Race to Freedom Challenge #3 – Maximize Savings

saving pennies

Photo Credit: totalAldo Last month you were challenged to stop eating out for the entire month, OR severely cut back to a reasonable level. To recap, my family tried to cut our eating out visits to 4 times with a cap of $120 being the most we could spend for the month. As I reported in the update post a few weeks ago, we went out to eat six times, but since then did add one more time to that for a grand total of $200. To be honest IU’m not regretting that one either because it was right before [...] Read more »

My Resolutons – Track My Progress!

resolutions 2011

Hello everyone and happy Friday! Last year I made lots of resolutions but failed to track them throughout the year. This year I am not making the same mistake. That’s why I created a page you can go to whenever you are curious as to how I am doing on the resolutions I set to accomplish. (and to hold me accountable) Hopefully, this will not only help keep me accountable, but will also motivate and inspire some of you to fulfill your own resolutions in 2011! I will be updating this page weekly, monthly, and sometimes randomly depending on the [...] Read more »

Saying “I Can’t” Is Just Like Saying “I Don’t Want To”

crossroads

Photo Credit: haydnseek Have you ever said “I can’t?” I have, and you probably have too. What is it that you are really saying when you speak those words? Are you saying you lack the ability to learn, or are you saying you lack the desire to try? I personally feel the phrase “I can’t” is the equivalent of saying “I don’t want to”. If you wanted to do something, wouldn’t you try, and if you didn’t, you couldn’t say I couldn’t, you would have to then say I didn’t? (Tongue twister—I know) Unfortunately, many people say I can’t before [...] Read more »

Children And Money: Are You Helping Your Children Learn The Basics?

Teaching Your Kids Early On Is The Best Way To Ensure Financial Responsibility Since approximately February of 2009 we have been adding small amounts of change to Isaac’s piggy bank periodically.  He gets money for doing certain things like cleaning up after himself, helping around the house, etc.  He loves to help and we want him to learn the value of hard work.  If he works he does get paid, and if he doesn’t work then he doesn’t get paid—just like the real world. We have a pretty loose system as Isaac is only 3, but as he gets older [...] Read more »

Fully Funded Emergency Fund – Do It Your Way!

Go Get You An Umbrella! You’ve reached baby step 3!  You now have NO DEBT except for your house, and are ready to beef up your savings.  Congratulations! You are climbing a mountain and are two-thirds of the way up.  Can you see the top?  Pretty soon you will be at an overlook that you at one time thought was impossible.  Keep moving forward! There may be times when you feel as if you are moving too slow, but just keep moving!  Now isn’t the time to stop!  Now you should be more motivated and here’s why.  When you were [...] Read more »