My husband Adam and I married 2 years ago. When we married, per our W2's... we were considered middle class. Now, 2 years later... we're still middle class in the eyes of the goverment, but not to our checking account.

We don't live extragivently by any means. We buy used cars, I rarely buy clothes that aren't on sale or I buy them at consignment shops, we take advantage of the "buy 1 get 1 free" deals at our local grocery store, we car pool as much as possible to save on gas, etc. Even at the YMCA we made to much to bring our membership down, which blew my mind! (I went else where for 21.35 a month instead of 90.00 a month!) Yet, try as we might, we're still up to our eye balls in debt.

Just this month we sold one of our cars to pay down debt. Thankfully we don't have car payments and this is why! We can take the money and put it else where when needed in an emergency.

Greedy lenders and brokers are the cause of the housing mess we're in. Folks who should never have been given a mortgage have sent this encomy spiriling out of control. It's not an "American Right" to own a home, it's an "American Dream" folks! Gas prices have only made it worse and I blame OPEC and the greedy Oil Execs that get to sleep on their expensive "fluffy pillows" at day's end. I'm tired of debating whether to buy meat, eggs, and milk or gas each pay period. I'm tired of watching my husband stress each pay period with our budget and the bills that we have (We actually don't have many, but we're getting there!). Short of nixing phone, internet and cable... there's nothing else we can do to our budget to help ourselves out, it's just that bad! Each day things get more and more expensive... I can't imagine what next year will bring!