A friend and I hit Ikea this morning. Not only did I get curtains at a phenomenal price, (really long ones that will fit a higher ceiling) but we had this for breakfast for $1.99. I think they call it their "Big Breakfast." Such a kid-friendly place ... just LOVE Ikea!
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Another Good Deal/Meal at Ikea
A friend and I hit Ikea this morning. Not only did I get curtains at a phenomenal price, (really long ones that will fit a higher ceiling) but we had this for breakfast for $1.99. I think they call it their "Big Breakfast." Such a kid-friendly place ... just LOVE Ikea!
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Neighborhood Sports Teams
Something we've been involved with the last year is a group of parents getting their kids together to play various sports. All the parents volunteer to do something: coach, team mom, pictures, trophies, etc. We pay $12-$15 dollars per child and have played t-ball, soccer and football. It's pretty relaxed and we keep it as simple as possible. Everyone brings their own drinks and snacks, etc. A great way to introduce children to different sports and at very reasonable price.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Saving Money on College Textbooks
A friend of mine wrote a really helpful article on buying college textbooks at reduced prices. Here's the link.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
A Little Money Saver
The last couple months I've been trying to come off my expensive and unhealthy Diet Coke addiction. What I've started doing when I hit a drive-thru is get a water with my meal and use a little crystal light packet in the water. The packets are cheaper than buying a soda and although not that healthy themselves, I think better than the Diet Coke addiction.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Stop Counting the Pennies!
There's a book I started reading a while ago, and only got about 75 pages in before my life got super busy, but think it's a great book. It's called, "All Your Worth, The Ultimate Lifetime Money Plan" by Elizabeth Warren and her daughter, Amelia Warren Tyagi. I've really liked Elizabeth for years. She's was appointed recently by Obama to develop the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. She really does seem to care about the shrinking middle class.
She gave a piece of advice in the book I think is really true. She says everywhere we go, we are told to save our pennies, watch the Starbucks, etc. She says that's wonderful, but they want us to spend our "precious minutes where they count most: your dollars. Instead of spending your time on how to squeeze a few nickels out of small purchases, it's time to focus on the really big expenses, where an hour on the phone can save you thousands of dollars. This step starts with an incredibly simple premise: Dollars are worth more than pennies."
I've always felt that we really blow our budget on our big purchases rather than one too many rentals at Redbox!
She goes on to discuss the big-ticket items, house, car, insurance, etc. She says, "If you are overspending on these big monthly bills, then money is draining out of your pocket a lot faster than you can replace it by getting double coupons on your frozen vegetables. She calls this step in her plan, "the foundational step for getting straight with your money.
Then comes the tough love.
"Who says you shouldn't spend all your money on a normal house and a normal car? We do. It doesn't matter if you are living in a regular house. It doesn't matter if you are driving an average car. It doesn't matter if all of your Must-Haves seem perfectly ordinary and no different from those of your neighbors. Because you can't use your neighbors as a guide. Why not? Because most of your neighbors are not building wealth."
She wants us spending no more than 50% of our income on "must-haves." Must haves being food, shelter, etc. This book was published in 2005. If everyone in the country had read this, it would have saved us all so much money. We would have been keenly aware if we really could afford the houses we were buying, etc. Anyway, more from her later. Such a voice of reason.
She gave a piece of advice in the book I think is really true. She says everywhere we go, we are told to save our pennies, watch the Starbucks, etc. She says that's wonderful, but they want us to spend our "precious minutes where they count most: your dollars. Instead of spending your time on how to squeeze a few nickels out of small purchases, it's time to focus on the really big expenses, where an hour on the phone can save you thousands of dollars. This step starts with an incredibly simple premise: Dollars are worth more than pennies."
I've always felt that we really blow our budget on our big purchases rather than one too many rentals at Redbox!
She goes on to discuss the big-ticket items, house, car, insurance, etc. She says, "If you are overspending on these big monthly bills, then money is draining out of your pocket a lot faster than you can replace it by getting double coupons on your frozen vegetables. She calls this step in her plan, "the foundational step for getting straight with your money.
Then comes the tough love.
"Who says you shouldn't spend all your money on a normal house and a normal car? We do. It doesn't matter if you are living in a regular house. It doesn't matter if you are driving an average car. It doesn't matter if all of your Must-Haves seem perfectly ordinary and no different from those of your neighbors. Because you can't use your neighbors as a guide. Why not? Because most of your neighbors are not building wealth."
She wants us spending no more than 50% of our income on "must-haves." Must haves being food, shelter, etc. This book was published in 2005. If everyone in the country had read this, it would have saved us all so much money. We would have been keenly aware if we really could afford the houses we were buying, etc. Anyway, more from her later. Such a voice of reason.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
After Christmas Perfume Shopping
If you're a perfume gal, I noticed Target and Walgreens blowing out those Christmas perfume gift sets. You can get some of the different stars perfumes like Faith Hill, Halle Berry and Beyonce (not sure I spelled their names correctly!?) and oldies but goodies like CK one, Eternity for Men, and Obsession for a fraction of their normal cost.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
After Christmas Shopping
I haven't written for a long time, we bought a house and between that and the holidays, I've been a busy gal.
Had some time though for some after Christmas shopping yesterday. Besides getting all the Christmas decorations, etc. for cheap, one of the things I like to buy is wrapping paper that doesn't look overly "Christmas-y" so I can use it for gift wrapping during the year. You can also get tissue paper at great prices. Yesterday Target had bulk white tissue paper half off.
Had some time though for some after Christmas shopping yesterday. Besides getting all the Christmas decorations, etc. for cheap, one of the things I like to buy is wrapping paper that doesn't look overly "Christmas-y" so I can use it for gift wrapping during the year. You can also get tissue paper at great prices. Yesterday Target had bulk white tissue paper half off.
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