“Back to School” Make Every Dollar Count

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As much as we wish to preserve their innocence and keep them young forever, kids grow up before our eyes and their expenses often grow with them. “Back to school” season is upon us and added expenses ranging from new clothes, supplies for the classroom and extracurricular activities can throw a monkey wrench in your finances if you are not prepared. The National Retail Federation’s 2012 Back-to-School spending survey found that the average person with kids in grades K-12 will spend $688.62 on their children, up from $603.63 last year. If you have school age children, “back to school” can […] Read more »

Hotels.com Gained, and Lost Me As A Customer

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We knew we didn’t want to drive the entire 11 hours home from Kentucky to Minnesota in one day, so we were looking for somewhere to spend the night at about the 7 hour mark. The wife of another couple that had also traveled from Minnesota found a place in the desired city and price range using Hotels.com. Looking at the computer screen, I was impressed with the website as it listed the hotels for the city requested as well as the surrounding area. Users are also able to sort the list many different ways. Our friend called and booked […] Read more »

2012 Meets the 1950’s

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Today’s stage is set for the I Love Lucy show. A devoted wife and mother Lucy didn’t work but depended on Ricky, her star performer husband to bring home the bacon. Lucy longed for the chance to be a star and if she were here today maybe even a credit card. The sad truth is that she wouldn’t be able to get one. Why? Well because of the Credit CARD Act of 2009. The act which was meant to protect people has put stay at home mom’s at arm’s length from applying for credit. In an effort to help students […] Read more »

Survive Wedding Season Debt Free

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I have surpassed the threshold of having multiple friends I grew up, or went to school with (making us all about the same age) getting married in what seemed like—all at once. There was a span of about three years where I attended, or was in fifteen weddings—the expenses crushed my finances. I never calculated the actual amount I spent, the shock may have given me a heart attack, but I would venture to guess I spent an average of $750 for each of the 5 weddings I was in and roughly $200 for those I attended, making the total over […] Read more »

I’m Hot Because I’m Bald

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What comes to mind when you think of the stereotypical, sexy, attractive male? If the covers of magazines and romance novels are any indication, it’s a tall, tan guy with washboard abs, and of course a head of thick, long flowing hair. However, there are signs that this viewpoint is changing. Earlier this week, my friend and fellow blogger Suzanne Cramer wrote a post asserting that financially responsible men are attractive. Well, I’ve got some news, and it’ll knock the socks off of Suzanne and other women who share her viewpoint. Bald men are more attractive because they’re financially responsible. […] Read more »

My ImpulseSave Experience: Is Saving Money Fun?

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Hello everyone! I hope you’re having a great weekend so far! A few weeks ago I did an ImpulseSave Invite Giveaway! At the time, I wasn’t quite fully setup and connected to my Perkstreet checking account so unfortunately I couldn’t share a more personal review of the site and the wonderful savings tool that it is. On March 11th, I was finally able to take full advantage of the site. Since then I’ve jumped in head first and I must say — I LOVE IT!!!! I don’t think saving money has ever been this much fun! My wife and I […] Read more »

Buyer Beware Hidden Charges May Be Affecting Your Bottom Line

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You are one of those people that diligently budgets for every expense, cuts costs wherever possible–a sheer genius when it comes to personal finance. So why does it seem you just can’t get ahead as a middleclass American citizen doing all the right things when it comes to sticking to your budget? The economy has taken its toll on just about everyone, both consumers and business. In fact either you or someone close to you has likely fallen victim to a foreclosure, layoff, or downsizing. When you fill up at the pump you wonder when a gallon of gas and […] Read more »

P90X Your Finances this Year

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Unless you have been living under a rock, chances are you have heard of the P90X workout system and its charismatic fitness guru, Tony Horton. On January 1, 2012 I started the P90X system and have embraced both the diet and exercise requirements, hoping to take my health and fitness to the next level. I don’t know about all of you but I need a regimented diet and exercise plan to have any chance of staying on track. In fact last year I completely fell off the wagon and gained 30 pounds!  I made 2 resolutions for 2012:  Get healthy […] Read more »

Changing My Money Mind in 2012

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It’s that time of year when we all vow to change our ways and resolve to go on a diet, quit smoking, or get out of debt. How many of us actually have a plan in place to make our resolutions a reality? Unfortunately most of us don’t and this is why we are doomed to fail before we even start. Yes, money is necessary to support our lifestyle, but do we let it determine how we live our lives? The fact is many of us do. We allow ourselves to live up to or above our means which often […] Read more »

Just Say No to Inflatable Santa’s

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“Mommy please can we get one of those inflatable Santa’s?” This is the plea I have heard from my eight year old son since we began to decorate (with our already purchased) holiday decorations the day after Thanksgiving. My answer remains constant, “Not right now buddy, we don’t need an inflatable Santa.”  Unfortunately millions of Americans apparently do feel they need inflatable Santa’s, two Christmas trees, and thousands of twinkle lights to adorn their homes so they can feel the magic of the holidays.  According to a Bloomberg report, “This year U.S. consumers will spend $6 billion on decorations, the […] Read more »

The Most Important Money Advice You Will Ever Receive

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You do not need to buy a bunch of books from Dave Ramsey, Suze Orman or David Bach to get this kind of advice. You don’t have to go to week long seminars to learn this powerful tool either. You don’t even have to leave your home. Look no further than this blog post and you will get the most valuable money advice you could ever need. The power of this strategy is amazing! It will teach your children a valuable lesson. It will save you thousands of dollars. It will help your marriage. It will even allow you to […] Read more »

No Restaurants in November 2011 – First Week Peek Plus Recipes!

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If this is your first time visiting last year I hosted my very own No Restaurants in November challenge. The point was to save some money and hopefully curb some bad eating out habits while being transparent about all of it. I revealed how much we spent in October of 2010 and our savings at the end of November. The challenger was a huge success in terms of popularity so I decided to bring it back every year. If you want to know more about it read No Restaurants in November 2011 – for the rules of the road. It’s […] Read more »

Day 1: No Restaurants in November 2011 – Let the Savings Begin!

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Time to break out the cookware!

So today it begins. No Restaurants in November baby! If you missed the rules I am giving myself (and possibly you) click here to see if you have what it takes. Yep those are challenging words! :D Have you decided to be TOTALLY WEIRD by participating in such a thing? WARNING: Your friends may laugh at you. You may get called some names. Your actions may cause people to feel judged. If this happens to you, please tread carefully. Unpredictable behavior may ensue. I get it. It totally sucks to be the only person at work with a bagged lunch, but guess what? It also sucks to be broke and/or keeping yourself from reaching your goals. Read more »

No Restaurants in November 2011

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Recently, I ran a poll about what challenges you the most about becoming debt free and I thought the results were great. There were 70 voters total and the results can be found here. Today, I want to talk about one of the TOP 5 challenges picked by you and am excited to bring back something I did last year that was very popular. Of course I’m talking about my No Restaurants in November challenge! According to my EOD Poll, 37% of you picked EATING OUT as one of the five things that challenged you the most about becoming debt […] Read more »