A few years ago, I recounted the tragic tale of how I “accidentally” spent almost $450 on my daughter’s birthday party – an event that was held in my backyard – to celebrate her turning 2. At the time, I vowed how I’d never go overboard with a child’s birthday party again.

Liar, liar, pants on fire.

My daughter’s birthday happens to fall right at the beginning of the school year, and as we were new to town last year, I decided to invite every little girl my daughter had come across during her first two months in our new city. I figured half of them wouldn’t come, so our initial guest list of 14 would be more like 7.

Wrong again.

Instead, every single little girl my daughter invited RSVP’d “yes,” and as a result the party at a local beauty salon (geared for kids) that was supposed to cost $200 ended up costing twice that much. Once again, I’d gone overboard without ever intending to.

But this year, I’m finally going to make good on my promise not to overspend on my children’s birthday parties. Here’s how:

My son will turn 3 in a few weeks, and has been begging me for months to throw him a party at a local “bounce house” type of venue. Unfortunately, the price tag for those pre-packaged parties runs upwards of $300 – definitely not in our budget this year! So instead, I’m throwing him a party at a local park. Turns out, shelter rental is free to city residents, so right off the bat I saved $75. I’m only inviting family and three of his friends and their families; in lieu of gifts, each family will bring one kid-friendly dish to share, potluck style. All we’ll be paying for are the hot dogs & hamburgers, drinks, and cake – around $100. I know the kids will have a blast on the newly-refurbished playground at the park, as well as enjoying the nearby lake.

My daughter’s birthday party plans were a little trickier to solidify, mostly because I’d upped the ante over the past few years. But not to fear! A few weekends ago, we were at a silent auction for our church’s fundraiser when – lo and behold! – I spotted the perfect item up for grabs: a birthday party for 8 at a local jewelry store for kids. The package came with:

• Pizza and drinks for up to 8 kids
• $10 for EACH child to spend in store
• Each child would get to make her own bracelet as a craft
• Each child would get to decorate her own wooden doll as a craft
• 2 hours of karaoke/dancing in the store after hours

I hovered near the item all  night, finally swooping in minutes before the silent auction closed with my winning bid of $100. I’ll still have to provide the cake, but with just 8 girls in attendance, I anticipate I won’t spend more than $20 tops at the local bakery. Score!

What are some creative, cost-effective ways you’ve come up with to celebrate your children’s birthdays, all while staying on budget?

Article publié pour la première fois le 06/10/2014

I will concede that I am not the only, nor the most knowledgeable saver/personal-finance-lover on the block.

But if I know anything, I know a useful website when I see/use one.  Since I cannot justify  writing an entire post about any of these sites individually (nor do I want to), I’ve been saving them for the time when I had 10 exactly. 

Why?  Because I like multiples of 10 and I’d forget half of them by the time I got to 20.

So here they are, with a little something for everybody.   

For eBay-ers:

It’s just like eBay.  But cheaper.

Yes, you will find some of the junk that you find in stores, perhaps even some of the junk that you yourself donated.  However, you will find some excellent deals sans the too-high price tags that people place on their, ahem, “heirlooms.” 

If you think Antique Roadshow is exciting, then you’ll love this. 

For Parentals:

I’ve always wondered how children’s clothes could be so expensive when they require so much less raw materials than real people clothes.  Someone figure this out, it’s gonna drive me nuts. 

Here’s how they sum up the process: 

1. Pick – Pick a great new box of clothes for your child – just $5 + shipping.

2. List – Post a box of gently-worn clothes your child no longer wears.

3. Send – When another member picks your box, send it 100% free of charge. 

For Book Readers:

It’s just like thredUP, but instead of pants and shirts, you trade books. There are no fees on this one, you just pay shipping for the books that you mail. 

Great idea for people who are running out of shelf space; which is basically everyone I know. 

[click to continue…]

Article publié pour la première fois le 10/11/2010

Anyone who’s been to a Pottery Barn outlet can tell you that that’s where chipped pieces of particle board go to die.  That bedroom set sure didn’t look like that in the catalog.

Last year, newlywed Husband and I went to Ashley Furniture to buy an affordable entertainment center.  Knowing a little bit about furniture, I made sure to ask if the piece we were looking at was solid wood.  The salesperson assured me that, yes, it was, “entirely made of wood.”  Technically, she wasn’t lying.  Veneer is wood.  Particle board is wood.   

Many, dare I say most, large furniture companies use a combination of veneers and particle board to make their furniture.  Veneers, or thin sheets of wood, are glued to the surface of particle board, or saw dust and wood chips that are glued together, and voila, you have a cheap, decent looking building material (I got a little comma crazy in this sentence, I apologize).  This type of construction has several downsides. 

[click to continue…]

Article publié pour la première fois le 13/07/2010

In our second article in our series about saving time, we look at how to save time grocery shopping.

If you took a survey of the average person, you would find that approximately 100% of people hate grocery shopping. Sure, it’s a good excuse to get out of that house of screaming kids you have, but the act itself is not fun. Here are a few tips to help make grocery shopping a cheaper and less painful experience.

If your grocer doesn’t offer this, look for a competitor that specializes in grocery delivery like Peapod or Tesco.

Order From Your Grocer Online

Article publié pour la première fois le 14/11/2013

In the last ten years the price of gas has more than doubled, and there’s little evidence to suggest that gas prices are going to return to their previously low levels.  Just take a look at historical prices and other than a few isolated dips the price of gas has consistently increased.

Gas is just one expense that most people completely forget about when considering the cost of owning a car, but the costs can add up pretty quickly.  For example, my daily commute to work involves a 42 mile drive each way.  Luckily I only go the office four days per week, but I still have to fill up the tank an average of once a week (and my car is pretty much used for nothing but commuting to work).

Fortunately it is one expense that you have a good deal of control over.  The tips in this article will help you get the most bang for your buck at the gas pump.

Stick to Regular

Premium gas costs a good twenty to thirty cents more per gallon so switching to regular will save you at least a few bucks with every fill up.  Most cars run just fine on regular unleaded gas so unless your owner’s manual specifically states your car needs premium you’re just throwing your money away.

Slow Down

The faster you drive, the faster you’ll burn through your gas.  Slow and steady wins the race for most mileage so ease off the accelerator and pay attention so you’re not making sudden starts and stops.  This will help your brakes last longer too.

Don’t Be Idle

Don’t leave the engine running while you run into the store or hit the ATM for some cash. Even if you think you’ll just be a minute, you’re using gas for nothing.

Take a Load Off

The more weight your engine has to haul around the harder it has to work and the more fuel it will burn through. That means you shouldn’t carry around all your worldly possessions with you.  That means you should empty your trunk of anything not essential.  In other words, take out the 300 pounds in dumbbells and weights, though you should probably leave the spare tire and jack.

Speaking of weight, maybe this is a good excuse to finally drop a few pounds of your own.  And while losing twenty or thirty pounds from your waistline won’t have a huge impact on your car’s mileage, it will help you live a little healthier and happier.

Skip the Gimmicks

It’s amazing how many products promise to boost your mileage to amazing levels and there is no shortage of frugal drivers willing to buy them.  But they’re really just throwing their money away with fuel boosts and gas additives that do little good.

You can even buy a kit that will supposedly convert your car to run on water instead of gas.  If that sounds shady, you’re right.  It probably won’t work at all and you could end up damaging your car and even voiding the warranty.  Buyer beware.

Article publié pour la première fois le 24/11/2014