We've heard the cost of nearly everything is still on the rise, and millions of families will be cutting back on their Christmas spending this year. But for some families who don't want to cut back, the only option they have is to turn to plastic.  Credit Card debt is rising just about as fast as prices.  It caught one family off guard and now they are working to rebuild their finances. 

If you were to look in the wallets of most Americans, you'd find 2 or 3 of these credit cards. While they help build up your credit, they can also jeopardize your prized possesions - like your home or your car. 

David Christenson says, "I think like everybody else, instant gratification, rather than wait until you have the cash to buy something that you want instead of something that you need. We would go out and get it. Pretty soon you get to the point where your nose is just barely above water."

Christensen and his wife Lori didn't rely entirely on plastic to get by, but they used the card to help pay for construction costs for their new home. 

Lori says, "Certain things come up when your building a house that you don't expect and to try to pay off your bills when you need to buy more wood or paint."

And the funds started dwindling as they struggled to make the monthly minimum payment on their card. 

"Everything can be just fine and something bad happens and it just starts to compound and here you are sitting with a bunch of debt," says Dave.
 
The Christensen's say that the turning point came when they had to start paying their mortgage and that's when they looked for some help. They turned to a program at their church for support in paying off their debt, and they didn't go at it lightly. 

Dave says, "Tried to recognize where there's waste and what we can live without and what we actually need. If there was an opportunity to drop something that was a creature feature and didn't need to live and it was $20 or $15 we got rid of it."

They stopped supplying salt for soft water, they got rid of their land line and strictly use cell phones now and they planned meals and grocery lists so they buy only what they need when they get to the grocery store. 

Lori says, "We use coupons a lot. We definitely budget, budget every dollar that we are going to spend and how."

When it comes to Christmas it's going to be a different story than in previous years. The Christenson's have 6 kids and while buying gifts used to be expensive, this year will be a lot more on budget. 

"We're not afraid our children will disown us if they don't get hundreds of dollars in gifts...which they will not, something more thoughtful," says Dave.

And Lori will be making homemade gifts for other family members. 

While they continue to cut back and budget, The Christesons plan to keep the plastic habit in their past. 

"We chopped 'em up and haven't had any since," says Dave.

The Christensen's say the best thing to remember is to buy what you need and not what you want and start using a debit card instead of credit cards...that way your purchases are paid for right away.