Organic Mama Book Review - Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover

This Christmas, probably the best present Robert and I received was from his Uncle Sam. Don't laugh - it's a book about money. Specifically, Dave Ramsey's book, The Total Money Makeover. I'd heard of Dave Ramsey before but hadn't ever listened to him. I'd heard he was pretty hard core about his financial guidelines but reading the book, we realized we already follow most of his plan.

What words come to mind when you think about your money? Are you - Excited, confident or secure? Or do you feel fearful, anxious, defensive or angry? I'm not going to lie. Though we pay cash for everything - no credit cards, there have definitely been times that I didn't really want to know the balance in my account. Unfortunately, we can't escape money in our present culture.We need it to live. So, what if instead of feeling afraid or unsure of ourselves when we think about how our actual net worth, we could know exactly where we are and where we're going? If that's what you're looking for, this book is for you. We loved it.

If you can't afford to buy it - guess what? It's available at the Phoenix Public Library - and I'd venture to guess it's in the local library of whatever town you call home. But, in the meantime, here are some of the highlights of the book.


In "The Total Money Makeover", Ramsey reminds his readers that if they are willing to "Live Like No One Else, Later They Will Live Like No One Else". Meaning - if you're willing to be a little (or a lot!) frugal now, you'll find you have so much more to spend later down the road whether it's for vacations or homes or for your kids' college education. Dave explains that, as with excess weight, most of the problems people have have with money aren't due to lack of knowledge but force of (bad) habit.

I love that Mr. Ramsey is honest about where he gets his ideas. He makes no claim to having created some kind of new system. In fact, he credits our depression-era grandparents for his plan, which includes the following novel ideas (for our society).

1. Save an emergency fund. If you have one of these, you won't be tempted to spend on a credit card when crisis hits.
2. Don't use credit cards. If you can't afford to buy it with cash, you probably don't need it. And, if you have an emergency fund, you don't need them in emergency.
3. Pay off the debt you incurred rather than choosing bankruptcy or foreclosure. In the long run, he encourages you that it IS possible to pay off the debt and be free from that burden.
4. Contribute to your own retirement. It's no secret that Social Security won't fully fund all the living expenses of old age.
5. Pay off your house and invest the money you're now free to use each month!

If these ideas sound crazy or out of reach in our culture, be encouraged. Not only are they possible, these are the ways our grand or great-grandparents survived what they called the Great Depression. They didn't survive it by spending money they didn't have to create an artificial "consumer confidence" index. They grew their own food, used and reused the same things over and over (original recycling), mended their clothes (and sheets) instead of tossing them and bartered or traded for things they needed. My grandparents definitely lived this way and I picked up a lot of their frugal habits from my parents, who also used them. Though, Robert did draw the line when he discovered I was saving old bread bags. Maybe a little extreme...hahaha!

The truth is, so many people in our culture are slaves to their credit card bills, to inflated mortgages and insecure natures that require them to try to keep up with the Jones'. Robert and I have never wanted to be stuck in that rut. As Dave says, the Jones' may not have enough to live like they're living either. Where Robert and I have fallen down on the job is in the area of savings. Since reading the book, we've decided to take on extra work that will allow us to have the margin we need to create more emergency and retirement savings.

While these are some of the basic ideas of this book, it's worth buying or borrowing. Taking the time to read this and commit to the plan Dave outlines will give you the time to shift your mind into a new way of looking at money.

Since this is such an important topic to us, we'll be exploring different ways to save money and use it wisely over the next few months.

Have any of you read this book? What have your experiences with saving money or getting out of debt been?

Book Review: The Help, Kathryn Stockett

I've spent the last week reading a book I borrowed from the friend of a friend. I became so engaged in the story that I thought of it every day until I could get back to it again. The book is called, The Help. Kathryn Stockett's book of historical fiction, set in Mississippi during the early days of the 1960's, doesn't focus much on the dangerous physical brutality of the Civil Rights movement. Instead, she sets out to tell the story of the tenuous relationships between the white women of Jackson, Mississippi and the black women who served them every day.

The Help gives us a glimpse into the lives of Southern women, black and white, who were raised to follow a certain set of unwritten social rules related to race. One of the main characters, Skeeter, has a burning desire to become a writer. Her first attempt is a secretly and anonymously written collection of stories by the black women of the town who serve the white women, many of whom are Skeeter's friends. As she gathers the stories, she soon learns that the connections between those serving and the served are not nearly as clear cut as she'd believed. Her own bonds with the white community begin to change as she finds the courage to follow her own convictions, buoyed by the strength of the women whose stories she's writing.

The book, published in 2009, received positive reviews like this one in The Washington Post and this one at The Huffington Post. However, other reviewers like this one in the California Literary Review and this blogging mom raise concerns about a white author telling this story, intimating that Stockett's characters rely too heavily on stereotypes. They draw comparisons between Stockett and Skeeter and their similar backgrounds and career choices and criticize Stockett's use of vernacular when writing the dialogue of the African American women.

While I understand those comments, I feel that Ms. Stockett has written a story worth reading. First, it does something that made me choose history as a major in college. It brings dates and events to life by telling the STORY of the kind of people who lived them. Not only did I feel a real connection to the women in those pages, I gained a deeper understanding of a social situation I'm not unfamiliar with since I  live in Arizona, a border town hot with immigration issues.

Kathryn definitely knows how to write a story that touches the emotions. I laughed out loud more than once. I cried, I felt guilty. And, I alternately admired and feared for the courageous women who sought to tell their story. When I put the book down, I had that satisfying sensation I get after feeling my mind and heart have been stretched in a new way. Most importantly, Kathryn has written a good story. Unfairly "vernacular-ed"or not, it has the possibility to engage readers in a topic they might never have considered otherwise.

This review is a little late since the book came out last year but I was busy with a three month old at the time.  I'm guessing some of you are as behind in your reading as I am! If you haven't already read it, take the time to check it out. Especially some of you dear friends whose eyes glaze over when I talk passionately about history. THIS is why. It's just someone's story - and it is as worthy of reading as yours is.

If you have a favorite book, add it to the comments list! I'm back on the reading wagon.

Great Books for Raising a Healthy Child

Speaking of birth...If you are expecting a sweet bundle of love or already have one, here are a few great books to add to your library.

Preparing for Birth

Birthing from Within by Pam England - Good resource for preparing for the spiritual and physical reality of childbirth without creating anxiety in the reader. It's one of the only books I read on the subject that explores a woman's expectations of childbirth and offers a review of options without condemning the reader if she has chosen a hospital birth. If you're going to buy a book on the topic, skip the "What to expect..." books (they list everything that can possibly go wrong - like your mind doesn't explore these possibilities already!) and just read this one.

If you're looking for a month by month or week by week update on what's going on with your body and your baby, there are some great - FREE - online tools that aren't so scary!

Herbal for the Childbearing Year, Susan Weed. Great book on healthy herbs for moms before, during and after pregnancy. Susan Weed is definitely a very earthy person but has an encyclopedic level of knowledge about herbs. I refer to this book frequently.

After your baby arrives


The Baby Book - Dr. William Sears and Martha Sears R.N. - The main reason I love this book is that it is awesome for the middle of the night when your baby is crying and you're trying not to freak out. It is a sort of middle of the road book - empowering parents to understand basic stages of growth and common baby ailments. Dr. Sears does advocate immunization but gives parents suggestions for what to do before running to the doctor. I avoided a lot of unecessary doctor visits with this book. Oh, and besides running a very successful pediactric practice, this couple has raised eight children of their own! One of their sons is on an afternoon show called "The Doctors".

Smart Medicine for a Healthier Child - Zand, Roundtree and Walton. My sister-in-law bought this book for me. It also lists common childhood ailments and different treatment modalities for each ailment, including Herbal, Nutritional, Homeopathic or Allopathic (what an M.D. would prescribe).

I am passionate about being educated about health. We moms are our families' best doctors. Our intuition gives us insight into our kids' health even before we can feel that they have a fever. Our love for them gives us the strength to stay up all night when they're sick. But education give us confidence that we know the best course of action for a sick little person - whether that's a home remedy and rest or a trip to the doctor. Now that's a good feeling.

Blessings on you as you "doctor" your family. Hope these books help!