A Week In Central Minnesota On A $135,002 Joint Salary

Housing costs: $1,679 (mortgage, insurance, and taxes).
Loan payments: $500 extra towards mortgage principal.
Health insurance: $115.22
Dental insurance: $105
HSA contribution: $540
Pension contributions: $442
Husband’s 401(k): 8% gross + 6% match (roughly $700 combined monthly — he just started contributing to this).
Husband’s company stock purchase: $150
Roth IRA: $580
Union dues: $96
Internet: $76.77
Gas: $74
Electric: $82
Phones: $108
Car insurance: $112
Netflix: $7.49 (with ads).
Daycare: $1,200
Charity: $500

Was there an expectation for you to attend higher education? Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
There was an expectation that I would have at least two years of college. In Minnesota, you can attend college for free your junior and senior year of high school. My parents encouraged us to get our generals done while we were still in high school, and all six of my siblings and I have done the program. Because I have so many siblings, my parents were not able to pay for college for any of us, but they did help us with applying for scholarships, grants, and loans. They also let us live rent-free and paid for food if we chose a college close enough to home and were able to commute. I was able to graduate debt-free by saving before college, working two or three jobs at a time while attending school, living with my parents during my undergrad, and becoming a graduate assistant in grad school, which gave me partial tuition reimbursement. I worked an average of 30 hours a week during the school year and 50-60 hours a week during the summer. I recently took several graduate-level courses to bump myself on the teaching pay scale to a master’s +30 level, which we cash-flowed. My husband received a full ride academic scholarship to his college, and he was able to graduate without loans as well.

Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent(s)/guardian(s) educate you about finances?
There was a big emphasis on saving money and not “wasting” it. Money from birthdays (my grandma would give us $10) was put in savings accounts, with the intent that we would use it for college or to buy a car. My parents talked to us about earning money and not letting our expenses exceed our income. For a few years, we made practice budgets as part of our curriculum. I only remember receiving an allowance once, for a few months, and we were expected to donate 10%, save 30%, and could spend the other 60%.

What was your first job and why did you get it?
My first job was at 12, refereeing soccer. I received $20 a game and paid my parents $5 to drive and wait until the game was done. I reffed for a few years and also babysat starting at 12. My first job with regular hours was working as a library aide in the public library when I was 16. I got the jobs to save for a car and college.

Did you worry about money growing up?
I never worried extensively but there was always the knowledge that money was finite and we didn’t have a lot for extra things. We were a one-income family of nine: My dad worked as a high school teacher and my mom homeschooled us, so the budget was always tight. We ate out only a few times a year, and used mostly secondhand items and hand-me-down clothing. We never had our utilities shut off and the bills were always paid on time, but I’m sure my parents struggled to afford everything.

Do you worry about money now?
I’m not sure I worry but I definitely think about it a lot and constantly run through different scenarios in my mind. It’s hard to feel that the money we’re making now is permanent. I spent so much of my life saving every extra cent and not spending on anything “frivolous” that seeing the amount we make now doesn’t quite feel real. We are able to save a good chunk every month and theoretically have more money to spend, but I still sometimes feel a need to save. Our daughter S. died as an infant three years ago, and I’ve learned not to take anything for granted. I think a lot about how to balance saving for the future or an unknown and using the money we earn now to live well and enjoy life.

At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net?
I got married a few months before my 21st birthday and moved into an apartment with my husband, K., at the same time, so I would say then. We paid all of the expenses ourselves, except health insurance. I was still on my parents’ health insurance and K. was on his parents’ until my first job out of grad school at 23, at which point I paid for health insurance for K., our daughter T. and me. If either one of us lost our job, I know we would be able to manage on one income, but things would be very tight. My parents would let us live with them if we needed it, but I’m hoping we never do.

Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain.
No.