budgeting
How to Shop Online Without Blowing a Cash Budget
For as long as we’ve been together, my husband and I have placed almost all our purchases–gas, groceries, clothing, vacations, restaurants, and practically everything else we purchased–on a reward-earning credit card. We thought we were being smart. After all, we always paid off the balance each month, even when that balance made us cringe, or was the source of yet another huge fight about money. The day the credit card bill came was always a dark day each month in the Soukup household. Month after month we were always shocked. We weren’t really spending that much, were we? Besides, look how many rewards we were earning. Even long ... read more
Why I Don’t Always Use Coupons
I love saving money with coupons. I don’t always love using coupons. Because, let’s face it, clipping coupons—enough to really save a LOT on groceries—is a lot of work. Yes, the payoff is often impressive—I mean, who wouldn’t want to bring home $127 worth of groceries for less than $0.25—but the truth is that using coupons is not always feasible. I know many of you first found this blog by searching for help on how to start using coupons. You stumbled upon my Beginner’s Guide to Coupons, mastered the 8 week baby steps program, and are now coupon geniuses. Please don’t worry—this is still a good thing! Everything in that ... read more
How to Save on Food for the Holidays
Thanksgiving. Christmas Dinner. Holiday Parties. Seasonal baking. For most of us, food plays a starring roll in our holiday festivities. We all have our favorites, that certain special dish we only eat once a year. Without it Christmas or Thanksgiving just wouldn’t be the same. Oh, the pressure. And while our mouths start watering at the mere thought of golden roasted turkey & homemade apple pie, the cost of food, especially when combined with all of the other expenses this time of year, can be a serious strain on your budget. Even scarier, it is often one of those “hidden” expenses that we don’t account for when we think about ... read more
How to Cut Your Grocery Bill in Half {5 Simple Tips Everyone Should Know}
Food is expensive. The average family spends just over 10% of their household income buying groceries–over $6,000 a year–and even while average wages have gone down, the price of food keeps going up. When you are just trying to feed your family, that is a pretty scary prospect. That said, as more and more people are beginning to realize, coupons can be a great way to save money on food. If you’ve ever watched TLC’s Extreme Couponing, you probably already know that sometimes those savings can be quite dramatic. The problem is that those dramatic savings often come from seasoned coupon users who have spent countless hours clipping & ... read more
re-assess your budget {day twenty-nine}
This is the twenty-ninth day of my 31 Days of Living Well & Spending Zero challenge. To read all the posts in order, start with Day One or visit the Overview Page. * * * There are only a few days left of our 31 day zero spending challenge. We’ve spent the past 4 weeks taking care of our basic needs, cleaning and organizing our homes, fostering our creativity, and maximizing our resources. At this point it would be easy to pat ourselves on the back and congratulate ourselves on a job well done. But we’re not going to do that. At least, not yet. The whole point ... read more
In Search of Financial Peace {5 Things I’ve Learned So Far}
When I started this blog 2 years ago, it was not because I was some slick money guru or finance major who wanted to pass on my certified wisdom to the world. Far from it, actually. I started this blog because my spending was out of control. I was unhappy and bored, and my husband and I were on the brink of both divorce and financial ruin. I started this blog to save my marriage, my family, myself. My goal was simply to figure out how to stretch my budget so that I could buy all the things I wanted. It was pretty simple math, actually: the less I spent ... read more
5 Quick Tips for Getting your Post-Holiday Budget Back on Track
Welcome WINK viewers! Officially I am still on vacation this week but I wanted to make sure you’d be able to easily find the resources I talked about on air this morning. For those of you who didn’t catch the segment, here is a brief overview of my 5 quick tips for getting your post-holiday budget back on track: 1. Freeze your spending. Once you’ve gotten into the “spend” mode, it can sometimes be hard to stop, even when you know you shouldn’t. If you spent too much this Christmas then the first thing you need to do is STOP spending money! Resist the temptation any way you can. 2. ... read more
LWSL Holiday Planning Guide {Free Printable}
The holidays are right around the corner! I don’t know about you , but my feelings are mixed. On the one hand, I truly love this time of year, but at the same time, I can’t help feel a little stressed. There are so many expectations! So many things to do! So many things to buy! As my girls get older, I am finding it increasingly important to keep my priorities in check. I want them to grow up knowing the true meaning of Christmas, not being caught up in the commercialism of it all. I want them to remember happy memories with our family, the special traditions and the ... read more
Fashion on a Dime: How to Look Your Best Without Breaking the Bank
Do you ever feel like you are on a never-ending quest for that perfect piece of clothing? You know the one–the super flattering dress that will instantly make you look 10 pounds slimmer, or the ultra-cute top that makes your eyes sparkle, or the to-die-for boots that make perfect strangers stop just to tell you how great they are. My problem is usually that I’ll like something for a while and then suddenly I’ll hate it and have nothing to wear. Again. There was a time in the not-so-distant past where I spent way too much money on clothes, only to hate them all a short time later. These days, ... read more
The Beginner’s Guide to Savings {Week 8}: Make More Money
Part 8: Make More Money Here’s the good news: you’ve made it to the end. It’s week eight and you have arrived, you’ve followed through, you’ve worked hard and made huge strides. You truly deserve a pat on the back. Way to go, you! (If you are new to my blog or missed out on the last seven weeks, you might want to start at Week 1: Stop Spending before reading any further!) So here’s the bad news, at least for some of you: After delving into your finances and taking a long hard look at what you are earning versus how much you want or need to spend, you have realized ... read more
The Beginner’s Guide to Savings {Week 7}: Save for the Future
Part 7: Save for the Future The Future. Big. Undefined. Non-immediate. Nebulous. Scary. If you’re anything like me, saving for this vague entity known as “the future,” is the hardest part of all. After all food, clothing, vacations, housing, and yes, even shoes are all real. They are tangible and immediate. Saving on–or for–those things affects us right now. (Before we go any further, if you are new to my blog or missed out on the last six weeks, you might want to start at Week 1: Stop Spending before starting this week’s assignment!) Saving for far-off things like retirement or college or putting money aside for an emergency fund is ... read more
The Beginner’s Guide to Savings {Week 6}: Save on the Special Things
Part 6: Save on the Special Things Vacations. Birthdays. Holidays. We know they’re coming and yet it is so easy to blow our budgets just because “it’s a special occasion.” If you’re still with me after all this time, you should be starting to feel pretty good about your budget. After all, you’ve been able to make a distinction between your wants and needs, you’ve set a budget for yourself and hopefully found ways to save some money on the big things (like housing & insurance), the necessary things (like utilities & groceries), & even the fun things (like shoes!) (Before we go any further, if you are new to ... read more
The Beginner’s Guide to Savings {Week 5}: Save on the Fun Things
Part 5: Save on the Fun Things Finally, a topic that we actually WANT to think about. Or maybe that’s just me. Saving on the all the things we MUST spend money on–important as it may be–is, well, somewhat tedious, to say the least. (Before we go any further, if you are new to my blog or missed out on the last four weeks, you might want to start at Week 1: Stop Spending before starting this week’s assignment!) If we’re being perfectly honest, which of these two scenarios would make you do the happy dance: a.) You were able to negotiate a .3 percentage point drop in your mortgage rate b.) ... read more
The Beginner’s Guide to Savings {Week 4}: Save on the Necessary Things
Part 4: Save on the Necessary Things If you’ve made it this far, you’ve probably come to the conclusion that getting your financial life in order is hard work! I wish I could say it will be a cakewalk from now on, but alas, there is still much to be done. Don’t let that discourage you or make you give up. If you are feeling overwhelmed (a perfectly normal reaction), the just stop, take a deep breath, and give yourself a break. Wait a week or two to pick up where you started. This series will be here for you when you’re ready. I promise you CAN do this, and ... read more
The Beginner’s Guide to Savings {Week 3}: Save on the Big Things
Part 3: Save on the Big Things After spending the last week sorting out your budget and then recording all your purchases, you hopefully now have a fairly clear idea of where your money is going. Over the next 6 weeks be sure to keep those worksheets handy–you will need to adjust your amounts as we work to lower expenses in the various categories. Be sure to also continue recording all your purchases in the expense tracking worksheet too! (If you are new to my blog or missed out on the last two weeks, you might want to start at Week 1: Stop Spending before starting this week’s assignment!) This week we ... read more
