Earn, Save, and Live Joyfully.
The final tally of my Christmas gifts is just over $222 in credit cards and cash (including coins), plus an additional $105 in redeemed gift cards and certificates. I can’t list all of the gifts on account of any wandering eyes who might glance onto my blog, but my best deal by far was at … Read more
On Monday I tried to estimate just how much money I spend on stuff each month. As soon as I finished writing that post I pulled out my financial journals and started running reports to see how close my estimate came to the actual number. Here is a breakdown of our discretionary expenses in order … Read more
Have you ever tallied up just how much stuff you purchase each month? I suppose before you can answer that question you need to know what stuff includes. I think it should include any items that you can live without. In other words I wouldn’t consider groceries, utilities, mortgage or rent in my definition. I … Read more
My husband cooked the most delicious vodka cream pasta sauce for our lunches last week. This is the third or fourth week in a row where he’s cooked a big batch of hearty, goodness that we can take to work with us. Last week he made Indian food, which wasn’t nearly as tasty as this … Read more
Sometimes I find myself focusing way too much on money. I stand in the grocery store aisle staring at shelves and shelves of items, trying to figure out whether I should buy the larger can or the smaller one; the name brand or the generic. I waste time staring at a wad of flimsy newspaper … Read more
Weeks ago Cindy Brick asked me the following questions: How did you save up enough for your rental property? And having done that — would you do it again, knowing what you do now? Well the wait has been long, but without further ado here are my answers… I found my house a few weeks … Read more
I’ve been spending money like it’s growing on trees. It all started innocently enough with a few online purchases and ballooned into a laundry list in just fourteen days. Replacement for my stolen GPS: $175 Dress for a wedding: $120 New summer dress: $50 New summer blouse: $11 Two new bras: $35 A few nights … Read more
Have you ever noticed the way in which expensive, five star restaurants layout the items on their menu? How they display details about a particular entree or appetizer and then display the price directly below the description rather than to the right of it? I never thought much about it before, but an interesting article … Read more
This weekend I searched for a new dining set for my front porch. I ran the numbers, compared prices and consulted my budgeting software. I had a specific price in mind before I reached the store and walked in confident that I wouldn’t break the bank. If I bought a table and chairs similar to … Read more
Our credit card bill is higher than it’s been in ages. In fact it’s more than the previous four months combined. So where did all of the money go? Well I’m afraid to say much of it went out the window. We spent a whopping $1,700 on food, groceries and gas. My husband and I … Read more