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Inspiration Thursdays: Well, What Do You Know? 10 Inspiring Quotes on Learning

Because Thursday’s child has far to go…

I am a homeschool mom and a perpetual student of life. I think, had I the resources to go along with my inclination, I would have been one of those strange birds that found themselves permanently glued to a university because I love learning. Luckily I have found that life, itself, in all of its’ intricate and extraordinary glory, is just as much a school campus as anywhere. While I feel I learned much while gaining an education in a formal setting, I’ve learned equally as much from life itself (mostly for free, save for the occasional “stupid tax” I’ve paid). In fact, plenty of the smartest people I know never had a formal education. Instead they had a curious mind and a love of learning. An education is a wonderful and valuable thing and I’m grateful for mine. But whether formally educated or not, it is important to have continual curiosity, along with an open mind and heart, to learn. Part of what my blog has been about is how much I have learned while facing some of the more challenging parts of my life and how I’ve managed to make lemons into some of the sweetest lemonade and how I’ve come to be a Rice and Beans kind of girl. I’m still learning to do this. It’s a continual work in progress. In the process of sharing my learning with you all, I am gifted in return with learning from you as readers when you email or comment. I am grateful. I love the conversation this blog allows us all to have. I find joy in how much we can learn from each other. Lifelong learning is part of what keeps us young, interested, and fascinated.  I love the fact that I will run out long before all there is to learn runs out. I have no excuse to ever be bored when there is something more to learn-and because I am infinitely curious I am fairly certain I will have plenty to keep me occupied. So today, I am inspired to celebrate learning by sharing these wonderful quotes. I hope they inspire you to  keep learning all along the way. Have a wonderful Thursday all!

1.“It is what we think we know already that often prevents us from learning.”~ Claude Bernard

2. “Life is a learning experience, only if you learn.” ~Yogi Berra

3. “Learning is not a spectator sport.” ~D. Blocher

4. “Man’s mind stretched to a new idea never goes back to its original dimensions.” ~Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr

5. “If you hold a cat by the tail you learn things you cannot learn any other way.” ~ Mark Twain

6. “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” ~ Henry Ford

7. “I am still learning.” ~ Michelangelo

8. “I don’t love studying. I hate studying. I like learning. Learning is beautiful.” ~ Natalie Portman

9. “I am not afraid of storms for I am learning how to sail my ship.” ~ Louisa May Alcott

10. “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi

All Comments are Worthy:

Which is your favorite? Do you have your own  favorite quote or saying about learning not listed? Please share!

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Inspiration Thursdays: Faith Keeps You Moving and Helps You Hold On (10 Quotes to Keep the Faith)

Because Thursday’s child has far to go…

Back when we had a feeling that my husband was going to endure a period of unemployment as we transitioned from military life back to the civilian world, we began to prepare like squirrels putting acorns away for a long winter. As the time neared for him to take that final step back into the civilian world, we were far more frightened about the future than we had anticipated being. We had a million ‘what if’s’ running through our heads. We’d prepared but things weren’t going quite as we’d hoped. Our already tight belts were about to get tighter. We went over five months without seeing anything more than a small check from the unemployment office. (It’s a good thing we like rice and beans like we do because we sure did eat a lot of them!) What we held onto through that difficult and uncertain time was our faith. We had faith in what we were doing and in why. We had faith that it was going to be ok. And we held very tightly to our faith in God.

We’re on the eve of more changes in our lives and I find myself considering faith and how it sustains me. It is easy to have faith on mountain tops and harder to have faith in the valleys. But it’s important to keep on having faith. When the world is beating on you and you are tired and scared faith is what helps you through it.

Today I’m sharing a few quotes on faith. I went looking for them to be inspired and encouraged. I hope these quotes help to strengthen your resolve, as well, to have faith in the path you are on-whether it’s to simplify your life or to continue a new direction you’ve taken, or maybe it’s focusing more on the things that matter most or continuing to work hard kicking debt to the curb. Whatever it is you face today, I hope for you to have faith that your challenges will help you grow and that you will get through it. There is light at the end of the tunnel. Take heart. Have faith.

1. “Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith.” — St Francis of Assisi

2. “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”  –Hebrews 11:1(NIV)

3. “Faith is like radar that sees through the fog.”  ~Corrie Ten Boom, Dutch Christian Holocaust survivor, Tramp for the Lord

4. “A better world shall emerge based on faith and understanding.” –General Douglas MacArthur

5. “The smallest seed of faith is better than the largest fruit of happiness.” –Henry David Thoreau

6. “Fear knocked at the door.  Faith answered.  And lo, no one was there.” –Author Unknown

7. “Faith begins where Reason sinks exhausted.” –Albert Pike

8. “Faith makes things possible, not easy.”  –Author Unknown

9. “Fear can keep us up all night long, but faith makes one fine pillow.” — Philip Gulley

10. “Faith is believing that the outcome will be what it should be, no matter what it is.”  –Colette Baron-Reid

All Comments are Worthy:

Do you have a favorite quote or saying on faith? Add it to my list in the comments!

9 Unexpected Things That Have Happened on Our Road to Debt Free

We’ve experienced both highs and lows on our road to debt freedom and today I want to share with you some of the fun and unexpected things that have happened on our journey.

  1. Less mail and far fewer bills in my mailbox. Most days there’s nothing in there. And I kind of like that.
  2. Surprise expenses are only annoying now and not fear inducing. When we took our son to the emergency room last winter we weren’t afraid of the bill in the same way we would have been before our debt free journey so we focused more easily on making sure he was getting the care he needed.
  3. Budgeting has become a fun game for us. At first making a budget is confusing and frustrating. But as you see progress it gets fun. Trust me. (If you haven’t started yours here are two blog articles that might help you: How to Make a Budget That Works over at BeingFrugal.net and How to Make a Budget over at ChristianPersonalFinance.com)
  4. As we’ve gotten closer to debt freedom we are getting giddy about making plans for our money instead of our debt making the plans for us.
  5. There are almost no arguments about money in our house. I can’t recall the last time we argued over money. (Underwear and socks left on the floor, yes. But not money.)
  6. I’ve learned to cook some great fun food, like homemade pizza. Eating at home is healthier and we don’t need to leave a tip. When we do eat out it really does feel like a treat because it is.
  7. My kids understanding of money has improved greatly. And I’m very motivated to make sure they don’t travel the debt road we have.
  8. Vacations planned and paid for in cash are FAR more fun because you can truly be in the moment. I love knowing on the ride home that I will not be getting the bill in the mail. The memories stay more golden for me this way.
  9. My five year old walking around hollering “Freeeeedooommmmm!!!!!” or “I’m debt free!!!!!!!” from listening to Dave Ramsey’s free podcast with me in the car or while I’m on the treadmill is hilarious. But clearly he’s listening.
Comment Worthy:
Add a 10th thing to this list! What has been a fun and unexpected result of your debt freedom journey?

The Most Important Tool in Becoming Debt Free

As my husband and I were discussing our finances this evening, our conversation veered, as it often does, into questions about where we’ve been so we can better determine where we are going. We found ourselves on the subject of discussing what, exactly, was the most important thing  in our journey to becoming debt free. He said something that surprised me but that I found rather profound: “It is more of an attitude than a technique.” I looked at him and waited for him to go on as he was sorting laundry from his most recent trip out of town for work. He said, “the thing is, it’s so easy to talk yourself from a want to a need.” I smiled at him. He did not easily jump on board with our debt free journey. For a long time he humored me but didn’t really embrace that where we were going was not only important but achievable. Over time, as he has seen our debt decrease and our choices in life expand he has become even more enthusiastic about getting debt free than I am. My husband, who once coveted a Breitling watch to the tune of several thousand dollars, is now incredibly excited about a re-issue Army watch instead. For less than $100 (but isn’t sure if he really needs it since he has one that tells time fine now, though it is heavily worn and falling apart and has been to the repair shop countless times in the last two years). He even sold several things he loved in order to upgrade his bike recently. It didn’t cost us a dime. He used what we like to call “found money” in the objects he already owned that he was willing to part with in order to have his better bike. He rides joyfully and often and it is a serious hobby for him so I’m proud of him for doing it this way. His attitude has most definitely changed over the course of the last many years that we’ve gone on this journey to debt free. We both backslide on occasion, but I realize tonight how right he is. It’s easy to talk yourself from a want to a need. We still struggle with this, but a whole lot less often than we used to. There are long lists of items that can be cut from a budget but the reality is that the most important tool is this: It’s more of an attitude than a technique. When you embrace the attitude, the techniques will follow more naturally.

An old favorite picture of mine: Thoughtful by the sea.

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