Over the holiday weekend I couldn’t help but think about our freedom and independence as a county and about my freedom and independence from debt. It’s a feeling I never thought I would have.

While getting out of debt was a major struggle, trying to STAY out of debt is proving itself to be continuously tough.

My savings totals are in from June and I realized I didn’t say what my May totals were so I’ll tell you what they are now.

I have to be honest… my savings were (relatively speaking) pretty dismal.

May and June were the first 2 months that my husband and I have tried out the “joint account thing”. It’s strange because it almost ends up feeling like there is a “cap” put onto the amount that I can save each month. This, my friends, is going to take some major getting-used-to-it-ness. This is how we decided it was gonna work… we would each deposit a certain set amount into the joint account at the beginning of the month and then pay joint bills through that account. I thought it would be just fine and it WAS until I realized how much money was accumulating in that joint account. Suddenly, that joint account is like an odd uncle who is doing really well financially and no one quite knows why. Did the account go out and get a part-time job? Is it crocheting pot-holders for craft fairs on the side? I mean, really, where is that money coming from? And how is it all just hanging out in there not getting used?

The problem is that I know exactly where that money is coming from. My account (and from my husbands account). And while I was all aboard for the “joint account thing” now I don’t really like it. It translates into me having less to save which means less to eventually invest. I’m stewing about it and I know that there is going to be an adjustment period but it’s definitely harder to do the Spending Diet with this joint account situation. I know that it can be done. It’s just going to be trickier and the savings at the end of the month are not going to be as much as they were before.

May’s savings were a big, nasty ZERO. Yes. $0.00. Moral of the story: Europe is expensive so don’t go to Europe if money is something you would like to hang onto. With the exchange rate being as terrible as it is and with things just plain costing more over there it doesn’t add up to a lot of success in the savings department. Also, I didn’t have enough paid time off at my day job for the amount of time we were away so my paycheck got cut into on that end too. So, that’s that. May was a bust.

June was slightly better with a savings of $147.61. (You can see the total savings here.) My bank account was still writhing in pain from the trip and I had to take off my time off from work without pay so that hurt the bank account and savings that much more.

While the savings from May and June are lower then usual because of: the trip, the leave without pay at work, the feeling of a “savings cap” on my account because of the joint account it’s no wonder why these last two months have been less than desirable- savings-wise.

Despite those changes to my financial situation I’m trying to not get discouraged. You know, its about getting back up and it’s about CONTINUING to get back up. I’m not going to give up despite some set-backs. I’m going to figure out a way to generate additional income and make it through this adjustment time. We all have things that vary and change throughout different times in our lives and we’ve got to keep going and keep adapting to those changes.

It’s doesn’t mean giving up, it means fighting harder.