenty of other debts and household challenges ahead of us.
But we’re moving in the right direction.
And that’s what this journey is about.
Not pretending everything is suddenly fixed.
Not waiting for a miracle.
Just taking the opportunities we have, making decisions that help our family, and steadily working towards being comfortably functional again.
One smash at a time
We know $3,377.10 isn’t the finish line.
Our total debt is greater than the $32,000 fundraising target, and we’re not pretending otherwise.
But every amount we eliminate matters.
Sometimes that’s $377.10 rescued from years of forgotten coin jars.
Sometimes it’s $3,000 from a tax refund.
And sometimes it’ll be smaller amounts that barely look impressive on their own.
They all move us forward.
We started this journey because we wanted to do more than simply ask for help. We wanted to document what we’re doing ourselves, celebrate the progress, acknowledge the setbacks and hopefully show that even an enormous financial mountain can be tackled a little at a time.
Today, that mountain is $3,000 smaller.
And we couldn’t be happier about it.
Follow our $32K → $0 journey
Our family debt journey page shows our live progress, including what we’ve raised through GoFundMe and what we’ve personally smashed off our debts.
There are also plenty of ways to support our family without spending a cent – following our journey, sharing our posts, visiting Jays n Dees or simply helping somebody new discover what we’re doing.
$32,000 is the fundraising target.
$0 debt is the destination.
And today, we’re another $3,000 closer.
Debt Smash #2: COMPLETE. 💥