The Single Leading Cause of Divorce

I've heard again and again that money is the leading cause of divorce. Not adultery...not battery...not eating crackers in bed....money.

Toby and I have never fought about money - but - that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement in the way we handle it. Our big failing, in my mind, is that we are too darn nice to each other. I have friends whose husbands "don't let them" buy things. I don't have any idea what that is like. We give each other permission to buy anything our little hearts desire.

It sounds great at first (especially if your spouse is a penny-pinching coupon weilding Hun), but I think we both need the other to the be the bad guy sometimes...and that just aint happenin' in this relationship.

We need a hard-liner. We need a nay-sayer. We need a "No Man". So we're bringing in a pro.

Neither of us goes in for self-help books or the latest pop-psych advice. We don't watch Dr. Phil or Suze Orman....we don't get all tingly when we see Tony Robbins. But...we do like listening to all the morons...I mean, all the people with really messed up finances...that call into the Dave Ramsey Show. So, Saturday the 17th we're going to be attending the Dave Ramsey Live event at the E Center. I'm really hoping he can convert us (in five short hours) into the aforementioned penny-pinching, coupon weilding, budget bulldogs we need to be.

This is what the seminar promises to teach:

1. How to spend purposefully with an easy-to-follow plan.
   
2. What it takes to get out of debt and stay out of debt.
   
3. How to deal with the differences between men and women when it comes to finances.
   
4. The power of compound interest and how it affects your savings.
   
5. How to become a cheerful giver.
   
6. How to invest with confidence using diversification.
   
7. How to communicate better with your spouse about money.
   
8. How to work the Debt Snowball.
   
9. The basics of mutual funds.
   
10. How to get a good deal on a car or house.

If anyone else that reads this little blip in cyberspace would like to come with us, we'd love to have you!