Spilling the Financial Tea With Our Better Halves

📈 Are you on track with the Baby Steps? Get a free personalized plan. Today we’ve got two very special guests in the studio . . . Winston Cruze and Whitney Kamel! In this episode, Rachel, George and their spouses spill the tea on married life, money, and how the two mix. Next Steps: 🏅 Help us make the show better! Please fill out a quick survey. 🍸 Follow Smart Money Happy Hour on TikTok: @smartmoneyhappyhour. 📱 Submit a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George! Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it. 💵 Start your free budget today. Download the EveryDollar app! Connect With Our Sponsors: 🔒 Get 20% off when you join DeleteMe. 🌿 Get up to 40% off with code SMARTMONEY at Cozy Earth. Today’s Happy Hour Special: 🍸 Hanky Panky Recipe: Liquor.com Ingredients: 1 1/2 ounces gin 1 1/2 ounces sweet vermouth 2 dashes Fernet-Branca Garnish: orange twist Instructions: Add the gin, sweet vermouth and Fernet-Branca into a mixing glass with ice and stir until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist. Explore More From Ramsey Network: 💡 The Rachel Cruze Show 💰 George Kamel 🎙️ The Ramsey Show 💸 The Ramsey Show Highlights 🧠 The Dr. John Delony Show 🪑 Front Row Seat with Ken Coleman 📈 EntreLeadership Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:05Rachel Cruze?

  Cannot believe it, but Whitney Kamel, George's better half.

• 0:09George Kamel?

  Winston Cruz, ladies and gentlemen.

• 0:11Rachel Cruze?

  Unbelievable.

• 0:12Speaker 02

  Wow.

• 0:13George Kamel?

  Who is the nerd and who's the free spirit in your relationship when it comes to money?

• 0:16Speaker 02

  I've never heard this question before. What's a harmless pet peeve your significant other is guilty of?

• 0:20George Kamel?

  It's got dark real quick.

• 0:21Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 0:27Rachel Cruze?

  Hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz.

• 0:29George Kamel?

  I'm George Kamel.

• 0:31Rachel Cruze?

  And this is. Smart Money Happy Hour.

• 0:39George Kamel?

  Special drink for some special guests today.

• 0:42Rachel Cruze?

  That's right.

• 0:43George Kamel?

  Highly requested.

• 0:44Rachel Cruze?

  Cannot believe it, but I'm gonna go ladies first. Whitney Kamel, George's better half.

• 0:51George Kamel?

  Winston Cruz, ladies and gentlemen.

• 0:53Rachel Cruze?

  Unbelievable.

• 0:54Speaker 02

  Wow.

• 0:54Rachel Cruze?

  You got.

• 0:55Speaker 02

  Thank you for having me.

• 0:56George Kamel?

  I don't think you understand how long the people have been wanting this.

• 1:00Speaker 02

  This has been the longest sales job ever.

• 1:02George Kamel?

  It feels like it.

• 1:03Speaker 02

  For Whitney and I.

• 1:04George Kamel?

  It feels like it.

• 1:05Speaker 02

  Finally closed the deal today. Congratulations.

• 1:07George Kamel?

  I'm not sure. I think people thought I was lying, that I even had a wife.

• 1:11Rachel Cruze?

  Well, this episode's gonna be very special.

• 1:12Speaker 02

  I think, I think you'll prove it after today. I think you'll prove it after today.

• 1:17Rachel Cruze?

  Well, overall, this is the show where two friends who happen to be money experts talk about what you're talking about. Everything from pop culture, current events, and money. And this episode, obviously, we're gonna chat our marriages, which is so fun.

• 1:29George Kamel?

  Marriage and money.

• 1:30Rachel Cruze?

  And we're gonna sip on a.

• 1:32George Kamel?

  Hanky panky.

• 1:33Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, a little hanky panky.

• 1:35George Kamel?

  I know it's a family-friendly show. That's about as edgy as we're gonna get today. And we're gonna tell you what's in this drink and give you our rating at the end of the episode and reveal the cost per glass, so stick around for that.

• 1:45Rachel Cruze?

  That's right.

• 1:46George Kamel?

  Well.

• 1:47Rachel Cruze?

  This is gonna be a fun episode. We got questions in the fishbowl that we're gonna draw. You see that fishbowl over there?

• 1:52Speaker 02

  I see that fishbowl.

• 1:54Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 1:54George Kamel?

  No fish, just questions.

• 1:56Rachel Cruze?

  Draw some questions out. And we're actually gonna play a newlywed game. We have dry and array sports and everything. It's gonna be pretty entertaining.

• 2:03George Kamel?

  I feel like this is really a tell-all episode. People are just hoping that our spouses roast us.

• 2:08Rachel Cruze?

  I know. Do y'all have a lot to roast us on, you think?

• 2:09Speaker 02

  Hmm.

• 2:10Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know.

• 2:11Speaker 02

  No, it's not. It's a pretty mild episode.

• 2:13George Kamel?

  Okay, alright. We'll roast you then.

• 2:17George Kamel?

  It's very, very exciting.

• 2:18Speaker 02

  I'd love for you to roast me, George.

• 2:20George Kamel?

  Wouldn't dare. People know I love Winston.

• 2:24George Kamel?

  Okay, so before we draw the first question, I want to hear how you two met. And I'd like to hear it from Winston's side, if that's okay.

• 2:31Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, wow.

• 2:32George Kamel?

  Because I've heard it from your side, I feel like there's a different side.

• 2:36Rachel Cruze?

  We have like three stories.

• 2:37George Kamel?

  Exactly.

• 2:37Speaker 02

  I know the very first time that I like met her in person, she was coming over to the house that I was renting. This is in college. And she was with one of my roommates.

• 2:50George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 2:51Speaker 02

  He brought her by. And then she comes in and she shakes my hand like we were like.

• 2:56George Kamel?

  Business acquaintances?

• 2:58Speaker 02

  I mean, like she was in a job interview.

• 3:02George Kamel?

  Was like.

• 3:02Speaker 02

  I had never played.

• 3:03George Kamel?

  Rachel Ramsey.

• 3:04Speaker 02

  I had never played the handshake game with a female until then. But it was like this like, bro, standoff. And so she does the tour of the house with my roommate and they leave. And that's the first time we met.

• 3:18George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 3:19Rachel Cruze?

  But I walked in, I was like, classes hadn't started yet, I was just a freshman. To this house and legitimately, I was like, there are so many good looking guys that like love Jesus, that are like good guys, they're like young life leaders and stuff. And they were like, all had like visors on and like outdoor bags and like y'all were all like campers.

• 3:37Speaker 02

  And this Brentwood girl is walking in like, wow, what's an outdoor bag?

• 3:42Rachel Cruze?

  But I was like, who, what is, there's a whole other world of men out there. But I always thought, I thought you were good looking.

• 3:49Speaker 02

  Oh, thank you.

• 3:50George Kamel?

  You're saying like it was like surprising.

• 3:53Speaker 02

  Yeah, I was fascinated by you.

• 3:55George Kamel?

  So when was the first like spark? When was the, okay, I think there's something here. I think we should date. Was that months later?

• 4:00Rachel Cruze?

  A year, a year later.

• 4:02Speaker 02

  It was a great, I mean, Rachel alluded to it. She actually went on dates with multiple roommates.

• 4:09George Kamel?

  So this is literally, this is the bachelorette.

• 4:11Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh.

• 4:12George Kamel?

  It was the bachelorette before the bachelorette.

• 4:14Speaker 02

  I did not over, I did not overcook that statement at all, but she went out on dates with one other.

• 4:23Rachel Cruze?

  If a guy, listen, my rule is if a guy asks me out to dinner, sure.

• 4:27George Kamel?

  So you dated three out of the four roommates before you landed on those stuff?

• 4:30Rachel Cruze?

  No, no, he had like nine guys.

• 4:32Speaker 02

  Not dated, but she went out with a few, and then, you know, and then...

• 4:35Rachel Cruze?

  It was not serious.

• 4:36Speaker 02

  I was, I was trying to figure out life, as I still am. And so then she became great friends with my younger sister, and the circle started to get tighter and closer, and then she was available.

• 4:52George Kamel?

  That's a good start. That's a green flag.

• 4:54Speaker 02

  All the, all the roommate stuff had kind of like washed out. And so I called her and specifically remember asking her on a date, because I'm old school.

• 5:06George Kamel?

  Represent.

• 5:06Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm.

• 5:07Speaker 02

  And, uh, no, I didn't. I didn't. I take that back.

• 5:11Rachel Cruze?

  No, yeah, you didn't. You hung out with me twice.

• 5:13Speaker 02

  I went in with the can I drive your car method.

• 5:16Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 5:16George Kamel?

  What? That's not a method?

• 5:17Rachel Cruze?

  He wanted to like hang out a couple of times, and then I remember saying, I'm not hanging out with Winston Cruz anymore unless you ask me on a date, because I don't know, I don't know this game to play.

• 5:24Speaker 02

  She didn't say that to me. I think by that time I just said, "Date."

• 5:28George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 5:29Speaker 02

  That's the magic word, I guess.

• 5:30George Kamel?

  So, hey, can I borrow your car?

• 5:32Speaker 02

  No, not borrow it.

• 5:32Rachel Cruze?

  No, he was like, you got a new car.

• 5:34Speaker 02

  Let's go drive it.

• 5:35Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna drive your car, like, you know.

• 5:36George Kamel?

  Okay. Similar to borrowing, but the person is in the car with you. The owner is in the car too.

• 5:42Rachel Cruze?

  The passenger seat.

• 5:43Speaker 02

  I didn't like need a ride to CVS.

• 5:48George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 5:48Speaker 02

  It's very different.

• 5:49George Kamel?

  Much less romantic than Rachel's version.

• 5:51Rachel Cruze?

  Wait, what?

• 5:52Speaker 02

  Oh, Rachel's version is like, I saw him and I just was so enamored by him.

• 5:56Rachel Cruze?

  I did.

• 5:57George Kamel?

  And Winston's like, yeah, I mean, she was there, I was there, she dated a few of the other roommates. I was still there, and I was like, yeah, let's go for a ride.

• 6:03Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 6:04George Kamel?

  That's the, that's the spark notes.

• 6:05Speaker 02

  No, this is the how we met story, and, and then we went into, oh, then how did it start to grow? I mean, we can...

• 6:11George Kamel?

  First date, sparks fly, bada bing bada boom, she's Rachel Cruz.

• 6:14Speaker 02

  So much sparks. Many.

• 6:17Rachel Cruze?

  Wow.

• 6:18George Kamel?

  Multiple.

• 6:19Speaker 02

  Multiple.

• 6:20George Kamel?

  All right.

• 6:20Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, how about you guys?

• 6:21George Kamel?

  Settles it. I think equally as unromantic, we were coworkers.

• 6:27George Kamel?

  I think I'd like to hear your side.

• 6:29Speaker 03

  Yeah, and it was my first week and George came and said hi to me and he was one of the first few people that was super friendly to me, but it wasn't in a flirty way, it was actually in a like, oh, this guy is so nice.

• 6:41Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, just a nice guy.

• 6:42Speaker 03

  But we didn't start dating till like two years later because at the time Ramsey was a lot smaller and you had to kind of know if you were gonna like actually date or work out because the whole company I feel like was watching you at the time.

• 6:55Rachel Cruze?

  Totally. So you all worked at Ramsey for about two years before you actually like started dating?

• 7:00Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 7:00Rachel Cruze?

  How long did you all date for before you got married?

• 7:02Speaker 03

  Uh, a year.

• 7:03George Kamel?

  Yeah, just over a year.

• 7:04Speaker 03

  Yeah, we did hide it for three months, we didn't tell anyone at work and someone came up to me and they're like, that George guy is really weird to you.

• 7:13Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 7:13Speaker 03

  And I was like, oh, is he? I don't know why.

• 7:15Rachel Cruze?

  People are watching, but you were in a personality then?

• 7:17Speaker 03

  No.

• 7:17Rachel Cruze?

  You're doing social media.

• 7:18Speaker 02

  Oh, okay.

• 7:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, this is before personality.

• 7:20Speaker 03

  He wasn't even in the post scrolling.

• 7:22George Kamel?

  I was like an email marketing coordinator.

• 7:24Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 7:25George Kamel?

  You know?

• 7:25Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 7:26George Kamel?

  Social media guy.

• 7:26Speaker 02

  Were you intimidated to like walk up to her randomly?

• 7:28George Kamel?

  Oh, I was.

• 7:29Speaker 03

  He didn't even ask me out.

• 7:31George Kamel?

  Yeah, I messaged her over Snapchat. And I'm a grown man at this point, I'm not seventeen.

• 7:37Rachel Cruze?

  To ask her out.

• 7:37George Kamel?

  And I was like, hey, um, Michael, Michael Reddish, mixologist and his wife Vicki, they wanna know like what you would say.

• 7:44Speaker 03

  They think we should go on a date, that's what he said.

• 7:48Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, no, George.

• 7:49George Kamel?

  So she called me.

• 7:50Speaker 02

  I would rather drive her car.

• 7:54Speaker 02

  Be honest.

• 7:54George Kamel?

  Yeah, I should have asked, hey, can I drive your car?

• 7:57Speaker 03

  And I was on my way to church.

• 7:58Speaker 02

  A lot of people are saying.

• 7:59Speaker 03

  And I literally said to him, I was like, I'll get back to you after church. So I was mad because I had sneakily given him my number. So I was like, you have my number and you're doing this like,

• 8:08Rachel Cruze?

  Snapchat.

• 8:08Speaker 03

  They're putting me in a trap because he's not actually asking me out. So then you're making me feel weird.

• 8:12George Kamel?

  It was like, let me just get my thoughts because then it was, you know what? It was protecting myself.

• 8:16Rachel Cruze?

  You were, self-preservation mode.

• 8:17George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 8:18Rachel Cruze?

  Unhealthy George.

• 8:19George Kamel?

  Exactly.

• 8:19Speaker 02

  If she says no, then it's their fault.

• 8:21George Kamel?

  It's just like, well, she said no to the idea of them saying that we should.

• 8:24Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 8:25George Kamel?

  She wasn't interested in their idea.

• 8:26Speaker 02

  Arms length proposal.

• 8:28George Kamel?

  She didn't reject me, she rejected their idea.

• 8:30Rachel Cruze?

  That's right. Oh, gee.

• 8:32Speaker 02

  They're, yeah, I hear you.

• 8:33Speaker 03

  But I came back and said I'd go on one date and then I regretted it because we had fun. We didn't start dating again till Christmas party of, what was it? 2017 or something?

• 8:42George Kamel?

  2016, Randy Christmas Party. We danced the night away on Broadway.

• 8:45Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, y'all, that's fun.

• 8:48George Kamel?

  And I hate dancing.

• 8:49Rachel Cruze?

  And then it began. It looked so great.

• 8:49George Kamel?

  It worked out. I don't think any, like, no relationship was like, it was just as beautiful, so romantic. Everything went perfectly. It's always a little awkward from the start.

• 8:56Rachel Cruze?

  Sure.

• 8:57Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 8:57George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 8:58Speaker 02

  I'm not saying I had the best idea to do a car and that, you know, it worked.

• 9:01George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 9:02Speaker 02

  But I never did that story, so that's good to hear.

• 9:03George Kamel?

  There we go.

• 9:04Rachel Cruze?

  I love it.

• 9:05George Kamel?

  All right, let's get to the fishbowl. It's what the people came here for.

• 9:07Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, are we drawing for them?

• 9:09George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 9:09Rachel Cruze?

  What is this? Are these questions for them?

• 9:11George Kamel?

  They're for all of us, I think.

• 9:12Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, okay. All right.

• 9:12George Kamel?

  No one said.

• 9:13Rachel Cruze?

  I'm ready.

• 9:14George Kamel?

  But I think they should answer because they are sick of us talking.

• 9:17Rachel Cruze?

  For sure. All right.

• 9:19Speaker 02

  Who?

• 9:19George Kamel?

  Who is the nerd and who's the free spirit in a relationship when it comes to money?

• 9:23Speaker 02

  I've never heard this question before.

• 9:27Speaker 02

  Let me get, let me take a minute.

• 9:30George Kamel?

  Take your time.

• 9:31Speaker 02

  I think we were gonna cover this.

• 9:32George Kamel?

  I think your wife wrote like a whole book about this.

• 9:35Speaker 02

  Yeah. We were, I was born a nerd and she was born a free spirit from the beginning.

• 9:40Rachel Cruze?

  A hundred percent. Yeah, how about you guys?

• 9:43Speaker 02

  We're as opposite as it gets.

• 9:44Speaker 03

  I feel like same. But I do have my nerd tendencies. You don't give me enough credit.

• 9:48George Kamel?

  When's the last time you opened up a Google Sheet? Just tell me.

• 9:50Speaker 02

  Wait, y'all are the same?

• 9:52Speaker 03

  No, I'm free spirit. He's the nerd. But...

• 9:54George Kamel?

  I'm like the nerd spender and she's like a free spirit saver.

• 9:58Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, you're like a Dave and Sharon combo.

• 10:00Speaker 03

  Oh.

• 10:01George Kamel?

  Oh, look at that.

• 10:02Rachel Cruze?

  Look at that. Uh huh.

• 10:03George Kamel?

  Am I the Sharon?

• 10:04Rachel Cruze?

  No, she's the Sharon.

• 10:05George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 10:05Rachel Cruze?

  The free spirit saver. And you're the nerd spender. Yeah.

• 10:09George Kamel?

  Like, I'll eat my vegetables to know I have room for dessert.

• 10:12Speaker 02

  I don't understand.

• 10:13Rachel Cruze?

  I know. Because I'm the spender, free spirit. And you're the nerd saver.

• 10:19Speaker 02

  Just a straight one or the other for us.

• 10:22Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, we don't mix it.

• 10:23Speaker 02

  That's amazing.

• 10:23George Kamel?

  That's good. Well, I feel like if you guys weren't together, you'd have some problems.

• 10:26Rachel Cruze?

  I probably might.

• 10:27George Kamel?

  We need, we need the Winston in your life.

• 10:30Speaker 02

  We'd either be like, living crazy or in a hole. If we were both one or the other.

• 10:36George Kamel?

  Either way.

• 10:36Rachel Cruze?

  No fun. Or just all crazy.

• 10:38George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 10:39Rachel Cruze?

  We're gonna chill out. It's good.

• 10:41George Kamel?

  One down.

• 10:41Rachel Cruze?

  One down. Here we go.

• 10:42Speaker 02

  Are we doing all those?

• 10:43George Kamel?

  All of them.

• 10:44Rachel Cruze?

  Possibly.

• 10:47Rachel Cruze?

  What's one challenging aspect of being married to a Ramsey personality?

• 10:51Speaker 03

  Oh, I would definitely say, what do you call it? Energy something, energy.

• 10:55George Kamel?

  Management?

• 10:56Speaker 03

  Yes, like just going from podcast to camera to everything all day and then coming home. And then I'm a stay at home mom now, so I'm like, hey, talk to me. But there's literally nothing left in the tank. So I think that's probably the hardest part is you have to just lay it out there all day. So.

• 11:12George Kamel?

  I leave it on the dance floor at work and then I go home and I feel like I have no energy or like mental capacity to give.

• 11:18Speaker 02

  Hey, what'd you talk about today? You're just like, oh.

• 11:21George Kamel?

  Luckily, she's here now, so we don't have to talk about this. Yeah, I've got a battery. I'm human.

• 11:26Rachel Cruze?

  You don't have to talk about this podcast.

• 11:27George Kamel?

  All humans have batteries.

• 11:28Speaker 02

  I know, but Rachel's goes up and most people goes down.

• 11:31Speaker 03

  Oh, it's amazing.

• 11:32Speaker 02

  It is amazing.

• 11:33Rachel Cruze?

  Which is maybe why it's the challenging part of a Ramsey personality.

• 11:36Speaker 03

  No, that's great.

• 11:37Rachel Cruze?

  Stop.

• 11:38George Kamel?

  And then Winston's drained when you come home to talk about your day. All right, hard enough. You did a podcast. Cool, good for you.

• 11:45Speaker 02

  Yeah, Rachel charges while she's driving. It's weird.

• 11:48George Kamel?

  It's amazing. What's the biggest challenge for you, Winston?

• 11:51Speaker 02

  There's a few. I'm married to a Ramsey too.

• 11:54George Kamel?

  We can go top three.

• 11:55Speaker 03

  We got some therapy sessions.

• 11:57Speaker 02

  Here's what, here's what, here's a, here's a interesting one. I think most people think that we have it all together. And so if you're always treated like the guide or the person that led you somewhere or taught you something or helps you celebrate a milestone in your life, sometimes you're like over here with your story, you know? And it's like, okay, that's great, but we're not like perfect, you know, at all.

• 12:24George Kamel?

  You feel like you can't really put that out there because there's an expectation that you have it all together?

• 12:28Speaker 02

  I think it's just the assumption that because Rachel's a Ramsey personality, that we have all the answers.

• 12:33Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 12:34Speaker 02

  And we don't.

• 12:34Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 12:35Speaker 02

  You're right, so.

• 12:36Speaker 03

  That's a good one.

• 12:37Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, the humanity of life is very real.

• 12:40Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 12:40Rachel Cruze?

  For us, regardless of job or not.

• 12:42Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 12:43Rachel Cruze?

  And some people don't always expect that or see that. But yeah, that's good.

• 12:47Speaker 02

  And the, on the flip side though, like if people come up to Rachel in an airport, I don't have to do anything.

• 12:53Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 12:54Speaker 02

  And that's awesome.

• 12:55Speaker 03

  I know, it's so awesome.

• 12:55Speaker 02

  For an introvert, she'll talk to all of y'all and I'll hang and just kind of like part B as we go.

• 13:02George Kamel?

  Do you ever want to be introduced, feel awkward to not be?

• 13:05Speaker 02

  No, I actually have.

• 13:07George Kamel?

  You step away like you don't know her?

• 13:08Speaker 02

  To embrace the awkward and just be like.

• 13:11George Kamel?

  Just stand there.

• 13:12Speaker 02

  At first I was like.

• 13:14Rachel Cruze?

  Chicken hands. I taught you that babe.

• 13:16Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 13:19George Kamel?

  She taught you how to shake hands?

• 13:22Rachel Cruze?

  Hi, I'm Mr. Grinch.

• 13:23Speaker 02

  Fairest handshake ever.

• 13:25George Kamel?

  Wow. I didn't know that about you. Very stiff, like, just...

• 13:29Rachel Cruze?

  Well, no. No, but as an eighteen-

• 13:30Speaker 02

  She's assertive.

• 13:31Rachel Cruze?

  As an eighteen-year-old girl.

• 13:33George Kamel?

  One day, she taught you. Hey, look him in the eye, shake their hand.

• 13:36Speaker 02

  She called me sir. It was so crazy.

• 13:39George Kamel?

  Yikes.

• 13:40Speaker 02

  Nice to meet you, sir.

• 13:43George Kamel?

  Who handles money in your marriage?

• 13:47Rachel Cruze?

  Why'd you read it like that?

• 13:49George Kamel?

  Well, it says underneath, spoiler both. So I feel like-

• 13:53Speaker 02

  Is that like breathing?

• 13:54George Kamel?

  Yeah, but I think there's different skill sets-

• 13:55Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I mean, honestly, in our marriage, who handles the money?

• 13:59Speaker 02

  Me?

• 14:01George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 14:02Rachel Cruze?

  You don't think so?

• 14:03George Kamel?

  Who knows the logins to the utility account to pay the bill?

• 14:07Speaker 02

  Oh, okay. From that perspective, I do it.

• 14:09George Kamel?

  It's not like she's not involved and doesn't know what's going on.

• 14:11Speaker 02

  I get the mail. I could tell you what our last electric bill was. I could tell you the gas prices too, but- And Rachel's like, she checks, she's at this level up here, and I'm down in the wheat.

• 14:24Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 14:25George Kamel?

  Got it.

• 14:25Speaker 02

  Right?

• 14:25Rachel Cruze?

  Hundred percent.

• 14:26Speaker 02

  Would you describe it that way?

• 14:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. Oh, a hundred percent.

• 14:28George Kamel?

  So she's CEO, you're CFO. We have our roles.

• 14:31Speaker 02

  That's exactly right, George.

• 14:32Rachel Cruze?

  That's fair.

• 14:33Speaker 02

  That's exactly right.

• 14:34Rachel Cruze?

  Great way of putting it.

• 14:35Speaker 02

  A real fun-spending CEO.

• 14:39Speaker 02

  And a Grinch.

• 14:39George Kamel?

  She calls the shots, you tell her how much those shots cost, and if it's, if we're gonna be okay.

• 14:44Speaker 02

  She does ask me that.

• 14:45Rachel Cruze?

  I am like, hey, how much is-

• 14:47George Kamel?

  You're like her business manager.

• 14:48Speaker 02

  At a big picture, she's like, are we gonna be okay? And I'm like, do you think we'll be okay?

• 14:53George Kamel?

  That worries me.

• 14:54Speaker 02

  You're seeing the same thing I am.

• 14:55Rachel Cruze?

  We're really at full this year. So there was a lot of checks being written.

• 14:58Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 14:59Rachel Cruze?

  And he's doing all that, right? And I can like, log in and see the account, but I am like, okay, how much is left? Like, oh. And you have the spreadsheet, like, the details, you have a lot of that covered.

• 15:08Speaker 02

  Yeah. I just have more control issues than you.

• 15:10Rachel Cruze?

  Probably. You do.

• 15:11George Kamel?

  There we go.

• 15:11Rachel Cruze?

  That's great.

• 15:12George Kamel?

  Very similar, would you say?

• 15:13Speaker 03

  I'd say almost exactly the same. No changes.

• 15:17Speaker 02

  Wait, who's who?

• 15:17George Kamel?

  No notes. I'm you.

• 15:19Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 15:20George Kamel?

  We're the same.

• 15:21Speaker 02

  We're so much more alike than I thought.

• 15:22Rachel Cruze?

  I know. Y'all can be invested out there.

• 15:24George Kamel?

  I thought we were exactly alike. People mistake us.

• 15:27Rachel Cruze?

  I mean, the boots are just identical.

• 15:29George Kamel?

  I'm like walking through Costco and they're like, "Are you wins-" "No, I know, we get that a lot." "You got the wrong guy, he's a little shorter."

• 15:36Rachel Cruze?

  Do you want to draw one?

• 15:37George Kamel?

  I think you should draw one.

• 15:38Speaker 02

  I don't know, are we-

• 15:39Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah, this is fun, this is fun.

• 15:41Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 15:41Rachel Cruze?

  You draw one.

• 15:42George Kamel?

  It's not an easy job. People think it is.

• 15:44Speaker 02

  I'm going with whatever I get.

• 15:45Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. Irene.

• 15:48Speaker 02

  What's a harmless pet peeve your significant other is guilty of?

• 15:51George Kamel?

  It's got dark real quick.

• 15:54Speaker 02

  Rachel is wild to live with for like a Grinch. You know, like the control Grinch who likes everything neat.

• 16:02Speaker 02

  Half-eaten like breakfast bars. Nothing's ever finished.

• 16:08George Kamel?

  Just like she gave up midway through anything.

• 16:11Speaker 02

  But it's like, even if it came with two bars, she'll eat one and a half. Like, one bite is there. And it's in the cup holder. Of the car or something. I'll make her coffee in the morning. Always some coffee left.

• 16:24Rachel Cruze?

  Because it gets cold.

• 16:25Speaker 02

  Some- I- I- yeah, but every day.

• 16:28Rachel Cruze?

  Water bottles always leave a little bit left.

• 16:30Speaker 02

  And they're all crunched up. Just- she just doesn't finish anything.

• 16:34Rachel Cruze?

  I'm like, are we the same people? Are you saying with you? I know it's gonna be yours, is it?

• 16:39George Kamel?

  I would consider that a harmful pet peeve.

• 16:42George Kamel?

  I mean, it's- you're wasting food, you're causing other people to clean up after you.

• 16:46Speaker 02

  Wasting food.

• 16:46Rachel Cruze?

  I don't ever ask him to clean up after me. It's on my nightstand.

• 16:49George Kamel?

  Well, three days a day, I'm like-

• 16:50Rachel Cruze?

  My nightstand too, and my cup holders.

• 16:52George Kamel?

  Eventually you go, well, someone's gotta do it.

• 16:54Rachel Cruze?

  No, I'd still do it.

• 16:55Speaker 02

  Thank goodness for toothpastes.

• 16:58George Kamel?

  Yep.

• 16:59Speaker 02

  Two toothpastes. Thank you, Lord.

• 17:01Rachel Cruze?

  My toothpaste is terrible, y'all.

• 17:03Speaker 02

  Looks like it got murdered.

• 17:03Rachel Cruze?

  Ever since I was a child. Never.

• 17:06Speaker 02

  Looks like a crime scene.

• 17:07George Kamel?

  Is it all over the counters?

• 17:08Speaker 02

  In her bathroom drawer is a crime scene.

• 17:11George Kamel?

  Like, how many, are we talking multiple toothpastes? Is there just toothpaste everywhere?

• 17:15Rachel Cruze?

  I love the lid. So it just got, it's, I know, I'm a child, Joe, I'm a child.

• 17:21George Kamel?

  How hard are you squeezing the toothpaste?

• 17:23Rachel Cruze?

  Well, I just don't.

• 17:24Speaker 02

  It's not about that.

• 17:25Rachel Cruze?

  It's not the squeezing, it's the like.

• 17:26Speaker 02

  It's the.

• 17:28George Kamel?

  Oh, you don't know how to get it on the toothpaste?

• 17:29Rachel Cruze?

  I don't get it off.

• 17:30Speaker 02

  She doesn't know how to get it on the toothpaste.

• 17:31George Kamel?

  It's the motor skills. Okay.

• 17:34Speaker 02

  It's the motor skills.

• 17:35George Kamel?

  Yeah, alright. Cool, cool, cool.

• 17:37Speaker 02

  And don't close the lid, because it can't.

• 17:40George Kamel?

  It's no longer.

• 17:41Speaker 02

  It won't go on.

• 17:42George Kamel?

  It's gunked over.

• 17:43Speaker 02

  Yeah, yeah.

• 17:43Rachel Cruze?

  I know, it's bad.

• 17:45Speaker 02

  Fascinating.

• 17:46George Kamel?

  Yeah, I'll say, I guess you need to go for me.

• 17:49Rachel Cruze?

  Rachel didn't say. Um, I mean, it's kind of on the same lines. His tolerance for like, the kids and like, his bathroom drawers and stuff, like, we have three kids under nine, like, kids are gonna be, they're gonna be everywhere, and they're gonna, you know. But when he like, opens his drawer and everything's not, "Who's been in my drawer? My cotton balls aren't, you know, whatever, whatever, whatever, whatever." And it's just like a.

• 18:13George Kamel?

  Is that the big item for you? The big toiletry?

• 18:16Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's in the drawer, on the side, and it has like, the kids' homework in there. I mean, it does, I mean, it can get, it can get crazy. But the level of.

• 18:24Speaker 02

  I have like, three spaces that you cannot touch.

• 18:27Rachel Cruze?

  That's what he always tells us.

• 18:29Speaker 02

  My wallet, my bathroom drawer, and my, uh, network gun closet.

• 18:36Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, well, yeah. Well, that's a safety issue, yeah.

• 18:38Speaker 02

  Well, I say the same thing to all of the spaces. And, I don't have any cotton balls in there.

• 18:44Rachel Cruze?

  So that's mine, it's just like, you gotta be flexible, like, stuff's gonna happen.

• 18:48George Kamel?

  Yeah, be flexible. When it's not.

• 18:51Speaker 02

  You got this whole house, but you want my bathroom drawer? Which is perfectly organized.

• 18:55George Kamel?

  It does feel very personal.

• 18:57Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, y'all, let's go.

• 18:58George Kamel?

  Mine for you?

• 18:59Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 18:59George Kamel?

  Very similar, I am a very kind of tidy, clean freak, so like, there's like, a little bit of lacquer left.

• 19:05Speaker 02

  Keep going, George.

• 19:06George Kamel?

  It's been three days, I'm feeling for temperature, like, oh, the body's dead. It's gone, it's.

• 19:10Rachel Cruze?

  Lacquer is done.

• 19:11George Kamel?

  It's gone room temp, let's toss it. Empty water bottle, let's crush that up and toss that. It's that kind of stuff, the bathroom counter, like, mine, my side, tidy every night, I get ready for bed, it's clean. Her side? Could be a few weeks before it gets tidied up.

• 19:26Rachel Cruze?

  But if everything's out, you can see it all.

• 19:28Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 19:29Rachel Cruze?

  So it makes it easier.

• 19:30George Kamel?

  But it causes stress and trauma for the other person who has to live with it.

• 19:34Speaker 03

  He does like two things to get ready for bed. And I'm like, yeah, that's why you don't have a bunch of junk all over your counter.

• 19:39Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's true.

• 19:40George Kamel?

  I'm a simple man.

• 19:41Speaker 03

  So in the same vein, mine is also the tidying. He has to tidy every night. And if I'm not in the mood to tidy.

• 19:52George Kamel?

  What's my worst toxic trait? I care too much. I simply care too much.

• 19:57Speaker 03

  He is passive aggressive about it. He's like, he's a two, an Enneagram two. And he's like, why aren't you helping me tidy this house? And I'm like, oh, because I've tidied after a toddler all day. I'm out of tidying. I need to lay here.

• 20:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 20:09Speaker 03

  Yeah, I need to lay here on my heating pad and chill, so.

• 20:12George Kamel?

  And I'm, it's 10:00 PM and I'm just wiping down countertops.

• 20:15Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, no.

• 20:16George Kamel?

  Let's get this thing clean.

• 20:16Rachel Cruze?

  George, yeah.

• 20:17George Kamel?

  I'll sleep better.

• 20:18Rachel Cruze?

  You gotta let go of that stuff, man.

• 20:19Speaker 02

  It feels good.

• 20:20Rachel Cruze?

  All right, George, one thing we can all agree on, though, is that Cozy Earth has the best products.

• 20:25George Kamel?

  That's nonpartisan.

• 20:26Rachel Cruze?

  I mean, obsessed, y'all, from the PJs and the sheets and the socks. Uh, I got some lounge pants. Love them. I mean, like, seriously, everything I buy. And I even bought a ton of Christmas gifts off of Cozy Earth because it's just, they're amazing.

• 20:40George Kamel?

  And our spouses have reaped the benefits of these products because we sleep on their sheets every night. And Whitney and I, we're making the sheets and we like unfurled them to, you know, throw them on the bed. And you're like, wow.

• 20:51Speaker 03

  Luxury.

• 20:51Rachel Cruze?

  Luxury.

• 20:53Speaker 02

  Especially when they're tidied, even better.

• 20:55George Kamel?

  Love a tidy.

• 20:56Rachel Cruze?

  Love a tidy sheet.

• 20:57George Kamel?

  Great products and, you know, we, we are considered bougie frugal. So we like nice things. We want to get a deal. And so for our Smart Money Happy Hour viewers and listeners, they get up to 40% off when they use the code [email protected]/SMARTMONEY. And that's our gift to you.

• 21:12Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, which is a huge code, you guys. I mean, because I will say, again, it's quality products. You're going to pay a quality price for the stuff, but it lasts. The material is amazing and you're going to love it. So make sure to, yes, use the Smart Money Happy Hour code.

• 21:25George Kamel?

  And Winston famously paid full price. That's how good it was for him. He bought a sweater.

• 21:30Speaker 02

  Oh, yeah.

• 21:31George Kamel?

  A hoodie at full price.

• 21:32Speaker 02

  I did, I did. I couldn't wait.

• 21:34George Kamel?

  It hurts my frugal soul, but hey, that just speaks to the quality.

• 21:37Speaker 02

  It was very out of character for me.

• 21:38Rachel Cruze?

  It's true, but it was so good.

• 21:39George Kamel?

  So check them out. We'll have a link in the show notes as well, or go to COZYEARTH.COM/SMARTMONEY.

• 21:44Rachel Cruze?

  It's so great. All right, Whitney, you, you draw one.

• 21:48Speaker 03

  See what we got here. Name the top three qualities you admire most in your spouse. Oh, sweet.

• 21:55Rachel Cruze?

  That's a nice one.

• 21:57Speaker 02

  Wow. What a switch.

• 21:59Rachel Cruze?

  Gosh, here we go.

• 22:00Speaker 02

  Happy Valentine's Day.

• 22:03Rachel Cruze?

  Roasting to... My number one for Winston is he is a man that like continues to work on himself. Like, he's not a guy that's like, oh, I'm too, I'm fine, duh, duh, duh. There's like a major level of like, oh, yeah, I want to continue to learn and grow. And I'm curious about this part of me and all this, all this. Like, it's one of the best. To be married to that type of man is like the biggest gift ever.

• 22:28Rachel Cruze?

  I would say his, kind of pairs with that, humility. I feel like there's a level of just, um, an honesty, a vulnerability, like a, like, here's who I am and here's what's going on. And there's not a lot of like pride in that. And so that's been like so helpful in marriage. And then third, I'm gonna say his, uh, okay, it was my pet peeve. See, it's a blessing and a curse. I'm gonna say your level of taking care of things. His organization, his like, he can do stuff like, oh, yeah, your tire's low. Here's the tire pump thing that I have, or here's the, uh, there's this, this, uh, the washer dryer broke, I'll fix, like, it's like, uh, I just, you just take care of things. He's like a proactive, proactive guy.

• 23:13Rachel Cruze?

  There you go. Off the top of my head.

• 23:15Speaker 02

  Thanks, babe. Wow.

• 23:16George Kamel?

  Very nice things.

• 23:17Rachel Cruze?

  Fifteen years of marriage.

• 23:18Speaker 02

  Do this again tomorrow.

• 23:19Rachel Cruze?

  That's great.

• 23:22Speaker 02

  Uh, I'm gonna go with authenticity is probably my number one. Cause I feel like Rachel's the same wherever she goes, which is really hard to do.

• 23:32George Kamel?

  On camera, off camera?

• 23:34Speaker 02

  On camera, off camera. Um, and then she's really intelligent. And so I love watching her have conversations. And she is so like... Smart and quick and up to date and has great perspective and things to say when we're talking with people and with us, obviously. Um, and I'm gonna go with her nails. I like her nails.

• 23:59Speaker 03

  Wow.

• 24:00George Kamel?

  I've always liked her nails.

• 24:02Speaker 03

  Always loved my nails.

• 24:02George Kamel?

  Like natural?

• 24:03Speaker 03

  He's a scratcher. He's like a cat or a dog.

• 24:06Speaker 02

  I am?

• 24:06Speaker 03

  Yeah, just like he likes to be scratched.

• 24:08Speaker 02

  Oh yeah, I am a dog.

• 24:09Speaker 03

  Head, back, like, that's his love language.

• 24:11Speaker 02

  Yeah, yeah.

• 24:12Speaker 03

  I do have long nails.

• 24:12Speaker 02

  She's had, she's always had great nails. I always liked them. So I'm gonna go with the easy one.

• 24:17George Kamel?

  I'm surprised you did none of that for Winston. No physical traits. Best qualities on the inside.

• 24:22Speaker 02

  Well, she hadn't finished her hanky panky yet.

• 24:25George Kamel?

  Okay, I'll go.

• 24:26Rachel Cruze?

  You'll do me?

• 24:27George Kamel?

  Yeah, um, my favorite thing is her calming personality. I'm a naturally anxious person. She's a naturally very peaceful, calm person, and that was what initially really attracted me to her, and I appreciate that about her, because I can spin out pretty easily.

• 24:43Rachel Cruze?

  Not you, George.

• 24:44George Kamel?

  Not me. Me, no. Number two, her intentionality, especially seeing her become a mom. I've never seen someone do the research, want to do the right thing, the right way, even if it's harder, even if it's more expensive, she's going to do it the right way because she cares that much about our daughter or our dogs. And so I love that about her.

• 25:04Speaker 03

  It's good.

• 25:05George Kamel?

  And number three, I just think she's really cute. It's very, I know, I know, but I was, obviously that's what initially attracts you to someone.

• 25:14Speaker 03

  Sure.

• 25:14George Kamel?

  At face value.

• 25:15Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 25:16Speaker 02

  You only get three today, so it's hard to.

• 25:18George Kamel?

  Yeah, well, truthfully, she's also shorter than me, which was a big win. As a, as a short king to find your short queen, that's special.

• 25:25Speaker 03

  But I did think I was taller than him until our first picture, so.

• 25:29George Kamel?

  That's her toxic trait.

• 25:30Speaker 03

  And I had to pray about it, so I need to get over it. So, for the record, I would've dated George if I was taller.

• 25:38George Kamel?

  She had to pray to be like, Lord, help me get over his tiny, tiny body.

• 25:42Speaker 03

  Hey, I mean, it's admirable, I guess. You would say.

• 25:46Rachel Cruze?

  Whitney.

• 25:47George Kamel?

  Speaking of which, say three nice things about me.

• 25:51George Kamel?

  Good luck.

• 25:52Speaker 03

  Same thing. I would say, even though, yes, I give you a hard time for tidying, it does give me a great, like, mental, like, my mental space is not free of, it's free of, like, all the clutter and stuff in our home. Like, I don't have to, like, worry about those stuff, because I know you got it. Watching you become a dad, you just love Mia, and she obviously loves you so much, like, all day long, it's just like, da, da, da, da. And I'm like, he's not here. It's mama right now. I'm like, I'm doing all this right now. But that's been so sweet, just to see y'all's relationship. And then, the last one would be, I just know I can trust that you, like, have the best intentions for our family and our future. Like, I feel like George is already 10 years ahead all the time, and it's, and

• 26:37Speaker 03

  he'll bring me in, which is great, and all his, like, spreadsheets and stuff that he just nerds out over, but it's cool that he cares enough about where we're going, instead of just, like, us waking up one day and being like, oh, shoot, what's happening here? So I know that I can trust him in that, just to, like, care about, you know, our family and our finances and all the things, so.

• 26:58George Kamel?

  It's really sweet.

• 26:59Rachel Cruze?

  That's so good.

• 27:00George Kamel?

  Thank you.

• 27:00Rachel Cruze?

  Man, well done, y'all.

• 27:01Speaker 02

  I like George even more now.

• 27:03Rachel Cruze?

  Well done.

• 27:04George Kamel?

  That was a really sweet time. Let's get back to roasting each other.

• 27:08Speaker 02

  George is bored.

• 27:09George Kamel?

  I'm more comfortable. No, it was really sweet. I think people tuned out.

• 27:14George Kamel?

  What are your and your spouse's love languages? This should be easy. There's only five of them, right?

• 27:20Rachel Cruze?

  One is physical touch. I mean.

• 27:22George Kamel?

  Oh, bingo.

• 27:23Rachel Cruze?

  And the key in the book is, like, not necessarily sexual, because everyone's like, oh, yeah, of course, physical, but like.

• 27:28Speaker 02

  What's my number two?

• 27:29Rachel Cruze?

  He always says, like, can I just have a hug? Like, I just need a hug, right? He just sort of like.

• 27:33Speaker 02

  And Rachel's flying around the house, making a schedule for, like, next year.

• 27:38Rachel Cruze?

  I know. I'm like, I'm sorry, sorry. And then I pat him sometimes. He says, don't pat me!

• 27:43George Kamel?

  It's patronizing.

• 27:45Rachel Cruze?

  No, I'm sorry. I'm just, yeah.

• 27:46Speaker 02

  It's like we're buds.

• 27:49Speaker 02

  Bro, thanks for that hug and gidget.

• 27:53George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 27:55George Kamel?

  That's rude.

• 27:56Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, that, uh...

• 27:57Speaker 02

  You wanna throw to ours later?

• 27:59Rachel Cruze?

  Second would be quality time.

• 28:00Speaker 02

  Yeah, I mean, way to go.

• 28:02Rachel Cruze?

  I got you, babe. I got you.

• 28:03George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 28:04Speaker 02

  Um, words of affirmation. Acts of service.

• 28:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 28:10George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 28:10Speaker 02

  Did I get them in the right order?

• 28:12Rachel Cruze?

  Uh...

• 28:13Speaker 02

  Oh, boy.

• 28:13Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, no, no, no. Um...

• 28:15Speaker 02

  Tie?

• 28:15Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I'd say tie. Yeah, interchangeable.

• 28:17George Kamel?

  So say nice things and do nice things.

• 28:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 28:20George Kamel?

  How about and for Rachel?

• 28:22Speaker 02

  Love your nails while I'm doing the dishes.

• 28:27Speaker 02

  That's called a callback.

• 28:29Rachel Cruze?

  Good job.

• 28:30George Kamel?

  If you know, you know. Pay attention. Okay.

• 28:34Speaker 03

  Yours is acts of service, for sure.

• 28:36George Kamel?

  Hundred percent.

• 28:36Speaker 02

  Really?

• 28:37George Kamel?

  Because I'm always the one doing all the things.

• 28:39Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 28:40Rachel Cruze?

  And when someone does it for you, you're like, still feel up.

• 28:42Speaker 02

  Something and you're like, that's a big deal.

• 28:43George Kamel?

  Yes. That means the world.

• 28:45Speaker 03

  But let's just say it's not things that always need to be done in that moment.

• 28:48George Kamel?

  Didn't know we were still roasting. Thought the pet peeve part was over.

• 28:52Rachel Cruze?

  Act like you do all the things.

• 28:54George Kamel?

  Yeah, if I see a task that needs to be done, I don't care what's going on. House could be on fire. I'm like, well, I'm finishing this.

• 28:59Speaker 03

  Can't think of it through priorities. It's like, what do I see in front of me?

• 29:02George Kamel?

  The priority is whatever I'm doing right now.

• 29:04Rachel Cruze?

  Whatever's there.

• 29:04Speaker 02

  Whatever gives you therapy.

• 29:05George Kamel?

  Whitney's, uh, quality time.

• 29:08Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm, yeah.

• 29:09George Kamel?

  Still figuring out what that means, but...

• 29:12Speaker 03

  His version of quality time is us sitting together in silence on our phones, but we're still together. Where I'm like, no, we need like...

• 29:18George Kamel?

  It's very sweet.

• 29:19Speaker 03

  Be speaking to each other.

• 29:20George Kamel?

  Or like watching a show together that we both are into. I feel like that's quality time.

• 29:24Speaker 03

  Nope. It's not there yet.

• 29:26George Kamel?

  I think she wants like, a conversation.

• 29:29Rachel Cruze?

  I bet she does.

• 29:32Speaker 02

  I agree, as a fellow quality timer.

• 29:35Speaker 03

  Wow, thank you.

• 29:36Rachel Cruze?

  All right, next question. Let's see, this one, were you and your spouse on the same page financially when you first met?

• 29:44George Kamel?

  Well, that's easy for us. We met at Ramsey. So the answer is yes. And Whitney was debt-free when I met her. Which, you know, green flag for sure. Wouldn't have been a red flag if she had debt she was paying off. But the fact that she was debt-free was just like, oh, that's awesome. Like, we're gonna be leapfrogging when we're married completely debt-free. So that was really nice.

• 30:01Rachel Cruze?

  How much debt did you have?

• 30:02George Kamel?

  Um, I had paid it off by the time I met her.

• 30:05Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, so you were debt-free too?

• 30:07George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 30:07Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 30:07George Kamel?

  So that was a game changer. And we didn't have to have a ton of financial conversations because we both believed in the Ramsey principles. We both had been through Financial Peace University. So that made our life a lot easier, I would say, on that front.

• 30:18Rachel Cruze?

  Agreed. That's great.

• 30:20George Kamel?

  So Rachel, obviously, coming from Dave and Sharon, very Ramsey, very hazard financial principles. But were you in the same... Did you even know Ramsey?

• 30:28Speaker 02

  No. I was a college kid not listening to talk radio.

• 30:35Speaker 02

  Which...

• 30:36George Kamel?

  Fair.

• 30:36Speaker 02

  Pretty much all of them. Yeah. And...

• 30:39George Kamel?

  So where were you at with your money?

• 30:40Speaker 02

  This was back in the day, too, right? Uh, I loved work and I loved, like, earning money. I was into the credit thing. Like, I remember getting my first $500 limit. Uh, because it was all strategy for me. It was...

• 30:55George Kamel?

  You wanted to play the game.

• 30:57Speaker 02

  Yeah, yeah. And I was gonna be great at it, you know? I wouldn't say we were on the same page when we started dating. And then, I don't remember having specific conversations around it, but I just think as I got to know her family,

• 31:14Speaker 02

  I just started to adopt, um, certain principles, probably. We did go through Financial Peace.

• 31:23Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I think we did watch it.

• 31:24Speaker 02

  I think Dave made us do that.

• 31:27Speaker 02

  He made us do that.

• 31:28Rachel Cruze?

  He did on engagement.

• 31:29Speaker 02

  I hadn't thought about that in 12 years.

• 31:32Rachel Cruze?

  We went to a class, y'all. Like, we went to a class.

• 31:35George Kamel?

  Did they know, like, your... Dave's daughter... Like, do they...

• 31:37Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, not until I was on the lesson.

• 31:39Speaker 02

  Not till we're like, "She looks familiar."

• 31:43George Kamel?

  Did you ever have red flags, Rachel, when you like, you see a credit card?

• 31:47Rachel Cruze?

  No, I remember thinking, oh, this is pretty funny, that like, I'm out.

• 31:51George Kamel?

  You did?

• 31:51Rachel Cruze?

  We're getting pizza and like, there's the...

• 31:53George Kamel?

  Did you really?

• 31:53Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's your eagle credit card.

• 31:54George Kamel?

  But you didn't say, I mean...

• 31:56Rachel Cruze?

  I didn't really care, I mean, honestly, I'm 19.

• 31:57George Kamel?

  You're 20 years old.

• 31:58Rachel Cruze?

  I'm out with Winston.

• 32:00George Kamel?

  Blasting your thinking.

• 32:00Rachel Cruze?

  Winston.

• 32:01George Kamel?

  He's driving, he's driving my car.

• 32:02Rachel Cruze?

  He's driving my car, it's great, I'm fine.

• 32:05George Kamel?

  What car was it? I paid for that dinner. What kind of car was this?

• 32:08Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, it was like a SUV.

• 32:11George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 32:11Rachel Cruze?

  Lexus SUV.

• 32:12George Kamel?

  Nice.

• 32:13Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. But with the money, so, because people ask us this a lot, and I'm like, yeah, number one, we were so young and it was kind of like this, and you weren't like a crazy, like, oh my gosh, I want...

• 32:20George Kamel?

  No.

• 32:21Rachel Cruze?

  I want this crazy nice car. He's not a consumer, like, consumerism is not Winston's like, top issue, right? So, because of that, he's like, very practical, and so the idea of living with what you have, not going into debt...

• 32:34George Kamel?

  It fits my personality.

• 32:35Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I was like, it wasn't this big, like... Yeah, it wasn't this like, oh, I have to change my mindset.

• 32:40George Kamel?

  I was gonna work hard and be practical with or without credit. I really was.

• 32:43Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 32:44George Kamel?

  So I was like, okay, without.

• 32:45Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, yes, FPU is a great class, right? Worth the money you pay. You know what else is worth the money you pay?

• 32:51George Kamel?

  What's that?

• 32:51Rachel Cruze?

  For Delete Me, a subscription that literally this company goes in and removes all of your data that is online. So data brokers come in and get your data from websites that you filled your, you know, your information out, and so they, these data brokers, they have your address, your number, your name. I mean, it's crazy, the information that you have that's out there, and Delete Me goes in and removes your information from all of these websites, so it helps you, you know, stay away from like, scammers and spammers and everything out there.

• 33:22George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah. It's one of the ways I say I love you to my family, is by using Delete Me, our information is being scoured, online, removed, Delete Me sends me the report, and I sleep easier, which as an anxious person, very nice.

• 33:34Rachel Cruze?

  It's what you need.

• 33:35George Kamel?

  Very, very helpful.

• 33:36Rachel Cruze?

  Some peace.

• 33:36George Kamel?

  So I encourage everyone to check it out. They're giving our listeners and viewers a great discount. If you go to joindelete.me/smartmoney, you'll get 20% off any of their plans, uh, just by going to that site. Joindelete.me/smartmoney.

• 33:49Rachel Cruze?

  And their plans start as low as $9 a month, you guys, so it's really inexpensive. And in the world today of technology and internet and every, all of our information out there, it is worth it protecting your information. So it is a great service. I love it. And it's so fun to get the, to get the emails and the reports to see how many hours you've saved, they saved you from removing your information.

• 34:11George Kamel?

  And I'll always beat you because I started first. I'm at 66 hours and I brag about it.

• 34:15Rachel Cruze?

  George is there. I'm in the 40s, but it's fine.

• 34:17George Kamel?

  Check it out. We'll drop a link in the description below.

• 34:19Rachel Cruze?

  So great. Okay. Next, I think we should play a game and we could play like the not so newlywed game because we've all been married, you know?

• 34:26George Kamel?

  Yeah, how long? Six years.

• 34:28Rachel Cruze?

  Jinx, you owe me coke. Six years, 15.

• 34:31George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 34:32Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know.

• 34:33George Kamel?

  That's pretty wild.

• 34:34Speaker 02

  If they beat us, we're screwed.

• 34:35Rachel Cruze?

  This episode.

• 34:36George Kamel?

  You guys should do better than us.

• 34:37Rachel Cruze?

  This episode comes out, this is like a trivia, at Valentine's Day. Do you remember when you proposed?

• 34:42Speaker 02

  Uh, the day before Valentine's Day, like a true strategist.

• 34:45Rachel Cruze?

  I know, the 13th.

• 34:47Speaker 02

  Get into the restaurants.

• 34:49Rachel Cruze?

  That's true. That's how you get into the restaurants.

• 34:51Speaker 02

  No salmon you on this thing. Actually, I don't know why I did it. Maybe that was it. I didn't want to be cliche. That's kind of my fore coming out.

• 34:56Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, but I thought about that this time of year. This is when we got engaged. That's so funny. Okay, so Kelly, our producer is going to ask some questions. So let's get our whiteboards.

• 35:04Speaker 04

  What is your wife's favorite fast food order?

• 35:08Rachel Cruze?

  Oh man, this is hard. I have a lot. I just wrote one and then I thought, oh, but there's another one in my head. That's really good, too.

• 35:17Speaker 02

  Gosh, George. It's a long order.

• 35:22George Kamel?

  It's an exhausting life.

• 35:23Rachel Cruze?

  We have dietary restrictions, so.

• 35:25George Kamel?

  Okay, I'm ready.

• 35:27Speaker 04

  All right, Winston, what'd you put?

• 35:29Speaker 02

  I went with Taco Bell, nonspecific. It's the dirtiest fast food.

• 35:34Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 35:34George Kamel?

  You just went Taco Bell.

• 35:36Speaker 04

  Rachel?

• 35:36Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 35:37George Kamel?

  All right.

• 35:38Speaker 04

  Do you know what her order at Taco Bell is?

• 35:40Speaker 02

  Um, two soft shell beef tacos.

• 35:43Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that is true. That's correct.

• 35:46Speaker 02

  That's not what you wrote.

• 35:47Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 35:49George Kamel?

  Oh, wow. Can we see?

• 35:51Speaker 02

  That's really good, too.

• 35:51George Kamel?

  For the good of the group, can you read?

• 35:52Speaker 03

  Italian, sorry, Italian.

• 35:53Speaker 02

  I don't think I've ever got that.

• 35:54Speaker 03

  From Firehouse Sub.

• 35:56George Kamel?

  Fully involved?

• 35:56Speaker 03

  Fully involved, you see, senor. Yes, that's exactly right.

• 35:59George Kamel?

  We just did our fast food Smart Money episode a little while back, so.

• 36:02Speaker 03

  Okay.

• 36:03George Kamel?

  I learned a lot about her fast food habits.

• 36:04Speaker 02

  Oh, that would have been helpful.

• 36:06George Kamel?

  You should be worried.

• 36:07Speaker 04

  All right, George, what'd you put?

• 36:08George Kamel?

  I said Chick-fil-A grilled chicken club meal gluten-free bun.

• 36:13Speaker 03

  Wow.

• 36:15Speaker 04

  Chick-fil-A gluten-free?

• 36:17George Kamel?

  Nailed it.

• 36:18Speaker 02

  Unbelievable.

• 36:19Speaker 03

  Wow.

• 36:20George Kamel?

  Had to add the gluten. You gotta tell them.

• 36:22Speaker 02

  One to zero.

• 36:22Speaker 03

  Wow, all right, y'all are winners.

• 36:24Speaker 04

  All right, second question. What is your wife's vacation dream spot?

• 36:28George Kamel?

  Oh, gosh.

• 36:29Speaker 02

  Not even a dream.

• 36:31George Kamel?

  She doesn't even know. This isn't fair.

• 36:33Speaker 03

  I'm like, dream, that's different.

• 36:34George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 36:34Speaker 03

  Than where are we gonna go? Okay.

• 36:36Speaker 04

  All right, Winston?

• 36:38Speaker 02

  New York City.

• 36:39Speaker 03

  Oh, New York City.

• 36:39Speaker 04

  Wow. Look at that.

• 36:41George Kamel?

  I said Alice Beach.

• 36:43Speaker 03

  And I went beach first, but then I went dream Europe, cross that out, back to realistic, and beach.

• 36:49Speaker 04

  That's right.

• 36:50Speaker 02

  Uh, wait, with a what?

• 36:52Speaker 03

  38.

• 36:53George Kamel?

  38, you know, she covered the whole highway for you. Do ya? I went very specific.

• 36:58Speaker 03

  That was good, okay.

• 36:59Speaker 04

  All right, last question for the guys. What is your wife's favorite place to shop for herself?

• 37:05George Kamel?

  Oh, gosh, this is tough.

• 37:06Speaker 03

  I know.

• 37:07George Kamel?

  It's like there's the where she would like to shop, and there's where she has to shop.

• 37:10Speaker 04

  No, her favorite place, like where does she go most often?

• 37:13Speaker 03

  I don't shop. He doesn't give me money.

• 37:18George Kamel?

  She acts like there's an allowance. He doesn't give me money.

• 37:21Speaker 02

  Wow, you won't let her have any money?

• 37:23George Kamel?

  I'm gonna... I'm gonna go perfect world type.

• 37:26Speaker 04

  All right, Winston?

• 37:27Speaker 02

  Target with a question mark.

• 37:29George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 37:30Speaker 04

  Yay.

• 37:31Speaker 02

  Such a close.

• 37:33George Kamel?

  I'm waiting for her to finish, to be fair.

• 37:35Speaker 03

  I can't even, okay.

• 37:36George Kamel?

  I don't wanna be accused of cheating.

• 37:37Speaker 03

  I know, sorry, sorry, sorry. What do I like? I don't know. Okay.

• 37:42George Kamel?

  I'll tell you what you like.

• 37:43Speaker 03

  Okay, you can go.

• 37:44Speaker 02

  I'll tell you how much money you get.

• 37:45George Kamel?

  I said anthropology.

• 37:48Speaker 03

  Dang, that's it. That is it. I put Nordstrom.

• 37:51George Kamel?

  I know her better than she knows her.

• 37:53Rachel Cruze?

  You know her better than she knows herself, George.

• 37:55George Kamel?

  All right, it's me and the Lord.

• 37:56Speaker 02

  You get internal points.

• 37:58Speaker 04

  Whitney and Rachel, what is your husband's favorite music album of all time?

• 38:05Rachel Cruze?

  Can I say an, okay.

• 38:06Speaker 02

  That's the hardest question ever.

• 38:07Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know albums. I mean, I genuinely, can I say like favorite artist?

• 38:11Speaker 04

  Let's say favorite music artist of all time.

• 38:12Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, that's better. I can do that. I can do that.

• 38:13Speaker 04

  Artist.

• 38:14Speaker 03

  I got album and artist.

• 38:15George Kamel?

  We're going album and artist, which gives us a bonus point.

• 38:18Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 38:19Speaker 04

  No.

• 38:19Rachel Cruze?

  Shoot, yeah.

• 38:21George Kamel?

  No, it's fine. Rachel can change the rules at any time, but I can't. Okay, no, no. It's fine. I get it. Makes sense. Makes sense. All right.

• 38:29Speaker 04

  All right, Whitney?

• 38:30Speaker 03

  How do you say it? Bonnie Vera, Bonnie Vera?

• 38:31Speaker 04

  Bonnie Vera.

• 38:33George Kamel?

  Bonnie Vera, Bonnie Vera.

• 38:33Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, it's the same word.

• 38:35George Kamel?

  It means Good Winter in French. Well, that's the album. It's his self-titled.

• 38:38Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 38:39Speaker 04

  All right, Rachel?

• 38:40Rachel Cruze?

  Winston loves Gavin the girl.

• 38:42George Kamel?

  Oh, way to go, babe!

• 38:46Speaker 04

  Nice job.

• 38:47Speaker 02

  I guess what you, I thought you would guess.

• 38:49George Kamel?

  Did he did the Sweet Chariot song? Was that his big hit? You don't sound too enthused about that. You're like, well, you gotta listen to his deeper cuts. It's actually...

• 38:56Rachel Cruze?

  No, piano.

• 38:58Speaker 02

  No, he's, he's awesome.

• 38:59Speaker 04

  What's one chore around the house your husband hates the most?

• 39:03Speaker 03

  Ooh, easy.

• 39:04Speaker 02

  Don't process it.

• 39:06Speaker 03

  I'm going for it.

• 39:08Speaker 04

  All right, Whitney?

• 39:10Speaker 03

  I said deep cleaning, specifically the shower.

• 39:13George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah. I got that one wrong. I said washing baby dishes.

• 39:17Speaker 03

  Which, how many times have you done that to me as a girl?

• 39:19George Kamel?

  That's why I said it. I'm being honest.

• 39:22Speaker 03

  Never.

• 39:22George Kamel?

  I, I draw the line.

• 39:24Speaker 03

  His brother has washed more dishes.

• 39:25Speaker 04

  Rachel?

• 39:26Rachel Cruze?

  I said laundry.

• 39:27Speaker 02

  Oh, shoot. I said dishes.

• 39:29George Kamel?

  Oh, how did we both say, we both hate the dishes and they don't know.

• 39:34Speaker 03

  No, you love adult dishes. You don't like baby dishes.

• 39:37Rachel Cruze?

  What was the laundry? I think we were married like four or five months and you did laundry. And I was like...

• 39:41Speaker 02

  Probably perfectly.

• 39:42Rachel Cruze?

  And what did I say?

• 39:45Rachel Cruze?

  We joke about that.

• 39:45Speaker 02

  I think laundry is your thing.

• 39:47Rachel Cruze?

  That's what I taught him. I was like, I think laundry might be your thing.

• 39:51Speaker 02

  I need to stop doing laundry so often with my acts of service.

• 39:55George Kamel?

  She considered it like it's one of his greatest talents.

• 39:57Rachel Cruze?

  I did. I was like, you're really good at it.

• 39:59George Kamel?

  I understand.

• 39:59Speaker 03

  I'll wash and dry and wait till George gets home to fold.

• 40:02Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, the folding, that's it. It's the folding that'll detail people.

• 40:05George Kamel?

  I'm a great folder.

• 40:06Speaker 04

  All right, last question unless we have to go into tiebreaker.

• 40:08Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 40:09Speaker 02

  Oh, Lord.

• 40:09Speaker 04

  If your husband had to pick one TV show to watch for the rest of his life, what would it be?

• 40:13Speaker 03

  Oh, man. Oh, my gosh. One TV show for the rest of your life.

• 40:17Speaker 02

  It's not a good sign when I can't think of it.

• 40:19Speaker 03

  I know.

• 40:21Speaker 03

  Oh, man.

• 40:22George Kamel?

  It's not that deep. All right.

• 40:23Speaker 04

  Okay, with me?

• 40:24George Kamel?

  This is for the championship.

• 40:26Speaker 03

  Uh, Seinfeld.

• 40:27George Kamel?

  Yes!

• 40:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yes! Oh! Oh, wait, this is his.

• 40:30Speaker 03

  I almost said Breaking Bad.

• 40:33Rachel Cruze?

  All right, right. I love Friends, because I love Friends.

• 40:35Speaker 04

  Rachel.

• 40:36Speaker 03

  Okay, I'm putting this.

• 40:39Speaker 03

  Because it's kind of my two Real Housewives, RH, Real Housewives.

• 40:43Speaker 02

  Because I have to.

• 40:44Speaker 03

  You laugh at it a lot.

• 40:46Speaker 02

  Babe.

• 40:47George Kamel?

  Oh, no.

• 40:48Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, shoot.

• 40:49Speaker 02

  How it's made.

• 40:50Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that is Winston's, totally.

• 40:52Speaker 04

  Okay, the camel's won!

• 40:56Rachel Cruze?

  I went me. I went so selfish.

• 40:58George Kamel?

  Do you need time to grieve the loss, or are you good?

• 40:59Rachel Cruze?

  I mean.

• 41:01George Kamel?

  Save it for therapy. We gotta keep moving.

• 41:02Rachel Cruze?

  I just hate that I went selfish with Real Housewives, but you do think it's funny.

• 41:06Speaker 02

  Oh, gosh, if I have to. That's what I sacrificed to be with you. Okay. There it is. There it is.

• 41:12Rachel Cruze?

  Congratulations on the win.

• 41:15Speaker 02

  Yeah, well done, guys.

• 41:17George Kamel?

  You didn't have a sore loser on one of her top traits.

• 41:20Speaker 02

  Y'all are way ahead. No, she's... She'll bring it back up.

• 41:24George Kamel?

  Cool, cool, cool.

• 41:26Rachel Cruze?

  All right, so if we could all each leave a final money tip for the viewers and the listeners when it comes to, are we going to money in marriage specifically, or just life money tips? George, what do you think?

• 41:39George Kamel?

  Ooh, I mean, I feel like this has been a very marriage-focused, but I think we can open it beyond that.

• 41:44Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, so just a money tip.

• 41:45George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 41:46Rachel Cruze?

  What would you say to people out there?

• 41:48Speaker 03

  Top of my head, I would say just practicing contentment. Like, one of my biggest traps, I'm always kind of like looking at the next thing, which is great to have goals, but sometimes you need to be okay with what you have. So even in singleness, like, you don't have to be chasing the next thing all the time.

• 42:05Rachel Cruze?

  Well said.

• 42:06Speaker 02

  Beautifully said. Love it. I would say that the way that my relationship with money is always telling a story about me on a deeper level. So if I'm wanting to spend, then there's probably a lot of reasons why. And so it's not just the money of it. It's telling me a story about where I'm at. So it could be because I want some control. It could be because I want a little hit of dopamine, so I'm gonna do a little Amazon shopping. It could be because I want to feel powerful. It could be because I'm scared. It could be, you know, all kinds of different things. And so my tip would be, it's telling you something about where you're at in the moment.

• 42:49Rachel Cruze?

  Um, yeah, on that same kind of idea, I would say to have money in its rightful place. Because I do think even being in a career where we talk about money a lot, and we're like, budget and get out of debt and save and invest and all the things, which is very important and you need to do to create peace in your life. But put money in its proper position in life. Because I do think people just chase it and chase status. And there is an underlying belief, if I just had more, kind of what you were saying, Whitney, like, I'll be okay. And to a degree that it's an unhealthy part of your life, more does not mean that it's gonna be better. So when you can kind of get to this place, like, it's great and we want it under control, we don't want it to be a stressful thing in our life, so we're gonna do and make wise

• 43:33Rachel Cruze?

  choices around us. So that's, it's not the thing that we're chasing all the time, because it kind of leads to a dead end.

• 43:40George Kamel?

  Beautifully said. I'm gonna put a bow on it, along the same theme, and say that you go with you. Doesn't sound like it's about money, it is. The question to ask here is, and then what? You're gonna achieve this financial goal, and then what? Well, then my life will be... No, it's not gonna be fixed. And so I think money is a tool to accomplish goals, but if money is just the thing that you're trying to solve for, you're gonna be really disappointed when you get there. So have a bigger goal, have a bigger vision for who you want to become, whether you're single, has a family, whatever it is, and chase that instead of the next financial goal.

• 44:13Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. Love that, George. That's good. Well said. So well said.

• 44:18George Kamel?

  I do feel like marrying the right person is a wealth hack in and of itself.

• 44:18George Kamel?

  And marry the correct person.

• 44:23Rachel Cruze?

  You know, I saw an Instagram reel, and I don't know who the guy was, but he was like an older looking guy. He looked very smart and rich. Interviewer said, what's the number one thing you would say to people, like the number one piece of advice ever, ever? And he said, marry the right person. That the spouse, I mean, truly, the spouse creates a lot of dynamics in life.

• 44:41George Kamel?

  I don't want that to cripple people to be like, well, there's a soulmate out. No, it just means make sure you're aligned with that person versus going, oh, my gosh, I didn't, he's not on the same page, and I'll never get there.

• 44:51Rachel Cruze?

  Yep, yep, exactly. So good. Okay, well, before we get to Guilty as Charged, George, tell us what we sipped on, because I am almost finished.

• 44:58George Kamel?

  We sipped on a hanky panky, which is appropriate for this episode and at the same time inappropriate. I'm going to give this drink a eight out of 10. How about you?

• 45:11Rachel Cruze?

  I'm going, I'm not usually a dark liquor cocktail person anymore, but I think I would order, I'm going to give it 10 out of 10. I think I would order it at a restaurant. I thought it was really good.

• 45:22George Kamel?

  Winston, rating?

• 45:23Speaker 02

  I am, honestly, it's growing on me, as a cocktail does, but I'm like a six and a half.

• 45:32George Kamel?

  All right, thanks for being honest. Six and a half. I'd say nine. It's good. All right. We just like stair stepped there. We got a full range from six and a half to 10. So here's what's in it. If you're curious, it's got gin, sweet vermouth, fir net branca, which is an Amaro, and an orange twist as a garnish, and it comes out to $3.96 a glass, which is probably a fifth of what you'd pay at a restaurant for this. So make it at home. The recipe's in the show notes, and tell us who's right on their rating. Is it a six and a half, or is it a 10? Or somewhere in between?

• 46:06Rachel Cruze?

  All right, now it's time for Guilty as Charged. And this is where our producer, Kelly, gives us a new Guilty as Charged question every week, and if we're guilty, we take a sip. Kelly?

• 46:16Speaker 04

  So this one's a little bit different. This is, what is your spouse's most toxic money trait?

• 46:24George Kamel?

  Are you trying to cause Merrill's fate?

• 46:28George Kamel?

  Why would you do that? We were gonna have a great night after this.

• 46:32Speaker 02

  In Rachel's haste, sometimes she has fallen for scams.

• 46:39Speaker 02

  Sometimes.

• 46:41George Kamel?

  Our audience is very familiar with this. Because of her authenticity, they know.

• 46:46Speaker 02

  They know. I'm not telling you anything you don't know. That's it. That's, I mean, that is it. She just goes.

• 46:51Rachel Cruze?

  I've fallen for a lot.

• 46:52Speaker 02

  Click, click, click. That doesn't look real.

• 46:56George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 46:57Speaker 02

  You know what I mean? Do you remember that one?

• 46:58Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 46:59Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 47:01Rachel Cruze?

  I've fallen for some good ones.

• 47:02Speaker 02

  Show me the website.

• 47:03Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 47:03Speaker 02

  No wonder you need to delete me.

• 47:05George Kamel?

  So, her most toxic trait is that she's too trusting?

• 47:10Speaker 02

  I don't think that's what I said, George.

• 47:12George Kamel?

  I've seen worse. That's all I'm saying.

• 47:14Rachel Cruze?

  I just don't think through things sometimes.

• 47:17Speaker 02

  Just get excited.

• 47:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 47:20Speaker 02

  I'm not gonna go as far as toxic.

• 47:21George Kamel?

  We've all got that text from USPS being like, hey, you owe us money if you want this package delivered.

• 47:26Speaker 02

  Click this tracking number.

• 47:27George Kamel?

  So exciting.

• 47:28Speaker 02

  Yeah, yeah, exactly.

• 47:29Speaker 04

  Rachel, what's Winston's?

• 47:31Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, Winston's toxic trait is that he claims and is undercover a saver. Doesn't spend, I mean, literally, we will go through, we'll go through, like, I'm not kidding, a month, two months, maybe three months, in the Winston line item, in the EveryDollar budget. Like, there might be, like, one Starbucks in it. I mean, like, nothing. And then he comes to me and he's like, hey, I kinda wanna buy a piano that's against the wall, that's silent, even though we have another piano, but he wants the practice piano where the kids don't bother him. And it's a lot of money. Or, I want a sauna, but I kinda like want the really nice sauna, the three-person sauna, it's gonna cost a lot of money. And I want, like, he never spends, but when he spends, it's like, a lot of money.

• 48:15Speaker 02

  Lifelong product.

• 48:16Rachel Cruze?

  Lifelong product. And I'm like, sure, I mean, I'm great, I mean, I guess, fine, right, we're not going into debt for it, like, we got it, so. But when he spends, it's like, I could buy.

• 48:26George Kamel?

  Breath-taking.

• 48:26Rachel Cruze?

  My Amazon packages don't equate to what he's, like, I think, I think if we added it up, you actually spend dollar amount more than I spend.

• 48:34Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 48:34Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you.

• 48:35Speaker 02

  A thousand cuts versus...

• 48:37Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 48:38George Kamel?

  So, he focuses on life-changing things that really matter, and you focus on the trivial? I think that's a fair assessment.

• 48:46Speaker 02

  You know?

• 48:47George Kamel?

  And don't you reap the benefits of said sauna and said piano playing?

• 48:51Rachel Cruze?

  Well, no, the piano's silence because he wanted it away from the kids.

• 48:54Speaker 02

  What has headphones?

• 48:55George Kamel?

  Which reaps its own benefits when you don't want to hear piano, which I think is very thoughtful of him.

• 48:59Speaker 02

  She just wants more hangers. It works out.

• 49:02Rachel Cruze?

  More clothes.

• 49:03Speaker 02

  Just like, you gotta, we gotta get some of these hangers out of here.

• 49:05George Kamel?

  More hangers, you gotta get more clothes because then you have empty hangers.

• 49:08Speaker 02

  Well, the closet's full, so you have to, I don't know.

• 49:12Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, what's yours?

• 49:13Speaker 03

  All right, Whitney? I mean, it's weird how like similar we are. That's exactly what I was gonna say about George. When he, so same thing, he won't spend frivolously for months and then all of a sudden he wants a bed jet that will air condition his bed.

• 49:28George Kamel?

  Wait a minute.

• 49:28Speaker 03

  Side at night. I thought you'd tell them how much it was.

• 49:32Speaker 02

  We've hung out this long and we, and the bed jet didn't come up?

• 49:37Speaker 03

  Yeah. And he just bought a bed jet mini because the big one had too much air conditioning.

• 49:41George Kamel?

  I returned, to be fair, I returned it to save us money and purchased the mini version, which was a few hundred bucks cheaper.

• 49:48Speaker 02

  This is fascinating.

• 49:49Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 49:50Speaker 02

  Do the viewers know, is this the fir, is this, the viewers know about this?

• 49:53George Kamel?

  I think I've mentioned the bed jet before. Yeah, it's not an endorsement. More of a, I mean, if I could afford the eight sleep, I'd probably go with that, but that's $4,000. So I thought 350 bucks for the bed jet's a steal.

• 50:04Speaker 03

  But even minor things, like just girl stuff, like, but he gets his haircut every two weeks, so that's in the budget. So obviously it's like normal, but then when I go and get highlights, he's like, whoa, like freaks out. But I'm going twice a year, which is way less than his twice a week.

• 50:19Rachel Cruze?

  That's right.

• 50:19Speaker 03

  Haircut.

• 50:20Speaker 02

  Toxic.

• 50:20Speaker 03

  So, yeah.

• 50:21Rachel Cruze?

  Toxic.

• 50:23George Kamel?

  Okay, is it my turn?

• 50:24Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, it is.

• 50:26George Kamel?

  How much time do we have? No, your, your toxic trait, unequivocally, is the fact that you will buy hundreds and hundreds of dollars worth of clothing, but she's going to return it all, maybe more than she bought. So where somehow she's gonna make us money. It's a money-making scheme for her.

• 50:45Speaker 03

  I put money back in the budget.

• 50:46George Kamel?

  She's like, hey, I'm gonna spend $500 at Old Navy, but I'm gonna return most of it.

• 50:50Speaker 03

  Because it's 50% off. And I don't know my size anymore. I just had a baby.

• 50:53George Kamel?

  She's a mom.

• 50:54Speaker 03

  I'm gonna throw that card in there. So I have to buy multiple pants.

• 50:57George Kamel?

  If you just say the word postpartum, I'm like, okay, I can't win. Like, you won.

• 51:01Rachel Cruze?

  It's a trump card.

• 51:02George Kamel?

  So she, and to be fair, she does return it all. A month later, there's a $400 credit back to our account. But in the moment, as a saver, I'm like. That's a lot of money to spend on clothes in one month.

• 51:14Speaker 03

  But also, I'm not doing it every month, you have to be honest. This is like, once every two years, don't even.

• 51:19Rachel Cruze?

  Hey, you know what? Mia's gonna love you. I just took my girls to Target and I was like, "Should we get some new boots?" They're like, "Yeah." I was like, "Okay." Oh yeah, so we went and bought new boots and it's so fun.

• 51:28Speaker 03

  And I got Mia three pairs of shoes today and he was like, "What is this charge?" I was like, "Your daughter needs to be happy."

• 51:33George Kamel?

  She can't walk. She cannot walk. I feel like that's a valid point.

• 51:38Rachel Cruze?

  But she's cute, that's all that matters.

• 51:39George Kamel?

  But she does look cute.

• 51:40Rachel Cruze?

  I know. Oh, it's so fun. Girls are fun.

• 51:42George Kamel?

  I think what we've learned is that toxic money trades don't mean you can't have a great marriage.

• 51:48Rachel Cruze?

  That's right.

• 51:50George Kamel?

  That's what I've learned.

• 51:50Rachel Cruze?

  Thousand percent.

• 51:52George Kamel?

  That was fun. Can I just say thank you too for being here? I know this, maybe you both were dreading this. We kind of forced you into it, but we appreciated it.

• 51:59Rachel Cruze?

  No, it was fun. Very much, thank you. Thank you, thank you.

• 52:02Speaker 02

  Happy Valentine's Day to y'all.

• 52:03George Kamel?

  Happy Valentine's Day.

• 52:04Rachel Cruze?

  So fun.

• 52:05Speaker 02

  Glad you know each other better than we did.

• 52:06George Kamel?

  Love to get-

• 52:07Rachel Cruze?

  I just want a point.

• 52:08George Kamel?

  Love to get dinner on Valentine's if you guys are free. Let us know.

• 52:11Rachel Cruze?

  Double date, double date. So great.

• 52:14Speaker 02

  Rachel still wants to finish the newlywed game.

• 52:17Rachel Cruze?

  What am I like, ready for dinner? So I'm trying to rise towards a dinner.

• 52:20Speaker 02

  Thanks for having us to dinner.

• 52:20Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, like round two? Should we do round two?

• 52:22Speaker 02

  It's three to two, I think, from what I remember.

• 52:24George Kamel?

  Best out of three.

• 52:27Rachel Cruze?

  Best out of three. Oh man, well, thank you guys for listening and watching. As always, you can check out our episode on why fewer people are having kids today. It's not us, because we got kids, but make sure to check that out, subscribe, and like, and we will see you guys next Thursday on an all-new episode of Smart Money Happy Hour.