This is the second post in our New Year’s Motivation series. After weight loss, I think people’s #2 resolution is to recover from their holiday debt, and learn how to manage your money. I feel it certainly is a worthy goal. To me, managing your money is less about getting rich and more about ensuring…
OK my lovelies – the holiday season is officially over. The turkey has been eaten, the presents unwrapped, the decorations are ready to go back in their boxes, and it’s time for the Christmas bills to start arriving. If you have done significant overspending during this holiday, this is the part you have been dreading,…
I know most people prefer to give gift cards for holidays and birthdays. It certainly is faster and easier than choosing a gift for someone and in some cases, I do think they make sense. But just as a common practice I almost never give gift cards or money. There’s a big difference between…
Tomorrow is my second payday after Christmas. And tomorrow, I will write a check and poof! All my Christmas bills will be paid off. My holiday situation wasn’t always like this – like many people, I used to have Christmas bills from my holiday overspending that would take me months to pay off. But that…
I did a post about saving money at the gym last year. I wanted to revisit it again as part of my New Year’s Motivation series. The first week of January is exactly the time of year when people start flooding to the gym again to try and get rid of a few extra…
The Lesson I Learned about Homemade Laundry Soap I have seen SO many posts over the years about saving money by making your own homemade laundry soap. I think it’s a good idea – in theory. However, I learned a tough lesson about this more than 25 years ago. My mother-in-law found some laundry soap…
America has a huge love affair with the magazine industry. And I get it, they’re all glossy and pretty and promise all these fresh new ideas. There are thousands of magazines created every month for everything from knitting to golf and every other hobby or interest imaginable. Most people have at least 5 to…
One thing I love about digital scrapbooking is that you aren’t necessarily married to a page size. I typically like to design my pages in 12 X 12, but I don’t necessarily like storing the 12 X 12 albums. They take up a LOT of space and are kind of awkward to store because they…
A debt snowball is an incredibly powerful way to pay off debt quickly and easily. They are fairly easy to set up and use, and they are very powerful. They can literally save you thousands in interest over the life of a loan and help you get out of debt years earlier. I have a…
Last year, my son ran up more than $78 in library fines and fees. That’s some serious money for something that is theoretically free. Fortunately, they agreed to let him pay his library fines online and we were able to negotiate a reduction since it was a first-time occurrence. Keep in mind, this wasn’t…
I don’t know about you, but I really STRUGGLE not to overspend when I go to Costco. Some of my friends just think it’s a joke – they call it the “Hundred Dollar Store”. But for me, it was a lot worse than that. My record was nearly $500 in ONE TRIP – one EPIC…
Here are some other posts that you might enjoy: Debt Free Coaching 10 Secrets of Women Who Always Have Money How to Make Money from Your Excessive Clutter Financial Tips To Help Your Future College Student
As the owner of four cats and a dog, I have paid out my share of vet bills. Maybe even more than my share. Last year, our St. Bernard – Joe got out of the yard, got hit by a car, and ended up with a broken leg that cost us about $800. It really…
Here’s a clever idea that might help you manage an out of control spending habit. Use the banking alerts that your bank offers to help you manage your overspending. It can be surprisingly motivating if you actually pay attention to them. Plus it helps you keep your bank balance in mind before you overdraw your…
I just finished yet another cruise last week, so while I was on board, I was thinking of you guys and picking up little tips I’d like to share with you on how to enjoy a cruise if you have a chance. A cruise can be SO much fun, but they can be a LOT less…
Every New Year’s Eve, what is the absolute number one resolution? Hands down, it is always to lose weight. It’s like the Holy Grail of resolutions! Because of that, the diet and exercise industry is one of the richest in the world. People spend thousands of dollars each year with hopes of losing weight –…