How To Get The Most Out of A Hotel Stay

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Saving money on a hotel room is sometimes a question away. Just asking if  a better rate is available can in some cases save a significant amount of money. My brother in law wins the prize for the biggest discount, however, because with one question he saved over $200. We had been planning a New Year’s Eve stay at a hotel with some family near the Mall Of America in the Minneapolis / St. Paul metropolitan area. The location would put us in walking distance of several restaurant options for dinner, along with the potential to go to a movie and a […] Read more »

Hindsight is 20 dollars: An Andrew Jackson can save you 2 hours or more on home improvement

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A termite infestation was discovered during our last insect treatment. Our “guy”, Bugs by Brian, sprays on a quarterly basis and always does a great job keeping spiders and other bugs from getting into our home. What we didn’t know was that large pieces of wood separating the sloped yard from our flowerbed and patio was home to some wood-eating critters. Not wanting to spend any money on the project, I decided to take care of them myself. This was a big project but I already knew what had to be done – I had replaced some of the 6’ […] Read more »

How to Get Ahead if You’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck

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get ahead living paycheck to paycheck

Some recent studies showed that more than two thirds of people are living paycheck to paycheck at least some of the time. That’s pretty incredible! It seems to be getting harder and harder to keep your head above water financially, and there is no lack of reasons why that’s happening. Some of it is because our attitudes about money have changed over the years.  Some of it is also because of the changing economy, and some of it is probably due to the fact that the world is rapidly changing, and some are getting left behind because they refuse to […] Read more »

Are You Taking Care Of Your Money?

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Do you take good care of your money? Think about that question for a few minutes while I tell you a story. My daughter went to an outdoor swimming pool over the weekend with a friend’s family. The weather was hot making it a perfect day to go swimming. Even though the pool was crowded, my daughter had a fantastic time. Until she discovered that the $20 she brought with her was missing from her swim bag. She wasn’t the only one that had lost money, either. Her friend’s mother had $40 stolen from her purse as well. Apparently, the […] Read more »

Club Stores are NOT Always Cheaper

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In an effort to take advantage of our 2% cash back perk of our executive membership, I’ve been trying to get in the habit of making bulk buying run to Costco once a month. By purchasing products that we always need and use in bulk once a month I figured I’d save time and money. One thing consumers have to be very careful about is whether what we’re buying is actually cheaper at a club store. The perception many consumers have is that if you buy gigantic packages at a club store, it MUST be a good deal. But I […] Read more »

Why Camping is a Very Expensive Holiday Option for Me

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camping costs

Last Sunday we drove to the airport and my son boarded a plane. On his own and he is only thirteen. He is off for a week camping with a friend and his family. Why we are not with him, you may ask? We are staying put because, contrary to popular belief, camping for me has always been a very expensive holiday option. “Always” as in the three times I’ve tried it, that is. I tried camping for the first time about twenty years ago; we were young(ish) and my step sons were still at an age when sleeping in […] Read more »

Are Luxury Hotels Worth the Price?

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A car pulls up to a hotel, the owner gets out as a doorman removes the bags and a valet takes the keys and drives away.  Inside the lobby a well dressed person at the reception desk goes through the check in process while describing all the amenities the hotel has to offer.  Being able to stay at a luxury hotel where employees bend over backwards to do everything for you is portrayed as a symbol of pampering and wealth. But is it really all it’s cracked up to be? My wife and I spent the 4th of July weekend […] Read more »

Preventing Impulse Buys With A Waiting Period: Does it Work?

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Delayed gratification:  The art of making yourself wait to purchase something new.  Some people use a self-imposed waiting period to make sure that they really want to part with their hard earned cash.  The thought is, you reassess the want to make a purchase after a designated waiting period.  Many times you’ll decide against the purchase, thus saving yourself from wasting money on impulsive purchase. But does this practice really work?  I had the opportunity recently to find out. About a month ago, we decreased our cell phone bill by $150 a month by switching to a no contract plan […] Read more »

When Frugal Travel Hacks backfire

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Today’s post is a guest post by NZ Muse, a writer from Auckland who’s just completed a six-month trip around the world. She blogs about money, travel, food, and generally bumbling through Gen Y adulthood. Think you can’t afford to travel? Saving dosh while traveling isn’t much different than saving dosh in your day-to-day life. It’s all about weighing your priorities and cutting back in some areas so you can spend more freely on what matters to you. You can fly from point A to B – or you could catch a bus, or even hitchhike. You can eat in […] Read more »

The Cost Of Decluttering Your Home

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It wasn’t how I envisioned my Saturday playing out. After completing my early morning eight mile run, I asked Vonnie what was on her agenda for the day. She suggested we do some much needed cleaning, but first she wanted my help in repotting some plants. After doing one, I started looking for a hand garden shovel that would make the task easier. My search led me to the small shed on the side of our garage. I opened the door of the shed and stared at the cluttered contents, knowing the small shovel was likely buried in a box […] Read more »

Cut A Brisket, Cut Your Costs

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It’s Labor Day weekend and grills across the country are firing up for end of the summer cookouts. We hosted one yesterday, and I was up before the sun (5AM to be precise) to start smoking a brisket for a gathering we were hosting that evening. I removed the fourteen pound mass of meat I had purchased and seasoned the night before from the refrigerator. I snapped on some rubber gloves and began rubbing a little extra seasoning on the brisket ensuring it was fully covered. I ran my fingers across the layer of fat that separates the two major […] Read more »

Recognize the Good Amidst the Goofy – Consider the Flip Side

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Sometimes we do things that are goofy and they can lead us into financial trouble. At other times we engage in frugal behavior and some of that can appear to be equally goofy. What can make our frugality appear misapplied is the minimum way in which the activities appear to save money or otherwise reduce our burden of debt. Saving a nickel here or there is just plain goofy, right? Well, what might appear goofy at first, could be beneficial if only we take the time to look at the flip side. Examining the opposite side of the coin can help give us a "would you rather have this instead" perspective, and that can be just enough to help us see the good in it. Often, outward appearances can mask a healthy mindset. Even if we don't appreciate the savings we see, we might appreciate the mindset that drives it, and sometimes the mindset is never more clear than when we examine the flip side of things. Read more »

Carolina Dreaming

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Suzanne Coblentz CareOne Debt Relief Serivces Blogger

If you are able to take a vacation each and every summer, good for you, but for many of us juggling various financial goals, sometimes the big trips don’t make the cut. Getting away can get extremely pricey, and that does not even include what you paid in advance for your trip.  Vacationing in general is just an expensive process. As a result, it is not something that we do as a family each and every summer.  We typically do a few small weekend jaunts and live it up with the plastic pool in the backyard. Normally the idea of […] Read more »

Save Money by Being Your Own Florist? Yes You Can!

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What’s the key to a successful marriage? That’s a loaded question, and quite honestly I think the answer is unique to each couple. But if I had to give one generality that I think could possibly apply to everyone, I would advise people to listen to their partner. I’m not referring to giving a nod and throwing in an agreeable statement every time there’s a pause in your partner’s voice. I mean really listen to what they’re saying. The amazing thing is, your significant other will actually tell you what they want. About a month ago, my daughter had her […] Read more »