Top Six of Six

Are you one of those parents that celebrates their kids’ half-birthdays? I am — kinda. Well, not really. I didn’t celebrate the half-birthdays of my actual kids, but I am celebrating the half birthday of my new baby — this website.

Yes, it’s Hope+Cents’ half-birthday! I officially launched this blog six months ago!

To be completely cliché, the past six months have flown by. But they have been a full six months. Full of learning, acclimating myself to this new-to-me world of blogging, and forming relationships with other bloggers. (And if I’m being real, also full of overwhelm and doubt, but shhh…don’t tell anyone.)

These six months have also been full of unexpected surprises like being interviewed by US News & World Report and His & Her Money, and becoming a part of AOL’s Finance Collective. The blog is just getting started, and I am so excited about what’s ahead.

In honor of this half-birthday (or six-month blogiversary), I bring to you the top six posts of the last six months. If you haven’t read them, take a look!

6. How to Do a Zero-Based Budget

I love that this post was one of the most popular in the last six months! After trying many different budgeting methods, the “zero-based budget” was the first one that stuck, and learning how to do it was life-changing for me. In this post, I share detailed instructions on how to do a zero-based budget. Read

5. My Debt-Free Journey

If you’ve been reading this blog, then you know that I paid off a bunch of debt in a fairly short amount of time. $74,000 in twenty-five months to be exact. In this post, I share how I did that — as well as some personal stuff along the way. Read

4. How to Squeeze $500 Out of Your Budget

Think you can’t squeeze any more out of your budget? Think again. In this post, I give suggestions for combing through your monthly budget for some savings. A little here and a little there, and you’ll see some significant savings. Read

3. 8 Reasons Why Your Budget Doesn’t Work

We can all easily spout off reasons why something doesn’t work for us. When it comes to budgeting, many of the excuses people give are the same. I tackle eight common reasons why budgets fail, and I offer ways to work through them. Read

2. Can a New Blogger Really Make Money?

As a newbie blogger, I didn’t know until after I started that blogging could be a source of income. Blogging can actually be a great way to make money on the side, or it can even provide a full-time sustainable income. In this post, I interview Michelle Schroeder-Gardner, who earns six-figures from her blog, Making Sense of Cents. Read

And coming in at #1…

1. 3 Things NOT to Sacrifice When Paying Off Debt

It’s fitting that this was the most popular post in the last six months since I am passionate about helping others become debt-free. Dumping debt is dependent on some level of sacrifice. You get to choose how much or how little. In this post, I share three things that we shouldn’t sacrifice while paying off debt. More importantly, we need to make sure we prioritize these three things. Read

Readers, thanks for reading, commenting, and sharing over the last six months. You have an almost infinite choice of blogs to read, so I truly appreciate you stopping by and reading this one!

THANK YOU!!

Happy (half) Birthday / Blogiversary to Me!